LeBron's final hurdle: the free throw line LeBron最後的障碍：罚球线（不是发线） MIAMI -- At the Heat's media day on Monday, LeBron James looked like a man completely at peace. For more than 20 minutes during his news conference, James spoke calmly, with supreme confidence, fully cognizant of his long line of accomplishments at age 28, his golden place in history and his promising future. 迈阿密报导－礼拜一热火队的媒体日，LeBron James看起来是个入禅般的人。 在这20多分钟的记者会中，James说话既平静又充满自信，彻底认知到他在28岁 就达成的一长串成就、他在历史中的地位和光明的未来。 “I want to be the greatest player of all time,” James said. “It’s that simple. But I’m far from that.” 「我想当史上最伟大的球员。」James表示。「就这麽简单。但我还差得远。」 James knows he’s the best basketball player on Earth, a two-time NBA champion and four-time MVP in his prime coming off the most lopsided MVP vote in league history. This past summer, he married his high-school sweetheart, traveled around Europe and watched his team reload after repeating as world champion. James has a lot to feel good about these days, to say the least. James知道自己是现役地表最强篮球员，在巅峰时拿到两届NBA冠军、四届NBA的 MVP，而且最近的MVP投票是联盟史上得票数最悬殊的一次（译按：和2000年的 Shaquille O'Neal一样，差一张第一名票）。这个暑假，他和他的高中情人结婚 、环游欧洲并且看着他的球队在二连霸後持续补强。我们至少可以说他近来有不 少可以爽的事。 But at Monday’s news conference, one thing seemed to rattle James while he sat on his figurative throne: 但在礼拜一的记者会，即使在王座上依然有件事似乎让James感到烦恼。 His lifelong battle with the free throw line. 他这一生中和罚球线的对抗。 The struggle 挣扎 It’s the last area of the game he has yet to conquer. 这是比赛中最後一块他未征服的领土。 What else is there? Last season, he ranked in the top five in scoring and eighth in assists. He shot better than 40 percent from 3-point range and raised his overall field goal percentage to a blistering 56.5 percent. He led his team in rebounds and committed a career-low 1.4 fouls per game. He topped the rest of the league in PER by a wide margin with a 31.7 rating and raised it to an astronomical 37.8 in clutch situations, according to NBA.com data. 还有其他的吗？上一季，他得分排在联盟前五而助攻则是联盟第八。他三分球 命中率超过40%同时整体命中率来到逆天的56.5%。他篮板是全队第一并犯规次 数来到生涯最低的场均1.4次。根据NBA.com的数据，他的PER值31.7大幅领先全 联盟而且在关键时刻甚至来到夸张的37.8。 The man who wants to be the greatest player of all time has pretty much mastered every technical skill in the book -- except for free throws, which just so happens to be the simplest skill of all. Just walk up to the line and shoot an uncontested shot from 15 feet. What’s so hard about that? 这位想要当史上最加篮球员的男人大概精通每一样应该学会的技巧，除了罚球外 ，而这却是所有技巧中理应最简单的。只需要走到罚球线前并投一个15尺的无人 防守投篮。到底有什麽难的啊？ Nonetheless, James converted 75.3 percent of his free throws last season, which was the exact league average. Meanwhile, he is decidedly above-average in just about everything else. And he knows it, too. Which is why James made it his No. 1 priority this offseason (besides, you know, getting married). 然而，James上一季的罚球只有75.3%的命中率，约莫是联盟的平均值。在此同时 ，他其他的数据都明确的在平均值以上。这件事他自己也很清楚。这也是为什麽 罚球是他休赛期间的第一优先事项（除了结婚之外啦，你懂的）。 Just before the Heat rode off into the summer sunset after winning the title, Heat boss Pat Riley said “our goal is to get [James] up over 90 percent from the free throw line.” But when asked about that bar on Monday, James laughed it off. 就在夺冠後的夏天尾声时，热火队老大Pat Riley说：「我们的目标是让James罚 球命中率上升至90%。」但我们礼拜一提到这个问题时，James一笑置之。 “Ninty percent is not the goal, that is out of control,” James said, shaking his head to a roomful of laughter. “Let me get to 80 percent first. Let me get to 78 percent.” 「90%并不是目标，这太不现实了。」James表示，对着满房的笑声摇摇头。「先 到80%。或先到78%。」 James didn’t pick up that 78 percent figure out of thin air. That’s his career high for a season, set in 2008-09 in Cleveland, which is slightly above his career rate of 74.7 percent. But on Monday, in one of the few moments when James was actually asked about on-court matters, he made his call. James说到的78%这个数字并不是无中生有。这78%是他罚球命中率最高的一年，在 克里夫兰08-09球季时，比他的生涯74.7%罚球命中率稍稍高一些。但在礼拜一时 ，在少数几个James真正问到场上问题的时刻，他作出了声明。 “Eighty percent is the goal,” James said. “Hopefully what I've been able to do in the offseason can translate to the game. I’m very focused on it and it’s something that I want to improve, but we’ll see what happens.” 「80%是我的目标。」James表示。「希望我休赛季所作的能反应在比赛中。我很 专注於这个问题而这一直是我想要进步的部分，但我们会见真章的。」 Is 80 percent really that far-fetched for James? Depends how you look at it. 80%的罚球命中率对James而言真的这麽遥不可及吗？这端看你怎麽解读它。 Consider this: Across an entire NBA season, the difference between a 75 percent shooter and an 80 percent shooter is turning one miss into a make every three games. That’s it. But if it were easy for James to do that, he probably would have done it by now. 这样想：整个NBA球季，75%罚球命中率和80%命中率的射手差别在於每三场比赛将 一个投失的罚球投进。就只有这样。但这对James来说简单的话，他大概早就搞定 了。 James’ longest stretch of games in a regular season during which he’s shot at least 80 percent? Try 42 games. And he did it in his rookie season. In fact, he’s never shot 80 percent in any 30-game stretch in a Heat uniform. All in all, becoming an 80 percent free throw shooter for an entire season would require doubling his longest stretch of 80 percent shooting in his career. James罚球命中率至少80%的连续场次在常规赛中最长到几场？答案是42场。这还 是他新人球季作到的。事实上，他自从穿上热火球衣後，从没连续30场以上罚球 命中率达到80%。各方面来说，成为一个整季罚球命中率达到80%的射手需要他将 生涯中罚球达80%最长连续场次加倍。 Given James’ mastery of the sport, how is this possible? The average American probably knows a friend, co-worker or family member who shot 80 percent at some level in his or her basketball career. This is probably why free throw shooting has become a fetish of the critical NBA fan. If Joe from around the corner can hit free throws at the neighborhood park, why can’t the best player in the world? 即使James如此精通这项运动，这有可能吗？每一个美国人大概都认识一个篮球 生涯罚球命中率达到80%的朋友、同事或家人。这可能是为什麽罚球成为NBA粉丝 的某种迷信。如果路人甲可以在社区公园投进罚球，为什麽全世界最好的球员不 行？ Repetition makes perfect? 反覆能生巧？ James still hasn't figured out the riddle. His problem, he’ll tell you, is repetition. One of the first things you learn as a basketball player is to find a free throw routine. One dribble, spin, shoot. Three dribbles and up. Whatever it is, just stick to it. But James hasn't mastered that part. He tweaks and overhauls his routine probably dozens of times every season. James还未解开谜团。他会告诉你他的问题就是反覆动作。这是身为一个篮球员 找寻罚球习惯的第一件事。运一下、转一下、投出去。运三下便拔起来。无论哪 种，维持就对了。但James还没搞清楚这部分。他每季挣扎并全面修改他的罚球 习惯次数约莫一打有余。 “Obviously it becomes mental at some point when you go up there,” James said. “For me, it’s mental, it’s not physical. One game you make 11 out of 12. Next game you shoot 6 out of 13. Then you change it ... which is crazy.” 「显然的到某个时间点罚球问题变成心理问题。」James表示。「对我来说，这 是心理上的问题，而非身体上。某一场你投12中11。下一场变成13中6。然後又 变……让人抓狂。」 To a basketball coach, it is just that -- crazy. James fully understands this is certifiably irrational and probably detrimental. A player doesn't scrap his routine after a random fluctuation at the line, just like a baseball player doesn't overhaul his batting stance after going 0-for-4 on a Saturday afternoon. Knowing this, James tried to correct his approach this summer, but it led to a psychological tug-of-war. 就一个篮球教练来看，这就是这麽扯。James明确的了解这麽作的确不理智且很 可能不利於罚球。一个球员不该在罚球随机发生命中率波动时，抛弃他的罚球动 作。就像一个棒球员不该在星期六下午打击表现4之0时修改他的击球姿势。理解 这个後，James在这个夏天试着修正他的方法，不过这导致他内心小天使和小恶 魔的拔河。 “This offseason I just stuck to the same routine,” James said. “Even if I missed four or five in a row I just stuck to the same routine, just try to challenge myself. It went through my mind, ‘OK, it’s time to change.’ I was like, ‘No, stick to the same routine. Stick to the same shot.’ That was cool, I was able to do that all summer.” 「这个休赛季我就只是维持同样的罚球习惯。」James表示。「即使我连续投失4 到5球，我还是维持这个习惯，试着挑战自己。『是时候该换动作了。』这个想法 有闪过我的脑袋，但我就想『不，维持这个姿势！维持这个投篮动作！』这很有 趣，我有办法整个夏天都在做这件事。」 What’s the longest he’s ever stuck to a routine? 他维持一样的投篮动作最长一的一次多久？ “I don’t know, which is letting you know it’s not a good thing at all,” James said. “I shot 85 percent my freshman year in high school and after that, it was too easy to score and free throws didn't matter and it’s been downhill ever since.” 「我并不知道，这也告诉你这完全不是件好事。」James说到。「我在高中一年级 时罚球命中率达到85%，但得分对我来说太简单了，罚球并不重要，所以接下来命 中率就溜滑梯似的下降。」 Putting it into action 加入实战 As James sees it, he’s never needed to be elite at free throws to be elite. But with two NBA titles under his belt and “the greatest ever” distinction in sight, he has made it a top priority these days. In all likelihood, this is probably not the first offseason James has started from scratch. He’s probably tried every trick in the book to correct his free throw shot. Last season, he found some success emulating Ray Allen’s routine, but it wasn't long before he tweaked. Even after winning four MVPs, the random fluctuations still got to him. 就如同James理解的，他从来不需要成为罚球高手。但拥有两座总冠军头衔和「 史上最佳」荣耀近在眼前，他将罚球成为这些日子的优先改善目标。极有可能的 是这不是他第一个休赛季从头练起。他大概用了所有能用的方法来改善他的罚球 。上一季，他透过模仿Ray Allen的罚球动作得到一些小小成功，但马上他又变 了。即使他获得了四座MVP，这些随机波动依然纠缠着他。 “I can go in the gym during the offseason after my workout dead-tired and shoot 150 free throws and make 150 free throws,” James said. “That means absolutely nothing until you get out on the floor and you actually do it.” 「我在休赛季可以进到球场作完累死人的重训後罚150球进150球。」James表示。 「这完全不具任何意义，除非你真的在球赛中完成这件事。」 James isn't alone in this struggle. A fascinating photo snapped by ESPN Radio’s Beto Duran last season informed us that at one point last season that Dwight Howard had made 82 percent of his 1,582 free throws in practice. 82 percent! 受罚球之苦的人不只James一人。一张由ESPN Radio’s Beto Duran所拍摄的令 人眼睛为之一亮的照片告诉我们上一季Dwight Howard曾在某一次的罚球练习中 罚1,582颗命中82%。82%你敢信！ In games? Just 49.5 percent. But Howard wasn't the only one to buckle under the pressure. Even if we take Howard out of the equation, the Lakers’ free-throw percentage tumbled from 89 percent on the practice floor to 77 percent in real action. In other words, the Lakers went from Kevin Durant to LeBron James once the bright lights came on. 比赛中呢？只有49.5%。但Howard并不是唯一一位在压力中变差的人。即使把 Howard从中移除，整个湖人队的罚球命中率也从练习时的89%掉至比赛时的77%。 换句话说，湖人队一但开始比赛，罚球便从Kevin Durant变成LeBron James。 Though it’s unlikely that James actually reaches his goal next season, we probably shouldn't doubt him at this point either. Three seasons ago, James didn't have a reliable postgame or a knockdown 3-point shot. Now he has both. One-by-one James has turned almost all of his remaining weaknesses into strengths. The last skill standing is the free throw. If he figures that out, what then? The “greatest ever” tag may not be so far after all. 虽然James要在下季达成他的目标是不太可能的事，我们在这个时间点上也不能 怀疑他。三季前，James没有值得依靠的低位或稳定的三分能力。现在他两个都 有了。一个接着一个，James把每个弱点都升级成优点。最後还未点满的技能点 便是罚球。若他搞定罚球後，接着呢？「史上最佳」的标签或许就不远了。 原文网址－ http://tinyurl.com/o7vl6xv 心得： 明确指出LBJ罚球的问题 罚球姿势太常变了!!!! 他自己也知道 看来下一季是可以期待80%罚球命中率的LBJ (油头的目标也太严格) 其实到也不全然是命中率的问题 是LBJ罚球稳定性太低 有时候一场罚球命中率90% 有时候又可以不到50%.... 这种不稳定对胶着的战况真的很不利 所以我认为他「有必要」改进罚球 不是单纯差那一两分而已 文内提到湖人队也很有趣 不得不配服像Nash、Ray、KD这些罚球不软手的人啊 -- 新手NBA外电翻译+数据分析部落格 http://mola79321.pixnet.net/blog 欢迎来讨论!!! --

※ 发信站: 批踢踢实业坊(ptt.cc) ◆ From: 124.218.28.55