Johnson not taking back seat to anyone 強哥不當任何人的板凳 Kidd's former backup fills starring role in playoff series By Mark Montieth [email protected] Chris Childs. Jeff McInnis. Travis Best. Doug Overton. Zoran Planinic. Jacque Vaughn. Robert Pack. Anthony Goldwire. Derrick Zimmerman. Anthony Johnson smiles when he's reminded of those names. It's the smile of a man who has earned the last laugh. Chris Childs. Jeff McInnis. Travis Best. Doug Overton. Zoran Planinic. Jacque Vaughn. Robert Pack. Anthony Goldwire. Derrick Zimmerman..... 回想起這些名字，強哥笑了。 那是最後勝利者的微笑。 Those are the point guards New Jersey has brought in to back up Jason Kidd since it let Johnson get away as a free agent in the summer of 2003. 2003年的夏天，老強成為自由球員而離開後， 上述那些，是紐澤西找來當Jason Kidd替補的名字 Think perhaps the Nets' brain trust is second-guessing itself these days? Johnson served up another reminder to his doubters Thursday with the best game of his playoff career and perhaps his best game, period. 你覺得這幾天籃網的智囊團是否懊惱不已呢? 我們來看看: 週四，強哥以生涯最佳的季後賽成績， 也或許是至今最棒的一場比賽，又讓那些唱衰他的人閉嘴。以上。 His 25 points, eight assists, five rebounds and no turnovers were crucial to the Indiana Pacers' 107-95 victory over New Jersey at Conseco Fieldhouse. He is the primary reason the sixth-seeded Pacers own a 2-1 advantage in their opening-round playoff series. 他的二十五分、八助攻、五籃板與零失誤， 對於溜馬在主場對籃網的勝仗是至關重要的。 他，是第六種子的溜馬以二比一取得此系列領先的主要原因。 Through three games, Johnson, the perennial backup, has averaged 18 points on 47.5 percent shooting, with 18 total assists and five turnovers. Kidd, the perennial All-Star, has averaged 8.3 points on 30 percent shooting, with 27 assists and five turnovers. 這三場比賽裡，強哥，萬年板凳，平均以.475的命中率拿下18分，合計18助攻5失誤。 Kidd，全明星的常客，平均以.300的命中率得到8.3分，共27助攻5失誤。 Johnson has endured enough hard knocks in his nine NBA seasons to know better than to assume anything. But this qualifies as redemption. 強哥很清楚，他在九年的NBA裡承受了夠多的嚴厲批評， 而如今這被稱為一種補償。(*注1) "It's exciting," he said following Thursday's victory, in which he scored 13 fourth-quarter points. "It's playoff time -- a time you either step up your play and lead your team to wins or you go home crying, like little babies." "很刺激啊，"在末節獨得十三分的強哥，在勝利後說道: "這可是季後賽，不挺身而出就等著回家哭囉。" CEO Donnie Walsh was astute enough to save Johnson from obscurity two summers ago, but Pacers management also has taken its turn underrating Johnson, whose NBA career includes seven stops and a detour through the CBA. They brought in Sarunas Jasikevicius to be Jamaal Tinsley's backup last summer and nearly traded Johnson. 精明的Walsh在兩年前揀了強哥回來，但溜馬高層照例低估了他； 他生涯停留過七支球隊，甚至還到次級聯盟打過球。 上個夏天，溜馬找了天王來當小汀的候補，強哥幾乎被交易掉。 Now he's their postseason savior, having replaced the injured Tinsley and outplaying Jasikevicius. 現在，強哥是季後賽的救世主，取代了受傷的小汀， 並且把天王完完全全地比下去。 "A.J. is playing with great awareness and great savvy," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. "He looks like a guy that understands the pulse of the team he's running. The majority of the game, he's making our calls and directing us into things. He's a guy that really knows this team, as well as any player that I've had the opportunity to work with as a coach." "強哥打得既敏銳又充滿悟性，"溜馬教頭卡帥說道: "他瞭解球隊的脈動。在大部份的比賽，他執行我們的要求，並帶領我們進入狀況。 他懂得這支球隊，就像那些我曾經共事過的教練型球員一樣。" Johnson was admittedly disappointed when the Pacers signed Jasikevicius last summer but didn't let it affect his approach. He has incorporated Pilates and yoga into his workout regimen the past two summers. The result is a new body and new-found confidence that could -- maybe -- transform him from an assumed backup to a full-time starter. 大家都知道，溜馬簽來天王這件事打擊了強哥， 但那並未影響他的作法。兩年來，他把比拉提斯和瑜伽併入練習排程裡， 造就了新的身體與自信，也許能夠將他從候補人選之一提升到專任的先發地位。 "There's so much more to this game than showing up and playing and shooting," he said. "It's definitely been paying off. "這場比賽的意義遠大於展現身手或投籃什麼的....." 強哥說道:"這毋寧是對過去的一種清償。" "For whatever reason, I eliminated that mental block the past couple of years and charged ahead full force. Things have been working out for me ever since." "不管是什麼理由，我終於消除了過去這些年的陰霾，並且全力衝刺， 此後水到渠成，事情於是變得愈來愈好。" With Tinsley perpetually unavailable, as he likely will be for the remainder of the playoffs, and the subject of constant offseason trade speculation, could Johnson be the Pacers' long-term answer as a starting point guard? At the moment, he looks like a cheaper alternative who has as much to offer. 因為小汀總是無法上場，在季後賽裡似乎將成為多餘的人，且又是交易傳聞的常客， 是否強哥能成為溜馬先發控衛的最後答案呢? 目前看來，他不僅便宜，又一樣好用。 More directly, can Johnson even go back to being a backup? He laughed when the question was posed Thursday. 直截了當地說: 強哥難道還能回去當替補嗎? 星期四，聽到這個問題，強哥笑了。 "That's going to be answered down the road," he said. "I know I'm one of the top backups in the NBA and I feel I'm a pretty good starter. People around the league are hesitant to give me credit, which is fine, but I know I can play against most starters and I know I can play all backups. But if there's a quality starter ahead of me, I have no problem being a backup." "直到最後才能知道答案吧，"他說: "我知道我是NBA的頂尖候補之一，而同時也是個相當不錯的先發球員。 這個聯盟的人總是不願意承認我的能力，沒差， 但我知道我能夠跟大部份的先發放對，也能夠抗衡所有的替補球員。 我願意當個候補，如果真有人比我更優的話。" *注一: Redemption,照理應該要翻"救贖"的..... (這篇有點超出能力範圍.....有錯請指正。) --

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