The Bulls' training camp will not officially start until mid-September, but Xu Yong is not alone in returning to Chicago.
Because every year before the training camp starts, other players will report in advance.
Xu Yong met those people on the first day he arrived at the United Center training facility.
Several people who participated in the summer league together, Johnson, Gibson and Richard are all here. As newcomers and marginal players, they need to do more than others to get the chance to play in the new season.
However, the appearance of one person surprised Xu Yong.
Luol Deng, one of the King's fierce rivals in the first half of his life and a master of Sudanese basketball, Deng Yingqiao.
A piece of hot knowledge, Deng is actually in the same class as James.
James was the No. 1 high school student in the class of 2003, and Deng ranked second.
It's just that unlike James who participated in the NBA draft after high school, Deng chose to enter Duke University and played for one year before entering the NBA.
Perhaps it is because of his university experience, or perhaps because he was born into a political family (his father was a national minister and deputy prime minister of Sudan) that Deng gave people the impression of being very well-educated and extremely friendly to others.
Even Xu Yong thinks so.
Speaking of which, Deng also won the NBA Ethics Award and the Kennedy Citizenship Award at the same time, which is essentially different from other players with character designs.
Of course, that's off the field.
In the training camp before this training camp, Xu Yong still felt the toughness of this top small forward on the court.
Deng plays tough on the court and is suffocating defensively.
In other words, this is also the first time Xu Yong has experienced the strength of the top defender in the NBA.
That's not just talent, it's the perfect combination of skills and experience.
Although the previous Jordan was also very skilled, at the age of 46, he was incomparable to a player like Deng who was in his prime.
It was difficult for Xu Yong to score in front of him.
But it was precisely because of this that Xu Yong felt excited.
Sunspots say that the summer league is not worth mentioning, but Xu Yong actually knows this better than they do.
This is why he didn't feel proud after scoring 48 points. Instead, he immediately went to Olajuwon to practice his back.
Although he practiced in Tempe for a summer, the defensive level of DeRozan and Harden, and later Butler, was limited.
Those trainings were more about making him skilled in movements. Real improvement will only come from playing against players of Deng's level.
Deng didn't feel much at first, and Xu Yong looked similar to when Rose came to the team last year. He was in good health, but his skills were relatively raw.
But as the training continued, he began to notice that something was gradually going wrong.
Xu Yong’s progress is so fast!
One day, his back-turn layup was destroyed, and the next day, he was able to feint and score a step-back jumper.
That damn feeling of being an experienced baby, even he felt weird.
So much so that by mid-September, Xu Yong was able to match him 50-50 in one-on-one offense and defense.
This is not because Xu Yong cheated, but because he is strong in confrontation, plus he has excellent pull-out and breakthrough skills. After being tempered in actual combat, he can connect these technical movements with his back. It is not like a one-ape chariot turning into a double-column chariot. , took off.
Of course, one-on-one and formal games are two different concepts, because you will encounter flanking and assisting defense during the game.
Those are the keys that really determine whether this technology is successful.
But this was enough to surprise and anticipate Deng.
He has been playing in the NBA for five years, and has long since escaped the category of "young Deng". Instead, he has begun to enter the rising period of his career, which is the time to achieve results.
Last season they lost against the defending champion Celtics in seven games, and the future is worth looking forward to.
As a result, the Bulls sent away two of last season's main players in a summer trade, starting from scratch again.
Even if he is as honest as he is, he will inevitably feel disappointed.
But Xu Yong's performance has wiped away his disappointment.
And there's Gibson.
Although Gibson is a rookie and seems to have no upper limit, he is very mature in all aspects and is an immediate player among rookies.
And he also has a very stable mid-range jumper, so it may be better to have him replace Thomas.
So it is equivalent to Salmons being replaced by Xu Yong. The new season is worth looking forward to.
At this time, the Bulls' training camp officially began. Except for Rose, who would be late due to some ankle injuries, everyone else arrived.
Xu Yong also got a glimpse of the Bulls' lineup.
Then his feeling was, Emmm... I can't say it's average, but it's indeed a hundred million points difference.
At point guard, second-year Rose is the main force, with Hinrich on the bench, and there are also Genero Pago and Chucky Atkins on the bench.
Hinrich was the No. 7 pick selected by the Bulls in 2003, but he never performed well. He became a substitute last season, averaging only 9.9 points and 3.9 assists per game.
As for the two players on the bench, Pago is worth 500,000 to make up the lineup when you play an operational game like Fantasy Basketball Manager.
Atkins was traded to the Bulls in the offseason.
After completing the trade of the second pick, the Bulls turned around and used the expiring contract of a future second-rounder, Don Thomas, to make a deal with the Thunder in exchange for Atkins and Damian Wilkins. Two guys filling out the backcourt.
Then the subject of this deal is actually Wilkins. As a 35-year-old defender with a height of less than 1.8 meters, it is still unknown whether Atkins can stay until the beginning of the season.
However, this configuration is already the best among the Bulls' five positions.
At shooting guard, Xu Yong, like Rose last year, will most likely start directly, and his substitute is the just-mentioned Wilkins.
Of course, this Wilkins is not that Wilkins. He is the nephew of "The Essence of Human Cinema" Dominic Wilkins. He is 29 years old and at his peak.
It's just that the peak height is a bit low.
He was in his fifth year with the Thunder last season, averaging 5.3 points per game on a bad team.
The only good thing is that he is a swingman of sufficient size and plays good defense.
Then, the only one left on the bench is Lindsay Hunter, whom only hardcore fans have heard of, the No. 10 pick, but in 1993.
This guy will be 39 years old in December this year...
At small forward, Luol Deng is the main force, James Johnson will most likely be a substitute, and his competitor is veteran Tim Thomas.
The power forward is the worst, with rookie Gibson and Darius Sangella competing for the starting spot, and Chris Richard, who was retained due to his good performance in the summer league, sat on the bench.
As for the center, last season's bench, third-year Noah, who averaged 6.7 points and 7.6 rebounds per game, will most likely become the starter. Veteran Brad Miller will be the substitute. Sitting on the bench is the No. 59 pick in 2007. Lon Gray, and Jerome James, a famous garbage contract created by the Knicks.
Jordan shook his head when he saw this lineup, and the others ran away with their buckets overnight.
But this is not because Forman is not good, but because the mess left by his predecessor is really bad.
You must know that if we go back three years, the Bulls are still fifth in the Eastern Conference. In the summer, Kobe Bryant at the time was calling for the team he wanted to join.
But in the past three years, except for Deng and Xinrich, who failed to train him, everything else was gone.
After all the talking, a bunch of junk contracts were left behind.
If you take a look at the salary table, you may be able to understand it deeply.
The Bulls' current salary leader is Brad Miller with 12.25 million, followed by Deng with 10.37 million, and Hinrich with 9.5 million.
Among the top three, all except Deng are worthless.
But at least this can still be played. The fourth and fifth players on the team, Jerome James with 6.6 million and Tim Thomas with 6.47 million, are pure garbage contracts.
Then you know, except for Deng, all the Bulls' main players next season are still on rookie contracts.
It's no wonder that outsiders think the Bulls can't make the playoffs. I don't think you did it for the sake of Deng and Rose.
Of course, Xu Yong didn't think so much.
In history, Jimmy Butler can complete the black eight and reach the finals with a group of draft picks and premium contracts. Their lineups are somewhat similar. Even if they can't reach that level, they still have great hope of entering the playoffs.
You must know that the overall strength of the Eastern Conference has been weak in recent years, and there are only a few strong teams.
And he knows that Rose, Noah, and even Gibson are stronger than their seemingly thin NBA resumes.
Of course, the most important thing is that after being able to play 50-50 with Luol Deng in the training camp, he is also looking forward to how he can perform in the real NBA game.
