By Marilyn Dubinski | Pounding The Rock (PtR), 2025-01-16 05:30:46
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。
卡斯尔作为首发的表现远好于替补，但这并不意味着他已经准备好全职首发。
表面上看，斯蒂芬·卡斯尔(Stephon Castle)的新秀赛季到目前为止相当典型。既有高光时刻，比如进攻端的爆发、防守端的高潜力闪光，以及与维克托·文班亚马(Victor Wembanyama)日益增长的化学反应，共同创造了“51区”二人组；也有新秀球员常见的低谷，比如防守失误、投篮挣扎和状态不稳定。但总的来说，他的表现非常稳固，并且在本赛季竞争激烈的年度最佳新秀角逐中，他很有可能成为最终的热门人选。
然而，当你深入研究时，卡斯尔NBA生涯的开端要复杂得多。虽然高光和低谷对于新秀来说很常见，但它们出现的场景却非常明确。任何密切关注马刺本赛季比赛的人都会发现，他的高光时刻往往出现在首发时，而低谷则出现在替补出场时，事实也确实如此。作为证据，以下是他在首发和替补时的统计数据对比，数据来自basketball-reference.com：
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一些数据上的巨大差异（比如首发时的得分和助攻几乎翻倍）可以归因于每场比赛的出场时间差异——首发30分钟而替补只有18分钟，但效率数据，例如投篮命中率和进攻效率，表明他确实在首发时比替补出场时更出色。因此，这导致许多人宣称卡斯尔应该全职首发。有些人甚至指责马刺让他替补出场是对他的一种“伤害”，因为“这会打击他的自信心”。至少在我看来，这是一种错误的心态，并引发了一些问题。
虽然卡斯尔在首发时表现出色显然是件好事，但他作为替补时的挣扎是否值得关注？这是否表明他还不够全面，无法适应不同的阵容？他是否需要身边有更多有天赋的球员才能发挥出色？他是否从无球跑动和克里斯·保罗(Chris Paul)在场上指挥中获益太多？正如那些支持他首发的人所暗示的那样，他的心态是否受到了角色的影响？
当然，我们讨论的是一个到目前为止只打了37场NBA比赛的新秀，所以我并不是想批评卡斯尔，而是想评估一下因为这些原因就让他成为首发是否正确。马刺不应该仅仅让卡斯尔待在一个让他感到舒适的特定角色中。相反，他应该接受挑战，在不同的角色和阵容中做得更好。如果他们的目标是让他成为未来的首发控球后卫（甚至可能就在下个赛季），那么他就需要更多时间担任持球角色，而这主要是在第二阵容中实现的。他还需要与所有队友一起打球并学习他们的特点，而不仅仅是首发球员。
事实上，卡斯尔甚至没有被期望在本赛季初就经常首发，但他由于杰里米·索汉(Jeremy Sochan)的各种伤病而获得了机会。考虑到索汉在他参加的21场比赛中只有3场替补出场，他很有可能在健康的情况下继续首发，而且没有理由不让他首发。他也在（并且需要继续）与文班建立化学反应，此外他还是一名全明星级别的防守球员。
假设索汉的背伤痊愈后再次回到首发阵容，那么卡斯尔将不得不调整并找到在替补角色中做出更多贡献的方法。让他每场比赛的出场时间超过18分钟可能会有所帮助，这样他就能在我们讨论的那些情况下得到更多发展，但他仍然需要找到一种方法，无论角色如何都能保持相同的贡献水平。
卡斯尔度过了一个不错的新秀赛季，但他的角色可能会根据伤病等情况继续波动。如果他想更上一层楼，就需要证明自己能够胜任不同的角色、场景和阵容。一旦他做到了，对于一个被认为是马刺激动人心未来一部分的球员来说，天空才是他的极限。
点击查看原文：Stephon Castle as a starter vs. a reserve presents a conundrum
Stephon Castle as a starter vs. a reserve presents a conundrum
Castle plays much better as a starter than a reserve, but that doesn’t mean he’s ready to start full time.
On the surface, Stephon Castle has had a pretty typical rookie season so far. There have been plenty of highs, such as offensive explosions, flashes of his high defensive upside, and his growing chemistry with Victor Wembanyama to create the “Area 51” duo, and there have been the typical lows that often come with rookies, such as defensive lapses, shooting struggles, and inconsistency. But overall, he has been very solid and is in the running for Rookie of the Year in a wide-open race that may just come down to whoever is hottest at the end of the season.
However, when you dig a little deeper, the beginning of Castle’s NBA career has been much more complex. While the highs and lows are typical of rookies, the scenarios they come in are very defined. Anyone who has watched the Spurs closely this season will assess that his highs tend to come as a starter while his lows are when he comes off the bench, and they would be correct. For proof, here are his stat splits as a starter vs. as a reserve, courtesy of basketball-reference.com:
Some of the stat jumps (like nearly doubling in points and assists when starting) can be attributed to the minutes per game differential of 30 as a starter versus jus t18 as a reserve, but the efficiency stats, such as shooting and offensive rating, suggest he truly does thrive more as a starter than coming off the bench. As a result, this has led many to declare that because Castle should start full time. Some have even gone as far as accusing the Spurs of doing him a “disservice” by bringing him off the bench because “it hurts his confidence”. This is the wrong mindset, at least in my opinion, and raises it a few of questions.
While Castle thriving as a starter is obviously a good thing, are his struggles as a reserve a cause for concern? Is it a sign that he’s not yet versatile enough to play with different lineups? Does he need more talent around him to thrive? Does he benefit too much from playing off the ball and being directed on the court by Chris Paul? Is he mentally impacted by his role, as those who advocate for him to start suggest?
Of course, we’re talking about a rookie who has played in 37 NBA games so far, so I’m not trying to knock Castle but rather assess if crowning him starter for these reasons is the right approach. The Spurs shouldn’t just keep Castle in a niche role where he is comfortable. Instead, he should be challenged to do better in various roles and lineups. If their goal is for him to be their starting point guard of the future (maybe even as soon as next season), then he needs more time in an on-ball role, which will mostly come with the second unit. He also needs experience playing with and learning the tendencies of all of his teammates, not just the starters.
The fact is, Castle wasn’t even expected to start much to begin the season, but he got the opportunity thanks to various injuries to Jeremy Sochan. Considering Sochan has only come off the bench in three of the 21 games he’s played, odds are he will continue to start when healthy, and there’s no reason for him not to. He too is (and needs to continue) building chemistry with Wemby, plus he’s an All-NBA caliber defender.
Assuming Sochan once again returns to his starting role once his back is better, then Castle will have to adjust and find ways to contribute more when he’s playing in a reserve role. It probably wouldn’t hurt to give him more than 18 minutes per game so he can get more develop in those scenarios we discussed, but he still needs to find a way to contribute at the same level regardless of role.
Castle has had a good rookie season, but his role will likely continue to fluctuate depending on situations such as injuries. He needs to show he can handle different roles, scenarios and lineups if we wants to take the next step. Once he does, the sky will be the limit for a player who is presumably a part of an exciting Spurs future.
By Marilyn Dubinski, via Pounding The Rock