The NBA's Absolute Dominance

Chapter 19 Monster-like Physical Test Data
On May 11th, at 8:5 AM, Tang Bei arrived at the hotel lobby, ready to board the officially arranged bus to the Chicago Stadium.

John Liu was beside him; Eric Fleischer had just arrived earlier.

Before long, the rookies arrived in the lobby.

Jim Jackson, Tom Gugliotta, Lafonso Ellis, Robert Horry, Anthony Peele, Wolf Williams, Latrell Sprewell, Joan Barry, Todd Daye, PJ Brown, and many other college stars who performed well in the NCAA are among them.

Not only are there NCAA rookies, but also players from the CBA, such as Tang Bei, and Mark Davis, the scoring champion of the Cats and Birds team who played in the finals with Hai.

The total number of invitees exceeded seventy. The rookies were not familiar with each other, or even knew each other. They were also competitors in the draft, and with the rookie camp about to begin, they were all a bit nervous. So, they didn't greet each other much. Although there were many people, the lobby was very quiet.

Chinese people are an anomaly among white and black people, and with their giant physiques, Tang Bei stands out among the rookies. Every rookie who arrives will glance at him.

Even most of the rookies didn't know who Tang Bei was, and were very surprised that a yellow-skinned person would appear here.

"Is that Asian person Korean or Japanese?"

"They might be Chinese."

"Who knows him?"

“I know him. He’s not from the NCAA, but he played in the CBA. He’s probably Chinese.”

"God, Chinese people can play basketball?"

His appearance sparked some discussion.

Mark Davis naturally saw Tang Bei. As Tang Bei's primary target for help defense, he had suffered a lot under Tang Bei's command, so he didn't greet him.

"Humph!"

Christine Lightner arrived and couldn't help but snort angrily when she saw Tang Bei.

His right cheek was still somewhat red and swollen after a night of treatment, and several of his teeth were loose, which made him hate Tang Bei even more.

But he already knew Tang Bei's ruthless methods and that retaliation would not be delayed for even a second, so he dared not cause trouble in person again and did not want to experience the taste of being slapped again.

Mo Ning arrived without greeting Tang Bei. The two spent the night in the same room, barely exchanging a word.

O'Neal arrived late and didn't greet anyone. He listened to music and swayed his head, appearing very relaxed compared to the other nervous rookies.

At this time, numerous agents, NBA scouts, and general managers gathered at the Chicago Arena.

In addition, to increase the influence of the NBA draft, the organizers also invited many influential media reporters, as well as three television networks: NBC, ABC, and ESPN.

At 9:02, the bus carrying the rookies arrived at the stadium entrance, where a large number of waiting reporters rushed forward.

"Crack, click, click..."

The most popular were Kristen Laettner and Shaquille O'Neal, as well as Alonzo Mourning and Jim Jackson, among others, with reporters following them around taking photos and conducting interviews.

This was the first time Tang Bei had seen so many reporters and cameras, and he couldn't help but marvel at the vast difference in influence between the NBA and the CBA.

Although many NBA team general managers know him and have even watched him play, he has little media recognition, so no reporters interview him.

After following the crowd for a while, we entered a dimly lit, curved corridor. After walking for a while longer, the space suddenly opened up, and we could vaguely hear voices in the light.

As Tang Bei stepped out of the passage, he saw a huge stadium.

There isn't an indoor stadium this big in Tianjing. He had been to the Beijing Capital Gymnasium once, and it was about the same size as this stadium.

At that moment, Eric Fleischer walked over and said, "Don, all the general managers of 27 teams have arrived. Do your best."

Under Fleischer's guidance, Tang Bei completed the registration and application process, officially joining the United Rookie Camp.

The physical fitness test was conducted on the first day, and the data from that test will become the official data later.

The largest crowd gathered to watch O'Neal's physical test; general managers from all the teams went over.

First came static talent, then dynamic talent; as O'Neal's stats came out one by one, they drew waves of admiration.

It was already afternoon when it was Tang Bei's turn. It seemed that many general managers of NBA teams had come over, and they moved to whichever physical test Tang Bei was going to do.

Not all general managers came; for example, Lakers general manager Jerry West and Magic general manager Williams didn't come. "Are they crazy?"

Seeing so many NBA general managers surrounded by fans, Christine Laettner was not only surprised but also extremely resentful.

The agent next to him quickly reminded him, "Kerry, keep your voice down."

The other rookies also found it strange that so many general managers and fans would be watching the Chinese man's physical test.
“Standing reach: 9 feet 5 inches (2.87 meters).”

"God, just like Shaq O'Neal."

"Vertical vertical jump of 85 centimeters."

"How is that possible? Onic is only 80 centimeters tall."

"Running vertical jump: 101 centimeters."

"God, O'Neal is 91 centimeters."

"His approach jump was 15 centimeters longer than his vertical jump, which shows that he is really fast and has super explosive power."

"Maximum bench press: 510 pounds."

“Incredible, O’Neal weighs 420 pounds.”

"40-yard sprint in 4.46 seconds".

"God, O'Neal just had 4.6 seconds."

"Am I right? This Chinese guy has such a good running jump, he's faster than O'Neal, and his explosiveness is definitely stronger."

"God, yet another monster has appeared."

As Tang Bei's statistics were released one by one, the general manager and fans' eyes lit up and they paid more and more attention, and now there were bursts of discussion.

"Crack, click, click..."

The reporters who had previously paid no attention to Tang Bei started snapping photos of him.

Only O'Neal looked a little dark, muttering to himself, "Why do you guys always compare yourselves to me?"

He was very surprised as it was the first time he had encountered a tall person with similar physical abilities to himself.

Christine Lightner and Alonzo Mourning were equally surprised and even reluctant to believe the data they heard.

Among the crowd, Lakers general manager Jerry West was somewhat regretful, regretting leaving the arena that day.

He was attracted by some of Tang Bei's data. Although he disliked Chinese people, as the general manager, he could not ignore Tang Bei's talent.

"Is he that talented?"

Magic general manager Pat Williams also came over, for the same reason: as a professional general manager, he couldn't ignore Tang Bei.

After completing all the physical tests, Tang Bei has become one of the most watched rookies in the stadium, and reporters follow him wherever he goes.

That evening, the benefits of Tang Bei participating in the rookie camp became apparent: his story appeared in the evening sports news on three major television stations.

ESPN reports: "Tang's athleticism is on par with Shaquille O'Neal, which would guarantee him a first-round pick. Whether he makes the lottery depends on his performance in rookie camp."

NBC reported: "Tang has no NCAA experience, and the CBA playoffs are too low-level, which will greatly affect his draft prospects, but a first-round pick is worth it."

ABC News reported: "If Tang is drafted, he will be the first Chinese player to enter the NBA."

TNT reported: "Tang played 8 games in the CBA playoffs, causing 8 opponents to leave the game due to injury, averaging one opponent injured per game. His offensive power is astonishing, demonstrating his superb physical strength."

On the 12th, Tang Bei's name and photo appeared in reports from major media outlets.

He played in the CBA playoffs, and the combined attention and buzz from those eight games was far less than that from a single physical test at a rookie camp.

(End of this chapter)