Spurs Insider Podcast, 2026-01-21 06:44:00
专栏作家迈克·芬格与马刺随队记者杰夫·麦克唐纳和汤姆·奥斯本共同探讨了维克托·文班亚马为何以及如何被任命为全明星首发，以及这位身高7英尺4英寸的法国人为何开始投射更多三分球。此外，格雷格·波波维奇的教练树在对阵爵士的比赛中得以展现，以及卡特·布莱恩特为何不必剃光头……至少暂时不用。
推荐阅读：
以下是播客的文字记录：
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger) : [音乐淡入] 这里是《马刺内幕》，“好运回归”特别版，信号来自遍布德克萨斯州的高度机密的地点网络。我是主持人迈克·芬格，像往常一样，与我同在的还有《快报新闻》的马刺随队记者汤姆·奥斯本 (Tom Orsborn) 和杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)。
本地球队或许已经摆脱了最近的困境。马刺队又拥有了一位全明星首发球员，这在球队历史上屡见不鲜。
马刺更衣室里正刮起一股“光头潮”。你闭嘴。用凯尔登·约翰逊 (Keldon Johnson) 对杰夫·麦克唐纳说的话就是，你为什么还在抗拒？
嗯，杰夫，你为什么在抗拒？
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald) : 好运气，光头潮，所有的一切。这就是你问我的问题？
迈克·芬格 : 是的。凯尔登·约翰逊不是这么问你的吗？
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 我什么都没抗拒。我，我，我欣然接受这一切。
迈克·芬格 : 好的。汤姆，你在抗拒吗？
汤姆·奥斯本 (Tom Orsborn) : 我对一切都做好了准备。不，不。我是个和平主义者，不是斗士。
迈克·芬格 : 好的。嗯，情况有所好转。我们照例在周二早上录制这期节目，这意味着周二晚上在休斯顿有一场比赛，汤姆正在他的秘密基地为此做准备，随时待命报道这场正逐渐演变成I-10州际公路德比的比赛。
那应该会是一场大战。我们今天不会过多关注那场比赛。我们将回顾过去一周，展望未来一周，而马刺队，嗯，在录制这期“好运回归”节目时，他们……他们……他们回来了吗？他们已经取得了三连胜。我们可以谈谈维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 入选全明星队的事。杰夫，既然你没有抗拒，你想从哪儿开始？
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 我们就从全明星队开始吧。那是昨天的大新闻。
迈克·芬格 : 好的。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 就从那儿开始。
迈克·芬格 : 我还以为你会主动点然后……
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 哦，你是指我吗。你这是什么意思？嗯……
迈克·芬格 : 马刺队当时正准备进行赛前投篮训练，那是在傍晚，为了一场罕见的马丁·路德·金纪念日的日场比赛，对手是犹他爵士队，我记得米奇·约翰逊 (Mitch Johnson) 说他把时间安排在1点50分，而官宣是在1点14分下来的，一直拖到了最后一刻。好了，杰夫，舞台给你搭好了，你来吧。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 一直拖到了最后一刻。可怜的维克托不得不等到最后一个名字被念出来。再次，他是昨天公布的10名全明星首发中的第10个。去年，他是最后一个被宣布的替补，所以我想那次是更令人紧张的时刻，因为他去年差一点就没能入选。
今年，如果他没能入选首发五人组，他也会成为一名替补，但他最终入选了西部首发阵容，这让马刺队拥有了自2017年的科怀·伦纳德 (Kawhi Leonard) 以来第一位获得此项荣誉的球员。
所以，我想，恭喜维克托吧，嗯……
迈克·芬格 : 你知道，尽管他的队友们都说他们对此毫不怀疑，认为这只是走个过场，但结果确实是相当惊险。甚至不得不通过打破平局规则来决定，杰夫，加时赛。给听众们解释一下打破平局的规则吧。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 解释打破平局规则。这样说吧，好的。基本上，嗯，让我理清一下思路。球员们……球员们认为安东尼·爱德华兹 (Anthony Edwards) 更……最终是在维克托·文班亚马和安东尼·爱德华兹之间通过打破平局规则来决出胜负。
就是那个出色的明尼苏达森林狼队后卫，他刚刚在霜岸中心砍下了惊人的55分。但是，嗯，规则是这样的：球迷投票占球员得分的50%，媒体投票占25%，还有……谁来着？其他球员，球员投票占球员得分的25%。球员们把安东尼·爱德华兹排在了维克托前面。嗯，球迷们把维克托排在了安东尼·爱德华兹前面，但他俩都没进前五。是媒体的投票迫使了平局的产生，他们把维克托投到了第四，而安东尼·爱德华兹排在后面。所以当你把所有复杂的数学公式算完后，他们俩的得分完全一样。在这种情况下，就要看这两名球员中谁获得的球迷票数更多，结果是维克托·文班亚马。他在西部联盟获得了第六多的球迷票数。安东尼·爱德华兹获得了第七多。
所以，维克托最终胜出。如果你是维克托·文班亚马的球迷，你可以感谢媒体迫使了平局的产生。然后你们可以拍拍自己的胸脯，因为作为球迷，你们为维克托投票的努力，让他在一对一的平局决胜中超越了安东尼·爱德华兹。如果这听起来像一团浆糊，嗯，恭喜你，我们大家的理解都差不多。
迈克·芬格 : 如果这听起来像一团浆糊，那你等着看全明星周末本身的赛制吧，汤姆很可能会代表《快报新闻》去报道。我们昨晚和一些播客的朋友们就此进行了一次私下里的讨论，那赛制简直是……太奇葩了，伙计。祝汤姆·奥斯本在洛杉矶的Intuit球馆报道顺利。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 那么，让我说几点。好的，今年变成了美国队对阵世界队。美国队有两支队伍，世界队有一支，他们会打一种循环赛，对吧？嗯哼。那么，在我们刚刚经历的所有投票公式之后，碰巧有五名国际球员被选为首发。但如果选出了六个呢？其中一个就不能首发了，即使他被选为了首发，因为只有一支国际队。这时候该怎么办？我完全不知道。
迈克·芬格 : 杰夫，就像我们昨晚提到的，他们这是在摸着石头过河。他们今年做的所有事情，明年都会被推翻。他们试图解决一个大家都说是个大问题的问题，那就是球员们在全明星赛上不认真打。这个问题在我们的某些听众出生以来就一直存在，而且他们永远也解决不了。他们为了一个本来就不那么重要的事情费尽周折。但这太荒谬了。如果你想认真对待其中任何一部分，你都会把自己逼疯，因为这一切都太荒谬了。
你提到了那个问题。好吧，你为什么要将美国队一分为二？当你自己的队伍被分成两半时，谁会为美国的荣誉而战？世界上所有最强的球员都在国际队阵容里。国际队可能赢不了，但他们拥有所有的MVP候选人。就像，如今赢得MVP的每个人都是国际球员。国际队是绝对、绝对、绝对的热门。嗯，这很傻。这一切都很愚蠢。但全明星赛和全明星周末就应该是这样。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 如果你是森林狼队的球迷，对安东尼·爱德华兹没能首发感到愤怒，嗯，他其实能首发。就像，他只是会为另一支美国队首发。而勒布朗·詹姆斯 (LeBron James)……
迈克·芬格 : 会有15个首发球员。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 是啊，勒布朗·詹姆斯连续21次全明星首发的纪录……结束了。哦不，并没有。
迈克·芬格 : 是的。因为凯文·杜兰特 (Kevin Durant) 会首发，安东尼·爱德华兹会首发，勒布朗·詹姆斯也会首发。嗯……
昨晚，杰夫，你当时在场吗，我们确实得到了一点全明星周末的消息。也许之前已经公布了，但这是我第一次听说。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 我在。我知道你要说什么。他不会，他不会参加那个比赛。
迈克·芬格 : 昨晚我们和我们的朋友斯蒂芬·卡斯尔 (Stephon Castle) 聊天，在闲聊中，我问他，我们当时在谈论全明星的某些事情，也许是这一切的荒谬之处。我问他是否会再次参加扣篮大赛，他用很多话回答说，绝对不会。没有这个计划。我不知道这在《马刺内幕》播客上算不算突发新闻，但是，汤姆，你今年不会在扣篮大赛上看到斯蒂芬·卡斯尔了。
除非……除非……
汤姆·奥斯本 : 汤姆，你兴奋吗？汤姆，你对去现场报道感到兴奋吗？是啊，当然。是的，嗯，你知道，主要的事情是赛前的媒体采访，而且，是的，我本来很期待斯蒂芬·卡斯尔再次参加扣篮大赛的，但这……这算是个令人遗憾的消息，但我能理解。他去年被抢劫了。
迈克·芬格 : 是的。嗯，而且我认为从更宏观的角度来看，我对全明星赛的看法不一定在于比赛本身，而在于这些球员获得的荣誉。这对像维克托·文班亚马这样的球员来说意义重大。我不想只单说他。对于任何一个从小看比赛、热爱比赛、仰望像勒布朗·詹姆斯、凯文·杜兰特和斯蒂芬·库里 (Steph Curry) 这样球员的人来说，能够成为这个群体的一部分并被接纳，都是一件大事。维克托，正如杰夫提到的，在球员投票中没有进入前五，但他进入了前七，他开始得到同行、球迷以及媒体的尊重，当然，媒体是最不重要的。嗯，看到这些家伙获得那些荣誉是一件很酷的事情。比赛本身，可有可无。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 我对比赛赛制有个大胆的想法。如果我们回到东部对阵西部的模式怎么样？当然，比赛可能很烂，无所谓。我们就回到那个模式吧。
迈克·芬格 : 总有一天会回到那个模式的。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 至少那样简单明了。
迈克·芬格 : 这才有道理。十多年来都是这样。嗯，你，你正在试图解决一个其实没那么严重的问题。当然，比赛很糟糕，但比赛从来就没那么精彩过。我们倾向于美化我们年轻时的东西，我想。而且情况确实变得更糟了。别跟我争。呃，我的意思是，我不是在反对防守越来越差的说法，但它从来就没那么好过。
汤姆·奥斯本 : 我得说……这取决于你说的是谁的青春。
迈克·芬格 : 嗯，我想是每个人的青春。每个人都会美化自己的青春。
汤姆·奥斯本 : 当然，但以前确实更好。是的，至少在我那个年代是这样。
迈克·芬格 : 我想你只是这么认为而已。它确实更好，但我不认为它有多棒。
汤姆·奥斯本 : 我说的是更好。我没说很棒。我说的是更好。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 那么我们达成共识了。太好了。
迈克·芬格 : 我们都达成了共识，这让播客变得很棒。关于全明星的话题就到此为止吧。那场比赛还有一个月，还有好几个星期。我们可以在未来的播客节目中更多地讨论它。与此同时，本地球队在输球栏、三分球命中率栏以及整体进攻数据栏上都陷入了小小的低谷，也许……隧道尽头出现了一些曙光，杰夫？
而且，以一种完全出乎意料、无法预见、令人震惊的方式，是维克托·文班亚马把马刺队从三分球的低迷中拉了出来。他决定，如果其他人投不进三分，那我就重新开始投三分，这对我来说，真是太聪明了。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 这感觉非常像，你知道，“求人不如求己”那种情况。因为那个家伙，那个在本赛季前几个月里相当一贯的故事情节是，维克托并没有像他前两年那样疯狂出手三分。在十二月，再次强调，他十二月只打了10场比赛，所以样本可能有点小，但他场均只尝试3次三分，而且在那10场比赛中，他有两场，他从未在任何一场比赛中投进过3个三分。十二月他的最高纪录是2个。然后突然之间，过去三场比赛，他变成了斯蒂芬·库里。是上一场，对阵……他们昨晚打谁来着？犹他爵士队？12投7中。这对他今年的命中数和出手数来说都是新高。而且，你知道，因为他投中了，这解放了他们一些似乎在泥潭里困了好几个星期的进攻。
而且，嗯，我想他本赛季的命中率已经上升到38%左右，这对他来说，你知道，真的很不错了。就像，如果他能保持那个命中率，那就得小心了。所以，我们得看看这能持续多久，无论是他实际出手三分，还是这些球能投进。他昨晚确实说了，下一场比赛我可能一个都不投，谁知道呢。
迈克·芬格 : 而且我认为这种事情是周期性的，在某种程度上关乎马刺的进攻体系。比如，他现在需要这么做的原因是，球队已经不再尊重三分线了。防守方不再尊重三分线了。过去几周和几个月，我们谈论了很多关于马刺后场拥有众多具备持球冲击篮筐能力的组织者，比如特雷·琼斯 (Tre Jones)、斯蒂芬·卡斯尔和布雷克·韦斯利 (Blake Wesley)，这些家伙可以随心所欲地杀入篮下，迫使防守收缩，为所有人拉开空间。嗯，当没人能投进三分球时，这种打法就不那么有效了，需要有人开始做到这一点。
我们上周提到，我认为一个被低估的因素是德文·瓦塞尔 (Devin Vassell) 没有上场。那是一个巨大的三分投射威胁、跳投威胁，一个球队在过去几周里不必去忌惮的全面进攻威胁。于是，投进那些球的责任就落在了别人身上。当朱利安·尚帕尼 (Julian Champagnie) 的表现起伏不定时，他们就需要一个额外的球员来打开局面。我认为当其他球员开始填补这个空缺时，我相信他们会的，朱利安·尚帕尼的投篮会更好，德文·瓦塞尔也会复出。嗯，你不会看到维克托·文班亚马在赛季剩余的比赛里场均出手10次三分。我不认为这是他们的新体系，让维克托变成斯蒂芬·库里。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : NBA一个赛季的很多时候就是这种，呃，对手调整，然后你再针对他们的调整进行调整，来来回回。我觉得当维克托在赛季前几个月出场时，他没有投很多三分，对手就开始用那种方式来防守马刺。哦，维克不会一场比赛投12个三分。他昨晚告诉我们，是的，犹他队在每次挡拆时都选择绕下防守。嗯，所以那个投篮机会就出来了，嗯，所以现在他开始投了，并且投进了。只要这种情况持续下去，现在你就要看对手如何调整，然后你再针对那个调整进行调整。这就是一个NBA赛季的走向。所有事情都有起有落。
迈克·芬格 : 你知道，作为一个七尺长人在场上跑来跑去，肆无忌惮地投着三分，还说了点垃圾话，杰夫，你猜昨晚这让威尔·哈代 (Will Hardy) 想起了谁？
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 嗯，一位名叫蒂莫西·西奥多·邓肯的先生。
迈克·芬格 : 没错。《马刺内幕》播客的听众们可能会说，这是什么玩笑？蒂姆·邓肯 (Tim Duncan) 从来没那么打过球。显然，你们都错过了。我们也错过了。因为播客的朋友威尔·哈代昨天给我们讲了一些关于野球场球员蒂姆·邓肯的趣闻轶事，他说蒂姆·邓肯打野球时和他在NBA打球时完全不一样，那时候他会和威尔·哈代、米奇·约翰逊，可能还有威利斯·霍尔以及所有马刺以前的助理教练们打球，蒂姆·邓肯是个浪投王。我想威尔，威尔·哈代叫他“球霸”，一个垃圾话大王，一个狂扔三分的家伙。我真想看看那个场面。所以也许，也许维克托·文班亚马看到了那些，从蒂米那里得到了一些灵感。这让我笑得不行。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 也许会有些像那种 grainy video（模糊的录像）流出来，就像那场美国国家队和大学生的老旧 scrimmage（训练赛）录像一样，随着时间的推移慢慢流传开来。也许我们会从某个地方看到蒂米这个野球场高手的模糊录像。
迈克·芬格 : 我敢打赌那一定很好看。嗯，威尔·哈代和米奇·约翰逊之间的相互尊重也很有趣。多年来，我们有过很多关于教练的故事和采访，对手教练，所有那些和格雷格·波波维奇 (Gregg Popovich) 有关联的人，教练A、B、C、D、X、Y、Z来到圣安东尼奥，你问他们和波波的渊源。听到联盟里那么多教练能讲出的波波故事总是很有趣。但米奇也有他的人脉。那两个人非常尊重彼此，而且我认为他们俩也是联盟中其他教练非常尊重的两位教练。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 他们确实是继承波波教练遗产的两个人。他们俩，可能还有伊梅·乌度卡 (Ime Udoka)。我倾向于把米奇和威尔归为一类，与伊梅分开，因为米奇和威尔加入时更年轻。他们在NBA里可以说是无名小卒。而伊梅曾是球员。他们俩可以说是从默默无闻中崛起，成为教练界的明星，并拥有了自己的球队，我认为他们两人之间肯定有一种在这里，在圣安东尼奥建立起来的纽带。当米奇在2016年加入时，威尔已经在这里了。
然后当米奇从奥斯汀的教练组被提拔到圣安东尼奥的教练组时，他被提拔是因为威尔·哈代从发展教练组被提拔到了板凳席。所以米奇基本上接替了威尔·哈代为了升任全职助理教练而空出的位置。所以他们确实有很多共同点，很多联系，有很多东西把他们联系在一起。
汤姆·奥斯本 : 你知道，道格·里弗斯 (Doc Rivers) 谈到过米奇，嗯，在那场对阵密尔沃基的比赛前，他说，你知道，他感觉，他想念，道格说他想念波波的存在，但同时，那种存在感依然在，因为米奇继承了波波的很多东西。而且，嗯，你知道，他只是，只是在赞扬米奇，并指出，你知道，波波不可能选错，没有比他更合适的人来接替波波了。我知道我们都，你知道，多年来我们都在讨论谁会接替他，谁会接替他。结果证明米奇·约翰逊是正确的人选。而且，道格说，你知道，他在很多，很多，很多意义上都是一个真正的波波门徒。
迈克·芬格 : 你知道，我们讨论那个话题太久了，我记得曾几何时，我们说，你知道，迟早，迈克·布登霍尔泽 (Mike Budenholzer) 会在亚特兰大被解雇，他可能是接替波波的人。
汤姆·奥斯本 : 奎因·斯奈德 (Quin Snyder)，是的。
迈克·芬格 : 几十年前的事了。
汤姆·奥斯本 : 贝基·哈蒙 (Becky Hammon)。
迈克·芬格 : 嗯，这听起来可能有点离谱，但我不太确定，嗯，波波的接班人在场边是不是比波波本人更不那么情绪激动。谁更容易生气？谁更容易激动？2026年的米奇·约翰逊还是晚年的格雷格·波波维奇？我觉得米奇·约翰逊可能会完胜他。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 是的。有些时候我都在想，米奇对这份工作来说太年轻了。他需要冷静一点。赛季还长着呢，你知道。赛季还长。但这很有趣，因为他在赛前赛后和我们交谈时总是那么冷静和沉着，小心翼翼地选择他想说的话。然后当他在场边时，就是“抢下那该死的篮板！”然后口水四溅，那场面太棒了。
迈克·芬格 : 他在很多方面都继承了波波的衣钵。
嘿，我们是不是该谈谈，我们应该谈谈卡特·布莱恩特 (Carter Bryant) 保住了他的头发这件事。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 是的，说吧。这是个好话题。你这周挺主动的，提出话题和讨论。干得不错。继续。
迈克·芬格 : 这是个好话题。我可不干。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 我不喜欢，我不喜欢这种“新年新我”的做派。抱歉。我想我得回到过去那个懒散的样子。
迈克·芬格 : 你怎么看卡特·布莱恩特保住他头发的事？
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 我觉得这是个非常、非常有趣的故事。我的意思是，首先，我们都知道卡特大概有一个月的时间都得了“扣篮失忆症”，那真是最奇怪的事。大概有四五次，他每次去扣篮，你都知道他会扣飞。其中一场比赛，他甚至在空中决定不尝试扣篮，而是尝试上篮，结果那个也搞砸了。还有一场，他终于扣进了一个，但不知怎么地，他自己的扣篮造成了干扰球，所以不算分。所以队员们大概一个月来都在拿这事给他找乐子，因为他就像是队里运动能力最强的球员。也许是马刺近代史上运动能力最强的球员之一。他就是那种……
迈克·芬格 : 客观上说，队里垂直弹跳最好的人。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 是的，扣篮对他来说应该易如反掌。所以他们就一直在拿这事开他玩笑。然后上周，当凯尔登和维克托出于只有他们自己知道的原因决定剃光头时，嗯，这件事就提出来了，是凯尔登·约翰逊、德文·瓦塞尔和朱利安·尚帕尼决定的，基本上就是说，卡特在本赛季剩下的比赛里还有三次“失误机会”。在他第三次扣篮失手后，他就得剃光头。
迈克·芬格 : 我猜卡特·布莱恩特同意了这件事。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 是的。所以，嗯，我想他，就像米奇说的，我觉得他别无选择。是的。所以你瞧怎么着，他在上一场对阵犹他的比赛中有两次扣篮。一次是，一次是在罚球线附近的一个有点软的双手扣篮。然后他还有一个快攻中的空中接力，来自……来自特雷·琼斯，我简直觉得特雷·琼斯这么做太坏了。我觉得特雷·琼斯把他置于可能扣失的位置上，这太坏了。他本可以自己上篮的，特雷本可以的，但不，他非要让卡特完成这个扣篮，而且你知道，这是双赢。要么他扣进了，马刺得两分，要么他，他，呃，扣失了，他们离给卡特剃头又近了一步。但他昨晚没有扣失任何球，所以他保住了他的头发。
但是，德文·瓦塞尔和……我想凯尔登也特意指出的一点是，这事还没完。不是说他一场比赛没扣失，这个赌注就取消了。他必须在今年剩下的时间里都做到，他有三次失误的机会，否则那头发就得剃掉。
迈克·芬格 : 这就像技术犯规一样，是整个赛季累积的。你一场比赛没吃到技犯，不代表你下一次被禁赛的风险就降低了。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 而且这看起来都是善意的玩笑。这很有趣。这支球队非常有趣。他们的更衣室氛围很好。嗯，气氛很好。我想他们彼此都喜欢对方。我觉得这又是另一个迹象，表明他们能够用那种方式互相开玩笑。
迈克·芬-格 : 你喜欢昨晚卡特·布莱恩特扣篮后卢克·科内特 (Luke Cornet) 的庆祝动作吗？
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 我喜欢。是他给卡特的扣篮送出的助攻。他有一个很不错的……双手分开的动作。是的，他，嗯，他算是这里的庆祝之王了，不是吗？我不知道你是否会把那个动作印在T恤上。我觉得他另一个动作更适合印在T恤上，但是……是的，这个也很不错。
迈克·芬格 : 是的。是的。嗯，在那之前，呃，我们有点喧宾夺主了，这在播客上经常发生，只是因为时间关系。我们错过了谈论赛季中一些有趣的时刻。杰夫之前顺便提到了，但是周六晚上在霜岸中心的维克托·文班亚马和安东尼·爱德华兹的对决，汤姆，那场面真是叹为观止。
汤姆·奥斯本 : 是的，确实如此。你知道，在第四节末段他们你来我往，但还有第二节，你知道，维克托得了，你知道，无数分。我记得是半场结束前2分37秒内得了12分。简直是统治级的表现。而且你知道，我们刚才还在谈论他的三分球。他对阵森林狼队罚了14次球。我的意思是，那真的是，那真是一场伟大的表演，然后你看到爱德华兹，他赛后也承认，他面对马刺时会格外来劲，因为文班。这不奇怪，但是，我的天哪，55分。嗯，是的，看那场比赛真的很有趣。那可能是我看过的最有趣的比赛。
迈克·芬格 : 顺便说一句，如果安特（爱德华兹的昵称）在周一下午之前就因为文班而兴奋起来，我想全明星投票的结果可能会给这事再加点料，因为安特·爱德华兹绝对是一个当之无愧的全明星首发。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 但那不是文班的错。他应该取代斯蒂芬·库里入选。我就是这么投的。是的。
迈克·芬格 : 是的。嗯，所以在安特和文班你来我往的对决仅仅两天后，安特得了超过50分，并且看起来就要带领森林狼在周六再次对马刺完成一次大逆转，这是森林狼一周内对马刺的第二次大逆转，他们之前在明尼苏达落后19分逆转取胜，这次又是从落后25分追平。嗯，相当惊人。然后，然后那两个人为了最后一个全明星首发位置打平，这真是太巧了。所以，我想，我想马刺以后再也不用担心在接下来的交锋中、在未来几年中、在未来可能出现的季后赛系列赛中，得不到安东尼·爱德华兹的最佳表现了。那可能会是一组有趣的对决。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 可能就是今年春天。一个真正的宿敌对决。
迈克·芬格 : 可能就是今年春天。一个真正的宿敌对决，不像我们之前谈论过的另一个。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 你又想让我们谈论切特了。
迈克·芬格 : 不，而且我觉得，不想再重复这个已经被翻来覆去说了太多次的话题了。但我认为维克托对这一切的看法就是，他的对手是像安特·爱德华兹、SGA、约基奇这类球员。而不是冠军球队里那些非常非常优秀的“角色球员”。我不认为这是对切特·霍姆格伦 (Chet Holmgren) 的不尊重。我想他只是选择他的……
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 他想不通为什么每个人都在问他与另一支球队里第三好的球员之间的竞争关系。
迈克·芬格 : 是的，完全正确。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 这就好像问切特他与德文·瓦塞尔的竞争关系一样。在维克心里，这俩问题一样没道理。
迈克·芬格 : 就是这个意思。嗯……
汤姆·奥斯本 : 文班，那场比赛还有，呃，你知道，文班总有金句。你知道，我问他关于他最后那个莫名其妙决定故意罚丢那个罚球的事，以及你的想法是什么？“没怎么想，我向你保证。”呃，那是个有趣的时刻。回答那个问题的方式非常棒。
迈克·芬格 : 嗯，我的意思是，没有别的办法了，那种球你只能认了，承认自己搞砸了，因为你没法解释为什么在比赛最后几秒领先三分时会故意罚丢一个罚球。嗯，我想……
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 不过我很高兴有人问了那个问题。那是必须要问的。
迈克·芬格 : 嗯，谢谢你，杰夫。
汤姆·奥斯本 : 干得好。
迈克·芬格 : 干得好，汤姆。嗯，这周还有其他进展吗？杰夫，你在关注什么趋势吗？对西部第二好的球队有什么见解吗？
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 我刚刚给你提供了30分钟的见解。天哪。
迈克·芬格 : 我早该知道的，我不该多此一问的。汤姆，你有什么要说的吗？
汤姆·奥斯本 : 嗯，布雷克（韦斯利）之前有那么五场比赛陷入了撞墙期，现在似乎又回来了。那，那，那对他们来说太重要了，有他像以前那样冲击篮下。
迈克·芬格 : 我同意。我同意。接下来一周，汤姆今晚在休斯顿市中心报道对阵火箭的比赛。周四在盐湖城还有一场对阵威尔·哈代和犹他爵士的比赛，然后在周日晚上，NFL分区冠军赛的那个周日，在霜岸中心有一场与强大的新奥尔良鹈鹕的对决。我知道，我知道马刺国度和全国的目光都将关注那场马刺对鹈鹕的比赛，因为超级碗的对阵双方即将揭晓。所以那应该会是一件大事。呃，又是好运的一周，汤姆，你觉得呢？今晚那场是关键。
汤姆·奥斯本 : 两胜一负。马尔卡宁周四会回来吗？他的伤病情况如何？
迈克·芬格 : 那是，那是，那是两天后的事了。是的。对于这个播客来说可能预测得太远了。我们拭目以待。
汤姆·奥斯本 : 嗯，我预测两胜一负。
迈克·芬格 : 我明白了。杰菲，你对这周怎么看？
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 是的，我也会给他们两胜一负。我不知道他们能不能拿下在休斯顿的那场比赛。我知道他们本赛季早些时候在圣安东尼奥击败了火箭队。嗯，而且他们在与火箭的对话中绝对有一席之地，并且在赛程上领先于他们，但我只是觉得，背靠背第二场客场比赛，对手是一支会把你打得屁滚尿流的球队，嗯，我会说火箭会拿下那一场。
汤姆·奥斯本 : 是的。
迈克·芬格 : 没得赢？
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 啊，我不会说得那么绝对。你知道，有时候你就是会碰上好运。
迈克·芬格 : 火箭队投篮不行。问题是，火箭队投篮不行。所以如果他们陷入某种，你知道，除了他们拥有比赛历史上最伟大的射手之一外，他们，嗯，他们正经历着和马刺之前一样的三分球困境。所以如果你在一场比赛里他们就是投不进，那你就有机会了。
迈克·芬格 : 是的。而且马刺队已经赢了很多场，这个播客上的人认为他们赢不了的比赛。所以，你永远不知道。
嘿，汤姆，你还记得《黑道家族》里那一集吗，托尼·B，托尼·布伦德托，和他的一位女性朋友走在街上，他在路边发现了一个装满了现金和毒品的袋子？对吧。这种事会发生在谁身上？会发生在谁身上？
而且，但是，但是问题是，有时候当你撞上好运时，结果对你来说却是不好的，你知道。我就是这个意思。是的。你知道，那让他重返犯罪生涯。如果他从未，如果他从未撞上好运，你知道，他可能过得更好。
汤姆·奥斯本 : 这个比喻太棒了。
迈克·芬格 : 这就是说，如果你看，如果你在某个时刻看起来很幸运，你知道，你永远不知道事情会如何改变。
汤姆·奥斯本 : 小心你许下的愿望。
迈克·芬格 : 小心你许下的愿望，这就是重点。所以，我就是这个意思。我们拭目以待吧。
还有别的吗？我想这期播客太棒了，杰夫表现出了主动性，带着话题有备而来，我只是想知道在结束前他是否对结尾有什么建议。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 : 我觉得这一期我们可以提交去参评2026年的奖项。让我们把这一期收藏起来。
迈克·芬格 : 是的，我们一定会这么做的。我们一定会，呃，想办法下次做得更好一点。在那之前，彼此多保重，活得真实点。[音乐淡入]
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：Bald don’t lie: Wemby gets All-Star start and Bryant gets to keep his hair
Bald don’t lie: Wemby gets All-Star start and Bryant gets to keep his hair
Columnist Mike Finger and Spurs beat reporters Jeff McDonald and Tom Orsborn discuss why and how Victor Wembanyama was named an All-Star starter and why the 7-foot-4 Frenchman is shooting more 3-pointers. Also, the Gregg Popovich coaching tree was on display against the Jazz and why Carter Bryant doesn’t have to shave his head … yet.
Suggested reading:
Victor Wembanyama’s reaction to All-Star news was telling
3 Takeaways as Wembanyama flexes All-Star mettle
Why the Spurs bring out the best in Anthony Edwards
Here is the transcript of the podcast:
Mike Finger: [music fades in] From a highly secured network of top secret locations across the state of Texas, this is the Spurs Insider, Return of the Good Vibes edition. I am Mike Finger, joined as always by Express News Spurs Beat Writers Tom Orsborn and Jeff McDonald.
The local cagers might have put a their recent rough patch behind them. The Spurs have another in a long line of All-Star starters.
Baldness is spreading across the locker room in the countryside. Shut up. And the words of, and the words of Keldon Johnson to Jeff McDonald, why are you fighting it?
Um, Jeff, why are you fighting it?
Jeff McDonald: The good vibes, the baldness, everything. That’s your question for me?
Mike Finger: Yes. Isn’t that what Keldon Johnson asked you?
Jeff McDonald: I’m not fighting anything. I’m, I’m, I’m here for it all.
Mike Finger: Okay. Tom, are you fighting it?
Tom Orsborn: I’m ready for everything. No, no. I’m a lover, not a fighter.
Mike Finger: Okay. Well, things, things have been better. We’re again taping this on our usual Tuesday morning, which means there’s a game, uh, Tuesday evening in Houston that Tom is in his secure location gearing up for, ready to cover what what’s turning into a a bit of a a I-10 rivalry again.
And that should be a big one. We’re not going to focus too much on that one today. We’re going to look back on the week that was, look forward to the week that will be, and the Spurs, uh, heading into this recording of good vibes and and what have you, are, uh, are, are, are they back? They’ve they’ve they’ve won three games in a row. We can talk about Victor Wembanyama making the All-Star team. Jeff, where do you want to start since you’re not fighting it?
Jeff McDonald: Let’s let’s start with the All-Star team. That was the big news from yesterday.
Mike Finger: Okay.
Jeff McDonald: So start there.
Mike Finger: I I thought that you were going to take some initiative and uh…
Jeff McDonald: Oh, well, you just meant me. What do you, what is this? Um…
Mike Finger: The Spurs were heading into a to their to their pre-game shoot around, the the the the early evening, the the early afternoon shoot around for a rare, uh, Martin Luther King Day matinee against the Utah Jazz, which I think Mitch Johnson said he had scheduled for 1:50 and the announcement came down at 1:14 and it went down to the wire. That’s, that’s the setup for you, Jeff, to take.
Jeff McDonald: Went down to the wire. Poor Victor had to wait till the last name was called again. Again, he was the 10th of 10 starters announced yesterday, uh, for the All-Star, All-Star team, All-Star game. Uh, last year he was the last reserve announced, so I guess that was even more of a white-knuckle moment because he almost didn’t, you know, there was a chance he didn’t make it at all last year.
This year he would have been a reserve if he did not make the the starting five, but he made the starting five in the Western conference and he gives the Spurs their um, first guy to achieve that designation since uh one Kawhi Leonard in 2017.
So congrats to to Victor, I guess and uh…
Mike Finger: You know, just for as much as the, as much as his teammates were saying that they had no, uh, doubts that this would happen and how it was a a mere formality, it really did end up being a pretty close call. It had to go to a tiebreaker, Jeff, overtime. Explain the tiebreaker rules to the people.
Jeff McDonald: Explain the tiebreaker. How about this? Okay. So basically, uh, let me see if I get this all right in my head. Um, the players, uh, the players thought Anthony Edwards was a better, it came down to a tiebreaker between, uh, Victor Wembanyama and Anthony Edwards.
Uh, the the wonderful Minnesota Timberwolves guard who just put up 55 freaking points at the Frost Bank Center. But, uh, the, so the way it works is the fan vote is 50% of a player’s score, the, uh, media vote is 25%, and the, uh, who’s left? The, uh, other players, players vote is 25% of a player’s score. And the players had Anthony Edwards ranked ahead of Victor. Um, the fans had, um, the fans had Victor ranked ahead of Anthony Edwards, but both of them out of the top five. And it was the media that sort of forced that tie by voting, uh, Victor fourth and and Anthony Edwards behind that. And so when you added it, when you did all the fancy mathematical formulations there, they both ended up with a tied score. And in that case, it goes down to which of those two players received the most fan votes, which was Victor Wembanyama. He got the sixth most fan votes in the Western Conference. Anthony Edwards got the seventh most.
And so, uh, Victor gets the nod. So if you’re a Victor Wembanyama fan, you can thank the, uh, the media for forcing that tie. And then you can, uh, pat yourselves on the back because, uh, your work voting for Victor as fans is what, uh, pushed him past Anthony Edwards in the head-to-head tiebreaker. And if that’s clear as mud, um, congratulations. We’re, we’re all on the same page there.
Mike Finger: If that’s clear as mud, wait till you get to the format of the All-Star weekend itself, which Tom will probably will be covering with the Express News. We had a bit of a, uh, an off-the-air podcast with some of the friends of the podcast about this last night, and it’s just something else, man. Good luck to Tom Orsborn out in LA at the Intuit Dome covering that.
Jeff McDonald: It’s so, let me, let me throw some things out there. Okay, it’s now it’s the US versus the world this year. Uh, the US gets two teams, the world gets one, and they play like a round robin tournament, right? Uh-huh. Um, so it just so happened with all the voting formulations that we just went through, that five international players were voted in as starters. But what if six had been voted in? One of them just doesn’t get to start, even though he was voted in as a starter, because there’s only one international team. What do you do there? I have no idea.
Mike Finger: Jeff, as we mentioned last night, they’re making this up as they go along. And this all, everything they’re doing this year is going to be thrown out the window next year. Trying to solve this problem that everyone says is a huge problem, that players don’t play hard in the All-Star game. That’s been a problem for as long as some of our listeners have been alive that they’re never going to solve. And they’re jumping through hoops for something that doesn’t matter a whole lot to begin with. But it’s, it’s absurd. If you try to take any of it seriously, you’re going to drive yourself crazy because it’s all absurd.
You have, you mentioned that issue. Okay, why are you cutting the US in half? And who’s going to play for US pride when you have your side cut in half? All the best players in the world are on the international roster. The international team might not win, but they have all the MVP candidates. Like, like, everybody who wins MVP these days is an international player. The international team is a huge, huge, huge, huge favorite. Um, it’s, it’s silly. It’s all silliness. But that’s what All-Star games and All-Star weekends are supposed to be.
Jeff McDonald: And if you’re a Timberwolves fan that is irate that Anthony Edwards isn’t getting to start, well, he is. Like, he’s just going to start for the other, the other US team. And LeBron James…
Mike Finger: There’ll be 15 starters.
Jeff McDonald: Yeah, like LeBron James’s streak of of 21 straight All-Star starts is uh is over. Well, no, it’s not.
Mike Finger: Yeah. Because Kevin Durant’s going to start, Anthony Edwards is going to start, LeBron James is going to start. Um…
We did, were you standing around last night, Jeff, we did pick up a bit of All-Star weekend news. Maybe it was out there before, but this is the first time I’d heard it.
Jeff McDonald: I was. I know what you’re saying. He’s not, he’s not going to participate in that B.
Mike Finger: We were talking to our guy, Stefan Castle last night and just in in passing, I asked him, we were talking about All-Star something or other, maybe the absurdity of this all. And uh I asked if he was going to take part in the slam dunk again and he said uh in so many words, absolutely not. No plans to do so. I don’t know if that’s breaking news on the Spurs Insider podcast, but uh you will not see Stefan Castle in the in the slam dunk contest this year, Tom.
Unless unless…
Tom Orsborn: Tom, are you excited? Tom, are you excited about going? Yeah, sure. Yeah, it’s uh, you know, the the main stuff is the media availability before it and uh yeah, I was looking forward to Stefan Castle uh participating in the dunk again, but that that’s uh that’s kind of uh a sad note there, but I I can understand that. He got robbed last year.
Mike Finger: Yeah. Um, and I I think just in in greater terms, with the way I think of the All-Star game is not necessarily the game itself, it’s just kind of the honors that these people receive and it’s such a big deal for a guy like Victor Wembanyama. I don’t want to single him out. Just anybody who grew up watching the game, loving the game, um, looking up to guys like LeBron James and Kevin Durant and Steph Curry and to be part of the group and to be accepted into that group. Victor, as Jeff mentioned, didn’t finish in the top five in the player voting, but he finished top seven and he’s starting to get the respect of his peers and the fans and the media who count least of everyone, of course. Um, it’s it’s a cool thing to see these guys get the, get those honors. The game itself, you could take it or leave it.
Jeff McDonald: I got a hot take for the game, the format. What if we just go back to the East plays the West? And of course it’s a bad game, whatever. Let’s just go back and do that.
Mike Finger: Let’s, that’s what’s going to happen at some point.
Jeff McDonald: At least it’s straightforward.
Mike Finger: It makes sense. It’s for a decade now, more than that. Um, there’s, you’re, you’re solving, you’re trying to solve this problem that’s not really that big of a deal. Sure the game is putrid, but the game’s never been that great. We tend to romanticize stuff from our, our youths, I think. And it has gotten worse. Don’t fight me. Uh, I mean, I’m I’m not fighting that assertion that that the defense has gotten progressively worse, but it was never that great.
Tom Orsborn: I’d sort of… It depends on whose youth you’re talking about here.
Mike Finger: Well, I think everyone’s youth. Everyone romanticizes their youth.
Tom Orsborn: Well sure, but it but it was better back in the day. Yep, back in my day at least.
Mike Finger: I think you think that. And it was it was better, but I don’t think it was great.
Tom Orsborn: I’d said better. I didn’t say great. I said it was better.
Jeff McDonald: So we’re on the same page. That’s great.
Mike Finger: We’re all on the same page, which makes for a great podcast. That’s enough All-Star talk for now. We’re that that game is a month away, a few several weeks away. We can get to that more in future editions of the podcast. In the meantime, the local cagers who had been in a bit of a a slump in the in the one loss columns, in the uh, in the for sure in the three-point shooting columns, in the overall offensive statistical columns, maybe uh some light at the end of the tunnel there, Jeff?
And in a completely unexpected, unforeseen, shocking, um, turn, it was a one Victor Wembanyama who pulls the the Spurs out of their three-point shooting slump. He decides if the other guys can’t make three-pointers, I’m going to start shooting three-pointers again, and that, to me, is brilliant.
Jeff McDonald: It was very much it felt like a, you know, if you want something done right, you have to do it yourself kind of situation because that that guy that that had kind of been a a um pretty consistent storyline of the first few months of the season is Victor isn’t just launching threes the way he did um the his previous two years. In December, and again, he only played in 10 games in December, so maybe it’s a small sample size, but he was only trying three a game and he only had two of those 10 games where he, he never made three in any of those 10 games. Two was his high in December. Then all of a sudden, the last three games, he’s turning into Steph Curry. Was it last, against the um, who’d they play last night? The uh, Utah Jazz? Seven of 12. Like, that was a high for makes and attempts for him this year. And it has, you know, because he’s hitting them, it has unlocked uh some of their offense that seemed to be stuck in mud there for so many weeks in a row.
And, um, I think his percentage for the season is up around 38, which is, you know, really good for him. Like, if he can hit that that clip, then kind of look out below. So, we’ll see how long it keeps up, just in terms of him actually shooting them. He did say last night, I might not take any next game, who knows. Um, and also in terms of them going, going in.
Mike Finger: And this stuff is is cyclical, I think, in terms of the of the the Spurs offensive identity in a way. Like the the the reason that he needed to do this now is because teams were just not respecting the three-point line anymore. Defenses weren’t respecting the three-point line anymore. We’ve talked a lot over the past few weeks and months about the Spurs’ plethora of downhill playmaking threats in the back court, in terms of De’Aaron Fox and Stefan Castle and Dillon Harper and guys who can get to the rim whenever they want, who can make defenses collapse and open up the floor for everyone. Well, when no one is making the three-point shots, that’s not as effective and somebody needed to start doing that.
And we mentioned last week, I think an underrated part of this is Devin Vassell hasn’t been playing. And that’s a huge three-point shooting threat, jump shooting threat, just a offensive threat in general that teams haven’t had to respect in the last few weeks. And it fell on somebody else to start making those shots. When Harrison Barnes wasn’t making as he as many as he had been for a while, Julian Champagnie’s been up and down. Um, they just needed an extra guy to open things up. And I think when other guys start to fill in that void, which I think they will, Harrison Barnes is going to shoot better, Julian Champagnie is going to shoot better, Devin Vassell’s going to come back. Um, you won’t see Victor Wembanyama shooting 10 threes a game the rest of the season. I don’t think this is their new identity, is Victor becoming Steph Curry.
Jeff McDonald: A lot of an NBA, a lot of an NBA season is this sort of, uh, teams adjusting and then you adjusting to that adjustment and back and forth. And I feel like when Victor came out the first few months of the season, he wasn’t shooting them a lot, teams sort of started to play the Spurs that way. Oh, Vic’s not going to shoot 12 threes a game. He told us last night, yeah, Utah’s going under every pick and every, every pick and roll, they’re going under. Um, so that leaves that shot open, um, and so now he’s taking them and hitting them. And as long as that keeps up, now you’re, now you look at teams adjusting to that, and then you adjusting to that adjustment. And that’s just the way an NBA season goes. Like there’s ebbs and flows to all of it.
Mike Finger: You know, as a, as a seven-footer was running up and down the floor launching threes with abandon, talking a little bit of smack, you know who I bet that reminded Will Hardy of last night, Jeff?
Jeff McDonald: Um, one Timothy Theodore Duncan.
Mike Finger: Yes. And the listeners of the Spurs Insider podcast are saying, what kind of joke is that? Tim Duncan never played like that. Apparently, y’all were missing out. And we were missing out. Because friend of the podcast Will Hardy regaled some of us yesterday with tales of Tim Duncan, the pickup basketball player, and saying that Tim Duncan played nothing like he played in the NBA when he would play pickup basketball against Will Hardy and Mitch Johnson and probably Willis Hall and all the Spurs assistant coaches back in the day, that Tim Duncan was a chucker. He was a pig, I think Will, Will Hardy called him a pig, uh, just a trash talker, a guy launching threes. I would have loved seeing that. So maybe, maybe Victor Wembanyama saw some of that and got some inspiration from Timmy. That made me laugh a lot.
Jeff McDonald: Maybe there’ll be some like grainy video of it, like that old uh Team USA scrimmage between Team USA and the college kids that kind of made its way out over over time. Maybe we’ll see some grainy footage from somewhere of Timmy the the pickup artist.
Mike Finger: I bet that was fun to watch. Um, the the Will Hardy, Mitch Johnson respect is fun too. For for years, we’ve had uh, stories and and interviews with coaches, opposing coaches, all the the the Gregg Popovich connections and coach A, B, C, D, X, Y, Z comes into San Antonio and you ask about their background with Pop. And that that was always fun to hear the Pop stories that so many coaches across the league could tell. But Mitch has his connections too. And those those two guys respect each other a great deal and are two, um, I I think coaches that are getting a lot of respect from others around the league too.
Jeff McDonald: They they really are the two that are that that are carrying on the uh Pop coaching legacy. The those two and Ime, probably. And I kind of lump Mitch and uh and Will together separate from Ime just because Mitch and Will were younger when they came in. They were kind of they were kind of nobodies in the NBA. Like Ime had been a player. Um and they sort of rose up from nowhere to become kind of coaching stars and to get their own teams and I think there’s definitely a bond there between those two that was forged here in San Antonio, um when when Mitch showed up in 2016, Will was already here.
And then uh when Mitch got promoted from the Austin staff to the San Antonio staff, he got promoted because Will Hardy got promoted from the development coaching staff up to the bench. So Mitch basically took the post that Will Hardy vacated to move to the to a full assistant coach role. So they do have a lot in common, a lot of bonds, and there was a lot of um there was just a lot to tie them together.
Tom Orsborn: You know, Doc Rivers talked about Mitch, um, before that Milwaukee game about how, you know, it’s you feel, he missed, Doc said he missed Pop’s presence, but at the same time, the presence was still there because Mitch is carried on so much of what Pop did. And, um, you know, he just, just saying, uh, uh, Mitch’s praises and pointed out that, you know, Pop couldn’t have picked, there couldn’t be a better guy to follow Pop. And I know we’re all, you know, for years we talked about who’s going to follow him, who’s going to follow him. And it turned out Mitch Johnson was the right guy. And, uh, Doc said, you know, he’s, he’s, he’s a real Pop protégé in a lot of, in a lot of, in a lot of sense.
Mike Finger: You know, we had that discussion for so long that I remember once upon a time it was like, you know, sooner or later, Mike Bud’s going to get fired in Atlanta and he could be the guy to replace Pop.
Tom Orsborn: Quin Snyder, yeah.
Mike Finger: decades ago.
Tom Orsborn: Becky Hammon.
Mike Finger: Um, this is going to sound outrageous too, but I’m not so sure that, um, Pop’s replacement is less intense on the sidelines than Pop was. Like who gets angrier? Who gets more worked up? 2026 Mitch Johnson or or later years Gregg Popovich? I think Mitch Johnson might blow him away.
Jeff McDonald: Yeah. There there are times I’m thinking Mitch is too young for this. He needs to calm down just a little. It’s a long season, you know. It’s a long season. But it’s it is interesting because he’s so calm and measured with us before and after the game, carefully choosing the words that he wants to say. And then when it’s on the sideline, it’s, “Get an F-ing rebound!” and saliva flying everywhere and it’s great.
Mike Finger: He’s he’s uh he’s following Pop’s footsteps in in more ways than one.
Hey, should we talk about the, we should talk about Carter Bryant getting to keep his hair.
Jeff McDonald: Yeah, go ahead. That’s a good one. You’re taking some initiative this week and introduce topics and discussions. Good good job. Keep keep going.
Mike Finger: That’s a good one. I’m not doing it.
Jeff McDonald: I don’t like, I don’t like this new year, new me stuff. Sorry. I need to go back to being the old schlub, I think.
Mike Finger: What do you think about Carter Bryant keeping his hair?
Jeff McDonald: I think it’s a very, very funny story. I mean, uh, number one, we all know Carter has had about a month now of just the dunk yips, where it’s been like the darndest thing. Like it was four or five times where he just, every time he went for a dunk, you knew he was going to blow it. Um, one of those games the other night, he kind of decided midair not even to try the dunk, to try a layup, blew that one. Um, one of the games, he finally got one to go down, but somehow found a way to basket interfere with his own dunk, so it didn’t count. And so the guys have been kind of giving him grief for about a month now about his just, because he’s like the most athletic guy on the team. Like maybe one of the most athletic guys in recent Spurs history. Like he’s a guy where…
Mike Finger: Objectively, the the the the best vertical leap on the team.
Jeff McDonald: Yes, dunking should come easy. So they were just giving him all kinds of guff about it. And then uh last last week when Keldon and Victor decided to shave their heads for reasons known only to them, um, it kind of came up that it was it was uh Fox and uh Harrison Barnes and Julian Champagnie decided, basically Carter gets three more strikes for the rest of the season, he gets three more strikes. After his third missed dunk, he’s got to shave his head.
Mike Finger: And I guess he agreed to this, Carter Bryant did.
Jeff McDonald: Yeah. So um, I think he, I don’t think as Mitch said, I don’t think he had a choice. Yeah. So low and behold, he’s, he had two dunks in the last game against Utah. One was a, one was a, it’s a little two, a soft two-hander in the lane. And then he also had a fast break alley-oop lob from uh, from De’Aaron Fox that I just thought was mean. I just thought that was a mean thing for De’Aaron Fox to do to put him in the position to miss one like that. Like he could have just shot his layup, De’Aaron could have, but no, he’s gonna make Carter make this dunk and, and you know, it’s, it’s win-win. Either he makes the dunk and the Spurs get two points or he, he, uh, misses it and uh, they’re, they’re, they’re, a missed dunk closer to shaving Carter’s head. But he didn’t miss any dunks last night, so he gets to keep his hair.
And but the the the the thing that uh Harrison Barnes and um I think De’Aaron too made sure to point out is like this isn’t over. It’s not like he uh he got through one game not missing a dunk and the bet’s off. He’s got to make it through the rest of the year and he gets three misses or that hair is coming off.
Mike Finger: It’s like the technical fouls that that it’s a cumulative thing over the course of the season. Just because you go a game without a tech doesn’t mean that you’re you you you lower your risk of a suspension the next time.
Jeff McDonald: And it seems like it’s uh it seems like it’s all in good fun. It’s kind of it’s fun. This team is very fun. They got a good locker room. Um, good vibes. I think they all like each other. I think that’s just another sign of it that they’re able to kind of mess with each other in that way.
Mike Finger: Did you enjoy the Luke Cornet celebration after the Carter Bryant dunk last night?
Jeff McDonald: I did. He was the one that gave the assist to Carter for his for his dunk. And he had a nice little uh… two-handed separation. Yeah, he’s um he’s kind of the king of celebrations around here, isn’t he? I don’t know if you’re going to put that one on a t-shirt. I think he’s the other one’s still better for for t-shirt purposes, but… Yeah, it’s pretty good.
Mike Finger: Yeah. Yeah. Um, before that, uh, we’re we’re burying the lead, which often happens on the podcast just because of timing. We miss out talking on some fun moments during the season. Jeff mentioned it in passing earlier, but the Victor Wembanyama, Anthony Edwards duel in the Frost Bank Center on Saturday night, Tom, was something to behold.
Tom Orsborn: Yeah, it was. Uh, you know, in the fourth quarter them going back and forth late, but also that second period, you know, Victor scores, you know, gazillion points. I think it was 12 in the last 2:37 of the half. I mean, just dominant. And you know, we were talking about his three-point shooting. He goes to the line 14 times against the Timberwolves. I mean it was, it was, it really was a great performance and you see Edwards, who admitted after the game, he gets, he gets up for the Spurs because of Wemby. No, no shock there, but I mean, good Lord, 55 points. Um, yeah, it it was a lot of fun to watch. That was probably the most entertaining game I’ve seen.
Mike Finger: By the way, if Ant Edwards was getting up for Wemby before Monday afternoon, I think the the results of the All-Star balloting might uh add a little bit to that too because Ant Edwards is is a deserving All-Star starter for sure.
Jeff McDonald: It’s not Wemby’s fault, though. He should have gotten in over Steph Curry. That’s who I, that’s how I voted. Yeah.
Mike Finger: Yeah. Um, and so for that to come down to, just two days after the back and forth Ant Wemby duel, where Ant scores over 50 points and and just look like he’s going to carry the the Timberwolves to another huge rally against the Spurs on on Saturday, the second huge rally in a in a week for the Timberwolves, who came back from 19 to win in Minnesota, came back from 25 to erase a deficit, uh, this time. Um, pretty impressive. And then and then for for those two to to tie for the last spot for All-Star was was was too perfect. So, I think uh I think the Spurs will never have to worry about not getting Anthony Edwards’ best game when they when they meet in the next meetings, in the next years, in the next maybe playoff series to come. That could be a, that could be a fun match.
Jeff McDonald: That could be this spring. A true rivalry.
Mike Finger: That could be this spring. A true rivalry, unlike the other one we’ve talked, talked a little bit about.
Jeff McDonald: You’re trying to get us to talk about Chet again.
Mike Finger: No, and and that’s I think, not to rehash this whole storyline again, which has been hashed and rehashed far too many times. But that I think that’s just Victor’s point with all this is that his rivals are the Ant Edwards, the SGAs, the Jokices, uh those type of players. Not not the very, very good role players on championship teams. I don’t think it’s a, I don’t think it’s Chet disrespect. I think he just chooses his…
Jeff McDonald: He can’t, he can’t figure out why everyone is asking about his rivalry with the third best player on some other team.
Mike Finger: Yeah, exactly.
Jeff McDonald: It’d be like asking Chet about his rivalry with Devin Vassell. Like it just in Vic’s mind it makes the same amount of sense.
Mike Finger: That’s, that’s the point. Um…
Tom Orsborn: Wemby, that game also, uh, you know, Wemby’s always got a great quote. You know, I asked him about his inexplicable decision to miss, intentionally miss that, uh, free throw at the end and what was your thinking? Not much thinking, I can guarantee you that. Uh, that was a funny moment. Great, great way to answer that question.
Mike Finger: Well, I mean, there’s no other, that’s one you just have to take and realize, I I screwed up because there’s no explanation for why you would intentionally miss a free throw up when you’re up three points in the closing seconds of a game. Um, I think…
Jeff McDonald: I’m glad someone asked that question, though. It needed to be asked.
Mike Finger: Well, thank you, Jeff.
Tom Orsborn: Good job.
Mike Finger: Good job, Tom. Um, any other developments this week? Any any any trends you’re watching, Jeff? Any, uh, any insights on the second best team in the Western Conference?
Jeff McDonald: I just gave you 30 minutes of insights. Good Lord.
Mike Finger: I should have known to, I should have known better than to, uh, to ask for a little more. Tom, you got anything?
Tom Orsborn: Well, Dylan had that little hit the wall slump, you know, for five games and seems to be back now. That’s, that’s, that’s huge for them, just having him getting downhill like he was before.
Mike Finger: I agree. I agree. The uh the week ahead, Tom is covering the Rockets game in downtown Houston tonight. There’s another game against Will Hardy and the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City on Thursday, and then a uh a showdown with the vaunted New Orleans Pelicans at the Frost Bank Center on Sunday evening, the week of NFL Championship Sunday. I know the, I know the the eyes of Spurs Nation and the country at large will be watching that Spurs-Pelicans showdown as the uh as the Super Bowl teams are decided. So that should be a big deal. Uh another week for uh for for good vibes, Tom, you think? The the one tonight is the big one.
Tom Orsborn: Two and one. Is Markkanen back uh on Thursday? What’s his injury status?
Mike Finger: That’s, that’s, that’s uh two days from now. Yeah. Maybe too far into the future for this podcast to project. We will see.
Tom Orsborn: Well, I’m going two and one.
Mike Finger: I see. Jeffy, what do you think about the week?
Jeff McDonald: Yeah, I’ll give them two and one as well. I don’t know that they’re going to get that game in Houston. I know they beat this the uh Rockets here earlier in the season in San Antonio. Um, and and they’re they’re definitely in the Rockets, you know, a conversation with the Rockets and ahead of them in the schedule, but I just think the second night of a back-to-back on the road against a team that’s going to beat the living daylights out of you, um I’m gonna I’m going to say the Rockets get that one.
Tom Orsborn: Yeah.
Mike Finger: Unwinnable?
Jeff McDonald: Ah, I wouldn’t go that far. You know, sometimes you just stumble into something.
Mike Finger: The Rockets can’t shoot. The thing is, the Rockets can’t shoot. So if they get into some sort of uh outside of, you know, what they have one of the greatest shooters in the history of the game, but outside of him, they um they’re they’re they’re having the same kind of three-point struggles that the Spurs were having. And so if you get in a game where they just miss everything, then you, then you got a fighting chance.
Mike Finger: Yeah. That and the Spurs have have uh have won lots of games that they didn’t think that that that people on this podcast didn’t think they could win. So, you never know.
Hey Tom, you remember that episode of the Sopranos when Tony B, Tony Blundetto, is walking down the, is walking down the street with his uh this lady friend and he finds like this this this bag of full of um full of cash and and narcotics on the side of the road? Right. Like who who does that happen to? Who does that happen to?
And and the but but the thing is sometimes the when when you stumble into something, it it ends up being bad for you, you know. That’s all I’m saying. Yeah. You know, that that returns him to a life of crime. If he’d never, if he’d never found a stroke of good luck, you know, he might have been better off.
Tom Orsborn: That’s a great analogy.
Mike Finger: That’s just to say, if you look, if you look lucky at one at one moment, you know, you never know how it might change.
Tom Orsborn: Be careful what you wish for.
Mike Finger: Be careful what you wish for is the point there. So, that’s all I’m saying. So, we’ll see how it works out.
Anything else? I think this has just been a great podcast of Jeff showing initiative, coming armed with topics, and I’m just wondering if he has any any suggestions for the conclusion before we go away.
Jeff McDonald: I think this is one that we could submit for awards in 2026. This let’s let’s bookmark this one.
Mike Finger: Yeah, we’ll be sure to do that. We’ll be sure to uh maybe come up with some ways to do it a little better next time. Until then, take care of each other and keep it real. [music fades in]