…
China.
On Monday morning, grocery stores can be seen everywhere at the entrances of the streets and alleys.
There is usually a shelf at the door of these grocery stores, with a variety of newspapers on it.
Before the rapid improvement of economic level, newspapers were an important pastime for Chinese people.
On a busy morning, you can see all kinds of people running around.
There are office workers rushing to work, elderly people getting up early to go to the market to buy vegetables, and students carrying schoolbags or riding bicycles to school.
You can see the smiles on their faces.
This era is also the era in which the Chinese people have the highest happiness index.
A bicycle stopped in front of the grocery store. A student with a backpack got off the bicycle, whistling, and skillfully flipped through the newspaper in front of him.
Soon, he smiled and picked up the newspaper he was looking for.
Basketball Herald.
The newspaper has a total of 7 sheets, 14 pages, 28 sides, and a cover. It costs only 2 yuan per copy, which is very economical.
Before the student had time to take out his money, he couldn't help but exclaimed "Huh" when he saw the cover of the newspaper.
Because the face on the cover is both familiar and unfamiliar.
It felt familiar because it was a very typical Chinese face, and it felt strange because he had never seen this face before.
There is only one Chinese player playing in the NBA now, Yao Ming.
Then there are two Chinese players who have great hopes of entering the NBA this year. One is Yi Jianlian who plays for Guangdong Hongyuan, and the other is Sun Yue who plays in the American ABA league with the Aoshen team.
These three people have appeared on the covers of newspapers this year, but who is this handsome guy in front of me?
There is a string of data and a... nickname written next to the cover?
11 points, 11 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 blocks.
Shadow Assassin
“We’re going to be late!”
Just as he was about to open the newspaper, another student on a bicycle came over and shouted.
Although the student was confused, he paid the boss, stuffed the newspaper into his schoolbag, and then rode his bike to school together.
On the way to school, the two chatted about the contents of the newspaper, and their curiosity was aroused at the same time.
After arriving at school, the two couldn't help but peek at each other from the back row.
The name Lin Ying popped into their minds for the first time.
They also learned that in addition to Sun Yue, there was another person named Lin Ying who played in an American university and was a teammate of Durant.
He's an excellent passer, plays solid defense, and can shoot the three-pointer!
And in a recent focus game, he also hit a tip-in to win the game!
"Will we have three guys making it to the NBA this year?!"
The student lowered his head and covered half of his mouth with his hand, lowered his voice and turned his head, his excitement hard to conceal in his tone.
"If that's the case, we'll have a lot more games to watch in the future."
He responded with a small whisper.
"What are you two doing?!"
But before they could talk any more, the teacher's voice was heard overhead.
The teacher had "teleported" behind them without them knowing when.
Before they could explain, the teacher had already confiscated the newspapers from their hands.
As they looked reluctant, the teacher had already walked towards the podium with the newspaper in his hand.
If it were any other class, the teacher would definitely criticize them harshly with a newspaper.
However, their Chinese teacher is also a basketball fan. After taking the newspaper to the podium and putting it down, he continued teaching.
This saves money on a newspaper.
Similar scenes are happening across the country.
Except for a small number of people who have access to sports forums, more people learned about Lin Ying's existence through newspapers.
It was after this day that many Chinese fans began to look forward to it even more.
Just like that student said: Will there be three Chinese players entering the NBA this year?
It has been almost twenty years since Stern opened the door to the Chinese market with videotapes.
During such a long period of time, only a few people such as Wang Zhizhi, Battelle, and Yao Ming entered the NBA.
Besides, except Yao Ming, the others were unable to gain a foothold in the NBA and were eliminated one after another.
Now, three people may enter the NBA at the same time. This sudden happiness really catches people off guard and makes them unable to contain their joy!
Of course, before that, their strongest wish is to see more reports about Lin Ying, so that they can get to know more about this "stranger".
…
Lin Ying didn't know what was happening in the country. After accepting Yang Yi's interview, he and Durant went back to high-intensity training.
The win over Kansas was gratifying, but the season continues.
"A lazy genius will be surpassed by a diligent one."
This sentence said by Durant's mother Wanda has become a motto to motivate the two to move forward.
Of course, they can still see the reports from the United States.
Even if Lin Ying didn't pay attention to it, with Durant around, he would naturally know the news.
The latest news from TNT mentioned their game against Kansas.
However, unlike the Basketball Herald, the focus of the report is Durant.
"The next Tracy McGrady", "A historically talented scorer", "The answer to the NBA's small forward of the next decade"...
When the American media praises someone, they are even more harsh than the domestic media.
Two days later, they were ready to leave for a media conference.
Durant and Lin Ying arrived at the designated location one after another.
But they didn't see anyone else.
After waiting for a while, Barnes and Springman also arrived, but there was still no one else to be seen.
Springman beckoned them into the car.
"What about the rest?"
Durant couldn't help but ask Springman.
"It's just the four of us. This is a media meeting. It's impossible for everyone to go."
Springman explained with a laugh.
It's not just the University of Texas team that's attending the media meeting. If everyone brings their entire team, the meeting would be so crowded.
Durant's face suddenly turned ugly when he heard this.
He didn't think so much about it. Springman had said it to everyone in the locker room before. He thought the whole team would go, but he didn't expect that only he and Lin Ying would go.
Lin Ying was not a talkative person to begin with, Durant was sulking, and Barnes and Springman began to rest after getting in the car, so the atmosphere in the car was a bit depressing.
The drive lasted more than an hour, and there was no conversation except for the occasional exchange between Springman and Barnes.
When we arrived at the meeting, there were many reporters at the door.
When they saw Durant coming over, they all wanted to interview him, but they were all rejected with a cold face.
Lin Ying was also helpless as he watched from the side.
Now Durant is probably unable to get rid of the label of "cold".
"If I had known that others couldn't come, I wouldn't have come."
When they arrived at the rest area, Springman and Barnes went to meet with the staff, and Durant, who had been holding it in all the way, started to complain to Lin Ying.
Lin Ying nodded.
In the past, all their activities were group activities, and this was the first time that there were just the two of them.
After a while, Springman came over and took them to the meeting site.
"Rick is already over there, just walk up from the side later."
Springman will not go up, he is here to do the connection work.
"Kevin, be happy. Leaving a good impression on those people will help you in the draft."
Springman saw that Durant still looked bad, so he spoke up to remind him.
Durant said nothing in response.
After seeing this, Springman shook his head helplessly. It seemed that today's meeting would not go smoothly.
The meeting was held in a large conference room. When they entered, they saw a large crowd of people with cameras and long guns.
The reporters who came were not just from the NCAA. Big media outlets like TNT and ESPN also sent reporters.
Those who are invited to attend the meeting are all teams that have performed well in their respective leagues in the past period of time, and naturally there will be outstanding players among them.
Or you can understand it as an opportunity for the outside world to get to know this year's top rookies.
After they arrived, they did not go on stage immediately, but found the front row waiting area where Barnes was and sat down.
The person being interviewed on stage now is from the University of Florida.
Head coach Billy Donovan, the team's three core players are Joakim Noah, Al Horford and Corey Brewer.
With just these few people sitting on the stage, a sense of pressure was overwhelming.
As the defending champions, they have been crushing the opponent so far this season.
Although the outside world has praised Oden's Ohio State University to the sky, their position at the top of the power list is as solid as a rock.
This is the biggest boss of the NCAA this year.
Lin Ying looked at the people on the stage thoughtfully.
Donovan's resume in the NBA is not successful, but he is also a famous coach in the NCAA.
Especially after leading the University of Florida to win the championship last year, he officially entered the top ranks of the NCAA.
Just like the versions of the triangle offense, the level of performance a coach can perform at will vary greatly in different environments.
Then there are these three core players, all lottery-talented seniors.
Coupled with their tactical execution and tacit understanding, in a sense, they are a talent-upgraded version of the University of Kansas.
Compared to Ohio State, which relies purely on talent, this is the team that scares opponents the most.
Judging from the experience that the University of Texas just had against Kansas, if they were facing this University of Florida team.
Unless Florida plays poorly, they have no chance of winning.
This is not self-destruction, but the reality.
Just then the interview on stage had ended.
Barnes asked Durant and Lin Ying to stand up, then walked towards the stage.
The two groups met on the steps, and the four people from Florida all looked at Durant at the same time.
Although the chances of a matchup between the two teams are slim considering their strength, Durant is a rookie predicted to be selected in the top two picks, so even they would take a second look at him.
But what they saw was a cold face.
And, another cold face next to it.
Several people looked at each other.
Their inner thoughts at this moment were: Can a team with this atmosphere beat Kansas?
How bad is Kansas this year...
Barnes sat down with Lin Ying and Durant, and after a brief greeting, the reporters below began to ask questions.
Soon, the reporters below were also confused.
Because they found that they were facing two uglier faces!
Especially Durant, who was the focus, could clearly feel the perfunctory answers, which made people feel completely offended.
Sure enough, a "cold" person!
Barnes tilted his head to look at Durant at this time.
Durant was in a bad mood in the car. He didn't know why and didn't ask too much. He thought it would be fine when he got to the meet-and-greet.
This is also Durant's chance to break the "cold" label that the media has previously given him.
Who would have thought that the situation would turn out like this? This is not a good thing for Durant.
"Kevin, why do you look unhappy?"
Finally, a reporter couldn't help but ask a question.
When they interviewed Oden before, Oden was humorous and approachable.
Durant and Oden are equally famous, but their performances in front of the media are very different.
At this time, Barnes took the microphone and answered the question for Durant.
"Kevin trained until about 2 a.m. yesterday and didn't sleep well. He's not in a very good mental state today."
Barnes is trying to save Durant's image.
The reporter who asked the question looked as if he suddenly understood something after hearing this.
It is true that people tend to be in a bad mood when they don’t get enough sleep.
Moreover, this move killed two birds with one stone, provided a very reasonable explanation, and also established Durant's image as a hard-working trainer.
Barnes's operation deserved full marks, but what he didn't expect was that Durant didn't appreciate it!
After Barnes answered and put the microphone back, he then held the microphone in front of himself.
"What the coach said is only one aspect. What puzzles me more is why the whole team can't be invited to this meeting?"
Durant's words stunned all the reporters below.
No one has ever asked this before!
"We won the game together, but why are there only two of us here?"
Durant then asked again, and it was obvious that he was not joking.
At this time, Barnes reached out and rubbed his forehead vigorously.
He now understood why Durant had been unhappy since he got in the car.
This is unreasonable!
Springman had already explained the reason to Durant before, and who would stay angry about something like this?
He wanted to be angry and laugh at the same time.
At the same time, the reporters below looked at Durant with a "freak" look.
Perhaps only Lin Ying can understand.
When the high school team went to a dinner party, Durant could let everyone wait because he was not there.
"Because you are the most dazzling one and the most talented one."
The reporter who asked the question opened his mouth to reply.
“Nonsense!”
The reporter's words made Durant's tone become excited.
"Without other people's pick-and-roll and running, I would not be able to get a good shooting space. Similarly, without other people's hard defense, I would not have so much energy to attack!
Those are things that the data cannot reflect. I look dazzling only because I am the one who is arranged by the coach to take the shot.
We are a team and it’s all our hard work that got us invited, but no one else could be here!”
After Durant finished speaking, the reporters in the audience were stunned.
At this time, Barnes put away the feeling of wanting to be angry and laugh, and looked at Durant with a hint of appreciation in his eyes.
Durant may have a childish temper, but one thing is certain: he will be an excellent team leader.