"Mr. Shentong, can you share your views on the next Chinese Derby?"

"Do you have a personal relationship with Wang Zhizhi?"

"After the last game, Kobe thought you were a rookie with great potential. What do you have to say about being selected in the second round?"

"We are reporters from Basketball Pioneer. Can we make an appointment with you for an exclusive interview?"

"I heard that Adidas is interested in signing you to compete with Wang Zhizhi, who has signed with Nike. Have you received an offer?"

...

Shen Tong's head was dizzy because he was talking in so many different languages.

But from reporters’ questions, STO obtained a key piece of information.

Chinese Derby!

Under the protection of the Nets' bodyguards, Shen Tong was able to escape the encirclement and enter the safe area of ​​the hotel.

Seeing this formation, Jefferson was quite excited.

"Shen, I didn't expect you to be so popular that reporters started to follow you."

Shentong took a look outside and saw that 80% of them were Chinese journalists.

STO can understand that in 2001, two Chinese players represented different teams in the NBA at the same time. This was the first time that history was made.

"Richard, I just happened to come across a hot topic that can be hyped."

"What topic?"

"Did you know about the Chinese Derby? Our next opponent, the Dallas Mavericks, also has a Chinese player on the team named Wang Zhizhi."

After listening to Shentong's words, Jefferson suddenly understood.

"Ah, I heard you say that Wang, a very famous player in China, is different from you in that he never played in the United States before coming to the NBA."

"Yes, you know, this is the first time that two Chinese players have met and competed on the NBA stage."

"Oh, you made history, man."

"Yes, that's why this game attracts so much attention."

Jefferson blinked and asked Shentong: "Shen, I have always heard that China has a large population. How many people are there? 500 million?"

Shentong smiled and replied: "According to official statistics, the population should be 1.3 billion."

Jefferson's mouth was wide enough to swallow several golf balls.

"Wow~~1.3 billion people! Oh my God! Shen, the fan group behind you must be huge, not only the number of fans, but also the market potential and so on."

After a pause, Jefferson asked: "Shen, why don't you hire an agent?"

broker?

This concept entered STO's mind for the first time.

...

Two days before the game against the Mavericks, the media headlines were overwhelming, and words like "Chinese Derby" and "Making History" were absolutely indispensable.

Yang Yi, a basketball reporter for the Beijing Youth Daily, wrote an article titled "In the First Year of the New Era of Chinese Basketball, a Tribute to Two Chinese Basketball Pioneers", which attracted the attention of many media and fans.

The young reporter, who graduated from the Sports Journalism Department of Shanghai Institute of Sport, described Wang Zhizhi and Shentong as pioneers who created a new situation in Chinese basketball.

Chinese basketball has always been a top-notch basketball team in Asia, but its international results have always been unsatisfactory.

In the 1994 World Championships, the golden generation headed by Hu Weidong and Atijiang ended the embarrassment of the Chinese Men's Basketball World Series being unable to win against strong European and American teams without a super center, and created the greatest success of Chinese basketball in the World Championships.

Good result, eighth place.

In the 1996 Olympics, with Zheng Wu's winning goal, the Chinese men's basketball team defeated Argentina and advanced to the quarterfinals of the Olympic Games.

Breakthroughs in the World Series in recent years have brought Chinese basketball onto the world stage and attracted the attention of the NBA.

As the overlord of world basketball, the NBA is the highest palace of dreams for basketball players around the world. Being able to play in the NBA is not only a technical recognition, but also a symbol of a player's status.

In Yang Yi's words, reaching the top eight in the world means the end of the prehistoric era.

And when Chinese players ascend to the highest level in the world, it means that the Chinese men's basketball team has entered a new historical period.

It can be seen from this that the level of attention paid to this game at home and abroad has reached.

...

Before the game, Scott announced the team's starting lineup.

Although Corey Kidders has come off the injured list, Shentong is still assigned as the starting shooting guard.

This time Jefferson was completely at his wits end.

Because Jefferson once denied the $500 bet, believing that STO's starting position was obtained by relying on Kidders being placed on the injured list, and it was not considered to be obtained by his own strength.

But unexpectedly, when Kidders returned from injury, STO would still be firmly in the starting lineup.

"Richard, don't try to deny it this time. After the game, you will accompany me to buy the "Knights of the Flame Dragon" cassette."

"I know." Jefferson said angrily.

Mark Lodge, Martin, Van Horn, Shentong, and Kidd are still the starting lineup that defeated the Lakers in the last game.

...

Dallas Mavericks.

The starting center is Sean Bradley, the tallest man in the league nicknamed "Big Bamboo Pole".

Bradley, who was born in Landstuhl, Germany, is the same hometown as Nowitzki.

Bradley, who has played for the Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Nets in his career, has found a sense of belonging with the Mavericks.

In the last wonderful 50+ win season, Bradley played every game without missing a beat.

In 82 games, 35 starts, he averaged 7.1 points, 7.4 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game. He took on the defensive responsibility inside and won the trust of the team.

This season, Old Niles has listed Bradley as the team's first choice for center.

Bradley, who is 2.29 meters tall, will be behind Nowitzki and support the Mavericks inside.

There is no doubt that the starting candidate for power forward is "German Tank" Dirk Nowitzki.

This big man, who is 2.13 meters tall, almost misses his shots, and his advanced signature move of leaning back, the golden rooster, is even more difficult to guard against.

The most important thing is that this big man actually has a three-point shooting skill.

Looking at the entire league, only Chinese players Wang Zhizhi and Nowitzki share the same template. There was really no other player in the league back then who played like them.

Last season, Nowitzki started all 82 games, averaging 21.8 points, 9.2 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.1 steals, and 1.0 blocks per game, with a 47.4% two-point field goal percentage and a 38.7% three-point field goal percentage.

The explosion played an important role in the Mavericks' 50+ victory.

What's even more frightening is that Nowitzki is still on the rise, and this season is only his fourth season.

The starting small forward is Mexican Edondo Najera. Najera, who is 2.03 meters tall, was selected by the Rockets in the 2000 draft and was immediately traded to the Mavericks.

Last season, Najera had just experienced his rookie season and his performance was quite satisfactory. However, Nelson had a keen eye and put Najera, who has a stable mid-range shot, into the starting lineup.

Najera shot 52.3% on two-pointers last season.

There is no suspense about the shooting guard position, the King of Dallas, Michael Finley.

Finley, who has played full attendance and served as a starter in the past four seasons, can be called an iron man. In the past four seasons, he has averaged 20+5+4 per game. Finley's treatment here is comparable to that of the King. He is also the team's scoring tool and current signature.

figure.

Point guard Steve Nash.

At that time, Nash had just emerged last season, forming Dallas' new trident with Nowitzki and Finley.

Nash, who was firmly in the starting lineup last season, ushered in an explosion of personal data.

The scoring average increased from 8.6 points to 15.6 points per game, and the assist average also increased from 4.9 to 7.3 times per game.

Nash, who has a career three-point shooting percentage of over 40%, aims to become the league's top point guard.

Bradley, Nowitzki, Najera, Finley, Nash.
Chapter completed!