No.1 in basketball scoring-Chapter 132 - 92. This time he took action with just as much determination! (An extra Chapter will be added for every 500 monthly passes)
Chapter 132: 92. This time he took action with just as much determination! (An extra Chapter will be added for every 500 monthly passes)
Watching Yao Ming on-site indulging in a ’health drink,’ Zhang Yang felt satisfied and participated in the following filming segment with the production team.
There were still scenes to be shot on Yao Ming’s side. With Jordan making an appearance today, Chaotian Channel wanted to capture footage of both icons together, and neither of them declined—either fake dead or be dead for real.
During his first meeting with Yao Ming, Zhang Yang didn’t have an in-depth conversation with him, just an acquaintance. He’d wait until after establishing himself in the NBA, when Yao wouldn’t look at him with ’benevolent eyes reserved for a Chinese kid playing in the NBA.’ There was no rush; they could always talk more later.
That night, Zhang Yang saw his photo on Chaotian Channel’s official website—the one of his O-shaped mouth agape in shock as he watched Yao Ming drink the ’health drink.’ Chaotian’s reporters were really sly; didn’t they say the cameras were off?
He hoped that netizens in the future who loved making emoticons wouldn’t come across this photo. If they did, please ignore him in the background.
Training was interrupted for a day. On the 29th, the training continued, and October 30th marked the day of the new season’s first game for the Bobcats.
At 7:40 p.m., players from both teams entered the arena.
It was Zhang Yang’s first time seeing the stadium filled with nearly twenty thousand people. It was exhilarating, though not all fans came solely for the Bobcats—some were there for Yao Ming and McGrady.
For a small-market team, it was only when stars like them came to town that the arena would erupt with excitement.
Even before teaming up with Yao, McGrady was already a top star in the East with two consecutive All-Star starts and even the Eastern Conference All-Star vote leader in the ’02-’03 season.
Yao Ming, the All-Star vote leader of last season, even though the majority of his votes came from his homeland, was genuinely and deservedly crowned as such.
Unfortunately, the Rockets officially announced yesterday that McGrady would miss one to two weeks due to back spasms.
It wasn’t just the fans who were disappointed—Zhang Yang was too. Back when he watched the live broadcasts on TV, he rarely got to see Yao and McGrady play together.
As he remembered, after Yao and McGrady teamed up, the only season they were both healthy was their very first season together, the ’04-’05 season, with Yao playing 80 games and McGrady playing 78.
After that, they both turned into ’Glass Men,’ plagued by injuries.
Zhang Yang looked at the group of players across from him. Apart from McGrady in a suit and Yao Ming taking off his practice gear, the other players... What had gone wrong with his brain back then for him to believe those media stories that the Rockets were championship contenders? freeweɓnovel-cøm
But what the domestic media hyped up was actually half true.
Juwan Howard, an All-Star power forward... once upon a time, spiked only in his sophomore year, then never touched All-Star level again. He was merely a first-rate scorer averaging 15+ with a diverse scoring approach, poor rebounding, and a defensive black hole. By the time he joined the Rockets after turning 30, he had deteriorated to mere long-distance shooting abilities.
Derek Anderson, from the loaded draft class of ’97, picked 13th in the first round, touted as the college-educated Kobe Bryant... If only his knee hadn’t suffered a serious injury in his second year, destroying his athleticism. Eventually, he transitioned from an aerial style to a skill-based game and finally got back on track during the ’00-’01 season. However, poor team choices led him to accepting a 6-year, 50 million US dollar contract with the Trail Blazers, securing the paycheck but at the expense of his health due to the team’s medical staff. This offseason, with 2 years and 18.83 million US dollars left on his contract, Paul Allen cut him outright, and he joined the Rockets for the minimum salary.
David Wesley, once among the league’s top defensive point guards... from the ’90s, now long past his prime, one could say that there aren’t any players left in the league that the current David Wesley could still guard effectively.
Rafer Alston, the king of streetball... that was indeed true, the most formidable streetball player. However, the Chinese media only praised his streetball prowess without mentioning that he epitomized the stereotypical disruptive behavior associated with some black athletes: domestic violence, assaulting waiters, drunkenly cutting someone in the street, faking injuries, ridiculing his former ’bros’ as paupers after landing a 6-year, 27 million US dollar contract, using US dollars to wipe his rear in the park... Some of the Great General’s unbelievable future decisions would be modeled after his actions.
There was also the legendary center Mutombo, who claims to be only 40 years old, Rick Barry’s son Jon Barry, and number two draft pick Swift... When those media hyped up this group of players, they cherry-picked only the flattering details, convincing the young Zhang Yang at the time that the Rockets were indeed contending for the championship.
At 8:00 p.m., the regular-season opener between the Bobcats and the Rockets began.
Over at Chaotian Channel’s live broadcast, the commentators were, with their eyes closed, praising the Rockets’ offseason moves, constructing a ’championship contender.’
However, to the Bobcats’ players, the Rockets had nothing to do with championship contention, aside from Yao Ming and McGrady. The rest of the Rockets’ players weren’t even on par with their Bobcats.
This was an opponent they could take on!
Yet, after the game started, the Bobcats players immediately felt the terror of a 142-kilogram Yao Ming—it was like facing their demise!
Even Okafor, bulking up to 127 kilograms, and the 218-centimeter tall Brezec couldn’t stop the fully-energized Yao at the beginning of the game.
Zhang Yang watched Yao dominate the paint and thought of one word—dominance!
The weight gain had significantly increased the strain on Yao’s lower body, but it also gave him a sense of presence similar to that of O’Neal.
The Bobcats couldn’t stop Yao on defense, and their offense wasn’t faring any better.
With Jeff Van Gundy, who had inherited the tactical genius of the Iron Age, and building around Yao, along with Alston, Luther Hayes, Ryan Bowen, and Juwan Howard, they crafted an extremely powerful defense... it was even better than last season with McGrady, who had gradually lost his defensive edge from 2002 onwards. By the time he joined the Rockets, he had become one of the NBA’s leading examples of a player strong in offense but weak in defense. Except when facing specific opponents and momentarily reviving his defense, he usually couldn’t match the defensive capabilities of a role player.
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