I feel hot in the NBA

Chapter 48 Popovich's Mouth
"Lin Yang, your performance in the three games so far has exceeded many people's expectations. In the game between the Mavericks and the Wizards, you even outperformed John Wall, the No. 2010 pick in [-]. This has become a hot topic in China. What do you think of your performance in the past week? If you were asked to rate yourself, how much would you score?"

"I just completed the task assigned to me by the coach during the game. If I were to score it myself, it would be 7 points! It's not bad, but it's not so good that it's surprising."

"A lot of fans in China regard you as the future of the Huaxia men's basketball team. Have you considered this? Will you work hard with Dayao in the international arena someday in the future?"

"Of course, every Chinese basketball player regards playing for the country as an honor, and I am no exception. But to be honest, before I have developed the ability to hold the ball, there is not much difference between whether I am in the Chinese men's basketball team or not. My ability has not yet reached the level that can change the strength of a national team's perimeter. I am just a role player now. Just like what I am doing with the Mavericks, this is already my limit."

"..."

……

The entire interview process lasted about 20 minutes. Lin Yang's state of answering questions was no different from Zhou Ling'an's first interview with him before. He still answered every question calmly, and sometimes answered some too straightforward words, which made Zhou Ling'an not know how to answer the conversation.

However, maybe it is because of this that Lin Yang has become such a distinctive Chinese outside player, right?
Before him, there has never been a Chinese outside player who can play such statistics in the NBA. Lin Yang has broken history to a certain extent.

What Zhou Ling'an didn't make it clear to Lin Yang is that the current level of discussion on Lin Yang in China is much higher than he imagined. After all, so far this season, Yi Jianlian has not played even a second of playing time, and Sanders completely treats him as a "water cooler manager" hanging in the corner; and Dayao's performance in the new season is not satisfactory. He averaged only about 10 points and 5 rebounds per game. Even if Dayao increased his playing time, I am afraid that his performance on the court will not be much better. The two of them have fallen into a trough just like the domestic fans worried before the start of the season. Lin Yang's appearance is like a new light. Almost all Huaxia fans can't wait to follow the latest news of Lin Yang every day. They hope that Lin Yang can play better than ever.

Otherwise, the Huaxia men's basketball team is likely to have a fault. This is not alarmist. Since A Lian and Sun Yue were selected in 07, it is difficult to see a newcomer who has the potential to impact the NBA draft in China. If Lin Yang did not appear suddenly this year, I am afraid that it will take at least 3 to 4 years before we can see Huaxia players in the NBA draft.

This is the current situation of the Huaxia men's basketball team. After experiencing the "golden generation", the entire Huaxia men's basketball team has experienced a fault phenomenon. Fortunately, there is Lin Yang now. Otherwise, this phenomenon will become more and more serious.

Because of this, although the new season has only started for a week, the pressure and expectations on Lin Yang's shoulders are much greater than before the start of the season.

However, the current attitudes of the domestic media interviewed in the NBA are relatively unified. They deliberately avoided these issues. After experiencing the incident of "praising" Yi Jianlian, they now have a sense of protection for the players.

They don't want to ruin another good seedling.

Zhou Lingan left the Mavericks arena directly after the interview. Hearing that she said that she would go directly to the airport to fly to Houston, seeing her non-stop appearance, Lin Yang kept saying in his heart: It's not easy.

***
During the pre-match interview with the Spurs, Popovich was surrounded by reporters as usual.

The old man is still wearing a white shirt and black tie today, and a pure black suit without any stripes.

This is his most common attire. There are at least [-] days a year. Popovich always stands in front of the media like this. Like his rosacea nose, it is always red.

The only difference is the expression on his face.

"Coach Popovich, do you have any special arrangements for tonight? The Mavericks have won three consecutive victories. Do you think the Spurs can stop their three-game winning streak?"

"There is no special arrangement, and there is no guarantee that the Mavericks will be able to stop the three-game winning streak. Well, you already know the answer, and you can get off work now."

"..."

The old man started teasing us again!

Those reporters glanced at each other and felt that today's pre-match interviews would be extremely difficult.

"Tim has successfully lost weight this season. From the looks of him, he has become more energetic. Is this your decision? Or is it his own will?"

"Well, that's what every great player goes through at some point in his career, and obviously he did, that's what makes Tim great."

It's just that when it comes to Tim Duncan, Popovich is a lot more serious.

"Then Coach Popovich, what do you think of the Mavericks' rookie Lin?" A reporter mentioned Lin Yang. After the game between the Mavericks and the Wizards, Lin Yang's popularity has greatly improved.

After all, this is the guy who suppressed the No. [-] pick in the game.

"He's great. He's a superstar in the league. He's worth all of my tactics. I think if we take Lin tonight, we can win."

Unfortunately, Popovich is not serious again.

"Okay, please forget what I just said, and then I will seriously answer this question!" The old man looked at the helplessness of these reporters, gave a smirk with satisfaction, and said seriously, "This is a good rookie. He has brought new vitality to the old guys of the Mavericks. I expect him to perform better tonight."

……

"Did he really say that?"

I am done!
A Mavericks team reporter told him Popovich's evaluation of Lin Yang.

After Lin Yang listened to the original words of Popovich relayed by the reporter, his subconscious reaction was that he was finished tonight.

Mr. Lu Xun once engraved "Popovich's mouth, a deceiving ghost!" in Sanwei Bookstore.

He also specifically wrote in "Diary of a Madman": "Believe anyone and don't believe what Popovich said before the game!"

The grandson didn't have a single word of truth out of his mouth.

Moreover, Popovich gave him such an evaluation, which means that this bad old man has already set his sights on him. Lin Yang knows that he will face the biggest challenge in his career.

(End of this chapter)