[外電] Mejia闖出一片天

[Leek ( つかさ )]

原文出處：http://www.nba.com/pistons/news/practice_071028.html

(本譯文同步刊載於個人網誌)


Second-round pick determined to make final roster
第二輪新秀決心進入最終陣容輪替

Mejia Makes His Mark
Mejia闖出一片天


by Ryan Pretzer


As the starters and a few other veterans were joking and casually shooting
free throws toward the end of Sunday’s practice, Pistons rookie guard Sammy
Mejia was still at it with assistant coach Dave Cowens. A jumper. Another
jumper. A move with his back to the basket. A drive from the left side of
the lane. The 6-foot-6 Mejia even took a couple stabs at a running hook shot.
There would be nobody better to learn it from than Cowens, who crafted an
effective one during his Hall of Fame career.
星期日的練習接近尾聲時，先發球員們和一些老將不是在打打鬧鬧，就是在作一些例行
的投籃練習。不過，活塞的新秀後衛Sammy Meija仍然和助理教練Dave Cowens一起從事
訓練課程。一個跳投，又一個跳投，一個轉身投籃，又接著一個左線運球上籃，6-6的
Mejia甚至練習了一些跑動間的小鉤射。從Cowens這樣的老師身上學習這樣的動作，真是
再適合也不過了，這是Cowens吃飯的傢伙，也是進入名人堂的註冊商標。

Mejia, 24, listened intently, his face and body language a model of
concentration. If there is a guidebook for making an NBA team as a second-
round draft pick – especially a team that has already committed to a pair
of rookies and a win-now mentality – Mejia has read his cover to cover.
Since his surprising selection in June, he has worked to put himself in a
favorable position.
24歲的Mejia正在專心的聽著，臉上的表情和肢體語言都顯示了他專心致志的程度。如果
真的有一本入門書，專門教人如何以第二輪選秀的身分正式進入一支已經選入兩個新秀
，並且一切以當下的贏球為優先的NBA球隊，Mejia一定會把它讀到滾瓜爛熟的。從六月
的入選開始，他就不斷的督促自己，並隨時處於良好的狀態。


First-round choices Rodney Stuckey and Arron Afflalo have generated more
buzz and will have a greater impact on the Pistons in 2007-08. But with the
Pistons' final roster to be announced shortly, Mejia, the 57th overall pick,
appears to be in the mix as well. He won't make it based on his preseason
stats (he hardly played), just persistence and the knowledge nothing could
be taken for granted.
今年的第一輪新秀Rodney Stuckey與Arron Afflalo已經造成了轟動，也確實帶給活塞
07-08球季一些很大的幫助。但是在即將被公佈的正式球員名單裡面，第57順位的Meija
或許也能成為其中一員。並不是因為季前賽的表現有多出色(畢竟他難得有機會上場)，
而是因為他不把一切視為理所當然的那種認知與持續的努力不懈。


"I always feel I can do better," Mejia said. "I don't think I had a bad
training camp, I've done a lot of things well. Obviously there's a lot of
things I need to work on, as well as every other player in this league."
「我總覺得我能做得更好，」Meija說，「我並不認為我訓練營爆了，我也做好了很多事
。很明顯的我需要加強的地方也還是很多，跟其他所有球員一樣都需要更進步。」


Mejia had a solid career at DePaul, averaging 12.1 points, 4.8 rebounds and
3.2 assists in 123 games. His selection after the Pistons had already drafted
two guards drew quizzical looks at the time, but his demeanor and 6-foot-6,
200-pound frame made him a safe choice. Pistons head coach Flip Saunders
said an ankle injury made it tough to full evaluate Mejia in training camp,
"but he’s a pretty smart player and he shoots ball pretty well. Those are
his main strengths."
Mejia在DePaul大學的籃球生涯相當扎實，在123場比賽裏面平均有12.1分2.8籃板以及
3.2助攻。對於當時已經挑了兩個後衛的活塞，選上Mejia的舉動實在讓人覺得很古怪。
不過Mejia堅毅的表情，6呎6吋200磅的厚實身材，實在讓人覺得這會是個正確的選擇。
老桑認為，因為受到腳踝傷勢的影響，對於想要根據Mejia在訓練營的表現來下判斷，
可能十分不妥當。「他是個相當聰明的球員，也有相當出色的投籃技巧，這些都是他的
主要優勢。」


On a roster full of smart players who can shoot well, however, Mejia doesn't
help Saunders fill an obvious need, making minutes hard to come by. He
averaged only 9.0 minutes per game in the preseason, appearing in six of the
team’s eight games. Mejia said the reduced playing time has been his
toughest adjustment.
不過，對於一個球員名單上每個幾乎都是如此聰明而且善於投籃的球隊來說，Mejia還不
能夠讓老桑感受到有辦法能帶來明顯的影響力，因此上場時間也受到了限制。熱身賽裡
他的平均出賽時間是9分鐘，8場比賽中只打了6場，而Mejia也坦承，上場時間的嚴重壓縮
，是他目前面對到最不容易調適的困難。


"Coming from high school and college, they put you right out there pretty
much. You played such a major part of whatever school you went to and you
do a lot for that team," the Bronx, New York, native said. "At this level,
everyone's as good as you if not better and you understand you have to find
a niche, how you're going to fit into this team and do something that's going
to make this team better."
「從高中一直到大學，他們總是讓你盡情打個夠，不管在哪間學校你總是個中心人物，
而你也好像無所不能一般的大小事情一手包辦。」出身紐約Bronx的Mejia說，「然而，
到了這個等級，每個人最差的程度也就跟你差不多，更別提那些遠勝的人了，於是你就
了解，必須找出自己的有利之處，以及如何融入球隊的運作，並且發現你能夠幫助球隊
的地方。」


Finding a niche will involve a lot of late practice sessions with Cowens and
the other assistant coaches. Improving his offensive efficiency is Mejia's
focus after shooting 4-of-17 from the floor in the preseason. "You've got to
take advantage of the few opportunities that you get. You're not going to get
a lot of open shots, and when you do they expect you to make them," he said.
"Understanding that and being able to capitalize on those things are what
make you a good player in this league."
找出自己有利之處所需要付出的，包括了許多次和Cowens以及其他助理教練們的額外練
習時間。在季前賽投17中4的命中率之後，增加進攻的效率就成為Mejia的首要課題。「
你必須把握每次得來不易的空檔，畢竟投籃的機會是稍縱即逝的，而空檔出來之後，大
家就理所當然的希望你能夠投進。」他說，「了解這事實，並且把它變成你的基本能力
，就是成為這個聯盟裡 一個優秀選手所必備的條件之一。」


"This league" is where Mejia would like to stay, though a stint or two with
the team's Developmental League affiliate in Fort Wayne is a possibility.
While Mejia wouldn't mind extended playing time, he's looking forward to
spending a lot of his first NBA season with the Pistons.
所謂的「這個聯盟」，正是Mejia現在想要留下來的地方，雖然在某些有限的情況之下，
韋恩堡的NBDL也是一個可能的結果。不過，既然Mejia並不在意上場時間的長短，那麼
他就有可能可以在活塞待上整個球季的時間。


"I'm happy to be here and trying to stay up here as long as I can," he said.
"If they feel like the best way I can help this organization is to go down
there for a couple weeks, months, then that's what I'm going to do. I'm all
about helping this team win and trying to get better so I can help the team
win. That’s the ultimate goal."
「我很高興能夠來到這，並且也嘗試儘可能在這裡能留多久就留多久。」他說，「不過
如果球隊認為我可以幫助他們的方式就是去那裡(指NBDL)待個幾周或是幾個星期，那麼
這就是我會去努力的事情。我的目的就是幫助這支球隊贏球，並且讓自己更進步，才能
讓球隊更有競爭力，而這才是我的最終目的。」


--
We may be human,
But we still animal.
                                 ＝ Steve Vai ＝

--
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※ 編輯: Leek            來自: 140.109.54.2         (10/31 15:02)
推 kerrys:願認真的Mejia能在其他球隊闖出一片天！
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推 Kreen:推～