By Tom Orsborn, Staff Writer | San Antonio Express-News (SAEN), 2026-03-27 13:17:48
2026年1月7日，星期三，在圣安东尼奥霜银中心，圣安东尼奥马刺队前锋凯尔登·约翰逊 (3号) 在庆祝马刺队以107-91战胜洛杉矶湖人队时，被队友们嬉闹着拍打。约翰逊得到全场最高的27分。
密尔沃基——在迈阿密最近的一次投篮训练结束后，马刺队的老将哈里森·巴恩斯 (Harrison Barnes) 刚坐下来准备接受媒体群访，一名喧闹且调皮的队友就偷偷溜到他身后，大声干扰采访。
在凯尔登·约翰逊 (Keldon Johnson) 终于跑去别处找乐子几秒钟后，33岁的巴恩斯被问到了一个显而易见的问题：
“他们怎么还没让你崩溃？”
“这是我待过的最年轻、可能也是最有活力的一群人，”这位征战联盟14年的老兵巴恩斯说道，“我见过许多被选中的年轻人，但这一届绝对是目前为止最年轻的。”
而26岁、肩膀宽阔的NBA最佳第六人候选人约翰逊，正是这群人的“领头羊”。正如从超级巨星维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 到新秀迪伦·哈珀 (Dylan Harper) 所言，他是球队的“灵魂人物”。
“无论什么时候，他都能带来活力，”文班亚马说道。
从在更衣室里拎着像水泥块一样沉重的音响，到赛前、赛中和赛后仰头发出震耳欲聋的呐喊，再到不停地和每一个人开玩笑，约翰逊就像一个行走的、永不停歇的派对。
随着马刺队在他七年职业生涯中首次开启赢球模式，他本赛季的快乐程度已经爆表。
无论是充当文班亚马的理发师为其剃头，还是将凡妮莎·卡尔顿的《A Thousand Miles》选为球队非官方主题曲；无论是谈论用他的NBA杯奖金为他在博尔尼的牧场买一只羊驼，还是在俾斯麦·比永博 (Bismack Biyombo) 为刚果举办的拍卖会上，跳下座位大声庆祝自己在竞拍画作时赢过了马刺总经理布莱恩·莱特 (Brian Wright)——约翰逊对这支球队来说，简直是“瞬息全宇宙”般的存在。
“他以前就很吵，但我认为现在更吵了，”巴恩斯说道，“我不知道这是因为赢球了，还是因为他在这个群体里感到更自在了，但声音绝对是更大了。”
正如格雷格·波波维奇 (Gregg Popovich) 在约翰逊的新秀赛季所总结的那样，马刺队从这种热情中获益匪浅。这就是为什么这位名人堂教练决定，让当时年仅20岁、来自弗吉尼亚农村地区的29号秀多留在母队，而不是去发展联盟的奥斯汀马刺队打球。
“我记得在某个阶段，波波说：‘好吧，他需要留在球队身边。他有太多的正能量和极具感染力的个性，我们现在正需要这个，’”现任马刺队主帅、前波波维奇助手米奇·约翰逊 (Mitch Johnson) 说道，“接着你就看到，他带着音响，大声放着玛丽亚·凯莉的歌，拉马库斯·阿尔德里奇 (LaMarcus Aldridge) 和德玛尔·德罗赞 (DeMar DeRozan) 都在想：‘这孩子到底是谁？’”
波波维奇的举动让约翰逊得以毫无顾忌地释放个性。但这位肯塔基大学旧将带给球队的远不止快乐。从他第一次踏上球场直到今天，他那强硬、勇猛的“大身体 (Big Body)”球风为马刺队奠定了基调。
“你随处可见他的身影，”米奇·约翰逊说道，“这孩子总是在地板上摸爬滚打。每一场比赛，他为了球队的利益不惜让自己置身险境。他是球队的灵魂人物。我们有很多个性鲜明的球员，也有球队门面（文班亚马），但这家伙才是灵魂。”
约翰逊在周六下午对阵雄鹿队的比赛前，场均贡献13.0分和5.5个篮板。在周三晚上123-98战胜孟菲斯的比赛（他得到15分和7个篮板）之前，他在接受《快报》采访时表示，接管更衣室从来不是他的目标，他只是在做自己。
“我从小到大一直都是这样，”谈到自己的充沛精力时，他说道，“我总是房间里声音最大的那个人。我一直很外向、很快乐，我只是把这种状态带到了工作中。我觉得我拥有世界上最好的工作。我每天都能做自己热爱的事情。当我来到这里，与这些了不起的队友、教练以及这个伟大的组织一起工作时，这就是我真实状态的体现。”
约翰逊小时候在学校里，他那停不下来的精力有时会让他被老师找麻烦，这让他学到了宝贵的一课。“你必须学会什么时候开启，什么时候关闭，”他说道。
不过，马刺队从未因为他太吵或太亢奋而责备过他。
2025年11月20日，星期四，在圣安东尼奥霜银中心，圣安东尼奥马刺队前锋凯尔登·约翰逊 (3号) 在第二节对阵亚特兰大老鹰队的比赛中进球后做出反应。
“这就是我日复一日的真实样子，”他说道，“我只是努力待在这里，每天为队友们出现，每天做一个负责任的人，做好我的工作。无论进展顺利还是糟糕，我都坚持做自己。很高兴知道这得到了认可。我很感激他们允许我做自己。”
马刺队前锋德文·瓦塞尔 (Devin Vassell) 是在约翰逊的新秀赛季之后被选中的，他发誓从未见过自己的好友有过心情糟糕的时候。
“他不会表现出来的，我可以告诉你这一点，”瓦塞尔说道，“无论他的个人生活发生了什么，他总是以同样的方式出现，总是那么快乐、积极，带动每一个人。这正是球队需要的。”
瓦塞尔表示，对约翰逊性格的真正考验是在他们一起度过的那些艰难岁月里。“我们经历过连输10场、12场、14场的时候，但他依然是那个‘KJ’，”瓦塞尔说道，“这是我最敬佩他的一点。”
米奇·约翰逊认为，“灵魂人物”这个标签是对这位目前球队效力时间最长的球员的完美描述。
“这反映了他的性格以及他对这个组织的承诺，”教练说道，“我们有很多球员正在打出一个非常出色的赛季，他们才华横溢，拥有各自的一系列荣誉和成就。但我相信，他们中的每一个人都已经或将会声明，他才是这支球队的灵魂。”
迪伦·哈珀正在为《马刺直播赛前秀》接受 @DanWeissPBP 的采访，而“凯尔登·约翰逊教授”路过抢镜
氛围拉满！距离季后赛还有10场比赛！ pic.twitter.com/HpU5zpicJ2
— Jacob Tobey (@JacobRTobey) 2026年3月25日
在周三孟菲斯的投篮训练中，约翰逊又“乱入”了另一位队友的采访，这一次他溜进了新秀哈珀与马刺电台解说员丹·维斯 (Dan Weiss) 的座谈中。
“他每天都是这样，”哈珀说道。
而马刺队也正希望他如此。
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：Keldon Johnson opens up about being 'heart and soul' of Spurs
Keldon Johnson opens up about being ‘heart and soul’ of Spurs
San Antonio Spurs forward Keldon Johnson (3) is playfully hit by his teammates as they celebrate the Spurs’ 107-91 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. Johnson was the Spurs’ lead scorer with 27 points.
MILWAUKEE — Spurs elder statesman Harrison Barnes had just settled into a media scrum Q&A after a recent shootaround in Miami when a boisterous, mischievous teammate snuck up behind him to loudly disrupt things.
Seconds after Keldon Johnson finally moved on to have fun elsewhere, the 33-year-old Barnes got hit with an obvious question:
“How have they not made you lose your mind?”
“It is the youngest and probably the most energetic group I’ve been a part of,” said Barnes, a 14th-year pro. “I’ve had young guys who have been drafted and been around, but this group is by far the youngest, for sure.”
And Johnson, the 26-year-old broad-shouldered NBA Sixth Man of the Year candidate, is the ringleader, or as everyone from superstar Victor Wembanyama to rookie Dylan Harper has put it, the “heart and soul” of the team.
“He brings energy no matter what time of the day,” Wembanyama said.
From toting around his concrete block-like boom box in the locker room to tilting his head back to shout at an ear-splitting level before, during and after games to his non-stop banter with anyone and everyone, Johnson is a one-man, non-stop party.
And with the Spurs winning for the first time in his seven-year career, his joy has been off the charts this season.
Whether serving as Wembanyama’s head-shaving barber, picking Vanessa Carlton’s “A Thousand Miles” as the team’s unofficial theme song, talking about using his NBA Cup windfall to buy a llama for his Boerne ranch or jumping out of his seat to loudly celebrate outbidding Spurs general manager Brian Wright to win a painting at Bismack Biyombo’s auction for the Congo, Johnson has been everything everywhere all at once for the team.
“He was loud, but I think it’s gotten even louder,” Barnes said. “I don’t know if that’s winning. I don’t know if that’s just more comfort in the group, but it’s definitely louder.”
And as Gregg Popovich concluded during Johnson’s rookie season, the Spurs benefit greatly from all that enthusiasm. It’s why the Hall of Fame coach decided that the then-20-year-old 29th overall pick from rural Virginia needed to spend more time with the big club rather than playing for Austin in the G League.
“I remember at a certain stage, Pop said, ‘Well, he needs to be around the team. He’s got too much positive energy and too good of an infectious personality. We need that right now,’” current Spurs coach and former Popovich assistant Mitch Johnson said. “And next thing you know, he was bringing a boom box, thumping Mariah Carey, and LaMarcus Aldridge and DeMar DeRozan were, like, ‘Who the hell is this kid?’”
Popovich’s move empowered Johnson to unabashedly let his personality flow. But the Kentucky-ex brought so much more to the team than his fun-loving ways. From the first time he stepped onto the court through present day, his bold, hard-charging “Big Body” style sets a tone for the Spurs.
“You see it all over the place,” Mitch Johnson said. “The kid’s just falling on the floor. He puts his body in harm’s way for the betterment of the team every game. He is the heart and soul of the team. We got a lot of big personalities and we got a face of the franchise (in Wembanyama), but that guy’s the heart and soul.”
Johnson, who will enter Saturday afternoon’s game against the Bucks averaging 13.0 points and 5.5 rebounds, said it was never his goal to take over the locker room. In an interview with the Express-News before he had 15 points and seven rebounds in Wednesday night’s 123-98 win over Memphis, he said he’s just being himself.
“That’s always been me since I was a little kid,” he said of his exuberance. “I’ve always been the loudest person in the room. I’ve always been outgoing and happy, and I just continue to carry it over to my job. I feel like I have the best job in the world. I get to do something I love each and every day. And that’s just a reflection of when I get to come in and work with these amazing, amazing teammates, amazing coaches, and an amazing organization.”
When Johnson was a kid in school, his relentless energy sometimes got him in trouble with his teachers, which taught him a valuable lesson
“You just got to learn when to kind of turn it on and turn it off,” he said.
The Spurs, though, have never chastised him for being too loud or hyper.
San Antonio Spurs forward Keldon Johnson (3) reacts to making a basket against the Atlanta Hawks in the second quarter at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025.
“It’s just who I am day in, day out,” he said. “I just try to be here, show up each and every day for my teammates, be the same accountable person each and every day and just come in and do my job. Regardless if they’re going good or if they’re going bad, just continue to be myself. And it’s good to know that it’s appreciated. I’m glad they have allowed me to be myself.”
Spurs forward Devin Vassell, who the Spurs drafted after Johnson’s rookie season, swears he’s never seen his friend have a bad day.
“He wouldn’t show it, I’ll let you know that,” Vassell said. “No matter what’s going on in his personal life, he always comes in same way, always happy, positive, getting everybody going. And that’s what you need.”
Vassell said the true test of Johnson’s character came during their lean years together.
“We were going through stretches where we were losing 10, 12, 14 games in a row and he was still being ‘KJ,’” Vassell said. “That’s what I respect the most about him.”
Mitch Johnson believes the “heart and soul” label is a perfect description for the franchise’s current longest-tenured player.
“It’s just a reflection of his character and his commitment to the organization,” the coach said. “We have a lot of guys that are having really good years, guys that are very talented and have their own laundry list of accolades and things that they’ve accomplished. And every single one of them has, or would, I believe, state that he’s the heart and soul of the team.”
Dylan Harper filming an interview with @ DanWeissPBP for Spurs Live Pregame and Professor Keldon Johnson stops by
Vibes are HIGH! 10 games left until playoffs! pic.twitter.com/HpU5zpicJ2
— Jacob Tobey (@ JacobRTobey) March 25, 2026
At shootaround Wednesday in Memphis, Johnson crashed another teammates’ interview, this time sneaking his way into a sit-down chat between rookie Dylan Harper and Spurs radio voice Dan Weiss.
“This is who he is every day,” Harper said.
And the Spurs wouldn’t have it any other way.
By Tom Orsborn, Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News