Versatile Point Forward

Chapter 93 Minnesota Journey

Pritchard's news is very well-informed. Indeed, a team with a higher draft pick has begun to contact Duffy, hoping that Ye Feng can come to participate in his individual trial training.Timberwolves general manager Kevin McHale was the first to call Duffy's cell phone. This former Celtics champion member seemed to have regained the decisiveness and shrewdness he had in the Celtics. He sincerely expressed the hope that Ye Feng could go to the Target Center for trial training.

However, he also clearly told Duffy that he is very interested in Kevin Love, another potential rookie of UCLA. Although the team already has Jefferson as an inside killer, Love's shooting And coping ability still fascinated him deeply.Of course, he had little interest in Westbrook, because he felt that Foye was good enough to be the team's starting point guard, not to mention Marbury's cousin Telfair was sitting on the bench.

Duffy knows that now is not the time to bargain. In the draft year, no rookie can grasp the capital of the team. This may be a relatively sad thing in the year when potential new stars emerge in endlessly.After asking Ye Feng and Love himself for their opinions, he agreed to McHale's invitation.Ye Feng was originally irrelevant, since Duffy thinks that the Timberwolves are more suitable for him, there is no harm in going for a trial training. As for Love, he has no objection, and is also very excited because he can go to Minnesota with Ye Feng .

According to industry rules, Duffy readily bought air tickets to Apollos, Minnesota for the two of them.Duffy never saves money like this, not only because he has a good attitude towards his players, but also Ye Feng and Love will give him ten times, hundred times or even a thousand times in return in the future. , The round-trip air tickets for two people are nothing.However, in order to handle related matters for the two new clients, Duffy also bought himself a ticket on the same flight, and was going to accompany them to the Target Center, taking this opportunity to find out what the Timberwolves management said.

The Target Center was built in October 1990 at a cost of US$10 million and can accommodate 1.04 spectators.In addition to the Minnesota Timberwolves, the WNBA's Minnesota Lynx and the LFL's Minnesota Valkyrie also call it their home.The property rights of the arena are owned by the Minneapolis City Government, operated and managed by Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG), and named by Target Corporation.The arena also has 20444 club seats and 702 luxury suites, which are mainly used for family shows, concerts, sports events, graduation ceremonies and private affairs.

The arena was originally built and owned by the Timberwolves. In 1995, the city of Minneapolis purchased the arena ownership and handed over the management of Ogden Entertainment (Ogden Entertainment). In 2000, SFX Corporation (later changed to Clear Channel Entertainment ) to take over the operating contract. In 2004, the operator was changed to Midwest Entertainment Group, a joint venture between Timberwolves and Holland Concert.By 2007, AEG signed the right to operate the arena.

In 2004, the Target Center underwent a large-scale renovation, replacing all 19006 seats and adding nearly 1500 seats, and the on-site facilities and equipment were also updated.According to the arena website, the floors are the only two movable floors, making the renovated arena closer to fans and more suitable for various events.The Target Center can be converted to a 2500-7500-seat theater known as the U.S. Bank Theater.The theater incorporates a movable floor-to-ceiling curtain system, allowing the show to be changed based on specific venue needs.In addition to concerts, the Bank of America Theater is also used for family shows and Broadway performances.

The appearance of the arena seems to have nothing to do with sports, more like an office building of a bank or government department.Ye Feng and Love, who had just arrived, were not very surprised by this arena. You must know that the Staples Center is located in the same city as UCLA, and they have also played in this home of the Lakers and Clippers.But what made them secretly happy was that the Timberwolves obviously gave them extremely high treatment. General manager McHale and head coach Whitman specially waited for their arrival at the entrance of the arena. This pair of rookies who have not yet entered the NBA It's already a VIP reception.

However, from the expressions of the two, it can be seen that it was McHale who made the decision. This tall white man had a gentle smile on his face, and even looked at Ye Feng and Love with a bit of blaze in his eyes.Although he paid more attention to Love, it was only because he seemed to see himself when he was young. He was also a well-rounded white insider. McHale felt that Love looked like himself.

As for Whitman next to him, he just twitched the corners of his mouth. If you didn't look carefully, you would think he had a poker face.But it’s not his fault. The Timberwolves’ record of 22 wins and 60 losses last season is indeed a bit embarrassing, but he doesn’t think a rookie can change the status quo of the team. Being able to come to the gate of the arena and wait for two rookies who are about to participate in the draft is already a Give McHale face.According to his thinking, with this time, it is better to go back and study the team's tactical system.

Neither Ye Feng nor Loew felt restrained. After all, they had met many big shots when they followed the UCLA Bruins team.After the two sides exchanged pleasantries for a while, they walked into the arena together. In fact, McHale couldn't wait to see the performance of the two of them in the trial training.First of all, of course, was a series of physical tests. Love's test results were quite satisfactory, but Ye Feng surprised the Timberwolves' team doctor.

When McHale got Ye Feng's physical test report, he was also stunned, his eyes couldn't help but glance at Ye Feng, who was gulping down a sports drink and panting slightly from time to time.From the physical test report, it is difficult to see that Ye Feng is a yellow race: He is 2.07 meters tall with shoes on, 2.03 meters tall naked, with a wingspan of 2.21 meters and a standing height of 2.78 meters. His body fat content is only 7%. For a professional player who has not accepted For those who train the system, this is already quite excellent data.In addition, several data reflecting bounce, speed and strength have also reached a very high level.

When handing over the physical test report to McHale, the team doctor couldn't help but said to him: "I seem to have seen a monster. If I hadn't seen him with my own eyes, I really couldn't imagine that this kid is an Asian. Many blacks are not as good as him." Strong physical fitness. Judging from this physical test report alone, we will not suffer a disadvantage in choosing him, because he has a high probability of becoming another superstar!" McHale smiled and said: "Thank you for your suggestion, I will considerate."

Of course, the communication between the two should avoid Duffy and Ye Feng himself. It is not so easy for the team's internal news to leak out.And as a veteran who has been in the league for decades, McHale knows very well that a player's physical fitness means nothing. There are many perverted physical fitness in the history of the league, but not everyone is Leave your name in the long river of history.How to make good use of their physical fitness, how to give full play to their advantages in the game, and how to help the team and teammates become better are the things they should think about, and it is also the foundation of their standing in the NBA. Physical fitness cannot last long by eating.

He returned to the reception room, smiled apologetically, and said to Ye Feng and Love: "Can you please change your jerseys? Next, we need to conduct shooting and confrontation tests." Ye Feng and Love smiled at each other. This is their favorite test project, because Ye Feng is the initiator of the shooting craze for the entire UCLA team, and as his roommate, Love received the most guidance and made the most progress.How could Duffy on the side not know the true strength of these two guys?As he was calculating, he imagined McHale's surprised expression later.

In fact, McHale was even more surprised than Duffy had imagined. In fact, it has become a habit to hit the iron in NCAA games. Many teams can only score 35 to [-] points per game, not only because of the [-]-second attack time, but more Or because the basic shooting skills of college players are relatively not so good.However, the performance of Ye Feng and Love was completely beyond his expectations. How could Love miss a few shots, and his performance on large two-pointers and three-pointers was also unsatisfactory, but this is also related to his It was related to the position, but Ye Feng made everyone's eyes widen.

Whether it's a three-pointer or a mid-range shot, whether it's a catch-and-shoot or a dribble shot, Ye Feng's movements and expressions are always the same, and the basketball also goes into the basket exactly the same.Of all the people present, only Love knew that Ye Feng had entered a unique state of his own. In this state of shooting, he could maintain a super high shooting percentage like a shooting machine. Taking advantage of the trial training rules, defenders may rush to you at any time during the official game, trying to interfere with every shot you make.

However, Ye Feng's shooting still blinded the eyes of a large number of people. His super-fast shooting speed and extremely smooth body movements all indicate that this is a natural shooter, and he can be transformed into a player almost as long as he adapts to the defensive strength of the NBA. Immediate combat power, a shooter who can open up space is always one of the goals the team is chasing, and the priority is quite high, especially for a team like the Timberwolves whose outside firepower is simply scum.

McHale was very satisfied with Ye Feng and Love's performance, but he still pretended to be mysterious and said: "Next, there is a big gift for you two boys, I hope you don't let me, an old man, down!"

(End of this chapter)