By Jacob Douglas | Pounding The Rock (PtR), 2025-11-29 17:08:37
“如果你有种，就必须团结一致。而不是一遇到困难就寻找第一个出口逃跑。”——帕特·莱利 (Pat Riley)
在下半场被丹佛掘金队打出一波23-8的攻击波后，圣安东尼奥马刺队看起来完全被对手压制了。半场结束时，他们以59-74落后，要为失利找借口简直太容易了。马刺队中最好的两名防守者，维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 和斯蒂芬·卡斯尔 (Stephon Castle)，都因伤缺阵。面对由联盟最佳球员尼古拉·约基奇 (Nikola Jokic) 和明星后卫贾马尔·穆雷 (Jamal Murray) 领衔的掘金队强大进攻火力，马刺队该如何应对？
自从失去文班亚马和卡斯尔以来，坚韧不拔的精神就定义了这支人员短缺的马刺队。他们总能设法深挖潜力，在艰难的比赛中找到取胜之道。这里迫使对手一次失误，那里打成一个2+1。打四分成功更是掀起了追分高潮，不断蚕食掘金队一度高达18分的领先优势。纵观全场，圣安东尼奥显然将这场比赛视为一场必须拿下的战斗。这不仅是为了队史首次晋级NBA杯八强赛，更是为了传递一个信息——无论文班亚马在或不在，我们 现在 就已准备好竞争。凭借着高昂的能量和专注度，马刺以139-136的比分赢得了在这位大个子缺阵下的第五场胜利。
在所有人中，两位身披银黑战袍时间最长的马刺球员表现最为耀眼：德文·瓦塞尔 (Devin Vassell) 和凯尔登·约翰逊 (Keldon Johnson)。周五晚上，瓦塞尔化身神射手。他全场17投12中，其中三分球9投7中，砍下35分。当圣安东尼奥的进攻在第四节末段停滞，眼看掘金就要卷土重来锁定胜局时，正是瓦塞尔命中了关键投篮，帮助马刺重新夺回了比赛的主动权。
对于瓦塞尔来说，这场比赛的表现一定让他如释重负，此前一些人曾将他标记为圣安东尼奥本赛季初“最令人失望的球员”。这位征战联盟第六年的侧翼球员，正逐渐成长为一名杰出的无球射手。周五的这场比赛，或许是他年轻职业生涯中最出色的一场。
约翰逊则已成为这支球队的心脏与灵魂。他和朱利安·尚帕尼 (Julian Champagnie) 在情绪上引领了球队第三节的反击高潮，让圣安东尼奥重回比赛。KJ本场拿下14分和8个篮板，险些再次贡献两双。他的防守完美吗？不，但他的能量和热情富有感染力，让整支球队变得更好。
在摆烂的那些年（没错，我就是这么称呼那段时期的），外界曾有很多担忧，认为这支球队会养成“输球习惯”。而周五晚上，则是一个“赢球习惯”的典范。马刺永不放弃，打出了流畅的进攻，顶住了对手的多次冲击，并在关键时刻挺身而出。所有这一切，都是在他们的当家球星缺阵的情况下，面对NBA最顶尖的球队之一完成的。现在，他们将有机会在八强赛中对阵状态火热的洛杉矶湖人队，看看他们在这届NBA杯中究竟能走多远。也许到那时，他们会迎来一些超级巨星的支援。
赛后观察：
- 是时候聊聊尚帕尼了。他最近打出了一段惊艳的表现。周五是他连续第三场砍下两双，贡献了25分和10个篮板。最令人印象深刻的是，他愿意在内线肉搏的拼劲。通常情况下，尚帕尼只是一名定点接球就投的球员。但最近，他开始攻击防守者的补防并积极冲抢进攻篮板。这种进化使他成为一名更具活力的进攻球员，也应该会为马刺创造出无数机会。同时，他正在成为一名场上的发声领袖。在第二节掘金抢下一个进攻篮板并补篮得手后，他对着队友们大喊，要求他们卡位（期间还夹杂着一些脏话）。他是另一位体现圣安东尼奥正在重新建立的赢球文化的球员。
- 迪伦·哈珀 (Dylan Harper) 的未来不可限量。他在周五的比赛中得到11分、3次助攻和3次抢断。对于一个新秀来说，他的防守已经相当不错。他的突破能力已是众所周知的强项。赛季开始前，很多人对他的跳投表示担忧。虽然他还不是神射手，但他已经展现出了良好的手感。他在约基奇头上命中的那记中距离跳投非常漂亮。
- 在文班亚马缺阵期间，卢克·科内特 (Luke Kornet) 在防守端稳如磐石。他显然不是一个长期的首发中锋人选，但他足以在一段时间内胜任这个位置。当由科内特防守时，掘金队的投篮命中率为46%（22投10中）。他还贡献了5次“掩护助攻”，即队友利用他的掩护后得分。在文班亚马缺阵的这段时间里，他一直在默默地打出稳健的表现。
- 我们在这场对阵掘金的比赛中也看到了卡特·布莱恩特 (Carter Bryant) 的一些闪光时刻！他先是迫使对手失误，随后命中一记底角三分，这是他本赛季攻防两端表现最好的片段之一。但他也因一次完全失位的卡位，被掘金队抓住机会补篮得手，并因此被迅速换下场。布莱恩特的技术还很粗糙，但很明显，教练组看到了他身上的天赋。
- NBA杯距离成为一项伟大赛事仅一步之遥。在十一月就能看到一场“季后赛”级别的比赛，这很有趣。小蒂姆·哈达威 (Tim Hardaway Jr.) 在命中关键三分后在场上大秀肌肉，这种情景通常只在五月份才能看到。这些比赛显然比一场普通的常规赛初期对决更有意义。只要联盟能抛弃那些花里胡哨的球场，并让锦标赛冠军的奖励更丰厚一些，NBA或许真的在酝酿一件大事。
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。
点击查看原文：What we learned from the Spurs win over the Nuggets
What we learned from the Spurs win over the Nuggets
“You’ve got to stay together if you’ve got the guts. And you don’t find the first door and run out of it.” – Pat Riley.
It looked like the San Antonio Spurs were simply outmatched after a 23-8 run by the Denver Nuggets in the second half. Down 74-59 at halftime, it would have been easy to make excuses. The Spurs’ two best defenders, Victor Wembanyama and Stephon Castle, were injured. How could the team match up with Denver’s high-powered offense, headlined by the best player in the league, Nikola Jokic, and a star guard, Jamal Murray?
Grit has defined this short-handed Spurs squad since they lost Wembanyama and Castle. Somehow, some way, they dig in and find a way to win tough games. Force a turnover here. And-1 finish there. Four-point plays led to big swings that cut into Denver’s 18-point lead. Through it all, it was evident that San Antonio viewed this as a must-win game. Not just to advance to the franchise’s first NBA Cup Quarterfinals appearance, but to send a message – we are ready to compete NOW with or without Wembanyama. With energy and focus, the Spurs won their 5th game without the big man, 139-136.
Shining above everyone else are the two Spurs that have donned the Silver and Black the longest: Devin Vassell and Keldon Johnson. Vassell was a marksman on Friday night. He had 35 points on 12-17 shooting from the field, hitting 7 of his 9 three-pointers. When San Antonio’s offense stalled late in the fourth quarter, and it seemed Denver would make a comeback to seal the game, it was Vassell who knocked down the big shots to swing the contest back in the Spurs’ favor.
It’s got to be cathartic for Vassell, who some have labeled the “most disappointing player” of San Antonio’s young season. The 6th-year wing is coming into his own as an off-ball shotmaker. Friday may have been the best game of his young career.
Johnson has become the heart and soul of this team. He and Julian Champagnie emotionally spearheaded the third-quarter run that got San Antonio back into the game. KJ nearly notched another double-double with 14 points and 8 rebounds. Is he perfect on defense? No, but his energy and enthusiasm are infectious and make the team better.
There was a lot of worrying during the tanking years (yes, I’m calling them what they were) about the team developing “losing habits.” Friday night was an example of “winning habits.” The Spurs had no quit, ran good offense, withstood multiple blows, and made plays when they needed to. All of that without their star player against one of the best teams in the NBA. They’ll now get a chance to see how far they can take this NBA Cup run against the red-hot Los Angeles Lakers in the Quarterfinals. Perhaps they will have some superstar support when that game comes around.
Takeaways:
- It’s time to talk about Champagnie. He’s been having an amazing stretch. Friday marked his third-straight double-double, with 25 points and 10 rebounds. What has been most impressive is his willingness to mix it up inside. Typically, Champagnie has just been a stand-still catch-and-shoot player. Lately, he’s been attacking closeouts and crashing the offensive glass. That evolution makes him an even more dynamic offensive player, and it should open up numerous opportunities for the Spurs. He’s also becoming a vocal leader. After the Nuggets got an offensive board and put it back in the second quarter, he screamed at his teammates to box out (with some expletives thrown in). He’s another player exemplifying the winning culture that San Antonio is re-establishing.
- Dylan Harper is going to be so good. He had 11 points, 3 assists and 3 steals on Friday. His defense is already pretty good for a rookie. His driving ability is a known strength at this point. A lot of people expressed concerns about the jumper heading into the season. While he’s not a sharpshooter yet, he’s shown good touch. His mid-range J he got to fall over Jokic was nice.
- Luke Kornet has been rock solid defensively in Wembanyama’s absence. He’s clearly not a long-term starting center, but he is good enough to man the position for a stretch. The Nuggets shot 46% (10-22) when guarded by Kornet. He also had 5 “screen assists” where a player scored after getting a screen from the big man. He has silently been having a solid stretch here with Wembanyama out.
- We got some Carter Bryant flashes against Denver! He forced a turnover and then hit a corner three in one of his best two-way stretches of the season. He also completely missed a box out that led to a Denver put-back that got him swiftly benched. Bryant is pretty raw, but it’s evident that the coaching staff sees talent in him.
- The NBA Cup is so close to being awesome. It’s fun to see a “playoff” type game in November. Tim Hardawat Jr. flexing up and down the court after hitting a big three was something you’d typically only see in May. These games clearly mean more than a random early-season matchup. Just ditch the ridiculous courts, and make the perks of winning the tournament a little more lucrative and the NBA could be cooking up something real here.
By Jacob Douglas, via Pounding The Rock