Chapter 180 179. Compton Three Volumes King Reunites
After a day of rest at home, on the morning of February 2, Zhang Yang met with Felton, Rondo, Gerald Wallace, Millsap and Okafor at the airport.

Zhang Yang participated in the rookie game and the main competition, Gerald Wallace and Okafor participated in the main competition, and Felton represented the sophomore team in the rookie game.

隆多靠着1月份接近场均6+6+6的表现，赛季数据提升到了4.5分4.8板5.4助攻1抢断，照这个趋势发展下去，新秀年场均5+5+5有望，入选了新秀队。

Millsap averaged 6 points and 4 rebounds per game and was selected to the Rookie Team.

The performances of these two players are enough to be selected for the rookie team. Zhang Yang and Felton have agreed that they must make a big effort this year.

The boss wanted to go to Las Vegas with them, so they took the boss's private plane. The boss hadn't arrived yet, so Zhang Yang took out his notebook and spent some money to ask the airport staff to connect to the Internet. He called his teammates together to read the ESPN column. He said he couldn't guess what ESPN meant.

Okafor looked at the content of the article, glanced at Zhang Yang, smiled, but immediately returned to his poker face.

Rondo gave Zhang Yang a blank look, but he didn't say anything.

This ESPN column ranks the individual performances of players in the East and West in the first half of the season.

In the West, Nash is first, Nowitzki is second, Kobe is third, Yao Ming is fourth, and Duncan is fifth.

There is no controversy about this. Nash and Nowitzki's individual performance and team performance are the best; Kobe averaged 29.8 points per game, the highest in the Western Conference. Although Yao Ming only played 30 games, he averaged 25.6 points per game, the only inside player averaging 25+ points this season; Duncan averaged 20+10 per game, ranking third in the record.

There is nothing wrong with these five people ranking in the top five in the Western Conference.

但东部……张杨第一名显得那么刺眼，排在他之后的是场均27分6板6助攻的詹姆斯、场均30.1分6助攻的阿里纳斯、场均27分7.5助攻的韦德、场均14分8.5板9.5助攻的基德。

张杨打了46场比赛，场均25.3分4.5板2.3助攻1.3抢断0.7盖帽，重点标注了他场均扔26.5次拿到30分的那个阶段的表现。

The bold mark seemed to be praising his performance during that period, but the Bobcats players felt that it was saying that Zhang Yang relied on that period to increase his average points per game to 25+.

Before that period, Zhang Yang averaged 23 points per game, and after that period, Zhang Yang averaged 23.5 points per game.

Felton analyzed: "Are they trying to sow discord among our team members?"

His attention was focused on the part of the player performance analysis that said Zhang Yang led the Bobcats to the second best record in the Eastern Conference.

If we have to say that Zhang Yang is the best player in the Eastern Conference in the first half, it is not impossible. In terms of record, the Bobcats are second in the Eastern Conference, and he averages 25 points per game. He is the best Eastern player in terms of team record and personal scoring. The Pistons have a better record, but the Pistons players have performed very averagely, and there is not a single player averaging 20+ points per game.

The players who scored higher than Zhang Yang have a much bigger gap in team record compared to the Bobcats.

But using Zhang Yang's performance as the team leader to make the point... is so blunt that it makes people uncomfortable. Half a month ago, ESPN was still saying that Zhang Yang's team had only a 50% win rate when leading the team.

Gerald Wallace said: "This is making enemies for Jack, right? You want all the superstars to target him. Carter and Pierce both averaged 25+ points per game. If Jack goes to the Celtics, I think it will be difficult for him to average 20 points per game."

Rondo and Millsap looked at Zhang Yang upon hearing this... and nodded in agreement!

Felton countered: "Jack can still average 20 points per game, but his shooting percentage may be lower."

Seeing that the two were about to go off topic again, Okafor interrupted and said, "Both possibilities are possible, but there is another possibility."

Gerald Wallace was about to argue with Felton when he heard this and asked, "What's the possibility?"

Okafor: "Maybe it's paving the way for King James. Look, this column says that Philip Saunders is the best coach in the East. This one says that the strongest team in the East is the Bulls."

Gerald Wallace: Pave the road?

Okafor: "The Cavaliers have a low chance of winning against us, the Bulls and the Pistons. They should praise us three teams first. Even if they lose to us, it won't be shameful. If they win and beat us, it means they 'break the cat-scare curse'. If they beat the Bulls, they will beat the strongest team in the East. If they beat the Pistons, they will beat the strongest coach."

Rondo finally spoke up and questioned, "Does anyone believe this?"

The four core players who have been in the NBA longer nodded in unison: “Yes!”

Rondo: "..."

This world is so fucking outrageous!

Felton and Gerald Wallace began to explain to Rondo and Millsap the bizarre public opinion they encountered when they played against the Cavaliers last season. Okafor helped Zhang Yang and then quietly stepped aside. Zhang Yang also quietly put away his computer.

Zhang Yang also felt that the "estrangement" mentioned by Gerald Wallace was a possibility. Regardless of whether it was true or not, he called several core teammates together to talk openly, and this potential hidden danger could be easily resolved.

However, Zhang Yang was somewhat surprised that Okafor would take the initiative to step forward to help.

...

After arriving in Las Vegas on Boss Joe's private jet, Zhang Yang started working in the afternoon.

Since Yao Ming withdrew from the game due to injury and could not participate in any commercial activities, Zhang Yang was particularly busy during this All-Star Weekend.

In addition to fixed endorsements, there are also some commercial activities during the All-Star Weekend where brands spend a lot of money to invite stars to make appearances.

Since Yao Ming didn't come, most of these one-time tasks fell on Zhang Yang.

I was very busy for two and a half days. After finishing my work and having a good sleep, it was already Friday, February 2th, and I continued to devote myself to the work arranged by the alliance.

Or because Yao Ming didn't come, the attention of the domestic media was focused on Zhang Yang... When he took some time to go to the toilet, he called Yao Ming to complain, and Yao Ming laughed and responded - "I got this treatment every year before you came, this year it's your turn to enjoy it."

After the morning shooting and interviews, Zhang Yang went to the airport to pick up his parents and brother and brought them to the holiday villa they rented in Terem.

There is no need to worry about the three of them, including their parents and brother, being alone. The coaching staff of Compton High School and the two friends arrived in Las Vegas on Wednesday.

John Johnson and Del Burke and their wives came, and Thomas finally got out of being single, finding a 23-year-old female teacher who had just graduated from college and was teaching at Compton High School as his girlfriend. Zhang Yang called him crazy when he saw him. If Thomas was a little bit bad when he was young, this girl could be his daughter, right? A role model for our generation!

At noon, Zhang Yang's parents treated everyone to lunch. His parents and coaches sat at one table, and the "children" sat at another table. Zhang Yang called Felton over.

Last year, DeRozan and Harden only arrived on Saturday night, and Zhang Yang was busy on Sunday, so he didn't have the chance to introduce the three to each other.

Felton came to the restaurant, greeted Zhang Yang's parents, and got to know DeRozan, Harden, and Zhang Yang's high school coaches.

Del Burke exclaimed, "Wow, we have four of the top ten high school students in the United States!"

Felton was also very outgoing: "Really? DeMar, James, where are you guys?"

Harden: "I came back from winter break and was ranked eighth."

DeRozan: “Sixth.”

In Class 07, Mayo is first, Love is second, Eric Gordon is third, Michael Beasley is fourth, and Rose is fifth. They are all tough guys. Even if DeRozan C bleeds, he can't get up there.

Felton: "Haha! I'm the tallest! I'm third in level 02... Jack, why are you poking me?"

Zhang Yang had a conflicted expression. DeRozan knew Zhang Yang's personality and decisively said, "Jack is ranked second in the United States."

Felton felt terrible after hearing that. His previous "hahaha I'm the tallest" was so stupid, but he immediately found an excuse: "Class 05 is too weak. The top high school student is McRoberts. Your class is not good. Class 02 is ranked first by Stoudemire and second by Anthony. It's normal for me to be ranked third... Jack, why are you poking me again?"

DeRozan continued to stab: "Jack is from the class of 06. Oden ranked first and Durant ranked third."

Felton: "Jack, aren't you in the same class as me?"

Zhang Yang: "You didn't know that I skipped grade 12 and went straight to the NBA?"

Felton: "Uh... I always thought you were just too young to go to school. Oh my god, you were able to get over 11 points after finishing 1500th grade and get into our school? If only you were born a few years earlier or I was born a few years later, then I could copy your homework in college!"

Zhang Yang: "I seldom go to class, so you can't copy my homework."

Felton: "Aren't you usually studying on your own? You also go to class occasionally. Can't you help me with my homework when you're bored?"

Zhang Yang: "It's not impossible..."

DeRozan: “…”

Here it comes! The long-awaited alternative chat is back!
It's been another year since we last met, and Jack is still the same as before. When chatting with Jack, the topic would go off track, but when I listened, I felt that it was not Jack's fault.

If DeRozan wasn't so familiar with Zhang Yang, he would really think that there was something wrong with Felton... No, there was definitely something wrong with this guy.

The news said that although Felton was reckless and impulsive, he was smart, wise, had a sense of the overall situation and leadership ability... DeRozan didn't quite believe it... Oh, by the way, they have another problematic person here.

Harden: "Jack, can you help me with my homework? I want to go to North Carolina too!"

DeRozan rolled his eyes at Harden: "They have Lawson and Ellington there, you can only play as a substitute. If you want to participate in the draft next year, you must go to a team where you can start right away."

Harden's excited expression froze on his face, and then he instantly switched to a depressed state: "Yeah... DeMar, aren't you going to participate in the draft next year? The Trojans already have their starting guard and small forward, right? It seems that they won't participate in the draft this year, so why can you go?"

DeRozan: "I just need to grab their starting spot, James, if you are willing to grab it, you can definitely get it."

Harden: "Stolen someone else's starting lineup... Isn't that bad?"

DeRozan: "You should just go to the Wildcats. Don't think too much about it. You'll be drafted after your freshman year anyway, and you may not go to college in the future. It doesn't matter if someone helps you with your homework."

Harden: “Yeah!”

This time it was Zhang Yang's turn to be speechless.

After so many years, Harden is still the same. He has more ambition and drive than Zhang Yang knew in his previous life, but he still doesn't want to compete.

Is it really necessary to use a world peace elbow to bless Harden?
How about the bad boy Zhang San’s elbow?

After chatting for a while, the four of them sat down to eat.

Felton was eating when he suddenly thought of something and asked Harden, "James, I heard from Jack that you taught me the step-back three-pointer with a pick-and-roll. Did you teach him that?"

Harden: "I didn't teach him... When I developed this move in 05, he learned it after watching it a few times, and helped me improve it. But his explosiveness is not as good as mine, so he is not suitable for playing like this. I didn't see him use it when I watched your team's live broadcast."

Felton: "Two years...James, are you free this afternoon? Let's go to the gym to practice together?"

Harden: "Okay! I have time... Can I meet Kobe Bryant?"

Felton: "Maybe. Jack has Bryant's phone number. He should be able to call Bryant out."

Harden: "No, no, no, it would be great if we could meet by chance, but forget it if we can't..."

DeRozan watched Harden and Felton chatting so enthusiastically. He knew that it was because they were both top ten high school students in the United States, so Felton was so enthusiastic. Otherwise, he would at most chat with them for Zhang Yang's sake.

Del Burke's words "both are among the top ten high school students in the United States" were meant to introduce the two of them to Felton so that they would not be looked down upon.

DeRozan is more motivated. Only if he maintains... no, only if he performs better and better, can he continue to stay in the same circle with Jack in the future!
(End of this chapter)