By Michael C. Wright, 2026-05-15 19:00:00
在弗罗斯特银行中心球馆顶端，紧邻名人堂成员蒂姆·邓肯 (Tim Duncan)、马努·吉诺比利 (Manu Ginobili) 和托尼·帕克 (Tony Parker) 退役球衣的地方，悬挂着一面致敬格雷格·波波维奇 (Gregg Popovich) 的旗帜，它与那些球衣形状的伟大纪念物截然不同。
“POP 1,390”字样位于圣安东尼奥马刺队标和“名人堂”字样上方。为了表彰波波维奇为圣安东尼奥这座城市带来的五座总冠军奖杯，旗帜顶部排列着五颗星。这个数字代表了波波维奇作为该队主教练所创造的 NBA 历史常规赛胜场纪录。
去年 10 月下旬，当马刺队悄悄将这面旗帜升入球馆上空时，他们并未发布任何公告。弗罗斯特银行中心没有举行任何仪式，甚至连球馆播音员都没有按惯例口头致意。
这正是波波维奇想要的。
马刺代理主教练米奇·约翰逊 (Mitch Johnson) 将其形容为“非常有波波维奇的风格”。
波波维奇在胜利资本训练中心的出现也遵循着类似的轨迹，只不过是现在的球员们将注意力引向了波波维奇。在 2024 年 11 月 2 日遭遇中风后，他在一年多前卸任了帅位。现年 77 岁的波波维奇目前担任球队篮球运营总裁，在邓肯的注视下完成康复训练后，他通常会独自待在球队训练设施的背景处。
而马刺球员们会像夏天的蚊子一样围拢过去。
“能看到波波在身边总是很棒，”控球后卫斯蒂芬·卡斯尔 (Stephon Castle) 说道，他在新秀赛季曾为波波维奇效力过五场比赛。“特别是在这个时候，比赛至关重要。显然，他经历过的风浪比我们组织里的任何人都多。当我们看到他时，总会上去打招呼。即使不聊篮球，他也是一个你可以无所不谈的人。”
在西部半决赛对阵明尼苏达的第四场失利中，法国天才维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 因肘击纳兹·里德 (Naz Reid) 被驱逐出场。当马刺队回到圣安东尼奥时，波波维奇正在机场等待着这位法国人。
当地一家电视台拍到了波波维奇对文班亚马训话的画面。22 岁的文班亚马背着双手，穿着黑色耐克运动服，专注地倾听着这位名人堂教练的教诲。
“显然，我不会透露他说了什么，”文班亚马在第五场大胜明尼苏达后表示。“但他出现在那里，也许是为了表明态度，或者让他的话更有影响力。在我们的系列赛和比赛中，他经常会给出反馈并与我们交流。一如既往，当他开口时，所有人都会倾听。”
如果在周五晚上的第六场比赛中战胜明尼苏达森林狼（东部时间晚上 9:30，Prime 播出），马刺将自 2017 年波波维奇带队以来首次晋级西部决赛。马刺的首发阵容中只有一人——达龙·福克斯 (De’Aaron Fox) 拥有季后赛经验，而马刺 10 人轮换名单中有 7 人年龄在 26 岁以下，且此前从未参加过季后赛。但这支年轻的球队在征战季后赛的过程中，正向波波维奇等圣安东尼奥传奇人物学习。
然而，波波维奇的声音如今在训练场上通过各种渠道传递，其共鸣感仿佛是他亲口传达的一样。毕竟，他创造了现任管理层正在维护的“马刺之道”。因此，对于由约翰逊和总经理布莱恩·莱特 (Brian Wright) 领导的新团队来说，在引导圣安东尼奥进行下一次进化的过程中，依靠大楼里依然存在的各种冠军资源是合情合理的。
在训练设施的任何一天，现役马刺球员都可能走进一间坐满昔日冠军球员的房间。在吃午饭时遇到吉诺比利与三届冠军得主布鲁斯·鲍文 (Bruce Bowen)（他的 12 号球衣在圣安东尼奥退役）共进午餐并不罕见。邓肯曾经在旧设施的教练更衣室里有一个位置，现在他也经常出现在新场馆，此外还有两届冠军、10 次入选全明星的大卫·罗宾逊 (David Robinson) 和在 1999 年为球队夺得首冠立下汗马功劳的肖恩·埃利奥特 (Sean Elliott)。
“从 20 年前到现在，组织里的每个人都紧密相连，”新秀后卫迪伦·哈珀 (Dylan Harper) 在来到圣安东尼奥的第一周说道。“昨天，我正在训练，随机就看到了邓肯、波波维奇和吉诺比利。这在任何其他组织都是见不到的。”
维克托·文班亚马和圣安东尼奥马刺距离自 2017 年格雷格·波波维奇带队以来首次挺进西部决赛仅差一场胜利。 Eric Gay/美联社
就在波波维奇参与马刺队第五场赛前录像课的那个早晨，官方身份为篮球运营特别顾问的吉诺比利正与同为左撇子的哈珀一起走在走廊上。几小时后，哈珀便贡献了 12 分和 10 个篮板，帮助球队取得了本赛季（常规赛加季后赛）第 13 场净胜 25 分以上的胜利。坐在球场另一端讲台上的前锋德文·瓦塞尔 (Devin Vassell) 迫不及待地想结束他的投篮训练采访。
“老实说，等采访结束，我要去和（波波维奇）聊一会儿，”瓦塞尔说。“在录像分析课上，他帮了大忙。你谈论的是史上最伟大的教练。能坐在这里听他讲述他们经历过的往事或他的见解，那是无与伦比的。”
马刺首席执行官 R.C. 布福德 (R.C. Buford) 是旧体制与新体制之间唯一的日常活跃纽带，他在某种程度上与波波维奇共同创立了“马刺之道”。波波维奇作为“大老板 (El Jefe)”在力所能及的时候提供帮助，但如今他的主要任务是从中风中恢复。球队的领导层包括两位 39 岁的成员——老板彼得·J·霍尔特 (Peter J. Holt) 和约翰逊，以及 43 岁的莱特。
布福德曾是一名教练——他曾在圣安东尼奥和洛杉矶快船担任过五年助教——并与波波维奇并肩作战，他怀念球鞋在地板上摩擦和篮球弹地的声音。65 岁的布福德现在依然能听到这些声音，但在他的管理岗位上，这种机会没那么频繁了。
“我们两人能出现在这里，唯一的理由就是因为 R.C.，”莱特告诉 ESPN。“他在选秀期间为了考察德章泰·默里 (Dejounte Murray)（2016 年）发现了米奇，并把我从底特律挖了过来。寻找人才来不断充实这个体系，功劳应该归于他。”
如今，布福德负责与老板沟通，并协助管理层和教练组，作为一个几乎组织内各个部分都可以依靠的资源和指导者而存在。
去年，当约翰逊在波波维奇中风当晚接手担任临时主教练时，他需要所有的支持。那天晚上马刺正要对阵森林狼，也就是本周五第六场比赛的对手。
“依靠从上到下的整个组织，整个家庭，管理层，布莱恩、R.C. 和波波，以及后勤团队，这让我从未感到孤立无援或无处求助，”约翰逊说。“当你拥有这种支持时，它会带给你信心。随着时间的推移，我们的关系不断发展，我有幸在（与波波维奇共事的）许多不同角色中获得这种支持。他在很多时刻、很多情况下都是很多人的支柱。这绝对是他的特殊能力之一。”
这种文化也在延续。
虽然波波维奇在圣安东尼奥开启了“凿石”文化，但过去和现在的马刺人都致力于带领教练和球迷进入球队的下一个阶段，文班亚马很可能在未来多年内都是核心。
“（波波维奇）是对我要求最严厉的人之一，”NBA 年度最佳第六人凯尔登·约翰逊 (Keldon Johnson) 告诉 ESPN。凯尔登在第五场比赛中拿下了季后赛生涯新高的 21 分，上个月他与曾于 2008 年获得该奖项的吉诺比利一起庆祝了获奖。
“听到他说为我感到骄傲，并让我继续保持下去，这对我来说意义重大，”凯尔登说。“他真的帮助我成为了一名真正的职业球员，无论场内场外都成为了一个更好的年轻人。在我那个年纪，他以一种任何人都无法企及的方式塑造了我的职业生涯。他为很多人都做到了这一点。”
组织内部的多位消息人士将波波维奇的存在描述为“一份礼物”。但值得注意的是，约翰逊并没有试图用波波维奇的方式来执教，波波维奇在整个过程中一直强调让约翰逊做回自己。与此同时，莱特管理办公室的方式也与布福德不同。
他们都在真实地做自己，并将波波维奇建立的“马刺之道”作为指路明灯。布福德意识到，自他与波波维奇并肩管理球队以来，“马刺之道”已经发生了进化，他迫不及待地想看到球队的下一个章节将如何展开。
“能够让波波、马努、蒂姆和大卫出现在球馆里，围绕着这个体系，传承我们每个人都引以为豪的底蕴，这对我们来说是一份真正的礼物，”布福德告诉 ESPN。“希望我们能以任何他们需要的方式支持他们，同时又不干扰到他们。”
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：How the Spurs are learning from the greats who came before them
How the Spurs are learning from the greats who came before them
TUCKED AWAY HIGH in the rafters right next to the retired jerseys of Hall of Famers Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker, the banner celebrating Gregg Popovich looks different than the rest of the jersey-shaped mementos honoring greatness at Frost Bank Center.
“POP 1,390,” just above the San Antonio Spurs logo and the words “Hall of Fame.” In recognition of the five championships Popovich brought to the city of San Antonio, five stars line the top of the banner. The number represents Popovich’s NBA-record regular-season win total as the club’s coach.
When the Spurs quietly raised the banner to the rafters in late October, they didn’t send out an announcement. No ceremony commenced at Frost Bank Center, either. Not even the obligatory shoutout from the arena announcer to acknowledge the banner.
This is what Popovich wanted.
Spurs coach Mitch Johnson described it as “very Pop-esque.”
Popovich’s presence at the Victory Capital Performance Center follows a similar pathway, except it’s the franchise’s current players who draw attention to Popovich, who stepped down a little more than a year ago after suffering a stroke on Nov. 2, 2024. Now the team’s president of basketball operations, Popovich, 77, typically posts up alone in the background at the team’s practice facilities after completing his rehabilitation workouts under Duncan’s watchful eye.
The Spurs swarm, like mosquitos in the summer.
“It’s always great to have Pop around,” said point guard Stephon Castle, who played five games last season for Popovich as a rookie. “Especially at this time, when games matter the most. He’s been through it obviously more than anybody else in our organization. When we see him, we go up to greet him all the time. Even if it’s not about basketball, that’s a guy you could talk to about literally anything.”
When the Spurs returned to San Antonio after French phenom Victor Wembanyama was ejected during a Game 4 loss in the Western Conference semifinals to Minnesota for elbowing Naz Reid, Popovich was waiting for the Frenchman at the airport.
A local television station caught Popovich addressing Wembanyama. Arms behind his back, wearing a black Nike sweatsuit, Wembanyama, 22, listened intently to the Hall of Fame coach.
“I’m not going to leak anything he said, obviously,” Wembanyama said after a Game 5 blowout of Minnesota. “But he maybe wanted to make a statement or make his talking even more impactful by being there. He gives feedback and talks to us regularly throughout our series, throughout our games. As always, when he speaks, everybody listens.”
With a win over the Minnesota Timberwolves in Friday night’s Game 6 (9:30 p.m. ET, Prime), the Spurs can advance to the Western Conference finals for the first time since Popovich led them there in 2017. Only one Spurs starter, De’Aaron Fox, has previous playoff experience – and seven of the Spurs’ 10 rotation players are under 26 and had never appeared in a playoff game – but this young team is learning from San Antonio legends such as Popovich as they navigate these playoffs.
Popovich’s voice, however, emanates these days from a variety of sources at practice and resonates as if he’s delivering the messages himself. After all, he created the “Spurs way” the current regime is stewarding. So, it only makes sense for the new group, led by Johnson and general manager Brian Wright, to lean on all the championship resources still populating the building as they guide San Antonio through its next evolution.
On any given day at the facility, a current Spur can walk into a room filled with championship players from the past. It’s not uncommon to go to lunch and find Ginobili dining with three-time champion Bruce Bowen, whose No. 12 jersey is retired in San Antonio. Duncan, who once had a space in the coaches’ locker room at the old facility, is a fixture at the new spot, too, along with two-time champ and 10-time All-Star David Robinson and Sean Elliott, who in 1999 played a key role in the franchise’s first title.
“Everyone’s connected from the organization, from 20 years [ago] to now,” rookie guard Dylan Harper said during his first week in San Antonio. “Yesterday, I’m working out and I randomly see Tim Duncan, Gregg Popovich and Manu Ginobili. That’s not something you’ll see in any organization.”
Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs are one win away from reaching the Western Conference finals for the first time since Gregg Popovich led the team there in 2017. Eric Gay/AP Photo
On the same morning Popovich took part in San Antonio’s film study going into Game 5, Ginobili – officially a special adviser to basketball operations – walked down a hallway with Harper, a fellow lefty, who hours later would contribute 12 points and 10 rebounds in the team’s 13th win this season (regular season and playoffs) by 25 points or more. Sitting at a dais on the other side of the gym, forward Devin Vassell couldn’t wait for his shootaround interview to end.
“Honestly, when we’re done with this, I’m going to go talk to [Popovich] for a little bit,” Vassell said. “[In] the film session, he helped out a lot. You talk about the greatest coach of all time. To be able to sit here and tell you the experiences they’ve gone through or what he sees, that’s second to none.”
Spurs CEO R.C. Buford is the only active daily link between the old regime and the new, and he’s somewhat of a co-founder of the “Spurs way” alongside Popovich, who contributes when he can as “El Jefe” but is mostly tasked these days with rehabbing from his stroke. The club’s leadership group includes a pair of 39-year-olds in governor Peter J. Holt and Johnson, along with Wright, 43.
A former coach – he worked five years as an assistant with San Antonio and the LA Clippers – who worked side by side with Popovich, Buford misses the sounds of sneakers squeaking and basketballs bouncing. Buford, 65, hears them still but not as frequently in his white-collar role.
“The only reason either of us are here is because of R.C.,” Wright told ESPN. “He identified Mitch during the draft for Dejounte [Murray in 2016] and he came and got me out of Detroit. He should get the credit for going and finding people to continue to add to the program.”
These days, Buford liaises with ownership and assists the front office and coaching staff as a presence that virtually every part of the organization can lean on for resources and guidance.
Johnson needed them all last season when he took over for Popovich as interim coach the same night the Hall of Famer suffered a stroke ahead of a matchup against the Timberwolves, the club’s opponent in Friday’s Game 6.
“Leaning on the organization from top to bottom, the whole family, the front office, Brian, R.C., and Pop, the supporting staff, it has made it where I’ve never felt isolated [with] nowhere to turn or alone,” Johnson said. “When you have that type of support, it gives you confidence. I’ve been blessed to have that now for years in a lot of different roles [with Popovich] as our relationship has grown over time. He’s been that for so many people in so many moments, times and situations. It’s one of his special powers for sure.”
It endures, too, culturally.
While Popovich started the pound-the-rock culture in San Antonio, the Spurs of the past and present are intent on carrying the coach and fanbase into the franchise’s next iteration with Wembanyama as its centerpiece likely for years to come.
“[Popovich] was one of the hardest people on me,” NBA Sixth Man of the Year Keldon Johnson told ESPN. Johnson, who scored a career postseason high of 21 points in Game 5, celebrated winning the award last month with Ginobili, who captured it 2008.
“To hear him say he’s proud of me and to keep doing what I’m doing means the world to me,” Johnson said. “He really helped me become a true professional, a better young man on and off the court. He’s helped mold my career in ways nobody else could when I was that age. He’s done that for a lot of people.”
Multiple sources within the organization describe Popovich’s presence as “a gift.” But it’s important to note that Johnson isn’t trying to coach the same way as Popovich, who has stressed to Johnson to simply be himself throughout this journey. Wright, meanwhile, also isn’t running the front office in the same manner as Buford.
They’re being themselves, authentically, using the “Spurs Way” established by Popovich as the North Star. Buford realizes the “Spurs Way” has evolved since his time running the franchise alongside Popovich, and he can’t wait to see how the club’s next chapter ultimately unfolds.
“The ability to have Pop, Manu, Tim and David in the gym around the program, carrying forward what we’re each proud to have been a part of, is a real gift to us,” Buford told ESPN. “Hopefully we can support them in any way that they need without getting in the way.”
By Michael C. Wright, via ESPN