Champion, please stay!

Chapter 84, Section 82: Do you want to come and assist me?
In August, the men's basketball team arrived in Beijing and moved into the Olympic Village.

Numbers 3 and 4 played two warm-up matches at the competition venue in advance.

This is an advantage of being the host country, as they can familiarize themselves with the venue in advance.

The opponents in the warm-up match were criticized by Yi Shui – the players of the 'Brazilian All-Star Team' did look very Latin American, and the 'American All-Star Team' didn't have a single white player who looked more like the French team.

Despite the complaints, Yi Shui played very hard because it had been a long time since they had played an official match!
In previous training camps and official roster practice matches, Yi Shui's aggressiveness and intensity in the competition caused some teammates to complain.

After these two warm-up matches, they had no more resentment.

So they were holding back back then!

Especially in the second warm-up game against the 'American All-Stars', Yi Shui flew and ran between the two wing elbow areas, his tight double-teaming and pressing were fierce, and his flying blocks were powerful...

The teammates started to feel sorry for the American players that the opposing team had somehow found!

With 26 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 5 steals, and 7 blocks, Yi Shui, backed by the Little Giant, swept through the mid-range and close-range, forcing the opposing group of flashy, penetrating players to only dare to float and shoot from the outside!
"Match rating: National team official warm-up match. Congratulations on obtaining the basic reward: 5 hours of three-point training card. Win the match. Congratulations on obtaining the reward: 5 hours of passing training card."

"Congratulations on receiving the following personal rewards: 10 hours of shooting practice card, 2 hours of rebounding practice card, and 8 hours of blocking practice card."

After the match, Yi Shui looked at the reward with great satisfaction. He hadn't received a reward in a long time, and his training cards had long been used up.

During the training camp, he could only point to the 100% efficiency bonus of the 45-degree angle on both wings of the 'Angle Genius' and the 50% efficiency bonus of the rim protection basics of the 'Guardian of the Basket'.

In yesterday's first warm-up game, he was very motivated, but it wasn't about playing aggressively; he just played normally. Unexpectedly, the game was later judged to be a 'national team game,' so tonight he's putting in all his effort to shoot and help on defense.

Suddenly, another notification appeared.

"Your performance in the warm-up matches gave your teammates a new understanding of your strength. Your national team exclusive skill: Leader, your leadership has been upgraded from basic to advanced."

'Uh... that's an upgrade?'

Yi Shui looked at his teammates in astonishment and found that several of his inside teammates, especially Yao Ming, were looking at him with even more... fanaticism?

...

Yi Shui was new to the area and, although he knew that Yao Ming had a tough time in the national team, he couldn't truly understand just how tough it was.

Two years ago at the World Championships, Yao Ming gave his all, averaging 25.3 points per game and winning the scoring title. He scored two points more than Dirk Nowitzki, who came in second, and four points more than Pau Gasol and Gloria Arroyo, who came in third and fourth respectively.

He also tied Zhang Weiping's average of 25.3 points per game at the 1978 World Championships, ranking first among Chinese men's basketball players in the World Championships scoring list.

However, they only managed to finish 15th and were eliminated by the Greek team in the round of 16.

In that World Championship, Yao Ming had an absolute advantage against any player, but his teammates on the perimeter were either digging themselves into a hole or on their way to digging one.

At the Olympics held on his home turf, he finally found a world-class perimeter teammate!

Moreover, his then-younger teammates on the national team's perimeter, who were still quite inexperienced, have improved considerably in the past two years, which has boosted his confidence!
After two warm-up games, the men's basketball team had two more days of training. After a rehearsal on the 7th, the opening day of the Olympics arrived on the 8th.

In the morning, the entire men's basketball team had free time...

With the Olympics happening right on our doorstep, who doesn't have relatives and friends here?

I'll go meet my parents first at Yishui.

The two spent a few days in a resort villa area in Daxing last month before returning to Jiashan.

My high school teacher said that there are three months of winter and summer vacations a year, but there are still plenty of things to do during the holidays.

But the Olympics were about to begin, so the couple flew back to Beijing and stayed in a hotel in the city center, which was very close to the Wukesong Arena, arranged by their agent.

After the schedules for various competitions were announced last month and tickets went on pre-sale, Yi Shui called his parents to ask which matches they wanted to watch and had his agent buy all the tickets they wanted. He also secured good seats for the opening ceremony. This trip was just to meet them and deliver the tickets.

Next, he went to another hotel and met his American friends who had been invited to watch the Olympics.

That is, the college coaching staff, Calhoun, Clark, Jerry Cook, Ollie and others, and their relatives. Except for Clark, who is a bachelor, the other three brought their wives and children. Some of them were meeting Yi Shui for the first time.

His college teammates invited Yad, Robinson, Johnson Bird, and Price.

At the club level, he currently only knows two teammates: Curry and Chalmers.

These two guys aren't actually very close; their relationship is only based on competitions. He was prepared to be rejected.

Unexpectedly, both of them agreed to come, so he naturally had to treat them well, just like his university coach and teammates, and had his domestic agent team make all the arrangements.

Originally, Yi Shui also wanted to invite the club's management and coaches, but after learning about it, he found that it was unnecessary. Dolan and Walsh were already on this trip because of him, and D'Antoni was recruited by the head coach of the US men's basketball team, Coach K, to be an assistant coach.

After greeting the veteran coaches, Yi Shui went to lunch with several new and old teammates. This was at the coaches' suggestion, as they didn't want to eat with a group of young people in their early twenties.

During lunch, Yi Shui followed the national team's rules and only drank some bottled beverages, without eating anything else.

Everyone present understood this, as the Olympics started tonight and they couldn't afford to be careless.

It was supposed to be a meal, but we mostly just chatted.

Yad immediately complained, "Brook, you're such a good actor, aren't you?"

Yi Shui: "What was I pretending to be?"

Yad: "Pretending to be poor! I always thought you lived in a primitive tribe! But your country is full of modern cities!"

Yi Shui: "Jeff, didn't you know that our country has the third largest GDP in the world? You were the one who told me this last year. How could you think our country is like a primitive tribe?"

Yad: "Uh... well, that's what the news says, saying China is poor and backward. Yeah! The third largest GDP in the world... Your country is so rich, yet you pretend to be poor! You eat in the cafeteria every day, forcing me to eat in the cafeteria with you. I don't even dare to complain, afraid you'll feel inferior!" Yi Shui: "My family isn't considered poor in our country, we're middle class, right? We have a house and enough income. The main problem is that prices in America are too high. Our family's monthly income before was only a little over $1000."

You've been in Shanghai and Beijing for several days now. With $100, is that enough for food and lodging for one day? What can you buy in Stamford with $100?

Yad: "Let me think, $100... can I bring two girls to spend the night at community college?"

Yi Shui: "You've been there?"

Yad: "It happened a long time ago... I was in 12th grade when I came to try out for the Huskies. After the tryout, I was driving around the streets of Storrs when I got to the vicinity of Sykes Community College. A blonde girl knocked on my car window and asked if I wanted to play in the car or stay overnight. She said $20 in the car and $50 overnight."

Yi Shui: "Your experiences are truly fascinating..."

At this point, Robinson, Johnson Bird, and Chalmers joined in, reminiscing about their own flamboyant past.

Chalmers has a history of rivalry with Yi Shui in the semifinals of the 3rd Super League, but now that they're in the same club, and Yi Shui is definitely going to be the future team leader, Chalmers is very proactive in trying to build a good relationship with Yi Shui.

Curry originally wanted to finish the match.

But the way Yi Shui, Yad, Robinson, and others chatted suited his taste perfectly!
They rambled on about this and that, without any particular purpose or mandatory topics, able to end the conversation at any time and then return to it just as easily… and he joined in the conversation…

...

At 1 p.m., Yi Shui bid farewell to his teachers and friends and returned to the Olympic Village to participate in the men's basketball team's pre-game pep rally.

This kind of thing might seem like formalism, but Yi Shui felt it was quite necessary to participate in it personally, to unify the direction, clarify the goals, and boost morale.

As evening fell, Yi Shui, as a member of the Olympic men's basketball team, participated in the opening ceremony's entrance ceremony.

He... was just a supporting actor, even though he was incredibly popular around the time of the draft and quickly gained fame in China.

But Yao Ming is the most prominent focus of the Chinese men's basketball team!
He felt no envy or jealousy; Yao Ming deserved it.

It was Yao Ming who made other basketball players aware of 'China' in the world of basketball.

It was Yao Ming who opened the door for Chinese basketball players to the world stage... it's just that those who came after him were not up to par.

But seeing the blacksmith on the West Coast, who isn't that old yet, get a 10-second close-up shot all by himself... Yi Shui is jealous. The day after tomorrow, he'll get him!
With the Olympic flame lit, the opening ceremony came to a successful conclusion.

The next day, the 9th, was the final day of preparation for the Chinese men's basketball team.

During tactical training, Yi Shui could clearly feel his teammates' tension, and he knew the reason for it, of course.

It is said that four months ago, after Wang Zhizhi represented the men's basketball team in a draw, he washed his hands dozens of times a day for several days in a row because he felt his hands were too smelly.

In Group A, the teams are Argentina, Lithuania, Russia, Australia, Iran, and Croatia.

No matter who they replace, they are guaranteed a spot in the quarterfinals.

However, Wang Zhizhi was drawn into Group B, which consists of the United States, Spain, Greece, Germany, and Angola.

In order to attract attention and viewership, the organizing committee of the Olympic Games, disregarding the well-being of its own people, scheduled their group match against the US team on the first day of the men's basketball tournament, which is tomorrow's prime time slot.

This group stage match is definitely the one that domestic fans are most looking forward to, but it's tough on our own men's basketball team.

However, when it came to the group competition against the American team, Yi Shui noticed that his teammates seemed less nervous...

After the training match ended, he opened the system and, sure enough, there was a notification on the homepage: "Leader (Advanced) triggered. The fear and apprehension of teammates due to the strength of the opponent have been greatly reduced."

'Turns out this skill works even in targeted practice matches, it's quite useful!'

Mindset not only affects the competition, but also the effectiveness of preparation!

...

It was August 10, 2008. Around 7 p.m., Yi Shui and his teammates entered the stadium after warming up.

He felt fine when he played warm-up matches and participated in the opening ceremony of the Olympics; he was just excited.

But this time, with each step he took closer to the players' tunnel exit, he felt the pressure increase, but at the same time, his excitement and longing were also rising rapidly.

When he walked out of the players' tunnel and heard the cheers of the fans and saw the five-star red flags everywhere, all his pressure, excitement, and longing disappeared.

There was only one thought—to fight! For the national team! To fight for the country!

Yi Shui tried to calm his overly excited state of mind, as it was not conducive to the game.

After calming down, he heard many people shouting "Kobe," seemingly even more than Yao Ming... which made him want to smash the blacksmith even more.

But before he could go and provoke the blacksmith, someone else came up to him first.

The moment James and Yi Shui faced each other, James was taken aback—wasn't he supposed to be six feet seven inches? How come he seems taller than me? I was already being ridiculous by reporting my barefoot height, and this guy…

He took the initiative to greet me, saying, "Hi, BIG-YI, I've wanted to meet you for a long time. I'm really curious to see how capable someone who gets a bigger endorsement contract than me is... Anyway, welcome to the Nike family!"

These words sounded fine, but Yi Shui just felt very awkward about them.

The other party was still quite polite, and he replied politely, "Thank you, it was just luck, nothing more than luck."

James said meaningfully, "Yeah, it's really a lucky thing to get into the NBA and play in a big city like New York."

"Do you also want to come to a big city? I'd love to have you here. James Dolan would definitely be willing to pay you a max contract to help me."

(End of this chapter)