Chapter 17 Training Camp (Seeking Follow-up Reading)
On September 9, the Mavericks' new season training camp officially begins!
They will train in the gym for a while and then start playing in the preseason.

When Zheng Yang arrived at the stadium in his Hummer, he met the "Son of the Wind" Nash who had just arrived in the underground garage.

Nash, a thin man with long flowing hair, recognized the rookie and waved.

"Nice to meet you Steve, I'm Zheng Yang! You can call me Zheng!"

"Zheng! I know you. I've seen your video tapes! Your physical fitness is amazing, you know. I also want to play like you, haha!"

"I really envy your passing ability. If I could learn it, I would be the top pick this year, haha."

The two walked into the arena while complimenting each other. I have to say that Nash is easy to get along with and plays well, but his coaching level is...

Forget it, man. Don’t be a coach in the future. If it weren’t for you, there might not be a Brooklyn Nets team!
When we entered the stadium, in addition to the trainers and other staff, there were also several players who had already arrived.

Sitting there chatting were the team's former boss, All-Star Finley, Walker who had just been traded, and the German white man "Bamboo Pole" Sean Bradley. This guy was really tall, 2.29 meters, and even when sitting he was almost a head taller than the two people next to him.

Not far away, there were two black men sitting there timidly, holding basketballs in their hands. They wanted to play but were afraid to make noise and disturb the veterans.

I felt uncomfortable just sitting there without playing ball.

They are naturally this year's rookies, Josh Howard, who was selected with the 29th pick in the first round, and undrafted Marquis Daniels, who are jokingly called the "Dallas Double Ugly".

As the saying goes, there are wrong names, but there are no wrong nicknames.

These two brothers are really ugly looking!
But "Ugly" Josh Howard is actually quite inspirational. When he was born, his legs were deformed and bent severely inward. In order to have a healthy body, the doctor had to break his twisted knees and legs and then perform surgery.

The fact that he can make it to the NBA today is certainly due to his talent, but his hard work is also inevitable.

Speaking of ugliness, Walker, who we just talked about, is also qualified to be mentioned again. This guy has an undeveloped face and a big bald head, so he is also nicknamed "Fat Monk".

It can be said that if the Dallas Mavericks did not have Zheng Yang to raise the average appearance of the players, their appearance would definitely be ranked at the bottom of the league.

Let’s talk about the “Dallas Ugly Twins” again. These two brothers are rookies, not very famous, and have not seen much of the world. In addition, it is said that rookies will be bullied badly by veterans in their first year. Now, sitting in front of such a group of veterans, they dare not even breathe.

Seeing someone coming, everyone's attention was focused on them. Everyone first glanced at the "Son of the Wind" and then looked at the only yellow man on the field.

It was him who made the Mavericks pay with a bench strongman and a first-round pick?

It doesn’t look like there’s anything special about it!
Noticing everyone's gazes, Zheng Yang waved to everyone generously and briefly introduced himself. His performance was much more natural than that of Dachou and Erchou.

The others just nodded without saying much. Nash quickly joined the circle of several veterans, and Zheng Yang did not join the group of Dachou and Erchou, but found a seat nearby and sat down.

Several veterans chatted very happily and harmoniously. Having a good relationship is one thing, but what is more important is that the team has four All-Stars this season, and everyone feels that they will definitely win the championship this season.

So everyone is in a good mood.

There is a famous saying in the NBA: "Victory can solve 99 percent of locker room problems."

This sentence is not unreasonable.

Not long after, a tall white man walked in carrying a small bag. Everyone stopped chatting, and Dachou and Erchou even stood up nervously, grabbing the corners of their clothes with both hands and swallowing.

It's like a primary school student doing something bad and meeting his class teacher.

He is naturally the leader of the team, the "German Tank" Nowitzki.

In fact, the previous leader of the Mavericks was Finley, but he did not lead the team to a very good record. Nowitzki, who was selected later, grew very fast, coupled with his outstanding performance in the playoffs, so Nowitzki is now recognized as the leader of the Mavericks.

Old Finley didn't have the idea of ​​"I thought he was here to assist me". Let him be the second in command. Anyway, the big contract has been signed and he has entered the All-Star Game. Now the only goal is to win the championship.

Nowitzki is not a serious and overbearing person like Jordan and Kobe. In life, he is much more gentle and easy-going. At this moment, he greeted everyone.

Seeing that "King Nuo" was actually waving at them, Da Chou and Er Chou were at a loss and almost knelt down on the spot.

"Hello, Zheng! Welcome to the Mavericks. Are you getting used to living in Dallas? I didn't feel comfortable at all when I first arrived."

After putting down his things, Nowitzki came to Zheng Yang, put his arm around his shoulders and asked.

Faced with such great kindness shown by King Nuo, Zheng Yang was somewhat surprised, but he still smiled and nodded.

“It’s pretty good here!”

"That's good, work hard in the new season. Although we have Walker, we still need the help of young people like you.

If you have any difficulties in life, you can always come to me. "

"it is good."

After saying that, Nowitzki integrated into the circle of veterans and did not say hello to Dachou and Erchou.

There are two reasons why he is so friendly to Zheng Yang. First, the other party was selected with the sixth pick and is indeed very talented. He can become his right-hand man in the future, so it will not be wrong to recruit him in advance.

The second reason is old Nelson. From the previous conversation with old Nelson, it seems that he likes this young man very much.

Old Nelson can be said to be a benefactor to Nowitzki. He does not want to go against him, so he is willing to show goodwill to Zheng Yang.

Several main players of the Mavericks are easy to get along with, but not everyone is like them. The "Fat Monk" who was just traded would glance at Zheng Yang from time to time with another emotion in his eyes.

As an All-Star player, Fat Head Tuo had a high status in the Celtics locker room, but after coming to the Mavericks, he was at most the fourth in command.

There are also Nowitzki, Finley and Nash above them.

He was a little unhappy, but there was nothing he could do, after all, it was his fault for coming late.

But he also needs to do something to establish his authority in the locker room and consolidate his position.

Apparently, it's a good idea to flex your muscles in front of the rookies.

There are a total of three rookies this year, but seeing how timid the Big Ugly and the Second Ugly were, he didn't even have the desire to bully them. But it would be quite interesting to bully this yellow guy.

So the fat monk shouted at Zheng Yang.

"Rookie, go to the locker room and get me a pair of sneakers."

Zheng Yang knew that the other party was calling him, and he also knew that it was a tradition in the league for rookies to be ordered by veterans to carry bags in their first year. Even Jordan was called up in the middle of the night during his rookie season to deliver a condom to the veterans' room.

He had no intention of breaking this tradition, so he nodded, asked which pair of shoes, and walked towards the locker room.

Nowitzki and others also understood what Fat Monk meant, but they didn't say much. This is the tradition of the league, and it's okay as long as it's not too excessive.

After returning from the locker room, Fat Monk smiled and nodded.

“Good job.

Oh, I forgot to tell you that I need to pick up a pair of socks. I don’t think you would refuse to help me run another trip.”

Zheng Yang glanced at him and felt a little unhappy. It was no big deal to make an extra trip, after all, the locker room was not far away.

The main thing was that the other party's attitude was obviously making fun of him, and this feeling made him feel very bad.

Uncle Zheng is very unhappy!
Just then, Nash came out to smooth things over.

"Let the other two run a trip and let them get familiar with the location of the locker room. Hey Josh, go to the locker room and get Walker's socks. Marquis, go buy me a case of water. I'll treat everyone to water today."

How could Dachou and Erchou dare to say no, and they hurried over.

Zheng Yang returned to his original seat and sat down!

“Hey Nash, I just asked him to get me a pair of socks, that’s all!

We all came here this way.”

Fat Monk did not appreciate Nash's kindness. He did not think that what he did was excessive. Since he was a rookie, he should just be obedient and do what he was told to do. If he was told to stick his butt up, he would stick his butt up higher.

Udoka said he is very skilled in this business, and he is better at singles than Durant...

Seeing that Fat Monk didn't appreciate it, Nash didn't say anything more.

In his opinion, the young man was different from other rookies, and it was not easy to make him as docile as a kitten.

After everyone arrived one after another, head coach Nelson also arrived. When everyone saw him, they stood up obediently and waited for his next words.

After taking a look around, old Nelson nodded.

"Very nice kids. Fortunately, I didn't see your butts curled up higher than that flying pig."

The flying pig he mentioned is naturally Barkley, but he retired three years ago and is now a commentator on TNT Sports Channel.

Just kissed a donkey's ass last year...

Old Nelson's words were meant as a joke, but due to his powerful aura, no one in the audience dared to laugh.

Of course, old Nelson would not say such boring words as "Laugh? Why not laugh? Is this joke not funny?" He continued.

"Everyone knows what our goal is this season, and with Walker, Zheng, Josh and Marquis joining us, we have indeed become stronger.

But our opponents are also getting stronger, so if you want to win the championship, you have to train hard.

Today’s training officially begins.”

At the command, everyone took action. Although Zheng Yang didn't know what he was going to practice, he quickly ran to the basketball court with the basketball in his arms.

"Zheng, practice your mid-range shots first. Don't let me see you miss any shots, not even one."

"Good coach."

"Josh, Marquis, what are you two doing standing there in a daze? Go to the side and practice your sliding defense.

Everybody move, everybody move.

Don't let me catch you stopping or I'll kick your ass."

Old Nelson shouted loudly. Under the strong sense of oppression, no one dared to be lazy, including Nowitzki.

Everyone plays in different positions and has different team positioning, so naturally we need to practice different things.

After the morning training, everyone went to the stadium's restaurant. They were going to have lunch here as they had training in the afternoon.

During lunch, Fat Monk started to order Zheng Yang to buy water for him. Zheng Yang did not refuse and brought a bottle for everyone when he came back.

“Well done rookie, remember to bring a bottle for me in future training and competitions.

Remember, it tastes better when it’s ice cold.”

The fat monk became more and more demanding, and Zheng Yang shrugged.

"Walker, this joke is not funny."

"Rookie, I'm not kidding you."

"Walker, the team doesn't pay me millions of dollars a year to buy you water.

If you are willing to pay me this much, I can also bring you a bottle, and I promise it will be the coldest water in the world."

"Rookie! What are you talking about?"

"I remember there was a hospital not far from the stadium, if your ears are not very good, I think you can go there to have a look.

Of course, remember to ask for leave from your coach. Don't call me and say, 'Hey rookie, help me ask for leave from my coach. Remember to ask for a year, that kind of leave is the best.' Hahaha.

Walker, do you think this is funny? Haha, I think this is pretty funny. "

Zheng Yang imitated Fat Monk's previous tone and spoke in a sarcastic tone.

Dachou and Erchou, who were not far away, couldn't help laughing when they heard this, and the others, including Josh Finley, were also trying hard to hold back their laughter.

The fat monk suddenly felt ashamed and shouted "rookie" angrily, but Zheng Yang had already walked away. He turned and glared at Dachou and Erchou who had smiles on their faces.

These two men did not have the courage that Zheng Yang had. They did not even dare to look at Fat Monk and quickly lowered their heads.

Noticing that the others still had smiles on their faces, Fat Monk clenched his fists.

This yellow man is so arrogant, he must find an opportunity to teach him a lesson.

After a short rest at noon, Nowitzki specifically sought out Fat Monk to chat.

"Walker, there's no need to be angry with Zheng, he's only eighteen years old, just a little kid.

Our top priority right now is to win the championship, and we shouldn’t let this little thing affect the atmosphere in the locker room.”

I can't even command a rookie, how can I compete for the championship?

Fat Monk thought so, but he still nodded with a smile on his face.

“The Dirk I know, I’m not mad at him.

I have been in the league for so many years, why would I bother with a rookie? "

"That's good."

On the other side, Nash also went to chat with Zheng Yang.

"Walker is like this, you know, he likes to show his power by ordering others around.

I mean you shouldn't take it too seriously."

"I understand that as long as he is not deliberately teasing me, I will give him the respect he deserves as an old man."

If you don't know how to be shameless, then there's nothing we can do!

Even clay figures can get angry!
Both of them were very confident at this moment, but during the afternoon training, they had another conflict.

(End of this chapter)