Ethan Sherwood Strauss

When I sat down with Kent Bazemore a few days before he signed with the Atlanta Hawks for two years， $4 million， I assumed hed be caught up in the frenzy like so many of us NBA news addicts. I figured Bazemores fingerprints would be callused from keeping up with news on Twitter all week. Hes no LeBron James， but Id seen Bazemore mentioned in so many freeagency rumors that Id just believed his entire existence had been reduced to a swirl of confusing speculation. The rangy， athletic guard probably couldnt get his arms around all the rumors， even with a 6-foot-11 wingspan.

在肯特·貝茲摩爾和老鷹簽下兩年400萬(wàn)美元新合同之前的幾天，我和他坐在了一起。我以為他會(huì)像很多人一樣對(duì)新聞上癮，會(huì)受到瘋狂交易流言的影響。我以為貝茲摩爾的手指會(huì)因?yàn)樘焯焖⑼铺匦侣劧コ隼O子。他不是勒布朗·詹姆斯，但我在很多自由球員的流言中都看到了他的名字，我覺(jué)得他也是這一團(tuán)迷霧中的一分子。盡管他的臂展長(zhǎng)達(dá)2.11米，但關(guān)于他的所有流言，這個(gè)瘦高且運(yùn)動(dòng)能力出眾的后衛(wèi)可能兩只手都“抱不過(guò)來(lái)”。

Not quite. Bazemore wasnt checking Twitter -- he says he glances at it roughly once a day， usually in the afternoon. “You cant control it，” was his succinct answer for why he doesnt obsess over the transaction game. Also， he has people to do that for him.

但事實(shí)情況跟我想的不太一樣。貝茲摩爾沒(méi)看推特，他說(shuō)自己一天大概只會(huì)草草瀏覽一次，一般是在下午?！澳憧刂撇涣?。”對(duì)于為什么不在意交易流言，他給出了這樣簡(jiǎn)潔的回答。當(dāng)然，有人專門為他做這種事。

"We got a group chat， me and my roommate， my little brother， my agent， financial advisor， two of my other best friends，”Bazemore said. “They just rant on about that stuff all day. I just watch the Tour de France， I play FIFA downstairs. I actually won the Scottish Premier Cup with my team just now right before you got here.”

“我們有個(gè)群，里面有我、我的室友、弟弟、經(jīng)紀(jì)人、經(jīng)濟(jì)顧問(wèn)，以及兩個(gè)我的好友?！必惼澞栒f(shuō)，“他們天天都在說(shuō)這事。我就是看環(huán)法，在樓下打FIFA。就在你來(lái)之前，我剛剛用自己的球隊(duì)贏得了蘇超聯(lián)賽的冠軍?！?/p>

Its easy to forget athletes are more than skill sets on the court. They get approached by fans who know them only from their games. Though a bench player for most of his career， Bazemore gets recognized. Sadly， that recognition doesnt come with praise of his stellar FIFA play， his golf game， or his recent painting of an eye-shaped sun setting itself over an ocean.

我們很容易就忘記了，其實(shí)運(yùn)動(dòng)員擁有的能力并不只局限在場(chǎng)上。他們接觸到的都是只了解他們比賽的球迷。盡管職業(yè)生涯大部分時(shí)候只是替補(bǔ)，但貝茲摩爾還是得到了認(rèn)可?？杀У氖?，這并不包括對(duì)他高超F(xiàn)IFA游戲水平、杰出高爾夫水準(zhǔn)，以及繪畫天賦的認(rèn)可。貝茲摩爾最近才完成了一張畫，畫里的海面上有一個(gè)眼睛狀的東西。

Paintings aside， Bazemores Bay Area apartment was something more spartan than youd expect from an player， which makes sense when you consider his transient lifestyle. After getting traded to Los Angeles， hed been living out of a hotel near the practice facility. Though he maintains strong ties with the Warriors organization， he wasnt expecting the kind of offer from Golden State that would keep him in this Oakland-area apartment.

拋開(kāi)繪畫不說(shuō)，貝茲摩爾位于灣區(qū)的公寓也遠(yuǎn)比你想象中，球員的家要簡(jiǎn)單，如果你想到他不斷變動(dòng)的生活方式，一切也就可以理解了。被交易到湖人后，他住在了訓(xùn)練館附近的一家酒店。雖說(shuō)他和勇士保持著緊密聯(lián)系，但他并不覺(jué)得勇士會(huì)給他開(kāi)出合同，并讓他留在這套位于奧克蘭的公寓里。

Bazemore had gotten back from Atlanta the night before， where hed met with Danny Ferry， Darvin Ham and others in the Hawks organization. It was more like a classic job interview than anything we associate with the NBA， but he enjoyed what can be a nervewracking process for others. Unlike what happens on Twitter， theres a degree of control in a face-to-face meeting. “A lot of guys cant hold a conversation，” Bazemore said. He knows he can， and appreciates the chance to set himself apart.

前一天晚上，貝茲摩爾剛剛從亞特蘭大回家，他在亞特蘭大見(jiàn)到了丹尼·費(fèi)里、達(dá)文·哈姆以及老鷹的其他人。相比我們了解的NBA，這更像是一次傳統(tǒng)的工作面試，但貝茲摩爾卻很喜歡這個(gè)在有些人看來(lái)無(wú)比緊張的過(guò)程。跟推特上發(fā)生的事情不一樣，面對(duì)面交談時(shí)，一切都在控制中?！昂芏嗳瞬粫?huì)交談?！必惼澞栒f(shuō)，他知道自己有這個(gè)能力，而且很高興有機(jī)會(huì)讓自己與眾不同。

What becomes apparent with Bazemore is that he has more energy than you. Its not a coincidence that his sideline celebrations were known as the leagues most elaborate. Though hes coming off foot surgery， his days include 20-mile bike rides. On weekends， he tends to go over 40 miles when biking with his girlfriend in the East Bay Hills.

讓貝茲摩爾和普通人不同的是，他比你們更有活力。所以說(shuō)，他在板凳上的慶祝動(dòng)作在全聯(lián)盟最富盛名，這也不是什么巧合。盡管剛做完腳部手術(shù)，但他一天還是會(huì)騎20英里的自行車。周末時(shí)，他會(huì)和女朋友一起在東灣山里騎上40英里。

Hes drawn to the fatigue， addicted to the point at which a body no longer functions."Youll be in the middle of a bike ride and youre just like， man， I dont know if I can turn another rep.”

他喜歡疲勞的感覺(jué)，對(duì)那種身體無(wú)法再繼續(xù)運(yùn)轉(zhuǎn)的感覺(jué)上癮。“騎到一半，你會(huì)有種，老天，我不知道還能不能蹬動(dòng)車子的感覺(jué)。”

"Do you like that， though？" I ask. A Tour de France race is on TV， and it looks like torture with consent.

“你喜歡這感覺(jué)？”我問(wèn)道。電視上正播著環(huán)法，那看上去就是一種自愿的折磨。

The response is fast and unambiguous. "I love it. I love it. I love it. I love it.”

他的回答快而明了，“我愛(ài)死，愛(ài)死了，愛(ài)死了，愛(ài)死了?！?/p>

His attention turns to the cyclists suffering at the craggy hands of a French mountain. Hes updating me， filling me in on which guys are running on fumes， which guys are about to fall from the pack. Hes keyed in on the process of exhaustion.

正在被法國(guó)崎嶇高山折磨的騎手此時(shí)吸引了他的注意力，他在給我做實(shí)時(shí)講解，告訴我哪些人體力正佳，哪些人就要被大部隊(duì)甩開(kāi)了。他關(guān)注著整個(gè)煎熬的過(guò)程。

He might be a little jealous. Bazemore said he wished hed gotten to run in even more unglamorous D-League games last season. He just wanted to play. He always wants to play.

也許他有些嫉妒了。貝茲摩爾說(shuō)，他希望上賽季能在沒(méi)人關(guān)注的發(fā)展聯(lián)盟打球，因?yàn)樗幌氪蚯颍肋h(yuǎn)都想打球。

Bazemore believes its what carried him to the NBA. In the beginning， his skills didnt seem to presage an NBA career. "I sucked，” he said. “I was terrible all the way up until eighth grade. When it was time to go to AAU camps， I would score， like， six points in a weekend.”

貝茲摩爾相信，這就是讓他在NBA立足的根本。最開(kāi)始，貝茲摩爾的技術(shù)夠不上NBA級(jí)?！拔液軤€?！彼f(shuō)，“直到8年級(jí)，我所有的方面都很爛。能參加AAU的訓(xùn)練營(yíng)時(shí)，我能得的分也就是一周末6分的水平。”

But his mom kept bringing him， and he kept improving. "Ive been a pretty optimistic guy my entire life，” he said. “Especially where I come from， optimism really helps you." Bazemore grew up in Kelford， North Carolina， a tiny town where the per capita income is less than $10，000 per year. His family struggled."No heat in the winter， no air conditioning in the summer， food gets scarce. Four people in the house and my dad got laid off and my mom was the only one making any money.”

但媽媽不斷鼓勵(lì)他，他也在持續(xù)進(jìn)步?！拔乙惠呑佣际莻€(gè)挺樂(lè)觀的人?！彼f(shuō)，“尤其考慮到我的出身，樂(lè)觀真的能幫助自己?！必惼澞柕募彝ナ潜笨_來(lái)納的科爾福德，那是一個(gè)小鎮(zhèn)，人均年收入不到一萬(wàn)美元。他們一家生活得很艱苦?！岸鞗](méi)有暖氣，夏天沒(méi)有空調(diào)，吃的東西不夠。家里有四口人，我爸爸丟掉了工作，我媽媽是唯一掙錢的人?！?/p>

The desperation of that situation was integral to getting him here， to a point where multiple NBA teams call for his services. "Thats why I applaud people like Steph [Curry]，”Bazemore explains. He doesnt understand how anyone gets here without the hunger of poverty. So in some ways his good friend Stephen Curry， a man from comfortable means， is a mystery.

那種生活環(huán)境帶來(lái)的絕望是支持貝茲摩爾走到現(xiàn)在的內(nèi)在原因之一，現(xiàn)在有多支NBA球隊(duì)想要簽下他?！斑@就是為什么我贊賞斯蒂芬（庫(kù)里）的原因?！必惼澞柦忉尩?。他無(wú)法理解，那些沒(méi)有對(duì)貧窮的恐懼，而走到現(xiàn)在的其他人。所以，從某種程度上說(shuō)，他的好朋友斯蒂芬·庫(kù)里，一個(gè)出身富裕人家的人，對(duì)他來(lái)說(shuō)就像一個(gè)謎。

Bazemore used that hunger to get here， but theres a downside to the trait he trusts. That gnawing energy took him to a place where energy couldnt help him： the bench. At times， he was miserable riding pine. People loved his sideline celebrations， but those were as much expressions of frustration as they were of joy. He was antsy in his seat. “I went to a dark place，” Bazemore recalled of his DNPs. “You can contain the tiger in the cage for so long.”

利用這種渴望，貝茲摩爾走到了今天。可他信賴的這些特質(zhì)也有不利的一面?；盍⑺麕У搅艘粋€(gè)活力也無(wú)法幫助他的境地：板凳席。有時(shí)候，他過(guò)得非常痛苦。人們喜歡他在板凳席上的慶祝，可那些慶祝更像是沮喪的發(fā)泄，而不是快樂(lè)的宣泄。他在板凳上坐立不安。“我進(jìn)入了黑暗地帶。”回憶自己無(wú)法得到上場(chǎng)機(jī)會(huì)時(shí)，貝茲摩爾說(shuō)道，“你也只能把老虎關(guān)在籠子里那么久?！?/p>

Theres a cruelty to how a lifetime of physical preparation can lead to spectating， eons of interminable waiting. Its the plight of the many players we dont see in commercials or All-Star Games. Bazemore has an intense desire to use what got him to the top of his profession. Maybe hell get opportunity with a fun， floor-spacing Hawks team.

幾乎用人生所有時(shí)間做準(zhǔn)備，等來(lái)的卻是永久的旁觀和漫長(zhǎng)的等待，這太殘忍。對(duì)于我們?cè)谌餍菑V告里看不到的球員，這就是他們的生活。貝茲摩爾迫切想利用將自己帶上職業(yè)生涯巔峰的能力，也許在輕松、注重拉開(kāi)球場(chǎng)空間的老鷹，他能得到這個(gè)機(jī)會(huì)。