The Spurs will start their NBA season with an all-star battle against Steph Curry and Kevin Durant's Golden State Warriors in Oakland on Wednesday (AEDT).

It will be the Spurs' first season without Duncan since 1997, with the future Hall of Famer guiding the franchise to five NBA championships.

Mills will step into a bigger leadership role to help the Spurs move into the future and the three-time Olympian is confident the new generation is ready for the challenge.

"Everyone is excited, the feeling around the group is upbeat and up-tempo," Mills said.

"Everyone has definitely put in on the court and off the court. For how young [some of the new guys] are, they've been really professional which has really impressed me.

"The biggest thing is they've bought into the culture and understand the culture ... they understand what it takes to be a Spur."

The Spurs will continue their pre-season preparations with a match against the Houston Rockets, with Pau Gasol slotting in as Duncan's replacement.

Mills has been rested for parts of the pre-season schedule and injected as a starter in others as coach Gregg Popovich finds the right mix for the 2016-17 season.

Mills is set for a massive year after leading Australia's Olympic campaign and is driven by the pain of falling short of their Olympic medal goal.

He is in the final year of his Spurs contract and a big campaign will bolster his free agent stocks at the end of the season.