http://goo.gl/zkxvta Before a preseason game in St. Louis two Octobers ago, Timberwolves coach Flip Saunders sent a message to the opposing locker room via the official scorer who nightly collects starting lineups from each team. 前年在圣路易举行的热身赛赛前，灰狼队教练 Flip Saunders 透过记录台人员，传送 一则讯息到对手休息室。 Saunders told the scorer to tell “Thibs” the Wolves would start the game by running a play called “93.” Saunders 告诉记录台人员，请转告「锡箔(Thibs)」，灰狼队将用代号为「93」的战术 展开比赛。 Moments later, Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau received the tip and laughed a laugh that echoed down the corridor. 不久，公牛队总教练 Tom Thibodeau 得知讯息後大笑，笑声响彻整条走廊。 Sure enough, the Wolves opened by running an isolation play for rookie Andrew Wiggins on the left wing. 果不其然，灰狼队一开赛就放 Andrew Wiggins 在左翼执行单打。 Both men knew “93” because fundamental parts of their systems and philosophies were coaching fruit that fell from the same tree: that of career coach Bill Musselman. 两人都晓得「93」的含意，因为他们的体系和哲学都师出同门：Bill Musselman。 Musselman coached three-plus NBA seasons with Cleveland and the Wolves from 1980 through 1991, compiled a .302 winning percentage in those two situations with teams that were undermanned and overmatched. But long after Musselman’s death in 2000, those who played for him or coached under him worked on in the NBA, planting the roots in a coaching tree in which Saunders, Thibodeau, Scott Brooks, Sam Mitchell, Tyrone Corbin, Sidney Lowe and Bill’s son, Eric, all became head coaches there. 从80年代至1991年，Musselman 在 NBA 执教过骑士队和灰狼队。两段时期的球队皆是 人手不足且时常吞败，共只缴出三成出头的胜率。不过就在 Musselman 於2000年过世 时，曾经在他指导下打球，或是以助理教练身分与他共事的成员，包含 Saunders、 Thibodeau、Scott Brooks、Sam Mitchell、Tyrone Corbin、Sidney Lowe，以及他的 儿子 Eric Musselman，都已在联盟教练圈崭露头角。 Saunders played for Musselman when he was Gophers coach in the 1970s. Thibodeau received his NBA start when Musselman took a chance on a young assistant coach at Harvard and gave him his first pro job with the expansion Wolves’ inaugural team in 1989. Saunders 曾在70年代明尼苏达大学球员时期，接受过 Musselman 指导。而 Thibodeau 的NBA执教起点发生在1989年，当时 Musselman 大胆任用仍是哈佛大学助教的他，提供 他在刚创队的灰狼队内的助教机会。 “We never worked together,” Thibodeau said of the late Saunders last week, “ but I always felt like we were connected through Bill.” 「我们从未共事过。」Thibodeau 提到 Saunders 时说道。「但我总觉得我们经由 Bill (Musselman) 连结着。 」 Last week, Thibodeau accepted a five-year, $40million contract to become Wolves coach and president of basketball operations. In doing so, he is being entrusted with Saunders' legacy: Young stars Wiggins, Karl-Anthony Towns and Zach LaVine, a trifecta so talented it convinced Thibodeau to return to a Wolves organization where he started rather than accept one of many offers that were sure to come. 就在上周，Thibodeau 接受灰狼队开出五年四千万元的合约，成为球队新任总教练以及 篮球事务总裁。他也承接了 Saunders 遗留下资产：Wiggins、Karl-Anthony Towns 和 Zach LaVine，这三名年轻人的天分说服了 Thibodeau 重回执教生涯的起点，而不是接 受其他球队的报价。 “Flip had a great vision for the team,”Thibodeau said.“I had talked to him two years ago and talked to him some a year ago, too, and he knew exactly how he wanted to built it. And he executed the plan. I think that's one of the things that made this so attractive. It's positioned very, very well.” 「Flip 替这支球队订出伟大愿景。」Thibodeau 说道。「我在近两年跟他聊过几次，他 非常清楚自己要什麽，并且贯彻计画执行。这是为何这份工作如此吸引人的原因之一， 球队正处在一个非常好的位置上。」 Top-flight teachers 顶级导师 Saunders was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma in June, not long before he selected Towns No. 1 overall and made a trade-night trade to acquire Tyus Jones. The summer before, Saunders drafted LaVine 13th overall before later completing the blockbuster trade that brought Wiggins from Cleveland for All-Star Kevin Love in a bigger deal that included two players and a first-round draft pick. Saunders 於去年六月被诊断出罹患淋巴癌，不久之後的选秀会，他用状元签挑选了 Towns，并交易来 Tyus Jones。再往前一年的夏天，他在第13顺位挑选了 LaVine， 并经由交易把该年选秀状元 Wiggins 从骑士队换来。 Saunders was hospitalized last September because of complications resulting from his cancer treatments and died in October at age 60. 去年九月，Saunders 因为癌症疗程导致的并发症而住院。十月时过世，享寿60岁。 “Sad, obviously, to lose him at such a young age,” Thibodeau said. “He was not only a great, great coach, but a great, great person on top of that.” 「这麽早就失去他真的令人哀伤。」Thibodeau 说道。「他不仅是位优秀的教练，也 是一位好人。」 From Musselman, both Thibodeau and Saunders learned about intensity, precision and attention to detail. Thibodeau went on to work with Jerry Tarkanian, John Lucas, Jeff Van Gundy, Don Chaney and Doc Rivers in 20 years as an NBA assistant from San Antonio, Philadelphia and New York to Houston and Boston before he was hired as a head coach for the first time. 从 Musselman 身上，Thibodeau 和 Saunders 都学习到魔鬼藏在细节中。之後20年的 NBA助教生涯，Thibodeau 与 Jerry Tarkanian、John Lucas、Jeff Van Gundy、Don Chaney 以及 Doc Rivers 共事过，一路从马刺、七六人、尼克到火箭以及赛尔提克後 ，才终於获得第一份总教练工作。 He has worked with college coaching greats Mike Krzyzewski and Jim Boeheim with the U.S. Olympic team, a commitment Thibodeau intends to fulfill with this summer’s team that will play in Brazil. He has also through the years has worked alongside fellow assistants such as Brendan Malone, who coached under Chuck Daly, Hubie Brown and Rick Pitino and Chaney, who played on two NBA championship teams for the Celtics. 在美国男篮国家队，也与大学名教 Mike Krzyzewski 和 Jim Boeheim 共事过，预计 今年夏天里约奥运将再度出征。除此之外，曾在 Chuck Daly、Hubie Brown 和 Rick Pitino 手下工作过的 Brendan Malone，以及赛队两届夺冠成员 Chaney，都曾是他的 助教夥伴。 “That’s the one thing I benefited from, being around a lot of great coaches,” Thibodeau said. “You’re a sum of your past experiences. Who are the coaches you’ve been around? Who are the teams you’ve been around? You learn from players. You learn from opponents. You learn from the coaches, and I’ve been around some great coaches. Every day you went to work, it was like you were at the best clinic in the world. We’d throw something out and as assistants we’d say, ‘How would Chuck Daly or Hubie Brown or Pat Riley handle this?’ I think you can learn from everybody.” 「能在这麽多优秀教练身旁学习，让我获益良多。」Thibodeau 说道。「你是过往经 验的总和，球员是你的学习对象，对手是你的学习对象，教练也是你的学习对象，而 且我曾经替许多优秀教练工作过。每一天开始工作，好像置身在全世界最棒的诊所内 。我们会把问题丢出，然後想着『如果是 Chuck Daly、Hubie Brown 或 Pat Riley， 他们会如何处理？』，我认为你可以从每个人身上学到东西。」 Great place to start 美好起点 It was so long ago, but Thibodeau doesn’t underestimate those first two seasons in Minnesota with Musselman. 虽然早已年代久远，Thibodeau 不会低估在明尼苏达和 Musselman 学习的那两个球季。 “You think back to the first time around with Bill and for me, I couldn’t have broken into the league under a better guy,” said Thibodeau, now 58. “He was such a great coach, such a great teacher and so demanding. You couldn’t help from learn. A guy like Musselman, I’ll put him up with anybody.” 「回到当初和 Bill 工作的日子，我找不到更好师傅将我领进门。」现年58岁的 Thibodeau 说道。「他是一名优秀教练、导师，且非常严格，你会不停的学习。」 Ask Thibodeau how much Musselman is in him and he’ll say all the coaches with whom he has worked are a piece of him. 当问到 Musselman 对他的影响，Thibodeau 会回答过去与他共事过教练们，都在他身 上留下些什麽。 Others, though, see it. 不过，别人会回答观察到很多。 “I see a lot,” said Eric Musselman, now the coach at the University of Nevada. “I see it in Tom’s competitive nature and the way he prepares. The bottom line is his teams play hard. I think he’ll be great there. I think he’ s a perfect coach for a young team. You want young players to know how to prepare to be a pro, to know how to get yourself ready through an 82-game season. The way he prepares teams, the single-mindedness to play as hard as you can possibly play, those are all the things young players need to have. 「我观察到许多。」内华达大学现任教练 Eric Musselman 说道。「从 Tom 的竞争 天性和他的赛前准备就能看出，结论是他执教的球队，在场上绝不会松懈。我认为他 很适合这份新工作，和年轻球队是个完美组合。你想要年轻球员了解成为职业等级的 准备工作，了解如何让自己准备好面对82场比赛的球季。赛前准备以及球场上全力以 赴，这些都是你希望年轻球员去学习的课题。」 “With any young team, you need to have internal leadership from your head coach and there’s no question, he’ll provide that.” 「对任何一支以年轻球员为主的球队，需要来自总教练的内部领导力。而毫无疑问， 他将有能力提供这点。」 --

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