雙軌時代

Michael Scotto

Two-way contracts werecreated with the hope of givingmore players jobs， strengtheningthe relationship with the G Leagueand team affiliates， increasing payand more， but was it a success in theeye of those involved？ It depends onwho you ask.

雙向合同的設立初衷，是希望為球員提供更多工作機會，強化發展聯盟球隊與母隊的聯系，增加球員收入。但在參與其中的人眼中，雙向合同的試驗是成功的嗎？這取決于提問的對象。

For players， a two-waycontract represents a foot in thedoor to living their dream full-timeat the NBA level with the caveatof a burdensome travel schedule.For executives， two-way playersrepresent the opportunity to find adiamond in the rough and developcheaper and younger talent for thefuture. For agents， the two-waycontract can offer their clients lessopportunity and more obstaclesthan advertised.

對球員來說，雙向合同意味著一只腳邁入全職在NBA打球這個夢想的大門;但其中隱含的一個問題，繁重的旅行。對管理層來說，雙向合同意味著找到璞玉的機會，為未來培養廉價的年輕天賦。對經紀人來說，雙向合同并非如宣傳的那樣，只能為客戶提供更少的機會，制造更多的障礙。

NBA teams are allowed upto two players under two-waycontracts. Those players spend thebulk of the season in the G Leagueand a maximum of 45 days withtheir NBA team. Those playersare paid a corresponding dailysalary based on the number ofdays they play in each league. Onlyplayers with four NBA seasons ofexperience or less can sign two-waydeals， which can be for either oneor two seasons. A player has to beactive for one day to get credit for ayear of service.

NBA球隊最多可以擁有兩名雙向合同球員。這些球員賽季大部分時間在發展聯盟度過，最多可以在NBA球隊停留45天。這些球員根據在兩個聯盟打球的天數，按照日工資獲得相應的報酬。只有在NBA效力時間不多于四年的球員可以簽雙向合同，雙向合同的時長為一年到兩年。想獲得一賽季的NBA履歷，球員必須至少有一天在NBA處于激活狀態。

While two-way contractsgenerally go to young playerswith potential upside， some olderplayers with overseas experiencetook advantage of the opportunity.C.J. Williams， who previouslyplayed in Greece， Italy， France，and the former D League， earneda two-way contract at 27 with theClippers.

盡管雙向合同大部分歸屬擁有上升潛力的年輕球員，但也有一些有著海外職業經驗的老球員抓住了這個機會。曾經在希臘，意大利，法國和發展聯盟打過球的CJ·威廉姆斯，就在27歲時和快船簽下了雙向合同。

"It's a dream come true， to behonest，" Williams said. "I alwayswanted to play in the NBA andget an opportunity. It's not exactlyan NBA contract， but at the sametime I get an opportunity， and that'sall I can ask for， and I've just beenenjoying every moment of it， butI know my work isn't done. I can'tbe satisfied with just a two-waycontract， I have to work to progressto get more."

“說實話，這就是夢想成真。”威廉姆斯說，“我一直想在NBA打球，想得到一個機會。嚴格來說這不是NBA合同，但與此同時我得到了機會，這就是我想要的一切。我真的很享受每一個瞬間，但我知道自己的工作還沒完成。我不能只滿足于雙向合同，我需要繼續努力得到更多。”

Williams admitted it was"weird" to play for two differentteams technically， but played wellenough to force the Clippers togive him a multi-year contract withsome guaranteed money.

威廉姆斯承認，為兩支球隊打球是一種“怪異”的感覺，但如果足夠優秀，他就能讓快船送上一份帶有部分保障的多年合同。

Williams was eventuallywaived and signed a two-way dealwith the Minnesota Timberwolvesfor this season.

威廉姆斯最終被快船裁掉，他在本賽季與森林狼簽下了雙向合同。

Former Rockets two-wayguard Markel Brown， 26， used thetwo-way contract as an opportunityto return to the NBA. The formersecond-round draft pick played twoseasons for the Nets before spendingone season in Russia with BCKhimki. After making substantiallymore overseas in Russia， Brownreturned to the States with the hopeof making the NBA again.

前火箭隊雙向球員，26歲的馬克爾·布朗，將雙向合同看作重返NBA的機會。這個二輪秀在籃網打了兩賽季后，又在俄羅斯的希姆基隊打了一年。布朗的海外生涯大部分在俄羅斯度過，回美國后，他希望能再次進入NBA。

"On the court， I feel like foroverseas there is a lot of competitiondepending on what league you're in，depending on what team you go andplay for， it's a lot of competition，"Brown said. "There are a lot of guysthat used to be in the NBA that areoverseas now， and I think it's great.

“球場上，我覺得競爭的壓力取決于你在哪個聯賽，效力什么球隊以及對手，海外聯賽的競爭是很激烈的。”布朗表示，“有很多曾經在NBA打球的人現在在海外打比賽，我覺得這很好。”

"Going overseas， being ableto make some money to be able totake care of your family， but I thinkstaying in the States and playingin the G League is also good aswell. You've got great coaches inthe G League who are constantlypreparing you for their affiliateteam， so I think both are great onthe court. Off the court， for me，being in Russia the language， food，traveling around trying to ventureout and see new things versus beingin the States it's just like beinghome， so I think it opens up youreyes and makes you more thankfulfor what you have around you."

“去海外打球能賺錢養家，但我覺得留在美國，在發展聯盟打球也很好。發展聯盟有很優秀的教練，他們一直讓你為加入母隊做準備，所以我覺得在籃球方面，這兩種選擇都很好。籃球之外，對我來說，在俄羅斯，無論是語言，食物，四處旅行能看到新事物，相比美國，我覺得這能打開眼界，讓你更珍惜身邊的一切。”

Brown played four gamesfor the Rockets last seasonbefore signing in Turkey for theupcoming season.

布朗上賽季為火箭打了四場比賽，隨后在新賽季與土耳其球隊簽約。

"I think it's great for a lot ofyoung players who are on the cuspto making rosters，" Brown said. "Ithink it was great for me being thatguy， coming back from injuries andtrying to continue to fight to getinto the NBA."

“我覺得對很多接近進入大名單的年輕球員，這是很不錯的選擇。”布朗說，“我覺得這對我來說也很好，我受傷之后想要繼續拼搏重返NBA。”

In addition to inconvenienttravel plans on a moment's notice，some agents worried about thephysical toll their clients enduredand lack of sleep as formerBrooklyn Nets two-way playerMilton Doyle noted.

除了接到通知需要立刻動身的不方便旅行計劃外，一些經紀人擔心自己的客戶身體上會承受更多壓力，睡眠時間也會減少，正如前籃網雙向球員米爾頓·多爾說的那樣。

"It gets crazy sometimes justbecause you never know whenyou're going to get the call，" Doylesaid. "Somebody might get hurtor be sick or anything. You mightget a call at twelve， one， or two inthe morning and they tell you thatyou've got to fly out at 6：00 in themorning. The flight， just to get tothe airport — especially in NewYork — is crazy traffic and thena flight. It just takes a toll on yourbody with whatever traveling you'redoing."

“有時候會變得很瘋狂，因為你不知道什么時候會接到電話。”多爾說，“有人會受傷或者生病。你可能在凌晨12點，1點或2點接到電話，對方說你得在早上6點坐飛機趕來。特別是在紐約，去機場的交通太痛苦了，接著還有航班。不管什么樣的旅行都會對身體產生影響。”

These are the types of tripsplayers will endure for that NBAdaily paycheck， and even pass ona mother's home-cooked meal， asDetroit Pistons two-way playerReggie Hearn explained.

為了獲得NBA級別的薪水，球員愿意忍受這樣的旅行，有時甚至會放棄媽媽做的飯，活塞的雙向球員雷吉·赫恩做出了解釋。

"There was one where we hada game at Grand Rapids at sevenand Detroit had a game in Detroit atseven，" Hearn said. "At 3：45 I got acall saying that I needed to come toDetroit and I think that was to playMiami. I think at the last second，one of the guys was a no go， so Stan（Van Gundy） wanted to make surehe had an extra wing on the bench，so I packed up all my stuff in 15minutes. My mom was at my houseready to go to the game that nightat Grand Rapids. I had to tell her，‘Hey， sorry.' She made some chili，and mom makes some bomb chili（laughs）. Then we got in the car，and as we pulled away they decidedthat the roads were too bad， so I waswith Jon Phelps， our GM， so we justended up heading straight to thegame in Grand Rapids. I thought Iwas going to Detroit and making aheck of a lot more money that day."

“有一次我們在大急流城有場7點的比賽，活塞在底特律7點也有場比賽。”赫恩說，“3點45時我接到一個電話，讓我去底特律，那場比賽是打熱火。我覺得是在最后一刻，他們有球員不能不上場了，所以斯坦（范甘迪）希望板凳上有額外的側翼球員，為此我15分鐘就打包好了行李。我媽媽當時在我家，準備那天晚上去看大急流的比賽。我只能跟她說，'嘿，對不起。'她做了些辣味的飯，我媽做辣的東西特好吃。開車后我們被攔下了，因為路況太差了，最終我和總經理喬·菲爾普斯一起只能改道去了大急流城的比賽。那天我以為自己能去底特律掙一大筆錢。”

Quinn Cook may have beenthe biggest winner of the two-waysweepstakes. He began the seasonas a two-way player for GoldenState， averaged 9.5 points and 2.7assists in 33 games played duringthe regular season， signed a multiyeardeal with the Warriors andwon a ring. For each executive，Cook offers hope that a two-wayplayer can become a component tosuccess.

奎恩·庫克可能算是雙向合同的最大受益者。他先是成為勇士的雙向球員，在常規賽的33場比賽里拿到9.5分2.7助攻的場均數據，接著和勇士簽下多年合同，最終贏得了一枚總冠軍戒指。對球隊管理層來說，庫克就是雙向球員能夠成為勝利拼圖的希望。

"I like having another youngplayer under our control to develop，and it allows for more flexibilityand bodies to work with ouryounger roster players duringdevelopment work，" an EasternConference general manager said."I don't like that the 10-day talentpool is more diminished for teams."

“我希望擁有一個受自己控制的年輕球員，在培養的過程中我們可以有更大的靈活性，年輕球員可以得到更多鍛煉機會。”一個東部球隊的總經理表示，“我不喜歡10天短合同的球員池越來越小的情況。”

Along the lines of theexecutive's point regarding thedilution of talent for the 10-daypool， agents are hesitant to the newtwo-way idea of locking a playerinto one team for the season. Inthe past， their client could earn acall-up to a team that had a morepressing need and playing timereadily available.

除了管理層以為10天短合同球員越來越少的說法外，經紀人也對雙向合同將一名球員鎖定在一支球隊一個賽季的做法存在猶豫態度。過去，他們通常可能贏得更有需求球隊的召回，并能立刻獲得上場時間。

Some two-way players suchas Jalen Moore （Bucks）， BronsonKoenig （Bucks）， Yakuba Ouattara（Nets）， Eric Griffin （Jazz） andMichael Young （Wizards） neverplayed a minute in the NBA.Several other players appeared infive or fewer games while on twowaycontracts for their NBA team.

一些雙向球員，如賈倫·摩爾（雄鹿），布朗森·科尼格（雄鹿），亞布巴·奧特洛（籃網），埃里克·格里芬（爵士）和邁克爾·楊（奇才）從未打過一分鐘NBA的比賽。另一些雙向球員在NBA只出場過五場或更少的比賽。

"Teams previously couldaccess all the top players in the GLeague if they needed or wantedto，" another agent said. "Now they'revery limited. If a team needs tocall up a point guard， they will notbe able to call up the best pointguard in the G League since he'slikely locked in on a two-way withsomeone else."

“如果有需要或者想要，球隊過去可以找到發展聯盟的所有頂尖球員。”另一名經紀人說，“現在他們受限了。如果有球隊想招名控衛，他們不會找到發展聯盟最好的控衛，因為他可能已經和別的球隊簽了雙向合同。”

Looking ahead， some agentssuggested changes to improvethe two-way system. Multipleagents said they want the leagueto eliminate multi-year， two-waydeals and limit the number of twowaycontracts a team can use perseason.

展望未來，一些經紀人建議做出改變，改善雙向合同體系。多名經紀人希望聯盟取消多年雙向合同，取消限制球隊每個賽季可以簽下雙向球員的數量。

"Teams like Milwaukee andHouston had at least four differentguys on them （two-way contracts）said. "They are not being used for'development' players. They're beingused as a way to circumvent the capand a free （no cap hit） insurancepolicy against injury."

“一個賽季里，雄鹿和火箭擁有至少四名（雙向）球員。”一名經紀人說，“雙向合同沒有被用來‘培養球員，它們只是被用來規避工資帽，這是對受傷球員的一種免費保險（還不觸及工資帽）。”

Multiple agents also said theybelieve late second-round picksare being selected partly due toa willingness to take a two-waydeal and it could become a trendgoing forward. In last year's draft，Shake Milton （54）， Thomas Welsh（58）， George King （59） and KostasAntetokounmpo （60） all signedtwo-way contracts.

多名經紀人還表示，他們認為二輪末段的新秀之所以被選擇，是因為他們有接受雙向合同的意愿，這可能在未來成為趨勢。去年的選秀中，謝克·米爾頓（54），托馬斯·威爾什（58），喬治·金（59）和科斯塔斯·安德托昆博（60）簽的都是雙向合同。

Overall， if you're a fringeNBA player coming out of college，looking for a second chance in theleague or preferring to remain inthe States instead of going overseas，the two-way contract gives you achance to make an impression ona team over the course of a seasonand become a full-time NBAplayer. In the process， you'll enduredifficulty with travel schedules. Ifyou're an executive， you can usemultiple two-way players such asthe Rockets and Bucks last seasonto save money against the salarycap， try out reclamation projectsfor an extended time and finda difference maker such as theWarriors with Cook. If you're anagent， it's imperative to correctlyplace your client with a team thatwill prioritize development， offer achance to play and as concise travelplan as possible.

總的來說，如果你是一名剛離開大學的NBA邊緣球員，想尋找進入聯盟的第二次機會，或者不想去海外想留在美國，那么雙向合同能為你提供一個在賽季過程中給球隊留下印象的機會，讓你有可能成為全職的NBA球員。在這個過程中，你要忍受艱苦的旅行安排。如果你是管理層，你可以像上賽季的火箭及雄鹿那樣，使用多名雙向球員以規避工資帽的現實，在較長的時間里嘗試不同球員，像勇士找到庫克那樣找到一個與眾不同的球員。如果你是一名經紀人，那么讓客戶進入一支強調球員發展，提供上場機會，且旅行計劃盡可能簡單的球隊就非常重要了。