Spurs Insider Podcast, 2026-05-20 08:37:00
专栏作家迈克·芬格 (Mike Finger) 与马刺跟队记者杰夫·麦克唐纳 (Jeff McDonald) 和汤姆·奥斯本 (Tom Orsborn) 共同探讨了在西部决赛首战中，维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 如何在双加时中接管比赛，帮助马刺险胜雷霆。此外，马刺该如何保持势头并赢下第二场？他们又在多大程度上需要德阿隆·福克斯 (De’Aaron Fox) 的回归？
推荐阅读：
这位百亿挑一的超级巨星文班亚马，是如何迎来他职业生涯至今最伟大时刻的
马刺对阵雷霆：G2取胜钥匙
为什么马刺的迪伦·哈珀 (Dylan Harper) 在他的首次季后赛首发中全程开启“进攻模式” 马刺对阵雷霆G1：在文班打出历史级表现的一夜后，马刺全队的反应
以下是播客的文字实录：
芬格：本期《马刺内幕》(Spurs Insider) 由戴维斯律师事务所 (Davis Law Firm) 赞助播出。想要了解更多？请致电戴维斯律师事务所。[音乐]
芬格：这里是来自俄克拉荷马城各处高度安全、机密地点的网络联播，为您带来《马刺内幕》双加时特辑。我是迈克·芬格，身边是一群疲惫不堪的《圣安东尼奥快报》马刺跟队记者。我们有面露倦容的杰夫·麦克唐纳，还有，还有，正在咬牙坚持的汤姆·奥斯本。我们一路跟队报道，终于来到了西部决赛。有时候，我们似乎把即将发生的事情渲染得太过了，有太多荒谬的炒作。我们也是这台炒作机器的一部分。但是，麦克唐纳，也许我们炒作得还不够，因为几个小时前，就在离我们安全地点不远的佩科姆中心 (Paycom Center)，我们见证了一场载入史册的经典战役，不是吗？
麦克唐纳：我的意思是，“瞬间经典”这个词如今被用得太多了，甚至有点泛滥，但那场比赛，绝对配得上这个词。如果这个词有定义的话，那场比赛就是模板。双方在最后阶段你来我往，互相挥出重拳。关键的进球，关键的防守。我报道过这么多场马刺的季后赛，包括在这座球馆里的许多场，而这一场绝对能和我见过的最精彩的比赛并列。我的意思是，你会想到雷·阿伦 (Ray Allen) 的那记三分，或者在这里（俄克拉荷马城）的G6，蒂米（蒂姆·邓肯）投进将他们送进总决赛的那一球。这绝对是一场永恒的经典。
芬格：你说得对，杰夫。这还只是第一场，而在经历那样的时刻之后，我们往往容易成为“当下情绪的俘虏”。历史上有很多经典的G1，赢球的队伍回头却输掉了系列赛。但是，汤姆，文班亚马在比赛最后阶段的表现，不仅为自己争夺真正的MVP增加了筹码，而且正如斯蒂芬·卡斯尔 (Stephon Castle) 在全国电视节目上所说，他证明了自己是“这个该死的世界上的最佳球员”。汤姆，我们是不是太容易被当下的情绪左右了，还是说那场比赛确实像看起来那样具有里程碑意义？
奥斯本：是的，我的意思是，有太多画面定格在了那一刻。文班在超远logo位置投进的那记三分，天哪，那一球创造了太多回忆。看那场比赛的人，尤其是孩子们，会在很长一段时间里珍藏那个瞬间。在第二个加时赛还剩大约40秒时，德文·瓦塞尔 (Devin Vassell) 在篮筐附近封盖了切特·霍姆格伦 (Chet Holmgren)，那次防守至关重要。真的有太多伟大的时刻了。但最让我触动的是，他们距离总决赛只差三场胜利了。这是一次非凡的征程。
芬格：太疯狂了。想想看，在比赛开始前大约一小时，你们经验最丰富的季后赛球星福克斯宣布因伤缺阵。这意味着一位20岁的新秀，要在马刺近九年来最重要的一场比赛中被推上首发阵容。而他整个赛季总共才首发过四场比赛。杰夫，他却拿到了堪比埃尔文·“魔术师”·约翰逊 (Earvin “Magic” Johnson) 的数据——迪伦·哈珀。我是说，20分、10个以上篮板、6次助攻，还有7次抢断！7次抢断！这太疯狂了。而在这场疯狂的比赛之后，他却像是一个附注，一个被顺带提起的人。这真的……我听起来可能有点夸张。我们，或者说每个人在谈论这支球队时听起来都很夸张，因为他们正在以一种前所未有的方式做着前所未有的事情。但是，你很难不为此疯狂。
麦克唐纳：让我们，让我们把话题回到维克托身上。你知道，你在系列赛开始前写过，很多人都在推崇这样一个故事线：哦，他必须在G1开始前看着谢伊·吉尔杰斯-亚历山大 (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander) 捧起他的MVP奖杯，这会激怒他、激励他，让文班打出一场怪兽级的比赛。每个人都这么写。这就像是1995年哈基姆·奥拉朱旺 (Hakeem Olajuwon) 对阵大卫·罗宾逊 (David Robinson) 的重演。
芬格：是95年。
麦克唐纳：95年。当时感觉我们好像有点过度解读了，这似乎是个显而易见的剧本。但事实恰趣就是这样。我的意思是，维克托看着SGA举起了他认为属于自己的奖杯。让我在这里停顿一下，我想马刺队中没有人认为SGA配不上这个奖项。这不是配不配的问题。只是正如米奇·约翰逊 (Mitch Johnson) 赛后和维克托谈到的一样，看着别人拿走你渴望的荣誉，这会如何激励你。然后他上场砍下了40+20的数据！40分20个篮板！他是NBA历史上在季后赛砍下40+20最年轻的球员，也是马刺队史第二人，此前只有大卫·罗宾逊做到过。我的意思是，这简直就像是写好的剧本，一切都按照剧本在发展。就像我说的，你在比赛开始前就写到了这一点，瞧，事情就这么发生了。
芬格：而且我认为文班亚马或马刺的任何人都不会承认SGA的颁奖仪式是动力来源，就像31年前，奥拉朱旺也没有承认自己在阿拉莫穹顶体育馆 (Alamodome) 看着大卫·罗宾逊领取MVP奖杯时被激怒了一样。但是，我的意思是，这确实起到了作用。而且，我认为无论昨晚赛前地板上举行什么仪式，文班亚马都会在G1打出怪兽级的表现。但是，天哪，像他这样的竞争者，自从我们在美国的一场热身赛中第一次见到他起，就不断地在一个又一个关键时刻证明自己，从不畏惧任何挑战。在《马刺内幕》播客中，我们在过去三年里几乎把这一切当成了理所当然。我是说，在有些播客里，我们甚至都不提他做过的那些荒谬的事情。然后，在那样的一个夜晚，你只需要坐下来，静静地欣赏。汤姆，我们先别想得太远，这仍然是一场竞争非常激烈的系列赛。雷霆能拿到西部第一绝非浪得虚名。他们作为卫冕冠军，这不是侥幸。他们是联盟中防守最好的球队。他们会对马刺的战术做出调整，但我不知道他们能否对文班亚马的发挥做出回应。
奥斯本：不，他们，好吧，我在这里直说了，他们做不到。[笑声] 马刺会赢下这个系列赛。我的意思是，哇。我觉得这不算什么惊人言论。看看他们在常规赛对阵雷霆时的表现。是的，季后赛是不同的，我知道，但是他们防守SGA的方式——派多个人去包夹他，那些后卫们不知疲倦。那些外线防守者们死缠烂打。然后你还有文班在篮下护筐、协防，甚至不仅仅是协防。我是说，他们直接限制了雷霆最强大的武器。他昨晚虽然得到了24分，但23投7中的效率非常低。是的，我的意思是，他们掐断、阻碍并挫败了雷霆最大的杀器。我认为，除了文班之外，这就是最大的不同。
芬格：但硬币的另一面是，我们已经提到过几次的那记接近logo位置的超远三分，它发生在第一个加时赛快结束时。如果那一球没进，马刺就输了！[笑声] 今天早上的新闻就会变成：文班到底在想什么，在那么远的地方拔起就投？杰夫，他整晚在三秒区之外，甚至在合理冲撞区两英尺以外的地方，都没有投进过一个球。在第一个加时赛的最后一分钟之前，他投进的每一个球要么是扣篮，要么是上篮，要么是合理冲撞区边缘的抛投。而在进攻时间还剩大约20秒、比赛还剩30秒、球队落后三分的情况下，他居然在斯蒂芬·库里 (Stephen Curry) 的射程范围内拔起就投。如果那一球没进，汤姆刚才说的一切，以及我们在播客前几分钟讨论的一切，都会彻底改变。因为那样的话，我们就会讨论“季后赛是不同的，俄克拉荷马城的经验确实发挥了作用”。正因为那一球进了，正因为文班统治了第二个加时赛，而哈珀打得像疯了一样，故事的走向才完全不同。所以，基本上，这只是给“马刺将轻松晋级”的乐观情绪泼了一点冷水。这仍然是一场打到最后的双加时比赛，容错空间并没有那么大。但马刺肯定感觉很好。而雷霆一定会感到沮丧，因为他们可以一次又一次地击败联盟中的其他所有人，却似乎总是解决不了这支球队。
奥斯本：是的，你刚才说文班统治了第二个加时赛。而SGA，谢伊·吉尔杰斯-亚历山大在两个加时赛中一共只得到了两分。你知道的。
芬格：汤姆完全是马刺的铁杆拥趸。[笑声] 这会是一场横扫吗？马刺三场晋级？
奥斯本：我是个现实主义者。我没说，我没说他们会横扫，但他们会赢下这个系列赛。他们会的。
芬格：哇。杰夫，你刚才说，你刚才说这轮系列赛会打满七场。
麦克唐纳：我仍然认为会打满七场。我的意思是，仅仅基于我们昨晚看到的一切，双方就像是在互扇耳光，隐喻层面上是这样，有时甚至在物理层面上也是如此，一次又一次。无论你是哪支球队，你都可以看着比赛说，比如马刺可以说：“好吧，我们不会再出现21次失误了。卡斯尔不会再出现11次失误了，我们还会迎来福克斯的回归，所以这场胜利比想象中还要含金量更高。”而如果你是雷霆，你可以说：“好吧，我们的三分球会投得比这场更好，SGA会打得更出色，文班也不会再投进logo三分了。”我觉得在接下来的系列赛中，我唯一敢百分之百确信并预测的是，我们不会再看到亚历克斯·卡鲁索 (Alex Caruso) 砍下30分了。[笑声] 是的。这就是我的预测底线。差不多就这样。但是，我的意思是，这也是马刺可以感到欣慰的另一件事，因为这种来自奇兵角色球员的爆发，往往是扭转比赛甚至系列赛走向的因素。因此，他们能够顶住卡鲁索砍下30分的冲击并活下来，在某种程度上是令人鼓舞的，因为这不会再次发生。那个家伙，他是雷霆在圣诞大战中输给马刺的原因。他们当时眼睁睁看着他投丢了10个三分球，12投仅2中。而昨晚他一上来就投进了8个三分，砍下31分。我敢说这不会再发生了。如果我是马刺，我不知道我是否会改变对他的防守策略。就让他继续投吧，我认为均值回归法则迟早会惩罚他。
奥斯本：是的，而且如果你能迎回福克斯，他能让马刺稳住阵脚。在昨晚比赛后期的几个节点上，他们非常需要这一点。这样一来，卡斯尔就不会有那么多失误了，所以，是的。
麦克唐纳：是的，如果福克斯在场，卡斯尔的那11次失误绝对不会发生，因为卡斯尔不会有那么多持球机会去犯错。这三位后卫协同作战的美妙之处就在于，他们可以像接力棒一样轮流掌控球权，没有人必须在每一次进攻中都担任发起者。我记得赛后我问过卡斯尔，没有福克斯在场有多艰难，他说：“老兄，我累坏了。”像那样一次又一次地去发起进攻真的太累了。他还说，这种疲劳显然导致了那11次失误。所以，我认为这就是福克斯能真正帮助他们的地方——不需要一个人或两个人去承担所有，那太消耗体力了。雷霆会贴身防守，对你的持球人进行身体对抗，如果有三个人来分担这个重任而不是两个人，如果他们能迎回福克斯，那将是一个巨大的助力。
芬格：这可能在系列赛开始前就被列入了《快报》的取胜钥匙中。肯定是的。但在进入西部决赛之前，很多人都在密切关注的一个对决点是：雷霆倾向于以联盟最高的频率之一制造对手失误，而马刺则是联盟中失误较少的球队之一。昨晚，你可以看着比赛说：“好吧，雷霆在这方面赢了。”但正如你刚才所说，杰夫，这里面有特殊情况。比如，当你缺少了首发控卫时，你很可能会出现更多失误。尽管你还有另外两位非常优秀的控卫——卡斯尔和哈珀。我重复杰夫刚才说的话，是因为这个观点太棒了。在过去的一周里，媒体圈在投篮训练或某些地方有一些讨论——顺便说一句，自我们上一期播客以来，这一周真是太疯狂了。
麦克唐纳：天哪，真是不可思议。
芬格：但当时，可能是在更衣室里，有人说：“迈克·芬格在这期播客中的使用率简直高得离谱。他应该多传传球，多分配一下球权。”我说：“好吧，我需要我的角色球员站出来主动要球。当我把球传给他们时，他们不能只是把球又扔回给我。”
麦克唐纳：你这里可没有卡鲁索，哈哈。
芬格：是的。所以，我很欣赏杰夫刚才主动要球并发挥了更大的作用。现在我可以更信任他，多把球传给他了。说到信任，我想回到哈珀的话题上，因为在任何其他球队、任何其他系列赛、面对任何其他队友，他绝对会是今晚乃至整个季后赛至今最瞩目的焦点。有一球，是在常规时间末段还是——我已经分不清是常规时间、第一个加时还是第二个加时了。
麦克唐纳：没错。
芬格：当时他连续做出了三次像托尼·帕克 (Tony Parker) 在总决赛里的那种动作，身体几乎失去平衡单膝跪地，球也快丢了，但他三次把球救了回来，并最终转化为了一个关键进球。这听起来又像是在夸大其词，但即使周围的一切都在崩溃，他似乎也从未失去冷静。杰夫，你昨晚在媒体席上提到，这轮系列赛可能在一年前的选秀抽签仪式上，当马刺拿到榜眼签时就已经赢了。
麦克唐纳：是的。
芬格：这又是杰夫·麦克唐纳的一个极佳观点。[笑声] 我不知道该怎么说。他在季后赛中挺身而出，迎来了属于自己的时刻。但是，是的。
麦克唐纳：我基本上就是这个播客里的罗伯特·霍里 (Robert Horry)。常规赛我都在混日子，但季后赛一到，天哪，我就进入状态了。就是这样。我一直在投进一个又一个关键球。
芬格：对于年轻的迪伦，你还能多说什么呢？
麦克唐纳：我是说，他才20岁。在某种程度上，他是这支球队的代言人。就像，你本不应该在这个阶段做到这些。
芬格：没错。
麦克唐纳：哈珀本不应该在NBA季后赛中就打出这样的表现。马刺作为一个整体，也本不应该在这个时候就走到这一步。但是，我认为是时候相信他们了。我再次重申，我不认为马刺稳赢这轮系列赛，但他们完全有能力赢。所以，是时候相信哈珀已经为这个时刻做好了准备，是时候相信马刺已经为此做好了准备。
芬格：我们一次又一次拿他作比较的球员，或者至少我是这么比的——这并不是什么独特的发现——是马努·吉诺比利 (Manu Ginóbili)。你知道，他并没有马努那种在国际赛场上取得成功的履历，而且马努是那种百亿挑一的竞争者。但是，他在场上做的一些动作确实会让你想起马努。在这方面，我们需要提醒自己的是，当马努满腔热血地进入联盟，并在2003年帮助球队在总决赛中击败了一支来自纽约地区的球队夺冠时——顺便说一句，这可能是一种预兆。
麦克唐纳：啊，是的。继续说，没关系，继续。
芬格：是的，他当时已经25岁了，杰夫。
麦克唐纳：是的。
芬格：一个25岁的新秀。当时的评论是：“看看这个年轻的新秀是如何应对这样的场面的。”而哈珀现在只有20岁。在迎来他的第一个NBA季后赛之前，他不仅没有代表阿根廷参加过奥运会和世锦赛，甚至连NCAA锦标赛（疯狂三月）都没打过。我已经说过很多次了，但这依然让我感到震撼。这可是他人生中第一次打这种备受瞩目的高强度比赛，而且打得极其出色。
奥斯本：米奇昨晚在被问到迪伦时，很快就提到他可能在防守端表现得更好。那7次抢断，迪伦自己表现得很谦虚，说这归功于团队防守和轮防。但我看到他几次死防SGA，效果不亚于任何人。我是说，他是马刺限制SGA防守体系中非常重要的一环。所以，无论是融入团队防守还是单兵防守，他在防守端也度过了一个极其出色的夜晚。
芬格：还有年轻的卡特·布莱恩特 (Carter Bryant)，同样是20岁，也花了大量时间去防守SGA。正如汤姆所提到的，德文·瓦塞尔，还有朱利安·尚帕尼 (Julian Champagnie) 防守SGA的一些时刻。我还漏了谁？太多人了，显然还有卡斯尔。是的。我认为，正如联盟中一些人所称的“罚球商人”SGA，他在某个时刻肯定会重新找回状态。这同样不是什么惊人观点。就像所有这些防守者对他防得那么好，马刺对SGA制定了如此扎实的战术计划，但他总会在某个时刻拿到他该拿的分数。
奥斯本：哦，是的，这是一个长期积累的过程。[笑声] 这一整季都是如此。这并不是说……我是说，他们一整季都对他防守得很好。
芬格：我认为他们会防好他。我认为他是一位蝉联了两届MVP的超级巨星，他也曾在关键时刻挺身而出。在关键时刻爆发这方面，文班亚马可不是垄断者。
麦克唐纳：是的。
芬格：而且，我认为文班亚马也希望如此，他希望在自己爆发的同时，对手也能提升状态，以此来证明谁能站得更高。昨晚他们做得很好，成功把谢伊挡在了禁区之外。他真的只能被迫出手很多中距离投篮，很多艰难的中距离投篮。而他确实是一个能投进这种球的球员，事实上，他就是靠这个生存的。昨晚他的命中率并不高，基本上你对他能做的也就这些了。如果他要爆发，他就必须顶着防守投进那些高难度的球。我认为这一部分是可以延续的，他们可以继续给他施加压力。但我确实认为他会在接下来的某些比赛中挺身而出，依然能打爆防线。
芬格：是的。在杰伦·威廉姆斯 (Jalen Williams) 伤愈复出的第一场比赛中，我们也看到了为什么人们如此喜爱J-Dub的闪光点。他在某些时刻肯定会制造一些麻烦。他因为什么伤病缺席了多少场比赛来着？是拉伤了腿筋吗？他缺席了挺长一段时间。他已经一个月没打比赛了，是的。在他们前两轮的季后赛横扫中，雷霆甚至不需要他。但是，这是另一个因为最后阶段的戏剧性表现而被遗忘的故事线。在比赛中，当文班亚马在首节早些时候或下半场中段不得不下场休息时，就像我们在媒体席上说的那样：“我是说，你不能让他打满48分钟。”还记得那句话吗，杰夫？
麦克唐纳：是的，结果他打了49分钟。
芬格：是的，没错。[笑声] 你不能让他打48分钟，所以你有时必须让他休息。结果他打了49分钟。但在他下场休息的那些时间里，马刺的防线又像是不设防的上篮训练一样。太艰难了。这并不是针对卢克·科内特 (Luke Kornet)，雷霆只是又高又壮、运动能力又强，几乎可以面对任何人冲击篮筐。威廉姆斯就是其中之一，在维克托下场的每一分钟里，他都在一次又一次地冲击篮筐。所以，当你在寻找调整空间或可利用的对决点时，我相信双方的教练组都在关注这一点。对雷霆来说，是如何在文班不在场的每一分钟里实现利益最大化；而对米奇·约翰逊来说，是如何稍微巩固一下这段时间的防守。
麦克唐纳：是的，你知道，签下科内特正是为了这种时刻，为了能在让维克托喘口气的同时，禁区防守不至于彻底崩盘。但有时候它确实会崩盘。这其实和科内特关系不大，更多是因为维克托在场时的防守标准定得太高了。当维克托在场时，对手甚至都不敢尝试冲击内线。而一旦科内特上场，内线就变成了对手的“禁区游行”。不过有时这也会对马刺有利，因为有些比赛科内特状态很好，依然能保护篮筐。我不觉得他现在移动得很顺畅，我们说的是卢克，我不知道他现在的移动是不是很好。你知道，他在赛前就因为左脚伤病被列入了伤病名单。所以我不知道他是不是处于100%的状态，我认为这对他是名副其实的考验，因为他通常是一个非常出色的护筐手。但昨晚，只要维克托在板凳上休息，雷霆就会立刻开启进攻模式。是的，我们在上一轮系列赛中也看到了马刺出现过这种情况。因为我猜对手们也意识到，只有当维克托不在场时，他们才有最好的机会去冲击禁区。这就是我昨晚说的，如果你能让文班亚马打满48分钟，这轮系列赛的每场比赛你都能赢下10分，但我之前认为这不可能。我以为这不现实，但显然他是可以做到的。我很想看看大家在周三的比赛中表现如何，他们会不会已经精疲力竭了？两支球队还能不能恢复活力？感觉那种强度的比赛，如果你拼尽全力打到那个份上，你最好能赢下来。如果在G1让主力都打了40多分钟最后却输了，那打击真的太大了。
芬格：汤姆，昨晚赛前米奇·约翰逊对你提问的回答挺有意思的，是关于福克斯和科内特的。他说——我想这是他第一次承认这一点，尽管这可能挺显而易见的——他说只要马刺还在打季后赛，他们就必须一直面对这个问题。福克斯的伤病不会凭空消失，也不会明天就痊愈。他把科内特也归入了同一类情况，不是吗？
奥斯本：是的，而且赛程的性质决定了，每隔一天就有一场比赛，根本没有时间去恢复。我认为福克斯昨晚其实是可以上场的。我想他们只是做出了决定，让我们看看，让他多休息一下，从长远考虑，这也是他们一贯的做法。事实证明他们做出了正确的决定，没有他他们也赢了。[笑声] 而且他们还有哈珀这个极其可靠的“保险单”。也许他们会让他继续休息。也许他们会继续把目光投向这轮系列赛的尾声乃至总决赛。但是，是的，情况不会有太大的好转，但我想可能会逐渐好转。
芬格：这就是杰夫刚才提到的，当你赢下那样一场双方主力都打了40多分钟、且双方都有球员带伤作战（无论是威廉姆斯还是科内特等人）的比赛时，另一个好处。赢下这场比赛的部分回报是，你现在已经拿下了在俄克拉荷马城必须拿下的那场胜利。你夺回了主场优势。在周三的第二场比赛中，你们基本上是在“用庄家的钱玩游戏”（毫无压力）。如果你真的想让福克斯恢复得更好，或者让其他人恢复得更好，也许你可以——我不认为他们会让他继续休战，如果他们这么做，我会感到非常震惊。但这是你现在可以做的事情，因为你已经拿到了一场胜利，也许你可以让他以更接近100%的状态在第三场比赛中复出。赢下那场比赛，再次重申，这是来自《马刺内幕》的惊人言论，[笑声] 但赢下那场比赛真的太关键了，老兄。如果那记logo三分没进，如果哈珀在最后阶段没有多次挺身而出而是出现了失误，突然之间，马刺就陷入了绝境。而现在，陷入绝境的是雷霆。
麦克唐纳：是的，雷霆陷入了绝境，哇。
芬格：好吧，我的意思是，汤姆已经预言系列赛结束了。[笑声] 但是，你不觉得吗？雷霆……格雷格·波波维奇 (Gregg Popovich)——我敢肯定他此时正在家里用留声机或高保真音响听着这期节目，对着他的唱片机大喊：“第二场不可能是生死战。”但对于俄克拉荷马城来说，我觉得这确实有点像生死战了。
麦克唐纳：是的，确实如此。确实是。你不能——我们说过，马刺在上一轮系列赛中输掉了第一场，我们当时也说了同样的话：“你不能在主场以0-2落后。”如果你在主场0-2落后，你基本上很难翻盘了。这极少发生。所以。
奥斯本：杰夫，他们上一次遭遇两连败是什么时候？马刺太他妈强了。[笑声] 他们简直就是……
芬格：汤姆，你自己有刚才问的那个问题的答案吗？马刺上一次输球是什么时候？
奥斯本：哦，他们什么时候输的？一……一月份吧，我猜。一月份的某个时候。
麦克唐纳：问题是什么来着？
奥斯本：呃，马刺上一次遭遇两连败是什么时候？
麦克唐纳：是在一月中旬。他们连续在客场输给了明尼苏达和俄克拉荷马城。
奥斯本：是的。
麦克唐纳：就是那次。
芬格：103比104，98比119。那已经是很久以前的事了。想想自一月份、自1月13日以来发生的一切吧。
麦克唐纳：呃，现在已经是五月中下旬了，我们居然在聊一月份的事。我都记不得一月份发生什么了。
芬格：哼哼。我告诉你吧，早在的一月份，当汤姆·奥斯本敢坐在本播客主持人的旁边时，还没有任何分歧。[笑声] 那时候大家还没有这么神经紧张。天哪，我觉得文班、哈珀、卡斯尔和米奇·约翰逊应对这轮季后赛的状态，比我们《马刺内幕》播客的嘉宾们还要好。
麦克唐纳：好吧，我只是在努力不让“爸爸妈妈”吵架。[笑声] 我，我不知道该怎么办。这让我很不自在。
芬格：汤姆快要把我逼疯了，而我也肯定早就挑战了他的底线。我敢肯定。但我们正在努力克服。有时候你必须学会共存。你感觉怎么样，汤姆？我是不是在考验你的耐心？
奥斯本：不，并没有。呃，昨晚你还是像往常一样荒谬，但是，[笑声] 你懂的。
芬格：所以尽管我表现得令人讨厌、冒犯他人等等，你依然能保持内心平静？
奥斯本：是的，是的。我的意思是，你还行吧。就像我上周说的，我已经慢慢接受了，你懂的。
麦克唐纳：是的。老汤（TO），这家伙能把教皇都气得爆粗口，所以。
芬格：我能吗？
麦克唐纳：能。
芬格：那，呃，也许吧。
奥斯本：我们都是有缺陷的、会犯错的、一团糟的普通人。[笑声]
芬格：这绝对适用于你，芬格先生。有缺陷、会犯错、一团糟的芬格。我接受这个评价。
奥斯本：4个F。
芬格：4个F。在我们下一次与听众和观众交流之前，还有一周的时间。想想看，到那时圣安东尼奥马刺周围的世界会发生怎样的变化。那将是另外三场比赛。怎么说，我们在节目结束前，要像常规赛那样做个正式的预测吗？
麦克唐纳：我已经做过正式预测了。我们这轮系列赛会打满七场。
奥斯本：我也做过了。
麦克唐纳：是的。
芬格：好的。听起来不错。记住，要让你的感恩之心大于你的期望，照顾好彼此，保持真实。[音乐]
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：Wemby and the 2OT classic
Wemby and the 2OT classic
Columnist Mike Finger and Spurs beat reporters Jeff McDonald and Tom Orsborn discuss Victor Wembanyama’s takeover in the Spurs’ double overtime win over the Thunder in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals. Also how the Spurs keep momentum and win Game 2? And how much do they need De’Aaron Fox to return?
Suggested reading:
How Victor Wembanyama, a 1-in-8-billion star, met his biggest moment
Spurs vs. Thunder: Game 2 Keys to Victory
Why Spurs’ Dylan Harper was in ‘attack mode’ throughout his first playoff start Spurs vs. Thunder, Game 1: Spurs react after Wemby’s historic night
Here is the transcript of the podcast:
Mike Finger: This episode of Spurs Insider is brought to you by Davis Law Firm. Want more? Call the fours. [music]
Mike Finger: From a highly secure network of top secret locations across Oklahoma City, this is the Spurs Insider Double Overtime Edition. I am Mike Finger, joined by a weary crew of San Antonio Express-News Spurs beat writers. We have the fatigued Jeff McDonald, the, the, the battling Tom Orsborn. We’ve we’ve made it all the way to the Western Conference Finals covering this team, and it seems like there were times when we were making too much of what was about to happen. It was too much ridiculous hype. We were part of the hype machine, and maybe, Jeff McDonald, we did not hype it enough, because what we witnessed at Paycom Center just down the street from our secure locations a few hours ago was an all-timer, was it not?
Jeff McDonald: I mean, the phrase “instant classic” gets thrown around a lot these days, maybe too much, but that one, that one was an instant classic. Like, if there’s a definition, it was that game. Just back and forth down the stretch, both teams just throwing haymakers. Big shots, big stops. I’ve covered so many Spurs playoff games, including many in that very building, and that one was right up there with some of the best ones I’ve ever seen. I mean, you’re thinking about the Ray Allen game, Game 6 here in Oklahoma City with the with the Timmy shot to send them to the finals. Just just an all-timer of a game.
Mike Finger: You said it, Jeff, it was just Game 1 and we tend to be prisoners of the moment after moments like that. There there have been many classic Game 1s where the team that has has won it has turned around and not won the series, but Tom, the way that Victor Wembanyama played down the stretch in that game, making a case for himself not only as the the real MVP, but as the best player in the bleeping world, as Stephon Castle put it on national TV, are are we too much a prisoner of the moment, Tom, or was that as momentous as it seemed?
Tom Orsborn: Yeah, I mean, there’s so many moments frozen in time. The, the deeper than logo three-pointer by Wemby, man, that’s so many memories are going to be were made by that shot. I mean, people, people watching that game, kids are going to cherish that moment for, for a long time. Devin’s block of Chet Holmgren at the rim with about 40 seconds left in the, in the second overtime was huge. I mean, just so many great moments. But the thing that, you know, just jumps out to me, too, is they’re three wins away from the finals. It’s just, it’s a remarkable run.
Mike Finger: Craziness. And to think that the night started with your most experienced playoff star in De’Aaron Fox being scratched about an hour before game time. And this means that a rookie, 20-year-old rookie, is is thrust into the starting lineup for the biggest game the Spurs have played in the last nine years and he started four games all season, and puts up legitimately, Jeff, Magic Johnson numbers, Dylan Harper. I mean, from the 20 points over 10 rebounds, six assists, seven steals, seven steals! That’s crazy. And he’s sort of the postscript, the after, the afterthought to this crazy game. It’s, it’s, it’s really I sound ridiculous. We, everybody sounds ridiculous talking about this team because it’s doing unprecedented things in an unprecedented way. But, it’s, it’s hard not to sort of go crazy.
Jeff McDonald: Let’s, let’s go back to Victor, you know, you wrote it coming into the series, a lot of people pushed that storyline of, oh, he’s going to have to watch Shai get his MVP before Game 1 and it’s going to, you know, upset him and and motivate him and make him mad and Vic’s going to have just a monster game, and everyone wrote that. It’s going to be Hakeem against David back in and whatever, '96.
Mike Finger: '95.
Jeff McDonald: '95. And and it almost felt like we were going too far in that direction, you know, it seemed like the easy narrative. But that’s exactly what happened. I mean, Victor watched Shai hoist the trophy that he thought was his. And let me pause here and say, I don’t think anyone on the Spurs thinks SGA is an unworthy recipient of that award. It’s it’s not about that. It’s just, as Mitch said after the game with Victor, it’s watching someone have an award that you want and how that motivates you. And this to go out there and put up a 40-20 game, a 40-20 game! The youngest player in NBA history to have a 40-20 playoff game, second Spur, only David Robinson has done that. I mean, it was just it was like it was like written in a it was like a script. It was like scripted how this was going to go. Like I said, you wrote it before the before the game even started, and lo and behold, that’s what happened.
Mike Finger: And I don’t think Victor or anyone with the Spurs acknowledged that the Shai Gilgeous-Alexander ceremony was the motivating factor, just as, by the way, 31 years ago, Hakeem Olajuwon did not acknowledge that he was fired up by watching David Robinson get the MVP award on the Alamodome court. But, I mean, it plays into it. And, you know, I I think Victor Wembanyama would have had a monster Game 1 regardless of what pregame ceremony happened on the floor last night. But man, a competitor like that to continually, since the first day we saw him in in America in a in an exhibition game, living up to moment after moment after moment, not being afraid of any of them, it’s, it’s something that on the Spurs Insider podcast we’ve almost taken for granted over the past three years. I mean, there there have been podcasts where we just don’t mention some of the ridiculous stuff that he does. And then, on a night like that, just, you you have to sit back and and appreciate it. And Tom, not to get too far ahead of ourselves, you know, th- this is still a a very much a a competitive series. The Oklahoma City were not the number one seed in the West for nothing. They’re not the defending champions for nothing. It’s not a fluke. They’re the best defensive team in the league. They’re going to come up with some kind of answers for what the Spurs are throwing at them, but I don’t know if they come up with an answer for that.
Tom Orsborn: No, they, well, I’ll say it here, they don’t. [laughter] Spurs are going to win this series. I mean, whoa. I, I don’t think that’s a hot, I don’t think that’s a hot take. Look at look at what they did in the regular season against them. Yeah, the playoffs are different, I know that, but, the, the way they defend SGA, you know, sending multiple bodies at him, those guards are relentless. Those perimeter defenders are relentless. Then you got Wemby, you know, defending the rim, helping out, you know, more than helping out. I mean, they just they just take he he had 24 points last night, but it was a very inefficient 7 of 23. Yeah, I mean, they take away, they they stifle and frustrate, Oklahoma City’s biggest weapon. And I think that’s that’s, in addition to Wemby, I think that’s the biggest difference.
Mike Finger: The the flip side to that is that near logo three that we’ve referred to a couple times already that happened near the end of the first overtime. If that doesn’t go in, the Spurs lose! [laughter] And the story this morning is, what in the world was Wemby thinking pulling up from that far, when he had not, Jeff, he had not made a shot outside, not only outside the paint, but outside like two feet of the restricted area all night long. Every every shot he made up until the last minute of the first overtime was either a dunk or a layup or a floater right there at the at the restricted area, and to pull up from Steph Curry range with 20 seconds, I think, still left on the shot clock, 30 seconds left in the game, you’re down by three, if that shot doesn’t go in, everything that Tom just talked about, everything that we’ve been talking about for the first several minutes of this podcast, changes. Because that, you know, then we’re talking about the playoffs are different and Oklahoma City is, that experience does matter. Because that shot goes in, because Wemby dominates the second overtime and Dylan Harper just plays out of his mind, the story is very different. So, basically, this is just a a little bit of cold water on the idea that the Spurs are going to run away with this. It’s still going to That was a double overtime game, down to the wire. The the margin of error is not that huge. But the Spurs have to feel good about about themselves. And Oklahoma City has to be getting frustrated with the fact that they can beat everybody else in the league over and over and over again and they can’t seem to solve this team.
Tom Orsborn: Yeah, and you you just said Wemby dominated in the in the second overtime period. SGA had, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had two points in the two overtimes. You know.
Mike Finger: Tom is just pro Spurs all the way. [laughter] It’s going to be a sweep? Spurs in three?
Tom Orsborn: I’m being a realist. I I didn’t say, I didn’t say they’re going to sweep, but they’re going to win the series. They are.
Mike Finger: Wow. Jeff, you just said, you just said it’s going seven.
Jeff McDonald: I think it’s going seven still. I mean, just based on everything we saw last night, it was just people punching themselves in their face, metaphorically, and sometimes not metaphorically, over and over. And you can, I mean, if you’re either team, you can look at it and say, you know, the Spurs can say, “Well, we’re not going to turn it over 21 times again. Stephon Castle’s not going to have 11 turnovers again, we’re going to get De’Aaron Fox back, like that’s an even better win than you think.” And if you’re the the Thunder, you can say, “Well, we’re going to shoot better from three than we did, SGA’s going to have a a better game. Victor’s not going to hit a logo three.” I I think the only thing I feel comfortable predicting with absolute certainty for the rest of the series is we’re not going to get another 30-ball from Alex Caruso. [laughter] Yes. That’s That’s about where I would set it. That’s about it. But, I mean, I mean, that’s another thing the Spurs can feel good about because that’s the kind of, those are the, those kinds of performances from like weirdo role players are the things that turn games and turn theory, turn series-es. So, the fact they were able to survive a 30-ball from Alex Caruso is kind of heartening, in a way, because it’s not going to happen again. That that guy, he was the reason the Thunder lost on Christmas Day against the Spurs. They sat there and watched that man miss ten three-pointers, 2 of 12. And then he comes out and hits nine, hits eight of them and 31 points. And I feel comfortable saying that’s not going to happen again. I don’t If I’m the Spurs, I don’t know if I change my approach to that. Just let him keep firing and then, the law of averages will catch up to him, I think.
Tom Orsborn: Yeah, and you, if you get Fox back, you know, he settles the Spurs down so much. They need, they they needed that at at various points late in that game. You know, you don’t have all those turnovers by Castle, so, yeah.
Jeff McDonald: Those, yeah, those 11 turnovers by Castle do not, do not happen if De’Aaron Fox is there because Steph wouldn’t be on the ball enough to have 11 turnovers. Like, the the way those three guards work together in tandem where they can kind of pass the baton back and forth and nobody’s having to be the initiator of the offense on every single possession, that’s kind of the beauty of that, that, that threesome there. I remember that’s what I asked Steph after the game was how hard was it not having Fox and he said, “Man, I’m tired.” Like, that was so tiring to have to just do that over and over and over again. And he said of course that fatigue, you know, contributed to 11 turnovers. So, I think that’s where Fox is going to really help them, is just not one person and not two people have to do, that’s taxing. The the Thunder get into you and they’re physical with your ball handlers and to have three guys to share that load instead of two is a huge is, will be a huge boon if they can get, if they can get De’Aaron back.
Mike Finger: It might have been in the Express-News keys to victory before the series started. Sure it was. But but a a, a matchup that a lot of people were looking closely at heading into the Western Conference Finals was the fact that the Oklahoma City Thunder tend to force turnovers at one of the highest rates in the league, and the Spurs tend to turn the ball over less than most teams in the league. And last night, you could look at it and say, “Well, the Thunder won that,” but because of what you just said, Jeff, I mean, there were, there were extenuating circumstances. Like, when you don’t have your starting point guard, you’re probably going to turn the ball over more. And, even though you have two other, two other really good point guards in Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper. I’m repeating what Jeff just said because the point was so excellent. And there was some, there was some talk around the in the media circles around a shootaround or, or somewhere over the past week, which, by the way, what a week it’s been since our last podcast.
Jeff McDonald: Jeez, Louise.
Mike Finger: But th- there was, it might have been in the locker room, where that it was like, “the, the Mike Finger’s usage rate is is like through the roof on this podcast. And like, he, like he, he, he should distribute more.” And I said, “Well, I need my the, the supporting players to step up and want the ball. They can’t just throw the ball back to me when I pass to them.”
Jeff McDonald: You don’t have an Alex Caruso here, no.
Mike Finger: Yeah. So, like, I I appreciate Jeff like wanting the ball there and doing more with it. Now I can trust him to to pass to him more often. Speaking of trust, I’m going to get back to the Dylan Harper thing, because in, on any other team, any other series with any other teammate, he’s the freaking story of the of the night and of the of the postseason so far. There was a, there was a play, was it late in regulat- I lose track of regulation, first overtime, second overtime.
Jeff McDonald: Right.
Mike Finger: When he did like three of the Tony Parker in the finals things in a row where he’s like falling down to a knee and like almost losing the ball and he got it back three times and preserved it for a big bucket there. It’s just, again, this sounds like hyperbole, but he never seems to lose his cool even when everything around him is falling apart. And to have that, Jeff, you mentioned up on the, on, in our media seats last night that this series might have been won a year ago at the draft lottery when the Spurs got the number two pick.
Jeff McDonald: Yeah.
Mike Finger: Like, that’s, that’s another excellent point by Jeff McDonald. [laughter] I, I don’t know what to tell you. He’s coming through in the playoffs, he’s meeting the moment. But, but yeah.
Jeff McDonald: I’m I’m basically the Robert Horry of this podcast. I mail it in during the regular season, but the playoffs come and, boy, howdy, I’m on it. There you go. I’m storing the big shots after big shot.
Mike Finger: What more can you say about young Dylan?
Jeff McDonald: I mean, he’s 20 years old. He’s not, in a way, he’s the poster boy of this team. Like, you’re not supposed to be doing this yet.
Mike Finger: Yep.
Jeff McDonald: That’s Dylan Harper’s not supposed to be doing this in the NBA playoffs yet. The Spurs as a whole are not supposed to be doing this in the playoffs yet. And and, I you know, I think it’s time to believe in both of them. And I, again, I don’t think I don’t think it’s a lock the Spurs win this series, but there’s no reason they can’t. So, it’s, it’s, it’s time to believe in Dylan Harper is is ready for this moment. Time to believe the Spurs are ready for this.
Mike Finger: The the player we’ve compared him to over and over again, or at least I have, and it’s not a unique observation, is is Manu Ginóbili, and you know, he does not have that track record of like international success and just the Manu Ginóbili is a one in eight billion competitor. Um, but some of the stuff he does on the floor reminds you of Manu and and and, what we have to remind ourselves on that front is when Manu Ginóbili came into the league with his hair on fire on a team that won the NBA Finals in 2003 against a team from the New York area, by the way, foreshadowing maybe.
Jeff McDonald: Ah, yeah. Go ahead, never mind. Go ahead.
Mike Finger: Yeah, he was 25 years old, Jeff.
Jeff McDonald: Yeah.
Mike Finger: A 25-year-old rookie. And it was and the the the commentary then was, “Look at this young rookie handle this moment like this.” Dylan Harper is 20 years old. Not only did he not star for Argentina in Olympics and and World Cups heading into his first NBA postseason, he didn’t even play in the NCAA tournament. I’ve said that a bunch of times, but it still blows my mind. These are the first high-profile games he’s ever played in, and playing really, really well.
Tom Orsborn: And Mitch, Mitch mentioned pretty quickly last night, when asked about Dylan, that he may be even better defensively. You know, he, the seven steals, he was pretty modest, Dylan was, saying that came in in terms of team team defense and just rotating. But I saw him clamp down on SGA a few times as well as anyone, as well as anyone could. I mean, he was a big part of their defense against him. So, yeah, whether he’s in the team concept or individually, he had a hell of a night defensively, too.
Mike Finger: As well as young Carter Bryant, also 20 years old, also spending chunks of time on SGA, as well as, as Tom mentioned, Devin Vassell, some Julian Champagnie moments against SGA. Who am I missing? So many guys, Stephon Castle, obviously. Yeah. And I think that the the the free throw merchant, as as some around the league refer to SGA, I I think he’s going to, he’s, he’s going to get rolling again at some point. That’s not a, again, not a hot take. Like, as well as all those defenders played against him, as solid of a of a game plan as the Spurs had for SGA, he’s going to get his at some point.
Tom Orsborn: Oh, yeah, it’s been a body of work thing. [laughter] It’s been It’s been a regular season playoff thing so far. It’s not like they I mean, they’ve they’ve defended him well all season.
Mike Finger: I think they’ll defend him well. I think he’s a two-time, mm, two in a row MVP who has risen to moments of Wemby does not have the monopoly on rising to moments.
Jeff McDonald: Yeah.
Mike Finger: And, I don’t think Victor Wembanyama would have it any other way than to have the opponents rise to their games when he’s rising to his, and find out who can, who can rise higher. It’s going to be They did a good, they did a good job of keeping Shai out of the paint last night. He really had to settle for a lot of that midrange stuff, a lot of tough midrange stuff, and he’s a guy that can make that, in fact, he thrives on making that. He didn’t make it at a very high clip last night, and that’s basically all you can do with him, is if he’s going to if he’s going to get going, he’s going to have to make tough shots over the top of people. And I think, I think that part can continue. They can continue to make it hard on him. I do think he will rise to the occasion in some of these games and torch you anyway.
Mike Finger: Yeah. And we we saw some flashes in his first game back in a while of why people love J-Dub, Jalen Williams so much. Like, he’s going to he’s going to create some problems at some point. That was How many games in a row had he missed with what was it? A hamstring injury? He’d he’d been out a while. He hadn’t played in a month, yeah. They hadn’t needed him during their first two playoff sweeps. But, this is another storyline that is forgotten because of the theatrics down the stretch, but there were moments during when Victor Wembanyama had to go to the bench early in the game, midway through the the second half, because, as, as we were saying upstairs in our seats, “I mean, you you can’t play him 48 minutes.” Remember that line, Jeff?
Jeff McDonald: Yeah, he played 49.
Mike Finger: Yeah, exactly. [laughter] You can’t play him 48 minutes, so you have to sit him sometimes. He ended up playing 49. But during the the stretches when he was out of the game, it was kind of a layup line again. Rough. And it’s nothing against Luke Kornet, this, the Thunder are just big and strong and athletic and can get to the rim against just about anybody, and Jalen Williams was one of them who was getting to the rim over and over again during every minute that Victor was out of the game. So, when you’re looking at adjustments, matchups to exploit for either of these teams, I’m sure that’s, that’s something that both of those coaching staffs are looking at, is to, on Oklahoma City’s side, how do we maximize every non-Victor minute, and, for Mitch Johnson’s side, how do we shore that up a little bit?
Jeff McDonald: Yeah, yeah, you know, Kornet was, was signed for exactly this kind of thing, to to give to be able to give the give Victor a breather without the paint defense just falling off a cliff, but sometimes it falls off a cliff. And it, and it has less to do with Kornet and more that the the bar is so high yeah, when Victor’s in the game. Like, people don’t even try it. And then, as soon as Kornet’s in there, it’s, it’s a, like a paint parade, and then sometimes it works in the Spurs’ favor because there are games where Kornet’s just got it going and he’s he’s still rim-defending. I don’t think he’s moving, we’re talking about Luke, I don’t know if he’s moving great right now. You know, he was on the injury report going in there with a with a left foot thing. So, I don’t know if he’s at 100 percent, and I think that, that, that’s an issue for him because he usually is a very good rim defender. But last night, as soon as, like, for the moments Victor’s on the bench, it just becomes the the the Thunder now in attack mode, and yeah, we saw that at times in the previous series too with the Spurs, because I guess that’s where teams figure out they have their best shot to get to get to the paint, is when Victor’s off the floor. And that’s what I said last night, if you could play Victor Wembanyama 48 minutes, you would win every game by 10 in this series, but I didn’t think you could do that. I didn’t think it was it was possible, but apparently it is. I’ll be interested to see how everybody comes out on Wednesday, like, are are they just are they just gassed? Is there any kind of bounce-back for both teams? It almost felt like that game, if you’re going to go that hard after a game, you better win it. Like, to go to to play all those guys 40 minutes and lose that game would have been pretty tough for Game 1.
Mike Finger: Tom, you, there was sort of an interesting, Mitch Johnson answered to a question you asked him before the game last night about De’Aaron and and Luke and that he said, I think this is the first time he’s acknowledged this, even though it’s probably kind of obvious, but didn’t he say that that’s just they’re going to be dealing with that as long as the Spurs are playing? This isn’t an a an injury for De’Aaron that’s just going to go away, that’s going to heal tomorrow. And he he threw Luke into that same boat, did he not?
Tom Orsborn: Yeah, and the, the nature of the schedule, you know, every other day, it’s just there’s just no no time to get better. And I think Fox probably, I think he could have played last night. I think they just made the decision, let’s let’s see, let’s give him a little rest, let’s think long-term, long picture, which they always do. And it turns out they made the right decision, you know, they won without him. [laughter] And they’ve got a hugely reliable insurance policy in Dylan Harper. I mean, maybe they rest him again. Maybe they keep they they they keep looking toward the end of this series and into the finals. So, but yeah, it’s it’s not going to get it’s not going to get hugely better, but it can get incrementally better, I guess.
Mike Finger: That’s the, that’s another upside to what Jeff was just talking about when you win a game like that, where where both teams are are throwing guys out there for 40 minutes, and both sides are are working through nagging injuries, you know, whether it’s Jalen Williams or or Luke Kornet or whoever, you th- part of the reward of that is now you’ve gotten the one game in Oklahoma City that you that you had to get. You you stole home-court advantage back, and in Game 2 on Wednesday, you’re sort of playing with house money. And if you want to really, get De’Aaron Fox better, get somebody better, maybe you can I don’t think they’re going to sit him again. I would be borderline shocked if they did. But that’s a, that’s something that you can do now, knowing that you’ve already got one, and maybe you bring him back a little closer to full strength in Game 3. Winning that game, again, hot take from the Spurs Insider, [laughter] but winning that game was freaking huge, man. Like, if the Spur, if that logo three does not go in, if if Dylan Harper turns the ball over instead of doing what he did so many times down the stretch, like, all of a sudden, it’s desperation time. And now, instead, it’s desperation time in OKC.
Jeff McDonald: Yeah. Desperation time in OKC, wow.
Mike Finger: Well, I mean, Tom’s already predicted the series is over. [laughter] But do, do you not think that, the Thunder Gregg, Gregg Popovich, who I’m sure is listening to this at home on his phonograph, on his hi-fi system, is yelling at his his record player right now saying, “It can’t be a must-win game in Game 2.” But it kind of, for Oklahoma City, I think it kind of is.
Jeff McDonald: Yeah, it is. It is. You can’t, and we said, you know, the Spurs lost Game 1 of their last series, and we said the same thing, “You can’t go down 0-2 at home.” You you that doesn’t you kind of don’t come back from that if you’re down 0-2 at home. That rarely happens. So.
Tom Orsborn: When’s the last time they lost two in a row, Jeff? Spurs are damn good. [laughter] They they are just…
Mike Finger: Tom, do you, do you have the answer to that question that you just asked, on the last time the Spurs lost?
Tom Orsborn: Oh, when did they lose? Jan- January, I guess. Sometime in January.
Jeff McDonald: What was the question?
Tom Orsborn: Uh, when is the last time the Spurs lost two games in a row?
Jeff McDonald: It was, it was mid-January. They lost to Minnesota and Oklahoma City in consecutive games on the road.
Tom Orsborn: Yeah.
Jeff McDonald: There it is.
Mike Finger: 104 to 103, 119 to 98. That’s been a long time. Think of all that’s happened since January, January the 13th.
Jeff McDonald: Uh, this is, this is mid-to-late May now, and we’re talking about January. I don’t even remember January.
Mike Finger: Uh-huh. I’ll tell you what, way back in January, there was no dissension when Tom Orsborn would dare sit next to the host of this podcast. [laughter] There there there was, there were no frayed nerves. Man, this, Wemby and Dylan Harper and Stephon Castle and Mitch Johnson are handling this postseason better, I think, than the panelists on the Spurs Insider podcast are.
Jeff McDonald: Well, I’m just, I’m just trying to keep Mommy and Daddy from fighting. [laughter] I I, I don’t know what to do. It makes me uncomfortable.
Mike Finger: Tom is Tom’s going to get on my last nerve, and I’m past his last nerve, I’m sure. I’m sure. But we’re fighting through it. Sometimes you got to co-exist. How, how are you feeling, Tom? Am I, am I testing your serenity?
Tom Orsborn: No, not really. Uh, last night you were you were you were your ridiculous self, but, [laughter] you know.
Mike Finger: But your serenity endures despite me being just obnoxious and offensive and all those things?
Tom Orsborn: Yeah, yeah. I mean, you’re, you’re all right. Well, like I said last week, I’ve come to accept it, you know.
Jeff McDonald: Yeah. TO, this man could make the Pope curse, so.
Mike Finger: I could?
Jeff McDonald: Yes.
Mike Finger: That’s uh, maybe.
Tom Orsborn: We’re all flawed, fallible, and f-ed up. [laughter]
Mike Finger: That certainly applies to you, Mr. Finger. Flawed, fallible, f-ed up Finger. I’ll take it.
Tom Orsborn: The four Fs.
Mike Finger: The four Fs. We got another week before we talk to the listeners again, the viewers again. Think of, think of how the world around the San Antonio Spurs could change by then. It’ll be three more games. What, do we do the regular season thing and do the official predictions before we sign off?
Jeff McDonald: I already did my official prediction. We’re going seven.
Tom Orsborn: I already did mine.
Jeff McDonald: Yeah.
Mike Finger: Okay. Sounds good. Remember to keep your gratitude greater than your expectations, take care of each other, and keep it real. [music]