原網址：
https://www.latimes.com/sports/lakers/story/2019-11-23/lakers-alex-caruso-
mural-lebron-james-kawhi-leonard
縮網址：https://reurl.cc/247NOv
Column: How Alex Caruso played his way off the Lakers’ bench and into a
mural near LeBron James and Kawhi Leonard
專欄：卡禿是如何從板凳打到變成可以被畫在詹皇跟可愛旁邊的壁畫
Near the corner of Melrose and Fairfax is a collection of photography and
street art that pays homage to some of the city’s best NBA players. There’s
a wall of pictures featuring Kawhi Leonard. Not far away is #MambaOnMelrose,
a mural of Kobe Bryant made up of 413 triangles to represent April 13, the
date of his last game. And half a block away, in a midsize parking lot facing
Fairfax High, Alex Caruso is dunking on James Harden and a few other Western
Conference foes.
在Melrose & Fairfax市場的一角，有一堆向這個城市最棒的NBA球星致敬的攝影作品及街
頭藝術聚集在這。那裡有一整面牆上都是Kawhi Leonard，不遠處則是#MambaOnMelrose，
一幅用了413個三角形所構成的Kobe壁畫，413代表4月13，Kobe退休戰的那一天。再走過
半個街區，一個在Fairfax高中對面的中型停車場，Alex Caruso在James Harden還有一些
其他西區對手的頭上灌籃。
https://i.imgur.com/sNBXYvF.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/qhbz7DG.jpg
The only thing more surprising than seeing a mural of an undrafted role
player, who graduated from college averaging eight points a game, is seeing
Harden’s defense immortalized. This is the same wall, mind you, that
famously featured the mural of LeBron James looking up to Kobe, Shaq, Magic,
Kareem and Wilt.
All of those greats have rings.
一個在大學場均只有8分、沒有在選秀會上被挑中的綠葉球員被畫成了一幅壁畫，唯一一
件比看見這幅壁畫還要令人驚喜的事是，鬍子的防守也在這面牆上得到了永生。(咦???)
提醒你，同一面牆上還有一幅著名的壁畫，上面畫著LeBron仰望著Kobe、Shaq、Magic、
Kareem還有 Wilt。
https://i.imgur.com/W5L8Uud.jpg
上面這些偉大的傢伙，都拿過冠軍戒指。
Leonard has rings.
可愛也有一枚。
Caruso has yet to log a total of 82 games in three years.
而卡禿目前在三年內總共才只打了82場比賽。
He’s not supposed to be here. And for Gustavo Zermeño, the artist who did
both the Caruso mural and those of the aforementioned Lakers greats, that is
precisely the point.
他不應該出現在這裡的。不過對於Gustavo Zermeño，那位畫了卡禿以及前面所提到那些
先賢壁畫的藝術家來說，這恰恰是為什麼卡禿能出現在這上面的原因
“I had him dunking on the best players in the west because we’re number one
right now, plus it shows that you don’t necessarily need to be getting paid
out to be recognized for what you bring to a team,” Zermeño said. “He
seems like a regular guy, very relatable and humble. I kinda compare him to
Lamar Odom, not skill-wise but likability. There’s just something that makes
you want to root for them.”
「我讓他在西區最厲害的傢伙們頭上灌籃是因為我們現在是西區第一，另外這表示你不用
一定得要給球隊帶來什麼才值得被認識。他就像一個普通人一樣，跟我們很像而且很謙虛
。我會說他就跟Lamar Odom一樣，沒有非常炫麗的技巧但是很讓人喜歡，就是讓你情不自
禁想要為他們加油。」
There’s no denying Caruso, who said he initially thought it was a joke when
he learned about the honor, has become a fan favorite at Staples Center. When
he enters the game, the cheers rival those received by the team’s two
all-world players, and when he heads back to the bench his efforts do not go
unrecognized.
卡禿沒有否認這件事，當他一開始聽說他已經變成整個Staples Center最受歡迎的球員時
，他覺得大家只是在開他玩笑而已。當他踏上球場的時候，他獲得的歡呼聲可以媲美隊上
另外兩位巨星，而當他回到板凳休息時他的努力也都不會被忽略掉。
It’s not unusual for a championship-caliber team to have a de facto mascot
that fans adore. But those guys are usually running around hustling at the
end of games that have been decided. Caruso entered the game with 25.5
seconds left and the Lakers up six against the Phoenix Suns. He was in the
game against the Sacramento Kings with 5.5 seconds left and the Lakers
clinging to a 97-95 lead. He entered Friday’s game with 23.6 seconds
remaining and the Lakers up 126-123 against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
在冠軍級別的隊伍中有個討人喜愛的吉祥物球員並不少見，但通常那些傢伙只會在垃圾時
間才被放上場跑跑龍套。而卡禿在太陽戰剩下25.5秒上場的時候，湖人只領先6分。對陣
國王剩下5.5秒上場時，湖人才只以97-95領先2分。禮拜五打雷霆終場前23.6秒他上場時
，湖人更是126-123只領先3分。
Mascots are not crunch-time fixtures. They do not average 20 minutes a game,
knock down big threes or catch bodies at the rim. And they certainly don’t
do all of that while looking like a middle school teacher.
吉祥物不會在緊要關頭被放上場。他們不會平均一場比賽被放上去打20分鐘、投進大號三
分球或是在別人頭上灌籃。他們真的不會做那些事，尤其當他們外表看起來只是個中學老
師的時候。
“I’ve had thin hair almost my entire life,” Caruso said, smiling. “I used
to have facial hair but my girlfriend doesn’t like it, so I try to stay
clean-shaven. But who knows, I may go full Rick Ross one day.”
「我頭髮一直都這麼少啊，我以前還留過鬍子可是我女朋友不喜歡，所以我只能把他們刮
乾淨。不過搞不好有一天我會弄得跟Rick Ross一樣，誰曉得？」
(可是我說卡禿…Rick Ross除了光頭造型以外，髮量看起來還不少耶…)
In many ways he already has, considering the rapper’s first single was
called “Hustlin’.”
就很多方面而言，其實他也跟Rick Ross相去不遠了，譬如說這位饒舌歌手的首張單曲“
Hustlin’.”
(我猜應該是跟歌詞有關？ ” Everyday I'm hustlin' ”)
Although the 6-foot-5 guard graduated from Texas A&M as the school’s career
leader in assists and steals, he went undrafted and ended up playing in the
2016 Summer League for the Philadelphia 76ers. He was signed by the Thunder
in late September but was waived three weeks later after the team acquired
Reggie Williams. A short time after that, he was picked up by the Thunder’s
G-League team, but the following year again found himself without a home.
雖然這個從Texas A&M畢業，身高6呎5的後衛是該校的助攻及抄截紀錄保持人，他還是沒
有在選秀會上被挑走，最終只幫76人打完2016年的夏季聯盟就被丟掉。接著他在九月底被
雷霆簽下，但三個禮拜後雷霆得到了Reggie Williams，所以他又被丟掉。沒多久之後他
被雷霆的G-League team撿走，不過隔年他再度被丟掉。
That’s when the Lakers picked him up for the 2017 Summer League, the one
that featured rookies Lonzo Ball, Josh Hart and Kyle Kuzma. While Ball and
Kuzma grabbed the fans’ attention, Caruso played well enough to catch the
eye of team executives who signed him to a two-way contract.
當湖人在2017年夏季聯盟簽下他的同時，隊上還有當年閃耀的新秀們(老爸超級嘴的)球哥
、(沒人要跟他擊掌的)小哈以及(大腸麵)Kuz。就當球哥跟Kuz抓住所有球迷的注意力時，
卡禿因為打得夠好吸引了高層注意而簽下了一份雙向合約。
“When I got called up I thought I had made it,” he said about playing in
his first game in 2017. “I loved everything about being in the NBA and
wanted to stay, but it didn’t work out that way. It was frustrating but I
tried to stay focused on the things I could control.
「當我被call上一軍的時候，我想說我終於辦到了，」卡禿提起他在2017年的第一場比賽
。「我愛死了NBA的一切，想盡辦法都要留下來，可是沒有用，我還是被丟回去了。那很
令人沮喪，不過我開始試著專注在那些我可以掌控的事情上。」
“I grew up with a religious background. As I’ve gotten older and met so
many people, I’ve come to believe everything happens for a reason. There are
no coincidences. There’s a reason I went back to the G-League and I ended up
growing and improving myself mentally and physically. When I got my chance to
play more minutes at the end of last season, I was able to show how much I
grew. … It all worked out.”
「我在一個虔誠的家庭長大，當我年紀增長、遇見許多人之後，我開始相信事出必有因，
沒有巧合這種事。我會回去G-League不會沒有理由的，但終究我在心理跟生理方面都有了
十足的成長與改進。當我在上個季末得到了機會能夠有更多上場時間，我就能夠表現出我
有多少長進…這全都要歸功於鍛鍊！」
Metta World Peace was at the final practice before the team embarked on its
current four-game road trip. When he saw Caruso, he walked over, gave him a
bro hug and said, “You’re killing it.”
“I’m so happy for him,” Metta said. “He worked so hard and it’s paying
off. He would have made more money playing overseas but he stayed here in the
G-League, worked his tail off and now he’s played himself into getting at
least a couple of contracts.”
窩屁在球隊準備要出發去打客場四連戰的最後一次練習中看到了卡禿，然後他走了過去給
了卡禿一個兄弟式的擁抱並對他說：「幹得好！」
窩屁表示「我很替他高興，他非常努力而且有了回報。他本可以去海外打球賺更多錢的，
可是他卻留在G-League當拼命三郎，然後他現在可以掙得好幾份(NBA)合約了。」
Last April, the G-League announced it was increasing base salaries to $7,000
per month. NBA two-way players like Caruso were set to earn $77,250, “
prorated for days spent on an NBA G-League roster, and the NBA rookie minimum
salary, prorated for the days with their NBA team, for maximum potential
earnings of $385,000 next season.” This summer Caruso signed a two-year deal
worth $5.5 million.
去年四月G-League宣布，球員基本薪資將調漲到月薪7,000美元，像卡禿一樣有NBA雙向合
約的球員則可以拿到77,250美元。這將由你待在NBA G-League球員名單中、NBA 菜鳥最低
薪資以及你待在NBA球隊裡的天數依照比例進行分配，下個球季最多可以拿到385,000美元
。而卡禿在這個夏天就簽到了一份價值550萬美元的兩年合約。
When I pulled into the lot to take a look at his mural, a car rolled in soon
thereafter. A couple of guys jumped out and began taking selfies next to it.
David Ramirez and his brother Diego said they were driving down the street
when the giant Caruso caught their eye.
“This is so cool,” David said. “He looks like just a guy, you know, but he
’s out there balling. Like I know he’s in the NBA but he doesn’t look like
a NBA player. … It’s just so cool.
當我正要好好的欣賞這幅卡禿的壁畫時，一輛車子開了過來，幾個傢伙跳下車然後開始跟
壁畫自拍。David Ramirez 還有他兄弟Diego說他們正開車在街上晃，然後這個巨大的卡
禿吸引了他們。
「這超酷的，他看起來就只是個平凡人，可是他卻在那裡打球耶。我知道他是NBA球員可
是他看起來就不像啊…超酷的！」David說。
That element to his story — he doesn’t look the part — is what catches
eyeballs and inspire memes and nicknames like “Bald Mamba,” which is really
curious considering Bryant was bald when his “Black Mamba” moniker became
popular. But when you consider Caruso’s journey from second team
All-Southeastern Conference to two G-League teams to three summer leagues,
and now on the floor in crunch time for a team that’s a favorite to win the
NBA title, his looks are perhaps the least interesting thing about him.
有關卡禿這個人…他看起來就不是那種會吸引人注意或是什麼心靈雞湯型的球員，而且外
號還叫『禿曼巴』，不禁讓人好奇回想當Kobe的『黑曼巴』綽號開始流行的時候他是不是
也禿了。但當你回想卡禿一路以來的歷程，從NCAA全美東南區第二隊到兩支G-League隊伍
再到三次的夏季聯盟，然後現在成為一個能在關鍵時刻上場的球隊新寵兒，而這支隊伍搞
不好還會贏得NBA總冠軍，他的長相可能是他這個人最不吸引人的地方。
“I was listening to a podcast — it might’ve been Joe Rogan’s — and they
were talking about fear,” Caruso said. “One of the first things that
happens with anxiety and fear is that it impacts muscle memory. You might be
really good at something, but as soon as you introduce anxiety you lose that
natural instinct. So when I’m out there on the court I try not to think too
much and just play ball. I’ve been playing my whole life, I love the game,
so I try not to think about being in the NBA or playing in Staples. I just
play.”
卡禿說：「我當時正在聽podcast，有可能是Joe Rogan的節目，他們正在談論『恐懼』，
其中一件可能會伴隨著焦慮或恐懼發生在你身上的事，就是它會影響你的肌肉記憶。你可
能對某件事情非常在行，但當你感到焦慮時你會失去本能反應。所以當我在場上的時候，
我就是試著不要想太多，就是好好打球。我大半輩子都在打球，我喜歡比賽，所以我試著
不要去想我正在NBA或是正在Staples Center裡打球這件事。就是專心打球。」
Like he’s right where he belongs.
就像他現在正在做的事一樣