https://reurl.cc/Erx0On Paolo Banchero, Jabari Smith Jr. and the mystery that surrounded the NBA draft's No. 1 pick Tim MacMahon and Brian Windhorst Jul 7, 2022 AROUND MIDNIGHT THE evening before the NBA draft, Orlando Magic president Jeff Weltman and general manager John Hammond walked together to their cars, talking about the event -- and decision -- that could change the course of their franchise. Less than 24 hours before the team's first No. 1 pick since 2004, the Magic's top two basketball executives weren't quite at peace. 约莫在NBA选秀会前一天的午夜，奥兰多魔术队总裁Jeff Weltman与GM John Hammond一同 走向他们的座车，讨论着这场可能会改变球队进程的选秀以及他们的决定。距离2004年以 来魔术首次的第一顺位不到24小时，球队两位最高决策者的心情并不那麽平静。 That day, in meetings with their scouts and personnel specialists, the group had reached a tentative decision to go with Paolo Banchero, the powerful 19-year-old big man from Duke. Probably. "If you told me Jeff would've walked into the office with a different decision in the morning," Hammond said, "I wouldn't have been shocked." 那天在他们与球探及选秀部门的会议里，团队达成了初步决定，他们会选择来自Duke大学 的19岁长人Paolo Banchero──应该吧。 「如果你那时告诉我Jeff明早会带着一个不同的决定走进办公室，我并不会惊讶。」 Hammond说。 That next day, the Magic created a modern rarity: genuine surprise with the top pick on draft night. They selected Banchero after most of the league had for weeks believed they were leaning toward Jabari Smith Jr., a sweet-shooting, defensive-minded forward from Auburn. 隔天，魔术创造了一个现代的罕见事蹟：在选秀夜用状元签演出真正的惊奇。数星期以来 联盟中大多数人都相信他们倾向的是拥有迷人的投射能力以及防守意识，来自Auburn 大 学的前锋Jabari Smith Jr.，但他们选择了Banchero。 The late reveal was a jolt to Smith, who had been preparing to join the Magic after a workout in Orlando in early June. And Banchero, who bypassed an offer to travel to Orlando for formal meetings because he wasn't sure the team was seriously considering him. And the Houston Rockets, who had prepared to pick Banchero with the third pick. 第一顺位的公布震惊了Smith，在六月初奥兰多的试训後，他已经准备好要加入魔术。而 Banchero此前则是略过了前往奥兰多进行正式会面的邀请，因为他不确定魔术是否有认真 考虑自己。另一边休士顿火箭已经准备好要用第三顺位拿下Banchero。 All the primary characters come together Thursday (10 p.m. ET, ESPN) as Banchero and the Magic face off against Smith and the Rockets at Las Vegas Summer League, hoping to shake off the awkwardness of the draft-night drama. 所有主要人物即将在周四*聚集在一起，Banchero与魔术队要在拉斯维加斯夏季联赛对阵 Smith与火箭队，他们希望摆脱掉来自戏剧性选秀夜的尴尬。 译注：原报导发表於魔术火箭夏联比赛前。 "We didn't know [Orlando was taking Banchero] until 10 minutes before the draft," Rockets general manager Rafael Stone said. "I didn't hear from the Magic telling me for sure until a few minutes before," said Mike Miller, Banchero's agent and a 17-year NBA veteran. And as Banchero said, "I didn't find out I was actually getting picked until about 20 seconds before the commissioner got on the stage." 「在选秀会前10分钟我们才知道魔术要选Banchero。」火箭GM Rafael Stone这麽说。 「一直到几分钟前我才从魔术那收到明确的告知。」Mike Miller说道，他是Banchero的 经纪人，有过17年的NBA球员身涯。 Banchero则如他本人所言：「到主席上台宣布的前20秒左右，我才得知自己真的被选为状 元了。」 THE INITIAL THEORY was that the Magic had run a misdirection on the rest of the league, and particularly Houston, by hiding their intentions. But multiple members of the Magic said it was merely the product of a grueling process to choose between top prospects that also included Gonzaga's Chet Holmgren. 外界最初的推测是魔术隐藏了他们的想法，藉此误导联盟中的其他球队，特别是火箭。不 过根据数名魔术团队成员的说法，这单纯是要在包含Gonzaga大学的Chet Holmgren在内的 顶尖新秀中做抉择这一艰困过程中的产物。 Weltman, who has led Orlando's front office since 2017, is known for being both tight-lipped and fastidious. If there was a decision-maker in the league who could conduct such an operation, Weltman would be on the short list. "There's a lot of strategy that goes into the draft," Weltman said. "There's a lot of secret-keeping; there's a lot of misdirection." 从2017年开始领导魔术制服组的Weltman，以不露口风及严谨的行事风格为人知。如果要 说联盟中有哪一个决策者可以完成这般操作，名单不会太长，而Weltman会位列其中。 「选秀中有着大量的策略，大量的保密工作，以及大量的误导。」Weltman说。 He and the Magic simply didn't dissuade anyone when mock drafts were formed and league intelligence percolated with the common belief that it would be Smith at No. 1, even if the team hadn't internally made the call. 当各个模拟选秀与联盟中的消息都弥漫着一股Smith会成为状元的确信时，他与魔术队只 是单纯的不动声色，即便球队内部也尚未达成决定。 "Orlando never committed to taking Jabari first," said Wallace Prather, Smith's agent. "Obviously, the internet and social media creates narratives and creates stories, and we all know it's a TV show. Orlando kept things close to the cuff." 「魔术从未决定要在第一顺位选择Jabari。」Smith的经纪人Wallace Prather表示： 「很显然的网路及社群媒体创造了一连串的叙事及故事，我们都知道那只是电视演出， 魔术一直将事情掌控在自己手边。」 When Weltman met with staff members shortly before the draft on June 23, he commended them for staying airtight as an organization, as their plans hadn't leaked. "I think it's the best way to do business," Weltman said. "It's important people know information is managed discreetly with us." 当Wletman在6月23日选秀会前与团队短暂会面时，他赞赏了整个组织能保持密不透风， 因为他们的计画没有外泄。 「我认为这是做生意的最佳方式，让人们知道与我们打交道时讯息会被谨慎控管是重要 的。」Weltman说道。 Then there was the mystery of the sportsbooks. Many of the top casinos went from lowering Banchero's odds in the few days leading up to the draft to outright making him the favorite – overnight. While the Magic investigated -- the team came to the conclusion social media might've played a role -- the Rockets began to react. "When [the odds] shifted, we noted it," Stone said. "If people are willing to put their money on it, especially when you see a big swing like that, it feels like maybe somebody knows something." 接着是关於运动彩券的谜团，许多顶级赌盘在选秀会前几天调降了Banchero的赔率，让他 在一夜之间成为状元热门。 当魔术对此进行调查时──球队的结论是这可能是来自社群媒体的影响──火箭一方开始 做出反应。 Stone表示：「我们注意到赔率产生变化，如果人们愿意进场投注，特别是当你看到这种 大幅波动，那感觉像是也许某人知道了什麽内情。」 The Rockets reached out to Prather, a veteran agent who has a long history with the organization. Houston hadn't met with Smith before the draft, though they'd done extensive scouting and research on him. With the growing uncertainty of what the Magic might do, Prather gave the Rockets Smith's pre-draft medical reports. 火箭联系了Prather，他是一位与球队有着长期来往的资深经纪人，火箭在选秀会前不曾 接触过Smith，尽管他们已在他身上进行了广泛的球探与调查工作。随着魔术动向的不确 定性逐渐升高， Prather将Smith的选前医疗报告提供给了火箭。 This personal data, which includes previous injury history, is often closely held by players and agents. Secrecy sometimes is used as a tactic to guide players away from certain teams. It's also often not shared if an agent is confident the client will be off the board before that team picks, as was thought to be the case in this instance. The Rockets didn't have full medicals on Holmgren, either; he had only provided them to the Magic and the Oklahoma City Thunder, who had the No. 2 pick. 这份个人档案包含了过往的伤病史，这种资讯通常会被球员及经纪人紧抓在手中，档案保 密有时可以做为让球员避开特定球队的手段。若是经纪人有把握他的客户会在某球队的顺 位前就被选走，往往也不会将资料分享给该球队，此刻的情况就是这种案例。火箭也同样 没有Holmgren的完整医疗报告，後者只将它提供给魔术与手握第二顺位的雷霆。 With the draft fast approaching, veteran agent Bill Duffy, who represents Holmgren, told the Rockets that if he got an indication the Magic and Thunder were passing on his client, he would give Holmgren's medical reports to Houston so it could prepare. The Thunder's long-standing interest in Holmgren was known across the league, but in the hours leading up to the draft, there was apprehension that nothing might be what it seemed. 当选秀会快速逼近，身为Holmgren代理人的资深经纪人Bill Duffy通知火箭，如果他感到 有徵兆显示魔术与雷霆会跳过他的客户，他会提供火箭Holmgren的医疗报告好让他们可以 预先准备。 全联盟都知道雷霆长期以来对Holmgren抱持着兴趣，但是在选秀前的数小时存在一股忧虑 ，担心事情发展并不如表面所见。 As speculation ebbed and flowed, the Magic stayed mum. Miller, Banchero's agent, saw the swinging sportsbook odds and communicated with Orlando throughout the day, naturally wanting to vet the situation. The Magic divulged nothing. "When you're playing poker," Weltman said, "you don't put your cards on the table." 随着猜测起起伏伏，魔术始终保持沉默。Banchero的经纪人Miller眼见赌盘赔率的波动， 整天持续着与魔术队联系，他自然会想厘清情势，但魔术甚麽都没有透漏。 「当你玩扑克时，你不会在台面上亮出自己的底牌。」 Weltman这麽说。 THE ROCKETS AND Thunder deepened their information gathering. Hours passed. Once the Rockets were convinced Orlando was going with Banchero, Houston reached out to the Magic to make a trade offer to get up to the top pick, sources said. The Rockets wouldn't have made an offer if they were certain Smith would slide to them, sources said, but they were concerned about having to make a decision on Holmgren without time to digest his medical information. 火箭与雷霆加强了他们的情报收集。 数小时过去，根据消息来源，当火箭确信魔术会选择Banchero後，他们联系魔术并提出了 交易提案想要向上换取第一顺位。 消息源表示若是火箭确定Smith可以落到第三顺位，那他们不会提出交易，但是他们担忧 可能必须在没有足够时间消化 Holmgren的医疗资讯的情况下面对是否要选择Holmgren的 决策。 Teams drafting near each other routinely carry out due diligence, feeling out pick availability and values. Perhaps the Magic, the thinking went, were running a smoke screen -- an effort to force last-minute trade offers only to move back and take the player they had allegedly been leaning toward all along is a game as old as the draft itself. 在相邻顺位选秀的球队会不断的尽职调查，探询选秀签的可取得性与价值。用常理推断， 或许魔术是在释放烟雾弹──藉由这种努力来促成压线的交易提案，让他们能将顺位後移 ，并选走他们真正心仪的球员，这种操盘手法的历史与选秀本身同样悠久。 In 2017, the Boston Celtics famously traded the No. 1 pick for the No. 3 pick as the Philadelphia 76ers moved up to draft Markelle Fultz. The Celtics had Jayson Tatum No. 1 on their draft board all along, so they got their player and an extra future pick. 在2017年波士顿塞尔提克与费城七六人两队着名的第一及第三顺位互换中，後者向上交易 并选下Markelle Fultz。Jayson Tatum 至始至终是塞尔提克选秀榜单的第一名新秀，因 此他们同时拿到了自己最想要的球员与额外的未来选秀权。 But that Celtics-Sixers trade happened three days before the draft. Had the Magic truly wanted to trade this No. 1 pick and move back, they'd have made the decision a few days earlier, sources said. So the Magic listened to the Rockets' offer but firmly passed. The negotiation was brief, and the Rockets got the message: A deal was highly unlikely. 但是塞尔提克与七六人的交易案发生在选秀会的前三天。根据消息来源的说法，假设魔术 真的想将状元签向下交易，他们会更早几天做出决定。 魔术听取了火箭的报价，但他们坚定的将它丢到一旁。两队的谈判很短暂，火箭得到的讯 息是：交易不太可能达成。 "You never know what is going to come up," Weltman said. "You never know what other teams are trying to do behind you." And when the time came, Weltman didn't wait around. Within moments of being put on the clock by NBA commissioner Adam Silver, the Magic called in their selection, well ahead of the five-minute time limit. Any last-minute offers would have been moot. 「你永远不知道会发生甚麽事。」Weltman说：「你永远不知道其他球队在你背後盘算什 麽。」 当时候到了，Weltman没有多作等待。就在NBA主席 Adam Silver宣布计时开始後没多久， 魔术用电话告知了他们的选择，这远早於五分钟的时限，若有任何的压线报价也将失去意 义。 Banchero and Smith were left to their twisting emotions, their early careers likely to be tied to that moment in Brooklyn. "Jabari ended up in a place that fits who he is," Prather said. "There was nothing but excitement on Jabari's part about going to Houston. We love their young core. We love the city. We love the passion of their fan base." After wiping away tears upon hearing his name called first, any unease over the way it played out faded for Banchero. "No, this isn't even a dream. I feel like this is a fantasy," Banchero said. "I dreamed of being in the NBA, but being the No. 1 overall pick, this is crazy." Banchero与Smith置身在各自曲折翻转的情绪中，他们的初期生涯大概会绑定在那一刻的 布鲁克林。 Prather说：「Jabari最终到了一个适合他的地方，前往休士顿对他而言只有满满的兴奋 ，我们喜爱他们的年轻核心，我们喜爱那座城市，我们喜爱火箭球迷的热情。」 Banchero拭去了听到自己名子在大会上第一个被喊出时落下的泪水，原本显露出的所有焦 虑不安也消散退去。 「这甚至不是会作为梦想的情境，我感觉它是一个奇幻故事。」Banchero说道：「我梦 想过能进入NBA，但可以成为状元，这真是疯狂。」 --- 等了一阵子的内幕报导，有挖掘出一些有趣的未知事件，如魔术对赌盘变化的反应 以及火箭曾报价想向上交易第一顺位。 整体来说今年选秀看得还蛮开心的。不常做全文翻译，如有错误也请指正。 --

※ 发信站: 批踢踢实业坊(ptt.cc), 来自: 114.24.216.253 (台湾) ※ 文章网址: https://webptt.com/cn.aspx?n=bbs/Orl-Magic/M.1657435058.A.E5D.html 我的看法是偏向沙推後无法确保向下交易能选到Paolo，雷霆的动向太难抓 这也是我一直不觉得最後真的会有交易的原因 不过我喜欢制服组在过程中创造空间的操盘 其实火箭的内部排名也蛮难说的，虽然选後Stone说法是JSJ是火箭的top pick 他们这几年抓了一些draft twitter社群的球探 Paolo在draft twitter的评价比NBA球探圈好 ※ 编辑: arrowsean (114.24.216.253 台湾), 07/10/2022 15:34:02