Starting from the last bus in the NBA

Chapter 207 Training Camp

208 - training camp
At the end of September, the Olympic Games have just ended, and the NBA's training camp will start immediately.

The schedule for the new season has been announced, and on October 10, the opening game will officially start.

The opener will be played by the Trail Blazers and the Lakers.

As the opponent of the Western Conference Finals last season, and played seven life-and-death battles, this game is full of suspense.

Even, many media have said that the Lakers last season were just luckier.

It would be better luck for the Trail Blazers to eliminate the Lakers in the tiebreaker, and they would also get the key.

So, the Eastern Conference team is so bad?
Well, in fact, the NBA structure in recent years is indeed strong in the west and weak in the east, an obvious fact.

The western teams, whether it is the Lakers, the Trail Blazers, or even the Supersonics, are all strong.

That's right, in the power list announced by the media not long ago, the Sonics ranked third in the league.

The two opponents in front of him happen to be the Lakers and the Trail Blazers in the West.

And then, the Pacers.

That's right, the champion of the Eastern Conference has no cards like this, and can only be ranked fourth on the combat power list.

This is nothing surprising, after all, in the Western Conference semifinals, as well as the Western Conference Finals, both the Sonics and the Trail Blazers caused a lot of trouble for the Lakers.

On the contrary, in the finals, the Pacers had to rely on the old Reggie Miller to have a slight chance of winning.

Even, even if Kobe was injured for two games, the Pacers' performance is still difficult to shine.

You know, in the Western Conference Finals, the Trail Blazers fought the Lakers in seven games, and life and death were in an instant.

As for the Sonics, in addition to their performance in the playoffs last season, signings are also an important factor.

With the addition of Gorilla Ewing, the Sonics seem to have a solution to O'Neal.

That's right, Ewing is 37 years old, but the problem is, as a former superstar, he still can't move.

Indeed, Ewing's age and physical condition do not support him to maintain a high level of normal game performance.

However, as long as he can guarantee 25 to 30 minutes of performance, it is worthwhile for the Sonics.

After all, they still have a PJ Brown.

Ewing, Gary Payton, and PJ Brown and Wang Hao, one best defensive player, one best defensive first team, two best defensive second teams.

This kind of defense is simply extravagant.

It can be argued that, on paper alone, the Sonics are already one of the best defensive teams in the league this season.

Of course, this is only theoretical. As for the actual situation, it depends on the supersonic defensive system.

However, it shouldn't be a big problem.

From this point of view, it is reasonable for the Supersonics to surpass the Pacers to rank third in the combat power list.

October 10st, this is the National Day of China. The compatriots are enjoying the holiday, but Wang Hao has to work hard.

He didn't deliberately squeeze the time to go to the training hall, there was no need for it, just leave it to others.

It's not that I don't care, but there are still some old comrades in this team, so there is no need to grab them.

Instead of fighting for these false names, it is better to have something real.

"Hi Brent, hi Rashad..."

Although Wang Hao didn't intend to play the finale, but when he arrived at the training hall, there were already quite a few people.

Why did you come a little late? It's just that I didn't plan the time well.

Today, Wang Hao no longer lives in the team apartment. After all, the place is too small and inconvenient.

For example, some female fans took the initiative to...

No, what he meant was that sometimes training is required, and the apartment is not convenient after all.

As for the fact that the apartment is next to the training hall, this question has been automatically ignored by Wang Hao.

Signed a 4-year contract with the Sonics, he will be in Seattle for a while anyway.

Moreover, Seattle is also a very good city, and it is quite suitable for buying real estate.

Therefore, Wang Hao simply chose to settle down, and a villa worth more than 400 million U.S. dollars became his new home.

Adjacent to Lake Washington, the scenery is beautiful and the climate is quite comfortable.

The so-called ten million dollar mansion is really unnecessary, after all, he usually lives alone.

At most, one or two more people occasionally come.

Don't think too much, what he means is that parents come back to see him occasionally, or friends come.

The villa occupies a small area, but according to Wang Hao's request, there is a large area behind the house.

Here, Wang Hao will build an indoor training ground with a basketball court and professional training equipment.

Having just won such a big contract, coupled with so many commercial endorsements, Wang Hao is not worried about running out of money at all.

What's more, earning money is not just for spending.

It was the first time I drove to the training hall by myself, and it was inevitable that I was not familiar with the road conditions, so Wang Hao was late.

As for his car, since he endorsed Mercedes-Benz, it was naturally a large off-road vehicle provided by Mercedes-Benz.

As for what model?
Well, he's not very familiar with it either. Aren't cars all four wheels, as long as they can drive.

For him, looking solid enough, secure enough, was enough.

After all, on the roads in the United States, there are many drag racing gangs. Sometimes if you don't hit someone, they will hit you!
Many of them are teammates from last season. Although they haven't seen each other for a few months, they are already very familiar with fighting side by side for a season.

When they saw Wang Hao, there was more or less a hint of envy in everyone's eyes.

They naturally knew about the big contract that Wang Hao had just signed with the team, and they knew it very clearly.

It's just that everyone is just envious, but not jealous.

After playing in the basketball circle for so many years, they already know very well that only the strong are entitled to more.

More performance opportunities, more playing time, more important tactical status, and now a bigger contract.

"Hi PJ, hello, welcome to Seattle."

PJ Brown is a very friendly player. Although he is of black origin, he has a somewhat gentle feeling.

At this time, he also said with a smile: "To be honest, although I have only been here for two days, Seattle is really a very good place.

To be honest, I can't wait to play, with Ni and Gary. "

Wang Hao also met the team's two rookies, Quentin Richardson and Michael Reid.

When there was a little surprise, Michael Reed seemed a little sluggish, and his spirits were not very high.

This is not surprising, as a second-round pick, the future is actually uncertain, so naturally there is more confusion.

Especially in the summer league, his performance was not outstanding.

Especially with a teammate in the same position beside him, Quentin Richardson performed very well.

As a result, Quentin Richardson got more praise, but Michael Reid was a little at a loss.

Regarding the summer league, Wang Hao naturally didn't know.

However, he is quite concerned about these two rookies. They will be the key to the team's bench in the new season.

It's just that the technical characteristics of the two are somewhat similar, and the three-point shooting is very good.

At the same time, Quentin Richardson still has a good breakthrough.

"Wow, look who's here!"

At this time, someone suddenly walked into the training hall again, and it was still two people together.

It's just that they are two people, one tall and one short.

That's right, it was Gary Payton, who had just participated in the Olympics, and Patrick Ewing, who had just joined the Supersonics.

To be honest, it was quite a surprise that the two appeared together.

After all, he just finished the last Olympic final the day before yesterday and participated in the closing ceremony yesterday.

As a result, a day later, Gary Payton hurried back.

It can be seen that Gary Payton attaches great importance to the upcoming start of the new season, and he sees hope.

Since reaching the finals in the 1995-1996 season, the Sonics have the best chance.

Moreover, he also knew that after Patrick Ewing joined the Sonics, it would inevitably bring some influence.

No way, as the four major centers, as a former superstar, this is inevitable.

He personally attended the training camp today, and even came to the training hall with Ewing, just to get in touch first.

The results so far are not bad.

After leaving the Knicks, to be honest, Ewing was actually a little disheartened.

Of the four major centers, he is the only one without a championship. I have to say that this is definitely a blow.

Coupled with age, Ewing has little motivation.

To be honest, if it weren't for that expensive contract, he even planned to retire.

It is impossible to retire. After all, making money is still very important, let alone such a large amount of money.

However, now it seems that Gary Payton found Ewing on purpose, and the two chatted, and the result was very good.

Because Ewing also saw the possibility of a championship.

Although he doesn't know how big the chance is, he will fight for it no matter how small the possibility is.

This kind of thing can be seen from the state of mind.

In the original time and space, Ewing's competitive state has declined rapidly since the Knicks immediately, and it seems that he has become unable to play.

Even if it's because of age, it's impossible for this to happen, after all, his experience is there.

There is only one reason for this, and that is that the spirit is gone.

Perhaps, at that time, in Ewing's heart, he no longer had basketball and was just waiting to retire.

"Wang, let me introduce you, this is Patrick, Patrick, this is Wang!"

"Wang, you guys did a good job last season, David is just lucky, and his strength is average.

The year before last, all the teams were not well-prepared, which allowed him to win a championship for nothing. "

Wang Hao was a little speechless. He had heard that Ewing was not only a gorilla, but also had a big mouth.

Because of his mouth, he caused a lot of trouble.

Now it's even more impolite. Regarding David Robinson's comments, he just opened his mouth.

It is said that there is also a chain of contempt among the four major centers. It seems that Ewing is very upset with David Robinson.

It's just that David Robinson is really not bad, at least he has won a lot of awards.

The best player in the regular season and the best defensive player in the regular season. On the other hand, Ewing doesn't actually have many honors.

The training camp has officially started. The first thing to do is naturally a physical test to see how the players are maintaining their condition.

Overall, the Supersonic players are in good shape.

After all, most of them are young players. Even in the offseason, it is impossible not to play basketball at all.

As for Ewing, as long as he can still play, you can't ask for more from him.

The ones who maintain the best condition are naturally Wang Hao and Gary Payton.

Needless to say, Gary Payton, after all, has been playing in the Olympics, and he just finished the final and won the gold medal.

As for Wang Hao, he gave the coaching staff a huge surprise.

They have long heard that Wang Hao has been training during the offseason, and they still have high expectations for Wang Hao's state.

However, when they actually saw the physical test data, everyone was really shocked.

Compared with last year, Wang Hao has made great progress in all aspects, especially in athletic talent.

It is not impossible to improve athletic ability.

"Wang, during the offseason, did you conduct special training to strengthen your athletic ability?"

Regarding the head coach's concern, Wang Hao naturally answered honestly.

"Yes, during last season, I felt that my speed became faster, and you reminded me.

You said, I can train properly during the offseason, and for this, I specially invited Tim Glover.

Now it seems that the effect is very good. "

It's not just good, it's an exaggeration. Such obvious progress is simply unbelievable.

However, if you think about Wang Hao's age carefully, he is less than 20 years old, and he is still in the stage of physical development.

This is not incomprehensible.

What's more, this is a good thing, and Paul Westphal naturally won't worry too much.

Yuan Shikong played less than 20 games this season, and Paul Westphal was swept out by Akeli.

But now there is no need to worry.

Akeli is no longer the team owner, and last season's performance is enough to ensure Paul Westphal's coaching position.

Wang Hao's physical test data brought a lot of surprises to Paul Westphal and the coaching staff.

However, they never expected that the surprise had just begun.

The purpose of the physical test is actually very simple, it is to understand the status of the players, and then formulate corresponding training plans.

For example, Patrick Ewing, what he has to do now is to lose weight and restore his body to the state of the game.

With such a body, it is impossible to compete.

There is also Gary Payton, what he needs now is rest, after all, he did not have a good rest throughout the offseason.

But the problem is, now that the training camp has started and the new season is not far away, how can it be possible to rest?

Therefore, Gary Payton's training is mainly to restore the body, and then adjust the state.

If the recovery is not good now, injuries are prone to occur.

There are other people, in fact, the same. They haven't played for a few months, and everyone wants to get back to the game state.

It has been nearly 5 months since the last game ended in May.

In addition, the coaching staff also prepared new tactics.

After all, as the team lineup changes, tactical adjustments will also be made, which is a must.

Without Wen Baker, inside singles tactics are bound to decrease.

Otherwise, who do you ask to fight?Even if Patrick Ewing can play, how many rounds can he play?

(End of this chapter)