Yao Ming has a very easy-going personality and high emotional intelligence.
Although it was the first time that Zhao Chen met him, there was not much of a barrier between the two and they quickly became familiar with each other.
To Zhao Chen's surprise, the most people in Dayao Restaurant were not Asians, but Latinos. According to Dayao, the restaurant managers, chefs, and waiters here are all Mexicans.
There are a few Chinese, but not many.
The reason is that Latino wages are cheaper…
Most people in Yao Restaurant no longer speak Chinese, and they mainly speak English.
The layout of the restaurant is great. There are many photos of Yao Yao and NBA stars. Chinese elements can be seen everywhere and hidden in every corner.
Roast duck, dumplings, fish, beef...
Entering the private room, there are very exquisite dishes on the table, which are quite Jiangnan and Cantonese style and have pure southern Chinese taste.
"Brother Yao, the food here is good." Zhao Chen commented after eating some.
Hearing Zhao Chen's praise, Yao Ming smiled bitterly: "This place is almost going bankrupt."
It turned out that Yao's Restaurant could still continue to operate when Yao Ming was still playing in the NBA. However, after Yao Ming retired, his reputation naturally declined, and Yao's Restaurant no longer had free advertising every day, so it was inevitable that it would continue to decline.
Zhao Chen did not delve too much into this topic, and the two chatted about life in the NBA.
Zhao Chen also learned what Dayao was mainly busy with after retiring.
Family, studying, taking over the CBA team Shanghai Sharks, and waiting for a job appointment from the Basketball Association.
Dayao was very vague when he was working in the Basketball Association, but Zhao Chen knew that the position of the top leader of the Basketball Association had already been decided.
At the end of the dinner, Dayao asked Zhao Chen: "Xiao Chen, have you ever considered joining the national team in the near future?"
Hearing this question, Zhao Chen thought about the current situation of the national team during this period.
The national team is going to be included, it’s just a matter of when.
The Chinese men's basketball team has experienced a long trough since the 2008 Olympic Games. Six years have passed, but there is no sign of returning to the top.
In the 2009 Tianjin Men's Basketball Asian Championship, the Chinese men's basketball team was controlled by Guo Shiqiang, and all national first-team players such as Yi Jianlian and Wang Zhizhi participated. There was only one goal, which was to regain the championship and reshape the men's basketball team as the dominant player in Asia.
The Chinese team played very easily in the group stage, but in the rematch, the Chinese team had many problems.
After passing the danger, the Chinese team's problems broke out collectively in the final, and they lost to the Iranian team 52-70.
This game set four shameful records, namely the lowest score in a single quarter (10 points in the first quarter), the lowest score in a half (25 points in the half), the largest losing margin in the Asian Championships (18 points), the first Losing the championship at home...
After the game, the "joking scandal" between Sun Yue, Zhu Fangyu and Du Feng was also revealed.
Under tremendous pressure, coach Guo Shiqiang resigned.
Then, in the last group match of the 2010 Turkey Men's Basketball World Championships, since the Chinese team had already qualified early, Deng Huade sent young players on the field for training purposes.
The result triggered a massacre, and the Chinese team lost to the host Turkey 40:87.
40 points is also the lowest score for the Chinese team in official international competitions.
In the six years since 2005, the Chinese team has missed the championship. This is the first time in the history of the Chinese men's basketball team's Asian Championships.
You know, after missing the championship in the 2007 and 2009 Asian Championships, the Chinese men's basketball team's dominance in Asia was questioned for the first time.
In this context, the Chinese men's basketball team entered the 2011 Asian Championships. Failure to win the championship would be a failure. After passing all the tests, the Chinese men's basketball team met the Jordanian men's basketball team led by Douglas and Abbas in the finals.
The game was very close. In the first half, the Chinese team was still 5 points behind. The situation was very serious. However, in the second half, the Chinese team gradually turned the situation around under the leadership of Yi Jianlian. Yi Jianlian scored 25 points and 16 rebounds in the game, and used free throws. Helped the Chinese team to narrowly defeat Jordan 70-69. With a complete victory record, it once again stood at the top of Asian basketball six years later and won a ticket to the London Olympics.
In the 2012 London Olympics men's basketball group stage, the Chinese men's basketball opponents were Spain, Russia, Australia, Brazil and the United Kingdom.
Forget about losing to Spain. When facing Brazil and the United Kingdom, the Chinese team lost to their opponents 59-98 and 58-90 respectively. They lost all five games in the group stage.
The Chinese men's basketball team finally ranked 12th, the lowest ranking in the history of the Chinese men's basketball team in the Olympic Games. After the London Olympics, Deng Huade was dismissed.
On April 25, 2013, the famous Greek coach Panagiotis Yannakis officially became the new coach of the Chinese men's basketball team.
In the 2013 Asian Championships, the Chinese men's basketball team lost to South Korea, Iran and Chinese Taipei in Manila and missed the top four of the 27th Asian Championships.
This means that the Chinese men's basketball team has the worst record in the history of the Asian Championships since 1975, and it also misses the opportunity to qualify for the 2014 World Cup in Spain.
On February 8, 2014, the Chinese Basketball Association confirmed Gong Luming as the head coach of the Chinese men's basketball team...
"I've been busy with the playoffs recently and haven't thought about this issue yet. Brother Yao, when do you think it's appropriate for me to join?" Zhao Chen replied after thinking.
Zhao Chen does not hope that his joining will affect Dayao's appointment as the top leader of the Basketball Association in the future.
No matter how many keyboard warriors and gossips try to criticize Dayao, Zhao Chen feels that Dayao being the leader of the Basketball Association is a good thing for Chinese basketball.
There is no other basketball player in China who has more experience and vision than Yao.
Now Zhao Chen's influence is too great, and the butterfly effect will be great. If he rashly takes sides, it will easily change the progress of some things.
Dayao said: "You can join whenever you want. This is your right."
Seeing how confident Dayao was, Zhao Chen no longer had any worries.
Zhao Chen said: "Okay, then when the national team needs me, I will join."
Dayao said: "Haha, in fact, small events don't need you. Young people in China also need to exercise."
Dayao doesn't want Zhao Chen to make the same mistake as him and consume himself for some unnecessary games.
….
After Zhao Chen chatted with Dayao, what struck him most was the difference in structure and vision.
As a retired All-Star who has fought in the NBA for many years, Dayao no longer looks at issues from the perspective of a player.
He spends more time thinking about how to help the development of the entire country’s basketball foundation, private sector, and CBA league.
After talking about the national team, Dayao also complained about some troubles to Zhao Chen.
For example, the selection issue of Shanghai Sharks Club.
Zhao Chen said: "Brother Yao, you can set your sights on CUBA. There are so many there, and there should be some good seedlings among them that can be cultivated."
Nowadays, most domestic clubs are reluctant to use college players, and it is still an undeveloped treasure land.
Zhao Chen's words opened up Yao Ming's thinking.
Yao Ming continued to ask: "What do you think of CBA integrating with CUBA in the future? Let's also hold a draft..."
Zhao Chen said: "Of course, I fully support it."
This is the future route, and the development is not bad.
Zhao Chen and Dayao talked a lot at this dinner.
