[專欄] MPJ幾乎失去籃球後找尋自我

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Michael Porter Jr. lay on a bed in a patient room, staring up at the
ceiling, left alone with his doubts and fears.

Not again, he thought. Not again.

He felt as if he were in a dream. A terrible, agonizing nightmare. And he
felt intense déjà vu. For good reason: He had indeed been in this exact
room, in this exact bed, inside this exact Dallas medical facility—not once,
but twice before.

MPJ躺在病床上帶著疑慮跟恐懼盯著天花板 「別再一次」他心想 「別再一次」
他感覺像是在做一場夢,一個恐怖、痛苦的惡夢.而他強烈的覺得似曾相識,這是有根據的:他曾經在同樣的房間,同樣的床,同樣的達拉斯醫療診所—不只一次是兩次

On this afternoon in December 2021, the then 23-year-old had just awakened
from an unthinkable third back surgery in five years. The first surgery
occurred during his freshman year at Missouri in 2017, in which he played
just 53 minutes in three games; the second occurred before the start of his
rookie year with the Denver Nuggets in 2018, causing him to miss the entire
season. He had barely played basketball for two years. Now he was facing a
prolonged absence again. The game he so brilliantly dominated felt like it
had been stolen from him, and all he could do was helplessly wonder why.

“Why?” he asked, lying on that bed a year and a half ago. “Why is this
happening to me again?”

在2021年12月下午,當時23歲的他剛從五年來難以想像的第三次背部手術醒來,第一次發生在2017年Missouri大學的新秀賽季,當時才上了3場比賽打了53分鐘,第二次發生在2018年金塊隊新秀賽季之前,導致他缺席了整個賽季,幾乎兩年沒打過籃球. 現在又要面臨長期缺席的問題,在場上統治比賽的表現感覺像是要被偷走了,他所能做的僅是無助的想知道為什麼

「為什麼?」一年半前躺在病床上時他問著「為什麼這種事又發生在我身上?」

It was an incomprehensible fate to grasp for someone who was once ranked as
the no. 1 recruit in the country. Back then, the 6-foot-10 forward was
praised as the future of basketball, a surefire top pick in the 2018 NBA
draft. Known for his astounding athleticism and wingspan, he could shoot or
dunk over anyone. Leaping was almost like breathing: unconscious, effortless,easy. Basketball had always come so easy to him.
And now he faced the most difficult part of his young career: wondering if itwas truly over just as it was taking off. It had taken every fiber of his
being just to recover from his previous two surgeries and then miraculously
play well enough with the Nuggets to earn a five-year, $207 million max
extension in 2021.

對於一位曾經是全美第一人來說,這是一個難以理解的命運,當時這位208公分的前鋒被譽為籃球的未來,是18年NBA選秀不用懷疑的狀元,以驚人的運動能力以及臂展聞名,他可以在任何人面前投籃跟灌籃,飛躍幾乎跟呼吸一樣:無意識、不費力、輕鬆，籃球對他來說是很簡單的.
現在他在生涯起步面臨著最困難的部分:想知道是否於生涯正在起飛時就已經結束了,他用盡所有精力才從前兩次手術恢復,並且奇蹟式的打得很好,足夠從金塊隊爭取到一張5年最多可以領2億700萬的延長合約

But after his third surgery later that year, a similar microdiscectomy
procedure to the one he had previously undergone two times, he couldn’t
fathom how hard it would be to attempt yet another comeback. If, that is, it
was even physically possible—especially for someone whose game relied so
heavily on athleticism. He was devastated. “For a lot of guys, that’s
career-ending, one of those surgeries,” Porter Jr. says. “This is after two
of them.

“I thought I had kind of gotten over everything, and now I have to get a
third one? I don’t know if anyone’s ever played—especially at my young age
—after three back surgeries.

“I was just over it,” he says.

在那年第三次的手術,一個跟他前兩次相似的手術,他無法知道再次復出會有多困難,如果這手術會對身體上造成影響—尤其是在比賽中非常依賴運動能力的人. 他感到身心俱疲
「對很多人來說這手術是生涯的終結的其中一種」MPJ說「但這手術是我其中的第三次」「我以為我已經克服了這一切,現在我又要做第三次? 我不知道是否有人經歷三次手術後還有打球,特別是跟我年紀一樣時」MPJ說「我釋懷了」

The surgeries posed a unique and difficult challenge due to the intricate
nature of the back and the fact that they involved different nerves in his
body. When a nerve gets pinched, compressed, or irritated, it can cause
distress to a number of areas around the body, including the leg, as was the
case for Porter Jr.

It’s a tricky surgery because of how delicate nerves are. If anything in the
surrounding area compresses or irritates a nerve, it can significantly impactor even completely shut off power to whatever function that nerve serves. In
severe cases, one could lose the ability to use a particular extremity.

Due to the complex nature of his injury, Porter Jr. required extensive rehab
not just for his back, but also for his left leg, including his quad, his
hamstring, and his glute.

由於背部的複雜性以及涉及了身體不同的神經,這些手術導致獨特且困難的挑戰. 當神經受到擠壓、推擠、刺激的時候可能會導致全身多個地方疼痛,包含腿部就像MPJ的情況一樣

這是很棘手的手術,因為神經很脆弱,如果周圍有任何東西刺激到神經,神經會明顯影響或完全關閉神經作用的部位,在嚴重的情況下,可能會無法使用身體某個部位

由於傷勢的複雜性,MPJ不只需要對背部大量復健,甚至股四頭肌、腿部、臀部

Lisa, his mother, walked into the patient room that December day and prayed
over him alongside Nicodemus Christopher, Porter Jr.’s close friend,
performance coach, and manager. After the surgery, they helped him into a
wheelchair and steered him out of the facility.

In the coming months, Porter Jr. wasn’t allowed to drive. He couldn’t
perform basic movements such as bending down and tying his shoes. If he
dropped a pen, he couldn’t reach down and retrieve it. He couldn’t even sit
up on his own at first. He had to relearn dozens of mundane movements he oncetook for granted. “It wasn’t even about getting back to those athletic
moves,” Christopher says. “It was learning to operate in life again.”

他的媽媽Lisa在12月走進病房,跟MPJ的好友兼體能教練兼經紀人Nicodemus Christopher一起為為MPJ祈禱,手術後他們協助MPJ坐上輪椅離開醫院.
在往後的幾個月MPJ不被允許開車,甚至彎腰綁鞋帶這簡單動作都辦不到,如果地上掉了筆他也無法伸手去撿,剛開始坐著甚至無法站起來,他不得不去重新學習幾十個習以為常的基本動作.
「這甚至不是要恢復那些體能活動」Christopher說「是要學習重回日常生活」

Bridging the distance between where Porter Jr. was and where he yearned to be—playing at the highest level of basketball, sprinting, cutting, jumping at
full speed—seemed inconceivable.

Emotionally, coping with his third procedure weighed on him. “There was a
lot of sad feelings and there was a lot of really, honestly, depression and
anxiety,” Porter Jr. says, “not knowing if you’re able to fulfill what you
thought for your life.”

縮短MPJ現在的能力與他渴望的—最高水準的籃球全速—衝刺、切入、跳躍的距離似乎是
不太可能的.
精神上他面對著第三次手術的壓力「有很多難過的感覺,真的很多,如沮喪、焦慮」MPJ說「不知道是否能夠實踐你所想的人生」

When Porter Jr. was lying alone with his thoughts, there was another voice
inside him. It urged him to keep going. To not give in. That driven,
resilient part of him told him that he wasn’t going to quit, no matter how
arduous rehab would be. Day after day, he worked and worked, pushing himself
further.

Now, about a year and a half after that December day, Porter Jr. has emerged
triumphantly as a starter for a Nuggets team playing in the NBA Finals for
the first time in franchise history. The Nuggets will play the Miami Heat in
Game 1 on Thursday.

當MPJ獨自躺在床上沉思時,內心深處有另一個聲音,驅使他繼續前進,不屈服. 他內心堅強的部分告訴他,他不會放棄的,不論復健過程有多艱鉅. 日復一日,努力再努力把自己推向高峰
在12月手術那天過了約一年半,MPJ贏得金塊隊第一次的冠軍戰中的先發位置,金塊隊將在G1面對熱火

Porter Jr. isn’t his team’s best player, as people might have envisioned
when he came out of high school, but he might be the team’s biggest X factor
in pursuit of a ring. He’s played magnificently throughout the playoffs,
averaging 14.6 points and eight rebounds per game, and he’s flourishing on
the perimeter, shooting 40.8 percent on nearly seven 3-point attempts per
game.

But his impact has been felt far beyond scoring. He’s been a relentless
rebounder, grabbing double-digit boards in seven games. He’s also been an
improved defender and shot blocker, taking pride in his assignments. Instead
of dwelling on aspects of his game he felt he had lost due to his injuries,
such as his athleticism, Porter Jr. focused on what he could gain and how he
could add to his arsenal.
MPJ不是隊中最好的球員,如大家從他高中畢業預料的,但是他可能是隊上追逐冠軍的最大X因子,他在季後賽表現出色,場均14.6分8籃板,而他在外線表現出色,將近7次的3分出手達到40.8%的命中率
但他的影響力遠超出了得分,他是個不屈不撓的籃板手,在7場比賽中抓下雙位數籃板,他也在改善他的防守跟火鍋,為自己的任務感到自豪. MPJ沒有專注在因為傷勢而失去的東西:例如運動能力,反而專注於在他的武器庫可能獲得、增加什麼

As a result, he’s morphed into a more all-around player, making selfless
plays that contribute to winning basketball. It helps, too, that he is
playing with one of the most dominant centers ever: two-time MVP Nikola
Jokic. “Being able to play with Nikola has been awesome for me,” Porter Jr.
says, adding that Jokic embodies the selflessness that the Nuggets have
embraced. “You have to be kind of like that if you want everyone, the whole
team, to be like that.”

Denver coach Michael Malone praised Porter Jr. after the Game 1 win over the
Lakers for his hustle in diving for a loose ball late in the fourth quarter,
leading to a two-handed Aaron Gordon dunk. “It’s a game-winning type of
play,” Malone said.

“He came up to me during the Phoenix series [in Round 2] and says, ‘Listen,
man, if you want to get Bruce [Brown] in at the end of the game, whatever youthink is gonna help us win the game. I just want to win.’”
結果他變成了一個更全面的球員,做出無私的表現為贏球做出貢獻. 這也對跟著有史以來最有統治力之一的兩屆MVP中鋒Jokic有所幫助. 「對我來說能夠跟Jokic打球真的很棒」並提到Jokic擁有的無私「如果你想要所有人,整隊如此無私,你必須像Jokic這樣」
Malone在第一場戰勝湖人隊後,對MPJ於第四節努力拯救一個快要失去的球,引領Gordon雙手灌籃表示稱讚「這是一種"贏球"的打法」Malone說著「MPJ在與太陽對決時跟我說『如果你想讓Brown收官,無論你覺得可以幫球隊贏球的方式.我只想贏』」

He has learned to thrive within his role, sacrificing for the greater good ofhis team. It wasn’t always easy. For most of his life, he was a go-to
scorer, but he has learned how to complement the stars around him, including
Jokic, Gordon, and Jamal Murray. “It’s letting go of ego,” Porter Jr.
says, “but that’s our whole team. Our whole team is about that. A lot of
guys are sacrificing.”

Porter Jr. finally feels he’s in the right place. When he’s playing, he
feels he’s back in his element. The pressure to perform well has dissipated
and been replaced with sheer joy to be on the floor at all. To have a chance
to win a ring on the biggest stage of basketball.
他學會了在他自己的角色中成長,為團隊最大利益犧牲,這不是那麼容易的. 在他大部分的人生中他是個絕對的得分手,但是他已經學習到如何跟圍繞著他的明星球員們互補「就是放下自我中心的想法」MPJ說「但這就是我們整隊,整隊都是這樣子,很多隊友都有犧牲」

MPJ終於覺得他在一個對的環境,當他在比賽時覺得回到了自己的狀態,要表現出色的壓力已經消散,取而代之的是在場上時單純的喜悅,有機會贏得籃球中最高殿堂的冠軍
“I’m still not fully pain free,” he says. The brace, also known as an
ankle foot orthosis, or AFO, was specifically designed for older people in
recovery from strokes or other nerve damage. Porter Jr. is wearing it while
chasing after some of the best athletes in the world. He believes he is the
first NBA player to wear such a brace.
It isn’t easy to play with, as it severely restricts his natural movement,
making the way he’s able to defend quick forwards even more impressive. But
it helps stabilize him, preventing injury and essentially allowing him to
have more normal flexion and extension of his foot. If he didn’t have it, he
’d literally trip over himself because he wouldn’t be able to pull his foot
up when running.
He used to dread putting on the brace when he first started wearing it. It
wasn’t just because it limited his freedom on the court, but also because it
reminded him of what he had lost. But now, before each game, he thanks God
that such an apparatus exists, because without it: “My career would’ve been
over.”
「我還沒有擺脫痛楚」MPJ說著. 這支架也稱為腳踝矯正器,專為中風康復中的老人或神經身經損傷的人設計,MPJ穿著它追逐著全世界最好的球員,他相信他是第一位配戴它的NBA球員,穿著它很難打球,它嚴重限制著我的動作,尤其是防守敏捷的鋒線更讓我印象深刻,但是有助於我穩定住腳踝,防止受傷讓我的腳能夠彎曲或伸展.如果沒有穿著,MPJ會因為跑步時無法抬腿而自己跌到
他起初很怕戴上支架,不只是因為會限制他在場上的行動,也因為這會使他想起他失去的東西,但現在每場賽前他感激上帝有這樣的儀器存在,因為沒有它「我的生涯就結束了」
He’s felt that sense of gratitude during the Nuggets’ playoff run. During
Game 2 against the Lakers in Denver, Murray hit a 3 to put the Nuggets up
nine late in the fourth quarter. Then, the next time down, Porter Jr. took a
handoff from Jokic, nailing a momentum-shifting 3 of his own to widen the
lead to 12 and forcing the Lakers to call a timeout.

The home crowd roared. Porter Jr. lost himself in the noise, joy coursing
through his bones. He let out a smile.

His parents, Lisa and Michael Porter Sr., and Christopher, who were sitting
in the stands, exchanged glances. They hadn’t seen Porter Jr. smile like
that in a long, long time. Some nights.
在金塊季後賽中他感受到了感激之情,在與湖人隊G2的比賽中,用3分球擴大領先到12分迫使湖人隊叫了暫停,主場觀眾一片歡呼,MPJ迷失在歡呼聲中,喜悅流淌著他的骨頭,合不攏嘴的笑,他的父母以及Christopher,坐在觀眾席互換了眼神,他們已經好久沒有看到MPJ笑得那麼燦爛

心得:大概翻了一半而已,後面開始從第一次背傷聊起,其中大學時遇到全國轉播,熱身時
突然發現左腳有問題,還是決定上場在第一個暫停被換下場(爸爸是球隊助教),甚至躺在床上數週無法動彈等等問題,真的感覺MPJ很努力,雖然在防守端受限於支架跟身體,還是想辦法防守,甚至在冠軍賽進攻端3分失靈,第四戰轉而攻擊禁區,都試著幫助球隊. 希望MPJ能夠早日擺脫支架,回復健康了!

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很多人都知道MPJ有背傷,但可能不清楚開過三次刀,甚至有裝支架呢 我發這篇文章,主要也是想讓大家知道他裝著支架打球