Jack, you’ve changed.
Jack, you’ve changed.
“Jack’s ball-handling habits and rhythm are also very good.
He pays attention to protecting the ball when dribbling, and even if the defense can’t stop him, he doesn’t forget to protect the ball.
The sense of rhythm is also good…”
DeRozan, paying more attention to details, said with a bit of a heavy heart, although his buddy’s ball-handling skills were still not considered good, they had already shown to be better than his own.
Tatum thought about it, and it was true!
He looked to his left, the top middle schooler in Southern California, glanced to his right, the late-training but amazingly talented scholar from Hidden Mountain…
Geniuses are so annoying!
“But Jack, you’re playing way too solo, I’m wide open and you don’t pass.”
Jack had to find some trouble to feel thrilled.
Who was it that had turned into a cheerleader just now, shouting “Jack go go go” and urging him to keep on playing solo?
However, he was used to the quirky temperaments of these two friends.
Now that he was happy, he wouldn’t retort.
Right now, he was in the joy of ‘grinding for days and finally leveling up.’
His approach to ‘frying fish’ today was simple: take a step to the side, start, burst in, go for a layup or a dunk.
Since the 11th, he had started to adjust, and over the past dozen days, he had gradually gotten used to the new dribbling habits.
His ball-handling level had also improved a lot compared to before the 11th, and he could dribble smoothly in non-confrontational or light-confrontational situations.
The biggest improvement was in his initial move, the way Nash taught him to use power, making full use of his body more than before.
He considered Nash to be the true ‘master of body utilization,’ who could make his six-foot-three frame, incapable of dunking, work wonders.
The learning over that week was immensely beneficial to him.
In addition to the progress in dribbling itself, ‘Wind Child’s Basic Dribbling Rhythm’ was activated on Thursday, and he considered that day to have laid a solid foundation for his ball-handling.
The changes brought about by ‘Wind Child’s Basic Dribbling Rhythm’ were very obvious.
When doing crossover moves and starting moves, he felt he had better control over his body and the ball.
Of course, if Zhang Yang were to try fancy dribbling or in-front-of-the-body crossovers now, if he sped up, he would still put on a show of tripping over his feet.
But for things like receiving the ball in the open and cutting in, he was confident.
He felt that the effect of ‘Wind Child’s Basic Dribbling Rhythm’ hadn’t been fully exploited yet.
Skills that required ball-handling, such as step-back shooting and stop-and-pop jump shots, could definitely benefit from it, and these two practical scoring skills were in his technical development plan.
But the learning sequence for these two skills would have to be delayed.
Taking into account the actual experience from the last game, the role he played on the team, the actual level of his ball-handling and shooting skills…
and other real-life considerations, he was ready to develop that one move first.
Zhang Yang said to Tatum, “Carmelo, lunch isn’t for a while, let’s practice fast breaks together.
You’re good at that, and I could learn from you.”
“Sure!” Tatum agreed without hesitation.
That’s right, all men love to teach others.
Not to mention someone asking for guidance; even if others didn’t ask, he enjoyed giving unsolicited advice, be it playing games, chess…
DeRozan’s eyes bulged with surprise.
Jack, you’ve changed!
You used to learn from me, and now you’ve got another dog!
Is it just the fast break?
okay, the Kobe of Compton High School isn’t really that good at pushing the fast break.
DeRozan went to the next court and made four fadeaway jump shots, missing three, using the music of Los Angeles to soothe the sadness of being ‘abandoned’ by his buddy.
Tatum and DeRozan currently are not compatible; the three of them are nearly the same height, which isn’t suitable for playing together.
DeRozan’s speed in initiating fast breaks isn’t particularly outstanding, based on the actual situation of last week’s game.
After establishing a sound foundation in ball handling, Zhang Yang decided to learn how to push the pace himself.
Tatum’s ability to lead fast breaks is exceptional and he teaches with great enthusiasm.
He wants to compete with DeRozan in everything.
He had seen DeRozan teach Zhang Yang how to drive to the basket, and Zhang Yang learned well; Tatum wouldn’t be satisfied unless he taught even better.
Leading a fast break, overall, isn’t difficult—there are just a few key points: controlling the ball over long distances, dodging defenders mid-stride with change-of-direction moves, and the rhythm of abrupt stops and explosive starts over long distances…
When it comes to learning ability, Zhang Yang indeed has talent.
In just over half an hour, he had understood with his eyes and felt he had learned with his brain, it’s just a pity his hands wanted to hammer his brain and his feet wanted to kick it.
When lunchtime arrived, Zhang Yang stopped learning and grabbed a couple of burgers with the two others.
Then they returned to the practice court for a bit more practice until 1:30 PM, when the reserve team gathered for tactical training.
The reserve team didn’t have much time for joint practice—just two to three times a week.
There was one session on Thursday afternoon, and sometimes one in the morning and one in the afternoon on Saturday, or just one in the afternoon, like today.
This was because the starting team had team training in the morning, and the tactical coach Burke had to attend to them, leaving the reserve team with just the afternoon session.
During Thursday’s training, Zhang Yang was in high spirits.
The four teammates in his group were all willing to listen to him.
Tactics weren’t difficult to grasp; their runs were much smoother compared to last week, and the learning progress had noticeably accelerated.
But today his mood wasn’t great.
What was the meaning of constantly changing his teammates?
Did the assistant coach with the sour face really treat him as a tactical utility player?
Johnson, standing to the side with an expression so stern it could sour milk, felt inwardly joyful—the court commander was indeed effective!
He had originally expected the players to be able to use a few simple tactics normally by the end of the entire preseason.
Now, with Jack on the team, he estimated that time could be cut by at least half!
He didn’t blush at all; this was also a way of training the students’ command abilities, wasn’t it.
The next day, at 2 PM, Allen Sports Arena, the Compton High School reserve team kicked off their warm-up game against the main team of Temple City’s Saint George High School.
Saint George High School’s strength ranked among the bottom few in this year’s Southern California league, a school that insisted on competing in California’s second-tier league for the sake of prestige.
Whether in terms of the players’ individual skills or team cooperation, Saint George High School was far behind Freedom Park College.
After the start of the game, even though Compton High School was still not doing well in team positioning, they managed to dominate the opponent solely through Tatum and DeRozan’s turn-taking in isolation plays.
When Zhang Yang substituted for Tatum, Compton High School’s tactics also came into effect, and the score gap quickly widened.
Crushing the opponent effortlessly, Johnson wasn’t surprised; Saint George High School was precisely the kind of team he and Burke discussed last week, one that Tatum alone could break through, suitable for county-level competitions.
Today, the team executed tactics better than last week, which was normal since this week’s reserve team’s combined practice sessions had a much better training effect than the previous week.
But what was the deal with their court commander?
He saw that Zhang Yang tonight was doing a lot more ball-driving and pushing fast breaks!
The other players might not have noticed, but Johnson saw right away that Zhang Yang had gone from last week’s ‘tactical supporting role’ to becoming the second main offensive option!
He hadn’t arranged for this; clearly, it was an adjustment someone made on their own.
This kid was actually ‘seeking private benefit using his authority’!
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