By Jared Weiss | The Athletic, 2026-04-21 19:10:18
圣安东尼奥——维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 从不在赛前投篮训练时接受采访。他身边的一些人表示，在认识他的这些年里，从未在比赛日给他打过电话。赛前，他总是静静地准备上场，闭目冥想，试图屏蔽外界无休止的嘈杂声——随着他的星光愈发璀璨，这些噪音只会越来越大。
但在周二上午，圣安东尼奥马刺队对阵波特兰开拓者队的系列赛第二场之前，文班亚马坐到了他从未坐过的发言席前。上午 11:33，文班亚马在加入马刺队后的首次赛前新闻发布会上，回顾了自己成为联盟历史上首位全票当选的 NBA 年度最佳防守球员的感受。
这让他想起了一个他还没成为世界级防守者的时刻，当然，那是很久以前的事了。当他还是法国篮球学院一名 14 岁的少年时，他曾背负着“不打防守”的名声。他说，那段经历让他铭记至今。
“对方教练说：‘他可能很有潜力，但他不会防守，所以去进攻他，’”文班亚马说道，“我的队友和教练把这话告诉了我。”
随后一名记者开玩笑说：“你把这当成私人恩怨了 (You took that personally)”，这引用了迈克尔·乔丹 (Michael Jordan) 在《最后一舞》(The Last Dance) 纪录片中的名言。
“我确实记在心里了，”文班亚马笑着回应道，“剩下的就是历史了。”
就在那时，马刺队前锋凯尔登·约翰逊 (Keldon Johnson) 走进媒体群并举起了手。
“是的，我有个问题，”在文班亚马点到他后，约翰逊说道，“不仅成为最年轻的年度最佳防守球员，还是唯一一位全票当选的年度最佳防守球员，这种感觉如何？”
约翰逊很快发现，他的问题实际上是新闻发布会上被问到的第一个问题，两人随后的一番互动以文班亚马要求一个拥抱告终。
当约翰逊结束拥抱准备离开时，他像往常一样说道：“世界上最好的球员。”
文班亚马则回应道：“年度最佳第六人”，指的是将于周三颁发的奖项。约翰逊是三位入围者之一，另外两位是迈阿密热火队的小海梅·哈克斯 (Jaime Jaquez Jr.) 和丹佛掘金队的小蒂姆·哈达威 (Tim Hardaway Jr.)。
如今，很少有人再质疑文班亚马的防守能力。每一位参与评奖投票的人都达成了一致：这个大个子确实会防守。
为了纪念这一奖项，耐克发布了一段 45 秒的广告，口号是“他就在我们之中封盖 (He Blocks Among Us)”，这呼应了文班亚马的外号“外星人”。
一个极具统治力的存在正行走在这个星球上。这就是证据。@文班 是联盟历史上首位全票当选的 Kia NBA 年度最佳防守球员。pic.twitter.com/svVTVAPSBF
— Nike Basketball (@ nikebasketball) 2026年4月21日
作为回应，NASA 官方账号在 X 上发布道：“无论是在这个星球还是在宇宙中，文班都在守护。”
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 remembers the time a youth coach said 'he can't play defense'
Victor Wembanyama remembers the time a youth coach said ‘he can’t play defense’
SAN ANTONIO — Victor Wembanyama never speaks at pregame shootarounds. Some people in his circle say they haven’t called him on a game day in all the years they’ve known him. Before games, he quietly prepares to take the floor, closing his eyes and meditating, trying to block out the endless external noise that will only grow louder as his star shines brighter.
But Tuesday morning, before Game 2 of the San Antonio Spurs’ series against the Portland Trail Blazers, Wembanyama sat at the podium at a time he never had before. At 11:33 a.m., Wembanyama, in his first pregame news conference since joining the Spurs, reflected on becoming the first unanimous NBA Defensive Player of the Year winner in league history.
It brought him back to a moment when he wasn’t an all-world defender, which, of course, was a long time ago. When he was a 14-year-old at the basketball academy in France, he had a reputation for not playing defense. He said that stuck with him.
“The opponents’ coach said, ‘He may be a prospect, but he can’t play defense, so attack him,’” Wembanyama said. “My teammates and my coach told me that the coach said that.”
A reporter then joked, “You took that personally,” referring to Michael Jordan’s famous quote from “The Last Dance” documentary.
“I took that personally,” Wembanyama responded with a laugh. “And the rest is history.”
At that moment, Spurs forward Keldon Johnson stepped into the media gathering and raised his hand.
“Yeah, I have a question,” Johnson said after Wembanyama called on him. “How does it feel to not only be the youngest Defensive Player of the Year, but the only unanimous Defensive Player of the Year?”
Johnson soon found out that his question was actually the first one asked in the news conference, resulting in a back and forth that ended with Wembanyama asking for a hug.
As Johnson finished the hug and began to walk away, he said, as he often does, “Best player in the world.”
Wembanyama responded with “Sixth Man of the Year,” referencing the award that will be handed out Wednesday. Johnson is one of three finalists, along with Miami’s Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Denver’s Tim Hardaway Jr.
These days, few people are questioning Wembanyama’s ability to defend. Everyone who voted for the award agreed: The big man certainly can play defense.
To commemorate the award, Nike released a 45-second ad with the tagline “He Blocks Among Us,” referencing Wembanyama’s nickname, “The Alien.”
A dominant presence walks this planet. Here’s proof. @ wemby is your first-ever unanimous Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year. pic.twitter.com/svVTVAPSBF
— Nike Basketball (@ nikebasketball) April 21, 2026
In response, the official NASA account posted to X: “On this planet or out in the universe, Wemby defends.”
By Jared Weiss, via The Athletic