马刺1996-97赛季实录（560+篇）

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-03, By Glenn Rogers Express-News Staff Writer

马刺队试图给掘金沉重一击

今天晚上马刺队在阿拉莫穹顶主场揭幕战中迎战丹佛掘金队，比赛盛况空前。而大部分精彩场景可能在下午 6 点比赛开始前的引球员登场时上演，届时将会燃放烟花以示庆贺。

马刺队不会依赖进攻爆发来赢得首场胜利并开始胜负持平的维持计划，直到大卫·罗宾逊 (David Robinson) 和威尔·珀杜 (Will Perdue) 复出。

胜利将伴随防守干扰而来。

当被问及球队在揭幕战的观众面前是否必须依靠防守时，肖恩·埃利奥特 (Sean Elliott) 回答道：“我大概会这么说。”“我们要专注于防守，我们的进攻还没有协调一致。我们有两个新人在首发阵容中，这可能会让局势有些混乱。”

尤其是当其中一个新人顶替罗宾逊的位置时。马刺队正在学习罗宾逊给他外线队友提供的自由和空间。

埃利奥特在周五晚上对阵森林狼时很快吸收了这一教训。

他谈到自己的运球突破时说：“我以前从未如此努力过。”“他们只是汇聚起来封死了路线。”

汇聚让格雷格·安德森 (Greg Anderson) 和卡尔·埃雷拉 (Carl Herrera) 摆脱了防守——如果罗宾逊守中锋，汇聚很可能使罗宾逊灌篮得分。

埃利奥特谈到多米尼克·威尔金斯、弗农·马克斯韦尔和查尔斯·史密斯在替补席上积极的表现时说道：“我们的替补进攻很棒。”“第一小组只是朝着不同的方向前進。”

外围防守对于缓解安德森和埃雷拉在前线的压力至关重要。否则，前线将花费大量时间迎接马克·杰克逊、布莱恩特·西斯、萨鲁纳斯·马修利奥尼斯和里奇·皮尔斯发起的进攻。

马刺队的前锋和中锋将同拉方索·埃利斯 (LaPhonso Ellis) 和安东尼奥·麦克戴斯 (Antonio McDyess) 在禁区内竞争。

埃弗里·约翰逊 (Avery Johnson) 说：“我们必须采取遏制防守。”“你知道，如果我们习惯这样做，当大卫和威尔·珀杜回来时，我们将成为一支更好的球队。”

陷阱将会出现在地板周围，延续更积极的防守，帮助迫使森林狼在周五晚上失误 17 次，并扰乱了森林狼的进攻，仅允许 18 次助攻。

新秀斯蒂芬·马布里陷入困惑，他因脚踝扭伤而离开，可能是明尼苏达队的福气。老将詹姆斯·罗宾逊和特里·波特帮助森林狼镇定下来。

约翰逊说：“我们不想在防守上冒险。”他暗示罗宾逊不会回来纠正错误。“但我们需要陷阱，我们需要向他们展示一些不同的视角。”

主教练鲍勃·希尔 (Bob Hill) 同意必须保持防守压力，并保持更多的陷阱意识。

他说：“但是，记住，我们一直是一支优秀的防守球队。”“我们想确保我们能快速回归，我们不想在运球突破中被击败。我们不想让我们的主力球员被迫上抢支援，那样篮板就会空虚，我们拿不到篮板。”

很明显，马刺队需要大量的攻击力。周五他们只有 43% 的投篮命中率，第三节仅得到 11 分——明尼苏达森林狼队纪录，对手单节最低得分。

威尔金斯得到 18 分，但 21 次尝试仅命中 7 次。马克斯韦尔是 7 投 3 中，维尼·德尔内格罗是 5 投 1 中。

草率、笨拙的投篮应尽可能减少，德尔内格罗将不得不退出一个或两个挡拆才能跳出来。

点击查看原文：Spurs try to lower boom on Nuggets

Spurs try to lower boom on Nuggets

There will be plenty of explosions tonight when the Spurs take on the Denver Nuggets in the season’s home opener at the Alamodome But most probably will take place before the game begins at 6 p.m., with the fireworks blasting away during the introduction of the players.

The Spurs won’t be relying on offensive eruptions to notch their first victory and begin a win-loss maintenance program until David Robinson and Will Perdue return to action.

Triumph will lie with the defensive disruptions.

“I’d probably have to say that,” said Sean Elliott, when asked if the defense would have to carry the team in front of the opening-night crowd. "We’ll be concentrating on that; our offense just isn’t in synch yet.

“We’ve got two new guys in the starting lineup, and that tends to throw things off a little.”

Especially when one of the new guys is taking the place of Robinson. The Spurs are learning in a hurry the freedom and space that Robinson allows his perimeter teammates.

Elliott absorbed the lesson quickly Friday night against the Timberwolves.

“I was going as hard as I’ve ever gone,” he said of his drives off his dribbles. “They just converged and shut down the lanes.”

The converging left Greg Anderson and Carl Herrera open - the converging likely would have led to a few Robinson dunks if he had been manning the pivot.

“Our second unit’s offense was fine,” Elliott said, referring to the aggressive play of Dominique Wilkins, Vernon Maxwell and Charles Smith off the bench. “The first group was just going in different directions.”

Defense along the perimeter will be vital to keep the pressure off Anderson and Herrera on the front line. Otherwise, the front line will be spending a lot of time greeting the drives of Mark Jackson, Bryant Stith, Sarunas Marciulionis and Ricky Pierce.

The Spurs’ forwards and centers will be contending enough with LaPhonso Ellis and Antonio McDyess deep in the paint.

“We have to play containment defense,” Avery Johnson said. “You know, if we do that know, get used to it, we’ll be that much better of a team down the road when David and Will Perdue return.”

Traps will be sprung around the floor, continuing a more aggressive defense that helped force the Timberwolves into 17 turnovers Friday night and disrupted the Wolves offense enough to allow only 18 assists.

Rookie Stephon Marbury was thrown into confusion, and his departure with a turned ankle possibly was a blessing in disguise for Minnesota. Veterans James Robinson and Terry Porter helped the Wolves calm down.

“We don’t want to take too many chances on defense,” Johnson said, eluding to the notion that Robinson wouldn’t be back there to help correct mistakes. “But we need traps and we need to show them a few different looks.”

Coach Bob Hill agreed that the defensive pressure would have to be maintained and that a more trapping mentality would exist.

“But, remember, we’ve always been an excellent defensive team,” he said. “We want to make sure we get back in a hurry and we don’t want to be beat off the dribble. We don’t want our big men forced to step up to help, that leaves the boards open and we don’t get the rebound.”

The Spurs obviously are going to need a healthy dose of attacking prowess. They hit only 43 percent of their shots Friday, scoring a meager 11 points in the third quarter - a Minnesota franchise record for low output by an opponent in one period.

Wilkins scored 18 points, but hit just seven of his 21 tries. Maxwell was 3 of 7, Vinny Del Negro 1 of 5.

Hasty, awkward shots will have to be held to a minimum, and Del Negro will have to come off one or two screens to spring open.

By Glenn Rogers Express-News Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-03

NBA 新闻

• 马刺队伤病情况：马刺队队医大卫·施密特(David Schmidt)和执行副总裁格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich)周六上午发布了四名球员的伤病更新。大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)仍在伤病名单上。他将至少缺席接下来的四场比赛，目前还没有确定他的回归日期。

然而，施密特表示，他下背部肌肉的问题是可以治疗的，并且可以治愈，不会复发。

“他在加州学习了一种积极的脊柱稳定和活动协议，”施密特说。“他现在好多了。他的治疗方案，每天约三个小时，旨在加强他的下背部肌肉和腹肌，并提供更大的活动范围和灵活性。”

波波维奇表示，现在给出时间表是不可能的，罗宾逊将在接下来的四场比赛结束后重新评估。

查克·珀森(Chuck Person)的状态保持不变——将缺席三到六个月。

“查克接受了鲍勃·沃特金斯博士（加州英格伍德的乔布-克尔兰诊所）的手术，他现在恢复良好。他在周五晚上或周六凌晨出院，”施密特说。

施密特说，珀森的背部做了一个小切口，修复了两个腰椎间盘。

预计中锋威尔·珀杜(Will Perdue)将再缺席两周。

“他的左拇指顶部有明显的骨折，”施密特说。“大卫·格林博士检查了他，说他大约三周后（从 10 月 26 日起）才能复出，”施密特说。“拇指非常敏感，疼痛感很强，这就是为什么威尔不能训练。”

如果珀杜能够在两周后复出，他将缺席接下来的八场比赛。

查尔斯·史密斯(Charles Smith)的右膝将在整个赛季都存在问题。

“他的膝盖遭受了大量的磨损，需要在整个赛季进行管理，”施密特说。“他有一个治疗方案，并将服用抗炎药。”

施密特说，史密斯不需要手术。

• 魔术队得到塞卡利：罗尼·塞卡利(Rony Seikaly)即将重返佛罗里达。

费尔顿·斯宾塞(Felton Spencer)将加入他四个月内的第三支球队。

在一项早已预料之中的交易中，金州勇士队周六将被禁赛的中锋塞卡利和他的替补克利福德·罗齐尔(Clifford Rozier)交易至奥兰多魔术队，换取斯宾塞、约翰·孔卡克(John Koncak)和唐纳德·罗伊尔(Donald Royal)。

勇士队还将一个未来的第二轮选秀权交易至奥兰多。

塞卡利在迈阿密效力六年后，过去两年在勇士队效力，他的到来将填补奥兰多中锋位置的空缺，因为沙奎尔·奥尼尔(Shaquille O’Neal)今年夏天以自由球员身份加盟洛杉矶湖人队。

斯宾塞以防守著称，而不是进攻，他说魔术队显然希望在中锋位置上获得更多得分能力。

“我认为他们正在寻找一位在进攻端更加积极的中心球员。我认为他们认为罗尼更适合他们的体系，”斯宾塞说。- 来自工作人员和电讯社的报道

点击查看原文：NBA NOTES

NBA NOTES

- Spurs injury update: Spurs team doctor David Schmidt and Executive Vice President Gregg Popovich issued medical updates on four players Saturday morning. David Robinson is still on the injured list. He will miss at least the next four games and there is no date set for his return.

However, Schmidt said the problem with his lower back muscles is one that can be treated to the extent that it will go away and not return.

“While he was in California he learned an aggressive spine stabilization and mobilization protocol,” Schmidt said. “He’s better now. His regimen, about three hours daily, is designed to strengthen his lower back muscles and abdominal muscles and provide him with greater range of motion and flexibility.”

Popovich said it was impossible to give a time-line and that Robinson would be re-evaluated after the next four games.

The status of Chuck Person remains the same -out for three to six months.

“Chuck was operated on by Dr. Bob Watkins (of Jobe-Kerlan clinic in Inglewood, Calif.) and he is doing well. He was released from the hospital either late Friday night or early Saturday morning,” Schmidt said.

Schmidt said a small incision was made in Person’s back and two lumbar discs repaired.

Center Will Perdue is expected to be out for another two weeks.

“He has a clean break across the top of his left thumb,” Schmidt said. “Dr. David Green examined him and said the it would about three weeks (from Oct. 26) before he can return,” Schmidt said. “The thumb is very tender, there is a lot of pain and that’s why Will cannot practice.”

If Perdue is able to return in two weeks, he will miss the next eight games.

Charles Smith will have problems with his right knee throughout the season.

“There has been a lot of wear and tear on the knee and it will have to be managed through the season,” Schmidt said. “He has a therapy regimen and will take anti-inflammatory medication.”

Schmidt said surgery was not necessary for Smith.

- Magic get Seikaly: Rony Seikaly is heading back to Florida.

Felton Spencer is heading to his third team in four months.

In a long anticipated move, the Golden State Warriors traded suspended center Seikaly and his backup, Clifford Rozier, to the Orlando Magic on Saturday for Spencer, John Koncak and Donald Royal.

The Warriors also sent a future second-round draft pick to Orlando.

Seikaly, who spent the past two years with the Warriors after six seasons in Miami, was obtained to fill Orlando’s hole at center since Shaquille O’Neal went to the Los Angeles Lakers as a free agent this summer.

Spencer, known more for his defense than his offense, said the Magic apparently wanted a little more scoring punch in the middle.

“I think they were looking for a center who would be a little more involved offensively for them. I think they felt Rony would fit the system a little better,” Spencer said. - From Staff, Wire Reports

via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-03, By Tim Griffin Express-News Staff Writer

痴迷于电视 - 圣安东尼奥(San Antonio) 在大联盟中影响力有限，这对电视机前的球迷来说无足轻重

距离最近一个星期日下午的开球时间还有30分钟，位于德萨瓦拉路(DeZavala Road)和10号州际公路交叉口的H-E-B商店的过道和收银台都挤满了人。球迷们匆忙地将啤酒和鸡肉、牛排和木炭堆放在他们的购物车里，然后冲向收银台。

一个小时后，西北区商店里有了喘息的空间。停车场的交通也明显减少了。

一位顾客开玩笑地说，空荡荡的购物通道因为缺乏人流量，将成为一个完美的保龄球场。

“我们绝对可以在周日橄榄球比赛的销售额中看到一些变化，”商店部门经理鲍勃·布兰特(Bob Brandt)说。“在我们达拉斯牛仔队(Dallas Cowboys)的比赛之前，我们的销售额可能会至少增长20%，甚至可能达到30%。”

像这样的场景在每个秋季周末，都会在圣安东尼奥的购物中心、电影院、杂货店和教堂里重复上演。

尽管圣安东尼奥只有一支职业联盟球队，但它被评为美国观看职业体育赛事，特别是橄榄球、篮球和拳击比赛的收视率最高的市场之一。

“在过去几年里，圣安东尼奥的电视体育节目收视率一直非常非常高，”全国最大的电视收视率调查公司尼尔森公司(A.C. Nielsen Co.)的体育营销副总裁芭芭拉·齐多夫斯基(Barbara Zidovsky)说。“我认为你们几乎把它当作一种宗教。周末做完礼拜后，你们就回家坐在电视机前崇拜NFL。”

经济在其中起着重要的作用。《体育商业日报》(Sports Business Daily)在其市场对市场调查中，对前34个电视市场的调查显示，圣安东尼奥的每 capita 收入最低。

“我认为，当你将马刺队(Spurs)或NFL比赛的门票价格定为30美元或40美元时，它会产生影响，”百视达有线电视(Paragon Cable)的公共事务副总裁T.J.康诺利(T.J. Connolly)说。“这是一个你无法突破的钢制天花板。对于人们来说，待在家里看电视比去现场观看这些比赛更经济实惠。

“这不是最富有的市场，这里的人们会选择看电视来娱乐，而不是做其他事情。他们更倾向于在电视上观看比赛，而不是去达拉斯或休斯顿观看比赛，或者进行其他娱乐活动。”

说到圣安东尼奥的电视体育节目，超级碗(Super Bowl)冠军牛仔队是基石。

尼尔森公司(Nielsen)公布的1月28日超级碗XXX的收视率显示，圣安东尼奥是第三大收视率最高的都市市场，仅次于两支参赛球队的所在地——匹兹堡(Pittsburgh)和达拉斯。

统计数据表明，在比赛收视率最高的时段，圣安东尼奥几乎79%的电视机都打开了，在观看超级碗。

“那个（超级碗）收视率简直令人难以置信，”KMOL-TV电视台的市场营销主管金格尔·祖梅塔(Ginger Zumaeta)说。“这样的收视率几乎是电视史上最高的。”

牛仔队的比赛在圣安东尼奥的收视率通常超过50%，随着季后赛的临近，这个数字还会上升。

上周对阵迈阿密(Miami)的比赛获得了35.7的收视率和60的份额，这是过去两个赛季圣安东尼奥任何NFL常规赛的最高收视率。

收视率是指一个市场上所有电视家庭的百分比，份额反映的是这些电视在当时开机的百分比。

“不用说，我们对这个收视率非常高兴，”福克斯(Fox)附属电视台KABB和KRRT的研究主管约翰·F·库奇(John F. Kuczaj)说。“随着关于吉米·约翰逊(Jimmy Johnson)对阵他以前球队的讨论，我们从一开始就将这场比赛定为我们认为会取得好成绩的比赛。”

NFL橄榄球在三年前加入福克斯(Fox)电视台，被吹捧为让这个新兴的网络在广告商面前拥有发言权。

“当我们获得NFL比赛的转播权时，它在许多广告商眼中提升了我们整个网络的形象，”库奇(Kuczaj)说。“之前我们几乎被认为是二流电视台。

“多年来，许多电视台都难以通过节目获得自己的身份。但是为了树立我们是一个主要的竞争性网络的印象，橄榄球是一个很好的节目载体。”

马刺队(Spurs)的电视收视率也很高，但没有达到牛仔队的水平。

马刺队(Spurs)官员说，上个赛季圣安东尼奥的收视率比全国平均水平高出60%，比特纳电视网(Turner Network Television)的比赛平均收视率高出26%。

总的来说，圣安东尼奥在NBC转播的NBA比赛收视率中排名全国第四，在TNT转播的比赛收视率中排名全国第六。

马刺队(Spurs)的本地电视收视率一直位居NBA前三名或前四名，他们也是付费观看比赛购买量最高的球队之一。上个赛季，马刺队(Spurs)在KSAT-TV电视台转播的19场常规赛中平均收视率为12.0，份额为19，在KABB和KRRT电视台转播的21场常规赛中平均收视率为10.3，份额为16。

“这并不是我们最近几年才看到的现象，”马刺队(Spurs)广播副总裁劳伦斯·佩恩(Lawrence Payne)说。“这是多年来一直很强劲的东西。我们两年前（球队创纪录的62胜20负赛季）达到了最高峰，上个赛季也取得了不错的成绩。”

马刺队(Spurs)的电视收视率没有达到牛仔队的水平，原因有很多。

首要因素可能是达拉斯多年来的成功。赢得球迷支持的最佳方式是始终如一地获胜，就像牛仔队(Cowboys)在过去四个赛季中三次获得超级碗冠军，并在过去30年中23次打入季后赛。

牛仔队(Cowboys)还受益于在体育淡季，在附近的奥斯汀(Austin)举办了一个月的训练营宣传活动。所有圣安东尼奥的电视台，以及来自该州几乎所有其他市场的众多其他电视台，都派出了摄制组记录球队训练营的情况。

此外，NFL的所有宣传活动都集中在每周打一场比赛，通常是在周日或周一晚上特定的时间段。球迷们知道他们唯一的机会是在这些时间段观看NFL。

“像NFL一样打比赛既有优势也有劣势，”马刺队(Spurs)商务运营执行副总裁罗斯·布克宾德(Russ Bookbinder)说。“如果我们每周只打一场比赛，这将明显有利于我们的宣传工作。但考虑到我们的运营成本，我们负担不起。”

布克宾德(Bookbinder)认为，圣安东尼奥没有其他大联盟球队，是圣安东尼奥球迷更倾向于观看比赛，而不是去现场观看比赛的原因之一。

“这是一个拥有只有一支大联盟球队的非常好的体育电视市场，”他说。“唯一能满足这种需求的方法就是通过电视。这些都是非常热爱的体育迷，他们非常关心自己的运动。我们是大联盟中唯一的球队，这促使他们更多地观看电视上的其他比赛。”

像摔跤和拳击这样的付费观看比赛，似乎不受这些财务限制的影响。尽管大型拳击比赛的价格高达50美元，但付费观看拳击在圣安东尼奥的生意非常火爆。

“我们一直关注着圣安东尼奥，”唐·金(Don King)制作公司发言人迈克尔·马利(Michael Marley)说。“它很容易成为我们在德克萨斯州最具响应性的市场。我们把查韦斯-惠特克(Chavez-Whitaker)比赛带到阿拉莫体育馆(Alamodome)是有原因的，而该市对拳击的强力支持是这场比赛在那里举办的主要原因。”

马利(Marley)说，最近几场麦克·泰森(Mike Tyson)比赛的购买率几乎是全国平均水平的两倍。预计泰森(Tyson)在周六晚上与前重量级冠军埃万德·霍利菲尔德(Evander Holyfield)的比赛也将获得类似的收视率。

据齐多夫斯基(Zidovsky)说，圣安东尼奥的历史上吸引了所有电视节目高于平均水平的收视率。当地观众也逆转了全国趋势，观看了更多电视体育节目。

“我知道圣安东尼奥的付费有线电视家庭比大多数其他城市都多，”齐多夫斯基(Zidovsky)在纽约市办公室接受电话采访时说。“通常，有线电视普及率高的城市电视收视率也更高，因为这些客户正在购买这些服务。

“但圣安东尼奥的体育节目收视率非常高。我们在全国范围内没有看到很多城市的收视率像它这样高。”

（注：请参见1996年圣安东尼奥观看NFL比赛的收视率和超级碗收视率图表，见第16C页。）

点击查看原文：Glued to the tube - S.A.'s limited clout in big leagues means little to armchair QBs

Glued to the tube - S.A.'s limited clout in big leagues means little to armchair QBs

It’s 30 minutes before kickoff on a recent Sunday afternoon and the aisles and checkout lines at the H-E-B store at DeZavala Road and Interstate 10 are jammed. Fans are hurriedly piling beer and chicken, steaks and charcoal into their carts before they dash to the checkout counters.

Come back an hour later and there’s breathing room inside the Northwest Side store. Traffic in the parking lot has also thinned considerably.

One customer jokes that the empty shopping aisles would be a perfect place for bowling because of the lack of traffic.

“We definitely see something in our sales on football Sundays,” said Bob Brandt, unit manager of the store. “Our sales probably go up by at least 20 percent and maybe as much as 30 percent before a Dallas Cowboys game.”

Scenes like this one are repeated each autumn weekend at shopping malls, movie theaters, grocery stores and churches across San Antonio.

Despite having only one major-league franchise, the Alamo City rates as one of the strongest television markets in the country for

professional sporting events, particularly football, basketball and boxing.

“For the last few years, the numbers for television sports in San Antonio have been very, very high,” said Barbara Zidovsky, vice

president of sports marketing with the A.C. Nielsen Co., the nation’s largest television rating service. “I think you guys almost consider it a religion. After church on the weekends, you go home to worship the NFL in front of your television sets.”

Economics play a large part in the equation. San Antonio has the lowest per-capita income among the top 34 television markets surveyed by the Sports Business Daily in its market-by-market check of local ratings.

“I think that when you put a ticket price of $30 or $40 on the Spurs or an NFL game it has an effect,” said Paragon Cable vice president for public affairs T.J. Connolly. "It’s a steel ceiling you can’t break. It just becomes more economical for people to stay home and watch television than attend those events.

“This isn’t the wealthiest market and people here will watch television for entertainment rather than do other things. They would be more apt to watch a game on television, rather than go to Dallas or Houston for a game or do some other entertainment activities.”

And when it comes to televised sports in San Antonio, the Super Bowl champion Cowboys are the cornerstone.

Nielsen ratings for Super Bowl XXX on Jan. 28 placed S.A. as the third-highest major metropolitan market, trailing only Pittsburgh and Dallas - homes of the two competing teams.

Statistics indicate almost 79 percent of the sets turned on in San Antonio were watching the Super Bowl during the peak viewership segment of the telecast.

“That (Super Bowl) number is simply incredible,” KMOL-TV director of marketing Ginger Zumaeta said. “Something like that is about as high as you can get in television.”

Cowboys games routinely draw a share of more than 50 percent of the audience in the Alamo City, and that number builds as the playoffs approach.

The 35.7 rating and 60 share generated for last week’s game against Miami were the highest in San Antonio for any NFL regular-season game in the last two seasons.

The rating is a percentage of all television households in a market, the share reflects the percentage of those TVs turned on at that time.

“Needless to say, we are ecstatic about that rating,” said John F. Kuczaj, research director for Fox affiliate KABB and KRRT. “With all of the talk about Jimmy Johnson playing his old team, we had this game targeted from the start as one we thought would do well.”

The arrival of NFL football to Fox three seasons ago was trumpeted as giving the fledgling network clout with advertisers.

“When we got the package of NFL games, it elevated our entire network in the view of a lot of advertisers,” Kuczaj said. "We were perceived as almost like a second-class station before.

“It had been difficult for a lot of the stations to get an identity through the years. But to put forth the impression we were a major competitive network, football was a great programming vehicle.”

The Spurs carry similarly high television ratings, but don’t match the Cowboys.

Spurs officials said San Antonio viewership was 60 percent above the national average for NBA games on NBC last season and 26 percent above the average for Turner Network Television contests.

Overall, San Antonio ranked fourth nationally among NBA markets for games televised by NBC and sixth for TNT games.

The Spurs consistently rank among the top three or four NBA teams in local television ratings, and they’re also among the leaders in pay-per-view buys. Last season, the Spurs averaged a 12.0 rating and 19 share for 19 regular-season games on KSAT-TV and a 10.3 rating and 16 share for 21 games on KABB and KRRT.

“It’s not anything that we’ve just seen in recent years,” Spurs vice president of broadcasting Lawrence Payne said. “It’s something that’s been strong for many years. We had our strongest year two years ago (during a team-record 62-20 season) and had another good year last season.”

There are compelling reasons why the Spurs do not match the Cowboys in television appeal.

The primary factor may be Dallas’ success through the years. The best way to earn a fan following is to consistently win, as the

Cowboys have done during a run of three Super Bowl victories in the last four seasons and 23 playoff berths in the last 30 years.

The Cowboys also benefit from having a month worth of promotion of their training camp in nearby Austin at the slowest time of the sports season. All of the San Antonio television stations, and a slew of others from nearly every other market in the state, send crews to chronicle the team’s camp.

Additionally, all of the NFL’s promotion is geared to playing one game a week, typically at specific times on Sundays or Monday nights. Fans know their only chance to watch the NFL will be at those times.

“Playing like the NFL has some advantages and disadvantages,” Spurs executive vice president of business operations Russ Bookbinder said. “It would obviously help us from a promotional standpoint if we played only once a week. But with the cost of our operations, we couldn’t afford to do that.”

Bookbinder believes the lack of other big-league sports in town is one reason why San Antonio fans are more inclined to watch games rather than attend them.

“This is a very good sports television market with only one major-league team,” he said. "The only way to fill that appetite is

through television. These are great sports fans that care deeply about their sports. The fact that we are the only big-league team helps steer them to watching other events on television."

Pay-per-view events such as wrestling and boxing appear immune from those financial constraints. Despite prices of up to $50 for big fights, pay-per-view boxing does tremendous business in San Antonio.

“We are always aware of San Antonio,” said Michael Marley, a spokesman for Don King Productions. “It’s easily our most responsive market in Texas. There was a reason why we brought the Chavez-Whitaker fight to the Alamodome (in 1993), and the city’s strong support for boxing was a big reason why the fight was held there.”

The purchase rates for recent Mike Tyson fights have been almost double the national average, Marley said. Similar figures are expected for Tyson’s fight on Saturday night against former heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield.

San Antonio historically attracts higher-than-average viewership for all television programming, according to Zidovsky. Local viewers also are reversing a national trend by watching more television sports.

“I know there are more cable television homes in San Antonio than most other cities,” Zidovsky said in a telephone interview from her offices in New York City. "Usually, cities with a high cable penetration have higher television viewing because those customers are buying those services.

“But San Antonio’s numbers are incredibly high for sports. We don’t see many cities with numbers like that, anywhere in the country.”

(Note: See San Antonio viewing of NFL in 1996 and Super Bowl ratings chart on page 16C.)

By Tim Griffin Express-News Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-03, By Buck Harvey

在如此绝望的时刻，难道埃利奥特不应该哼哼吗？

肖恩·埃利奥特应该在今晚获得球。意识到双人包夹。然后做一些他从未做过的事情。他应该长出一条卷曲的尾巴。

埃利奥特应该是一个自私的人，看着球框，看着我的数据，沉迷于球。

当他在主场揭幕战中面对一位前马刺球员时，马刺可能会变得更好。谁知道呢？埃利奥特可能会享受其中。

在大多数 NBA 城市中，这不会成为问题。当一位全明星因伤退出时，剩下的全明星迫不及待地想在他的投篮手指上起水泡。

当迈克尔·乔丹因棒球比赛而离开时，斯科蒂·皮蓬也这么做了。看看今年没有沙奎尔·奥尼尔的便士·哈达威会怎么做。

然而，周五晚上，埃利奥特表现得好像他自己的沙克仍然站在他旁边。在对阵森林狼的赛季揭幕战中，埃利奥特本应该在没有大卫·罗宾逊的情况下享受一个难得的时刻。他本应该用右手掌握球队。

相反，他在 41 分钟内投了 11 次。多米尼克·威尔金斯摇着自己卷曲的尾巴，设法在 36 分钟内挤出 21 分。

有理由的。明尼苏达的孩子们懂得在埃利奥特的运球中跑动。“我尽了最大的努力，”埃利奥特说道，“他们只是聚集了过来。”

这让埃利奥特暴露出了一个缺点。他还没有学会如何让对手为双人包夹付出代价。他经常额外地控球一下，允许防守方进行调整。

但这也表现出了埃利奥特的个性。他可能无法像皮蓬和哈达威那样提升自己的比赛，但如果这意味着他要对抗百分比，那么埃利奥特也宁愿不去尝试。从字面上讲，他宁愿放弃挑战。

三年前就已经很明显了。然后，在赢得全明星赛季之后，就像现在一样，他为一支赢得 20 场比赛的底特律球队效力。乐透天赋通常转化为无数次投篮机会。

不过，六个不同的活塞队的场均投篮次数都多于埃利奥特，其中包括一位名叫林赛·亨特的新秀。从 1993 年到现在，亨特还没有在任何一个赛季投出比 38.1% 更好的命中率。

埃利奥特认为，仅仅因为其他人勉强出手，并不意味着他应该这样做。但上个月，当知道罗宾逊缺阵时，埃利奥特说得就不一样了。在季前赛的一场比赛后，有人问他开绿灯是否会很有趣。

“谁会不喜欢这样呢？”他当时说道，“这是我在大学时的样子。”

埃利奥特很可能通过进攻获得投篮机会，从而成为亚利桑那大学的全美球员。鲍勃·希尔，举例来说，无法想象埃利奥特会变得贪得无厌。“肖恩不会做出糟糕的投篮，”希尔在周六说道，“他没有那种个性。句号。他是一个从头到脚的职业球员。你永远不会称他为自私。”

这就是为什么他与罗宾逊如此契合，为什么他上赛季与艾弗里·约翰逊和文尼·德尔内格罗配合得如此默契。很少有 20 分得分手能够配合得如此默契。

但现在到了没有戴夫的 11 月。埃利奥特出现了，进攻的合法继承人，周五晚上保持着逻辑和基本功 - 而威尔金斯和弗农·麦克斯韦尔则出手投篮，这是自沃尔特“真实”贝瑞以来的前所未有。

另一个事实：马刺需要威尔金斯和麦克斯韦尔的侵略性，否则球队可能只能得到 50 分。希尔在罗宾逊回来后希望控制他们，但至少就目前而言，他们都很活跃。

但是，当新马刺球员猛烈进攻和热火朝天时，如果老马刺球员最好的一个加入他们，会有什么坏处呢？而今晚如果不是合适的时间，当丹佛派出优秀的 3 分投篮手，对位防守差的戴尔·埃利斯对阵埃利奥特时呢？

所以，主场揭幕战应该这样进行。在年度烟花、音乐轰鸣、比赛延迟的前期盛宴结束后不久，埃利奥特应该伸出手来。然后哼哼。

没人会介意的。现在不会。

点击查看原文：In these desperate times, shouldn't Elliott say oink?

In these desperate times, shouldn’t Elliott say oink?

Sean Elliott should get the ball tonight. Recognize the double team. And then do something he never does. He should grow a curly tail.

Elliott should be a selfish, look-at-the-rim, look-at-my-stats ballhog.

The Spurs might be better for it, especially as he faces an ex-Spur in the home opener. And who knows? Elliott might enjoy himself.

This wouldn’t be an issue in most NBA cities. When one All-Star goes out with injury, the remaining All-Star can’t wait to develop blisters on his shooting fingers.

Scottie Pippen did as much when Michael Jordan left for baseball. Watch what Penny Hardaway does this year without Shaquille O’Neal.

Elliott acted Friday night, however, as if his own Shaq still stood next to him. In the season opener against the Tenderwolves, Elliott should have enjoyed a rare moment without David Robinson. He should have palmed the franchise in his right hand.

Instead, he took 11 shots in 41 minutes. Dominique Wilkins, wagging his own curly tail, managed to squeeze off 21 in 36.

There were reasons. Minnesota’s kids knew enough to run somebody at Elliott’s dribble. “I was going as hard as I’ve ever gone,” said Elliott. “They just converged.”

That brings up an Elliott flaw. He hasn’t learned yet how to make an opponent pay for double teams. Too often he holds the ball an extra count, allowing defenses to adjust.

But it also brings up the Elliott nature. He might not be able to elevate his game as high as Pippen and Hardaway, but Elliott would also rather not try if it means he’s going against the percentages. He would literally rather pass on the challenge.

That was evident three years ago. Then, coming off an All-Star season, as he is now, he played for a Detroit team that won 20 games. Lottery talent usually translates into lota-shots.

Still, six different Pistons averaged more shots-per-minute than Elliott, and among them was a rookie named Lindsey Hunter. From 1993 until now, Hunter has yet to shoot better than 38.1 percent in any season.

Elliott figured that, just because someone else forces bad shots, that doesn’t mean he should. But last month, knowing Robinson was out, Elliott talked differently. After a preseason game, he was asked if it would be fun to have an ever-green light.

“Who wouldn’t like that?” he said then. “That’s the way it was for me in college.”

More than likely, Elliott became an All-American at Arizona by getting his shots through the offense. Bob Hill, for one, couldn’t imagine Elliott being piggish. “Sean doesn’t take bad shots,” Hill said Saturday. “He doesn’t have that kind of personality. Period. He’s a pro from head to toe. You’d never call him selfish.”

That’s why he fits so well with Robinson, why he blended with Avery Johnson and Vinny Del Negro last season. Few 20-point scorers mesh as well.

But now comes the No-Dave November. And there was Elliott, the rightful heir to the offense, staying logical and fundamental on Friday night - while Wilkins and Vernon Maxwell forced shots unseen since the days of Walter “The Truth” Berry.

The other truth: The Spurs needed the aggressiveness of Wilkins and Maxwell, or they might have scored 50. Hill will want to reign them in when Robinson is back, but, for now, at least they are active.

But as the new Spurs slash and play h-o-r-s-e, would it hurt anything if the best of the old ones joined them? And wouldn’t tonight be the perfect time, when Denver starts good-3, no-D Dale Ellis on Elliott?

So here’s the way the home opener should go. Shortly after the annual fireworking, music-blaring, game-delaying pregame extravaganza, Elliott should hold his hands out. And say oink.

No one would mind. Not now.

By Buck Harvey, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-04

马刺队新闻

• 慢热开局：马刺队必须尽快进入状态，避免出现每隔一年的开季低迷。在 大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson) 时代，最糟糕的两个开局分别出现在 1992 年和 1994 年。1992 年，马刺队在前任主教练 杰里·塔坎安(Jerry Tarkanian) 的带领下举步维艰。“鲨鱼塔克”，这位 UNLV 跑酷队传奇教练，只执教了 20 场比赛，就被前老板 雷德·麦克科姆斯(Red McCombs) 于 12 月 18 日解雇。塔克在马刺队的执教战绩为 9 胜 11 负。

两年前，马刺队在首发前锋 丹尼斯·罗德曼(Dennis Rodman) 因训练营期间的干扰行为被停赛后，前 17 场比赛取得了 8 胜 9 负的战绩。在鲍勃·希尔(Bob Hill) 担任主教练的第一年，马刺队表现强劲，赢得了队史最高的 62 场比赛。

• 未来赛程：马刺队今天将前往东部进行为期两天的客场之旅，分别对阵克利夫兰和华盛顿。

马刺队将在周二于冈德体育馆对阵骑士队，并在周三于 US Airways 体育馆对阵子弹队。他们将在周五返回主场，在阿拉莫穹顶球馆迎战西雅图超音速队。

11 月可能是全年最艰难的月份。有两场对阵沙奎尔·奥尼尔和洛杉矶湖人队的比赛，一场对阵犹他爵士队的比赛，以及另一场对阵迈克尔·乔丹和芝加哥公牛队的比赛。

• WNBA 推进：布克宾德表示，他预计球队将继续游说加入新的女子国家篮球协会（WNBA）。

这个新联盟将在明年夏天在八个城市开赛。马刺队希望拥有一支球队，但据报道，他们的申请被拒绝，主要原因是穹顶球馆的空间过大。

“最终我们希望拥有一支球队，”布克宾德说道。“从参与度来看，这是一个正在增长的市场，圣安东尼奥在女子篮球电视收视率方面表现出色。我们靠近奥斯汀（得克萨斯大学女子牛仔队的所在地），我相信这与之有关。” - 杰里·布里格斯(Jerry Briggs)

点击查看原文：Spurs Notes

Spurs Notes

- Rocky starts: The Spurs will have to kick it into high gear to avoid the every-other-year, start-of-the season blahs. Two of the worst starts in the David Robinson-era came in 1992 and 1994. In 1992, the Spurs floundered under former head coach Jerry Tarkanian. “Tark the Shark,” the legendary former coach of the UNLV Runnin’ Rebels, lasted only 20 games before he was fired on Dec. 18 by former owner Red McCombs. Tark finished his Spurs career with a 9-11 record.

Two years ago, the Spurs went 8-9 in their first 17 games after forward Dennis Rodman was handed a leave of absence for disruptions he caused during training camp. In Bob Hill’s first year as head coach, the Spurs finished strong, winning a franchise-record 62 games.

- Upcoming: The Spurs will travel East today for a two-game swing through Cleveland and Washington.

The Spurs play the Cavs at Gund Arena on Tuesday and the Bullets on Wednesday at USAir Arena. They return home to meet the Seattle SuperSonics on Friday at the Alamodome.

November could be the toughest month of the year. Two games are scheduled against Shaquille O’Neal and the Los Angeles Lakers, one against the Utah Jazz and another against Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls.

- WNBA push: Bookbinder said he expected that the franchise would continue to lobby for a team in the new Women’s National Basketball Association.

The new league will debut next summer in eight cities. The Spurs wanted a team, but reportedly had their application denied in large part because of the spaciousness of the dome.

“Eventually we’d like to have a team,” Bookbinder said. “It’s a growing market from a participation standpoint, and San Antonio does extremely well in women’s (basketball) television ratings. Our proximity to Austin (home of the UT Lady Longhorns) has something to do with that, I’m sure.” - Jerry Briggs

via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-04, By Jerry Briggs Express-News Staff Writer

失准的马刺输给掘金

周日晚上，马刺在四年来首次在一季度的开始阶段遭遇 0-2 失利，而且失利时发出的巨响让穹顶球场的上空都回荡着。掘金队的后卫瑞奇·皮尔斯在第四节中拿下全队最高的 15 分中的 11 分，帮助掘金 88-79 击败马刺。

在这场本赛季的首个主场比赛中，马刺投篮命中率只有 32%，并且由于三名关键球员受伤缺席而进攻混乱。

“你不能找借口，”马刺后卫文尼·德尔内格罗说，“他们有一些高大、强壮且富有活力的球员。你必须称赞他们。这样的时刻会让你更加珍惜健康且连胜的时候。”

掘金曾在上半场两度领先20分，卫冕中西部分区冠军马刺在下半场通过防守起死回生，这让现场 20791 名观众的情绪也因此受到鼓舞。

马刺在三节过后将其劣势缩小至 8 分，而艾弗里·约翰逊在 3:37 秒时的一个行进上篮将这一优势进一步缩小至 6 分。

但是皮尔斯在底线造成了肖恩·埃利奥特的犯规，随后两罚全中。在埃利奥特投篮不中后，掘金队控球后卫马克·杰克逊在进攻计时器接近结束时命中三分，将掘金的领先优势扩大至 80-69，此时比赛还剩 2:30。

杰克逊在投球时正在远离球筐，“对于我们纽约人来说，练习这种投篮远比常规投篮更多，”他说，“我在球场上投进了不少这样的球。”

马刺本可以在自己的进攻中使用一些球场天赋，但这在某些时候看起来毫无希望。球的移动是一场灾难，16 次助攻对比 19 次失误。

“我们在上半场很难得分，”马刺队教练鲍勃·希尔说，“在下半场，我们打出了不错的防守，并将自己置于获胜的境地。但我们就是投不进球。”

这场失利终结了圣安东尼奥对掘金 8 场连胜的纪录，该纪录可追溯至 1994 年。

掘金队上次战胜马刺是 1994 年 11 月在科罗拉多。自 1994 年 4 月以来，掘金队没有在圣安东尼奥赢过球。

尽管马刺队在周五晚上的赛季揭幕战中以 78-82 输给了明尼苏达，但马刺队的球迷们还是怀着喜庆的心情来到了穹顶球场。他们认为马刺队始终可以依靠战胜丹佛，尤其是在主场。

然而，对于目前缺少受伤的全明星中锋大卫·罗宾逊、替补中锋威尔·帕杜和锋线查克·佩尔森的马刺队来说，没有什么是可以肯定的。

“大卫的缺席让大家士气低落，”希尔说，“在比赛之前，我试图以心理学家的方式与他们交谈并开导他们。但他们就是因为大卫、威尔和查克的不在而意志消沉。我必须让他们相信他们可以得分。”

36 岁的前锋多米尼克·威尔金斯度过了一个艰难的夜晚，他前 12 次投篮都没能命中，最后在无足轻重的最后一分钟扣篮成功。

威尔金斯、肖恩·埃利奥特、弗农·麦克斯韦尔和卡尔·埃雷拉四人总共 40 次投篮仅命中 6 次。

“我们基本上只能投一次，就是这样，”埃利奥特说，他得到全队最高的 17 分，但投篮命中率仅为 3/10，“我们在内线处于极大劣势。我们的队员们在内线拼尽全力。但看起来每个人都有很多大个子。我们只是人手不足。”

在上半场，马刺队在 11 分钟多时间里都没有投中任何一球，而掘金队则轻松进入中场休息，取得了 52-34 的领先优势。

在上半场最后一节和下半场前五节中，马刺队只获得了 6 次罚球。

约翰逊终于在第二节 7:04 时靠着一个 14 英尺的飞身投篮打破了 14 投 0 中的得分荒。总之，马刺整场比赛仅仅命中 24 个进球，距离球队史上最低命中率仅差一个。

被迫在第四节担任中锋的前锋查尔斯·史密斯表示，球队需要正视伤病问题。

史密斯说：“我们必须正视现实，不会有援军赶来。这就是我们拥有的。这就是我们必须解决的问题。”

马刺队的球迷们可能会有几分清醒的思考。在过去两个常规赛中赢得了 121 场比赛的马刺队现在输给了两支去年没能进入季后赛的球队。

在失去 7 英尺 2 英寸的高中锋迪肯贝·穆托姆博后，掘金队本应进行重建，穆托姆博作为自由球员签约了亚特兰大。掘金队让 7 英尺高的埃尔文·约翰逊在该位置首发，在下半场大部分时间里，由 6 英尺 9 英寸的安东尼奥·麦克戴斯打中锋。

点击查看原文：Off-target Spurs lose to Nuggets

Off-target Spurs lose to Nuggets

The Spurs fell to 0-2 to start a season for the first time in four years Sunday night, and they did so with a resounding thud that could be heard in the upper reaches of the cavernous Alamodome. Denver guard Ricky Pierce scored 11 of his team-high 15 points in the fourth period to help the Nuggets hold off the Spurs 88-79.

In their first home game of the season, the Spurs shot 32 percent and looked generally confused on offense without three key players, all out with injuries.

“You can’t make excuses,” Spurs guard Vinny Del Negro said. “They’ve got some big, strong athletic guys who are active. You’ve got to give them credit. Times like these make you appreciate the times when you’ve been healthy and had some winning streaks.”

A crowd of 20,791 came to life a few times in the second half when the defending Midwest Division champions made runs at the Nuggets, who had led by 20 points twice in the first half.

The Spurs cut Denver’s advantage to eight after three quarters and whittled it down to six with 3:37 remaining on a driving layup by Avery Johnson.

But Pierce drew a foul on Sean Elliott on the baseline, and followed with two free throws. Following a miss by Elliott, Denver point guard Mark Jackson hit a three-pointer with the shot clock winding down, boosting the Nuggets to an 80-69 lead with 2:30 left.

“Us New Yorkers practice that shot more than the regular ones,” said Jackson, who was fading away from the hoop when he released the ball. “I’ve made quite a few like that on the playground.”

The Spurs could have used some playground flair in their offense, which looked hopelessly disjointed at times. Ball movement was a horror, with 19 turnovers against only 16 assists.

“We struggled to score in the first half,” Spurs coach Bob Hill said. “In the second half, we played some good defense and put ourselves in a position to win. But we just couldn’t make a shot.”

The loss brought to a close San Antonio’s eight-game winning streak over the Nuggets dating back to 1994.

Denver’s last victory over the Spurs came in November 1994 in Colorado. The Nuggets hadn’t won a game in San Antonio since April 1994.

Spurs fans arrived at the dome in a generally festive mood, despite an 82-78 loss at Minnesota in the season opener Friday night. They figured that the Spurs always could be counted on to get a win over Denver, especially at home.

Then again, nothing is assured right now for the Spurs, who are playing without injured All-Star center David Robinson, reserve center Will Perdue and small forward Chuck Person.

“David’s absence just has the guys down,” Hill said. “I tried to put on my psychology hat and talk to 'em about it a little before the game. But they’re just down that David’s not there. That Will and Chuck aren’t there. I’ve got to make them believers that they can score the ball.”

Nobody had a tougher night than 36-year-old forward Dominique Wilkins, who missed his first 12 shots before throwing down a dunk in the final, meaningless minute.

Combined, Wilkins, Sean Elliott, Vernon Maxwell and Carl Herrera hit only 6 of 40 from the floor.

“We’re basically getting one shot, and that’s it,” said Elliott, who scored a team-high 17 points but was 3 of 10 from the field. “We’re just at a big disadvantage inside. Our guys are fighting inside. But it seems like everyone has a lot more big men. We’re just undermanned.”

The Spurs went more than 11 minutes in the first half without a field goal as the Nuggets coasted into intermission with a 52-34 lead.

Through the final six minutes of the first quarter and the first five of the second quarter, the Spurs managed only six free throws.

Johnson finally snapped the 0-of-14 field-goal drought with a 14-footer off the wing at 7:04 of the second period. In all, the Spurs made only 24 field goals on the night, one off the franchise record for futility.

Forward Charles Smith, who was forced to play center in the final quarter, said the team needs to come to grips with the injury problem.

“We have to face facts,” Smith said. “There’s no cavalry coming over the hill. This is what we’ve got. This is what we have to deal with.”

A few sobering thoughts may have crossed Spurs fans’ minds. The Spurs, who have won 121 games over the past two regular seasons, have now lost to two teams that failed to make the playoffs last year.

Denver was supposed to be rebuilding after losing 7-foot-2 center Dikembe Mutombo, a free agent who signed with Atlanta. The Nuggets started 7-foot Ervin Johnson in the post and played much of the second half with 6-9 Antonio McDyess in the middle.

By Jerry Briggs Express-News Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-04, By Buck Harvey

马刺的新世界：联盟为乏味的夜晚做好准备

记者走向丹佛掘金队后卫布莱恩特·史蒂斯(Bryant Stith) 的更衣柜。史蒂斯抬起头，表情认真而急切，他有一个问题需要马上得到答案。“我们会在海军上将回来之前再和这些家伙打比赛吗？”

没有人认为没有大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson) 的马刺会是一支相同的球队。但在前两场比赛之后，联盟中的每个人都开始翻看赛程，看看谁会很快遇到他们。

周日轮到掘金队了。史蒂斯希望尽快回到正轨。掘金队在过去 22 场比赛中输掉了 21 场——他们去年没有进入季后赛——在上半场就感到无聊。

这是马刺的新世界，在没有七尺高的全明星的情况下，一切都变了，埃弗里·约翰逊(Avery Johnson) 看到了这一点。他在第四节开始时上场，如果发现吉祥物土狼在禁区里，他不会感到惊讶。

肖恩·埃利奥特(Sean Elliott) 站在大前锋位置上，多米尼克·威尔金斯(Dominique Wilkins) 站在中锋位置上。“我看到了这个阵容，”AJ 说，“我心想，‘我的天哪。’”

当 AJ 看到他的新中锋以让阿弗里克·休斯(Alfredrick Hughes) 都感到羞愧的命中率投篮时，他无疑会和上帝交谈。威尔金斯、卡尔·埃雷拉(Carl Herrera) 和弗农·麦克斯韦尔(Vernon Maxwell) 这三人组合创造了罕见的 3 投 30 中的统计数据。他们每个人都投进了一球，再次证明了化学反应的力量。

威尔金斯至少有一个借口。四次，他的投篮手感都受到了丹佛奇才安东尼奥·麦克戴斯(Antonio McDyess) 的封盖影响。赛后，有人开玩笑地问麦克戴斯，为什么他没有把威尔金斯当作传奇对待。

“他是吗？”麦克戴斯说。“他今晚不像。”

对于一个在自己的主场揭幕战中输给了达拉斯小牛队的球员来说，这真是太狂妄了。但同样，这是新世界。没有罗宾逊在身边，麦克戴斯既可以表现得很大，也可以说得很厉害。

但即使麦克戴斯封盖了马刺没有投中的球，这仍然是一场第四节落后 6 分的比赛。鲍勃·希尔(Bob Hill) 派上了小个阵容，部分原因是他的大个阵容不太好。而奇怪的斗士是埃利奥特，他从没以强硬著称。

他在明尼苏达获得了 8 个篮板，周日又获得了 8 个篮板。尽管马刺有很多问题，但篮板却不是问题之一。“肖恩打得太努力了，”AJ 说，“他激励了其他人。”

虽然这听起来很好，而且可能有一定的道理，但多年来，快船队更衣室里也出现了类似的言论。即使是联盟最差的球队也能坚持住，这不仅因为他们决心要赢，还因为这是比赛的本质。

这场比赛也不例外。上半场结束时比分是 52-34。马刺队准备以 50 分庆祝 NBA 50 周年吗？

希尔在中场休息时谈论防守。掘金队谈论谁应该去吃快餐。丹佛知道他们已经控制了这场比赛。

罗宾逊带领的马刺队知道这种感觉。他们有多少次让实力不如他们的人坚持了？所以，马刺队正在努力反击，希望麦克斯韦尔的一记三分球或威尔金斯的一次突破能够最终命中，当马克·杰克逊(Mark Jackson) 在 24 秒钟结束前投出高难度球时，他们感到沮丧。

掘金队的反应是将球传给了这场比赛中另一位过了巅峰期的球员，里奇·皮尔斯(Ricky Pierce)。然后打了个哈欠。还没结束吗？

直到比赛结束后，他们才醒来。直到有人给他们看了赛程。史蒂斯看到这一幕很伤心：丹佛下次和马刺打比赛的时间是 1 月 3 日。如果一切按预期进行，到那时旧世界将回归。

点击查看原文：Spurs' new world: The league lines up for boring nights

Spurs’ new world: The league lines up for boring nights

The reporter walked to the locker of Bryant Stith, the Nuggets guard. Stith looked up and, his face earnest and urgent, had one question he needed answered right then. “Do we play these guys again before the Admiral gets back?”

No one thought the Spurs would be the same without David Robinson. But after the first two games, everyone in the league is pulling out the schedule to see who gets them soon.

It was the Nuggets’ turn Sunday. And Stith wants to get back in line as soon as possible. The same Nuggets that had lost 21 of their last 22 here - the same Nuggets that didn’t make the playoffs last year - were bored by halftime.

This is the new Spurs’ world, buried six feet under without seven feet of All-Star. Everything changes, and Avery Johnson saw that. He trotted out to begin the fourth quarter and would have been no more shocked to find the Coyote in the post.

Sean Elliott stood at power forward, Dominique Wilkins stood at center. “I saw that lineup,” said AJ, "and I thought, `Oh my God.’ "

AJ no doubt conferred with Him when he saw his new center firing at the rim at a percentage that would embarrass Alfredrick Hughes. The trio of Wilkins, Carl Herrera and Vernon Maxwell combined for the rare 3-of-30 stat. They each made one, proving once again how powerful chemistry is.

Wilkins had an excuse, at least. Four times, his shooting touch was greatly affected by the blocking touch of a Denver wunderkind, Antonio McDyess. Afterward, someone kidded McDyess that he didn’t treat Wilkins like a legend.

“Is he one?” said McDyess. “He didn’t look like it tonight.”

Cocky stuff from someone that lost his own home opener to the

Dallas Mavericks. But, again, it’s the new world. Without Robinson

around, McDyess can both look and talk big.

But even as McDyess blocked what the Spurs didn’t miss on their own, this was a six-point game in the fourth. Bob Hill went with a small lineup, partly because his big one isn’t too good. And the curious combatant was Elliott, someone never known for pushing back.

He had eight rebounds in Minnesota, another eight Sunday. And for all the problems the Spurs have, rebounding somehow hasn’t been one. “Sean was playing so hard,” said AJ, “that he motivated everybody else.”

As nice as that sounds and as much truth as there may be in it, similar quotes have come from the Clippers’ locker room for years. Even the league’s worst teams hang around, not merely because they are determined, but because it’s the nature of the game.

This one was no different. At halftime it was 52-34. Were the Spurs about to celebrate the NBA’s 50th anniversary by scoring 50?

Hill spent his halftime talking about defense. The Nuggets talked about who should go out for fast food. Denver knew it had this game under control.

The Robinson Spurs know the feeling. How many times have they let inferior beings hang around? So there were the Spurs, working their way back, hoping that one Maxwell trey or one Wilkins’ drive might finally fall, frustrated when a Mark Jackson heave beat the 24-second clock.

The Nuggets reacted by dumping the ball to another of the past-the-prime players in this game, Ricky Pierce. And then yawned. Isn’t it over yet?

They wouldn’t wake up until after the game. Until someone showed them the schedule. Stith was sad to see this: The next time Denver plays the Spurs will be Jan. 3. If all goes as expected, the old world will be back by then.

By Buck Harvey, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-05, By Jerry Briggs Express-News Staff Writer

历史表明马刺正处于困境 - 圣安东尼奥今晚将在克利夫兰寻求首胜

克利夫兰 - 马刺将在今晚 6:30 对阵克利夫兰骑士队的比赛中试图避免在 NBA 历史上首次遭遇 0-3 开局。1992 年，在前任教练杰里·塔尔坎扬(Jerry Tarkanian) 的带领下，马刺以 0-2 的战绩跌跌撞撞地开始了比赛。但那是自 1976 年球队加入 NBA 以来，除了今年，球队唯一一次在最初的两场比赛中失利的记录。

马刺主教练鲍勃·希尔(Bob Hill) 并不担心历史。他说他甚至不担心在连续两晚客场对阵骑士和华盛顿子弹队的比赛。

“我唯一担心的是，我们是否需要调整我们的轮换以及如何在进攻中简化战术，”他说。“我们只需要尽力做好准备。即使我们没有伤病，这段时间也很难熬。”

到目前为止，马刺输给了两支上赛季在乐透区结束的球队。在全明星球员大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson) 和另外两名球员受伤的情况下，他们在周五客场以 82-78 输给了明尼苏达，并在周日主场以 88-79 输给了丹佛。

接下来的赛程，从 2-0 的骑士队开始，将包括在七场比赛中对阵六支 1996 年季后赛球队。马刺很有可能将在大多数，如果不是全部比赛中，都将缺少两位常规中锋 - 罗宾逊和威尔·珀杜(Will Perdue)。

球队历史上最长的连败纪录出现在球队在 1973 年加入美国篮球协会(American Basketball Association) 的第一个赛季，当时马刺输掉了他们的前四场比赛。

目前这支球队的球员大部分都在上小学。二年级后卫科里·亚历山大(Cory Alexander) 当时还不满一岁。三年级老将蒙蒂·威廉姆斯(Monty Williams) 当时只有两岁，还在穿尿布。

为了避免 0-4 的开局，马刺需要一些好运。

“现在，我们要撸起袖子，系紧腰带，准备出发，”前锋查尔斯·史密斯(Charles Smith) 说。“我们会很艰难。卡迪拉克(Anderson) 认为我疯了(在对阵丹佛的比赛之前)。我告诉他，‘把你的 11 分钟时间给我。’”

球队的士气低落，但绝不完全灰心。

前锋查克·珀森(Chuck Person) 上周接受了背部手术，可能会缺席六个月，但罗宾逊(下背部拉伤) 和珀杜(左拇指骨折) 都将在几周后回归。

在对阵丹佛的比赛后，前锋肖恩·埃利奥特(Sean Elliott) 在气氛压抑的马刺更衣室里说，他听说罗宾逊独自练习投篮，试图在恢复背部的过程中保持手感。

“他感觉好多了，”埃利奥特说。“但我仍然认为，在我们确保他恢复到可以上场的状态之前，让他休息至关重要。他千万不能过早地复出。”

过去，马刺在没有罗宾逊的情况下一直挣扎。在他开始自己的第八个赛季以来，他缺席了 19 场比赛，马刺战绩为 7-12。真正让球队陷入混乱的是珀杜的伤病，这件事发生在十天前。

在常规赛的前两场比赛中，马刺被迫让安德森、史密斯、多米尼克·威尔金斯(Dominique Wilkins) 甚至埃利奥特打中锋，以弥补两名受伤的七尺巨人。

据报道，马刺正在考虑让史密斯今晚首发打中锋。但希尔不愿透露他的计划。

“我们正在认真考虑做出改变，这样我们就能有一个更好的开局，”他说。

在明尼苏达，马刺在第一节只得了 15 分。对阵丹佛，马刺在开局的 12 分钟内只得了 18 分，上半场只得到 34 分。

“如果说我们有两点亮点，那就是我们仍然非常努力，查尔斯·史密斯打得非常出色，”希尔说。“此外，艾弗里(Avery) 就是艾弗里。无论如何，他都打得很努力。其他球员也在努力。也许太努力了。

“我们会尝试为克利夫兰制定一些新的策略。但我们不想加入太多东西。我们希望尽可能地保持简单。”

点击查看原文：History says Spurs are in trouble - San Antonio looking for first victory tonight in Cleveland

History says Spurs are in trouble - San Antonio looking for first victory tonight in Cleveland

CLEVELAND - The Spurs will attempt to avoid the first 0-3 start in their NBA history tonight at 6:30 when they take on the Cleveland Cavaliers at Gund Arena. The Spurs stumbled out of the blocks 0-2 under former coach Jerry Tarkanian in 1992. But that was the only time since the team joined the NBA in 1976 that the club had dropped its first two - until this year.

Spurs coach Bob Hill isn’t concerned with history. He said he isn’t even worried about games on consecutive nights on the road against the Cavaliers and the Washington Bullets.

“The only thing weighing on my mind is whether we need to change our rotations and how to simplify things on offense,” he said. “We just have to prepare the best we can. This would be a tough stretch even if we were healthy.”

So far, the Spurs have lost a pair of games to teams that finished in the lottery last season. Without injured All-Star David Robinson and two others, they have fallen 82-78 at Minnesota on Friday and 88-79 to Denver at home Sunday.

Upcoming on the schedule, starting with the 2-0 Cavaliers, is a stretch that includes games against six 1996 playoff teams in seven games. It’s likely that the Spurs will be without both regular centers - Robinson and Will Perdue - for most, if not all, of those games.

The longest winless start in the franchise’s history came in the team’s first season in the American Basketball Association, when the Spurs lost their first four in 1973.

Most of the current group of players were in grade school at the time. Second-year guard Cory Alexander was less than a year old. Third-year veteran Monty Williams was still in diapers at age 2.

To avoid the 0-4 start, the Spurs will need a few breaks.

“Right now, it’s roll up your sleeves, tighten up the belt and get ready to go,” forward Charles Smith said. "We’re going to struggle. Cadillac (Anderson) thought I was crazy (before the Denver game). I told him, `Give me 11 minutes of your life.’ "

The mood of the team is downcast, but by no means is it totally discouraged.

Forward Chuck Person may be out six months after back surgery last week, but Robinson (lower back strain) and Perdue (fractured left thumb) are both scheduled to return in a few weeks.

Speaking in a subdued Spurs locker room after the Denver game, forward Sean Elliott said he has heard the reports of Robinson shooting on his own, trying to maintain his touch as he rehabilitates the back.

“He’s feeling a lot better,” Elliott said. “But I still think it’s imperative that we rest him until he’s ready. It is so important that he doesn’t come back too fast.”

The Spurs have struggled without Robinson in the past. In the 19 games he has missed as he begins his eighth season, the Spurs are 7-12. What really threw the team into chaos was the injury to Perdue, which happened 10 days ago.

In the first two regular-season games, the Spurs have been forced to play with Anderson, Smith, Dominique Wilkins and even Elliott at center to fill in for the injured 7-footers.

The Spurs reportedly are considering inserting Smith into the starting lineup at center tonight. But Hill wouldn’t give any hints as to what his plans might be.

“We’re thinking strongly about a change, just so we can get off to a better start,” he said.

At Minnesota, the Spurs scored 15 points in the first period. Against Denver, the Spurs scored 18 in the opening 12 minutes and finished with only 34 points at halftime.

“If we have two highlights, it’s that we’re still really trying hard and Charles Smith is playing really well,” Hill said. "Also, Avery is Avery. He plays hard no matter what. The rest are trying hard. Maybe too hard.

“We’ll try to come up with a few new wrinkles for Cleveland. But we don’t want to try to put in too much. We want to keep it as simple as possible.”

By Jerry Briggs Express-News Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-06, By Jerry Briggs Express-News Staff Writer

马刺战胜骑士 - 圣安东尼奥从落后17分的劣势中爬出取得首胜

克利夫兰 - 周二晚上，马刺在第三节落后骑士17分时，本可以像兔子一样竖起耳朵，开始听取枪案体育馆替补席后面的所有嘘声。但他们没有理会这些干扰，继续努力，最终以74-68战胜了克利夫兰骑士队，取得了本赛季的首场胜利。

“这正是医生开出的药方，”马刺队主教练鲍勃·希尔(Bob Hill)说。“我们遭遇了太多伤病，并且刚刚输掉了两场硬仗。我们非常需要这场胜利。”

如果有人穿着银黑制服听到了嘘声，他们并没有承认。但一位球迷在下半场反复嘲讽马刺队，大声喊着：“嘿，0胜11负听起来怎么样？”

很明显，这位球迷对他在球场上看到的球队没有多少尊重，因为球队当时缺少了受伤的全明星中锋大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)和其他两名关键球员。

事实证明，马刺队让批评者闭嘴，将赛季战绩提升至1胜2负，并给骑士队在主场揭幕战的庆祝活动泼了一盆冷水。

圣安东尼奥依靠强大的防守、维恩·麦克斯韦(Vernon Maxwell)和多米尼克·威尔金斯(Dominique Wilkins)在关键时刻的几次关键投篮，以及克利夫兰前锋克里斯·米尔斯(Chris Mills)的一次致命失误赢得了比赛。

当马刺队领先一分时，骑士队抢下了麦克斯韦的投篮失误，并开始反击。米尔斯将球抛向后卫鲍勃·苏拉(Bob Sura)和特雷尔·布兰登(Terrell Brandon)之间，球在比赛还剩13.5秒时滚出界外。

球滚到了令人难以置信的克利夫兰主教练迈克·弗拉泰罗(Mike Fratello)的脚下。

“我们的防守很糟糕，进攻更糟糕，”弗拉泰罗说，他的球队战绩降至2胜1负。“这基本上概括了整个比赛。我们罚球命中率只有50%，而且失误连连……这意味着我们必须解决一些问题。”

在下一次进攻中，马刺队在比赛还剩24秒时，因为骑士队后卫雷吉·吉尔里(Reggie Geary)的死球犯规而没有将球发进界内。由于这次犯规发生在比赛最后24秒内，所以马刺队获得了罚球机会，并获得了另一次进攻机会。

麦克斯韦命中了第一个罚球。马刺队将球发给前锋肖恩·埃利奥特(Sean Elliott)，他立即被犯规。埃利奥特全场得到17分，他命中了两个罚球，将领先优势扩大到5分。

“这是一个死球犯规，这对我们很有帮助，”希尔说。

在上半场，马刺队进攻几乎毫无生气，仅得到31分，追平了球队纪录。

在第三节还剩6分28秒时，米尔斯将球打进，将骑士队领先优势扩大到50-33。当时，马刺队仅仅命中了15球，看起来他们将成为球队历史上第一支以0胜3负开局的球队。

“也许他们放松了，”希尔说。“但当我们命中了几球，重新回到比赛中，当我们咬紧牙关时，我们就开始做了一些好的事情。”

威尔金斯和麦克斯韦并没有吹嘘他们在来到克利夫兰之前各自的表现。在本赛季的前两场比赛中，威尔金斯投篮命中率为8投34，麦克斯韦为4投16。

但在第三节最后四分钟，威尔金斯得到了他所有的8分，包括连续命中两个三分球，每次命中后都让队友从板凳上跳起来。

麦克斯韦和埃利奥特在最后12分钟贡献了大部分的进攻火力，埃利奥特整场比赛都面临着双人包夹。

麦克斯韦在三分钟内得到7分。首先，他从篮下突破上篮得分。然后，他后退一步，命中了一记12英尺跳投。最后，他在一次乱战中，从40英尺外命中了一记三分球。

“这场比赛对我们来说非常重要，”希尔说。“我无法告诉你（有多重要）。在今晚之前，我不确定‘Nique（多米尼克·威尔金斯）和Max（维恩·麦克斯韦）是否感觉自己是球队的一部分。”

威尔金斯对骑士队的投篮命中率为9投3，看起来他不太愿意强打，他说他不担心自己的比赛。

“我只是状态不好，”他说。“在季前赛中，我的投篮命中率很高。但在前两场比赛中，我就陷入了低迷。嘿，我连着进了三个球。我现在感觉不错。”

麦克斯韦没有谈论自己的个人亮点，而是选择谈论这场胜利将如何帮助球队的士气，为今晚在华盛顿的比赛做准备。

“我们战绩为0胜2负，所以这场胜利对我们来说绝对是一场大胜，”他说。“我们只是想尽全力，将所有的一切都投入到球场上。这是一场意志坚定的胜利。希望它能提升我们的信心，并延续下去。”

希尔改变了首发阵容，将查尔斯·史密斯(Charles Smith)放到大前锋的位置上。但是史密斯整场比赛犯规太多，让卡迪拉克·安德森(Cadillac Anderson)成为球队内线最突出的球员。

安德森打出了本赛季最佳表现，抢下13个篮板，封盖5次。

布兰登以21分领跑骑士队。但他没有得到太多帮助。米尔斯17投6中，得到12分。泰隆·希尔(Tyrone Hill)得到11分。

新秀维塔利·波塔彭科(Vitaly Potapenko)在周六晚上对华盛顿的比赛中得到22分，但整场比赛都被包夹，只得到8分。 - - -

备注

- 下一场比赛：在马刺队今晚与子弹队比赛后，他们的赛程将更加艰难。首先，他们将在周五在阿拉莫穹顶迎战西雅图队。然后，他们将在周日和周一分别在波特兰和犹他州客场作战。

- 根据联盟规定，马刺队全明星中锋大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)在因背部伤病缺席前五场比赛后，有资格在波特兰出战。但一位球队官员表示，罗宾逊不太可能在对阵开拓者队的比赛中出场。

“我们还不知道是否会带大卫去（波特兰-犹他）旅行，”马刺队总经理格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich)说。“问题是他是在家里进行康复训练，还是在路上进行。”

波波维奇说，罗宾逊将在打任何比赛之前与球队一起训练一段时间。但他表示，目前还没有确定他何时回归训练的具体时间表，也不知道他需要多少训练时间才能为比赛做好准备。

根据球队最初的初步时间表，罗宾逊可能会缺席到11月19日。估计替补中锋威尔·珀杜(Will Perdue)左拇指骨折，可能会缺席到11月16日。这两名球员都留在圣安东尼奥，与力量训练师迈克·布伦加特(Mike Brungardt)一起训练。

- 回家的人：前锋查克·珀森(Chuck Person)上周接受了背部手术，预计将缺席6个月，他预计将在今天回到圣安东尼奥。他一直在加州英格尔伍德的凯尔兰-乔布骨科诊所接受康复治疗，他在那里接受了手术。

- 听证会：马刺队前锋多米尼克·威尔金斯(Dominique Wilkins)的合同纠纷仲裁听证会定于11月20日在伦敦举行。 - 杰里·布里格斯(Jerry Briggs)

美联社

查尔斯·史密斯(右)俯身在地板上，与骑士队的特雷尔·布兰登争抢一个松球。史密斯和马刺队避免了0胜3负的开局。

点击查看原文：Spurs charge past Cavaliers - S.A crawls out of 17-point hole for first victory

Spurs charge past Cavaliers - S.A crawls out of 17-point hole for first victory

CLEVELAND - Trailing by 17 points in the third quarter Tuesday night, the Spurs could have grown rabbit ears and started to listen to all the hecklers behind their bench at Gund Arena. Instead, they shut out the distractions, went to work and claimed their first victory of the season, 74-68 over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

“This is just what the doctor ordered,” Spurs coach Bob Hill said. “We’ve been hit with so many injuries and we had just lost two tough games. We needed this one.”

If anyone wearing the silver and black heard the hecklers, they weren’t admitting it. But one fan repeatedly chided the Spurs during the second half, calling out, “Hey, how does 0-for-November sound?”

Obviously, the fan didn’t have much respect for the team he saw on the floor, which was playing without injured All-Star center David Robinson and two other key players.

As it turned out, the Spurs shut up the critics, improved to 1-2 on the season and threw cold water all over the Cavaliers’ celebration for their home opener.

San Antonio did it on the strength of a swarming defense, a few big shots from Vernon Maxwell and Dominique Wilkins down the stretch and a costly turnover by Cleveland forward Chris Mills.

With the Spurs leading by one, the Cavaliers rebounded a miss by Maxwell and started up court. Mills tossed the ball between guards Bob Sura and Terrell Brandon and it rolled out of bounds with 13.5 seconds to play.

The ball rolled right up to the feet of a disbelieving Cleveland coach Mike Fratello

“We were bad defensively and we were worse offensively,” said Fratello, whose team fell to 2-1. “That kind of sums up the whole thing. To miss half our free throws and turn the ball over the way we did . . . that means we’ve got to straighten some things out.”

On the next play, the Spurs didn’t get the ball inbounds before a dead ball foul was called on Cavs guard Reggie Geary. Because it came in the final 24 seconds of the game, the infraction sent the Spurs to the free-throw line and gave them another possession.

Maxwell hit the first free throw. The Spurs inbounded to forward Sean Elliott, who was fouled immediately. Elliott, who led the Spurs with 17 points, made both of the freebies for a five-point lead.

“It was a dead-ball foul, and it definitely helped,” Hill said.

In the first half, the Spurs appeared nearly lifeless offensively, tying a franchise record with only 31 points.

With 6:28 remaining in the third period, Mills kissed an 8-footer off the glass for a 50-33 Cavs advantage. At that point, the Spurs had produced only 15 baskets, making it look like they would become the first in the franchise’s NBA history to start the season with an 0-3 record.

“Maybe they relaxed,” Hill said. “But once we hit a few shots and got back into it, once we sunk our teeth in there, we started to do some good things.”

Wilkins and Maxwell weren’t bragging about their individual performances coming into Cleveland. In the first two games of the year, Wilkins was 8 for 34 from the field and Maxwell 4 for 16.

But in the final four minutes of the third period, Wilkins scored all his eight points, including consecutive three-pointers that prompted teammates to leap off the bench each time.

Maxwell and Elliott, who had double teams coming at him all night, provided most of the offensive punch in the final 12 minutes.

Maxwell scored seven points in one three-minute stretch. First, he ducked under the rim for a reverse layup. Then he stepped back and dropped in a 12-footer. Finally, he buried a

three-pointer from 40 feet off a broken play.

“This was really important for us,” Hill said. “I can’t tell you (how much). Before tonight, I’m not sure that 'Nique and Max felt like they were much a part of the team.”

Wilkins, who hit 3 for 9 against the Cavs and seemed less inclined to force his offense, said he wasn’t worried about his own game.

“I was just in a little slump,” he said. “In the preseason, I shot it pretty well. But in the first two games, I just got in this little slump. Hey, I hit three in a row. I’m all right now.”

Maxwell shrugged off giving a rendition of his personal highlights and chose to talk about how the win would help the team’s morale going into tonight’s game at Washington.

“We were 0-2, so this is definitely a big win for us,” he said. “We just wanted to play as hard as we could and leave everything out on the floor. It was a gutsy win. Hopefully it can boost our confidence and carry over.”

Hill shook up the starting lineup, placing Charles Smith into the power-forward slot. But foul problems dogged Smith most of the night, leaving Cadillac Anderson to emerge as the team’s standout in the paint.

Anderson responded with his best game of the season, grabbing 13 rebounds and blocking five shots.

Brandon paced the Cavaliers with 21 points. But he got little help. Mills went 6 for 17 from the floor to score his 12 points. Tyrone Hill scored 11.

Rookie Vitaly Potapenko, who had 22 points in a win over Washington on Saturday night, was double-teamed most of the evening and was limited to eight points. - - -

Notes

- Upcoming: After the Spurs play the Bullets tonight, the schedule gets extra tough. First, there’s Seattle at home Friday at the Alamodome. Then, there’s road games at Portland and Utah on Sunday and Monday nights, respectively.

Under league guidelines, Spurs All-Star center David Robinson would be eligible to play at Portland after sitting out the first five games on the injured list with a lower back strain. But a team official said it was unlikely that Robinson would play against the Trail Blazers.

"It’s too early to tell if we’ll take David on the

(Portland-Utah) trip," Spurs general manager Gregg Popovich said. “It’s a question of whether he’ll do his rehab at home or on the road.”

Popovich said Robinson would work out with the team for a period of time before he played in any games. But he said there is no timeline for his return to practice, and it isn’t known how much practice time he will need to get ready for the games.

Robinson, based on the team’s original, tentative timeline, could be out until Nov. 19. It is estimated that reserve center Will Perdue, nursing a fractured left thumb, could be out until Nov. 16. Both players are in San Antonio working with strength coach Mike Brungardt.

- Person coming home: Forward Chuck Person, who will be out up to six months after undergoing back surgery last week, is expected to return to San Antonio by today. He has been recuperating at the Kerlan-Jobe Orthopedic Clinic in Inglewood, Calif., where the surgery was performed.

- Hearing set: The arbitration hearing over Spurs forward Dominique Wilkins’ contract dispute is set for Nov. 20 in London. - Jerry Briggs

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Charles Smith (right) dives to the floor to fight the Cavs’ Terrell Brandon for a loose ball. Smith and the Spurs avoided an 0-3 start.

By Jerry Briggs Express-News Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-07, By Jerry Briggs Express-News Staff Writer
伤病满营马刺被子弹击退 - 96-86 失利后受伤名单再添新成员

马里兰州兰多弗 - 周三晚上，马刺队带着更多的伤病担忧离开美国航空球馆，但他们也感觉到在全明星中锋大卫·罗宾逊缺席的情况下，球队化学反应可能有了进展。在 96-86 负于克里斯·韦伯和华盛顿子弹队后，他们也以 1-3 的战绩结束了比赛。

“我认为我们打得很好，”马刺队教练鲍勃·希尔说，“我认为我们表现得很棒。我们只是经历了一段 4 分钟的低迷期，他们投进了一些关键球，而我们却篮筐不吃饼。”

尽管韦伯和前密歇根大学“五巨头”队友，前锋朱万·霍华德表现出色，但马刺队在前三节与子弹队打得难解难分。

在赛季表现最好的上半场，圣安东尼奥以 47-43 领先，然后在进入最后一节时以 70-67 落后。在比赛的那个阶段，子弹队的“炸弹小队”在马刺队面前大爆发。

替补贾伦·杰克逊、克里斯·惠特尼和特雷西·穆里在最后一节开始时都投进了三分球。当硝烟散尽时，马刺队以 79-70 落后。对阵战绩提升至 2-1 的子弹队，马刺队在比赛的剩余时间里再也没有将分差缩小到 5 分以内。

“我们自称炸弹小队，”1995 年在与马刺队效力两个赛季后被球队裁掉惠特尼说，“任何时候你都能对曾经和你一起打球的家伙这么做，这肯定会让你感觉很好。这只是一场对球队来说一场完美的胜利。”

对于马刺队来说，这可能是场代价不菲的失利，具体取决于前锋查尔斯·史密斯和后卫文尼·德尔内格罗的伤势严重程度。在右膝开始肿胀后，史密斯下半场只打了 10 分钟。

在第四节初期，德尔内格罗在子弹队的篮下滑倒，扭伤了左脚踝。他并没有回来，这对球队造成了伤害，因为当时他投出了 7 投 5 中的 11 分。

这些不幸事件让马刺队雪上加霜，因伤缺阵的还有罗宾逊、替补中锋威尔·珀杜和小前锋查克·珀森。

“一开始我确实很紧张，因为我以为是我的膝盖，”他说，“那真的是一次奇怪的跌倒。当时我在篮下，想突破到外围，结果我滑倒了。我的（左）膝盖一直让我困扰，但（扭伤的）是脚踝。”

德尔内格罗表示，球队需要在逆境面前保持集体信心，而马刺队可以用尽一切积极情绪，迎接周五晚上在阿拉莫圆顶球馆对阵西雅图超音速队的比赛。

“我们只需要克服这个，”德尔内格罗说，“我们必须继续努力拼搏。最终，你必须相信一些好事必定会发生在我们身上。我们参加了这场比赛。只是对我们来说不行。

“但你知道吗，即使我们输了，我认为我们在这两场比赛（包括周二晚上在克利夫兰以 74-68 获胜）中表现出了我们的性格。我们正在弄清楚我们可以做什么。我们正在学习如何一起比赛。”

自训练营第二周以来，史密斯的膝盖一直断断续续地困扰着他。

当韦伯（22 分和职业生涯最高的 21 个篮板）和霍华德（22 分、12 个篮板）上场并打败他的队友时，他痛苦地皱起了眉头。之后，史密斯听起来比德尔内格罗更加沮丧。

“很难描述我现在正在经历的心理状态，”他说，“但我无能为力。当无法为球队提供帮助时，我感觉真的很糟糕。”

前锋肖恩·埃利奥特以 18 分、6 个篮板和 3 次助攻领跑全队。但子弹队在下半场对他进行了限制，只让他得到 4 分。多米尼克·威尔金斯得到 13 分，弗农·麦克斯韦尔得到 10 分。

控球后卫埃弗里·约翰逊被子弹队的组织后卫罗德·斯特里克兰克制，最终得到 8 分和 11 次助攻。约翰逊经常在时间到之前接到球。由于内线选择较少，他 15 投只有 4 中。

约翰逊在谈到球队对阵子弹队的 39.8% 的投篮命中率，以及之前的比赛中 78、79 和 74 分的得分时说：“我们的投篮仍然不理想。在所有球员都缺阵的情况下，很难在投篮命中率只有 38% 的情况下获胜。”

斯特里克兰在休赛期与波特兰开拓者队进行交易后加盟子弹队，得到 16 分、7 次助攻和 4 个篮板。

在上半场早期落后 7 分后，马刺队加快了子弹队强加的比赛节奏，并在中场休息时获得了 4 分的领先优势。

在第二节后半段的一波 12-2 的攻势让马刺队以 45-39 领先。埃利奥特在此期间得到最后 6 分，包括两次扑向篮筐。

马刺随笔

- 抢板之王：马刺队的肖恩·埃利奥特，本赛季开始前生涯场均篮板是 4.5 个，本赛季加强了篮板球。

埃利奥特这位 6 英尺 8 英寸的前锋，在球队的四场比赛中场均抢下 7.3 个篮板。

- 找回状态：在季前赛手感冰冷之后，后卫文尼·德尔内格罗重新找回了状态。

在过去的三场比赛中，德尔内格罗 26 投 14 中。他在第四节初扭伤脚踝，早早离开了对阵华盛顿的比赛。

- 韦伯统治比赛：经常受伤的华盛顿中锋克里斯·韦伯，得到 22 分和职业生涯最高的 21 个篮板，让子弹队教练吉姆·利纳姆赞不绝口。

“绝对出色，”利纳姆说，“他的篮板从未如此犀利。他和朱万（霍华德）经常遭到包夹。但他们都超越了自己。”

在全明星球员大卫·罗宾逊受伤的情况下，马刺队教练鲍勃·希尔对韦伯的表现更加客观。

希尔说：“我们的中锋不在，他应该有一个美好的夜晚。”

- 赛季最高得分：在输给子弹队的比赛中，马刺队得到 86 分，创下本赛季单场最高得分。

在之前的三场比赛中，他们分别得到 78、79 和 74 分。该队常规赛中的历史最低得分是 1994 年 4 月对阵波特兰开拓者队的 71 分。 - 杰瑞·布里格斯

点击查看原文：Ailing Spurs feel the blow from Bullets - Wounded list grows after 96-86 setback

Ailing Spurs feel the blow from Bullets - Wounded list grows after 96-86 setback

LANDOVER, Md. - The Spurs left the USAir Arena on Wednesday night with a few more injury concerns but with a sense that they may have made some strides in developing the team chemistry in the absence of All-Star center David Robinson. They also left with a loss, falling to 1-3 on the season after a 96-86 setback to Chris Webber and the Washington Bullets.

“I thought we played awful well,” Spurs coach Bob Hill said. “I thought we were terrific. We just had a four-minute stretch where they hit some big shots, and we came up empty.”

The Spurs played the Bullets even for three quarters, despite dominating performances from Webber and forward Juwan Howard, former teammates on the University of Michigan’s “Fab Five.”

San Antonio led 47-43 after their best half of the season, and then fell behind 70-67 going into the final period. At that stage of the game, the Bullets’ “Bomb Squad” went off in the Spurs’ faces.

Reserves Jaren Jackson, Chris Whitney and Tracy Murry all nailed three-pointers to start the last quarter. By the time the smoke cleared, the Spurs were down 79-70. They never got closer than five the rest of the way against the Bullets, who improved to 2-1.

“We call ourselves the bomb squad,” said Whitney, waived by the Spurs in 1995 after two seasons with the team. "Any time you can do

that against some guys you used to play with, it’s going to make you feel good. It was just a good win for the team."

For the Spurs, it could be a costly loss depending on the severity of injuries to forward Charles Smith and guard Vinny Del Negro. Smith played only 10 minutes in the second half after his troublesome right knee started to swell.

Del Negro slipped and fell under the Bullets’ basket early in the fourth period and twisted his left ankle. He didn’t return, which hurt the team because he had 11 points on 5-of-7 shooting at the time.

The mishaps were all the Spurs needed in the wake of injuries that have sidelined Robinson, reserve center Will Perdue and small forward Chuck Person.

“I was nervous at first when I did it because I thought it was my knee,” he said. “It was a weird fall. I was under the basket and tried to get out to the perimeter and I slipped. My (left) knee had been bothering me, but it was the ankle (that I turned over).”

Del Negro said the team needs to keep its collective chin up in the face of the adversity, and the Spurs could use all the positive vibes they can get with Seattle coming to San Antonio for a Friday night game at the Alamodome.

“We just have to fight through this,” Del Negro said. "We have to keep scrapping. Eventually you have to think some good things are bound to happen to us. We were in this game. It just didn’t work out for us.

“But you know, even though we lost, I think we started to show some character in these two games (including a 74-68 victory at Cleveland on Tuesday night). We’re figuring out what we can do. We’re learning how to play together.”

Smith has struggled off and on with the knee since the second week of training camp.

He cringed with frustration as Webber (22 points and a career-high 21 rebounds) and Howard (22 points, 12 rebounds) went to work and polished off his teammates. Afterward, Smith sounded much downcast than Del Negro.

“It’s tough to describe what I’m going through mentally,” he said. “But there’s not much I can do. I feel really bad when I can’t help the team.”

Forward Sean Elliott led the team with 18 points, six rebounds and three assists. But the Bullets put the clamps on him in the second half, holding him to four points. Dominique Wilkins added 13 points and Vernon Maxwell 10.

Point guard Avery Johnson, who had his hands full with Bullets playmaker Rod Strickland, finished with eight points and 11 assists. All too often, Johnson ended up with the ball as the shot clock wound down. With few options inside, he hit 4 of 15 from the floor.

“We are still not shooting very well,” said Johnson, talking about the team’s 39.8 percent field-goal reading against the Bullets, and three previous games of 78, 79 and 74 points. “With all our guys out, it’s hard for us to shoot 38 percent and win.”

Strickland, acquired by the Bullets in an off-season trade with Portland, produced 16 points, seven assists and four rebounds.

Trailing by seven points early in the first half, the Spurs bought into the fast pace forced by the Bullets and cashed in on a four-point lead at intermission.

A 12-2 run late in the second quarter gave the Spurs a 45-39 lead. Elliott scored the last six points during the run, including two drives to the hoop. - - -

Spurs Notes

- Board banging: Spurs forward Sean Elliott, with a

career-rebounding average of 4.5 coming into this season, has stepped up his board work this season.

Elliott, a 6-foot-8 forward, is averaging 7.3 rebounds in the team’s four games.

- Warming up: After a cold-shooting preseason, guard Vinny Del Negro has rediscovered his stroke.

Del Negro has hit 14 of 26 from the field in the last three games. He suffered a sprained ankle and left the Washington game early in the fourth quarter.

- Webber dominates: Chris Webber, the often-injured Washington center, had Bullets coach Jim Lynam raving about his 22-point, career-high 21-rebound performance.

“Flat-out sensational,” Lynam said. “He never hit the board harder. He and Juwan (Howard) got doubled often. But they both rose above their level.”

Spurs coach Bob Hill was more objective about Webber’s showing in the absence of injured All-Star David Robinson.

“With our center out, he should have a good night,” Hill said.

- Season-high points: The Spurs scored a season-high 86 points in the loss to the Bullets.

In their previous three games, they produced 78, 79 and 74 points. The team’s all-time low in a regular season game is 71, against Portland in April of 1994. - Jerry Briggs

By Jerry Briggs Express-News Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-08, By Glenn Rogers Express-News Staff Writer

马刺遭遇新伤痛，旧病复发

那难以捉摸的伤病之神似乎下定决心要狠狠咬马刺球员一口。中锋大卫·罗宾逊和威尔·佩尔杜已经出局，查尔斯·史密斯正在与他膝部的慢性疼痛做斗争，而维尼·德尔·内格罗和卡尔·埃雷拉在周三晚上对阵子弹队的比赛中受到了威胁性的冲击。

德尔·内格罗扭伤了脚踝和膝盖，但他表示，当马刺队在今晚 7:30 在阿拉莫穹顶对阵西部冠军音速队时，他将准备好上场。埃雷拉表示不确定自己能否上场。

埃雷拉在周四说：“我的（左）腿筋有点撕裂，它有点让我疼，”。“我得看看明天的感觉。今天早上接受了一些治疗，下午会去看医生。”

埃雷拉说，他在华盛顿的最后一次比赛中伤了腿筋，当时他去抢篮板并被犯规。

史密斯拒绝对他膝盖的伤势发表太多评论。“这不是每次都必须写出来的一件事，”他说。“我只想上场并尽可能拼命地打完我的每一分钟。”

主教练鲍勃·希尔表示，在今天早上收到最新报告之前，他不能确定谁会上场。

与此同时，罗宾逊说他在持续好转。

他在治疗结束后说：“我做得很好”。“我希望在月底前回来。

他说：“（我的背）在日常生活中感觉好多了，这很好。”。“我仍然无法在场上做很多事情，但他们并不急于让我恢复。我没有扭伤和跳跃。”

有人开玩笑对他说：“那是即将发生的事”。

罗宾逊爽朗大笑地说：“是的，我预计很快就会发生。”。“我想他们很快就会开始催我复出了。现在，我只做了一些投篮和跑步，跑步的量非常小。我的大部分训练都是静止训练。”

罗宾逊说，在他缺阵期间，他对球队的表现感到满意。

他说：“在电视上看他们很奇怪，我以前从未在那个位置。”。“他们在克利夫兰表现出色，我认为他们会在华盛顿赢球。

这位中锋说：“我们有能投篮的人，他们都想进入防守角色。”。“关键是不要让他们灰心丧气，让他们相信自己能赢。那是即将发生的事。”

佩尔杜说他怀疑自己能否赶上在波特兰对阵开拓者和在犹他对阵爵士的客场比赛。

佩尔杜在投罚球时说：“除了大拇指，我感觉很棒。我只是接不住球”。“我的大拇指开始恢复了一些感觉，感觉好多了。但是，不，我认为我不会准备好参加这两场比赛。”

佩尔杜还表示球队打得很好。

他说：“我们现在打得很好，只是投篮不是很好。”。“我们在克利夫兰投进了一些球，赢得了那场比赛。在华盛顿，两个半场截然不同。但随着信心的不断提升，我们会赢得一些比赛。”

德尔·内格罗一直在转换比赛中得分，跑向篮下，为他的跳投创造空位。他在对阵子弹队的比赛中七投五中，对阵骑士队的比赛中九投五中。

他说他相信自己能够对阵音速队。

对于他的脚踝，他说：“没有太大的疼痛。它没有我想的那么肿。”“这不是通常的脚踝扭伤，在那里你顺着它的长度扭伤它。它有点向后转。我有点担心，因为我同时扭伤了膝盖。

他说：“我肯定自己能够上场。我会接受一些治疗，我们看看肿胀情况如何。”。

这位后卫说，进攻能够快速跑动并为快速投篮创造空位。他说，进攻方面做了一些调整，以便在半场对决中使他得以空位。

他说：“我们改变了很多东西。”。“我们必须稍微改变一下挡拆。当大卫设置掩护时，由于他得分的能力，他给防守施加了很多压力。现在我试图以略有不同的方式摆脱掩护，以获得空位。

他说：“我们试图为射手设置更多掩护，我们不会进行太多背打。”。“这只是我们熟悉不同的轮换和场上不同球员的问题。”

格雷格·安德森在周四球队的休息日与助理教练汉克·伊根一起完成了训练。安德森在中锋位置上表现得很强势，在过去的两场比赛中抢下 24 个篮板。

点击查看原文：New aches, old pains for Spurs

New aches, old pains for Spurs

That injury bug seems determined to keep biting the Spurs. Centers David Robinson and Will Perdue already are out, Charles Smith is fighting chronic pain in his knee and Vinny Del Negro and Carl Herrera received threatening jolts Wednesday night against the Bullets.

Del Negro twisted his ankle and knee but said he would be ready to take the floor when the Spurs play the Western Conference champion Sonics at 7:30 tonight at the Alamodome. Herrera said he was not sure if he would be able to suit up.

“I have a little tear in the (left) hamstring and it’s bothering me a little bit,” Herrera said Thursday. “I’ll have to see how it feels tomorrow. I had some treatment this morning and I’ll see the doctor this afternoon.”

Herrera said he hurt the hamstring on his last play in Washington when he went for a rebound and was fouled.

Smith declined to comment much on his knee. “It’s not really something that has to be written about all the time,” he said. “I just want to get out there and play as hard as I can during my minutes.”

Coach Bob Hill said he couldn’t be sure who would be playing until he gets the latest reports this morning.

Meanwhile, Robinson said he is progressing.

“I’m doing well,” he said after this therapy sessions. "I hope to be back by the end of the month.

“It (the back) feels a lot better on a day-to-day basis, and that’s good,” he said. “I still can’t do a lot on the floor, but they’re not rushing me. I’m not twisting and jumping.”

“That’s coming,” he was told in a joking manner.

“Yeah, I expect it to come very soon,” Robinson said with a deep laugh. “I imagine they’ll start pushing me some pretty soon. Right now, I’ve just been doing some shooting, some running, very little running. Most of my exercises have been stationary work.”

Robinson said he has been pleased with the team’s performance during his absence.

“It’s weird watching them on television, I haven’t been in that position before,” he said. "They were awesome in Cleveland and I thought they were going to win in Washington.

“We’ve got guys who can shoot and they’re all trying to get into their defensive roles,” the center said. “The key is for them not to get discouraged, to believe that they can win. That is coming.”

Perdue said he doubts he will be ready to play in time for road games against Portland Sunday and Utah Monday.

“I feel great, except for the thumb. I just can’t catch,” Perdue said while shooting free throws. “I’m starting to get some feeling back in it, it is better. But, no, I don’t think I’ll be ready for those two games.”

Perdue also said the team was playing well.

“We’re playing well now, we’re just not shooting that well,” he said. “We hit some shots in Cleveland and won that game. Against Washington, it was a tale of two halves. But as the confidence continues to go up, we’re going to win some games.”

Del Negro has been scoring in the transition game, getting down the floor and open for his jumpers. He hit five of seven shots against the Bullets, five of nine against the Cavs.

He said he is confident he will be able to play against the Sonics.

“There’s not too much pain. It didn’t swell up as much as I thought it would,” he said of his ankle. "It wasn’t the usual ankle sprain, where you twist it by turning it lengthwise. It kind of went back. I was a little worried because I twisted the knee at the same time.

“I feel sure I’ll be able to play. I’ll get some therapy and we’ll see how the swelling goes,” he said.

The guard said the offense has been able to run and get open for the quick shots. He said there has been some tinkering with the offense to spring him open during the halfcourt game.

“We’ve changed a lot of things,” he said. "We have to play the pick and roll a little different. When David was setting the picks, he put a lot of pressure on the defense because of his scoring ability. Now I’m trying to come off the picks a little different to get open.

“We’re trying to set more screens for the shooters, we’re not playing as much post up,” he said. “It’s just a matter of us getting familiar with the different rotations, different players on the floor.”

Greg Anderson worked out with assistant coach Hank Egan during the team’s off-day Thursday. Anderson has been strong in the middle, hauling down 24 rebounds in the last two games.

By Glenn Rogers Express-News Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-09, By Glenn Rogers Express-News Staff Writer

马刺的小阵容与超音速苦战

西雅图超音速队的赛前报告可能与马刺队之前的对手相同——利用马刺队内线的弱点，包夹并限制肖恩·埃利奥特(Sean Elliott)。最终，超音速队以87-75战胜马刺队，将马刺队的战绩定格在1胜4负，但比赛结果似乎并未如超音速队所预期的那样。

大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)再次缺席，但格雷格·安德森(Greg Anderson)在内线表现出色，抢下8个篮板并送出6次盖帽。

“他打得不错，但我认为他们让肖恩（肯普）吃了不少亏。弱者通常会得到裁判的偏袒，”超音速队主教练乔治·卡尔(George Karl)说道。“现在，几乎任何一支主场作战的球队都能赢球，除了芝加哥公牛队之外，联盟中没有哪支球队真的打得很好。”

马刺队整场比赛都非常努力，最终失利是因为他们的投篮命中率不高，并且罚球25罚15中。

卡尔指出，这场胜利虽然是赛季初，但却可能至关重要。

“这场比赛最终可能会让我们在季后赛中获得主场优势，”他说，指的是马刺队阵容完整后，两队在季后赛中争夺排名位置的可能性。

马刺队本场比赛也失去了因膝盖疼痛而缺阵的查尔斯·史密斯(Charles Smith)，卡尔·埃雷拉(Carl Herrera)也因腿筋问题只打了4分钟，他们被迫使用小阵容迎战对手。

多米尼克·威尔金斯(Dominique Wilkins)和埃利奥特轮流担任大前锋，随着比赛进入尾声，他们分别占据中锋和强力前锋的位置。

“他们用很小的阵容，但我们也能打这种比赛，”卡尔说道。“我本可以派上更大的阵容，但在比赛的这个阶段（下半场结束前），我认为我们也可以让德特勒夫（施伦普）打中锋。”

比赛进行得异常缓慢，由于电路故障，比赛时钟和投篮时钟都停止了计时，比赛时间被拉长了许多。现场15,027名观众很少为比赛欢呼或喝彩。

“这是一场没有时钟的丑陋比赛，”卡尔说道。“我认为这是我第一次打没有时钟的比赛，我们上半场最后两分钟没有时钟。这场比赛完全没有马刺队的风格。”

马刺队以41%的投篮命中率再次险些刷新球队单场最低得分，最后两回合仅得到4分。

超音速队的投篮命中率更低，他们仅以39%的命中率结束了比赛。但他们在篮板球上以46-38领先对手，并且比马刺队多出手8次。

“我认为他们打得很好，”纳特·麦克米兰(Nate McMillan)说道。“我们知道没有大个子打比赛是什么感觉。肖恩在季前赛中就缺阵了。那感觉并不好。”

点击查看原文：Spurs' small lineup hangs with Sonics

Spurs’ small lineup hangs with Sonics

Seattle’s scouting report likely read the same as those of previous Spurs opponents - take advantage of the middle, double and crowd Sean Elliott. The SuperSonics won, 87-75, sending San Antonio to a 1-4 record, but the game didn’t seem to turn out quite the way Seattle anticipated.

David Robinson was again absent but Greg Anderson held his own inside, grabbing eight rebounds and blocking six shots.

“He played fine, but I thought they let them beat up on Shawn (Kemp) quite a bit. The underdog will usually get the calls,” Sonics coach George Karl said. “Right now, just about any home team can win, no team in the NBA, possibly excepting Chicago, is really playing that well.”

The Spurs, hustling all night, finally fell because they couldn’t hit shots and misssed 10 of 25 free throws.

Karl noted that the victory, though so early in the season, could prove immensely important.

“This could wind up giving us the homecourt advantage in the playoffs,” he said, referring to the probable battle for playoff position once the Spurs return to full strength.

The Spurs, who also wound up playing without Charles Smith (out with a sore knee) and getting just four minutes from Carl Herrera because of hamstring problems, threw small lineups at the visitors.

Dominique Wilkins and Elliott took turns at the power forward slot, as the game wound down they occupied the center and power positions.

“They went very small but we can play that game, too,” Karl said. “I could have gone bigger but at that stage of the game (late in second half) I think we could have played Detlef (Schrempf) in the pivot.”

The game crawled along, huge minutes played with the game and shot clocks off due to electrical failures. The 15,027 in attendance rarely was moved to applause or cheers.

“This was an ugly game without the clock,” Karl said. “I think this is the first game I’ve played without a clock, we went about the last two minutes of the first half without it. This game just didn’t have a San Antonio feel to it.”

The Spurs, hitting 41 percent of their shots, again narrowly missed matching the franchise low output, scoring four points on their last two possessions.

The Sonics’ accuracy was worse - they put down 39 percent of their tries. But they outrebounded the Spurs, 46-38, and took eight more shots.

“I thought they played real well,” Nate McMillan said. "We know what it’s like to go in without your big man. Shawn was out during the preseason games. It’s no fun.

By Glenn Rogers Express-News Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-09, By Jerry Briggs Express-News Staff Writer

超音速队构成了难以逾越的屏障——马刺队在最近对阵西雅图的比赛中继续挣扎

星期五晚上，马刺队的痛苦与折磨仍在继续，他们差一分钟就创下了球队得分最低的纪录，以 87-75 输给了西雅图超音速队。主办方本应该向出席阿拉莫圆顶球场的 15,027 名球迷分发头痛药粉的。NBA 中得分最低的球队再次失利，本赛季第五次得分低于 80 分。

比赛还有一分钟结束时，伤病满营的马刺队——少了去年 59 胜的中西部赛区冠军阵容中的七名主力球员中的四名——才得到 68 分。

球队 71 分的最低得分纪录岌岌可危。

只有科里·亚历山大命中几个罚球和一个三分球以及文尼·德尔内格罗在最后 60 秒跳投得分才使圣安东尼奥避免在无用功中被载入史册。

马刺队控球后卫埃弗里·约翰逊开玩笑说，上半场导致比赛延迟了几次的进攻时间和比赛时间的故障如果持续整场比赛的话可能会是有益无害的。

“我们本可以像在户外操场上打球一样，”约翰逊说。“不使用时钟。然后天黑的时候，每个人都回家，我们对得分有争议。然后我们就会大打出手。”

约翰逊的计划只有一个问题。由于缺少健康球员，马刺队可能在打斗中失利。由于他们的不幸，毫无疑问另一个人也会因伤倒下。

“我现在会对球迷说什么？”马刺队教练鲍勃·希尔问道，他的球队的场均得分是每场 78.4 分。“我会告诉他们，我们缺少四名主力球员，剩下的这些球员打得非常努力。如果今晚我们只是投进罚球，我们就会赢得比赛。”

马刺队在罚球线上苦苦挣扎，仅命中 25 次罚球中的 15 次。除此之外，圣安东尼奥队与表现平平的卫冕西部联盟冠军在其他统计类别中几乎平分秋色。

西雅图队命中 24 次罚球中的 21 次，似乎并没有对一支在没有受伤中锋大卫·罗宾逊和其他三名球员的情况下比赛的球队表现出太多热情或情绪。

大前锋查尔斯·史密斯是最近遭遇最严重伤病的球员。他在比赛前出现在圆顶球场，抱怨他的长期疼痛的右膝疼痛，也就是周三晚上在华盛顿 96-86 输球时减慢了他脚步的那条腿。

“他疼痛难忍，所以我们决定让他回家，让他远离，”马刺队教练鲍勃·希尔说。

在大多数情况下，受伤的球员穿着便服坐在替补席上。这位前锋的下落直到上半场后期才成为一个谜。

希尔否认了球员与管理层之间有任何紧张关系。

“不，不，不，”希尔说。“绝对没有。”

前锋肖恩·坎普带领超音速队在 19 分和 13 个篮板的帮助下以 3-2 获胜。控球后卫加里·佩顿得到 16 分、7 个篮板和 7 次助攻。前锋德特勒夫·施拉姆夫得到 16 分，替补后卫克雷格·埃洛得到 11 分。

马刺队以 1-4 告负，肖恩·埃利奥特得到 15 分，抢下 11 个篮板。约翰逊得到 15 分，送出 7 次助攻。多米尼克·威尔金斯贡献了 12 分，右膝和脚踝疼痛的德尔内格罗得到 11 分。

中锋凯迪拉克·安德森平了职业生涯最高得分，得到 6 次盖帽，抢下 8 个篮板。在第一节，他还被超音速队后卫赫西·霍金斯手肘打中鼻子，导致他被送回替补席。他返回球场打了 36 分钟，鼻梁上贴着绷带，鼻子被割伤了。

“我希望没人对我们下诅咒，”安德森谈到球队的遭遇时说。“我不认为有人做错了什么。现在很艰难。”

因腿筋拉伤而一瘸一拐的大前锋卡尔·埃雷拉仅在上半场打了 4 分钟，然后没有重新上场。如果这还不够，鲜有出场的菲律宾小前锋蒙蒂·威廉姆斯在第四节因胃病——是生理病，不是最终得分——去了更衣室。

“当事情变得糟糕时，它就变得糟糕了，”威尔金斯说，他在职业生涯的 14 年中一直担任小前锋，在对抗超音速队的比赛中担任大前锋。“我们正在努力，尽力而为。人们必须认识到，我们有很多受伤的人，我们的许多其他人都在带伤比赛。”

马刺队在第一节比赛时进攻时间的时钟不起作用，落后 24-15，再也没有恢复过来。约翰逊不想大做文章，只是说，“它伤害了我们，有一点。”

裁判们修理了进攻时间时钟，但在上半场最后 91 秒比赛时间时钟闪烁着熄灭时，他们惊呆了。公共播音员斯坦·凯利大声喊着剩余的时间，让球员们知道还剩多少时间。

莫里斯·戈恩拍摄的照片

马刺队的科里·亚历山大在星期五晚上超越超音速队的内特·麦克米兰投篮。

点击查看原文：Sonics too sound of a barrier - Spurs continue to struggle in latest loss against Seattle

Sonics too sound of a barrier - Spurs continue to struggle in latest loss against Seattle

The pain and suffering continued for the Spurs on Friday night when they came within a minute of establishing a franchise-low for scoring in an 87-75 loss to the Seattle SuperSonics. Promoters should have passed out headache powder to the 15,027 fans in attendance at the Alamodome. The lowest-scoring team in the NBA did it again, falling below the 80-point level for the fourth time in five outings this season.

With a minute to go, the injury-depleted Spurs - without four of their top seven players from last year’s 59-win Midwest Division championship squad - had only 68 points.

The franchise-record-low score of 71 in a game was in serious jeopardy.

Only a couple of free throws and a three-pointer by Cory Alexander and a jumper by Vinny Del Negro in the last 60 seconds saved San Antonio from going into the books for futility.

Spurs point guard Avery Johnson joked that a shot-clock and game-clock problem that forced a couple of delays in the first half might have been beneficial if it had lasted the entire game.

“We could do it like a outdoor playground game,” Johnson said. “Don’t use a clock. Then when it gets pitch dark, everyone goes home and we dispute the score. Then we get into a tussle.”

There would be only one problem with Johnson’s plan. With the lack of healthy bodies, the Spurs would probably lose the tussle. And with their luck, someone else would undoubtedly go down with another injury.

“What would I say to the fans right now?” asked Spurs coach Bob Hill, whose team is averaging 78.4 points per game. “I’d tell them that we haven’t got four of our top guys and the guys we have left are playing awfully hard. If we just make our free throws tonight, we’re in the game.”

The Spurs struggled at the foul line, hitting only 15 of 25 attempts. Other than that, San Antonio played the listless defending Western Conference champions on almost even terms in other statistical categories.

Seattle, which converted 21 of 24 free throws, didn’t seem to have much fire or emotion against a team playing without injured center David Robinson and three others.

Power forward Charles Smith was the latest and most serious casualty. He showed up at the dome before the game complaining of pain in his chronically sore right knee, the same one that slowed him in the Spurs’ 96-86 loss Wednesday night at Washington.

“He was in a lot of pain so we just decided to send him home so he could stay off of it,” Spurs coach Bob Hill said.

In most cases, injured players sit on the bench in street clothes. The forward’s whereabouts were a mystery until late in the first half.

Hill denied that there was any tension between the player and management.

“No, no, no,” Hill said. “Absolutely not.”

Forward Shawn Kemp led the Sonics, who improved to 3-2, with 19 points and 13 rebounds. Point guard Gary Payton added 16 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. Forward Detlef Schrempf contributed 16 points and guard Craig Ehlo added 11 off the bench.

For the Spurs, who fell to 1-4, Sean Elliott scored 15 points and pulled down 11 rebounds. Johnson scored 15 points and passed for seven assists. Dominique Wilkins contributed 12 and Del Negro, playing on a sore knee and ankle, had 11.

Center Cadillac Anderson tied a career-high with six blocked shots and pulled down eight rebounds. He also took an elbow to the nose in the first quarter from Sonics guard Hersey Hawkins that sent him to the bench. He returned to play 36 minutes with a bandage over the bridge of the nose, which was cut.

“I hope nobody has a curse on us,” said Anderson, talking about the team’s misfortune. “I don’t think anybody did anything wrong. It’s rough right now.”

Power forward Carl Herrera, hobbled by a strained hamstring, played only four minutes in the first half and then didn’t get back into the game. If that weren’t enough, little-used small forward Monty Williams went to the dressing room in the fourth quarter, sick to his stomach - from an illness, not the final score.

“When it goes bad, it goes bad,” said Wilkins, a small forward during his 14-year NBA career who started against the Sonics at power forward. “We’re working hard, trying to do the best we can. People have to realize we have a lot of people hurt and a lot of our other people are playing with injuries.”

The Spurs, playing on an end of the court in the first period where the shot clock was not working, fell behind 24-15 and never recovered. Johnson didn’t want to make a big deal out of it, saying only, “It hurt us, a little.”

Officials fixed the shot clock, but then were stunned when the game clock blinked off for the final 91 seconds of the first half. Public address announcer Stan Kelly was calling out the seconds remaining to let the players know how much time was left.

PHOTO BY MORRIS GOEN

The Spurs’ Cory Alexander goes over the top of the Sonics’ Nate McMillan for a shot Friday night.

By Jerry Briggs Express-News Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-09, By Dan Cook

评论家找到了新弹药 - 罗宾逊的休赛期

无论你有多受欢迎，取得了多大的成就，总会有批评家渴望发现你的阴暗面，并指出你能找到的任何负面因素。大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)也不例外，他毫无疑问是马刺队历史上最伟大的中锋。

大卫是一位优雅的人，无论是在球场上还是场下，他都是一位绅士。但对于一些人来说，他在季后赛中的失望表现一直是对他的一种批评。

人们抱怨说：“他太友善了，不够强势。我们需要一个能在篮板下变得凶狠的人。”

多年来，我收到过不少长信，信中解释了如果马刺队想要赢得 NBA 冠军，大卫应该用他的肘部多么凶狠地造成多少伤害。

现在这位巨人在场边，因为背部疼痛而无法上场，他已经接受过许多医生的检查和治疗，现在又有一波新的批评声指向了罗宾逊。

这些批评以各种问题形式出现，例如：“为什么大卫不在休赛期照顾好他的背痛？”以及“为什么他要等到赛季开始前几周才认真考虑治疗？”

好吧，这就是我在这里的原因 - 帮助解答这些问题。

稍微回顾一下，罗宾逊不应该参加上一次奥运会，因为他是在亚特兰大奥运会前不久弄伤了背部。然而，以背部疼痛为借口退出奥运会，而此时背部看起来很健康，无疑会引发另一波批评。

此外，他很想参加比赛，并认为随之而来的漫长的休赛期可以解决他所有的健康问题。

但后来他出现了疝气，这又给他带来了更多的疼痛。这种新的疾病似乎比背痛更需要优先处理。

我从未经历过这样的撕裂，所以我不知道疝气还是背痛更疼。但如果我同时患有这两种疾病，我会先解决疝气问题，就像大卫所做的那样。

手术后，至少有一位医生建议他多休息，这是疝气手术后的常规处方。

所以罗宾逊休息了 - 同时他的背部越来越严重。

还有必要继续说下去吗？

简而言之，这位巨人的假期并不愉快。

现在又出现了更多的问题。他回来后能有多好？能坚持多久？

当他最终被介绍到马刺队的首发阵容中时，他不会像从药物康复中心休假六周后回来那样，受到雷鸣般的掌声。但当地球迷会给他热烈的欢迎。

然而，他不能过早回归，然后被迫再次长时间缺席。没有罗宾逊，马刺队很难进入季后赛。

当威尔·珀杜(Will Perdue)带着他修复好的拇指回归时，情况应该会好转，如果珀杜不试图用那只疼痛的爪子做太多事情的话。

他们说，在大多数职业体育运动中，你必须带着伤痛比赛。

是的，但到底要承受多少疼痛？

这让我们想起了已故的斯图·吉布森(Stu Gibson)，他是一位老朋友，一位全能运动员，在晚年成为了一名职业摔跤手和推广人。

斯图曾经问我：“你知道什么比任何其他疼痛都更让人痛苦吗？”

我扮演一个老实人，回答说：“不，什么最痛？”

斯图回答说：“任何让你感到痛苦的东西——牙痛、腿骨折，无论你有什么疼痛。”

你知道吗？他说得对。

但现在我开始怀疑疝气和背痛同时出现的感觉。我们得问问大卫。

点击查看原文：Critics find new ammo - Robinson's off-season

Critics find new ammo - Robinson’s off-season

It doesn’t matter how popular you are or how great you’ve become, there will always be critics eager to uncover your dark side and point out whatever negatives can be found. And so it is with David Robinson, without doubt the greatest center the Spurs have ever had.

David is a class act, a gentleman both on and off the court. But that was always the knock on him from some following

disappointments in the playoffs.

The complaints were, “He’s too nice, not aggressive enough. We need somebody who can get mean under the boards.”

Over the years, more than a few lengthy letters have hit my desk explaining just how mean and how much damage David should inflict with his elbows if the Spurs are to ever win an NBA title.

Now that the big man is out, sidelined by an aching back that’s been tested and treated by many medics, a new wave of criticism is being directed Robinson’s way.

It comes in the form of questions like: “Why didn’t David take care of his sore back during the off-season?” and “Why did he wait until just a few weeks before this season started to get serious about a cure?”

Well, that’s what I’m here for -to help with answers.

A little hindsight says Robinson never should have played in the Olympics this last time around since he hurt his back just before the Atlanta Games. However, begging off from that honor with a sore back that looks healthy would have no doubt raised a new wave of criticism.

Besides, he wanted to play and figured the long off-season that followed would take care of all his health problems.

But then came the hernia that poked more pain into his body. That new ailment seemed to require priority over the sore back.

Never having had a rupture like that, I have no idea which would be more painful, a hernia or an aching back. But if I had both at the same time, I’d get the hernia fixed first, just as David did.

Following the operation, at least one doctor suggested a lot of rest, the usual prescription after hernia surgery.

So Robinson rested - while his back got worse.

Is there any need to continue?

Simply put, the big man did not have a great vacation.

Now come more questions. How good can he be when he returns and for how long?

When he finally is introduced in the Spurs’ starting lineup, Robinson won’t receive the thunderous applause he would get had he been off for six weeks in some drug rehab center. But local fans will give him a warm greeting.

It’s imperative, however, he doesn’t return too soon and be forced out again for a long time. Without Robinson, the Spurs would have a terrible time just making the playoffs.

When Will Perdue returns with his mended thumb, things should get better, if Perdue doesn’t try to do too much with that sore paw.

They say that in most pro sports you’ve got to play with pain.

Yeah, but just how much pain?

That takes us back to the late Stu Gibson, an old friend and an all-around athlete who late in life became a pro wrestler and promoter here.

Stu once asked me, “Do you know what hurts more than anything else you can have?”

Playing the straight man, I answered, “No, what hurts the most?”

Stu replied, “Whatever hurts you at the time - a toothache, a broken leg, whatever pain you’ve got.”

You know something? He was right.

But now I’m wondering about a hernia and a backache at the same time. We’ll have to ask David.

By Dan Cook, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-10, By Jerry Briggs, Spurs Beat

亚历山大希望用比赛来证明自己

有时，控球后卫科里·亚历山大(Cory Alexander) 会想，如果他在另一支NBA球队，在另一个城市，生活会是什么样。他说他热爱马刺队以及圣安东尼奥球迷的支持。

但他想知道，作为一支球队中第四控卫，在一个只有三个控卫轮换的阵容中，即使这支球队在开局糟糕后注定会赢很多比赛，他是否能比现在更快乐。

或者，如果他在一支不被期望赢得太多比赛的球队中经常上场，他会更喜欢并且进步更快吗？

来自弗吉尼亚州的亚历山大，这位二年级球员承认，在他职业生涯的某个未来时刻，他希望成为首发。在这方面，他和联盟中每个首轮选秀权都一样。

但他表示，试图给何时获得大放异彩的机会设定时间表是徒劳的。

“我永远不知道情况会怎样，”亚历山大说，他是1995年选秀大会上的第29顺位。 “我今天可能在这里，明天就可能穿着别人的球衣。我正在努力成为一名篮球的学习者，并尽我所能帮助球队。我知道我身后有一位非常棒的老将控卫（艾弗里·约翰逊）。”

尽管如此，作为一位前高中和大学明星，对他来说，坐在板凳上观看比赛是一件很痛苦的事情。

“这非常困难，有时也很沮丧，”他说。 “有时我会问自己，我宁愿在一支优秀的球队里坐板凳，还是在一支输球的球队里上场时间更多。这里面存在着平衡。（但）我是一名球员。我喜欢做的事情，无论是在一场非正式比赛中，还是在任何地方。”

目前，亚历山大很高兴自己比上个赛季上场时间更多。在他的新秀赛季，他只在球队82场比赛中的60场比赛中出场，由于教练的决定，他缺席了17场比赛。

作为一名拥有得分手自信心的控球后卫，即使在他的首个赛季中作为替补球员有限的上场时间里，他也创造了球队新秀三分球命中率的纪录，达到39.4%。

本赛季初，亚历山大——球队中最年轻的球员，23岁——已经参加了每一场比赛。他在季前赛的表现促使教练们重新考虑他们的三人轮换阵容计划，这个阵容包括约翰逊、维尼·德尔·尼格罗和维恩·麦克斯韦尔。

由于缺乏健康的内线球员，在一些关键时刻，当教练想要在球场上布置一个更小、更快的阵容时，亚历山大发现自己身处激烈的比赛中。

“他比去年有了很大的进步，”马刺队助理教练汉克·伊根说。 “NBA的比赛与大学比赛完全不同。现在，他明白如何将我们融入进攻体系。他的无球防守也得到了提升。”

“此外，”伊根继续说道，“他知道什么时候该出手，什么时候不该出手——这些微妙的东西。他拥有技术。他只是在学习比赛。”

在前五场比赛中，亚历山大的场均上场时间为10.8分钟。尽管他的上场时间仍然有限，但他通常很好地利用了这段时间。他场均得到3.8分（投篮命中率为50%）、1.6次助攻和1.2次抢断。

“我不知道球迷或媒体是否知道，”亚历山大说。 “但我认为我的队友们欣赏我所做的一切。这就是最重要的。”

亚历山大只经历过一次糟糕的比赛，那是在上周五主场对阵西雅图的比赛中。他在上半场出现了几次失误，很快就被换下场。

但在周三对阵华盛顿的比赛中，亚历山大差点就完成了一个可能将失利变成胜利的进球。在球队落后6分，比赛还剩1分钟的情况下，他在马刺队篮下抢到一个边线球。子弹队拿回了球，最终以10分的优势获胜。

“就像那天晚上发生的一切一样，”亚历山大说。 “我们只差一步。”

亚历山大在赛季揭幕战对阵明尼苏达的比赛中出场了22分钟。然后在下一场比赛中出场了8分钟。然后是6分钟。然后是对阵华盛顿的12分钟。在明尼苏达的比赛中，他得到3分、5次助攻和3次抢断。两天后，他在对阵丹佛的比赛中几乎没有上场。

对于亚历山大来说，这是一段狂野的旅程，因为教练们正在努力找到如何在中锋大卫·罗宾逊、威尔·珀杜等球员受伤的情况下安排阵容。

“我不会说这是在刀尖上行走，”亚历山大说。 “你只需要上场去尽你的职责。你努力去做到他们要求你做的事情，并准备好他们在需要你的时候随时上场。”

点击查看原文：Alexander hopes to make point with play

Alexander hopes to make point with play

Sometimes, point guard Cory Alexander wonders what life would be like on another NBA team, in a different city. He said he loves the Spurs organization and the support of the fans in San Antonio.

But he wonders whether he could be happier than he is now, playing as the fourth guard in a three-guard rotation on a team that, despite a woeful start, is destined to win a lot of games.

Or, would he like it more and progress faster if he were playing regularly on a team that wasn’t expected to win as much?

Alexander, a second-year player from Virginia, admitted that at some future date in his career, he wants to be a starter. In that regard, he is like every first-round draft pick in the league.

But he said it’s futile to try and put a timetable on when he would like to be afforded the opportunity to make his big splash.

“I never know the situation,” said Alexander, the 29th pick in the 1995 draft. “I could be here today, and in someone else’s uniform tomorrow. I’m trying to be a student of the game and help this team any way I can. I know I’m playing behind a very good veteran point guard (in Avery Johnson).”

Still, as a former high school and college star, it’s hard for him to sit and watch.

“It’s very difficult and sometimes it’s frustrating,” he said. "Sometimes I pose the question of whether I’d rather sit for a good

team or play a lot for a losing team. There’s a balance there. (But) I’m a player. It’s what I like to do, whether it’s in a pickup game or anywhere."

For now, Alexander is happy to be playing more than he did last season. In his rookie year, he appeared in only 60 of the team’s 82 games, sitting out 17 by coach’s decision.

As a point guard with a scorer’s confidence, he established a franchise record for rookies with 39.4 percent shooting from three-point range, even in his limited, first-year role off the bench.

Early this season, Alexander -the team’s youngest player at 23 -has played in every game. His performance during the preseason prompted coaches to reconsider their plan for a three-guard rotation of Johnson, Vinny Del Negro and Vernon Maxwell.

And with the shortage of healthy big men, Alexander has found himself in the thick of the action at some crucial moments when the coaches have wanted a smaller, quicker lineup on the floor.

“He’s made a big improvement over last year,” Spurs assistant coach Hank Egan said. "The NBA game is so much different from the college game. Now, he understands how to get us in to our offense. He’s also improved his off-the-ball defense.

“Plus,” Egan continued, “he knows more about when and when not to shoot - the subtle things. He’s got the skills. He’s just learning the game.”

Through the first five games, Alexander is averaging 10.8 minutes. Even though his floor time has still been limited, he generally has made good use of it. He is averaging 3.8 points (on 50 percent shooting), 1.6 assists and 1.2 steals.

“I don’t know if the fans or the media know it,” Alexander said. “But I think my teammates appreciate what I’ve been able to do. That’s what counts.”

Alexander has endured only one poor outing, and that came Friday at home against Seattle. He made a few turnovers in the first half and earned a quick seat back on the bench.

But Alexander nearly made a play that could have turned the loss at Washington on Wednesday into a win. With his team down six and a minute left, he got his hand on an inbounds pass under the Spurs’ basket. The Bullets retrieved the deflection and went on to win by 10.

“It was just like everything (that) night,” Alexander said. “We were one step away.”

Alexander played 22 minutes on opening night at Minnesota. Then eight in the next game. Then six. Then 12 against Washington. In the Minnesota game, he produced three points, five assists and three steals. Two nights later, he barely played against Denver.

It’s been a wild ride for Alexander, as the coaches try to figure out how to play with injuries to centers David Robinson, Will Perdue and others.

“I wouldn’t say it’s life on the edge,” Alexander said. “You just go out there play your role. You try to do what they ask and be ready when they call for you.”

By Jerry Briggs, Spurs Beat, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-10, By Glenn Rogers Express-News Staff Writer

伤病缠身的马刺队将赴波特兰迎战开拓者，史密斯缺阵

马刺队又遇到了一个棘手的问题——大前锋查尔斯·史密斯(Charles Smith) 的未来状况。史密斯因右膝慢性疼痛，在周六早上训练开始前离开了圣安东尼奥大学，并表示他将缺阵一段时间，具体时间尚未确定。

“还没有确切的时间表，”史密斯说道，明显对膝伤带来的困扰感到沮丧。“这非常严重，因为伤病我甚至无法发挥出五成的实力。”

马刺队周六前往波特兰，俄勒冈州，并在今晚与开拓者队比赛。下一场比赛将在周一晚上于盐湖城对阵爵士队。

史密斯在1991-92赛季之前曾接受过右膝关节镜手术，仅出战了49场比赛。1993年12月7日，他进行了左膝关节镜手术，出战了43场比赛。

上赛季，他的右膝一直困扰着疼痛。

“虽然过去的几个赛季我一直在忍受着疼痛，但我没有抱怨过伤病，”他说。“但现在我必须决定下一步应该采取的措施。

“我将与（球队医生大卫）施密特和其他一些医生谈谈。我想看看我需要做什么。如果疼痛持续下去，我将不得不采取下一步行动。”

史密斯说，手术可能是一个选择。当被问及是否正在考虑退役时，他表示没有。

“我会问医生我的选择是什么，但我没有想过退役，”他说。“只是目前没有确切的时间表。”

史密斯本赛季将获得约370万美元的薪水，他的合同还有三年。目前尚不清楚合同将如何处理，也不清楚如果史密斯的回归可能性仍然不确定，球队是否可以从工资帽中获得一些减免。

马刺队目前的工资已经超过了2470万美元，只能签下最低薪资约27万美元的球员。

“我的目标是回到能够全力以赴比赛，并且不用担心下一天的状态，”他说。“现在，我可能今天打一场比赛，明天就无法上场，今天训练，明天就无法训练，这种情况不能再持续下去了。”

史密斯周六短暂地留在了圣安东尼奥大学。他与球队执行副总裁格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich) 和主教练鲍勃·希尔(Bob Hill) 交谈，然后站在一群队友的中间，告诉他们目前的状况。当会议结束时，球员们都拍了拍他的背。

“我只告诉他们我告诉你的这些，”史密斯说道。

波波维奇表示，史密斯将在周一进行膝盖的核磁共振和骨骼扫描。

“届时将再次评估他的状况，”波波维奇说道。“他的膝盖疼痛难忍，无法随队出行。”

波波维奇说，现在讨论马刺队是否会尝试引进另一名球员还为时尚早。

马刺队目前已经失去了大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson) 和威尔·珀迪(Will Perdue)。首发中锋格雷格·安德森(Greg Anderson) 在周五晚上马刺队输给超音速队的比赛中左手中指骨折，今晚的比赛可能无法上场。

大前锋卡尔·埃雷拉(Carl Herrera) 左大腿后侧肌肉拉伤，在对阵西雅图的比赛中只打了4分钟。

主教练鲍勃·希尔拒绝讨论史密斯的状况。球员们被严格要求不要谈论此事。

史密斯显然对自己何时能回归感到不确定。

“我的律师和格雷格将处理我合同上的任何事宜，”史密斯说。“我对球队只有最大的尊重，我当然没有受到任何回归比赛的压力。球队知道我能够打球，但底线是我现在无法打球。

“是的，我认为自己会回到球队，并在今年晚些时候帮助他们赢得冠军，但只有时间会证明一切。但是，我绝对不会排除对球队有利的任何选择。无论发生什么，波波维奇和我的律师都会解决这个问题。”

史密斯说，他将在圣安东尼奥待“接下来的几天”，他在西雅图比赛之前离开了阿拉莫圆顶球馆，膝盖的疼痛让他无法上场。

“我昨晚情绪崩溃了，”史密斯说道。“这对我来说是一个现实的检验。我在（周五早上的轻量级训练）投篮训练中遇到了困难，我告诉自己，这是我必须面对的事情。”

点击查看原文：Already-limping Spurs must meet Blazers without Smith

Already-limping Spurs must meet Blazers without Smith

The Spurs have yet another quandary to wrestle with - the future status of power forward Charles Smith. Smith, suffering with chronic pain in his right knee, left the gym at the University of the Incarnate Word just before practice started Saturday morning and indicated he would be out for an undetermined period of time.

“There is no timetable,” Smith said, obviously upset with the problems his knee is causing him. “This is very serious. I can’t even give 50 percent because of the injury.”

The Spurs traveled to Portland, Ore., on Saturday and will play the Trail Blazers tonight, with the Utah Jazz scheduled for Monday night in Salt Lake City.

Smith had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee before the 1991-92 season and played in only 49 games. He had the same surgery on his left knee Dec. 7, 1993, and played in 43 games.

He was bothered by pain in the right knee all last season.

“I haven’t complained about injuries the past couple of seasons even though I have played in a lot of pain,” he said. "But now I have to decide the proper steps that I have to take.

“I’m going to talk to (team doctor David) Schmidt and some other doctors. I want to see what I have to do. If the pain continues after that, I’ll have to take the next step.”

Smith said surgery could be an option. Asked if he is considering retirement, he said no.

“I’ll ask the doctors what my options are, but I’m not thinking about retirement,” he said. “There is just no time frame on this.”

Smith will earn about $3.7 million this season and has another three years left on his contract. It is not clear how the contract will be handled or whether the team can get some relief from the salary cap if Smith’s return possibilities remain uncertain.

The Spurs are well past the $24.7 million cap right now and can only sign players for the minimum salary of about $270,000.

“My goal is to get back to where I can play hard and not worry about the next day,” he said. “Now I can play one game and not really the next, practice one day and not the next, and that can’t continue.”

Smith stayed briefly at Incarnate Word on Saturday. He spoke to executive vice president Gregg Popovich and Coach Bob Hill, then stood in the middle of a ring of his teammates and told them of the situation. The players patted him on the back when the meeting broke up.

“I just told them the same things I’ve told you,” Smith said.

Popovich said that Smith would have an MRI and a bone scan on the knee on Monday.

“His status will be evaluated again at that time,” Popovich said. “His knee is too painful for him to accompany the team on this trip.”

Popovich said it is too early to discuss whether or not the Spurs would try to bring in another player.

The Spurs already are without David Robinson and Will Perdue. Starting center Greg Anderson suffered a fractured ring finger on his left hand during the Spurs’ loss to the Sonics on Friday night and is doubtful for tonight’s game.

Power forward Carl Herrera has a strained left hamstring and played only four minutes against Seattle.

Coach Bob Hill declined to discuss the Smith situation. The players were under strict instructions not to talk about it.

Smith certainly seemed far from certain about when he could return.

“My attorney and Gregg will deal with any of my contract matters,” Smith said. "I have nothing but great respect for the organization and I certainly haven’t had any pressure to return to play. The team knows I can play but the bottom line is I can’t play right now.

“Yes, I do see myself being on the team and helping them win a title later in the year, but only time will tell. But, I’m not at all ruling out what is best for the team. Whatever happens, Pop and my lawyer will work that out.”

Smith, who said he would be in San Antonio for “the next several days,” left the Alamodome before the Seattle game, the knee too troublesome to allow him to play.

“I was an emotional wreck last night,” Smith said. "This has been a reality check for me. I struggled in the shootaround (a light practice Friday morning) and I told myself that this is something I have to face right now.

By Glenn Rogers Express-News Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-10, By Glenn Rogers, Around the NBA

马刺的处境并非看起来那么糟糕

你可能需要一把镐头和十足的决心，但你仍然可以在马刺的矿井中找到一条银脉。圣安东尼奥在头五场比赛中输掉了四场，但试想一下，如果你被判处本赛季剩下的时间都要为森林狼、掘金和骑士队加油。

马刺队正在适应改变的进攻方式，一些新面孔的加入以及一些老将的缺席，他们与平庸和低于平庸的球队缠斗。他们脑海中一定闪过这样一个念头，那就是当大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)和威尔·珀杜(Will Perdue)回归后，他们会及时提升到顶级球队的更高水平。

当弗农·马克斯韦尔(Vernon Maxwell)和多米尼克·威尔金斯(Dominique Wilkins)回归到他们预定的替补角色，以及常规首发球员找到更多空间来释放他们的进攻武器时，球队可能会发生翻天覆地的变化。

球队还能赢得50场或更多比赛吗？嗯，如果他们能找到一两种方法赢得几场比赛，直到大卫回来，他们就能做到。

假设罗宾逊要到11月下旬才能回归，也就是11月27日对阵波特兰的比赛。球队将剩下68场比赛。如果他们的战绩是3胜11负，他们将需要赢得剩余比赛的70%才能达到50胜，也许可以获得第五个季后赛席位。

这有很多假设，但马刺队在过去两个赛季中赢得的比赛超过了他们比赛总数的70%。

不幸的是，查尔斯·史密斯(Charles Smith)膝盖的伤病可能是致命的。如果他无法回归，而卡尔·埃雷拉(Carl Herrera)继续因腿筋受伤和整体表现不佳而挣扎，球队将被迫再次在罗宾逊身边轮换珀杜和一名小前锋。这在去年的常规赛中奏效了，但在季后赛期间，任何球队的薄弱环节都会很快被发现。

• 金钱：我不知道你怎么样，但我发现朱万·霍华德(Juwan Howard)签署了一份价值超过1亿美元的合同，本赛季他将获得975万美元，而克里斯·韦伯(Chris Webber)将获得800万美元，这让我难以置信。

奇怪的是，罗宾逊本赛季的总收入为6600万美元，其中995万美元来自本赛季。即使是霍华德和韦伯也必须意识到，他们是马刺中锋的绝佳补充，但他们肯定还没有，也许永远不会达到他的水平。

马刺队最好感谢肖恩·坎普(Shawn Kemp)脑海中那些喜怒无常、对合同不满的想法没有出现在罗宾逊的脑海中。

• 威慑力：亚特兰大老鹰队正在发现，半個罗宾逊胜过没有。

他们在休赛期签下了进攻乏善可陈但防守凶悍的迪肯贝·穆托姆博(Dikembe Mutumbo)，并且已经收获了回报。

老鹰队在另一场比赛中击败了超音速队，主要是因为穆托姆博威慑了西雅图的进攻球员。

“我记得超音速队去年来到奥姆尼的时候，他们对我们想做什么就做什么，”史蒂夫·史密斯(Steve Smith)说道。“但这一次，迪肯贝在后面，这造成了巨大的区别。他产生了巨大的影响（即使只抢到一个篮板球）。”

老鹰队也变得更加放松，投篮命中率超过50%，从而击败了超音速队。

• 球迷支持？如果教练无法让球队打出斗志，那就让球迷来做吧。

波士顿凯尔特人在与印第安纳步行者队的比赛中，听到了弗利特中心球迷的嘘声，并且对此有所回应。凯尔特人队表现毫无兴趣，上半场落后了26分。他们在中场休息时被嘘下场。

他们发红的耳朵让血液流动加快，他们以38-8的比分反超，最终以94-84获胜。毫无头绪的步行者队在下半场只得到26分，比NBA最低纪录少了2分。

迪诺·拉贾(Dino Radja)说：“被自己的球迷嘘是一种糟糕的感觉。他们发出了一个明确的信号，让我们在下半场至少做点什么。我从未见过我们如此拼搏。”

联盟其他球场的球迷可能应该注意这一点。

• 事情总是很奇怪：所以你仍然认为经纪人和球队不会在选秀或自由球员时期聚在一起，互相勾结，威胁要确保一名球员被送到他们想要的球队吗？

这里还有一个涉及湖人队的例子，他们从奥兰多引进了沙奎尔·奥尼尔(Shaquille O’Neal)，并在与弗拉德·迪瓦茨(Vlade Divac)的交易中从夏洛特得到了科比·布莱恩特(Kobe Bryant)。

黄蜂队不得不以第13顺位选中布莱恩特。显然，科比的经纪人阿恩·特勒姆(Arn Tellem)说服了科比和科比的父母给篮网队打电话，说服他们不要用第8顺位选中科比。

特勒姆坚持认为，科比只会在湖人队打球，他甚至在迪瓦茨威胁要退役而不是离开洛杉矶前往夏洛特时，也坚持了这一要求。

布莱恩特说，如果交易失败，他当然会为黄蜂队打球，但这与6月份特勒姆在电话里对一名记者大声喊叫时说的完全不同：“这是不可能的。他将成为湖人队的球员，这是他唯一效力的球队。他下滑了五个（选秀）顺位来做到这一点，来实现这一点。并且它将发生。”

• 时代在变：NBA正在庆祝成立50周年，因此有趣的是，湖人队中锋乔治·麦肯(George Mikan)在他效力的第二个赛季就获得了25000美元的最高薪水。湖人队的总工资为70000美元，整个联盟所有球员的工资总额不到500000美元。

点击查看原文：Spurs' situation not as bad as it seems

Spurs’ situation not as bad as it seems

You might need a pick ax and a lot of determination, but you can still find a vein of silver in the Spurs’ mine. San Antonio has lost four of its first five games, but imagine, if you will, being sentenced to rooting for the Wolves, Nuggets and Cavaliers for the rest of the season.

The Spurs, fussing with the need of a changed offense, some new faces and the absence of some old ones, tangled with mediocre and sub-mediocre teams. The one thought that must have fired in their brains was that they would, in time, be raised to a loftier level of top-level teams when David Robinson and Will Perdue return to action.

The team could change dramatically when Vernon Maxwell and Dominique Wilkins are back to their pre-ordained roles of support players and the usual starters find far more space to unleash their offensive weapons.

Can the team still win 50 or more games? Well, they could if they can just find a way or two to win a couple of games until David gets back.

Let’s say Robinson can’t get back until late November, the Nov. 27 game against Portland in the Alamodome. The team would have 68 games left. If they had a 3-11 record, they would have to win 70 percent of the remaining games to hit 50 and earn maybe the fifth playoff slot.

That’s a lot of ifs, but the Spurs have won more than 70 percent of their battles in each of the last two seasons.

The potentially lethal wound, unfortunately, has been delivered by the pain in Charles Smith’s knee. If he can’t return and Carl Herrera continues to be hobbled by a bad hamstring and generally poor play, the team will be forced again to rotate Perdue and a small forward in and out of the spot next to Robinson. That worked last year during the regular season, but the weak link in any team quickly will be discovered during playoff time.

-Dollars and cents: I don’t know about you, but I find it mind boggling that Juwan Howard has signed a contract worth more than $100 million, and that he will earn $9.75 million and Chris Webber will make $8 million this season.

The oddness comes when Robinson’s figures total $66 million and $9.95 million this season. Even Howard and Webber have to realize that they would be wonderful complementary pieces to the Spurs center but are certainly, not yet, perhaps not ever, on his level.

The Spurs best be more than thankful that the moody, contract-unhappy thoughts that wander through Shawn Kemp’s head don’t drift through Robinson’s.

-Intimidation factor: The Atlanta Hawks are discovering that half a Robinson is better than none.

They signed the offensively non-existent but defensively ominous Dikembe Mutumbo during the off-season and already are reaping benefits.

The Hawks beat the Sonics the other night, primarily because Mutombo deterred the Seattle attackers.

“I remember when the Sonics came to the Omni last year, and they did anything they wanted with us,” said Steve Smith. "But this time

Dikembe was back there, and that made a huge difference. He had a great impact (if only one rebound)."

The Hawks also became loose and relaxed enough to hit more than 50 percent of their shots to down the Sonics.

-Crowd support? If the coach can’t whip a team into fighting shape, then let the fans do it.

The Boston Celtics heard and heeded the Fleet Center boo birds during their tangle with the Indiana Pacers. Boston, playing with little or no interest, fell behind by 26 points in the first half. They were booed off the floor during intermission.

Their reddened ears energized the blood flow, and they rallied with a 38-8 run to win 94-84. The nonplussed Pacers scored 26 points in the second half, two shy of the NBA record low.

Said Dino Radja: “It’s a terrible feeling to get booed by our fans. They sent a clear message to come out (in the second half) and at least do something. I never saw us hustle like that.”

Fans in other arenas around the league might take heed.

-Funny how things work: So you still think that agents and teams don’t gather and finagle and threaten to make sure a player goes to a desired team during the draft or free-agent time?

Here’s another one involving the Lakers, who lured Shaquille O’Neal from Orlando and landed Kobe Bryant from Charlotte in the Vlade Divac trade.

The Hornets had to draft Bryant at No. 13. Apparently Kobe’s agent, Arn Tellem, persuaded Kobe and Kobe’s mother and father to call the Nets to convince them not to take Bryant with the No. 8 pick.

Tellem insisted that Bryant would play only for the Lakers, a demand he hammered even when Divac threatened to retire rather than leave La-La-Land for Charlotte.

Bryant says sure he would have played for Charlotte if the deal had fallen through, but that’s plenty different from June, when Tellem shouted at a reporter over the phone, “That’s an impossibility. He is going to be a Laker, and that’s the only team he’s playing for. He went down five (draft) spots to do this, to make this happen. And it will happen.”

-Times do change: The NBA is celebrating its 50th anniversary so it’s interesting to note that in his second season, Lakers center George Mikan had the highest salary at $25,000. The Lakers team payroll totalled $70,000 and all player salaries throughout the league totaled less than $500,000.

By Glenn Rogers, Around the NBA, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-11, By Jerry Briggs Express-News Staff Writer

卫冕冠军马刺被开拓者狙击

俄勒冈州，波特兰 - 周日晚上，马刺队仅有 10 名球员造访玫瑰体育馆。他们的首发中锋凯迪拉克·安德森左手无名指戴着夹板。首发得分后卫文尼·德尔·内格罗膝盖和脚踝酸痛。包括全明星中锋大卫·罗宾逊在内的其他四名球员因伤缺席比赛。

上赛季取得 59 场胜利的马刺队已经变成这样，他们在新年伊始的六场比赛中 1 胜 5 负，最近一场比赛以 81-94 负于波特兰开拓者队。

马刺队拼尽全力，尽己所能，在开拓者队三节结束前的得分均保持领先，但开拓者队四节拿下比赛，战绩提升为 4 胜 3 负。

“我们努力了一段时间，”马刺队前锋肖恩·艾利奥特说。“我们下半场再次遇到了麻烦。我们在输掉的比赛中都是半场后出现问题的。随着比赛进行，对方球队消耗了我们的体力。他们不断向我们施压。”

马刺队今晚将在盐湖城客场对阵犹他爵士队，结束为期两场的客场之旅。马刺队教练鲍勃·希尔只能寄希望于球队拿出对阵波特兰时一样的努力。

“我们在前三节比赛表现出色，”他说。“文尼因脚踝和膝盖伤势无法完成比赛。凯迪手指骨折了。在这种情况下，我们表现得非常出色。”

第四节开场后，开拓者队打出一波 15-5 的攻势，将马刺队拒之门外。替补中锋克里斯·达德利近距离补篮得分，帮助波特兰队以 86-69 领先。

圣安东尼奥队此后再无威胁。

“我们（进入更衣室）后，我首先说的是，我欣赏凯迪拼尽全力上场作战，”希尔说。“我们甚至向他传了几次球，因为他是空位的。但他接不住球。早上投篮训练的时候他也没能接住球。”

安德森是上赛季球队的第三中锋，上场 17 分钟。他 0 投 4 中得分挂零，拿下 3 个篮板，在用右手破坏对手向低位传球时抢断了 2 次球。

“第三节我受伤了一次，”他说。“我拼抢篮板球时撞到了别人。这感觉就像被人用枪打了一样。”

波特兰队改进过的后场发挥了主要的进攻火力。得分后卫 J.R. 里德为开拓者队拿下 23 分和 6 个篮板。控球后卫肯尼·安德森得到 17 分并送出 7 次助攻。

在马刺队一方，36 岁的前锋多米尼克·威尔金斯可能迎来了本赛季最出色的一场比赛，他在 35 分钟内拿下 18 分和 11 个篮板。他 20 投 9 中命中。他抢下的 7 个篮板全部来自进攻端。

弗农·麦克斯韦尔和蒙蒂·威廉姆斯替补上场为马刺队带来了提升，合砍 31 分。麦克斯韦尔得到 17 分，威廉姆斯作为马刺球员表现最好的一场比赛之一，7 投 6 中拿下 14 分。艾弗里·约翰逊得到 14 分，艾利奥特得到 12 分。

约翰逊对忍痛上场的队友们表示赞赏。

“我们可能要考虑在对阵爵士队的比赛中让这些家伙轮休，”约翰逊说。“如果我们对明年春天的情况有展望，我们可能需要让他们休息一下。11 月份不会有人赢得冠军。”

这是马刺队在 NBA 效力 21 年来，前六场比赛中最差的战绩。还有八次马刺队开局 2 胜 4 负。希尔说，只要球队全力以赴，他就能接受这样的挫折。

“如果我们能继续保持这样的强度，那么等到身体健康时，我们的表现会非常棒，”他说。“等我们健康的时候才行。我们遭受了许多伤病打击。”

波特兰队第三节以肯尼·安德森的三分球为结尾，打出一波 7-0 的攻势，迫使希尔叫暂停。

马刺队由威尔金斯拿下三分球还以颜色，但开拓者队拥有太多强兵悍将。他们在本节晚些时候又打出一波 11-4 的攻势。

克利夫·罗宾逊的三分球为这波攻势画上句号，帮助球队以 71-56 领先。

艾利奥特的上篮得分，麦克斯韦尔的两次罚球命中，以及约翰逊在本节最后 1 分 15 秒的另一次突破，帮助马刺队以 71-62 迫近分数。

第一节结束时落后 11 分的马刺队在第二节使用了小阵容，重新回到了争夺中。然而，开拓者队经受住了反扑，并且以 52-46 领先进入中场休息。

点击查看原文：Blazers latest foe to pick on Spurs

Blazers latest foe to pick on Spurs

PORTLAND, Ore. - The Spurs showed up Sunday night at the Rose Garden with only 10 players. Their starting center, Cadillac Anderson, wore a splint on a broken ring finger on his left hand. Vinny Del Negro, their starting shooting guard, had a sore knee and ankle. Four other players, including All-Star center David Robinson, were suffering from various injuries and didn’t make the trip.

This is what has become of the Spurs, a 59-win team last season, who nevertheless fell to 1-5 on the new year after dropping a 94-81 decision to the Portland Trail Blazers.

The Spurs played hard, battled with what they had, and managed to stay in the game for three quarters before the Blazers, who improved to 4-3, blew the game open.

“We scrapped for a while,” Spurs forward Sean Elliott said. "We just had trouble again in the second half. In the games we’ve lost,

we’ve done it after halftime. As time goes on, teams just wear us down. They just keep thowing bodies at us."

The Spurs will conclude a two-game road trip tonight in Salt Lake City against the Utah Jazz. Spurs coach Bob Hill can only hope that he gets the same effort that he did against Portland.

“We did a whale of a job for three quarters,” he said. “Vinny couldn’t finish the game with his ankle and his knee. Caddy had a chipped bone in his finger. Under the circumstances, we did a great job.”

The Trail Blazers put the Spurs away with a 15-5 run to start the fourth quarter. Reserve center Chris Dudley finished it off with a putback from close range to lift Portland into an 86-69 lead.

San Antonio never threatened after that.

“The first thing I said after we came in (to the dressing room) was that I appreciated Caddy going out there and playing like that,” Hill said. “We even threw him the ball a couple of times because he was open. But he couldn’t catch it. He couldn’t catch it this morning in the shootaround.”

Anderson, the team’s third center last season, played 17 minutes. He went scoreless on 0-of-4 shooting, pulled down three rebounds and notched a couple of steals when he deflected entry passes into the post - with his right hand.

“I hurt it once in the third quarter,” he said. “I was going for a rebound and I hit it on someone. It felt like I was shot with a gun.”

Portland’s revamped backcourt did most of the offensive damage. Off-guard J.R. Rider led the Trail Blazers with 23 points and six rebounds. Point guard Kenny Anderson scored 17 points and passed for seven assists.

For the Spurs, 36-year-old forward Dominique Wilkins enjoyed what might have been his best game of the season with 18 points and 11 rebounds in 35 minutes. He hit 9 of 20 from the field. Seven of his rebounds came on the offensive end.

Vernon Maxwell and Monty Williams gave the Spurs a lift off the bench, combining for 31 points. Maxwell scored 17 and Williams, in one of his best games as a Spur, added 14 on 6-of-7 shooting. Avery Johnson scored 14 and Elliott 12.

Johnson applauded his teammates who played with pain.

“We may have to think about sitting those guys out (against the Jazz),” Johnson said. “If we have vision for what we want to be next spring, we may need to give them a rest. Nobody wins any championships in November.”

The team’s record is the worst after six games in 21 years in the NBA. Eight other times, the Spurs started 2-4. Hill said he can accept the lumps as long as his team puts forth the effort.

“If we can continue to play with that kind of intensity then we’ll be awfully good when we get healthy,” he said. “That’s when we get healthy. We’ve just been hit with a lot of injuries all at once.”

Portland opened the third period with a 7-0 run, capped by a three-pointer by Kenny Anderson, that forced Hill to call time out.

The Spurs fought back with three buckets by Wilkins, but the Trail Blazers had too many weapons. They put together an 11-4 run later in the quarter.

Cliff Robinson’s three-pointer capped the spree and gave his team a 71-56 lead.

A layup by Elliott, two free throws by Maxwell and another drive by Johnson in the final 1:15 of the period pulled the Spurs to within 71-62.

The Spurs, trailing by 11 after one quarter, employed a small lineup in the second period and pulled themselves back into contention. The Blazers, however, withstood the rally and took a 52-46 lead into intermission.

By Jerry Briggs Express-News Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-12, By Glenn Rogers Express-News Staff Writer

伤病缠身的马刺前锋仍旧在寻找膝盖问题的答案

马刺队的强力前锋查尔斯·史密斯(Charles Smith)周一对于他恢复右膝无痛活动能力的可能性显得更加乐观。史密斯周一早上在圣安东尼奥接受了核磁共振和骨骼扫描，当时球队前往波特兰和犹他州。

“没有令人沮丧的结果，”史密斯说。“我只是在弄清楚自己需要做什么。没有令人震惊的消息。关于我的膝盖，并没有我不知道的事情。”

尽管如此，史密斯今天将离开圣安东尼奥，去咨询另一位医生。

“你总是想获得另一位医生的意见，”他说。“我尽快回到圣安东尼奥。我必须开始行动，开始做我需要做的事情来进行康复。”

由于膝盖问题，史密斯一直表现不稳定，他没有具体说明他将在圣安东尼奥缺席多长时间。

“我不会离开太久，”他说。“是的，我知道我今天听起来更加乐观，但当你了解情况时，你总是会感觉更加乐观。我只是不知道（膝盖）发生了什么。”

史密斯患有右膝滑膜炎，即关节内膜炎症。观察人士说，这是膝盖骨与骨骼摩擦造成的。

周六，史密斯暗示他可能会缺席一段时间。

“我能看到自己今年晚些时候为马刺队效力，努力赢得冠军，”他说。“但我必须完全康复。我不能带着50%的状态上场。我现在无法像以前那样帮助球队。”

史密斯说，目前手术并非真正可行的选择。

“我认为不会进行任何手术，”他说。“那将是遥远的事情。”

他说，困扰他比赛的不是疼痛，而是膝盖肿胀和随之而来的活动受限。

马刺队总经理格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich)表示，史密斯在周三阿拉莫穹顶对阵洛杉矶湖人队的比赛中出场的可能性很小。除此之外，他说他不想对此发表评论。

“他在今天早上和下午接受了检查，”波波维奇周一说道。“结果将在（周二）公布。”

波波维奇承认，关于史密斯的不明朗因素可能与伤病本身一样，正在伤害球队。他说，他不愿推测球队将如何应对。

“我不进行推测，”他说。“我没有水晶球，或者任何东西。显然，任何人都希望他们所有的球员都健康，并站在球场上。我们现在没有这样的情况。我们将尽力应对。”

史密斯还表示，他将为球队做最好的选择，并表示他的合同情况将由他的经纪人布里格姆·欧文斯(Brigham Owens)和马刺队之间协商解决。

欧文斯周一表示，他们没有讨论史密斯的合同，史密斯的合同还有四年时间，包括本赛季，本赛季将支付他大约370万美元。

“现在讨论合同情况还为时过早，”欧文斯说。

有报道称，马刺队已经向联盟申请了关于查克·珀森(Chuck Person)的伤病特例，珀森在背部手术后缺席比赛。如果联盟批准申请，马刺队将拥有大约100万美元的资金来签下一名自由球员。

但是，高质量的中锋要么已经与球队签约，要么正在欧洲打球。约翰·萨利(John Salley)仍然没有与球队签约，但马刺队有可能通过保证联盟最低薪资来吸引这位前公牛队球员。

布莱恩·威廉姆斯(Brian Williams)仍然没有签约，但他从快船队那里得到了超过400万美元的报价。

点击查看原文：Ailing Spurs forward still seeking answers for knee

Ailing Spurs forward still seeking answers for knee

Spurs power forward Charles Smith sounded considerably more upbeat Monday about his chances of regaining pain-free mobility in his right knee. Smith, who remained in San Antonio while the team traveled to Portland and Utah, had an MRI and bone scan performed on the knee Monday morning.

“There was nothing discouraging,” Smith said. “I’m just finding out what I have to do. There is no shocking news. There is nothing about the knee that I didn’t know before.”

Still, Smith will leave San Antonio today for another doctor’s opinion.

“You always want to get another opinion,” he said. “I’ll get back to San Antonio as soon as possible. I have to get cracking, start doing what I have to do to rehabilitate.”

Smith, who has played inconsistently because of the knee, did not specify how long he would be away from San Antonio.

“I won’t be gone too long,” he said. “Yes, I know I sound more encouraged today but you always feel more encouraged when you know what’s going on. I just didn’t know what was going on (with the knee).”

Smith is suffering from synovitis of the right knee, an inflammation of the lining of the joint. Observers have said that it’s bone rubbing against bone in the knee.

On Saturday, Smith implied he might be out for a lengthy period.

“I can see myself playing for the Spurs later in the year, trying to win a title,” he said. “But I have to be completely healthy. I can’t be out there giving 50 percent. I can’t help the team the way I am now.”

Smith said surgery is not really an option at this time.

“I doubt that there will be any surgery,” he said. “That would be way down the line.”

He said it wasn’t so much the pain as the swelling and resulting immobility of the knee that hampered his playing.

Spurs general manager Gregg Popovich said Smith’s status for the Los Angeles Lakers game Wednesday at the Alamodome was doubtful. Other than that, he said he didn’t want to comment on it.

“He underwent testing this morning and this afternoon,” Popovich said Monday. “The results won’t be communicated until (Tuesday).”

Popovich admitted that the uncertainty regarding Smith might be hurting the team as much as the injury itself. He said he didn’t want to speculate on how the team might deal with it.

“I don’t engage in speculation,” he said. “I don’t have a crystal ball, or anything. Obviously, anyone would like all their players healthy and out on the court. We don’t have that situation right now. We’ll have to deal with it the best we can.”

Smith also said that he would do what was best for the team and said his contract situation would be a matter between his agent, Brigham Owens, and the Spurs.

Owens said Monday that there are no discussions about Smith’s contract, which has four years left, including this season that will pay him about $3.7 million.

“It’s premature to discuss the contract situation,” Owens said.

There have been reports that the Spurs have applied to the league for an injury exception for Chuck Person, out after surgery on his back. If the league approves the application, the Spurs will have about $1 million to offer a free agent.

But quality big men have either signed with a team or are playing in Europe. John Salley still hasn’t signed with a team, but it is possible that the Spurs could lure the former Bull by guaranteeing the league minimum.

Brian Williams is still unsigned but he has a $4 million-plus offer on the table from the Clippers.

By Glenn Rogers Express-News Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1996-11-12, By Jerry Briggs Express-News Staff Writer

时光扭曲：湿滑的地板拯救了圣安东尼奥——犹他州的危险球场将比赛推迟至下个月

盐湖城——发起者称其为一场 NBA 比赛，但看上去更像是中学车间课。星期一晚上，球迷们在 Delta 中心的座位上等候犹他爵士队与圣安东尼奥马刺队的比赛开球。新的硬木地板上有工人跪在地上试图用电动砂纸修理 28 个翘起的地点。其他人员紧随其后，用吸尘器清理灰尘。
在经过 45 分钟的延误后，官员取消了比赛，“这是出于对球员安全的考虑”。自然地，球迷们发出了热烈的嘘声。爵士队的忠实拥趸知道马刺队正在受伤，而且将不得不在没有八名主力球员中的四名的情况下比赛。

他们想看到爵士队像五月份在西部决赛中那样暴打马刺队。相反，官员宣布比赛已重新安排在 12 月 15 日在 Delta 中心举行。

马刺队教练鲍勃·希尔说：“这是我们近段时间第一次休息。” “最大的突破在于这是针对犹他州。” 这可能会成为季后赛中打破平局的一场。根据我们球队的现状，今晚的比赛并不会很好。”

在周日晚上以 87 比 75 输给波特兰之后，马刺队以 1 比 5 的战绩进入了 Delta 中心。自训练营开始以来一直饱受伤病困扰，他们只带来了 10 名球员。

犹他州以 2 比 2 的战绩进入比赛，并满怀希望，对一个兵力不足的对手展开一场反应迟钝的进攻。马刺队没有全明星中锋大卫·罗宾逊、替补中锋威尔·珀杜、大前锋查尔斯·史密斯或小前锋查克·珀森。

至少，罗宾逊和珀杜有望在两支球队相遇进行补赛时重回阵容。

爵士队教练杰里·斯隆对球场（刚为新赛季安装）是否可能导致球员受伤的问题表示不屑。

斯隆说：“你在街上散步被汽车撞到的概率有多大？” “当然，任何人都可能受伤。可能是因为地板、因为有缺陷的鞋子，也可能是因为其他任何原因。”

斯隆承认，他本来更愿意让球队参加比赛。

“我有点老派，”他说，“当我是球员的时候，我们都在泥土地上打球。你想打球；你只要出去打就好了。”

Delta 中心维护人员周一下午注意到，爵士队公关办公室发布的消息称，地板各部分相交的地方抬高了约十六分之一英寸。

木地板的下侧有一条凹槽，塑料棒沿着地板的多个部分延伸。该新闻稿称，问题的原因已追溯到将木板部分固定在一起的一些塑料棒的相对孤立的故障。

取消比赛的决定可能使马刺队免于再次失利。事实证明，他们于周一晚上晚些时候登上了他们的包机，并计划于今晨返回家中。

马刺队接下来将在周三晚上迎战沙奎尔·奥尼尔和洛杉矶湖人队。

希尔说：“这立刻让我有点担心。”“但我确实认为他们在大多数地方做得很好。他们真的做到了。但后来有两个点——一个在他们端，另一个在我们端——你无法打磨，地板实在太不平整了。

“当你踩到其中一（部分）时，它就会松动。你可能会跌倒。”

随着比赛被取消，希尔和斯隆在中场的一次交流让一些媒体成员议论纷纷。

希尔说：“杰里说，‘我以前曾在比这更糟糕的球场上打过球。’” “我说，‘你打过的所有球场都比这个球场更糟糕。’他说，‘我们只是每晚都在打。’ 我说，‘这是 90 年代。你们比以前更娇气了。’”

一个偷听到谈话的观察者说斯隆咕哝着说：“这是（混蛋）。”

当一名犹他州电视记者询问罗宾逊是否无法及时参加补赛时，马刺队前锋肖恩·艾利奥特咧嘴一笑。艾利奥特说：“很明显，他们想参加这场比赛。” “我们这次旅行只有 10 个人，而且只有 8 个人是健康的。我敢肯定他们希望比赛继续进行。”

-马刺队新闻：受到双膝疼痛和踝关节疼痛困扰的后卫文尼·德尔·内格罗获得了休息一夜的假期。

中锋凯迪拉克·安德森说，他已经做好准备，带着左手骨折的无名指连续参加第二场比赛。他说，当他回到圣安东尼奥时，他会再次对手指进行 X 光检查。

点击查看原文：Time warp: Wet floor saves S.A. - Utah's unsafe court postpones game until next month

Time warp: Wet floor saves S.A. - Utah’s unsafe court postpones game until next month

SALT LAKE CITY - Promoters billed it as an NBA game, but it looked more like a middle school shop class. Fans were in their seats Monday night at the Delta Center, waiting for tipoff between the Utah Jazz and the San Antonio Spurs. On the new hardwood floor were workers, on their hands and knees, trying to repair about 28 warped spots with electric sanding

equipment. Other personnel followed closely behind with vacuums to clean up the dust.

After a 45-minute delay, officials called off the game, “due to the safety issue, in the players’ interest.” Naturally, fans booed with gusto. The Jazz faithful knew the Spurs were hurting, and would have to play without four of their top eight players.

They wanted to see the Jazz pour it on the Spurs, just as they did in May in the Western Conference semifinals. Instead, officials

announced that the game had been rescheduled for the Delta Center on Dec. 15.

“This is the first break we’ve had in a while,” Spurs coach Bob Hill said. “The biggest break is that it’s against Utah. This could be one that might be a tiebreaker for a playoff spot on down the road. The way our team is right now, tonight’s game wouldn’t have been very good.”

The Spurs entered the Delta Center with a 1-5 record after suffering an 87-75 loss at Portland on Sunday night. Wrecked by injuries since the start of training camp, they brought only 10 players.

Utah came in with a 2-2 record and with high hopes of kick-starting a sluggish offense against an undermanned opponent. The Spurs didn’t have All-Star center David Robinson, reserve center Will Perdue, power forward Charles Smith or small forward Chuck Person.

At the very least, Robinson and Perdue are expected to be back in the lineup by the time the two teams meet to play the makeup.

Jazz coach Jerry Sloan scoffed at whether he thought the floor, just installed for the new season, might have caused an injury to a player.

“What are the chances of you walking out in the street and getting hit by a car?” Sloan said. “Sure, anyone could have gotten hurt. It could have been because of the floor, because of a defective shoe, because of anything.”

Sloan admitted that he would have preferred that the teams play the game.

“I’m a little old-fashioned,” he said. “When I was a player, we played on dirt courts. You wanted to play; you just went out and played.”

Delta Center maintenance personnel noticed Monday morning that portions of the floor where the sections meet were rising approximately one-sixteenth of an inch, a release from the Jazz public-relations office stated.

The wood floor has a groove on the underside, and plastic rods run the length of the numerous sections of the floor. The cause of the problem, the release said, has been traced to a relatively isolated failure of some of the plastic rods that hold the wood sections together.

The decision to call off the game may have saved the Spurs from another drubbing. As it turned out, they boarded their charter flight later Monday night and were scheduled to be at home early this morning.

Upcoming for the Spurs is a game Wednesday night against Shaquille O’Neal and the Los Angeles Lakers.

“It was a concern on my part right away,” Hill said. "But I really thought that they did a pretty good job on most of those spots. They really did. But then there were two spots - one at their end and one at our end - that you couldn’t sand, and the floor was just too uneven.

“When you stepped on one (section) it would give. You could have tripped.”

An exchange between Hill and Sloan at midcourt as the game was being called off had some media members buzzing.

"Jerry said, I used to play on some courts that were worse than this,' " Hill said. "I said, All the courts you played on were worse than this one.’ He said, We just played every night.' I said, This is the ‘90s. Guys are a little more spoiled than you were.’ "

One observer who overheard the conversation said Sloan walked off muttering, “This is (expletive).”

Spurs forward Sean Elliott grinned when a Utah television reporter asked if Robinson wouldn’t be ready in time for the makeup. “Obviously, they wanted to play this game,” Elliott said. “We had only 10 guys on this trip and only eight of them are healthy. I’m sure they wanted to get the game going.”

-Spurs notes: Guard Vinny Del Negro, bothered by two sore knees and a sore ankle, had been given the night off to rest.

Center Cadillac Anderson said he was prepared to play his second straight game with a fractured ring finger on his left hand. He said he would have the finger X-rayed again when he returned to San Antonio.

By Jerry Briggs Express-News Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News