Rekindling the dream of becoming a star

Chapter 203 Ignite Yourself and Light Up the Way Ahead

When Duan Ran came to see Chen Fang with a request, the latter was stunned for a while.

There was a man in a suit next to Duan Ran. When he saw Chen Fang looking at him, he immediately took out his business card.

When I looked at the business card, I saw that it was a very famous name: Wang Qi, Operations Director of TX Sports.

One is the founder and the other is the director. This request made Chen Fang a little hesitant.

"Come in first." Chen Fang extended his hand and invited the two into the house.

Although they knew it was a rental house, the two were still curious about what the future star's residence looked like. But after looking around, they found it to be very ordinary, with furnishings and decorations that made it impossible to tell that this was a basketball star.

There was nothing in the house that reminded one of basketball.

"Sit anywhere."

Seeing that there were sofas here, Duan Ran and Wang Qi each picked one.

Seeing the two people sitting down, Chen Fang pondered for a moment: "Actually, I don't like documentaries. Although I will watch documentaries about celebrities that I'm interested in, I'm more reluctant when it comes to watching documentaries about myself."

Chen Fang's honesty surprised both of them. It was Duan Ran who spoke up: "It's not really a documentary. It's just a record of daily life, so that the fans can get to know the people they like and their daily lives."

"I know this, but with my current status, it's a bit too high-profile to do this." Chen Fang made a direct assessment, making it difficult for both of them to refute.

At this time, Wu Zi came in. She had just gone shopping at Walmart, and was followed by the two brothers Lu Yun and Lu Jie, as well as Wu Zhen and Sun Lexian.

New Year's Day is also a statutory federal holiday. Some universities have it closed for Christmas as well, while USC has it closed for two weeks. But this is for students. As for Chen Fang, he will have to return to school on the 3rd to start training.

Today is the last day of 16. We gathered together and prepared to have some fun to welcome the New Year.

Seeing a guest coming into the room, everyone stopped laughing.

"They are all my friends." Chen Fang explained, but Sun Lexian's eyes lit up: "Duan Ran!"

Obviously he recognized him, and he hurried over to join in the conversation. His noise interrupted the main topic, and Chen Fang did not stop him. It was Wu Zi who came out and called Sun Lexian away.

Sun Lexian didn't dare to disobey. Ever since Wu Zi said she wanted to introduce him to a girlfriend, Sun Lexian became very submissive. There was no other way. Wu Zi was full of supermodels. In her small circle, any one of them would be top-notch.

Now Sun Lexian knows that he is also a successful person and his standards have become higher. He looks down upon ordinary people.

People are like this; their mentality is always changing with wealth and power.

Finally, no one interrupted. Duan Ran was a little anxious. He patiently explained: "This is not high-profile. It is just a life interview to deepen the character setting. Our TX Sports is also the largest NBA audience platform in China. If we guide you well in the early stage, it will be very helpful to your future."

Before Wang Qi came, Duan Ran reminded him to talk less and listen more.

Seeing that Chen Fang was still frowning, he couldn't help but organize his words and said, "In fact, we also know that you are very low-key and not an outspoken person. It's just that the correct guidance will avoid a lot of misunderstandings. As for the remuneration, we are capped at a maximum standard. As long as you ask, we will fully cooperate."

Chen Fang waved his hand and chuckled, "This has nothing to do with remuneration. I actually have something I want to express, but I originally thought the time was not right. But if you are willing to accept my ideas and plans in their entirety, I might agree."

Duan Ran was refreshed and said without hesitation: "That's even better. We can cooperate. There will be no problem with technical support and later operations."

Chen Fang was quite surprised. He didn't expect that Duan Ran would guess what he just said.

As expected of the person who created the domestic NBA platform, Chen Fang did not hide anything when seeing this.

"This documentary is actually just a gust of wind. If it could be a mountain, a mountain next to the city, it would be even better."

“Everyone who loves basketball can see the mountain when they look up.”

“Just like the NBA, it’s a mountain.”

“And I hope to build a playground in the mountains so that people who like basketball can find some happiness in it.”

Both of them were a little confused after hearing this. Duan Ran asked tentatively, "Do you mean to build a long-term platform to analyze basketball content?"

"That's about it, but I haven't thought it through yet. But the core should be divided into two layers, the outer layer is campus basketball information and reports on future stars, and the inner layer is long videos of professional content."

"Professional content, what aspects?" Wang Qi asked, as this involved his business.

"How to truly improve your skills, all-round, physical, technical, and tactical skills. This column must be certified and the content must also be assessed. It is a bit like a university correspondence course, except that the content taught is basketball-specific knowledge."

Duan Ran showed a thoughtful expression. He didn't expect that Chen Fang was thinking about this. How old is he? Why would he think like this?

"This platform is designed to help people who really want to improve themselves, no matter how old they are, and to teach everyone. But more importantly, it provides a platform for people who want to improve their skills and an ocean of basketball knowledge."

After Chen Fang's explanation, Duan Ran and Wang Qi seemed to be hit on the head and started to think far ahead.

"At present, TX's NBA platform is just a basketball shell, a place to provide information and broadcast games. This is actually too general. I think it still needs a professional core to truly show how to play basketball well."

"I roughly understand it. This is what I want to do, and I also believe that TX Sports has the ability to do it." Wang Qi immediately gave a clear answer.

Chen Fang took a look at the man. He was the first to say that he was the one who truly represented TX Capital, and Duan Ran was just a signboard.

But it doesn't matter. Chen Fang smiled and said, "Director Wang, don't rush to agree, because I have some conditions."

"I'm sorry, I'm really excited by this idea, you say!" Wang Qi also came to his senses and realized that he had shown his impatience.

"This platform should be independent, not on the NBA platform. Then, I need to invest and have the leading power."

Both of them were stunned. First, Wang Qi looked at Duan Ran, who nodded in agreement. So he asked, "Is this for you personally?"

"Company, I have my own company." Chen Fang smiled confidently: "Originally, I was planning to do this myself, but if I cooperate with TX Sports, the progress will be faster."

"Then who is in control...?"

"I don't want others to interfere, because this is very professional content, and it should be operated by professionals." Chen Fang said the word "operate" very slowly.

Their expressions changed, but Wang Qi spoke up again: "So what percentage of the shares do you want?"

"We can discuss this, but in fact, from a market perspective, its benefits will not be great, and the cash-out rate is not high. It is more of a brand power. Of course, if it is done well, it will feed back to the brand influence of TX Sports."

“So I prefer to have a share of more than 3% and have a veto power over major resolutions. In other words, I must have real power on this platform.”

Chen Fang made it clear that he didn't care whether the deal could be reached or not, because time was on his side, and in another year or two, he would have everything he needed.

"Of course, this is just my assumption. We don't need to rush. Whether we can cooperate or not is actually not important. I agree to this routine interview. It will be scheduled for January 1. I will send you my approximate schedule later."

Chen Fang finished his words quickly. He was in a good mood on the spur of the moment, and also because Duan Ran was a person who truly loved basketball, there was a basis for cooperation. In fact, it didn't matter whether it would succeed or not. Maybe it would be more suitable to make it by himself and wait for TX Sports to acquire it.

After all, they are professionals in this field.

But the price won’t be this one by then, and there may be more competitors. Well, Ali Sports is also a good candidate.

After the two of them left, Lu Yun popped up and asked casually, "Isn't it time for you to hire an agent?"

Although Lu Yun misunderstood, it also meant that he didn't eavesdrop, so Chen Fang said, "Don't worry, I don't want to ask a father to come back, I want to be obedient."

"Tsk tsk, he really behaves like a dog!" Lu Yun said sarcastically.

"No dog, my future big boss!"

"Ha, never mind. It's better that we never talk about money again." Lu Yun immediately raised his hands in surrender.

"Don't worry, I will be the one to say this sooner or later." Chen Fang replied meaningfully.

It was Lu Yun's turn to sigh, and it was obvious that he also had a premonition.

So he sighed: "Sometimes, when you are in the world, you have to follow the will of others."

Back to family life, with six people in the house, the feeling is different, very lively and warm. Only during festivals will you not feel annoyed when you hear noisy voices.

If you feel upset, it is probably because you are having a bad time.

In the United States, setting off fireworks is more difficult than setting off guns. The various legal procedures and applications from local communities are extremely cumbersome, and the fireworks that can be purchased are very rubbish, so after all the consideration, I decided to give up.

Lu Yun was still determined to get something, so he asked Lu Jie to make a batch of small fireworks, which he stuck in the soil. They made a hissing sound, smoking and burning into colorful flowers.

Thus, 16 entered 17 with six people counting down in unison and colorful flowers.

16 and 17 may just be one year for many people, but for aging, they are very important.

He exceeded expectations in 16 and reached a new level. At the same time, he also knew that 17 was more critical. If he could perform just like in 16, then by 18 and 19, he would be really awesome.

Yes, Chen Fang thought so. He actually didn’t have any ambitions, but just had some evil tastes.

People cannot live too hard. Although it is true that there is hardship before sweetness, this is no longer an era where you can get rewards for your efforts.

The United States can't do it, and neither can China, let alone other places.

It's enough as long as he has no regrets, so in Chen Fang's heart, he will grit his teeth and persevere, but it won't be like this every day.

Sometimes I think that it makes sense that everyone loves Kobe. After all, not everyone can be as competitive as he is.

What he wants to chase is God, the sun, while 99% of people are more accustomed to the feeling of the sun shining on their bodies.

The story of Kuafu chasing the sun has been passed down to this day, perhaps the core of its spirit is this truth.

Forget about standing shoulder to shoulder with the sun.

Holding Wu Zi in his arms and looking at everyone laughing, Chen Fang raised his glass of white wine. He wanted to thank the Lu brothers, the smugglers, and shouted, "2017, here we come!"

※※※

At 4:30 in the morning, the entire filming crew had woken up. This was a team of five people.

Two cameramen, one responsible for sound and lighting, one interviewer, and one logistical support who can act as a driver and carry equipment.

They arrived at Chen Fang's door on time before 5:30.

Although some people in the group felt that this was unrealistic and more like a show, no one was so low in EQ as to say it out loud.

Someone opened the door for them. It was Chen Fang. He had just gotten up from the bed. After opening the door, he started to wash up.

A cameraman faithfully recorded everything, and the voice-over was by Duan Ran.

Duan Ran asked: "Is it like this every day?"

Spitting out the toothpaste foam, rinsing his mouth and wiping the foam from the corners of his mouth, Chen Fang replied: "When I was still studying in Shandong, it started from this time."

Walking to the sofa, Chen Fang began to change his shoes. Basically, basketball players have three pairs of shoes at first: one pair for walking, two pairs for training, and as for competitions, there are special pairs of shoes.

Basketball players can tell the difference very clearly, just like women putting on makeup, very rigorous.

"At that time, I would arrive at school before six o'clock, and go to the court for shooting practice while there were still 40 minutes left before morning exercises." Chen Fang recalled. In a blink of an eye, two years had passed, and he could only remember sleeping in a few times.

Picking up the backpack that he had packed yesterday, Chen Fang went out.

He drove his car out of the garage, Duan Ran sat in the passenger seat, the cameraman was in the back seat, and the others followed behind in the car.

The streets were deserted, with hardly a car to be seen.

"This reminds me of Kobe." Duan Ran had an association.

"Haha, there's no comparison. He can keep doing this forever, but I've just started. I don't know how long I can last."

"But until the goal is achieved, we must persevere."

Perhaps because it is a documentary, Chen Fang wanted to say more: "In fact, in my opinion, few people would take pleasure in suffering. Most of them are there because they want something, so they hold on to something."

"I really want to sleep in." After saying that, Chen Fang smiled at the camera.

Then, Chen Fang talked about his former teammate Tatum, saying that he took Kobe as his role model and insisted on arriving at the school gym at 5:30 every day. It was a funny thing that when he went to the gym for the first time and saw Tatum, both of them were stunned.

"He will definitely succeed. He is the most self-disciplined person I have ever met. This is the power of role models. Kobe's performance on the court radiates off the court. In fact, there is no need to talk about how many Chinese teenagers who like him have been influenced by him. In the United States alone, there are countless high school students who use him as a model for self-discipline."

Listening to Chen Fang talking while driving, Duan Ran had a very strange illusion, as if the young man next to him was a very grown-up. His tone always made people feel that it made sense and they wanted to believe it.

He speaks logically, talks gracefully and has a natural expression. All of this makes Chen Fang, who is only 18 years old, have a very mature temperament.

The car drove into the campus. Before that, the interview team had applied for registration, and Chen Fang also applied. The school granted the interview team one-day pass to enter the campus.

After parking the car in the parking lot outside the training hall, Chen Fang led everyone to the stadium.

Chen Fang briefly introduced USC's hardware and software and explained their functions and effects. This was also the proper behavior to give back to the school for its support. After entering the stadium, Chen Fang began to change his clothes.

“Warming up is important in two ways.”

"First, it can greatly prevent injuries, and second, it can improve the effectiveness of training." "Warm-up and training should not be separated, the two are combined together."

Duan Ran was very surprised. He didn't expect Chen Fang to explain it in such detail. He immediately thought of their last conversation.

It seems that he was not just talking casually, but had really thought about it.

Chen Fang had already changed his clothes. At this time, three people came in. Chen Fang waved them over and introduced them: "This is my sparring partner. If you want the training to be effective, there must be intensity, and the intensity must be brought by external force."

Afterwards, Chen Fang began to move his joints. He would first introduce each movement, and then leave out the details and explain why he did it that way.

Even Duan Ran was confused by some of what he heard. Yes, although he is a professional in the NBA, it does not mean that he understands the core logic of the sport of basketball.

The interview has not been boring at all. Instead, I feel like I am looking forward to seeing what will happen next.

After the activity, Chen Fang started training with the ball. His training with the ball was not just about dribbling the ball wildly by himself and showing off his skills. It was all close to actual combat. Duan Ran saw that not only was there someone constantly interfering with him closely, but there was also someone on the other side making a surprise attack, which made Chen Fang constantly adjust his dribbling posture and change hands to avoid.

After a few sets, the move was dribbling, and new things were added. A sturdy sparring partner would put an elastic rope around Chen Fang's waist and abdomen, and kept pulling from behind. At the same time, there was another person next to Chen Fang who kept squeezing him and applying a side impact.

The last sparring partner will constantly block in front, requiring Chen Fang to change direction.

This alone left the entire crew stunned. They specialized in sports reporting and had seen a lot of basketball training, but Chen Fang's warm-up training was truly eye-opening.

After finishing, Chen Fang returned to his seat to rest for a while and drink an energy drink to replenish himself. He said to Duan Ran, "I will strictly control the rest time to one minute. Don't let your heart and lungs stop, which will accumulate a lot of lactic acid."

"If you stop and take a break, your muscles will ache, so keeping your muscles warm and active will prevent them from getting sore."

It is incredible to hear these very professional words coming out of Chen Fang's mouth.

Duan Ran couldn't help but ask: "How do you know this?"

"I have received instruction and training from ten trainers. Each of them has a different professional direction. They would first tell me why they did something and then let me train, so I naturally know a lot."

"My life is training, attending classes, and playing basketball. The most relaxing time I remember was when we played in the World Youth Championship. The team had a day off and let us go to the beach to play for half a day. Haha, that was a year and a half ago."

After expressing his feelings, Chen Fang continued with his warm-up training.

Now they started training with the ball. This time, Chen Fang's accuracy shocked the filming crew. Duan Ran watched for a while, took out his mobile phone and started timing to prevent being accused of deliberate editing.

After throwing 100 balls, Chen Fang took a short break. He said to Duan Ran beside him, "I will throw five groups, one hundred each. The first three groups will all be three-pointers, and the last two groups will be free throws."

"Five hundred a day is already a lot." Duan Ran sighed.

Chen Fang laughed: "No, I will cast 1500 a day, this is just an appetizer."

Feeling numb, Duan Ran watched Chen Fang return to the court and continue his shooting training.

His shooting is not that simple. It is all practical. Some people interfere head-on, some people interfere in the backup position, and another one is responsible for passing the ball. Looking at two people holding big sticks to intimidate, Chen Fang was still able to make the shot. Duan Ran understood why he could maintain such a high hit rate on the court.

Time passed quickly and it was already half past seven. The one and a half hour high-intensity warm-up training was over.

Chen Fang wiped the sweat off his body and then introduced the next itinerary.

"Now go have breakfast, then relax and recover. The team will start formal training at nine o'clock."

When they arrived at the school's athlete restaurant, Chen Fang thoughtfully ordered breakfast for everyone. He took his own portion and sat there eating. Duan Ran asked, "Isn't it a little too little?"

"Not too little. We basically eat more meals and less food. We have five meals on training days and three meals on weekdays."

"Today is a training day."

After eating, he went to the rehabilitation center. Special personnel were already in place, and Chen Fang began to introduce the function of each item. Duan Ran was eager to absorb this new knowledge, and he immediately liked this feeling.

This is what real sports people should do. Superficial content is a waste of one's energy.

At 8:40, Chen Fang led the filming team to the main training ground. They would train at the Galen Center on training days. Before entering, Chen Fang still explained: "No filming is allowed when it comes to tactics. I will give a hint, and the camera will be turned off as soon as you raise your hand."

"Don't worry, nothing will go wrong." Duan Ran nodded and assured.

After entering the Galen Center, Duan Ran saw the entire Troy team. Chen Fang's status could be seen from the fact that his teammates took the initiative to greet him and surround him.

Everyone is accustomed to interview teams. In the United States, many future stars have experience in documentaries, and there are people in this team.

Group warm-up training is different from individual warm-up training. It is an important part of team coordination. Groups of two or three people conduct competitive warm-up, including with or without the ball, and getting rid of pursuit. These may seem like games, but they deepen the understanding of each other.

If a team's collective warm-up training is too rigid, it will lack cohesion.

This was the case in China before, and recently they have started to incorporate training games devised by Europe and the United States. Duan Ran naturally knows that football and basketball are both introducing a large number of new concepts and new ideas.

One of the segments includes an interview with Chen Fang’s teammates and coaches.

Duan Ran knew in advance that everyone would say nice things, but he didn't expect it to be so true.

Every person who interviewed was praising Chen Fang, using exaggerated adjectives and very rich expressions, which made Duan Ran want to laugh.

Watching the edited version afterwards, I felt more and more ashamed. They were just speaking from their true feelings. Despite this, they still edited out a few particularly exaggerated lines and scenes.

On the contrary, the content of the head coach Andy was very adoptable. He sat on a chair and did a simple interview: "Chen is the most talented player I have ever seen in my more than 4 years of coaching. He meets the S standard."

"Dynamic and static talent, basketball IQ, willpower, and leadership."

"You know, he has only been in the team for four months, and he has already become the undisputed leader of the team, relying not only on his football skills, but also on his character."

"I'm very confident that he will be a great player, not only in the history of the team, but also in the league."

"Of course, he will go to the NBA, and in a core capacity. I have no doubt about that."

"I've worked in the NBA, and I know the NBA's standards very well. Before I even introduced Chen Fang to my friends, they all called me, wanting to know more about Chen Fang."

"This is Chen Fang, the new commander of the Trojans."

“This position has been vacant in USC for a long time, and now it has its owner!”

It has to be said that Andy's identity and status gave his words enough weight. Duan Ran was moved and felt extremely proud of him.

After warming up, it’s time for fitness and strength training.

Transfer to the fitness center.

Led by the coaches, the players were divided into groups and began a wide variety of strength training, which Duan Ran had never seen or heard of before. Every one of them made Duan Ran feel more professional than professionals.

The strength training ended at 12:. The players took a short break and went to the rehabilitation center to recover, and then went to have dinner at :.

At 1:30 in the afternoon, tactical training began. Even if I didn’t film it, it was a pleasure to watch it from the sidelines.

Of course, this is only true for people who like basketball.

After that, there was an intra-team competition, a big match between Team One and Team Two. Usually this point is the opportunity for Team Two to perform. Duan Ran discovered something very interesting.

Even when Chen Fang led the second team, he was able to interact with the first team, which speaks volumes about one thing.

That is Chen Fang's ability to lead a team, which is indeed very strong.

The team training ended at 4:30 in the afternoon.

Chen Fa was sitting there sweating and gasping for breath. It was obvious that his physical strength was almost exhausted.

During the break, the sparring partner he saw in the morning appeared again. Duan Ran asked in surprise, "There's more?"

"Yes, training at this time is effective. This day, we will rely on the training that follows to produce results."

Chen Fang’s reply was so speechless that the entire filming crew was truly shocked.

They knew that "one minute on stage is the result of ten years of hard work off stage", but after seeing this day with their own eyes, not to mention Chen Fang, all of them were very tired.

You can imagine how hard the training is.

And of the 1000 shots that Chen Fang had mentioned in the morning, the remaining shots began to be carried out.

Obviously, the hit rate is not as incredibly high as it was in the morning, but it is still close to 70%.

When all the training was over, it was already half past five.

Returning to the rehabilitation center again, Duan Ran now feels that this place is more like a charging center where he can recharge when his battery runs out.

At 6:20, the group drove home.

On the way, Duan Ran asked, "Is it like this every day?"

"Almost. I'm a little tired today because it's a training day. Normally I can spare three or four hours to do other things. I have a lot of major and elective courses. At the end of the day, I don't even have time to chat."

"Aren't you tired?" The young lady in charge of sound and lighting finally couldn't help asking.

"I'm used to it. Ever since I decided to pursue a career, I knew it would be tiring, but there's nothing I can do. I chose this path myself, so I have to endure all the hardships."

"I go to bed at 9:15 every day, watch half an hour of video as a reward for myself, and then go to bed before o'clock. Seven hours of sleep is enough. I spend hours a day on training and studying. In fact, this kind of life is very fulfilling after getting used to it."

Duan Ran was speechless about this.

After arriving home, Chen Fang actually started cooking, which again confused the filming crew. Duan Ran even asked, "You always do it yourself?"

"Yes, I always make dinner by myself. In fact, this is when I am most relaxed."

"I quite like cooking." Chen Fang smiled at the camera.

Because there were other people at home, the camera had to be turned off at this time. Chen Fang said, "It's okay, just follow me and don't record other people."

Therefore, the final stage of the filming was to film Chen Fang cooking. It was at this time that Chen Fang became a food blogger and began to share his cooking tips and inspiration.

When the sumptuous dinner was served on the table, the crew finished filming the scene, and this documentary that recorded the one-day display finally came to an end.

Chen Fang walked him to the door and asked casually, "When will this be released?"

"Before the New Year, it should be soon, within two weeks." Looking at Chen Fang, who was smiling despite being tired and wearing an apron, it was hard to imagine that he was the most popular person in Chinese basketball.

"By the way, you should come up with the name of this documentary." Duan Ran almost forgot the most important thing.

Chen Fang thought for a moment and replied, "Light yourself up and illuminate the way ahead."

Duan Ran thought about it and nodded: "I understand."

After saying goodbye to each other, Duan Ran got in the car. They were going to find a restaurant to eat. They were both hungry and tired.

On the way, the cameraman suddenly said with emotion: "It turns out that being a star player requires so much sacrifice."

"No, as a Chinese, if you want to be an NBA star, you need to pay so much!" Duan Ran corrected solemnly.

“I think this is the meaning of this shoot.”

If we Chinese want to play in the NBA, we really need to work twice as hard as others to have a chance of success.

Chen Fang is still on the road. He faces it calmly and persists in an unimaginable way.

Just like what he said in the title, light up your own light and chase your dreams.

So what should we do?

Duan Ran was asking himself.

Deep down, Duan Ran hopes that many aspiring young people, struggling and hard-working basketball players can feel the power of role models from this documentary.

Back at home, Chen Fang was eating very slowly. Wu Zi knew he was very tired and wanted to ask him how his day was, but didn't want to disturb him.

It was Chen Fang who said it himself.

"Today's filming went smoothly. I hope the mother will not feel too sorry for her son after seeing this video."

　Just as my original intention in writing this story, I hope there will be more Xiao Cuis who can ignite themselves and light up the way ahead.

　　I have watched the documentary about Nagaki Kawamura, and the comments section is full of blessings. I really cannot understand why people in my country, who are just as pure, are being blackened.

　　I couldn't understand some people's train of thought until I saw a certain comment and then I suddenly realized it.

　　Do you think they really like basketball? No, they just use basketball as an excuse to vent their resentment towards life.

　　People who truly love basketball will never criticize those who pursue their dreams, they will only give their blessings.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)