[外電] Into the Fray

[kerrys (台北不是我的家)]

    原文出處：
              http://0rz.tw/7a3Kx

--

For the prorated portion of the veteran’s minimum contract Theo Ratliff signed
upon joining the Pistons, he’s already been worth the cost – even if he does
nothing for the final 19 regular-season games and into the playoffs. He’s
played an instrumental role in wins in his only two games, which already
exceeds expectations for March additions to the bottom of the roster. But
Ratliff is feeling so good physically and so recharged emotionally that he
thinks he’s capable of more.
    對Theo Ratliff和活塞簽下老將最低薪合約後按比例所得的部分薪資而言，他已經對
得起這份合約了 - 就算他在最後19場例行賽還有季後賽什麼事都沒做也一樣。他在唯二上
場的比賽中起了相當作用，不僅幫助球隊獲勝，同時也超越了大家認為三月加入的球員只
有補滿球員名單作用的期望。但Ratliff感覺身體狀況好極了，情緒方面也再次充電完成，
所以他認為自己可以承擔更多的工作和責任。

Maybe even a lot more.
    或甚至是更多更多。

“I love being back with (strength coach) Arnie (Kander),” Ratliff said. “
Putting those magic hands on me and taking care of me and continuing to get my
body right. It’s going to be real scary once I get my full health and get my
legs up under me. I think it’s going to surprise a lot of people in the league
.”
    "我很高興能再回到體能教練Arnie Kander身邊，羞(誤)，"Ratliff說。"把那雙充滿
魔力的手放在我身上，持續好好照顧我，讓我身體恢復最佳狀態(說得好曖昧XD)。只要我
恢復百分之百的健康，能夠再次自由運用我的雙腿，對手就必須提心吊膽，我的表現將會
讓聯盟中許多人都感到訝異。"

When news first broke that the Pistons had a shot at Ratliff, who pursued a
buyout from the Minnesota Timberwolves when he saw the NBA trend of veterans
hooking on with contenders and noticed the Pistons’ buyout of Flip Murray
created a roster opening with his original team, I figured, hmmm, if he’s
healthy that’s an upgrade over Plan A, which was Dale Davis.
    Ratliff發現聯盟多了老將投靠強隊的開外掛風潮並注意到活塞買斷魔銳後，母隊的球
員名單上多了一個空位便要求明尼蘇達灰狼買斷自己的合約。當新聞傳出活塞對Ratliff有
濃厚興趣後，我就認為，嗯，如果他保持健康，那他會是活塞A計畫 - 補進Dale Davis -
的升級版。

But who knew how much Ratliff had left in the tank? He’s been mired on some
really bad rosters since suffering a broken wrist during Philadelphia’s run to
the NBA Finals in 2001, an injury that cost him a spot in the All-Star game and
also a chance at an NBA ring when the 76ers moved him to Atlanta for Dikembe
Mutombo so they could suit up a healthy center. Except for a few months at the
end of the 2004 season with a Portland team that went 41-41, Ratliff hasn’t
been with a team that’s won more than 35 games since then. He hasn’t been on
a playoff team in eight years.
    但誰知道Ratliff還剩幾成功力？自從'01年在費城邁向總冠軍賽途中手腕骨折，導致
他無法參加全明星賽，甚至在七六人為了保有健康的中鋒的情況下，被交換到亞特蘭大換
取木桶伯之後，他就一直身陷泥沼，待在一些三流球隊之中。除了'04年球季末效力的波特
蘭拓荒者拿到剛好五成的勝率，之後Ratliff效力的球隊就不曾拿到超過35勝。他已經有八
年時間不識季後賽滋味了。

And injuries – a bad back last year cost him all but two games and a sore knee
that eventually required surgery this year took 45 games from him this season
– pushed Ratliff even further from the spotlight. Indeed, signing Ratliff was
something of a leap of faith, but the word from Minnesota was that he’d
returned to the lineup following the All-Star break in good shape and ready to
play.
    而且傷病 - 去年背傷幾乎讓他整個球季報銷，只打了區區兩場比賽。這個球季最終走
上手術一途的膝蓋傷痛問題也讓他缺席45場 - 這一切使得他距離鎂光燈越來越遠。確實，
簽下Ratliff有點像是無條件的信任，雖然明尼蘇達曾說過他在全明星週末後就會恢復良好
體態並做好上場拼鬥的準備。
(譯按：所謂leap of faith，請見http://0rz.tw/e73LQ)

So adding a dynamic shot-blocker with the defensive ability and mobility of
Ratliff over the bull-strong but plodding Davis made perfect sense. Where Davis
would have been insurance, Ratliff in two games has shown he can be, and
already is, much more. Ratliff is another option on nights Jason Maxiell’s
lack of height is problematic or Amir Johnson’s inexperience and lack of
strength presents matchup problems – or on nights Rasheed Wallace can’t go
with a sprained ankle, the circumstance that elevated Ratliff into the starting
lineup for his first two games back with the franchise that made him the 18th
pick in the 1995 draft.
    所以增加了一名具備防守能力且運動力比粗壯有餘但敏捷不足的Davis更好的超級蓋鍋
手Ratliff，對活塞來說絕對是件好事。原本計畫簽下Davis只是想多買份保險，但Ratliff
在那兩場比賽中已經展現了他的能耐，而且比大家期待得更好。在J-Max身高不足的問題或
Amir Johnson缺乏經驗的問題被突顯出來時，Ratliff會是另一個可供運用的可靠戰力 -
或是在溪蛙因腳踝扭傷的情況下，剛回到'95年選秀會上以第18順位挑選自己的活塞，才第
一和第二場比賽Ratliff就被推上先發火線。

“He’s been in the league a long time and everyone knows what he can do,”
Flip Saunders said. “He can block shots, he can rebound, change shots, a very
intelligent player. Knows how to play offense, either setting screens or
staying away from people when he should stay away. He was exactly what we
thought he was and I think he’s going to be a big plus for us.”
    "他已經在聯盟混了很長一段時間而每個人也都知道他的能耐，"老桑說。"他能蓋鍋，
他能抓板子，是一個很有天份的球員。知道如何進攻，不管是掩護或是遠離該遠離的人，
都做得很好。他真的如同我們想像的那樣，而我想他的加入對我們來說會是大大的加分。"

The Pistons didn’t anticipate throwing Ratliff to the wolves quite the way
they wound up doing when Wallace twisted his left ankle against Boston, but
having Ratliff available might have spared the Pistons two losses in games with
the Knicks and Bulls that were virtual toss-ups into the last five minutes.
    活塞並未預期Ratliff這麼快就會派上用場，但溪蛙在對戰波士頓的比賽中扭傷左腳踝
迫使球隊不得不做出這樣的決定，但Ratliff提供的即戰力或許已經幫助活塞避免了兩敗，
因為與尼克和公牛的比賽一直到最後五分鐘，活塞與對手還是殺得難分難解。

Against the Knicks, Ratliff gave the Pistons five points, five rebounds and two
blocks in 22 minutes. On successive possessions late in the game, Ratliff held
his ground and forced misses out of Eddy Curry. Against the Bulls, Ratliff went
26 minutes and gave the Pistons 10 points, eight boards and three blocks.
    與尼克的比賽中，Ratliff在22分鐘內貢獻了5分、5籃板和2次阻攻。在比賽末段連續
幾次攻防之中，Ratliff堅守他的防守位置並迫使Eddy Curry數次失手。與公牛的比賽中，
Ratliff的表現更上一層樓，他上場26分鐘，幫助活塞得了10分，抓下8個籃板，並且送出3
記麻辣鍋！

“He was huge,” Chauncey Billups said after the Chicago game. “He changed so
many shots in there. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen guys come in the
paint and be looking for somebody like that – ‘Where’s he at?’ He’s always
in the right coverage defensively. He’s just a veteran, just a professional.
When he gets his opportunities to score, he’s doing that. He’s giving us
extra possessions. He rebounds. Just a great, great, great acquisition.”
    "他表現好極了，"與芝加哥的比賽結束後槍蜥說。"他毀了好幾次對方的出手。我已經
很久沒看到像Ratliff這樣守護禁區、尋找敲火鍋機會的人了，'幹，那個會蓋鍋的傢伙在
哪？'當然有時候他能送出麻辣鍋，有時候沒有。但他防守時總能出現在適當的位置。他是
一個沙場老將，職業級的。當他有機會得分時，他也能把握機會。他搶下的進攻籃板也讓
我們有二次、三次進攻的機會。他的加入對我們來說實在太棒，太棒了啦！"

Ratliff sacrificed significant money to facilitate Minnesota’s buyout for the
chance to contribute to a title run this season and appears unmistakably
reinvigorated by the winning atmosphere the Pistons project. In fact, Ratliff
– who had intended for this season to be his last – and Joe Dumars have
talked about the possibility of sticking around next season.
    為了本季能有機會在尋求總冠軍的過程中貢獻所長並且在展現出贏球是一種傳統的活
塞中肯定地找回全盛時期的自我，Ratliff犧牲了明尼蘇達買斷他的大筆金錢。事實上，原
本認定本季是職業生涯最後一季的Ratliff以及老喬已經談論過了下一個球季繼續合作的可
能性。

“It feels great being out there playing with guys who know how to play the
game and have that experience,” Ratliff said. “These guys do a great job of
drawing double teams and finding guys. They make it easy for the bigs. I’m
going to enjoy being a part of that.”
    "和知道怎麼打球而且經驗豐富的人共事感覺好極了，"Ratliff說。"這些傢伙在吸引
包夾以及適時傳球方面表現非常突出。他們讓大個子能輕鬆打球，我很享受成為其中的一
份子。"

Ratliff might find himself in the starting lineup a third straight game when
Philadelphia comes to The Palace on Wednesday night. Wallace worked with Kander
during Tuesday’s practice, shot extensively and did some running afterward but
said his availability would be a game-time decision and his mobility was
somewhat limited.
    當星期三費城七六人至宮殿球場造訪時，Ratliff可能連續第三場被排進先發陣容之中
。溪蛙星期二練習期間Kander隨伺在側，他練習了各距離各角度的投籃，之後又稍微練跑
，但他說是否上場要等賽前才做決定，因為他的活動力仍受到某些限制，還沒恢復到百分
之百。

The 76ers are coming in off a disappointing home loss Monday to Boston before
the first sellout crowd of the season. Boston scored the game’s first 15
points, and though Philadelphia came back to tie, the Celtics won by 14. Still,
Philly has won 12 of its last 16 and is among the likeliest first-round playoff
opponents for the Pistons. Detroit native Willie Green left the Boston game
with a back injury and is uncertain for Wednesday’s game.
    因為來踢館前剛在本季主場門票首次售罄的爆滿球迷面前敗給了超賽，七六人有些失
意。波士頓甫開賽就連得15分，儘管費城很快就將比分追平，但超賽還是以14分贏球。不
過七六人在過去16場比賽贏得其中12場，很有可能成為活塞在季後賽首輪的對手。底特律
出生的Willie Green在對上波士頓的比賽中因背傷缺陣，在星期三也不確定能否上場。

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