[外電] Approaching the Finish Line (Nash外電)

[neak (neak)]

Approaching the Finish Line                                                    
Steve Nash is out to prove that he’s more than just a cap number
by Bill Simmons on February 13, 2014

http://grantland.com/features/approaching-the-finish-line/


這文章前兩天就出來了，但是一直沒有勇氣去讀他，直到今天我終於讀了，讀完後我覺得這
篇文章是屬於太陽版的，雖然Nash 已經不在太陽了，可是我相信太陽版的大家還是會想知
道 Nash 的新消息，所以在離開太陽版多年後，我又回來太陽版翻外電。(家還是最好的)


NBA 版有個刪工減料斷章取義的翻譯，Grantland 上的文章才是原文。

                              ◇◇◇

關於Bill Simmons

我覺得在讀文章之前，還是跟沒住在美國的人介紹一下作者 Bill Simmons 。

Bill Simmons 最早是在 AOL 的部落格，寫關於 Boston 運動如 Celtics 的部落客，網站
點閱率超高後，被ESPN 延攬到 ESPN.com 寫文章，他之前文章主要都在 Page 2 發表，文
章也會在紙板的ESPN Magzine 發表，算是個超有人氣的專欄作家。他的 Podcast 是
Itunes Podcast 運動類下載第一名。

前幾年當他的合約到期時，他跟ESPN 談判，要求更高的創意空間及掌控，Espn 答應了他所
提出 30 for 30 記錄片的計畫，他成為 Espn 節目製作人。後來在 Page 2 關掉後，Bill
成立了 Grantland 網站，有自己的作家、編輯、製作人、Youtube Channel，談論關於運動
、音樂、電影、電視的評論。算是個 ESPN 的子公司，可是網站涵蓋超出了運動。前NBA 球
星 Jalen Rose 在 Grantland 有個 Podcast ，Bill Simmons 是他的老闆。

ESPN & ABC 轉播的NBA 球賽多年來被 TNT 壓著打，TNT 有Barkeley 跟 Kenny 一搭一唱，
一直以來都被公認說比較好笑。去年起ESPN & ABC 的中場評論，請了Grantland 的Bill
Simmons & Jalen Rose 來當評論員，所以Bill 現在也是每週上電視的名嘴了。

他有自己的網站、Youtube Channel、Podcast，跟ESPN 關係良好，可以把節目提案給ESPN
。

              ◇◇◇  正文開始 (有些無關 Nash 的我就不翻了)  ◇◇◇

2014: $9,300,500
2015: $9,701,000


Steve Nash wears no. 10 for the Lakers, but it’s really 9.3. Next season, that
turns into 9.7. Those are the numbers Lakers fans see. They see a walking cap
figure.

Nash 現在穿湖人隊10號的球衣，但是湖人球迷見到的是今年的 9.3 明年的 9.7。對他們來
說 Nash 就是會走路的Cap Figure。

He just turned 40. His body keeps breaking down. The Lakers need his cap money
— desperately — whether it happens through trade, medical retirement, buyout,
stretch provision, whatever. He’s in the way.


他剛過完40 歲生日，身體傷病不斷，湖人隊需要他可清空的薪資空間，不管是交易、
退休、買斷。他就是在檔路。

Please leave, Steve Nash. We need that money for someone else.

Nash 拜託請離開，我們需要把錢花在別人身上。

It’s a cruel finish for such a wonderful player. I never saw Cousy and Oscar,
obviously. I only caught the tail end of Frazier and the second (and inferior)
incarnation of Tiny. I caught everything Magic and everything Isiah; they’re
1-2 on the “Best Point Guards I Ever Watched” list. After them, not counting
current stars, it’s Stockton, Nash, Kidd and Payton in some order. Stockton
submitted the most impressive start-to-finish career. Kidd and Payton were the
most dominant two-way players. And Nash was the most skilled offensive player,
a gifted playmaker who doubled as one of the most efficient shooters ever.
Right now, his career shooting percentages are 49 percent (field goal), 42.8
percent (3-point) and 90.4 percent (free throw), which means Nash passed 10,000
career assists while also nearly creating the Lifetime 50-40-90 Club. Good luck
seeing that again.

這是對這麼棒的球員最慘忍的結局。在知名控衛中，Stockton有著最傑出完整的生涯，Kidd
& Payton 在攻守方面的強勢，而Nash 除了是進攻天才外還是最有效率的射手，助攻超越
10,000 的同時，生涯命中率接近180。以後再有人達成的機率微乎其微。

Nash peaked on those “Seven Seconds or Less” Suns teams, when Phoenix built
him a high-powered Formula One racing car — with Stoudemire, Shawn Marion and
a rotating cast of 3-point bombers as the engine, and Mike D’Antoni as the
lead mechanic — knowing that Nash and Nash alone could steer such a
complicated vehicle. Maybe they never won a title, but Chris Connelly nailed it
when he called them “critically acclaimed.” Not the worst legacy in the
world. Nash and D’Antoni reunited in Los Angeles four years later, only the
pairing belonged to another era — wrong teammates, wrong situation, wrong
point in Nash’s career. When he battled nerve damage in his back last
November, rumors stupidly swirled that Nash might retire. You know, because it’
s so easy to walk away from 10 million bucks. Anyone paying attention knew what
was more likely: a 2014-15 season featuring phrases like “Steve Nash’s
Expiring Contract” and “Keep Getting ’Dem Checks!”

Nash 在七秒秒殺的太陽隊達到巔峰，鳳凰城為他打造了一部F1 賽車，有Stoudemire、
 Shawn Marion 跟三分射手當引擎， Mike D’Antoni 做主技工，他們知道只有Nash 可以
駕馭一部這麼複雜的車。或許他們從未奪冠，但Chris Connelly說的好，他們是『好評不斷
』。 Nash and D’Antoni  四年後在洛杉磯復合了，但卻是在錯誤的時空，錯誤的隊友，
錯誤的情況、Nash 生涯錯誤的時間點。當他去年11 月在跟他的背部神經奮戰時，開始有愚
蠢的傳言說 Nash 將要退休。你知道，放棄一千萬美金是這麼容易的事。 任何有點概念的
都知道說這比較是 2014-2015 『Steve Nash 到期合約』『繼續收該死的錢』。

Then again, that’s par for the course with great players. Only Russell left at
the right time. Everyone else hangs around for an extra year or two — their
bodies break down, they lose a step, their pride never totally kicks in.
Eventually, they get it. Kareem needed to get shoved around like a rag doll by
the Bad Boys. Jordan needed the Wizards. Hakeem needed the Raptors. Bird needed
a 15-pound back brace. Barkley needed to blow out his quad tendon. Kidd needed
to brick 225 straight 3s last season and postseason. You could keep going and
going. And no, Kobe, Dirk and Duncan haven’t reached that “get it” point
yet. But they will.


Steve Nash? I thought he’d already arrived. I thought he was there. And then,
one night

但這就是偉大球員的詛咒，只有Russell 急流勇退，其他的都多待了1, 2 年，直到他們身
體敗壞，少了一步。驕傲總是太晚才來。最終他們才認清了現實。Kareem 需要被壞小孩修
理過才知道，Jordan 到了巫師隊才知，Bird 需要15 lb 重的背架，Barkley 直到四肌腱傷
了，Kidd 連鐵了 255 顆三分球。這說都說不完。而Kobe, Dirk and Duncan 直到現在還不
認輸，但他們總有一天會。而Nash 我以為他早就到了，然後有一天

 … my phone rang.

我的電話響了。

It was him.

是他。


                                  ♦♦♦

I have known Steve Nash for nearly five years. We met by phone during the
summer of 2009, when Nash needed a copilot for a potential book project.
Teaming up for a modern-day version of Life on the Run or The Game absolutely
intrigued me, especially after chatting with Nash and finding out how
perceptive he was. For instance, Nash didn’t just play with Stoudemire. He
wondered why Stoudemire behaved certain ways in certain situations, and what
internal and external forces contributed to that behavior. He wondered how to
make him happy and keep him happy. He tried to figure out every conceivable way
to make Stoudemire better at basketball, both on and off the court. And a lot
of times, it didn’t have anything to do with basketball. Amar’e Stoudemire
was a complicated puzzle that Nash never stopped trying to solve.

我是五年前認識 Steve Nash 的，Nash 2009 年找我商量一個新書計畫。寫個貼身球員觀察
的書讓我著迷，尤其在電話中Nash 是這麼敏銳。譬如說，Nash 並不只是跟Stoudemire 打
球，他好奇Stoudemire 為何有時在某些時刻是某些行為，是內在跟外在的哪些力量造成得
個這行為。他想知道如何取悅與維持 Stoudemire 的好心情，他用盡了所有方法讓
 Stoudemire 在場上場外成為更好的球員，而很多時候這些跟籃球無關，Amar’e
Stoudemire 是Nash 從未解完的謎題。

This was a whole other level of thinking. I was doing backflips. This could
have been, potentially, one of the great sports books. Steve Nash would be
allowing us behind the curtain. Of course, the most appealing thing about the
project became the same thing that derailed it: Over the course of a few phone
calls and emails, Nash smartly realized he could never publish the book he
wanted to write. Not while he was still playing, anyway. He couldn’t be candid
about teammates and coaches as he was leading them. Impossible.

這是另一個層次的思考，我聽到時心情簡直就在做後空翻。這將有可能會是始上最棒的運動
類的書。 Steve Nash 將會讓我們從廉後窺視。但這項計畫也毀在它最迷人的地方，幾次電
話跟電郵後，Nash 查覺他將無法出版他想寫的書，至少在他還打球的時後不可能。他無法
一方面帶領著他的隊友又真誠的寫出他的感想。這是不可能的。

Deep down, I knew this — that’s why I urged him to scribble out some thoughts
while being as frank as possible. I promised I would never show anyone those
emails. (And I won’t.) He sent a few. They were remarkably, staggeringly
outspoken. And by the third or fourth one, he realized, “Oh yeah, it would be
crazy for me to write a book right now.”

在內心深處，我早知道會是這樣的結果，所以我鼓勵他真誠寫下想法，我答應他永不讓其他
人看到這些電郵，而我也沒有。他寄了些，這些都是出乎意料的直言無諱，而在第三封、第
四封時，他查覺他現在不能寫這本書。

(And he was right.)

而他是對的。

So we placed the book on permanent hiatus. Nash became involved with one of my
big projects, 30 for 30, codirecting our film about Canadian hero Terry Fox. We
spent a night at Sundance eating dinner with an oversize group; teammate Jared
Dudley had borrowed Nash’s no-sugar diet to lose weight, so I have a vivid
memory of Dudley pointing to menu items (like a little kid) and asking Nash, “
Can I eat this? What about this?”4 After Nash’s Fox film received universally
positive reviews, we remained in touch and recorded a few podcasts, crossing
paths by accident a couple more times. His move to Los Angeles opened the door
for a belated collaboration. Well, for about three seconds. Almost immediately,
Nash’s first Lakers season degenerated into a full-fledged soap opera —
 Starring Dwight! And Kobe! And Jimmy! And Phil! And Mike Brown as Mike! —
 right as Nash’s divorce trial became weekly TMZ fodder. I never felt right
about following up.

我們將這本書束之高閣，Nash 在我 30 for 30 的計畫中參了一咖，導了部關於加拿大英雄
Terry Fox 的記錄片。在Sundance  影展時，我們一大群人吃了個晚餐，Nash 的隊友
 Jared Dudley 像小孩般指著菜單說『這個可以吃嗎？那這個呢？』，問著認真執行無糖餐
的Nash，以試圖減肥。在Nash 的紀錄片得到好評後，我們依然有來往，他來錄了我幾次的
 Podcast ，偶而有偶遇。他搬到洛杉磯後，開啟了新合作的大門，只維持了 3 秒。馬上的
 Nash 湖人隊的第一季就像個鄉土劇，由 Dwight, Kobe, Jimmy, Phil, Mike Brown,
Mike 領銜主演，而 Nash 的離婚官司每週都登上八卦網站 TMZ。這不是重提計畫的時機。

A solid year passed. My phone rang one night.

一年過了，我的電話響了。

Nash???

Within a few seconds, he was spilling everything. He hated being a cap figure.
He hated that his teammates only knew him two ways: as the quarterback of those
delightful Suns teams, and as the banged-up geezer who was barely hanging on.
He spent an inordinate amount of time thinking about basketball and his body,
and not in that order, coming to the conclusion that he couldn’t retire yet.
He wasn’t sure if that stubbornness was fueled by denial or hubris, or both.
He wondered if the same trait that made so many athletes great — supreme
confidence at all times — was their mortal enemy in moments like this. He
didn’t trust his own instincts.

在幾秒內，他開始爆料。他討厭他只是個 cap figure，他討厭他的隊友只認識那個太陽隊
的四分衛或是快撐不住的老兵。他花很多的時間思考關於籃球與他的身體，而得到結論說他
還不能退休。他不知道這份固執是來自不服輸還是自大，或著都有。他好奇是不是讓球員成
功的特質 --  永遠的強烈自信 --是他們的最大敵人。他已經不相信自己的第六感了。

Did he have anything left … or did he just WANT to have something left? And
how could he tell the difference?

他到底還有沒有剩下，還是他只是希望他還有剩，他又如何知道兩者的分別?

He wouldn’t know for sure unless he killed himself to come back. And that’s
what he had been doing, Steve Nash said. For weeks and weeks. He figured he
could play quality basketball once a week. But in the NBA, you need to do that
three or four times a week. That’s the subtle difference between being
productive and being a scrub. He found that more frustrating than anything,
Nash confided — being able to get there every once in a while, just not all
the time.

在NBA 一個禮拜要打好3,4 次。這就是一流跟二流的差別。這比任何事都讓他心煩。他偶而
打的好，就是不能一直保持著。

I mean … who couldn’t identify with that?

這是大家都可以感同身受的。

Now, imagine you’re me. You’re sitting home on some random night watching
hoops when the phone rings. It’s one of the five or six best point guards who
ever lived, a two-time MVP, one of the most entertaining players of the past 40
years. He’s talking candidly, telling you about his myriad problems, vowing
that he isn’t done yet. And then he says he’s been documenting this latest
comeback with his production partner, Ezra Holland, and that 30 for 30’s
talented-and-then-some visionary Jon Hock had gotten involved,5 and that maybe
Grantland could get involved, too. At that point, I was waiting for him to say
“Baba Booey” and hang up. Nope.

然後想象你是我，你坐在家中看籃球賽時，電話突然響了。電話的另一邊是史上前幾名的控
衛，兩次MVP，過去40年來最有趣的球員之一，他率直的告訴你他的無數問題，發誓說他還
沒有完，他跟他的製作夥伴 Ezra Holland 及 30 for 30 的 JonHock 打算紀錄他最新的復
出，然後說 Grantland 也可以插一角，我幾乎以他會說『啊!開玩笑的』然後掛上電話。沒
有。

Halfway through the phone call, I started to comprehend the stakes. We finally
had a chance to pull off that Life on the Run/The Game idea, only in video
form, and in real time. You read those books, as great as they are, while
already knowing the ending. This time around, the ending would write itself. We
could root for Nash as it happened. A once-great athlete, trying to hang on,
searching for a rare talent that may or may not have vanished from his body. He
doesn’t know if it’s gone. Neither do you. Neither do I.

在這通電話的一半時，我開始領悟這個義涵。我們終於可以把我們之前那個想法實現，只是
這次是影片，以實況方式。你讀哪些書時，不管書有多棒，你都事先知道了結局。這一次結
局會自己寫，我們可以在它發生時為Nash 加油。一個曾經偉大的球員，試圖留住尋找那或
許還存在或消失在他身體的天份。他不知道那到底是不是走了。我也不知道。

As if that’s not a good enough wrinkle, here’s one more: Nash spent a good
deal of energy, legal and financial, to guarantee his children would be raised
in Los Angeles. He doesn’t want to move them again. When we talked that first
night, he mentioned the “stretch provision,” a newish cap wrinkle that allows
the Lakers to waive Nash’s final year, then “stretch” his $9.7 million cap
number over as many as four years.6 It’s a fancy way for the Lakers, or any
bumbling NBA team, to dilute the impact of a damaging contract. Nash believed
the “stretch” buyout was a looming threat — if it happened, he’d probably
retire unless the Clippers wanted him.

如果這還不是個好梗的話，還有一個：Nash 花了很多的精神，法律上跟金錢上，來確保他
的小孩可以在洛杉磯長大，他已經不想他的小孩再搬家了。當我們昨天談時，他提到 “
stretch provision” ，一個新的制度讓湖人可以放棄Nash 最後的一年然後以四年分攤他
970萬的美金 cap number ，這是讓NBA 的球隊減輕爛約的方法。Nash 相信 “stretch”
買斷將會是一個有可能的危機，如果發生了，他大概會退休，除非快艇要他。

I took the other side, believing the Lakers would be foolish to use the
stretch. Wasn’t Nash more valuable as an expiring deal, both as a potential
trade piece and a 2015 cap hold before free-agent studs like Kevin Love become
available? Then again, the Lakers have done a variety of silly things lately.
Who knows? Nash and I batted around the various scenarios like we were Wilbon
and Kornheiser. Only later did I realize how surreal it was to discuss Cap
Figure Nash with Real Person Nash.

我是另外一邊的，湖人如果用了就蠢了。Nash 的到期合約將會是交易中重要的一環，他們
需要清空Cap 來迎接 2015 年自由球員如Kevin Love。但這又很難講，因為湖人近期幹的傻
事還少了嗎？我們倆討論了很多可能的情況，跟現實生活中的 Nash 談論 Cap Figure
Nash 感覺超現實的。

We stayed in touch over the next few weeks, as Nash rehabbed his back in
Vancouver and eventually returned to the Lakers’ lineup in Minnesota. I have
to admit, I expected the worst. But he dished out nine assists and looked like
the old Nash crossed with Old Nash. On his birthday a few nights later, he
scored 19 during an encouraging performance in Philly. Less than 48 hours
later, he tweaked his leg against Chicago. Now he’s day-to-day. Maybe when you
’re 40, you’re always day-to-day. Regardless, I couldn’t believe how much I
was pulling for him last week. Cap Figure Nash had morphed into Real Person
Nash — the guy trying to save his career, his contract, his family and his
inordinately special gift. I didn’t see 9.3 and 9.7 anymore. I saw only no.
10.

我們在之後的幾個禮拜還保持連絡。當Nash 在溫哥華復健，在跟灰狼隊球賽回到湖人隊時
，我已預期最糟糕的情況。但他有了9個助攻，好像又回到舊的 Nash 。在他生日那天根費
城的比賽得了振奮人心的19 分。48小時後在公牛的比賽扭到了腿。現在他day-to-day，或
許當你40歲時你永遠都是day-to-day。我無法想像說我上個禮拜是怎麼樣的為他加油，他已
經不再是9.3 跟 9.7 。我只見到了十號。

Whether Lakers fans follow suit remains to be seen. The day of that Minnesota
game, a buddy of mine who loves the Lakers stopped by Grantland’s office. He
knew nothing about our Nash project. As I started describing it, he hissed, “
Oh God, I hope it’s a project convincing him to retire.” We showed him a
rough cut. Within 10 minutes, he was begrudgingly admitting, “Now I’m rooting
for him to come back.” In the wonderful world of sports, things flip that
fast. Welcome to The Finish Line.

湖人球迷會不會跟隨還未知，在灰狼球賽那天，我有個湖人的球迷朋友來了 Grantland 辦
公室，他事先不知我們的 Nash 計畫，當我解釋時，他不屑的說『希望這個計畫可已說服他
退休。』我們給他看了初剪，在十分鐘他不甘心的承認說『我現在希望他回來球場。』　在
美妙的運動世界裡，立場轉變得如此迅速，歡迎來到『終點線』。

                                   ♦♦♦

第一集連結 http://grantland.com/the-triangle/the-finish-line-episode-1/



--
※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc)
※ 編輯: neak            來自: 24.205.130.25        (02/16 07:37)
推 mywu        :好文
推 bll135      :QQ
推 vodkaitis   :QQ  有洋蔥
推 lunaluna    :老大QQ
推 pkgameover  :老大請回來溫暖的鳳凰城阿！
推 jlcsn       :老大QAQ
推 NashTheGreat:推
→ NashTheGreat:復健的時候  Baron Davis 也在溫哥華一起訓練
→ NashTheGreat:B.D.的一段影片  http://tinyurl.com/ledpwmd
→ NashTheGreat:兩個人就是比較歡樂XD
推 jaytsao2006 :太沉重了QQ 老大
→ NashTheGreat:另外Stockton那行漏了個字  無傷大雅就是了
推 KEDEN       :推老大
推 jerrys0580  :QQ
推 q2092490    :不推不行~不考慮回來嗎?還是因為小孩在那邊定居了Q
推 ooox        :女兒真的比較重要 QQ
※ 編輯: neak            來自: 24.205.130.25        (02/16 15:30)
推 killua90356 :看影片真的眼眶濕濕...感謝Nash
推 zzogdoll    :推一個 帶領我進入NBA世界的球員
推 articlebear :老大去湖人後幾乎沒看他比賽但在我心中他還是最棒的
推 machine139  :Nash 是讓我開始打籃球的球員，真心祝福他!!
推 critical2002:感謝原PO翻譯這篇動人的文章
推 butterflycat:Thanks ! /cry
推 vinPHOENIX  :感謝翻譯 !
推 lunarvoice  :感人推...
推 maxeast     :因為他才開始NBA的QQ
推 allan5411   :帶領我進nba的球員，加油啊!!
推 andy1203    :希望還能拍很多集!加油!!
推 JHNJHNJHN   :
推 McRoberts   :Nash  白人名人堂後衛就是偉大
推 cielnoir    :老大...Q_Q
推 spy007city  :除人在湖人奪冠光榮退休外我只希望他回太陽阿QQ
推 DragicGoran :加油!!!
推 alexisv41   :懷念納維拉的時光 以前最後領先時 就是他關門的時候
→ alexisv41   :小帥現在罰球真的太不穩了 Nash回來吧~~~~~
推 kimo0211    :推 永遠的老大
推 NashTheGreat:再推
推 a8084123    :NASH...