Young players in the NBA
NBA的年輕球員
1.
Minutes after stepping onto the basketball 1)court last Wednesday (Oct. 30), 18-year-old LeBron James proved he was ready for the NBA. The point guard for the Cleveland Cavaliers 2)scored 12 points during the first 12 minutes of his 3)professional career. By the end of the game, James had earned 13 more points, and 4)lived up to the hype surrounding his 5)debut.
上週三，才踏上籃球場沒幾分鐘，十八歲的李朋詹姆士就證明了他已經準備好進軍NBA。這位克利夫蘭騎士隊控球後衛在他職籃生涯的頭十二分鐘內攻進了十二分。比賽結束前詹姆士又再得了十三分，果然不愧於對他首度演出的媒體宣傳。
1) court (n.) 球場
2) score (v.) 得分
3) professional (a.) 職業的
4) live up to (phr.) 不愧於……
5) debut (n.) 首度演出
2.
Yet despite his successful first game, many people still have 1)doubts. Shouldn't these high school students go to college first? Aren't they too young to 2)handle the 3)pressures of professional sports? These questions are becoming more common as the NBA continues to look for younger players.
儘管他的第一場比賽很成功，很多人仍然存疑。這些高中生不是該先去上大學嗎？他們不會太年輕而無法處理職業運動所帶來的壓力嗎？隨著NBA繼續尋找更年輕的球員，這些問題也愈來愈常碰到。
1) doubt (n.) 懷疑
2) handle (v.) 處理
3) pressure (n.) 壓力
3.
Last June, James was chosen as the number-one draft 1)pick for the 2003-2004 NBA season. He was the second high school player ever to have the 2)honor. Three other high school players were also drafted in the first 3)round.
去年六月，詹姆士名列二○○三至二○○四年NBA球季選秀狀元。他是史上第二位享有這項殊榮的高中球員。另外三名高中球員也在第一回合中被選中了。
1) pick (n.) 挑選
2) honor (n.) 榮耀，榮譽
3) round (n.) 回合
4.
But really, this is nothing new. The NBA has 1)attracted young stars since 1971, when Spencer Haywood 2)sued the 3)league to be allowed to play. Until then, high school players had to wait four years before going 4)pro. Still, few 5)athletes were drafted out of high school until 2001. That year, four of the top 10 picks entered the NBA straight out of high school.
但是說真的，這不是新聞了。NBA 自一九七一年開始就一直吸引年輕明星球員，當時史賓塞海伍德為了參賽資格控告聯盟。在那之前，高中球員必須等上四年才能轉入職業籃球。可是，直到二○○一年之前，高中一畢業就被NBA選秀的運動員還是屈指可數。那一年，選秀排名前十名的球員中有四位是高中剛畢業的。
1) attract (v.) 吸引
2) sue (v.) 控告
3) league (n.) 聯盟
4) pro (a.) 職業的，代表 professional
5) athlete (n.) 運動員
5.
But not everyone supports the decision to draft players right out of high school. 1)Critics say that few teenage athletes are 2)mature enough to 3)deal with the 4)mental and 5)physical pressure of the pros. Players also 6)sacrifice the chance to 7)further their education. And many feel that, 8)in the long run, a college education is more important than the NBA.
但並不是每個人都支持挑選高中剛畢業的新秀。批評者指出，很少有十幾歲的運動員夠成熟可以處理職業運動員心理和生理上面臨的壓力。球員並且犧牲了他們受高等教育的機會。而且很多人覺得，長遠來看，大學教育比NBA更重要。
1) critic (n.) 批評者，評論家
2) mature (a.) 成熟的
3) deal with (phr.) 處理，對付
4) mental (a.) 心理的，精神的
5) physical (a.) 身體的
6) sacrifice (v.) 犧牲
7) further (v.) 增進，進一步發展
8) in the long run (phr.) 長期來看
6.
But there are also many who support drafting young players. Many fans of the NBA think that drafting younger players 1)provides the league with exciting new 2)talent. Going pro allows players to earn a living. In college, athletes play for free and also 3)risk getting a career-ending 4)injury.
但是支持年輕球員選秀的也大有人在。很多NBA的球迷認為，選拔年輕球員可以提供給聯盟更有活力的新血。成為職業選手也是賺錢謀生的方式。運動員在大學打球沒有酬勞，而且要冒著受傷而終結運動生涯的風險。
1) provide (v.) 提供
2) talent (n.) 才華，人才
3) risk (v.) 冒……之險
4) injury (n.) 傷害
7.
The NBA says it would like to have a 1)minimum age 2)requirement of 20. Even Haywood thinks that might be a good idea. “I see some [players] straight out of high school that don't have the 3)fundamentals,” he says.
NBA表示希望設定最低年齡二十歲的限制。就連海伍德都覺得這可能是好主意。「我看到一些高中剛畢業的球員，基礎都沒打好」，他說。
1) minimum (a.) 最低的
2) requirement (n.) 規定，要求
3) fundamental (n.) 基本
8.
But now that King James is ruling the court in Cleveland, no one is jumping to change the rules. Says Haywood: “You see a guy like LeBron, and you say, ‘He's ready!’”But others are saying, “is he?” (based on Time For Kids, Nov. 17th, 2003 World Report)
但是現在詹姆士大帝正在克利夫蘭稱王，沒有人急著要改變規則。海伍德表示，「你看到像李朋這樣的人，會說：『他準備好了！』」但其他人在問：「是嗎？」
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