By Jeff McDonald, Staff Writer | San Antonio Express-News (SAEN), 2025-11-12 13:30:35
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。
资料图 - 2004年10月28日，纽约，纽约尼克斯队主教练兰尼·威尔肯斯（Lenny Wilkens，左）在一场对阵犹他爵士队的篮球比赛第三节中与后卫斯蒂芬·马布里（Stephon Marbury）交谈。(美联社照片/朱莉·雅各布森，资料图)
当NBA传奇人物兰尼·威尔肯斯 (Lenny Wilkens) 于周日逝世，享年88岁时，这一噩耗让马刺队教练米奇·约翰逊 (Mitch Johnson) 倍感痛心。
在20世纪60年代末至70年代初，威尔肯斯曾是西雅图超音速队的一名全明星控球后卫和教练，并于1977年至1985年间重回球队执教，期间包括率队夺得1979年NBA总冠军。
正是在威尔肯斯第二次执教西雅图期间，他指导了米奇的父亲——约翰·约翰逊 (John Johnson)。
“他是这个联盟的传奇，也是西雅图这座城市的传奇，”身为西雅图人的约翰逊说道。“他为这座城市带来了所有职业体育项目中的第一个总冠军，居功至伟。”
现年38岁的约翰逊在威尔肯斯执教西雅图的全盛时期尚未出生。但他从父亲那里听说了许多故事，后来也有幸与威尔肯斯本人有过交流。
“他所带来的智慧，以及他一贯的为人处世之道，他总是那么谦逊且轻声细语，”约翰逊说。
除了西雅图，威尔肯斯还曾在波特兰、亚特兰大、多伦多和纽约执教。
作为一名奈史密斯名人堂成员，威尔肯斯在2005年退役时，以1332场胜利成为NBA历史胜场最多的教练。此后，这一纪录先后被唐·尼尔森 (Don Nelson) 和格雷格·波波维奇 (Gregg Popovich) 超越。
“如果你真正审视他为这个联盟和这项运动所做的一切，你会发现他是一个非常、非常伟大的人物，”约翰逊在谈到威尔肯斯时说。“我曾有幸在他身边待过一小段时间，并试图领悟他的一些智慧。”
2025年6月28日，星期六，在西雅图气候承诺体育馆的西广场，兰尼·威尔肯斯为自己一座6英尺高、700磅重的铜像揭幕后，脸上洋溢着灿烂的笑容。这座雕像是为了纪念他作为西雅图超音速队教练在1979年带领球队夺得队史首个NBA总冠军的成就，并表彰他为社区所做的贡献。(凯伦·杜西/西雅图时报/TNS)
点击查看原文：Spurs coach Mitch Johnson remembers late Lenny Wilkens
Spurs coach Mitch Johnson remembers late Lenny Wilkens
FILE - New York Knicks head coach Lenny Wilkens, left, talks with guard Stephon Marbury during the third quarter against of a basketball game against the Utah Jazz, Oct. 28, 2004 in New York. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson, File)
When NBA legend Lenny Wilkens died Sunday at age 88, the loss hit Spurs coach Mitch Johnson close.
Wilkens was an All-Star point guard and coach of the Seattle SuperSonics in the late 1960s and early ’70s, and returned to coach the team from 1977 to 1985, including a run to the 1979 NBA championship.
It was during the second of those stints in Seattle that Wilkens coached John Johnson, Mitch’s father.
“He’s a legend in this league and a legend in the city of Seattle,” said Johnson, a Seattle native. “He was vital in bringing the city the first championship they had in all of pro sports.”
Johnson, 38, was not yet born during Wilkens’ Seattle heyday. But he heard stories from his father, and later enjoyed interactions with Wilkens himself.
“The wisdom he brings and the way he always carried himself, he’s always very humble and soft-spoken,” Johnson said.
In addition to Seattle, Wilkens also coached in Portland, Atlanta, Toronto and New York.
A Naismith Hall of Famer, Wilkens retired from coaching in 2005 as the NBA’s all-time wins leader with 1,332. That number has since been passed by Don Nelson and subsequently Gregg Popovich.
“If you actually look at what he did in this league and for this game, he was a very, very big character,” Johnson said of Willkens. “I was fortunate enough to be around him a little bit and try to grasp a little of that wisdom.”
Lenny Wilkens is all smiles moments after he unveiled a 6-foot, 700-pound bronze statue of himself on the west plaza at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle on Saturday, June 28, 2025. The statue honors him as coach of the Seattle Supersonics leading them to its first NBA title in 1979 and celebrates his community service. (Karen Ducey/The Seattle Times/TNS)
By Jeff McDonald, Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News