By Jeff McDonald, Spurs Writer | San Antonio Express-News, 2024-05-30 10:40:17
由生成式人工智能翻译，译文内容可能不准确或不完整，以原文为准。
2023 年 1 月 2 日，土耳其，伊斯坦布尔——尼古拉·托皮奇（C）所属的基兹勒伊尔迪兹在 Ulker 体育馆举行的土耳其航空欧冠篮球联赛比赛中对阵塔里克·比贝罗维奇（13）和乔纳森·莫特利（0）率领的费内巴切贝科。（摄影：Emrah Yorulmaz/Anadolu via Getty Images）
在球队历史上首次手握两张前 10 的选秀权的情况下，马刺队将参加 6 月 26 日的 NBA 选秀，他们拥有第 4 顺位和第 8 顺位的选秀权。
如果不是去年，马刺队以状元签选中了维克托·文班亚马，那么这两个选秀权将会是俱乐部自 1997 年以来最高的选秀权。
这是马刺队在这些位置上可能考虑的新秀简介系列文章的第一篇：
在以文班亚马为核心进行建队时，马刺队进入休赛期，希望解决以下两个主要方面：控球后卫位置的大小和外线投篮。
马刺队可能在塞尔维亚后卫尼古拉·托皮奇身上弥补其中一个缺陷。
6 英尺 6 英寸的托皮奇被认为是本届新秀中最好的传球手，他那种可以轻松传出 10 次助攻，只用给文班亚马抛高球的球员。
18 岁的托皮奇在这个过去赛季在塞尔维亚展示的篮球本能，令人叹为观止。与马刺队现任首发控卫、矮个子（但 6 英尺 1 英寸）特雷·琼斯相比，他的体型将会得到提升。
托皮奇已经证明自己是一个出色的挡拆传球手，不需要过多地审视他的比赛录像，就可以想象他与文班亚马的二人组可能会造成怎样的破坏。
他对比赛的理解使他成为本次选秀中可能的 5 大新秀，即使马刺队没有选择他。将托皮奇放在一个拥有全球技术最娴熟球员的 NBA 球队中，他的组织天赋可能会更加出色。
与 2024 年选秀中较为平淡的新秀群体中的大多数人一样，托皮奇也有一些缺点。
最迫切——但从长远来看却最不令人沮丧——是他的伤病史。
托皮奇在 1 月份与游击队贝尔格莱德比赛时右膝受伤。巧合的是，他在本月早些时候与游击队贝尔格莱德进行 ABA 联盟决赛时扭伤了同一膝盖。
诊断结果是膝盖扭伤，托皮奇应该可以完全康复。
托皮奇的另一个危险信号是马刺队办公室在选秀之夜叫到他的名字之前肯定会考虑的。
他是一名糟糕的三分射手，在他的职业生涯中，他在三分线外的命中率从未超过 30%。
马刺队是上赛季 NBA 三分球命中率第三差的球队，三分球命中率为 34.7%。只有同属乐透区的孟菲斯和波特兰队更糟。
2024 年 1 月 02 日，土耳其，伊斯坦布尔——在 Ulker 体育馆举行的土耳其航空欧冠联赛常规赛第 18 轮比赛中，来自贝尔格莱德红星梅里迪安贝特的尼古拉·托皮奇（44 号）对阵费内巴切贝科伊斯坦布尔。（摄影：Tolga Adanali/Euroleague Basketball via Getty Images）
赛季末球队的三分神射手是塞迪·奥斯曼，他投出了值得称赞但并不出众的 38.9%。
控球后卫托皮奇在理论上会争取取代琼斯，他的三分球命中率为 33.5%。对于投篮散乱的托皮奇来说，这个数字将是他的职业生涯新高。
有人认为，应该选择一名能满足其他需求的球员，并让马刺队的培养人员教他投篮。这是近期的首轮新秀杰里米·索汉和布雷克·韦斯利正在经历的过程。
马刺是否愿意承担另一个这样的项目还有待商榷。
尽管如此，将托皮奇这样的高智商传球手与文班亚马这样的顶级天赋配对，还是有很大的吸引力。
如果马刺队在第 4 顺位选择了托皮奇，预计他们会用第 8 顺位选择一名射手。
点击查看原文：Spurs draft profile: The case for Nikola Topic
Spurs draft profile: The case for Nikola Topic
ISTANBUL, TURKIYE - JANUARY 2: Tarik Biberovic (13) and Jonathen Motley (0) of Fenerbahce Beko in action against Nikola Topic (C) of Kizilyildiz during Turkish Airlines Euroleague basketball match between Fenerbahce and Kizilyildiz at Ulker Sports and Events Hall in Istanbul, Turkiye on January 2, 2023. (Photo by Emrah Yorulmaz/Anadolu via Getty Images)
The Spurs enter the June 26 NBA draft armed with a pair of top-10 picks for the first time in team history, holding the No. 4 and No. 8 selections.
Had it not been for last year, when the Spurs famously nabbed Victor Wembanyama first overall, either of those picks would have marked the club’s highest draft slots since 1997.
This is the first in a series of profiles of prospects the Spurs might consider at those spots:
The Spurs headed into the offseason looking to address two major areas as they look to build around Wembanyama: size at the point guard position and perimeter shooting.
In Serbian guard Nikola Topic, the Spurs could fill at least one of those holes.
The 6-foot-6 Topic is considered the best passer in the class, the kind of guy who might average an easy 10 assists simply throwing lobs to Wembanyama.
At age 18, Topic’s basketball instincts — on display this past season in Serbia — are off the charts. He would represent a size upgrade over the Spurs’ incumbent starting point guard, the plucky (but 6-1) Tre Jones.
Topic has already proven himself to be a stellar pick-and-roll passer, and it doesn’t take much squinting at his game tape to imagine the havoc he might wreak in a two-man game with Wembanyama.
His feel for the game makes him a probable top-5 pick in this draft, even if the Spurs aren’t the ones to select him. Put Topic on an NBA team filled with the most skilled players in the world, and his playmaking talents are likely to shine even brighter.
As it is with most every prospect in a somewhat watered-down 2024 draft group, Topic comes with some drawbacks.
The most pressing — and yet least discouraging long-term — is his injury history.
Topic suffered a right knee injury in January while playing in a game against Partizan Belgrade. In a moment of coincidental flashback, he tweaked the same knee in the ABA League Finals against Partizan Belgrade earlier this month.
The diagnosis was a knee sprain, from which Topic should make a full recovery.
The other red flag on Topic is one the Spurs’ front office will certainly need to consider before calling his name on draft night.
He is a poor 3-point shooter who hasn’t shot better than 30% from beyond the arc at any point in his young professional life.
The Spurs were the third-worst 3-point shooting team in the NBA last season, converting 34.7% of their attempts. Only fellow lottery teams Memphis and Portland were worse.
ISTANBUL, TURKEY - JANUARY 02: Nikola Topic, #44 of Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade in action during the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season Round 18 match between Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul and Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade at Ulker Sports Arena on January 02, 2024 in Istanbul, Turkey. (Photo by Tolga Adanali/Euroleague Basketball via Getty Images)
The top 3-point marksman on the roster at the end of the season was Cedi Osman, who hit a respectable-but-unspectacular 38.9%.
Jones, the point guard Topic would hypothetically be fighting to replace, made 33.5% of his 3-point tries. That number would be by far a career high for the scatter-shooting Topic.
There is an argument to be made for taking a player that fits a need otherwise and letting the Spurs’ development staff teach him to shoot. It is a process ongoing for recent first-round picks Jeremy Sochan and Blake Wesley.
It is fair to wonder if the Spurs would be willing to take on another such project.
Still, there is much to like about the tantalizing prospect of pairing a high-IQ passer like Topic with an out-of-this-world talent like Wembanyama.
If the Spurs do grab Topic at No. 4, expect them to take a long hard look at a shooter with the No. 8 pick.
By Jeff McDonald, Spurs Writer, via San Antonio Express-News