no shortcuts in basketball

Chapter 43 A New Journey
Just as Xu Yong was making final preparations for the new season with the Devils, the first NCAA polls for the new season had been released.

The NCAA has a big change in the team lineup every year. For example, last year's champion Kansas University, after winning the championship, almost a whole set of starting lineups announced their participation, which is equivalent to emptying out the talents accumulated for several years. But the strength has declined significantly compared to last year.

The same University of Memphis has recruited TOP3 high school students like Tyreke Evans with Rose's departure, but its strength is not as good as last year.

In this issue of the list, the top ranking is the University of North Carolina.

They have completed the accumulation of talents last season, but lost to the University of Memphis in the semifinals. This season they added Ed Davis (No. 9) and Tyler Zeller (No. 18) two five-star players A high school student, and Larry Drew (No. 44), a quasi-five-star high school student.

As Jordan's alma mater, this volume is also unmatched.

Ranked second is Duke University, which has 12 four-star high school students, including seven five-star high school students, even surpassing North Carolina in number.

Ranked third is UCLA. Although Love and Westbrook left, Darren Collison chose to stay. At the same time, they also recruited the 2008 class including No. 2 Jrue Holiday. 3 five-stars and 2 quasi-five-stars, in addition to the lack of experience, the talent is still very strong.

The fourth place is the University of Connecticut. They have recruited Kemba Walker, the 18th-ranked five-star high school student. Although there are only six four-star high school students, there are insiders like Hashim Thabeet in the team. They are promising for the new season.

Also favored is Arizona State University, which ranks No. 9 on this list!
They were not on the list last year, but this year they are already in the top ten!

Such a change gave the members of the Devils a shot in the arm, and it also gave Sandek greater confidence and the right to speak.

In the matter of arranging opponents for the invitational tournament, his thinking cannot be said to be different from last year, it can only be said to be completely different.

This time their opponents were basically on the investigation list.

And it is worth mentioning that their opponent in the opening game is the University of Memphis, which ranked 12th and eliminated them in the championship last season.

Sandek's arrangement is obviously very meaningful. In addition to the close ranking of the two sides, it is more about wanting the players to overcome the psychological barrier.

Of course, this arrangement also put pressure on the players. After all, if the Devils lose, the blow will be doubled.

However, as the so-called wealth and wealth are sought in insurance, after a whole summer of training, Sandek is obviously very confident in his players.

Equally confident are Devils fans.

The opening game of the invitational tournament was played at home. An hour before the game started, the arena was already crowded with people.

If they still relied on the derby to gain popularity last season, they have completely suppressed the University of Arizona in the new season.

Incidentally, because Bayless opted to play in the NBA, it's the University of Arizona's turn to be unlisted this year.

In the locker room before the game, the members of the Devils were already eager to try.

As the captain, Xu Yong delivered a mobilization speech before the game.

"The floor of Wells Fargo Arena will remember all the sweat we shed this past summer, let's step on this floor and start the new season, Devils!"

"come on!"

After the players raised their hands and shouted in unison, they trotted out of the locker room together.

When they went out from the player tunnel, they were greeted with overwhelming cheers.

Xu Yong looked up, and the fans excitedly waved the KT boards in their hands with enthusiasm.

And in the middle of the auditorium, he also spotted some scouts in suits and ties.

This time is different, because he and Harden have a first-round prospect this season, plus Tyreke Evans from the University of Memphis, even if this game is just an invitational game, it is enough to attract their attention .

Or to put it another way, starting today, every game they play will have an impact on their ranking!
现场进入到开场仪式，孟菲斯大学老虎队作为客队率先登场，首发也随之出炉：1米88的1号威利·肯普、1米96的20号多尼尔·麦克、安东尼奥·安德森、罗伯特·多齐尔、2米08的0号肖恩·塔格特。

Roberts and Dorsey ran with Rose, leaving only Anderson and Dozier in the starting lineup.

And after the opening ceremony, the live cameras kept pointing at Evans on the sideline bench.

As the No. 2008 high school student in the class of 3, Evans' high school career performance can be described as "horrible".

他高四场均可以得到32.1分8.8个篮板5.7次助攻4.3次抢断，其中两次得到50+，并且在麦当劳全美高中全明星赛中砍下21分10板4助攻，当选MVP；在乔丹经典赛中砍下23分7板4助攻3抢断，和2008届第一高中生布兰登·詹宁斯共享MVP；2008届全美高中生一队，宾夕法尼亚州年度最佳高中球员……

If it weren't for Stern's 19-year-old rule, Evans would have entered last year and would have been a lottery lock.

Then, the University of Memphis didn't arrange for him to start!
I don't know if the coach is out of caution or if Evans has any physical problems.

The Arizona State Devils came on as the home team, and when they played, there was a tsunami of cheers.

The team's new season's start and even the style of play are very exciting for fans.

After the opening ceremony, the starting lineup of the Devils came out: Harden, DeRozan, Cooksix, Xu Yong, Ayers.

Sandek did not let DeRozan play as a substitute like Memphis, but mentioned Harden to the 1st position.

Moreover, the average height of this lineup is 2 meters, and it is really average. The whole team has no height below 1 meters!
Regardless of how the game was played, the moment these five players stood on the court, the sense of oppression immediately felt.

Of course, this arrangement also made those scouts feel puzzled and curious.

Harden said he was a combo guard, but he played shooting guard most of the time, and his assist-to-turnover ratio last season was very high. Whether he can be a point guard is debatable.

And his defense is very poor, and DeRozan, who is also criticized for his defense, has a direct double leak on the outside.

In their mood, Ayers was the first to give them a surprise. He jumped high and turned the ball back to the Devils half.

The "veteran" with the oldest qualifications but the lowest talent in the Devil's team, this speed seems to be "a dead tree in spring"?

Of course, that's impossible. It's more because of the hard training in the summer that Ailes's overall state is at a very high level.

Harden pushed forward with the ball, and the Devils' first show of the new season kicked off.

(End of this chapter)