ORONTO — Over six months, Kawhi Leonard endured "82 practices," then another 11 in the postseason. But there's no preparation for the individual burden he placed on his broad shoulders Sunday night against the Philadelphia 76ers.
多伦多——过去的六个月,卡哇伊莱昂纳德打了82场常规赛和11场季后赛。但是,对于周日晚上他对费城76人的比赛,他还没有做好独自承担重任的准备。
Leonard launched more field goals through three quarters than either Kobe Bryant or LeBron James have ever attempted in an entire seventh game. He scored 13 of the Toronto Raptors' final 15 points in the closing minutes. And in the final 4.2 seconds of a game tied at 90-90, being chased in close pursuit by Ben Simmons then Joel Embiid, he drained the first Game 7 buzzer-beater in NBA history.
相较于科比以及詹姆斯在抢七中的表现,莱昂纳德只用了三节时间,就命中了比另外两名球星全场都要多的球。在多伦多猛龙队最后的15分里,他得到了13分。在比赛的最后4.2秒,双方打成了90-90平手。尽管先后被本西蒙斯和乔尔·恩比德紧贴防守,莱昂纳德命中了NBA历史上第一个抢七绝杀。
"That's something I never experienced before — Game 7, winning shot," Leonard said. "It's a blessing1 to get to that point and make that shot and feel that moment, and it's something I can look back on in my career."“这是我以前从未体验过的——在抢七中命中绝杀。” 莱纳德说,“能够在那种情况下投中,并能享受那个时刻是非常幸运的。这是我在职业生涯中可以回忆的一幕。”
The sequence of images will be iconic in NBA history: the leaning, fading motion that elevated Leonard above Embiid's outstretched arm, his staggering out of bounds as the shot reached its apex2, his squatting3 in wait as the ball bounced four times around the iron, his letting out a primal4 scream as it finally fell through, teammates mobbing him as the rim5 rendered its verdict, Embiid's incredulous response with his hands atop his head in tragic6 disbelief.
他的身影将成为NBA历史上的标志:莱昂纳德高高跃起,身形飘逸,动作娴熟,即便是恩比德也封盖不及,球在最高点出售,而他他蹒跚的落在了界外,蹲在那里等待着。球在篮筐上弹了四下,随着球最后掉入网中,他发出了疯狂的呐喊声。球进之后,队友们都跑过来簇拥着他。而恩比德则悲伤的抱住了头,一脸的难以置信。
"It was one of those moments where it's just like a real-life game winner, Game 7, like count-it-down when you're back home, and everyone was celebrating like that," Kyle Lowrysaid. "It was a pretty awesome7 moment."“这时候就像是现实生活中的胜利者的时刻,在抢七绝杀,就像倒数回家的时间一样,每个人都在庆祝,”凯尔·洛瑞说。"这是一个非常令人惊叹的时刻。"Real life transcended8 fantasy on Sunday for a franchise9 that has been victimized in the postseason by shotmakers of Leonard's caliber10. The Raptors had never before employed one of those talents of their own. Now they do, and they rode him to the Eastern Conference finals, which begins Wednesday night in Milwaukee.
在这个周日,现实超乎了想象,莱纳德用投射杀死了这轮比赛。猛龙队以前从未拥有过有如此天赋的球员。而现在他们正是靠着这样一位球员打进了东部决赛。东部决赛将于周三晚上在密尔沃基开始。
The matchup between the Raptors and Milwaukee Bucks11 will feature a fascinating chess match between two teams with exceptionally high basketball intelligence. But it will also be a collision of an unstoppable force and an immovable object. Decide for yourself which is Kawhi Leonard and which is Giannis Antetokounmpo. They rank No. 1 and No. 2 in postseason player efficiency rating, and have undoubtedly12 been the most consistent, dominant13 performers in this year's playoffs.
猛龙队和密尔沃基雄鹿队之间的比赛将会是一场精彩的对弈,两队的篮球智商极高。但它也将是一个不可阻挡的力量和一个不动如山的物体的碰撞。你自己决定看好卡哇伊·莱纳德,还是扬尼斯·安德托昆博。他们在季后赛的效率分裂第一和第二,并且无疑是今年季后赛中表现最稳定、最具优势的球员。
Leonard's heroics lifted the Raptors against Orlando and Philadelphia, but the Bucks aren't a team easily beaten with a constant isolation14 attack by a single player — even Leonard. He is very likely to encounter a much more aggressive and unpredictable scheme against Milwaukee, which posted the NBA's top-ranked defense15, both in the regular season and playoffs. The Bucks' peripatetic16 defense scrambles17 like crazy, and has no misgivings18 about pressuring a threat like Leonard with multiple bodies coming from anywhere and everyone on the floor. If that means putting the defense into rotation19, so be it, because the Bucks are quick to react and long enough to recover lost ground in an instant.
莱昂纳德扛起了整个球队,帮助猛龙队在对阵奥兰多和费城的比赛中获胜,但是雄鹿并不是一支能被一个球员就能轻易击败的球队,即使是莱昂纳德不停的独自进攻。无论在常规赛还是季后赛,他都很有可能在对阵密尔沃基的比赛中遭遇更具攻击性和难以预测的防守。雄鹿的轮番防守非常疯狂,他们对于莱昂纳德这样的人没有任何顾虑,如果这意味着要轮流防守,那他们就毫无疑问会这样做,因为雄鹿防守反应迅速,有足够长的时间来追回丢掉的分数。
NBA
The Raptors have been fond of saying that every postseason game tells a different story, but one common thread throughout Toronto's playoff run has been its willingness to pass up open shots along the perimeter20. Some of that can be attributed to the inherent unselfishness of players such as Lowry and Marc Gasol.
猛龙队一直喜欢说,每一场季后赛都有不同的故事,但多伦多季后赛的一个常见的现象是,他们愿意放弃一些空位投篮的机会。其中的一些原因可以归结为洛瑞和马克·加索尔等球员的无私。
But against a Bucks defensive21 scheme in which Brook22 Lopez typically (though not always) begins each possession in the paint, early open jumpers will be available. Once that Bucks' defense starts scrambling23, an open Raptor can ill-afford to look a gift horse in the mouth when the ball is swung to him, because daylight in the half court is brief before shadows of the Bucks' defenders24 descend25 on open space.
但是在布鲁克·洛佩兹通常(虽然不是总是)开始统治油漆区,之前的跳投的防守计划就会生效了。一旦雄鹿的防守开始发力,拿到球的猛龙队员将很难获得出手机会,因为雄鹿的补防实在是太快了。
But Antetokounmpo and the Bucks are a different breed of offense26, as Raptors coach Nick Nurse outlined after Sunday's win.
但是安德托昆博和雄鹿有着不同类型的进攻,就像猛龙队教练尼克·诺斯在周日获胜后所描述的那样。
"It's a totally different style than we've just been through in our past two series," Nurse said. "These were set-play teams, pretty methodical on offense. They're going to come down, look at things, run some post-ups, run stuff for their certain guys. That's not to say Milwaukee doesn't do that too, but they much rather spread the floor, give it to a guy, put their head down, take it to the rim, and put it in the rim. If you send help, they're going to fire it out and they're going to shoot a ton of 3s."这是一个完全不同的风格,相比于我们刚刚经历的两轮系列赛,”诺斯说。"这些都是固定模式的球队,有着相当有条理的进攻。他们会慢下来,观察,采用一些背身单打,采用背身单打的也就是那些确定的人。这并不是说密尔沃基也不这样做,但他们更倾向于传导球,把球给安德托昆博,放低姿态,把它运到篮筐,并把它放进篮筐。如果你派人来帮忙,他们就会开火,他们就会投出许多三分。”
More broadly, Milwaukee features an uncommon27, almost lethal28 versatility29. Apart from spacing, the Bucks are a team that doesn't need any specific condition to succeed, not unlike the Golden State Warriors30 of recent seasons. They can win big or small, fast or slow, inside or outside, in the half court or the open floor, with scripted or improvisational31 play. Theoretically, the Raptors should be able to thrive in many of those environments as well, though they've demonstrated some vulnerabilities, particularly on the glass and in contending with size.
更广泛地说,密尔沃基的特点是罕见的,每一项都是致命的。除了空间之外,雄鹿是一支不需要任何特殊条件就能成功的球队,这一点与近几个赛季的金州勇士并无二致。他们可以赢得大或小,快或慢,内部或外部,在半场或开放的地板上,通过脚本或即兴发挥。从理论上讲,猛龙也应该能够在许多这样的环境中茁壮成长,尽管它们已经展示了一些弱点,特别是在篮板球上和体型上。
For those who believe that a team's experience matters deep in the NBA postseason, Toronto has its most decisive advantage in the matchup. The Raptors' roster32 has played a collective 116 games in the conference finals and beyond, and the Bucks have played in 24 such games — all of them by George Hill as a member of the San Antonio Spurs and Indiana Pacers.
对于那些认为球队的经验在NBA季后赛非常重要的人来说,多伦多在比赛中有着最决定性的优势。猛龙队在决赛和其他比赛中共打了116场比赛,而雄鹿队也打了24场这样的比赛—所有这些比赛都是乔治·希尔作为圣安东尼奥马刺和印第安纳步行者的一员。
Resumes aside, the Bucks seem to have shaken off any residual33 altitude sickness — they're well aware of where they are and what they're playing for, as are the Raptors. And for sheer individual star power and tactical scheming, this matchup is catnip for both casual fans and NBA junkies.
撇开过往的经历不谈,雄鹿似乎已经摆脱了任何残留的高原反应——他们很清楚自己在哪里,他们在为什么而战,就像猛龙一样。对于纯粹的个人明星力量和战术策划来说,这场比赛对与粉丝和NBA爱好者来说都是值得期待的。
1 blessing [ˈblesɪŋ] 第7级 | |
n.祈神赐福;祷告;祝福,祝愿 | |
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2 apex [ˈeɪpeks] 第10级 | |
n.顶点,最高点 | |
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3 squatting [sk'wɒtɪŋ] 第8级 | |
v.像动物一样蹲下( squat的现在分词 );非法擅自占用(土地或房屋);为获得其所有权;而占用某片公共用地。 | |
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4 primal [ˈpraɪml] 第11级 | |
adj.原始的;最重要的 | |
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n.(圆物的)边,轮缘;边界 | |
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6 tragic [ˈtrædʒɪk] 第7级 | |
adj.悲剧的,悲剧性的,悲惨的 | |
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7 awesome [ˈɔ:səm] 第8级 | |
adj.令人惊叹的,难得吓人的,很好的 | |
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8 transcended [trænˈsendid] 第7级 | |
超出或超越(经验、信念、描写能力等)的范围( transcend的过去式和过去分词 ); 优于或胜过… | |
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9 franchise [ˈfræntʃaɪz] 第8级 | |
n.特许,特权,专营权,特许权 | |
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10 caliber ['kælɪbə] 第10级 | |
n.能力;水准 | |
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11 bucks [bʌks] 第8级 | |
n.雄鹿( buck的名词复数 );钱;(英国十九世纪初的)花花公子;(用于某些表达方式)责任v.(马等)猛然弓背跃起( buck的第三人称单数 );抵制;猛然震荡;马等尥起后蹄跳跃 | |
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12 undoubtedly [ʌn'daʊtɪdlɪ] 第7级 | |
adv.确实地,无疑地 | |
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13 dominant [ˈdɒmɪnənt] 第7级 | |
adj.支配的,统治的;占优势的;显性的;n.主因,要素,主要的人(或物);显性基因 | |
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14 isolation [ˌaɪsəˈleɪʃn] 第8级 | |
n.隔离,孤立,分解,分离 | |
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15 defense [dɪ'fens] 第7级 | |
n.防御,保卫;[pl.]防务工事;辩护,答辩 | |
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16 peripatetic [ˌperipəˈtetɪk] 第11级 | |
adj.漫游的,逍遥派的,巡回的,(教师)在多校兼课的 | |
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17 scrambles [ˈskræmblz] 第8级 | |
n.抢夺( scramble的名词复数 )v.快速爬行( scramble的第三人称单数 );攀登;争夺;(军事飞机)紧急起飞 | |
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18 misgivings [mɪs'ɡɪvɪŋz] 第8级 | |
n.疑虑,担忧,害怕;疑虑,担心,恐惧( misgiving的名词复数 );疑惧 | |
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19 rotation [rəʊˈteɪʃn] 第10级 | |
n.旋转;循环,轮流 | |
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20 perimeter [pəˈrɪmɪtə(r)] 第9级 | |
n.周边,周长,周界 | |
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21 defensive [dɪˈfensɪv] 第9级 | |
adj.防御的;防卫的;防守的 | |
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22 brook [brʊk] 第7级 | |
n.小河,溪;vt.忍受,容让 | |
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23 scrambling [ˈskræmblɪŋ] 第8级 | |
v.快速爬行( scramble的现在分词 );攀登;争夺;(军事飞机)紧急起飞 | |
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24 defenders [dɪ'fendəz] 第8级 | |
n.防御者( defender的名词复数 );守卫者;保护者;辩护者 | |
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25 descend [dɪˈsend] 第7级 | |
vt./vi.传下来,下来,下降 | |
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26 offense [əˈfens] 第7级 | |
n.犯规,违法行为;冒犯,得罪 | |
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27 uncommon [ʌnˈkɒmən] 第8级 | |
adj.罕见的,非凡的,不平常的 | |
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28 lethal [ˈli:θl] 第9级 | |
adj.致死的;毁灭性的 | |
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29 versatility [ˌvɜ:sə'tɪlətɪ] 第7级 | |
n.多才多艺,多样性,多功能 | |
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30 warriors ['wɒrɪəz] 第7级 | |
武士,勇士,战士( warrior的名词复数 ) | |
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31 improvisational [ɪmprəvaɪ'zeɪʃənl] 第9级 | |
adj. 即兴的 | |
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