Right now, the NBA is in the midst of a point guard era. The level of play at that position has been elevated so high that the performance of the primary ball handler often dictates which team will win a game.
当今的NBA正处在控卫的盛世，比赛的级别已经被提高到一个球队的控球手的表现往往能决定一场比赛胜利与否的程度。
But this wasn't always the case. Go back five or six years and the NBA was dominated by some of the most talented and physically dominant wing players to ever play this game. And most nights, I was in charge of figuring out how to stop them on defense.
但以前可不是这样，回到五六年前，NBA被几个最有天赋最强壮的侧翼球员所统治。大多数的晚上，我都负责在防守上阻挡他们。
I've faced many, many gifted players throughout my career, but in my opinion, these five guys were the toughest to guard:
在我的职业生涯中，遇到过许多有天赋的球员，但是在我看来，有五位球员是最难防的。

Kobe Bryant
科比·布莱恩特
One of the toughest games I remember playing against Kobe happened in Boston. I think he made seven or eight shots in a row on me. So we come into the huddle during a timeout and Coach is looking at me with a face that I knew meant he wanted me to switch off of Kobe. And the rest of the guys on the team could see what was happening and they were looking at me too. Finally they bring up that maybe we should switch and put a different guy on him, and I yelled, "Hell no! I'm going to guard him! I got this!"
我记得对阵科比的最艰难的一场发生在波士顿，我想他已经在我面前连续命中七到八个投篮。所以我们叫了一个暂停围在一块，教练看着我的表情我能理解，他想让我限制住科比，球队的其余队员知道发生了什么，他们也用同样的表情看着我。最后他们提出或许我们应该用车轮战来对付他，当时我大喊道，“天哪，不，我来防他，我自己能搞定”。
He ended up missing the last nine shots of that game with me on him, and we won. But the stat sheet is still vivid in my mind. Kobe took 47 shots. Forty-seven. No one has ever taken 47 shots on me. Most games a team will get up 81 to 89 shots.
在我的防守下，那场比赛的最后九次投篮他都投丢了，然后我们赢了。但是那场比赛的数据统计仍然历历在目，科比投了47个篮，47个，从来没有那个人在我面前投了47个，要知道一支球队的大多数投篮次数只有81到89次。
What you have to understand about Kobe's game is that by taking that many shots, he's meticulously wearing down the defender until he breaks them. He's made a career out of making guys lose confidence in their defense and then continuing to attack them. He's won five rings doing that.
你必须知道科比在一场比赛出手如此多次意味这什么，他一丝不苟的消耗防守者，直到他们彻底崩溃。他的整个职业生涯就是即使让防守者失去信心也在不停的攻击他们。要知道，他靠这赢得了五个总冠军。
If you want to have any defensive success against Kobe, you can't break. That's much easier said than done.
如果你想成功的防住科比，首先你不能崩溃。说起来容易最起来难呀！
Tracy McGrady
特雷西·麦克格雷
Tracy is a point guard in a small forward's body. He's 6-9, has long arms and can jump out of the gym, so every time he went up to shoot there was no point even trying to block it.
特雷西是一个拥有小前锋身材的控球后卫。身高6尺9，长臂展使他在球场上能够轻易地跳投，所以每次他拔起来投篮时根本就没机会封盖住他。
Attempting to stop him always came down to how could you bother him. With some guys you can bother their shot by playing them really tight. But every time Tracy elevated to shoot, he got so high up that you were pretty much at his will. With those type of guys, you really just have to hope they miss.
所以每一次试图阻挡住他最后往往变成干扰他。有许多球员你可以通过紧紧的贴身防守来干扰他们的投篮，但是特雷西每次都能轻易起跳到你用力才能到达的高度，所以，遇到这种类型的球员，你能做的就是祈祷他投丢。
Since there was no way to stop Tracy's shot, you just had to do everything you could to make sure he didn't get in a position to shoot. So I would always do my best to deny Tracy the ball and be physical with him. I always knew that I couldn't allow easy points in transition against him because then he might heat up. And if a guy with an unblockable shot heats up, well, that's not good. But limiting transition points against a guy with the physical talent of Tracy was just a nightmare. He was such a tremendous finisher.
由于没有办法防住特雷西的投篮，你能做的就是尽可能的确保他不在投篮位置，所以我每次都在试图抢断他，与他进行身体对抗。我时刻谨记不能让他在转换中轻易得分，因为这可能让他找到手感。如果让一个投篮不会被盖帽的家伙手感发烫，这绝对不是好事。但是在转换进攻中限制有像特雷西那样身体天赋的球员，绝对是防守者的噩梦。他是一个如此强大的终结者。
Vince Carter
文斯·卡特
This guy is just an athletic freak.Nobody wants to be on a Vince Carter highlight.And I'd always be thinking about that before we played against him. My mission would always be not to make the Vince Carter highlight reel, so before the game even started, he was already in my head.
这家伙就是一个运动怪兽。没人想成为文斯·卡特表演的背景。每次对位他之前，我都会想我的任务就是不让他有任何表演的机会，他是一个每次在比赛前，会出现在我脑海里的家伙。
From a defensive standpoint, he put you in such a tight spot. He's hell to guard out on the perimeter because of the elevation on his shot. But you were so afraid of him blowing by you and throwing down a dunk that would be all over SportsCenter that you would allow him space to shoot. Then he would get hot from three-point range and at that point... what do you do?
在防守的角度上，他能把你放在一个两难的境地。由于他投篮的提升能让你在三分线外相当难防。如果你害怕他过了你，来一个大力灌篮，你就会给他投篮的空间，然后他就会在三分线外手感滚烫，如果这样……你会怎么办？
LeBron James
詹皇
Who ever heard of a guy that's 6-8, 260 lbs being faster and stronger than everybody else in the NBA？
你听说过有有一个家伙有6尺8的身高，260磅的体重竟然比NBA中其余的人更快更壮么？
Once he takes his first step off the dribble, if he gets to the side of you, there's no staying in front of him. He's just too strong when he gets his shoulder into your chest. He's also one of the best finishers with his left and right hand that this league has ever seen. And when he's not physically dominating his opponents, he can also pick your team apart with his passing.
一旦他第一步运球到达你侧身，他能用强壮的肩膀顶住的的胸膛，你就别想再出现在他的前面。他也是我见到过的联盟中最好的左右手终结者。如果他不用强壮的身体来统治对手的话，他又能用他的传球来撕裂你的球队。
You can bet that after you guard LeBron, you're going to be sore all over for the next few days.
在防守完勒布朗之后，你可以打赌你能在接下来的几天中能够得分。
Carmelo Anthony
小甜瓜安东尼
If I had to single one guy out who is the most difficult player to guard in the league, it would have to be Carmelo. He's a unique blend of being big, strong, and athletic while also having a world-class shooting touch and a natural ability to get to the rim. That's what sets him apart — every facet of his game is elite.
如果我不得不挑一个联盟中最难防的球员，那这个人就是卡梅伦，他是一个独一无二的集身高，力量和运动能力的混合体，同时又有世界级投篮和攻击篮筐的能力。每个方面都是精英级别让他与众不同。
A lot of guys might shoot better from certain areas, so you try to force them elsewhere on the floor. Carmelo doesn't have a spot on the floor where he can't consistently hit shots.
有许多球员可能在某以特定区域投篮比较好，所以你只要迫使他待在球场上其他区域就好了。但是球场上还没有那个地方是卡梅伦不能持续投篮的地方呢。
In my opinion, his combination of physicality and shooting touch is unmatched in the NBA. You can't take one second off when you're matched up against him.
在我看来，他的身体和投篮的完美结合使他在NBA中所向披靡。防守他时，你一刻都不能松懈。

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