By Mike Finger | San Antonio Express-News (SAEN), 2025-11-15 17:47:48
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。
维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 举起了他的右臂，就在篮筐旁边。霜岸银行中心超过19000名观众都注视着他的一举一动。
那是他们希望篮球去往的地方。每个人，包括金州勇士队和NBA历史上最精明的防守者之一，都心知肚明。然而，在比赛进入读秒阶段时，马刺队却选择了另一个方案。
在18英尺外，德阿隆·福克斯 (De’Aaron Fox) 腾空、后仰、出手，然后投失了。
在周五的夜晚，这是一个注定失败的选择。
但从更宏观的视角来看呢？
这依然是正确的选择。
“没偏左，也没偏右——就是投短了，” 福克斯赛后站在自己的更衣柜前，回味着那个瞬间说道。“这是你可以接受的结果。”
马刺当然能够接受。尽管福克斯的最后一搏在篮筐上弹了两下最终弹出，但这并不能改变一个事实：这正是九个月前球队交易来他时，所期待他投出的那种球。
马刺队正是为了让福克斯来执行这一投，才放弃了三个首轮选秀权。
也正是为了让他命中这一投，球队才为他奉上了队史最大合同。
未来当比赛胜负悬于一线时，即使那位7尺4寸的法国人正在篮下高举长臂，球队也依然会欣喜若狂地将球交给他来终结。
“我们相信德阿隆能处理好这样的投篮，” 文班亚马说道。“历史已经证明，他完全有能力改变比赛。”
这段历史并不久远，也并非空穴来风。2023年，福克斯凭借其在比赛末段的出色表现，以压倒性优势荣膺NBA首届年度关键球员奖，获得了100张第一选票中的91张。而就在上周末，正是在对阵新奥尔良的赛季首秀中，福克斯接管了比赛的收官阶段，在终场前29秒命中关键一球。
在那个回合中，文班亚马同样也在要球。但马刺若想达到他们所期望的高度，就必须让对手的防守不仅仅只忌惮一个明显的威胁点。当初引进福克斯的整体构想，就是为了给他们的建队核心找到一位得力助手，并迫使对手做出艰难的抉择。
当对手哪怕有那么一秒钟忘记了文班亚马的存在，福克斯也完全乐于扮演组织者的角色。去年二月，他在作为马刺球员的首场比赛中就证明了这一点，当时他在决定胜负的回合中，用一记完美的传球助攻文班亚马，帮助球队在亚特兰大赢下了比赛。
那么，周五对阵勇士时，他本可以选择那条路吗？或许可以。在比赛最后四秒，马刺落后一分，当福克斯运球至左翼时，文班亚马正在右侧低位落位。
有那么一瞬间，似乎出现了空接的机会。但当福克斯急停跳投时，斯蒂芬·库里 (Stephen Curry) 已经移动向文班亚马，准备实施包夹，而德雷蒙德·格林 (Draymond Green) 则在内线保持着防守优势位置，几乎是在引诱福克斯传球。
“是的，那球根本传不过去，” 格林说道。“这可是关系到真金白银的时刻。我干这行已经很久了。”
也许文班亚马——这位在周五晚上已经正面硬刚过格林一次的年轻人——如果得到机会，会再次在这位老将面前占得上风。也许如果福克斯当时选择将球传向篮筐，而不是自己后仰跳投，比赛的结果将会截然不同。
但是，福克斯的这次出手在周五晚上并非错误的选择。篮球很可能再多飞那么零点几英寸，就能弹进网窝，而不是再次弹出篮筐。
而从长远来看，这次失手无论如何都可能带来回报。下一次当马刺在最后几秒需要得分时，那些见识过福克斯敢于自己出手的防守者们，会不会因此离文班亚马、或是斯蒂芬·卡斯尔 (Stephon Castle)、又或是哈里森·巴恩斯 (Harrison Barnes) 稍远一些呢？
当马刺在二月份做客旧金山时，或者甚至在四月份的某场季后赛中，格林——相信了他自己关于已经锁死文班亚马的判断——会不会转而对福克斯投入更多的协防精力呢？
比赛的胜负就在这样的电光火石之间决定。季后赛系列赛亦是如此。
所以，着眼于大局，马刺完全可以接受周五晚上发生的一切。
毕竟，对于马刺来说，还有什么比看着他们交易来执行关键一投的球员错失一记潜在的压哨绝杀更糟糕的呢？
那就是，眼睁睁看着所有人都认为他根本没有胆量承担这一投。
San Antonio Spurs guard De’Aaron Fox (4) lays the ball in during the second quarter of an NBA Cup game at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Friday, Nov. 14, 2025.
San Antonio Spurs guard De’Aaron Fox (4), right, disagrees with a referee’s foul call during an NBA Cup game against the Golden State Warriors at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Friday, Nov. 14, 2025. The Spurs fell to the Warriors 109-108.
San Antonio Spurs guard De’Aaron Fox (4) drives past Golden State Warriors guard Moses Moody (4) during an NBA Cup game at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Friday, Nov. 14, 2025. The Spurs fell to the Warriors 109-108.
San Antonio Spurs guard De’Aaron Fox (4) talks to his team before starting a play against the Golden State Warriors during the fourth quarter of an NBA Cup game at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Friday, Nov. 14, 2025. The Spurs fell to the Warriors 109-108.
San Antonio Spurs’ De’Aaron Fox (4) high-fives his teammate Victor Wembanyama (1) after an offensive foul was called on Wembanyama during the first quarter of an NBA Cup game at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Friday, Nov. 14, 2025.
点击查看原文：Why De’Aaron Fox’s big miss was right play for Spurs in long run
Why De’Aaron Fox’s big miss was right play for Spurs in long run
Victor Wembanyama raised his right arm, right there beside the basket. More than 19,000 people at Frost Bank Center watched him do it.
That’s where they wanted the ball to go. Everybody, including the Golden State Warriors and one of the savviest defenders in NBA history, knew this. But with the final seconds ticking off the clock, the Spurs went with another option.
From 18 feet away, De’Aaron Fox rose, faded away, shot, and missed.
On Friday night, it was a doomed choice.
In the bigger picture, though?
It still was the right one.
“It wasn’t left, it wasn’t right – it was short,” Fox said, replaying the moment while standing at his locker after a 109-108 San Antonio loss. “That’s something that you can live with.”
The Spurs surely will. The fact that Fox’s last-gasp attempt bounced twice off the rim didn’t change the fact that it was precisely the kind of shot they had in mind when they traded for him nine months ago.
It’s the shot the Spurs gave up three first-round picks to have Fox take.
It’s the shot they gave Fox the biggest contract in franchise history to make.
And it’s the shot they’ll be ecstatic to have him take the next time a game is on the line, even if a 7-foot-4 Frenchman is raising his long arm beside the basket.
“We trust De’Aaron with these kinds of shots,” Wembanyama said. “History has proven he’s more than capable of making things happen.”
That history isn’t exactly ancient, and it also isn’t selective. In 2023, Fox’s penchant for late-game brilliance made him the runaway winner of the NBA’s inaugural Clutch Player of the Year award, earning 91 out of 100 first-place votes. And as recently as last weekend, it was Fox who took over the closing stages of his season debut against New Orleans, swishing the biggest basket of the game with 29 seconds left.
Wembanyama waved for the ball on that play, too. But for the Spurs to be as good as they think they can be, they have to make defenses account for more than one obvious threat. The whole idea behind acquiring Fox in the first place was to give their franchise player a worthy sidekick, and to force opponents to make difficult choices.
When those opponents forget about Wembanyama for even a second, Fox is more than willing to become a facilitator. He proved that in his first game as a Spur last February, when he won a game in Atlanta with a perfect pass to Wembanyama on the deciding possession.
Could he have decided to go that route on Friday against the Warriors? Perhaps. With the Spurs trailing by a point in the final four seconds, Wembanyama was posted on the right block as Fox dribbled to the left wing.
For an instant, it looked like a lob opportunity was there. But as Fox pulled up, Stephen Curry moved toward Wembanyama, ready to pounce with a double-team, while Draymond Green kept leverage inside, almost daring Fox to make the pass.
“Yeah, that wasn’t going nowhere,” Green said. “It’s money on the line. I’ve been doing this a long time.”
Maybe Wembanyama, having already stood up to Green once on Friday night, would have gotten the better of the veteran again if he got the chance. Maybe if Fox had passed the ball toward the rim instead of launching a fadeaway jumper, the game’s outcome would have been different.
But a shot from Fox wasn’t the wrong play Friday. The ball easily could have floated just a fraction of an inch farther, letting it bounce into the net instead of off the rim again.
And in the long run, that miss might pay off, anyway. The next time the Spurs need a basket in the closing seconds, might defenders convinced of Fox’s willingness to take that shot drift just a little bit farther away from Wembanyama, or from Stephon Castle, or from Harrison Barnes?
When the Spurs go to San Francisco in February, or maybe even in a postseason game in April, might Green – believing his own pronouncement about having Wembanyama locked down – give a little more help against Fox instead?
Games can be won in split-seconds like that. So can playoff series.
So with the big picture in mind, the Spurs can live with what happened Friday.
After all, what would have been much worse for the Spurs than watching the player they acquired to make big shots miss a potential buzzer-beater?
Watching nobody believe he’d have the guts to take it.
By Mike Finger, via San Antonio Express-News