By Devon Birdsong | Pounding The Rock (PtR), 2026-02-01 21:45:16
在每个为人父母的生命中，总有那么一个时刻：你出于经验之谈，劝告孩子不要做某件事，而他们却把你的话当成了耳旁风。
据我所知，这种体验放之四海而皆准，它跨越了国界与语言，地域与阶层，偏见与种族，以及宗教与政治立场。在某些方面，年轻就是这般执拗。
而且，问题在于，大多数时候，这甚至算不上是公然的挑衅。
我手机锁屏上有一张我女儿最珍贵的照片。照片里，她正在攀爬哈特克里克游乐场边缘的一个低矮栅栏，而她右边就是一个金属标牌，上面写着：请勿攀爬栅栏。
她那时才两岁，看不懂标牌上的字，也看不出栅栏外空荡荡的停车场里有任何危险。并非规则和危险不存在，只是在那一刻，她察觉不到而已。
她根本无法想象停车场会停满车辆，也想不到会有汽车为了去往别处而粗心大意地穿过这片空地。她对现实的感知与其说是错误的，不如说是受限于她孩童时期对因果关系、外部世界和时间流逝的片面理解。
在她看来，空停车场会一直空着。粗心的人也肯定会注意到她。栅栏是阻碍通行的障碍，而非保护安全的屏障。
尽管成年人也常犯此病，但世界上没有谁比一个在宠爱中长大的幼儿更对自己深信不疑了。
你可以在一支年轻球队身上找到这种自信的另一种表现形式——他们超越了预期和成长时间表，有望成为媒体叙事中的宠儿，在球迷眼中也早已如此，而这可能导致某种自满情绪的产生。
这种自满不同于一支常年乐透（或常年不上不下）球队的自满，因为它源于一种能力、一种技巧，源于一种“天赋重于努力”的心态。或者，至少是认为，努力程度时高时低也无伤大雅。
自从圣安东尼奥马刺队多次击败俄克拉荷马城雷霆队以来，我们就看到这种非常特别的自满情绪在悄然滋生。在对阵黄蜂队的上半场，这种情绪暴露无遗，一如一周前对阵鹈鹕队，以及一月份早些时候对阵缺兵少将的灰熊和伤兵满营的开拓者时一样。
尽管人们对马刺第三节的“老毛病”怨声载道，但他们的第一节场均失分也高居联盟第四，第二节场均失分则排在第八。他们以8胜7负的战绩踉踉跄跄地结束了一月份的比赛，当月进攻效率仅排名联盟第19位。
他们只有在面对排名靠前的强敌时才会认真起来。
值得称道的是，在面对那些强队时，他们确实表现出色，因为他们知道面对像尼克斯、湖人、凯尔特人和森林狼这样的对手时，自己毫无容错空间。
在这段时间里，马刺取得了一些令人印象深刻的胜利。但对于这群年轻人来说，这些胜利或许太过耀眼，让他们过于坚信自己可以轻易地“打开开关”，去对付那些实力稍逊的对手——直到危险几乎迫在眉睫（而且往往为时已晚）时，他们才意识到真正的威胁。
然而，问题在于，他们不再是幼儿了。他们更像是青少年，能感觉到成年已近在咫尺，并说服自己已经准备好迎接所有成人的抉择和独立所带来的挑战。
这其中也有一种别样的美感。马刺队之所以能击败比他们更强的球队，正是因为他们对自己认知的局限性一无所知。他们狂野而无畏地踏入了强队竞争的世界，并且至今还未真正被彻底击垮。
科马克·麦卡锡 (Cormac McCarthy) 曾写道，上帝不让年轻人一开始就知晓生活的真相是件好事，否则他们根本没有勇气开始。
我开始怀疑，或许要等到这支年轻的马刺队迎来他们第一次真正意义上的季后赛之旅，他们才能领悟到赢球需要付出什么——那种成为冠军所必需的警惕、专注、谨慎和近乎偏执的态度，以及“没有哪个夜晚可以懈怠”的信条。
就目前而言，我们只能忍受年轻所带来的大起大落。那些看似重大的踉跄，那些不知为何无法举一反三、也无法牢记于心的教训。
如今的马刺队看得懂警示牌了。但他们对那个空荡荡的停车场，依然心存疑虑。
我不确定米奇·约翰逊 (Mitch Johnson) 能否改变他们的这种心态。我也不确定波波维奇 (Pop) 能否做到。
我相信，他也曾经历过一些夜晚，即便是伟大的蒂姆·邓肯 (Tim Duncan) 也会对对手判断失误。我相信这种事发生的次数比我们记忆中要多，只是被邓肯那不可动摇的专注与可靠的神话所掩盖了。
这是这支马刺队必须靠自己去解决的问题。这可能需要不止一些惨痛的教训和意想不到的失利。作为一名球迷，我相信他们终将达到那个高度。这就像为人父母所怀有的那种希望一样。你别无选择。
不过，在此期间，我可不会把我的车借给这帮年轻人开。
给他们买辆破车吧。因为他们还没撞够呢。
要点速览
- 尽管哈里森·巴恩斯 (Harrison Barnes) 仍在缓慢地走出低谷——这是自从丹尼“铁林”格林 (Danny ‘Icy Hot’ Green) 的时代以来，我记忆中最糟糕的三分球低谷之一，但米奇·约翰逊还是决定将他调整到替补阵容，并让朱利安·尚帕尼 (Julian Champagnie) 担任首发。虽然尚帕尼本赛季已经有过首发经历，但这还是第一次在巴恩斯和瓦塞尔都健康的情况下发生，这是对尚帕尼多年来进步的应有肯定。具体来说，他在过去10场比赛中手感火热，场均得到生涯新高的13分，同时在此期间，他的有效命中率、真实命中率和球员影响力估算值均领跑全队。巴恩斯对此的回应是三分球5投3中，并且毫无怨言。如果这种状态能保持下去，我敢说除了特定的对位和/或交易情况外，这一阵容调整将是永久性的。
- 我不知道该怎么说，但文班在过去10场比赛中的防守表现相当不尽如人意，在此期间，他的防守效率值在所有出战非垃圾时间的球员中仅排全队第8（向防守效率值领跑全队的乔丹·麦克劳克林 (Jordan McLaughlin) 致敬！）。因此，马刺队在此期间的防守效率仅排在联盟第12位，而当你整个月的进攻效率只排在第19位时，这就成了一个大问题。如果马刺队想守住西部前四的位置，他们就必须在防守或进攻上有所提升。我更希望两者兼得，但就像约翰·列侬 (John Lennon) 一样，我只是个爱做梦、会写些矫揉造作（且有些自相矛盾）歌词的人。♫ *想象这里没有假摔。只要你愿意，这很简单…*♫
- 听着，我爱 斯蒂芬·卡斯尔 (Stephon Castle) 。他有韧性，有渴望，还有那种永不言弃的、难以言喻的精神。本周看着他在第四节防守端把休斯顿火箭搅得天翻地覆时，我感觉和他比跟自己某些家人还要亲近。但除非他能稳定地找到投篮手感，并能够胜任得分后卫的位置，否则我们无法看到最好的德阿隆·福克斯 (De’Aaron Fox) 和马刺队的进攻。虽然福克斯是一名更好的射手，但很明显，只有当球在他手中，能够创造突破威胁，从而为他的跳投拉开空间时，他才会感到最自在（也最有用）。福克斯至今还未能重现卡斯尔（和文班）缺阵时期的那种强势表现，而球队的进攻迫切需要那个版本的他回归。不幸的是，卡斯尔在过去10场比赛中的真实命中率仅排在球队第9（整个赛季排第13），所以这个梦想可能要再等一年了。
- 另外，还有一个非常有趣的小数据，你绝对猜不到过去10场比赛中谁的防守效率值领跑马刺队。如果你猜是卢克·科内特 (Luke Kornet)，那很接近了，但实际上是新秀迪伦·哈珀 (Dylan Harper)！虽然他的很多防守表现是对阵对方的替补阵容时取得的，但这无疑是为这位未来之星的履历再添光彩的一笔，他注定将成为马刺队那对令人胆寒的乐透后场双枪的另一半。引用Timbuk 3乐队的歌词来说，前途一片光明，我得戴上墨镜。
离场音乐 – 今夜主题曲：
In Time by Robbie Robb
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 loss to the Hornets
What we learned from the Spurs loss to the Hornets
There’s a moment in every parent’s life when, from a place of experience, you advise your child not to do something, and they proceed to disregard you.
It is, so far as I can tell, a universal experience, bypassing borders and languages, regions and classes, prejudices and ethnicities, and religions and political affiliations. In certain ways, youth is simply incorrigible.
And the thing is, most of the time, it’s not even outright defiance.
One of my most treasured photos of my daughter is on the lockscreen of my phone. She’s in the middle of scaling one of the low fences at the edge of a Hat Creek playground, and just to the right of her is a metal sign bearing the words: PLEASE DO NOT CLIMB ON THE FENCE.
She was two years old, unable to read the sign, and unable to see any danger in the empty parking lot beyond the fence. It’s not that the rules and danger didn’t exist; they simply were not apparent to her at the time.
She had no conception of how the parking lot would fill, or how cars might incautiously cruise through the empty lot on the way to another destination. Her perception of reality was not so much wrong as it was limited by her childish understanding of cause and effect, the exterior world, and the flow of time.
Empty parking lots stayed empty. The inattentive would surely be attentive to her. Fences were barriers to access rather than barriers of protection.
Though adults are frequently guilty of it, no one is more self-assured of their import to the world than a toddler who has spent their life at the center of adoration.
You can find another form of this self-assurance in that of a young team exceeding expectations and timelines, positioned to be darlings in the media narrative, already so in the eyes of their fans, and that can lead to a certain kind of complacency.
It’s a different sort of complacency from that of a perpetual lottery team (or the perpetually middling) in that it comes from a place of competency, of skill, of the sentiment that talent outweighs effort. Or, at the very least, that it allows for effort to wax and wane without consequence.
Ever since San Antonio’s repeated defeats of the Oklahoma City Thunder, we’ve seen that very specific brand of complacency creeping in, and it reared its head in the 1st half against the Hornets in the same way that it did a week ago against the Pelicans, and earlier in January against the depleted Grizzlies and banged-up Trailblazers.
For all the complaints about their third-quarter woes, the Spurs also allow the 4th most points scored in the NBA in the 1st quarter, and the 8th most in the 2nd quarter. They limp out of January with an 8-7 record and the 19th-ranked offense for the month.
They’re not taking the opposition seriously unless the opposition sits high in the standings.
And to their credit, they’ve performed well against those teams, knowing that there’s no margin for error against the likes of the Knicks, and the Lakers, and the Celtics, and the Timberwolves.
There have been some seriously impressive wins during this stretch. Maybe too impressive for a group of youngsters who believe all too strongly that they can simply flip the switch against lesser opponents — who see no real danger until it’s almost already too late (and often is).
The thing is, though, they’re not toddlers anymore. They’re more like teenagers who can feel the edge of adulthood on the horizon and have convinced themselves that they’re ready for all of the adult decisions and the inherent challenges of independence.
And there’s a kind of beauty in that. The Spurs have beaten teams better than them because they don’t know what they don’t know. They’ve walked out wild and fearless into the world of contention, and they haven’t been really and truly crushed yet.
Cormac McCarthy once wrote that it was good that God kept the truths of life from the young as they were starting out, or else they’d have no heart to start at all.
I’m beginning to suspect that it’s going to take their first real jaunt into the postseason for these young Spurs to grasp the reality of what it takes to win — the vigilance required of champions. The focus. The wariness. The paranoia. The notion of no nights off.
For now, we’re just going to have to endure the incredible highs and lows of youth. The stumbling that often feels momentous. The lessons that somehow fail to translate to everything else and somehow fail to stick.
The Spurs can read the signs now. They remain skeptical of the empty parking lot.
I’m not sure that Mitch Johnson will be able to knock that out of them. I’m not sure Pop would have been able to either.
I’m sure he had to endure nights where even the great Tim Duncan miscalculated against the opposition. I’m sure it happened more than we care to remember, lost in the irrepressible mythos of Duncan’s focus and reliability.
It’s something these Spurs are going to have to figure out on their own. It’s probably going to take more than a few hard lessons and unexpected losses. As a fan, I have faith that they’re going to get there. It’s the same kind of hope you hold as a parent. There’s really no other choice.
In the meantime, however, I wouldn’t let these youngsters borrow your car.
Buy them a clunker. They’re not done crashing yet.
Takeaways
- Though Harrison Barnes continues to slowly climb his way out of one of the worst three-point slumps I can recall since the days of Danny ‘Icy Hot’ Green, Mitch Johnson made the decision to move him to the bench squad and give Julian Champagnie the starting role. Though Champagnie has been getting time in the starting unit this season, this marks the first time that’s happened with both Barnes and Vassell healthy, and it’s a much-deserved sign of the progress that Champagnie has made over the years. Specifically, he’s been red hot over the last 10 games, averaging a career-high 13 points per game, while leading the team in Effective Field Goal Percentage, True Shooting Percentage, and Player Impact Estimate in that span to boot. Barnes responded by going 3-5 from three, and without ego, and if that keeps up, I’d wager the change will be permanent outside of specific match-ups and/or trade scenarios.
- I’m not sure how to say this, but Wemby’s defense has been pretty subpar over the last 10 games, and his defensive rating ranks 8th on the team over that stretch for players getting non-garbage-time minutes (all hail defensive rating leader Jordan McLaughlin!). Consequently, the Spurs have ranked 12th in defensive rating during that span, which is a real problem when you’re also 19th in offensive rating for the month. The Spurs are going to have to improve defensively or offensively if they want to hold onto a top 4 spot in the West. I’d prefer that it to be both, but like John Lennon, I’m a dreamer who writes cloying (and somewhat contradictory) lyrics. ♫ *Imagine there’s no flopping. It’s easy if you try…*♫
- Look, I love Stephon Castle. He’s got grit. He’s got desire. He’s got that ineffable thing that never lets him quit. Watching him defensively punk the Houston Rockets in the 4th quarter this week, I felt closer to him than some of my own family members. But until he finds his shot consistently and is able to slide over to shooting guard, we’re just not going to see the best of De’Aaron Fox and San Antonio’s offense. While Fox is a better shooter, it’s clear that he is most comfortable (and useful) with the ball in his hands to create the driving threat that gives him space for his jumper. Fox has yet to match the stretch he had when Castle (and Wemby) were out, and the offense really needs that version of him back. Unfortunately, Castle is 9th in True Shooting on the team over the last 10 games (and 13th for the season), so that dream may have to wait another year.
- Also, this is a super fun little stat, but you’ll never guess who’s been leading the Spurs in defensive rating over the last 10 games. If you guessed Luke Kornet, you were close, but it’s actually rookie Dylan Harper! And while a lot of his defense is coming against opposing team’s benches, it’s yet another feather in the cap of what’s sure to be the scary other half of San Antonio’s lottery guard tandem. In the words of Timbuk 3, the future’s so bright, I gotta wear shades.
Playing You Out – The Theme Song of the Evening:
In Time by Robbie Robb
By Devon Birdsong, via Pounding The Rock