By Jared Weiss | The Athletic, 2026-04-16 19:00:30
周四，维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 荣获由专业篮球作家协会 (PBWA) 颁发的“魔术师约翰逊奖”。该奖项旨在表彰那些不仅在赛场上表现卓越，且在对待媒体和球迷时展现出极高配合度与风度的 NBA 球员。
在其职业生涯的第三个赛季，文班亚马迅速成长为 NBA 的形象大使之一，他在场外的吸引力丝毫不亚于场内。虽然他的赛场表现让他进入了 MVP 的讨论范畴，但他同时也成为了联盟中最受媒体追捧的采访对象之一。他的新闻发布会总是充满了反思、坦诚，偶尔还伴随着欢声笑语。
“维克托·文班亚马完全体现了这一奖项的精神——作为一名超级巨星，他在场外同样深思熟虑、平易近人，正如他在场上的统治力一样，”PBWA 主席霍华德·贝克 (Howard Beck) 表示，“他乐于奉献，对记者友善且有耐心，并渴望讨论几乎任何话题——从 MVP 竞争到社会正义，再到北极光。正如我们的一位成员所言，维克托是一个‘深思熟虑的思想者，他懂得言语的力量’。”
文班亚马几乎在每场比赛后都会接受采访，回答现场几乎每一位记者的提问。他总是会特意为两名从法国移居圣安东尼奥全程报道他的记者多留出时间，用法语回答几个额外的问题，即便在此之前他已经回答了十几个问题，他依然能给出详尽的回复。甚至在 NBA 杯决赛负于纽约尼克斯队后，正处于悼念祖母离世的悲痛中时，他也出现在了发布会现场，而这种情况下大多数球员都会选择拒绝公开露面。
在流泪离场前，他勉强回答了两个问题，这展现了他作为联盟球星，在履行职责方面远超预期的职业态度。
在拉斯维加斯的那一周之后，他作为顶级球员的名声大噪。文班场均贡献 25 分、11.5 个篮板、3.1 次助攻和 3.1 次盖帽，带领马刺队取得了 62 胜 20 负的战绩，这是这支底蕴深厚的球队历史上最出色的常规赛战绩之一。自 2 月初他完全康复以来，马刺队打出了全联盟最佳的 30 胜 4 负，净效率值高达 +14.7，远超排名第二的夏洛特的 +10.8。他们在此期间 88.2% 的胜率足以让他们追平金州勇士队 73 胜的历史纪录。
文班亚马有望入围 MVP 最终候选名单，入选最佳阵容一阵已是板上钉钉，甚至可能成为史上首位全票当选的最佳防守球员。这只是获得魔术师约翰逊奖的第一部分条件，而他在对待媒体和球迷时，也展现出了与赛场表现相匹配的卓越水准。
许多球星都与球迷群体保持着紧密联系，但文班亚马将这一概念进行了升华。赛季开始前，他组建了联盟首个全职铁杆球迷团体，名为“胡狼 (Jackals)”。他接受了《运动报》(The Athletic) 为数不多的非电视独家专访，深入探讨了去年从血栓中康复的经历如何促使他发起了“胡狼”项目。自那以后，该团体已成为马刺队比赛中的常客，也是社区中的一股力量。
延伸阅读
维克托·文班亚马想要创建一个马刺球迷团体。“胡狼”的意义远不止于此。维克托·文班亚马不仅提出了建立马刺队欧式球迷看台的构想，还将其转化为了城市自豪感的源泉。
在整个赛季中，他逐渐成为了 NBA 的思想领袖。他在伦理困境上大胆表态，展现出自信的同时，也小心翼翼地不越过傲慢的红线。这造就了许多迷人的时刻，并为他的比赛带来了一种竞争的张力。关于俄克拉荷马城雷霆队的“道德篮球”评论仅仅是冰山一角。
在 11 月与德雷蒙德·格林 (Draymond Green) 及金州勇士队的较量中，文班亚马完成了他在联盟的惊艳亮相，并展示了他在关键时刻是多么坦率。在第四节对格林完成一次震撼的空接扣篮并怒视对手后，这一幕成为了他本赛季首个疯传网络的瞬间。文班亚马表现得自信且张扬，解释了他对那一刻的看法。
“我最好的回答总是在球场上。那是对他们伤害最大的方式，”文班亚马说道，“当我扣篮时，（格林）完全沉默了。”
尽管事实是格林在扣篮后与文班亚马面面相觑并开始喷垃圾话，但尊重是赢来的。“我尊重他的回应方式，”格林说道，“你永远不会向任何人退缩，他也没退缩。所以我尊重这一点。”
这种竞争意识定义了文班亚马的赛季。这位身高 7 英尺 4 英寸（或 5 英寸、6 英寸）的马刺球星消除了人们对其高大纤细的身材能否承受 NBA 赛季强度的担忧。尽管他偶尔需要进行负荷管理并因伤缺阵，但只要上场，他就会付出 100% 的努力，即使在无关痛痒的比赛中也是如此。在全明星赛前，他承诺要恢复这项多年来一直是联盟声誉污点的赛事的竞争性，并且他确实做到了。
在明尼阿波利斯发生美国移民及海关执法局 (ICE) 特工致命枪击事件后，文班亚马是首批强力发声谴责暴力的球员之一。他甚至承认了就此事发声可能带来的后果，以一种公众人物罕见的坦率方式把心里话公开说了出来。
“我也意识到，说出我脑子里想的一切，对我现在来说代价太大了，”文班亚马说，“我不想谈论太多细节。”
在整个赛季的新闻发布会上，文班亚马一直乐于“打破第四面墙”，当他对其他观点感到好奇时，他会将问题抛回给媒体。了解维克托是一个双向互动的过程，这在年轻球星中越来越罕见。他会征求你对时事或随机话题的看法，对周围人的世界观充满真实的好奇。
本赛季有许多幕后时刻，让在 NBA 版图上追踪报道文班亚马变得非常有意义。在休斯顿的一场比赛后，他在更衣室里自豪地向《运动报》展示了他的伤疤。还有在迈阿密关于 MVP 的辩论，这是一个典型的例子，展示了他如何以不同的方式对待公众人物的身份。在更衣室与《运动报》就他的 MVP 候选资格进行了 20 分钟的辩论后，他愿意将对话带到发布台公之于众。
当被要求在麦克风前重申辩论内容时，他询问该如何组织答案。随后，他应要求提出了三个论点，这在随后引发了全国性的报道。这是他如何通过新闻发布会进行真诚交流的最佳范例。
当文班亚马征求记者的意见时，他从不带有攻击性。他会点头、思考、接受不同的观点，并解释他为何不同意。他甚至会虚心接受建议，并承认问题有多个合理的答案。对于一个处在如此聚光灯下的人来说，他的思想开放程度令人惊讶。在那些从拿到驾照起就是超级巨星、刚进入联盟就表现出世故和厌倦感的球员身上，这种特质在文班身上完全看不到。
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：Victor Wembanyama wins Magic Johnson Award for cooperation with fans and media
Victor Wembanyama wins Magic Johnson Award for cooperation with fans and media
Victor Wembanyama won the Magic Johnson award from the Pro Basketball Writers Association on Thursday, honoring the NBA player who best combines excellence on the court with cooperation and grace in dealing with the media and fans.
In his third season, Wembanyama rapidly emerged as one of the NBA’s ambassadors, becoming as much of an attraction off the court as he is on it. While his play pushed him toward the forefront of the MVP conversation, he became one of the most sought-after quotes in the league. His news conferences are filled with introspection, candor, and, sometimes, even a good laugh.
“Victor Wembanyama thoroughly embodies the spirit of this award — as a superstar who is just as thoughtful and engaging off the court as he is dominant on the court,” said PBWA president Howard Beck. “He is giving of himself, amiable and patient with reporters, and eager to discuss just about any subject — from the MVP race to social justice to the Northern Lights. As one of our members put it, Victor is ‘a deep thinker who understands the power of his words.’”
Wembanyama speaks after nearly every game he plays, taking questions from essentially any reporter in the room who asks. He also always takes a few extra questions in French for the two reporters who have relocated from France to San Antonio to cover him full-time, giving them fruitful responses even after taking often a dozen questions beforehand. He has even shown up at the podium when he was grieving the passing of his grandmother following the NBA Cup Final loss to the New York Knicks, a scenario where most players would decline to appear publicly.
He managed to answer only two questions before leaving the podium in tears, demonstrating his commitment to honoring his duties as a star player in the league well beyond the call.
After that week in Las Vegas, his reputation exploded as one of the premier players. Wembanyama averaged 25 points, 11.5 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 3.1 blocks while leading the Spurs to a 62-20 record, one of the best regular seasons in a rich franchise history. Once he became fully healthy at the beginning of February, the Spurs finished a league-best 30-4 with a net rating of plus-14.7, far beyond second-place Charlotte at plus-10.8. Their 88.2 winning percentage over that span would have them on pace to nearly match the Golden State Warriors’ record 73-win season.
Wembanyama is expected to be a finalist for MVP, a lock for first-team All-NBA and potentially the first-ever unanimous Defensive Player of the Year. That’s the first part of the qualification for the Magic Johnson award. But he has matched his stellar play when dealing with the media and fans.
Many star players have strong relationships with their fan base. Wembanyama has transformed that concept. Before the season, he formed the league’s first full-time ultras supporters group called the Jackals. He sat down with The Athletic for one of his few non-TV exclusive interviews of the season to dive deep into how his journey recovering from a blood clot last year led him to put the Jackals project together. Since then, the group has become a staple of Spurs games and a force in the community.
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Over the course of the season, he has found his voice as a thought leader in the NBA. He has taken bold stances on ethical dilemmas and has been willing to puff his chest out while trying not to cross the line into downright arrogance. It has resulted in captivating moments and brought a sense of competitive tension to his games. The “ethical basketball” comments surrounding the Oklahoma City Thunder were just the tip of the iceberg.
After a clash against Draymond Green and the Golden State Warriors that became his coming-out party in November, Wembanyama showed just how candid he would be in the heat of the moment. After a huge alley-oop and staredown over Green in the fourth quarter became one of his first viral moments of the season, Wembanyama was bold and brash, explaining his perspective on the moment.
“My best answer is always on the court. That’s what hurts them the most,” Wembanyama said. “(Green) went completely silent when I dunked on him.”
Though the truth was that Green met Wembanyama face-to-face after the dunk and started jawing at him, the respect was earned. “I respect the way he responded,” Green said. “You don’t ever back down from anybody, and he didn’t. So I respect that.”
That competitiveness has come to define Wembanyama’s season, as the 7-foot-4 (or 5”, or 6”) Spurs star eradicated concerns that his massive, slender frame is too fragile for the rigors of the NBA season. Though he had to load manage on occasion and missed some time due to injury, he brought 100 percent every time he suited up. Even when the games didn’t count. Ahead of the All-Star game, he pledged to revive the competitiveness of the event that had become a stain on the league’s reputation for years and did just that.
Following the fatal shootings by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Minneapolis, Wembanyama was one of the first players to speak forcefully, condemning the violence. He even acknowledged the consequences of speaking out on the matter, saying the quiet part out loud in a way that is rare for any public figure.
“I’m conscious, also, that saying everything that’s on my mind would have a cost that’s too great for me right now,” Wembanyama said. “I’d rather not get into too many details.”
Wembanyama has been willing to break the fourth wall in his news conferences throughout the season, turning the question back on the media when he is curious for other perspectives. Getting to know Victor is a two-way street in a way that is increasingly rare among young stars. He solicits your opinion on the topical and random, genuinely curious about the worldviews around him.
There have been many behind-the-scenes moments this season that have made covering Wembanyama across the NBA map worthwhile. After a game in Houston, he proudly showed The Athletic his scars in the locker room. Then there was the MVP debate in Miami, which was a crystallizing example of how he is taking a different approach to being a public figure. Following a 20-minute locker room debate with The Athletic over his MVP candidacy, he was willing to take the conversation to the podium to bring it to the public.
When queried to rehash the debate on the mic, he asked how he should structure his answer. He then presented three talking points upon request, which fueled national coverage thereafter. It was the ultimate example of how he embraces a genuine conversation through his news conferences.
When Wembanyama asks for reporters’ opinions, he is never combative. He’ll nod, ponder, accept a differing viewpoint, and explain why he disagrees. He’ll even take it under advisement and acknowledge there are multiple reasonable answers to the question. He is strikingly open-minded for someone under such a bright spotlight. The sense of jadedness that often comes from players entering the league — who have been superstars since they were getting their driver’s license — isn’t apparent with Wemby.
By Jared Weiss, via The Athletic