By Tom Orsborn, Staff Writer | San Antonio Express-News (SAEN), 2026-06-24 01:47:43
2026年3月16日，星期一，在加利福尼亚州英格尔伍德进行的一场NBA常规赛中，圣安东尼奥马刺队主教练米奇·约翰逊（右）在对阵洛杉矶快船队的上半场比赛中看着后卫达龙·福克斯运球。（美联社照片/Ryan Sun）
周二晚，在许多球迷和专家将马刺在总决赛中大比分1-4不敌纽约尼克斯归咎于主教练米奇·约翰逊 (Mitch Johnson) 和后卫达龙·福克斯 (De’Aaron Fox) 之后，马刺总经理布莱恩·莱特 (Brian Wright) 对两人表达了强烈的支持与信心。
“我认为教练组和米奇做得很棒，”莱特说道。
在名人堂教练格雷格·波波维奇 (Gregg Popovich) 于2024-25赛季初期不幸中风后，约翰逊曾临危受命担任代理主教练。而在他正式执教的首个赛季中，他便带领马刺斩获62胜并锁定西部第二种子，最终在年度最佳教练投票中高居第三。在季后赛前两轮淘汰波特兰和明尼苏达后，马刺在抢七大战中击败了卫冕冠军俄克拉荷马城，成为联盟历史上晋级总决赛第二年轻的球队。
但这些成就并未能阻止外界对约翰逊在季后赛中一些质疑决定的批评，其中包括他在总决赛第四战马刺106-107憾负中所承担的责任。在这场关键战中，尼克斯完成了NBA总决赛历史上最大分差的逆转，在一度落后29分的情况下反败为胜，从而取得了大比分3-1的夺冠赛点。
随后在第五战中，纽约再次克服16分的落后，以94-90逆转获胜，夺得了队史53年来的首个NBA总冠军。约翰逊因未能守住领先优势、在第四战中过度消耗超级巨星维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 以及在决胜时刻过度依赖状态挣扎的福克斯而饱受质疑。
“我认为我们每天都在经历学习和成长的时刻，从整个俱乐部的层面来看，我们都可以回顾这个赛季，并找到可以改进的地方，这是一件好事，”莱特说道，“如果能在打出这样一个赛季的同时，大家还能说，‘嘿，还有很多事情我们都可以为彼此做得更好’，这绝对是一件令人兴奋的事情，因为这意味着我们还能继续成长。”
在2026年NBA选秀首轮结束后接受媒体采访时，莱特还回应了外界对福克斯在总决赛中低迷表现的批评，尤其是他在第四战尾声阶段的一次关键决策，许多人认为正是这次选择让马刺失去了将大比分扳平并带回圣安东尼奥的机会。
“我们（对福克斯）的信任度依然极高，”莱特表示。
福克斯在2025-26赛季职业生涯第二次入选全明星，他在对阵雷霆和尼克斯的系列赛中，一直顶着次轮对阵森林狼时遭遇的高位踝关节扭伤带伤作战。在总决赛第四战的第四节，他5投仅1中，并出现了全场最高的4次失误。但批评者主要将矛头指向了他在比赛还剩13.1秒、马刺以106-105领先时的一个决定——当时他试图快速冲向篮筐，完成一次看似无人防守的快攻上篮。
然而，福克斯未能完成这次得分，他的出手被OG·阿奴诺比 (OG Anunoby) 封盖，后者随后在比赛还剩1.2秒时完成了准绝杀的补篮。当被问及当时为何不将球控在安全区域并迫使尼克斯犯规时，福克斯表示：“我当时只是觉得我能跑过他们。”
“你们都和他聊过，他从不找借口，”莱特说道，“他不会逃避任何事情。正如我之前所说，我们每个人都有需要反思的时刻，会想‘天哪，我们本可以做得更好。’我知道他正带着继续提升的心态来迎接这个夏天。在受伤之前，你们也看到了他的表现。显然，伤病确实对他造成了很大的影响。
“但我们对达龙、对他的球员实力、他对我们的贡献以及他对这支球队的意义有着绝对的信心，这一点毫无动摇。”
莱特表示，下赛季将由约翰逊来决定迪伦·哈珀 (Dylan Harper) 扮演怎样的角色。哈珀在自己出色的新秀赛季中主要担任替补，并在总决赛中有着抢眼的发挥。有人认为，考虑到哈珀的迅速崛起，加之福克斯去年秋天签下的四年2.231亿美元顶薪提前续约合同将在下赛季开始生效，俱乐部或许是时候交易走这位有着9年球龄的老将了。
但莱特暗示，球队并没有与福克斯分道扬镳的计划。尽管福克斯在对阵尼克斯的系列赛中投篮命中率仅为34.3%，其中在第五战更是15投仅3中，三分球8投1中。
“他们会继续并肩作战，对于任何防守他们的人来说，这都会是极大的考验，”莱特在谈到28岁的福克斯和20岁的哈珀时说道，“我们在不同的战术组合中见识过他们的威力。我们尝试过双后卫阵容，也尝试过三后卫阵容（福克斯、哈珀和斯蒂芬·卡斯尔 (Stephon Castle)）。我想我们会继续尝试这些组合，对手显然不会希望看到他们同时在场。他们是非常难缠的对手，因此我们会继续为他们创造能够发挥出最佳水平的战术环境。我相信他们会从今年的经历中吸取教训，学会如何更好地互补和支持彼此，并以此为基础继续进步。”
莱特称赞马刺是一支“优秀的团队”。在这个休赛期伊始，球队便在选秀首轮摘下了18岁的杰登·昆坦斯 (Jayden Quaintance) 和22岁的小塔里斯·里德 (Tarris Reed Jr.) 两位大个子，针对性地补强了前场深度。
“我们的大部分核心阵容都会回归，因此我们会继续做好该做的工作。但我们深信我们现有的这支队伍，”莱特说道，“我们相信，我们能走到总决赛绝非偶然。
“我确实想向纽约尼克斯、他们的管理层、球队总裁莱昂·罗斯 (Leon Rose)、主教练迈克·布朗 (Mike Brown) 以及他们的球员们致敬。他们在这轮极其艰难的系列赛中表现得无与伦比，他们赢得了NBA总冠军，这是他们应得的荣誉。
“但我们也深知，我们拥有能够保持竞争力的基石。在这个联盟里，没有任何事情是理所当然的，也没有任何绝对的保证，但我知道我们这群人致力于付出努力并团结一致，这就是我们将要做的。”
由生成式 AI 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：Why Spurs' Brian Wright has confidence in Mitch Johnson, De'Aaron Fox
Why Spurs’ Brian Wright has confidence in Mitch Johnson, De’Aaron Fox
San Antonio Spurs head coach Mitch Johnson, right, watches as guard De’Aaron Fox dribbles during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Los Angeles Clippers Monday, March 16, 2026, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)
Spurs general manager Brian Wright gave strong votes of confidence Tuesday night to coach Mitch Johnson and guard De’Aaron Fox after many fans and pundits blamed them for the team’s five-game loss to the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals.
“I thought the coaching staff and Mitch did an amazing job,” Wright said.
In his first season as head coach after filling in on an acting basis for Gregg Popovich after the Hall of Famer suffered a stroke early in the 2024-25 season, Johnson finished third in voting for coach of the year after leading the Spurs to 62 wins and the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference. After vanquishing Portland and Minnesota in the first two rounds of the playoffs, the Spurs defeated defending NBA champion Oklahoma City in seven games to become the second youngest team in league history to reach the Finals.
But those achievements didn’t stop critics from pouncing on Johnson for questionable decisions he made in the postseason, including his part in the Spurs’ deflating 107-106 loss in Game 4 of the Finals. The Knicks overcame a 29-point deficit in the pivotal game to record the biggest comeback in NBA Finals history for a commanding 3-1 series lead.
New York overcame a 16-point deficit for a 94-90 victory in Game 5 that handed the franchise its first NBA title in 53 years. Johnson was criticized for not doing enough to protect those leads, for overplaying superstar Victor Wembanyama in Game 4 and for continuing to lean on the struggling Fox in crunch time.
“I think we all have learning moments each and every single day, and I think all of us organizationally can look back at this season and find moments where we can all get better, and that’s a beautiful thing,” Wright said. “If you can have the season that we have, and we all say, ‘Hey, there’s things we can all do better for one another,’ that’s absolutely something to be excited about because we can continue to grow.”
Speaking to the media after the first-round of the 2026 NBA Draft, Wright also addressed criticism leveled at Fox after his sub-par performance in the Finals, which included a decision late in Game 4 that many believe cost the Spurs a chance to even the series heading back to San Antonio.
“The confidence level (in Fox) is incredibly high,” Wright said.
Fox, who was an All-Star in 2025-26 for the second time in his career, played against the Thunder and the Knicks with a high ankle sprain he suffered in the second round against the Timberwolves. He missed 4 of 5 shots in the fourth quarter in Game 4 in the Finals and finished with a game-high four turnovers, but his critics pointed mainly to his decision to attempt to race to the rim for what appeared to be a breakaway layup with 13.1 seconds left and the Spurs leading 106-105.
Instead of completing the play, Fox had his shot blocked by OG Anunoby, who recorded a game-winning putback with 1.2 seconds left. Asked why he didn’t dribble the ball away from the basket and force the Knicks to foul him, Fox said, “I just thought I’d be able to outrun 'em.”
“You guys talk to him, he doesn’t make excuses,” Wright said. "He doesn’t shy away from anything. I think, as I said earlier, there are moments for all of us to reflect back and (be) like, ‘Man, we can do this better.’ I know he’s approaching this summer (with the mindset that he) can continue to improve. And you guys saw him prior to the injury. Obviously, the injury is a real thing.
“But we have the ultimate faith in De’Aaron and who he is as a player, what he’s been for us, and what he means to this team, and there’s no wavering in that at all.”
Wright said it will be up to Johnson to decide next season what kind of role Dylan Harper will have after he came off the bench during his outstanding rookie season, which included a strong showing in the Finals. Some have argued that given Harper’s rise and the fact that the four-year, $223.1 million extension Fox signed last fall is set to kick in next season, it might be time for the club to trade the nine-year veteran.
But Wright indicated there are no plans to part ways with Fox, who shot just 34.3% from the field against the Knicks, including going 3 of 15 from the floor and 1 of 8 from 3-point range in Game 5.
“They’ll continue to play and they’ll be a tough matchup for anybody that has to guard them,” Wright said of Fox, 28, and Harper, 20. “I think we saw them in different situations. We saw two guards on the floor. We saw three guards (Fox, Harper and Stephon Castle) on the floor. I think we’ll continue to see all of that, and our opponents probably don’t like when they see them on the floor. They’re a tough matchup and so we’ll continue to put them in situations for them to be at their best, and I think they’ll learn from this year on how they can continue to play off one another and support one another, and go from there.”
Wright called the Spurs a “great group” after the offseason began with the team filling an area of need by acquiring two big men in 18-year-old Jayden Quaintance and 22-year-old Tarris Reed Jr. in the first round of the draft to bolster depth in the frontcourt.
“We’ve got a lot of that group coming back, and so we’ll continue to do our due diligence. But we believe in the team that we had,” Wright said. "We believe that we were there (in the Finals) for a reason.
"I do want to give credit to the New York Knicks, that organization, (team president) Leon Rose and (coach) Mike Brown and those players. They did a phenomenal job in an incredibly tough series, and they won the NBA championship, and they earned it.
“But we do feel like we have something that can continue to be good. And you’re not promised anything. You’re not guaranteed anything, but I know the group we have is committed to doing the work and staying together, and that’s what we’ll do.”
By Tom Orsborn, Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News