By Tom Orsborn, Staff writer | San Antonio Express-News (SAEN), 2024-10-17 12:44:29
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。
2024 年 10 月 7 日，星期一，德克萨斯州圣安东尼奥，圣安东尼奥马刺队后卫克里斯·保罗（3 号）、中锋维克多·文班亚马（1 号）、前锋哈里森·巴恩斯（40 号）和前锋凯尔登·约翰逊（0 号）在 AT&T 中心球馆观看队友在下半场对阵俄克拉荷马雷霆队的 NBA 季前赛中。马刺队以 112-107 负于雷霆队。
这位 12 届全明星控球后卫即将迎来自己的第 20 个 NBA 赛季，他决心帮助马刺队在本赛季取得进步，此前他们在过去两个赛季中都只赢得了 22 场比赛。但与此同时，他也开始思考，当他最终退役后，他的生活将会是什么样子。
对于这位未来的名人堂成员来说，有一件事是肯定的：告别职业篮球并不容易。
“我问了很多问题，没有人为退役做好准备，”保罗说。“我知道当我结束的时候，我也不会做好准备。”
现年 39 岁的保罗正在庆祝这个里程碑式的赛季，即使他专注于如何在场上和场下与新队友建立默契，但他也不断收到提醒，告诫他应该为篮球生涯结束后的人生制定计划。
“伙计，这太不真实了，”他谈到在联盟征战如此之久时说道。“这是一种难以置信的祝福，尤其是来到这些球馆，看到很多熟悉的面孔。”
那天晚上在迈阿密，那张熟悉的面孔是巴特勒。两人是好朋友，曾在洛杉矶做过两个赛季的队友，当时他们在 2011 年至 2013 年效力于快船队。
在那段共同的经历结束 11 年后，保罗仍然在球场上为比他小 20 岁的马刺队队友输送炮弹，而 44 岁的卡隆·巴特勒(Caron Butler)即将进入他在迈阿密热火队担任助理教练的第五个赛季，热火队最近与他续约了四年，他将继续留在埃里克·斯波尔斯特拉的教练组。
“看到我的兄弟卡隆·巴特勒坐在替补席上，这太疯狂了，”保罗在马刺队输给迈阿密热火队后告诉记者。“我的很多队友现在都是主教练了，所以我心存感激。不仅还能留在这里，而且还能以高水平比赛，这很有趣。”
但保罗知道，作为一名职业球员的美好时光不会永远持续下去。与巴特勒的重逢让他想起了自己想要在退役后建立充实的生活的愿望。
考虑到这一点，保罗正在考虑在退役后尝试各种各样的工作，其中一项工作考虑到他长期担任美国篮球运动员协会主席的经历，可以说是颇具讽刺意味。
“是的，你知道这很有趣，我肯定想成为球队老板，”他说。
保罗从 2013 年到 2021 年一直担任球员工会的主席，这是继奥斯卡·罗伯特森之后 NBA 历史上第二长的任期，罗伯特森从 1965 年到 1974 年一直担任球员工会主席。
“我肯定想成为某个球队的一份子，因为作为球员工会的主席，我可能是唯一一个从球员到老板再到商业方面都了解的人，”保罗说。“可能没有其他人拥有像我这样的视角和观点。”
他还表示，执教也在考虑范围内。
“我今天和我的妻子谈过，因为我一直说我永远不会执教，”他说。“但只是想想，我不知道。我正在努力想清楚。我的妻子和朋友们总是告诉我，我对比赛充满了知识和热爱，我可以去执教。但我也在想做一名父亲，因为我错过了孩子们生命中太多的东西。所以，是的，我不知道。”
保罗和他的妻子贾达有两个十几岁的孩子，儿子小克里斯和女儿卡姆林。
为了弄清楚自己的未来，保罗说他“和每个人都谈过”没有篮球的生活是什么样的。
“德维恩·韦德，我已经看到了他的转变，”他谈到他的好朋友、前热火队球星德维恩·韦德(Dwyane Wade)时说。“我已经看到了卡梅隆·安东尼(Carmelo Anthony)、鲁迪·盖伊(Rudy Gay)，所有这些不同的球员。作为球员工会的主席，我看到了这种转变是什么样子的。我问了很多问题。”
但就目前而言，他的首要任务是帮助马刺队取得一个良好的开局，并向他的队友灌输那些让他能够长期保持出色状态的价值观。
马刺队将于 10 月 24 日在达拉斯迎战卫冕西部冠军小牛队，开启常规赛的征程。
“我们都了解克里斯，”马刺队中锋维克多·文班亚马(Victor Wembanyama)说。“有一件事是肯定的，那就是他真的很有竞争力，他真的想要赢球。而这些都是我们对他抱有的期望。这些都是我从小就在电视上看到他的表现，我知道他总是会很有侵略性，总是会像那样，很有竞争力。我们需要这种精神。”
保罗在今年夏天与马刺队签署了一份为期一年、价值 1046 万美元的合同，据报道其中包括价值 156 万美元的奖金。
“我们只需要继续建立信任，”保罗在谈到他和队友为配合默契所做的努力时说。“对于一支年轻的球队来说，这是最重要的事情，建立信任。但首先也是最重要的一点，这是一群很棒的球员，他们努力拼搏、敢于竞争，所以我觉得我们能够解决这个问题。”
他想要在退役后找到有意义的生活，这一点很可能也是如此。
2024 年 10 月 12 日，星期六，德克萨斯州圣安东尼奥，圣安东尼奥马刺队后卫克里斯·保罗（3 号）在 NBA 篮球比赛下半场对阵犹他爵士队的科迪·威廉姆斯（5 号）和凯尔·菲利波夫斯基。圣安东尼奥以 126-120 获胜。(美联社照片/达伦·阿贝特)
2024 年 10 月 15 日，星期二，佛罗里达州迈阿密，迈阿密热火队前锋吉米·巴特勒（22 号）和圣安东尼奥马刺队后卫克里斯·保罗在 NBA 季前赛上半场争抢一个松球。(美联社照片/威尔弗雷多·李)
2024 年 10 月 15 日，佛罗里达州迈阿密：圣安东尼奥马刺队的克里斯·保罗（3 号）在 2024 年 10 月 15 日于佛罗里达州迈阿密凯撒中心举行的季前赛第三节对阵迈阿密热火队的比赛中运球。
2024 年 10 月 12 日，星期六，德克萨斯州圣安东尼奥，圣安东尼奥马刺队主教练格雷格·波波维奇（右）在 NBA 篮球比赛下半场对阵犹他爵士队的比赛中与马刺队后卫克里斯·保罗（3 号）交谈。(美联社照片/达伦·阿贝特)
2024 年 10 月 12 日，星期六，德克萨斯州圣安东尼奥，犹他爵士队后卫科林·塞克斯顿（2 号）在 NBA 篮球比赛上半场对阵圣安东尼奥马刺队后卫克里斯·保罗。(美联社照片/达伦·阿贝特)
2024 年 10 月 9 日，星期三，圣安东尼奥马刺队教练格雷格·波波维奇在上半场与奥兰多魔术队的 NBA 季前赛中与后卫克里斯·保罗（3 号）和中锋维克多·文班亚马（1 号）交谈。圣安东尼奥以 107-97 击败奥兰多。
2024 年 10 月 9 日，星期三，圣安东尼奥马刺队后卫克里斯·保罗（3 号）在上半场对阵奥兰多魔术队的 NBA 季前赛中带球 melewati 奥兰多魔术队后卫杰伦·萨格斯（4 号）。圣安东尼奥以 107-97 击败奥兰多。
2024 年 10 月 7 日，星期一，德克萨斯州圣安东尼奥，圣安东尼奥马刺队中锋维克多·文班亚马（1 号）在下半场对阵俄克拉荷马雷霆队的 NBA 季前赛中坐在他的新队友后卫克里斯·保罗（3 号）和前锋哈里森·巴恩斯（40 号）之间，面带微笑。马刺队以 112-107 负于雷霆队。
2024 年 10 月 7 日，星期一，德克萨斯州圣安东尼奥，圣安东尼奥马刺队后卫克里斯·保罗（3 号）、维克多·文班亚马（1 号）和德文·瓦塞尔（24 号）在下半场观看队友对阵俄克拉荷马雷霆队的 NBA 季前赛。马刺队以 112-107 负于雷霆队。
点击查看原文：As stint with Spurs gets underway, Paul also explores what comes next
As stint with Spurs gets underway, Paul also explores what comes next
San Antonio Spurs guard Chris Paul (3), center Victor Wembanyama (1), forward Harrison Barnes (40) and forward Keldon Johnson (0) talk as they watch their teammates take on the Oklahoma City Thunder in the second half of a pre-season NBA match-up at Frost Bank Center on Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, in San Antonio, Texas. The Spurs fell to the Thunder, 112-107.
As the 12-time All-Star point guard prepares to enter his 20th NBA season, he’s committed to helping the Spurs improve this season after they won 22 games in each of the last two years. But at the same time, he’s also thinking about what his life will be like when he finally retires.
One thing certain about what comes next for the future Hall of Famer: Moving on from playing pro basketball won’t be easy.
“I asked a lot of questions, and nobody is ever ready to be done,” Paul said. “And I know when I am finished, I won’t be ready either.”
Even as he focuses on how to grow chemistry with his new teammates on and off the court while celebrating this milestone season, Paul, 39, is dealing with frequent reminders that it would be prudent to finalizes his plans for his life after basketball.
“Man, it’s surreal, actually,” he said of playing in the league for so long. “It’s an unbelievable blessing, especially coming into these arenas and seeing a lot of familiar faces.”
The familiar face on that night in Miami was Butler. The two are good friends after spending two seasons as teammates in Los Angeles, where they played for the Clippers from 2011-2013.
Eleven years after that shared stint ended, Paul is still on the court feeding the ball to some Spurs teammates 20 years younger than him, while Butler, 44, is poised to enter his fifth season as an assistant coach with the Miami Heat, who recently gave him a four-year extension to remain on Eric Spoelstra’s staff.
“Seeing a brother of mine, Caron Butler, on the bench, it’s crazy,” Paul told reporters after the Spurs’ loss at Miami. “A lot of my teammates are head coaches now, so I am grateful. To not only still be here, but playing and playing at a high level, it’s fun.”
But Paul knows the good times as a pro won’t last forever. His reunion with Butler was served as a reminder of his desire to build a life in retirement that is also fulfilling.
With that in mind, Paul is contemplating a variety of endeavors to possibly tackle in retirement, one of which could be described as ironic given his long stint as president of the National Basketball Players Association.
“Yeah, you know it’s funny, I definitely want to be on the ownership side,” he said.
Paul was the union’s leader from 2013 to 2021, the second-longest stint in the NBPA’s history after Oscar Robertson, who headed it from 1965-74.
“I definitely want to be part of an organization because being the president of the union, I am probably the only guy who knows from being a player to ownership to the business side of it and all that,” Paul said. “There is probably nobody else who has the lens and the views I have.”
He suggested that coaching is also on the table.
“I was talking to my wife today because I have always said I would never coach,” he said. “But just thinking about it, I don’t know. Trying to figure it out. My wife and friends are always telling me I have so much knowledge and love for the game that I could coach. But I also think about being a dad because I have missed so much of my kids’ lives. So, yeah, I don’t know.”
Paul and his wife Jada have two teenage children, son Chris Jr., and daughter Camryn.
In an attempt to gain clarity about his future, Paul said he’s “talked to everybody” about what life without basketball is like.
“D Wade, I have seen his transition,” he said of his good friend and former Heat star Dwyane Wade. “I have seen Carmelo (Anthony), Rudy Gay, all these different guys. And being president of the union, I got to a chance to see what that transition looks like. I asked a lot of questions.”
But for now, his primary focus is on helping the Spurs get off to a good start and instilling in his teammates the values that have allowed him to excel for so long.
The Spurs open the regular season on Oct. 24 against the defending Western Conference champion Mavericks in Dallas.
“We all know Chris,” Spurs center Victor Wembanyama said. “One thing for sure is that he is really, really competitive, that he really wants it. And those are things to expect from him. These are things I have seen all my life from him on TV and I know he is always going to be aggressive, is always going to be like that, competitive. And we need that.”
Paul joined the Spurs in the summer on a one-year, $10.46 million contract that reportedly includes incentives worth $1.56 million.
“We just have to continue to build trust,” Paul said of efforts by him and his teammates to jell. “With a young team, that’s the biggest thing, building that trust. But first and foremost, it is a great group of guys, guys that play hard and compete, so I feel like we can figure that out.”
The same will likely be true of his quest to find a meaningful life after he retires.
San Antonio Spurs guard Chris Paul (3) drives against Utah Jazz’s Cody Williams (5) and Kyle Filipowski during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, Oct. 12, 2024, in San Antonio. San Antonio won 126-120. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)
Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler (22) and San Antonio Spurs guard Chris Paul chase down a loose ball during the first half of an NBA preseason basketball game, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
MIAMI, FLORIDA - OCTOBER 15: Chris Paul #3 of the San Antonio Spurs dribbles the ball against the Miami Heat during the third quarter of a preseason game at Kaseya Center on October 15, 2024 in Miami, Florida.
San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich, right, speaks with Spurs guard Chris Paul (3) during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Utah Jazz, Saturday, Oct. 12, 2024, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)
Utah Jazz guard Collin Sexton (2) drives against San Antonio Spurs guard Chris Paul during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, Oct. 12, 2024, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)
San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich talks to guard Chris Paul (3) and center Victor Wembanyama (1) during the first half of their NBA preseason game with Orlando at the Frost Bank Center on Wednesday, Oct 9, 2024. San Antonio beat Orlando 107-97.
San Antonio Spurs guard Chris Paul (3) brings the ball upcourt past Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs (4) during the first half of their NBA preseason game at the Frost Bank Center on Wednesday, Oct 9, 2024. San Antonio beat Orlando 107-97.
San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1) smiles as he sits between his new teammates guard Chris Paul (3) and forward Harrison Barnes (40) during the second half of the pre-season NBA match-up against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Frost Bank Center on Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, in San Antonio, Texas. The Spurs fell to the Thunder, 112-107.
San Antonio Spurs guard Chris Paul (3), Victor Wembanyama (1) and Devin Vassell (24) watch their teammates take on the Oklahoma City Thunder in the second half of the pre-season NBA match-up at Frost Bank Center on Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, in San Antonio, Texas. The Spurs fell to the Thunder, 112-107.
By Tom Orsborn, Staff writer, via San Antonio Express-News