By Jared Weiss | The Athletic, 2026-04-11 10:00:36
《The Athletic》正在直播 NBA常规赛收官战。
德克萨斯州博尔内 —— 穿过成堆的干草和一群小羊羔组成的迷宫，凯尔登·约翰逊 (Keldon Johnson) 发现了他家庭的新成员：一只黑白相间的大羊驼。
去年12月，这位26岁的球员曾表示，他想用圣安东尼奥马刺队打进NBA杯决赛的奖金买一只大羊驼。由于价格比预想的要便宜得多，他在复活节周末为自己位于德克萨斯州希尔乡村的牧场买了两只。它们刚好在《The Athletic》来访前运抵。
他给这两只大羊驼取名为邦妮 (Bonnie) 和克莱德 (Clyde)。很快，原因就显而易见了：它们总是在跟踪每一个人（无论是人还是动物），但当约翰逊走过去打招呼时，它们又会立刻跑开。
“我觉得它们不会让我靠得太近，”约翰逊笑着说，“它们还在适应环境，所以我还没真正见识到它们的个性。但我认为它们会是农场的好成员，它们会适应得很好。”
约翰逊深谙化学反应之道，这是他最强大的技能。这也是为什么他是赢得年度最佳第六人的头号热门。作为马刺阵中效力时间最长的球员，他在职业生涯前四个赛季绝大多数时间担任首发后，如今已欣然接受了替补角色。尽管被移至替补席，但他仍是球队从上赛季的乐透球队跃升至全联盟战绩第二的关键。
他在场上贡献良多，在场均23.3分钟的出场时间里能得到13.1分和5.4个篮板，同时提供了球队急需的强韧与活力。但他在场外所做的一切，或许才让他成为了NBA最重要的第六人。
当被问及与他一起住在牧场的兄弟和朋友会如何描述他时，他迅速插话道：
“大嗓门。”
凯尔登·约翰逊坐在他牧场的皮卡车里。(Jared Weiss / The Athletic)
他的队友们也这么说。本赛季有无数次，当人们在更衣室里聊到一半时，会听到约翰逊用一种极其滑稽的方式大喊大叫，以至于那种烦躁感很快就被敬意所取代。
他会看到二年级后卫斯蒂芬·卡斯尔 (Stephon Castle) 正在接受采访，然后大喊：“斯蒂芬妮！” 老将凯利·奥利尼克 (Kelly Olynyk) 话说到一半，你会突然听到约翰逊大喊：“小狗！” 奥利尼克也会笑着回一句“小狗”。
在一支拥有当今篮坛体型最大球员维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 的球队里，约翰逊却是那个最能带动全场氛围的人。他是马刺队充满欢乐的原因。在这些搞怪行为中他并非形单影只，但毫无疑问，他是球队文化的中心。
“核心与灵魂”，马刺更衣室里的每一个人都这样称呼他。他的许多队友都讲过这样的故事：约翰逊对他们坚持不懈的信任，就像注入了一剂强心针，帮助他们实现了突破。
“他们只是让我做回自己，让我的能量传递下去，”约翰逊说，“一旦我习惯了这样做并真正适应了这种状态，我觉得每天就像一台运转良好的机器。我不需要做任何改变，只要做我自己就好。”
约翰逊搬到牧场居住的时间，大约是在2023年马刺选中文班亚马前后。这不仅是他生活的转变，也是他职业生涯的转型。在那之前，球权一直掌握在他手中，他是那支挣扎中的球队的得分王，希望能为球队找到方向。
最终，那个方向找到了约翰逊和马刺。
是时候寻找新角色了。约翰逊已经完成了这段旅程，并在一个完美的位置上实现了蜕变，而这支球队的表现甚至超出了人们极高的预期，已经开始竞争总冠军了。
约翰逊是格雷格·波波维奇 (Gregg Popovich) 时代到新教练米奇·约翰逊 (Mitch Johnson) 时代的桥梁，他肩负着重新定义“马刺之道”的重任。他说他试图延续波波维奇建立的标准，但会加入自己的风格，他要求每个人负责，就像大家对他要求一样。
他在牧场对待动物的方式也是如此，只是带着他独特的风格。
在大羊驼跑开后不久，约翰逊终于明白了邦妮不愿靠近的原因——她其实是在“逃亡”（打个比方）。
约翰逊的驴子一瘸一拐地走过，正在搜寻大羊驼的踪迹。约翰逊不确定这头驴是怎么受伤的，但他有个猜测：这头驴肯定是在追逐新来的毛茸茸邻居时受的伤，但这并不能阻止它做回自己。
“它很危险！它一直在追每一个人。真是个混蛋，”约翰逊说，“现在我得给兽医打电话来看看它的腿，因为它想当个混蛋。它平时不怎么受伤，它就像辆坦克。所以它肯定是伤得不轻。”
约翰逊给他的驴取名为“矮子” (Chapo)，取自臭名昭著的毒枭华金·“矮子”·古兹曼 (Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman)。虽然这头驴是农场里体型较小的动物之一——在几十只动物中，只有迷你羊和一只小牛比它矮——但它却是最调皮捣蛋的。
就像约翰逊一样。他说自己每天醒来时精力都是“拉满”的状态。
“那就是我，”约翰逊说，“老实说，当我进去大喊大叫的时候，我不需要刻意去寻找那种状态。那就是我的本色。”
凯尔登·约翰逊在牧场上与朋友和家人摔跤。(Jared Weiss / The Athletic)
约翰逊和一群来自弗吉尼亚老家的家人和密友住在牧场。当他们在一辆皮卡车后座合影时，其中一人想留下记录：约翰逊承诺，如果他赢得最佳第六人，就给他们每人买一块劳力士。他的一个朋友自豪地展示着他的牛仔靴版 Crocs 鞋，引得伙伴们哈哈大笑。另一位朋友托恩·苏厄德 (Tone Seward) 则想让人知道他单身、没孩子，而且身高实际上有1米9（也许是踮着脚尖量的）。在任何随机的时刻，约翰逊都可能开始和他们中的某个人摔跤，互相试着给对方来个锁喉。
牧场的每个角落都充满了青春的快乐。很快你就能看出约翰逊的性格从何而来。他的朋友和家人在滋养着这种性格，甚至与动物的接触也让他更接近真实的自我。
约翰逊说，最能代表他的动物是一匹名叫 Mu Mu 的白马，它和他的另一匹马 Forrest 住在一起。
“它很野，总是完全放开自我，”约翰逊说，“就像大家今天看到的，它到处乱跑，追逐大羊驼之类的。我喜欢和它打交道，它让我时刻保持警觉。”
当你踏入牧场的那一刻，Mu Mu 就很有存在感。当你第一次靠近大门时，它会轻轻踢门打招呼，并低下头让你抚摸。只要一直喂它和 Forrest，它们就会很开心。
“如你所见，它们一顿饭都没落下，”约翰逊说，“它们胖得要命。”
有时 Mu Mu 会太兴奋，把栅栏撞坏。约翰逊会一直念叨这件事。Mu Mu 考验着他的耐心，但这种麻烦总是值得的。没有 Mu Mu，农场就不成其为农场，就像没有约翰逊，马刺也就不再是马刺。
“在这里面对动物时，我必须严肃得多，”约翰逊说，“我会和队友开玩笑，但有时（在这里）我必须严肃点，因为它们会闯入不该去的地方，总是在搞事情。但当我不用处理动物的事情时，这里就像一场笑剧。我们所做的就是大笑、开玩笑，然后像疯子一样到处乱跑。”
凯尔登·约翰逊和他的马 Mu Mu，它一直在不停地吃草。(Jared Weiss / The Athletic)
约翰逊宣称自己是个乡下孩子，他来自南希尔 (South Hill)，那是弗吉尼亚州南部农村一个只有4709人的小镇。他问我这个城里孩子为什么在动物身边不害怕，并嘲笑一些客人在面对极具好奇心的马匹时是多么紧张。我告诉他，如果你以冷静回报它们的信任，它们也会信任你。
几分钟后，Mu Mu 又试图啃我的相机。
牧场充满了混乱，约翰逊也是如此。但当他坐在池塘的码头上聊天，牛仔靴悬在水面上方时，他深吸一口气，望向地平线。
“我觉得这里非常宁静，”他说，“我可以和家人在这里共度高质量的时光。我觉得这是最重要的。在NBA打球，事情会变得有些忙乱。但我觉得在这里，我能真正找到内心的平静。”
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：A day on the ranch with Keldon Johnson, Spurs’ heart and soul and NBA Sixth Man favorite
A day on the ranch with Keldon Johnson, Spurs’ heart and soul and NBA Sixth Man favorite
The Athletic has live coverage of the NBA regular season finale.
BOERNE, Texas — Stepping through piles of hay and a maze of tiny goats, Keldon Johnson spots one of the newest additions to his family, a black and white llama.
In December, the 26-year-old said he wanted to buy a llama with his prize money from the San Antonio Spurs’ run to the NBA Cup final. They were much cheaper than expected, so he got two over Easter weekend for his ranch in Texas Hill Country. They arrived just in time for The Athletic to visit.
He named the llamas Bonnie and Clyde. It’s quickly apparent why. They are constantly stalking everyone, human and animal, but run away the second he comes to say hi.
“I don’t think they’re gonna let me get close enough,” Johnson says with a laugh. “They’re still getting adjusted, so I haven’t really gotten to see their personalities yet. But I think they’ll be a good addition to the farm. I think they’ll fit in just fine.”
Johnson gets chemistry. It’s his greatest skill. It’s why he’s the odds-on favorite to win Sixth Man of the Year. The longest-tenured player on the Spurs roster, he has embraced a reserve role after starting the vast majority of his first four seasons in the NBA. Despite his move to the bench, he has been a key to the team’s jump from the lottery last season to the second-best record in the NBA.
He does so much on the court, averaging 13.1 points and 5.4 rebounds in 23.3 minutes while supplying much-needed toughness and levity. But he may be the most important sixth man in the NBA because of everything he does off it.
When asked how his brother and friends who live with him on the ranch would describe him, he quickly interjects.
“Loud.”
Keldon Johnson sits in a pickup truck on his ranch. (Jared Weiss / The Athletic)
His teammates say the same thing. There have been countless times this season when people will be mid-conversation in the locker room and hear Johnson yelling about something in a manner that is so goofy that the annoyance is overridden by reverence.
He will see second-year guard Steph Castle doing an interview and yell, “Stephanie!” Veteran Kelly Olynyk will be mid-sentence, and suddenly you can hear Johnson yelling, “Doggy!” Olynyk will say “Doggy” right back with a smile.
On a team known for having the biggest player in the game, Victor Wembanyama, Johnson takes up the most space in the room. He’s the reason the Spurs are so full of joy. He is not alone in the shenanigans, but he is unquestionably the epicenter of the culture.
Heart and soul. That’s what every single person in the Spurs’ locker room calls him. So many of his teammates have told stories about how his unrelenting belief in them was the injection of confidence that helped them break through.
“They just let me be myself and let my energy carry,” Johnson says. “Once I got comfortable doing that and really just adjusted to that, I feel like it’s just a well-oiled machine every day. I don’t have to do anything different than just be myself.”
Johnson moved to the ranch around the time the Spurs drafted Wembanyama in 2023. It was a transition for Johnson’s career as much as it was for his life. He had the ball in his hands up until that point, the leading scorer on a floundering team, hoping it could find direction.
That direction found Johnson and the Spurs.
It was time for him to find a new role. Johnson has come out on the other side of that journey in the perfect place for him and a team that is already competing for a championship, even beyond its lofty expectations.
Johnson is a bridge from a prior era under Gregg Popovich, tasked with redefining the Spurs Way under new coach Mitch Johnson. He says he tries to carry on the standard Pop built, but puts his spin on things and holds everyone accountable just as much as they return the favor.
It’s the same thing he tries to do, in his own unique way, with his animals on the ranch.
Shortly after his llama runs away, Johnson can finally see why Bonnie won’t come close. She’s actually on the lam (figuratively).
Johnson’s donkey comes limping by, on the prowl for the llama. Johnson isn’t sure how the donkey got injured, but he has a guess. The donkey assuredly got hurt in pursuit of his new fuzzy neighbor, but it’s not gonna stop him from being himself.
“He is dangerous! He’s been chasing everybody. A–hole,” Johnson says. “Now I gotta call the vet to get his leg looked at, cause he want to be an a–hole. He don’t get hurt. He a tank. So he must be really hurt.”
Johnson named his donkey “Chapo” after infamous drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman. Though the donkey is one of the smaller animals on the farm — of the several dozen animals, only the mini goats and one baby cow stand closer to the ground — he is the most rambunctious.
Just like Johnson. He says he is “on 10” when he wakes up every day.
“That’s just me,” Johnson says. “Honestly, when I go in yelling and stuff like that, I don’t have to find it. That’s just who I am.”
Keldon Johnson wrestles with his friends and family on his ranch. (Jared Weiss / The Athletic)
Johnson lives on the ranch with a crew of family and close friends from back home in Virginia. As they pose for a group photo on the back of a pickup truck, one of them wants it on the record that Johnson promised to buy them all Rolexes if he wins Sixth Man of the Year. One of his friends proudly shows off his cowboy boot Crocs as his boys laugh. Another, Tone Seward, wants it known that he’s single, has no kids and is actually 6-foot-3 (maybe on his tippy toes). At any random moment, Johnson might start wrestling one of them as they fight to put each other in a headlock.
Blissful youth lives in every corner of the ranch. It doesn’t take long to see where Johnson’s personality comes from. His friends and family nurture it. Even the connection to the animals brings him closer to his true self.
Johnson says the animal that represents him best is a white horse named Mu Mu, who lives alongside his other horse, Forrest.
“He’s wild. He’s wide open all the time,” Johnson says. “As people seen today, he was running around, chasing the llama and things like that. I love dealing with him, and he keeps me on my toes.”
Mu Mu has a presence the moment you walk on the ranch. When you first approach the gate, he lightly kicks it to say hi and bows his head to let you pet him. Keep feeding Forrest and him, and they remain happy.
“As you can tell, they don’t miss no meals,” Johnson says. “They fat as s—.”
Sometimes Mu Mu gets too excited and breaks the fence. Johnson won’t let him hear the end of it. Mu Mu tests his patience but is always worth the hassle. The farm wouldn’t be the farm without Mu Mu, just like the Spurs wouldn’t be the Spurs without Johnson.
“I’ve got to be a lot more serious out here with the animals,” Johnson says. “I get to joking with my teammates, but sometimes I got to be a lot more serious (here) because they get into things they shouldn’t get into and they always up to something. But when I’m not dealing with the animals, it’s like a laugh show out here. All we do is laugh and joke and run around acting crazy.”
Keldon Johnson with his horse Mu Mu, who would not stop eating hay. (Jared Weiss / The Athletic)
Johnson proclaims himself a country boy, hailing from South Hill, a town of 4,709 in rural southern Virginia. He asks why I’m not scared around the animals as a city kid, laughing at how some of the guests get nervous around the endlessly curious horses. I tell him that if you trust them with calm, they trust you back.
A few minutes later, Mu Mu tries to eat my camera again.
The ranch is full of chaos, as is Johnson. But as he sits down to talk on the dock of his pond, his cowboy boots dangling over the water, he takes a breath and looks out at the horizon.
“I feel like it’s just so peaceful out here,” he says. “I get to spend quality time with my family here. I feel like it’s the main thing. Playing in the NBA, things get hectic a little bit. But I feel like I really get to find my peace here.”
By Jared Weiss, via The Athletic