愛德 - 籃球與我（上） - 籃球

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愛德 2019/3/15

台啤的立陶宛射手愛德，在來台參加瓊斯盃之後就愛上台灣。如今他終於如願在台灣打球
，這是他的故事。



My dad is a basketball coach, so it’s not surprising that I started to play
basketball at a very young age. My elder brother also plays basketball profes
sionally now. When we were little, we practiced together. Practicing with thos
e who are three years older than me helped me become more physical. In additio
n, we often played one-on-one in summer.

我爸爸是籃球教練，所以自然而然，我從很小就開始打籃球。我哥哥現在也是職業籃球
員。我們小時候都一起練球。和比我大三歲的人一起練球，讓我的身體素質比較好。我們
以前夏天還都會打一對一。


At 10 years old, I went to a bigger city to play basketball. My mom drove me
there and watched me practice every day, so she understands basketball as wel
l. Sometimes my family try not to talk about basketball at home. All of us agr
ee on that. But five minutes later, our topic turns back to basketball. We can
’t help. We are basketball family!

我10歲的時候，就到比較大的城市打籃球。那時候，我媽媽每天都載我去練球，她也會
在旁邊看我練習，所以她也懂籃球。有時候，我們會想說在家都不要再講籃球的事。大家
也都同意，但是5分鐘之後，我們的話題又回到籃球。沒辦法，我們是籃球家庭！


https://i.imgur.com/lYqLl5Z.jpg

（愛德與他的家人，取自愛德Instagram帳號。）



In fact, when I was not a professional player, I was quite good at academic
subjects. I like math, and I was even one of the best kids at school. However,
I like basketball more. Thus, when my home city team invited me to join in, I
accepted immediately. I was 13, and I was the youngest player in the league t
hen. When I went on the court, I was shaking.


其實我還不是職業球員的時候，我學科表現還不錯。我很喜歡數學，成績甚至是前幾名
。但是，我還是比較喜歡籃球。所以當家鄉的球隊邀我加入他們的時候，我馬上就答應了
。那年我13歲，是聯盟裡最年輕的球員。我站上球場的時候，全身發抖。


When I was 15 years old, I went alone to our capital, Vilnius, to play in th
e second tier of Lithuanian league. It’s also the moment that I knew basketba
ll would be my living. Actually, all my life, I was thinking that I'm gonna be
a basketball player. But when I signed the contract, I knew that I would make
money by playing basketball for real.

當我15歲的時候，獨自到立陶宛的首都，維爾紐斯，在二級聯賽打球。從那個時候起，
我就知道自己會靠當職業球員為生。事實上，我一直都在想著要當籃球員。但是當我簽下
合約的那一刻，我才真實地感受到自己可以靠打球賺錢了。


At that time, I was still a student. I had morning practice, then I went to
school, and went to practice again. Although I stopped going to school afterwa
rds, I still took exams and finished the schoolwork. Everything was fine.

那時候，我還是學生。我早上要練球，然後去學校，放學之後，再去練球。後來我就沒
去學校了，但是我還是有完成考試和學業。一切都很順利。


I was preparing to be a center at first because I was 185 cm tall when I was
13. But in Vilnius, the coach told me that I had to shoot. My coach helped me
a lot to build my confidence, so I started to be the shooter, playing like a
shooting guard.

我其實原本是要當中鋒，因為我13歲的時候，就185公分了。但是我到維爾紐斯的時候
，教練就告訴我必須要投籃。那位教練幫我建立滿大的自信，所以我就開始練投籃，轉成
得分後衛。


People put huge expectation on me because I started to play basketball early
. I have been to a lot of basketball camps, like Jordan Brand Classic. I playe
d an all-star game with Wiggins and Hezonja, and practiced with Anthony Davis.
When I was 16 years old, I had a lot of offers. American universities and one
of the best European teams gave me offers.

因為我很早就開始打職業籃球，所以大眾對我有滿高的期待。我也參加過很多籃球營，
像是Jordan Brand Classic。我和Wiggins(現NBA球員)，還有Hezonja(現NBA球員)一起打
過明星賽。我們也和Anthony Davis(現NBA球員)一起練過球。16歲的時候，我有滿多打球
的機會，像是美國的大學，還有歐洲很棒的球隊都有來找我。


But I don't like American style basketball. American basketball is just one-
on-one. I like to play more like a team. That's why I stayed in Europe. Eventu
ally, I chose one of the best Lithuanian teams to sign the contract.

但我不太喜歡美國的球風，他們強調一對一單打。我比較喜歡團隊配合，所以我就待在
歐洲，最後和立陶宛的球隊簽約。

https://i.imgur.com/ycFYCb6.jpg

（愛德與他在立陶宛BC Rytas的隊友，取自愛德Instagram帳號。）



I was one of the best European players at my age. I played very good in LKL
(the premier professional basketball league in Lithuania), and I was starting
five in every game. In 2012, I got a chance to play in Junior EuroLeague. Howe
ver, the worst thing happened...

在我那個年紀，我算是最頂尖的歐洲球員之一。我在LKL打得非常好(LKL是立陶宛最高
級的職籃聯賽)，每場比賽我都是先發。在2012年，我獲得參加青年歐洲籃球聯賽的資格
。然而，最糟的事情在此刻發生了...