The Golden Age of Basketball.

Chapter 24 Anger

Bellman was as rude as ever, and addressed everyone as "ladies".

For high school basketball teams, a touch of rudeness and aggression can quickly establish the coach's authority among the players.

Chinese children are generally well-behaved and obedient, so for Berman, quickly getting into the role of managing the team was not difficult at all.

But problems arose after training began. Bellman discovered that among the group of players, only Forrest Gump was a true basketball player.

Chen Xing barely qualifies as half, and there's another Korean who also counts as half. The rest are similar to Gan Guohui—basketball enthusiasts who can play, but are basically not competitive.

This was a collection of 11 people cobbled together by Beiqiao Middle School, one less than the full list, because they simply couldn't find anyone else.

Bellman first conducted a physical test on each player, then a basic skills test, and then a half-hour shooting test, which gave him a preliminary understanding of each player's situation.

The situation is clearly not optimistic. With such a level of basic skills and athleticism, they can't even execute some simple tactics.

Fortunately, Bellman was mentally prepared for this. In addition, he had worked at the Excel in Basketball summer camp for two months and had practical experience in how to improve the level of ordinary basketball enthusiasts. He developed a training plan to try to shape the team's style and fighting power in a short period of time.

The Water Clock team's first training session lasted until 6 p.m., and the three hours of practice left the players exhausted.

Two players asked to leave the team after training, reducing the team size from 11 to 9, not even enough for a single 5v5 scrimmage.

However, two people stayed behind after training to continue practicing: one was Gan Guoyang, and the other was the Korean high school senior named Xu Xun.

The two players each occupied half of the court; one was shooting hoops, while the other, with Bellman's assistance, was practicing back-to-the-basket drills.

Berman knew that Gan Guoyang's back-to-the-basket offense and defense would be key to the team's victory, and he had to give him extra training to improve his skills.

The two chatted while training.

Gan Guoyang asked Berman how he ended up teaching at Beiqiao Middle School. Berman replied that he had come to Beiqiao School for an interview that day.

Gan Guoyang was somewhat skeptical and said, "Really? Then why did you only come today? We didn't know anything about you before."

"Stop talking nonsense. Your turning speed is still a bit slow. Your footwork, why is your footwork unsteady? You need to be more solid!"

Bellman changed the subject, complaining that Gan Guoyang's back-to-the-basket footwork wasn't solid enough.

Gan Guoyang said, "It's not that I'm not solid, but that I'm more agile. If I'm facing players who are taller than me in the paint, I have to use my agile footwork to create enough space for my shot."

According to his own 2K setting, his height will grow to around 6 feet 10 inches (208). In a situation where height exaggeration is common, this height is not short. However, he will definitely encounter real 7-foot tall people in the future, so strength and agility are necessary.

Back-to-the-basket moves with large lateral movements and unpredictable footwork, when mastered to perfection, can allow a player to easily defeat defenders of any size. However, this is also the most difficult type of back-to-the-basket technique, requiring a high level of balance and coordination from the player.

Bellman knew that Gan Guoyang was right, but he still insisted that Gan Guoyang start from the basics, using his body strength, center of gravity, and left-hand blocking to create space and complete the attack.

"Even geniuses have to start with the most basic techniques. You may not need them later, but you can't be unaware of them. Use your ass to push! You're not some ass-grubber, you don't need to be so careful with your ass!"

Gan Guoyang listened to the advice. He knew that Coach Berman wanted to build a more solid technical foundation for him, so he temporarily gave up the more advanced footwork and started practicing from the very basics.

What Gan Guoyang didn't know was that Bellman gave up the better-paying and better-working Palo Alto High School for him and chose to teach at Beiqiao Middle School.

It is extremely difficult for a coach to coach a talented player in his lifetime. In Berman's eyes, Gan Guoyang is a rough gem, and he wants to polish him properly.

Of course, Bellman wouldn't tell Gan Guoyang these things; how could he possibly say that?

After an extra hour of practice, Gan Guoyang finally made 100 long-range shots—there was no three-point line on the court; the NCAA didn't introduce the three-point line until after 1986, and high school games came even later.

At seven o'clock, it was time for the school to rent the basketball court, and Gan Guoyang had to leave.

After changing his clothes in the locker room, Gan Guoyang noticed that his Korean teammate, Xu Xun, hadn't left after changing into a T-shirt; instead, he was heading to the second floor.

"Hey, aren't you going home yet? You've practiced long enough today, rest is also very important."

Xu Xun trained for the same amount of time as Gan Guoyang, and it seems that his physical fitness is also very good.

Upon hearing Gan Guoyang speak to him, Xu Xun merely glanced back, then turned and went back upstairs without saying a word.

"Why aren't you saying anything? Is your English worse than mine?"

For the next week, Gan Guoyang attended classes, trained, and did extra practice every day. Under Berman's careful guidance, he gradually solidified his foundation and learned many key points and details.

Xu Xun also practiced extra every day, and after practice he would go upstairs to the second floor, I don't know what he did. This strange guy usually didn't talk, he was a taciturn person, he would only say a few words when Behrman questioned him.

His basketball talent is average. He has a good shot and amazing stamina, but his technique is rather rough. He is very rough in contact training. After a week of training, he has already had several conflicts with his teammates.

Every time a conflict occurred, he would keep his head down and not say a word. When Berman reprimanded him, he would just lower his head and say a few "uh-huhs," which made Berman lose patience with him, but he couldn't fire him because the team was already short of players.

On Wednesday, the team held its first tactical training session. Berman has developed his tactical system, which, simply put, revolves around Gan Guoyang in both offense and defense.

The offense revolves entirely around Gan Guoyang's low post play, combined with outside penetration and movement, as well as Gan Guoyang's offensive rebounds—this is of paramount importance.

On the defensive end, Bellman put more effort into it, spending two hours teaching and training on zone defense, while Gan Guoyang was naturally responsible for protecting the rim and rebounding.

The first tactical training session was, if not disastrous, still unbearable to watch. The players made numerous mistakes in coordination and details, and Berman felt even more desperate than when he was getting a divorce.

The only thing that gave him a little comfort was that Gan Guoyang was very bright. Not only did he learn quickly, but he could also guide his teammates. Clearly, he had a high basketball IQ.

They will play their first game this Saturday, and Berman has confirmed the team's starting lineup.

Gan Guoyang is undoubtedly the center and the absolute core player.

The power forward is Wu Zhixiong, a 188cm tall Fujian native nicknamed "Big Bear". He received some basketball training in elementary school and participated in the Chinatown Basketball Training Camp jointly organized by Thomas King, Huang Xianhu and the Golden State Warriors.

However, due to a lack of talent and his family's lack of support for his basketball career, he did not continue.

But his foundation is solid; he has the physique to back it up. He could work with Gan Guoyang in the paint.

The responsibility of point guard was given to Chen Xing, who calls himself the fastest hand in Chinatown. He is qualified in terms of ball control and agility, and has received some professional training, but his physical strength needs to be improved.

Shooting guard Berman selected Xu Xun, whose physical attributes ranked second in the team and who was qualified in all aspects.

But he seemed to have low basketball IQ, played selfishly, didn't pass the ball, and didn't communicate with his teammates. Berman had no choice but to pick him, even though he felt it was a mistake.

However, for the small forward position, a crucial position that requires a lot of athleticism, Bellman has been unable to find a suitable candidate. He is trying to get the school to recruit another talented player—preferably a Black player with strong athleticism.

On Thursday, Bielman conducted the team's first 5v5 scrimmage. Since the team only has 9 players, Bielman had to personally participate, acting as both a player and a referee.

The training session was very ineffective because with Gan Guoyang on the court, the opposing team was unable to organize an effective offense; they couldn't penetrate the paint or grab rebounds.

His defense was also easily penetrated; Gan Guoyang had an almost 100% shooting percentage inside.

Later in the game, Xu Xun was the only one who dared to challenge Gan Guoyang with the ball.

After being blocked four or five times in a row, he was still not giving up. In a counterattack, he rushed too hard and collided with Gan Guoyang in mid-air. He was sent flying and crashed heavily to the ground, losing consciousness from the impact.

Berman quickly took him to the locker room, and after taking off his undershirt, he found that there were bruises all over his back, which were obviously not injuries from playing basketball.

Xu Xun woke up at this moment, quickly put on his clothes, and returned to the court despite Bielman's obstruction, continuing to devote himself to training.

Fortunately, he was not seriously injured; otherwise, if another person had been injured, the Water Bell Team could have been renamed the Sending Bell Team.

On Friday, the team held its first practice session before the game. Knowing that the team couldn't undergo any significant changes in a short period of time, Bellman only conducted an hour of shooting practice before disbanding the team. Bellman also needed to find a place for some mental therapy.

He has never managed such a bad team before.

Gan Guoyang stayed behind for extra training as usual. Compared to the others, he was a basketball fanatic. He felt happy every moment on the court and had an inexhaustible body.

Just as Gan Guoyang was making shot after shot, Xu Xun, who had stayed behind with him, shouted at him, "Gan! I want to challenge you one-on-one!"

The ball bounced a few times on the floor and rolled to the side.

This was the first time Xu Xun had spoken to Gan Guoyang.

Gan Guoyang turned to look at Xu Xun, his youthful face contorted with inexplicable ferocity and anger, as if Gan Guoyang were some kind of enemy.

Gan Guoyang smiled and said, "Sure, I'd also like to find someone to play some bullfighting with. I think your skills are pretty good, let's have a match."

Upon hearing Gan Guoyang's sudden praise, Xu Xun's expression became somewhat unnatural. The inexplicable anger seemed to have lost its footing and slipped away from his face in an instant.

(End of this chapter)