By MateoMayorga | Pounding The Rock (PtR), 2025-02-05 06:44:58
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。
斯蒂芬·卡斯尔(Stephon Castle)正在崛起，而这仅仅是个开始
根据NBA官方消息，斯蒂芬·卡斯尔(Stephon Castle)荣获了他的第一个西部月最佳新秀奖，击败了以赛亚·科利尔(Isaiah Collier)、瑞安·邓恩(Ryan Dunn)和杰伦·威尔斯(Jaylen Wells)。他场均得到14.9分，真实命中率为51.9%，还有3.1个篮板和3.6次助攻，但他的影响力远不止于此。
一月份的西部@ Kia月最佳新秀是斯蒂芬·卡斯尔！#KiaROTM
14.9分 | 3.1篮板 | 3.6助攻 pic.twitter.com/4jr8ntHKrn— NBA (@ NBA) 2025年2月4日
要知道，NBA中场均得分15分以上并且防守对方最佳球员的选手不超过15人，而卡斯尔正在做的事情正是如此。此外，他在进攻端的积极挡拆也为文班亚马(Victor Wembanyama)争取了额外的时间来调整位置。虽然文班的盖帽数据可能不会很亮眼，但卡斯尔的工作同样重要，而且是防守中最难的任务。
卡斯尔的表现如此出色，以至于主教练米奇·约翰逊(Mitch Johnson)应该让他继续留在首发阵容中，以弥补新加盟马刺的德阿隆·福克斯(De’Aaron Fox)在防守端的不足。自1月8日以来，卡斯尔一直是首发阵容的中流砥柱，考虑到他的进步速度和出色完成任务的能力，将他移到替补席上对他来说是一种伤害，因为目前没有比他更适合这份工作的球员。
在一月份，卡斯尔45%的出手距离篮筐不足5英尺，并且这些出手的命中率高达59.4%。他之所以在这个区域表现出色，是因为他出色的无球跑动以及持球突破时对抗防守球员的能力。尽管他场均出手超过四次三分球，但三分命中率却低得令人咋舌（28.8%），但他应该以文班亚马为榜样，继续无畏地出手。奇普·恩格兰德(Chip Engelland)留下的“秘方”最终会将他打造成一个外线进攻选择，但这需要时间。别忘了，一年前，文班亚马因为投太多三分球而受到包括我在内的许多评论家的批评，但最终这为他带来了回报。
除此之外，卡斯尔在一月份还展现了出色的组织能力，尤其是在突破分球给射手以及快攻中的传球方面。他与文班亚马之间的默契也让“51区”变得更加强大。他们在一月份展现了足够的闪光点，足以让人们预见他们将成为NBA的顶级二人组之一。
卡斯尔攻防两端都非常全面，在经过一段时间的调整，将福克斯融入球队体系后，他应该能够保持一月份的数据，这意味着这不会是他最后一次获得月最佳新秀奖。
点击查看原文：Stephon Castle named Western Conference Rookie of the Month
Stephon Castle named Western Conference Rookie of the Month
Stephon Castle is on the rise and it’s only the beginning
Stephon Castle was honored with his first Western Conference Rookie of the Month award, beating out Isaiah Collier, Ryan Dunn, and Jaylen Wells, per NBA Communications. He averaged 14.9 points on a 51.9 true shooting percentage, with 3.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists, but his impact felt greater than that.
The Western Conference @ Kia Rookie of the Month for January is Stephon Castle! #KiaROTM
14.9 PPG | 3.1 RPG | 3.6 APG pic.twitter.com/4jr8ntHKrn— NBA (@ NBA) February 4, 2025
Keep in mind, there are not 15 players in the NBA scoring 15 points per game and guarding the other team‘s best player, which is what Castle is doing. Furthermore, getting over all those screens at the point of attack buys Victor Wembanyama an extra second to get into position. He may not get the flashy blocks on the stat sheet, but his work is just as important and is the hardest to do on defense.
Castle has played so well that coach Mitch Johnson should keep him in the starting lineup to cover De’Aaron Fox, the newly acquired Spur’s, defensive weaknesses. Castle has been a mainstay there since Jan. 8 and at the rate he is progressing and his ability to handle the task, it would do him a disservice to move him to the bench because there isn’t a player undoubtedly better than him for the job.
In January, 45 percent of his attempts were taken fewer than five feet away from the rim, and he made 59.4 percent of those shots. He excels in this area because he moves well without the ball and is strong enough to take a bump from defenders when dribbling. His 3-point percentage was abysmal (28.8) on over four attempts per game, but he should follow Wembanyama’s example and keep hoisting them up without fear. The secret sauce that Chip Engelland left behind will eventually turn him into an outside option, but it will require time. Don’t forget, a year ago, Wembanyama was taking a lot of heat from critics, me included, for shooting too many threes and it paid off for him.
On top of that, he showed good playmaking skills in the month, specifically on drive-and-kick plays to shooters and feeds on the break. His connection with Wembanyama is only making Area 51 stronger, too. They showed enough flashes together in January that’s easy to envision them becoming one of the NBA’s top combinations.
Castle is versatile on both sides and after an adjustment, incorporating Fox in the lineup, he should be able to maintain his January numbers, which means this will not be his last Rookie of the Month prize.
By MateoMayorga, via Pounding The Rock