Where the noise did not reach

Chapter 159 The basketball here is pure.
After joining the national team, Xu Ling officially moved from the hotel into the dormitory prepared by the General Administration of Sport for the men's basketball team.

The team leader assigned him a roommate, Zhu Ba, who was from Guangdong.

After Xu Ling finished her phone call with her agent, Leon Rose, she returned to her room and saw Zhu Ba intently typing away on his computer.

"What is this written?" Xu Ling asked curiously.

"Writing a blog!" Zhu Ba looked up and smiled. "I'm writing the part about you right now."

blog?

Xu Ling then remembered that there was a period when celebrities and stars treated Weibo as their private social media circle.

Xu Ling asked curiously, "What's the point of writing this?"

Zhu Ba stopped typing, looking helpless: "I have to write this! Some idiots are using my photos online to scam young girls, cheating them out of their feelings and money. I have to come out and set the record straight."

Xu Ling subconsciously sized up Zhu Ba—square face, buzz cut, eyes that could squint into slits when he smiled. Could someone with that kind of appearance really swindle money and sex? Are the standards for con artists really that low these days?
“If you ask me,” Zhu Ba suddenly leaned over, “you should start a blog. Right now, you’re the most talked-about person on the team, but all the articles the media write about you are too official; the fans don’t really know who you are. Listen to me, take a more approachable route, you can’t go wrong!”

"I'll pass," Xu Ling said, but her body betrayed her by taking half a step closer to the computer.

Zhu Ba said directly, "Stop dawdling! I'll help you register an account, and the profile picture will be the one of you wagging your finger at James!"

Xu Ling reluctantly picked up the mouse and, with Zhu Ba's hands-on guidance, opened his old Sina blog account.

Then Xu Ling simply wrote a short blog post.

The title is simply "Reporting in".

The blog post content is extremely simple and straightforward:
"I have successfully registered. I am in good physical condition and am currently integrating with the team."

The basketball atmosphere here is so pure, it reminds me of my college days.
See you tomorrow."

Xu Ling went to sleep after posting her blog, which surprised Zhu Ba.

Because at this time, he and several of his old buddies from the national team were about to start their exciting nightlife.

However, he didn't bother Xu Ling, and they each went their own way, which was the most comfortable way to get along.

The next day, Xu Ling woke up on time, rubbed his eyes, and woke up his dormant laptop, only to find that his blog had been flooded with thousands of fans.

The comments below are quite characteristic of the era.

"The sofa has to be mine! Is it really you, Xu Shen?!"

"Bench! Laughing and patting the dog's head on the first floor!"

"I'll say it a hundred times! I've finally seen you in the national team jersey! Can you play tonight? Can you crush that big idiot Bogut? I've been wanting to smack him for ages!"

"This post is going to go viral! Support Xu Ling, the hope of Chinese basketball!"

Xu Ling glanced at it a few times and then closed the laptop, because today's schedule was quite tight.

The national team's training is different from other places. Head coach Jonas is a tough guy when it comes to training. Even if there are warm-up matches at night, the training volume is still quite high.

However, this didn't put much pressure on Xu Ling, as he was a training fanatic.

That evening, the Chinese men's basketball team faced the Australian All-Stars. Although named an "All-Star team," this was actually the full-strength Australian national team. Previously, in their encounter in Sydney, the Chinese team had narrowly defeated their opponents even without Xu Ling, but that game was missing their key player – Andrew Bogut.

Now, the absolute core of the Australian team is in place.

Xu Ling already had a poor impression of Bogut. In his previous life, as an observer, he had witnessed Bogut repeatedly offending Chinese fans with his words and actions when Bogut came to China to play matches.

Previously in the NBA, the two had little interaction and could get along peacefully; now that they meet on the court representing their respective countries, Xu Ling's mind is naturally on edge.

That night, the atmosphere in the stadium was extremely heated, with a sense of shared hatred for the enemy in the air.

Because Australian All-Star center Andrew Bogut complained about air quality after arriving in China, and clarified that this was not prejudice, but rather "athletes need to protect their lungs."

This statement has enraged Chinese fans.

So when the Australian team took the field, discordant boos rang out from the crowd.

Bogut didn't care about these things. After seeing Xu Ling, he even took the initiative to strike up a conversation: "Rookie, does the air here affect your shooting?"

Xu Ling seemed not to have heard him at all, and turned away as if Bogut was no one in his eyes.

This made Bogut both embarrassed and angry. He certainly knew what kind of reputation Xu Ling had in the NBA, so he came over to say hello and make a joke. Obviously, the other party was completely unaware of his sense of humor.

Not only that, he also showed contempt.

Bogut's anger grew stronger. He always performed better in FIBA ​​games, just like Yao Ming was the world's best center in FIBA, but he always seemed to fall short in the NBA.

That bastard will pay the price for his arrogance tonight!
"What did that guy talk to you about?"

Yao Ming asked with a smile.

“He wanted to talk to me about the air,” Xu Ling said.

Upon hearing this, Yao Ming rolled his eyes: "That's how these bastards are."

The match began shortly afterward.

Yao Ming gently tapped the ball and won the jump ball.

Liu Wei received the ball and dribbled it to the frontcourt before passing it directly to Xu Ling, who was positioned on the left side of the three-point line. He was being defended by Brad Newley, known as the "Australian Demon Blade".

Xu Ling received the ball and was greeted with cheers from the crowd. He then adopted a triple threat stance, made a feint, causing Newley to shift his center of gravity slightly, and then jumped directly into the air, his body stretching out extremely in the air.

"Shh!"

“！@#￥！#￥@”

The whole place erupted in cheers!

After scoring, Xu Ling immediately turned and went back to defend.

"Great shot! Xu Ling has scored his first basket in his national team career!"

It was Australia's turn to attack. The ball was lobbed to Bogut in the low post, who wanted to respond in kind. Yao Ming defended very aggressively. Frustrated, Bogut spun around and attempted a hook shot, but missed off the backboard.

Yi protected the rebound and passed it to Liu Wei, who then sprinted down the left flank like an arrow.

Liu Wei understood perfectly and sent a long pass to Xu Ling. Xu Ling was facing only one retreating Australian player. Without slowing down, he took long strides, and the opponent was powerless to stop the Chinese team's counterattack.

Wearing the national team's red jersey, Xu Ling leaped up like a fire-breathing dragon, knocking the Australian player who was trying to draw an offensive foul to the ground, and violently slammed the ball into the basket.

"Beep!!!"

"A powerful dunk! And a free throw!" Yu Jia roared passionately, "Xu Ling started the game in incredible form!"

"！#￥￥#"

Then, Australia's outside shooting began to pick up. Young Patty Mills scored on a mid-range jumper against Liu Wei.

On the Chinese side, the spread-out formation also gave Yao Ming and Bogut one-on-one opportunities.

However, Yao Ming has only recently returned to the court, and his competitive condition is probably less than 60% of his healthy level. His turnaround hook shot after the rebound was off-target.

Fortunately, the player on the other side grabbed the offensive rebound and scored a putback.

Subsequently, the Australians attempted a complex offensive play, with Bogut setting consecutive perimeter pick-and-rolls, but he switched Xu Ling to defend Mills.

Xu Ling suddenly applied pressure, and Mills failed to protect the ball, which Xu Ling then forced out of bounds.

"What the hell are you doing!" Bogut roared in dissatisfaction.

Mills, of course, dared not argue back.

Xu Ling glanced at him with regret. It was clearly Bogut's pick-and-roll that disrupted the defense, but Mills ended up suffering the consequences of the chaos and had to take the blame.

Possession returned to the Chinese team. Liu Wei dribbled steadily across half-court and passed the ball back to Xu Ling on the wing.

Xu Ling raised his hand to let Yao Ming come out to set a screen.

Bogut had to switch defenses, and Yao Ming, while drawing Newley away, moved to a shooting spot where he was more confident.

Meanwhile, on the perimeter, Bogut, while giving his all on defense, didn't stop talking: "Ready to embarrass yourself in your hometown?"

Xu Ling lowered his center of gravity, the basketball skillfully weaving between his legs. Bogut dared not be careless, keeping a close eye on Xu Ling's shoulders and footwork.

Suddenly, Xu Ling made a quick change of direction, as if he was about to break through from the right.

Bogut barely reacted and moved his body to block, but Xu Ling flicked his wrist, and the basketball was cleverly passed from behind to his left hand. At the same time, his body turned as lightly as a snake, and like dancing the tango, he brushed past Bogut's completely out of position on his left side.

Australian All-Star power forward Matthew Nelson came over to help defend, and Xu Ling flicked his wrist, throwing the ball into the air. Yi Jianlian, who was cutting in, seemed to be back in the NBA, jumping to the highest point to complete the alley-oop.

"Great news, handsome!" Yi gave Xu Ling a thumbs up.

Xu Ling nodded in response, then looked at Bogut, finally no longer treating him like he was invisible: "So you were the one guarding me just now?"

Bogut's expression changed.

"Why can't I sense any defense?" Xu Ling asked.

"FUCK!"

Bogut cursed under his breath, his face turning ashen.

In the ensuing possession, Bogut seemed to be in a nightmare. He was eager to regain his composure on offense, but facing Yao Ming's defense, his low-post isolation plays appeared sluggish, and a weak hook shot missed again. Yi Jianlian secured the rebound.

China launched a counterattack, and Liu Wei made a quick run and scored a layup.

The Australian All-Stars called a timeout because the point difference had widened.

However, their problem was not solved.

The atmosphere was much more relaxed on the Chinese team's side.

Xu Ling brought a sense of security to the men's basketball team that had not existed since Hu Weidong's retirement.

That is an unreasonable, single-point hard solution from the outside.

Since the golden generation of '96 gradually withdrew from the national team stage, the cultivation of youth basketball in China has shifted from the sports team model of the last century to sports schools and professional youth training. However, it has gradually lost the ability to cultivate all-around forwards. There are many players like Wang Qi who have accurate shooting but mediocre dribbling skills, and Zhu Ba who have explosive physical qualities but poor basic skills when playing inside since childhood.

Xu Ling's arrival has made the rest of the national team feel more and more like they are playing in the CBA. If we compare it to the CBA, Yao Ming is the big foreign player, Xu Ling is the small foreign player, and the others just need to do their jobs well within their responsibilities, and the game will naturally go smoothly.

Facing Australia, a team with the potential to reach the top eight in the Olympics, Xu Ling delivered a dominant performance at the start, which reassured many.

"I've wanted to teach that idiot a lesson for ages!" Zhu Ba said excitedly.

Xu Ling laughed and said, "Then shall I give him a few more whacks?"

"Absolutely! Look at the audience's reaction! Everyone wants to see this!"

Xu Ling kept his word. On the first possession after the timeout, he used a screen at the top of the key to face Bogut, who had switched onto his defense.

"Bring it on, you bastards!" Bogut cursed.

Xu Ling's face was ashen. After a series of rapid crossover dribbles, he made a quick right-side breakthrough feint. In the instant Bogut's center of gravity shifted, Xu Ling used his left foot as a pivot, quickly stepped back to create two large steps of space, and calmly launched a three-pointer.

"Shh!"

"Your pretense of defense is laughable," Xu Ling mocked Bogut.

Bogut was so angry that he just wanted to get back on offense, but the ball was stolen before it even reached his hands, forcing Australia to commit a tactical foul.

Xu Ling made a comeback. Utilizing Yao Ming's screen, he drove straight to the basket, actively seeking contact with the stagnant Bogut, forcefully shoving his opponent aside in mid-air, and tossing the ball with a slight backward lean!
"Bang!"

After landing, Xu Ling pounded his chest and said to Bogut, "Too easy!"

Bogut didn't even hear the sentence clearly because he was thrown off balance and fell out of bounds due to inertia.

The Australian All-Stars can only reduce Bogut's isolation plays and rely more on outside shooting to drive the offense, which is undoubtedly the right thing to do.

Bogut is not the kind of player who relies on unstoppable low-post offense to forcefully break through the paint like Yao Ming. Moreover, after being attacked by Xu Ling for several rounds, he appeared restless on both ends of the court.

Patty Mills is a formidable force, but with limited offensive firepower on the wings and little impact in the paint, it's difficult for a short guard to turn the tide.

The Chinese team began to exploit the pressure from multiple angles on the perimeter, particularly around Xu Ling.

When the score difference reached ten points in the first quarter, Jonas stopped the clock and made a substitution, with Xu Ling going to the bench to rest.

When Xu Ling left the court, the cheers from the crowd were extremely enthusiastic; perhaps only Yao Ming received such support in the national team.

But Xu Ling did it in less than a quarter of the game.

Before Xu Ling joined, the Chinese team's goal at the Olympics was at most to secure a top-eight finish and strive for a top-six finish, but now, the outside world's expectations have risen to the point of aiming for a medal.

But before Xu Ling proved that he could still perform at an NBA level under the FIBA ​​system, few people dared to make a guarantee about it. But now it's different.

Xu Ling's addition left Australia, whose strength was previously only slightly superior to the men's basketball team, completely helpless. There is no doubt that he can exert even greater power in FIBA ​​competitions.

Jonas had some concerns because the Chinese team had been working together for four years, and Xu Ling's sudden addition might disrupt their chemistry. But he was wrong.

Xu Ling has fully integrated into the team and has not had any conflicts with Yao Ming regarding ball possession or status. In addition, besides possessing an unprecedented outside offense for the Chinese team, he is also extremely outstanding on the defensive end.

“Eli,” Jonas said to Xu Ling, “you should teach Bogut a lesson if you get the chance; he’s very rude.”

"I will, Coach."

Xu Ling smiled and accepted the towel thrown to him by his teammate.

(End of this chapter)