After heaping praise on Robin Lopez for the last five months, Terry Stotts has had trouble lately coming up with a suitable word to describe exactly what the behemoth center has meant to the Trail Blazers this season. 在球季过去五个月当中，Stotts教练总是对Lopez赞不绝口，但在最近一次受访中他表示实 在找不到合适的字眼来确切得描述这位高大中锋对拓荒者的重要性。 “I haven’t found the right word,” Stotts said. “Because it involves a variety of things.” "我还没想到最恰当的形容词，因为那涉及到许多层面。" So when Lopez’s name arose Tuesday afternoon following the Blazers’ practice in Tualatin, Stotts decided it was worthless to be concise. “He has exuberance when he plays, he has a mental toughness, it’s hard not to play him because of how he plays,” Stotts said, rattling off a host of superlatives. “I think his demeanor elevates everyone else’s demeanor. He takes blame. He plays every possession and … the other guys who play with him, it’s not just that they appreciate the way he plays, but it also elevates their play. He’s a competitive guy. He expects a lot of himself, he expects a lot of his team.” 因此，当Lopez的名字再度於星期二下午的练球被提及时，Stotts教练不吝啬得侃谈Lopez 的好："他打球非常多元，同时又俱有强悍的意志，因此你很难不放他在场上。我想他的态 度感染了他的队友，他很有责任感。他总是会在每一次球权中将份内的事做好，而他的队 友们不仅感激他所做的一切，同时也提升了自己的表现。他是个富有竞争性的球员，对自 己跟球队都有所期许。" Perhaps Stotts should just say this: Lopez might just be the most improved player in the NBA. 或许教练应该直接说：Lopez该得到本季的最佳进步奖。 With 22 games left in the Blazers’ season, there’s a strong argument to be made that Lopez should — at the very least — be on a shortlist for the NBA’s annual award. 由於拓荒者还剩下22场例行赛，Lopez是否能够入选还有待商榷。 The 7-foot, 265-pound center is averaging career highs in rebounding (8.8 per game), blocks (1.7), field goal shooting (53.9 percent), free throw shooting ( 80.9 percent) and minutes played (31.5 per game), and at 11.0 points per game, he’s just 0.4 points shy of averaging a career high in scoring. He ranks second in the league in defending shots at the rim and he has recorded a career -high 23 double-doubles — including six in the last 11 games — which is eight more than he had in his career (15) before this season. 这位7尺高、265磅重的中锋在平均篮板(8.8)、阻攻(1.7)、投篮命中率(53.9%)及上场时间 (31.5分钟)都创下了生涯新高，而平均每场得到11分也只比生涯最高的单季平均得分低0.4 分而已。在"防守对手投篮"的排名当中，他排第二(*注)，同时他也创下了23次双十的记录 ，包含了过去11场比赛中的6次，而这也比他生涯最多的单季15次多了8次。 *注："Opponent FG% while being defended at the rim (对手在被防守时的投篮命中率) "的排名当中，第一名是Hibbert(41.3%)，第二名就是Lopez(42.5%)。 There’s also this: “Forty-one and 19,” Nicolas Batum said, referring to the Blazers’ record. “That’s all you need to know.” Batum认为Lopez的助益明显反映在战绩上: "41胜19败，这说明了一切。" Virtually every starter in the Blazers’ lineup is having a career season. Mo Williams has been a dependable and — while sometimes maddening — a difference -making sixth man. The Blazers' unheralded young bench players have shown improvement. But perhaps no one has meant more to the Blazers’ surprising success than Lopez, whose unselfish demeanor, dominant inside presence and willingness to do whatever it takes, whenever it needs to be done, has proven to be the linchpin for everything. 拓荒者的先发五人显然都缴出了生涯最佳的成绩单。Mo Williams也成为了一个可依赖的第 六人，虽然有时会让人抓狂，但他仍然为球队带来了改变；板凳上的年轻球员们也有令人 惊艳的进步，但对於拓荒者本季意外的成功而言，没有任何人的影响力能够和Lopez相提并 论。由於他的无私和统治级的内线存在感，以及无论何时，总会任劳任怨地完成球队所托 的态度，皆证明他之於球队各方面都是关键人物。 “First of all, what we’ve done this year has been a collective effort,” Stotts said. “That being said, of all the newcomers, obviously he’s had the biggest impact.” Stotts教练说: "首先，我们这季的成就是众人一同努力的成果，但尽管如此，Lopez无疑 是所有新加入的成员当中影响最甚者。" And his impact is only becoming more and more impressive. 然而他带来的影响却越来越让人印象深刻。 When the Blazers’ frontline was decimated by injuries after the NBA All-Star break, Lopez didn’t merely hold down the fort, he dominated. In the five games LaMarcus Aldridge and Meyers Leonard sat with injuries, Lopez set a career-high in blocks (seven) in one game, set a career-high in rebounds (18) in another and averaged a double-double (10.4 points and 11.0 rebounds). Over the last 11 games, Lopez is averaging 12.9 points, 11.4 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game. 拓荒者的内线在明星赛後伤兵累累，但在这期间，Lopez不仅顶替了球队空缺，也宰治了禁 区。在Aldrdige和Leonard坐壁上观的五场比赛中，Lopez写下平均双十的成绩(10.4分11.0 篮板)，并在两场不同的比赛中分别创下阻攻(7)及篮板(18)的生涯新高。环顾过去11场比 赛，Lopez的平均成绩爲12.9分，11.4篮板及2.4阻攻。 Indiana Pacers guard Lance Stephenson, New Orleans power forward Anthony Davis, Toronto Raptors guard DeMar DeRozan, Detroit Pistons center Andre Drummond, Orlando Magic guard Aaron Afflalo and Phoenix Suns guard Goran Dragic are a handful of players who could be on the shortlist of candidates for Most Improved Player by season’s end. 溜马後卫Lance Stephenson、鹈鹕大前锋Anthony Davis、暴龙後卫DeMar DeRozan、活塞 中锋Andre Drummond、魔术後卫Aaron Afflalo、太阳後卫Goran Dragic都可能是角逐年度 最佳进步奖的口袋人选。 The last thing Lopez wants to do is talk about himself — he’s that selfless — so it would be worthless to get his take on how his candidacy stacks up against these players. But his teammates are more than willing to do the talking for him. Lopez总是置个人於度外，因此他一定不在乎自己如何跟上述的那些球员竞争这个奖项。但 他的队友们倒是对此津津乐道。 “RoLo is very underrated in this league,” Batum said. “But the way he’s playing, the way he’s contributing to our team and the way we’ve changed our team — going from 33 wins to 41 and counting — yeah, he should be in that talk (for Most Improved Player).” Batum说: "螺肉是个非常被低估的球员，他打球和对球队贡献的方式，让我们从33胜的球 队变成到如今的41胜，并且还会持续累计下去，嗯，我认为他应该要被提名爲最佳进步奖 。" When asked if there were words to describe what Lopez has meant to the Blazers, starting shooting guard Wesley Matthews struggled to find them. 当被问到什麽是最适合用来形容"Lopez对拓荒者的影响"的字眼时，Mathews也词穷了。 “Not really,” Matthews said. “He’s filled a void for us that we didn’t have last year. A rim protector. Shot blocker. A presence in the middle. His numbers and what he’s done this season speak for itself.” Mathews说: "他补上了我们上季所欠缺的部分：保护篮筐、阻攻对手投篮、在禁区附近的 存在感。他的数据和球季中所做的一切都说说明了这一点。" Aldridge has credited Lopez for his MVP-type season. Batum has so appreciated Lopez’s unselfishness and willingness to do the dirty work that he tries to create scoring opportunities to reward him, almost to a fault. Lopez’s goofy, laid-back demeanor has, as expected, been a perfect fit for Portland. And, even more, his intense competitiveness and hatred for losing has been a motivator in the Blazers’ locker room. Aldridge把自己本季MVP级的表现也归功於Lopez。Batum亦非常感激Lopez的无私及蓝领精 神，因此他常藉由试着大量为Lopez创造得分机会来作为回报。Lopez与世无争的性格，无 疑地适合拓荒者，然而潜在的竞争天性与对输球的厌恶也使他成为休息室内的激励来源。 He holds himself accountable. He has his teammates' back. He cares about one thing above all else — winning — and the Blazers have done plenty of that. And in the end, Stotts said, that should carry significant weight. 他总是对自身负起责任，并保护着队友，而且从不在乎"赢球"以外的事情，这也是拓荒者 本季达成很多的部分。最後，Stotts教练说这或许是影响最大的要素。 “I don’t know who should be on the list,” Stotts said of the Most Improved Player debate. “But I think he should be in the discussion. For what he does to the team, not only statistically, but also in the things you don’t see. Everybody looks at offensive numbers and things like that, but the fact that he’s been instrumental in our turnaround from last year to this year. And I think, just like it is for All-Star voting and MVP voting, a player’s impact on winning should be taken into account for Most Improved Player voting.” "我不知道谁有资格出现在那候选名单上，但基於他为球队所做的一切，无论是数据可呈现 的部分，甚至是人们看不到的部分，我认为他都有资格被列入考量。大家只会看进攻数据 或是类似的东西，但却忽略他本身就是令我们本季表现能和上季截然不同的主因。因此我 想，在票选一个球员是否有资格得到最佳进步奖时，应该要像在票选全明星跟最有价值球 员时一样，将球员影响输赢的程度列入考虑。" from OregonLive.com --

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