no shortcuts in basketball

Chapter 20 The Charm of Basketball

After a while, UCLA started warm-up training. Harden and Xu Yong also found a comfortable position and observed through the gap of the bench.

Then, they didn't speak for a long time.

This group of people on the court is not only talented, but also has a very high tactical quality.

What surprised Xu Yong again was Westbrook. Unlike his impression of rushing to the inside with one kick of the accelerator, Westbrook played very reasonably in the positional battle at that time.

This is probably also related to UCLA's offensive system. They played the UCLA pass-and-cut tactic invented by John Wooden back then. The point guard does not need to organize the offense too much in this system. Things to do.

But when UCLA started full-court training, Westbrook had one thing in his mind, that is, the speed of switching offenses was really fast.

Basically, as soon as the defender gets the rebound, he has already passed the half court. As long as the ball is given, it is basically a dunk.

That's right, this guy can never buckle up during training, as if he has endless passion all over his body.

That is, after Westbrook completed another dunk, the two sat back.

"I've known Russell since I was ten years old. It was a basketball camp in 1998, and we became friends after that," Harden said.

Xu Yong looked at Harden with a face of surprise. He had the impression that Harden and Westbrook were teammates only when they arrived in the Thunder. Didn't expect the two to know each other so early?
"I know his story," Harden continued.

"Story?" Xu Yong became more curious.

"Did you notice the bracelet on his wrist?" Harden asked after nodding.

"Bracelet?" Xu Yong stood up again and searched for Westbrook on the field. Soon he found it, and found a bracelet on the latter's hand.

A plain looking plastic white bracelet.

"That's why he plays with so much passion." After Xu Yong sat down again, Harden continued.

This made Xu Yong full of curiosity. He didn't understand why an ordinary bracelet would make Westbrook full of passion.

Then, Harden told him a story, or a past.

When Westbrook was young, he had a very good friend named Casey Bales. The two lived on the street and went to school together to play together.

Of course, more often than not, it was Barrs who taught Westbrook his skills and helped him grow.

Because Westbrook was very thin at the time, but Bals was very tall. He was already 2 meters in the second year of high school, and his skills were very good. He was as famous as "Little Handsome" Durant and was known as the best young player in California , had a single 01-point performance in a high school game.

"During his sophomore year in high school, Russell had already started to grow taller. He and Casey met to enter UCLA together, and then participated in the NBA draft together."

Xu Yong listened and nodded. Needless to say, Westbrook is now playing at UCLA and will become an NBA superstar. According to Harden's description, Barrs will become an NBA player if nothing else happens, and his future is bright. kind of.

It's just that he searched his memory, and there was no such person as Bals.

"Then the accident happened," Harden continued. "In a game in 2004, Casey collapsed, and he woke up at one point because of a dilated heart, but he died that day."

Xu Yong was stunned when he heard this.

He didn't expect this result, and unlike others, he had a strong resonance at the moment.

Because in a sense, he and Bals are the same.

The only difference is that he ruined his basketball dream due to illness, but this equally talented Bals lost his life directly.

"Maybe he was reborn in another world." Xu Yong said.

Harden glanced at Xu Yong after hearing the words, and then continued to tell.

After Barrs' death, Westbrook was hit very hard. He didn't talk to anyone for a while, but in the end, he didn't choose to give up.

He made this bracelet first, and the words "KB3" were printed on the bracelet. KB is the abbreviation of Casey Balls, and "3" is Balls' jersey number.

Then, he started to use Baars's style of play.

Balls likes to hit the rim, and he dunks like crazy in the game;

Balls likes to yell on the court, and he yells at the crowd after every dunk.

"He told me that Casey didn't die, but lived in his body and became a part of his life. He was not only playing for himself, but also for Casey, and they were still fighting side by side. "

What Harden said touched Xu Yong a lot.

It turns out that Westbrook's violent play throughout his life turned out to be because of Baars.

Westbrook is lucky to have a friend like Westbrook, but equally lucky to have a friend like Westbrook.

He got up and looked up the field again, when Westbrook switched to the substitute group.

Mbah a Moute's suffocating defense completed the steal to his teammates. Collison flew down quickly, as fast as lightning, but at the moment of his fast-break layup, Westbrook chased and blocked the ball and flew the ball out of the field. He roared at Collison for a while, and then subconsciously glanced at the bracelet.

"Do we really have a chance to win?" Harden asked again at this time.

Although Xu Yong said before that they will have a chance if they play an advantage at the beginning, but with Westbrook, UCLA is not only superior to them in terms of player talent and tactical quality, but also in mental attributes.

This is probably the reason why UCLA was able to outperform their opponents by nearly 20 points per game in previous games. They are already extremely mature.

Can such an opponent really be defeated by them?

"How do you know if you don't try?" Xu Yong turned his head and asked back, still with that confident expression.

Facing a strong enemy, he knows that he may not be able to win, but he will not doubt, let alone feel fear.

Because the greatest charm of basketball does not lie in how many championships you have won and how many points you have scored, but in challenging the strong, making progress, and then challenging stronger opponents.

……

That night, the Wells Fargo Arena was full.

There were quite a few UCLA fans at the scene, but more of them were fans of Arizona State University. They held up signboards, and some fans even held the exclusive flag of the Devils, showing the enthusiasm of Tempe fans.

Of course, in such a game, it's not just the fans.

In the middle of the auditorium, there were a few guys in suits, leather shoes and laptop bags. Their outfits were obviously different from those of the surrounding fans.

They are scouts from the NBA. Tonight's game has their key targets, Westbrook and Love on the UCLA side, and Harden on the Arizona State University side.

It wasn't even just scouts, because the crowd was already boiling before the players from both sides entered the field.

Three familiar figures entered the field, which were the three core members of the Suns next door: Marion, Stoudemire and Nash!

Especially when Nash, the "son of the wind", the two-time MVP winner appeared, the scene was blown up.

The Suns have been championship contenders for several consecutive seasons, with strong strength, and this is in Phoenix, the "old nest" of the Suns.

Their appearance made this already high-profile game more interesting.

Like, who are they here for?

The warm-up before the game is over, and the opening ceremony is entered, and the starting lineups of both sides have also been released one after another.

棕熊队那边，1米85的2号达伦·科里森，和1米90的0号威斯布鲁克搭档后场，锋线上是1米96的3号约什·希普和2米03的23号卢克·理查德·巴莫特，中锋是2米03的117公斤的42号凯文·乐福。

The Devils are led by "Satan" Xu Yong and "Barr" Harden, plus Ayers, Shipp and Glasser.

"Steve, why did you choose this game? It's very difficult for the Devils to win." Marion couldn't help asking, looking at the players who had already started playing.

As the Suns player who is most familiar with the NCAA, he knows how strong UCLA's dominance in the Pac10 league is.

"Sean, the more difficult the game, the more you can see a player's ability." Nash said with a smile.

Stoudemire couldn't help but nod at these words. More important than winning or losing is the performance in adversity.

Because the momentary victory or defeat does not determine the future, but if there is the quality of being able to rise up in the face of adversity, then the future is destined to be successful.

(End of this chapter)