火箭专家费根搜狐专栏：休城三巨头姚明最重要

乔纳森-费根简介

    搜狐体育讯 导读：乔纳森-费根，是休斯顿惟一一家日报《休斯顿纪事报》的首席篮球记者，也是整个赛季跑满全部比赛的惟一一位记者。 在国内许多做NBA的媒体中，费根的名字恐怕是最耳熟能详的了，因为他的稿件的翻译版本充斥在各大网站和报纸上，是绝对的火箭专家。近日乔纳森-费根已经签约搜狐体育，搜狐也是目前国内惟一一家获权使用费根专栏文章的媒体。在以后的日子里费根将通过搜狐专栏与广大中国网友一起进行交流。

　　一切都毫无征兆，姚明突然像变了一个人似的。没有和教练组事先约定，也没有在之前达成任何的协议，姚明突然主动要求自己休战一战，而且是在他完全可以打比赛的前提下——这样的改变，真的让人感到不太适应。

　　当然，姚明能有这样的改变是件好事，新赛季他开始懂得了自我保护，学会了灵活的调整自己的身体状态。他主动放弃与强队小牛的比赛，这样的情况在以往的赛季是不可想象的。但如今，姚学会了放弃。

　　事实上，他完全可以参加与小牛的比赛。但他要求休息，并积极配合医生对自己的伤势进行再次确诊。姚明的训练师基思-琼斯被姚明的受伤吓的不轻，他告诉姚明这一次他很可能会再次休战好几周。姚明刚开始也有些紧张，但后来检查的结果还是让他眉开眼笑。与受伤下场时一瘸一拐一脸严肃的表情相比，姚明在检查结果出来后就轻松了许多，甚至还主动和周围的人开着玩笑。

　　和往年受伤时的建议一样，这一次医生还是让他再休息一场继续观察。姚明这一次没有再坚决要求出战，而是双手赞成了医生的建议。事实证明，姚明这样的决定是很明智的。缺席了与小牛的比赛后，他立马在火箭的东征之旅中展现了无与伦比的绝对统治力。麦迪还在为自己的伤势做喋喋不休的辩解，麦迪说要利用这三个客场来检验下自己的伤情。这样的说法，对于球队来说并不是个好消息。

　　但火箭还有姚明在。姚明站出来说他感觉很好，已经百分百的恢复。麦迪仍在无穷尽的伤病中不可自拔，慢热的阿泰斯特还在继续寻找着自己在球队战术体系中的位置，甚至连阿德尔曼自己，也在苦苦搜寻着火箭升空的正确轨道。

　　姚明很快给火箭带来了惊喜。东征3连胜，西区排名一路飙升。更重要的是，球队找到了正确的进攻方式，这正是阿德尔曼从季前赛开始一直在寻找的东西。

　　此前的比赛，火箭的进攻模式都是依靠球星的个人能力来赢得比赛。先是姚明，然后是麦迪，最后是阿泰斯特，他们被称为“火箭三巨头”，但却只能轮流为火箭带来胜利。后来次序改变了一下，先是阿泰斯特，然后是麦迪，再后来是姚明，火箭的胜利都是缘于他们三人中的某一个人发飙。阿德尔曼一直渴望的“团队式”胜利，却迟迟没能上演。

　　阿德尔曼不满意，球迷们和媒体们也对火箭的球员之间缺乏默契不满意。三连胜之前的大多数的比赛，火箭都是一个人打，剩下的两个巨头在一旁看。这样的进攻方式显然无法为火箭带来太多的积极结果——火箭的场均火力一度排在联盟的倒数第3。“三巨头”也都渴望能早日产生化学反应，但他们却迟迟无法擦出带有灵性的默契火花。

　　显然，阿德尔曼对此并不甘心。上赛季凯尔特人能将加内特、皮尔斯和雷-阿伦捏合在一起并夺得总冠军，为什么火箭就不能创造同样的奇迹？都说磨合需要时间，那波士顿的“三巨头”为何就能在极短的时间内找到让人惊诧的默契？是的，火箭的“三巨头”都是需要持球才能发挥出威力的球员，这和波士顿的“三巨头”确实存在着一点差异。

　　阿德尔曼也看到了问题所在。他一再表示，球队需要找到一个能让三巨头共存的正确方式。只有这样，火箭才能继续追逐自己的总冠军梦想。阿德尔曼认为，火箭的三大球星共存并非不可能。分析下波士顿的“三巨头”，皮尔斯是联盟里最好的单挑王之一，

　　阿伦是联盟最好的得分手之一，加内特则是NBA最优秀的内线球员之一，既然他们能共存，那火箭同样能做到这一点。

　　但首要的问题是，火箭必须要找到一个进攻的核心枢纽，这样才能避免在进攻端的茫然无序。谁最适合做火箭的枢纽？这在东征之前的比赛中始终没有明确的答案。但三连胜过后，所有人都知道了答案——姚明。是的，姚明在这波三连胜中的表现异常稳定，他在内线的统治力帮助火箭牢牢的掌握了比赛的主动权。

　　第一场与奇才的比赛，他把对手的内线蹂躏得一无是处。身体、力量、灵活，姚明占尽了优势。姚明赛后告诉记者，他的感觉就像奥尼尔第一次欺负自己一样。不甘受辱的奇才改变战略开始包夹姚明，但这无济于事。次战魔术，姚明更是证明了自己巨大的内线统治力，他用行动证明了自己远远强过被很多专家尊为“联盟第一中锋”的德怀特-霍华德。因为无法阻挡姚明，霍华德因为犯规早早的坐上了替补席。他赛后对姚明赞不绝口，声称没有人能防住姚明的转身跳投。

　　第三战赢热火的比赛同样精彩，姚明将对方的海斯勒姆彻底打爆，没费吹灰之力姚明便砍下了28分13板。整个三连胜，姚明场均得分22.7分，命中率高达61.5%。麦迪陷入了低迷，本赛季第5次单场得分没达到两位数，但这对于火箭来说并不重要，因为姚明已经成为了球队当仁不让的进攻核心。

　　最高兴的人是主帅阿德尔曼。经过了漫长的等待，他终于得到了自己想要的答案。“我们终于找到了我们的核心，球员们围绕着姚为核心打球，这样将会取得更大的胜利。”阿德尔曼说，“只要姚能保持健康和正确的判断，那我们就能变得更好。”

　　是的，现在火箭最流行的一句话就是“把球交给大个子”。数年以前，火箭就是以奥拉朱旺为核心，最终赢得了两个总冠军。如今，姚明成为了另一个奥拉朱旺，他将在球队的进攻中扮演着最重要的角色。事实上，火箭的旧帅汤姆贾诺维奇早就先知先觉，在姚明刚进NBA时就认准了姚明将是火箭的进攻核心。只是当时姚明还有些稚嫩，没能承担起这个重任，但现在姚明已经能胜任球队进攻核心的大任。

　　姚明自己也坦承，火箭在这次东征之旅中学到了正确的打球方式。他在内线强攻，同时也随时给外围的队友们发送炮弹以便实施外线轰炸。前10场比赛火箭靠的是球员们的篮球天赋，而如今则是靠正确的整体战术和严明的战术纪律。如果麦迪能早日健康归来，那他将会给火箭带来更多的得分和助攻，阿泰斯特则可以在防守上做的更多。如此，火箭的“三巨头”将爆发更大的威力。当然，姚明是无可争议的核心。

　　当然，不要用姚明的出手次数来判断他在球队中的地位。即使他不过多的投篮，姚明也可以为球队做出贡献。他在防守端能给对手带来压力，还能吸引对手对他实施包夹，如此姚明将会为队友创造足够多的投篮机会。

　　你必须承认，火箭正在发生着变化。这从姚明主动要求牺牲一场比赛来为接下来的比赛做准备可以看出来，也可以从球队在进攻时的传球更频繁更合理上看出来。 （搜狐体育 清河村翻译）

　　注：此稿件为乔纳森-费根独家提供搜狐体育  严禁转载

　　费根专供搜狐原文：

　　By Jonathan Feigen

     There was no deal made, no prior agreement reached between Yao Ming and the Rockets coaching and medical staffs. Still, it might have been a good idea, if only it were that easy.
     Yao agreed to sit out one game, against Dallas, to give doctors another day to consider his test results, even to bring in a few more specialists to look over his bone scan.
      Yao felt fine. He had long since gotten over the shock that hit him when Rockets trainer Keith Jones went over the list of possibilities, no matter how remote, including the distant chance that if surgery were needed Yao would have to sit out months again. No one really expected that. Even the possibility that Yao would have to skip a few weeks was remote. The real threat was that Yao would be hurt from keeling over in shock when Jones mentioned that most unlikely of worst-case scenarios.
     By the day of the game, however, Yao was back to feeling “fine, so fine.” Days before, he had grimaced in Oklahoma City and hobbled off the court, but even after that game, he was joking, unconcerned about an injury. Days later, he was certain that he was well, even if doctors wanted to think about it for another day or two.
     He consented to miss that one game, but it would have been a wise move if he had said that he would sit out only if the Rockets make him the center of all they do when he returned.
     It, of course, never came to that. But by the next game, the opener of a three-game road trip, he said he was “100 percent,” even as Tracy McGrady was openly fretting about his knee condition and treating the three-game road trip as an experiment to see whether he should muddle through or take time off to strengthen his sore left leg.
     Yao was feeling so good that when he saw Jones in an arena hallway, he feigned an exaggerated, comedic limp, before busting out laughing and slapping Jones on the back.
     With McGrady hobbled and Ron Artest struggling to find his place in the Rockets’ offense, the Rockets were then still searching.
     They returned with a three-game sweep of the trip and a sense they had found the offense they had sought since they convened for the start of training camp.
     Before, the ‘Big Three’ took turns.
     Yao. McGrady.  Artest.
     Artest. McGrady. Yao.
     They deferred to one another, with the other two and often everyone else standing around like a track team off in another part of the stadium while the pole vaulter takes off.
     More than two weeks into the season, the Rockets were 28th in the NBA and struggling to make their new parts fit. A year after the Celtics put together Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen and rapidly made a seamless transition, the Rockets’ power trio all needed the ball to be their best, forcing them to concentrate as much at staying out of one another’s way as helping each other.
     “We have to find a way to make our three guys compatible,” Rockets coach Rick Adelman said then. “Pierce has always been a great one-on-one player, Allen has been one of the great scorers and Garnett has been one of the best big guys in the league. They kind of fit together.
     “If Tracy was healthy it would be a lot different because he can do so many things out on the floor. He can put it on the floor and make things happen for us. Now, we’re just trying to fit Ron in. Now, the strengths of all three guys are post-ups. With three of them on the court at the same time, it’s hard to get any kind of rhythm going.”
     They were good enough to make that work at times. Yao dominated Dallas. McGrady shot the Rockets past Phoenix. But they were not close to what they could be if each star could somehow make the others and the Rockets around them, better.
     Then, with Yao already into a solid performance against the Wizards, he drove on Washington rookie JaVale McGee and punched down a vicious slam, a moment of physical dominance so powerful Yao said later that it reminded him of his first game against Shaquille O’Neal, still the standard for brutish power.
    The Wizards immediately switched to rapid double teams. Artest and McGrady were left open to hit jumpers. Yao scored again. And the Rockets blew out the Wizards.
     A night later, against the much more formidable Dwight Howard, Yao dominated early, sending Howard to the bench with early foul trouble. That forced the Magic to first dust off rarely-used Adonal Foyle and then to surround Yao with double teams. The Rockets again took off. And with the game on the line, they again went back to Yao, with Yao scoring on a drive, an offensive rebound and an unstoppable turnaround jumper on the baseline.
     “His turnaround jump shot, nobody can block it unless you’re 7-8,” Howard said.
     “It’s like a beanstalk. You got to chop.”
      Yao was similarly dominant against mini-Miami. With 6-8 forward Udonis Haslem starting at center, the Heat tried rapid double- and triple teams and even a zone. Yao still dominated, scoring 28 points with 13 rebounds and to complete the trip averaging 22.7 points on 61.5 percent shooting. But on a night McGrady was again dead-legged on his way to his fifth game scoring in single-digits, the threat of Yao inside created opportunities for everyone, not just when it was his turn.
     “We’re definitely looking to go to Yao,” Rockets coach Rick Adelman said of the improvement since the Rockets left town. “They’ve got to guard him. If he keeps making good decisions, we’re going to be OK.
     “Our guys, for whatever reason, since we’ve come on this trip, we hit a groove.”
     There is a tendency to think that plan should have been obvious all along, and maybe to a degree it was. But executing it never has been as simple as ‘throw it to the big guy.’
     Year ago, when the Rockets had built their offense around the spectacular Hakeem Olajuwon, before the rule changes that permit the swarms of defenders that surround Yao, Rockets coach Rudy Tomjanovich had made honing the offense to get Olajuwon his touches the central part of every practice. If it is obvious to anyone from the most expensive floor seat to the cheap seats near the rafters, it also occurs to opposing teams, armed with libraries worth of video and squads of coaches to do whatever is necessary to take away whatever their opponents want to do most.
     To emphasize how much work that took to keep the ball in Olajuwon’s hand, Tomjanovich once called over Robert Horry to vouch for how many hours were spent just on that. “Oh no,” Horry answered in a groan. “I don’t even want to think about it.”
     The Rockets made it work on the road trip, particularly in the fourth quarters when teams reveal what they value most. But if they don’t work on it in the next practice and do it again in the next game, they would immediately take another step backwards.
     They know this is how they should play, how they want to play. The ball is finally moving. The offense is clicking.
     “I think on this trip we learned something,” Yao said. “I think we found the way we’re going to play basketball – just use the advantage we have on the team and create open shots for teammates. For about our first 10 games we played with just our talent, not much with our team discipline, just skill, not passing the ball the way coach wants. I think we did very well on this trip.
     “I think we are very clear where we’re going to hit them.”
     Eventually, if McGrady ever gets well, he might be able to create the way he once had for the Rockets. There might be nights that Artest has an advantage against an overmatched defender. But night in, night out, there should be Yao.
     It doesn’t matter how many shots he gets. He can dominate just by forcing defenses to tie themselves in knots to stop him.
     With Yao and the ball moving more often and more swiftly, the Rockets have rebuilt themselves around him. They returned home a better team than the one that left town, a transformation that began when Yao consented to sacrifice one game to dominate the ones to come.