Versatile Point Forward

Chapter 15 We Are Underestimated
"Have you found an effective method yet?" Holland asked worriedly, looking at the players who were constantly running tactics on the court.Black, who was standing next to him, shook his head and said helplessly, "Kevin's performance doesn't need to be too worrying, he has already played the role of a top insider. But the cooperation between Russell and Ye is always a bit awkward."

Holland sighed: "The worst thing is that I haven't figured out where to put Ye. Obviously putting him in the third position can maximize his ability to attack the city, but it will be a waste His talent on the defensive end, and the fact that he and Russell have a backcourt that can be desperation on defense."

While the two coaches were scratching their heads off the field, the shouts on the field also came one after another. Anyone with a discerning eye could see that the biggest problem was the cooperation between Ye Feng and Westbrook, because they were the two who yelled the most:
"Russell, can you stop the car and pass the ball? Seeing you hit the center forward directly, I really worry about your happiness for the rest of your life. I seem to see a sports car being smashed into pieces."

"Idiot, didn't you see that my breakthrough attracted two people? And you didn't run out of the open space, what's the use of my pass to the outside line? By the way, are you going to fuck the opposite side?"

……

"My God, Ye, you are so shameless. It was obviously passed to me, but you still grabbed it abruptly. It is in vain that I usually treat you to dinner so many times. Is this how you treat me?"

"You actually dumped the blame on me! Who was about to be double-teamed and asked his teammates to pass it? If I hadn't intervened in the middle, you would have sent a wrong rhythm directly, do you believe it?"

……

"Damn Russell, why did you run in to grab a rebound as a point guard? Hurry up and return to defense. If someone hits a fast break, the responsibility is all yours. No matter how fast you run, it doesn't matter!"

"Hey, don't I want to get a triple-double? And Ye, aren't you also waiting for rebounds? Let's not talk about the second brother. If you can grab it, why can't I?"

……

Holland frowned and announced the suspension of training, and then called Ye Feng and Westbrook aside alone: ​​"Russell, Ye, can you tell me what's going on with the two of you? You are both very capable. A selfless player, why is he playing as ugly as a **** on the court? Huh?"

The two were silent for a while, before Ye Feng said in a low voice: "This is my responsibility. I'm not very familiar with Russell's playing style and habits in the team, and as a newcomer, I haven't understood the team's rules yet. Tactics, that's why there are various mistakes when cooperating with Russell."

Westbrook gritted his teeth and said loudly: "It's not all Ye's fault. I was also at fault. As the captain of the team, I didn't take the initiative to lead Ye to integrate into the team, and there is indeed a big problem with my one-rush style of play." .”

Seeing that the two disciples took most of the responsibility on himself, Holland was very satisfied, but he didn't show it, and said with a straight face: "Then tell me, how should we change this situation? You know, the level of chemistry between you will determine how far we can go this season."

"But coach, isn't it a question for you to consider how to integrate the two of us?" Westbrook raised his hand like in class and said weakly.

Holland knocked his head hard: "Russell, of course the tacit understanding between the two of you must be resolved by the two of you. By the way, I plan to let Ye continue to play shooting guard this season. In the future, the two of you One is the team's backcourt partner. How to establish a chemical reaction is up to you."

Looking at the frowning Ye Feng and Westbrook, Black quietly said to Holland: "Are you sure you can let them figure it out on their own? The first warm-up match will be two days later, and maybe they will also be there by then." It may not be able to play a decent cooperation." Holland said quietly: "I know, but I really can't do much except provide them with a little tactical guidance. A real combination should reach a high tacit understanding, Not to mention that they usually have a good relationship."

However, Ye Feng and Westbrook have been discussing for a whole day and a half, and they haven't discussed any results yet.The night before the warm-up match, Westbrook specially invited Ye Feng to dinner. The two finally decided to play the most traditional inside-out tactics in the first game. Westbrook broke through, and Ye Feng looked for an open shot outside. Opportunity, for the two of them, this is a good way to temporarily solve their urgent needs.

Holland's pick for UCLA's warm-up match is the Big Ten's Michigan State Spartans.When it comes to the basketball history of this university, the most famous is the "Michigan Five Tigers" led by Chris Webber and Juwan Howard. These five players made a big name in the entire NCAA at that time.Historically, they won the NCAA championship twice in 1979 and 2000 respectively. On December 2003, 12, when they competed with the University of Kentucky for the Basketball Cup, they set a record for the most spectators in basketball history with 13 people.

As the leading basketball school in California, even a warm-up match has attracted a large number of reporters to watch the game, and of course interviews with players and coaches are inevitable.This time the team was led by Tom Izzo, the famous coach of Michigan State University. The head coach born in 1955 did not have any bad reviews. Make overly extreme remarks.

However, the head coach's low-key does not mean that his players are equally humble. When asked whether he will develop special tactics for UCLA, Drew Nizel, who was selected to the first team of the Big Ten in the 2006-07 season, said arrogantly : "No, we don't need to deliberately target them, because our strength is far superior to them. Indeed, the historical record of the Spartans is far inferior to the brown bears, but now we are the stronger one!"

The team's starting center, Sutton, even spoke out in front of the Los Angeles press group: "We don't worry about their point guard at all. If he dares to rush to the basket, I swear I will make him look good. As for who... oh yes, Yeh, I don't believe how high an Asian can be, believe me, our defenders are much better than them."

Fortunately, Ye Feng and Westbrook have been busy cultivating a tacit understanding. If they saw these remarks, they might jump out and beat these people up.

The media in Los Angeles was in an uproar over the "high-profile" Michigan State University. In their view, no matter how weak UCLA is, it represents the face of California, not to mention that a thin camel is bigger than a horse.In fact, what they don't know is that their thinking is not too biased. UCLA is really not a strong team until their backcourt solves the problem.

Before the start of the game, Izzo deliberately came to the UCLA coaching bench to find Holland: "I'm sorry Mr. Holland, I apologize to you for the inappropriate remarks of those brats under me." Holland smiled wryly: "They What you said is generally correct, the problem in the backcourt is a bit big, and I have let them solve it by themselves." Izuo smiled playfully: "Aren't you afraid that I will deliberately arrange tactics to directly catch your loopholes and beat you hard?" "It doesn't matter. If you can let them cultivate a tacit understanding in a crisis, I have to thank you. This is just a warm-up match."

While they were chatting, the game had already begun.In addition to Ye Feng, Love also played as a starter, but in this game he was pressed by Holland in the center position, and the team's third and fourth positions were Josh Shipp and Luke Richard De Bamoute is an old man who has played for the school team for at least two seasons.

Under Love's hard work, UCLA won the ball in the first round.According to the established plan before the game, unless Westbrook comes up, he will be the first point of possession.Ye Feng obviously didn't think about fighting for anything. He trusted Westbrook's ability to handle the ball, so he didn't think about supporting him from the sidelines, and came to the frontcourt on his own.

But before he started running, Westbrook ran over the opposite point guard like a sports car with the accelerator pedal pressed to the bottom.Ye Feng's head was full of black lines: Are you playing with me?Why don't we just pull it apart and give you a single match!Complaints are nothing but complaints, Ye Feng still used Mbah a Moute to block the defender, and came to the bottom corner by himself.But he immediately felt that he had done nothing: Westbrook had already driven to the basket and wanted to make a cool backhand layup.

However, when he jumped up, Sutton, an old fritter, had already taken off from the side very deliberately, and his long arms completely covered Westbrook's sight.Distraught, Westbrook forced a shot, and the result was not unexpected-the ball was slapped by Sutton directly off the field, the Bruins' sideline ball.

After Shipp sent the ball, he passed it a few times and it was in Westbrook's hands. Now he didn't dare to break through casually, but gestured for Ye Feng to go inside to meet him.Ye Feng took a look at the situation on the field, and asked Mbah a Moute to make an off-ball screen from outside the three-point line, while he himself squeezed in from Mbah a Moute's right side.However, Westbrook didn't expect Ye Feng to call a pick-and-roll. Impulsively, he had already repeated the same mistakes and directly broke through. The direct result of the lack of communication between the two was that the space under the basket was compressed. In the chaos, someone touched it, and the ball went straight out. Bottom line, the referee gave the Spartans the backcourt.

The Bruins' backcourt complained to each other while retreating. "Ye, why don't you just come in? Why do you call an off-ball pick-and-roll?" "You think I'm a pervert like you? Of course you have to be lazy when you can save your energy. You don't wait for me to go in and break through by yourself." It's gone." "You're so slow, what should you do when people start to make up the defense? It's better for me to go straight in!"...

Holland helplessly covered his face off the court: Forget about the mistake, these two bastards are still arguing openly, what a shame!In the subsequent games, the cooperation between Ye Feng and Westbrook did not improve much. The two "contributed" an astonishing 5 turnovers in the first quarter. Without their support, Love could not support himself in the paint. The team fell behind by double digits by 10 to 21.

There was still no improvement in the second quarter, and the point difference further widened, but Holland kept them on the court in addition to the normal rotation.In the end, Ye Feng and Westbrook had no choice but to score points through frequent individual singles. The other players also had helpless expressions on their faces. After all, Michigan State University is not a weak team.In the end, the team lost 69 to 90 by 21 points. This point difference is not so unexpected. After all, Izzo still replaced a few substitute players in the last quarter. He did not intend to kill them all, but UCLA only scored 69. The score is something that many people did not expect, and their offense is not only a big problem.

As soon as the final whistle sounded, Ye Feng and Westbrook lowered their heads in frustration, and shuffled into the player tunnel.Behind them, Nizel, who scored 21 points and 7 rebounds, said loudly to the reporter: "Look, am I right? They are not our opponents at all, especially their backcourt, they are simply weak." Already!"

Ye Feng turned his head and saw the same burning flames in Westbrook's eyes: We have been underestimated!
(End of this chapter)