novellk Chapter 55 The Olympics, Showdown with Dream Team 8!
Chapter 55 The Olympics, Showdown with Dream Team 8!
Zeng Zhen has signed with the Oklahoma City Thunder, becoming the third Chinese player to be drafted in the lottery!
"Many fans claim that the Thunder will be my favorite team next season!"
Presti: We've had our eye on Zeng for a long time, and we're very lucky to have the opportunity to acquire him. Hopefully, he can succeed with the Thunder!
"It is understood that the Chinese men's basketball team will send a delegation to Los Angeles to invite Zeng Zhen, and Zeng Zhen's team will make a decision on whether to participate in the Beijing Olympics today!"
"If Zeng Zhen dons the national team jersey, the Chinese men's basketball team will have a true NBA-level guard this year!"
The following day, as news of Zeng Zhen's official signing spread again, related news flooded the country.
With Yao Ming injured and Yi Jianlian underperforming in the NBA, Zeng Zhen's emergence has given domestic fans new hope.
Some fans who don't follow the NCAA and the draft were a bit confused when they heard the news.
How come someone I've never heard of before was selected with the 8th pick?
Those fans who have been following Zeng Zhen are well aware that the 8th pick is a bit too low for him. In their opinion, Zeng Zhen should at least be a top-three draft pick, since he has dominated players who were drafted in the top three.
What domestic fans are more worried about is whether Zeng Zhen can have a good future on a tanking team like the Thunder.
Generally speaking, the locker room culture of bottom-ranked teams is terrible. They are filled with the frustration of losing, and rookies will suffer a lot of setbacks. Then, the fans and management will give the rookies a lot of opportunities, but these opportunities need to be fulfilled. If they don't have good mental strength, they may lose themselves in this high-pressure environment.
Schwartz had confidence in Zeng Zhen, believing him to be a true genius born for basketball.
After finishing his contract signing with the Thunder, Zeng Zhen returned to Los Angeles and began closed training.
The national team sent a team to discuss with him the matter of joining the national team this year.
This time, it wasn't an invitation to play in some kind of scouting match; instead, it was a direct offer of a starting point guard position and tactical support for the national team.
Obviously, Zeng Zhen wouldn't have been valued this much during his NCAA days, but everything changed after he joined the NBA as the 8th overall pick.
If Zeng Zhen is made to participate in any more evaluation matches, some people will be criticized to death.
After comprehensively considering business factors, family factors, and personal growth and development factors, Zeng Zhen finally agreed to wear the national team jersey and represent the Chinese men's basketball team at the 08 Beijing Olympics.
This is the Olympics being held on our doorstep; if we perform well, it will greatly enhance our commercial value.
.......
After deciding to return to China for the Olympics, Zeng Zhen did not rush to join the national team. Instead, he returned to his home in China first. Upon hearing this news, the kindergarten, primary school, junior high school, and high school that Zeng Zhen had attended all put up banners welcoming the "outstanding alumnus" back.
After resting and adjusting at home for 10 days, Zeng Zhen went to participate in the national team training camp.
Supersonics sent an assistant coach and trainer to join the Chinese team specifically to serve Zeng Zhen.
With Zeng Zhen joining the team, this year's national team boasts four NBA-level players: Zeng Zhen, Sun Yue, Yi Jianlian, and Yao Ming. This Chinese men's basketball team is hailed by domestic fans as the strongest Chinese men's basketball team.
In the warm-up matches, the Chinese team also showed good competitive form and achieved good results.
On August 8, Zeng Zhen attended the opening ceremony at the Bird's Nest.
On August 10th, the first match of the group stage was between China and the United States.
For Chinese fans, this was an incredibly anticipated match.
Dream Team VIII fielded their strongest lineup:
Guards: Kobe Bryant (Lakers), Dwyane Wade (Heat), Jason Kidd (Mavericks), Chris Paul (Hornets), Deron Williams (Jazz), Michael Reed (Bucks).
Forwards: LeBron James (Cavaliers), Carmelo Anthony (Nuggets), Tayshaun Prince (Pistons), Carlos Boozer (Jazz), Chris Bosh (Raptors).
Center: Dwight Howard (Magic).
The previous series of defeats in international competitions had pushed American fans' patience with the Dream Team to its limit.
This dream team is known as the "Redemption Team!"
In pre-match interviews, most of the Dream Team players did not display an arrogant attitude.
Kobe told reporters, "We have no reason to be complacent now. The Chinese team is a fantastic team; they are very strong, and we will do everything we can to beat them!"
After arriving in China, Kobe enjoyed an extremely high level of emotional value.
These are all his fans; the number of fans of any other player in the Dream Team is far less than his.
Of course, Kobe didn't care much about these things; he just wanted to win.
James said, "Zeng, Yao, and Yi are all very tough opponents, and we will focus on defense."
Unlike his popularity in the United States, LeBron James' popularity in China is not comparable to that of Kobe Bryant. His two previous defeats in international competitions have taught him how difficult it is to compete on the international stage.
Fortunately, Kobe, Wade, Howard, and others were all present this time, which gave James more confidence.
Howard, unusually arrogant, told reporters, "We made a bet in the locker room: each of us put up $10,000, and whoever could dunk on Zeng would win the whole prize!"
The Dream Team's management is quite interested in China's new No. 8 draft pick, wanting to see what unique qualities this rookie, who has been going wild in the NCAA for a month, has.
The Chinese team, on the other hand, displayed a humble yet assertive attitude when interviewed.
Yao Ming joked, "If I can beat them, I will announce my retirement."
Although Zeng Zhen's timely addition improved the Chinese team's backcourt strength, Yao Ming was all too aware of the gap between Chinese and American basketball, and it was difficult for him to bridge that gap through his individual efforts.
Yi Jianlian, with a serious expression, told reporters, "Our opponents are very strong, and we will go all out."
Zeng Zhenze said earnestly, "Anything is possible."
In online public opinion.
Almost all media outlets and basketball experts agree that it is an "impossible mission" for the Chinese men's basketball team to defeat the Dream Team.
Former national team player Hu Weidong stated frankly, "Not losing by 40 points is a victory," and added that he often lost to the American team by 50 or 60 points when he was on the national team.
One well-known commentator even said that "the probability of China defeating the Dream Team is even smaller than the probability of the Chinese men's football team beating Brazil."
"Hopefully Yao Ming can overcome his injuries and pose a threat to the Dream Team's interior defense."
"Yi Jianlian and Sun Yue should cause some trouble for the Dream Team."
"To be honest, I'm really looking forward to seeing how Zeng Zhen, the No. 8 pick, performs. His performance in the NCAA has been phenomenal."
"It's difficult for a rookie to perform well against the Dream Team's All-Star lineup."
Most Chinese fans didn't have high expectations for the outcome, but rather approached the game with an attitude of enjoying the process, generally believing that this game was more like a world-class basketball performance.
Pre-match predictions indicated that the game would attract approximately 10 billion viewers worldwide, with the leaders of China and the United States even attending in person at the Wukesong Basketball Arena. This game was also dubbed the most watched basketball game in Olympic history.