[外電] Cuz Coming Into His Own

[eliczone (C'est la vie)]

http://0rz.tw/m9q9l

The cameras are off. The noise in the locker room is a low hum. Members of
the media, divided into small groups, are talking amongst themselves,
recorders powered off.
攝影機關掉了，休息室裡面的聲音也變小了。一堆媒體人分成幾個小團體，各自在聊天。

Suddenly, shouting and boisterous laughter break out in a corner of the room.
Kings rookie DeMarcus Cousins is razzing teammate Omri Casspi about a slowly
developing bald spot on the top of Casspi’s head.
突然笑聲如雷灌耳，表弟正在開玩笑Omri的頭頂慢慢在禿了。

“Pretty soon you’re going to be like Manu [Ginobili],” he yells, pointing
good naturedly to Casspi’s thinning hair.
「很快你就會變成Manu了」邊大叫邊指著Omri稀疏的頭髮。

Casspi laughs and tosses a comeback, something about playing as well as Manu.
Omri笑著也來個反擊，說他打球越來越像Manu了。

“No,” Cousins says with a mischievous smile. “Not play like Ginobili! You’
re losing your hair like him!”
「不，不是打球像，而是你像他一樣在掉髮!!!!!!!」表弟帶著很機歪的笑容說。

Sensing a “moment,” the media converges. The cameras flash on. And as they
do, Cousins transforms.DeMarcus Cousins
焦點來了，所有機器On!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

His broad smile turns into lines of concentration. He’s focused now,
pensive. The time for joking is done. He’s ready to get down to business.
他的微笑成為焦點。他現在被關注著。有點淡淡的憂傷，開玩笑時間結束了，準備要做正
事了。

The same can be said for Cousins’ recent approach on the court.
表弟最近在場上也一樣。

Tough lessons borne out of adversity and losing have focused him. Being
demoted to the bench (for making a choking gesture in a loss to the Golden
State Warriors), then promoted back to starter seems to have changed his
outlook on the game.
在被降到板凳，之後又被升為先發後，似乎改變了他在比賽中的模樣。

After 20 some odd games of reckless, immature basketball, the rookie big man
has learned to harness his aggression, and his individual development is
paying big dividends for the Kings.
在20幾場沒有用腦、不成熟的比賽後，菜鳥大個學到了控制他的侵略性，而他的成長最近
也開始有所收獲。

Over the course of the last five games — three of which Sacramento has won —
 Cousins is averaging 21.8 points, 9 rebounds and 2.8 assists. More
importantly, he’s playing with poise; holding his tongue after bad calls
(not every time, but at least more often), heeding the advice of coaches and
waiting patiently for openings on offense rather than rushing a bad shot.
過去五場國王贏了三場，表弟平均21.8分、9籃板和2.8助攻。更重要的是，他打得很沉穩
；惦記著教練的叮嚀還有耐心等候著進攻的開始，而不是急忙就做了不好的選擇。

“I think my focus is a lot better,” Cousins said when asked about his
recent success. “I’m not getting stressed about referees or bad plays on my
part. I used to make a bad pass or a bad play and keep it in my head. Now I
let it go and move on to the next play or the next shot and I believe that’s
why I’m a lot better now.”
「我想我的專注力好很多了，我不會再想著裁判或不好的play。我過去只要做了不好的球
或者不好的play就會一直記著。現在我就讓它過去，然後繼續下個play，我相信那就是為
什麼我現在好很多的原因」表弟說。

His maturity is a change recognized by his coaches and teammates as well.
教練和隊友也認為他有變成熟了。

“He’s coming on real quickly in that area,” coach Paul Westphal said. “He
really is trying to put the explosions down quicker and he’s doing a great
job of it.”
「他真的學得很快，他真的很努力想要有所表現，他做得很好」西佛說。

“He’s become a leader out there,” said guard Francisco Garcia. “He’s
just playing basketball and not worrying about the fouls.”
「他成為一名領袖了，他就只是打球，不擔心犯規」Cisco說

Letting go of frustration has allowed Cousins to not only feel more relaxed
on the court, but also to better maximize his talent.
讓挫折過去已經不只讓表弟在場上感覺更放鬆，也更能夠最大化他的天份。

In a recent win over Phoenix, Cousins picked apart the Suns’ interior
defense with a ruthless array of post moves and mid-range jumpers. Rather
than bulling his way into double teams, as he was liable to do earlier in the
season, he used more head fakes and hesitation moves, allowing him to take
more controlled shots and hit open teammates (if the situation called for it).
在贏太陽的那場比賽，表弟用他的低位腳步和中距離摧殘了太陽內線防守。他不會像球季
之前一樣直接往包夾陷阱裡面衝，而是利用頭部假動作和慢動作，使得他更能夠掌控投籃
和找到空檔的隊友。

The approach worked. Cousins hit 11-17 shots from the field and 6-6 free
throws on his way to a season-high 28 points, most of which came against
respected defenders Robin Lopez and Marcin Gortat.
這方式奏效。表弟投17中11，罰6中6，得到球季新高的28分。大部分都來自於不錯的防守
者Lopez和Gortat。

“Patience is something the coaches have really been talking to me about and
it’s made me a lot better offensively,” Cousins said.
「教練一直在跟我說要有耐心，這使得我在進攻方面有了長足的進步」表弟說。

It’s also a quality that has led Cousins to a better understanding of where
his teammates will be on offense, allowing him to show off his prodigious
passing skills.
這也使得表弟對於在進攻時他的隊友的位置有更好的理解，讓他能夠秀一下他噁心的傳球
天份。

His point total in the Phoenix game wasn’t Cousins’ only season high. He
also racked up six assists — his highest total of the season so far — in a
performance reminiscent of the days of Chris Webber and Vlade Divac.
對太陽時他的亮點不只是球季新高的得分，還有傳出了六次助攻，也是球季新高，這樣的
表現讓人想起CW和老狄。

“I believe I’m getting more in sync with my teammates,” Cousins said of
his passing ability. “They know to expect something crazy around me because I
’ll throw [a pass] any time.”
「我相信我跟隊友更同步了，他們知道我隨時都會傳球」表弟談到他的傳球能力。

Cousins’ smooth footwork in the post and his ability to find the open man
out of double teams were primary reasons the Kings drafted him fifth overall
in the 2010 Draft, which is why his recent offensive breakout comes as a
surprise to few who know his game.
表弟在禁區的流暢腳步還有在面對包夾時能夠找到有空檔的隊友是國王選他的主要理由，
也是為什麼他最近進攻會爆發，也讓一些了解他的人嚇到了。

His progression on defense, however, has been something of an unexpected
development.
然而，他在防守上的進步，也是始料未及的。

Early in the season, much was made about Cousins’ inability to stay out of
foul trouble — and rightfully so; he was averaging 4.2 fouls per game in
November in just under 23 minutes of play. He was caught in the air more
times than a Chinese acrobat.
在球季前半，大部分都是關於表弟沒辦法避免犯規麻煩，也真的是這樣；11月平均每場
4.2次犯規，僅僅上場23分鐘。

Recently, though, Cousins has begun to adapt.
最近表弟已經開始適應了。

“I’m playing a lot lower,” he said in an interview after the Hawks game. “
In the beginning, I was standing up and reacting late. Now, I’m a lot lower
and I’m bending my knees.”
「我現在蹲得低很多了，在一開始，我站得高高的，所以反應慢。現在，我站得很低，彎
著膝蓋」表弟說。

He’s also moving his feet a lot better, as those who saw him defend Hawks
forward Josh Smith on Tuesday can attest to. Cousins challenged the athletic
Smith at every turn, holding him to 14 points and frustrating him several
times in the low block.
他腳的移動也好很多，那些看到他防守Josh Smith的人可以證明。表弟每次都在挑戰很有
運動能力的Smith，讓他只得了14分，也在低位讓他挫折很多次。

Cousins showed similarly impressive footwork in Thursday’s win over the
Nuggets, closing off the baseline to another Smith, JR, as a help defender
covering for Beno Udrih, who was beat off the dribble. Smith was forced to
pass to a teammate on the perimeter rather than attempt the easy layup he
likely envisioned.
表弟在對金塊時也展現令人印象深刻的腳步，踩住了JR的底線，幫了Beno一個忙，他那時
候已經被過了。JR被迫傳給外圍的隊友而不是輕鬆上籃。

It was a small but impressive victory for the Kings’ defense.
是個小地方但對於國王防守卻是一大勝利。

“He’s learning all the time,” Westphal said of Cousins. “He’s a player
who has quick feet, quick hands and a quick mind. He still has a lot to learn
about the League and what’s a foul and what isn’t, but he’s 10 times
better than a month ago at understanding those things.”
「他隨時都在學習，他擁有快腿、快手和腦筋動得很快。他仍然有很多要學的，怎樣是犯
規，怎樣不是，但他已經被一個月前好上十倍」西佛說

Compliments like that haven’t come easy this season. Westphal and Cousins
have had a contentious relationship as coach and player that is well
documented. But the two seem to have come to a mutual understanding — “They
definitely are getting better in the way they’re treating each other,”
 Garcia said after the Nuggets game — and the Kings are beginning to show
signs of improvement.
這樣子的讚美在本季可是得來不易。西佛和表弟在場上的關係轟轟烈烈。但Cisco說「他們
越來越了解彼此了」，而國王也開始要展現進步的成果。

“If we can have DeMarcus continue his rapid improvement and be consistent at
that level, and if we can have Tyreke [Evans] be healthy, we feel great about
our team going forward,” Westphal said. “We do think that we have a much
better team than we had last year.”
「如果表弟能夠持續快速進步，也能夠有穩定表現，如果reke是健康的，我們對於球隊的
前程是感覺很不錯的，我們真的認為我們比去年還要好上許多」西佛說

With Evans’ health improving by the day and Cousins coming into his own in a
way few expected this early in the season, that statement seems a lot less
laughable than it would have been two weeks ago.
隨著reke一天天地健康，表弟快速地進步，這樣的言論比起兩個禮拜前這麼說已經不這麼
可笑了。

Judging by their recent performances, the Kings are on a better path than
they were earlier in the season, which means there may be a day in the
not-so-distant future when they can focus less on losing and more on enjoying
trivial locker room fodder — like Omri Casspi’s male pattern baldness.
從最近的表現判斷，國王比之前好上許多，也代表著他們在不久的將來會有屬於他們的一
天，只要他們能夠不要這麼在意輸球，多享受一些休息室的趣事，就像Omri的男性象徵。


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◆ From: 219.70.179.33
※ 編輯: eliczone        來自: 219.70.179.33        (01/09 23:24)
推 domego:先前我還懷疑自己的眼睛，沒想到是真的，Kritc可當樣板
推 aidsai:讚 !!! 我從表弟在對金塊那場球賽因為一個犯規碎碎唸被 T
→ aidsai:到下一個 PLAY 一樣是犯規卻馬上快步衝到後場的舉動,棒 !!!
推 KillLakers:我一直想看表弟生氣+挑釁+賭氣狂衝Mix  XDDDDD
推 tiebreak:在某個方面而言 表弟比阿縫更能影響球隊 阿縫的得分能力
→ tiebreak:帶給隊友的效益相比表弟的好表現製造外圍空檔 後者更顯著
→ tiebreak:阿縫是個帶球能力很好的SG某方面很像Kobe 但是Beno的防守
→ tiebreak:狠勁遠遠不及漁夫 Cisco在外圍的防守和三分則如同Fox關鍵
→ tiebreak:小卡關鍵出手的膽識很有Cisco的風範整個先發就差Beno防守
→ tiebreak:如果能夠跟雷霆隊換到Maynor 整個團隊就會搭配地緊密理想