By August Bembel | Pounding The Rock (PtR), 2025-05-04 08:00:00
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。
即使波波维奇不再担任马刺队主教练，他的文化仍将延续。
在 NBA、NFL、MLB、NHL 或是欧洲顶级足球联赛中，大多数教练都是被解雇的。教练自己决定何时结束职业生涯的情况非常罕见，几乎不会发生。那些有幸被这样一位卓越人物领导的俱乐部或球队，都可以认为自己是幸运的。
圣安东尼奥马刺队就是这样一支球队。 格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich) ，一位忠于一支球队的教练，成为了 NBA 历史上胜场最多的教练。在我的一生中，我能想到的只有一位教练，他在一家俱乐部取得的终身成就能够与波波维奇相媲美——那就是 亚历克斯·弗格森(Alex Ferguson) ，他的名字与曼联的联系，就像波波维奇与马刺队的联系一样紧密。
弗格森于 1986 年 11 月与曼联签约，当时他们在顶级联赛（即当时的英格兰足球顶级联赛）中排名倒数第二。他在这家俱乐部效力了 26 个赛季，总共赢得了 49 座奖杯，其中包括 13 个联赛冠军。2013 年，他退休了。自那以后，曼联一直在走下坡路。
他们再也没有赢得过英超联赛冠军。包括过渡时期的主教练在内，自弗格森之后，他们已经更换了九位主教练，其中包括 路易斯·范加尔(Louis van Gaal) 和 何塞·穆里尼奥(José Mourinho) 等名帅。这表明，要取代像弗格森这样一位卓越人物是多么的困难。
我最喜欢的足球俱乐部，曼联的死敌利物浦足球俱乐部，也曾有一位对俱乐部影响深远的卓越人物—— 比尔·香克利(Bill Shankly) 。
当香克利在 1959 年末来到安菲尔德时，利物浦已经在次级联赛中沉沦了五年。他们在 1962 年升入顶级联赛，并在 1964 年赢得了香克利执教下的第一个冠军，总共获得了三个冠军。他于 1974 年退休，由他的一位助手接替（稍后会详细介绍）。
可以毫不夸张地说，波波维奇对于马刺队的意义，就像香克利对于利物浦的意义一样——而且两者之间有着惊人的相似之处。他们都坚持基本原则，将自己的球队打造成了持久成功的典范，并塑造了各自的运动。
香克利和波波维奇都将团队置于个人之上。对于香克利来说，利物浦足球俱乐部不仅仅是一家俱乐部，更是社区和努力工作的象征。他曾说过：“没有人比俱乐部更重要。” 他对待他的明星球员，就像波波维奇对待他的球员一样——不是把他们当作不可触碰的个体，而是把他们当作更大体系的一部分。
两位教练不仅打造了成功的球队，还创造了持久的文化。香克利的影响改变了利物浦。他的凝聚力和职业道德的价值观至今仍在该俱乐部感受到。波波维奇对马刺队的影响非常深刻，“马刺方式”已经成为 NBA 球迷公认的术语。
尽管取得了巨大的成功，但两位人物都保持着惊人的平易近人。香克利本人出身卑微，始终与球迷保持密切联系。波波维奇以挑战球员的个人能力而闻名，但同时也会在人性层面陪伴他们——远离美国体育运动中常见的明星炒作。
他们也都有着一种冷幽默，而且往往说话尖锐。香克利以他尖刻的言论而闻名，例如：“裁判的问题在于他们知道规则，但他们不懂比赛。” 你能想象波波维奇在被驱逐出场后说出这样的话吗？我当然可以。香克利，就像波波维奇一样，仍然是体育史上最常被引用的教练之一——如果你想了解更多他的名言，这里是个不错的起点。
与此同时，我认为马刺球迷可以从利物浦如何安排香克利的继任者身上学到一些东西。与后弗格森时代的曼联不同，利物浦没有聘请外人。他们从内部提拔。事实上，利物浦接下来的两位主教练都是香克利的前助手——而且他们甚至比香克利本人还要成功。
鲍勃·佩斯利(Bob Paisley) 在短短九年内赢得了六个联赛冠军和三个欧洲冠军杯（现在被称为欧洲冠军联赛）。他的继任者， 乔·费根(Joe Fagan) ，在 1984 年赢得了三冠王，并在一年后退休。
佩斯利和费根都是利物浦著名的“靴室”的成员，这是一个由香克利在 1959 年创立的非官方机构。每个成员都有特定的角色：战术、球探、转会等等。你可以把靴室看作是利物浦版的 PATFO（译者注：PATFO是马刺管理层，指Popovich And The Front Office）。
靴室也特别旨在培养未来的利物浦主教练。事实上，它一直培养利物浦主教练到 20 世纪 90 年代——远在香克利于 1981 年去世之后。
马刺队现在选择了类似的道路。波波维奇的助手和临时主教练， 米奇·约翰逊(Mitch Johnson) ，已被任命为波波维奇的正式继任者。据报道，马刺队甚至没有面试外部候选人。相反，他们信任自己人。
时间会证明这是否是正确的决定。但也许，就像利物浦一样，最好的还在后头。
点击查看原文：What Liverpool’s Past Can Teach Spurs Fans About Life After Popovich
What Liverpool’s Past Can Teach Spurs Fans About Life After Popovich
With Pop no longer the Spurs’ head coach, his culture will continue.
Most coaches in the NBA, NFL, MLB, NHL, or the big European soccer leagues are fired. It’s rare for a coach to decide on his own when to call it a career. It hardly ever happens. Those clubs or franchises that have the privilege of being led by such a transcendental figure can consider themselves lucky.
The San Antonio Spurs are one of those franchises. Gregg Popovich, a one-team coach, became the winningest coach in NBA history. In my lifetime, there’s only one coach I can think of whose lifetime achievement with a single club rivals Pop’s — and that’s Alex Ferguson, whose name is as synonymous with Manchester United as Popovich’s is with the Spurs.
Ferguson signed with Manchester United in November 1986 when they were second from bottom in the First Division, as the top tier of English football was called back then. He stayed with the club for 26 seasons, winning a total of 49 trophies, including 13 league titles. In 2013, he retired. It’s been a slow decline for Manchester United ever since.
They haven’t won another Premier League title. Including interim solutions, they’ve had a total of nine managers since Ferguson, including major names like Louis van Gaal and José Mourinho. It shows how difficult it is to replace a transcendental figure like Ferguson.
My favorite football club, Manchester United’s archrival Liverpool FC, also had a transcendent figure who shaped the club like no one else — Bill Shankly.
When Shankly arrived at Anfield in late 1959, Liverpool had been stuck in the Second Division for five years. They won promotion to the top flight in 1962 and claimed the first of three championships under Shankly in 1964. He retired in 1974 and was replaced by one of his assistants (more on that later).
It’s fair to say that what Popovich means to the Spurs, Shankly means to Liverpool — and there are striking similarities between the two. They shared fundamental principles that molded their teams into enduring models of success — and shaped their respective sports.
Both Shankly and Popovich prioritized the idea of the team over individual vanity. For Shankly, Liverpool FC was not just a club, but a symbol of community and hard work. He once said: “No one is bigger than the club.” He treated his star players just like Popovich treated his — not as untouchable individuals, but as part of a larger system.
Both coaches not only created successful teams but also lasting cultures. Shankly’s influence transformed Liverpool. His values of cohesion and work ethic are still felt at the club today. Popovich molded the Spurs so deeply that the “Spurs Way” has become a recognized term among NBA fans.
Despite their immense success, both personalities remained remarkably down-to-earth. Shankly, himself from a humble background, always stayed close to the fans. Popovich, for his part, is known for challenging his players personally but also for accompanying them on a human level — far removed from the star hype that often characterizes U.S. sports.
They also share a dry, often sharp-tongued sense of humor. Shankly was famous for his biting remarks, such as: “The trouble with referees is that they know the rules, but they do not know the game.” Can you imagine Pop saying that after one of his many ejections? I certainly can. Shankly, like Popovich, remains one of the most quotable coaches in sports history — and if you want more of his quotes, here’s a good place to start.
Meanwhile, I think there’s something we Spurs fans can learn from how Liverpool organized Shankly’s succession. Unlike Manchester United in the post-Ferguson era, Liverpool didn’t hire an outsider. They promoted from within. In fact, Liverpool’s next two managers were former Shankly assistants — and they were even more successful than Shankly himself.
Bob Paisley won six league championships and three European Cups (now known as the Champions League) in just nine years. His successor, Joe Fagan, won the treble in 1984 before retiring a year later.
Both Paisley and Fagan were part of Liverpool’s fabled “Boot Room,” an unofficial institution founded by Shankly in 1959. Each member had a specific role: tactics, scouting, transfers, and so on. Think of the Boot Room as Liverpool’s equivalent to PATFO.
The Boot Room was also specifically intended to train future Liverpool managers. In fact, it continued producing Liverpool managers well into the 1990s — long after Shankly had passed away in 1981.
The Spurs have now chosen a similar path. Popovich’s assistant and interim head coach, Mitch Johnson, has been named Pop’s full-time successor. Reportedly, the Spurs didn’t even interview external candidates. Instead, they trusted in their own.
Time will tell whether it was the right decision. But perhaps, as with Liverpool, the best is yet to come.
By August Bembel, via Pounding The Rock