basketball player

Chapter 574 Chapter 572: The First Fan

Els made himself a cup of coffee and turned on the TV, which was playing an early morning fitness program.

A lot of people think that old stuff like fitness TV shows is dead, but it's not, they've just come on while you're still awake.

Just when Ayers sat down with a cup of coffee and was about to admire the graceful figures of the fitness girls on the TV, the door of the duty room was knocked open.

Els looked up at the window of the duty room, his eyes widened.The visitor looked familiar, but Ayers couldn't remember who it was, so he asked loudly, "Who are you? What happened early in the morning?"

Els was one of the guards on duty when the place was still called the Conseco Arena.For so many years, he has seen Antetokounmpo leave the arena at three o'clock in the morning, but he has never seen anyone come to stay near the arena at 05:30 in the morning.

Even homeless people don't choose to spend the night outside the Bankers Life Arena.After all, it's not as warm as having a fire in an alley.

"Uh, sir, I'm Pascal Siakam, I'm Fort Winn. No, I'm a player from the Indiana Pacers. I want to go to the court to train." Siakam wanted to say that he was a player from the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, but he changed his name proudly in the end.

Now he is an NBA player!
"Pascal Siakam? Oh! I remembered who you are, you are the rookie who was traded by Henson two months ago!" After remembering who Siakam was, the doorman showed a kind smile.

After all, Siakam hasn't played much in the NBA, and most of the players usually enter the player tunnel from the underground parking lot, and rarely walk through the main entrance.Therefore, it is normal for the guard to not remember who Siakam is for a while.

"Little guy, you came to training so early? It's only 05:30 in the morning!" The doorman looked at his watch and went out to help Siakam open the door.

"I couldn't sleep all night, so I just came to practice. You know what, sir, I'm going to play in Miami today! I want to keep my best form on the court, and I don't want to disappoint Coach Henson! Starting training early should be good for my state improvement."

"Haha," Els smiled slightly after listening to Siakam's explanation, "Let me say that adequate rest is good for improving your state. Henson said, will I take you to a game today?"

"Ok!"

"Perform well, boy. I have seen too many unknown players shine under Henson. He is a good coach. He has brought glory to Indianapolis. As long as you work hard under him, I believe you will become a famous star in the future. Hey, why don't you sign me. When you become famous, everyone will know that I am the first person to get your autograph!"

Els excitedly took out a paper and pen from the duty room and handed it to Siakam. Siakam scratched his head shyly, then signed his name in unskilled handwriting.

"Now, you've got your first die-hard fan. Be good, Pascal, and kick some Miami ass!"

Siakam walked into the Bankers Life Arena with a smile. He never felt that being a professional player was so wonderful.

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"I deliberately didn't tell you about this yesterday. First of all, I have to apologize. I just wanted to give you a surprise, but I also know that it delayed your pre-match preparations. Then, I will let you come off the bench for today's game. If you perform well, I can even give you more playing time."

"Sorry? No, no, no! I should thank you for giving me this opportunity!" Siakam looked very nervous sitting in Henson's office.

Early this morning, Siakam was called into the office by Henson.Since they are going to play an away game, the Pacers players will gather at the arena, and then take the team bus to the airport to board the plane to Miami.When they arrive in Miami, they will start simple adaptive training and tactical drills.

But Siakam has been training for a few hours, after all, he has come at 05:30.

"Are you nervous? Why are you all stretched straight?" Henson pointed to Siakam's hand gripping his pants and smiled.

"No, boss. I'm just, I'm just excited, yes, excited. Don't worry, I will definitely do my best. As long as I play, I will do whatever I can." Although Siakam spoke forcefully, his nervousness did not decrease in the slightest.

"Well, let me make a bet with you. I bet tonight, you can score in double digits. If I lose, I can't lose. But if you lose, you have to stay in the first team and listen to me, a weird guy, nagging every day, how about it?"

Henson's little joke made Siakam relax a lot, and he also believed that Siakam was "losing" this time.

In fact, Siakam's lack of self-confidence does not come from his character, but from the draft pick that did not match expectations and the encounter with the Raptors.When everyone looks down on you, your self-confidence will definitely take a hit.

So to solve his self-confidence problem is actually very simple, that is to recognize him!

This morning, both guard Els and Henson have recognized Siakam.And Siakam is only one goal away from regaining his confidence.

When he found that it was not so difficult for him to score on NBA players, Henson believed that Siakam would be out of control!
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At the American Airlines Center in Miami, the Pacers have not been very popular with local fans.After all, if it weren't for Henson and the Pacers, God knows how many championships the Heat's Big Three could win.

Of course, even Pat Riley, who let Wade go, is not loved by Miami fans, let alone Henson.

When Henson took his players out to warm up, the stands were booed.But those boos were nothing compared to when they played in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Before the game started, some ESPN reporters found Henson, and many other players were interviewed by sideline reporters.But only Siakam is just warming up silently.

He first tried his hand from beyond the three-point line, and then under the guidance of Frazier, he practiced catching the ball and laying up in interference.

Many reporters' shots just glanced over Siakam. Many people didn't know where he played, or even his name.But no one cared about these, because they believed that this somewhat strange guy would definitely not be able to play today.

Of course, the reporters are indifferent to Siakam, but it doesn't mean that Spoelstra is also indifferent to Siakam.

Seeing an unfamiliar face suddenly appear in the Pacers lineup, Spoelstra immediately became nervous.He knew very well that it was impossible for Henson to stuff any extra players into his lineup.Why did he play such a strange guy in the Heat today?

Although the Heat have a poor record this season, they still have a chance to hit the playoffs.Therefore, Spoelstra will strive to win every game, even if his opponent is a powerful Pacers.

Therefore, Spoelstra is still a little nervous about Siakam's "stranger".

"The guy's information will be handed over to me in 10 minutes." So, the Filipino coach turned his head and gave the task to his assistant.

He knows very well that Henson always likes to interrupt the rhythm of the game with unexpected substitutions.But if you know Henson's players in advance, even if it's just a little transparency, you can reduce the chance of losing the game as much as possible.

Ten minutes later, Siakam's basic information appeared in front of Spoelstra.When he saw that Siakam was the No. 10 rookie of the year and played NBDL most of the time, he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

A player who averaged only 13.4 points per game in the NBDL should not be much of a threat.Maybe Henson called him back just to play him in garbage time?
"Damn Henson, you've already thought about garbage time!" Spoelstra clenched his fists, he won't let Henson get his wish!

In this way, Siakam was successfully ignored by Spoelstra.

(End of this chapter)