The obvious Western Conference Finals storyline is the Lakers attempting to exact revenge on the Suns for first round exits in 2006 and 2007. The former series saw the Lakers become just the eighth team in NBA history to blow a 3-1 lead. The latter featured one Laker victory. Now the Lakers are the consensus favorites and the Suns are the respected underdog, so the story has been turned on its ear.
对于即将开始的西部决赛来说，一个最明显的故事情节就是湖人将会尽力复仇太阳，来消灭他们在2006和2006两个赛季季后赛首轮被对手淘汰的阴影。在2006年湖人成为了历史上第八支在3-1领先的情况下被对手逆转的球队。而2007年湖人只拿下一场胜利。现在湖人是公认的最大的夺冠热门球队，而太阳则打出了人们期望之外的战绩，所以这个故事就变得有趣得多了。
But like most great tales, there's a B-plot. The story within the story. And that's where Jordan Farmar fits in.
但是就像大多数伟大的故事一样，都会嵌套一个小故事，而对于这次的对决来说，乔丹-法玛尔有幸成为了其中的一部分。
The Lakers backed into the 2007 playoffs 4-6 run after final 10 regular season games. Cohesion was minimal, and with Kwame Brown, Mo Evans, Lamar Odom and Luke Walton nursing injuries, so was health. Plus, they just weren't that great a team. An active imagination was needed envision victory. Because of these realities, the series itself contained little genuine intrigue (although Kobe's radio tour aftermath certainly made up for it). Still, this anticlimactic affair featured one interesting wrinkle. Smush Parker had become a lethargic basket case, so Phil Jackson made a drastic decision 80 games into the season and promoted rookie Jordan Farmar.
将故事返回到2007年季后赛，在他们最后10场常规赛中，他们取得了4胜6负的战绩。他们那个时候的球队凝聚力降到了最低，而且夸梅-布朗，莫-埃文斯，拉马尔-奥多姆和卢克-沃顿都还有伤在身，所以他们球队的健康也有问题。另外，他们球队也不是一支伟大的球队。他们想取得一场胜利几乎都成了一种空想，因为这些事实，这一系列赛本身就几乎不包含什么复杂的情节（当然在比赛之后，科比的无线电台之旅充分弥补了这一点）。不过虽然这一系列赛好无趣味，但是其中还是有一些有趣的东西。斯马什-帕克对于比赛似乎变得非常的懒洋洋，所以菲尔-杰克逊在80场比赛之后做了一个大胆的决定，他将新秀乔丹-法玛尔提上了首发的位置。
Matching playoff wits against Steve Nash is a challenge for seasoned veterans, much less a newbie averaging 15 minutes per game. The kid was clearly overmatched and after a solid Game 1, steadily faded. Still, there's no shame in getting outplayed by a two-time MVP, and it was a positive experience for the point guard.
在季后赛去对抗斯蒂夫-纳什对于一名老兵来说都是一件非常有挑战的事儿，那就更不用说一名整赛季场均只有15分钟上场时间的新秀了。在第一场比赛之后，很显然的，这个孩子被彻底打爆了，表现也从第一场开始越来越差。但是，被连续两届MVP打败，对于一名新秀来说并不是一件很丢人的事，而且对于一名组织后卫来说还是可以收获非常积极的经验的。
"It was cool," said Farmar while recounting the experience at a recent practice. "I want to be a starter all the time. My whole career. So it was great for me. I got a chance to get out there at the beginning and play the game a little differently. More comfortable in the situation."
“这非常的酷！”法玛尔在最近的一次训练后回忆那时获得经验说到，“我一直都想成为首发，在我的整个职业生涯我都一直这么想的。所以这（和纳什的对抗）对我来说非常的伟大，我能从比赛一开始就上场，用不同的方式去打球，在这样的情形下打球会让我感觉到更加的舒服。”
As Farmar noted, starting's always the goal, and to many, this series represented a signpost moment for his eventual career as the Lakers' starting point guard. Even with the offseason acquisition of Derek Fisher, it was only a matter of time before the reins were passed from a (then) 34 year-old to his protege.
就像法玛尔所提到的，首发对于大多数的球员来说，都是一个目标，而那一系列赛似乎也预示着他作为湖人首发控球后卫的职业生涯即将到来。尽管他们在休赛期签下了曾经的湖人球员德里克-费舍尔，而且大多人认为将首发从一名34岁老将传到他的弟子手里也只是一个时间上的问题。
Three seasons later, Jordan remains Fisher's backup. More notably, he hasn't made headway in taking the gig, despite L.A.'s obvious need for an heir apparent. I asked Farmar if this was a disappointment development in his career.
三个赛季之后，乔丹-法玛尔依然是费舍尔的替补，更显而易见的是，他似乎还没有进步到可以取代他师父的位置，尽管洛杉矶很显而易见的是在这个位置上需要一个继承人。我问过法玛尔这是否是他职业生涯中一个很令人失望的发展过程。
"Yeah. I mean, that's what I want for my career. I'm all about winning, so given my role on this team, I accept it wholeheartedly and try to do my best to help us win a championship. That's my obligation to the team and to the organization. At the same time, in my personal career, as my career goes on, I want to make strides to progress in my career. From that point, it's kind of gone up and down a little bit. I want to continue to keep getting better, to keep getting more opportunities. I really want to run a team."
“是的，我的意思是那是我职业生涯都想要的，我希望赢球，所以无论球队给我在队里面是什么位置，我都会全心全意的接受，然后尽量发挥我最好的来帮助我们赢下总冠军。这是我对球队和管理层的应尽的义务和责任。同时，在我个人的职业生涯里，随着时间不断的推移，我希望在我的职业生涯里能够取得很大的进步，所以从这看来，这只是职业生涯的一段起起伏伏的过程，我会继续保持变得更好，然后得到更多的机会，我真的很想成为球队的大脑。”
99.999 percent of NBA players prefer to start (.001 being Robert Horry), so Farmar coveting the spot shouldn't raise eyebrows. More concerning, however, is the flimsy case he's made. Farmar's basic stats have mostly dipped since his sophomore season. Ditto the PER. During a period in 2009 when his attitude was questioned, he briefly fell out of the rotation in favor of mid-season addition Shannon Brown, despite the lack of triangular knowledge. It's unfortunately easier to argue Farmar's regressed than improved since his second season, particularly on defense. At the very least, he's been stuck in neutral.
99.999%的NBA球员都更希望成为球队的首发（0.001%是罗伯特-霍利），所以法玛尔渴求那个首发的位置我们不应该扬起眉毛睁大眼睛而感到吃惊，我们更应该关心的，是他自己的表现。法玛尔自从他的第二个赛季之后，他的基本数据就一直呈下滑状态。还有他的PER值也是这样。在2009年的一段时间里，他的打球态度貌似有了点问题，还曾短暂的掉出了轮换阵容，而他的位置也被宰赛季中期转来的香浓-布朗所取代，尽管他对三角进攻的知识还相当的缺乏。很显然的，法玛尔自从第二个赛季之后，退步的比进步的多，尤其是在防守方面，最最起码的，他一直在中游水平上原地踏步。
Removing the "starter" issue from the equation, I asked Farmar to assess his career progress purely as a player:
我们先撇开首发不谈，我问过法玛尔，作为一个球员他如何评价自己进步了多少。
"It's hard to tell. I'm not getting to play basketball the way I know how to play basketball. I'm not the one making the plays, making the decisions. I'm more spacing the court, feeding the guys and being aggressive on occasions on my opportunities. It's just different. That's just my role on the team, to bring energy, to get us in our stuff, and to run the offense the right way. It's just a little different. In terms of my progression, my progression in this role has kind of come around to where I'm comfortable doing this role, but I still want more for my overall career."
“这似乎很难说啊，我并没有按照我所知道了解的打篮球方式那样去打球，因为我不是进攻的发起者，我不是做决定的那个人，我做的更多的是在场上找出空间，然后将球喂给那些家伙，当我有机会的时候，要更加的积极，这是不一样的。这就是我在球队里的角色，带来更多的能量，做好自己的份内的事，用正确的方式去进攻，这是有点不一样的。至于我在球队里的进步，我想可能就是我对于我在球队里的角色现在做的更加得心应手了，更加适应这个角色了，但是在我的职业生涯里我想要的还有更多。”
This take is pretty fascinating, because he's arguably right and delusional at the same time. Farmar's been accused of an inflated sense of his skill, and I'd be lying if I claimed never to concur. He often attempts way too much on the offensive end without accomplishing enough on the other side. At the same time, it's genuinely hard to refute his point about the Laker system not playing to his strengths. Farmar likes to play uptempo while making decisions with the ball in hands like a traditional point guard. The Lakers play slower, emphasize the post or Kobe, and often require him to spend time spotting up. It's a job description Farmar clearly isn't wild about, even when attempted in earnest.
这话听起来似乎非常有道理，因为他说的都非常对，但同时又有点痴心妄想。法玛尔经常被人们所诟病他的技术有点华而不实，如果我说我从来都没有觉得这一点那我肯定是在撒谎。他总是在进攻端尝试更多而忘记了另一端还有很多需要他做的。但是，同样的，你也很难听到这样的观点，说湖人的体系不能发挥出他的能量。法玛尔喜欢打快速的篮球，他喜欢将球控在自己手里，然后由他来做决定，就像一个传统的组织后卫一样。而湖人显然打得速度非常的慢，他们更强调低位的进攻或者科比，他们只需要法玛尔得定点投篮，这显然不是法玛尔所想要的进攻模式，尽管他已经非常认真的去做了。
After four years in a Laker uni, I'm still not convinced Farmar would make a great NBA starting point guard. But I absolutely think the odds would increase in a different system. The consensus opinion will be revealed this summer when Farmar hits restricted free agency. I'm not sure what the market holds for him, but I've felt for a couple of seasons this will be Farmar's last year in L.A. due to a mutual lack of interest. At a recent team dinner, it was acknowledged some faces could be gone next season. Jordan insists his focus is the title run, but acknowledged the concept of a last hoorah in purple and gold has crossed his mind.
法玛尔在湖人已经待了四年了，我至今都不确信法玛尔将会成为NBA一名伟大的先发控球后卫，但是我确信如果在一个不同体系里面这样的可能性会大大增加。这个观点将会在这个夏天法玛尔成为受限制的自由球员时得到验证。我不确定他的市场究竟有多大，但是今年将会是法玛尔在湖人的最后一个赛季这个观点我已经有了好几个赛季。因为双方都已经失去了兴趣。在最近的一次球队聚餐里，大家都认为有些面孔在下赛季将会消失。乔丹-法玛尔一直坚持他的目标依旧是获得总冠军，但是他也承认，这是他最后一次批上紫金球衣这样的想法并不是没有在他脑中闪过。
"You never know how it's going to work out."
“你永远都不知道最终的结果会是什么。”
It's important to note Farmar wasn't complaining about his situation, nor was any bitterness expressed while answering my questions. I broached the subject, not him. Yes, failure to secure a starting spot leaves Farmar unsatisfied, but he still recognizes the unique value of his four NBA seasons.
需要指出的是法玛尔并不是抱怨他在球队里的位置，在回答我的问题的时候他也没有诉苦，因为这个话题是我提出来的，而不是他。是的，没有打上首发这让法玛尔感到不太满意，但是他仍然认识到他在NBA这四个赛季他所体现出来的价值。
"In terms of my career, I've done everything you can do as a basketball player. I was a first round draft pick. I played in the Rookie game. I got sent down to the D-League. I came back up. I came off the bench. I didn't play at all. I started. I went to the Finals and lost. I went to the Finals and won. I've done pretty much everything you can do. I've gotten injured. I've had to sit out. I've had surgery. I've been through so many things as a basketball player in four years. I just have a lot of experience and a lot of preparation to really do more in my career.
“在我在球队的这些年来说，我已经做了作为一个篮球运动员所能做的一切。我是第一轮选秀球员，我打了新秀赛，我被下放到发展联盟，然后我又回来了，我打过替补，有过几乎坐穿板凳的经历，我输掉过总决赛，我也赢过总冠军。我几乎已经做了一切你可以做的，我受伤过，也有过因伤缺席比赛，我也做过手术，我在我作为篮球运动员的这四年了我经历过了这么多的事儿，我拥有了很多经验，我准备的更多，我可以在我的职业生涯里做的更多。”
"I've been through it all, man. I just want to play. “
“我经历了一切，哥们儿，我只是想上场打球。”
"I'm very, very happy. I've helped this organization, one of the greatest in the history of basketball, win another championship. I'm definitely a big part of that and it feels very special and it's time to do it again. As far as what's been accomplished, I'm very happy about it.
“我现在非常非常开心，我帮助过球队，这是篮球历史上最伟大的球队之一，我赢了一个总冠军，而且我是球队非常重要的一员，这感觉非常的特别，现在我们是我们再次做这一切的时候了，对于我们所完成的一切，我感觉非常的开心。”
"I can't complain... I don't know if I would have traded it for anything."
“我不能抱怨…我不知道我能否用它来换回什么。”
Uncertainty may loom on Farmar's horizon, but one thing's iron-clad. He's a member of the Los Angeles Lakers and a series begins Monday where he needs to step up. Phoenix's reserves have been critical to their postseason success, and it'll be up L.A.'s bench to match effectiveness and energy. Of any Laker in the rotation, much less the three main reserves, Farmar's made the smallest impact during the playoffs. Now is the time to demonstrate the capabilities he's always steadfastly believed in.
对于法玛尔的未来我们并不确定会发生什么，但是有一件事现在是非常显然的，那就是他现在还是洛杉矶湖人的一员，在周一开始的这一系列赛，他需要站出来表现更多，菲尼克斯之所以在季后赛如此的成功源自于他们的替补非常的出色，这就需要湖人的替补能够贡献他们更多的能量和影响力来匹敌对方的替补。在湖人的替补里，法玛尔是三个主要的替补当中在季后赛对球队影响力最小的。现在是时候来证明他拥有他所相信他所拥有的能力了。
If this emerges his final season as a Laker, it would only be fitting to succeed against the opponent showing him what playoff ball is all about.
如果这真的是他作为湖人的最后一个赛季，那面对他在新秀赛季的对手打出漂亮的表现，这将会是会再合适不过的剧本了。
