Volume 1 Western Cowboy Chapter 82: Tedious Summer
August 15, Athens.
The first game of Group A of the Olympic Men's Basketball, China VS Spain.
In the fourth quarter, Yao Ming fouled out. After he left the court, the live camera was focused on this leader of Chinese basketball.
Then, he was filmed angrily throwing the towel to the ground.
"Compared with the Busan Asian Games, our team has only changed its skin but not its heart." Yao Ming yelled as he looked at his teammates who had no fighting spirit on the court.
At this time, the Chinese team was already more than 20 points behind Spain, and Yao Ming fouled out again, so there was basically no possibility of catching up.
Spain is a world-class team, and losing to them is understandable. As long as China plays well in the next few games, it still has a chance to reach the quarterfinals.
But the fighting spirit and attitude shown by the Chinese team in the game made Yao Ming very annoyed.
He felt that no one wanted to fight at all, and they just wanted to die.
With this attitude, who knows if we can win the next few games.
New Zealand, Serbia, Argentina, Italy... Can the Chinese team guarantee victory against these opponents?
Yao Ming needs to see fighting spirit. After returning from the NBA, he hopes to lead the national team to achieve something.
However, he did not feel the fighting spirit he wanted.
So, this little giant who became the leader of the national team at the age of 24 got angry.
In an interview after the game, Yao Ming also said some angry words, which caused some not-so-good effects.
At that time, the media immediately mentioned Wayne.
There is no doubt that as a Chinese player selected in the NBA draft lottery, fans were somewhat disappointed not to see Wayne selected for the national team.
Although there were many reasons why Wayne could not participate in the Athens Olympics, it still could not stop fans from fantasizing.
Does the Chinese team really need someone to help Yao Ming share the pressure?
Athens 2004 has just begun, and China still has a chance to turn the tables.
But in Beijing in 2008, there was no room for error.
Regarding Wayne joining the national team, not only reporters, but many relevant people have begun to think about this issue.
The incident of the Chinese team's first defeat and Yao Ming's temper tantrum has become increasingly serious in China.
At this time in Indianapolis, all basketball fans were only concerned about one person - Wayne.
"Great, great, Wayne's performance was really great!"
When Mike Brown reported to Bird on Wayne's performance in the summer league in his office, the bespectacled black coach was full of praise for Wayne.
Half a month ago, the Rocky Mountain Summer League came to an end, and the Pacers achieved an excellent record of 10 wins and 1 loss!
The only game they lost was to the Bulls.
On the Bulls side, the British combination of Luol Deng and Ben Gordon is indeed powerful, and Wayne is no match for them.
In all other games, Wayne led his team to victory.
Throughout the summer league, Wayne averaged 22.3 points, 10.2 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 2.8 blocks per game, with a three-point shooting percentage of 40.2%, the best performance among all participating rookies.
This is also why there is no championship or MVP in the current Rocky Mountain Summer League, it is just a simple training game.
Otherwise, Wayne will have to bring back at least two honors.
Wayne's performance not only made Mike Brown incoherent, but also made Indianapolis fans extremely happy.
When Bird first traded Harrington and Tinsley for Wayne, Indiana fans were still a little worried.
This is also because Bird is highly respected in Indianapolis. If someone else made such a deal, he would probably be criticized to the point of becoming autistic.
Wayne's performance in the summer league proves the saying: "Believe in Big Bird and you will have eternal life!"
So much so that at the end of July, when Wayne officially signed with the Pacers, news about Wayne made the front pages of many local newspapers.
Indianapolis fans' expectations for this No. 12 rookie are comparable to those for the No. 1 pick.
"Well, then, do you think he can really make a difference at the three position?" Bird was very serious. He had watched all of Wayne's summer league game videos, but still needed to hear Mike Brown's opinion.
By the way, Bird himself was also a small forward under the guise of a power forward.
Therefore, he is still very confident in Wayne's transformation.
"This is not a question of suitability! He is really that kind of person, a rare one. He has outstanding courage. Although he is thin, he is not afraid of confrontation. The key is that he is reliable in three-point shooting, much more reliable than Artest!"
Artest, who is on vacation: "Meow, meow, meow?"
"It's a pity that the opponents in the summer league are too weak to see his true strength."
Seeing Mike Brown praising him, Bird smiled.
Is the summer league weak?
Compared to the NBA, it's really nothing.
But compared with the NCAA, it’s not easy at all.
It’s really great to be able to play like this in the first 11 games after transitioning from amateur to professional.
After all, from a global perspective, the level of the summer league is not low.
Many talented players who are doing great in European leagues may not be able to play in the summer league.
Bird didn't continue asking, but turned his eyes away from Mike Brown and looked at head coach Rick Carlisle.
Khalil and Bird were also old friends, and he understood with just one look, so he immediately said, “I will use him, but not for a long time at first.
If he proves he can, I'd be willing to have him take over Harrington's sixth man spot."
"Well, the sixth man. If possible, I hope he can be the sixth man next season. At the critical moment, let him have a try."
At the critical moment, as soon as Bird mentioned this word, the three old men in the office fell silent.
"Of course, I will give him a chance to prove his ability in the crucial moments." Carlisle nodded. This kind of test is very costly because if he fails to make the shot, he will lose.
But at the same time, if Wayne can really do it and is a player with a big heart, the Pacers will have one less major shortcoming.
"Very good, then next season Wayne will be swinging between the three and four positions. We have to see how much weight he gains in the summer and then decide on his development direction."
"Gain weight? Aren't we the ones helping Wayne gain weight?" Carlisle looked confused. Wayne should be on vacation now.
"From what I heard, Wayne is training on his own in a gym in the suburbs of Indianapolis. Of course, he has hired a professional trainer, so don't worry. When we see him at the end of September..."
Bird looked at the ceiling and raised his lips slightly: "Maybe he will be even better than in the summer league."
"By the way, Larry, about that deal..." Carlisle looked at Bird and asked about the recent transaction.
Like the Wayne trade, the player that Bird has been talking to recently, if he really comes, will definitely be a huge addition to the Pacers next season.
"Oh, that. It should be about the same. They probably won't be able to hold on for much longer. We'll have the result in 24 hours at most."
Bird nodded confidently. After experiencing a disappointing season, Bird was suddenly full of expectations for the new season.
※※※
Wayne was lifting weights like crazy in the training hall. Because of the "Man of Steel" badge, he began to ask Mancias to increase his weight gain efforts.
Of course Mancias didn't agree, and Wayne couldn't just tell him, "It's okay, you can just say I have a cheat."
So, after Wayne's constant persuasion, the two decided that they could only gain weight to a maximum of 105 kilograms before the new season.
It was about 3 kilograms more than expected.
In one summer, Wayne has to gain 20 kilograms!
While gaining weight, Wayne's strength is also increasing. Before the start of the new season, it will definitely not be a problem to train his strength to the passing line of 60.
When you upgrade, use growth points to add some strength, and then add the "Tough Defense" badge, you should not be crushed in the confrontation.
While gaining weight, Wayne was also careful to protect his touch.
He was afraid that if he gained too much weight, his shooting would be affected.
Fortunately, whether judging from the shooting training hit rate or the attribute interface, Wayne's shooting has not decreased.
Perhaps, once the attributes are added, they will not be affected by changes in factors such as body weight.
But Wayne doesn't know whether his physical attributes will be affected.
At present, there is no impact, but if I continue to gain weight in the future, will the speed decrease?
After all, his strength has always been limited by his "weight limit", which means that his physical attributes may not be able to increase as he wishes.
At noon, Wayne completed his strength training and walked out of the gym sweating profusely.
When Schwartz saw Wayne, he was very envious.
Young people are prone to developing lumps of flesh.
Looking at his belly again... Schwartz fell silent.
"Jeff, sorry to have kept you waiting." Wayne saw Schwartz and greeted him casually.
During this period, Schwartz met with Wayne every few days, and the two gradually became familiar with each other.
After all, Wayne has much more business activities than Okafor!
"Don't you want to take a break? There's still about a month before the new season training camp starts."
"There's no time to take a vacation. There are too many areas that need improvement." Wayne panted. Do you think he doesn't want a vacation?
But there is no other way, the system upgrades too slowly, he can only rely on himself!
Wayne's dream is to enter the NBA, become a star, seduce all the beautiful, rich and beautiful girls, and reach the peak of his life.
Although I have entered the NBA now, this is only the first step in realizing my dream.
It would be too unambitious to relax at this time.
Wayne doesn't want to disappear after two years.
"Okay, just get some rest..." Schwartz shook his head. Since Wayne had signed a contract with the Pacers last month, he now receives a salary every month in addition to the endorsement fee.
There is actually nothing to bargain about Wayne's rookie contract. After the new labor negotiations, the league has set strict regulations on rookie contracts.
The price of how much money a player gets for a certain pick is basically clear. The team cannot give less, and the players cannot ask for more.
Wayne's rookie contract is for four years and $7.89 million, with the third year being a team option.
That is to say, Wayne can definitely get the 3.4 million in the first two years. Whether he can get the last two years, and whether he will have a big contract in the future, depends on his ability.
Schwartz never expected that Wayne would devote all his salary to training.
I rented a gym, found some trainers, and happily " tortured " myself.
"You said, there's a commercial to be shot in a few days?" Wayne rested for a while and chatted with Schwartz about the schedule for the next few days.
Schwartz definitely didn't come here to watch Wayne train.
"Well, it's your first official advertising job. So, you have to stop training for a few days."
"Okay, no problem." Wayne has to do the job after getting the money, so he definitely can't take the 28 million from Nike for nothing.
"Then I won't bother you. Have a good rest, and I'll contact you in advance."
After saying that, Schwartz stood up and prepared to leave.
Meanwhile, in Atlanta, Hawks general manager Billy Knight was at his limit.
He picked up his phone and called Larry Bird.
This time, he was defeated by General Bird.
