By Jeje Gomez | Pounding The Rock (PtR), 2026-06-30 12:38:13
马刺在进入自由市场时，大名单已接近满员。周一，他们续约了朱利安·尚帕尼 (Julian Champagnie) 和哈里森·巴恩斯 (Harrison Barnes)，以此保留了上赛季的轮换阵容。到了周二，他们将拥有12份标准合同，其中包括最近选中的两名首轮秀的新秀合同。
这些举动一点也不令人意外。毕竟，圣安东尼奥马刺上赛季打进了总决赛，并且可以指望年轻球员的内部成长。由于球队没有薪金空间，因此在通过一些小修小补完成最后拼图之前，先确保阵容深度，一直以来都是最可能的结果。
让我们来看看目前的阵容情况，以及自由市场正式开启后可能会发生什么。
马刺以极佳的合同签下尚帕尼和巴恩斯
在展望未来之前，需要指出的是，马刺并没有溢价续约自己的自由球员。
尚帕尼原本在合同最后一年拥有球队选项，但管理层拒绝了该选项，让他提前一个夏天拿到了新合同。他们实质上给了他一份相当于全额中产特例（年薪1500万美元）的合同，且合同金额逐年递减，这是另一个聪明的细节。因此，他们锁定了一位25岁的侧翼球员，他不仅外线出手产量高且命中率达38%，同时还是一名防守悍将。对于这样一位优秀的球员来说，这绝对是一笔划算的交易。
巴恩斯上赛季将首发位置输给了尚帕尼，甚至在季后赛中，他的轮换顺位偶尔也会被卡特·布莱恩特 (Carter Bryant) 赶超，因此他本可以选择离开，去其他地方争取更多的出场时间。然而，这位老将同意签下一份一年800万美元的合同留守圣安东尼奥，这表明他对这支球队感到很舒心。有人可能会认为他在自由市场上拿不到这么多钱，但合同期限短弥补了这一点，如果双方决定在赛季中期分道扬镳，这也为管理层提供了一个极具交易价值的到期合同筹码。
马刺在过去交易截止日期的克制让他们现在有了消费空间
粗略看一下马刺的薪金空间就会发现，算上两名首轮秀的新秀合同，他们已承诺的薪水总额约为1.81亿美元。预计工资帽约为1.65亿美元，奢侈税线约为2.01亿美元。同样，这些都是估算值，但形势很明朗：圣安东尼奥可以使用价值1500万美元的完整中产特例，而不会触碰奢侈税线，这主要得益于他们在过去的交易截止日期前保持了克制。
早在今年二月，就有充分的理由支持这支银黑军团利用凯利·奥利尼克 (Kelly Olynyk)、杰里米·索汉 (Jeremy Sochan) 和巴恩斯的到期合同来升级前锋位置。问题在于，大多数寻求交易到期合同的球队都是为了摆脱长期合同。如果马刺当时用奥利尼克去交易一个在下赛季拿八位数薪水的球员，那么现在就很难在保持奢侈税线下有足够空间引进其他人的同时，还能留住尚帕尼和巴恩斯。看起来，当时的计划是优先保持灵活性，以维持轮换阵容的完整性，并可能在夏天进行补强。
马刺可以花钱，但可能没有空间给一位高出场时间的球员
马刺拥有完整的中产特例可供使用，并且有足够的空间将其完全用在一名球员身上，同时仍保持在奢侈税线以下以完善阵容。他们与大多数具有身材优势的投手联系在一起，其中包括托拜厄斯·哈里斯 (Tobias Harris)、约翰·科林斯 (John Collins)、迪恩·韦德 (Dean Wade)、桑德罗·马穆凯拉什维利 (Sandro Mamukelashvili) 和八村垒 (Rui Hachimura)。其中一些球员的年薪可能不到1500万美元，但即使在最好的情况下，他们也会占用大部分特例空间。他们绝对可以帮助在季后赛中缺兵少将的圣安东尼奥。问题在于，虽然圣安东尼奥有钱可以提供，但在常规赛中可能没有足够的出场时间。
马刺的阵容深度表如下：
控卫 (PG)： 斯蒂芬·卡斯尔 (Stephon Castle) – 迪伦·哈珀 (Dylan Harper)
分卫 (SG)： 达龙·福克斯 (De’Aaron Fox)
小前锋 (SF)： 德文·瓦塞尔 (Devin Vassell) – 卡特·布莱恩特
大前锋 (PF)： 朱利安·尚帕尼 – 凯尔登·约翰逊 (Keldon Johnson) – 哈里森·巴恩斯
中锋 (C)： 维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) – 卢克·科内特 (Luke Kornet) – 杰登·昆坦斯 (Jayden Quaintance) – 小塔里斯·里德 (Tarris Reed Jr.)
前场人满为患。虽然球员会因伤缺阵，但当每个人都健康时，确实没有太多的出场时间。即使假设巴恩斯将跌出轮换，且卡特·布莱恩特会通过蚕食约翰逊的时间来获得更多上场机会，前锋位置上依然人满为患。如果管理层认为有明显的升级人选，那么错过它将毫无意义；但如果他们不这么认为，在另一个前锋身上砸重金可能并非明智之举。保留中产特例以备赛季中期使用，或者将其拆分用在多名球员身上，都不失为一种选择。
马刺在周一完成了两笔聪明的签约，并且通过过去的克制，让自己在这个休赛期有机会在找到合适人选的情况下进行升级。希望会有合适的球员出现，帮助这支球队提升到新的高度；但如果没有，管理层也已经确保了米奇·约翰逊 (Mitch Johnson) 在常规赛中拥有所需的阵容深度。
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：The Spurs are taking a cautious, patient approach to free agency
The Spurs are taking a cautious, patient approach to free agency
The Spurs are heading into free agency with their roster almost full. On Monday, they re-signed Julian Champagnie and Harrison Barnes to keep their rotation players from last season in place, and will head into Tuesday with 12 standard contracts, including the rookie deals for their two recent first-round picks.
The moves were not surprising at all. San Antonio reached the NBA Finals last season, after all, and can count on internal development from their young players. The team didn’t have cap space, so securing a deep roster before adding the final touches with some additions was always the likely outcome.
Let’s take a look at where the roster stands now and what’s likely to happen when free agency officially starts.
The Spurs signed Champagnie and Barnes to great deals
Before looking ahead, it’s important to note that the Spurs didn’t have to overpay their own free agents.
Champagnie had a team option on the last year of his deal, but the front office declined it and got him paid a summer sooner than he would have had they waited. They essentially gave them the equivalent of the full mid-level exception worth $15 million a year on a contract that declines in value, which is another smart detail. As a result, they locked down a 25-year-old wing who shot 38 percent from outside on high volume and is a solid defender. Just a good deal for a good player.
Barnes lost his starting spot to Champagnie last season, and even in the playoffs, he occasionally saw Carter Bryant leapfrog him in the rotation, so he could have decided to leave to try to get more playing time elsewhere. Instead, the veteran agreed to a one-year, $8 million deal to stay in San Antonio, which shows that he’s comfortable with the organization. A case could be made that he likely would have made less in the open market, but the short duration of the contract makes up for it and gives the front office a tradeable expiring piece if the two sides decide to part ways during the season.
The Spurs’ restraint on the past trade deadline allows them to spend now
A very quick look into the Spurs’ cap situation reveals that they have around $181 million in committed salary, counting the rookie scale contracts for their two first-round picks. The cap is expected to be set at an estimated $165 million, and the tax line at around $201 million. Again, these are estimates, but the picture is clear: San Antonio can use the entire mid-level exception worth $15 million and not venture into tax territory, mostly because they remained disciplined in the past trade deadline.
There was a good case to make back in February for the Silver and Black to use the expiring contracts of Kelly Olynyk, Jeremy Sochan, and Barnes to make an upgrade at forward. The problem is that most teams trading for expiring deals are trying to shed long-term money. Had the Spurs traded, say, Olynyk for someone making eight figures in the upcoming season, it would have been hard to retain Champagnie and Barnes while still having enough room under the tax to add someone else now. It seems like the plan was to prioritize flexibility to keep the rotation intact and potentially make an addition in the summer.
The Spurs can spend, but might not have room for a high-minutes player
The Spurs have the full mid-level exception at their disposal and enough room to use it fully on one player while still being under the tax line to round out their roster. They have been linked to most shooters with size, a list that includes Tobias Harris, John Collins, Dean Wade, Sandro Mamukelashvili, and Rui Hachimura. Some of those players might sign for less than $15 million a year, but even in the best circumstances, they would command most of the exception. And they could definitely help a San Antonio team that was a man short in the playoffs. The problem is that while San Antonio has money to offer, it might not have playing time in the regular season.
The Spurs’ depth chart stands as follows:
PG: Stephon Castle – Dylan Harper
SG: De’Aaron Fox
SF: Devin Vassell – Carter Bryant
PF: Julian Champagnie – Keldon Johnson – Harrison Barnes
C: Victor Wembanyama – Luke Kornet – Jayden Quaintance – Tarris Reed Jr.
The frontcourt is crowded. Players will miss time, but there’s just not a lot of playing time when everyone is healthy. Even while assuming Barnes will be out of the rotation and Carter Bryant will get a bump in floor time by eating into Johnson’s minutes, there are still too many bodies at the forward spots. It would make no sense to pass on a clear upgrade if the front office thinks there is one, but if they don’t, spending big on another forward might not be wise. Keeping the mid-level exception to use during the season or using it on several players shouldn’t be out of the question.
The Spurs made two smart signings on Monday, and they set themselves up to have the chance to spend this offseason on an upgrade if they can find one by being disciplined in the past. Hopefully, the right player will be available to help take this group to another level, but if not, the front office made sure that Mitch Johnson will have the depth he needs in the regular season.
By Jeje Gomez, via Pounding The Rock