Don’t Sleep on the Spurs By Jeff Dengate http://0rz.tw/d82r2 SECAUCUS, N.J., Feb. 26, 2007 – It seems a foregone conclusion that the NBA Finals will be Dallas or Phoenix and some poor, unfortunate Eastern Conference team, right? 　这一切似乎那麽的昭然若揭，这一季的ＮＢＡ总冠军战将会是由东区的一 支可怜、不幸的球队碰上达拉斯小牛亦或凤凰城太阳。但，真是如此吗？ Not so fast. Didn’t you ever hear the cautionary warning about counting your chickens while sitting at the table? Maybe I’ve mixed messages, but let me make this one clear: Don’t sleep on the San Antonio Spurs. 别那麽着急，难道你不曾听过当你坐在桌子上数鸡时的警告声吗？或许我 混合了些讯息，但让我再说个清楚：别将圣安东尼奥马刺队搁在一旁。 How can that be, you ask? Surely I can’t be serious? Haven’t I been watching hoops at all this season? And haven’t I seen the Mavs and Suns so clearly dominate the West through the first two-thirds of the season. 　　 "那怎麽可能？"你问到。难道我并不当真？难道我没看过本季所有的Hoops 杂志？还有难道我瞎了眼没清楚地看到小牛和太阳在目前为止的三分之二球季宰制了整个 西区？ Yes, in all seriousness, I’ve witnessed the Spurs struggles, but I’ve also seen them in this position before. San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich is well known for not being overly concerned with his team’s regular season record, but rather using it as an 82-game tune-up for when the real action gets underway. As long as his team continues to improve, well, it seems just fine by Pop if his team isn’t leading in the win-loss column when the calendar still reads February. 是的，我很认真，我看到了马刺正在困境中挣扎，不过我在以前曾经看过 马刺有这样的情形。Popovich教练很了解不需要太关住他的球队在季中的成绩，反而是将 这82场比赛当作是为了真正挑战所做的调整。只要他的球队一点一滴的调适、进步，对Pop 来说在季赛中的胜败场次没领先别队不是那麽重要，更何况现在日历也才读到二月而已。 And who am I to second guess one of the game’s top decision makers, seeing as how he’s led his team to the Larry O’Brien trophy by kicking in the front door as well as slipping in the back. 我会去批判的是比赛中的决策者，看它是如何将球队带往总冠军奖盃的颁奖台 亦或只能夹着尾巴从後门偷溜出去。 "I think what is important is a group of men understanding that the real job is to get better as the season moves along and to be at your best at the end,”Popovich told USA Today’s David Dupree earlier this month. “Houston did it from behind, L.A. has done it both ways, we've done it both ways.” "什麽事比较重要 ? 我认为一群大男孩要知道真正的工作是随着时间的走过， 大夥要在季赛中要越打越好，并在正规球季结束时调整自身的状况达到巅峰。" Popovich 在本月初对"今日美国"的记者提道。"休士顿以前是这麽做，洛杉矶双管齐下，我们现在也是 双管齐下。" During the 2002-03 season, the Spurs were a mere 38-17 before going on a late tear to finish the season with an NBA-best 60-22 record. They then marched through the field of 16, beating the Suns, Lakers, Mavericks and Nets, all in six games apiece, to win their second championship in the Tim Duncan era. 在02-03球季中，马刺在大爆发前仅只有38胜17负的成绩，最终却以联盟最佳 的60胜22负结算。然後他们在球场上赢了16场比赛，打败了太阳、湖人、小牛和篮网，全 都在6场比赛内解决对手，赢得了他们在 Duncan 纪元中的第二座冠军杯。 Two seasons later, the Spurs found themselves staring up at the Suns in the standings after Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire led a remarkable 33-game turnaround to finish with a league-high 62 wins. The teams met in the Conference Finals and, weathering an impressive 37 points and nearly 10 rebounds per game from Stoudemire, the Spurs cruised to a 4-1 series win before being stretched to a seventh game by the Pistons in the Finals. 两个球季後，马刺发现他们自己碰上了拥有Steve Nash 和 Amare Stoudemire 的太阳队，一个比前季恐怖地多出了33胜的队伍和有着傲视联盟的62胜成绩，这两支队伍 在区冠军赛上碰头，在这几场比赛中Stoudemire有着摧枯拉朽般的平均每场37分10篮板 的可怕成绩，但马刺依旧以四胜一负写意的进军总冠军战，和活塞恶战了七场。 If this year’s Spurs (38-18) are to hope for more hardware this year, they may have to do so in the role of underdog. It seems unlikely the team is going to finish the season 22-4 to hit the 60-win mark as in 2003, but, even if it did, that might not be enough as the Mavs could notch 70 Ws with the Suns tight on their heels. 若马刺(38-18)今年想要更多补强，他们便须以失败的一方作收。以现在的状 况来看，全队的确不太像03年一般能在下半季已22-4的成绩攻上60胜的里程碑，就算真能 如此，60胜也难望可能攻下70胜以上之小牛队的项背，太阳也可能只紧跟在小牛之後而已。 A 10-game gap between the West’s best and the Spurs would hardly be considered as wide as, say, the 10-games that currently separate the Pistons and New Jersey Nets in the East. If paired in a seven-game series, nobody residing outside of the Garden State is likely to pick the Nets to upset Detroit. In the West, however, most would believe the Mavs to be the better team but couldn’t say with certainty they’d win a best-of-seven. 马刺和小牛有着难以想像的10场胜差，恰巧是在东区活塞(1)和篮网(9)的距离 。若将他俩送作堆七战四胜来分胜负，外头没人会发疯赌花园州(纽泽西)有可能将活塞翻 掉。但到了西区，大家却会只承认小牛是支较强的队伍，但与其它队伍(西区)以七战四胜 分高下时却未必能成功出线。(此段是在讲东西区强度不可同日而语，西区是人人有机会各 各没把握) “Dallas has 10 solid guys they can go to,” Duncan told USA Today. “It’s a luxury. They’re playing better basketball than we are, but we'll take the matchup.” "达拉斯有着十个能用的凶猛饥渴的家伙，" Duncan 对"今日美国"说道， "他们那样是一种奢侈(指有10个超强的可用之兵)。"他们现在的确比我们打的好，但我们 将会赢得对战。 While the teams had the top two records in the Western Conference a year ago, a wrinkle in the playoff seeding had them meeting in the Conference Semifinals because division winners were each guaranteed one of the top three seeds. That’s changed this year to only assure division winners one of the top four seeds, thus seeds 1 and 2 could go to teams from the same division. But, if the Spurs finish behind Utah – the Jazz is currently one game back of San Antonio – in the win column, the Texas rivals could again meet in the second round. 马刺和小牛在去年有着西区前两名的战绩，季後赛的种子排序窘境使他们 在西区准决赛中就王见王(因为分区领先者有着前三名的保证)，今年更改了制度使分区 领先者只保证有着前四名的排序，所以战绩一二名的球队有可能出自同一分区。但是， 若马刺在结算时落後了爵士(目前只以一场胜差落後马刺)，那德州大战不免的又要在今 年的第二轮上演。 Before they get to the playoffs, however, the Spurs need to close the 2006-07 campaign with the physical and mental health to know they can compete with whichever Western Conference power they may face. 然而在进入季後赛前，马刺队必须在06-07球季中保持身心的健康，以面对 西区的高强度竞争。 Last year, the Spurs took the Mavs the distance – and then some – despite the fact Duncan was hobbled by plantar fasciitis. Rallying back from a 3-1 deficit, San Antonio got 41 points, 15 boards and six assists from Duncan in Game 7, but it wasn’t enough as Dallas held on for the overtime victory at home. 在去年，马刺硬是将小牛的系列赛胜利拖到了第七场，尽管 Duncan 在 饱受足底筋膜炎困扰致使脚步困顿，马刺依旧在一胜三败的绝境中爬出一线生机。 圣安东尼奥在第七战中自 Duncan 那得到了41分15篮板6助攻的注挹，但小牛仍在延长赛 中夺走了马刺的主场胜利。 This year, Duncan is healthy, but his team has never quite found its stride. That doesn’t seem to concern Detroit’s head coach Flip Saunders, who scoffed at the notion the Spurs are no longer a championship-caliber squad. 今年的 Duncan 是健康的，但他的队伍却不像以往般大步向前。这对底特律 总教练老桑(Flip Saunders)来说却不是这麽一回事，他对马刺已经失去冲击总冠军实力的 舆论嗤之以鼻。 You look at their last 20 to 25 games, they have a phenomenal record to gear up for the playoffs,” Saunders told Pistons.com. “That’s always been their trademark. They’re similar to us in that they know they can win on the road, so whether they’re the first seed, second seed, third seed or fourth seed, they feel they can go and beat anybody.” "你仔细看看他们前20至25场的比赛，他们有着杰出惊人的成绩可以使他们 磨和好进入进後赛，" 老桑在活塞官网提到。"这是他们的注册商标，他们跟我们很像的地 方是:知道自己可以在客场赢球，所以无论他们是在第一种子，第二种子，第三种子或第四 种子，他们都深信可以打败任何一支球队晋级。" Gearing up for the playoffs is now under way. The Spurs are riding a five-game win streak – matching their longest of the season – heading into tonight’s match with the Toronto Raptors. As is their custom, the Spurs are getting it done on the defensive end, giving up an average of only 82.6 points per game during the current five-game winning streak, holding four of those five opponents to fewer than 85 points. 为季後赛磨合的工作早已开始进行，马刺现在以经五连胜(平这季纪录)，将 在今晚面对多伦多暴龙。就如同往常一般，马刺在防守方面重下心力，在最近的五连胜中 只使对手每场平均获得82.6分，更使其中的四支队伍得分不到85分。 So, while the Mavericks and Suns remain media darlings, their high- octane offenses as fun as ever to watch on a nightly basis, the Spurs continue to build for their annual postseason run, doing their tweaking in the shadows. 所以当小牛和太阳依旧为媒体宠儿，每晚演出高攻击性令人愉悦比赛时，马 刺正持续建构他们一年一度的季後工作，在阴暗处不断的埋头苦干。 Come May, they may again prove that defense does indeed win championships. They, too, may prove wrong all of us who counted them out prematurely. 在将来到的五月中，他们应该将再度印证防守才能赢得冠军的真理。也将证 明所有季中看衰他们的我们言之过早、错之以极。 -- 非常累人的翻译... 现在只剩一口气能说话了 Go~~Spurs~~Go~~ 　 -- Manu Ginobili Timo Boll Fernando Alonso Tiger Woods Chien-Ming Wang Roger Federer Zinedine Zidane --

※ 发信站: 批踢踢实业坊(ptt.cc) ◆ From: 140.122.231.118 ※ 编辑: merrope 来自: 140.122.231.118 (03/02 23:30)