Start coaching the Thunder, starting with Westbrook

Chapter 45 Free Rice Fried Rice

There are currently four games in the summer league, and the Thunder have only lost one game. This is because Antetokounmpo, the ball-handling core, played unstable in the first three games.

Now that Antetokounmpo's mentality has stabilized, as long as other players maintain a stable performance, relying on their unique defense in the summer league, it seems that it is not impossible to compete for the championship.

However, Li Sheng didn't insist on this aspect. It is gratifying to have it, and it is a pity not to have it. The main purpose is to train rookies, and then find problems. Unexpectedly, these reporters seem to care about this very much.

Although anyone with a discerning eye knows that Xialian can't represent anything, but for domestic basketball practitioners, they belong to the kind of honors big and small that they want to fight for.

To put it bluntly, Chinese people lack honor in the NBA. Yao, who has the highest achievement, did not win the championship, and the one who won the championship was only the leftovers of the team. It is embarrassing to say it.

Later, after Zhou Qi, who was known as the "big devil", was transferred to the Development League, the domestic attention of the Development League instantly increased several levels. Everyone even expected him to kill all parties in the Development League and win. It can be imagined.

So it's not surprising that they now expect Li Sheng to lead the team to win the Summer League Championship, so they will definitely arrange a lot of pages to brag about him in the future.

Considering this, Li Sheng originally wanted to say that in order to boost the confidence of domestic basketball fans after Dayao retired, he should work hard to win the summer league championship, so forget it.

Although the reaction of domestic fans does not affect him, if the expectations are raised too much at the beginning and then fall back later, the gap is too large and may cause a large number of black fans to appear.

This kind of thing is more useful if you don't say it and then do it, than to say it and do it, let alone what if you don't do it?

Li Sheng's attitude would definitely be tough and confident if he was dealing with the media in the United States, but it would be a different matter when dealing with domestic media. This is the cultural difference between the two sides.

Anyway, Li Sheng still cares more about the opinions of the fans in his home country, and hopes that they will be kinder to him, and naturally he will not be willing to cause any controversy and conflicts because of such trivial matters.

Just like Dayao, a player who has no problems on and off the court, because of the praise and rhythm of some domestic media, it has aroused the rebellious psychology of many fans.

The most black Dayao fans are domestic fans, can you believe it?

Some of these may really belong to those who vent their unsatisfactory life on the Internet, but there are also a large number of people who have been led by the media.

So sometimes the media is really not successful enough to make things worse. It has nothing to do with them to get good grades. If something goes wrong, it must be their fault.

"Well, it depends on the situation. At present, we mainly focus on military training, and everyone's experience is insufficient, and we are still in the running-in period..."

It's pure nonsense to say that, who in Xialian is not inexperienced, in the running-in period, and training is the main thing?

But when Li Sheng said this, some people knew that he was coping with the problem. Seeing that reporter Shen wanted to ask again, the big brother of CCTV quickly stopped her.

And just at this time, the dishes began to be served gradually, and everyone stopped asking questions for a while.

Because they were all at work, outside, and there were ladies present, so everyone stopped drinking and took drinks instead.

Then we should eat and drink, and continue to talk about what we should talk about.

It’s just that the atmosphere was different when it was at the dinner table. The interview was like chatting with him, and CCTV Big Brother could really chat with him, because according to him, a colleague and friend of his visited Li Sheng’s house and chatted with his parents.

"The two elders are in good health, and they are obviously happy for you. You can rest assured outside."

Li Sheng always felt a little weird when he heard this, but he could barely accept it.

And the other party also had good intentions and didn't reach out to hit the smiling person, so he also smiled and said: "Thank you for your concern, I can only say that I didn't embarrass their elders or the country when I was abroad."

"Uh...hahaha..."

Everyone was stunned for a moment, and then comparing the two people's words, it felt like they were playing each other's bureaucratic accents.

In the past, if someone said that, they would definitely be regarded as yin and yang by Shanggang, but now even the officials themselves sometimes laugh at themselves, and everyone is more and more accepting of certain statements and practices of young people.

At the same time, looking at Li Sheng with a silly smile on his face, he couldn't help but sigh in his heart, just like Dayao, he is still a child who grew up in his own country under the red flag, and he never forgets his roots.

It's a pity that Li Sheng is only a coach, and his ability to decide the game is limited. People don't think that letting him lead the national team can perform well-this is why the national team has not expressed anything to Li Yong.

Not to mention that his quality as a coach still needs to be tested. Who knows if he is another one who can only talk and run.

I don't know who will be the next domestic player who can bloom in the NBA, and when will it be?
I used to think that Dayao was the beginning, but I didn't expect it to be the peak.

I used to think that space is easy to be muddy and can't support the wall, but after going around, I found that he is the most reliable.

Hey, Chinese basketball is too blue.

Next, the atmosphere of this interview has always been very harmonious, mainly because the media have a leading pressure, and it is not easy to ask too sharp questions in the first interview.

It's nothing more than some feelings about the current situation, some prospects for the future, and what you want to say to domestic fans, blah blah blah.

Li Sheng didn't use any super-standard answers, they were all within the framework. After all, he was a person who watched so many interviews. Some questions can be answered in the same way. It's not the time to really speak with sincerity.

"That's all for today... Thank you, Xiao Li, for taking time out of your busy schedule to accept our interview."

In the end, it seemed that the time was almost up, and the meal had been eaten for more than an hour, so it should be over.

The reporters stood up one by one, shook hands with Li Sheng, and of course sent their best wishes at the same time.

After this interview, most of them will not be with the team anymore, and it is estimated that they will not be able to meet Li Sheng again until the regular season.

And the long offseason is also a time for domestic fans to imagine.

Whether it is for Li Sheng or domestic basketball fans, the regular season will be a test, because it is full of expectations, and whether the future can fulfill this expectation, or it will be full of regrets and hardships like the previous domestic players in the NBA. This is also a process full of reverie.

Of course, Li Sheng also expressed his gratitude to them. No matter what the road ahead is or what the future will be, at least their goals are relatively consistent for now.

After saying goodbye to them, Li Sheng went back to the hotel by himself, but bumped into Uduka and Collins who rushed over.

Seeing their anxious faces, Li Sheng asked strangely, "What are you rushing to do?"

Both of them looked Li Sheng up and down, and then they both breathed a sigh of relief.

Then Uduka said: "We just heard from the front desk that you were taken away by some Asians..."

Li Sheng was stunned for a moment before realizing that they thought they had offended the local Asian forces.

It is easy to form a gang if you want to live together in a group abroad, or if you want to live together in a group at the bottom, you can only choose this path in many cases.

Of course, there were more cases like this in the early years, but now it’s better. At least everyone prefers to be on the bright side, and their behavior will be more restrained.

He smiled helplessly, and explained that he just went out with a group of domestic reporters, and they were worried.

Compared to Collins who immediately breathed a sigh of relief, Udoka said seriously: "Li, I hope that next time you have something to go out, you can tell us, and at least find someone to accompany you."

Li Sheng was stunned for a moment, knowing that he was worried about him, and he was really worried about the security of the United States.

He also nodded solemnly and said, "Understood, thank you, Amy."

Only then did Uduka's expression soften, and Collins felt the change in the atmosphere, and immediately patted the shoulders of the two with a smile and said, "Okay, let's go back. Speaking of which, guess who I just saw?"

(End of this chapter)