Since the beginning of the 2016-17 season, this year's NBA Finals matchup appeared all but preordained.
NBA 2016/17赛季开始后，总决赛的对决似乎又被提前“钦定”了。
The Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers would inevitably meet for the third straight time, battling in the rubber match to end all rubber matches.
金州勇士和克里夫兰骑士，看上去将不可避免的第三次在总决赛相遇，用他们的系列赛结束整个季后赛。
It only took an hour Tuesday to throw that outcome into jeopardy.
不过周二，两小时内发生的两件事就让这个结论不那么肯定了。
First, the Cleveland Cavaliers announced All-Star power forward Kevin Love underwent arthroscopic surgery "to remove a loose body from his left knee," which is estimated to sideline him for the next six weeks.
首先，克里夫兰骑士宣布他们的全明星大前锋凯文-乐福将进行关节镜手术“移除左膝的一部分”，并预计将缺席接下来6周的比赛。
Shortly thereafter, The Vertical's Adrian Wojnarowski dropped one of his patented #WOJBOMBS, reporting the Toronto Raptors were sending Terrence Ross and the lower of their two first-round picks (their own or one from the Los Angeles Clippers) to the Orlando Magic for Serge Ibaka.
不久，The Vertical的Adrian Wojnarowski通过他的专栏#WOJBOMB，报道了多伦多猛龙用特伦斯-罗斯和两个首轮签中较低的那个顺位（他们自己的和通过洛杉矶快船获得的）从奥兰多魔术那里换来了塞尔吉-伊巴卡。
As a result, the Cavaliers' once-predetermined spot in the Finals suddenly appears to be up for grabs.
结果是什么呢？骑士在总决赛中“预定”的席位看上去面临猛龙的争夺。
Even if Love fully recovers heading into the playoffs, Toronto significantly bolstered its chances against the Cavaliers by acquiring Ibaka.
即使乐福能在季后赛阶段复出，多伦多通过得到伊巴卡也明显增加了同骑士竞争的机会。
No team has gotten less production from its power forwards than the Raptors this season, according to HoopsStats.com, which could have proved fatal against Love and Cleveland in a seven-game playoff series.
这个赛季，根据HoopsStats.com数据显示，猛龙的大前锋对球队的贡献排名倒数第一，如果在七场系列赛阶段对上乐福和骑士，这将是致命的。
With Ibaka in tow, what once was a weakness for Toronto has now become a strength.
在有了伊巴卡之后，猛龙这个位置曾经的弱点现在会变成强点。
Having spent years in Oklahoma City alongside Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, Ibaka is also used to serving as a complementary offensive option, which will be a mammoth boon for a Toronto team that has stagnated in recent weeks.
在俄克拉荷马城同凯文-杜兰特和拉塞尔-威斯布鲁克并肩征战了多年，伊巴卡已经习惯于作为辅助的进攻火力点，这对于最近几周停滞不前的猛龙来说，无异于巨大的福音。
Heading into Tuesday, the Raptors had lost 10 of their last 14 games, and both Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan had begun voicing their frustration.
在周二之前，猛龙输掉了最近14场比赛中的10场，凯尔-洛瑞和德马尔-德罗赞都表达了他们对球队的失望。
DeRozan, meanwhile, told TSN's Josh Lewenberg "Help is always welcomed, for sure" following Toronto's loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Feb. 8. After the Raptors' collapse Sunday, he echoed those comments, saying, "If help is an option, why not?"
同时，德罗赞在2月8日负于明尼苏达森林狼的比赛后，告知TSN的Josh Lewenberg“如果有补强，我肯定是表示欢迎的”。周日的溃败后，他重复了自己的观点，说：“如果补强是一个选择，为什么要拒绝呢？”
One look at the Raptors' clutch-time metrics speaks to just how much Ibaka can help.
看看猛龙决战时刻的表现，你就明白伊巴卡能带来多少帮助。
Heading into Tuesday, when the Raptors are either ahead or behind by no more than five points with five or fewer minutes remaining, Lowry and DeRozan have combined to shoot 72-of-160 (45.0 percent). All other Toronto players combined have gone 20-of-64 (31.3 percent).
截至周二，猛龙在所有进入最后五分钟且分差不超过5分的比赛中，洛瑞和德罗赞两人合计160投72中（命中率45%），而猛龙其他球员加起来64投20中（命中率31.3%）。

The Raptors are wise to rely predominantly on their two top scorers in close-game situations, but without a third consistent offensive threat, opposing defenses can load up on DeRozan and Lowry late and force other players to beat them.
在比分紧咬时，猛龙队明智的选择依赖两个顶级得分手，但是没有第三个持续的火力点，对手可以将防守集中于德罗赞和洛瑞身上，迫使其他人出手并击败他们。
With Ibaka in the fold, that won't be the case any longer. The big man has struggled in clutch time this season, going 6-of-22 (27.3 percent) to date, but he also wasn't playing alongside two All-Star talents in Lowry and DeRozan.
如果伊巴卡在队中，这种情况不再会发生了。这位大个子在本赛季关键时刻的表现也很碍眼，22中6（27.3%命中率），但他身边并没有两个像洛瑞和德罗赞这样的全明星天才。
During his final three seasons in OKC, Ibaka went 13-of-25 (52.0 percent), 10-of-29(34.5 percent) and 14-of-27 (51.9 percent) in such situations, respectively, suggesting he's plenty capable of picking up a complementary load.
而他在雷霆的最后三个赛季，他在关键时刻表现是25中13（命中率52.0%）、29中10（命中率34.5%）和27中14（命中率51.9%），这表明他作为一个辅助火力点的表现是合格的。
If he emerges as a third reliable option for the Raptors in clutch time, their late-game offense will become far less predictable, making them even more dangerous once the playoffs roll around.
如果他能成为猛龙决战时刻第三可靠的得分点，他们比赛末段的进攻将更不可预测，他们在季后赛将更有威胁。
Giving up Terrence Ross and a late-first-round pick for what could be a four-month rental in Ibaka carries inherent risk, but Toronto didn't have a choice.
用特伦斯-罗斯和一个首轮末签换伊巴卡的潜在风险是，他可能成为“四个月的租借球员”，但多伦多没有选择。
If the Raptors re-sign Lowry, they wouldn't have enough cap space to bring in a free agent of Ibaka's caliber as well.
如果猛龙选择同洛瑞续约，他们将没有足够的薪金空间签下像伊巴卡这样的自由球员。
In essence, trading for Ibaka is the Raptors' big free-agent splash, as they do reportedly plan to re-sign him as well, according to Wojnarowski.
本质上，这笔交易相当于猛龙提前在自由人市场上签下伊巴卡，而根据Woj透漏，他们的确计划同他续约。
(Citing "sources close to the situation," Basketball Insiders' Steve Kyler reported on Feb. 7 the Raptors were a "favorable situation for Ibaka long term, but it's unclear if he'd give assurances of re-signing there.")
（引用Basketball Insiders'的Steve Kyler的“内部消息”，2月7日报道说猛龙是“伊巴卡最好的栖身之地，但目前还不清楚他是否会承诺续约”。）
Re-signing Ibaka and Lowry will plunge the Raptors into luxury-tax territory, pending other trades, but that's a price worth paying for now.
如果同时续约伊巴卡和洛瑞，且没有其他交易的话，猛龙将在下个赛季起支付奢侈税，但这是值得的。
Lowry and DeMarre Carroll are each turning 31 over the coming months, and DeRozan will be 28 by the time next season starts.
洛瑞和德马雷-卡罗尔都即将年满31，德罗赞下个赛季开始时也将28。
With their core all firmly in the midst of their respective primes, now is not the time for the Raptors to cheap out and cut costs. The emergence of Norman Powell should also help soften the blow of losing Ross.
猛龙的核心球员们都将进入他们的巅峰期，这不是削减开支的时候。同时，诺曼-鲍威尔的成长也会淡化罗斯离队带来的冲击。
While this trade condemns Orlando to another year of rebuilding, it solidifies the Raptors' place as a legitimate Eastern Conference contender and should help them recover from their recent tailspin.
这笔交易让魔术开始了又一年的重建，它同时也帮助猛龙从近期的失控中恢复、巩固了他们东部冠军竞争者的地位。
Given the news about Love's extended absence, the timing of the move couldn't be much better for Toronto, as Ibaka can use the All-Star break to familiarize himself with his new digs and hit the ground running.
考虑到乐福长期缺阵的消息，这笔交易的时机对猛龙来说好的不能再好了，因为伊巴卡可以利用全明星周末迅速适应他的新环境。
It's too early to crown the Raptors as the new favorite to represent the Eastern Conference in the Finals, but this trade put them one step closer to dethroning LeBron James and the reigning-champion Cavaliers. As usual, Toronto general manager Masai Ujiri stays winning.
现在就把东部冠军的头衔加给猛龙还为时尚早，但是这笔交易确实让他们更接近于“废黜”勒布朗-詹姆斯、“推翻”骑士的王权。看来这一局猛龙总经理马塞-尤吉利又赢了。

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