By Jeff McDonald, Staff Writer | San Antonio Express-News (SAEN), 2024-09-30 15:22:26
由生成式人工智能翻译，译文内容可能不准确或不完整，以原文为准。
周一上午，在胜利资本训练中心举行的马刺媒体日活动上，马刺球员维克多·文班亚马（Victor Wembanyama）与新援克里斯·保罗（Chris Paul）在合影后交流。
现在回想起来，凯尔登·约翰逊（Keldon Johnson）本可以争取更多。也许他应该这样做。
作为马刺效力时间最长的球员，约翰逊当然没有义务把自己的球衣号码让给新人。自 2019 年进入 NBA 的第一天起，他就一直穿着 3 号球衣。
但当新人是克里斯·保罗——可以说是他那代人中最伟大的控球后卫，也是约翰逊当初选择穿 3 号球衣的原因——这就没有任何讨价还价的余地了。
约翰逊认为，与其说他放弃了自己的球衣号码，不如说他物归原主。
“最重要的是尊重，”本赛季将改穿 0 号球衣的约翰逊说。“我觉得他应该穿 3 号。”
周一上午，在胜利资本训练中心举行的马刺媒体日活动上，马刺球员凯尔登·约翰逊摆姿势拍照。
于是，在周一的马刺媒体日上，人们发现保罗出现在胜利资本训练中心的球场上，他球衣的背面印着熟悉的名字和号码，但前面印着的名字却完全出乎意料。
CP3 在马刺？也许他会习惯的。
“这些年来我们交手过很多次，”保罗低头看着胸前的马刺标志说。“但我已经有了足够的时间来到这里，安顿下来。”
马刺球迷可能需要更多时间——或者至少需要看到几次保罗传给维克多·文班亚马的空中接力——才能习惯为他们球队的新任首发控球后卫欢呼。
在今年 7 月，这位 39 岁的全明星球员与马刺签署了一份为期一年、价值 1050 万美元的合同之前，他一直是格雷格·波波维奇（Gregg Popovich）执教时代马刺最痛恨的对手之一。
从他的第三个赛季开始，当时年仅 22 岁的他帮助新奥尔良黄蜂队在季后赛第二轮将卫冕冠军马刺逼到了第七场的边缘，到 2015 年，他代表洛杉矶快船队在另一场抢七大战中用一记单腿跳投终结了马刺的卫冕之旅，保罗一直是马刺球迷最爱恨交加的球员。
不信？问问波波维奇本人就知道了。
“我恨了克里斯很多年，”波波维奇说。
一个水平稍低的球员在上班的第一天就发现老板已经不喜欢自己了，可能会感到困扰。但保罗不会，因为他显然可以以牙还牙。
“这是相互的，”保罗笑着说。
克里斯·保罗谈到希望在关键时刻为马刺带来“冷静”。 pic.twitter.com/ln1Emo7fL1
— 汤姆·奥斯伯恩（@ tom_orsborn）2024 年 9 月 30 日
事实上，波波维奇曾经对保罗的恨意中始终夹杂着钦佩。他恨的不是保罗这个人，只是讨厌和他对位执教。
“他不仅仅是一个 consummate competitor——他还是一个非常、非常、非常聪明的球员，”波波维奇说。“和他比赛总是很困难，因为他总能想到我们所有教练的前面。他是那种你会学着讨厌和他比赛，但同时又非常尊重他的人。”
现在的希望是——至少在一个赛季内——保罗可以将他 19 个赛季的 NBA 经验和 Mensa 级别的篮球智商带到这支年轻而稚嫩的马刺队中，因为这支球队在这两方面都很欠缺。
保罗和 32 岁的新队友哈里森·巴恩斯（Harrison Barnes）是马刺训练营名单中仅有的两名 30 岁以上的球员。
“我去年和这些家伙交过手，”保罗说，他职业生涯送出 11894 次助攻，在现役球员中排名第一，历史总排名仅次于约翰·斯托克顿（John Stockton）和贾森·基德（Jason Kidd）。“我观察过他们。我看到他们在很多比赛中，本来是赢球的，但在最后时刻却输了。希望我能在那些时候带来冷静。”
作为上赛季 NBA 最年轻的球队，马刺在关键时刻（比赛还剩最后 5 分钟，分差在 5 分以内）输掉了 28 场比赛。这与华盛顿奇才队并列联盟最多。
如果保罗能够帮助文班亚马领衔的马刺进入附加赛，甚至（敢于梦想）季后赛，这对已经注定要进入名人堂的他来说将是一次不错的谢幕演出。
“我认为他会让每个人都达到一个标准，”后卫德文·瓦塞尔（Devin Vassell）说，他预计将在休赛期接受足部手术后，带伤参加训练营。“这是最重要的事情。他会让每个人都承担起责任。”
保罗可以为马刺提供很多东西，但马刺也能为保罗提供一些诱人的东西：首发位置的保证。
保罗上赛季效力于金州勇士队，出场 58 场比赛，其中只有 18 场首发。当勇士队在 7 月份放弃他时，保罗开始寻找新的地方打球。
关键词是“打球”。
“这将是我远离家人的第 20 个赛季，”保罗说，他的妻子和两个孩子在赛季期间住在洛杉矶。“我喜欢打篮球。如果我要离开我的家人，那么我希望这是有意义的。你知道，我想打球。”
39 岁的保罗可能已经不是 29 岁时的他了。不过，他仍然想证明自己宝刀未老。
他的到来已经得到了马刺队内最重要的人的认可。今年夏天早些时候，保罗在圣安东尼奥待了一个星期，与他的新队友一起训练，赢得了文班亚马的高度评价。
“我记得我小时候看过他打球，”NBA 现役年度最佳新秀文班亚马说。“我真的很兴奋。就在我们和他一起在这里度过的那一周，我们学到了很多东西。我们都知道他会融入我们，但他正在努力做到最好地融入，并教导我们。”
随着马刺的第一次训练营练习定于周二举行，没有人比他的新教练更期待看到保罗的表现了。也许并非巧合的是，波波维奇不再恨他了。
“有时我不得不掐自己一下，想想有机会每天都能看到他打球，”波波维奇说。
今年夏天，当波波维奇第一次打电话给保罗，向他推销加盟马刺的可能性时，他的说辞只有三个字。
保罗问波波维奇在圣安东尼奥为他设想了什么样的角色。
“非常简单，”波波维奇说。“我说，‘做克里斯·保罗。’”
这就是保罗在自己的第 20 个 NBA 赛季所希望的一切。
如果保罗做自己能够帮助圣安东尼奥的文班亚马时代更上一层楼？马刺球迷会学着为新的 3 号球员欢呼的。
周一上午，在胜利资本训练中心举行的马刺媒体日活动上，马刺新援克里斯·保罗拍照。
周一上午，在胜利资本训练中心举行的马刺媒体日活动上，马刺新援克里斯·保罗拍照。
周一上午，在胜利资本训练中心举行的马刺媒体日活动上，马刺新援克里斯·保罗拍照。
周一上午，在胜利资本训练中心举行的马刺媒体日活动上，马刺新援克里斯·保罗向媒体成员问好。
周一上午，在胜利资本训练中心举行的马刺媒体日活动上，马刺新援克里斯·保罗接受媒体采访。
周一上午，在胜利资本训练中心举行的马刺媒体日活动上，马刺新援克里斯·保罗拍照。
点击查看原文：With San Antonio Spurs, Chris Paul can turn jeers to cheers
With San Antonio Spurs, Chris Paul can turn jeers to cheers
Spurs Victor Wembanyama and new addition Chris Paul share a mpoment after being photographed during Spurs Media Day activities Monday morning at the Victory Capital Performance Center.
In retrospect, Keldon Johnson could have driven a harder bargain. Maybe he should have.
As the longest-tenured member of the Spurs, Johnson certainly wasn’t obligated to give up his jersey number to the new guy. He had worn the No. 3 since his first day in the NBA in 2019.
When the new guy is Chris Paul – arguably the greatest point guard of his generation and the reason Johnson chose to don No. 3 in the first place – there was no haggling needed.
Johnson figured he wasn’t giving away his own jersey number as much as he was giving it back to its rightful owner.
“The main thing was respect,” said Johnson, who will switch to No. 0 this season. “I felt like he deserved to wear No. 3.”
Spurs Keldon Johnson poses for pictures during Spurs Media Day activities Monday morning at the Victory Capital Performance Center.
And so it came to pass that Paul was found wandering the court at the Victory Capital Performance Center at Spurs media day on Monday, a familiar name and numeral stitched to the back of his jersey but a completely unexpected one plastered on the front.
CP3 on the Spurs? Maybe he can get used to this.
“We’ve had a lot of battles over the years,” Paul said, glancing down at the Spurs logo on his chest. “But I’ve had enough time to get here and get settled in.”
It might take Spurs fans a little more time – or at least a few Paul-to-Victor-Wembanyama alley oops – before they grow accustomed to cheering their team’s new starting point guard.
Before the 39-year-old All-Star signed a one-year, $10.5-million deal to come to San Antonio in July, he was on the short list of the greatest Spurs villains of the Gregg Popovich coaching era.
Beginning with his third season, when at age 22 he helped New Orleans push the defending champion Spurs to the Game 7 brink in the second round of the playoffs, and progressing to 2015, when his one-legged runner with the Los Angeles Clippers ended the Spurs’ title repeat bid in another Game 7 thriller, Paul has been a player Spurs faithful has loved most to hate.
Don’t believe it? Just ask Popovich himself.
“I have despised Chris for many years,” Popovich said.
A lesser player might be bothered to arrive for his first official day on the job to discover the boss has already taken a disliking to him. Not Paul, who can apparently give as good as he gets.
“It’s mutual,” Paul said with a grin.
Chris Paul on wanting to bring a “calmness” to Spurs at crunch time. pic.twitter.com/ln1Emo7fL1
— Tom Orsborn (@ tom_orsborn) September 30, 2024
Indeed, the hate Popovich once harbored for Paul was always laced with admiration. He didn’t hate Paul the person, only having to coach against him.
“He’s not just the consummate competitor – he is a clever, clever, clever player,” Popovich said. “It was always difficult, because he’s thinking ahead of all us coaches. He’s one of those guys you learn to hate to play against him, but at the same time you respect the hell out of him.”
The hope now is – at least for one season – Paul might bring the wealth of NBA experience accrued over 19 seasons and his Mensa-level basketball IQ to a young and callow Spurs roster short on both counts.
Paul and 32-year-old fellow newcomer Harrison Barnes are the only players on the Spurs’ training camp roster over the age of 30.
“I played against these guys last year,” said Paul, whose 11,894 career assists ranks him first among active players and trails only John Stockton and Jason Kidd all time. “I watched them. I saw how a lot of games, they’d be winning and then lose it down the stretch. Hopefully I can bring a calmness in those times.”
As the NBA’s youngest team last season, the Spurs lost 28 games in clutch time, defined as a game that is within five points in the final five minutes. That was tied with Washington for most in the league.
If Paul can help lift the Wembanyama-led Spurs into play-in or even (dare to dream) playoff contention, it wouldn’t be a bad final act to his already Hall of Fame-headed career.
“I think he’s going to hold everybody to a standard,” said guard Devin Vassell, who is expected to begin training camp on the injured list after undergoing foot surgery in the offseason. “That’s the No. 1 thing. He’s going to hold everybody accountable.”
As much as Paul has to offer the Spurs, the Spurs had something enticing to offer Paul as well: The guarantee of a starting job.
Paul played last season at Golden State, where he appeared in 58 games, starting only 18. When the Warriors let him go in July, Paul went looking for a new place to play.
The operative word was “play.”
“It’s going to be my 20th season of being away from my family,” said Paul, whose wife and two children live in Los Angeles during the season. “I love to play basketball. If I’m going to be away from my family, then I want it to be meaningful. You know, I want to play.”
At 39, Paul might not be what he was at 29. Still, he is out to prove he has something left in the tank.
His arrival has already received the seal of approval from the most important man in the Spurs organization. Paul spent a week in San Antonio working out with his new team earlier this summer, earning rave reviews from Wembanyama.
“He’s a player I remember watching as a kid,” said Wembanyama, the NBA’s reigning Rookie of the Year. “I’m really excited. Just in the week we spent with him here, we learned a lot. We all knew he was going to fit with us, but he’s trying to make the best fit and teach us.”
With the Spurs’ first training camp practice set for Tuesday, nobody is more excited to see Paul in action than his new coach. Popovich, perhaps not coincidentally, doesn’t hate him anymore.
“Sometimes I have to pinch myself to think about having the opportunity to watch him on a day-to-day basis,” Popovich said.
When Popovich first got Paul on the phone this summer to sell him on the possibility of joining the Spurs, the pitch was three words long.
Paul asked what kind of role Popovich envisioned for him in San Antonio.
“It was very simplistic,” Popovich said. “I said, ‘Be Chris Paul.’ "
That is all Paul ever wanted out of his 20th NBA season.
And if Paul being Paul can help unlock the next level of the Wembanyama era in San Antonio? Spurs fans will learn to cheer a new No. 3.
New Spurs player Chris Paul is photographed during Spurs Media Day activities Monday morning at the Victory Capital Performance Center.
New Spurs player Chris Paul is photographed during Spurs Media Day activities Monday morning at the Victory Capital Performance Center.
New Spurs player Chris Paul is photographed during Spurs Media Day activities Monday morning at the Victory Capital Performance Center.
New Spurs player Chris Paulgreets media members during Spurs Media Day activities Monday morning at the Victory Capital Performance Center.
New Spurs addition Chris Paul speaks to the media during Spurs Media Day activities Monday morning at the Victory Capital Performance Center.
New Spurs player Chris Paul is photographed during Spurs Media Day activities Monday morning at the Victory Capital Performance Center.
By Jeff McDonald, Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News