火箭 調整方向 重新起航!

There was some logic to bringing in Carmelo. Houston could use a bigger forward to share some burden for Harden and Paul, which would make their lives easier not only in the regular season but when they face elite defenses in the playoffs. But Carmelo was never a well-rounded player even in his prime, hasn't been able to adjust his game to his declining athleticism.

起初引進卡梅洛是符合邏輯的。休斯頓火箭隊可以用一個更強力的前鋒來分擔哈登和保羅的一些負擔，這不僅會讓他們在常規賽打得更容易，而且能讓他們在季後賽面對精英防守時也更輕鬆。但是，卡梅洛即使在他的巔峯時期也從來都不是一個全面的球員，現在也無法調整他的比賽風格來適應他不斷下降的運動能力。

The 34-year-old can no longer beat defenders off the dribble, and he's not reliable enough as a spot-up shooter or BAll mover to be effective in a smaller role on offense, and his poor defense makes him almost unplayable.

這位34歲的男人已經無法通過運球擊破防守者，而且他作爲一名定點投手或傳球人也不夠可靠，無法在更小的進攻端角色中保持效率，他糟糕的防守讓他幾乎無法保證上場時間。

D'Antoni has never liked going deep into his bench. Even at the height of the Seven Seconds or Less era in Phoenix, he still didn't play more than seven or eight players. The early struggles of Carmelo and Carter-Williams only confirmed something he already believed.

德安東尼從來都不喜歡重用他的板凳球員。即使在鳳凰城“七秒鐘或更短”的鼎盛時期，他仍然沒有讓超過七八個球員打一場比賽。卡梅隆和卡特-威廉姆斯早期的掙扎只是讓德帥進一步證實了自己的想法。

After a disastrous 98–80 loss in Carmelo's return to Oklahoma City last week, D'Antoni circled the wagons, cutting his rotation to eight players and forgetting any idea of diversifying the offense. The Rockets, like a band who tried and failed to change their signature sound, went back to playing the hits.

在上週卡梅羅回到俄克拉荷馬城以98 - 80慘敗後，德安東尼開始嚴陣以待，將他的輪換減少到8名球員，忘掉了進攻多樣化的想法。火箭隊，就像一支試圖改變他們的標誌性聲音卻失敗了的樂隊，又回到了演奏熱門歌曲的行列。

There's one dark cloud in the Rockets' suddenly bright forecast. It's not even Thanksgiving, and they are leaning on Paul more than ever. He's averaging more minutes (34.6) and shots per game (14.2) than last season, and his usage rate (24.0) is only half a percentage point lower.

火箭隊突然稍顯光明的預測中，仍有一片烏雲。現在還不到感恩節，他們比以往任何時候都更加依賴保羅。他的平均上場時間( 34.6分鐘)和投籃次數( 14.2次)比上賽季多，他的使用率( 24.0次)也只低了半個百分點。

The hope was that the Rockets could keep Paul in neutral for most of the regular season and ramp him up in the playoffs. Instead, they may have to run him into the ground just to get themselves back to where they were last season.

希望火箭能在常規賽的大部分時間裏讓保羅保持中規中矩的出場時間，並在季後賽中再重用他。可與此相反，他們可能現在就需要保羅全力以赴，只爲讓球隊回到上賽季的狀態。

Even beating the Warriors won't be enough to win a title. The Eastern Conference is tougher than it has been in a long time.

即使擊敗勇士也不足以贏得冠軍。長期羸弱的東部，現在也越發厲害。

One of the keys to Houston's turnaround has been a few younger players who have thrived in more limited roles around Harden and Paul. Ennis, a 28-year-old journeyman on his fifth team in five seasons, has fit comfortably into Ariza's former role.

休斯頓火箭好轉的關鍵之一是一些年輕球員，他們在哈登和保羅身邊，角色有限但表現不俗。28歲的恩尼斯是一名5個賽季輾轉5個球隊的流浪漢，現在他已經很好地補充了阿里扎以前的角色。

At 6-foot-7 and 210 pounds, he has the size and speed to match up with players at multiple positions, and he can knock down enough 3s (he's shooting 39.5 percent on 3.9 attempts per game this season) to keep the defense honest.

身高6英尺7英寸，體重210磅，他有足夠的身高和速度與多個位置的球員對位，並且他可以刷下足夠的三分球(本賽季他場均投籃3.9次，命中率爲39.5 % )讓對方防守人不敢小視他。

The whole point of paying Paul and Harden a combined $66 million this season is their ability to lift the games of guys like Ennis.

這個賽季付給保羅和哈登總共6600萬美元的全部意義，就在於他們有能力提升像恩尼斯這些球員的表現。

All of the pieces in Houston now fit together. Harden and Paul take turns running pick-and-rolls with Capela, while Ennis and P.J. Tucker spread the floor and take the toughest assignments on defense.

火箭隊的所有球員現在都一同互相適應了。哈登、保羅輪流和卡佩拉一起做擋拆，而恩尼斯和P . J .塔克則負責防守和拉空間，承擔着最苦最累的任務。

Gordon brings scoring punch off the bench, with Gary Clark, an undrafted free agent on a two-way contract, and Isaiah Hartenstein, the no. 43 overall pick in the 2017 draft, filling out the rotation. Clark and Hartenstein, like Ennis, know exactly what is asked of them on both ends of the floor.

戈登也能從替補席站出來補充得分火力，而加里·克拉克則是一個雙向合同中的落選秀，以賽亞·哈滕斯坦恩是2017年選秀中的第43名，他們填補了輪換。克拉克與哈滕斯坦恩，都像恩尼斯一樣，之分清楚球隊需要自己做什麼。

Clark, who will likely have his contract converted, is a tough defender who can hit spot-up 3s, and Hartenstein has done just enough in his nine minutes per game as a backup center to keep Capela fresh.

克拉克的合同很可能轉爲保障，他是一名強硬的防守者，也能定點三分跳投，而哈滕斯坦恩作爲替補中鋒，在每場9分鐘的上場時間裏做了足夠多的努力來給卡佩拉爭取休息時間。

Houston doesn't have to make a move. It can hope to be healthy enough in June to take advantage of any drama or injuries in Golden State. It's hard to see the franchise standing pat, though. Rockets GM Daryl Morey is one of the most aggressive executives in the NBA, and the window to win while paying Paul $40 million a season will close soon.

火箭隊不必輕舉妄動。它可以希望在六月份足夠健康，坐觀金州勇士的種種內亂與傷病，以此作爲優勢。然而，管理層其實不太可能就這麼按兵不動。火箭總經理達雷爾-莫雷是NBA中最具侵略性的高管之一，每個賽季付給保羅4000萬美元的同時，贏得比賽的窗口也將很快關閉。

Carmelo was a low-risk gamble that didn't pay off, but that doesn't mean that Morey shouldn't try again. The Rockets have the pieces to be right there with the Warriors. They need one more to push them over the top.

卡梅隆是一場低風險的賭博，從中沒有回報，但這並不意味着莫雷不應該再試一次。火箭隊擁有能和勇士隊一同對抗的的出色球員，他們只要最後一個拼圖來把他們推向冠軍之巔。

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