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※ 引述《thnlkj0665 (灰色地帶)》之銘言：
 姊姊將出征奧運賽場 亞當斯表示絕對緊盯賽況

記者陳元廷／綜合外電報導





感謝p大回覆，印象中Steven Adams進入nba以來似乎都沒披上紐西蘭國家隊戰袍過，
而且通常都是表示要備戰下一季所以不克出賽，所以google了一下，發現一篇文章

https://bit.ly/3zhvM0t
https://www.foxsports.com.au/basketball/nba-star-steven-adams-explains-why-h

先講結論


以下簡略翻譯


水行俠解釋為何不打紐西蘭國家隊
NBA star Steven Adams explains why he has snubbed New Zealand’s national team

foxsports.com.au

亞當解釋為何至今尚未披上國家隊戰袍。在他的新書我的奮鬥(誤)中，首次深入回應
了為何至今對國家隊的徵召給軟釘子
紐西蘭先鋒報刊出一篇報導 (報導連結 https://bit.ly/3wS7poz)
引述小亞當的教練Kenny McFadden說「他沒錢可以自費幫
國家打球，所以就不打了」而這個事件激怒了小亞當。而現在水行俠的第一要務是好
好增進球技，幫助雷霆明年有更好的成績。
亞當回憶起不能在教練麾下為國出征的往事，「我沒錢啊，要代表國家青年隊要自費
，不只是籃球，所有的運動項目都一樣，為國出征要花上數以千元啊」








KIWI NBA star Steven Adams has revealed why he is yet to pull on the Tall
Blacks singlet.

In his autobiography Steven Adams: My Life, My Fight, Adams has delved
in-depth for the first time on why he has snubbed New Zealand’s national
basketball team.

Adams confirmed a report by the NZ Herald earlier this month, which outlined
that Adams held a grudge against Basketball New Zealand for not being able to
financially support him at a young age.

Adams’ mentor Kenny McFadden said that when his young charge wanted to play
for New Zealand, “he got no money and couldn’t play”.

McFadden said it was a snub which had irked then teenaged Adams.

He said the NBA star now felt more obligated to the Oklahoma City Thunder,
where Adams’ priorities were to be the best player he could be and help
contribute to a successful 2018-19 season.

Now, Adams has elaborated on the reasons for not joining the Tall Blacks,
recalling the time that he couldn’t link up with McFadden’s Junior Tall
Blacks side.

“I couldn’t afford it. To represent New Zealand as a young athlete costs a
lot of money, not just in basketball but in all sports. Being selected for an
age-group national side to play in an international tournament would cost
each player thousands of dollars,” Adams said.

“I knew of players who went on every trip, at least once a year, because
their parents could easily afford to play for each tournament. But there were
a lot of players, most of them brown, some of them the best in the country,
who never once represented New Zealand because they couldn’t afford to
trial, let alone to fly overseas. I hate to think how many guys I played with
could have had careers in basketball if they’d just been given more help
(like I was) when they were younger.”


Steven Adams is yet to represent his country.Source: AFP
Adams says he will play for the Tall Blacks “some day”, but says that many
people don’t understand his position, stressing that he has more loyalty to
his Thunder side in the NBA than he does to the Tall Blacks.

“In most sports, representing New Zealand in a black singlet is the peak.
Athletics, netball, rowing … But there are some sports, such as soccer,
tennis and basketball, where playing overseas is the ultimate goal. That’s
the pinnacle of those sports,” Adams said.

“Yes, I would love to represent New Zealand by playing for the Tall Blacks,
but right now I don’t feel I have time to give it my best and play a full
NBA season. It probably doesn’t help that I don’t feel a great sense of
loyalty to Basketball New Zealand. I like what the current Tall Blacks coach,
Paul Henare, has been doing with the team and I would love to play for him at
some point, but I need to be ready.

“Some might expect me to be the Basketball New Zealand poster child, but I
did the opposite of rising through the ranks of the junior national teams.
Being in a national team is far too expensive for most kids — me included.

“It takes a village to raise a child, apparently. And it takes a village to
fundraise for one too. New Zealand does best when everyone is invested. I had
my own little community of helpers who pushed me towards my passion, but that
’s not a cost-effective approach. Kenny still takes every morning training,
like he has for over a decade, and I know there will be plenty more
basketballers thanking him for their success in years to come. But, for now,
his project from 2008 has one focus and that focus is the Thunder and the NBA.
”


Steven Adams feels let down by New Zealand.Source: Twitter
Now, Adams wants to give back to young basketballers who are in the same
situation he found himself in earlier in his career.

“Paying it forward is what I like doing. Giving a leg-up to people who are
doing everything they can but could do with some support. There’s not a
single successful person who didn’t get help from a bunch of people along
the way,” Adams said.

“But I know that most of the people who helped me did so because they wanted
to, not because they thought they might be rewarded later. Now I want to be
that person for a bunch of other kids. It’s human nature to help others, and
now that I have money and some influence, I want to use it to help as many
people as possible.

“If I can see that kids are fighting and trying to be better, I’ll do
whatever I can to help them along. When a young player needs new shoes or can
’t afford stationery or a basketball trip, that’s when I’m willing to
spend my money.

“We have the talent in New Zealand, there’s no doubt about that, we just
need the systems and pathways in place so that kids can stay on track and not
lose out because they’re poor or live in the wrong city.

“If I have my way, New Zealand will be a basketball nation among the best in
the world before I die. That’s the kind of legacy I want to help build.”

This article first appeared in the NZ Herald and was republished with
permission

foxsports.com.au

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