By Fred Katz | The Athletic, 2026-06-02 09:05:00
季后赛系列赛的胜利绝非仅凭天赋就能信手拈来。克敌制胜的秘诀在于对位。
因此，随着NBA总决赛的临近，在纽约尼克斯队与圣安东尼奥马刺队鸣哨开球之后，让我们来盘点三个值得密切关注的对位：
防守“歌利亚”
尼克斯现在不得不去解答今年春天早些时候让三支西部球队闻风丧胆的难题：面对维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama)——这位身高7英尺4英寸、但场上存在感仿佛比注册身高还要高耸的巨人，他们该如何应对？
针对这一难题，目前流行的解决方案出在外线。尼克斯可以让他们的防守一阵级别侧翼阿努诺比 (OG Anunoby) 去对位文班亚马，这虽然会带来明显的体型劣势，但同样也会给马刺制造麻烦。面对身材较矮但强壮、对抗强硬的侧翼时，文班亚马的效率并不总是那么高。
如果他在西部决赛中保持健康，俄克拉荷马雷霆队前锋杰伦·威廉姆斯 (Jalen Williams) 本会承担防守文班亚马的任务。雷霆队在第一场比赛中曾尝试用控球后卫亚历克斯·卡鲁索 (Alex Caruso) 来防守文班亚马。而到了系列赛后期，这个重任大多落在了他们的中锋伊赛亚·哈尔滕施泰因 (Isaiah Hartenstein) 身上。但如果球队条件允许，首选通常还是侧翼——而且是阿努诺比这种类型的侧翼，就像威廉姆斯一样：身板宽阔、身手敏捷、力量对抗强、球商高，且不惧怕超级得分手。
身高6英尺7英寸、体重240磅的阿努诺比， perhaps是联盟中在低位接球前将身材更高大的对手顶出油漆区最出色的侧翼。这项技能在防守文班亚马时尤为关键，因为文班亚马可以在人类本不该触及的距离，轻松完成挑篮得分。
将文班亚马逼成一个跳投手，在他空切篮下时破坏其接球位置，在他试图在低位强吃时将其顶出禁区，在他打挡拆下顺时迅速卡住最佳防守位置以切断那些恐怖的空中接力——做到这些，防守人就算是对这位NBA最顶尖的年轻超巨尽到了职责。然而，让阿努诺比去防守文班亚马会产生连锁反应。
为了说明这一点，让我们把时间倒回两队在3月1日的第三次交手。在12月中旬的NBA杯决赛中，阿努诺比曾部分时间对位文班亚马。两周后，他几乎整场比赛都在防守文班亚马。但在3月初，他并没有怎么防守这位最佳阵容级别的中锋。相反，身高7英尺的卡尔-安东尼·唐斯 (Karl-Anthony Towns) 在开场时对位文班亚马。替补中锋米切尔·罗宾逊 (Mitchell Robinson) 也分担了防守时间。阿努诺比防守文班亚马的回合寥寥无几——因为马刺已经做出了调整。
到了3月，前锋哈里森·巴恩斯 (Harrison Barnes) 已经退出了马刺的首发阵容，取而代之的是朱利安·尚帕尼 (Julian Champagnie)。如果让阿努诺比去防守文班亚马，就意味着要给唐斯一个艰巨的任务。唐斯是一个移动相对缓慢的大个子，尽管他在尼克斯统治级的季后赛征程中打出了职业生涯最好的防守。当巴恩斯在场时，唐斯可以对这位不怎么移动和突破的老将进行收缩防守，并有足够的时间扑出去防守。但如果让唐斯去防守尚帕尼，尼克斯的防线就会显得有些脆弱。
尚帕尼在三分线外出手极其果断，纽约人在除夕夜就亲身体会到了这一点——当时马刺凭借尚帕尼投进的11记三分球，完成了逆转并以两分优势险胜尼克斯。如果让唐斯去防守另一位神射手德文·瓦塞尔 (Devin Vassell)，尼克斯的防守可能会面临类似的问题，尽管这样可以让阿努诺比死贴文班亚马。
当然，尼克斯有时会让阿努诺比去防守文班亚马。他们也会交替使用唐斯和罗宾逊，后者的篮板球牵制力在这轮系列赛中将至关重要——只要他能带着骨折的小拇指接稳篮球。但让阿努诺比进行错位防守，会让尼克斯的防线变得比他们预期的要脆弱一些。
唐斯要防守一个底角，杰伦·布伦森 (Jalen Brunson) 则防守另一个。如果文班亚马摆脱防守，尼克斯的侧翼群——阿努诺比、米卡尔·布里奇斯 (Mikal Bridges) 和乔什·哈特 (Josh Hart)（他们是纽约防守成功的基石）——可能谁都无法及时出现在他的冲筐路线上。
绝不犯规
布里奇斯在常规赛中并没有怎么防守斯蒂芬·卡斯尔 (Stephon Castle)。请将此视为希望他去防守卡斯尔的呼吁——即便卡斯尔在本赛季对阵尼克斯的三场比赛中投篮表现不佳。
为了解释这一点，让我们回顾一下布里奇斯在东部决赛第一场中的一次防守。在那个回合中，他本不该贴得詹姆斯·哈登 (James Harden) 那么紧。
当时尼克斯落后两位数，陷入了这支一个多月未尝败绩的球队罕见的困境中。这位侧翼死死缠住了这位前MVP。哈登竭尽全力想要摆脱防守，却无济于事。
第四节，哈登在边线发球，随后迅速空切接球。布里奇斯绕过掩护紧紧跟防。但请注意接下来发生的一幕——更确切地说，是注意没有发生的一幕。布里奇斯的手从未接近过哈登的手臂。
这正是哈登最擅长掌控局面的时刻。他的防守人失去重心，正朝他的方向扑来。对手可能会伸出一只手去够他，试图在脚步跟不上的情况下用上半身去延误。这种防守漏洞正是哈登的“甜点区”。那些臭名昭著的造罚球神技正是由此而生。
36岁的哈登或许巅峰已过，但他依然是个狡黠的战术大师。没有哪个球员能在七次领跑联盟罚球榜的同时，不保留那些能让他频繁走上罚球线的雕虫小技。在东部决赛的全部四场比赛中，都是布里奇斯在防守哈登。最主要的原因？他是无犯规防守的顶级大师。
上述这个回合就是最好的佐证。
看看布里奇斯在追赶哈登时的右手掌。它紧贴着自己的左侧臀部，提醒自己不要下手切球。在哈登运球突破时，一旦你把手伸出去，这位突破手立刻就会察觉到手悬在球的上方。哈登会迅速起跳，主动找防守人伸出的手进行身体接触，从而骗取两次罚球。
布里奇斯绝不会这么做。在这个回合没有，在整个系列赛中也基本没有。
他的内侧手放在对侧臀部，外侧手高高举起以干扰投篮。这次防守无懈可击，以至于哈登竟然合球了，这可不常见。通常情况下，哈登会冲击篮筐，要么直接上篮，要么分球给外线的三分投手。但布里奇斯让他彻底乱了阵脚。
哈登无法通过转身摆脱防守。当哈登起跳时，布里奇斯直立起跳封盖，而不是向前扑。他不仅成功防下了这一球，还避免了对哈登犯规。
在季后赛前两轮中展现出的那个布里奇斯——在第二轮防守费城76人队“小跑车”泰瑞斯·马克西 (Tyrese Maxey)，在东决防守节奏更慢的哈登——并不是尼克斯球迷在常规赛中所熟知的那个他。前82场比赛中的布里奇斯是一位出色的协防者，但在领防时却有些吃力。
他在面对掩护时会过早放弃，对抗也容易限制他的发挥。如果对方后卫速度极快，往往能轻松过掉这位尼克斯侧翼。但现在的这个布里奇斯——那个在季后赛中每晚锁死对方最佳阵容级别球星，同时还能在中距离投出59%命中率的家伙——才是尼克斯送出五个首轮签所要换来的那个人。他最显著的特质就是防守端的控制力。
他在整个系列赛中都在防守哈登。在如此长的时间里，他只对这位罚球大师犯过一次投篮犯规。仅仅一次。整个系列赛。那是在第一场尼克斯即将锁定胜局时，哈登尝试三分出手，布里奇斯下手切球犯规。此后，他再也没有对哈登犯过投篮犯规，哈登始终找不到节奏。因此，克利夫兰骑士队也同样无法找到节奏。
随着总决赛的开始，看看尼克斯将如何部署布里奇斯将非常有趣。在常规赛中，尼克斯和马刺交手过三次（包括他们的NBA杯对决）。大多数时候，布里奇斯都在防守全明星控卫达龙·福克斯 (De’Aaron Fox)。但考虑到布里奇斯在季后赛中的出色表现，让他去防守斯蒂芬·卡斯尔或许是明智之举。
卡斯尔是马刺外线最具侵略性的造犯规好手。根据Second Spectrum的数据，他在常规赛突破上篮时共制造了108次犯规，在全联盟排名第10。他在风格上像是马克西和哈登的结合体，既有哈登的体型和节奏变化，又拥有能一步过掉大多数防守者的速度和弹跳。
如果布里奇斯去防守卡斯尔，那么哈特就可以去防守福克斯。尼克斯侧翼三人组的美妙之处就在于他们的互换性。纽约可以轮番调整对位，而且他们深知，布里奇斯在防守任何人时都能保持极佳的克制力。
防守布伦森
马刺的防守几乎无懈可击，但即便他们刚刚限制住了两届常规赛MVP谢伊·吉尔杰斯-亚历山大 (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander)，面对另一位神鬼莫测的后卫布伦森，他们依然缺乏一个最理想的防守大闸。
毫无疑问，卡斯尔将在系列赛开始时负责领防尼克斯的进攻核心。在常规赛和NBA杯期间，马刺也曾尝试让福克斯去防守他。但卡斯尔是圣安东尼奥顶级防线的锁喉手，正是他在西部决赛的前六场比赛中限制住了吉尔杰斯-亚历山大。虽然布伦森没有吉尔杰斯-亚历山大那么高，速度也没那么快，但他拥有一项吉尔杰斯-亚历山大所不具备的武器。
他能够而且经常会选择急停三分出手，这有助于削弱文班亚马在油漆区周围的防守威慑力。更重要的是，任何能够真正限制布伦森的防守者——无论其单兵防守能力有多强（卡斯尔已经是外线防守者中的佼佼者了）——身高都不能低于6英尺7英寸。
布伦森最怕的就是防守人的长臂。在面对亚特兰大老鹰队的戴森·丹尼尔斯 (Dyson Daniels) 时，他很难轻松找到自己的出手点。底特律活塞队的奥萨尔·汤普森 (Ausar Thompson) 拥有极佳的长臂和弹跳，能在布伦森使出标志性的华丽转身并尝试12英尺急停跳投时，迅速罩住他的出手空间。几年前，甚至连凯利·乌布雷 (Kelly Oubre)——虽然他算不上丹尼尔斯、汤普森或卡斯尔那种级别的防守者，但却是一个拼劲十足、臂展惊人的活力小子——也在季后赛的前两场比赛中给布伦森制造了不小的麻烦。
像卡斯尔或迪伦·哈珀 (Dylan Harper) 这样更偏向朱·霍勒迪 (Jrue Holiday) 风格的“小钢炮”型防守者，在防守布伦森时并不会太轻松。布伦森依然能够通过灵动的跑位，完成那些看似难度极高、实则是这位明星控卫最擅长的失去重心跳投。
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：Guarding Wemby in the NBA Finals and other matchups I’ll be watching
Guarding Wemby in the NBA Finals and other matchups I’ll be watching
Playoff series are not won merely with talent. The secret sauce is in the matchups.
So, with the NBA Finals approaching, let’s run through three matchups to keep an eye on after the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs tip off:
Guarding Goliath
The Knicks are now forced to answer the question that three Western Conference teams dreaded earlier this spring: What are they to do with Victor Wembanyama, the 7-foot-4 giant whose presence somehow seems even taller than the height at which he’s listed?
The trendy answer to that question has come on the perimeter. The Knicks could place their all-defensive wing, OG Anunoby, on Wembanyama, which would represent a noticeable size difference but also present issues for the Spurs. Wembanyama isn’t always so hot against shorter but still stout, physical wings.
Had he been healthy in the Western Conference finals, Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams would have received the Wembanyama assignment. OKC tried a point guard, Alex Caruso, on Wembanyama in Game 1. By the end of the series, it had gone most to its center, Isaiah Hartenstein. But the preference, if a team can manage, is often the wing — and it’s the type of wing in Anunoby’s archetype, one like Williams: broad, agile, strong, smart and unafraid of bucket getters.
At 6-foot-7, 240 pounds, Anunoby may be the best wing in the league at pushing larger defenders away from the paint before they catch passes in the post. The skill is especially important against Wembanyama, who can drop in effortless finger rolls from distances that no human should be able to reach.
Turn Wembanyama into a jump shooter, knock him off his spots when he cuts to the rim, shove him away from the block when he muscles down low, dart to the ideal defensive location when he screens and rolls, taking away those horrifying lobs, and a defender has done his job against the NBA’s best young star. But there is a trickle-down effect from putting Anunoby on Wembanyama.
To show it, let’s rewind to the third time these two teams played, back on March 1. Anunoby had manned Wembanyama for parts of the NBA Cup final in mid-December. Two weeks later, he took Wembanyama for essentially an entire game. But at the beginning of March, he did not guard the All-NBA center much. Instead, 7-footer Karl-Anthony Towns took Wembanyama to start. Backup center Mitchell Robinson spent time on him, too. The Anunoby possessions were sparse — because the Spurs had changed.
By March, forward Harrison Barnes had exited San Antonio’s starting lineup. Julian Champagnie had replaced him. Putting Anunoby on Wembanyama would have meant handing Towns, a more lumbering big man who has played the best defense of his life during the Knicks’ dominant postseason run, a difficult assignment. When Barnes was there, Towns could sag off the vet, who doesn’t move or drive much, and get back to him in time to close out. Towns guarding Champagnie would leave the Knicks a tad more vulnerable.
Champagnie will let 3-pointers fly, as New York learned firsthand on New Year’s Eve, when the Spurs came back to topple them by two points — behind 11 made long balls from Champagnie. Placing Towns on Devin Vassell, another sharpshooter, could present similar issues for the Knicks defense, though it would enable them to stick Anunoby on Wembanyama.
Surely, the Knicks will use Anunoby on Wembanyama at times. They will also mix in Towns and with Robinson, whose gravity as a rebounder should be massive in this series — as long as he’s able to catch the basketball with a broken pinky. But cross-matching with Anunoby turns the Knicks’ defense a smidgen more fragile than it might prefer.
Towns would be guarding one corner. Brunson would be guarding the other. If Wembanyama broke free, it’s possible none of the Knicks’ wings — Anunoby, Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart, the backbone of New York’s defensive success — would be present to stop his path to the hoop.
Never hacking
Bridges did not defend Stephon Castle much during the regular season. Consider this a plea for him to do so — even if Castle did not shoot well during the three games against the Knicks this season.
To explain, let’s reach back to a play Bridges pulled off in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals, one on which he had no business sticking so close to James Harden.
With the Knicks down double digits, mired in a rare troublesome stretch for a team that has not lost a game in more than a month, the wing chased after the former MVP. Harden, in all his efforts to unglue himself, could not do it.
In the fourth quarter, he inbounded a pass from the sideline, then darted for the ball. Bridges danced around a pick to stay with him. But watch what occurs next — or better yet, watch what doesn’t actually happen. Bridges’ hands never come close to Harden’s arms.
This is the type of moment when Harden can take control. His defender is off-balance, racing in his direction. The opponent might stretch a hand out toward him, an effort to keep up with the rest of his body after his feet have lagged behind. These advantages are Harden’s sweet spot. They’re when all those infamous free throws sprout to life.
The 36-year-old Harden’s greatest days might be behind him, but he is still a demon of trickery. No player can lead the league in free-throw attempts seven different times and not retain those rinky-dink moves that got him to the line so often. Bridges defended Harden for all four games of the conference finals. The main reason? He is a master at defending without fouling.
This play above is yet another example of why.
Check out Bridges’ right palm as he catches up to Harden. It’s pressed against his left hip, reminding him not to leave a hand in the cookie jar. Extend a palm out as Harden dribbles to the hoop, and the driver will detect as soon as it lingers above the ball. Harden will rise quickly and smack a stray hand, garnering a couple of free throws.
Bridges never did that. Not here. And essentially, not all series.
The inside hand is on his opposite hip. The outside hand is up and out, deterring a shot. The play is so well defended that Harden actually picks up his dribble, a rare choice. Normally, he’ll launch himself at the rim, and either go up or kick out to a 3-point shooter from there. But Bridges has him frazzled.
Harden can’t free himself with a pivot. Bridges goes vertical instead of out when Harden jumps. And not only has he earned a stop; he’s also avoided fouling Harden.
The Bridges that showed up in the past two rounds of the playoffs, the one who defended Philadelphia 76ers firecracker Tyrese Maxey in Round 2 and the more prodding Harden in the conference finals, is not the one Knicks fans got used to during the regular season. The version of Bridges from the first 82 games was a magnificent defender away from the basketball but one who struggled at the point of attack.
He would let up early against a screen. Physicality could hinder him. If a guard was quick, he often found himself steaming past the Knicks wing. But this Bridges — the one who has clamped down on All-NBA talent each night while also shooting 59 percent on mid-range jumpers in the playoffs — is the guy for whom the Knicks traded five first-round picks. His defining trait has been his control.
He manned Harden for the entire series. During all that time, he committed one shooting foul on the free-throw maestro. One. All series. It was a reach-in on a 3-pointer Harden attempted with the Knicks about to close out a Game 1 victory. He did not commit another shooting foul on Harden, who couldn’t catch a rhythm. And thus, neither could the Cavaliers.
It will be fascinating to see how the Knicks deploy Bridges once the finals begin. The Knicks and Spurs played three times (including their NBA Cup matchup) during the regular season. More often than not, Bridges manned All-Star point guard De’Aaron Fox. But considering how Bridges has fared during the postseason, sliding him over to Stephon Castle could be the move.
Castle is the most unrelenting foul-drawer who occupies the Spurs’ perimeter. He absorbed 108 fouls on drives to the hoop during the regular season, which ranked 10th in the NBA, according to Second Spectrum. He is a stylistic mix of Maxey and Harden, boasting Harden’s size and change of pace with the speed and lift to blow by most defenders.
If Bridges were to take Castle, then Hart could move to Fox. The beauty of the Knicks’ wing trio is its interchangeability. New York can cycle through matchups. And it can do so understanding that Bridges can control himself against anyone.
Manning Brunson
The Spurs’ defense is not missing much, but even after it just stifled two-time reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, it lacks the ideal stopper for another shifty guard, Brunson.
You can bet that Castle will begin the series working the head of the Knicks’ offense. During the regular season and NBA Cup, the Spurs tried De’Aaron Fox on him, too. But Castle is the strangler atop San Antonio’s elite defense, the man who just stifled Gilgeous-Alexander, who Brunson isn’t as tall or quick as, for the first six games of the Western Conference Finals. But Brunson has a tool Gilgeous-Alexander does not.
He can and will pull up from 3-point range, which helps negate Wembanyama’s work around the paint. And more importantly, no Brunson stopper, no matter how dominant in a vacuum (and Castle is as good as any other guard patrolling the perimeter), is under 6-foot-7.
Brunson’s greatest struggles come against length. He doesn’t as easily get to his spots against the Atlanta Hawks’ Dyson Daniels. The Detroit Pistons’ Ausar Thompson has the arms and vertical to leap into his space after he attempts his crafty spins that usually open up 12-footers. A couple of years ago, even Kelly Oubre — not a defender of Daniels’ or Thompson’s or Castle’s caliber but a high-effort, long-armed energizer — gave him trouble for the first two games of the playoffs.
The tanks like Castle or Dylan Harper, guys more of the Jrue Holiday mold, don’t have as easy a time with Brunson, who can still slither into an off-balance jumper that looks difficult but is actually the type the point guard hunts.
By Fred Katz, via The Athletic