https://tinyurl.com/2p8ue2cu by Jeff Garcia
SAN ANTONIO — Despite bringing wins to San Antonio, an All-Star, and leading
the Spurs to the playoffs, it still wasn't enough for former Spur LaMarcus
Aldridge to get fourth-quarter playing time under Gregg Popovich's watch when
the team was throttling teams on the court.
Aldridge was a guest on the "Oddball Hoops" show and was discussing why he
couldn't see himself becoming a coach now that he is retired.
儘管LaMarcus Aldridge 為聖安東尼奧帶來了不少勝利，成為了全明星，還帶領馬刺進入
到季後賽，但 Popovich 在比賽大幅領先情況下，卻不讓Aldridge 在第四節上場。
Aldridge 在《Oddball Hoops》節目中作為來賓，談到了為什麼他退休後，無法想像自己
成為一名教練，因為他作為球員非常難相處。
He pointed to the fact that he could not see himself coaching because of how
difficult he was as a player.
Case in point: His time in San Antonio and clashing with Popovich about
late-game minutes.
Specifically, how the long-time San Antonio coach would not play him in the
fourth period when the team was up big on the scoreboard.
However, that didn't matter to Aldridge who said he wanted to play to
maintain his rhythm but Pop refused on the basis of resting him for the long
season.
一個例子是他在馬刺時，與Popovich 在針對第四節上場時間起了爭執。具體來說，就是
Popovich 在球隊大比分領先時，不讓Aldridge 在第四節上場。然而，Aldridge 表示他
希望能上場去維持比賽節奏，但Popovich拒絕了，理由是要讓他休息以應對漫長的賽季。
"That's when I got to San Antonio and we were winning 60 games that first
year," Aldridge said. "And we were up 30 (points) at halftime every time and
I wanted to play the fourth (period). Pop would fight me and be like 'No, you
can't play the fourth.'
"I'm just like, 'I need my rhythm,' so like I want to go back in the game in
the fourth."
「那是我剛到聖安東尼奧的時候，我們第一年就贏了60場比賽。每次半場結束時，我們都
領先30分，而我想上場打第四節。」
Popovich 總是反對，說「不，你不准打第四節。」
「但我想要找比賽節奏，所以我想回到場上打第四節。」
However, looking back at Pop's decision to sit him in the final frame now
makes sense to the former Spurs big man.
"You know that was the right way. To risk injury wouldn't have been smart but
I would be so frustrated," he said. "We would kind of butt heads a little bit
about wanting to go in for like two more minutes but you know it would never
happen."
Said Aldridge: "I understand the big picture now."
回顧 Popovich 當時的決定，現在對Aldridge來說，就合理的多了。
「你知道那是正確的決定。冒著受傷的風險是不明智的，但我感到非常沮喪。有時會因為
我想再打兩分鐘而爭吵，但你知道那是永遠不會發生事(回到場上)。而我現在我明白一切
是為大局而重。」
Resting players, minimizing the risk of injury, and preserving their bodies
for the long term are staples of Popovich's coaching style.
That approach allowed players to prolong their careers such as Tim Duncan and
Manu Ginobili.
It also is a credit to Popovich and why he is considered the best NBA coach
in history.
讓球員休息去減少受傷風險，並保持長期健康是Popovich的執教風格。而他也用這種方法
，讓球員的職業生涯得以延長下去，例如 Tim Duncan和 Manu Ginobili。
這也是為什麼 Popovich 被認為是歷史上最偉大的教練之一。
As for Aldridge, there was an adjustment period when he joined the Spurs in
2015.
He requested a trade from the Spurs in 2017 before Popovich spoke with him to
have a better understanding of his role and how to be coached.
After that, the pair enjoyed success.
Aldridge在2015年加入馬刺隊時，確實需要一段適應期。而在2017年，Aldridge也曾向馬
刺請求交易，然後Popovich與他詳談，去理解他在球隊的角色以及該如何去執教他。之後
，兩人取得了成功。
He'd become a three-time NBA All-Star as a Spur and lead the team to
four-straight playoff appearances (2016-19) before leaving San Antonio in
2021.
He can also add a lesson learned about player management from Popovich to his
NBA resume should he ever change his mind and get into coaching basketball.
Aldridge在馬刺入選了三次全明星，並帶領球隊連續四次闖進季後賽（2016年至2019年）
，然後在2021年離開馬刺。如果Aldridge 改變主意，決定成為教練，他還是可以把
Popovich那裡學到的球員管理，增加到他的履歷中。