詳析歐文離開騎士的原因

Kyrie Irving and LeBron James were always an arranged marriage. So if there is ever any confusion over why Irving demanded a trade from the Cleveland Cavaliers and no longer wants to play with James anymore, just understand: Irving never asked for this. James did all of the arranging.

凱里-歐文和勒布朗-詹姆斯一直都是一場“包辦婚姻”。這也就解釋了爲什麼歐文希望離開詹姆斯，希望騎士把他交易走：他從沒主動要求過和詹姆斯在一起打球，這件事是詹姆斯一手促成的。

Irving never would've been in position to clinch a title in Game 7 with that swinging, one-legged 3-pointer, never would've been able to hug the Larry O'Brien trophy or ride around shirtless along East 9th Street for a championship parade before his 25th birthday

如果詹姆斯不曾決定離開熱火加入騎士，那麼歐文不會站上總決賽搶七的舞臺，命中那個鎖定總冠軍的三分，不會有機會觸摸奧布萊恩杯，更不會坐上奪冠遊行的花車。

if James hadn't decided that the best place to spend the post-Miami portion of his career was back home in Cleveland with an electrifying point guard whose ridiculous handles brought him almost everything except wins.

如果詹姆斯沒有回騎士，歐文靠着他那華麗的技術，仍會拿到所有該拿到的榮譽——除了勝利。

But James chose Irving. It wasn't the other way around. And that's something Irving always had to grapple with over the past three seasons as a reluctant sidekick.

但詹姆斯選擇了歐文。這並不是一次突然反轉。過去三個賽季，歐文一直都因爲自己“詹姆斯小弟”的身份而掙扎。

While James' presence elevated him to stages where Irving always felt he belonged and where he might still be hustling to reach, it came at tremendous cost in other areas that mattered to Irving.

儘管詹姆斯帶着他踏上了他夢寐以求的舞臺，但與此同時歐文也很在意要付出的代價。

James' homecoming in 2014 was celebrated nationally – and especially in Northeast Ohio – but it forced Irving to surrender a franchise to which he committed by signing a five-year extension two weeks before "The Decision II" and that, for as lousy as it was at the time, belonged to him.

2014年詹姆斯“回家”時，球迷們，尤其是俄亥俄州的人們，大家都在慶祝。而在詹姆斯做出決定前的兩週，歐文就已經和騎士簽下了爲期五年的續約合同。所以歐文別無選擇，只能和詹姆斯在一起打完接下來的幾個賽季。

Irving made headlines All-Star weekend in New Orleans last February, revealing a quirky side he often conceals, when he shared his ridiculous belief that the world is flat (an argument from which he still has yet to back away).

去年，歐文入選了東部全明星，隨後在全明星週末成爲了輿論焦點：他認爲地球是平的（他現在仍支持這一觀點）。

During that weekend, Irving also spoke about what it meant to have James join the Cavaliers at a time when he was still trying to understand the responsibilities of a leader and potential franchise player.

在那個週末，歐文談到了詹姆斯回騎士對他的影響。歐文當時簽下了新合同，正準備做騎士的領袖，騎士的特權球員。

"I was trying to figure it out all at once, so it took a while. It didn't look perfect. A lot of the arrogance that I had, and aura I had, I had to let go of completely," Irving said.

“我當時想弄清楚這件事，想了很長時間。這事並不完美。我必須得放下我的自傲，放下我的氣場，完全放下，”歐文說，

"And let go of that complete ego, the selfishness that we all want to have and being that player every single night. The truth is, you can still be that player with other great players, you've just got to think about how to do that."

“得完全放下那份有點自私的驕傲——那種成爲每場比賽中獨一無二的球員的抱負。事實是，在偉大的球員身邊，你仍可以表現出色，但你得想想法子才行。”

In his mind, Irving is a leading man. But he would never get the starring role in a show that James is writing and directing. He'd always be eclipsed.

在歐文看來，自己就是球隊的老大。但有詹姆斯在，他永遠也當不上主角。他一直都相形見絀。

The Mamba Mentality that pushed Irving to challenge Kobe Bryant to a game of one-on-one before he made his NBA debut and to later hit the biggest shot in Cavaliers franchise history is the same one that made him anxious for the moment when he would finally stop having to defer.

他所擁有的那種“曼巴精神”推動着還是新秀的他去和科比單挑，推動了他去命中那個載入史冊的三分，最終推動他停止服從安排。

The wins were fun but they weren't enough, because they came with so much extra James sauce – an angry glare for looking him off, an eye roll for a missed defensive assignment and a sometimes joyless atmosphere, especially in the early, dramatic days of this union.

贏球是很棒，但贏球也要承受很多來自詹姆斯的壓力，尤其是在三巨頭成立之初：會因爲沒傳給空位球員而被瞪，會因爲防守失位而被翻白眼，會不時處在沒什麼樂趣的氛圍中。

James and Irving butted heads at times on the floor. And, other times off the court, James struggled to get Irving on board with his other teammates. Though he accepted it, Irving resented being the little brother.

在場上，詹姆斯和歐文還會經常互相碰碰額頭，但到了場下，歐文不像其他隊員那樣容易召集到。詹姆斯也承認，歐文不喜歡做別人的小弟。

After Cleveland upset the Golden State Warriors with that thrilling comeback from a 3-1 deficit in 2016, James and Irving were on such good terms that coach Tyronn Lue could crack jokes about the two of them fighting without igniting the next controversy or having anyone take it seriously.

2016年騎士完成對勇士1-3的大逆轉後，在泰倫-盧教練的安排下，詹姆斯和歐文的關係非常不錯，他們不介意誰是球隊老大，也從不認真去想這件事。

But after the Cavaliers lost in five games to the Warriors in a three-match that feels a lot longer ago than last month given this wild NBA offseason, that relationship seems to be more transactional than transformative. If they can't help each other win, then why do they need each other anymore?

但今年騎士輸給了勇士，自由市場又颳起大風大浪，他們兩人的關係變得充滿變數。既然他們在一塊不能贏球，那還何必繼續在一起呢？

The Cavaliers are the best team in the Eastern Conference with James and Irving on the same side. But James, at age 32 and chasing Michael Jordan's ghost, is in a championship-or-bust portion of his career when second place isn't good enough.

在東部，有詹姆斯和歐文的騎士是真正的霸主。但詹姆斯已經32歲，他不滿於當前的歷史地位，而想追上喬丹。

And Irving, at age 25 and still trying to establish himself amongst the current NBA hierarchy, is in the I've-already-won portion of his career when being second fiddle is no longer the ideal scenario.

而歐文才25歲，他仍需要證明自己，繼續做球隊的二當家已經不是他的最佳選擇。

James' decision to return to the Cavaliers caught Irving off guard but now this is his chance to return the favor with a stunning power move of his own. Irving, for once, got out ahead of James, who has strategically been setting the stage for his second Cleveland exit – the Decision Part III – next summer.

當年，出乎歐文的意料，詹姆斯回到了騎士。現在，出乎詹姆斯的意料，歐文要離開了。這次，歐文選擇在詹姆斯做出決定前掌握主動權。

This month, James has done little to quell rumors that he'll take his talents to the Los Angeles Lakers. He attended a summer league game in Las Vegas – in purple, no less – to watch Lonzo Ball share the ball in a way that Irving rarely did.

這個月來，一直有流言稱詹姆斯會把他的天賦帶到洛杉磯。他去了夏季聯賽，觀看與歐文風格截然不同的朗佐-鮑爾打球，還穿了一件紫色衣服——紫色是湖人的顏色。

He also allowed his frustrations to leak out in USA Today and gave departed general manager David Griffin props after Dan Gilbert declined to reward him with a suitable contract. Now, all that the Cavaliers had built over the greatest three years in franchise history stands to crumble.

他還透露出口風，表明了對管理層今夏操作的失望。現在，這支在過去三年圍繞着他打造的王者之師，將可能分崩離析。

Irving described this offseason as "peculiar," and what's bound to follow from his trade demand is almost too difficult to bear for Cavaliers fans. Because even if James had chosen to leave, Irving represented the promise of the future.

歐文將自己的休賽季描述爲“罕見的”。在他要求被交易後，隨後而來的是騎士球迷無法承受的後果。因爲詹姆斯也可能選擇離開騎士，所以歐文代表了球隊的未來。

But that's no more, if Irving gets his way. San Antonio (where he could play for the next U.S. Olympic coach and a five-time champion in Gregg Popovich), Minnesota (where his good friend and business partner Jimmy Butler resides),

如果歐文走了，那球隊就失去了未來。歐文感興趣的球隊有幾支：馬刺（能爲波波維奇打球），森林狼（有他的朋友和生意上的夥伴吉米-巴特勒），

Miami (where he has spent several summers and James found championship salvation after leaving the Cavaliers the first time) and New York (where he'd play close to where he grew up in New Jersey), all appeal to Irving. Cleveland,

熱火（他在邁阿密待過幾個夏天，而且詹姆斯在熱火奪得首冠）和尼克斯（離他的家鄉新夆西比較近）。

unfortunately, does not. Irving has his ring and has now decided it's his turn to determine his fate, his turn to do the arranging. And his other comments from All-Star weekend ring louder than ever.

不幸的是，他不願繼續留在克利夫蘭。歐文已經拿了一枚冠軍戒指，這一次，他決定，自己的命運，要由自己安排。他之前在全明星週末的那些言論也異常響亮了。

"Young players are becoming a lot better. The change of hand is happening. You see it," Irving said. "The veterans that were leading this thing for a while, that everyone was talking about, well now it's young players and ‘This is going to be his team over the next four or five years.' It's interesting to see how that is transpiring and things just get better."

“你可以看到，年輕球員們進步很大，一線球星的人選在發生改變，”歐文說，“過去大家都說，老將們還會引領聯盟一段時間。隨着年輕球員站出來，人們會說‘再過四五年，這會是他的球隊。'見證這種傳承和進步是一件很有意思的事。”

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