NBA's King of Talking

"The four players from UConn showed you that it doesn't matter if you're a top draft pick or not; basketball is a team sport." — ESPN Express.

"Arizona Beast Derrick Williams gets blown out by Connecticut backup forward Jia Fei!" — Cleveland Plain Dealer

"Jia Fei, a newcomer with physical attributes comparable to MJ and LBJ, could he be the dark horse of this year's draft?" - Los Angeles Times.

"Jia Fei, the yellow-skinned Jordan, he is the next Yao Ming!" — Sina Sports

When Jia Fei finished reading, he couldn't help but laugh. Compared to the UC editorial department, Sina Sports was relatively low-key. He suddenly remembered GD's classic line when he praised Yi Jianlian: "In terms of the richness and depth of language, Chinese language and culture are number one in the world!"

There are still many different kinds of news online, but Jia Fei didn't bother to look at them in detail. It's the off-season now, a period of rest and no official matches to report on. But the media still need to make a living, so they have to come up with some news, which is understandable.

Kemba Walker later told everyone that many of the news stories about them were actually written by the media at the behest of their agent, Jeff Schwartz. No matter how outrageous or unrealistic the writing was, the hype was real. Many team executives now knew about players like Jia Fei, Art Mayork, and Oriak.

Jia Fei is increasingly impressed with his agent, Schwartz. The training match he arranged yesterday was meticulously planned. The opponent's high profile and fame allowed them, relatively unknown players, to not only ride on their coattails but also win, effectively benefiting the opponent. The subsequent media coverage and hype provided ample opportunity for these marginal newcomers to showcase their talents.

What is professionalism? This is professionalism!

The Chicago Combine has ended. For the players who participated, this is like the end of a midterm exam. Next is the final exam, which is one-on-one tryouts. But being able to participate in this final exam means that they did well in the midterm exam.

康大的4人中，肯巴·沃克自然是不愁试训邀请的，他接到了拥有前10选秀权的10支球队里的8支球队的试训邀请。除了拥有前10选秀权的球队对他发出试训邀请，还有拥有10-20顺位选秀权的球队的试训邀请。

Compared to him, the other three players from UConn didn't receive as many trial invitations. But thankfully, even Auriak, who received the fewest trial invitations, still got trial offers from two teams.

Jia Fei received the most tryout invitations besides Kemba Walker. He has been in the spotlight these past two days, from the physical tests to the five-on-five practice matches, he has been the subject of discussions among scouts and general managers.

It can't be called a sudden emergence, but it can be considered a sudden rise to prominence.

Jia Fei received tryout invitations from seven teams: the Lakers, Thunder, Rockets, Bulls, Pistons, Heat, and Cavaliers.

Jia Fei was quite satisfied with this. His performance in the two-day NBA Combine earned him the opportunity, demonstrating that his abilities had gained considerable recognition. However, the fact that only seven teams participated, instead of the dozen or twenty that Kemba Walker had, shows that NBA scouts and administrators remained objective and level-headed. While the two-day combine was comprehensive, the sample size was still too small. Kemba Walker, on the other hand, had multiple seasons of outstanding performance in the NCAA, his credentials proven over time and in numerous games.

Jia Fei won't compare himself to Kemba Walker. He wants to seize the opportunity, whether it's the first or second round, he wants to give it his all. Even if he ultimately doesn't make the draft, he will try his best to participate in the Summer League and earn a contract for himself, even if it's non-guaranteed.

Besides the tryout invitation, Jia Fei also saw scouting reports about him on various media websites. He was quite surprised, because as a rising star, he didn't expect to see his own scouting report so quickly. It's worth noting that many scouts follow promising young players for a long time, learning about every aspect of the player before issuing a scouting report.

Jia Fei clicked on it out of curiosity, wanting to know how others viewed him.

Scout Report 1

Strengths: Excellent size for the wing position; can handle the ball with both hands; excellent static and dynamic physical attributes; possesses a quick first step and outstanding agility; excellent jumping ability; willing to share the ball; has some playmaking ability; a good team player; can defend multiple positions; has the potential to become an excellent defensive all-rounder.

Weaknesses: Limited ball-handling ability, average ability to create their own offense, inconsistent dribbling/spot shooting; needs to improve physicality and toughness, and needs to gain weight to be able to contend with strong forwards.

Future expected positioning: 3D wing

Draft benchmark: Wesley Johnson

Jia Fei read several more scouting reports and found that they were all very similar. He was quite surprised because even though he only had two days of outstanding performance and his role at UConn was small, the reports still analyzed his current situation (strengths and weaknesses) very well. It has to be said that NBA scouts are indeed very professional; they might make mistakes, but such mistakes are really rare.

One detail that impressed him was that he was left-handed as a child, but switched to right-handed when he started elementary school. So his left hand is just as dexterous as his right hand. He was surprised that the scouting report mentioned this as well. He really has to admit it.

But there's one thing that wasn't mentioned. Of course, it's not that people didn't notice it, but rather that it couldn't be mentioned. But those who understand will understand: that is his identity as a yellow person.

While there may not be blatant racial discrimination in the NBA, the reality is that, regardless of race, neither Asians nor Caucasians are as durable as Black players. With Jia Fei's physical attributes and skill base, if he were a Black player, at 19 years old, a graduate of a prestigious university, and with the added advantage of a championship, he would be a super-potential player and would receive far more attention.

This kind of invisible discrimination is a real and objective reality.

As for draft comparisons, he felt that based on his current performance, they were quite close. Wesley Johnson of Iowa State University is also 201cm tall, possesses excellent static and dynamic physical qualities, and is similarly average in ball handling, leaning towards 3D attributes, with the potential to become a defensive anchor on the perimeter.

Jia Fei thought to himself, if he really did end up like Wesley Johnson and become a lottery pick, he would be laughing in his sleep every night.

Lottery picks and regular first-round picks are completely different. Not only do lottery picks receive higher total rookie contracts, but more importantly, their future status and importance within the team are correspondingly greater. This means they are likely to get more playing time, play a larger role, and naturally, receive more development opportunities, leading to faster progress. Second-round picks also differ significantly from regular first-round picks. First-round picks almost always receive a guaranteed contract of at least two years, while second-round picks' contracts may be partially or non-guaranteed. Sometimes, second-round picks don't even receive a contract.

However, the draft order is not something the players can decide; the decision rests with the team.