By Jeje Gomez | Pounding The Rock (PtR), 2026-08-07 09:25:13
在常规赛期间，马刺队的替补阵容曾是球队的一大优势，但在季后赛中却大失所望。虽然年度最佳第六人凯尔登·约翰逊 (Keldon Johnson) 因在进攻端挣扎而理所当然地受到了最多的苛责，但卢克·科内特 (Luke Kornet) 同样面临着自己的问题——不仅是在防守端，在面对更出色的内线防守时，他在内线的得分也遇到了阻碍。
如今的科内特基本已经定型，因此指望他为了弥补运动能力的局限而大幅改变自己的进攻方式显然过于乐观。即便如此，他仍然可以开发出一项相对简单的武器来丰富自己的武器库，这可能会极大地提升他在季后赛中的得分可行性以及整体进攻影响力：那就是抛投。
从个人技术来看，科内特的投篮分布在常规赛期间似乎已经达到了最优化。他放弃了职业生涯早期试图开发的底角三分，现在只在篮筐附近出手，且大部分都是由队友创造的机会。他通过设立掩护后下顺，或者在扣篮位游弋。在他的330次投篮出手中有291次发生在合理冲撞区，通过靠近篮筐，他最大化地发挥了自己在拼抢前场篮板方面的价值。在31岁的年纪，科内特作为一名内线得分手取得了成功，并且扬长避短。
他在季后赛中遇到的问题是，对手更出色的护筐能力限制了他的内线得分，而这也是他唯一的得分武器。表面上看，科内特在合理冲撞区的命中率从65.9%下降到61.2%似乎并不是什么大问题，但由于在篮筐附近得分是他唯一的取分手段，这对于一支经常难以创造出良好出手机会的第二阵容来说，无疑是致命的。
诚然，对于科内特而言，人们一直期望他的价值主要体现在防守端，因此很容易忽视对他得分能力的苛求。但我们不能忽视的是，当他在场时，圣安东尼奥马刺每百回合要少得10分以上。有充分的理由认为，他个人的挣扎更多是外线自主创造投篮机会能力不足的体现，而他在场/不在场的数据则反映了维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 的伟大。但事实依然摆在眼前：在季后赛中，科内特在场时马刺的防守比平均水平略差，而进攻端则是极其糟糕。
那么，一个可靠的抛投会带来改变吗？很可能会。以赛亚·哈尔滕施泰因 (Isaiah Hartenstein) 向马刺展示了，当其他战术都失效时，一个没有投射能力的中锋在三分线内具备得分威胁能带来多大的帮助。由于维克托·文班亚马在防守端是禁区附近的巨兽，哈尔滕施泰因选择远离篮筐充当接应点，并利用自己的手感得分。他在8英尺外的进球数与8英尺内一样多，这与他在常规赛中的比例截然不同——常规赛中他在8英尺内出手225次，而在8到16英尺之间仅出手64次。这一调整让他得以在场上发挥作用。
对于那些不是典型空接威胁或三分射手的大个子来说，抛投或推射简直是一件绝佳的武器。马刺不仅面对过拥有这种技能的大个子，而且曾经也拥有过一位——雅各布·珀尔特尔 (Jakob Poeltl) 过去常常利用他那独特的出手方式，在对方大个子忽视他或在禁区沉退过深去干扰持球人时完成得分。没有理由相信科内特不能把这一招练得有模有样，并至少在特定情况下派上用场。
科内特作为一名下顺者的作用太大了，不适合转型为更多的短下顺球员，而且他必须真正向对手证明自己能用抛投惩罚他们，对手才会开始改变防守策略，从而为队友创造出投篮空间。即使防守方在他远离篮筐时做出反应，由于他从未扮演过这种角色，他可能也没有足够的传球功底和快速决策能力来加以利用。在大多数情况下，他应该继续设立掩护、强力下顺并做好接球准备，同时在队友投篮不中时卡位拼抢篮板。
然而，如果他能偶尔融入抛投、推射甚至短距离跳投，那么当防守方深沉退以保护禁区时，他就会有应对之策。指望他在31岁时成为一名神射手、组织者或低位得分手并不现实，但希望他能稍微丰富自己的终结手段，减少对直接冲击篮筐的依赖，似乎也并非不切实际。
马刺在签下科内特时就很清楚他的定位：一个坚如磐石的替补中锋，虽然没有外线技术，但有能力在面对第二阵容时保护篮筐，并在得到喂球时在内线得分。如果他在下个赛季依然只是扮演这样的角色，他依然会极具价值，尤其是在常规赛中。
然而，如果他还能完成一次微小的进化，开发出一点射程，那么在季后赛中，当文班亚马休息、禁区拥挤且无法获得理想投篮机会时，他就能通过保持进攻的多样性，发挥同样重要的作用。
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。
查看原文：The Spurs need Luke Kornet to develop a floater to be a playoff contributor
The Spurs need Luke Kornet to develop a floater to be a playoff contributor
The Spurs’ bench was largely a disappointment in the playoffs after being a huge strength in the regular season. While Sixth Man of the Year Keldon Johnson will rightfully get the most scrutiny for his struggles on offense, Luke Kornet had his own issues not only on defense but also scoring inside against better interior defenses.
Kornet is largely a finished product by now, so expecting him to alter his offensive game severely to account for his athletic limitations is too optimistic. That said, there is one relatively simple weapon to develop that he could add to his arsenal, which could make a huge impact on his viability as a playoff scorer and overall offensive player: a floater.
Kornet’s shot profile seemed optimized, at least for the regular season, based on his skills. He gave up on the three-pointer he tried to develop earlier in his career and only takes shots close to the basket now that are largely created for him. He sets screens and dives or roams the dunker spot. Of his 330 field goal attempts, 291 came in the restricted area, and by being close to the rim, he maximized his valuable offensive rebounding. At age 31, Kornet found success as an inside scorer, and he plays to his strengths.
The problem he ran into in the postseason was better rim protection that neutralized his inside scoring, which was his only weapon. On the surface, Kornet going from shooting 65.9 percent in the restricted area to 61.2 percent doesn’t seem like that big of an issue, but since scoring close to the rim is the only way he can get buckets, it was damaging for a second unit that often struggled to create good looks,
Now, with Kornet, his value was always expected to mostly be derived from his defense, so it’s tempting to dismiss any complaints about his scoring. Still, we can’t ignore that San Antonio scored over 10 fewer points per 100 possessions when he played. There’s a strong case to be made that his individual struggles were more a symptom of poor perimeter shot creation than anything else, while the on/off numbers are a reflection of Victor Wembanyama’s greatness, but the fact remains: the Spurs were slightly worse than their average on defense with Kornet playing and absolutely horrendous on offense in the playoffs.
So, would a reliable floater have made a difference? Probably. Isaiah Hartenstein showed the Spurs how much the ability of a non-shooting center to be a threat to score inside the arc can help when nothing else works. Since Victor Wembanyama was a monster close to the paint on defense, Hartenstein stayed away from the rim to be a release valve and used his touch to score. He made as many field goals outside of eight feet as he did within them, which is vastly different than the ratio he had in the regular season, where he took 225 within eight feet and just 64 within eight and 16 feet. The adjustment made him playable.
The floater or push shot is simply a great weapon for big men who are not typical lob threats or three-point shooters. The Spurs not only faced a big with that skill but used to have one, as Jakob Poeltl used his unorthodox launch to make buckets when big men ignored him or dropped too far in the paint to contest ball handlers. There’s no reason to believe Kornet couldn’t get decent at it and at least use it situationally.
Kornet is too useful as a dive man to turn into more of a short roll player, and he’d have to really prove to opponents that he can hurt them with a floater before they start defending him in a way that opens up shots for others. Even if the defense reacts to him away from the rim, he might not have the passing chops and quick decision-making to take advantage, since he never played that role. For the most part, he should continue to set screens, roll hard and make himself available for a pass, and get in position to rebound misses.
If he can mix in the occasional floater, push shot, or even a short jumper, however, he would have a counter for when the defense drops deep to protect the paint. Expecting him to become a knockdown shooter, playmaker, or post scorer at age 31 would not be realistic, but hoping he can diversify his finishing ability a little to make him less dependent on shots directly at the rim doesn’t seem that unreasonable.
The Spurs knew what they were getting when they signed Kornet: a rock-solid backup center with no perimeter skills but the ability to protect the rim against second units and score inside if he was fed. If he’s nothing more than that once again next season, he will be extremely valuable, especially in the regular season.
If he has one more minor evolution left in him in terms of developing a bit of range, however, he could be as important in the playoffs by keeping the offense more diverse when Wembanyama rests, the paint is crowded, and the ideal shots are not available.
By Jeje Gomez, via Pounding The Rock