美国国家公共电台 NPR The Pregame PB&J: How The Comfort Food Became The NBA's Recipe For Success

 

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

The NBA might have a substance-use problem, what ESPN Magazine calls the NBA's secret addiction¹ - peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Baxter Holmes wrote the story, and he joins us now over Skype from Los Angeles. He covers the Lakers for ESPN. Mr. Holmes, thanks for being with us.

BAXTER HOLMES: Thank you very much for having me.

SIMON: Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches belong in a first grader's lunchbox. What are they doing in the NBA?

HOLMES: They've been a staple² of NBA locker³ rooms, as I wrote, really since the 2007, 2008 Boston Celtics, which starred Kevin Garnett who kind of decreed one day when he was hungry after a fellow teammate likewise said he was hungry and wanted a PB and J that, you know, yeah, let's get on that. Let's have it every game. And virtually in every NBA locker room, you'll see a variety of different foods on the table. But PB and J is - if there's a locker room that doesn't have it, I haven't seen it.

SIMON: And I gather different teams have different traditions.

HOLMES: Certainly. So much depends on location, preferences of certain players. The Lakers have theirs catered⁴ by Whole Foods. The San Antonio Spurs have theirs catered by HEB Central Market, which they have a partnership⁵ with in San Antonio. Go up to Portland - half of their peanut butter and jelly order is toasted because the star player, Damian Lillard, likes them that way. Go up to Milwaukee, and they do a PB and J buffet⁶ before the games with a variety of nut butters and Nutella, all kinds of jams and jellies.

SIMON: They're not particularly healthy for you, are you? And, you know, these guys have bodies that are not just their temples, their corporations.

HOLMES: Nutritionists I've talked to said it's not the healthiest snack, but it is healthier than, say, greasy⁷ junk food that they might get in arena⁸ concessions⁹. And then you dive a little bit into the science of it. Peanut butter and jelly is comprised of various components¹⁰ that humans enjoy dating back to basically the Neanderthals when they were craving¹¹ certain things that - for survival, different kinds of fats and proteins, starches¹² and whatnot.

And because of it, the mental health benefits are what a lot of experts around the NBA say is actually its biggest benefit. The opiates it releases kind of calming players down, making them happy, putting them at ease, whatever the case may be. I mean, it truly is a comfort food.

SIMON: I gather that some health fanatic¹³ with the Golden State Warriors¹⁴ tried to have it banned.

HOLMES: Yes. So they hired a sports scientist from Australia, and he wanted to do with - away with a lot of unhealthy foods like candies and sodas¹⁵ and cookies, but he included peanut butter and jelly. And when the team got on the team plane, they it saw was gone and that kind of was the first shot fired in what became a peanut butter and jelly war between him and the players. And eventually, they got them back. And he is no longer employed by the team.

SIMON: (Laughter) The Cleveland Cavaliers - world champion Cleveland Cavaliers, I guess, have a gesture of real disdain¹⁶ to stock their opponent's locker rooms.

HOLMES: So they have a partnership with a fellow Ohio-based outfit¹⁷ in Smucker's, and they provide about a dozen of the prepackaged Uncrustable PB and J's to opposing teams every night, even though there are few teams that have told me they try to keep their players away from those because they're not very healthy.

Meanwhile, the Cavs make their own artisanal PB and Js prior to tip off with like homemade grape and raspberry jelly, almond butter and banana, and peanut butter and banana sandwiches. So they give opposing teams one thing, and they make themselves something completely different.

SIMON: Well, there's a whole new insight as to how they were able to defeat Golden State in the last few seconds. This will appall¹⁸ some people, but might I recommend crunchy peanut butter on rye bread?

HOLMES: That doesn't sound that bad. I mean, look, what - Russell Westbrook likes to butter the inside of the bread and then put peanut butter on it after it's toasted.

SIMON: If that's why he scores 70 points a game, I'll try it.

HOLMES: And to that point, Carmelo Anthony in New York likes his on a bagel, particularly a cinnamon raisin¹⁹ bagel.

SIMON: So if you're going to have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich today - whole wheat, white, almond butter, peanut butter - what kind of jam?

HOLMES: I'm probably going to go with sourdough, if I could, toasted.

SIMON: Oh, that's so California but go ahead, yeah.

HOLMES: I would probably go with creamy peanut butter. And my dad actually used to make - when I was growing up - homemade BlackBerry and raspberry jam. And so, you know, it would obviously taste good, remind me of dad, remind me of being a kid again.

SIMON: Baxter Holmes of ESPN, thanks so much for being with us. And can I say, bon appetit?

HOLMES: (Laughter) Yes, you may. Thank you very much for having me.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "PEANUT BUTTER JELLY TIME")

CHIP-MAN AND THE BUCKWHEAT BOYZ: (Singing) It's peanut butter jelly time, peanut butter jelly time, peanut butter jelly time. Where he at? Where he at? Where he at? Now there he go. There he go...

SIMON: You're listening to WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News.

1 addiction   

n.上瘾入迷，嗜好

参考例句：

• He stole money from his parents to feed his addiction.他从父母那儿偷钱以满足自己的嗜好。
• Areas of drug dealing are hellholes of addiction,poverty and murder.贩卖毒品的地区往往是吸毒上瘾、贫困和发生谋杀的地方。

2 staple   

n.主要产物，常用品，主要要素，原料，订书钉，钩环；adj.主要的，重要的；vt.分类

参考例句：

• Tea is the staple crop here.本地产品以茶叶为大宗。
• Potatoes are the staple of their diet.土豆是他们的主要食品。

3 locker   

n.更衣箱，储物柜，冷藏室，上锁的人

参考例句：

• At the swimming pool I put my clothes in a locker.在游泳池我把衣服锁在小柜里。
• He moved into the locker room and began to slip out of his scrub suit.他走进更衣室把手术服脱下来。

4 catered   

提供饮食及服务( cater的过去式和过去分词 )； 满足需要，适合

参考例句：

• We catered for forty but only twenty came. 我们准备了40客饭菜，但只来了20个人。
• They catered for everyone regardless of social rank. 他们为所有人服务而不计较其社会地位。

5 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

6 buffet   

n.自助餐；饮食柜台；餐台

参考例句：

• Are you having a sit-down meal or a buffet at the wedding?你想在婚礼中摆桌宴还是搞自助餐？
• Could you tell me what specialties you have for the buffet?你能告诉我你们的自助餐有什么特色菜吗？

7 greasy   

adj. 多脂的，油脂的

参考例句：

• He bought a heavy-duty cleanser to clean his greasy oven.昨天他买了强力清洁剂来清洗油污的炉子。
• You loathe the smell of greasy food when you are seasick.当你晕船时，你会厌恶油腻的气味。

8 arena   

n.竞技场，运动场所；竞争场所，舞台

参考例句：

• She entered the political arena at the age of 25. 她25岁进入政界。
• He had not an adequate arena for the exercise of his talents.他没有充分发挥其才能的场所。

9 concessions   

n.（尤指由政府或雇主给予的）特许权( concession的名词复数 )；承认；减价；（在某地的）特许经营权

参考例句：

• The firm will be forced to make concessions if it wants to avoid a strike. 要想避免罢工，公司将不得不作出一些让步。
• The concessions did little to placate the students. 让步根本未能平息学生的愤怒。

10 components   

（机器、设备等的）构成要素，零件，成分； 成分( component的名词复数 )； [物理化学]组分； [数学]分量； （混合物的）组成部分

参考例句：

• the components of a machine 机器部件
• Our chemistry teacher often reduces a compound to its components in lab. 在实验室中化学老师常把化合物分解为各种成分。

11 craving   

n.渴望,热望

参考例句：

• a craving for chocolate 非常想吃巧克力
• She skipped normal meals to satisfy her craving for chocolate and crisps. 她不吃正餐，以便满足自己吃巧克力和炸薯片的渴望。

12 starches   

n.淀粉( starch的名词复数 )；含淀粉的食物；浆粉v.把（衣服、床单等）浆一浆( starch的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• You should avoid sugars and starches. 你应避免吃糖和含淀粉的食物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Cotton and rayon yarns are most often sized with water-insoluble starches. 棉和人造丝纱多用不溶于水的淀粉上浆。 来自互联网

13 fanatic   

n.狂热者，入迷者；adj.狂热入迷的

参考例句：

• Alexander is a football fanatic.亚历山大是个足球迷。
• I am not a religious fanatic but I am a Christian.我不是宗教狂热分子，但我是基督徒。

14 warriors   

武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• I like reading the stories ofancient warriors. 我喜欢读有关古代武士的故事。
• The warriors speared the man to death. 武士们把那个男子戳死了。

15 sodas   

n.苏打( soda的名词复数 )；碱；苏打水；汽水

参考例句：

• There are plenty of sodas in the refrigerator. 冰箱里有很多碳酸饮料。 来自辞典例句
• Two whisky and sodas, please. 请来两杯威士忌苏打。 来自辞典例句

16 disdain   

n.鄙视，轻视；v.轻视，鄙视，不屑

参考例句：

• Some people disdain labour.有些人轻视劳动。
• A great man should disdain flatterers.伟大的人物应鄙视献媚者。

17 outfit   

n.（为特殊用途的）全套装备，全套服装

参考例句：

• Jenney bought a new outfit for her daughter's wedding.珍妮为参加女儿的婚礼买了一套新装。
• His father bought a ski outfit for him on his birthday.他父亲在他生日那天给他买了一套滑雪用具。

18 appall   

vt.使惊骇，使大吃一惊

参考例句：

• They were appalled by the reports of the nuclear war.他们被核战争的报道吓坏了。
• The enemy was appalled at our attack.敌人被我们的进攻吓得魂飞丧胆。

19 raisin   

n.葡萄干

参考例句：

• They baked us raisin bread.他们给我们烤葡萄干面包。
• You can also make raisin scones.你也可以做葡萄干烤饼。