Spurs Insider Podcast, 2026-02-25 22:13:00
专栏作家迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger) 与随队记者杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald) 和汤姆·奥斯本 (Tom Orsborn) 讨论了马刺队击败底特律活塞队以及他们的九连胜。此外，马刺队和活塞队是否会在 NBA 总决赛中相遇？马刺队会一直留在奥斯汀比赛吗？这些话题以及更多内容将在本周的《Spurs Insider》播客中揭晓。
推荐阅读：
马刺的德文·瓦塞尔如何努力在对阵底特律时找到进攻位置
3 大看点：德文·瓦塞尔砍下 28 分领衔马刺战胜活塞
以下是播客的文字记录：
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：这里是来自北美各地绝密地点的高安全性网络直播的《Spurs Insider》，“他们还会再输球吗？”专题版。我是迈克·芬格，和我在一起的依然是《圣安东尼奥快报》的马刺随队记者汤姆·奥斯本 (Tom Orsborn) 和杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)。我先从本期节目标题中提到的问题开始。汤姆，他们还会再输球吗？圣安东尼奥马刺队，这支本地篮球队，现在是西部联盟排名第二且势头正盛的球队。
汤姆·奥斯本 (Tom Orsborn)：嗯，我之前对连胜还有点怀疑。他们打了很多伤兵满营的球队。我觉得这可能是“虚假的繁荣”，但昨晚在底特律，他们无疑通过了考验。所以，是的，他们还会再输球吗？我们会一直工作到六月（总决赛）吗？这是个问题。我注意到有人写道，这可能是潜在的 NBA 总决赛预演。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：如果马刺和活塞在总决赛相遇——我还是要正式声明，这极其不可能——但我们会做一期播客，汤姆，这只是个预告，可能会让听众心痒。我想讲讲关于那件大秀、那件 T 恤、以及上一次马刺和活塞在总决赛相遇时那篇头版文章的故事。那是《快报》历史上的一段传奇。如果那一幕真的发生了，那是值得期待的事情，但大概率不会。既然我们现在表现得如此愤世嫉俗和消极，是时候欢迎杰夫·麦克唐纳进入播客了。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：我正准备唱反调呢。我正想问你，你刚说“极其不可能”？我不觉得是极其不可能。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：你是说马刺和活塞在 2026 年 NBA 总决赛相遇？
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：我想这取决于我们如何定义这些词，但我不会说极其不可能。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：我会说不到 5%。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：我不知道，我不能给所有事情都定个百分比，但就目前来看，我能看到这两支球队都打进总决赛。我不是说这很有可能，甚至是大概率，但“极其”这个形容词让我有点异议。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：我认为极其不可能。杰夫，你是个博彩迷，上周在奥斯汀的穆迪中心你就表现出来了。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：我可不是博彩迷。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：你当时满脑子都是让分盘，赛前还在问林迪·沃特斯 (Lindy Waters) 能不能打，好去安抚那些 FanDuel 的彩民。所以我要问你，我也不是赌徒，博彩很糟糕。千万不要赌体育，那很可怕。但我说的 5% 的意思是，如果赔率是 19 比 1，你会赌 1 美元，或者抱歉，你会赌 19 美元去赢 1 美元吗？不会。你会赌 1 美元去赢 19 美元马刺和活塞在总决赛相遇吗？我不确定。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：当然，当然。就 1 美元而已。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：我明白了。总之，我认为马刺打得非常好。今年的每一期《Spurs Insider》似乎都在证明质疑者是错的。我们几乎总是低估了他们。活塞队在底特律的表现也同样超出了人们的预期。这两支球队都提前完成了重建目标。他们正在利用当前的 NBA 格局——联盟中除俄克拉荷马城之外，已经出现了一定程度的均势，而雷霆自己也经历了一些挣扎。所以也许可以争论，如果不是现在，活塞或马刺这样的球队什么时候才会向总决赛发起冲击呢？但两队同时打进决赛看起来确实极其不可能。
就因为我们反反复复说过的话，这些球队，我想凯德·坎宁安 (Cade Cunningham) 领衔的活塞总共只打过一个季后赛系列赛。维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 领衔的圣安东尼奥马刺打过的季后赛系列赛次数是零。斯蒂芬·卡斯尔 (Stephon Castle) 从没打过季后赛，凯尔登·约翰逊 (Keldon Johnson) 和德文·瓦塞尔 (Devin Vassell) 从没打过季后赛，德阿隆·福克斯 (De’Aaron Fox) 打过一次。我们这是在重温老生常谈，这些话我们说了一遍又一遍。
但主题是，马刺一周又一周地在证明我们是错的。我们要看看他们是否能把这种势头延续到四月、五月和六月。但现在，为什么不欣赏这支球队的成就呢？他们赢了，杰夫，九连胜了吧？正如杰夫指出的，其中很多比赛是对阵胜率不足 50% 或缺少核心球员的球队。但昨晚在底特律的那场比赛，他们看起来像一支经验丰富的季后赛球队。令人印象深刻。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：关于进入底特律之前的连胜，如果我们在那场比赛之前录这个播客，我会说是的，他们打了一些伤兵营。那波连胜是靠赢下伤兵满营的球队以及本身就很烂的球队凑起来的。胜率都低于五成。在那八场比赛中，他们遇到的每一个对手要么少了一个全明星，要么少了不止一个全明星，要么胜率低于五成，有的两个占全了。
所以我理解对那波连胜的怀疑，但我从中看到了一个好的迹象：他们在痛击那些球队。除了对阵雷霆残阵那场打得有点松懈。我是说，他们在洛杉矶领先了 40 分。我不管对方是谁，如果你领先 40 分，说明你做对了一些事情。他们在对阵菲尼克斯和萨克拉门托时领先了 30 分。在 NBA，无论对方是谁上场，如果你能领先 30 或 40 分，说明你打的是高水平篮球。
所以这就是为什么我对他们在底特律打得这么好并不感到惊讶。当你这样打球时，你就给了自己赢球的机会。这波九连胜是从很久以前对阵奥兰多开始的。还记得那场比赛吗？他们刚从夏洛特赶回来，差点没赶上。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：我记得那天下午你说那场比赛赢不了。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：开球前四个半小时才下飞机，然后他们上场拼了下来，赢了魔术 9 分。那是九连胜的开始，也是那波连胜中唯一一场分差是个位数的。其余的都是两位数。所以对我来说，这是一支打得非常、非常、非常好球的迹象。即便他们昨晚输给了底特律，我也会说这是一支目前打得非常、非常、非常好的球队。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：瞧瞧。我都不知道该怎么处理这些正能量了。这不像我们的风格。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：好吧，林迪·沃特斯还没回来，这是个负面消息。他没打。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：你喜欢在穆迪中心的那两场比赛吗？
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：挺好的。我想对我们来说，新鲜感正慢慢消失。我不确定奥斯汀的球迷是否也失去了新鲜感。他们依然坐满了场馆，看起来相当兴奋。但我们在聊，前几次去的时候，你带去的是只能赢 22 场的球队，而那里挤满了媒体。媒体简直要把那儿占领了。我记得去年在奥斯汀的比赛现场有两个 ESPN 的团队。感觉那种吸引力已经不如从前了。但我认为对奥斯汀人来说，它依然有吸引力，这是一件好事。这对扩展品牌有好处。
让那些可怜的奥斯汀人有机会在自家门口看现场比赛。我没意见。我理解圣安东尼奥的球迷可能会觉得，“那是我们的球队，别来抢我们的东西”，但这挺有趣的。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：关于上周我在《圣安东尼奥快报》写的奥斯汀赛的文章，我有过一段简短的交流。有一些反对意见，也有一些赞同。但我的观点是，当这些比赛刚开始时，圣安东尼奥马刺球迷心中有一种固有的焦虑，因为尽管马刺队想尽办法反驳这种观点，但还是有一种普遍的情绪认为这是一种威胁。
马刺当时在一个已经老旧的球馆打球，尽管它才建成不到四分之一个世纪。它老旧得很快，没有起到带动周边社区的作用。大家都知道马刺在寻找新球馆，而通过每年在这个蓬勃发展的市场、这个每个人都说除了足球大联盟外终将拥有职业体育球队的科技中心打几场比赛，马刺似乎在划定底线，暗示如果在圣安东尼奥拿不到新球馆，马刺可能会搬到奥斯汀。
我从来没这么想过，但很多马刺球迷因为显而易见的原因产生了这种想法。我理解当时的焦虑，也理解那种对奥斯汀试图抢走我们球队的愤恨。现在，在贝克萨尔县选民去年 11 月通过了 A 号和 B 号提案后，圣安东尼奥市中心新球馆的道路已经铺平。我上周在报纸上写的是，圣安东尼奥球迷现在完全没有理由再为奥斯汀的比赛感到焦虑了。奥斯汀并没有试图抢走球队。我收到了一些反馈说：“我们还是不喜欢他们在那儿打球。他们依然是我们的球队。”
但马刺坚持这样做的一个原因是 CEO RC·布福德 (RC Buford) 在这些比赛刚开始时告诉《快报》的。他们认为自己的市场范围从墨西哥的蒙特雷一直延伸到得克萨斯州中部的奥斯汀。如果你把这个市场从南到北连起来，它是全美最赚钱的市场之一，他们想要全面扩展。在奥斯汀培养球迷、寻找商业伙伴，这些在财务上是合理的，而每年在那儿打几场比赛是很好的方式。我仍然认为这适用。当圣安东尼奥市中心的场馆在 2030 年或 2031 年左右投入使用时，我不确定他们是否还会去奥斯汀打球，但汤姆，如果他们继续这样做直到那时，我一点也不奇怪。我认为这可以作为牛仔节之旅的一部分。虽然球队得坐大巴去并住酒店，这在某种意义上不算主场比赛，但我认为这在每年的长途牛仔节客场之旅中提供了一个缓冲。
汤姆·奥斯本 (Tom Orsborn)：是的。那么，对活塞的那场胜利怎么样？
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：你不喜欢再聊聊奥斯汀的事吗？
汤姆·奥斯本 (Tom Orsborn)：不喜欢。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：听起来汤姆在离开前有话要说，那就让他聊聊昨晚的大胜吧。
汤姆·奥斯本 (Tom Orsborn)：噢，我的天。是的，文班，我是说，那是一场了不起的比赛。21 分，虽然手感不佳，但在面对那样一支强硬的球队时贡献了那么多。抢了那么多篮板，还有 6 个盖帽。还有卡斯尔对坎宁安的防守，瓦塞尔的关键表现。我觉得这才是今天的主题。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：继续说。
汤姆·奥斯本 (Tom Orsborn)：他说完了。是的，我说完了。讲到了。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：底特律的咖啡怎么样，汤姆？
汤姆·奥斯本 (Tom Orsborn)：你说什么？
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：底特律的咖啡怎么样？
汤姆·奥斯本 (Tom Orsborn)：提姆霍顿斯 (Tim Hortons) 非常棒。你知道，那是多伦多人的首选，但也流传到底特律来了。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：你更想要提姆霍顿斯的咖啡，还是咖啡师现调的美式？
汤姆·奥斯本 (Tom Orsborn)：不，我永远选提姆霍顿斯。正如你说的，我昨晚给你发了张照片，那是提姆霍顿斯的杯子，标志性的红色杯子，你说那是劳动人民的咖啡。而马刺昨晚拿到的是一场劳动人民式的胜利。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：我带你们回顾一下我全程观看那场比赛的心路历程。开始时，维克托，嗯，他们打出了 11-0 的开局，但一旦两队在第一节进入状态，感觉就像，噢，活塞又在对维克托上身体了，这似乎成了他今年的克星。关于他的防守秘籍就是：如果你对他推推搡搡，你就能让他打得有些飘，或者有点退缩。
活塞在他持球和无球时都推他，甚至把他撞倒，这在第一节左右的时间里看起来很奏效。我当时在想，“又来了，这是他在季后赛必须解决的问题。”当别人在场上教训你时，如何贯彻自己的意志。不能直接认怂。你不能说，“噢，他们对我上身体，那我就去那边站一会儿。”你得想办法。然后他做到了。
在第三节的某个时刻，他 12 投仅 3 中，却依然统治着比赛。统治着全联盟战绩最好的球队。最后他拿到了 21 分，数据看起来不错，但那 17 个篮板和 6 个盖帽，我是说，整场比赛的防守，尤其是下半场以维克托为核心的防守。你提到了斯蒂芬·卡斯尔 (Stephon Castle)；那简直是视觉盛宴，那是夺冠级别的表现，那种防守方式。
然后，有人会跳出来说：“是啊，好吧，我猜活塞也没那么强，他们的投射不够，二次创造机会的能力也不够。”这些可能都是事实，但在昨天之前，这对活塞来说一整年都不是什么大问题。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：回到“极其不可能”这个话题，部分原因在于这两支从未打过季后赛的球队。因为活塞队的打法和马刺截然不同。那是两支性格完全不同的球队，打球的方式也不一样。但他们都有共同的问题，即没去过那样的舞台，没弄清楚如何进行一场接一场的调整。
昨晚比赛中我有一个问题，或者说是一个突出的点——也许这完全是胡说八道——但斯蒂芬·卡斯尔 (Stephon Castle)，他一直打得很好，目前的表现远远超出了预期，他将是今年及以后的关键。他会成为明星球员。但仍有些时候，他低着头往篮下冲，这取决于他能不能博到犯规。我怀疑这种回合在季后赛中会变得更加困难。
因为杰夫和汤姆，你们这些年报道过很多季后赛系列赛。我在想，这些回合是否是他们必须去适应的，并意识到季后赛的吹罚尺度是不同的。就像底特律昨晚没能很好地适应马刺的做法。马刺将来也会遇到类似的挑战。我不是说马刺进总决赛的概率是 5%，也不是说活塞进总决赛的概率是 5%。我是说，两队同时进决赛，合在一起看是极其不可能的。不过那会很有趣，会是一轮精彩的系列赛。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：我觉得我们可能只是在一个副词上纠结。我是说，不可能，那是肯定的。我想你随便挑联盟里的两支球队，两队都进总决赛都是极其不可能的。每个人都有弱点。但总有人要打进去。如果你想弄清楚东部谁出线、西部谁出线的组合，我认为如果你想两边都猜对，百分比都会很小，因为现在对每个人来说都是开放的竞争。
我没看到谁是绝对稳进的，如果你想说服我俄克拉荷马城依然是冠军热门，他们以前做到过，显然实力足够，他们会整合好一切并在季后赛时保持完全健康并从西部突围，我肯定会买账。我依然认为他们是夺冠热门。但他们已经证明了自己是可以被击败的，他们并不是不可战胜。他们会被干掉。所以我认为半区里没有任何人是板上钉钉的。总得有人打进去。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：汤姆待不了多久了。在你叫的 Uber 到达之前，你有三分钟时间分享一下你的见解。
汤姆·奥斯本 (Tom Orsborn)：嘿，这是一大步。就像你刚才说的，迈克，早些时候我去洛杉矶看那场杯赛四分之一决赛时，没指望他们能赢。然后在拉斯维加斯打雷霆，也没指望他们能赢。所以他们在不断进步。昨晚他们通过了考验。让我们给他们应有的赞美。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：我正给他们赞美呢。马刺，嘿，马刺，凯尔登·约翰逊 (Keldon Johnson)，维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama)。我知道维克托会听这个播客。文班，这是给你的赞美。你很擅长打篮球。我要承认一件事：文班亚马很擅长打篮球。马刺也是。就这么着吧。这又不是什么《指环王》专题播客。他不可能听这个的。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：说得好。但无论外面有什么科幻作品，或者只是探索世界的奥秘，甚至是纯科学内容，他都可能在听。如果尼尔·德格拉塞·泰森有播客的话，他肯定在听。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：汤姆，在你走之前，快说说你对接下来这趟旅程剩下的多伦多和纽约比赛的看法？他们能延续下去吗？
汤姆·奥斯本 (Tom Orsborn)：是的，多伦多，我想他们今晚打雷霆。噢，我不确定。不，是的，总之，我觉得他们会延续下去。我想直到你们两个在纽约接手。打尼克斯会是另一个考验。篮网是唯一的，你知道，他们这 12 场比赛里有很多强队，很多高顺位种子球队，还有几支附加赛球队。篮网是唯一的软柿子。所以，是的，我觉得他们能延续势头。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：多伦多今晚确实打雷霆。汤姆，希望你到多伦多时雷霆队已经在那儿了。你熬过了东海岸的冬日天气，东北部的严寒。我知道你还得去纽约。如果你在这期播客中途不得不离开，祝你好运。我和杰夫会继续聊些有的没的。但旅途平安，汤姆。
汤姆·奥斯本 (Tom Orsborn)：好的，谢谢大家。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：说实话，他们迟早会再输球的。我觉得这显而易见。我只是不知道在哪场。总会发生的。可能在多伦多，也可能在布鲁克林。很难说。即便最强的球队也会阴沟翻船。但现在越来越难怀疑他们了。我是说，是的，他们会犯错输掉一些比赛，但所有那些我们今年早些时候认为他们会输的比赛——“噢，他们不可能去洛杉矶并在 NBA 杯赛击败湖人”——结果他们当然是把湖人痛扁了一顿。还有“他们不可能在 NBA 杯半决赛击败雷霆”——结果他们当然也做到了。所以很难看出有哪场比赛是他们赢不了或不该被看好的。但话虽如此，他们终究会输给某个对手。他们不可能以 34 连胜结束本赛季。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：我想那是肯定的。显然他们不会取得 34 连胜。但他们证明的是他们可以击败任何人。今年他们已经多次击败最顶尖的球队。他们今年对阵雷霆和活塞的战绩是多少，5 胜 1 负？联盟中最好的两支球队。只不过“能击败任何人”和“能在七场四胜制的系列赛中击败某个特定对手四次”是有区别的。那是巨大的考验。那是每支球队都要经历的考验。
在真正到达那里之前，我们无从知晓。正如**维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama)**所说，担心或者思考缺乏季后赛经验是否会影响他们在季后赛的表现是件徒劳的事情，因为为什么要现在担心呢？他承认季后赛经验是无可替代的。我想他知道这点，马刺也知道这点，但在那之前，为什么不按照杰夫·麦克唐纳说的那样，继续痛击对手呢？
实际情况是，当你进入一个对手深谙此道的季后赛系列赛时，一切都会升级。强度上升，哨声变了，身体对抗上升，专注度上升，你不到身临其境是不会懂的。大多数从未经历过这些的球队，往往要打两场系列赛才能回过神来，而那时你已经 0-2 落后并最终输掉系列赛。马刺的赛季大概率会在季后赛的某个节点以这种方式结束，即遇到一支真正懂球的球队，也许马刺后来想明白了，但明白得太晚了，然后这些东西会进入下赛季的“电脑数据”中，到那时也许他们就是那支给别人上课的球队了。
但周一晚上在底特律的这种比赛向你展示了他们准备得更充分了，因为那很有季后赛的感觉。那是一个备受瞩目、强度极大的夜晚，而马刺看起来像是经历过大场面的。
奥斯汀那两场比赛（后来演变成了两场惨案）中比较值得关注的进展之一，是**维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama)**第一次确认了我们在一年前对他血栓诊断的怀疑。杰夫，记得在 2025 年全明星赛前的那几场比赛中，文班看起来很累，对吧？整个人很疲惫。我们当时甚至在不知道他出问题之前就聊过，天哪，这个赛季让他吃不消了，他遇到了瓶颈期，虽然他的数据不算糟糕，但他整个人步履蹒跚。
因为去年发生的一切，以及整个事情的进展方式，我们一直无法确认他当时的状态是否与后来被诊断出的疾病有关——也就是他肩膀处的深静脉血栓，一个让他赛季报销、一度威胁到他职业生涯和马刺未来的血栓。最后结果还好，但他在奥斯汀提到，当时那条动脉只有 5% 的血流量，正如他所说，这并不能解释所有事情，但解释了很多。我想这最主要的是提供了一种慰藉：他去年看起来撞墙的原因是可以纠正的，不会影响他的职业生涯余下时间。他们已经找到了不会影响他长期健康的解决方案。我只是觉得这值得关注，说明他会没事的，去年他撞墙是有原因的，而今年他没有撞墙。这不仅是耐力的问题；去年他疲惫不堪是有因可循的。你觉得这有意思吗？
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：让我感触最深的是，大家应该还记得，他去年报销前打的最后一场比赛是全明星赛。他在奥斯汀告诉我们，全明星赛那是他在篮球场上感觉最糟糕的一次。我想，那是压死骆驼的最后一根稻草，让他们意识到必须弄清楚是怎么回事，必须采取行动。我也同意，在去年二月全明星赛前的那个阶段，他看起来确实像撞墙了，累坏了，赛季让他疲于奔命。但我刚查了一下，去年他在疲劳状态下为马刺打的倒数第二场常规赛是对阵华盛顿：31 分，15 个篮板，3 个盖帽。即便是在对阵波士顿的比赛中，他也拿到了 17 分、13 个篮板和 2 个盖帽。那个月初，他还拿过 27+10，24+12。对阵夏洛特是 16+11，外加 5 个盖帽。所以即使是在那种虚弱的状态下，他依然统治着全场。但没错，最让我震惊的确实是他谈到去年全明星赛时，说那是他打球以来感觉最糟的一次。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：展望未来，我是说，他正在进入巅峰。虽然在这一大波连胜中，很多对手并不算顶尖，但盖帽数激增。我不知道他是盖帽变得更积极了，还是对手更喜欢挑战他了，但他现在场均能盖 5 个。周六在奥斯汀对阵国王开场那一波，一分钟盖了 3 个！你刚才说他统治了对阵底特律的开局阶段；在那场奥斯汀的比赛刚开始时，感觉国王队要在 48 分钟里一分未得了。他一上场就冷酷无情。我当时觉得文班会对国王投出一场“无安打比赛”。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：国王队的前三次进攻都以文班亚马的盖帽告终。太不可思议了。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：在奥斯汀那两场比赛之后，他的反应是这并不特殊，这应该是每晚的标准，这是他想要带来的表现。并不是说他面对那些完全不是对手的球队做了什么特别的事情，这应该是底线。这应该是球迷走进场馆观看文班亚马比赛时的预期，这种统治力简直让人惊掉下巴。
我们甚至还没聊到他的双大风车扣篮，以及，还记得在圣安东尼奥文班时代的早期，我们讨论过给他空接传球有多难，看起来比实际要难得多，需要时间吗？现在，来自斯蒂芬·卡斯尔 (Stephon Castle)、德阿隆·福克斯 (De’Aaron Fox) 以及其他大个子队友的空接，似乎变得越来越容易了。真的很令人印象深刻。在他进入联盟的前几年，他都会遇到低潮期。而在 2025-2026 赛季，我们还没看到这种低潮，我不确定它什么时候会来。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：有一件事是你讨厌谈论的，但如果马刺最终拿到了西部第一——这并非不可想象，他们只落后雷霆两场——而且文班亚马打了 65 场比赛，我会很难不投票给他，不仅仅是把他写进我的 MVP 选票，而是把他放在第一位。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：有趣的一点是，我同样不是个奖项控，但今年的 MVP 可能会产生，目前有五个强有力的候选人。但在那个群体中，可能只有一两个或三个符合参赛资格（场次要求），候选人快用完了。约基奇已经快用完他可以缺阵的场次了。卢卡也快用完了。维克托大概只能再缺席五场左右。我想凯德·坎宁安目前是安全的。谢伊·吉尔杰斯-亚历山大 (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander) 也不能缺席太多。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：他现在就受伤了。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：没错，他还有点缓冲余地，但基本上就是这五个主要候选人。其中三个可能会出局，然后你可能会看到剩下符合条件的两个人的两方竞赛。所以是的，维克托虽然目前没有太多的 MVP 呼声，但如果他在余下的赛季不再缺席，把缺勤控制在两三场内，最终可能就在他和另外两名顶级候选人之间产生，那会是一场非常有趣的竞争。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：你知道吗，即使大家都符合资格，如果马刺拿到西部第一，我也会投给他。你会投他第一？第一。我是说，那不会是一张乱投的票。如果发生了这种情况，他赢了，而另外三个人出局了，那会有点糟糕，因为你不希望这事被打上星号。“噢，他能赢是因为另外三个人出局了。”我觉得即使所有这些情况都发生，他也本可以赢的。我的意思是，这都是假设。但这家伙正在统治联盟。我们要不要把防守算作篮球的一部分？因为他是世界上最好的防守球员，而那是比赛的一半。在做到这一点的同时场均贡献 24 分，并做出一系列进攻端的惊人举动，如果马刺一直在赢球，如果他们的战绩超过雷霆，超过活塞，你很难找到反对他的理由。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：我同意你的看法。从现在到那时还有很多事情要尘埃落定，但这同时也暴露了全年无休的 MVP 讨论是多么荒谬。人们在去年 12 月圣诞节前就在辩论 MVP 了。比如约基奇、SGA 还是卢卡领先？这归结为你所说的。如果马刺最后成了头号种子，这在几周前看起来不可思议，现在可不是，那他怎么能不是领跑者呢？我不想把这变成这周 NBA 播客里的第 97 场 MVP 辩论。感觉你这像是在暗指我们的老朋友“欢乐时光提姆” (Timmy Goodtimes)。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：提姆·邦唐 (Tim Bontemps) 是最棒的。这不是讽刺，提姆·邦唐是最好的，他每两周在 ESPN 做一次 MVP 模拟投票，让大家了解 MVP 的最新动向。他是个大好人。超爱邦唐。他绝对是独立的。是的，但这事直到最后才能见分晓。而在提姆的前几次 MVP 更新中，维克托还没进过前三。他现在正悄悄挤进前五。但如果马刺是西部头号种子，我认为他应该是默认的领跑者。因为虽然他没有卢卡那些人的进攻数据，比如得分、助攻什么的，但论球场两端的影响力，我不确定有没有人能接近他，特别是如果马刺排名榜首的话。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：我很高兴你用了“球场两端” (both sides of the floor) 而不是“攻防两端” (both sides of the ball)。后者在篮球里让我有点受不了。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：我总会想起，我们要收尾了，汤姆已经走了，所以我们得往奇怪的方向扯一扯。当年我在拉伯克的南平原报道著名的鲍勃·奈特 (Bob Knight) 时，那是他的忌讳之一。他在一次新闻发布会上痛斥了一个说“攻防两端” (both sides of the ball) 的人。鲍勃·奈特虽然平时不太好相处，但他彻底帮我戒掉了那个说法。我没说过那个词，而且我永远不会再说，因为篮球里不这么说。多亏鲍勃·奈特帮我把那个词从词典里删除了。愿他安息。
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：他还基本当面叫过你“男妓”，对吧？
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：噢天呐，杰夫，那是同一天晚上的事。这是个很棒的鲍勃·奈特故事，虽然这是马刺播客，但我还是讲讲吧，因为这故事真的很精彩。那个学生记者，德州理工大学的学生报纸叫什么来着？是《斗牛士》吗？
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：听着像。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：一个学生记者问鲍勃·奈特关于“攻防两端”表现的问题，鲍勃·奈特把他臭骂了一顿，说：“你根本不知道自己在说什么，这不是我们在篮球里讨论的内容，你需要准备得更充分，表现得更专业，但我并不指望你所在的这个行业能有什么专业性，”他指的是新闻业。那个可怜的孩子只是个新闻系学生。他说：“在你选择的这个行业里，只比卖淫高出两个级别。”然后他站起来准备愤而离席。我说：“教练，还有一个问题。”他转过头说：“什么？”我说：“那中间的那一级是什么？新闻业和卖淫中间的那一级是什么？”结果答案是播客。一点没错。那天他没给我答案，但 20 多年后我们找到了。答案就是播客。
所以，那是一段有趣的往事。别说“攻防两端” (both sides of the ball)。别说新闻业和卖淫是一回事，因为根据鲍勃·奈特的说法，中间至少还有一个台阶。接下来的纽约之行怎么看？汤姆已经跑去报道周三晚上的多伦多比赛了。在那之后，是在纽约对阵篮网和尼克斯的两场比赛，一场对阵 76 人，然后牛仔节之旅就结束了。连胜能持续到这趟旅程结束吗？
杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald)：当然可以。会吗？我不知道。我很期待在麦迪逊广场花园的那场比赛，因为去年圣诞大战我没在那儿。我也没在 NBA 杯决赛现场，而那两场都是精彩的比赛。我期待文班和这支优秀的马刺队带给那里的氛围。我认为那场比赛应该会有点季后赛的感觉，两支球队都很出色。
迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger)：又是一个潜在的总决赛对阵。虽然也是不太可能的总决赛对阵，但很有趣。尼克斯在那儿。尼克斯比活塞更早经历过季后赛洗礼，知道如何在顶级舞台竞技。所以那会很好玩。而且，我们会见到老朋友，杰里米·索汉 (Jeremy Sochan)。他一直在尼克斯获得一些上场时间，虽然不多。这很有趣，虽然不科学，但看看尼克斯推特上的反馈，当初他们签下索汉时，他们还在自说自话，觉得签来一个 22 岁的前前十顺位球员赚到了，现在他们已经到了“等等，他投篮不行，进攻端啥也干不了”的阶段。他们已经领教了为什么他不适合马刺。我希望他在那里一切顺利。在纽约打球压力非常大。我希望杰里米能顶住。
而在纽约见到杰里米之后，也许这长达四年、奉献给一个在 NBA 打球的年轻人的无数播客时长就要画上句号了。他做的比我们大多数人都多，但最终也只是有些喧嚣，结局平淡。很多球员的职业生涯都是如此。曾经有过希望，后来没了，现在随着他的离开，圣安东尼奥又有了新的希望。并不是因为他走了，而是现在马刺要迈向更宏大的目标了。也许杰里米在尼克斯也会有更好的发展。我们期待那场比赛，期待本周以及余下赛季的所有比赛。下次再见之前，互相照顾，保持真诚。
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：Will San Antonio ever lose again?
Will San Antonio ever lose again?
Columnist Mike Finger and beat reporters Jeff McDonald and Tom Orsborn discuss the Spurs’ win over Detroit and their nine-game winning streak. Also, could the Spurs and Pistons face each other in the NBA Finals? And will the Spurs always play in Austin? These topics and more on this week’s Spurs Insider podcast.
Suggested reading:
How the Spurs got physical in beating ‘bully ball’ Pistons
How Spurs’ Devin Vassell worked to find his spots against Detroit
Spurs at Raptors: How to watch the game, who’s starting, who’s out
3 takeaways as Devin Vassell’s 28 points lead Spurs past Pistons
Here is the transcript of the podcast:
Mike Finger: From a highly secure network of top-secret locations across North America, this is the Spurs Insider, “Will they ever lose again?” edition. I am Mike Finger, joined as always by San Antonio Express-News Spurs beat writers Tom Orsborn and Jeff McDonald. I’m just going to start with the question asked in my title of the episode. Will they ever lose again, Tom? The San Antonio Spurs, the local cagers, the second-best team in the Western Conference and rising.
Tom Orsborn: Well, I was a little skeptical about the winning streak. They played a lot of banged-up teams. I thought it might be fool’s gold, but they certainly passed the test in Detroit last night. So, yeah, will they ever lose again? Will we be working into June? That’s the question. I noticed some people writing that it was a potential NBA Finals preview.
Mike Finger: If the Spurs and Pistons meet in the Finals—which I will still go on record to say is extremely unlikely—but we’re going to do a podcast episode, Tom, and this is just a tease, it’s going to frustrate the listeners. But I want to tell the story of the big show, of the T-shirt, of the page A1 story way back in the last time the Spurs and the Pistons met in the Finals. That’s a legendary piece of Express-News history. That’s something to look forward to if it does happen, but it probably won’t. And as we’re being cynical and negative about things, it’s time to welcome into the podcast, Jeff McDonald.
Jeff McDonald: I was just going the other way. I was about to ask you, did you say extremely unlikely? I don’t know about extremely unlikely.
Mike Finger: That the Spurs and Pistons meet in the 2026 NBA Finals?
Jeff McDonald: I guess it depends on how we define all these terms, but I wouldn’t say extremely unlikely.
Mike Finger: I would say less than 5%.
Jeff McDonald: I don’t know, I can’t put a percent on everything, but I could see both those teams reaching the NBA Finals at this point. I’m not saying it’s probable or even likely, but “extremely,” that little adjective there threw me a little bit.
Mike Finger: I think it’s extremely unlikely. You’re a big betting guy, Jeff, at the Moody Center last week in Austin.
Jeff McDonald: I am not a big betting guy.
Mike Finger: You were all over point spreads and asking pregame questions about Lindy Waters, his availability to assuage the FanDuel people. So I’d ask you, I’m not a betting guy either, betting is terrible. Do not bet on sports. It’s awful. But what I mean by 5% is, if it’s 19 to one, would you bet $1, or I’m sorry, would you bet $19 to win $1? No. Would you bet $1 to win $19 that the Spurs and Pistons would meet in the NBA Finals? I’m not sure.
Jeff McDonald: Sure. Sure. Just a dollar.
Mike Finger: I see. Anyway, I think the Spurs are playing great. They have proven the doubters wrong every episode of the Spurs Insider it seems this year. We almost always undershoot them. The Pistons are doing the same in regards to the expectations that people have had in Detroit. These are two teams that are ahead of schedule. They are taking advantage of an NBA where a degree of parity has set in across the league, outside of Oklahoma City, who has undergone its share of struggles as well. So maybe the argument could be made that if not now, when would a team like the Pistons or the Spurs make a run to the Finals? But it just seems extremely unlikely that they both will.
Just because of what we’ve said over and over and over again, these teams, I think the Cade Cunningham Pistons have played in a grand total of one playoff series. The Victor Wembanyama San Antonio Spurs have played in zero playoff series. Stephon Castle’s never played in a playoff series, Keldon Johnson and Devin Vassell have never played in a playoff series, De’Aaron Fox has played in one. We’re playing the hits here. We’ve said this over and over and over again.
But the theme of this is the Spurs keep proving us wrong week after week after week. We’ll see if they can take it into April and May and June. But for now, why not appreciate what this team has done? They’ve won, what Jeff, nine games in a row? As Jeff pointed out, a lot of those games were against teams without winning records, without their best players. But that game in Detroit, it looked like an experienced playoff team. It was impressive.
Jeff McDonald: What I was going to say about the winning streak going into Detroit, if we had done this podcast before that game, is yes, they played some banged-up teams. The streak was made up of wins against banged-up teams and/or teams that were just bad anyway. Sub-.500. Every team they played in those eight games was either missing an All-Star or more than one All-Star, or they were sub-.500, and some of them were both.
So I get the skepticism with that winning streak, but the one good sign I saw in it is they were beating the crap out of those teams. Except for the Oklahoma City game where they kind of screwed around against a skeleton crew. I mean, they were up 40 in LA. I don’t care who’s on the other team, if you’re up 40, you’re doing something right. And they were up 30 against Phoenix and Sacramento. I don’t care who’s playing for the other team in the NBA, if you’re up 30 or 40 on them, you’re playing good basketball.
And so I thought that was why I’m not so surprised they went into Detroit and played well. When you do that, you give yourself a chance to win the game. This nine-game winning streak started way back against Orlando. Remember that game? They were coming back from Charlotte and couldn’t get there.
Mike Finger: I remember you called that game unwinnable that afternoon.
Jeff McDonald: Landed at the airport four and a half hours before tip-off, and they go out there and they gut it out and they beat the Magic by nine points. That started a nine-game winning streak, and that’s the only win in that streak that’s single digits. The rest of them were all double digits. So to me, that’s a sign of a team that’s playing really, really, really well. Even if they had lost last night against Detroit, I would say this is a team that is playing really, really, really well right now.
Mike Finger: There you go. I don’t know what to do with all this positivity. It’s off-brand.
Jeff McDonald: Well, they didn’t get Lindy Waters back, that was a negative. He didn’t play.
Mike Finger: Did you enjoy the two games at the Moody Center?
Jeff McDonald: They were good. They’re starting to become, I guess, the novelty has worn off for us. I don’t know that it’s worn off for Austin fans. They still pack the place and seem pretty excited about it. But we were talking about how the first couple of trips, you’re taking 22-win teams in there, and the place is just rife with media. It’s just overrun by media people. I think the game last year we had two ESPNs there at the games last year in Austin. It just seems to have, it’s not the draw in that sense that it used to be. But I think it is a draw to the people of Austin, and I think it’s a good thing. It’s good to expand the brand.
Give those poor Austinites a chance to see the team live in their own backyard. It’s fine with me. I understand San Antonio fans kind of feel like, “That’s our team, stop horning in on our thing,” but it’s fun.
Mike Finger: I had a small conversation about something that I wrote in the San Antonio Express-News last week about the Austin games. There was a little bit of pushback, there was a little bit of agreement. But my point was when these games started, there was this inherent angst among San Antonio Spurs fans because even though the Spurs said and did all they could to refute this sentiment, there was this overarching sentiment that there was a threat.
The Spurs were playing in an arena that had not aged well, even though it was less than a quarter-century old. It had not aged well, it had not done what it was supposed to do for the neighborhood around it. Everyone knew the Spurs were looking for a new arena, and by playing a couple of games in Austin per year in this burgeoning market, this booming tech area that everyone says is going to grow and have pro sports beyond the MLS at some point, that the Spurs were kind of drawing a line in the sand saying if we don’t get an arena in San Antonio, the Spurs might move to Austin.
I never took it that way, but a lot of Spurs fans took it that way for understandable reasons. I got the angst back then, and I got the budding resentment that Austin is going to try to take our team. Now, after the Bexar County voters approved Prop A and B last November, it paved the way for what looks like is going to be a downtown arena in San Antonio. What I wrote in the paper last week was that there’s no reason at all for San Antonio fans to have angst about games in Austin anymore. Austin is not trying to take the team. I got a little pushback from that saying, “We still don’t like them playing up there. They’re still our team.”
But the reason the Spurs keep doing that is something that CEO RC Buford told the Express-News way back when these games started. They see their market as spanning from Monterrey in Mexico all the way up to Austin in Central Texas. If you take that market from top to bottom, it’s one of the most lucrative in the country, and they want to expand on all of it. It makes financial sense to develop fans and business partners and all of that in Austin, and playing a couple of games a year is a great way to do that. I still think that applies. When the building opens in downtown San Antonio in 2030 or 2031 or whatever it is, I’m not sure they’re still going to be playing in Austin, but I would not be surprised, Tom, if they continue to do it until then. It works as part of the rodeo trip, I think. Those aren’t home games in the sense that the teams had to take a bus to get there and spend nights in hotels, but I think it provides a bit of a break in that long rodeo road trip every year.
Tom Orsborn: Yes. And how about that win over Detroit?
Mike Finger: You don’t enjoy the going over the Austin thing again?
Tom Orsborn: No.
Mike Finger: It sounds like Tom’s got something to say before we get out of here, so let’s let him talk about the big win last night.
Tom Orsborn: Oh my gosh. Yeah, Wemby, I mean, that was a heck of a game. 21 points, had a poor shooting night, but did so much against such a rugged team. Did so much rebounding, six blocks. You had Castle’s defense against Cunningham, Vassell coming up big. I think that’s the topic today.
Jeff McDonald: Go ahead.
Tom Orsborn: He’s done now. Yeah, I’m done. Covered it.
Mike Finger: How was the coffee in Detroit, Tom?
Tom Orsborn: I’m sorry?
Mike Finger: How was the coffee in Detroit?
Tom Orsborn: Tim Hortons is outstanding. You know, that’s the preferred spot in Toronto, but it’s trickled down here to Detroit as well.
Mike Finger: Would you rather have Tim Hortons coffee or a barista-brewed Americano?
Tom Orsborn: No, I’m always going to go Tim Hortons. As you said, I emailed you a shot of that last night, the Tim Hortons cup, the iconic Tim Hortons red cup, and you said it’s a working man’s cup of coffee. And that was a working man’s win last night by the Spurs.
Mike Finger: I will take you through my train of thought watching that game from start to finish. At the beginning with Victor, well, they started with that 11-0 run, but once both teams got into the game in the first quarter, it was like, oh, the Pistons are being physical with Victor again and this has kind of been the kryptonite against him this year. That’s the book on him; if you push him around a little bit, you can get him to kind of float or to kind of fade.
The Pistons were pushing him when he had the ball, when he didn’t have the ball, knocking him over, and it seemed to work for about a quarter. I was thinking, “Here we go again, this is the thing he’s going to have to figure out for the playoffs.” How to impose his will on a game when people are beating him up. Don’t just go away. You can’t just say, “Oh, they’re being physical with me, I’m just going to go stand over here for a while.” You have to figure out how. And then he did that.
At one point in the third quarter, he was still three of 12 and just dominating the game. Just dominating the best team in the league record-wise. And then ended up with 21 points, which looks great on paper, but the 17 rebounds and the six blocks, I mean, the defense throughout the game, but especially the second half anchored by Victor. You mentioned Stephon Castle; it was pretty much a sight to behold and that was championship-level stuff right there, the way they defended.
And then you have, people will swoop in and say, “Yeah, well, I guess the Pistons aren’t that good, they don’t have enough shooting, and they don’t have enough secondary creation.” All that’s probably true, but it hadn’t been much of a problem for the Pistons all year until yesterday.
Mike Finger: To go back to the “extremely unlikely,” that’s part of it, is for both of those teams who have never been through the playoffs before. Because the Pistons are going to, they play very differently than the Spurs do. Those are two different personalities on that team, two different ways they go about it. But they both have issues in terms of not having been there before, not having figured out how to make adjustments game to game.
One question I had during the game last night, or something that stood out—and maybe this is utter nonsense—but Stephon Castle, been playing great, has exceeded expectations by leaps and bounds so far, is going to be a key this year and beyond. Just a star player. There are still times when he puts his head down, goes to the rim, it depends on whether or not he gets a foul call or not. Those are the types of plays in the playoffs that I wonder are going to be more difficult.
Because Jeff and Tom, you both covered a lot of playoff series over the years. I wonder if those are the types of plays that they’re going to have to adjust to and realize the game gets called differently. Like Detroit didn’t adjust well to what the Spurs were doing last night. There are going to be times when the Spurs have similar challenges. I’m not saying it’s 5% that the Spurs make the Finals, I’m not saying it’s 5% that the Pistons make the Finals. I’m saying that combined, that’s extremely unlikely. It would be fun, though. It would be a good series.
Jeff McDonald: I think we might just be splitting hairs over an adverb there. I mean, unlikely, sure. I think you pick any two teams in the league and I think it’s extremely unlikely both teams get to the Finals. Everybody’s got flaws. Somebody’s got to get there. If you want to figure out what the combination is of who comes from the East and who comes from the West, I think it’s all a small percentage then if you want to get both of them right, because it’s just wide open for everybody.
I don’t see anybody that’s just going to, if you want to talk me into Oklahoma City still the champs, they’ve done it before, they’re good enough clearly, they’re going to get everything together and be completely healthy going into the playoffs and they’re going to be the team that goes out of the West, I would buy that for sure. I’d still say they’re the favorites. But they’ve proven to be vincible, the opposite of invincible. They can get got. So I just don’t think there’s anybody that is just a shoo-in on either side of the bracket. Somebody’s got to do it.
Mike Finger: Tom’s not going to be here all the way. You’ve got three minutes to get in some knowledge before your Uber shows up.
Tom Orsborn: Hey, it was a step. Like you said, Mike, earlier, when I went to LA for that quarterfinal cup game, didn’t think they were going to win there. Then Oklahoma City in Vegas, didn’t think they were going to win there. So they’re taking steps. They passed the test last night. Let’s give them their due.
Mike Finger: I’m giving them their due. Spurs, hey Spurs, Keldon Johnson, Victor Wembanyama. Victor Wembanyama, I know, listens to the podcast. Victor, here’s your due. I’m giving it to you. You’re good at basketball. I’m going to make an admission: Victor Wembanyama is good at basketball. The Spurs are too. There you go. It’s not like this is a Lord of the Rings podcast or something. There’s no way he listens to this.
Jeff McDonald: That’s a good point. There’s whatever science fiction is out there, or just solving the mysteries of the world or science period, he might be listening. He’s listening to Neil deGrasse Tyson if that guy has a podcast.
Mike Finger: Real quickly before you go, Tom, what do you think of Toronto and the New York games coming up the rest of this trip? Do they continue it? Do they keep going?
Tom Orsborn: Yeah, Toronto, I think they play the Thunder tonight. Oh, I’m not sure. No, yeah, but anyway, yeah, I think they’ll keep it going. I think until you boys pick them up in New York. Playing the Knicks, that’ll be another test. Brooklyn’s the only, you know, they’ve got this 12-game stretch, a lot of good teams, a lot of top-seeded teams, a couple of play-in teams. Brooklyn’s the only soft one. So, yeah, I think they keep it going.
Mike Finger: Toronto does play the Thunder tonight. The Thunder will be in town when you get to Toronto, hopefully, Tom. You made it through this East Coast winter weather, Northeast winter weather. I know you got to go through New York. Good luck with that if you have to leave us during this podcast. Jeff and I will continue the nonsense. But travel safe, Tom.
Tom Orsborn: Alright, thank you guys.
Jeff McDonald: Like, they are going to lose a game again at some point. I think that’s clear. I just don’t know where. It’ll be somewhere. It could be in Toronto, it could be in Brooklyn. It’s hard to say. Even the best teams slip up. But it’s getting harder and harder to doubt them at this point. I mean, yes, they’re going to slip up and lose some games, but all those games we thought they were going to lose earlier in the year—“Oh, there’s no way they’re going to go to LA and beat the Lakers in the NBA Cup”—of course they beat the crap out of them. And there’s no way they’re going to beat the Thunder in the NBA Cup semifinals—sure they are. So it’s just hard to see that there’s a game they can’t win or shouldn’t be favored to win. But that said, they are going to lose to somebody. They’re not going to close the season on a 34-game winning streak.
Mike Finger: I think that sort of is a given. And obviously they’re not going to win 34 in a row. But what they’re proving is that they can beat anybody. And they’ve beaten the best teams multiple times. Their record against the Thunder and the Pistons this year is what, five and one? The two best teams in the league. It’s just there’s a difference between “can beat anybody” and “will beat one team in particular four times in seven games.” That’s the big test. And that’s a test that every team goes through.
And we won’t know until it gets there. As Victor Wembanyama said, it’s a useless thing to worry about, a useless question to ponder, whether or not their lack of playoff experience will affect them in the playoffs, because why worry about it now? He acknowledged there is no substitute for playoff experience. I think he knows it, the Spurs know it, but in the meantime, why not just keep beating the crap out of people, as Jeff McDonald said?
What happens is, you get into a playoff series against a team that knows what it’s doing, and it’s like, oh, everything goes up. The intensity goes up, the fouls are called differently, the physicality goes up, the focus goes up, and you don’t know it until you’re in it. And most teams that have not been in it before, you’ve gone two games into the series before you figure it out and now you’re down 0-2 and you lose the series. And that’s probably how the Spurs’ season is going to end at some point in the playoffs, is getting to a series against a team that really knows what it’s doing, and maybe the Spurs figure it out, but figure it out too late, and then that’s stuff that goes into the computer for next season and now maybe they’re the team doing that to other teams.
But nights like Monday night in Detroit kind of show you that they’re more ready because that was playoff-esque. That was a high-profile, intense night, and the Spurs looked like they’d been there before.
One of the more noteworthy developments from those Austin games, which turned into a couple of blowouts, but for the first time, Victor Wembanyama confirmed something that we’d always suspected about a year ago and his blood clot diagnosis. Remember in those games, Jeff, right before the All-Star break in 2025, Victor had looked tired, didn’t he? Just beat down. And we had talked even before we knew anything was wrong with him that man, this season is catching up with him, and he’s hitting a wall, and even though his stat lines weren’t terrible, he was just lumbering.
Because of the way everything developed last year, the way it unfolded, we were never able to confirm that the way he looked was related to what ended up being diagnosed for him, which was deep vein thrombosis in his shoulder and a blood clot that kept him out for the rest of the season, temporarily threatened a lot about his career and about the Spurs’ future. Things ended up being okay, but he said in Austin that he had 5% blood flow through that artery, which as he said doesn’t explain everything but explained a lot. I think more than anything it just provided more reassurance that the reason he looked like he was hitting a wall last year was something that could be corrected, is not going to affect the rest of his career. They’ve come up with a solution that should not affect his long-term health. I just thought that was kind of worthwhile in terms of noting that he’s going to be okay and that there was a reason why he was hitting a wall last year and why he’s not hitting a wall this year. It’s not endurance stuff; there was a reason why he was worn out last year. Did you find that interesting at all?
Jeff McDonald: What struck me was, as everyone will recall, the last basketball he played last year before going on the shelf was the All-Star Game. And he said he told us in Austin that was the worst he’s ever felt on a basketball court, the All-Star Game. And that was, I guess, the last straw that said we got to figure this out, we got to do something about it. And I do agree, he looked like he was hitting a wall, tired, season catching up with him during that stretch of February before the All-Star break last year. But I just looked it up, the second-to-last regular season game he played for the Spurs last year when he was tired was Washington: 31 points, 15 rebounds, three blocks. Even the Boston game he had 17, 13, and two blocks. Earlier that month, it’s 27 and 10, 24 and 12. Charlotte was a 16 and 11, but five blocks. So even in that weakened state, he was dominating things. But yeah, that was the thing that really hit my ears was him talking about the All-Star Game last year and how that was the worst he had ever felt playing basketball.
Mike Finger: And to spin it forward, I mean, he is peaking in a way. And it’s been against less than stellar opponents through a lot of this winning streak, but the blocks are way up. I don’t know if he’s been more aggressive in blocking shots or if teams are just challenging him more, but he’s blocking five shots a night these days. That opening flurry against the Kings in Austin on Saturday, three blocks in a minute! You talked about him dominating the early stretches against Detroit; it looked like the Kings were about to be shut out for 48 minutes the way that game started in Austin. He just comes out ruthless. I thought Victor was going to throw a no-hitter against the Kings.
Jeff McDonald: The first three Kings’ possessions ended in Victor Wembanyama blocks. It was incredible.
Mike Finger: And he said after both of those games in Austin, his reaction was that that’s not exceptional, that should be the standard every night, that that’s what he wants to bring. And it’s not that he is doing anything special at all against teams that are completely overmatched against him, that that should be the baseline. That should be what fans expect when they walk in the door and watch a Victor Wembanyama game, which is just mind-blowing, the way he dominates these games.
And we’re not even getting into his double-windmill dunks and the way that, remember in the early stages of the Wemby era in San Antonio and we talked about the struggles in throwing lob passes to him and how it’s more difficult than it seems and how it’s going to take time? The lobs from Stephon Castle, from De’Aaron Fox, from fellow big men, it seems like the lobs are becoming easier and easier. It’s really impressive. His first couple of years in the league, he has hit these lulls. We have not seen that lull in 2025, 2026 yet, and I’m not sure when it’s coming.
Jeff McDonald: Here’s something you hate talking about, but if the Spurs end up with the one seed in the West, which is not unthinkable—they’re only two games behind the Thunder—and Victor Wembanyama has played 65 games, it’s going to be hard for me not to vote for him, not just put him on my MVP ballot, but put him atop my MVP ballot.
Mike Finger: What’s interesting there, and again I’m not a big award guy, but the MVP this year might win, there’s five solid candidates. There might not be more than one or two or three that qualify of that group, where you’re running low on candidates. Jokic has almost used up his games that he can miss. Luka’s almost used up the games he can miss. Victor only has five more he can miss, something like that. I think Cade Cunningham’s safe. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander can’t miss many.
Jeff McDonald: He’s hurt right now.
Mike Finger: Right, and he’s got some buffer, but those are basically the five big candidates. Three of them might be out and then you might have a two-way race between the two that qualify. So yeah, Victor, even though he hasn’t gotten a ton of MVP buzz, it could get to a point where if he doesn’t miss action the rest of the year, if he limits his missed games to two or three, it might be between him and two other top candidates and you could see a really interesting race there.
Jeff McDonald: You know what, I would be, even if everybody’s eligible, I think I would vote for him if the Spurs end up one in the West. You’d vote for him first? First. Yeah. I mean, that wouldn’t be a terrible vote. And if that happens and he wins and three guys are out, that would kind of suck because you don’t want there to be an asterisk on that. “Oh, he just won because three guys were out.” I think he might have won anyway if all those things come to pass. I mean, it’s all hypothetical. The guy is dominating the league. And are we going to count defense as part of basketball? Because he’s the best defensive player in the world, and that’s half the game. And to do that and average 24 and do some of the things he does on offense, and if the Spurs are winning, and if they’re ahead of the Thunder in the standings, ahead of the Pistons in the standings, it’s hard to see the argument against.
Mike Finger: I would agree with you. There’s a lot to fall into place between now and then, but what this also does is sort of exposes how ridiculous the year-round MVP discourse is. People were having MVP debates in December before Christmas. Like who’s ahead, Jokic or SGA or Luka? It comes down to what you’re talking about. If the Spurs end up being the top seed, which isn’t as unthinkable as it was a few weeks ago, how could he not be the leading candidate? I don’t want to turn this into the 97th MVP debate on NBA podcasts this week. You feel like you’re sub-tweeting our guy Timmy Goodtimes here.
Jeff McDonald: Timmy Goodtimes is the best. There’s no, and this is not any sarcasm, Timmy Goodtimes is the best guy who does the ESPN MVP poll every two weeks throughout the season, keeps everyone apprised of the MVP update. He’s the best guy. Love Tim Bontemps. He’s absolutely independent. Yes, but this isn’t decided until the end. And Victor hasn’t been in the top three of Timmy Goodtimes’ MVP updates the first few times he’s done it. He’s sneaking into the top five now. But if the Spurs are the top seed in the West, I think he should be the presumed frontrunner because he doesn’t match the offensive stats, the points and assists and all that stuff of the Luka guys, but in terms of both sides of the floor impact, I’m not sure anybody comes close, especially if the Spurs are atop the standings.
Jeff McDonald: I’m glad you said both sides of the floor and not both sides of the ball. That one drives me nuts a little bit in basketball.
Mike Finger: I always think of, we’re hitting the end here and Tom’s gone so we have to kind of veer off in strange directions. But covering the famed Bob Knight on the south plains of Lubbock way back in the day, that was one of his pet peeves. He ripped into a guy at a press conference one time for saying “both sides of the ball.” Bob Knight was not a pleasant person to be around a lot, but he knocked that nomenclature, that verbiage out of me for good. I didn’t say it, but I’ll never say it again because that’s not something you say in basketball. Tip to Bob Knight for removing that from my vocabulary. RIP.
Jeff McDonald: He also basically called you a prostitute once, right?
Mike Finger: Oh man, that was the same night, Jeff. This is a great Bob Knight story and this is the Spurs Insider podcast, but I’ll tell it because it’s a really good story. That student reporter, what’s the name of the student paper at Tech, do you know? Is it The Matador?
Jeff McDonald: That sounds right.
Mike Finger: A student reporter asked Bob Knight about playing on both sides of the ball and Bob Knight ripped into him, said, “You don’t know what you’re talking about, that’s not something we talk about in basketball, and you need to come more prepared and show more professionalism, but I would not expect any more from someone who is in your chosen field,” meaning journalism. This guy’s just a journalism student. And he says, “In your chosen field, which is two steps up from prostitution.” And then he stands up and he’s going to storm out. And I said, “Coach, one more question.” And he turns around and he says, “What?” And I said, “What’s in between? What’s the step in between journalism and prostitution?” And it turns out the answer is podcasting. That’s exactly right. He did not give me the answer that day, but 20-some odd years later we have answered it. The answer is podcasting.
So that was a fun trip down memory lane. Don’t say “both sides of the ball.” Don’t say journalism is the same as prostitution because there’s at least a step in between according to Bob Knight. What do we think about the upcoming New York trip? Tom has raced to cover the Toronto game on Wednesday night. After that, it’s two games in New York against the Nets and Knicks, one against the Sixers, and then the rodeo trip is over. Can the winning streak last through the rest of this trip?
Jeff McDonald: Sure it can. Will it? I don’t know. I’m looking forward to the game at Madison Square Garden because I was not at the one last season on Christmas Day. I was not at the NBA Cup Final, and both those were amazing games. I’m looking forward to the atmosphere there with Wemby and a good Spurs team going in there. A game that ought to feel a little playoff-y, I would think, both those teams being pretty good.
Mike Finger: Another potential Finals matchup. Another unlikely Finals matchup, but those are fun. The Knicks are up there. The Knicks, more than the Pistons, have been through the postseason battles before, know how to navigate the big stage. So that will be a fun one. Well, and we’re going to see our old friend, Jeremy Sochan. He has been getting some minutes for the Knicks, not a lot of minutes. It’s been interesting, sort of unscientific, but seeing the feedback on Knicks Twitter where they signed Jeremy Sochan and they’re talking themselves into a 22-year-old former top-10 pick coming over, and then now they’re at the “Wait a minute, he can’t shoot or do anything on offense” phase. They’ve already learned why he didn’t fit with the Spurs. I hope it goes well for him there. That seems like a very high-pressure situation to play basketball in New York. I hope Jeremy can handle it.
And then after we see Jeremy in New York, that might be the end of just the countless minutes of this podcast have been dedicated over the past four years to a guy who played NBA basketball. That’s more than most of us have ever done, but much ado about not a whole lot in the end. It’s the way a lot of careers work. There was hope, there wasn’t, now there’s hope in San Antonio now that he’s gone. Not because he’s gone, but now that he’s gone the Spurs are going to move on to bigger and better things. Maybe Jeremy will move on to bigger and better things with the Knicks. We look forward to that game, we look forward to all the games this week and the rest of the season. And until next time, take care of each other and keep it real.