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When a Switch Flips: Even Cavs Vets in Disbelief over Sudden Playoff
Turnaround
當按鈕按下了：連騎士的老將自己都不相信
BOSTON — Kyle Korver likes to think of himself as a well-reasoned,
intelligent man. He believes in things he can see.
Korver認為自己是一個理性有智慧的人，他相信他自己看到的。
So this magical "switch" he'd heard so much about around Cleveland was no
different than other figments of imagination. Santa Claus, Easter Bunny,
tooth fairy, flip-switchers—they're all the same.
所以這個關於騎士隊的魔術開關對他來說只是虛構的想像。聖誕老人、復活節兔兔、牙仙
子、切換開關－他們都是一樣的
"I've always been told that it wasn't real, that there wasn't a switch that
can just be flipped on," Korver told Bleacher Report Thursday afternoon.
"我總是被告知說那個按鈕不是真的，沒有一個開關是你可以切換的"Korver說
Korver brought this mentality with him to the court for the first
13-and-a-half years of his career. It's helped him carve out a niche as one
of the game's premier long-distance snipers, which is why, over the past few
weeks, he's been shocked to discover that he was wrong all along.
在他13年半的生涯裡，Korver把這個心態帶到場上，這幫助他成為場上最頂級的狙擊手。
這也是為什麼在過去的這幾個禮拜，他發覺自己錯了。
On Jan. 7, the Atlanta Hawks traded Korver to the defending champion
Cleveland Cavaliers. At the time, Korver thought he knew what awaited in
Cleveland. The Cavaliers were gunning for a second straight title. Their
star, LeBron James, was hunting the ghost of Michael Jordan.
1月7日，Korver被老鷹交易到騎士隊。那時候，Korver認為自己知道在克里夫蘭會面臨什
麼。騎士瞄準了第二冠，而姆斯，正在授獵喬丹的鬼魂。
This, Korver figured, would be one of the most intense and buttoned-up
basketball environments he ever entered. Instead, he watched the Cavaliers,
behind one of the weakest defenses in the league, drop 14 of their final 24
games, fall out of the No. 1 seed and enter the postseason tired, old and
vulnerable.
所以Korver瞭解到，這可能會是他經歷過最高強度的籃球環境。相反的，他看著騎士，展
現出全聯盟最爛的防守，在例行賽最後的24場比賽輸了14場，也輸掉了第一種子。進入季
後賽的他們看起來很累也很脆弱
"I was really concerned," Korver said. "But everyone just kept on telling me,
'Don't worry about it, we're all good.
"我相當的擔心"Korver說："但每個人都跟我說：不用擔心，我們很棒"
"And it turns out they were right."
"結果他們還真的沒騙人"
It's not just that the Cavaliers have run off nine straight wins thus far
this postseason, including an overwhelming 117-104 win over the Celtics in
Boston Wednesday night in the Eastern Conference Finals' opening game, that
has Korver reconsidering his belief in a team's ability to flip on a fake
light switch. It's the way in which they've devastated opponents like the
Celtics and Toronto Raptors, teams that ended the regular season looking like
possible threats.
不只是騎士隊季後賽的九連勝或是禮拜三對賽隊的大勝讓他重新考慮是否去相信一隻球隊
能否去切換開關，它們在季後賽摧毀了那些在例行賽號稱的騎士殺手：暴龍以及賽隊
Cleveland has actually upped its scoring this postseason—typically a time
where baskets are more difficult to come by—by about seven points per 100
possessions.
騎士在理論上更難進攻的季後賽裡，每100回合多得了7分。
They've also plugged up holes on the other end of the floor. The Cavs held
the Raptors to 100.9 points per 100 possessions in the second round, an
eight-point improvement from their regular-season mark.
它們也把防守上的漏洞塞住，騎士只讓暴龍每100回合得到100.9分，比他們例行賽還要低
8分
"I mean these guys have been playing into the playoffs deep into June for
three years now. It's easy to get bored in the regular season," Cavaliers
guard Deron Williams told Bleacher Report. "The intensity isn't there game in
and game out. But now you've got rest, you're not playing back-to-backs, you
get to focus on one team and lock in on them. For a team like this, with this
many veterans, it sets up perfect for how we're built."
"這些家伙已經連續三年打到六月了，他們很容易對例行賽感到無聊"騎士控衛威廉斯說：
"在例行賽他們完全沒有強度，但是現在我們有了休息，而且沒有背靠背的比賽，你只有
一個對手要針對。對於一個有很多老將的球隊，這樣的條件對我們來說很完美"
Like Korver, Williams, a 13-year veteran, was added to the fold late in the
season and grew concerned with what he saw.
就像Korver，在季末才加入的威廉斯，也對他所看到的感到憂慮。
"We didn't end the season well. It wasn't looking good for us," said
Williams, who was signed by the Cavaliers on Feb. 27 after being waived by
the Dallas Mavericks. "You know, I was nervous because I haven't been a part
of a team like this. I was like, 'I hope we can do it, I know we can lock in,
I've seen it for games.' But it just wasn't consistent."
"我們球季結束的很爛，一切看起來都很糟"威廉斯說："你知道的，我從來沒有待過一個
像這樣糟的隊伍，我感到很緊張，這就像是：我希望我們可以做到，我知道我們可以專注
，我曾經過看它，但那跟我現在看到的不太一樣"
As with everything in "Cavs Land," much of this turnaround is courtesy of
LeBron James. Over these nine games, he's played perhaps the best basketball
of his career. He's averaging 34.8 points—on 56.0 percent shooting—9.0
rebounds and 7.1 assists this postseason. He's left opposing coaches grasping
for ways to slow him down.
在騎士的領土，大部分的翻轉來自於姆斯。在過去的九場比賽他平均得到34.8分、56%、9
籃板、7助攻。他讓對方的教練傷腦筋來阻止他。
"It's hard to believe, but he's better than when I got into the league [four
years ago]," Celtics head coach Brad Stevens told reporters after Game 1. "A
lot better. Just as you get older, you gain more experience, see more things.
I didn't think he could get any better after that, but he is."
"這實在很難讓人相信，姆斯比我剛進聯盟(4年前)時還要好"賽隊教頭說："實在好太多了
，當你老了，你有了更多的經驗，我不認為他可以變得很好，可是他卻做到了"
But both Korver and Williams, the lone newcomers in the Cavaliers' primary
rotation, believe there's more to it.
Korver和威廉斯這兩個新來的，相信騎士可以做到更多。
"Really, I think, it's all on the defensive end, I think our offense, really
all season was great; just defensively we weren't very sharp, we weren't
where we needed to be," Korver said.
"我認為這一切都是防守，我們的進攻整季都很棒，只是防守上我們很遲頓，我們還未達
到我們所需要的防守"Korver說
"The coverages that this team is best at...they take a lot of energy, they
take a lot of showing and blitzing and trapping, guys who play so long into
the summer every year; it's easy to lose focus on that, to play with that
intensity."
"當這隊耗費大量能量在電光一閃、閃電夾擊時，他們有最棒的防守範圍。這些人每年夏
天都打這麼久，很容易就分心，而沒有展現應有的強度"
The difference, according to Korver, is simple: In the playoffs there are no
games on consecutive nights. Also, teams have more time to develop and
implement game plans, and players have more time to absorb them.
根據Korver，差別其實很簡單："季後賽沒有背靠背的比賽，我們有更多時間去制定比賽
計畫，也有更多的時間去瞭解它"
So, does that mean Korver is ready to become a believer in proverbial
electric levers?
所以，這表示現在Korver相信所謂的開關存在了嗎？
"The switch is certainly real here," he said. "But only here."
"這個開關是確賽存在的"他說："但只在這裡"
心得：有球隊藏招藏到連新來的都不相信的嗎？