no shortcuts in basketball

Chapter 308: No more dream team

The championship parade in Dallas was packed with people and the fans were passionate.

Last year they were unable to celebrate the championship due to the epidemic. This year it is a celebration and they have to vent all their emotions from both times.

When Xu Yong stood on the bus with two championship trophies and two FMVP trophies behind him, the reaction of the fans on both sides of the road was like a volcano erupting.

Satanic cheers spread from the street to the end of the street.

Before Xu Yong came to Dallas, it took them more than 40 years to win the first championship with Dirk Nowitzki and others.

But after Xu Yong arrived, in just two and a half years, they had already won two new championships. The difference between the before and after was not ordinary.

In this case, it is not too much to say, "He who wins Satan wins the championship."

It is worth mentioning that because there were so many people at the scene, the governor of Texas even activated the National Guard to maintain order at the scene.

This National Guard is no ordinary police force. It has a lot of heavy equipment, and even armored vehicles came to some places on the scene.

Texas has always been full of military virtue, and sometimes even dares to confront the federation, so although there are many people at the scene, order is maintained quite well.

During this parade, there was a very special phenomenon at the scene, that is, there were quite a few fans holding up slogans like "Let's have a dynasty."

This is something Dallas fans never dared to think about before. After all, there are only a few teams in the entire league that can achieve this achievement, but at this time it is their closest goal.

Xu Yong just smiled when he saw them, and then when the championship parade came to the final stage and gave a speech at the entrance of the arena, he finally spoke out his goal for next season: to bring a dynasty to Dallas.

This wave of responses directly caused the fans at the scene to boil.

This is a summer like no other for fans, because the NBA is open to fans again, because the Mavericks have proven their strength by defending their title, and because in August, the Olympic Games, which were postponed last year due to the epidemic, will be held this year. open.

Before the end of the NBA season, the American Basketball Association broke the news that this year's Dream Team will be an unprecedentedly powerful lineup.

Although fans didn't take it seriously before, after all, the American Basketball Association, a department with a very low presence, basically has no influence on NBA stars.

But this time, their words were really not empty talk, because not long after the season ended, when the Dream Team 14 began their summer training, people who had previously promised to play, such as Durant, James, etc., all appeared in the training camp. .

Although this still does not mean that they will definitely appear on the island Olympics, but the fans' appetite is whetted anyway.

In addition to the Dream Team, stars such as Xu Yong, Jokic, and Antetokounmpo will also appear in the Olympics. This year's Olympics will definitely be another basketball festival since 2008.

And unlike two years ago, before the start of the World Cup, the Chinese team was already highly likely to be the designated champion. This year’s Olympics has so many strong teams that it’s still unclear who will win.

Xu Yong also attaches great importance to this Olympic Games. Unlike last year, he set off to return to China only one week after the end of the season.

There was an episode in this process. Nelson, the general manager of the Mavericks, came out to persuade Xu Yong after learning about Xu Yong's schedule.

Although he has always been in favor of Xu Yong playing for the country, after all, Xu Yong has just finished the finals, and such sustained high intensity will cause injuries.

However, Xu Yong's words made Nelson smile bitterly: Have I been injured?

Because there are precedents like AC Green, no one really thinks that Xu Yong is cheating or anything.

Xu Yong's arrival allowed the national team to start training earlier than in previous years.

Moreover, on the first day of the training camp, Xu Yong changed his previous relaxed training state and adopted a serious and strict attitude.

Obviously, if your opponent has already taken out all the cards and you don't pay attention to them, then your hope of winning is nothing more than wishful thinking.

With Xu Yongdu's attitude, other team members naturally did not dare to slack off.

In other words, maybe most people thought there was no chance this year. After all, the dream team came out in full force, but Xu Yong’s attitude let them know that they still have to compete this year, and Xu Yong, who has already won 7 championships, is the biggest trump card. .

Time flies to the eve of the Olympics, and the Dream Team announces its final roster. It turns out that not one of the most popular candidates from the training camp has withdrawn.

Except for Curry, who was not recovering well due to injury, the American team really came out in full force this time.

There was even a person with a very eye-catching name in the roster they announced. Kobe Bryant actually went out as a member of the Dream Team this time.

This reaction is actually expected. After all, the last time they won the Olympic championship was in 2008, which was 13 years ago.

The best American team in the world has not tasted the feeling of being on top of the world in many years.

So sometimes some American fans complain online, saying that the NBA helped the Chinese team train Xu Yong, which is creating their own biggest enemy. This argument is not unreasonable.

But this time, the American team is really determined to get back the championship they lost.

Because the game was held in an island country, a large number of Chinese fans were present during the opening ceremony.

When Xu Yong once again became the flag bearer and entered the stadium holding the national flag, and the explosive cheers rang out, the audience in front of the TV thought that the capital of the island country was occupied by the Chinese.

Is this an exaggeration?

Not an exaggeration at all!

When a Chinese dominates the world's highest basketball league, the influence of basketball in the country has nothing to do with what is the world's number one sport, because even if you don't play, you will turn on the TV to watch Xu Yong ball.

This opening ceremony basically also foreshadows the situation that this time the Olympic Games are not at the doorstep, but just like the doorstep.

This was also reflected in the subsequent men's basketball games.

When the men's basketball team played Australia in the opening game, two-thirds of the Chinese fans were present, which really amazed fans all over the world.

Even before the game, some fans from the island country complained that they could not buy tickets online, which shows the strong ability of Chinese fans.

In this opening game, amidst the cheers of the Chinese fans at the scene, the men's basketball team showed an extremely focused attitude from the beginning. Under the leadership of Xu Yong and Li Kai, they firmly suppressed the Australians and did not give the opponent a chance. .

This has also greatly boosted the morale of Chinese fans. Even if all the American superstars come out, just like Kobe Bryant once said: Team USA, don’t think you are safe.

The men's basketball team had no problems in the group stage and rematch, and successfully advanced to the knockout rounds as the first place in Group E.

But starting from the knockout rounds, the game started to become difficult.

A quarter of their opponents were the German team.

The German team now does not have Nowitzki, but it has Schroeder on the outside and the growing Wagner on the inside, so it is not weak.

They struggled with the Chinese team for three quarters, and were defeated in the final quarter due to experience issues.

This is somewhat of a wake-up call for the Chinese team.

In the semi-finals, the Chinese team's opponent was the Serbian team.

The Serbian team has the internal and external core of Jokic and Bogdan Bogdanovic, and is only stronger than the German team.

Moreover, the Serbian team's advanced team basketball is very competitive in the world basketball world.

But at this time, the Chinese team's taller direction from the last World Cup began to take effect. With Li Kai playing the No. 1 position, the Chinese team was not at a disadvantage in terms of height.

Moreover, after being beaten by the German team in the quarter-finals, the Chinese team's nervousness obviously increased again.

When the two sides reached the decisive moment, Serbia frantically attacked Xu Yong. Xu Yong scored consecutive assists for Anderson's air cut and Ding Yanyuhang's big three-pointer from the outside. The men's basketball team finally defeated the Serbian team and advanced to the finals, successfully joining the Dream Team.

Compared with the men's basketball team, the Dream Team's path to promotion was not as easy as imagined. They encountered trouble in the game against their old enemy Free France. If Durant hadn't transformed into Du Zilong at the last moment and scored consecutively single-handedly, The dream team really might capsize.

This game also became a key research material for each team after the game, which naturally included the Chinese team.

After watching the video, Xu Yong's biggest feeling was: Popovich is not good.

Compared with his predecessor, Old K, Popovich really can't play with such a superstar team.

Before the World Cup, most people focused on the "poor" lineup of the Dream Team, and few people watched Popovich's coaching.

Facts have proved that Popovich's team play style is very problematic in the Dream Team.

Because a team does not have a clear core, it means that it has no backbone, and it means that each team is fighting independently.

After all, these super giants are the bosses in their respective teams. Maybe he knows psychologically that he needs to play a supporting role, but without clear tactics, he still returns to his instinctive way of playing physically.

This is like Billilard and Antetokounmpo teaming up. If you let him not have the ball in his hands, he will become more and more uncomfortable the more he plays.

The final day is another peak showdown between China and the United States.

The Chinese team launched a ruthless move at the beginning, flanking Durant and leaving James open.

When James attacked with the ball, Xu Yong shrank in advance to help defend.

Because the international arena is smaller, after being destroyed several times in a row, James could only be forced to throw three-pointers from the outside.

Just after Xu Yong repeated the classic and extended his hand to James in a "please" gesture, James' mentality exploded.

Relying on such a game strategy, the men's basketball team actually took the lead at halftime against this all-out Dream Team, which was called the strongest Dream Team in history before the game.

Of course, Xu Yong vaccinated everyone during the halftime break. Facing this dream team, if you have the idea of ​​popping champagne at halftime, it is disrespectful to your past efforts.

In fact, this was indeed the case. The Dream Team launched a ferocious counterattack in the third quarter.

And in this quarter, they almost abandoned the style of play in the first half, and instead concentrated the ball on Durant and Harden.

The Dream Team turned into a super-enhanced version of the Thunder team in the second half.

It was at this time that someone noticed that the person directing the Dream Team on the sidelines was no longer Popovich, but became the head coach of the Thunder and the assistant coach of the Dream Team this time, Scott Brooks. .

Obviously, Popovich has lost control of this team, but at this time, such details are no longer the focus. After all, compared with those, if the Dream Team still loses with the strongest lineup, then the Dream Team will lose in the future. The name "Team" is really not suitable anymore.

This adjustment was very effective. Brooks was also brave enough to take James into the starting lineup and replaced him with George as the starting third position. With a clear organization and offensive core, the Dream Team showed terrifying talent and suppression.

The Chinese team played very hard in this quarter, but at the end of the third quarter they were not only overtaken, but also led by the Dream Team to double digits.

During the timeout between the third and fourth quarters, the Chinese team’s bench was silent.

The toughest game is not when you don't play hard enough and don't focus enough, but when you try your best and still can't beat your opponent.

Xu Yong stood up at this time, and his actions attracted everyone's attention. Even head coach Li Nan subconsciously put down the tactical board he was about to raise.

"This is my last Olympic tour with the national team."

The first words Xu Yong spoke surprised everyone.

This is the first time Xu Yong has told this news.

With Xu Yong's competitive status, he can actually play again. After all, he will only be 2024 years old in the next one in 34.

But it seems Xu Yong has other plans.

But this also explains why Xu Yong returned to China so early this time and his attitude throughout the training process.

"I know you guys gave it your all, but I'm going to do better in the last quarter than before because it's my last chance."

Xu Yong didn't say much, it wasn't even a mobilization.

But after he finished speaking, the expressions of other members of the Chinese team changed significantly.

To put it bluntly, these people were all led by Xu Yong. Without Xu Yong, any world championship would be nothing more than a dream to them.

Xu Yong's last chance is naturally their last chance.

So even if Xu Yong didn't mobilize, they still had unprecedented pressure at the moment, and the determination to fight hard under that pressure.

It's not just a question of whether to go all out, but there really is no future.

Back in the fourth quarter, Li Nan started the game as the main force.

Xu Yong's words also made him realize.

Faced with this approach of the Chinese team, Brooks did not take risks.

Because of this radical style of play, as long as the US team can withstand the Chinese team's opening charge, the US team can win the game early.

There is no big problem with Brooks' strategy, but the problem is that he underestimated the determination of the men's basketball team at this moment.

After the start of the fourth quarter, the Chinese team members became completely crazy.

Zhou Qi can fight with Davis in the paint to prevent the next ball, and after being knocked away, he can quickly return to block Davis' shot. Ding Yanyuhang can break through like James, even after being knocked away. He also immediately stood up and walked to the free throw line.

Even Kyle Li can put enough off-ball pressure on George on the offensive end to create space for Xu Yong to shoot.

The Chinese team is still the Chinese team, but the Chinese team does not seem to be the Chinese team.

This moment even reminded some Chinese fans of the people's army that fought against the United Nations forces on the peninsula.

Strength is not the only factor that determines victory or defeat at all times. When you have the motivation to do everything for it, many seemingly impossible things will become possible.

And the same thing is that the same blood flows in their blood.

China may be defeated, but it will never be defeated.

"Crazy, a bunch of lunatics!"

When Ding Yanyuhang fell off the court to save the ball and left the field injured, even Popovich, who had seen countless big scenes, was stunned on the bench.

This isn't playing ball, it's obviously trying your best!

Yes, the Chinese team is working hard and using basketball.

Of course, this was still not enough for them to defeat this dream team, because Brooks replaced all the main players after experiencing the initial loss.

This allowed the Chinese team to chase points evenly.

But maybe the momentum of the men's basketball team has really come into play. Even though all the main players of the Dream Team are coming up, they are still playing back and forth with the opponent.

The two sides reached the last minute of the countdown, when Xu Yong began to carry the team.

He first jumped into the crowd and reached the inside, and when several people were surrounding him, he took action and forcibly caused damage.

Ding Yanyuhang's injury caused the men's basketball team to lose its most stable shooting point from the outside. At this time, Xu Yong could only choose to attack the basket.

His motivation comes from determination, and his reliance comes from his immunity to injury.

Although the pain of being knocked over and hitting the floor after being shot was very real, he was up and walking to the free throw line the next second.

Not to mention Popovich, the members of the Dream Team were stunned on the court.

They discovered that Xu Yong might not have tried his best when he was playing in the NBA.

The two teams each missed an attack. Durant hit a very difficult fadeaway against Zhou Qi's defense 8 seconds before the end to help the US team tie the game.

The last 8 seconds, the last attack.

Li Nan did not call a timeout because Xu Yong made a gesture.

Calling a timeout will only give the US team time to deploy tactics, while the Chinese team has no other tactics available.

Xu Yong caught the ball in the backcourt and took a deep breath. His eyes penetrated the 28-meter court and looked at the basket.

As soon as he puts the ball in, it's over.

He exhaled that breath and started pushing forward with the ball.

"China team, come on!"

The deafening cheers of Chinese fans can be heard in my ears. Tonight, three-quarters of the seats in the arena were occupied by Chinese fans.

Xu Yong began to accelerate. He changed directions without slowing down and passed George who was defending him. Then he continued to accelerate. Facing Durant who came to help defend, he used a horizontal drag step and then broke through vertically to pass the opponent again.

The elongated stadium was like a 100-meter track at this moment, giving Xu Yong enough room to accelerate.

"Stop him! Stop him!"

Brooks has become anxious because he found that starting from George, the Dream Team's defense has begun to collapse.

Even Kobe stood up from the end of the U.S. team's bench, a trace of worry flashing across his face. He was so familiar with Xu Yong.

Xu Yong has passed the halfway line, and only Davis is left in front of him.

Davis didn't dare to pounce forward at this time, because if he pounced, it would mean that the U.S. team's basket was completely unguarded.

Xu Yong began to slow down, and when he rushed to the free throw line, he began to jump.

Davis tried to raise his hand, but it was not enough to disturb Xu Yong.

But at this moment, a hand came from behind Xu Yong, and his long arm blocked the ball in Xu Yong's hand.

That's Durant.

After being passed by Xu Yong, he did not give up like others, but rushed forward with all his strength. When Xu Yong jumped up, he also jumped up and used his physical advantage to complete the block on Xu Yong.

But at this moment, Xu Yong sensed the danger and made a difficult lever in the air to avoid Durant's blocking hand.

He avoided the block, but it also made his shot from simple to extremely difficult this time.

At this moment, Xu Yong's staying in the air became his biggest advantage. After dodging in the air, he still had the energy to readjust his shooting posture and complete the shot before his body fell.

Just when the ball started to climb, the red light on the sidelines came on.

Almost everyone held their breath.

The basketball flew through the air and drew a perfect parabola, just like Xu Yong had trained countless days and nights.

Everything about him comes from training, and that is his greatest talent.

"Shh!"

The voice of Basketball Insight came from the Nets.

There was an inexplicable silence on the scene.

The members of the dream team were all in disbelief, and many of them subconsciously held their heads.

The next second, the scene was covered by the cheers of Chinese fans.

In the commentary box at this time, Yang Yi's voice trembled, and he spoke with excitement and pride: "The Dream Team began in 1992 and finally ended in 2021. Thirty years have passed, and there will be no more Dream Team in the world."

(End of this chapter)