By Jeff McDonald, Staff Writer | San Antonio Express-News (SAEN), 2026-04-01 15:22:00
2024年11月23日周六，在圣安东尼奥 Frost Bank 中心举行的 NBA 比赛上半场，金州勇士队后卫斯蒂芬·库里 (Stephen Curry) (30) 在运球过场时盯着圣安东尼奥马刺队后卫斯蒂芬·卡斯尔 (Stephon Castle) (5)。卡斯尔经常承担马刺队最艰巨的防守任务，他正在为入选 NBA 最佳防守阵容积攒筹码。
旧金山讯——周三，金州勇士队宣布全明星后卫斯蒂芬·库里 (Stephen Curry) 因右膝伤势连续第 26 场缺阵。
在追逐中心球馆得知这一消息后，马刺队后卫斯蒂芬·卡斯尔 (Stephon Castle) 并不是最失望的人。
但他肯定排在失望名单的前列。
“我希望我们面对的每一支球队的最强球员都能上场，”卡斯尔在勇士主场的晨间投篮训练后说道，“他不能打真的很遗憾。”
这种迎接所有挑战的态度自卡斯尔高中时期起就是他的招牌。
正是这种心态，让 21 岁的卡斯尔有望职业生涯首次入选 NBA 最佳防守阵容。
卡斯尔每晚的防守对位名单就像是 NBA 超级巨星的名录，涵盖了各种体型和风格——库里、俄克拉荷马城的谢伊·吉尔杰斯-亚历山大 (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander)、洛杉矶湖人队的卢卡·东契奇 (Luka Donĉić)、底特律的凯德·坎宁安 (Cade Cunningham)、波士顿的杰伦·布朗 (Jaylen Brown)、菲尼克斯的德文·布克 (Devin Booker)、休斯顿的凯文·杜兰特 (Kevin Durant) 和阿尔佩伦·申京 (Alperen Şengün)。
诸如此类，不胜枚举。
“他防守的那些球员唯一的共同点就是，他们始终是球队的第一进攻选择，”马刺队主教练米奇·约翰逊 (Mitch Johnson) 说道。
谈到马刺队的防守——在周三的比赛前排名 NBA 第三——身高 7 英尺 4 英寸的维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 是那个抢尽风头的防守核心。
然而，在对手球员进入禁区挑战（或不敢挑战）这位联盟盖帽王之前，他们必须先过马刺后场那辆 6 英尺 6 英寸、220 磅重的“麦克货车”这一关。
卡斯尔的“猎杀名单”令人印象深刻。
在圣诞大战客场战胜俄克拉荷马城的比赛中，他协助将曾经以及未来的 NBA MVP 热门人选吉尔杰斯-亚历山大的命中率限制在 19 投 7 中。
今年 2 月，他死缠烂打让坎宁安打出了 26 投 5 中的惨淡表现。去年 11 月，东契奇在面对卡斯尔时也遭遇了 26 投 9 中的噩梦。
还有在休斯顿的那一晚，卡斯尔在让杜兰特打得极其难受之余，还换防到了全明星中锋申京身上，从而切断了火箭队在比赛末段的进攻。
“当他施压时，很多球队甚至不想把球运过半场，”马刺队后卫德文·瓦塞尔 (Devin Vassell) 说道，“或者他们会尝试挡拆，或者干脆把球传出去。”
卡斯尔的防守造诣是他上赛季获得最佳新秀的重要因素。
教练和队友们表示，在他的第二个 NBA 赛季，他在持球防守和无球防守方面都有了进步。
“他能够贴身防守，且现在已经打出了名声，这让他可以增加身体对抗，裁判也会默许他的一些冲撞和推挤，这能让你成为一名非常优秀的防守者，”瓦塞尔说道，“而这正是他所擅长的。”
卡斯尔入选最佳防守阵容的呼声得到了文班亚马的有力支持，后者看起来极有希望在今年春天晚些时候赢得他的首座 NBA 年度最佳防守球员奖杯。
文班亚马预计到赛季结束时，卡斯尔的名字会和他一起出现在两支 NBA 最佳防守阵容之一。
“他原本就很出色，”文班亚马说道，“但我们多次让他去对位顶级球员，他每次都给出了回应。他在防守端真的非常令人印象深刻。”
卡斯尔一直认为自己是个“巨人杀手”，这可以追溯到他在佐治亚州科温顿纽顿高中的日子。
他不仅愿意接受最困难的防守对位，还经常主动请缨。
“在高中时，这可能更多是出于自尊心，”卡斯尔说，“看到那些排名在我前面的球员，那些和我有同样大学之路的球员。如果我看到有人被过度吹捧，我就想看看他到底有几分本事。”
卡斯尔在康涅狄格大学的一年里继续统治防守端，他的坚韧是哈士奇队夺得 2024 年 NCAA 全美冠军的核心驱动力。
2025 年 4 月 9 日周三，在旧金山追逐中心举行的金州勇士队对阵圣安东尼奥马刺队的比赛下半场，斯蒂芬·库里 (30) 在朱利安·尚帕尼 (Julian Champagnie) (30) 和斯蒂芬·卡斯尔 (5) 的防守下投篮。马刺队凭借哈里森·巴恩斯 (Harrison Barnes) (40) 的最后一秒三分球以 114-111 获胜。
巧合的是，卡斯尔记忆中在 NBA 的第一场焦点对决正是对阵库里。
“新秀赛季早期我们就打过勇士，”卡斯尔说，“他可能是我面对的第一批超级巨星之一。”
马刺在 2024 年 11 月 23 日的那场比赛中以 104-94 击败了金州。卡斯尔表现出色，协助将库里的表现限制在 16 投 5 中。
但毫无疑问，库里也曾给过他教训。
在去年 11 月早些时候的三天内，库里两次将 Frost Bank 中心变成了他的私人游乐场，尽管卡斯尔竭尽全力，库里仍在金州连续获胜的两场比赛中合砍 95 分。
库里在其中第二场胜利中砍下的 49 分至今仍是他本赛季的最高得分。
如果卡斯尔本周来到湾区是打算向这位两届 MVP 复仇的话，库里那不争气的右膝粉碎了他的计划。
这让卡斯尔感到非常遗憾。
“他算是这支（勇士）球队的引擎，我总是很享受和他交手，”卡斯尔说，“迎接这些挑战是我非常适应的事情。”
而这应该会让联盟其他球队感到不安。
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：Could Spurs put two on All-Defensive team? Stephon Castle making case
Could Spurs put two on All-Defensive team? Stephon Castle making case
Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) stares down San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle (5) as he brings the ball up court during the first half of their NBA game at the Frost Bank Center on Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024 in San Antonio. Castle often draws the toughest defensive assignment for the Spurs, and he’s building a case for NBA All-Defensive team.
SAN FRANCISCO — The Golden State Warriors ruled All-Star guard Stephen Curry out for the 26th consecutive game Wednesday with a right knee injury.
Spurs guard Stephon Castle wasn’t the most disappointed person at the Chase Center to learn the news.
But he was certainly high on the list.
“I want the best player on every team that we play against to play,” Castle said after the Spurs’ morning walkthrough on the Warriors’ home court. “It sucks to have him out.”
That take-on-all-comers approach has been Castle’s calling card since he was in high school.
It is a mentality that has the 21-year-old Castle on the brink of possibly earning his first NBA All-Defensive honors.
Castle’s nightly defensive assignments read like a who’s who of NBA superstars of all shapes and sizes — Curry, Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Los Angeles Lakers’ Luka Donĉić, Detroit’s Cade Cunningham, Boston’s Jaylen Brown, Phoenix’s Devin Booker, Houston’s Kevin Durant and Alperen Şengün.
Etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.
“The only thing that’s really similar with the guys that he guards is they’re always a primary option,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said.
When it comes to the Spurs’ defense — ranked third in the NBA heading into Wednesday — Victor Wembanyama is the 7-foot-4 scene-stealer.
Before opposing players can approach to the paint to challenge (or not) the league’s leading shot-blocker, however, they first must make it past a 6-foot-6, 220-pound Mack truck in the Spurs’ backcourt.
Castle’s hit list has been impressive.
On the Christmas Day win at Oklahoma City, he helped hold Gilgeous-Alexander — the once and perhaps future NBA MVP — to a 7-of-19 shooting performance.
In February, he hounded Cunningham into a brutal 5-of-26 night. Doncic had a 9-of-26 nightmare against Castle in November.
There was the night in Houston in which Castle took a break from the duty of making Durant’s life miserable to switch onto the Şengün, an All-Star center, thereby short-circuiting the Rockets’ late-game offense.
“A lot of teams don’t even want to bring the ball up when he’s pressuring them,” Spurs guard Devin Vassell said. “Or they’re trying to set a screen, or they’re just trying to pass it.”
Castle’s defensive chops factored into his Rookie of the Year win last season.
He has improved both on and off the ball in his second NBA campaign, coaches and teammates say.
“Him being able to get into people’s chests and him having that reputation now to where he could be a little bit more physical and he can get away with some of them bumps and pushes, that allows you to become a really good defender,” Vassell said. “And that’s what he’s been able to excel in.”
Castle’s all-defense case has the notable support of Wembanyama, who appears to be a shoo-in to win his first NBA Defensive Player of the Year award later this spring.
By season’s end, Wembanyama expects to see Castle’s name next to his on one of the two NBA All-Defensive teams.
“He was already good,” Wembanyama said. “But we put him on some top guys multiple times, and he’s answered every time. He’s really, really impressive defensively.”
Castle has always considered himself something of a giant slayer, dating to his earliest days on campus at Newton High School in Covington, Ga.
Not only was he willing to take on the most difficult defensive matchup, he often demanded it.
“In high school, it was probably more just pride,” Castle said. “Seeing guys ranked ahead of me, guys who have the same path going into college. I see somebody getting a lot of hype, I want to see what it’s about.”
Castle continued to dominate the defensive end for one season in college at Connecticut, where his tenacity was a driving force behind the Huskies’ surge to the 2024 NCAA national championship.
Stephen Curry (30) puts up a shot defended by Julian Champagnie (30) and Stephon Castle (5) in the second half as the Golden State Warriors played the San Antonio Spurs at Chase Center in San Francisco, on Wednesday, April 9, 2025. The Spurs won 114-111 on a last second 3-point basket by Harrison Barnes (40) and
The first marquee matchup Castle remembers in the NBA, coincidentally enough, was Curry.
“We played the Warriors early in my rookie year,” Castle said. “He was probably one of the first big superstars that I played against.”
The Spurs won that Nov. 23, 2024, game against Golden State 104-94. Castle made his mark, helping limit Curry to a 5-of-16 performance.
Make no mistake. Curry has gotten in his licks as well.
Twice in three nights earlier last November, Curry made the Frost Bank Center into his personal playground despite Castle’s best efforts, totaling 95 points in consecutive Golden State victories.
The 49 points Curry posted in the second of those wins remains his season high.
If Castle arrived in the Bay Area this week intent on gaining revenge against the two-time MVP, Curry’s balky right knee scuttled those plans.
Much to Castle’s chagrin.
“He’s kind of the engine for this (Warriors) team, and I always enjoy playing against him, Castle said. “Taking on those challenges is something I’m very comfortable with.”
And that should make the rest of the league uncomfortable.
By Jeff McDonald, Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News