Chapter 1872 Since It’s so Boring, Let’s Have a Huge Charity Match
(The last update on the last day of 2020, I wish you all the best in this magical year. I also hope that my dear book friends will be in good health and all the best in the new year!)
The lockout entered August, and the ice-breaking fantasies of fans did not come as promised. On the contrary, the lockout reached its climax in a series of measures taken by the league!
In late August, just as the United States was immersed in Ji Feng's unprecedented national tour, the NBA finally took action. They first announced on the 21st that all pre-season training camps for the new season would be cancelled. While the fans were still While digesting this breaking news, only two days later, NBA officials announced again that the summer season had also been cancelled.
Such news shocked the basketball circle. After all, although training camps and summer games are not well-known and have little attention among ordinary fans, they are undoubtedly a very important part of the entire NBA system.
The first is the training camp. The training camp here has two main functions. First, for the team, the training camp attracts outstanding players from all over the world, so it is an important place to inspect players and pursue the players they need. For For players, this is an important springboard for them to pursue their basketball dreams. They will get the most professional training here, which is of great benefit to improving their own strength. And most importantly, it is also a shortcut for them to enter the NBA, such as Ji Feng , was valued in the training camp hosted by the Grizzlies, and was successfully signed to start his NBA journey.
Compared with the training camp, the role of the summer league is more important. Let's first define the "summer league". Generally speaking, there are three summer leagues, the Las Vegas Summer League, the Utah Summer League and the Orlando Summer League.
Among them, the "Las Vegas Summer League" is an offseason game officially organized by the NBA. It has expanded rapidly in recent years. By last year, it had developed into an important game for all 30 teams to participate. Therefore, in a general sense, the term summer league Only used to refer to the Las Vegas Summer League, the other two leagues are usually mentioned with the prefix.
The role and significance of the Summer League is self-evident. Although most famous players will not play on this field, the Summer League can still attract a large number of stars, scouts, insiders, and league executives. and team managers, as well as many celebrities and media professionals.
One of the reasons is that the annual team summit, where all league executives and team managers are present, happens to be held in Las Vegas during the summer league.
Therefore, with player contract renewals and blockbuster transactions going on during the summer break, this place has naturally become the best place for rumors to ferment.
Speaking of players. The main gimmicks of the summer league are: first, high-ranking rookies, second, overseas players, and third, courtside bosses.
Although the competitive level of the overseas players participating in the summer league is not high in the league, the intensity of the competition in the summer league is just right. The UAE became famous overseas in the summer league, and eventually entered the NBA with a high pick. Except for China Players such as Iran's Haddadi and South Korea's He Shengzhen have all appeared in the summer league. As for players from Europe, South America, and Africa, there are more players. This is also an important springboard for them to enter the NBA.
Because in the summer league, in addition to the head coaches and general managers of each team, many big-name stars will also come here to inspect the performance of their juniors. Most rookies will make their team debuts in this arena and urgently need to prove their bench skills. Fringe players and second- and third-year players come here to fight for rotation time for themselves. G-League players and overseas players who have an NBA heart and hope to get a team contract will fight for a contract on this stage. And work hard.
For this reason, a large number of scouts and team staff gathered here to closely observe and judge the actual performance and possibility of realizing the potential of these fresh bodies.
It can be said that the Summer League is an organic supplement to the regular season and the offseason traffic gap. Generally speaking, the NBA Summer League is a place for team managers, scouts, and coaching staff to further inspect, screen, and determine players for the new season. It is an important stage for configuration and puzzle. The objects of inspection are the rookies from last season and the rookies just selected this season, short-term temporary workers and marginal figures of the team.
Therefore, the suspension of the summer season has directly disrupted the original plans of thousands of players, and also prevented each team from conducting some inspections and signing operations in the summer.
The suspension of training camp and summer league has a profound impact.
Considering that the summer games will also generate tens of millions of profits, this official operation of the NBA undoubtedly sends an important signal - they will not compromise easily, and the lockout has just begun!
Sure enough, the negotiations throughout August came to nothing again, with internal strife among players, quarrels among fans, official NBA exits, and disagreements among owners...
"It's even more lively~!" On September 5th, Ji Feng, who had completed all the work for the summer and had just completed the first phase of 10-day recovery training, lay in an ice bucket and watched the TV reports about the raging shutdown. , shook his head helplessly.
There is no doubt that this summer is a hundred times more lively than Ji Feng imagined. Of course, this also disrupted Ji Feng's original plan. All his summer plans have been completed. After all, at this time in the past, he should have returned to the Lakers to report. , the next step is to combine the Lakers team training with his personal training to prepare for the new season, but this year, returning to the team is still far away.
"So, what should we do next!" Ji Feng scratched his head. If he had known it, he would have extended the vacation time.
For two and a half months this summer, Ji Feng still maintained high-intensity training. In addition to various activities, Ji Feng only took a week of vacation to recuperate. During this period, Ji Feng had completed 4 training sessions. , the total time reached 30 days, and the training intensity was also very high. After all, the coaches and sparring partners invited by Ji Feng are all world-class, and the logistics support is also the best in the sports world. Ji Feng’s training attitude is also unparalleled. In addition to normal training As time goes by, additional practice is common.
Curry, who is staying at Ji Feng's house, has the most say on this point. He and Ji Feng went on a tour across the United States. They were very tired during the day, but as soon as the activities were over, Ji Feng would drag them to practice. Usually It lasted for 2-3 hours. After more than ten days, Curry felt more tired than the game...
But the effect was also obvious. Curry clearly felt that his skills had improved, which made Curry a little happy. He had no intention of going home after the activity, and just followed Ji Feng back to Los Angeles. Anyway, the team also returned. If you don't go, you might as well hold your thighs tightly.
Ji Feng doesn't care either. Curry can stay if he wants to. He cares more about the next arrangements. According to this trend, let alone September, October, or even November, it will be difficult to end the shutdown. These long three months If you can't make good use of it, won't this time be wasted?
"By the way, since everyone is so free, how about we hold the most awesome charity match in history!" Ji Feng touched his chin, and the more he thought about it, the more feasible it became!