On the balcony of the hotel, Lin Ying and Durant lay on the railing and enjoyed the cold winter breeze.
The University of Oklahoma is not located in Oklahoma City, the capital of Oklahoma, but in Norman County on the outskirts of the city.
There are not many people in counties in the United States, but the places are not small.
But basically the heart of the city is the University of Oklahoma.
Their hotel is not far from the school, about two or three kilometers away.
Standing on the balcony, you can see the direction of the school and the stadium with your naked eyes.
"are you OK?"
After feeling the cold wind for a while, Lin Ying spoke with concern.
To be honest, he was really shocked at the time.
When he spent Christmas at Durant's house, Wanda left him with such a good and gentle impression.
But when it came to beating Durant, he was really ruthless.
But it must be said that those two slaps woke Durant up immediately.
It turns out that the one who understands her son best is his mother.
Durant reached out and touched his face, and it still hurt a little.
But he shook his head.
The mother beats herself because she is not motivated and cannot accept failure.
"Do you think we will not be able to enter Crazy Three?"
Durant changed the subject.
"The chance of success is 99 %."
Lin Ying gave a conservative answer.
This is not Versailles, but this matter is basically a done deal.
Firstly, they have always been ranked in the top 30 on the power list, and secondly, their performance in the league playoffs is actually not bad.
Even though we lost the game against Kansas, the game was evenly contested and we didn't lose much in the end.
If there is no wild card with such performance, then the remaining possibility is that 1%: other leagues have various secret operations and then made them come out.
But that's highly unlikely.
Apart from anything else, from the perspective of ratings, the absence of Durant is also a big loss.
As a data analyst, it is quite easy to come to this conclusion .
Compared with this, he is more worried about the subsequent seeding issues.
It's really hard to predict what's inside.
The water there is really deep.
If they were seeded 15 or 16, and then directly competed against seeds 1 or 2 in the 64-to-32 format, they would most likely get a one-day experience card for the Crazy March.
But Durant didn't think as much as Lin Ying. He was still thinking about whether he could make it to the Crazy Three.
"If this is where our season ends, I'll stay and play another year."
Durant then spoke.
Lin Ying turned to look at Durant, making sure he wasn't just speaking casually, and then said in a very certain tone:
"No matter if we make it to the Big Three or how far we go, you should enter the draft this year."
"Why?"
Durant looked surprised. Lin Ying rarely spoke like this.
"It's best for you."
Lin Ying certainly couldn’t say that because he was a time traveler and had opened his third eye.
In fact, even if he didn't have the third eye, his answer would be the same.
Durant's talent is so strong that he doesn't need to prove anything in the NCAA.
In other words, it would be a complete waste of his talent if he stayed in the NCAA to play another year.
On the contrary, in the NBA, he was able to receive more formal training, improve his ball handling, and grow rapidly.
"No, if we can't play the three-game winning streak, you can't go to the NBA with me. I will definitely stay and play for another year. I have made my decision."
Durant's tone was also very affirmative.
When Barkley and Kenny Smith came to commentate on the game between the University of Texas and Kansas, they talked about his entry into the NBA.
He glanced at the two of them and thought that whether he could enter the NBA was decided by one person.
He said it at that time, and this is the first time he said it, that person was Lin Ying.
He kept his word on what we agreed to do at Christmas.
Lin Ying was stunned.
He looked at Durant with an expression that definitely showed he was not joking.
Is this friendship?
The fire in his heart started burning again.
I felt indescribable joy in my heart.
Being cared about so much by his only friend is the best thing in the world for him.
He turned back and took a deep breath, looking at the University of Oklahoma, the place where they failed, and said in a firm tone:
"Then let's win another championship!"
…
The finals of each NCAA league have ended, and the 32 championship teams have advanced to the "Crazy Three".
But it will take more than a week before "Crazy March" actually begins.
Because during this week, the NCAA League Committee not only has to determine the 33 wild card teams, but also has to reasonably distribute them to four divisions.
This will be a big project.
For the 32 teams that have advanced, this is their final preparation and rest time.
For the remaining teams, those that are basically hopeless have already started preparing for the new season;
Having hope is relatively painful, because no one knows whether that hope will eventually turn into disappointment.
Lin Ying and Durant are also ordinary people, they must be worried too.
In order to relieve such emotions, they put more energy into training after returning to Austin.
Whatever the outcome, there is nothing wrong with training.
Durant is working on his shooting ability against defense.
Lin Ying also focused on training his footwork and hook shot under the basket.
If you lose the big 12 finals because you are not as good as your opponent, then you should improve your skills.
As long as we can improve this technique a little bit before the start of "Crazy Three" and be able to use it in the official competition, that would be the biggest improvement.
Time flies, and five days have passed in the blink of an eye.
Lin Ying and Durant had been in closed training until Springman came to them with a smile.
He brought only one piece of news, the news they had been waiting for for a long time.
The University of Texas, as the No. 2 seed in the Big 12 Conference, advanced to the "Crazy Three"!
When Durant heard the news, he screamed with excitement.
Although Lin Ying had anticipated this result, he still excitedly raised his hand and clenched his fist after hearing it.
Although the NCAA championship is still a long way off for them, at least they officially have this opportunity!
There is also good news in the news brought by Springman, that is, a total of three teams from the Big12 were selected for the "Crazy Three" this time.
In addition to Kansas and the University of Texas, the third team is the University of Oklahoma Sooners.
This was unexpected, considering the Sooners were eliminated in the first round of the Big 12 playoffs.
But this also shows that compared with the playoff performance, the NCAA league committee pays more attention to the performance of each team in the regular season.
This also makes sense.
As mentioned before, this is the time to select strong teams to enter the Crazy Three, rather than seeing who plays better in the single elimination match.
And it's good news for the University of Texas, too.
If the University of Oklahoma can also make it, it means that the University of Texas has a high probability of being ranked in the upper half of the lower half.
Springman left, but Lin Ying and Durant were so excited that they couldn't control their emotions.
That feeling is exactly the same as the feeling you get after checking your college entrance examination results and knowing that you did well.
They couldn't even concentrate on training.
"How about we go watch the Bulls game?"
Durant suggested.
This Bulls team is certainly not the one in Chicago. Chicago and Austin are a world apart.
The last time Durant and Lin Ying finished shouting, they also found out about the Austin Bulls.
But it's not his fault, because this NBDL team only moved to Austin in 2005, which was the year before they came to the University of Texas.
Before they moved here they were called the Columbus River Dragons, and after they arrived they changed their name to the Bulls.
And there is one thing that Lin Ying's memory also has deviations.
At this time, the Bulls were not a subsidiary team of the Spurs. It was a common subsidiary team of the Celtics, Rockets and Spurs.
Austin is not small, but the Cedar Park Center, the home court of the Bulls, is not far from the University of Texas, and it takes less than half an hour by taxi.
Moreover, the Bulls were not very popular when they first arrived, and the number of spectators for their games was usually insufficient, so they would distribute some free tickets to specific groups.
This includes players from the University of Texas.
Logically speaking, since they are so close and have free tickets, they should go there more often.
But they usually don't want to waste training time, and the Bulls didn't have a game during the Christmas holiday, so they never went.
Since I can't concentrate on training now, going to watch the game is a good choice.
Lin Ying agreed.
The two hit it off immediately, and then called Randy Williams, and the three of them drove his 5-speed manual old car directly to the stadium.
Williams went to watch the game several times last year and shared his experience with them in the car.
Although NBDL is the development league of the NBA and contains many demoted NBA players, its level is actually not much higher than that of the NCAA.
"Kevin, if you played there, you would be the core of the team."
Durant felt relieved after hearing what Williams said.
Lin Ying beside him also nodded.
Speaking of this, it has something to do with them.
The NBA introduced the rule of "not allowing high school students to participate in the draft" during the 2005-2006 season.
That rule requires high school students to complete one year of high school and reach the age of 19 before they can participate in the NBA draft.
That is to say, when he and Durant finished high school, it was the year when high school students were not allowed to participate in the draft.
Of course, this has little to do with them, because even Durant has no intention of skipping the NCAA and running directly for the draft.
However, Oden and the Raptors were already interested in each other at that time.
As a result, a rule stipulated that he could only go to college, and this has been a heavy burden on Durant.
So if it weren't for that rule, Durant would already be the No. 1 pick in the 2007 draft.
This is the current situation, but before Lin Ying traveled through time, the NBA had already allowed high school players to play directly in the NBDL.
Many top-level high school students therefore choose to give up the NCAA and play in the NBDL.
Although the NCAA's broadcasting fees are sky-high and its advertising endorsement fees are also sky-high, they have nothing to do with the players.
Even if you have any private deals with sponsors, you will be banned by the NCAA and even lose your eligibility for the NBA draft.
But it’s different with NBDL. Not only can you accept endorsement contracts in advance, but you can also get salary!
Later facts also proved that top high school students are fully capable of playing in the NBDL and are not inferior to those adult players.
So Williams's assumption is completely valid.
Half an hour passed quickly. They chatted as they drove and in the blink of an eye, it was over.
The game hadn't started yet, so they entered the stadium early and sat down in a seat with a good view.
As mentioned before, NBDL has low attendance, tickets are cheap or even free, and the revenue is pitifully small.
Except for those players who have been demoted and have NBA contracts, most of the rest only make $10,000 to $20,000 a year.
That's right, there is no missing zero. This is lower than the salary of most ordinary Americans, and it is more likely to be a fine for NBA players.
Cuban often received fines from Stern, each of which cost $25,000.
Of course, this is also the place closest to the NBA, and most of the people who play here are pursuing their dreams of entering the NBA.
So it is not difficult to understand why Williams often comes here to watch the game.
For a player like him who has average talent but still has a basketball dream, this may very well be where he will work after graduating from college!
They had been sitting there for a while when fans started to come in one after another.
What made them a little strange was that when the fans came in, they all looked in their direction and then whispered to each other.
One or two is fine, but if there are more, it will be too weird.
Durant couldn't help but look at Williams, then at Lin Ying, and finally pointed to the top of his head:
“Is my hair messy?”
Lin Ying put his hand to his forehead.
You have a flat head!
What they didn't expect was that there were quite a few people coming to watch the game today.
The stadium, which has a capacity of 3,000 people, was about one-third full in a short while.
Just when they were wondering, players from both sides came out to warm up.
That's when they understood.
Because they saw Steve Novak on the Bulls side!
Novak is a rookie for the Rockets and doesn't have much chance in the NBA.
But it is very familiar to Lin Ying and the others!
Novak is a famous three-point king in the NCAA!
One statistic says it all: in four years at Norwalk University, he made 368 of 793 three-pointers, with a hit rate of 46.4%!
The key person is still the power forward!
And it’s no wonder why so many fans came here today.
Novak is not a big player in the NBA, but his three-point shooting is like a bug in the NBDL.
Well, the one who can ejaculate is your daddy.
At this time, more fans entered the stadium, and some people started sitting down next to Lin Ying and the others.
"excuse me?"
A voice sounded in their ears.
Just when they thought he was going to stand up and give up his seat.
"You're Kevin? Kevin Durant?"
However, the other party's next words made them stunned.
Durant smiled and nodded after hearing this.
He didn't expect anyone to recognize him here.
"God, it's Kevin Durant!"
But the man's next reaction scared Durant.
Lin Ying and Williams also shuddered.
If you recognize it, just recognize it. Why shout so loudly to scare people!
However, what the three of them didn't expect was that after he shouted, the other audience members all looked towards them at the same time.
Then, Lin Ying saw the scene in front of him and unconsciously thought of the name of a movie:
"resident Evil"!