By Tom Orsborn, Staff writer | San Antonio Express-News (SAEN), 2024-12-31 12:31:43
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3月29日星期五，在弗罗斯特银行中心举行的圣安东尼奥马刺队与纽约尼克斯队的NBA比赛结束时，马刺队中锋维克多·文班亚马(Victor Wembanyama)向观众致意。文班亚马得到全队最高的40分，带领圣安东尼奥在加时赛中以130-126战胜尼克斯队。
维克多·文班亚马(Victor Wembanyama)翻阅着一些在法国成长的旧照片，偶然发现了一张他穿着以前从未见过的马刺球衣的照片。
在成为马刺球员之前，他作为球迷就身穿银黑相间的球衣，这并不让他感到意外。
“这可能是我从小到大最常想到、最常观看的球队，”他在最近一场比赛后用法语说道。“当我刚开始看篮球的时候，他们经常进入总决赛，所以能够来到这里绝对是很特别的。”
“特别”一词恰如其分地描述了自从俱乐部在2023年NBA选秀大会上以状元签选中文班亚马后，马刺队和圣安东尼奥所发生的一切。一个月前，马刺队赢得了选秀抽签。他激活了这支低迷的球队，为这座城市带来了新的活力，同时还获得了年度最佳新秀，本赛季他的表现甚至更好，马刺队正在努力建造一座新球馆，球迷们梦想着这位7尺3寸的中锋有朝一日能带领球队重返总决赛。
由于这些变革性的成就，由于他以高度的职业精神追随着球队传奇人物和大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)和蒂姆·邓肯(Tim Duncan)这两位状元的脚步，由于他在巴黎带领法国队获得奥运会银牌的出色表现，以及他与圣安东尼奥建立的紧密联系，文班亚马被评为《圣安东尼奥快报》年度最佳运动员。
“获得这项殊荣是我的荣幸，尤其因为这是来自圣安东尼奥本地的认可，这个地方对我来说意义重大，是我的新家，”文班亚马在一份声明中表示。“自从被这里选中以来，我一直全力以赴地代表这座城市，我将继续尽我所能让圣安东尼奥在未来感到骄傲。”
过去一年一切进展得如此顺利，几乎就好像从文班几年前还是个孩子时穿上马刺球衣的那一刻起，他就注定要在圣安东尼奥这座城市茁壮成长。当时，邓肯、马努·吉诺比利(Manu Ginobili)和另一位法国球星托尼·帕克(Tony Parker)组成了传奇的“GDP组合”。
“这里的人们（私下里）并不认识我，但他们待我如家人，”文班亚马说。“受到这样的欢迎真是太好了。我非常感激，也感到非常幸运。”
马刺队上赛季只赢了22场比赛，但文班亚马破纪录的表现点燃了球队未来的希望。球迷们成群结队地回到弗罗斯特银行中心，电视网络也渴望转播马刺队的比赛，因为“文班效应”正在全面发酵。不出所料，文班亚马跻身NBA球衣销量排行榜前五名，与斯蒂芬·库里(Stephen Curry)、勒布朗·詹姆斯(LeBron James)、杰森·塔图姆(Jayson Tatum)和扬尼斯·阿德托昆博(Giannis Antetokounmpo)并驾齐驱。
“他帮助我们获得了许多很酷的机会，尤其是在今年，”马刺后卫特雷·琼斯(Tre Jones)谈到文班亚马时表示，他指的是马刺队在圣诞节当天在纽约对阵尼克斯队，以及球队下个月将在巴黎对阵印第安纳步行者队的两场比赛。
雄心勃勃、极具竞争力的文班亚马场均得到21.4分、10.6个篮板、3.9次助攻、联盟最高的3.6次盖帽、1.8个三分球和1.2次抢断，继1990年的罗宾逊和1998年的邓肯之后，成为第三位获得年度最佳新秀的马刺球员。NBA历史上没有其他球员能达到这些综合数据，这凸显了他在比赛各个方面的出色表现。
对于这样一位天赋异禀的、具有划时代意义的天才球员来说，他成为自1952-53赛季年度最佳新秀奖项设立以来第六位获得所有第一名选票的球员，这再合适不过了。其他几位分别是休斯顿的拉尔夫·桑普森(Ralph Sampson)（1984年）、罗宾逊（1990年）、洛杉矶快船队的布雷克·格里芬(Blake Griffin)（2011年）、波特兰的达米安·利拉德(Damian Lillard)（2013年）和明尼苏达的卡尔-安东尼·唐斯(Karl-Anthony Towns)（2016年）。
2024年3月29日星期五，在弗罗斯特银行中心举行的NBA比赛中，圣安东尼奥马刺队中锋维克多·文班亚马（右）在以130-126战胜纽约尼克斯队后与后卫德文·瓦塞尔(Devin Vassell)拥抱。
和之前的罗宾逊和邓肯一样，文班亚马在场外的谦逊、智慧和老成的性格也给人留下了深刻的印象，这对于一个即将在周六年满21岁的球员来说，真是一个奇妙的组合。
“我仍然认为，令人震惊的是，在他这个年纪，就拥有如此成熟的水平，并能够以各种方式理解全局，”代理马刺队主教练米奇·约翰逊(Mitch Johnson)在被问及文班亚马最让他感到惊讶的地方时说道。
格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich)在11月初突发中风后无限期离开马刺队，他说文班亚马“可能是我见过的最成熟的20岁年轻人”。
这位名人堂教练说：“他不仅对比赛有天赋和悟性，而且很有见识。他知道轻重缓急。围绕着他的所有喧嚣，并没有影响到他。”
在经历了历史性的新秀赛季后，文班亚马在夏天继续闪耀，但这次是在一个炙手可热的全球舞台上。在巴黎奥运会金牌争夺战中，这位NBA历史上首位以状元身份被选中的法国球员在98-87负于美国队的比赛中砍下全场最高的26分，表现令人眼花缭乱。
除了他的比赛之外，文班亚马还因为赛后毫不掩饰地流露出的情感而受到赞扬，他用手捂着脸哭泣，然后在看台上寻找他的母亲。
尽管在经历了繁忙的夏季和一些轻伤之后，文班在第二个NBA赛季的开局阶段受到上场时间限制的影响，表现缓慢，但作为二年级球员，他的表现更加出色。在周二晚上主场迎战洛杉矶快船队之前，他场均得到25.5分、10个篮板、联盟领先的4次盖帽、3.8次助攻和1次抢断，三分球命中率为35.9%，场均出手9.5次。
他以一贯的才华打出了这些数据，即使是最挑剔的观察者也会时不时地问自己：“我刚才真的看到这一幕了吗？”
“我们是在自家后院打球，还是在NBA打球？这太疯狂了，”马刺后卫德文·瓦塞尔在看到文班亚马在最近战胜亚特兰大老鹰队的比赛中，通过将球传到篮板上再扣篮得分后说道。
马刺球星维克多·文班亚马的昵称已经成为更多狗主人的最爱。
对于联盟其他球队来说，一个令人不安的想法是，文班亚马的潜力还远远没有被完全挖掘出来。
“他还年轻，他想变得更好，这才是可怕之处，”前锋朱利安·尚帕尼(Julian Champagnie)说道。“他才二年级。不是三年级，不是四年级，也不是五年级。是二年级。所以，他还有很多成长空间，还有很多需要加强的地方。但他正在做着他该做的事情。”
也许对一支在本赛季之前经历了队史最长的五年季后赛荒的球队来说，最重要的是，马刺队将在新年前夜的比赛中取得16胜，而上赛季他们直到3月25日才取得第16场胜利。此前，马刺队曾连续22个赛季打入季后赛，并在此期间五次夺冠，追平了联盟纪录。
随着文班亚马越来越适应各支球队对他的防守方式，人们对他和马刺队抱有更大的期望。
约翰逊说：“当你被一些球队为他设计的独特防守方式所限制时，这需要时间。我认为他已经开始逐渐掌握一些他反复看到的模式。”
明智的赌注是，文班亚马将在2月首次入选全明星阵容，并在5月获得他的第一个年度最佳防守球员奖杯，上赛季他获得该奖项的亚军，仅次于他的法国导师鲁迪·戈贝尔(Rudy Gobert)。
“我认为他已经成为联盟中最好的防守球员，”波特兰开拓者队主教练昌西·比卢普斯(Chauncey Billups)说道。“他在场上为你封锁了很多进攻路线。你以为是空位的机会，其实并不是。所以，他正在适应。至少可以说，他正在适应。”
至于融入圣安东尼奥的温暖怀抱，文班亚马已经做到了。
“我感受到了，这温暖了我的心，”他在一场比赛后用法语说道。“我喜欢与球迷们建立联系。我们的成就离不开他们，他们的快乐很大程度上也归功于我们。这是一个良性循环。马刺队是NBA的豪门球队之一，拥有强大的球迷基础。但最重要的是，他们的球迷是联盟中最好的。他们总是对自己的球员非常积极。”
点击查看原文：Wembanyama energized a sagging franchise, excited a city
Wembanyama energized a sagging franchise, excited a city
San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama talks to the crowd at the conclusion of their NBA game with the New York Knicks at the Frost Bank Center on Friday, March 29, 2024. Wembanyama scored a team high 40 points to lead San Antonio past the Knicks 130-126 in overtime.
Thumbing through some old photos from his days growing up in France, Victor Wembanyama came across one of him in a Spurs jersey he had never seen before.
It didn’t surprise him that he wore the silver and black as a fan long before he donned the colors as a player.
“It’s probably the franchise I grew up thinking about the most, the one I watched the most,” he said in French after a recent game. “When I first started watching basketball, they were in the Finals a lot, so it’s definitely special to be here.”
“Special” describes what’s happened to the Spurs and San Antonio since the club selected Wembanyama No. 1 overall in the 2023 NBA Draft after winning the lottery a month earlier. He energized the sagging franchise and brought excitement back to the city while winning Rookie of the Year and is playing even better this season as the Spurs make a push for a new arena and fans dream of the 7-foot-3 center someday leading the team back to the Finals.
For those transformative accomplishments, the way he has carried himself with a high-degree of professionalism that follows in the footsteps of franchise legends and fellow first overall picks David Robinson and Tim Duncan, his performance in Paris in leading France to an Olympic silver medal, and the tight bond he has formed with San Antonio, Wembanyama has been named the San Antonio Express-News Sportsman of the Year.
“It’s an honor to receive this recognition, especially since it’s local from San Antonio, a place that means so much to me and is my new home,” Wembanyama said in a statement. “I’ve put my all into representing the city since being drafted here, and I’m going to continue to do anything I can to make San Antonio proud in the future.”
Things went so well this past year, it’s almost as if Wembanyama landing in and then thriving in the Alamo City was preordained from the moment he donned a Spurs jersey as a kid years ago at a time when Duncan, Manu Ginobili and another French star, Tony Parker, formed the legendary “Big Three”.
“People here don’t know me (personally), but they treat me like family,” Wembanyama said. “It’s so nice to be welcomed like this. I’m so grateful and feel so lucky.”
The Spurs won just 22 games last season, but Wembanyama’s record-setting play sparked hope for the franchise’s future. Fans returned to the Frost Bank Center in droves and television networks were eager to broadcast Spurs games as the Wembanyama effect was in full force. Not surprisingly, Wembanyama cracked the top five list of best-selling NBA jerseys, putting him in the company of Stephen Curry, LeBron James, Jayson Tatum and Giannis Antetokounmpo
“He has helped put us in a lot of cool positions, especially this year,” Spurs guard Tre Jones said of Wembanyama, referring to the Spurs playing the Knicks in New York on Christmas Day and the two games the team will play next month in Paris against the Indiana Pacers.
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The ambitious, fiercely competitive Wembanyama became the third Spur to win rookie of the year, joining Robinson in 1990 and Duncan in 1998, after he averaged 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, a league-best 3.6 blocks, 1.8 3-pointers and 1.2 steals. No other player in NBA history had averaged those combined figures, which underscored how terrific he is in all aspects of the game.
Fittingly for such a uniquely gifted, generational talent, he became just the sixth player since rookie of the year debuted in the 1952-53 season to receive every first-place vote. The others were Houston’s Ralph Sampson (1984), Robinson (1990), the Los Angeles Clippers’ Blake Griffin (2011), Portland’s Damian Lillard (2013) and Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns (2016).
San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama, right, embraces guard Devin Vassell at the conclusion of their 130-126 overtime victory over the New York Knicks in their NBA game at the Frost Bank Center on Friday, March 29, 2024.
And like Robinson and Duncan before him, Wembanyama impressed off the court with his humility, intelligence and old-soul persona, quite a mix for a player who is set to turn 21 on Saturday.
“I still think it’s shocking that at his age there’s the level of maturity and the ability to understand big picture aspects in a variety of ways,” acting Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said when asked what has amazed him most about Wembanyama.
Gregg Popovich, who is away from the Spurs indefinitely after suffering a stroke in early November, said Wembanyama is “probably the most mature 20-year-old” he’s ever encountered.
“He’s got not just a knack and an IQ for the game, but (he’s) just worldly,” the Hall of Fame coach said. “He understands priorities, you know. All the hoopla around him, doesn’t affect him.”
After his historic rookie season, Wembanyama continued to shine in the summer, but this time on a red-hot world-wide stage. The first French player taken first overall in the NBA draft dazzled with a game-high 26 points in the 98-87 loss to Team USA in the gold medal game at the Paris Olympics.
In addition to his play, Wembanyama earned praise for the unabashed emotion he showed after the game when he covered his face and wept before searching for his mother in the stands.
Although he started his second NBA season slowly while shackled with a minutes restriction following his busy summer and in response to some minor injuries, Wembanyama has been even better as a sophomore. He’s averaging 25.5 points, 10.0 rebounds, a league-leading 4.0 blocks, 3.8 assists and 1.0 steals while shooting 35.9% from beyond the arc on 9.5 attempts entering Tuesday night’s home game against the Los Angeles Clippers.
And he’s posted those numbers with his usual flair, making even the most jaded observer ask themselves at times, “Did I really see that?”
“Are we playing in our backyard or we playing in the NBA? It is crazy,” Spurs guard Devin Vassell said after watching Wembanyama dunk in a recent win over the Atlanta Hawks after setting up the play by passing the ball to himself off the backboard.
Spurs star Victor Wembanyama’s nickname has become a slam dunk for more dog owners.
A troubling thought for the rest of the league is that Wembanyama has only scratched the surface when it comes to how good he ultimately will be.
“He’s young and he wants to be better, and that’s the scary part,” forward Julian Champagnie said. “He’s in year two. It’s not year three, not four, not five. It’s year two. So, he still has a lot of growing to do, a lot of bulking up to do. But he’s doing his thing.”
Perhaps most importantly for a franchise that entered this season with a franchise-worst five-year playoff drought after making the postseason a record-tying 22 consecutive seasons and winning five titles in that span, the Spurs will enter the New Year’s Eve game with 16 wins after notching their 16th win last season on March 25.
As Wembanyama adjusts even more to how teams are playing him, bigger and better things are expected from him and the Spurs.
“It takes time when you’re guarded in some of the unique ways teams have schemed for him,” Johnson said. “And I think he’s starting to get a little bit of a hold on some of the patterns he’s seen over and over and over again.”
The smart money is on Wembanyama gaining his first All-Star berth in February and collecting his first Defensive Player of the Year trophy in May after he finished as the runner-up to his French mentor Rudy Gobert last season.
“I think he’s already the best defender in the league,” Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups said. “He shuts a lot of things down for you out there. You think things are open that aren’t open. So, he’s settling in. He’s settling in to say the least.”
When it comes to settling into San Antonio’s warm embrace, Wembanyama has already done it.
“I feel it, and it warms my heart,” he said in French after a game. “I love having a relationship with the fans. What happens to us is thanks to them, and what happens to them is largely thanks to us. It’s a virtuous circle. The Spurs are one of the great franchises in the NBA, with a powerful fan base. But above all, their fans are the best in the league. They’ve always been very positive towards their players.”
By Tom Orsborn, Staff writer, via San Antonio Express-News