Most of those I've polled around the NBA are picking the Lakers to depose the champion Celtics in June, based on the return of center Andrew Bynum and L.A.'s intimidating depth around league MVP Kobe Bryant. When Luke Walton is unable to make the nine-man rotation, you know you've got a deep team.
我在NBA范围内做了个调查，大部分人都认为湖人会在明年6月从凯尔特人手中夺回冠军，根据是拜纳姆的伤愈回归，还有以新科MVP科比布莱恩特为核心的湖人恐怖阵容，连卢克沃顿都不能进入9人运转阵容，可想而知，湖人的实力有多深厚。
But depth is a secondary issue when your starters are overwhelmed, as the Lakers were by the Celtics' three stars last June. Ever since their 131-92 walloping in Game 6 of the Finals, the transcendent issue has been whether the Lakers have enough star power to overcome the Boston threesome of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen. When I asked last week whether the Lakers can win without developing Pau Gasol as a No. 2 star, the question was answered with a roll of the eyes by Phil Jackson.
但当你的正选被制服时，你的板凳深度就只是次要的因素了，就像今年6月被凯子的三巨头抑制那样。当他们在总决赛第6场以92比131告负时，最大的问题就是湖人到底有没有足够的明星力量去抵御由加内特，皮尔斯，和雷阿伦组成的三人组。上个星期当我问到如果没有把加索尔提升到第二号球星，湖人还能不能赢的时候，菲尔杰克逊用一个白眼回答了我。
"Anybody who doesn't see the value in this player as a No. 2 scorer and a No. 2 player on this team really doesn't understand the value he has as a player,'' Jackson said in reference to Gasol. "It's easy to underestimate, [but] he's shooting a high percentage, his free-throw shooting is great. He passes the basketball, he does a lot of great things for us. And until we move up to that championship bracket and win it, then people will appreciate exactly what he does.''
谈到枷锁，杰克逊说：“如果没看到他作为第二号得分手和球队2号人物的价值的话，那么你真的就不会理解他作为一个球员的价值了。人们很容易会低估他，但是他有高的命中率，罚球也很准，还能传球，他为我们做了很多的事情，人们会在我们争夺冠军并赢下冠军的时刻才会真的感激他真正做了什么。”
In other words, only when he has a ring on his finger will Gasol be recognized as a star capable of winning at the highest level. That's how it worked for Scottie Pippen.
换句话说，只有当加索尔手戴冠军戒指时人们才会承认他是能赢得最高等级比赛的球星，皮蓬当时的情况也是这样。
This is not meant to be a referendum on Gasol. The point can be made (see below) that he is just now exploring his first opportunity to show his talent in the NBA. In the meantime, however, Bryant understands where I'm coming from. When I put the same question to him -- does he need the support of another star, or can he win with a committee of very good players -- he was quick to answer.
这并不是要为枷锁来个全面公投，能说明的就是他正有个机会来展示在这个NBA舞台的能力。同时，科比也明白我想要知道的是什么。当我把同样的问题扔给他的时候，问题是：他是需要另一位超级巨星的帮助还是一群出色的队友，他做出了快速的回答。
"It can be by committee,'' he said. "It's just a matter of having players who make the defense do something. If you have a [secondary] player who makes the defense adjust, then you have a team that can win the championship. That's really the key: You have another guy on the floor that teams have to focus on and pay attention to, and that gives you pretty good balance.''
他说：“我选择团队能力吧，我们得有一些球员能牵制防守，如果你有个2号人物能够做到这一点，那么你这支队伍就能赢得冠军，那真的很关键：你队里有另外一个队友能够吸引对方的注意，那样会给你的队伍带来很好的形势。”
Bryant understands the recent history of the league as well as anyone. Since Magic Johnson and Larry Bird recast the NBA in 1979-80, only two of the 29 championships have been won by a team with fewer than two stars (including at least one top 10 player). The 1993-94 Rockets won with Hakeem Olajuwon surrounded by rookie Sam Cassell, second-year forward Robert Horry and other very good players. The exceptional 2003-04 Pistons won without one traditional superstar -- the only such champion since the Magic/Bird era began -- though they had Ben Wallace dominating at the defensive end and the all-around talents of Rasheed Wallace to go with the emerging Chauncey Billups and Rip Hamilton.
科比跟其他人一样了解联盟的历史规律。打从魔术师与大鸟在1979-80赛季为NBA洗新革命后，29次的冠军队里就只有两只拥有少于两个超级明星（至少是排名前10的球星）的队伍。1993-94火箭夺冠，是奥拉朱旺带着当时还是新秀的山姆卡塞尔和2年级生罗伯特霍里还有其他优秀的球员勇夺冠军。而最例外的是03-04赛季的活塞队夺冠之时却没有一个传统的超级巨星---这是魔术师大鸟时代后的唯一一次---虽然他们拥有在防守端独挡一面的本华莱士，和技术全面的拉希德华莱士，还有崭露头角的比卢普斯和汉密尔顿。
In 2002-03, the Spurs won with Tim Duncan and David Robinson, who averaged 8.5 points and 7.9 rebounds in his retirement year. They were accompanied by the 21-year-old Tony Parker and 25-year-old rookie Manu Ginobili, who did not put up All-Star numbers that year yet made big plays in the Finals reflective of the future Hall of Famers they have become (at least I view them as likely to make the HOF, though many readers accuse me of giving Parker and/or Ginobili too much credit). I view those '03 Spurs, in hindsight, as a three-star outfit of Duncan-Parker-Ginobili, similar to the makeup of the current Celtics.
在02-03赛季时，马刺在双塔的带领下夺得冠军，大卫罗伯逊在他退休那年场均得到8.5分和7.9个篮板，阵容中还拥有21岁的帕克和25岁的新秀吉诺比利，这俩小伙子虽没打出全明星的数据，但在当年的总决赛上的锋芒已经影射他们会成为名人堂的成员（至少我认为他们会踏进名人堂，即使很多读者怪我对他们俩评价太高了。）事后，我认为03年那届马刺的三驾马车（邓肯，吉诺比利，帕克）跟如今的凯尔特人三巨头很相似。
How does all of this relate to the Lakers? Throughout last season's Finals, the Celtics were able to triangulate their defense on Bryant because no other Laker scared them. Gasol, Lamar Odom and Derek Fisher weren't able to consistently punish the Celtics for their concentrated efforts to hold Bryant to 25.7 points on 40.5 percent shooting (down from 51.4 percent for 31.9 points over the opening three playoff rounds). That series confirmed that Bryant must lead the Lakers in an untraditional way.
那么这些跟湖人有啥关系呢？通过上次的总决赛可以看出，凯子敢于对科比进行3人包夹，因为他们不惧怕其他的湖人队员。加索尔，奥多姆和费舍尔在凯子集中精力限制科比的得分和命中率分别在25.7分和40.5%的时候，都没能让凯子尝些苦头（季后前三轮科比的命中率和得分是51.4%和31.9分）。那个系列赛证明了科比得带领湖人队以非正规的方式来回击。
"In a lot of ways, I've got to do a little bit of what Michael and Scottie had to do, you know what I mean?'' he said.
他说：“从很多方面讲，我有点象包办了乔丹和皮蓬该做的事情了，你知道我的意思吗？”
For all six of his championships, Jordan had a complementary star in Pippen who could make plays on his own.
乔丹的6个冠军里，他拥有那位可以一夫当关的好帮手—皮蓬。
"Right,'' Bryant said. "Scottie was the quarterback. Michael was more of the scorer. I've got to do a little bit of both. It's not necessarily like a point guard role; it's like a quarterback. You've got to go through a series of options with your team to make sure you set this guy up or that guy up.''
科比说：“没错，皮蓬是4号位，而乔丹是个得分手，我就得都做他们俩做的事情，这完全是控卫该做的工作，更象是4号位该做的，你得尝试着各种各样的选择来确保你让所有人都参与进来。”
Bryant is dedicating this season to raising the confidence of Gasol and others.
科比这赛季牺牲个人的数据来提高枷锁和其他队友的自信心。
"That's a big part of what we do around here,'' he said. "You see me step back a lot and develop Pau and Drew [Bynum] and Lamar and some of these guys to where they become serious threats. With Boston, you've got to focus on Garnett, you've got to focus on Paul Pierce, you've got to focus on Ray Allen coming off the screens, so when you're focusing on one or two, it gives the third one a chance to bust you up.''
他说：“这就是我们现在专注的一个很关键的情况，你看我都拉开了位置，让枷锁，拜纳姆还有其他人去造成威胁。对于凯子来说，你得看住加内特，皮尔斯，还有雷阿伦，他会突然从人堆里冒出来，所以当你侧重于其中的一个或两个时，那第三个就会跑出来制造麻烦了。”
The mistake -- as identified by Jackson -- will be to underestimate Gasol's star potential. This is the first time in eight NBA seasons that he has been paired with a true center, with Bynum relieving him of the heavy work in the paint.
正如禅师所指出来的，人们低估了枷锁潜在的能力。这是他8年NBA职业生涯首次搭档真正的中锋，拜纳姆让他减轻了好重的负担。
"I've been always trying to fight guys physically who are bigger and mostly stronger than me,'' Gasol said of his previous roles with the Grizzlies and last season with the Lakers in Bynum's absence. "I now have a chance to move out and pick up my old habits and my old skills, so it should be fun.''
枷锁谈到先前在灰熊时候的角色还有就是由于拜纳姆的回归的角色转变，他说：“我总是得去扛那些比我强壮多的球员，我现在终于有机会可以解脱，并且重操旧业了，这会很好的。”
Gasol has been one of the world's dominant players in the summer FIBA tournaments, with the freedom to exploit seams and mismatches on the perimeter and near the basket while leading Spain to the 2006 World Championship gold medal and the Olympic silver last summer. Now he can be liberated in between the bookends of Bynum on the post and Bryant on the perimeter. Gasol ranks second on the Lakers with 17.5 points and 3.4 assists while leading the team with 9.4 rebounds and 34.4 minutes. At 28, expect him to grow into this expansive role as the season progresses.
在国际篮联夏天的系列比赛里，枷锁无疑是世界顶尖的球员，他能自由地在罚球线和篮筐附近产生巨大杀伤力，带领西班牙夺得06世锦赛冠军和北京奥运的亚军。如今内线有拜纳姆，外线有科比，枷锁被解放出来了，他场均得到球队第二高的17.5分，和3.4个助攻。而他的9.4个篮板和34.4的上场时间则是全队最高。今年28岁的他，希望能够随着赛季进行，在这个发展空间很大的角色里能够发光发热。
If the playoffs turn into a three-man game, then the Lakers aren't going to beat the Spurs or the Celtics. Their goal is to develop Gasol, Bynum and Odom (leading the second unit) as playmakers who can create for themselves or others when Bryant is swamped. This remains a young team -- only Fisher, 34, is older than the 30-year old Bryant -- but Kobe has given them four months to figure it out.
如果季后赛就靠三个人来打的话，那么湖人可能打不过马刺或者凯子。他们的目标是把枷锁，拜纳姆和奥多姆（带领第二集团）进化成能为自己或其他人创造机会的整体，特别是当科比低迷的时候。他们还是一只年轻化的球队，只有34岁的费舍尔年长过30岁的科比—但是，科比已经给了他们4个月时间去磨合了。
"Our mind-set is let's go get it and let's go get it now,'' said Bryant. "We don't know about next year. All we care about is right now.''
科比说：“我们的信念就是‘现在就干吧，现在就把冠军拿下，因为我们不知道下一年情况是怎样，我们只关心这个赛季。’”
