[外電]Pistons' draft pick driven to stop opponents

[guestly (郭寶)]

http://0rz.tw/8e2Rg


BY KRISTA JAHNKE

FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER

LAS VEGAS -- Last month, as he introduced the Pistons' two first-round draft
picks, team president Joe Dumars tried to correct a misconception about Arron
Afflalo.

上個月當球隊總裁Joe Dumars介紹活塞隊的兩個第一輪新秀時，他試著去糾正關於Arron
的誤解。

Dumars said it wasn't just Afflalo's defensive skill that led him to pick the
reigning Pac-10 player of the year, that Afflalo's overall versatility really
sold the deal.

Dumars說不光是Afflalo的防守技巧讓他選了這位Pac-10的年度球員，Afflalo多方面的技
巧也是原因。

But it is that defensive grit that will likely first endear him to typical
Pistons fans.

但首先強硬的防守會讓典型活塞球迷喜愛他。

It's not just that Afflalo understands defense or has the right body to play
it. He's 6-foot-5 with enough athleticism and quickness to guard multiple spots
on the floor. But beyond that, he is simply driven to stop his opponents.

Afflalo不光是了解防守或是有適合的身體去執行防守。6呎5吋加上足夠的速度和運動能力
讓他在場上可以守多數個點。除此之外，他也驅使自己阻止對手。

"I think you can see that he has the mentality of, 'I want to defend, I want to
guard somebody, I want to be the guy to make the big stop,' " said John
Hammond, the Pistons' vice president of basketball operations. "He welcomes
that. I think a lot of times it seems the good defenders have to have that kind
of mind-set."

「我想你可以看到他有『我要防守，我要守住某個人，我要成為大鎖』的精神。」活塞的
籃球事務副總裁John Hammond說。「他歡迎這種想法。我認為很多時候好的防守者都會有
那種頭腦設定。」

Even in summer league games and scrimmages this week, Afflalo has been a
take-away-your-space, cut-you-off-on-the-way-to-the-rim,
knock-the-ball-out-of-your-hands pest.

即使是在這禮拜夏季聯盟的混戰，Afflalo已經成為了一個「把你擠出去」、「切斷你到
籃框的路線」、「把球從你手上打掉」的討厭鬼。

He provided a huge stop late in the Pistons' win over the Philadelphia 76ers on
Saturday afternoon, shutting down point guard Louis Williams on a key
possession of a tied game.

在星期六中午活塞贏得與七六人的比賽中他提供了一次很好的防守─他守死了控衛Louis
Williams的一次關鍵持球，而當時雙方比數相同。

Those are the kind of game-changing moments he lives for.

這是那種他經歷過的改變比賽的時刻。

"The older I got, the more I realized how much I hate to lose," Afflalo said.
"I've always hated to lose, even when I was little. It would bother me, even
more than winning makes me feel good."

「當我越年長，我越了解我多麼討厭輸球，」Afflalo說。「我總是痛恨輸球，即使是我
小時候。輸球會干擾我，甚至比贏球讓我高興的感覺強多了。」

He wasn't known as a defender, though. Afflalo has worked hard to add defensive
intensity to a game already marked with offensive talent.

雖然他不被認定是個防守者。Afflalo在被認可的進攻能力之外努力增強防守強度。

Afflalo grew up in Compton, Calif., living with his mother, Gwen Washington,
until his was 10. He then moved in with his father, Benjamin (Danny) Afflalo,
who worked for the Los Angeles Housing Department for 25 years.

Afflalo出生在加州的Compton，和媽媽Gwen Washington住在一起直到10歲。他搬去和爸
爸Benjamin (Danny) Afflalo同住，他爸為洛杉磯的房屋部門工作了25年。

Gang activity and street violence were never far away, Afflalo said, although
he managed to keep them at arm's length.

幫派活動和街頭暴力總是在不遠之處，Afflalo說，雖然他試著與他們保持一段距離。

"I wasn't on the streets or anything like that," Afflalo said. "But the area I
grew up in was pretty bad."

「我不是在街頭或是其他像那樣的地方，」Afflalo說，「但我成長的環境很糟。」

Before high school, he and his father moved to an area of the city where zoning
allowed farm animals and the lots were much roomier.

在高中之前，他和爸爸搬到城市裡較為寬廣和允許農場動物的地區。

The neighbor across the street had a horse; his next-door neighbor kept
chickens.

對街的鄰居有一匹馬；而他隔壁的鄰居養了雞。

"It's not the typical landscape you think of when you think of Compton,"
Afflalo said.

「那不是你提到Compton時會想到的景色。」Afflalo說。

But anywhere he went, Afflalo found a way to shut out distraction and focus on
basketball, the game he first fell in love with when he was just 2.

但任何他去的地方，Afflalo發現一個方法可以揮別干擾並專注在籃球上，他在兩歲時愛上
了籃球。

Because his house didn't have a hoop, he often went to school -- Compton
Centennial High, just five minutes away -- early to work out, sometimes with
Gabe Pruitt, a high school teammate and another player the Pistons had their
eye on in last month's draft.

因為他家沒有籃框，他常跑到學校--Compton百年紀念高中，就五分鐘路程--早早去練習，
有時和Gabe Pruitt，

"When we were playing in seventh and eighth grade, Arron was also known as a
scorer," said Pruitt, now a rookie with the Boston Celtics. "You'd also see him
back in middle school putting up 30, 40 points."

「剛我們七八年級打球的時候，Arron已經被認定成得分手了，」現在是塞爾提克新人的
Pruitt說。「你也會看到他在中學得到3、40分。」

It was at Centennial where Afflalo first decided to focus more on his defensive
skills, helping lead him to UCLA, where he carried the Bruins to the NCAA title
game in 2006 and the Final Four in 2007.

Afflalo第一次決定更加專心在防守是在百年紀念學校，也幫助他到了UCLA，他在那帶領
Bruins2006年打到了NCAA的比賽，2007年更進入最後四強。

"My high school coach (Rod Palmer) wanted me to defend," Afflalo said. "And my
freshman year (in college), I wanted to get as many minutes as possible, so
coach told me, 'You want to play the whole game? Get out there and defend.' So
I did."

「我的高中教練(Rod Palmer)希望我防守，」Afflalo說。「我大學第一年，我希望能儘可
多上場一些時間，所以教練告訴我『你想打滿整場比賽嗎？給我去防守。』所以我就這麼
做了。

Pruitt, who Afflalo still calls a good friend, was a rival in college,
attending USC. The two faced off in a scrimmage at Cox Pavilion on Sunday
afternoon. Although no official score was kept, the Celtics won two of the
three 10-minute quarters, and Pruitt often looked like the best player on the
floor.

Pruitt，Afflalo仍稱他是一個好朋友，在大學就讀USC變成了Afflalo的對手。他們兩個
星期六在Cox Pavilion的混戰照了面。雖然沒有官方得分紀錄，塞爾提克贏了三個10分鐘
的小節裡贏了兩個，而且Pruitt似乎是場中的最佳球員。

Afflalo didn't guard Pruitt much, but ask him, and he'd probably say he should
have. He's the one who asked coach Terry Porter to switch him on to Williams in
Saturday's scrimmage, and he has made it clear to the team executives that he
will guard anyone who works the perimeter.

Afflalo沒有守到Pruitt很多，但問他，他大概會說他應該要守。他是那種在星期六的比賽
中要求教練Terry Porter讓他換防Williams的人，他對球隊行政人員表示他願意防守半場中
任何一個傢伙。

"At one point I said to him, 'Well, we know you can guard threes and you can
guard twos,' " Hammond said. "And he said, 'Hey, John, I can guard ones also.' "

「下午一點我告訴他，『恩，我們知道你可以守二號、三號位置，』」Hammond說，「然後他
說，『嘿，John，我也可以守一號。』」

After the scrimmage Sunday, as the roster hopefuls came off the court to put on
shoes, grab their gear and head upstairs to watch No. 1 draft pick Greg Oden
play, Afflalo kept working. Shooting free throws, running off screens set by
assistant coach Michael Curry, even guarding a few of the other guys as they
attempted jumpers.

星期天的激戰後，球員們希望可以離開場地高掛球鞋，修生養息到樓上欣賞狀元Greg Oden
的比賽，Afflalo仍持續練習。練罰球，從助理教練Michael Curry設定的掩護後移開，甚至
在其他球員跳頭時嚐試防守。

"It's all pride and effort with me," Afflalo said.

「這就是我的尊嚴與努力。」Afflalo說。

He was the last player off the court, not leaving until the Sixers started to
crowd the baseline, waiting to get onto the practice court themselves.

他是最後離開球場的球員，一直等到七六人球員塞滿底線做練習時才離去。

That's just Afflalo's style -- always trying to keep opponents off their game.

這就是Afflalo，總是試著阻擋對手。


--
※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc)
◆ From: 125.231.226.22
※ 編輯: guestly         來自: 125.231.226.22       (07/09 21:30)
推 freeskyd:推
推 RAYBO:screen應該是掩護的意思啦 XD
→ guestly:^^"...馬上改
※ 編輯: guestly         來自: 125.231.226.22       (07/09 23:13)
推 quiff:Guard one two threes應該是指位置的一、二、三號
推 LOJ:辛苦推 不過是守一到三號   XD
※ 編輯: guestly         來自: 125.231.211.224      (07/10 12:16)