By Jacob Douglas | Pounding The Rock (PtR), 2026-04-05 16:22:05
圣安东尼奥马刺 (San Antonio Spurs) 此前的十连胜期间并没有太多值得总结的地方。大部分比赛都是针对摆烂球队或阵容残缺的球队，胜负往往在半场前就已尘埃落定。随着季后赛临近，外界开始出现担忧的声音，认为这支年轻球队在真正关键的比赛开始前，还没有经历过足够的逆境。
在以134-136不敌丹佛掘金 (Denver Nuggets) 的比赛中，马刺确实遭遇了重重困境。尽管在87%的比赛时间里都保持领先，但圣安东尼奥在关键时刻（clutch time）未能稳住阵脚，在比赛还剩一分半钟时丢掉了6分的领先优势，让丹佛人将比赛拖入加时并最终带走胜利。
几次愚蠢的失误葬送了比赛。维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 和朱利安·尚帕尼 (Julian Champagnie) 在防守掩护时缺乏沟通，没能明确是否换防，导致两名马刺防守者都去扑尼古拉·约基奇 (Nikola Jokic)，漏掉了阿隆·戈登 (Aaron Gordon) 让他轻松完成空位扣篮。德亚伦·福克斯 (De’Aaron Fox) 在面对约基奇尝试胯下运球干拔跳投时手滑丢球，运球失误导致投篮偏出。球队落位发起进攻的速度太慢，导致进攻难以顺畅运转。当然，还有福克斯和德文·瓦塞尔 (Devin Vassell) 之间那个搞砸了的快攻配合，那本可以在加时赛中扳平比分。
虽然这只是一场常规赛，但考虑到掘金正在争夺西部第三，这场球打出了季后赛的强度。马刺明白，在高强度的比赛中，若想赢得总冠军，他们必须在球场表现上达到另一个完美的境界。当压力陡增时，他们必须在比赛末段展现出执行力。球员和教练组需要找到方法，让核心球员在有利的位置接球得分，即使对手正在对他们进行针对性布防。然后，就看这些球员能否打出关键表现了。
好消息是，马刺在没有真正季后赛风险的情况下吸取了这一教训。在真正关键的比赛到来前，他们还有四场比赛来调整状态。周六的失利告诉他们，如果想要具备竞争力，就必须提升到更高的水准。
关键总结：
- 文班亚马与约基奇的对决是一场精彩绝伦的较量。 两位外籍超级巨星在大舞台上的对决，如果能打满七场系列赛，那将是这项运动的特别时刻。约基奇是篮球界少数几个拥有极佳手感、能让球越过文班亚马头顶并稳稳命中的球员之一。他的身体控制力和投射能力使他成为马刺大个子的一个极具挑战性的对手。另一方面，文班能够顶住丹佛强硬的防守冲击篮下，走上罚球线并把握住机会。圣安东尼奥利用文班作为掩护者，迫使对方小个后卫换防到他面前，从而在禁区制造错位优势。文班全场砍下34分、18个篮板、7次助攻和5次盖帽，而约基奇则贡献了40分、8个篮板、13次助攻和3次盖帽。
- 马刺尝试了几种不同的方案来限制约基奇。 他们的首选是让文班一对一单防。这在某些时刻奏效了，但在关键时刻，迫使他出球或许是更好的选择。他们还尝试用凯尔登·约翰逊 (Keldon Johnson) 这种体型较小但对抗强硬的防守者去顶防，而让文班担任协防扫荡者（roamer）。看起来约基奇在这种防守体系下杀伤力最大，因为他避开了文班，在身材较矮的防守者头上得分。我很期待看到“法式香草 (French Vanilla)”阵容对阵丹佛。卢克·科内特 (Luke Kornet) 无法一对一防住约基奇，事实上没人能做到。但科内特拥有足够的体型和力量在内线卡位，而文班则可以作为盖帽手四处游走。在进攻端，我们也看到了科内特和文班配合得很好。虽然没有办法彻底防死约基奇，但也许“法式香草”组合能让他慢下来。
- 另一方面，马刺已经找到了一套相当合理的末节进攻策略。 即通过换防让对方的小个后卫对上文班，然后以此展开进攻。掘金的应对方案是让戈登去防文班，这样当换防发生时，一名身体素质出众、运动能力极强的防守者会去缠绕马刺的后卫，让他们很难把球传给文班。这就是福克斯在第四节末段投出三不沾三分球时发生的情况。除此之外，文班在比赛末段只要在禁区附近接球，就会面临两到三人的包夹。在某种程度上，马刺的其他球员必须站出来，击败那些重点盯防文班的防守。
- 福克斯必须表现得更好，尤其是在关键时刻。 他来到这支球队就是为了在重大时刻挺身而出的。这位前“年度关键球员”全年的表现都很稳健，但在对阵丹佛时却掉链子了。不仅是投篮不中，他在转换进攻中给瓦塞尔那个失败的空接传球，以及在比赛末段面对严密防守时的运球失误，都是严重伤害球队的错误。他将有机会完成救赎，并在季后赛中证明自己为何是马刺的二号球星。
- 马刺的投手们在周六挺身而出。 尚帕尼、瓦塞尔和哈里森·巴恩斯 (Harrison Barnes) 都在外线命中投篮。三人合力在外线20投11中。这些球员能投进球，对于圣安东尼奥在季后赛取得成功至关重要。
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 Nuggets
What we learned from the Spurs loss to the Nuggets
There hasn’t been much to learn from the San Antonio Spurs’ 10-game winning streak. Most of the games were against tanking or shorthanded teams, and the result was decided before halftime. With only a handful of games left before the playoffs, there have been murmurings of concern that the young team hasn’t faced enough adversity before the games really start to count.
The Spurs faced plenty of adversity in their 136-134 loss to the Denver Nuggets. Despite leading for 87% of the game, San Antonio couldn’t execute in clutch time, letting go of a 6-point lead with a minute and a half remaining, allowing Denver to force overtime and eventually secure the victory.
Several silly mistakes beat the team. Victor Wembanyama and Julian Champagnie failed to communicate if they were switching screens, which led to Aaron Gordon getting a wide-open dunk after both Spurs defenders went to guard Jokic. De’Aaron Fox fumbled the ball while trying to go between the legs on a jumper over Jokic, and mishandled his dribble, forcing an errant shot. They were too slow to get into their sets, making it hard to run offense. Of course, there was the blown fast break between Fox and Devin Vassell that would have tied the game in overtime.
It may have just been the regular season, but with the Nuggets fighting for the third seed, this felt like a playoff game. The Spurs learned that in a high-stakes game, there is another level of basketball perfection they must reach to win a championship. They have to execute late in the game when the pressure goes up another level. The players and the coaching staff have to find ways to get their best players the ball in advantageous situations to score, even when the opposing team is honing in on them. Then, it’s on those players to make big plays.
The good news is the Spurs learned this lesson without there being actual playoff stakes. They have four more games to right the ship before it really counts. Saturday’s loss showed them there is another level they must get to if they want to contend.
Takeaways:
- Wembanyama vs. Jokic was an outstanding battle. A 7-game series between the two would be a special moment for the sport, as two foreign-born superstars duel on a huge stage. Jokic is one of the few players in basketball who has the touch to get the ball over Wembanyama and still make the shot. His body control and shotmaking ability make him a fascinating matchup for the Spurs’ big man. On the flip side, Wembanyama was able to play through the physical Denver defense to get to the free-throw line and convert. San Antonio used Wembanyama as a screener to get smaller guards switched onto him, creating a mismatch he could exploit in the paint. Wembanyama had 34 points, 18 rebounds, 7 assists, and 5 blocks, while Jokic had 40 points, 8 rebounds, 13 assists, and 3 blocks.
- The Spurs tried a few different approaches to guarding Jokic. Their primary option was to have Wembanyama guard him one-on-one. It worked some times, but in the clutch, it may have been better for them to get the ball out of his hands. They used smaller, physical defenders, like Keldon Johnson, to guard him while Wembanyama acted as a roamer. It seemed like Jokic did most of his damage against this defensive scheme, as he avoided Wemby and scored over the smaller defender. I’d be interested in seeing the French Vanilla lineup against Denver. Luke Kornet can’t guard Jokic 1-on-1; no one can. But Kornet has the size and strength to hold position against Jokic inside, while Wembanyama roams as a shot blocker. Offensively, we’ve seen Kornet and Wembanyama play well together. There is no way to stop Jokic, but maybe French Vanilla could slow him down.
- On the flip side, the Spurs have found a pretty sound end-of-game offensive strategy. Get a smaller guard switched on to Wembanyama and then play off that. The counter for Denver was to put Aaron Gordon on Wembanyama, so when the switch happens, a physical, athletic defender was hounding the guards, making it hard for them to get Wemby the ball. This is what happened on the airball three from Fox late in the fourth quarter. On top of that, Wembanyama faced two to three defenders every time he touched the ball near the paint late in the game. To a certain point, the rest of the Spurs are going to have to beat opposing defenses that key in on Wembanyama.
- Fox has to be better, especially in the clutch. He’s on the team to come up in big moments. The former clutch player of the year has been solid year-round, but faltered against Denver. It’s not just that his shot wasn’t falling, but the failed lob to Vassell in transition, and losing his handle against tight defense late in the game were mistakes that really hurt the team. He’ll have a chance to redeem himself and show why he’s the Spurs’ second star in the playoffs.
- The Spurs’ shooters stepped up on Saturday. Champagnie, Vassell, and Harrison Barnes hit shots from deep. Combined, the trio was 11-for-20 from deep. Having those players hit shots is crucial to San Antonio’s playoff success.
By Jacob Douglas, via Pounding The Rock