愚人金

Howard Beck

LAKERS， KNICKS FINDING SALARY-CAP SPACE AND BIG-MARKET ALLURE ARE FOOLS GOLD.

湖人、尼克斯发现，薪金空间与大球市的吸引力只是愚人金而已。

In the frenzied early hours of NBA free agency， with cash flowing and promises flying， Greg Monroe—Age： 25； Position： forward； Upside： high—paused to consider his options.

在NBA自由球员市场疯狂的最初几小时里，各支球队纷纷抛出了金钱和承诺，格雷格·门罗——25岁、前锋、潜力高——停下来，考虑了自己的选择。

New York offered the grandest stage.The Lakers offered the glitziest legacy.

纽约能提供最大的舞台。湖人有最闪耀的历史。

Portland offered a partnership with a dazzling young point guard.

波特兰有一个年轻且才华横溢的控卫。

Monroe would be wealthy no matter where he landed. Every suitor was armed with the same four-year， $50 million contract， the maximum allowed under league rules.

无论去哪，门罗都能得到大笔的钱。每支追求他的球队都开出相同的4年5000万美元合同，这是他们在联盟规定下所能开出的顶薪。

Monroe rebuffed them all and chose the Milwaukee Bucks， a smallmarket franchise in a cold-weather city， where the NBA spotlight rarely shines.

门罗拒绝了以上球队，选择了密尔沃基雄鹿。这是一支小球市球队，主场位于天气寒冷的城市，那里也绝少得到NBA的青眼。

This is NBA free agency in 2015. The old rules no longer apply.

这就是2015年的NBA自由球员现状。旧的规则也不再适用。

The Broadway glare？ Monroe doesnt need it. Hollywood glamor？ Monroe rejected it.

百老汇灯光？门罗不需要。好莱坞魔力？门罗表示拒绝。

What Monroe craved most， after five torturous seasons in Detroit， was a winning environment. He found it on the left bank of Lake Michigan①.

在底特律经历了痛苦的五个赛季后，门罗最渴望的，就是赢球的环境。他在密歇根湖的左岸找到了自己的归宿。

"His priorities were stability and the chance to make the playoffs as quickly as he could，" said Monroes agent， David Falk. "After he evaluated all the four teams， he felt that Milwaukee had the most pieces in place already to make the playoffs the quickest."

“他首先考虑的是稳定性，以及尽快打进季后赛的机会。”门罗的经纪人大卫·法尔克表示，“他评估了所有四支球队，他觉得雄鹿阵容更完善，能最快打进季后赛。”

Monroe chose small-town glory over big-market fame—and in doing so sent a message that should resonate in every NBA city： Times have changed.

门罗选择了小球市，放弃了大城市的名气——用这个方法，他发出了一个能在所有NBA城市得到共鸣的信息：时代改变了。

Every NBA game is now available on League Pass， with streaming on tablets and mobile phones. Social media has given every player a direct link to his fans. The NBAs biggest pitchmen reside in Oklahoma City （Kevin Durant） and Cleveland （LeBron James）.

现在，每场比赛都可以用联盟通行证，在平板或手机观看。社交媒体使得每名球员都可以和球迷直接沟通。NBA最大牌的宣传机器分别在俄克拉荷马城（凯文·杜兰特）和克利夫兰（勒布朗·詹姆斯）。

"It really doesnt matter where you are，" Bryan Colangelo， the former Phoenix Suns and Toronto Raptors executive， said on Bleacher Report Radio."I think what these players have done is theyve made the statement and said，Look， its about money， but its also about putting myself in a situation where I can win and be with a good organization."

“你在哪里真的已经不重要了。”曾在太阳和猛龙担任管理职位的布莱恩·克朗格洛在Bleacher Report电台采访时这样说道，“我觉得这些球员的做法已经表明了他们的立场，他们在说：‘听着，钱是很重要，但让我进入一个能赢球的环境、进入一支好球队同样重要。”

The Lakers wooed LaMarcus Aldridge， but the perennial All-Star chose San Antonio， where he could contend for titles immediately.

湖人争取过拉马库斯·阿尔德里奇，但这位多次入选全明星的球员选择了马刺，在那里，他可以立刻争夺总冠军。

The Knicks had visions of luring Marc Gasol， but the All-Star center decided he was happiest in Memphis.

尼克斯曾经想过吸引马克·加索尔，但全明星中锋认为还是在孟菲斯最快乐。

The Knicks？ They had to settle for Robin Lopez and Arron Afflalo—a solid haul， but not franchise-altering.

尼克斯？他们只能签下罗宾·洛佩斯和阿隆·阿弗拉罗——这些都是很不错的球员，但不足以改变球队的命运。

The Lakers？ They snagged Roy Hibbert in a trade and signed Brandon Bass and Lou Williams—enough to make them interesting， but not a playoff team.

湖人？他们通过交易换来了罗伊·希伯特，签下了布兰顿·巴斯和路·威廉姆斯——这足够让他们成为一支有趣的球队，但仍不足以打进季后赛。

The Celtics？ They traded for David Lee （a salary dump from Golden State） and signed Amir Johnson and Jonas Jerebko—all modest additions.

凯尔特人？他们换来了大卫·李（勇士清理空间的举动），签下了阿米尔·约翰逊和乔纳斯·杰雷布科——都属于小修小补。

"B-level free agents，" Colangelo called them.

“B级自由球员。”克朗格洛这样评价他们。

Think about that. Three of the NBAs most storied franchises， in three of the nations biggest markets， effectively struck out in free agency. No Kevin Love. No Kawhi Leonard or Jimmy Butler. No Gasol， or Aldridge， or Jordan.

想象一下。三支NBA最有历史的球队，分别身处全美最大的三个市场，纷纷在自由市场主动出击。没签到凯文·乐福，没有科怀·伦纳德或吉米·巴特勒，没有加索尔、阿尔德里奇或小乔丹。

The Knicks and Lakers hoarded salary-cap room—jettisoning players as necessary—in the belief that the elite players would flock to New York and Los Angeles. They couldnt even land Monroe， a second-tier player.

尼克斯与湖人囤积薪金空间——必要时放弃球员——他们以为，顶尖球员愿意聚集在纽约和洛杉矶。他们甚至连门罗，这个第二等级的球员都没能争取到。

"Theyre just not attractive right now，" Colangelo said.

“现在他们只是没有吸引力而已。”克朗格洛说。

The lesson here is a familiar one： NBA free agency is rarely the path to title contention. Rebuilding strictly with cap room， more often than not， is a fools errand.

这里的教训并不陌生：NBA自由球员市场很少能将球队变为总冠军竞争者。只靠薪金空间进行重建，通常情况下都是徒劳无益的。

The superstars rarely move in free agency， because the entire NBA system is designed to keep them home， rewarding them with longer， richer contracts for staying put. And 98 percent of the time， it works.

超级巨星很少进入自由球员市场，因为NBA的整个体系设置，就是为了让他们留在母队，因为留守而赋予他们更长、更高的合同。98%的情况就是这样操作的。

Love was， according to multiple sources， profoundly unhappy in Cleveland this past season. Yet he agreed to stay， taking a five-year， $110 million deal that he could not have received anywhere else. The most Love could have received from another team was $80 million over four years.

据多个消息源表示，乐福过去那个赛季在克利夫兰过得非常不开心。可他还是同意留下，签下了一份他在别处都拿不到的五年1.1亿美元的合同。乐福从其他球队最多只能得到四年8000万美元。

Meanwhile， the rules of restricted free agency kept Leonard （Spurs）， Butler （Bulls） and Draymond Green （Warriors） from even considering other teams.

同时，受限自由球员的规则让伦纳德（马刺）、巴特勒（公牛）和德拉蒙德·格林（勇士）甚至不会考虑其他球队的报价。

It all underscores a point that superagent Arn Tellem made to me six years ago， when I was writing for the New York Times： The NBAs collective bargaining agreement had "eliminated， for the most part， free agency for the high-end players." The financial inducement to stay put is just too powerful.

这些都进一步证实了六年前我还在《纽约时报》工作时，超级经纪人阿恩·塔勒姆告诉我的一个观点：NBA劳资协议“基本上消灭了高端球员的自由球员市场。”留守的经济动力实在太过强大。

Shaquille ONeal left Orlando for Los Angeles in 1996， in an era before "max" contracts， when the Lakers could simply outbid their rivals. That is no longer the case.

沙奎尔·奥尼尔1996年离开奥兰多来到洛杉矶，那时候“顶薪合同”的概念还没诞生，湖人只要比对手出价高就足够了。现在的情况则不一样。

As I noted in that 2009 story， in the 12 years that followed ONeals decision， just three in-theirprime franchise stars changed teams via free agency： Grant Hill， Tracy McGrady and Steve Nash. （Hill and McGrady went to Orlando in 2000. Nash went to Phoenix in 2004. And Nash only left Dallas because the Mavericks balked at paying him the max.）

就像我在2009年的那份报道中写的，奥尼尔做出决定后的12年里，只有三个处于个人巅峰的球员通过自由球员市场更换了主队：格兰特·希尔、特雷西·麦格雷迪和史蒂夫·纳什。（希尔和麦迪2000年前往魔术，纳什2004年前往太阳。纳什离开达拉斯，是因为小牛不愿意付给他顶薪。）

NBA trends have not significantly changed since then， despite some notable exceptions.

尽管有一些特例，但NBA的趋势在那之后并没有出现明显改变。

In 2010， LeBron James and Chris Bosh left their teams to join Dwyane Wade in Miami. That same summer， Amare Stoudemire left Phoenix for New York， in one of the wildest summers in modern history.

2010年，勒布朗·詹姆斯和克里斯·波什各自离开球队，到迈阿密加入了韦德。同年夏天，在现代历史上最疯狂的一个夏天里，阿玛雷·斯塔德迈尔离开太阳去了尼克斯。

And of course， James became a double-anomaly last year， when he left Miami to return to Cleveland.

当然，去年詹姆斯离开迈阿密返回克利夫兰时，他又改变了趋势。

Some good， vital players， have migrated via free agency in recent years： Andre Iguodala （Denver to Golden State in 2013）， Jamal Crawford （Atlanta to L.A. Clippers in 2012）， Tyson Chandler （Dallas to New York in 2011）.

有些优秀的重要球员最近几年通过自由球员市场更换了主队：安德烈·伊戈达拉（2013年从掘金前往勇士），贾马尔·克劳福德（2012年从老鹰前往快船），泰森·钱德勒（201 1年从小牛前往尼克斯）。

But the truly elite？ The perennial All-NBA first-teamers？ The MVP candidates？ The franchise cornerstones？ Good luck landing them.

可真正的顶尖球员？常年入选第一阵容的人？MVP候选人？真正的建队基石？想得到他们，只有自求多福了。

Between 1997 and 2008， the following superstars became free agents and stayed put： Kobe Bryant， Tim Duncan， Dirk Nowitzki， Allen Iverson， Kevin Garnett， Chris Webber， Jason Kidd， Paul Pierce， Vince Carter， Reggie Miller， Gary Payton， Ray Allen， Stoudemire， John Stockton， Karl Malone and David Robinson. （By the time Malone and Payton joined the Lakers in 2003， they were nearing retirement.）

1997年到2008年，以下巨星在成为自由球员后选择了留守：科比·布莱恩特、蒂姆·邓肯、德克·诺维茨基、阿伦·艾弗森、凯文·加内特、克里斯·韦伯、贾森·基德、保罗·皮尔斯、文斯·卡特、雷吉·米勒、加里·佩顿、雷·阿伦、斯塔德迈尔、约翰·斯托克顿、卡尔·马龙和大卫·罗宾逊。（等到2003年马龙和佩顿加入湖人时，他们都已经接近退役。）

Since 2009， the following superstars have also stayed put in free agency： Wade， Pierce， Nowitzki， Tony Parker， Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony. The Houston Rockets made an all-out push for Bosh and Anthony last summer and came up empty.

从2009年至今，以下超级巨星也选择了留守：韦德、皮尔斯、诺维茨基、托尼·帕克、克里斯·保罗和卡梅洛·安东尼。去年夏天，火箭曾全力追逐波什和安东尼，但都无功而返。

"Obviously， the cap-room strategy doesnt work for everyone，" said Colangelo， who signed Nash in 2004.

“显然，薪金空间策略并不是每支球队都适合。”克朗格洛说，他在2004年签下了纳什。

In an earlier era， a major-market team could have tempted a player like Aldridge with more money. But in a max-salary era， the Spurs can offer just as much as the Knicks， and a better roster to boot.

早些年，大球市球队可以用更高的薪金吸引像阿尔德里奇一样的球员。可在顶薪合同规则时代，马刺能给的钱和尼克斯一样多，而且他们拥有更好的阵容。

Its easy now to mock the Lakers and Knicks for their free-agent whiffs， to scapegoat the front office （Jim Buss， Phil Jackson） or the ball-hogging star（Bryant， Carmelo Anthony）. Easy， but misguided and far too simplistic.

我们可以轻松地嘲笑湖人和尼克斯在自由球员市场上的失败，拿管理层（吉米·巴斯、菲尔·杰克逊）或霸占球权的球星（布莱恩特、卡梅洛）做替罪羊。这是一种简单的做法，但却具有误导性，而且太过简单。

The Lakers and Knicks are fighting history， a nearly two-decade trend in which the best of the best almost always stay home. They are fighting a system that is specifically designed to thwart them. They are fighting a wellconstructed， systematic inertia.

湖人与尼克斯正在与历史斗争，与一个持续近20年的顶尖球员留守母队的趋势进行斗争。他们正在与一个经过特别设计专门针对他们的体系进行斗争。他们正在与一个构造良好、体系化的惯性进行斗争。

The salary cap is set to spike next summer， by at least $20 million， providing the marquee teams with another chance to chase the marquee free agents—Kevin Durant， Bradley Beal， Mike Conley， Al Horford， Andre Drummond， Dwight Howard.

明年夏天工资帽会大幅增加，至少会提高2000万美元，这给顶尖球队追逐顶尖自由球员的机会——凯文·杜兰特、布拉德利·比尔、麦克·康利、艾尔·霍福德、安德烈·德拉蒙德、德怀特·霍华德。

The odds are against them. But hope， unlike cap room， is infinite.

可形势对他们并不有利。与薪金空间相比，希望却是无穷小的。