Basketball trainer, I created a super giant

Chapter 208 Yao Ming Returns to the Team
October 16th arrived at its appointed time.

Yao Ming arrived in New York as promised.

At the entrance of the training center.

The towering Yao Ming immediately became the most eye-catching person at the scene upon his appearance.

Accompanied by Ryden, he greeted Cheney and the others one by one.

"Brother Sen, it's been a long time."

When he approached Tang Sen, he automatically switched to Chinese, with a big smile on his face.

Tang Sen nodded and added, "Actually, you could rest for two more days."

The Asian Games closed on the 14th, and on the 15th, Yao Ming set off for the United States, taking a flight that lasted more than ten hours.

Because of the time difference, it was still the 15th when I arrived in New York.

The Knicks held a welcome ceremony, but Yao Ming came to practice early this morning.

At least I can adjust to the time difference and get back into the swing of things.

Yao Ming said, "I'm fine. I can't sleep at home anyway, and I really think that practicing with you will help me sleep better."

"By the way, it seems like we've been losing all the games."

After a moment's hesitation, Yao Ming asked in a low voice.

He was speaking in Chinese.

Yesterday at the welcoming ceremony, a reporter asked him about the Knicks' continued losses in the preseason.

Tang Sen glanced at Cheney and said, "It's not that exaggerated."

Of course, losing the game is a fact.

They have lost all four games since the start of the preseason.

When we lost the first game, no one said anything.

At the time, the New York Times lavished praise on Houston and showed the utmost leniency towards the team's numerous rookies.

But then the Knicks lost to the Wizards.

Hill is in good condition.

Surprisingly, he didn't find any chemistry with Jordan, but instead developed a good working relationship with Stoudemire, with whom he had trained all summer.

Hill drew the defense to the wing, then passed the ball to Stoudemire for a drive to the basket.

With this one move, Stoudemire scored his first 20+ point game.

They lost to the Heat in the third game.

In their final match, they suffered a crushing defeat against Wolves.

A counterfeit product encountered a genuine product.

Bender was completely out of sorts throughout the game, while Garnett scored a whopping 26 points in just 25 minutes of playing time.

One minute at a time.

In the first quarter, he delivered an incredible 5-for-5 shooting performance.

After the game, Knicks fans became dissatisfied.

They are patient, but not many.

The New York Post showed no mercy, launching a tirade against Ryden, saying he'd lost his mind and come up with such a bizarre team-building plan.

Previously, Britney Spears was proclaiming it as a great revival for the Knicks.

Now, she's become a complete idiot, a weirdo.

Tang Sen wasn't mentioned much.

It's not Tang Sen's fault.

Firstly, it's unrealistic for Tang Sen to develop the next Garnett or Jordan in such a short time, given that he has only recently taken over training the players.

Everyone can understand.

Secondly, putting Houston aside, just look at Kobe and Garnett. After going through Townsend's million-dollar training camp in the summer, their skills have improved tremendously and noticeably.

Therefore, Tang Sen's training level is not a problem.

The problem arose with Ryden, who found a bunch of useless people for Tangsen.

In this situation, the Knicks definitely need a victory to save face.

But the preseason games weren't as exaggerated as Yao Ming made them out to be.

Now that Yao Ming is here, he can do some simple recovery training.

He has participated in the World Championships and the Asian Games, with a long schedule, and needs time to recover his form.

Take him to the changing room to change clothes.

As I entered, I bumped into Miles walking out.

He first glanced at Yao Ming in surprise, shocked by Yao Ming's height, before saying to Tang Sen, "Sir, I am not late today."

"Yes, Not Bad."

Tang Sen gave a casual reply and glanced silently at the wall clock.

8 points.

This kid really leaves the moment it's eight o'clock, not wanting to stay even a minute longer.

Watching him leave, Yao Ming asked curiously, "Isn't training supposed to start at eight o'clock? Why did he leave?"

"He's different."

Tang Sen did not provide a specific explanation.

It's hard to explain in a few words, but Tang Sen thinks Miles is coming soon.

In the first few days, his mother didn't seem to be in a hurry to leave; she stayed in New York to keep an eye on him for a few days.

Once his mother left, the kid slowly started to slack off.

He arrived right after 4:30 at first.

Then it gets later and later.

Like today, I think I didn't arrive at the training center until 4:56.

The security guards at the entrance are keeping track of his time.

I heard there are even bets on when this kid will be late.

Logically speaking, this time should already be considered unacceptable.

If you're going to be on the court at 5 o'clock to start training, you need to be in the locker room at least 15 minutes early to change clothes and get ready.

It can only be said that he is constantly relaxing his standards for himself.

I think it's fine if I'm a little late today, as long as I arrive before five o'clock.

Then I timed it perfectly.

Keep relaxing until one day you're late.

Therefore, Tang Sen felt that his judgment was correct; this guy was just not self-disciplined enough and had a too-careless personality.

"Let's go, say hello to your teammates."

After Yao Ming changed his clothes, Tang Sen took him to the training ground.

The players are training.

Yao Ming's arrival immediately attracted everyone's attention.

Everyone knows that Yao Ming is the Knicks' new darling, the cornerstone of the team, and the absolute core.

Even Houston is already a thing of the past.

Some unreliable media outlets have also reported that the Knicks' thorough dismantling of the team was not only for the plan to revive Layden's greatness, but also to pave the way for Yao Ming.

Send away all those disobedient old fogies and troublemakers.

So from this, everyone knows that in the Knicks, you can't mess with Yao Ming.

If you don't get along with Yao Ming, then you can expect to be traded away.

"Yao".

Houston warmly stepped forward and hugged Yao Ming.

Yao Ming has high emotional intelligence. He greeted each player amicably, then turned his head and noticed a large LED screen installed on the blank wall above the entrance passage.

There are staff members making adjustments downstairs right now.

Houston noticed his gaze and said, "Tang had it done, but I don't know what he's trying to do."

A few days after the first preseason game, the team contacted someone to install an electronic screen here. I heard that it was Tang Sen who had it installed.

But nobody knows exactly what they're going to do.

Houston thought it might be that playing videos during regular training sessions would facilitate learning.

Yao Ming simply said "oh" and didn't ask any further questions.

Training begins.

Tang Sen had Tedeschi lead Yao Ming through low-intensity recovery training.

There are still 3 preseason games left, and we're not planning to let him play. We'll just have his regular season debut on October 30th.

In about ten days, I should be able to get back into shape.

Leiden approached Tang Sen and asked in a low voice, "Tang, how much longer do you think Darius will be late?"

After Townsend decided to eliminate Miles, Raiden began preparing his trade.

According to Cheney, it seems there's an agreement, and it's a three-way deal, but the final details haven't been agreed upon.

Unfortunately, Townsend and Miles had a bet.

Tang Sen's idea was to wait until he was late and failed before sending him away.

This would not only make him leave willingly, but also teach all players a lesson. Sending him away now, Renden worries, could damage Townsend's reputation.

They promised to give me a chance, but they sent me away halfway through.

Tang Sen thought about Miles' performance today and said, "It should be in the next few days."

He was getting later and later; if he was even a little late washing up, he would be late.

Leiden nodded, his face brimming with barely suppressed excitement, and said, "Tang, the player I'm going to trade for is absolutely a genius. Let me put it this way, he's hailed as the next Pippen."

Now, Tang Sen trembles at the mere mention of names like Jordan, Rodman, and Johnson.

Logically speaking, after so many years in the league, Layden should know that the media's praise is all nonsense and cannot be believed at all.

“Scott, we’ve already talked it over. If you insist on following your team-building strategy, then I can’t guarantee you anything this season,” Tang Sen said.

During the first match, Tang Sen felt something was off.

Later, after reading media reports and seeing Frazier's comments, I finally understood.

As Frazier said, that's not how the team is built at all.

They gather a bunch of so-called geniuses, wanting everyone to be at the top, the best.

The conventional approach should be to first identify the core players, then determine the tactical system, and then find suitable players and build the lineup.

Layden is really something else. He wants top-tier stars in his starting five and Rodman and Pippen in his five substitutes. He wants Barkley-level players to be on the bench.

If he actually achieves that, not to mention anything else, his salary will explode, no matter how rich New York is.

So Tangsen had a special talk with Redencheni.

Hopefully, they will adjust their thinking and be more realistic.

However, Leiden was still not giving up.

The final idea reached was a compromise.

In the first season, we won't pursue results. We'll let them develop and weed out the weak to see how many useful players can be cultivated from this group of talented players.

Next season, we will adjust the roster based on these developed players.

Then strive to win the championship in the third season.

Three steps.

Looking at it this way, it seems quite reasonable.

Based on my own training level, I should be able to select truly talented players who can perform well over the course of a whole season.

Then, aiming for the championship is a more realistic approach.

“I know.” Leiden chuckled awkwardly, then added, “But Tang, he really is very talented. Just wait and see.”

Tang Sen thought to himself that there were plenty of talented players, and every player on the field right now was incredibly talented.

To Tang Sen's surprise, Miles was late the day after Yao Ming arrived.

At 7:30, Tang Sen drove to the training center.

As soon as he entered, the security guard said urgently, "Don, Darius is late."

"Oh?"

Tang Sen was taken aback and asked what was going on.

He was one and a half minutes late.

The security guard held up one finger, saying that his watch was extremely accurate and would never be wrong.

Tang Sen silently shook his head.

In fact, according to his own requirements, Miles would have been late long ago.

When I arrived at the office, Tedeschi was already there.

"Don, Darius keeps crying, what should we do?"

"cry?"

Tang Sen was speechless.

You're already 21, an adult, why are you still crying?

Come to the locker room.

Before I even went inside, I could hear intermittent crying coming from inside.

Upon entering, I saw that most of the people had already arrived.

Miles sat in his seat, covering his face and weeping.

Houston, the only veteran on the team over 30, was comforting him.

Kenyon Dulin stood beside him, unsure how to offer any words of advice.

The remaining players simply watched silently.

The arrival of Tang Sen caused Miles to break down, and he hurriedly explained, "Sir, I'm only a minute late. There was a car accident at the intersection, and I got stuck there."

At four or five in the morning, a car accident is possible, but if you're stuck in traffic, do you want to listen to what you're saying?

Being late is fine, there's no need to make so many excuses.

Tang Sen had anticipated this day would come, and although he hadn't expected the kid to cry, he had already prepared his explanation in advance.

"Dalios".

Tang Sen stepped forward and said gently, "Don't cry. You just made a mistake. Everyone makes mistakes. It's okay."

Miles stopped crying, looked at Tangsen innocently, and asked, "So... can I still stay with the team?"

Tang Sen shook his head: "I'm sorry, Darius, you may really have to leave."

Staying is impossible.

Miles' eye twitched, and he looked like he was about to cry again.

Tang Sen immediately said, "Dalios, you're actually already great, but I've been too demanding of you. You should understand that not everyone can become Jordan."

"Stop crying. Learn from this experience, go to a new team, and do your best. Don't worry, I will tell everyone that you have great talent, but you are just not suitable for our team."

In Tang Sen's view, this kid never realized his mistakes; he was simply afraid.

Even now, they are afraid of being eliminated by the Knicks and then being considered by other teams as lacking talent.

Sure enough, he looked up and asked, "Sir, are you really going to say that to everyone?"

Tang Sen nodded.

If you don't tell them, won't your trading value be affected?

"Alright, stop crying. Go back and get a good night's sleep. You've had a tough time these past few days." Tang Sen patted him on the shoulder.

Miles thought for a moment, then slowly got up and left the locker room, turning back every few steps.

The person left, but the locker room remained deathly silent.

Tang Sen clapped his hands to attract everyone's attention and said in a deep voice, "I think you have all seen how easy it is to give up on yourself."

Everyone present remained silent.

Miles' results shocked everyone.

He was given a chance, but he still couldn't seize it.

And he only persisted for half a month!
Tang Sen's gaze swept over everyone, and he continued, "Like I said, not everyone can become Jordan, but if you don't even have the will to become Jordan, then you should give up now and leave."

Tang Sen pointed to the locker room door.

No one spoke.

After a long pause, Prince was the first to stand up, shoved his bag into the locker, and said in a deep voice, "Sir, I'm going to training."

With that, he walked out of the locker room.

As soon as he left, Chandler quickly followed.

Then one by one, they headed to the training ground.

Tedsky nodded slightly to Tang Sen, gave him a thumbs up, and then turned and followed him out.

He knew Tangsen's plan and believed that after what happened with Miles, the players who ultimately stayed would definitely be influenced and try their best to persevere.

After Miles arrived late, Ryden did not hesitate and immediately initiated his trade.

On October 19, after the preseason game against the Jazz, a trade was officially completed.

It really was a three-way deal involving multiple players.

The Knicks draft Darius Miles and Eddie Robinson.

They were both sent to the king.

Then they acquired Gerald Wallace, the 25th overall pick in last year's draft, and veteran Brent Price from the Kings.

On the Kings' side, Scott Pollard was sent to the Nuggets.

Pollard's poor performance in the crucial moments of last year's Western Conference Finals has already made the Kings dissatisfied with the big man.

But the Nuggets wanted him, after all, he was a big center with Western Conference Finals experience and had defended O'Neal.

The Nuggets acquired Scott Pollard and traded veterans George McLeod and Donil Harvey to the Knicks.

Of these, Brent Price and George McLeod both have expiring contracts, totaling seven million.

After the Knicks acquire them in a trade, they will immediately waive them.

But this also effectively passed on Eddie Robinson, a potential salary burden, to the Kings.

So, in order to compensate the Kings and expedite the trade, the Knicks also gave up their 04 first-round pick in a first-round swap with the Kings.

After this trade was completed, Knicks fans were speechless with disbelief.

No matter how you calculate it, the Knicks are losing money again.

In other words, the assets acquired in the Sprewell All-Star trade—Eddie Robinson, a first-round pick, and all of them were relegated—ultimately only resulted in Gerald Wallace and Donnell Harvey.

(End of this chapter)