Chapter 63: Dunk over the No. Center in the Western Conference
On September 9, the Dallas Mavericks' training camp before the start of the new season began.

When he drove to the underground garage of the American Airlines Center and saw that the parking spaces of Fat Monk and Nash had been occupied by other cars, Zheng Yang felt that things had changed a lot.

The two guys I had the closest relationship with in the team are gone!

He still remembered that he met Nash in the garage at this time last year. It was the first time he saw him in real life, and the other party took the initiative to greet him.

A year has passed in a blink of an eye...

After entering the stadium, the sidelines were still the same as before. Finley and Zhugan and others were sitting there chatting, but two familiar figures were missing.

After a year of getting along, Da Chou and Er Chou have finally integrated into this group of veterans. They no longer have to sit in the corner, at a loss, and huddle together for warmth!

"Hey Zheng!"

Seeing Zheng Yang coming, everyone greeted him. One reason was that they all had a good relationship with him, and the other was to show their respect for him.

After last season's playoffs, everyone understood that Zheng Yang's position in the team was second only to Nowitzki, and even his position in the locker room was slightly higher than Nowitzki's.

Of course, for the sake of the locker room atmosphere, Zheng Yang never does those little tricks. To be honest, there is no point in doing those things.

Zheng Yang also greeted everyone with a smile, and then talked about what they did during the offseason.

Only a few people can train hard during the off-season. People like Finley and Zhugan basically train intermittently to maintain their condition. Although Dachou and Erchou train a lot, I don't think they train as hard as Zheng Yang.

Following Zheng Yang are point guard Jason Terry and forward Alan Henderson, these two are the new players acquired from the Hawks in exchange for Fat Toutuo.

Both of them were quite friendly and took the initiative to greet every player, but the smiles on their faces became even brighter when they greeted Zheng Yang.

He also said a lot of praise.

Next is Jerry Stackhouse, who dared to challenge Jordan in his rookie season and was once regarded as the "next Michael."

只是敢跟乔丹叫板不代表能跟乔丹媲美，在96年跟乔丹的比赛中，他只拿到13分1个篮板1个助攻4个盖帽，投篮命中率为36.4%的惨淡数据。

And what about Jordan?

轻取48分10个篮板2个助攻1个抢断1个盖帽，投篮命中率为64.3%。

There is a world of difference between the two!
Of course, what impressed the fans more about Jerry Stackhouse might be his free throws, because the range of his free throw preparation was quite large. Other players might bend their knees slightly, but he just did a deep squat.

Regarding this habit, Jerry Stackhouse once explained that when he was a child, he was asked to bend his knees when shooting free throws, but when he grew taller, he got used to his previous shooting position, so he had to squat deeply so that he could find the right shooting point.

He was traded by the Mavericks during the offseason, and the team's apparent goal was to add depth to its bench.

When Jerry Stackhouse arrived, he greeted everyone, but his attitude was not that enthusiastic and it was obvious that he was a little arrogant.

The next person to enter the stadium was Eric Dampier, the second-best center in the Western Conference. This guy with a big bald head immediately attracted everyone's attention when he entered the stadium.

However, there was no respect for the second best center in the Western Conference in everyone's eyes. Instead, they all looked puzzled.

This guy signed a 7-year, $7300 million contract?
Is he really aiming for his self-proclaimed title of the second best center in the Western Conference?
Facing everyone's strange looks, Dampier seemed very natural. It might not be because of his inner strength, but because he simply couldn't figure out what everyone's gazes meant.

"Guys, after training today, let's go to the nightclub and have some fun. It's my treat."

Dampier shouted loudly, with a somewhat nouveau riche attitude.

Although we didn't understand how this guy got such a big contract, after all it was our first day meeting, so we still gave him face and accepted the conversation.

The last one to arrive was Nowitzki. This guy always likes to be late... No, he always likes to be the last to arrive.

As the core of the team, everyone took the initiative to greet him, including Zheng Yang.

"Hey Zheng, you're still training during the offseason? You're a lot stronger than you were a few months ago!"

After Nowitzki put his things away, he talked to Zheng Yang first. He pinched Zheng Yang's biceps and said with a smile.

Indeed, after gaining proper weight, Zheng Yang is indeed much stronger than last season, and the difference can be seen at a glance.

"Do you believe me if I tell you that I became like this because of eating hamburgers? Hahaha!"

"If that's true, I think I'll be eating burgers three times a day. Hahaha."

After exchanging a few words with Zheng Yang, Nowitzki started chatting with the others one by one.

He really doesn't look like a team boss, but more like a big brother next door.

This is his advantage, but it can also be his disadvantage at critical moments.

When Nowitzki saw Dampier, he was half dumbfounded.

This is the guy the team found for me? The second best center in the West?
Looking at the other party's silly look, Nowitzki didn't know what to say. He just hoped that he would stop drooling!

But no matter how worthless Dampier's contract is, at least his height and physique are real.

Next season, Nowitzki can finally return to his favorite power forward position and no longer have to fight with a group of dark and strong centers in the penalty area!
Shortly after everyone arrived, the team's head coach Nelson also came to the stadium, and everyone quickly stood still.

After glancing at the players on the sidelines, old Nelson couldn't help but sigh.

It would be great if Cuban could keep Nash. Although this year's Mavericks are not as star-studded as last year, the lineup is much more reasonable and the depth of the bench is also good.

There is just no good candidate for point guard in the starting lineup. If Nash was still there, this team would definitely take off!

Now, how far this team can go depends on Zheng Yang's performance.

With other players, the team's lower limit is guaranteed, but only Zheng Yang can determine the team's upper limit.

As long as he can perform like a team's star player should, the team will have hope of winning the championship.

“Hey kids, when you see each other, it means a new season is coming.

There are several new faces on the team this season. I hope you can adapt to life in Dallas and integrate into the team as soon as possible.

Zheng and the others all know that I am not a coach who likes to procrastinate. Start warming up. I want to see to what extent your strength has deteriorated."

The beginning of the new season was painful for the players and the coach.

After all, there are only a few players who can continue training during the offseason. For most people, the head coach should be thankful as long as their strength does not decline too quickly.

Of course, if this group of people really degenerate to the point where their knees are rusty, then old Nelson doesn't mind increasing the intensity of training to help them find their game form as soon as possible.

In the various shooting drills before the competition, there were more missed shots today than in the past, especially for Dampier, who missed all three shots from the free throw line.

For a player like the second center in the Western Conference, the offseason is for rest, so he only touched the ball a few times this past offseason. He hasn't practiced much for several months, and you still want him to have such a high hit rate now, isn't this a joke?

Although "Jordan's successor" Jerry Stackhouse is not as outrageous as Dampier, his shooting percentage has dropped to some extent.

After missing two consecutive shots, Jerry Stackhouse felt a little annoyed. He cursed "Fuck" under his breath and then turned his gaze to Zheng Yang who was practicing shooting with him.

This guy, it seems like he hasn't missed many shots so far...

"Hey Zheng, have you been training during the offseason? Don't you like to go traveling, go to pool parties, and do other new things?"

With great curiosity, Jerry Stackhouse took the initiative to talk to Zheng Yang. This was also his first time chatting with Zheng Yang.

Zheng Yang answered while shooting.

"Yeah I like that too, maybe next year or the year after I'll do that, but right now I just want to train well."

Chatting did not affect his shooting. His shot was still quick and the ball he threw still went into the net.

"So why do you play ball?"

Jerry Stackhouse was a little puzzled again, and then he felt that his question was a bit silly.

But he was really curious, what drove this young man under 20 years old to train so hard?

Zheng Yang smiled and stopped shooting.

"I want to win a lot of honors, all the honors in the league that you can imagine, I want to win them.

That’s why I play hard.”

Then he bent his knees and raised his elbows again, and the basketball flew out from his fingertips and went into the net again without any suspense.

Jerry Stackhouse stared at him, wondering what he was thinking.

Old Nelson on the sidelines has been observing the training situation on the field. The players are in better condition than he expected.

Or to be more precise, after experiencing the defeat of last season, Nowitzki, Finley and others did not completely relax during the offseason, and their condition was maintained quite well.

The conditions of Dampier, Alan Henderson, Jason Terry and Jerry Stackhouse have been mixed, but it is clear that their strength has declined to a certain extent.

The environment will affect people. When you are on a championship team, due to the influence of the people around you, you will hold yourself to higher standards.

When you are in a bottom-ranked team, no matter how self-disciplined you are, you will always be influenced by the people around you and gradually relax.

“Pah pah pah…

Hey, come and gather, we are going to do the next training, the competition, listen to my grouping, Nowitzki, Dampier..."

Old Nelson clapped his hands and shouted that after some simple training, it was time to enter the team competition.

Who is improving and who is declining will become clear after the team competition.

In the end, Zheng Yang formed a team with Jason Terry, Alan Henderson, Da Chou and Zhugan.

Nowitzki, Dampier, Jerry Stackhouse, Finley and the two ugly guys form a team.

Obviously judging from the strength on paper, Nowitzki's side will be stronger.

Before the game started, the second-best center in the Western Conference moved his neck and pinched his knuckles. He was ready to give old Nelson and his teammates a little shock.

The second best center in the West?

I don't get my reputation for nothing!

And now he should be called the best center in the Western Conference. Because O'Neal has moved to the East, he is now the face of the Western Conference's interior.

Since it was an intra-team competition, it was not so formal, and old Nelson directly let Zheng Yang's team take the first offensive round.

Jason Terry, as the point guard, dribbled the ball across half court and passed it directly to Zheng Yang.

This pass has a somewhat flattering meaning.

After Zheng Yang took the ball, he signaled everyone to play one-on-one. Looking at Jerry Stackhouse standing in front of him, he could directly shoot with his height advantage.

With the opponent's physical talent and defensive strategy, it is impossible to interfere with him.

But when I think about how I have practiced attacking the basket for a whole summer, it would be a shame if I don’t use it now.

So he did not choose to pull up for the shot, but instead dribbled the ball between his legs and suddenly changed direction in front of his body to directly dribble past his opponent.

Then Zheng Yang rushed straight to the inside. When Danville, with a big bald head, saw the aggressive Zheng Yang, he was like a big bad wolf seeing a little lamb.

Hey, it’s not a wise choice to challenge the penalty area guarded by Dampier.

Let me treat you to a hotpot meal!

Dampier had already imagined the scene after he splashed blood on the opponent. The other players and the head coach would definitely look at him with admiration.

They will find it natural for them to sign big contracts!

Eric Dampier, start your journey to stardom in Dallas!

While the No. 1 center in the Western Conference was daydreaming in his mind, Zheng Yang had already rushed in front of him.

Ample running space allowed him to fully demonstrate his jumping ability. He grabbed the basketball with his big hands and dunked it towards the basket.

Eric Dampier was a little confused. He thought the opponent would choose to layup, but who would have thought that he would actually dunk over him.

He jumped up quickly, but was surprised to find that his palm could not reach the basketball in the other person's hand.

Zheng Yang has a very long arm span and ample bounce, plus he is holding the opponent down with one hand, so how could Dampier possibly beat him!

"boom!"

A loud bang resounded throughout the stadium, and at the same time, the huge impact force caused Dampier to stagger after landing and fall directly to the ground.

Zheng Yang’s weight gain during the offseason was not in vain. Coupled with his core strength, he will never be at a disadvantage no matter who he fights in an aerial confrontation!

The whole place fell into deathly silence...

(End of this chapter)