There was a Chinese giant who played a pivotal role in the rise of basketball in China.
曾經有一位籃壇“巨人”，他在推動中國籃球崛起的過程中起到了關鍵作用。
He's the first ever No. 1 pick in the NBA draft from overseas.
他是史上第一位來自美國本土以外的NBA狀元秀。
He's among the NBA's best centers.
他是NBA中最出色的中鋒之一。
He was, as of the 2010-11 season, the tallest player in the NBA and the most recognized face hailing from the world's most populous nation.
他是2010-2011賽季NBA中最“高大”的球員，同時也是來自全球人口最多國家的最知名的人物之一。
His name — Yao Ming.
他的名字叫——姚明。
From day one, Yao Ming had the makings of a basketball superstar in his blood. Born on September 12, 1980 in Shanghai, one of the most developed cities in China, Yao entered the world as the only child of two accomplished former Chinese basketball players who stand 6'7" and 6'3", respectively.
姚明一出生就具備了成為一名籃球超級巨星的潛質。1980年9月12日，姚明出生在中國的大都市上海。他是兩位身高分別為208cm和188cm的前國家隊籃球運動員唯一的孩子。
According to the book Operation Yao Ming, Yao's parents were convinced to marry each other so that they would produce a dominant athlete and, during Yao's childhood, he was given special treatment to help him become a great basketball player.
據《姚明傳》一書透露，姚明的父母相信，他們的結合能夠培育出一位超級運動員。當姚明還只是一名兒童時，他就開始接受特殊訓練，以為日后能將其培養成為一位杰出的籃球運動員。
While growing up as an abnormally tall child, Yao started playing basketball at age nine. By the time he reached 13, he started playing for the Shanghai Sharks junior team, and four years later, joined the senior team and played for five years in the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA).
還是一個孩子時，姚明的身材就異乎尋常的高大。他9歲開始接受籃球訓練，13歲時加入上海東方大鯊魚籃球俱樂部的少年隊，四年后入選大鯊魚隊，并在中國男子籃球職業聯賽（CBA）中打了五年球。
In his final year with the Shanghai Sharks, he led the team to a championship, averaging 38.9 points and 20.2 rebounds a game while shooting 76.6 percent from the field during the playoffs.
在上海大鯊魚隊中效力的最后一年，姚明帶領這支球隊奪得了CBA的總冠軍。他場均38.9分，20.2個籃板，在季后賽中的場均命中率更是達到了76.6%。
In 2002, after negotiating with the CBA and the Sharks to secure his release, Yao was selected by the Houston Rockets as the first overall pick in the NBA Draft. Since then, he had emerged as one of the Houston Rocket's most valuable players.
2002年，姚明從CBA中脫穎而出，被美國休斯敦火箭隊作為NBA狀元秀選中。自此，他逐漸成為火箭隊中最有價值的球員之一。
Before Yao's initial NBA season, several noted commentators predicted that Yao would fail in the NBA, and Charles Barkley even promised that he would kiss Kenny Smith's behind if Yao scored more than 19 points in any of his rookie-season games.
在姚明即將開啟其NBA職業生涯前，一些美國知名的體育評論員曾斷言他在NBA中不會有所作為。籃球評論員、前著名NBA球星查爾斯·巴克利甚至放話說，如果姚明能在其新秀賽季的任何一場比賽中得分超過19分，他就會去親吻肯尼·史密斯（另一位前NBA球星兼籃球評論員）的屁股。
Only after seven games, Yao began to dazzle fans with brilliant performances. On November 17, 2002, he scored 20 points, on perfect nine-of-nine from the field and two-of-two shooting from the free-throw line, against the Los Angeles Lakers. Barkley made good on his bet by kissing the rear end of a donkey purchased by Smith for the occasion.
然而，僅在七場比賽之后，姚明就開始以他炫目的表現令球迷們為之驚異。在2002年11月17日對陣洛杉磯湖人隊的比賽中，他9投9中，2次罰球也全部命中，一舉奪下20分。巴克利兌現了諾言，親吻了史密斯買下的一頭驢的屁股。
In his confrontation against the Dallas Mavericks ten days later, he scored an amazing 30 points.
而在十天后對陣達拉斯小牛隊的比賽中，姚明砍下了驚人的30分。
Yao soon became a marquee name and, eventually, he was perceived as a rival of the NBA superstar center Shaquille O'Neal.
姚明由此聲名鵲起，并被視為NBA超級中鋒沙奎爾·奧尼爾的勁敵。
O'Neal would be criticized for comments he made before his first clash with Yao, as he told a reporter to leave Yao a message: "Tell Yao Ming, Ching chong-yang-wah-ah-soh," a "message" which mimicked the Chinese language.
奧尼爾在他與姚明對陣的首場比賽前，曾讓記者給姚明捎話：“告訴姚明，Ching chong-yang-wah-ah-soh。”這段模仿漢語的挑釁性的話帶有明顯的歧視與藐視的意味。
Yao took it in stride, and eased the situation by joking that "Chinese is a hard language to learn."
姚明從容接招。為了緩和氣氛，他幽默地回應道：“漢語是一門很難學的語言。”
In the game, Yao scored six points, blocked O'Neal twice in the opening minutes and made a game-sealing dunk with 10 seconds left in overtime. Yao finished with 10 points, 10 rebounds and six blocks, while O'Neal ended up with 31 points, 13 rebounds and no blocks.
而在這兩位NBA巨人的首場對決中，姚明一開賽就奪下了6分，并成功阻斷奧尼爾兩次。在距離加時賽結束還剩最后10秒鐘時，是姚明的一記強力灌籃鎖定了勝局。此役，姚明砍下10分，10個籃板和6次阻斷，而奧尼爾的數據是31分，13個籃板，一次成功阻斷也沒有。
After nine seasons in the league and enjoying an illustrious career with 8 All-Star selections and a career average of 19 points, 9.2 rebounds and 1.9 blocks, on a rainy day on July 20, 2011, Yao Ming, the Chinese Giant, the tallest man in the NBA, hung up his No. 11 jersey for good, leaving behind giant footprints on this prestigious basketball court.
在其所經歷的NBA的9個賽季中，姚明8次入選全明星隊，職業生涯場均達到了19分、9.2個籃板和1.9次阻斷。2011年7月20日，姚明這位中國巨人，這位當時NBA中最“高大”的球員，將自己的11號球衣永遠地高懸了起來，在這個群星璀璨的籃球場上留下了一連串巨人的足跡。
But the book of Yao is yet to be folded...
不過，姚明的故事還沒有結束……
（作者厲振羽，系國際主流媒體雙語體育專欄作家、中國日報網特約專欄作家）
來源：人民網
