By Jeff McDonald, Staff writer | San Antonio Express-News (SAEN), 2025-03-20 13:47:37
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。
圣安东尼奥马刺队后卫布雷克·韦斯利(Blake Wesley) (14)在圣安东尼奥的霜冻银行中心为对阵达拉斯小牛队的NBA比赛热身时，独自一人休息片刻，摄于2025年3月12日星期三。马刺队以126-116击败小牛队。
周三深夜，一位来访者在布雷克·韦斯利(Blake Wesley)的更衣室外用一个普通的问题“袭击”了这位马刺队后卫，这个问题在两周前可能被认为是设陷阱。
“你好吗？”
“没什么可抱怨的，”韦斯利说。“我在NBA，所以我很高兴。”
这与韦斯利一周前、一个月前或一年前可能会给出的答案相同。但这一次，他有更多理由为自己感到高兴。
这位替补控球后卫证明了自己在马刺队以120-105战胜纽约的比赛中发挥了关键作用。
自从十二月以来，韦斯利一直是马刺队轮换阵容中一个被遗忘的人，但当明星后卫德阿隆·福克斯(De’Aaron Fox)本月早些时候选择赛季报销手术后，他的上场时间得以恢复。
这位22岁的速度型球员的未来与俱乐部息息相关，他正努力充分利用这个最新的机会。
“今年对我来说是耐心的一年，”韦斯利说。“我经历了太多的逆境，并克服了它们。我必须继续前进，无论好坏。”
随着新秀斯蒂芬·卡斯尔(Stephon Castle)在福克斯离开后进入首发阵容，韦斯利已经接任了马刺队的替补控球后卫。
他在周三的比赛中打出了几个月来最好的一场，得到6分，送出3次助攻，抢断3次，并以一波防守能量扭转了比赛局面。
如果不是桑德罗·马穆克拉什维利(Sandro Mamukelshavili)出人意料地得到34分，韦斯利可能就会是本场比赛的最佳球员。
“我原本以为布雷克会是我们在谈论的那个人，除非桑德罗打出了他那样的比赛，”代理教练米奇·约翰逊(Mitch Johnson)说。“布雷克的防守简直太棒了。”
在很多方面，韦斯利的名字将永远与马拉基·布兰纳姆(Malaki Branham)联系在一起，布兰纳姆是马刺队在2022年首轮选中的另一名后卫，但此后已经跌出了轮换阵容。
这两名球员下赛季都有合同在身，价格适中，并且很可能需要在秋季为进入球队名单而战。
布兰纳姆正试图在发展联盟重新开始他的第三个NBA赛季，上周他打了自新秀赛季以来第一场奥斯汀队的比赛，而韦斯利则在马刺队的第二阵容中获得了一个机会。
“每当我听到这个消息时，我就知道我准备好了，”韦斯利说。“他们告诉我这将是我的机会，所以我将全力以赴。”
韦斯利的跳投仍然在进步中。他仍然很难在油漆区内完成进攻。
尽管如此，韦斯利的速度、不知疲倦的防守以及骚扰对方持球人贯穿全场的能力，至少在下个月为他在马刺队的轮换阵容中赢得了一席之地。
他的目标是继续留在球队的未来计划中。
“这仅仅是个开始，”韦斯利说。“我将继续做我正在做的事情。”
首发中锋的调整取得了成效
约翰逊在对阵尼克斯的比赛中对阵容进行了一次调整，让杰里米·索汉(Jeremy Sochan)担任首发中锋，并将俾斯麦·比永博(Bismack Biyombo)移至替补席。
用一名6尺8寸的球员换掉另一名6尺8寸的球员的决定是基于对位的考虑。马刺队希望索汉花更多的时间对位尼克斯队的全明星球员卡尔-安东尼·唐斯(Karl-Anthony Towns)，并让比永博去防守米切尔·罗宾逊(Mitchell Robinson)，尼克斯队7尺高的替补球员。
这是索汉自1月6日在芝加哥以来首次首发。
“就传统阵容而言，我们有点像一支杂牌军，”约翰逊说。“我们时不时地进行调整，以便让球队的运转更加流畅。”
这个调整一开始似乎是一个糟糕的尝试，因为唐斯在前2分13秒内就得到了9分，最终得到32分。
情况稍微稳定了一些，马刺队打出了自1月13日在洛杉矶湖人队以126-102获胜以来最好的防守表现。
尼克斯队除唐斯之外的四名首发球员开场20投0中，这无疑有所帮助。
尽管身高处于劣势，但马刺队在篮板球上以52-44获胜，同时也在油漆区得分（52-50）和二次进攻得分（18-17）上占据优势。
“这是一个很大的问题，”尼克斯队主教练汤姆·锡伯杜(Tom Thibodeau)说。“他们派出了小个阵容，而我们对球的反应并不好。他们很有运动能力而且速度很快，我觉得我们整晚都落后于他们。”
San Antonio Spurs guard Blake Wesley (14) shoots over Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves, left, during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Los Angeles, Monday, March 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)
Charlotte Hornets guard Seth Curry (30) drives the ball past San Antonio Spurs guard Blake Wesley (14) during an NBA game at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, on Friday, March 14, 2025. The Spurs fell to the Hornets 145-134.
San Antonio Spurs guard Blake Wesley (14) dunks on the Charlotte Hornets during an NBA game at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, on Friday, March 14, 2025. The Spurs fell to the Hornets 145-134.
点击查看原文：Next few weeks crucial for San Antonio Spurs' Blake Wesley
Next few weeks crucial for San Antonio Spurs’ Blake Wesley
San Antonio Spurs guard Blake Wesley (14) takes a moment to himself while warming up for an NBA game against the Dallas Mavericks at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Wednesday, March 12, 2025. The Spurs defeated the Mavericks, 126-116.
A visitor at Blake Wesley’s locker late Wednesday hit the Spurs guard with an ordinary question that two weeks earlier might have been considered a gotcha.
How ya doing?
“Can’t complain,” Wesley said. “I’m in the NBA, so I’m happy.”
It was the same answer Wesley might have given a week, a month or a year ago. This time around, he had additional reason to be pleased with himself.
The backup point guard proved a key cog in the Spurs’ 120-105 victory over New York.
A forgotten man in the Spurs’ rotation since December, Wesley saw his playing time revived when star guard De’Aaron Fox opted for season-ending surgery earlier this month.
His future with the club on the line, the 22-year-old speedster aims to make the most of his newest opportunity.
“This year was a year of patience for me,” Wesley said. “I’ve been through so much adversity and overcome it. I’ve got to keep on pushing, good or bad days.”
With rookie Stephon Castle moving to the starting lineup upon Fox’s departure, Wesley has taken over as the Spurs’ backup point guard.
He enjoyed his best game in months Wednesday, scoring six points, doling out three assists, swiping three steals and turning the game on its head with a burst of defensive energy.
Had it not been for Sandro Mamukelshavili and his out-of-nowhere 34 points, Wesley might have been the player of the game.
“I thought Blake would have been the one we’d be talking about, except Sandro had the game he had,” acting coach Mitch Johnson said. “Blake was ridiculous defensively.”
In many ways, Wesley’s name will always be linked with that of Malaki Branham, another guard the Spurs drafted in the first round in 2022 who has since fallen out of the rotation.
Both players are under contract next season at modest price tags and will likely have to fight their way onto the roster in the fall.
Where Branham is looking to restart his third NBA season in the G League, last week playing his first game with Austin since he was rookie, Wesley has been afforded an opportunity on the Spurs’ second unit.
“Whenever I heard the news, I knew I was going to be ready,” Wesley said. “They told me it was going to be my opportunity, so I was going to run with it.”
Wesley’s jump shot remains a work in progress. He still struggles to finish in the paint.
Nevertheless, Wesley’s straight-line speed, tireless defense and ability to bother opposing ball-handlers the length of the court have given him a place in the Spurs’ rotation for at least the next month.
His goal is to remain in the team’s plans beyond that.
“This is only the start,” Wesley said. “I’m going to keep doing what I’m doing.”
Starting center swap pays off
Johnson made a lineup tweak against the Knicks, installing Jeremy Sochan as the starting center and moving Bismack Biyombo to the bench.
The decision to swap one 6-foot-8 player for another was matchups based. The Spurs wanted Sochan to spend more time against Knicks All-Star Karl-Anthony Towns and leave Biyombo to defend Mitchell Robinson, New York’s 7-foot backup.
It was Sochan’s first start since Jan. 6 at Chicago.
“We’re a little bit of a rag-tag group in terms of traditional lineups,” Johnson said. “Every now and then we’re making adjustments so it flows a little better.”
The switch seemed like a losing proposition at first, as Towns scored nine points in the first 2:13 on his way to 32.
Things settled down a bit, and the Spurs finished with their best defensive performance since a 126-102 victory at the Los Angeles Lakers on Jan. 13.
It didn’t hurt that New York’s four non-Towns starters opened the game 0-of-20 from the field.
Despite a size deficit, the Spurs won the rebounding battle 52-44 while also winning paint points (52-50) and second-chance points (18-17).
“That was a big concern,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. “They started small, and our reaction to the ball wasn’t great. They are athletic and quick, and I felt like we were behind all night.”
By Jeff McDonald, Staff writer, via San Antonio Express-News