马刺1997-98赛季实录（680+篇）

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-23, By Glenn Rogers
David Robinson made his most explosive appearance of the preseason in his neighborhood Wednesday night.

Robinson, showing few of the external signs of back problems, scored 22 points to lead the Spurs to a 112-69 walloping of the outmanned Dallas Mavericks at the Alamodome.

Robinson, guarded periodically and somewhat desperately by Mavericks center Shawn Bradley and power forward A.C. Green, ran loose, jumped freely and well, rebounded fiercely in the thick of action in the paint and dusted off his arsenal of offensive weapons.

Robinson finished fast breaks, hit jumpers, spun around the 7- foot-6 Bradley or Green for layups, faced up defenders and drove to the hoop.

“I’ve been getting better and better the last couple of days,” Robinson said. “I’m jumping and running better. (Coach Gregg) Popovich wants me to play without holding back and so I’m taking it to the rim. I’m feeling good enough to do that.”

Robinson brought the crowd to its feet late in the third quarter with back-to-back running dunks.

The first came with 2:49 left in the period. Robinson sprinted from just beyond midcourt, curled in to the hoop and took a high, looping pass from Cory Alexander and hammered it home. The crowd erupted. Sean Elliott, running back up the floor, flashed a broad grin.

The Mavs, shaken by the play, missed at the other end. Robinson led the charge back, took a pass from Vinny Del Negro and dunked it.

“David had been sitting for about two minutes before those two dunks,” Popovich said. “It was a very good sign that he was able to run that well after sitting for awhile.”

Dallas called timeout after the dunks and Popovich used the moment to take Robinson off the floor, a choice that didn’t bring a smile to his face. But Avery Johnson was happy.

“I told Pop, ‘Just get him out of the game,’” Johnson said. “We don’t need any setbacks because we’ve made such strides in the preseason.”

The Spurs led 79-55 after three periods but the game was out of the Mavs’ reach long before that.

Robinson led the Spurs’ romp in the second quarter, sparking a 22-0 run that put the Mavs down 47-25. He started the onslaught with three free throws and a layup. He added a jumper off a spin around Green.

Tim Duncan provided the highlight-film moment, a running, soaring, fast-break dunk off an alley-oop pass from Johnson.

Robinson had 15 points, five rebounds and a pair of blocks in the decisive first half.

Elliott also looked looser and more nimble than he has thus far in the preseason. Finding open space in the corners, he drained his jumpers and had 13 points by intermission.

“Sean looked like he was trying to catch his breath a couple of times early in the game,” Popovich said. “But then when we put him back in after a rest, he looked like he is really coming around.”

Dallas had no chance this night and appears heading into a long season.

Mavericks coach Jim Cleamons called three timeouts during the Spurs’ key run, maybe one to place a fast call for help to General Manager Don Nelson. When the game ended, Bradley had his arm around his coach’s shoulders as they walked off the floor.

Duncan, who spent his time on the floor guarding Bradley, contributed 10 points and nine rebounds.

“Dave looked real comfortable out there. He moved well,” Duncan said. “But I’ve seen him look even better. He has to keep pushing it.”

- Spurs-Mavericks notes: The Alamodome crowd got its first glimpse of one of the female referee expected to be named a regular NBA official this season.

Violet Palmer may become one of the first women to referee a regular game in any of the major- league sports.

- The Mavericks waived forward Malcolm Mackey and signed guards Jerome Allen and Reggie Freeman.

The 6-6 Freeman was a consensus All-Big 12 and Associated Press honorable mention All- America as a senior last season at Texas. He had been in the Milwaukee Bucks’ training camp.

By Glenn Rogers, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-24, By Jerry Briggs

银色、黑色和蓝色 - 强硬的火箭队打破了马刺队的完美季前赛战绩

休斯顿 - 周四晚上，在顶峰体育馆的一场被誉为季前赛职业篮球比赛中，上演了一场类似橄榄球比赛的激烈对决。

身体冲撞、争夺地板球的混战以及各种身体接触为比赛增添了刺激。休斯顿火箭队以 116-104 击败了之前保持不败的圣安东尼奥马刺队。

埃迪·约翰逊(Eddie Johnson)得到 21 分，马特·布拉德(Matt Bullard)得到 15 分，火箭队战绩提升至 5-2。蒂姆·邓肯(Tim Duncan)和大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)各得 18 分，马刺队战绩跌至 6-1。

总的来说，这场比赛是火箭队的复仇，他们在上周六的圣安东尼奥比赛中以 90-95 败北。

“他们的强度今晚提升了，”邓肯说，“今晚他们表现更好。我们犯了一些错误，包括身体和精神上的错误，他们让我们付出了代价。他们做得很好，比我们更好。”

马刺队将在周六晚上进行季前赛的最后一场比赛，主场迎战纽约尼克斯队。在他们再次比赛之前，他们需要进行很多调整。

“这就是 NBA 的精髓所在，”罗宾逊说，“如果你表现不佳，就会发生这样的事情。你可能赢几场，就会对自己的表现过于自信。像这样的事情可以让你重新审视自己。”

距离常规赛开始还有一周时间，常规赛将于 10 月 31 日在丹佛开赛。在这段时间里，马刺队需要从阵容中裁掉一名球员。

他们周四早些时候裁掉了新秀前锋肖恩·伊戈(Shawn Igo)，留下马利克·罗斯(Malik Rose)、贾伦·杰克逊(Jaren Jackson)和雷吉·吉尔(Reggie Geary)争夺最后两个席位。

“这是我执教 10 年来最艰难的裁员决定，”波波维奇说，“所有这些（被邀请参加训练营）的球员都非常出色。”

在开球后不久，一场激烈的 NBA 季前赛比赛就展开了。裁判对内线球员吹罚严厉，罗宾逊和休斯顿队的哈基姆·奥拉朱旺(Hakeem Olajuwon)在比赛初期就陷入了犯规麻烦。

奥拉朱旺在下半场被换下后，罗宾逊和凯文·威利斯(Kevin Willis)之间展开了一场紧张的对决。

在下半场接近尾声时，脾气开始变得暴躁。威利斯试图建立防守位置，将罗宾逊推倒在地。马刺队主教练格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich)从替补席上跳起来争辩，但被吹罚技术犯规。

几秒钟后，杰克逊和休斯顿队的马里奥·埃利(Mario Elie)为了争夺一个地板球而同时滑倒，摔成一堆。结果是？跳球。在球员们解开缠绕之前，裁判唐·维登(Don Vaden)看着倒在地上的球员，低声对谁也不说：“进攻！”

这一切都表明，休斯顿与圣安东尼奥的系列赛有可能成为本赛季联盟中最引人入胜的系列赛之一。

“这两支球队总是会打出这样的比赛，”波波维奇说，“这是一场伟大的竞争。今晚也不例外。”

上个赛季，马刺队有多名关键球员因伤缺阵，最终以 20-62 的战绩排名垫底，远远落后于火箭队。但休斯顿主教练鲁迪·汤姆贾诺维奇(Rudy Tomjanovich)表示，他认为马刺队和火箭队将再次争夺中西部赛区的最高荣誉。

“两支球队都充满了自豪感，”他说，“我看到了未来的趋势——这两支球队将展开激烈的竞争。”

火箭队在比赛初期落后 8 分，但在第二节扭转了局面。在马刺队季前赛首次出现长时间的防守崩盘的情况下，他们在 12 分钟内被对手以 41-21 的比分压制。

约翰逊在本节比赛中得到 12 分中的 10 分，包括两记三分球。火箭队总共投出了 25 次三分球中的 9 球，并不断压制着马刺队。

巴克利(Barkley)和威利斯各得 14 分，火箭队将领先优势扩大到 16 分，并在比赛后期保持优势。

点击查看原文：Silver and black and blue - Physical rockets blemish Spurs' pristine preseason record

Silver and black and blue - Physical rockets blemish Spurs’ pristine preseason record

HOUSTON - Something that looked a little like a rugby match broke out during a game billed as preseason pro basketball Thursday night at The Summit.

Body slams, pileups for loose balls and other assorted forms of physical contact added spice to the show as the Houston Rockets whipped the previously undefeated Spurs 116-104.

Eddie Johnson led the way with 21 points and Matt Bullard scored 15 for the Rockets, who improved to 5-2. Tim Duncan and David Robinson each scored 18 for the Spurs, who fell to 6-1.

All in all, it was a payback for the Rockets, who lost 95-90 at San Antonio last Saturday.

“Their intensity was up tonight,” Duncan said. “It was just a better night for them. We made some mistakes, physical and mental, and they made us pay. They just did a good job, better than we did.”

The Spurs close out the preseason with a home game Saturday night against the New York Knicks. Before they play again, there will be plenty of corrections to be made.

“This is what the NBA is all about,” Robinson said. “If you don’t play well, something like this happens. You might win a couple and feel too good about yourself. Something like this kind of puts things in perspective.”

A week remains before the start of the regular season, which commences Oct. 31 at Denver. In that time, the Spurs will need to trim one more player from the roster.

They waived rookie forward Shawn Igo earlier Thursday, leaving Malik Rose, Jaren Jackson and Reggie Geary battling for the final two spots.

“This will be the toughest cut I’ve been associated in 10 years since I’ve been in the league,” Popovich said. “All these guys (invited to camp) have been great.”

One of the toughest games of the NBA preseason unfolded shortly after the opening tip. Referees were calling a tight game on the big men, with both Robinson and Houston’s Hakeem Olajuwon working their way into foul trouble early.

After Olajuwon went to the bench in the first half, a tense duel developed between Robinson and Kevin Willis.

Tempers started to flare late in the half. Willis, trying to establish defensive position, leveraged Robinson to the floor with a thud. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich jumped up from the bench to argue the no-call, but he was hit with a technical foul.

Seconds later, Jackson and Houston’s Mario Elie both dove for a loose ball at halfcourt and went sliding in a pile. The result? Jump ball. Before the players could get untangled, referee Don Vaden looked at the bodies on the floor and whispered to nobody in particular, “First down.”

It was all a sign that the Houston-San Antonio series could develop into one of the most entertaining in the league this season.

“These teams always have games like this,” Popovich said. “It’s a great rivalry. Tonight was no different.”

Last season, the Spurs lost several key players to injuries and finished 20-62, far behind the Rockets. But Houston coach Rudy Tomjanovich said he thinks the Spurs and Rockets will be dueling once again for top honors in the Midwest Division.

“Both teams have a lot of pride,” he said. “I see the handwriting on the wall - it’s going to be a good race between these two teams.”

The Rockets, trailing by eight early, broke the game open in the second period. In the Spurs’ first prolonged defensive breakdown of the preseason, they were ripped 41- 21 over the 12-minute span.

Johnson scored 10 of his 12 first- half points during the period, including a pair of treys. In all, the Rockets hit 9 of 25 from beyond the arc and consistently burned the Spurs.

Barkley and Willis both scored 14 points for the Rockets, who kicked the lead up to 16 late in the game.

By Jerry Briggs, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-24, By Susan Yerkes

球场内外，我们都爱赢家

每个人都喜欢赢家。

读：马刺队。

“今年我收到的要票电话比上个赛季全年加起来都多，”马刺队代表里克·希尔(Rick Hill)开心地说，“当你的战绩是20胜60负时，人们可不想和你混在一起。”

但现在他们想。

最棒的混在一起的机会可能就在下周二，届时，只需1000美元，你就可以和八位朋友一起在新的亚当斯马克酒店参加马刺基金会的开场午餐会，与一位真正著名的运动员共进晚餐。

基金会首次出售1000美元的餐桌，每张桌子都会有一位马刺队球员作陪。

问题是：你无法选择球员，原因显而易见。球员将通过午餐前的抽签决定。对于企业粉丝来说，这可是个令人焦虑的时刻！

其他票价为60美元，而且用于支持的慈善事业很棒——9个当地慈善机构将从中受益。请拨打电话554-1414。

守夜班

开场午餐会后的第二天，艾弗里·约翰逊(Avery Johnson)、科里·亚历山大(Cory Alexander)和蒂姆·邓肯(Tim Duncan)可能会去墓地。

这是马刺队的社区工作。你可能没有看到很多，但它正在马刺基金会的支持下默默地进行着。

每位球员都签署了参与一些社区活动的协议；亚历山大和A.J.（希尔说邓肯可能也会参加）加入了“TeamUp”团队，教中学生做社区服务。正如大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)向我们展示的那样，这些球员在球场外也能做很多伟大的事情。

星期三，他们将带着45名圣安东尼奥的孩子去东区的公墓帮忙清理。这可是万圣节的大好事，值得欢呼，而不是嘘声。

点击查看原文：On court or in court, we all love a winner

On court or in court, we all love a winner

Everybody loves a winner.

Read: the Spurs.

“I’ve already had more calls from people asking for tickets this year than I did all year last season,” says Spurs rep Rick Hill happily. “People don’t want to hang out when you’re 20-60.”

They do now, though.

And the ultimate hanging- around-with may be next Tuesday, when, for a mere $1,000, you and eight friends can dine with an actual famous athlete at the Spurs Foundation’s Tip-Off Luncheon at the new Adam’s Mark Hotel.

For the first time, the foundation’s selling $1,000 tables, and a player on the roster will sit at each of those tables.

Hitch: You can’t choose the player, for obvious reasons. That will be determined by a pre-lunch drawing. High anxiety for corporate fans!

Other tickets are $60, and the causes are great - nine local charities benefit. Call 554-1414.

Graveyard shift

The day after the Tip-Off Lunch, Avery Johnson, Cory Alexander and maybe Tim Duncan will go to the graveyard.

It’s Spurs community work. You may not see much of it, but it’s quietly happening under the Spurs Foundation’s wing.

Every player signs up for some community involvement; Alexander and A.J. (and probably Duncan, Hill says) are with TeamUp, to teach middle schoolers community service. These guys, as David Robinson has shown us, can do great things off the court, too.

Wednesday, they’ll take 45 S.A. kids to help clean up an East Side cemetery. Great for Halloween. This deserves a cheer, not a boo.

Benched

“On the bench” is bad in basketball; good in law.

Sunday morning at the Hill Country Hyatt, the Women’s Bar Association tosses its annual Bench Brunch, honoring female judges and also raising dough for charities. Call 223-4911 to go.

It’s always a great bash, with attorney auction items including dinner for 10 at Gerry Goldstein’s King William manse (criminal consults extra) and - despite a judicial conduct commission decision that it isn’t ethical for judges to give time spent with them to charities - a sports party given by judges Charlie Gonzalez, Tim Johnson, Andy Mireles, Janet Littlejohn and more.

Doesn’t say what sport. Maybe watching the congressional candidates for Henry B’s seat duke it out.

Party pooper

Judge Charlie Gonzalez, already a long-odds favorite for his warrior dad’s congressional seat, announced Wednesday the non- news that he’s running, with the news that he’ll resign from the bench to campaign.

The announcement was scheduled for the courthouse steps, but moved to a nearby motel when Gonzalez backers found that the surrounding grounds had been spread with a thick and fragrant layer of fertilizing manure.

Gonzalez joked that he was looking for one of his opponents pushing an empty wheelbarrow.

Not so far-fetched in this town.

By Susan Yerkes, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-25, By Jerry Briggs

马刺季前赛日程的尼克斯之约

实验结束了。今晚在和纽约尼克斯的比赛中你看到的球员轮换很可能就是球队下周开季时的轮换。

马刺队主教练格雷格·波波维奇表示，他在预赛决赛中对尼克斯的轮换会尝试固定下来，比赛于美国中部时间 7:30 在阿拉莫穹顶举行。

“我们已经对谁获得（上场）时间做出了决定，”波波维奇在周五与球员们进行了 45 分钟的会议并观看了比赛录像后表示。“有些人可能对此不满意。我们明天晚上看看情况就会知道了。”

马刺队在常规赛的大部分时间里希望谁在场并不是什么秘密。进攻和防守策略将围绕中锋大卫·罗宾逊和他的前场搭档、新秀蒂姆·邓肯展开。

但罗宾逊、邓肯、前锋肖恩·艾利奥特以及后卫文尼·德尔·内格罗和艾弗里·约翰逊的首发阵容之外会发生什么就很有意思了。

“一年中的这个时候到了，”约翰逊说。“昨晚（周四对阵休斯顿）我们分担了上场时间。我打了大约 24 分钟，（替补控球后卫）科里（亚历山大）打了大约 26 分钟。没有什么首发阵容会打太久。

“但现在，我们要接近常规赛的样子了。”

尼克斯队（2-4）将带着一个新的阵容进入比赛，预备小前锋克里斯·米尔斯。自从星期三在与波士顿的交易中被收购以来，米尔斯将与他的新队友进行他的第一场比赛。

与此同时，马刺队（6-1）正在尝试在周五的训练中克服一些弱点。他们遭遇了预赛的首场失利，周四晚上在客场对阵火箭队以 116-104 失利。

波波维奇驳斥了火箭队将马刺队诱入一场身体对抗的比赛，然后淘汰他们的说法。他说他不担心对手的这种风格。

“（在身体对抗的比赛中）我们会做得很好，”他说。“我们已经做得很好，对阵奥兰多、休斯顿和纽约。昨晚我们只是表现得不够好。我不担心这个。”

马刺队于 10 月 12 日在纽约州锡拉丘兹以 97-90 击败了尼克斯队。在那场比赛中，马刺队在下半场曾领先 17 分之多。

尼克斯队在比赛结束时由首发阵容在场拉近比分，但马刺队的替补阵容挡住了他们。这是替补阵容在本季前赛中表现出的强劲表现之一。

但当球队开打时，谁将坐在周五马刺队的替补席上仍然是猜测的问题。波波维奇只表示有两个空缺，他计划在周一或周二做出决定。

第二年级的前锋马利克·罗斯上赛季在夏洛特打球，显然是其中一个空缺的有力竞争者。替补得分后卫的争夺十分激烈，人们认为杰伦·杰克逊比雷吉·吉里有一定优势。

“这三个人都值得在 NBA 球队效力，”波波维奇说。“我希望他们所有人都能如愿以偿。”

点击查看原文：Spurs' preseason schedule ends in the Knick of time

Spurs’ preseason schedule ends in the Knick of time

The experiments are over. Player rotations you see from the Spurs tonight against the New York Knicks likely will be what you get when the team opens the season next week.

Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said he will try to lock down the rotations in the preseason finale against the Knicks at 7:30 in the Alamodome.

“We’ve made the decisions on who gets the (playing) time,” Popovich said after a 45- minute meeting and film session with his players Friday. “Some people might not be happy with it. We’ll just see how it stacks up tomorrow night.”

It’s no secret whom the Spurs will want in the game most of the time in the regular season. Offensive and defensive schemes will revolve around center David Robinson and his front-line sidekick, rookie Tim Duncan.

But it will be interesting to see what happens beyond the starting unit of Robinson, Duncan, forward Sean Elliott and guards Vinny Del Negro and Avery Johnson.

“It’s that time of year,” Johnson said. "Last night (against Houston on Thursday) we split up the minutes. I played about 24 and (backup point guard) Cory (Alexander) played about 26. None of the starters really played much more than that.

“But now we’re going to get assimilated to what it’s going to be like in the regular season.”

The Knicks (2-4) will enter the game with a new face on the roster, reserve small forward Chris Mills. It will be Mills’ first game with his new teammates since he was acquired in a trade with Boston on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the Spurs (6-1) were attempting to iron out a few wrinkles at Friday’s practice. They absorbed their first loss of the preseason Thursday night, falling 116-104 in a road game against the Rockets.

Popovich brushed off talk that the Rockets lured the Spurs into a physical game and then polished them off. He said he wasn’t worried about that sort of style by opposing teams.

“We’ll do fine (in physical games),” he said. “We’ve done fine already, against Orlando, Houston and New York. Last night we just didn’t execute as well. I’m not concerned about it.”

The Spurs beat the Knicks 97-90 Oct. 12 in Syracuse, N.Y. In that game, the Spurs led by as many as 17 points in the second half.

The Knicks rallied at the end with their starters on the floor, but the Spurs’ reserves held them off. It was one of several strong efforts from the reserves this preseason.

But exactly who will be on the Spurs’ bench Friday when the team opens is a matter of speculation. All Popovich will say is he has two spots open and he plans to make a decision by Monday or Tuesday.

Second-year forward Malik Rose, who played last season in Charlotte, apparently is a front-runner for one of the spots. The battle for the backup shooting guard slot is close, with Jaren Jackson thought to have an edge over Reggie Geary.

“All three deserve to be on an NBA team,” Popovich said. “I hope that works out for all of them.”

By Jerry Briggs, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-26, By Jerry Briggs

玫瑰成为尼克斯的眼中钉 - 马利克·罗斯在加时赛中为马刺的阵容席位拼得一席之地

圣安东尼奥盛开着一朵玫瑰。

马利克·罗斯(Malik Rose)，训练营中最令人惊喜的人，在加时赛中得到6分，帮助马刺以89-83战胜纽约尼克斯队。

马刺队开场打得不好，首节只得到7分。他们半场结束时落后于对手33-24，并在第三节一度落后13分。

但他们在阿拉莫穹顶21498名球迷的鼓励下，在比赛后期奋起直追，最终以7胜1负的战绩结束了季前赛。尼克斯队将在下一场季前赛后结束比赛，他们的战绩为2胜5负。

马刺队在第二节初期遭遇了一个打击，前锋查克·珀森(Chuck Person)因背部痉挛离场。珀森没有再回来，他是否能够参加周五在丹佛举行的常规赛揭幕战尚不清楚。

比赛结束后，马刺队主教练格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich)称赞了罗斯。罗斯在训练营开始时没有得到任何保证，但他凭借自己的努力赢得了球队的一席之地。

“马利克再次表现出色，”波波维奇说。“他并不高，但他利用自己的屁股和大长胳膊非常出色。他拥有一颗像阿拉莫穹顶一样大的心，而且每秒都在场上拼尽全力。”

最终的阵容将在下周确定。但可以肯定的是，身高6英尺7英寸，体重250磅的罗斯将成为其中一员。

在常规赛最后30秒的疯狂比赛中，尼克斯队两次投篮都没能命中，而马刺队在加时赛中占据了上风。

他们打出了强硬的防守，在加时赛中先得到8分中的6分，并将比分拉开至84-80。

纽约前锋拉里·约翰逊(Larry Johnson)命中三分球，将比分差距缩小到一分。但埃弗里·约翰逊(Avery Johnson)用一记上篮和两次罚球将比分拉开到86-83。

在下一回合，约翰逊犯规了纽约后卫查理·沃德(Charlie Ward)。此时，混乱出现了。最初，人们认为沃德将获得三次罚球机会，因为他在被犯规时位于三分线外。

但沃德罚失第一罚后，裁判改变了主意，将罚球改为两次。他再次罚失，尼克斯队落后3分，时间还剩13.6秒。

罗斯在12分钟内得到11分和6个篮板，并在比赛结束时命中了3个罚球，最终得到6分。他全场比赛得到11分，罚球9中9。

“我可以在任何对手身上抢到篮板，”罗斯说。“我很高兴能罚进那些球。我很高兴我今天晚上罚进了。”

马刺队的其他球员也感到高兴。他们在全场比赛中43罚27中，罚球命中率仅为62.3%。

他们在第一节17投2中，但不可思议地最终以36.1%的命中率结束了比赛。新秀蒂姆·邓肯(Tim Duncan)表现不佳，全场比赛20投5中，得到13分。

“他的二次、三次、四次努力都非常出色，”波波维奇说，他指的是邓肯的10个进攻篮板和19个篮板。“他是一个非常有竞争力的球员。一旦他在我们的进攻体系中更加舒适，他就会没事。”

马刺队中锋大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)在季前赛最高的30分钟内，得到18分和13个篮板，领衔马刺队。埃弗里·约翰逊得到17分、8次助攻和8个篮板。肖恩·埃利奥特(Sean Elliott)在周四对阵休斯顿的比赛中一分未得，这场比赛他得到了9分。

马刺队新闻：老将前锋查尔斯·史密斯(Charles Smith)在1995年与尼克斯队的交易中被换到马刺队，预计他不会留在球队。

史密斯患有右膝关节炎，当球队阵容在周三下午确定时，他很可能会被列入伤病名单。

点击查看原文：Rose a thorn in Knicks' side - Spurs reserve makes a case for roster spot in OT victory

Rose a thorn in Knicks’ side - Spurs reserve makes a case for roster spot in OT victory

A rose is blooming in San Antonio.

Malik Rose, the most pleasant surprise of training camp, scored six points in overtime to give the Spurs an 89-83 preseason victory over the New York Knicks.

The Spurs played poorly early, scoring only seven points in the first quarter. They trailed by an unsightly 33-24 at intermission, then fell behind by as many as 13 points in the third period.

But they rallied late, encouraged by 21,498 fans at the Alamodome, and finished the preseason with a 7-1 record. The Knicks, with one exhibition game to go, fell to 2-5.

A downer for the Spurs came early in the second quarter when forward Chuck Person left the game with back spasms. Person did not return, and his status for the regular-season opener Friday at Denver is unknown.

After the game, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich praised Rose, who arrived in camp without any guarantees and hustled his way to what should be a spot on the team.

“Malik did a great job again,” Popovich said. “He’s not that tall. But he uses his backside and long arms really well. He has a heart as big as the Alamodome and plays hard every second he’s on the floor.”

The final roster will be set next week. But it’s a good bet that the 6- foot-7, 250-pound Rose will be on it.

Following a frantic final 30 seconds of regulation, when the Knicks missed a pair of shots that would have won it, the Spurs took charge in the extra period.

They played tough defense, scoring six of the first eight points, and assumed an 84-80 lead.

New York forward Larry Johnson nailed a three-point shot to bring the Knicks within one. But Avery Johnson answered with a drive and two free throws to push the Spurs back up 86-83.

On the next possession, Johnson fouled New York guard Charlie Ward. At that point, confusion reigned. Initially, it was thought that Ward would shoot three free throws because he was outside the three-point arc when he was fouled.

But after Ward missed the first free throw, referees changed their minds and made it a two-shot penalty. He missed the second one, leaving the Knicks down by three with 13.6 seconds left.

Rose, who had 11 points and six rebounds in 12 minutes, hit three more free throws at the end for the final scoring. In all, he scored all six of his points in overtime on free throws and 9 of 11 for the game.

“I can get those (rebounds) against anyone,” said Rose, who played only three minutes in the first half. “The free throws are what I’m happy with. I’m glad I made those tonight.”

The rest of the Spurs are glad, too. They hit only 27 of 43 at the line for the game, good for only 62.3 percent.

After making only 2 of 17 shots from the field in the first quarter, they miraculously finished with 36.1 percent field goal shooting for the game. Rookie Tim Duncan had a tough night, hitting only 5 of 20 from the field and scoring 13 points.

“His second and third and fourth efforts were fantastic,” said Popovich, referring to Duncan’s 10 offensive rebounds and 19 overall. “He’s quite a competitor. Once he gets more comfortable in our offense, he’ll be fine.”

Spurs center David Robinson led the Spurs with 18 points and 13 rebounds in a preseason-high 30 minutes. Avery Johnson finished with 17 points, eight assists and eight rebounds. Sean Elliott, shut out in the scoring column against Houston Thursday night, contributed nine. Spurs notes: Veteran forward Charles Smith, acquired in a trade with the Knicks in 1995, is not expected to be with the team.

Afflicted with an arthritic right knee, Smith is a likely candidate for the injured list when team rosters are set Wednesday afternoon.

By Jerry Briggs, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-26, By Jerry Briggs

想象一下邓肯在雅典

马刺队的菜鸟新秀蒂姆·邓肯(Tim Duncan)并不想展望周五对阵掘金队的常规赛揭幕战。在他初出茅庐的NBA生涯中，他完全不会去想其他任何事情。

然而，上周洛杉矶的一份报道引出了一个引人入胜的问题。邓肯，今年六月选秀大会上的状元秀，会是明年夏天梦之队四队的候选人吗？

湖人队的全明星中锋沙奎尔·奥尼尔(Shaquille O’Neal)，这位前科尔高中明星，已经拒绝了参加7月29日至8月9日在希腊雅典举行的世界锦标赛的邀请。

《洛杉矶时报》报道称，在奥尼尔做出决定后，美国篮球协会已经向明尼苏达森林狼队的前锋兼中锋汤姆·古格里奥塔(Tom Gugliotta)发出了邀请。

美国篮球协会对此报道不予置评。但一位美国篮球协会发言人表示，预计“在未来几周内”将公布10名参加世界锦标赛的球员名单。

发言人补充说，另外两名球员将在明年春天某个时候宣布。

在奥尼尔退出后，古格里奥塔、华盛顿奇才队的克里斯·韦伯(Chris Webber)和西雅图超音速队的文·贝克(Vin Baker)是报道中被邀请名单上的唯一能够胜任中锋位置的球员。

这三个人实际上都是大前锋。

邓肯目前在马刺队担任首发大前锋，但他作为中锋的技能已经超越了他的年龄。问问最近在内线与休斯敦火箭队的哈基姆·奥拉朱旺(Hakeem Olajuwon)对位的任何人吧。

如果他继续以他在季前赛中展现出的快速速度进步，他是否会成为美国篮球协会明年春天填补最后两个阵容名额时的合乎逻辑的选择之一？

“那是因为你每天都能看到他打球，”马刺队主教练格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich)笑着说。

邓肯的经纪人朗·巴比(Lon Babby)说，他还没有收到美国篮球协会任何人的联系。但他显然认为他的客户会是一个不错的选择。波波维奇拒绝评论如果邓肯收到邀请，他是否会鼓励他参加比赛。

邓肯本人并不知道奥尼尔退出了夏季锦标赛。同样，他也不知道这对他的意义。

“到了那个时候，或者如果那个时候到了，我再处理吧，”邓肯说道。

其他显而易见的候选人包括奥拉朱旺、马刺队中锋兼三届奥运会选手大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)、纽约尼克斯队的帕特里克·尤因(Patrick Ewing)和迈阿密热火队的阿隆佐·莫宁(Alonzo Mourning)。

但你能想象30多岁的奥拉朱旺、罗宾逊或尤因参加明年夏天的非奥运赛事吗？还有莫宁，由于膝盖髌腱部分撕裂，将缺席本赛季的前六周比赛？

如果邓肯继续打得好，他可能会成为领先的候选人，无论谁感兴趣。作为维克森林大学的一名大学生，他从1994年到1996年每年夏天都参加美国篮球协会的活动。

他是否会接受明年夏天成为梦之队队员的邀请是另一个问题。

邓肯可能会从在锦标赛前与其他美国球员一起训练中受益。这可以帮助他提高技能，这在他的思想中始终是最重要的。

但如果马刺队季后赛走得比较远，他也可能需要这段休息时间。敬请期待。从现在到6月29日，梦之队四队的“希腊公式”可能会发生很多变化。

点击查看原文：Envision Duncan in Athens

Envision Duncan in Athens

Spurs rookie sensation Tim Duncan doesn’t want to look past the regular-season opener Friday at Denver. It would be totally out of character for him to be thinking of anything else in his fledgling NBA career.

But a report out of Los Angeles last week raised a compelling question. Could Duncan, the No. 1 pick in the June draft, be a candidate for Dream Team IV next summer?

Lakers All-Star center Shaquille O’Neal, a former Cole High School standout, has declined an invitation to play in the World Championships in Athens, Greece, July 29-Aug. 9.

The Los Angeles Times reported that USA Basketball, in the wake of O’Neal’s decision, has extended an offer to Minnesota Timberwolves forward-center Tom Gugliotta.

USA Basketball isn’t commenting on the report. But 10 players are expected to be announced for the World Championships “within the next couple of weeks,” a spokeswoman for USA Basketball said.

Two more players will be announced sometime next spring, the spokeswoman added.

With Shaq out of the picture, Gugliotta, Washington’s Chris Webber and Seattle’s Vin Baker are the only players on the reported invitation list who can pass as centers.

All three, essentially, are power forwards.

Duncan is starting at power forward for the Spurs, but his skills as a center are advanced beyond his years. Just ask anyone who has seen him battle in the post against Houston’s Hakeem Olajuwon recently.

If he continues to progress at the rapid rate he has shown in the preseason, wouldn’t he be one of the logical choices for USA Basketball when it fills its final two roster spots next spring?

“That’s just because you’ve seen him play every day,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said, smiling.

Lon Babby, Duncan’s agent, said he hasn’t heard from anyone with USA Basketball. But he obviously thinks his client would be a solid choice. Popovich declined comment on whether he would encourage Duncan to play if he were invited.

Duncan, for his part, didn’t know about O’Neal pulling out of the summer tournament. Likewise, he had no idea what it might mean to him.

“I’ll have to deal with it when the time comes,” Duncan said, “or if it comes.”

Other obvious candidates would be Olajuwon, Spurs center and three-time Olympian David Robinson, New York’s Patrick Ewing or Miami’s Alonzo Mourning.

But could you see 30-something Olajuwon, Robinson or Ewing in a non-Olympic event next summer? And what about Mourning, out for the first six weeks of the season with a partially torn patellar tendon in his knee?

If Duncan keeps playing well, he might be a leading candidate regardless of who’s interested. As a Wake Forest collegian, he participated in USA Basketball events each summer from 1994-96.

Whether he would accept an offer to be a prestigious Dream Teamer next summer is another question.

Duncan might benefit from workouts against other USA players leading up to the tournament. It could help develop his skills, always paramount in his thinking.

But he also might need the time off if the Spurs go deep into the playoffs. Stay tuned. A lot could change in the “Grecian Formula” for Dream Team IV between now and June 29. To leave a message for Jerry Briggs, call ExpressLine at 554- 0500 and punch 7292, or e-mail jbriggs@express-news.net

By Jerry Briggs, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-28, By Jerry Briggs

马刺队的教练和球员对稳固的防守赞不绝口

这就像防守球员的手直接伸到了投篮者的脸上一样简单。

在刚刚结束的季前赛中，马刺队用激进的防守策略让对手窒息，令对手的投篮命中率仅为 39.6%，场均得分仅为 87.3 分。

这两个数据均名列联盟前茅。

“我们基本上是针对球员本身来防守的，”马刺队助理教练 Hank Egan 在周一表示，“我们没有使用什么花招。我们只是没有给对手太多轻松的投篮机会，这一点很重要。”

马刺队在季前赛中 7 胜 1 负，将于周五在丹佛揭幕常规赛。

预计老将前锋 Chuck Person 将会出场。Person 在周六晚上对阵纽约尼克斯队的季前赛收官之战中出现了背部肌肉痉挛。

他在周一泡在游泳池里试图消除酸痛，并可能在今天恢复投篮训练。一年多前，Person 接受了背部手术，因此错过了上个赛季的所有比赛。

“医生认为，他能够在周五出场比赛，”马刺队教练 Gregg Popovich 表示。

与此同时，马刺队的替补中锋 Will Perdue 对最新的交易传闻不屑一顾。上周在《纽约邮报》中出现的猜测表明，马刺队可能愿意将 Perdue 交易给新泽西篮网队的后卫前锋 Kendall Gill。

“我无法预见这种情况会发生，”Perdue 表示，“但很难说。我看到这个夏天发生了一些疯狂的事情。”

Perdue 是马刺队防守如此有效的一个原因。

他并不像前场的首发球员大卫·罗宾逊或蒂姆·邓肯那样灵活敏捷，但他是一位身高 7 英尺的经验丰富的球员，他懂得如何执行不轻易丢分的这一不成文规定。

“拥有这样的三名大个子是至关重要的，”马刺队前锋肖恩·埃利奥特表示，“任何时候，我们都可以在场上拥有两名盖帽者。许多球队没有这样的阵容。”

在对阵尼克斯队的比赛中，Perdue 在 18 分钟内盖帽 4 次，当时马刺队从半场投篮表现不佳中恢复过来，以 89-83 加时赛获胜。

“这并不一定每次都是盖帽，”埃利奥特表示，“它可以起到威慑作用。它可以改变投篮。或者造成仓促投篮。拥有这样的大家伙可以为你做很多事情。”

即使马刺队使用较小的阵容，他们在防守方面也表现出色。

例如，邓肯、马利克·罗斯、蒙蒂·威廉姆斯、贾伦·杰克逊和艾弗里·约翰逊限制了尼克斯队在加时赛中只得到 2 个投篮得分。

“你可以感受到所有球员的强度，”约翰逊表示，“他们都希望成为这支球队的成员。和那些家伙一起上场，对我来说是一种荣幸。”

埃利奥特表示，迄今为止防守成功的关键因素之一是团队合作。

“这在很大程度上得益于无私精神，”他表示，“例如，（后卫）文尼（德尔·内格罗）不在乎他的防守对象得到 20 分，如果他可以帮助我，而我也并不关心我的防守对象，如果我可以帮助别人。”

埃利奥特表示，对于球迷甚至一些球员来说，在 NBA 取得成功防守的艺术存在误解。

“这不是一个单挑的比赛，”他表示，“而是团队之间的较量。许多球员都陷入了对位的纠缠之中。但要打好防守，你必须愿意牺牲并提供帮助。”

到目前为止，轮换奏效了。只有一次，上周在休斯敦，一支球队进攻火力全开，击败了马刺队。火箭队命中了 9 个三分球，并以 116-104 赢得了比赛。

在那场比赛中，马刺队尝试了对禁区进行包夹，这导致火箭队将球传出，并在外线找到了空位投篮的球员。

马刺队在训练营期间并没有过多练习这种策略，而且这种策略在对阵一支经验丰富的球队时瓦解了。

球迷们应该知道，季前赛数据可能是具有误导性的。例如，马刺队取得很大成功的原因是他们的二线球员比对手的替补球员更加努力。

“人们将派出更好的球员来对抗我们，”Egan 表示。

点击查看原文：Spurs coaches, players sold on solid defense

Spurs coaches, players sold on solid defense

It’s been as simple as a hand in a shooter’s face.

The Spurs suffocated the opposition with aggressive defense during the just-completed preseason, limiting teams to 39.6 percent field-goal accuracy and 87.3 points per game.

Both figures ranked among the best in the league.

“We’re playing people pretty much straight up,” Spurs assistant coach Hank Egan said Monday. “We haven’t used a lot of tricks. We just haven’t given up a lot of uncontested shots and that’s important.”

The Spurs, 7-1 in the preseason, open the regular season Friday at Denver.

Veteran forward Chuck Person is expected to play. Person suffered a muscle spasm in his back in the exhibition finale Saturday night against the New York Knicks.

He spent Monday in a swimming pool trying to work out the soreness and he could resume shooting drills today. Person sat out all of last season after undergoing back surgery a year ago this week.

“The doctor thinks he’ll be able to play on Friday,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said.

Meanwhile, Spurs reserve center Will Perdue shrugged off the latest trade rumor to confront him. Surfacing last week in the New York Post, the speculation suggested that the Spurs might be willing to deal Perdue for New Jersey Nets guard-forward Kendall Gill.

“I can’t forsee that happening,” Perdue said. “But you never know. I saw some crazy things happen this summer.”

Perdue is one reason the Spurs have been so effective on the defensive end.

He isn’t as mobile or as agile as David Robinson or Tim Duncan, the starters on the front line, but he is a 7-foot veteran who knows how to enforce the unwritten rule of no easy baskets.

“Having three big guys like that is huge,” Spurs forward Sean Elliott said. “At any time, we can have two shot-blockers on the floor. A lot of teams don’t have that.”

Perdue blocked four shots in 18 minutes against the Knicks, when the Spurs rallied from an abysmal first-half shooting performance to record an 89-83 overtime victory.

“It doesn’t have to be a block all the time,” Elliott said. “It can be intimidations. It can be altered shots. Or rushed shots. Having big guys like that can do a lot for you.”

The Spurs have excelled defensively even when they have used smaller lineups.

For instance, Duncan, Malik Rose, Monty Williams, Jaren Jackson and Avery Johnson limited the Knicks to two baskets in overtime.

“You could just feel the intensity all the players had,” Johnson said. “They all want to be part of this team. It’s an honor for me to be out there with those guys.”

Elliott said a major ingredient in the defensive success so far has been teamwork.

“A lot of it is unselfishness,” he said. “For instance, (guard) Vinny (Del Negro) doesn’t care if his man gets 20 if he helps me out, and I’m not concerned about my matchup if I’m helping out someone else.”

Elliott said misconceptions exist about the art of successful defense in the NBA - among fans and even among some players.

“It’s not a single man against a single man,” he said. “It’s a team against a team. A lot of players get caught up in matchups. But to play defense, you have to be willing to sacrifice and give help.”

So far, the rotations have worked. Only once, last week in Houston, has a team erupted offensively to burn the Spurs. The Rockets hit nine three-point shots and won the game 116-104.

In that contest, the Spurs experimented by double-teaming the post, which led to the Rockets swinging the ball and finding open shooters on the perimeter.

The Spurs hadn’t practiced the tactic much during training camp and it broke down against a veteran team.

Fans should know that preseason statistics can be misleading. For instance, much of the Spurs’ success has come with their second- line players outhustling the reserves of the opposition.

“People will be playing better players against us,” Egan said.

By Jerry Briggs, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-29, By Glenn Rogers

马刺球员可能缺席揭幕战

马刺队前锋查克·珀森(Chuck Person)可能无法在周五晚上马刺队在丹佛对阵掘金队的常规赛揭幕战中上场。

珀森在周六晚上对阵纽约尼克斯队的季前赛中背部痉挛。他周一在游泳池里锻炼以缓解疼痛，周二早上再次缺席训练。

“查克今天早上做了一些伸展运动，”主教练格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich)周二下午说。“我们会看看他的恢复情况，希望他能在这个周末准备好比赛。”

马刺队将于周六晚上在阿拉莫穹顶举行他们的主场揭幕战，对阵克利夫兰骑士队。

珀森说他希望能够对阵掘金队。

“很有可能我会在周五晚上准备好，”他在球队在阿拉莫穹顶观看录像后说。“明天，我会去投投篮，让背部放松，然后我希望我能在周五练习。

“我今天仍然有点酸痛，背部和关节仍然有一些痉挛和紧绷。希望由于我在这个夏天加强了背部和周围区域的力量，我能够在周五比赛。还是要一天一天地来，逐渐缓解疼痛。”

珀森说，如果接下来的几天对他的背部没有足够的效果，他还没有考虑休战。

“这些问题还没有出现，希望不会出现，”他说。

中锋大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)说，他认为珀森可能要缺席几场比赛。

“只是看着他，他看起来有点酸痛，”罗宾逊说。“所以他可能要休息一段时间。但我认为我们有足够的人来弥补他的缺失。

“查克将是我们今年的关键球员。我们需要他。如果他现在需要休息，就让他休息。”

波波维奇说：“罗宾逊医生最了解情况。让我们希望珀森医生是对的。”

点击查看原文：Person may miss opener for Spurs

Person may miss opener for Spurs

Spurs forward Chuck Person may not be in the lineup when the Spurs play their regular-season opener against the Nuggets in Denver on Friday night.

Person suffered back spasms during the preseason game against the New York Knicks on Saturday night. He spent Monday in a swimming pool to work out the soreness and again sat out practice Tuesday morning.

“Chuck did some flexibility exercises this morning,” Coach Gregg Popovich said Tuesday afternoon. “We will see how he progresses, and we hope that he will be ready to play this weekend.”

The Spurs play their home opener at the Alamodome on Saturday night against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Person said he is hoping to suit up against the Nuggets.

“It’s very possible I’ll be ready by Friday night,” he said after the team watched films at the Alamodome. "Tomorrow, I’ll go in and get some shots up, let the back loosen up and then I hope I’ll be able to practice Friday.

“I was still a little sore today, still had some spasms and tightness in my back and joints. Hopefully, because of all the work I did this summer strengthening my back and the surrounding area, I’ll be able to play Friday. It’s still a day at a time to work out the soreness.”

Person said he has not yet considered taking time off if the next couple of days do not prove sufficient on his back.

“Those questions haven’t come up yet; hopefully, they won’t,” he said.

Center David Robinson said he thinks Person may have to miss a couple of games.

“Just watching him, he looks like he’s a little bit sore,” Robinson said. "So he might have to sit out for a while. But I think we have enough guys to pick up the slack.

“Chuck will be a key part of our run this year. We will need him. If he needs a rest now, let him rest.”

Said Popovich: “Dr. Robinson knows best. Let’s hope that Dr. Person is right.”

By Glenn Rogers, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-29, By Compiled from Staff and Wire Reports

NBA 聘请女性裁判：联盟本赛季聘请两位女性担任裁判

纽约 - 下次当丹尼斯·罗德曼(Dennis Rodman) 撞倒对手，或查尔斯·巴克利(Charles Barkley) 怒气冲冲时，吹罚技术犯规的可能是迪·坎特纳(Dee Kantner) 或维奥莱特·帕尔默(Violet Palmer)。

这两位女性被加入 NBA 裁判团队，这是美国主要职业体育联盟首次在全男性联盟中聘请女性担任常规赛裁判。

坎特纳和帕尔默是联盟新增的五位裁判中的一部分，另外七位裁判未能入选。

NBA 运营副总裁罗德·索恩(Rod Thorn) 说：“她们每次的表现都越来越好。就像其他裁判一样，她们从夏季休赛期回来后参加了训练营和季前赛，已经适应了场上环境。”

NBA 要求这两位女性在今晚的电话会议之前不要谈论她们的任命。

36 岁的坎特纳曾担任 WNBA 的裁判主管。她还执法过四场女子 NCAA 锦标赛决赛，包括 1997 年田纳西大学与老 dominion 大学的比赛。

33 岁的帕尔默曾担任 WNBA 的裁判，也执法过大学女子比赛。

印第安纳步行者队总经理多尼·沃尔什(Donnie Walsh) 说：“我们让她们参加了一场季前赛，我并没有看到女性裁判和男性裁判之间有任何区别。我认为这会很好，这两位女士非常合格，会赢得所有与比赛相关人士的尊重。”

按照联盟的政策，NBA 并没有透露她们将执法哪些比赛，或者她们是否会执法任何比赛。常规赛将在周五晚上开始，共有 14 场比赛。

妇女体育基金会对这一任命表示赞赏。该基金会位于长岛，致力于女性及其在体育中的作用。

该基金会执行董事唐娜·洛皮亚诺(Donna Lopiano) 说：“你不得不佩服大卫·斯特恩(David Stern)。他的联盟在少数族裔招聘和女性参与方面一直保持着任何职业体育联盟中最好的记录。”

美国职业棒球大联盟曾经考虑过聘请女性裁判，但最终放弃了聘请帕姆·波斯特玛(Pam Postema) 的计划。她曾在 1977 年至 1988 年期间执法小联盟比赛。随后，波斯特玛对大联盟提起性歧视诉讼。该诉讼于去年四月庭外和解。

伯尼斯·格拉(Bernice Gera) 于 1972 年成为职业棒球历史上第一位女裁判，但在纽约 - 宾夕法尼亚新秀联盟中只执法了一场比赛后就退役了，因为她与一名经理发生了争执。

NHL 和 NFL 始终只有男性裁判。

马刺队前锋查克·珀森(Chuck Person) 说：“我认为这对这项运动和社会来说都是一件好事。社会一直以来都是男性主导的。我认为一个人的性别并不重要，如果一个人有能力胜任这份工作，他就应该被允许去做。”

坎特纳和帕尔默在过去三周一直在执法季前赛。她们还在去年的季前赛中执法过比赛，但没有入选 1996-97 赛季的最终名单。

帕尔默在 1996-97 赛季季前赛结束后说：“在执法了那些比赛之后，我获得了信心，说‘也许我能做到。也许我的朋友们是对的。’在季前赛之后，有几个球员走到我面前说，‘我希望你能留下来。你做得很好。’”

马刺队主教练格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich) 表示，他支持女性裁判。

波波维奇说：“如果她们有能力执法比赛，我根本不在乎她们的性别。这两位女士非常有能力。

“因为我们都是人类，我认为她们不会受到像男性裁判那样来自教练的攻击。大多数教练都很有风度。”

上赛季，迈阿密热火队的蒂姆·哈达威(Tim Hardaway) 表达了他对女性裁判的担忧。

帕尔默当时说：“那是他的看法。我并不在意。有一些球员说了一些负面的话，但这是正常的。你总会遇到一两个这样的球员。但我认为大多数球员并不关心你是谁。他们只想要优秀的裁判。”

自从联盟在夏季给各球队发了一份备忘录，要求他们为女性裁判准备一个空房间以来，这一任命就一直在预料之中。索恩说，没有做其他安排。

罗德曼在上赛季说：“我们已经准备好迎接她们了，但她们准备好迎接我们了吗？她们必须准备好与我们在球场上奔跑，被触碰，甚至偶尔被拍一下屁股。如果她们能应付这些，那么一切都会好起来的。”

NBA 球员被禁止撞击裁判，但没有关于触碰的明确规定。

索恩说：“有时球员会触碰裁判，比如拍拍他们的背，我们对此没有问题。如果有人故意撞击她们，（裁判）应该严厉地处理她们，然后让我来处理这件事。”

索恩还说，坎特纳和帕尔默不会被阻止尝试阻止争吵。

“我们告诉我们的裁判，如果你能插手并阻止一些事情，你就去做。任何裁判都必须根据情况做出判断，但如果你认为你能帮忙，你就跳进去。”

坎特纳和帕尔默在本赛季的季前赛中分别执法了四场和两场，她们在去年的季前赛中分别执法了两场。

点击查看原文：NBA's call: Women refs - League hires two females to officiate this season

NBA’s call: Women refs - League hires two females to officiate this season

NEW YORK - The next time Dennis Rodman smashes an opponent or Charles Barkley spews venom, the person whistling a technical foul could be Dee Kantner or Violet Palmer.

The two were added to the NBA’s referee staff Tuesday, the first time in major U.S. pro sports that women will officiate regular-season games in an all-male league.

Kantner and Palmer were among five new referees added to the league’s 58-member officiating staff; another seven refs didn’t make the cut.

“They’ve gotten better each time out,” said Rod Thorn, NBA vice president of operations. “Just like the other referees, they’ve come back from the summer, had training camp and preseason and have gotten used to being out there.”

The NBA told the women not to talk about their appointments until a conference call tonight.

Kantner, 36, was the supervisor of officials in the WNBA. She also has refereed four women’s NCAA championship games, including the 1997 matchup between Tennessee and Old Dominion.

Palmer, 33, was an official in the WNBA and has officiated college women’s games.

“We had them in one exhibition game, and I don’t see any difference in the female and male referees,” said Donnie Walsh, Indiana Pacers general manager. “I think it’s going to be fine. The two ladies they have are very well qualified and will demand the respect of everybody associated with the event.”

In keeping with league policy, the NBA would not say which games they would be working - or if they would be working at all - when the season opens Friday night with 14 games.

The hirings were applauded at the Women’s Sports Foundation, the Long Island-based organization dedicated to women and their role in sports.

“You have to hand it to David Stern,” Executive Director Donna Lopiano said, referring to the NBA commissioner. “His league has always had the best record of any professional sport in terms of minority hiring and women’s participation.”

Major League Baseball has considered hiring a female umpire but then passed on Pam Postema, who worked minor-league games from 1977 to 1988. Postema subsequently filed a sexual-discrimination suit against the major leagues. It was settled out of court last April.

Bernice Gera became the first woman umpire in pro baseball history in 1972 but retired after just one game in the New York-Penn Rookie League after an argument with a manager.

The NHL and the NFL always have had all-male officiating crews.

“I think it’s great for the sport and for society,” Spurs forward Chuck Person said. “Society has been male-dominated. I don’t think it matters what a person’s gender is, if a person is good enough to do the job he or she should be allowed to do it.”

Kantner and Palmer have been working exhibition games the past three weeks. They also officiated preseason games last year but did not make the final cut for the 1996- 97 season.

“Doing those games, I gained that confidence to say, ‘Maybe I can do this. Maybe my friends are right,’” Palmer said after the '96- 97 preseason. “After the exhibition games, I had several players come up to me and say, ‘I hope you make it. You did a good job.’”

Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said he was in favor of female referees.

“I couldn’t care less what their sex is if they are capable of calling the games,” Popovich said. "Those two ladies are very capable.

“Since we’re all humans, I don’t think they will get the same blast that male refs get from the coaches. Most coaches operate with class.”

Last season, Miami’s Tim Hardaway expressed his displeasure over the possibility of female refs.

“That’s his view,” Palmer said at the time. “It doesn’t bother me. There are a couple of players saying negative things, but that’s the way it goes. You’re always going to have one or two players like that. But most players, I don’t think they care who you are. They just want good referees.”

The hirings had been expected since the league sent a memo to teams during the summer ordering them to set aside a spare room for female officials. Thorn said no other accommodations have been made.

“We’re ready for them, but are they ready for us?” Rodman said last season. “They’ve got to be ready to run with us on the court, get touched and even get a pat on the (backside) every now and then. If they can handle that, then everything will be all right.”

NBA players are prohibited from bumping referees, but there is no blanket rule against touching.

“From time to time players will touch a referee, such as patting them on the back, and we don’t have a problem with that,” said Thorn, also in charge of suspensions and fines. “If somebody bumps them on purpose, (the referees) should unload on them and then let me handle it from there.”

Thorn also said Kantner and Palmer will not be discouraged from trying to break up fights.

“What we tell our refs is if you can interject and get something stopped, you do it. Any ref has to read the situation, but if you think you can help, you jump in.”

Kantner and Palmer each worked four exhibition games this preseason after officiating two apiece last season.

By Compiled from Staff and Wire Reports, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-30, By Karl O’Quinn

马刺队与NBA - 首场比赛

(以下是1973年10月11日星期四《圣安东尼奥快报》上关于马刺队首场常规赛的报道节选)

老将斯图·约翰逊(Stew Johnson)和新秀德怀特·拉马尔(Dwight Lamar)在第四节爆发，带领圣地亚哥征服者队以121-106战胜圣安东尼奥马刺队，在周三晚上的美国篮球协会(ABA)常规赛揭幕战中取得胜利。

约翰逊在关键的第四节贡献了12分，拉马尔贡献了15分，征服者队在这一节轰下了48分，打破了会议中心体育馆的单节得分纪录，从而从77-73的落后中反超。

马刺队在前三节结束时都领先，但约翰逊命中了5个三分球，拉马尔又添了2个三分球，几乎贡献了客队所有8个三分球。而圣安东尼奥的五名球员则无法用两分球来抵消三分球的差距。

总的来说，圣地亚哥队11次三分球尝试命中了8次。马刺队尝试了6次远投，但没有一次命中。

约翰逊，来自默里州立大学的六年级老将，凭借下半场的出色表现，最终得到38分。拉马尔，来自西南路易斯安那州立大学的火热新秀，最终得到30分。上半场时，两人分别得到10分和9分，当时圣安东尼奥队以52-43领先。

里奇·琼斯(Rich Jones)在下半场得到19分，是马刺队得分最高的球员，全场得到25分。乔·汉密尔顿(Joe Hamilton)在上半场和下半场分别得到10分，还贡献了10次助攻和2次抢断。鲍勃·内托利斯基(Bob Netolicky)得到17分，其中13分来自上半场。詹姆斯·赛拉斯(James Silas)得到14分，斯凯特·斯威夫特(Skeeter Swift)得到11分。

征服者队在第四节之前，双方战成平局3次，交换领先权2次，然后在最后阶段迅速拉开比分，将马刺队甩在了身后。征服者队在本场比赛的最后10分中，包括来自身高5英尺10英寸的比利·谢泼德(Billy Shepherd)在终场哨响时的三分球，都由他们取得。

马刺队尽了最大努力，5879名观众（这是该体育馆篮球比赛的第七高观众人数）在汉密尔顿每次抢断发动反击时都会欢呼，并在最后一节里短暂地将比分追近。

但这样的投篮表现是无法克服的，征服者队在最后一节里人人开火。这就像卡斯特将军试图抵抗苏族人一样。

“很明显，我们的防守没有周六晚上（马刺队在热身赛中击败休斯顿队时）那么好，”主教练汤姆·尼萨尔克(Tom Nissalke)说。

“他们比大多数球队都更愿意投三分球，而当他们像今晚这样命中三分球时……”他的声音逐渐消失。

“他们通过引进拉马尔和卡尔德威尔·琼斯（来自奥尔巴尼州立大学，身高7英尺的新秀，抢下16个篮板，与内托利斯基并列榜首）提升了自己的实力。”

威尔特·张伯伦(Wilt Chamberlain)在比赛开始前出现了，他从洛杉矶乘坐私人飞机赶来，受到了热烈的掌声。此前，一位法官暂时禁止他为征服者队效力。他说，他在这场比赛中实际上是助理教练，因为他一直在为法庭上的案件而担忧。斯坦·阿尔贝克(Stan Albeck)是他的助理教练，在他缺席期间一直在带领征服者队。

圣地亚哥：亚当斯(Adams) 2 0-0 4；巴塞特(Basset) 1 0-0 2；约翰逊 16 1-1 38；C. 琼斯 5 2-2 12；拉马尔 10 8-9 30；彭德(Pender) 1 0-0 2；米勒(Miller) 0 0-0 0；摩尔(Moore) 2 0-0 4；罗宾斯(Robbins) 7 0-0 14；谢泼德 2 0-0 5；威廉姆斯(Williams) 3 4-8 10。总计：49 15-20 121。

圣安东尼奥：阿维里特(Averitt) 0 0-0 0；钱伯斯(Chambers) 3 3-4 9；迪特里希(Dietrick) 1 0-0 2；汉密尔顿 8 4-5 20；希尔(Hill) 0 2-3 2；R. 琼斯 11 3-4 25；肯尼迪(Kennedy) 3 0-0 6；内托利斯基 8 1-3 17；赛拉斯 6 2-3 14；斯威夫特 3 5-6 11。总计：43 20-28 106。

圣地亚哥 19 24 30 48 - 121
圣安东尼奥 30 22 25 29 - 106

犯规总数 - 圣地亚哥 28，圣安东尼奥 26。技术犯规 - R. 琼斯。三分球 - 约翰逊 5，拉马尔 2，谢泼德 1。

点击查看原文：Spurs & NBA - The First Game

Spurs & NBA - The First Game

(The following is a portion of the story from the Spurs’ first regular- season game as it appeared in the Thursday, Oct. 11, 1973, edition of the San Antonio Express.) Spurs Booted In Opener Veteran Stew Johnson and rookie Dwight Lamar ignited a fourth- quarter explosion that sent the San Diego Conquistadors past the San Antonio Spurs 121-106 in the regular-season opener of the American Basketball Association on Wednesday night.

Johnson popped in 12 points and Lamar 15 in the fateful fourth period, in which the Q’s scored a Convention Center Arena-record 48 points to roar out of a 77-73 deficit.

The Spurs led at the end of each of the first three quarters, but Johnson hit five three-point shots and Lamar added two more to account for almost all the eight three-pointers notched by the visitors. And the San Antonio five couldn’t make any headway trading two-point goals for threes.

In all, San Diego hit on eight of 11 three-point attempts. The Spurs tried six of the long-range bombs, but were off target on each of them.

Johnson, a six-year veteran from Murray State, scored 38 points, and Lamar, the red-hot rookie from Southwestern Louisiana, wound up with 30 as a result of their second-half heroics. They had 10 and nine, respectively, at halftime, when San Antonio led 52-43.

Rich Jones got 19 points in the second half and led the Spurs in scoring with 25. Joe Hamilton got 10 in each half and had 10 assists and two steals as well. Bob Netolicky had 17 points, 13 of them in the fist half. James Silas hit for 14 and Skeeter Swift 11.

The Conquistadors managed three ties before swapping the lead twice in the fourth quarter and then jetted out in a closing spurt that left the Spurs in the fading distance. The Q’s scored the last 10 points of the game, including a three-pointer from 5-foot-10 Billy Shepherd at the buzzer.

The Spurs did their best, and the crowd of 5,879 (the seventh-largest for basketball in Arena history) roared each time Hamilton swiped the ball to spark a brief rally in the last quarter.

But shooting like that is not to be overcome, and the Q’s had everybody hitting in the last period. It was like Custer trying to hold off the Sioux.

“We obviously didn’t play defense as well as we did Saturday night (when the Spurs beat Houston in an exhibition game),” said Coach Tom Nissalke.

“They’re more willing to shoot the three-pointers than most teams are, and when they hit them like they did tonight …” His voice trailed off.

“They’ve improved themselves with the addition of Lamar and Caldwell Jones (a 7-foot rookie from Albany State who hauled in 16 rebounds to tie Netolicky in that department).”

Wilt Chamberlain received a healthy round of applause when he appeared before the game, fresh from a jet trip from Los Angeles, when a judge temporarily enjoined him from playing for the Conquistadors. He said he was really the assistant coach in this game, however, since he had spent so much time worrying about the legal type of court action. Stan Albeck is his assistant coach and has handled the Q’s in his absence.

SAN DIEGO: Adams 2 0-0 4; Basset 1 0-0 2, Johnson 16 1-1 38, C. Jones 5 2-2 12, Lamar 10 8-9 30, Pender 1 0-0 2, Miller 0 0-0 0, Moore 2 0-0 4, Robbins 7 0-0 14, Shepherd 2 0-0 5, Williams 3 4-8 10. Totals 49 15-20 121.

SAN ANTONIO: Averitt 0 0-0 0, Chambers 3 3-4 9, Dietrick 1 0-0 2, Hamilton 8 4-5 20, Hill 0 2-3 2, R. Jones 11 3-4 25, Kennedy 3 0-0 6, Netolicky 8 1- 3 17, Silas 6 2-3 14, Swift 3 5-6 11. Totals 43 20-28 106. San Diego 19 24 30 48 - 121 San Antonio 30 22 25 29 - 106

Total fouls - San Diego 28, San Antonio 26. Technical fouls - R. Jones. Three-point goals - Johnson 5, Lamar 2, Shepherd 1.

By Karl O’Quinn, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-30, By Jerry Briggs

马刺与NBA - 银色传奇 - 马刺队25周年赛季临近，疑问重重。随着状元签的加入，这些疑问能得到解答吗？

激情被点燃，想象力被激发。圣安东尼奥马刺队迎来了25周年赛季，而争论才刚刚开始。

纳税人应该为新的球馆付费吗？

如果没有，球队老板还会将这支南德克萨斯州唯一的职业体育队伍留在圣安东尼奥多久？

新秀蒂姆·邓肯(Tim Duncan)真的那么出色吗？

如果是，这支球队能依靠这位技术全面的前锋/中锋，在明年夏天首次打进NBA总决赛吗？

这些只是在周五晚上，马刺队在丹佛开始常规赛时，将在阿拉莫城周围引起热议的一些问题。

过去，当马刺队在季后赛早期轮次中失利时，马刺球迷会焦虑不安。或者如果球队交易了明星球员。或者如果球队解雇了受欢迎的主教练。

最近，马刺管理层承认，如果球馆没有建成，他们可能被迫考虑将球队搬迁。

与此同时，球员们也意识到，如果受伤的老将能够保持健康，他们可以抓住邓肯加盟的机会，在明年夏天冲击NBA总决赛。

球队训练营中的一幕总结了球员们的决心。

在季前赛对阵华盛顿的揭幕战开球前，马刺队聚集在弗吉尼亚州费尔法克斯的Patriot Center更衣室外的走廊里。

球员们围成一个紧密的圈子。首先，中锋大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)祈祷。然后，控球后卫艾弗里·约翰逊(Avery Johnson)向球员们提出了一个问题。

"我们的目标是什么？"他说。

"总决赛！"球员们异口同声地回答。

很明显，马刺队将他们的目标锁定在了夺取西部冠军。

"我们已经讨论过了，"约翰逊说。"我把这种感觉分享给了球队里的其他人。这就像，你越谈论某些事情，它就越有可能实现。你说，'我要成为一个好丈夫。'或者你说，'我要在工作中表现出色。'这是积极的思维方式。

“我们现在说的是，我们今年将尽一切努力打进总决赛。”

一些不了解情况的旁观者可能会嘲笑这种说法。马刺队上赛季战绩为20胜62负，在NBA中排名倒数第三，也是队史最差战绩。

但了解联盟的人并没有嘲笑。

马刺队与上赛季相比，在胜负榜上下降了联盟记录的39场胜利，主要原因是罗宾逊因背部和脚部伤病缺席了76场比赛。

他们直接掉进了乐透区，这使他们有机会获得状元签。幸运的是，他们凭借邓肯，这位上赛季来自维克森林大学的大学最佳球员，获得了头彩。

现在，对手教练正在努力想出如何防守一个恢复健康和重返巅峰的罗宾逊，以及与他搭档的邓肯。这是自上世纪80年代中期，阿基姆·奥拉朱旺与拉尔夫·森普森联手效力休斯顿以来，第一对明星级内线组合。

在奥兰多，魔术队主教练查克·戴利(Chuck Daly)承认，圣安东尼奥"是一支非常强大的竞争者"，他们有实力赢得西部冠军，即使上赛季他们的排名仅领先于波士顿和温哥华。

"好吧，这就是我们的乐透制度，"戴利说。“我的意思是，他们可能会从20胜提升到60胜。显然，对于任何球队来说，这最终取决于关键球员的伤病情况。”

戴利拒绝透露自己的最爱，但他将犹他、西雅图、洛杉矶湖人、休斯顿、菲尼克斯和马刺列为最有希望代表西部进入总决赛的球队。

"如果这些球队中的任何一支出现关键伤病，都会改变他们的前景，"他说。

但对于邓肯-罗宾逊的组合，戴利摇了摇头，称这两人"很危险。在我看来，他们在一起打得很好。他们是顶级的内线球员。"

事实上，马刺队是NBA历史上第一支拥有三名前伍登奖得主的球队，伍登奖是美国大学篮球最佳球员的象征。

罗宾逊（来自海军学院）、邓肯（来自维克森林大学）和肖恩·埃利奥特(Sean Elliott)（来自亚利桑那大学）——这是马刺队的梦幻内线组合，也是西部其他球队的潜在噩梦。

"我们还没有赢得任何（常规赛）比赛，"马刺队主教练格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich)最近表示。"我们还有很长的路要走。球迷们激动的心情是可以理解的。你看到上赛季的三名伤员（罗宾逊、埃利奥特和查克·珀森(Chuck Person)）都回来了，而且他们都打得很好。

“然后，你又加入了蒂姆·邓肯，媒体和球迷的关注是自然而然的。但我们知道，每天都需要保持自律。炒作是留给其他人的，而不是这支球队。我们只会走出去，踏实地工作。”

与此同时，圣安东尼奥体育基金会和圣安东尼奥大都会商会正在计划一项研究，评估建造球馆的可行性。

马刺队最近委托进行了一项民意调查，结果显示61%的市民反对在城市建设"社区体育馆"。

在掌握了民调结果后，马刺队大股东彼得·霍尔特(Peter Holt)在今年夏天早些时候取消了球队推动举行全民公决的计划。

但由于体育基金会和商会重燃兴趣，据报道，选民最早可能在明年春天就被要求对此事做出决定。

此举无疑会激怒一些纳税人，他们担心他们会被要求为球馆提供资金。球馆问题是球队历史上最具争议的问题之一。

有多么有争议？几个月前，罗宾逊因建议球队如果球馆问题没有解决，就存在"真正可能性"会搬迁而受到广泛批评。

霍尔特对此表示，他对公众的反应并不感到意外。他说，这只是说明了这个话题的争议性。

"我认为大卫很坦诚，"霍尔特说。“他是一个球员，他想留在圣安东尼奥。我认为他所说的（关于球队可能搬迁）是真实的。但是，我的意思是，我们作为老板，致力于将球队留在圣安东尼奥。我们已经说了一百遍。我不知道还能说多少遍。”

球员们表示，这个问题可能会成为干扰因素。罗宾逊说，球队需要将这个问题"放在外面"，专注于赢得比赛。

另一方面，邓肯却对此事不以为然，甚至有点玩世不恭。即使球队老板严厉警告，如果球馆没有建成，他们将在三年后不会续签他的合同，他仍然对此置之不理。

"我不担心，"他说。“我知道波波维奇和TJ（汤姆·詹姆斯(Tom James)，马刺队媒体服务主管）会解决这个问题的。”

霍尔特表示，他与可能担心球队搬迁的球员和其他员工进行了交谈。

"我们有70多名（前台）员工，"他说。“他们也想知道发生了什么事。你知道，他们的工作保障在哪里？我也会去和他们谈谈。我会尽力向他们保证，我们绝对致力于留在圣安东尼奥，我们真的会这样做。”

霍尔特在七月举行新闻发布会宣布他取消了推动举行全民公决的计划时，他说他想避免谈论球馆争论，专注于庆祝银禧纪念。

最近，当被问及此事时，他简要地表达了自己的看法。

"我认为我们今年有巨大的潜力，所以让我们不要让这个问题掩盖了一切，"霍尔特说，他持有马刺队31%的股份。“我故意不再花太多时间谈论它。”

话虽如此，球迷们很可能会替他代劳。让比赛，以及争论，开始吧。

点击查看原文：Spurs & NBA - SILVER STREAK - As Spurs' 25th season approaches, questions abound. With top - pick in the mix, can they be answered?

Spurs & NBA - SILVER STREAK - As Spurs’ 25th season approaches, questions abound. With top - pick in the mix, can they be answered?

Passions have been ignited. Imaginations have been stirred. It’s the dawning of the 25th anniversary season for the San Antonio Spurs, and the debate has just begun.

Should taxpayers pay for a new areana?

And, if not, how much longer will ownership choose to keep the city’s only major-league sports team in South Texas?

Is rookie Tim Duncan that good?

And, if so, can the team ride the smooth forward/center to its first NBA championship series next summer?

Those are just a few of the questions that promise to raise hair on the back of necks all around the Alamo city when the regular season begins Friday night at Denver.

In the past, Spurs fans would wring their hands when the team failed in the early rounds of the playoffs. Or if it traded a star player. Or if it fired a popular coach.

Lately, Spurs management has acknowledged that it may be forced to look at a franchise relocation alternative if an arena isn’t built.

At the same time, players have come to realize that if injured veterans remain healthy, they could seize the opportunity of Duncan’s arrival and burst into the Nba Finals next summer.

A scene from the team’s training camp summed up the players’ resolve.

Before tipoff in the preseason opener against Washington, the Spurs gathered in a hallway outside the dressing room at the Patriot Center in Fairfax, Va.

The group congregated in a tight circle. First, center David Robinson said a prayer. Then, point guard Avery Johnson asked the assembled players a question.

“What’s our goal?” he said.

“Finals!” the players answered in unison.

Clearly, the Spurs have directed their energies toward winning the Western Conference title.

“We’ve talked about that,” Johnson said. "I have shared that feeling with others on the team. It’s like, the more you speak about things, the more chance it has to develop. You say, ‘I’m going to be a good family man.’ Or you say, ‘I’m going to be effective in my job.’ It’s positive thinking.

“What we’re saying is that we’re going to do whatever it takes this year to get to the Finals.”

Casual observers might scoff at the rhetoric. The Spurs finished 20- 62 last season, the third-worst record in the NBA and the worst in franchise history.

But people who know the league aren’t laughing.

The Spurs dropped an NBA-record 39 games in the win column from the previous season, mainly because Robinson sat out 76 games with back and foot injuries.

They dropped right into the lottery, which allowed them to have a chance at the No. 1 draft pick. Luckily for the Spurs, they hit the jackpot with Duncan, the college player of the year from Wake Forest last season.

Now, opposing coaches are struggling to figure out how to defend a rehabilitated and rejuvenated Robinson on the same frontline with Duncan. It is the first combination of star-quality big men since the mid-1980s when Hakeem Olajuwon teamed with Ralph Sampson in Houston.

In Orlando, Magic coach Chuck Daly admitted that San Antonio “is a very strong contender” that could win the Western Conference, even after finishing ahead of only Boston and Vancouver in the netherworld of the standings last season.

“Well, that’s our lottery system,” Daly said. “I mean, they may go from 20 wins to 60 wins. Obviously, with any team, it comes down to key injuries.” more more more

Declining to list a favorite, Daly grouped Utah, Seattle, the Los Angeles Lakers, Houston, Phoenix and the Spurs as teams he sees as most likely to represent the West in the Finals.

“You get a key injury on any of those clubs and it changes their outlook,” he said.

But as for the Duncan-Robinson tandem, Daly shook his head and called the pair, “Dangerous. It looks to me like they play very well together. They are premier post- ups.”

In fact, the Spurs are the first team in NBA history to feature three former winners of the Wooden Award, signifying the best player in college basketball.

Robinson (from Navy), Duncan (Wake Forest) and Sean Elliott (Arizona) - it’s the Spurs’ dream frontline, and a potential nightmare for the rest of the West.

“We haven’t won any (regular- season) games yet,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said recently. "We have a long way to go. It’s totally understandable that the fans are getting excited. You have the three injured guys back from last season (Robinson, plus Elliott and Chuck Person) and all of them are playing well.

“Then, you add a Tim Duncan, and it’s only natural that the media and fans catch on. But we know it’s going to take discipline on a day- to-day basis. Hype is for everyone else. But it’s not for this team. We will just go out there and go to work.”

Meanwhile, the San Antonio Sports Foundation and the Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce are planning studies on the feasibility of building an arena.

The Spurs commissioned a poll of their own recently that revealed 61 percent of citizens opposed construction of a “community coliseum” in the city.

With the results of the poll in hand, Spurs majority owner Peter Holt earlier this summer called off a push by the team for a referendum on the issue.

But with the renewed interest from the Sports Foundation and the Chamber, voters reportedly may be asked to decide the issue as early as next spring.

It is a move that surely will raise the ire of some taxpayers, who fear that they will be asked to help fund the arena. The arena issue is easily the most controversial in the history of the team.

How controversial? A few months ago, Robinson was roundly criticized for suggesting that there was a “real possibility” the team might move if the arena issue wasn’t resolved.

Holt, in response, said he wasn’t surprised by the public’s reaction. He said it simply points out how controversial the subject has become.

“I think David was being honest,” Holt said. “He’s a player. And he’d like to stay in San Antonio. I thought what he said (about the potential for a move) was true. But, I mean, we as owners are committed to keeping the team in San Antonio. We’ve said that 100 times. I don’t know how many hundred times more I can say it.”

Players have said the issue could become a distraction. Robinson said it’s a subject the team will need to put “on the outside” and focus on the task of winning games.

Duncan, on the other hand, has playfully dismissed it. Even as ownership has sternly warned that the team will not re-sign him in three years if the arena isn’t built, he shrugged it off.

“I’m not worried,” he said. “I know Pop and TJ (Tom James, Spurs director of media services) will get it done.”

For his part, Holt said he has talked with players and other employees who may be worried about a move.

“We’ve got 70-something (front- office) employees,” he said. “They want to know what’s going on, too. You know, where’s their job security? I visit with them, also. I try to reassure them that we’re absolutely committed, and we are.”

When Holt staged a news conference in July to announce that he had called off the push for a referendum, he said he wanted to avoid talking about the arena debate and concentrate on the silver-anniversary celebration.

Pressed on the subject recently, he kept his comments brief.

“I think we have tremendous potential this year, so let’s not let this (issue) overshadow everything,” said Holt, who owns 31 percent of the Spurs’ stock. “I purposely won’t spend a lot of time talking about it anymore.”

Then again, fans likely will do most of the talking for him. Let the games, and the debate, commence.

By Jerry Briggs, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-30, By Glenn Rogers

马刺队和 NBA - 新的掠食者正在搜寻：邓肯准备出击 马刺新秀已展现出巨星气象

他在如今的 NBA 世界中有些另类。

他是一位新秀，却用提高每个人表现的愿望给经验丰富的队友留下了深刻印象。

他是一位年轻人，既没有在警察手电筒的灯光下闪亮，也没有在雷达枪中发出哔哔声。

他拥有过人的天赋，但却对讨论自己的这些天赋持回避态度。他不是那种在你面前喋喋不休地挑衅的人。

他愿意接受指导。

他就是蒂姆·邓肯，身披 21 号球衣，是圣安东尼奥马刺队选中的状元之选。他身体强壮，身高 6 英尺 11 英寸，动作敏捷、优美、篮球技巧娴熟，而且直觉敏锐。

“他是个真货，”教练格雷格·波波维奇说，他手下的球员现在完全有能力在季后赛中进行一场严肃的较量。

这位前维克森林大学球星彻底摒弃了近几个赛季进入 NBA 的一些神童形象。

你不会听到他宣布计划如何赢得这个或那个荣誉的豪言壮语。他说：“我不会把这个赛季当作赢得最佳新秀的时间。”然而，他却是目前的最热门人选。

所以，你不会听到他对著名的老将和/或其他新秀做出扣篮的承诺。

你不会听到他抱怨我如何、我如何，哀叹在场上没有得到足够的出场时间或触球机会。你不会听到他抱怨根本没人理解他或他的比赛风格。

邓肯确信自己的天赋，只是没有兴趣夸耀它。他更愿意谈论尚未完成的事情。

他说：“我必须看看自己在 NBA 中需要学习和关注什么。”

这似乎是他获悉马刺队赢得选秀抽签并宣布他们将选中邓肯后所秉持的指导原则——这其实没什么好惊讶的。

在正式选秀之前，波波维奇在美属维尔京群岛拜访了邓肯。他忍不住讨论了会让这位年轻新星参与其中的 NBA 战术。邓肯也不禁开玩笑说，波波维奇用糖包来设计战术。

邓肯欢迎体能教练迈克·布伦加特来指导，并且心甘情愿地接受马刺队助理教练的走访和训练。事实上，当被问及是否愿意参加在犹他州举办的夏季联赛锦标赛时，他说“是”。在训练营开始前，他与大卫·罗宾逊在科罗拉多州进行了训练，并参加了马刺队老将组织的各种训练。

罗宾逊说：“我知道，在新秀年之前的夏天，我从来没有这么努力过。他展现出了惊人的运动能力和态度。他看起来已经进入了赛季中期。”

邓肯说：“我只是想适应这帮家伙，适应战术。”

他做到了，然后指出，由于之前的所有努力，在训练营中他没有必要专注于大量的体能训练。

邓肯说：“我的职业道德来自哪里？它一直是我生活的一部分。我在参加游泳训练时就养成了这样的道德（一些人认为他本可以尝试入选奥运队）。我必须自己待在游泳池里，必须自我激励。”

基本上，邓肯坚持说他只想打好球。

这没问题。

早期的邓肯评价中包含了一些对他的消极暗示。季前赛的评价应该会消除这些负面影响。

邓肯可能不是那种能吸引别人注意的人，但他设法置身事物的中心。他在禁区内不断努力拼抢篮板。他在进攻端快速反弹。他在进攻时持续控球。他盖帽，并封锁对手的突破路线。

每个球员都应该如此消极。

他已拥有的低位动作让罗宾逊羡慕不已。

罗宾逊说：“在这个阶段，他比我强得多。而且他只想变得更好。这是很棒的心态。”

在球场上，邓肯像猎物追踪者一样狡猾。他是个思想者，密切注意比赛的进程，现在密切关注着球，然后寻找空当。他转身、穿过空当，然后转身投出一个完美的弧形跳投。

他说：“我喜欢传球。魔术师约翰逊是我最喜欢的球员。”他用巧妙的角度、击地传球、穿过防守队员的子弹球让队友们高兴不已。

邓肯没有被 NBA 的精英吓倒，但他不会犹豫一两个动作。

他说：“我喜欢观察别人，也许会利用他们的一些动作。我看到别人做什么，然后说‘我想这样做’。”

马刺队控球后卫艾弗里·约翰逊惊叹于邓肯的全能技能。

约翰逊说：“他无所不能。他是一位真正优秀的低位球员，他在 15 英尺之外投篮让我感到惊讶。他看起来比他表现出来的强壮得多。”这打消了一些担心——邓肯无法应付联盟中那些极具威胁的肌肉男。

约翰逊还喜欢邓肯的冷静举止。

他说：“他的情绪波动不大。他是一位稳定的球员。他还需要学习跑位、学习 NBA 的比赛，当我和大卫挡拆时，他应该在什么位置。当其他大个子球员陷入犯规麻烦或一蹶不振的时候，我们会对他期望很高。”

约翰逊还认为，他可以结束关于邓肯最终将以哪个位置闻名的争论。

他强调说：“他是个大前锋，不是中锋，”并把他的新队友定为大前锋。“他是一位经典的大前锋，这就是我们应该看待他的方式。当卡尔·马龙和查尔斯·巴克利退役后，蒂姆真的应该脱颖而出。”

文尼·德尔·内格罗也会给邓肯喂球，他喜欢这个新目标。

德尔·内格罗说：“他的手很好，这对大个子来说很重要。”

邓肯的季前赛

对手 分钟 篮板 助攻 盖帽 得分

黄蜂 22 4 2 1 19

尼克斯 36 9 4 2 19

魔术 13 4 0 0 6

黄蜂 32 10 1 1 20

火箭 32 17 0 2 17

小牛 25 9 2 3 10

火箭 30 9 2 3 18

尼克斯 45 19 1 2 13

平均 29.4 10.1 1.5 1.8 15.3

点击查看原文：Spurs & NBA - New predator on the prowl: Duncan's primed to pounce Spurs rookie already shows signs of stardom

Spurs & NBA - New predator on the prowl: Duncan’s primed to pounce Spurs rookie already shows signs of stardom

He’s a bit of an oddity in today’s NBA world.

He’s a rookie who impresses veteran teammates with his desire to improve everybody’s performance.

He’s a young guy who isn’t glowing in the shine of a police officer’s flashlight or setting off bleeping noises on radar guns.

He’s loaded with individual talent but he shies from discussing those talents. He is no in-your-face taunter.

He’s coachable.

He is Tim Duncan, the No. 1 draft pick wearing No. 21 for the San Antonio Spurs. He carries agility, grace, basketball moves and instincts in a strong, 6-foot-11 frame.

“He is the real thing,” said Coach Gregg Popovich, a man now presented with a cast of players who legitimately can contend for a serious playoff run.

The former Wake Forest star departs radically from the image of the wonder lads who have been entering the NBA the past several seasons.

You’ll hear no wild proclamations on how he plans to win this or that honor. “I just don’t look at the season as a time to win rookie of the year,” he says. Yet, he’s the early favorite.

So, you’ll hear no promises of hammer dunks on famed veterans and/or other rookies.

You won’t be subjected to me this and me that, cries of not getting enough playing time or touches on the floor. You won’t hear whines that simply nobody understands him or his playing style.

Duncan is sure of his talent, just not interested in braging about it. He prefers to talk about what has yet to be done.

“I have to see what I have to learn and focus on in the NBA,” he said.

That seems to have been his guiding principle moments after the Spurs won the draft lottery and announced they would select Duncan - big surprise.

Popovich visited Duncan in the U.S. Virgin Islands before the actual draft. He couldn’t help but discuss NBA plays that would involve his young star. And Duncan couldn’t help kidding about Popovich using sugar packets to design plays.

Duncan welcomed the time with conditioning coach Mike Brungardt and yielded willingly to visits and workouts with Spurs assistant coaches. He actually said yes when asked to appear in a summer-league tournament in Utah, practiced with David Robinson in Colorado and showed up at a variety of workouts with Spurs veterans before training camp opened.

“I know I never worked that hard during the summer before my rookie year,” Robinson said. “He has shown great athleticism and attitude. He looks like he’s already in midseason form.”

“I just want to get used to the guys, get used to the plays,” Duncan said.

He did, then noted he didn’t have to concentrate on a lot on conditioning work in camp because of all the previous labor.

“Where did my work ethic come from? It’s just been part of my life,” Duncan said. “I did it while I was in the swimming program (some believe he could have made a try for the Olympic team). I had to be in the pool by myself, had to push myself.”

Basically, Duncan insists he just wants to play well.

That will be no problem.

Early Duncan reviews were laced with intimations of passivity. Preseason reviews should erase those pans.

Duncan may not be one to attract artificial attention, but he manages to wind up in the thick of things. He’s consistently in the deep paint muscling for rebounds. He gets back fast on offense. The ball is continuously in his hands during attacks. He blocks shots and paths to the bucket.

Every player should be so passive.

He already has post moves that Robinson envies.

“He’s much better than I was at his stage of the game,” Robinson said. “And he wants to just get better. That is a great mentality.”

On court, Duncan moves with the cunning of an animal tracking its prey. He’s a thinker, watching the action unfold, now keeping track of the ball, then looking for an open man. He spins and breezes through an opening, then turns and arcs a jumper that’s all net.

“I love to pass. Magic Johnson was my favorite player,” he said, and he delights his teammates with deft-angled pitches, bounce jobs, bullets between defenders.

And Duncan isn’t overawed by the NBA elite, but he won’t hesitate to incorporate a move or two.

“I like to look at guys and maybe utilize some of their moves. I see something somebody does and say, ‘I’d like to do that,’” he said.

Spurs point guard Avery Johnson marvels at Duncan’s all-around skills.

“He can do it all. He’s a real good post-up player, and he surprised me by hitting jumpers from 15 feet,” Johnson said. “He’s a lot stronger than he looks,” he added, dispelling some fears that Duncan won’t be able to handle the league’s menacing musclers.

Johnson also likes Duncan’s calm demeanor.

“He’ll have few real ups and real downs. He’s kind of a steady player,” he said. "He still has to learn positioning, the NBA game, where he needs to be when I run the pick- and-roll for David.

“There will be nights when other big guys get into foul trouble or will just be down and we will expect a lot from him.”

Johnson also figured he could end any debate on what position Duncan eventually will be known for.

“He is a four, not a five,” he emphasized, putting his new teammate at power forward. “He is a classic four and that’s the way we should look at him. When Karl Malone and Charles Barkley retire, Tim really should come to the fore.”

Vinny Del Negro, one who also will be feeding the ball into Duncan, likes the new target.

“He has very good hands and that’s a key for big guys,” Del Negro said.

Duncan in preseason

Opp. Min. Rebs. Asts. BS Pts.

Wash. 22 4 2 1 19

N.Y. 36 9 4 2 19

Orl. 13 4 0 0 6

Wash. 32 10 1 1 20

Hou. 32 17 0 2 17

Dallas 25 9 2 3 10

Hou. 30 9 2 3 18

N.Y. 45 19 1 2 13

Avg. 29.4 10.1 1.5 1.8 15.3

By Glenn Rogers, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-30

马刺队 & NBA - 97-98 赛季马刺队教练组

格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich)于 1994 年 5 月第二次来到圣安东尼奥，接替被解雇的鲍勃·巴斯(Bob Bass)，担任篮球运营副总裁。

波波维奇聘请了鲍勃·希尔(Bob Hill)教练和一组助理教练。从那时起，他采取措施换来了肖恩·埃利奥特(Sean Elliott)、查克·珀森(Chuck Person)、艾弗里·约翰逊(Avery Johnson)和威尔·珀杜(Will Perdue)等球员。

波波维奇在 12 月 10 日解雇希尔后，接任主教练。他于 4 月 23 日签署了一份为期三年的合同，担任主教练兼总经理。

波波维奇于 1988 年首次来到马刺队，担任拉里·布朗(Larry Brown)的助理教练。他于 1992 年离开，成为金州勇士队唐·尼尔森(Don Nelson)的助理教练。

波波维奇在空军学院打了四个赛季，并于 1970 年毕业。他在空军学院担任了 6 年的助理教练，并在波莫纳-皮特泽(Pomona-Pitzer)学院(加州)担任了 8 年的主教练。

萨姆·舒勒(SAM SCHULER)

职位： 球员人事总监

马刺队历史： 于 1994 年 6 月被聘用；负责球探工作，专注于欧洲和南美洲。

背景亮点： 金州勇士队球员人事总监，任期 6 年。

R.C. 布福德(R.C. BUFORD)

职位： 球探总监

马刺队历史： 于 1994 年重返球队，担任首席球探；从 1988 年起，在圣安东尼奥担任助理教练，共计 4 年。

背景亮点： 曾在洛杉矶快船队担任过两个赛季的助理教练；在 1988 年的 NCAA 冠军队中，曾担任堪萨斯大学拉里·布朗的助理教练。

李·温伯利(LEE WIMBERLY)

职位： 首席球探

马刺队历史： 本月早些时候被任命为首席球探。

背景亮点： 在高中和大学执教了 28 年。

汉克·伊根(HANK EGAN)

职位： 助理教练

马刺队历史： 于 1994 年 8 月被聘为第一助理教练。

背景亮点： 从 1971 年到 1984 年，担任空军学院的主教练。

保罗·普雷西(PAUL PRESSEY)

职位： 助理教练

马刺队历史： 于 1994 年被聘用；在马刺队打了两个赛季，并在 1992 年退役，结束了 11 年的 NBA 职业生涯。

背景亮点： 在 1992 年的选秀中，被密尔沃基雄鹿队选中为首轮新秀；在 724 场比赛中，场均得到 10.6 分和 5.6 次助攻。

迈克·布登霍尔泽(MIKE BUDENHOLZER)

职位： 助理教练

马刺队历史： 在 1996-97 赛季之前被聘为助理教练；此前曾担任过两年的视频协调员。

背景亮点： 在 1993-94 赛季，为丹麦韦尔勒篮球俱乐部(Vejle Basketball Club)场均得到 27.5 分。

约翰·安德森(JOHN ANDERSEN)

职位： 运动训练师/旅行主管

马刺队历史： 在马刺队的第 17 个赛季，于 1981 年被任命为球队训练师。

背景亮点： 在 1990 年和 1996 年的全明星赛中，担任西部全明星队的训练师。

迈克·布伦加特(MIKE BRUNGARDT)

职位： 体能教练

马刺队历史： 在马刺队的第四个赛季。

背景亮点： 体能优势公司(Strength Advantage Inc.)的创始人之一。

点击查看原文：Spurs & NBA - '97-98 Spurs Staff

Spurs & NBA - '97-98 Spurs Staff

Coach/General Manager Gregg Popovich arrived for the second time in San Antonio in May 1994, to take over as vice president of basketball operations, replacing the fired Bob Bass.

Popovich hired Coach Bob Hill and a staff of assistants. Since then he has made moves to acquire players like Sean Elliott, Chuck Person, Avery Johnson and Will Perdue.

Popovich then took over as head coach after firing Hill on Dec. 10. He signed a three-year contract April 23 as head coach and general manager.

Popovich first came to the Spurs in 1988 as an assistant to Larry Brown. He left in 1992 to become an assistant under Don Nelson at Golden State.

Popovich played four seasons at the Air Force Academy, from which he graduated in 1970. He was an assistant coach at Air Force for six years and head coach at Pomona- Pitzer (Calif.) College for eight years.

SAM SCHULER

Title: Director of player personnel

Spurs history: Hired in June 1994; oversees scouting with concentrations in Europe and South America.

Background highlights: Player- personnel director for six years at Golden State.

R.C. BUFORD

Title: Director of scouting

Spurs history: Rejoined team in '94 as head scout; also spent four years in San Antonio as assistant coach, starting in '88.

Background highlights: Spent two seasons as assistant coach with Los Angeles Clippers; was assistant at Kansas under Larry Brown on '88 team NCAA title team.

LEE WIMBERLY

Title: Head scout

Spurs history: Named head scout earlier this month.

Background highlights: Spent 28 years coaching in high school and college.

HANK EGAN

Title: Assistant coach

Spurs history: Hired as first assistant in August 1994.

Background highlights: Head coach at Air Force from '71 to '84.

PAUL PRESSEY

Title: Assistant coach

Spurs history: Hired in '94; played for Spurs for two seasons before retiring after 11-year NBA career in '92.

Background highlights: First-round draft pick by Milwaukee in '92; averaged 10.6 points and 5.6 assists in 724 games.

MIKE BUDENHOLZER

Title: Assistant coach

Spurs history: Hired as assistant prior to the '96-97 season; previously was video coordinator for two seasons.

Background highlights: Averaged 27.5 points for Vejle Basketball Club in Denmark in '93-94 season.

JOHN ANDERSEN

Title: Athletic trainer/director of travel

Spurs history: In 17th season with the Spurs, having been named the team’s trainer in '81.

Background highlights: Was trainer for the Western Conference team in '90 and '96 All-Star games.

MIKE BRUNGARDT

Title: Strength and conditioning coach

Spurs history: Entering fourth season with Spurs.

Background highlights: A founder of Strength Advantage Inc.

via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-30, By Jerry Briggs

马刺与NBA - 一座城市的篮球洗礼 - 精明的举措为1973-74赛季的首支马刺队铺平了道路

近四分之一个世纪过去了，焦虑不安的安吉洛·德罗索斯(Angelo Drossos)拜访了他多年的朋友兼商业伙伴“红”麦克科姆斯(B.J. “Red” McCombs)的家。

麦克科姆斯想要通过购买并迁入一支职业篮球队来点燃圣安东尼奥平淡无奇的国家认同感。但随着收购达拉斯牛仔队的谈判拖延，他的胆怯逐渐显现。他开始犹豫不决。

对此，德罗索斯——阿拉莫城集团的谈判代表——出现在了麦克科姆斯住所。他下定决心。已故的前马刺队首席执行官德罗索斯决心为收购辩护。

“我差点就软弱了，没有去做，”麦克科姆斯回忆道。“安吉洛来到我家，他恳求我加入这笔交易，因为按照交易的结构，我会投入最多的资金（在所有拟议的投资者中）。”

尽管麦克科姆斯信任德罗索斯的判断，但他仍然感到一丝顾虑。此时，他的妻子查理恩(Charline)加入了谈话，并表达了自己的意见。她温柔的鼓励或许促成了这笔交易。

“亲爱的，”她问她的丈夫，“为什么你不试试呢？你会喜欢这的。”

这就是麦克科姆斯需要听到的。

部分是因为德罗索斯的坚定，部分是因为查理恩·麦克科姆斯知道如何抓住丈夫的心，圣安东尼奥马刺队诞生于老牌的美国篮球协会。

他们将从之前在达拉斯的家中摇摇晃晃地转移到圣安东尼奥，在1973-74赛季首次在赫米斯菲尔竞技场安家落户。当球队在本周五前往丹佛与掘金队进行常规赛揭幕战时，他们将庆祝他们的25周年纪念日——以及他们在NBA的第22个年头。

“那年夏天（73年）我在意大利打球，当时我接到了马刺队的第一个电话，”前锋科比·迪特里希(Coby Dietrick)说，他曾为这座城市的创始球队效力。“那时候，我在地图上都找不到圣安东尼奥。除了戴维·克罗克特和阿拉莫，我对这座城市一无所知。”

随着马刺队银禧纪念日的到来，回顾球队历史上第一支球队的历史揭示了球队成功的根源——精明的收购、精明的管理、有天赋的年轻球员，以及最终团结在赢家周围的球迷。

“球迷一直支持我们，”前马刺队球星乔治·格文(George Gervin)说，他在1974年1月被交易来，为球队在接下来的十几个赛季的成功奠定了基础。“没有他们，我们不会走到今天。”

然而，最初，球队的到来取决于一项商业建议。麦克科姆斯，一位圣安东尼奥汽车经销商，将加入一个由27名商人组成的团队，与达拉斯特许经营权签订为期两年的租赁协议。

根据计划，圣安东尼奥的投资者支付了大约20万美元的前期费用——麦克科姆斯贡献了三分之一——以便在第一个赛季让球队搬迁。

麦克科姆斯之所以被说服去追求租赁，是因为它给了他的团队一条退路，可以在两年的任何一年退出协议。

“我们本会（直接）收购球队，”麦克科姆斯说。“但我感觉达拉斯的人真的很想退出，所以我们才租用……本质上是为了让我们自己能够在事情进展不顺利的情况下退出。”

到次年春天，尼克松总统在应对美国众议院起草的弹劾条款。裸奔者正在大学校园里疯狂地裸奔。杰克·莱蒙(Jack Lemmon)凭借电影《拯救虎》(Save the Tiger)获得奥斯卡最佳男主角奖。

此外，显而易见的是，麦克科姆斯已经抓住了一条虎尾，也就是马刺队。

在头几个月缓慢的开局后——他们在开局阶段取得了0胜4负的战绩——球队在3月和4月成为了这座城市的话题，在新增球星格文和斯文·奈特(Swen Nater)的帮助下，击败了ABA的竞争对手。

因此，投资者在第一个赛季结束时额外支付了60万美元，以确保球队的所有权。据估计，今天这支球队的价值约为1.5亿美元。

“我并不惊讶（我们取得了成功），”麦克科姆斯说，他在1993年卖掉了他在球队中的股份。“因为安吉洛同意学习这门生意，并倾注了他的心血和灵魂。他成为了一个非常棒的运营者。”

大多数前ABA球员都记得马刺队的球迷，他们以粗鲁的行为而闻名，其中一些球迷在激烈的比赛中会向对手扔啤酒杯。

但麦克科姆斯承认，在最初的六周里，有些晚上并没有多少活力。早期观众中，较为慷慨的一群只有1700人。

“我们没有立即取得成功，”麦克科姆斯承认。“我们在酒吧和餐馆里赠送门票。”

乔治·卡尔(George Karl)，现在是西雅图超音速队的总教练，在马刺队效力的头五年里都为球队效力。他在职业生涯中的新秀赛季，也是球队第一个赛季，对他来说仍然很特别。

“那段时光非常快乐，”卡尔说，他从北卡罗来纳大学来到圣安东尼奥。“我们有过一些美好的时光。我记得我们在一开始的时候并不出色，但到了赛季末，我们已经足够出色，可以击败几乎任何球队。还有（教练）汤姆·尼萨尔克(Tom Nissalke)在头一个月里不停地对我咆哮。”

为什么？

“因为我花了大约一个月的时间才学会投篮，”卡尔说。

马刺队通过收购陷入财务困境的弗吉尼亚勇士队来增强他们最初的投资。麦克科姆斯和德罗索斯在11月收购了奈特，并在1月增加了格文。

这两笔交易的总花费为80万美元，当时这是一笔昂贵的交易，在管理层内部引起了争议。但这两名球员最终带来了丰厚的回报——尤其是格文。

格文后来在NBA中获得了四次得分王，并在马刺队效力了十多个赛季。1996年，“冰人”入选篮球名人堂。

奈特和格文与后卫詹姆斯·西拉斯(James Silas)和前锋里奇·琼斯(Rich Jones)联手，为马刺队提供了四位强大的进攻武器。像卡尔、迪特里希、尤金“古”肯尼迪(Eugene “Goo” Kennedy)、查克·特里(Chuck Terry)、鲍比·沃伦(Bobby Warren)和西米·希尔(Simmie Hill)这样的角色球员，让尼萨尔克能够用才华和防守韧性来对抗对手。

最终，马刺队的平均上座人数为6303人。他们在ABA西部取得了45胜39负的战绩，排名第三。在季后赛中，他们在面对卫冕ABA冠军印第安纳步行者队的比赛中取得了令人惊讶的2比1领先优势，但最终以3比4输掉了七场四胜制的系列赛。

在他们在季后赛的最后一场主场比赛中，马刺队在12304名观众面前以102比86战胜了对手。两天后，赛季在印第安纳波利斯展览中心体育馆结束。步行者队在第三节落后15分的情况下，奋力追回，最终以86比79获胜。

尽管输掉了比赛，但球迷多年来一直忠诚于马刺队。这对德罗索斯来说是一个主要的卖点，他促成了球队在1976年加入NBA。

迪特里希，一位圣安东尼奥的居民，有时仍然可以听到ABA球迷的欢呼声，只要他仔细听。

“我有一个生动的记忆，我们在对阵（纽约）网队的比赛中首发出场，我的对手是（朱利叶斯）欧文(Julius Erving)，”他说。“在介绍球员时，全场沸腾了。我坐在（队友拉里）肯恩(Larry Kenon)旁边。我看着K说，‘这难道不有趣吗？快看。’这是我生命中最酷的事情之一。”

点击查看原文：Spurs & NBA - A City's Baptism into Basketball - Shrewd moves paved way for first Spurs team in 1973-74

Spurs & NBA - A City’s Baptism into Basketball - Shrewd moves paved way for first Spurs team in 1973-74

Nearly a quarter of a century has passed since an anxious Angelo Drossos paid a visit to the home of his longtime friend and business associate, B.J. “Red” McCombs.

McCombs wanted to stoke San Antonio’s lackluster national identity by buying and moving a professional basketball team to the city. But as negotiations to purchase the Dallas Chaparrals dragged on, his nerve waned. He got cold feet.

In response, Drossos - the point man in the talks for the Alamo City group - showed up at McCombs’ residence. He had set his jaw. Drossos, the late former Spurs chief executive officer, was determined to argue for acquisition.

“I almost got weak-kneed and didn’t do it,” McCombs recalled. “Angelo came over to my house, and he was begging me to get in the deal, because the way it was structured, I’d be putting the most money in it (out of all the proposed investors).”

Even though McCombs trusted Drossos’ judgment, he still felt pangs of reservations. At that point, his wife, Charline, stepped into the conversation with an opinion. Her gentle encouragement may have clinched the deal.

“Honey,” she asked her husband, “why don’t you try it? You’d love this.”

It was all McCombs needed to hear.

Partly because of the tenacity of Drossos, and partly because Charline McCombs knew exactly what made her husband tick, the San Antonio Spurs were born into the old American Basketball Association.

They would jingle and jangle from their previous home in Dallas, setting up shop at HemisFair Arena for the first time in 1973-74. They will celebrate their 25th anniversary - and their 22nd in the NBA - when the team travels to Denver on Friday to meet the Nuggets in the regular- season opener.

“I was playing in Italy that summer (of '73) when I got my first call from the Spurs,” said former forward Coby Dietrick, who played for the city’s inaugural team. “Back then, I couldn’t point to San Antonio on the map. Past Davy Crockett and the Alamo, I didn’t know anything about it.”

With the Spurs’ silver anniversary at hand, a look back at the first team in franchise history has revealed the roots of its success - shrewd acquisitions by heads-up management, talented young players, and, ultimately, fans that rallied around a winner.

“The fans stayed behind us,” said former Spurs star George Gervin, whose acquisition in January 1974 would pave the way for the team’s success over the next dozen seasons. “We wouldn’t be here without them.”

Initially, however, the team’s arrival was contingent on a business proposition. McCombs, a San Antonio automobile dealer, would join a group of 27 businessmen in a two- year lease arrangement with the Dallas franchise.

In the plan, San Antonio investors paid about $200,000 up front - with McCombs pitching in a third of it - to get the team to move for the first season.

McCombs was persuaded to pursue the lease because it gave his group an escape route, where it could back out of the deal after either of the two years.

“We would have purchased the team (outright),” McCombs said. “But I sensed that the people in Dallas wanted out so badly, that we did the lease … essentially as an escape for us if things didn’t work out.”

By the next spring, President Nixon was reeling against articles of impeachment prepared by the U.S. House of Representatives. Streakers were making mad naked dashes across college campuses. Jack Lemmon was winning an Oscar for best actor in the move, “Save the Tiger.”

Also, it became evident that McCombs had latched onto a tiger’s tail with the Spurs.

After a slow start in the first few months - they went 0-4 out of the box - the team became the talk of the city by March and April, knocking off ABA contenders with the aid of newly acquired stars Gervin and Swen Nater.

As a result, investors forked over an additional $600,000 near the end of the first season to secure ownership. Today the team is worth about $150 million, by some estimates.

“I’m not surprised (that we succeeded),” said McCombs, who sold his interest in the team in 1993, “because Angelo agreed to learn the business and put his heart and soul into it. He became a very good operator.”

Most former ABA players remember Spurs fans for their rowdy behavior, including some who would launch cups of beer at the opposition during heated battles.

But McCombs admitted that on some nights in the first six weeks, there wasn’t much energy. One of the early crowds was generously pegged at 1,700.

“We were not an immediate success,” McCombs admitted. “We gave away tickets at bars and restaurants.”

George Karl, now the head coach of the Seattle SuperSonics, played for the Spurs in their first five years. His rookie year as a pro, also the team’s first season, remains special to him.

“It was a lot of fun,” said Karl, who came to San Antonio from the University of North Carolina. “We had some good times. What I remember was that we weren’t very good at the start of the year, but by the end, we were good enough to beat just about anyone. That, and (Coach) Tom Nissalke yelling at me for about the first month.”

Why?

“Because it took me about that long to hit a jump shot,” Karl said.

Spurs ownership bolstered its initial investment by picking the bones of the Virginia Squires, a financially ailing franchise. McCombs and Drossos moved in to purchase Nater in November and added Gervin in January.

The deals cost a combined $800,000, which at the time was a expensive proposition and sparked some disagreement within management. But the two players ended up paying big dividends - particularly Gervin.

Gervin went on to win four scoring titles in the NBA and played a dozen seasons for the Spurs. In 1996, the “Iceman” was named to the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Together, Nater and Gervin teamed with guard James Silas and forward Rich Jones to give the Spurs four solid offensive weapons. Role players like Karl, Dietrick, Eugene “Goo” Kennedy, Chuck Terry, Bobby Warren and Simmie Hill allowed Nissalke to match up against opposing teams with talent and defensive toughness.

In the end, the Spurs averaged 6,303 fans. They finished 45-39, third in the ABA West. After jumping out to a surprising 2-1 lead on defending ABA champion Indiana in the playoffs, they eventually lost 4-3 in the best-of- seven series.

The Spurs played before 12,304 fans in their final home playoff game, a 102-86 triumph. Two nights later, the season came to a close at the Indianapolis Fairgrounds Coliseum. The Pacers, down by 15 in the third quarter, rallied to win 86- 79.

Despite the loss, fans remained loyal to the Spurs over the years. It was a prime selling point for Drossos, who engineered the team’s entry into the NBA in 1976.

Dietrick, a San Antonio resident, can still sometimes hear the roar of the ABA crowd if he listens carefully.

“One vivid memory I have is of a game we played against the (New York) Nets and I’m starting against (Julius) Erving,” he said. “During introductions, the place was just coming apart. I was sitting there next to (teammate Larry) Kenon. I looked at K and said, ‘Isn’t this fun? Just look at this.’ It’s just one of the coolest things I’ve ever been involved in, in my life.”

By Jerry Briggs, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-30

马刺队和NBA - 97-98赛季电视转播时间表

比赛时间和安排可能会有所变动；圣安东尼奥马刺队主场比赛在(TBS)和(TNT)上的转播会在圣安东尼奥地区屏蔽。(x-NBC地区覆盖)。

星期五：芝加哥公牛队客场挑战波士顿凯尔特人队，晚上7点(TNT)；犹他爵士队客场挑战洛杉矶湖人队，晚上9:30 (TNT)

星期二：休斯顿火箭队客场挑战西雅图超音速队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三：奥兰多魔术队客场挑战芝加哥公牛队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期五，11月7日：奥兰多魔术队客场挑战底特律活塞队，晚上7点(TNT)；纽约尼克斯队客场挑战洛杉矶湖人队，晚上9:30 (TNT)

星期二，11月11日：马刺队客场挑战明尼苏达森林狼队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，11月12日：纽约尼克斯队客场挑战多伦多猛龙队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期五，11月14日：洛杉矶湖人队客场挑战休斯顿火箭队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期二，11月18日：纽约尼克斯队客场挑战休斯顿火箭队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期五，11月21日：新泽西篮网队客场挑战波士顿凯尔特人队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期二，11月25日：洛杉矶湖人队客场挑战迈阿密热火队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，11月26日：迈阿密热火队客场挑战奥兰多魔术队，晚上7点(TBS)；萨克拉门托国王队客场挑战洛杉矶快船队，晚上9:30 (TBS)

星期五，11月28日：纽约尼克斯队客场挑战底特律活塞队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期二，12月2日：西雅图超音速队客场挑战华盛顿奇才队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，12月3日：洛杉矶湖人队客场挑战丹佛掘金队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期五，12月5日：犹他爵士队客场挑战波特兰开拓者队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期二，12月9日：纽约尼克斯队客场挑战芝加哥公牛队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，12月10日：洛杉矶湖人队客场挑战金州勇士队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期五，12月12日：迈阿密热火队客场挑战印第安纳步行者队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期二，12月16日：底特律活塞队客场挑战纽约尼克斯队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，12月17日：洛杉矶湖人队客场挑战芝加哥公牛队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期五，12月19日：迈阿密热火队客场挑战费城76人队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期二，12月23日：夏洛特黄蜂队客场挑战波士顿凯尔特人队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期四，12月25日：休斯顿火箭队客场挑战犹他爵士队，下午2点(NBC)；迈阿密热火队客场挑战芝加哥公牛队，下午4:30 (NBC)

星期五，12月26日：迈阿密热火队客场挑战底特律活塞队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期二，12月30日：纽约尼克斯队客场挑战奥兰多魔术队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期二，1月6日：洛杉矶湖人队客场挑战温哥华灰熊队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，1月7日：芝加哥公牛队客场挑战迈阿密热火队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期五，1月9日：芝加哥公牛队客场挑战纽约尼克斯队，晚上7点(TNT)；马刺队客场挑战菲尼克斯太阳队，晚上9:30 (TNT)

星期二，1月13日：西雅图超音速队客场挑战芝加哥公牛队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，1月14日：马刺队客场挑战华盛顿奇才队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期五，1月16日：奥兰多魔术队客场挑战菲尼克斯太阳队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期日，1月18日：印第安纳步行者队客场挑战波士顿凯尔特人队，上午11点(NBC)；休斯顿火箭队客场挑战芝加哥公牛队，下午1:30 (NBC)

星期二，1月20日：西雅图超音速队客场挑战达拉斯小牛队，晚上7点(TNT) 星期三，1月21日：洛杉矶湖人队客场挑战菲尼克斯太阳队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期五，1月23日：奥兰多魔术队客场挑战迈阿密热火队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期六，1月24日：x-纽约尼克斯队客场挑战底特律活塞队，下午2:30 (NBC)；x-洛杉矶湖人队客场挑战西雅图超音速队，下午2:30 (NBC)

星期日，1月25日：犹他爵士队客场挑战芝加哥公牛队，中午(NBC)

星期二，1月27日：底特律活塞队客场挑战密尔沃基雄鹿队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，1月28日：纽约尼克斯队客场挑战迈阿密热火队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期五，1月30日：华盛顿奇才队客场挑战底特律活塞队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期日，2月1日：迈阿密热火队客场挑战纽约尼克斯队，中午(NBC)；芝加哥公牛队客场挑战洛杉矶湖人队，下午2:30 (NBC) 星期二，2月3日：亚特兰大老鹰队客场挑战奥兰多魔术队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，2月4日：芝加哥公牛队客场挑战犹他爵士队，晚上7点(TBS)；波特兰开拓者队客场挑战洛杉矶湖人队，晚上9:30 (TBS)

星期日，2月8日：全明星赛在纽约举行，下午5点(NBC)

星期二，2月10日：西雅图超音速队客场挑战休斯顿火箭队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，2月11日：西雅图超音速队客场挑战马刺队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期五，2月13日：底特律活塞队客场挑战迈阿密热火队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期日，2月15日：休斯顿火箭队客场挑战洛杉矶湖人队，下午2点(NBC)；底特律活塞队客场挑战芝加哥公牛队，下午4:30 (NBC)

星期二，2月17日：底特律活塞队客场挑战马刺队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，2月18日：纽约尼克斯队客场挑战犹他爵士队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期五，2月20日：休斯顿火箭队客场挑战明尼苏达森林狼队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期日，2月22日：休斯顿火箭队客场挑战纽约尼克斯队，中午(NBC)；洛杉矶湖人队客场挑战奥兰多魔术队，下午2:30 (NBC)

星期二，2月24日：迈阿密热火队客场挑战犹他爵士队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，2月25日：洛杉矶湖人队客场挑战印第安纳步行者队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期五，2月27日：洛杉矶湖人队客场挑战明尼苏达森林狼队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期日，3月1日：洛杉矶湖人队客场挑战纽约尼克斯队，中午(NBC)；x-犹他爵士队客场挑战休斯顿火箭队，下午2:30 (NBC)；x-菲尼克斯太阳队客场挑战西雅图超音速队，下午2:30 (NBC) x-底特律活塞队客场挑战明尼苏达森林狼队，下午2:30 (NBC)

星期二，3月3日：西雅图超音速队客场挑战迈阿密热火队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，3月4日：犹他爵士队客场挑战波士顿凯尔特人队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期日，3月8日：x-费城76人队客场挑战华盛顿奇才队，下午2点(NBC)；x-西雅图超音速队客场挑战明尼苏达森林狼队，下午2点(NBC)；x-底特律活塞队客场挑战洛杉矶湖人队，下午2点(NBC)；x-马刺队客场挑战波特兰开拓者队，下午2点(NBC)

星期二，3月10日：迈阿密热火队客场挑战芝加哥公牛队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，3月11日：印第安纳步行者队客场挑战底特律活塞队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期日，3月15日：x-迈阿密热火队客场挑战奥兰多魔术队，上午11点(NBC)；x-犹他爵士队客场挑战底特律活塞队，上午11点(NBC)

星期二，3月17日：芝加哥公牛队客场挑战印第安纳步行者队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，3月18日：犹他爵士队客场挑战夏洛特黄蜂队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期日，3月22日：x-犹他爵士队客场挑战纽约尼克斯队，上午11:30 (NBC)；x-亚特兰大老鹰队客场挑战底特律活塞队，上午11:30 (NBC)

星期二，3月24日：菲尼克斯太阳队客场挑战犹他爵士队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，3月25日：芝加哥公牛队客场挑战奥兰多魔术队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期五，3月27日：休斯顿火箭队客场挑战奥兰多魔术队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期日，3月29日：x-休斯顿火箭队客场挑战迈阿密热火队，上午11:30 (NBC)；x-马刺队客场挑战印第安纳步行者队，上午11:30 (NBC) 星期二，3月31日：底特律活塞队客场挑战芝加哥公牛队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，4月1日：波士顿凯尔特人队客场挑战奥兰多魔术队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期五，4月3日：洛杉矶湖人队客场挑战克利夫兰骑士队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期日，4月5日：洛杉矶湖人队客场挑战底特律活塞队，中午(NBC)；芝加哥公牛队客场挑战休斯顿火箭队，下午4:30 (NBC)

星期二，4月7日：纽约尼克斯队客场挑战亚特兰大老鹰队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，4月8日：迈阿密热火队客场挑战纽约尼克斯队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期五，4月10日：亚特兰大老鹰队客场挑战夏洛特黄蜂队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期日，4月12日：x-纽约尼克斯队客场挑战迈阿密热火队，中午(NBC)；x-底特律活塞队客场挑战夏洛特黄蜂队，中午(NBC)；x-休斯顿火箭队客场挑战西雅图超音速队，下午2:30 (NBC)；x-亚特兰大老鹰队客场挑战华盛顿奇才队，下午2:30 (NBC)

星期二，4月14日：华盛顿奇才队客场挑战纽约尼克斯队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期三，4月15日：芝加哥公牛队客场挑战底特律活塞队，晚上7点(TBS)

星期五，4月17日：休斯顿火箭队客场挑战明尼苏达森林狼队，晚上7点(TNT)

星期六，4月18日：纽约尼克斯队客场挑战芝加哥公牛队，晚上7:30 (NBC)

星期日，4月19日：x-奥兰多魔术队客场挑战夏洛特黄蜂队，下午2:30 (NBC)；x-迈阿密热火队客场挑战亚特兰大老鹰队，下午2:30 (NBC)；x-犹他爵士队客场挑战洛杉矶湖人队，下午2:30 (NBC)；x-西雅图超音速队客场挑战波特兰开拓者队，下午2:30 (NBC)。

点击查看原文：Spurs & NBA - '97-98 TV Schedule

Spurs & NBA - '97-98 TV Schedule

Game times and scheduled games are subject to change; Spurs home games televised on (TBS) and (TNT) are blacked out in San Antonio. (x-NBC regional coverage).

Friday: Chicago at Boston, 7 p.m. (TNT); Utah at L.A. Lakers, 9:30 p.m. (TNT)

Tuesday: Houston at Seattle, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday: Orlando at Chicago, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Friday, Nov. 7: Orlando at Detroit, 7 p.m. (TNT); New York at L.A. Lakers, 9:30 p.m. (TNT)

Tuesday, Nov. 11: SPURS at Minnesota, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, Nov. 12: New York at Toronto, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Friday, Nov. 14: L.A. Lakers at Houston, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Tuesday, Nov. 18: New York at Houston, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Friday, Nov. 21: New Jersey at Boston, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Tuesday, Nov. 25: L.A. Lakers at Miami, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, Nov. 26: Miami at Orlando, 7 p.m. (TBS); Sacramento at L.A. Clippers, 9:30 p.m. (TBS)

Friday, Nov. 28: New York at Deroit, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Tuesday, Dec. 2: Seattle at Washington, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, Dec. 3: L.A. Lakers at Denver, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Friday, Dec. 5: Utah at Portland, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Tuesday, Dec. 9: New York at Chicago, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, Dec. 10: L.A. Lakers at Golden State, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Friday, Dec. 12: Miami at Indiana, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Tuesday, Dec. 16: Detroit at New York, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, Dec. 17: L.A. Lakers at Chicago, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Friday, Dec. 19: Miami at Philadelphia, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Tuesday, Dec. 23: Charlotte at Boston, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Thursday, Dec. 25: Houston at Utah, 2 p.m. (NBC); Miami at Chicago, 4:30 p.m. (NBC)

Friday, Dec. 26: Miami at Detroit, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Tuesday, Dec. 30: New York at Orlando, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Tuesday, Jan. 6: L.A. Lakers at Vancouver, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, Jan. 7: Chicago at Miami, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Friday, Jan. 9: Chicago at New York, 7 p.m. (TNT); SPURS at Phoenix, 9:30 p.m. (TNT)

Tuesday, Jan. 13: Seattle at Chicago, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, Jan. 14: SPURS at Washington, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Friday, Jan. 16: Orlando at Phoenix, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Sunday, Jan. 18: Indiana at Boston, 11 a.m. (NBC); Houston at Chicago, 1:30 p.m. (NBC)

Tuesday, Jan. 20: Seattle at Dallas, 7 p.m. (TNT) Wednesday, Jan. 21: L.A. Lakers at Phoenix, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Friday, Jan. 23: Orlando at Miami, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Saturday, Jan. 24: x-New York at Detroit, 2:30 p.m. (NBC); x-L.A. Lakers at Seattle, 2:30 p.m. (NBC)

Sunday, Jan. 25: Utah at Chicago, noon (NBC)

Tuesday, Jan. 27: Detroit at Milwakee, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, Jan. 28: New York at Miami, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Friday, Jan. 30: Washington at Detroit, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Sunday, Feb. 1: Miami at New York, noon (NBC); Chicago at L.A. Lakers, 2:30 p.m. (NBC) Tuesday, Feb 3: Atlanta at Orlando, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, Feb. 4: Chicago at Utah, 7 p.m. (TBS); Portland at L.A. Lakers, 9:30 p.m. (TBS)

Sunday, Feb. 8: All-Star Game at New York, 5 p.m. (NBC)

Tuesday, Feb. 10: Seattle at Houston, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, Feb. 11: Seattle at SPURS, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Friday, Feb. 13: Detroit at Miami, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Sunday, Feb. 15: Houston at L.A. Lakers, 2 p.m. (NBC); Detroit at Chicago, 4:30 p.m. (NBC)

Tuesday, Feb. 17: Detroit at SPURS, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, Feb. 18: New York at Utah, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Friday, Feb. 20: Houston at Minnesota, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Sunday, Feb. 22: Houston at New York, noon (NBC); L.A. Lakers at Orlando, 2:30 p.m. (NBC)

Tuesday, Feb. 24: Miami at Utah, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, Feb. 25: L.A. Lakers at Indiana, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Friday, Feb. 27: L.A. Lakers at Minnesota, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Sunday, March 1: L.A. Lakers at New York, noon (NBC); x-Utah at Houston, 2:30 p.m. (NBC); x-Phoenix at Seattle, 2:30 p.m. (NBC) x-Detroit at Minnesota, 2:30 p.m. (NBC)

Tuesday, March 3: Seattle at Miami, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, March 4: Utah at Boston, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Sunday, March 8: x-Philadelphia at Washington, 2 p.m. (NBC); x-Seattle at Minnesota, 2 p.m. (NBC); x- Detroit at L.A. Lakers, 2 p.m. (NBC); x-SPURS at Portland, 2 p.m. (NBC)

Tuesday, March 10: Miami at Chicago, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, March 11: Indiana at Detroit, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Sunday, March 15: x-Miami at Orlando, 11 a.m. (NBC); x- Utah at Detroit, 11 a.m. (NBC)

Tuesday, March 17: Chicago at Indiana, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, March 18: Utah at Charlotte, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Sunday, March 22: x-Utah at New York, 11:30 a.m. (NBC); x-Atlanta at Detroit, 11:30 a.m. (NBC)

Tuesday, March 24: Phoenix at Utah, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, March 25: Chicago at Orlando, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Friday, March 27: Houston at Orlando, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Sunday, March 29: x-Houston at Miami, 11:30 a.m. (NBC); x-SPURS at Indiana, 11:30 a.m. (NBC) Tuesday, March 31: Detroit at Chicago, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, April 1: Boston at Orlando, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Friday, April 3: L.A. Lakes at Cleveland, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Sunday, April 5: L.A. Lakers at Detroit, noon (NBC); Chicago at Houston, 4:30 p.m. (NBC)

Tuesday, April 7: New York at Atlanta, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, April 8: Miami at New York, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Friday, April 10: Atlanta at Charlotte, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Sunday, April 12: x-New York at Miami, noon (NBC); x-Detroit at Charlotte, noon (NBC); x-Houston at Seattle, 2:30 p.m. (NBC); x-Atlanta at Washington, 2:30 p.m. (NBC)

Tuesday, April 14: Washington at New York, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Wednesday, April 15: Chicago at Detroit, 7 p.m. (TBS)

Friday, April 17: Houston at Minnesota, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Saturday, April 18: New York at Chicago, 7:30 p.m. (NBC)

Sunday, April 19: x-Orlando at Charlotte, 2:30 p.m. (NBC); x-Miami at Atlanta, 2:30 p.m. (NBC); x- Utah at L.A. Lakers, 2:30 p.m. (NBC); x-Seattle at Portland, 2:30 p.m. (NBC).

via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-30, By Jerry Briggs

他已准备好重新回到正轨——背部僵硬并非马刺队罗宾逊的担忧

马刺队中锋大卫·罗宾逊在周三摆脱了一次背部僵硬的困扰，并坚持称他将在球队在赛季揭幕战前的最后一次训练中做好准备参加训练。

“哦，是的。”罗宾逊在走出阿拉莫多姆球馆时说，“这没什么问题。”

马刺队将于周五晚上在丹佛进行常规赛揭幕战。他们将在当天上午在圣安东尼奥进行训练，然后在下午晚些时候搭乘包机前往一英里高城。

替补前锋查克·帕森在揭幕战中的出场状态在球馆的上午训练和录像分析后仍存疑问。自帕森在上周六对阵纽约队的季前赛决赛中遭遇背部痉挛发作以来，他还没有与球队进行过一场完整的训练。

“我现在无法（关于丹佛比赛）做出决定。”帕森说，他在周三的个人训练中命中了他投出的大部分球，“这件事悬而未决。我们将一天一天地看待它。对我来说，上场比不上场看起来更有希望。”

在抱怨背部紧绷后，罗宾逊在练习的最后45分钟左右去了更衣室。他将这些困难归因于当天早些时候去看治疗师。

“这只是有点僵硬，”他说，“这是意料之中的。我让医生给我按压……（我的背部）在今天上午进行了调整。有时这会让它变得酸痛。

“我通常会在一天的稍晚些时候这么做。它只是有些僵硬。现在感觉还行。”

如果最近的历史重演，罗宾逊应该会没事。在克尔维尔的训练营第一周，他在一次练习中感到一阵刺痛并休息了大概一半的时间。第二天，他顺利地跑了起来。

罗宾逊说，这次发作与本月初那次不同。那不是一阵刺痛。那只是逐渐变硬，这是一个他能克服的问题，因为他季后季严格的训练。

上个赛季，罗宾逊因背部和脚部伤势缺席了 82 场比赛中的 76 场。帕森在接受背部手术后错过了整个赛季。

进入丹佛比赛时，一个轻微的担忧可能是后卫文尼·德尔·内格罗右膝的肌腱炎。在坐下来冰敷之前，德尔·内格罗在过去两次训练中训练了一半多一点的时间。

“文尼的膝盖有一些肌腱炎，一直在活动，”马刺队教练格雷格·波波维奇说，“从几场比赛前开始，我们一直对他采取一些预防措施。对大卫来说，我们一直让他在练习中（在训练营期间）提前结束。到目前为止，这很有效。”

波波维奇说，帕森将于今天上午再次去看医生。希望他能够获得开始慢跑的绿灯。

波波维奇说：“我认为那将是真正的考验，看他是否能够加入我们（在丹佛）。”马刺队笔记：球员和教练们与 NBA 的国家团队联盟日合作，帮助一群 50 名中学生在周二清理了东区的一个墓地。

球员和教练们还参加了为马刺基金会献爱心午餐会，该基金会支持当地慈善机构。

• 新秀蒂姆·邓肯在八场季前赛中场均出场 29.4 分钟，得到 15.3 分、10.1 个篮板和 1.7 个盖帽。他的投篮命中率为 51.2%，罚球命中率为 54.2%。

罗宾逊场均出场 23.4 分钟，得到 15.3 分、7.8 个篮板，投篮命中率为 54.7%。帕森的三分球命中率为 41.4%。

肖恩·艾利奥特上赛季也因重伤复出，投篮命中率为 39.7%。他在 23.6 分钟的出场时间里场均得到 9.4 分。

点击查看原文：He's ready to get back on track - Stiffness not a concern for Spurs' Robinson

He’s ready to get back on track - Stiffness not a concern for Spurs’ Robinson

Spurs center David Robinson shrugged off an episode of back stiffness Wednesday and insisted he would be ready to practice today in the team’s final workout before the season opener.

“Oh, yeah,” Robinson said as he walked out of the Alamodome. “It’s not a problem.”

The Spurs open the regular season Friday night at Denver. They will work out in San Antonio this morning, then board a charter aircraft for the Mile High City later in the afternoon.

The status of reserve forward Chuck Person for the opener remained a question after a morning practice and film session at the dome. Person hasn’t gone through a full workout with the team since he suffered a bout with back spasms in the preseason finale last Saturday against New York.

“I can’t make a decision (about the Denver game) right now,” said Person, who connected on the majority of shots he took in solitary drills Wednesday. “It’s up in the air. We’ll take it a day at a time. It looks better for me playing than not playing.”

Robinson went to the locker room for about the final 45 minutes of practice after complaining of tightness in his back. He traced the difficulties to a visit to a therapist earlier in the day.

“It’s just a little stiffness,” he said. "It was expected. I had the doctor cranking on me … there was an adjustment (on my back) this morning. Sometimes that can make it sore.

“I usually do it a little later in the day. It just stiffened up some. It feels OK now.”

If recent history repeats itself, Robinson should be fine. In the first week of training camp in Kerrville, he felt a twinge at one practice and sat out about half of it. The next day, he ran smoothly.

Robinson said this episode was different than the one earlier this month. It wasn’t a twinge. It was just a gradual stiffening, the sort of problem he has been able to work through because of his rigorous off-season conditioning.

Last season, Robinson sat out 76 of 82 games with back and foot injuries. Person missed the entire season after having back surgery.

A minor concern going into the Denver game may be the tendinitis in the right knee of guard Vinny Del Negro. Del Negro has worked out a little more than half of the last two practices before sitting down to ice it.

“Vinny’s has had some tendinitis that’s moved around in his knee,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “We’ve been taking some precautions with him since a couple of games ago. With David, we’ve always been making him quit early in practice (during training camp). So far, it’s served us well.”

Popovich said Person would see the doctor again this morning. It is hoped that he will be given the green light to begin jogging and running.

“I think that’ll be the real test to see if he’s going to be able to join us (in Denver),” Popovich said. Spurs notes: Players and coaches, in conjunction with the NBA’s National TeamUp Day, helped a group of 50 middle school students clean up an East Side cemetery Tuesday.

The players and coaches also participated in the Tip-Off Luncheon to benefit the Spurs Foundation, which boosts local charities.

- Rookie Tim Duncan averaged 15.3 points, 10.1 rebounds and 1.7 blocked shots in 29.4 minutes during eight preseason games. He shot 51.2 percent from the field and 54.2 percent at the line.

Robinson averaged 15.3 points, 7.8 rebounds and shot 54.7 percent in 23.4 minutes. Person hit 41.4 percent of his three-point shots.

Sean Elliott, also coming back from a major injury last season, shot 39.7 percent from the field. He averaged 9.4 points in 23.6 minutes.

By Jerry Briggs, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-30, By Glenn Rogers

马刺与NBA - 抛开花边新闻，尽情享受比赛吧

是时候真正开始比赛了 - 而且已经不能再等了。

谁知道呢？也许再过一个星期，又会有一两颗明星倒下，受伤会毁掉另一支球队的希望，也让球迷们的期待大打折扣。

谁知道呢？也许再过一个星期，又会有一颗明星被法律的魔爪抓住。也许查尔斯·巴克利(Charles Barkley)会加码，把一个嘲笑他的人从十层楼的窗户扔出去，希望他落在水泥搅拌机里。

谁知道《纽约时报》发表的报道，声称联盟中广泛使用酒精和大麻后，会引发多少反应故事？

NBA 上空已经笼罩着罢工和封锁的阴云。老板们看到越来越多的钱流向了球星们，想要重新谈判集体谈判协议。球员们开始意识到，如果老板们真的决定再次谈判，他们也许可以永远摆脱工资帽的限制。

所以，让我们开始享受这场盛宴吧。让我们欣赏球场上那些滑稽的表演，那块木头两端各有一个篮筐。

让我们看看迈克尔·乔丹(Michael Jordan)，也许这是他最后的一个赛季，他伸着舌头，挑战地心引力，晃过防守球员，追逐着他职业生涯的第 10 个得分王和第 6 个总冠军戒指。

让我们准备好，欣赏一位头发染成匪夷所思颜色的球员在内线飞翔，追逐着一个又一个难以捉摸的篮板球。

让我们准备好，那些夸口预测的人用行动来证明他们的言论。

沙奎尔·奥尼尔(Shaquille O’Neal)将以瞪大的眼睛轰然灌篮，投进那些小小的推铅球般的跳投，然后罚球不中。凯文·加内特(Kevin Garnett)，在打消了在明尼苏达的目标中心顶上建造自己的顶层公寓的想法后，将迈步走上球场，证明自己价值 1.2 亿美元，只要他被斯蒂芬·马布里(Stephon Marbury)喂球，并且有汤姆·古格里奥塔(Tom Gugliotta)在他的身后守护。

休斯敦的三位老将 - 巴克利、克莱德·德雷克斯勒(Clyde Drexler)和哈基姆·奥拉朱旺(Hakeem Olajuwon) - 将穿上他们的短裤，喘着粗气，偶尔会靠着篮架支柱或记分台休息一下，然后冲向球场，完成突破式的扣篮，让火箭队的忠实球迷为之疯狂。

迈阿密和纽约将在半场压制和全场拼抢的战斗中针锋相对。帕特·莱利(Pat Riley)和杰夫·范甘迪(Jeff Van Gundy)将有机会与他们的夜间抱怨裁判反对足球战术的言论分享聚光灯。

76 人队的拉里·布朗(Larry Brown)今天会赞扬德里克·科尔曼(Derrick Coleman)，明天就会批评他。他会对艾伦·艾弗森(Allen Iverson)也做同样的事情，但他不会交易他。艾弗森将继续用他那令人窒息的交叉运球赢得 76 人队球迷的喜爱，但也会让一些队友计算他们上次投篮的时间。

让我们兴奋地搓着手，坐好 - 希望至少能用望远镜看到比赛 - 然后看看一些新面孔在场上展现自己的风采。

马刺队的蒂姆·邓肯(Tim Duncan)将展现他全面的比赛能力，包括封盖、抢篮板、勾手、跳投、扣篮和上篮。

凯斯·范霍恩(Keith Van Horn)，在邓肯的阴影下，将在某些夜晚在内线展现惊人的实力，帮助篮网队重新获得一些地位和球迷的关注，而新泽西州伊斯特拉瑟福德的洲际航空竞技场通常是空荡荡的。

像凯尔文·卡托(Kelvin Cato)、蒂姆·托马斯(Tim Thomas)和特雷西·麦克格雷迪(Tracy McGrady)这样的年轻人，首先会用他们惊人的身体技巧和扣篮后的笑容让我们感到惊奇和喜悦，然后当他们投出可笑的投篮，罚球不中，被老将们平静的假动作骗过时，又会让我们摇头叹息。

让我们让这一切都开始吧，在一切都分崩离析之前。

点击查看原文：Spurs & NBA - Forget sideshows, let's hoop it up

Spurs & NBA - Forget sideshows, let’s hoop it up

It’s time to tip it up for real - and not a moment too soon.

Who knows? Another week and maybe another star or two will go down to injury, wrecking the hopes of yet another team and dampening the anticipations of another gathering of fans.

Who knows, another week and another star could be snagged by the long arm of the law. Maybe Charles Barkley will up the ante and toss a heckler out of a 10-story window and hope he lands in a cement mixer.

Who knows how many reaction tales will follow the New York Times’ published account reporting extensive use of alcohol and marijuana throughout the league?

The dark cloud of threatened strikes and lockouts already has formed over the NBA. The owners see more and more of their money being channeled to the stars and want to renegotiate the collective- bargaining agreement. The players are beginning to get the idea they may be able to rid themselves forever of a salary cap if the owners do decide to deal again.

So, let’s get the fun part started. Let’s behold the antics on the court, the wooden one with hoops at either end.

Let’s watch Michael Jordan, perhaps in his last season, hang his tongue out, defy gravity, juke defenders and chase after his 10th scoring title and sixth championship ring.

Let’s prepare for some views of a preposterously dyed-head soaring above others in the paint in pursuit of another elusive rebound.

Let’s get ready for the boastful predictors to match their words with action.

Shaquille O’Neal will thunder- dunk with wide eyes, hit those little shot-put jumpers, blow free throws. Kevin Garnett, after turning aside thoughts to have his own penthouse built atop Minnesota’s Target Center, will stride to the court and prove he’s worth $120 million, as long as he’s being fed by Stephon Marbury and having his back watched by Tom Gugliotta.

The three old men in Houston - Barkley, Clyde Drexler and Hakeem Olajuwon - will put on their short pants, wheeze a little, lean against the basket support or scorers’ table for an occasional breather, and then streak down the floor for breakaway slams to rock the Rockets’ faithful.

Miami and New York will bristle in half-court strangulations and full-court bruising battles. Pat Riley and Jeff Van Gundy will get to share the spotlight with their nightly whining about referees objecting to football tactics.

The Sixers’ Larry Brown will praise Derrick Coleman one day, rip him the next. He’ll do the same with Allen Iverson but he won’t trade him. Iverson will continue to endear himself to Sixers fans with his crippling cross-over dribbles but leave some teammates counting the hours since they last shot the ball.

Let’s wring our hands excitedly, take our seat - hopefully within at least binocular distance of the action - and watch some newcomers strut for attention.

Tim Duncan of the Spurs will disclose his complete game of shot-blocking, positioning for rebounds, hooks, jumpers, slams and layups.

Keith Van Horn, in his niche below Duncan, will amaze some nights in the post and help the Nets reclaim some status and fan attention in the usually empty Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, N.J.

Kids like Kelvin Cato, Tim Thomas and Tracy McGrady will first amaze and delight with their physical acrobatics and their face- splitting grins after dunks, and then cause knowing shakes of fans’ heads when they take laughable shots, clank free throws, get undressed by the quiet veteran’s smooth fake.

Let’s get it all started before it all falls apart.

By Glenn Rogers, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-30

马刺队和 NBA - 认识球队成员

1.科里·亚历山大（Cory Alexander）
位置：后卫
身高体重：6 英尺 1 英寸，185 磅
年龄：24 岁（1973 年 6 月 22 日出生，弗吉尼亚州韦恩斯伯勒）

大学：弗吉尼亚大学

NBA 经验：第三个赛季，均效力于马刺队。

合同状态：将在合同最后一年收入 68.6 万美元。

1996-97 年亮点：3 月份艾弗里·约翰逊因病缺阵时，连续六场担任首发。…作为首发球员在 46.7 分钟上场时间内场均得到 20.3 分、9.3 次助攻和 4.2 个篮板。…3 月 20 日在菲尼克斯对阵凯文·约翰逊时，亚历山大表现出色，职业生涯最高得分 26 分。…得分场均比上个赛季提高了 4.4 分，跃升至每场比赛 7.2 分。

展望：尽管上个赛季的表现有所提高，但亚历山大仍需与艾弗里·约翰逊争夺担任候补控球后卫的上场时间。…仍然是球队三分球命中率最高的三人之一。…需要在防守端保持积极性，并掌控进攻节奏。

场均数据：命中率投篮命中率三分命中率平均数据场次上场时间得分投篮命中率三分命中率篮板助攻得分
1996-97 80 18.2 39.6 73.6 37.3 1.5 3.2 7.2
职业生涯 140 14.4 39.8 72.1 37.7 1.2 2.7 5.3

2.贾伦·杰克逊（Jaren Jackson）

位置：后卫

身高体重：6 英尺 6 英寸，210 磅

年龄：30 岁（1967 年 10 月 27 日出生，新奥尔良）

大学：乔治城大学

NBA 经验：第八个赛季，第一次效力于马刺队

合同状态：在一年、非保障性合同中获得 NBA 最低工资 27.2 万美元。

1996-97 年亮点：在华盛顿度过职业生涯最佳赛季。…作为替补球员在分卫位置上为卡尔伯特·奇尼效力。…他的 1,133 分钟超过了他在联盟前七年比赛的总分钟数。…子弹队把他当做防守墙，但他的外线投射能力有了显著提高。…投进了 53 个三分球，而在他前七个赛季中仅投进了三个。

3.雷吉·吉尔（Reggie Geary）

位置：后卫

身高体重：6 英尺 2 英寸，190 磅

年龄：24 岁（1973 年 8 月 31 日出生，新泽西州特伦顿）

大学：亚利桑那大学

NBA 经验：第二个赛季，第一次效力于马刺队

1996-97 年亮点：在克利夫兰骑士队打了 39 场比赛，场均得到 1.5 分和 6.3 分钟的上场时间…1 月 20 日在犹他，他职业生涯最高得分是 11 分…3 月 19 日在夏洛特，他职业生涯最高得分是 10 分，上场时间为 24 分钟…三分球命中率为 38%。

杰克逊和吉尔正在争夺最后一个阵容名额。该队必须在今天之前将球员人数减少到 12 人。

4.蒙蒂·威廉姆斯（Monty Williams）

位置：前锋/后卫

身高体重：6 英尺 8 英寸，225 磅

年龄：26 岁（1971 年 10 月 8 日出生，弗吉尼亚州弗雷德里克斯堡）

大学：圣母大学

NBA 经验：第四个赛季，第三个赛季效力于马刺队

合同状态：130 万美元合同的最后一年。

1996-97 赛季：作为职业生涯第三个赛季取得了巨大进步。…得分场均提高了 6.8 分。…尽管有几处小伤，但比前两年的上场时间（1,345 分钟）加起来还要多。…在 65 场比赛中，首发 26 场。在那些首发比赛中，场均得到 14.4 分和 3.7 个篮板。…4 月 8 日对阵丹佛，他职业生涯最高得分 30 分。

展望：威廉姆斯希望打出一个出色的赛季来证明上个赛季并非侥幸。…应该会在替补小前锋和可能的得分后卫位置上获得高质量的上场时间。…作为一名坚韧的防守者、快速的奔跑者以及团队中身体状态最好的球员之一，他可以帮助马刺队进入转换比赛。

场均数据：命中率投篮命中率三分命中率平均数据场次上场时间得分投篮命中率三分命中率篮板助攻得分
1996-97 65 20.7 50.9 64.5 00.0 3.2 1.4 9.0
职业生涯 13714.8 48.6 61.900.0 2.5 1.1 5.8

5.艾弗里·约翰逊（Avery Johnson）

位置：后卫

身高体重：5 英尺 11 英寸，175 磅

年龄：32 岁（1965 年 3 月 25 日出生，新奥尔良）

大学：南部大学

NBA 经验：第 10 个赛季，第七个赛季效力于马刺队

合同状态：将在此三年 900 万美元合同的第一年获得 250 万美元。

1996-97 年亮点：在马刺遭遇伤病危机期间，约翰逊的产量有所下降。…教练减少了他的出场时间，因为很明显球队打不进季后赛。…3 月份的疾病导致他打破了连续 378 场比赛的出场纪录。

展望：将作为首发控球后卫指挥球队。…随着进攻的重点放在大卫·罗宾逊、蒂姆·邓肯和肖恩·艾利奥特的才能上，约翰逊估计他将 80-85% 的时间控球，而过去超过 90%。…但他也将被要求在快速反击中推动球队。…他的领导能力至关重要。

场均数据：命中率投篮命中率三分命中率平均数据场次上场时间得分投篮命中率三分命中率篮板助攻得分
1996-97 76 32.5 47.7 69.0 23.1 1.9 6.8 10.5
职业生涯 63025.4 48.8 70.616.2 5.9 1.8 8.6

6.卡尔·埃雷拉（Carl Herrera）

位置：前锋

身高体重：6 英尺 9 英寸，225 磅

年龄：31 岁（1966 年 12 月 14 日出生，特立尼达）

大学：休斯顿大学

NBA 经验：第七个赛季，第三个赛季效力于马刺队

合同状态：在四年 676 万美元合同的第三年收入 182 万美元。

1996-97 年亮点：创下职业生涯单场最佳得分（8.0 分）和出场时间（24.5 分钟）。…在 75 场比赛中首发 58 场。…五次得分达到 20 分，其中包括 2 月 21 日在密尔沃基创下的职业生涯最高分 24 分。…表现出有限的篮板能力。…带着伤痛上场；鼻子两次骨折，膝盖肌腱炎发作。

展望：随着新秀蒂姆·邓肯的加盟，埃雷拉将重返替补席，但预计他将在大前锋位置打出侵略性的防守。…他已经有理由全力以赴，因为他认为球队可以成为一个大赢家。另一个激励因素：他有权在 1998 年 7 月 1 日成为自由球员。

场均数据：命中率投篮

点击查看原文：Spurs & NBA - MEET THE TEAM

Spurs & NBA - MEET THE TEAM

1 CORY ALEXANDER Position: Guard Height, weight: 6-1, 185 Age: 24 (June 22, 1973, Waynesboro, Va.)

College: Virginia

NBA experience: Third season, all with Spurs.

Contract status: Will make $686,000 in last year of his contract.

1996-97 highlights: Started six games in March as Avery Johnson recovered from an illness. … As a starter averaged 20.3 points, 9.3 assists and 4.2 rebounds in 46.7 minutes. … Matched against Kevin Johnson in Phoenix on March 20, Alexander exploded for career-high 26 points. … Increased his scoring average by 4.4 points over previous season, jumping to 7.2 points per game.

Outlook: Despite improved play last season, Alexander will have to battle for minutes as reserve point guard behind Johnson. … Remains one of the team’s top three-point shooting artists. … Will need to stay aggressive defensively and take charge of the offense. Avg. FG FT 3pt -Averages- G min ptg ptg ptg RebAstPts 96-97 80 18.2 39.6 73.6 37.3 1.5 3.2 7.2 Career 140 14.4 39.8 72.1 37.7 1.2 2.7 5.3

2 JAREN JACKSON

Position: Guard

Height, weight: 6-6, 210

Age: 30 (Oct. 27, 1967, New Orleans)

College: Georgetown

NBA experience: Eighth season, first with Spurs

Contract status: Will make NBA-minimum $272,000 on one-year, non-guaranteed deal.

1996-97 highlights: Enjoyed best season in his NBA career at Washington. … Came off bench behind Calbert Cheaney at shooting guard. … His 1,133 minutes surpassed the total minutes he played in his first seven years in the league. … Bullets used him as defensive stopper, but his outside shot improved dramatically. … Made 53 three- pointers, compared to only three in his first seven seasons.

4 REGGIE GEARY

Position: Guard

Height, weight: 6-2, 190

Age: 24 (Aug. 31, 1973, Trenton, N.J.)

College: Arizona

NBA experience: Second season, first with Spurs

1996-97 highlights: appeared in 39 games with Cleveland Cavaliers, averaging 1.5 points and 6.3 minutes … Scored career-high 11 points at Utah on Jan. 20 … Scored 10 points in career-high 24 minutes at Charlotte on March 19 … Shot 38 percent from three-point range.

Jackson and Geary are battling for the final roster spot. The team must cut to 12 players by today.

3 MONTY WILLIAMS

Position: Forward/guard

Height, weight: 6-8, 225

Age: 26 (Oct. 8, 1971, Fredricksburg, Va.)

College: Notre Dame

NBA experience: Fourth season, third with Spurs

Contract status: Final year of $1.3 million contract.

1996-97 season: Made big strides in third season as a pro. … Scoring average increased by 6.8 points. … Despite several nagging injuries, played more minutes (1,345) than he did in first two years combined. … In 65 games, started 26. In those starts, averaged 14.4 points, 3.7 rebounds. … Scored career- high 30 against Denver on April 8.

Outlook: Williams wants to have a big season to prove that last season was no fluke. … Should get quality minutes at both reserve small forward and possibly at shooting guard. … As a tenacious defender, swift runner and one of best conditioned players on team, he can help Spurs get into transition game. Avg. FG FT 3pt -Averages- G min ptg ptg ptg RebAstPts 96-97 65 20.7 50.9 64.5 00.0 3.2 1.4 9.0 Career 13714.8 48.6 61.900.0 2.5 1.1 5.8

6 AVERY JOHNSON

Position: Guard

Height, weight: 5-11, 175

Age: 32 (March 25, 1965, New Orleans)

College: Southern

NBA experience: 10th, seventh with Spurs

Contract status: Will make $2.5 million this year in first of three-year, $9 million deal.

1996-97 highlights: Johnson’s production dropped during Spurs’ injury disaster. … Coaches reduced his playing time after it became apparent that team would not make playoffs. … Illness in March caused him to break string of 378 straight games played.

Outlook: Will run team as starting point guard. … With motion offense keying on talents of David Robinson, Tim Duncan and Sean Elliott, Johnson estimated he will have his hands on the ball 80-85 percent of the time, compared to more than 90 percent in the past. … But he will be called on to push it on the fast break. … His leadership will be vital. Avg. FG FT 3pt -Averages- G min ptg ptg ptg RebAstPts 96-97 76 32.5 47.7 69.0 23.1 1.9 6.8 10.5 Career 63025.4 48.8 70.616.2 5.9 1.8 8.6

7 CARL HERRERA

Position: Forward

Height, weight: 6-9, 225

Age: 31 (Dec. 14, 1966, Trinidad)

College: Houston

NBA experience: Seventh season, third with Spurs

Contract status: Will make $1.82 million in third year of four-year, $6.76 million deal.

1996-97 highlights: Posted career-bests in scoring average (8.0) and minutes played (24.5). … Started 58 of 75 games. … Reached 20-point mark five times, including career-high 24 points at Milwaukee on Feb. 21. … Showed limited rebounding ability. … Played in pain; broke nose twice and suffered bout with tendinitis in his knees.

Outlook: With addition of rookie Tim Duncan, Herrera will return to the bench, but will be expected to play aggressive defense at power forward. … Has reason to give strong effort because he thinks the team can be a big winner. Another incentive: He has option to become free agent on July 1, 1998. Avg. FG FT 3pt -Averages- G min ptg ptg ptg RebAstPts 96-97 75 24.5 43.3 68.6 33.3 4.5 0.7 8.0 Career 37919.0 48.3 66.416.7 4.1 0.6 5.9

15 VINNY DEL NEGRO

Position: Guard

Height, weight: 6-4, 200

Age: 31 (Aug. 9, 1966, Springfield, Mass.)

College: North Carolina State

NBA experience: Eighth season, sixth with Spurs

Contract status: Will make $2.3 million in sixth and final year of $9.7 million deal.

1996-97 highlights: Faced more defensive pressure than usual because of injuries to his high-profile teammates, and still enjoyed a solid season. … Scored 20 or more points eight times, including season-high 29 at Sacramento on April 14. … Illness and injuries, including bruised right shoulder, caused him to miss 10 games.

Outlook: Del Negro is expected to start at shooting guard and could enjoy a big season, spotting up for open jumpers while defenses collapse on David Robinson and Tim Duncan. … With free agency pending next summer, will have plenty of incentive and might hear a few trade rumors. Avg. FG FT 3pt -Averages- G min ptg ptg ptg RebAstPts 96-97 72 31.2 46.7 86.8 31.4 2.9 3.2 12.3 Career 535 26.7 48.3 84.0 35.7 2.6 3.4 10.5

21 TIM DUNCAN

Position: Forward/center

Height, weight: 6-11, 248

Age: 21 (April 25, 1976, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands)

College: Wake Forest

NBA experience: Rookie

Contract status: Will be paid $2.96 million in first of three-year, $10.24 million contract.

1996-97 highlights: Consensus national player of the year in college at Wake Forest. … No. 1 overall pick in NBA draft on June 25. … First player since Shaquille O’Neal to repeat as unanimous AP first-team All- America. … Demon Deacons, ranked as high as No. 2 nationally, finished 24-7 and lost in second round of NCAA tourney.

Outlook: Will start immediately on frontline. … Gives Spurs another intimidating defensive presence in the lane. … Exhibited multiple skills in preseason that could make him one of team’s scoring leaders. (College stats) Avg. FG FT 3pt -Averages- G min ptg ptg ptg RebBS Pts 96-97 31 36.7 60.8 63.6 27.314.7 3.3 20.8 Career 12835.1 57.7 68.932.1 12.3 3.8 16.5

31 MALIK ROSE

Position: Forward

Height, weight: 6-7, 250

Age: 22 (Nov. 23, 1974, Philadelphia)

College: Drexel

NBA experience: Second season, first with Spurs

Contract status: Will make NBA-minimum $272,000 on one-year, non-guaranteed deal.

1996-97 highlights: Drafted 44th overall by Charlotte in 1996, Rose made the Hornets’ roster in strong training-camp performance. … Averaged three points and three rebounds in limited playing time behind Anthony Mason. … Scored career-high 14 points against Indiana on Jan. 29.

Outlook: Impressed Spurs coaches in camp with hustle and attitude. … Hit winning shot in preseason game at Orlando. … Because he is penciled in behind Tim Duncan and Carl Herrera at power forward, he might not play much. But if Herrera doesn’t perform well or is injured, Rose could step in to provide defense and rebounding. … Will be called on to be aggressive in practice. Avg. FG FT 3pt -Averages- G min ptg ptg ptg RebAstPts 96-97 54 9.7 47.7 61.3 00.0 3.0 0.6 3.0 Career 54 9.7 47.7 61.300.0 3.0 0.6 3.0

32 SEAN ELLIOTT

Position: Forward

Height, weight: 6-8, 220

Age: 29 (Feb. 2, 1968, Tucson, Ariz.)

College: Arizona

NBA experience: Ninth season, eighth with Spurs

Contract status: Will make $5.4 million in third of six-year, $32-million deal.

1996-97 highlights: Sat out 43 games, including final 38 of season with right quadriceps tendinitis. … Underwent surgery on Feb. 18 to repair partial tear in tendon just above right knee. … Shot career-low 42.2 percent from field last season. … Scoring dropped to 14.9 points per game, his lowest average since 1993-94 in Detroit.

Outlook: Expected to bounce back from surgery. … Has dropped weight to increase quickness. … Hopes to capitalize in lineup that features big men David Robinson and Tim Duncan by slashing or spotting up for jumper when defense drops off him. … With three-point line pushed back to 23-9, he may look to dribble and drive more often. Avg. FG FT 3pt -Averages- G min ptg ptg ptg RebAstPts 96-97 39 35.7 42.2 75.5 33.3 4.9 3.2 14.9 Career 58534.8 47.4 80.737.4 4.5 2.8 15.6

41 WILL PERDUE

Position: Center/forward

Height, weight: 7-0, 240

Age: 32 (Aug. 29, 1965, Melbourne, Fla.)

College: Vanderbilt

NBA experience: 10th season, third with Spurs

Contract status: Will make $1.7 million this season, his final year of guaranteed money from Spurs. Team holds option on last year of contract, which calls for him to make $4.2 million in 1998-99.

1996-97 highlights: Posted single-season career-bests in total minutes, rebounds, blocks, steals, field-goal percentage, scoring average and rebounding average.

Outlook: Will be counted on to play both center and power forward behind David Robinson and Tim Duncan. … His post defense, rebounding and general tenacity should mean that the Spurs won’t lose much when he’s in the game. … Trade rumors swirled about Perdue last summer, and they are expected to continue. Avg. FG FT 3pt -Averages- G min ptg ptg ptg RebBS Pts 96-97 65 29.5 56.8 57.9 0.0 9.8 1.6 8.7 Career 59615.7 51.9 59.6 7.1 5.0 1.1 5.2

45 CHUCK PERSON

Position: Forward

Height, weight: 6-8, 235

Age: 33 (June 27. 1964, Brantley, Ala.)

College: Auburn

NBA experience: 12th season, fourth with Spurs

Contract status: Will make $2.2 million this season. In final year in 1997-98, will make $2.5 million.

1996-97 season: Person sat out season after undergoing back surgery to repair a herniated disc on Oct. 29, 1996. … His absence was felt both on the court and in the locker room.

Outlook: Spurs were extremely pleased, and slightly surprised, at Person’s recovery. … They will look for him to resume his three-point bombing. … Will come off bench at small forward (and possibly some at power forward). … Will be counted on to provide instant offense and veteran leadership. Avg. FG FT 3pt -Averages- G min ptg ptg ptg RebAstPts 96-97 did not play, injured Career 79532.9 46.5 72.336.8 5.5 3.1 16.4

50 DAVID ROBINSON

Position: Center/forward

Height, weight: 7-1, 250

Age: 32 (Aug. 6, 1965, Key West, Fla.)

College: Navy

NBA experience: Ninth season, all with Spurs

Contract status: Team’s highest-paid player at $9.5 million this season, the third of six- year, $66 million deal.

1996-97 season: A nightmare. … Sat out 76 of 82 games with back and foot injuries. … Reported to training camp with a sore back. Injured it in first preseason game and missed more than two months. … Played six games, then fractured bone in his foot. … Underwent surgery on the foot Dec. 27 and didn’t play rest of season.

Outlook: Spurs are optimistic he will return to all-star form. … Robinson split duties at center and power forward with rookie Tim Duncan. … As always, is expected to be a team leader in scoring, rebounding and shot blocking. Avg. FG FT 3pt -Averages- G min ptg ptg ptg RebBS Pts 96-97 6 24.5 50.0 65.4 0.0 8.5 1.0 17.7 Career 56337.9 52.5 74.626.1 11.7 2.9 25.5

via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-30, By Buck Harvey

马刺与NBA - 又一个菜鸟？邓肯的对比

我之前报道过菜鸟球员。我报道过一个来自印第安纳的反社会乡下小子，他在打第一场比赛时，汽车轮毂被偷了。我报道过一个来自明尼苏达的滑头小子，在进入球队的第一天就嘲讽了他的第一个NBA教练。我还报道过一个海军毕业生，在他首秀之前还紧张地呕吐。

他们都取得了一些新秀赛季的成功。其中两人创造了联盟历史上最大的单赛季反转。另外一个帮助球队夺得了冠军。

现在轮到蒂姆·邓肯(Tim Duncan)了。他或许可以同时做到这两件事。

毕竟，邓肯有点像…

拉里·伯德(Larry Bird)，1979-1980赛季的菜鸟。

伯德在他第一个训练营之前就提前到达了，他经常参加两人制的练习赛。他和里克·罗比(Rick Robey)会对战M.L.卡尔(M.L. Carr)和戴夫·考恩斯(Dave Cowens)，然后他们会互相交换对手。任何看过他们比赛的人都无法忽视，无论队伍如何，伯德总是赢。

伯德的职业比赛从一开始就展现出了他的水平，尽管他的性格需要几年时间才能发展成熟。这位如今以步行者队教练身份容纳所有人的乡村哲学家，当时讨厌任何与人有关的肢体接触。

相比之下，邓肯是一位夜总会娱乐者。但他们的气质是一样的。伯德当时不会回嘴，他几乎不说话。但在更衣室里，他知道什么才是最重要的。如何相处，如何开玩笑，以及比赛之外的一切都是垃圾。

邓肯的性格？同样如此。

邓肯的传球不如伯德好，他的投篮也无法像三分球冠军那样精准。但邓肯是联盟中最接近一个6英尺11英寸的盖帽手的球员。更重要的是：伯德乐于将他的全能技能与波士顿的老将们融合在一起，而他的无私风格让这种融合得以奏效。

乔丹、尤因和罗宾逊这些菜鸟并不知道这些概念的存在。而这正是邓肯最像伯德的地方。也许自伯德以来，还没有哪位天赋异禀的球员在进入联盟时就展现出如此成熟的球风。

凯文·麦克海尔(Kevin McHale)，1980-1981赛季的菜鸟。

麦克海尔在计分台前唱着布鲁斯·斯普林斯汀(Bruce Springsteen)的歌词，当他不在嘲讽比尔·菲奇(Bill Fitch)说的话时。有时候，麦克海尔会想是否应该退出比赛，因为他的女朋友还在明尼苏达大学(她后来成为了他的妻子)，她感到很孤独。

啊，青春的简单。麦克海尔像邓肯希望的那样，能够安静地融入更大的明星阵容。麦克海尔在他的新秀赛季没有首发出场，因为他还不够好。不仅伯德在他前面，还有经验丰富的老将塞德里克·马克斯韦尔(Cedric Maxwell)。

很少有第三顺位选秀球员会背负如此少的压力。但随着赛季的进行，麦克海尔开始从马克斯韦尔手中抢走更多的出场时间。麦克海尔并没有赢得新秀赛季最佳球员奖（犹他州的达雷尔·格里菲斯(Darrell Griffith)获得了这个奖项），但麦克海尔应该得到这个奖项。也许即使是伯德也没有麦克海尔在那个赛季打出过那么多的关键第四节。

邓肯不会有时间慢慢来，他也不会在球场边唱歌。而邓肯第一次从背后传出软球给切入的球员时，这将是他比麦克海尔更多地使用过的一次。

但现在担任明尼苏达总经理的麦克海尔并不需要他的球探团队告诉他邓肯是什么样的球员。当这个兼具中锋和前锋特质的球员抢下篮板球，并巧妙地将球举过头顶时——当邓肯重复着稳固的基本低位动作时——这难道不是麦克海尔的再世吗？

大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)，1989-1990赛季的菜鸟。

拉里·布朗(Larry Brown)试图让罗宾逊记住基本功。比如：在进攻篮板后，先稳住自己，然后再出手。

新秀赛季的罗宾逊不仅没有低位进攻技巧，他还认为空间与他的电脑键盘有关。难怪他在第一场比赛之前感到恶心。但随后他7英尺1英寸的身材弥补了他的胃部问题；联盟从未见过如此巨大的体型和如此敏捷的速度。可以说，罗宾逊在新秀赛季的影响力超过了伯德或麦克海尔。

与邓肯的相似之处？他们都很高。他们都出生在加勒比海沿岸。他们都是聪明人。

哦，对了。他们将在球场上并肩作战。

点击查看原文：Spurs & NBA - Just another rookie? How Duncan compares

Spurs & NBA - Just another rookie? How Duncan compares

I’ve covered rookies before. I’ve covered an anti-social Indiana hayseed whose hubcaps were stolen while he played his first game. A Minnesota wise guy who made fun of his first NBA coach after about, oh, a half day on the job. And a Navy grad who heaved moments before his debut.

They went on to some first-year success. Two of them produced the biggest one-season turnarounds in league history. The other helped win a championship.

Now comes Tim Duncan. He could do both.

After all, Duncan is a little like …

Larry Bird, a rookie in 1979-80.

Bird showed up early before his first camp, and he would get into two-man pickup games. He and Rick Robey would play M.L. Carr and Dave Cowens, and then they’d switch around. Anyone who watched couldn’t help but notice that, no matter the teams, Bird won.

Bird’s pro game was there from the beginning, though his personality needed a few years to develop. The same country philosopher who now accommodates everyone as the Pacers’ coach then disliked any contact involving a human.

Duncan, in contrast, is a nightclub entertainer. But the demeanor is the same. Bird didn’t trash-talk back then; he didn’t say much of anything. But in the locker room, he knew what mattered. How to get along. How to joke. And that everything outside of the game was garbage.

The Duncan profile? The same.

Duncan can’t pass quite as well as Bird did, nor can he shoot like a three-point champ. But Duncan is as close as there is for a 6-foot-11 shot-blocker. More than anything: Bird was happy to blend his versatile skills with the Boston veterans that first season, and his selfless style made that work.

Rookies named Jordan and Ewing and Robinson didn’t know such concepts existed. And that’s where Duncan is most Bird-like. Maybe not since Bird has a first- rate talent entered the league with such 10th-year maturity.

Kevin McHale, a rookie in 1980- 81.

McHale sang Bruce Springsteen lyrics at the scorers’ table, when he wasn’t making fun of something Bill Fitch had said. Sometimes McHale wondered if he should quit the game because his girlfriend back at the University of Minnesota (she would become his wife) was lonely.

Ah, the simplicities of youth. McHale arrived as Duncan hoped he would, able to mix quietly among bigger stars. McHale didn’t start his rookie season because he wasn’t good enough to. Not only did Bird play in front of him, but so did a proven veteran named Cedric Maxwell.

Few No. 3 overall draft picks have ever carried such little pressure. But as that season went along, McHale began stealing more minutes from Maxwell. McHale didn’t win rookie of the year (Utah’s Darrell Griffith did), but McHale should have. Maybe even Bird didn’t have as many big fourth quarters as McHale did that season.

Duncan won’t be able to take his time, nor will he sing at courtside. And the first time Duncan slips a soft pass behind his back to a cutter, it will be one more than McHale ever threw.

But McHale, now the GM in Minnesota, doesn’t need his staff of scouts to tell him what Duncan is. When this part-center, part- forward rebounds and smartly keeps the ball above his head - when Duncan repeats solid, fundamental post moves - isn’t this McHale reborn?

David Robinson, a rookie in 1989-90.

Larry Brown tried to get Robinson to remember the basics. Such as: Gather yourself after an offensive rebound before you go back up.

Robinson the rookie not only didn’t have a post-up move, he also thought spacing had something to do with his computer keyboard. No wonder he felt queasy before his first game. But then his 7-foot-1 body made up for his stomach; the league had never seen such size with such quickness. Arguably, Robinson had more impact as a rookie than either Bird or McHale.

The parallel to Duncan? They are tall. They were born on Caribbean coastlines. They are smart men.

Oh yes. They will line up next to each other.

By Buck Harvey, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1997-10-31, By Russell Gold

对马刺队的城市狂热升温

在本周东区的一场街头篮球比赛中，希望是一个五字母的词。

"马刺！"12岁的布兰登·邦兹(Brandon Bonds)说道。“他们把所有好球员都召集回来了……”

“还有替补席，”12岁的埃里克·麦凯恩(Eric McKane)接话道。

“他们今年要大放异彩，”邦兹宣布道。

对于一支去年战绩为20胜62负，创造球队历史上最差战绩的球队来说，这座城市唯一一支职业体育球队的球迷都怀抱很高的期望。

随着大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)的回归和蒂姆·邓肯(Tim Duncan)以1000万美元的身价成为名副其实的新秀赛季最佳球员，球迷们希望马刺队能够像华尔街周二从554点的跌幅中反弹一样，迅速从令人难忘的赛季中恢复过来。

在周六对阵纽约尼克斯的比赛中，球队在最后时刻的奋力追赶中，21498名球迷中的许多人都在跳舞和跺脚，这样的景象已经很多个月没看到了。而这仅仅是季前赛。

但7胜1负的季前赛足以激发大量的兴奋情绪。

“我更快乐了。球员们更快乐了。竞技场里的老鼠们也更快乐了。球迷们更快乐了，”主教练格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich)说。“当你赢球的时候，每个人都高兴。当你输球的时候，每个人都生气。”

在整个城市，人们都为马刺队的全新赛季而兴奋，赛季将于今晚在丹佛对阵掘金队正式开始。首场主场比赛将于周六在阿拉莫圆顶球场进行，对手是克利夫兰骑士队。

胜利福音教堂的训练传道人德韦恩·德鲁(Dwayne Drew)表示，他期待着好消息的到来——也许。

“蒂姆·邓肯很厉害。我不会对他有任何保留。但是没有大卫·罗宾逊，这支球队就不是冠军级的。他必须保持健康，”德鲁说。

德鲁说，一支健康的马刺队意味着这座城市经济的强心剂。

“你会得到更多的服务类工作，所以我们赢得比赛，而且要赢很多比赛，这非常重要，”他说。

同样在消退的是一些关于圣安东尼奥纳税人是否需要花费数百万美元建造一个新的、更舒适的球馆来留住马刺队的焦虑。

就在一年前，马刺队主席彼得·霍尔特(Peter Holt)还在西海岸参观昂贵的全新球馆。他说，一座新设施的造价将在8500万美元到10000万美元之间。

但在7月份，马刺队取消了说服贝克萨尔县选民为新球馆提供资金的运动。第二天，霍尔特表示，如果球队不能获得一个新家，邓肯很可能在他三年合同到期后为另一支球队效力。

“如果他们赢了不少比赛，这可能会促使公众支持为新球馆提供资金，”卢娜在等公交车时说道。

其他一些人，就像被抛弃在祭坛前的未婚妻一样，表达了他们的怀疑。

珍妮特·罗德里格斯(Janet Rodriguez)站在城堡山一家修鞋店的柜台后面，她说这支球队很有潜力。

“他们总是表现不错，赢很多比赛，然后打进季后赛。在那时，他们就会变得非常紧张，”她说。

然后，还有一些人对马刺热已经过去了。

“他们一直在连胜吗？”约万达·特纳(Yovanda Turner)在北区一家发廊等候下一位顾客时问道。

看到新秀球星邓肯和健康的罗宾逊的承诺已经吸引了大批观众涌入阿拉莫圆顶球场。

根据入场人数统计，更多球迷观看了球队的四场季前赛。与1996年相比，观众人数增长了4%。

点击查看原文：City hype for Spurs heats up

City hype for Spurs heats up

At an East Side pick-up basketball game this week, hope was a five-letter word.

“Spurs!” 12-year-old Brandon Bonds said. “They got all them good players back. …”

“And a bench, too,” said Eric McKane, also 12, finishing the sentence.

“They are going places this year,” Bonds announced.

For a team that was 20-62 last year, the worst season in franchise history, hopes are high for the city’s only major league sports team.

With David Robinson back and a $10 million, genuine rookie-of-the- year candidate in Tim Duncan, fans hope the Spurs will rebound from a forgettable season as quickly as Wall Street bounced back Tuesday from its 554-point slide.

During a late rally in last Saturday’s victory over the New York Knicks, many of the 21,498 fans were dancing and stomping, the likes of which hadn’t been seen for many months. And that was still the preseason.

But a 7-1 preseason can generate a lot of excitement.

“I’m happier. The players are happier. The mice in the arena are happier. The fans are happier,” coach Gregg Popovich said. “When you win, everybody is happy. When you lose, everybody is angry.”

Around town, people were getting hyped for the new Spurs season, which begins tonight in Denver against the Nuggets. The first home game is Saturday in the Alamodome with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Brother Dwayne Drew, a minister in training at the Victory Gospel Chapel, said he anticipated good things to come - perhaps.

“Tim Duncan is good. I can’t take nothing away from him. But without David Robinson, that team is not championship caliber. He has got to stay healthy,” Drew said.

A healthy Spurs franchise means a shot in the arm for the city’s economy, Drew said.

“You get more service jobs, so it’s very important that we win and win a lot,” he said.

Also receding is some of the anxiety over whether San Antonio taxpayers will have to spend millions to build a new, cozier arena to keep the Spurs in San Antonio.

This time last year, Spurs Chairman Peter Holt was visiting expensive new arenas on the West Coast. A new facility would cost between $85 million and $100 million, he said.

But in July, the Spurs called off a campaign to convince Bexar County voters to fund a new arena. A day later, Holt said Duncan would probably be playing for another team after his three-year contract expires if the franchise can’t get a new home.

“If they win quite a bit, it will probably push the public toward funding a new arena,” Luna said while waiting for a bus.

Others, like brides abandoned before at the altar, expressed skepticism.

Standing behind the counter in a Castle Hills shoe repair shop, Janet Rodriguez said the team had promise.

“They always do well, win a bunch of games and then get to the playoffs. That’s when they get all choked up,” she said.

And then there were the few whom Spurs fever had passed by.

“Have they been on a winning streak?” Yovanda Turner asked while waiting for the next customer at a North Side hair stylist.

The promise of seeing rookie sensation Duncan and a healthy Robinson has been drawing crowds to the Alamodome.

More fans have turned out for the team’s four preseason games. Attendance rose 4 percent over 1996, according to gate counts.

By Russell Gold, via San Antonio Express-News