By Jeje Gomez | Pounding The Rock (PtR), 2025-10-04 07:29:56
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。
在媒体日上，球队大谈对防守的新一轮重视，这已是常态。事实上，由于这种情况频繁发生，现在几乎成了一种陈词滥调。马刺也不例外，多名球员都申明了他们个人和团队对新赛季防守的承诺，并声称球队在防守端可能会变得“非常恐怖”。
空谈无益，银黑军团需要用行动来兑现他们的承诺。在维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 时代，圣安东尼奥的防守效率每年都排在联盟后三分之一。带着挣扎的防守打进季后赛或许可能，但这并不常见。从长远来看，拥有文班的马刺应该在防守端建立自己的特色，但这一点至今尚未实现。
如果米奇·约翰逊 (Mitch Johnson) 想让他的首个完整执教赛季成为圣安东尼奥开启防守巨擘之路的元年，他就必须优先考虑那些有助于推动这一转变的人员配置和战术体系。但在进攻和防守之间找到合适的平衡点绝非易事。
对米奇·约翰逊而言，有效调配现有阵容将是一大挑战
马刺面临一个直截了当的问题：他们没有足够多能投射的外线防守者。虽然文班亚马和卢克·科内特 (Luke Kornet) 应该能够在内线筑起防守屏障，同时提供足够的得分，但外线的情况就复杂得多了。在持球点防守方面，最出色的球员是杰里米·索汉 (Jeremy Sochan) 和斯蒂芬·卡斯尔 (Stephon Castle)——前提是这位二年级后卫在防守端能取得合理的进步。上赛季，当他们俩站在三分线外时，几乎完全被对手放空。卡斯尔，以及在一定程度上，索汉都具备持球能力，但他们也并非像贾·莫兰特 (Ja Morant) 那样，能作为持球得分手撑起一支球队进攻的真正组织核心。
关键在于如何错开他们的上场时间，从而在保证场上有一名防守悍将的同时，不过分牺牲场上空间。让索汉与文班亚马一同首发，同时让卡斯尔从替补席登场，似乎是最简单的方法。因为文班能够拉开空间，而索汉则可以在进攻端扮演事实上的中锋，在防守端则承担主要的外线防守任务。我们已经见过马刺这样做。虽然这套阵容共同出场的时间太少，相关数据还不足以作为定论，只能算是一种概念验证，但上赛季，当德文·瓦塞尔 (Devin Vassell)、杰里米·索汉、哈里森·巴恩斯 (Harrison Barnes) 和维克托·文班亚马这四人组在场时，银黑军团的防守效率低至惊人的98.2，这一数据足以遥遥领先全联盟。在更长的出场时间里，以及当有像德阿龙·福克斯 (De’Aaron Fox) 这样的球员在场时，这个数据能否保持还有待观察，但这套阵容值得一试。
棘手之处在于如何说服卡斯尔接受替补角色。他是卫冕年度最佳新秀，上赛季作为首发表现不俗，而且他的合同还有好几年才到期，而索汉则可能带着一份到期合同进入新赛季。如果两人都无法在投射上取得飞跃，那么同时让他们首发并承担进攻端的后果，虽然符合“防守至上”的信条，但可能会导致阵容过于失衡。因此，尽可能地将两人分开使用或许是上策。但如果卡斯尔取得了进步，要想在不大幅削减索汉上场时间的情况下执行这一策略，可能会很困难。如何解开这个难题，是马刺和约翰逊需要迈出的第一步。
马刺或需摒弃传统，拥抱更强的侵略性
除了管理并非最优的人员配置，约翰逊可能还需要改变马刺传统的防守方式。在格雷格·波波维奇 (Gregg Popovich) 的执教下，圣安东尼奥主要专注于限制持球人、迫使对手投出高难度投篮——理想情况是中距离——并保护好篮板。他们不像热火队那样极端保守，厌恶制造失误和拼抢进攻篮板，但通常会优先考虑扎实的基本功，避免犯规，强调转换防守，并依赖于一种不会让对手进攻端感到特别难受、但足够稳妥的沉退防守体系。现在，也许是时候改变了。
拥有文班亚马和科内特这两位出色的护筐手，应该能解放外线防守者，让他们可以更大胆地冒险。福克斯曾领衔联盟抢断榜，他可能会成为传球路线上的梦魇，并向持球人施加巨大压力，因为他知道身后有人能为他补防。德文·瓦塞尔在上赛季末段提升了他的抢断和盖帽数据，如果他出色的预判能力得以延续，他可能成为一名防守端的破坏者。在更具侵略性的指令下，其他球员也可能会提升他们的防守强度，即便这会导致他们比以往犯规更多。上赛季联盟防守最好的两支球队——雷霆和魔术——其对手罚球率都排在联盟前五，这表明有时候更强的身体对抗从长远来看是值得的。
最后，同时派遣两名传统中锋上场——马刺在蒂姆·邓肯 (Tim Duncan) 转型至该位置后也曾偶尔为之——应该被重新提上议程。科内特对此已经习以为常，他在波士顿曾与克里斯塔普斯·波尔津吉斯 (Kristaps Porziņģis)、艾尔·霍福德 (Al Horford) 甚至内米亚斯·克塔 (Neemias Queta) 在短时间内同场竞技。由于文班亚马与科内特同时在场时能提供射程，场上空间不应过于拥挤。但如果对手上小个阵容，用一名侧翼球员来对位文班亚马，那么马刺的大个子们就应该全力冲击进攻篮板。上赛季防守排名前五的火箭队，在使用双中锋阵容时完全统治了禁区，并惩罚了任何胆敢对他们使用小个阵容的对手，进攻篮板率领跑全联盟。休斯顿在拥有史蒂文·亚当斯 (Steven Adams) – 阿尔佩伦·申京 (Alperen Sengun) 的双塔组合时，打出了卓越的防守效率，并通过在篮板上重创对手而在进攻端得以维系。
马刺在本赛季的媒体日上，多次谈到要建立防守型球队的特色。这显然是他们想要做的事，而致力于完成防守的决心本身就意义重大。好的防守不完全取决于努力，但充满活力地打球是必要条件。
最大的问题是，约翰逊能否找到合适的阵容搭配和战术微调，将这支在阵容上（尤其是在外线）可能并非拥有完美拼图的球队，转变为一支顶级的防守强队。只要有足够的信念和智慧，马刺至少应该能在防守端取得长足进步，达到合格水平，而这将是迈向正确方向的关键一步。
点击查看原文：How the Spurs can become the defensive juggernaut they want to be
How the Spurs can become the defensive juggernaut they want to be
It’s normal for teams to tout a newfound focus on defense during media day. In fact, it’s almost a cliche at this point because it happens so often. The Spurs were not the exception, with several players affirming their individual and collective commitment to defense for the upcoming season, claiming that the team could be “scary” on that end.
Words are cheap, but the Silver and Black need to follow up on their promise. In the Victor Wembanyama era, San Antonio finished in the bottom third in the league in defensive rating every single year. It’s possible to get to the playoffs while struggling to get stops, but it’s not usual. Looking past the short term, the Wemby Spurs should build their identity on the defensive end, and it just hasn’t happened.
If Mitch Johnson wants his first full year to be the one in which San Antonio starts to become a defensive juggernaut, he should prioritize the personnel and schemes that will help facilitate that transition. But finding the right balance between defense and offense won’t be easy.
Managing the suboptimal personnel well could be a challenge for Mitch Johnson
The Spurs have a straightforward problem: they don’t have enough perimeter defenders who can shoot. While Wembanyama and Luke Kornet should be able to anchor the defense inside while providing enough scoring, things get more complicated outside. The best defensive players at the point of attack are Jeremy Sochan and Stephon Castle, assuming reasonable progress on that end from the second-year guard. Both of them were downright ignored when they stood beyond the arc last season. Castle and, to an extent, Sochan can handle the ball, but they are not bona fide creators who can carry an offense as on-ball scorers, either in the way that, say, Ja Morant can.
The key will be figuring out how to stagger them to have a defender on the court without the spacing suffering too much. Starting Sochan next to Wembanyama while bringing Castle off the bench seems like the easiest way to do it, as Wemby can stretch the floor while Sochan acts as a de facto center on offense and main perimeter defender on the other end. We’ve seen the Spurs do this. The group played too little together for this number to be anything more than a proof of concept, but the Silver and Black with the four-man combination of Devin Vassell, Jeremy Sochan, Harrison Barnes and Victor Wembanyama had a ludicrously low defensive rating of 98.2 last season, which would have ranked first in the league by a mile. Whether that number will hold with heavier minutes and with Fox around remains to be seen, but it could be worth trying.
The tricky part is to convince Castle to come off the bench. He’s the reigning Rookie of the Year, did well as a starter last season, and has several years left in his contract, while Sochan could enter the season on an expiring deal. Trying to start both and living with the consequences on offense if neither takes a leap as a shooter would fit the defense-first mantra, but it could simply create units that are too imbalanced. Splitting the two as much as possible could be the play, but if Castle makes a leap, it might be hard to pull off without severely reducing Sochan’s minutes. Solving that conundrum is the first step for the Spurs and Johnson.
The Spurs might need to abandon tradition and embrace aggressiveness
Beyond managing suboptimal personnel, Johnson might need to change the way the Spurs have traditionally played defense. San Antonio under Gregg Popovich largely focused on containing ball handlers, forcing bad shots — ideally from the midrange — and securing the board. They weren’t as averse to forcing turnovers and grabbing offensive boards as an ultra-conservative team like the Heat, but they normally prioritized solid fundamentals, avoided fouling, emphasized transition defense, and relied on a drop scheme that didn’t make opponent offenses particularly uncomfortable but was safe. It might be time to change that.
Having Wembanyama and Kornet, two great rim protectors, should free the perimeter defenders to take more risks. Fox has led the league in steals before, and he could be a terror in the passing lanes and pressuring ball handlers, knowing that there’s someone behind him who can cover for him. Devin Vassell upped his steal and block numbers late last season, and if his great anticipatory skills carry over, he could be a disruptor. With a mandate to be more aggressive, others could also up their intensity, even if, as a result, they foul more than they used to. The top two defenses in the league last season, the Thunder and Magic, ranked in the top five in opponent free-throw attempt rate, which shows that sometimes being extra physical pays off in the long run.
Finally, playing two traditional centers together, something the Spurs did at times once Tim Duncan transitioned to the position, should be on the table again. Kornet is used to it after sharing the court with Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford and even Neemias Queta for short stints in Boston. The spacing shouldn’t be too cramped, thanks to Wembanyama’s range when he’s on the floor with Kornet, but if opponents go small, putting a wing on Wembanyama, the big men should crash the offensive glass. The Rockets, which had a top-five defense last season, owned the paint when they used two center units and punished anyone who dared go small on them, leading the league in offensive rebounding. Houston had a fantastic defensive rating with the Steven Adams – Alperen Sengun duo and survived on offense because of how much they hurt opponents in the glass.
The Spurs talked a lot about building an identity on defense on media day this season. It’s clearly something they want to do, and the commitment to getting stops goes a long way on its own. Good defense is not all about effort, but playing with energy is a must.
The big question is whether Johnson will be able to find the right lineups and the right tweaks to turn a roster that might not have the perfect pieces to become a dominant defensive team, especially on the perimeter. With enough conviction and ingenuity, the Spurs should at the very least make enough progress on that end to become competent, which would be a major step in the right direction.
By Jeje Gomez, via Pounding The Rock