[外絮] Kuminga淡化休賽季風波，承諾專注於球隊

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By Dalton Johnson

SAN FRANCISCO – Teammates were forced to answer questions for Jonathan Kumingaon Monday at Warriors Media Day because of his absence. Coach Steve Kerr fielded a few the next day before shutting them down and turning his attention to basketball. Finally, Kuminga on Thursday was able to speak for himself.

舊金山 – 由於 Jonathan Kuminga 缺席，勇士隊的隊友們在週一的媒體日被迫代他回答問題。教練 Steve Kerr 在隔天也回應了幾個問題，但很快就停止並把注意力轉回籃球。最終，Kuminga 在週四終於能夠親自發聲。

Kuminga on Wednesday ended his restricted free agency that lasted all three months of the offseason and bled into the bginning of training camp, signing a two-year, $48.5 million contract that has a team option on the second year. He wentthrough his first training camp practice Thursday and later addressed the mediafor the first time since inking his new deal.

Kuminga 在週三結束了持續三個月、甚至拖到訓練營開啟的受限自由球員狀態，簽下了一份兩年 4850 萬美元的合約，第二年包含球隊選項。他在週四第一次參加了訓練營，隨後首次就新合約對媒體發表談話。

The business side of basketball was eye-opening to Kuminga, who turns 23 years old on Oct. 6. The longer it took for Kuminga and the Warriors to agree to a deal, the louder the outside noise grew.

即將在 10 月 6 日滿 23 歲的 Kuminga，對籃球的商業層面有了大開眼界的體驗。協議拖得越久，外界的雜音就越大。

But it was brought down to hush from Kuminga’s answers speaking on the situation for the first time.

但當 Kuminga 首次就此情況發表看法時，所有雜音都被壓了下去。

“It’s part of what we do. It’s a business,” Kuminga said. “At the end of th
e day, all that matters is that we got it done and I’m excited to be here.”

「這是我們工作的一部分，這是一門生意。」Kuminga 說：「到頭來，最重要的是我們達成協議，而我很興奮能留在這裡。」

The only time Kuminga somewhat hinted at where his head was at during his restricted free agency was when he posted a picture to Instagram story on July 30 of him and his agent, Aaron Turner, that read, “I’ll bet on myself all day #JustKnow” while tagging Turner.

在受限自由球員期間，Kuminga 唯一稍微透露心境的時候，是他在 7 月 30 日於 Instagram 限時動態貼出與經紀人 Aaron Turner 的合照，並附上「我永遠會押注自己 #JustKnow」的文字，並標註了 Turner。

Once Jan. 15 arrives, the Warriors have three weeks to trade Kuminga by the NBA’s Feb. 5 deadline. His contract helps the Warriors find an in-season trade partner to move Kuminga if they choose to do so, but he doesn’t view his new dealas purely betting on himself.

當 1 月 15 日到來時，勇士將有三週的時間能在 NBA 2 月 5 日的交易截止日前交易 Kuminga。他的新合約確實能幫助勇士在賽季中找到交易對象，但他並不認為這份合約是純粹押注自己。

“I wouldn’t say that,” Kuminga said. “But I’ll tell you, me betting on myse
lf is helping us win a championship. And I think that’s our goal and how we all look at it. I’m blessed, I’m glad I got this done.”

「我不會這麼說。」Kuminga 表示：「但我會說，押注自己就是幫助我們贏得冠軍。我認為這是我們的目標，也是我們看待事情的方式。我很幸運，也很高興能完成這件事。」

Kuminga was drafted No. 7 overall by the Warriors in 2021, one year after the team took James Wiseman No. 2 overall and the same year they selected Moses Moodyat No. 14. A youth infusion appeared to be on the way as Steph Curry, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson entered the later part of their careers.

Kuminga 在 2021 年被勇士以第 7 順位選中，那是在球隊以榜眼簽選進 James Wiseman 的隔年，同年勇士還以第 14 順位挑選 Moses Moody。當時正值 Steph Curry、Draymond Green 與 Klay Thompson 職業生涯的後半段，看起來球隊即將迎來年輕化。

And then Curry led the Warriors to a championship in Kuminga’s rookie year that surprised many, possibly changing the franchise’s plans of what’s best for the present and future of the team. Yet the Warriors have turned down multiple trade offers for Kuminga in the past.

隨後，Curry 在 Kuminga 的菜鳥球季率領勇士奪冠，令許多人驚訝，也可能改變了球隊對於現階段與未來藍圖的規劃。然而，勇士過去已多次拒絕針對 Kuminga 的交易報價。

His 2024-25 season was hampered by a badly sprained ankle in early January thatkept Kuminga sidelined for more than two months. Kuminga started the first three games of the season and then was back to the bench, starting just 10 regular-season games in total. He has played 258 regular-season games in his career and hasn’t even started a third of them.

他的 2024-25 賽季因一月初的嚴重腳踝扭傷受到影響，讓他缺席了超過兩個月。Kuminga賽季初前三場是先發，之後回到板凳，全季僅先發 10 場。他生涯至今打了 258 場例行賽，先發數還不到其中的三分之一。

Which brings everything to the ultimate question: Does Kuminga want to remain with the Warriors and play for one team like his idol, the late Kobe Bryant?

這也帶來最終的問題：Kuminga 是否想像他的偶像、已故的 Kobe Bryant 一樣，一生只效力於一支球隊、留在勇士？

“I’m here now,” he said, throwing up his hands at the podium. “That’s every
body’s goal, to be somewhere for longer. You never know how your future will be determined. So far, that’s my goal and what I want to accomplish is being here longer.”

「我現在就在這裡。」他在台上舉起雙手說道：「那是每個人的目標，都希望能待得更久。你永遠不知道未來會怎麼發展。到目前為止，我的目標與想完成的事，就是能在這裡待得更久。」

Kerr on Wednesday reiterated the Warriors will operate through their veteran star trio of Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green. He emphasized what he always has for how Kuminga can earn more minutes and have a larger role: Run the floor, rebound and be the best defender he can.

Kerr 在週三再次重申，勇士將以明星三人組 Steph Curry、Jimmy Butler 與 Draymond Green 為核心運作。他也再度強調 Kuminga 若想爭取更多上場時間與更大角色，必須做到：快攻、搶籃板，以及把防守做到最好。

Showing a focus for the small details has fell by the wayside for Kuminga at times over his first four seasons in the NBA. He has shown an affection for playing isolation ball offensively and has missed assignments defensively. Playing that way won’t get him on the court under Kerr, in particular with this roster.

在 NBA 的前四個賽季裡，Kuminga 有時會忽略細節。他偏好單打進攻，在防守上則常有漏人。在 Kerr 的體系裡，特別是這支陣容下，以這樣的方式打球不會讓他獲得更多上場時間。

When asked about how he views his role on the Warriors, Kuminga deferred to winning over anything individually.

當被問到他如何看待自己在勇士的角色時，Kuminga 將勝利置於個人之上。

“Just helping us win,” Kuminga says. “Find a way to help us win. Both ends –
defense, offense – just find a way to be a piece that’s going to help us wingames and hopefully a championship. Being involved on both sides. Finding a wayto have an impact. If it’s defense, if it’s an assignment, just go guard the best player. Or if they need me to score. … I feel like that’s what I’m looking forward to and I am very open-minded.”

「就是幫助我們贏球。」Kuminga 說：「想辦法幫助我們贏。不論防守或進攻，就是找到能幫助我們贏球、甚至奪冠的方式。在攻守兩端都參與其中，找到影響比賽的方法。如果是防守，如果有防守任務，那我就去盯對方最好的球員。若是需要我得分，我也可以承擔。我覺得這正是我所期待的，而我也保持著開放的心態。」

Kuminga’s role isn’t expected to change much, but over the course of a season, he can be a highly valuable player for a team run by players in their mid-to-late 30s. He’ll be relied on to be more of a scoring factor in games that Curry and Butler need off or can’t go, and called upon to do what’s necessary to winon a nightly basis. Plus, the better he plays, the better his trade value is for the Warriors, possibly creating a win-win for both sides.

Kuminga 的角色預計不會有太大改變，但在整個賽季中，他仍能成為一名極具價值的球員，對於由一群三十多歲老將主導的球隊尤為重要。在 Curry 與 Butler 休息或缺席的比賽，他將被依賴成為更多的得分點，每晚都要完成贏球所需的任務。而且，他打得越好，對勇士的交易價值就越高，這可能為雙方創造雙贏局面。

However it all plays out for Kuminga and the Warriors, he’ll have a new look to his game. At least when it comes to the front and back of his jersey.

不管 Kuminga 與勇士的關係最終如何發展，他的比賽至少會有一個「新樣貌」——從球衣號碼開始。

Kuminga switched his jersey number from 00 to 1, marking a new chapter in a story that feels far from complete.

Kuminga 將球衣號碼從 00 改成 1，為這段尚未完結的故事開啟新篇章。

“A new start,” Kuminga explained. “I wanted to go back to my actual number that I used to wear when I was at [St. Patrick High School]. I just wanted to trynew things, you know.”

「一個新的開始。」Kuminga 解釋：「我想回到以前真正屬於我的號碼，那是我在 [St. Patrick 高中] 時期所穿的。我只是想嘗試新東西，你懂的。」

There wasn’t more fuel added to the fire by Kuminga’s first comments since re-joining the Warriors. How their relationship continues, however, can either burn the house downor be the spark he always needed to keep the flame all along.

Kuminga 在重返勇士後的首次談話，沒有為爭議再添柴火。然而，接下來他與球隊的關係，可能會是毀掉一切的大火，也可能會是讓這團火焰一直延續的火種。

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