Right now Hornets’ minds are somewhere else
黃蜂球員們的心現在不在這裡
原文出處 http://tinyurl.com/obg5mah
from夏洛特觀察者報(The Charlotte Observer)
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When Charlotte Hornets coach Steve Clifford got the job in the spring of 2013,
Kemba Walker and Gerald Henderson met with him to send the message they were
sick of losing and what could they do about that?
當Clifford教練在2013年春天得到總教練這份工作時，Walker跟Gerald Henderson(當時
的黃蜂球員，現被交易至拓荒者)與他會面，並且告訴他(Clifford)他們已經厭倦了輸球
，以及想知道對此他們能夠做些什麼？
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Clifford made them a bargain: Conform precisely with a strict set of principle
s and they would figure out a way to squeeze out enough victories to make the
playoffs. That’s what happened the following season.
Clifford與他們達成協議：明確地遵守一套嚴訂的原則，如此一來他們就能夠找出方式贏
夠多的球打入季後賽。那正是下一季所發生的事。
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Two games into the 2015-16 season these Hornets don’t practice conformity. Th
ey make silly turnovers. They fail to get back on defense. And they’re now 0-
2 following a 97-94 road loss to the Atlanta Hawks.
這個球季打了兩場比賽，這些黃蜂球員們沒有去實踐這種一致性。他們犯愚蠢的失誤。他
們沒有做好防守。現在他們在客場以97-94輸給老鷹之後取得0勝2敗。
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That the final score was this close – point guard Walker got off a 3-pointer
that missed as the final buzzer sounded – illustrated this new group’s firep
ower. The Hornets made 12-of-30 3-pointers, including shots by Jeremy Lin and
Marvin Williams that cut a 14-point deficit to two in the final minute.
最後比數是如此地接近 ─ 如同Walker在比賽結束哨音響起前投丟的三分球一樣 ─ 展示
了這支新隊伍的火力。黃蜂三分球投30中12，包括了林跟Marvin Williams的兩記三分球
，在比賽尾聲將分差從14分追到剩2分。
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But that comeback wasn’t this game’s story. It was the 20 turnovers (as many
as the Hornets committed in any game last season) and the 21 fast-break point
s the 2-1 Hawks scored.
但故事的結局不是逆轉。而是20次失誤(追平黃蜂上一季單場最多失誤次數)以及送給2勝1
敗的老鷹21分的快攻分數。
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The lackadaisical transition defense was a problem even in a 7-1 preseason (ho
w misleading that record looks now). The turnovers are a newer phenomenon.
攻防轉換時的懶散防守就算是在7勝1敗的季前賽仍舊是個問題(7勝1敗這個紀錄目前看來
是誤導了)。過多的失誤則是另一個新的課題。
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Clifford calls transition defense his “non-negotiable,” as in if you refuse
to run back you’ll sit. But how can he sit an entire roster?
Clifford表示攻防轉換時的防守是「沒有商量餘地的」，也就是如果你拒絕跑起來回防，
你將會坐板凳。但Clifford怎麼可能讓整個輪替陣容作板凳？(這句實在嗆很大XD)
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High turnover might not be “non-negotiable,” but it would be pretty close.
過多的失誤也許不會是”沒有商量餘地的”，但也相去不遠了。
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“We’re just so disorganized,” Clifford said post-game. “They’re very good
defensively, but we play with very little purpose. We don’t understand what
wins.
「我們就是打得亂無章法」Clifford在賽後接受採訪時提到。「他們(老鷹)在防守端作得
非常好，但我們打得幾乎沒有什麼目的性。我們不了解贏球的關鍵在哪。」
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“We’ve worked on it, we’ve watched it… If you’re going to look at every g
ame that’s played, if you’re going to not run back on defense and turn the b
all over, you’re gonna lose.”
「我們一直在努力著，我們一直在注意著……如果每一場比賽你都只是站著看，如果你不
跑起來回防並且一再失誤，你是會輸球的。」
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Clifford didn’t sound so much angry as exasperated. The teams he coached the
first two seasons in Charlotte were formulaic, but at least they stuck to the
script. Half the roster was turned over in the off-season and perhaps it will
take time for the message to sink in.
Clifford聽起來不像是被激怒而生氣。黃蜂在他執教的前兩個球季看起來有些刻板，但至
少他們堅持按著腳本在走。半數輪替陣容在休賽期間被更換了，或許這需要一點時間把這
樣的訊息(指防守紀律)灌輸給球員們。
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“The good thing is we’re playing hard and we have a talented team,” Cliffor
d said. “In this league it’s not who you play so much as how you play. We mi
ght have been not that talented the past two years, but we played well: We nev
er beat ourselves, we were disciplined and right now, for these two games, we
were none of that.”
「好消息是我們打得很努力，而且我們擁有一支有天份的球隊。」Clifford說道。「在這
個聯盟不是讓誰打得很多就夠，而是你該如何去打。也許過去兩年我們不是那麼有天份，
但我們打得不錯。過去我們從未擊敗我們自己，而且我們是有紀律的，然而現在，就這兩
場比賽來說，我們沒有做到那些。」
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A good example would be Nicolas Batum, who has been given major ballhandling r
esponsibility in the new, flashier offense. Batum made his first four shots fo
r a quick 10 points, but by game’s end he had committed seven turnovers.
Batum也許會是一個好例子，在這新的、更快的進攻系統裡，他被賦予主要持球者的任務
。Batum前四次出手全數命中並且很快地得到10分，但直至比賽結束，他一共發生七次失
誤。
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The good news: This is an 82-game season, not the 16-game sprint that is an NF
L season. But something needs to change soon because the margin for error to q
ualify for the playoffs doesn’t seem high, even considering the upgraded tale
nt on this roster.
好消息是，這是一個有著82場比賽的球季，而不是全力衝刺16場比賽的美式足球聯盟。有
些事情需要盡快改變，儘管這是一套天份獲得升級的輪替陣容，但取得季後賽門票所能容
錯的底線並沒有太高。
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“That can change in one day,” Clifford said hopefully. “A lot of what is ha
ppening right now is just mental. We have smart guys and you can change things
in this league in one day. It’s all about where your mind is at.”
「這是可以在一夕之間改變的。」Clifford充滿希望地說。「許許多多正在發生的事情都
只是心理層面的。我們擁有這些聰明的傢伙，可以在一夕之間、在這個聯盟裡作出改變。
一切全部取決於你的心態到哪。」
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Because right now it’s about where their minds aren’t.
因為把握「現在」正是他們心態上所欠缺的。
幾個想法：林今天在控球上打得並不理想，停球的壞習慣似乎又跑出來(有些朋友認為跟
戰術有關，但我並不這麼認為，林這一點確實做得不好)，但正因為它是「壞」習慣所以
才難改，希望林可以持續在他的NBA生涯裡改進這一點；我喜歡林今天的防守，有人說林
簽這個約是一個破除他防守不好的偏見的大好機會，相信在Clifford的執教下他會獲益良
多；第四節在三分線外的反彈幫助球隊回到比賽裡，讓人大呼過癮；最後，也許0勝2敗不
是一個很好的開局，但我喜歡黃蜂隊給人的整體感覺，Clifford是個好教練，相信今年會
是林有所斬獲的一年。