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The Five Most Interesting Teams … After the NBA Free Agency Fallout
自由球员市场后最值得关注的五支球队
【猛龙篇】
Will the Raptors commit to their aging, depleted core or make a move? Are the Sixers and Celtics trending in opposite directions? Might the Warriors, in spite of everything, still be light-years ahead? And how ’bout them Lakers, really?
猛龙会坚持现有核心阵容还是会做出改变？76人和凯尔特人开始走向了相反的方向？勇士在经历这么多变故后，是否还能领先一大步？而湖人究竟会怎样？
By DanDevine Jul 18, 2019, 6:00am EDT
The NBA’s free agency period isn’t officially finished—well, it never really ends these days, though that’s a different column—but when the list of the best targets still available is topped by names like Kenneth Faried and Thabo Sefolosha, the major action appears to have concluded. (Famous last words, I know.) So while a trade or two could still shake things up, this seems like a good time to take stock of the new state of affairs after the league’s annual summertime game of musical chairs.
NBA自由球员市场并没有正式结束，好吧，从未结束，虽然现在形势已经完全不同。但是当自由球员名单以法里埃德和塞弗洛沙为首时，就意味着大动作已经结束了。即使还可能会有一两个交易翻起一些浪花，但看起来现在已经是时候来看一看NBA夏季交响乐之后的新形势了。
Let’s take a look at five teams left standing in fascinating places at the end of free agency, starting with the one that ended last seasonon top of the mountain …
让我们来看看五支非常值得关注的球队，就从上赛季的巅峰球队开始。
Toronto Raptors
多伦多猛龙
… and will now try to avoid tumbling back down to earth after Kawhi Leonard chose to go home.
猛龙在卡哇伊选择回到洛杉矶球队后，要试图避免从山巅直接沦落到山脚。
Everyone knew this was possible the moment Masai Ujiri pulled the trigger on the trade that brought them both Leonard and Danny Green. The reward could be an NBA championship; the risk was that Leonard and Green, both on expiring contracts, could bolt in free agency after just one season, leaving Toronto with massive holes to fill. The Raptors experienced both, and while the reward was certainly worth the risk—the whole point is winning the gold ball, right?—the franchise now has to turn the page.
每个人都知道当乌杰里扣下扳机带来卡哇伊和丹尼-格林的时候，可能会发生什么。奖励可能是一座NBA总冠军，而风险则是两人在一个赛季后都将合同到期进入自由球员市场，而猛龙需要填补这个巨大的漏洞。最终猛龙既拿到了奖励也承担了风险，当然这是很值得的，一切都是为了总冠军，对吧？但球队现在需要翻到新的一页了。
What does life look like after Kawhi changed everything? What are the Raptors without him right now, and where do they go without him as the focal point of their future?
在卡哇伊重塑NBA后，失去他的猛龙现状如何？在失去了未来的焦点后，猛龙的路又要怎么走？
The downside of having to wait for Leonard’s decision was that by the time Kawhi went west, the roster-revamping options for an already capped-out Raptors team were pretty slim. Stanley Johnson and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson are interesting buy-low candidates—a pair of physical 6-foot-7 forwards with great length (a 6-foot-11.5-inch wingspan for Johnson, 7-foot-2 for Hollis-Jefferson) who can defend multiple positions, and who should bolster an already athletic and versatile group of defenders that includes Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, Norman Powell, and Patrick McCaw. But unless they can suddenly learn to shoot—Johnson has the lowest effective field goal percentage of any player to log at least 5,000 minutes since he entered the league, and fellow 2015 draftee Hollis-Jefferson has the fourth-lowest—the Raptors offense will probably feel a lot more congested and a lot less potent than it did with Leonard and Green spacing the floor. (Maybe second-unit pairings with Spanish league sharpshooter Matt Thomas could loosen things up.)
猛龙一直等待卡哇伊做出决定。这样做的不利一面是，当卡哇伊出决定的时候，已经达到奢侈税的猛龙并没有多少补强选项。斯坦利-约翰逊和郎戴-霍利斯-杰弗森是非常有潜力的候选者—两个6英尺7英寸的前锋，拥有超长臂展（约翰逊6英尺11.5英寸，霍利斯-杰弗森7英尺2英寸），可以防守多个位置，能够很好地加入一支由西亚卡姆、阿奴诺比、鲍威尔和麦考所组成的全能防守阵容。但除非他们能够突然学会投篮……自从进入联盟后，约翰逊在所有上场超过5000分钟的球员里，有效命中率倒数第一，而2015年新秀霍利斯-杰弗森则倒数第四。没有卡哇伊和格林拉开空间后，猛龙的进攻会显得格外拥挤，效率也会严重下滑。（也许拥有西班牙射手马特-托马斯的第二阵容能够缓解这方面的尴尬。）
Barring surprising leaps from those second-draft reclamation projects, or Anunoby bouncing back to break through following a difficult sophomore season, the Raptors will likely go as far as their post-Kawhi core can carry them. But three key members of that core—franchise linchpin Kyle Lowry, plus centers Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka—are now on expiring contracts. Will Ujiri look to flip his established veterans for young talent or future draft assets to accelerate a 2020 rebuild around Siakam, fresh off a Most Improved Player campaign and now expected to author a superstar-caliber encore? (How Toronto handles coming contract talks with the extension-eligible Siakam also bears watching.) Or will Ujiri give his holdover champions the chance to defend their title, taking a one-season victory lap on the off chance that the Raptors’ remnant is potent enough to make another deep run in a reconfigured East?
除非能够在二轮秀中淘到宝，或者阿奴诺比能够从艰难的二年级赛季反弹，猛龙还是可能需要他们在“后卡哇伊”时代的核心球员能够带领球队。但是核心中的三个关键成员：洛瑞、加索尔和伊巴卡都处于合同的最后一年。乌杰里是否会放弃这些老将，换来年轻球员或未来选秀权，以西亚卡姆这名进步最快球员为核心来进行2020重建计划，并期望西亚卡姆能够成长为下一个巨星？（猛龙将如何处理与西亚卡姆的提前续约仍然有待观察。）或者乌杰里会给他的冠军队员们一个卫冕的机会，看猛龙剩余的这些球员是否有能力走出这个重塑的东部？
The bet here: Faced with comparatively limited trade markets for a trio of high-priced 10-plus-year vets with more than 2,700 combined games under their belts, Toronto will pursue a seventh straight playoff appearance and the chance to at least make any would-be usurpers earn the crown. The line between running it back and hitting the reset button might be vanishingly thin, though; should an opportunity to kick-start the renovation present itself, it’ll be interesting to see how long Ujiri’s willing to stand on sentiment.
赌注：合计打了2700场比赛的三名10年以上的老将，交易前景相对受限，猛龙选择和他们一起追逐连续第七次季后赛之旅以及成为总冠军的机会。前进与重建之间的距离也许就只有肉眼不可见的那么一点点，重建的机会就在一念之间，不知道乌杰里的情怀能够维持多久。
原文链接：
https://www.theringer.com/nba/2019/7/18/20698813/interesting-teams-post-free-agency
个人公众号：NBA英文翻译爱好者，求勾搭！
个人公众号：NBA英文翻译爱好者，求勾搭！
The Five Most Interesting Teams … After the NBA Free Agency Fallout
自由球员市场后最值得关注的五支球队
【猛龙篇】
Will the Raptors commit to their aging, depleted core or make a move? Are the Sixers and Celtics trending in opposite directions? Might the Warriors, in spite of everything, still be light-years ahead? And how ’bout them Lakers, really?
猛龙会坚持现有核心阵容还是会做出改变？76人和凯尔特人开始走向了相反的方向？勇士在经历这么多变故后，是否还能领先一大步？而湖人究竟会怎样？
By DanDevine Jul 18, 2019, 6:00am EDT
The NBA’s free agency period isn’t officially finished—well, it never really ends these days, though that’s a different column—but when the list of the best targets still available is topped by names like Kenneth Faried and Thabo Sefolosha, the major action appears to have concluded. (Famous last words, I know.) So while a trade or two could still shake things up, this seems like a good time to take stock of the new state of affairs after the league’s annual summertime game of musical chairs.
NBA自由球员市场并没有正式结束，好吧，从未结束，虽然现在形势已经完全不同。但是当自由球员名单以法里埃德和塞弗洛沙为首时，就意味着大动作已经结束了。即使还可能会有一两个交易翻起一些浪花，但看起来现在已经是时候来看一看NBA夏季交响乐之后的新形势了。
Let’s take a look at five teams left standing in fascinating places at the end of free agency, starting with the one that ended last seasonon top of the mountain …
让我们来看看五支非常值得关注的球队，就从上赛季的巅峰球队开始。
Toronto Raptors
多伦多猛龙
… and will now try to avoid tumbling back down to earth after Kawhi Leonard chose to go home.
猛龙在卡哇伊选择回到洛杉矶球队后，要试图避免从山巅直接沦落到山脚。
Everyone knew this was possible the moment Masai Ujiri pulled the trigger on the trade that brought them both Leonard and Danny Green. The reward could be an NBA championship; the risk was that Leonard and Green, both on expiring contracts, could bolt in free agency after just one season, leaving Toronto with massive holes to fill. The Raptors experienced both, and while the reward was certainly worth the risk—the whole point is winning the gold ball, right?—the franchise now has to turn the page.
每个人都知道当乌杰里扣下扳机带来卡哇伊和丹尼-格林的时候，可能会发生什么。奖励可能是一座NBA总冠军，而风险则是两人在一个赛季后都将合同到期进入自由球员市场，而猛龙需要填补这个巨大的漏洞。最终猛龙既拿到了奖励也承担了风险，当然这是很值得的，一切都是为了总冠军，对吧？但球队现在需要翻到新的一页了。
What does life look like after Kawhi changed everything? What are the Raptors without him right now, and where do they go without him as the focal point of their future?
在卡哇伊重塑NBA后，失去他的猛龙现状如何？在失去了未来的焦点后，猛龙的路又要怎么走？
The downside of having to wait for Leonard’s decision was that by the time Kawhi went west, the roster-revamping options for an already capped-out Raptors team were pretty slim. Stanley Johnson and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson are interesting buy-low candidates—a pair of physical 6-foot-7 forwards with great length (a 6-foot-11.5-inch wingspan for Johnson, 7-foot-2 for Hollis-Jefferson) who can defend multiple positions, and who should bolster an already athletic and versatile group of defenders that includes Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, Norman Powell, and Patrick McCaw. But unless they can suddenly learn to shoot—Johnson has the lowest effective field goal percentage of any player to log at least 5,000 minutes since he entered the league, and fellow 2015 draftee Hollis-Jefferson has the fourth-lowest—the Raptors offense will probably feel a lot more congested and a lot less potent than it did with Leonard and Green spacing the floor. (Maybe second-unit pairings with Spanish league sharpshooter Matt Thomas could loosen things up.)
猛龙一直等待卡哇伊做出决定。这样做的不利一面是，当卡哇伊出决定的时候，已经达到奢侈税的猛龙并没有多少补强选项。斯坦利-约翰逊和郎戴-霍利斯-杰弗森是非常有潜力的候选者—两个6英尺7英寸的前锋，拥有超长臂展（约翰逊6英尺11.5英寸，霍利斯-杰弗森7英尺2英寸），可以防守多个位置，能够很好地加入一支由西亚卡姆、阿奴诺比、鲍威尔和麦考所组成的全能防守阵容。但除非他们能够突然学会投篮……自从进入联盟后，约翰逊在所有上场超过5000分钟的球员里，有效命中率倒数第一，而2015年新秀霍利斯-杰弗森则倒数第四。没有卡哇伊和格林拉开空间后，猛龙的进攻会显得格外拥挤，效率也会严重下滑。（也许拥有西班牙射手马特-托马斯的第二阵容能够缓解这方面的尴尬。）
Barring surprising leaps from those second-draft reclamation projects, or Anunoby bouncing back to break through following a difficult sophomore season, the Raptors will likely go as far as their post-Kawhi core can carry them. But three key members of that core—franchise linchpin Kyle Lowry, plus centers Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka—are now on expiring contracts. Will Ujiri look to flip his established veterans for young talent or future draft assets to accelerate a 2020 rebuild around Siakam, fresh off a Most Improved Player campaign and now expected to author a superstar-caliber encore? (How Toronto handles coming contract talks with the extension-eligible Siakam also bears watching.) Or will Ujiri give his holdover champions the chance to defend their title, taking a one-season victory lap on the off chance that the Raptors’ remnant is potent enough to make another deep run in a reconfigured East?
除非能够在二轮秀中淘到宝，或者阿奴诺比能够从艰难的二年级赛季反弹，猛龙还是可能需要他们在“后卡哇伊”时代的核心球员能够带领球队。但是核心中的三个关键成员：洛瑞、加索尔和伊巴卡都处于合同的最后一年。乌杰里是否会放弃这些老将，换来年轻球员或未来选秀权，以西亚卡姆这名进步最快球员为核心来进行2020重建计划，并期望西亚卡姆能够成长为下一个巨星？（猛龙将如何处理与西亚卡姆的提前续约仍然有待观察。）或者乌杰里会给他的冠军队员们一个卫冕的机会，看猛龙剩余的这些球员是否有能力走出这个重塑的东部？
The bet here: Faced with comparatively limited trade markets for a trio of high-priced 10-plus-year vets with more than 2,700 combined games under their belts, Toronto will pursue a seventh straight playoff appearance and the chance to at least make any would-be usurpers earn the crown. The line between running it back and hitting the reset button might be vanishingly thin, though; should an opportunity to kick-start the renovation present itself, it’ll be interesting to see how long Ujiri’s willing to stand on sentiment.
赌注：合计打了2700场比赛的三名10年以上的老将，交易前景相对受限，猛龙选择和他们一起追逐连续第七次季后赛之旅以及成为总冠军的机会。前进与重建之间的距离也许就只有肉眼不可见的那么一点点，重建的机会就在一念之间，不知道乌杰里的情怀能够维持多久。
原文链接：
https://www.theringer.com/nba/2019/7/18/20698813/interesting-teams-post-free-agency
个人公众号：NBA英文翻译爱好者，求勾搭！
