In the next few days, Zhou Quan trained with the national team.
He not only conducted tactical drills for the national team, but also conducted his own shooting training as usual. The coaching staff arranged for three training partners to pick up and pass the ball for him.
The members of this men's basketball team include Shan Tao, Liu Yudong, A Dijiang, Gong Xiaobin, Hu Weidong, Ji Mingshang, Sun Jun, Zhang Jinsong, Wu Qinglong, Wu Naiqun, Zheng Wu, and Zhou Quan.
He came here once last year and invited them to dinner once, so he knew most of them.
Among this group of people, he felt that there were indeed a few good people, such as Hu Weidong, whom Liu Yumin mentioned many times, as well as Sun Jun, Liu Yudong, Gong Xiaobin and others.
He and Hu Weidong are about the same age, more than two years younger, and they get along well with each other. He has been living in the men's basketball dormitory in the past few days and shares a room with Hu Weidong. He knows that Hu Weidong not only has mild myopia, but also has more severe astigmatism. He is a half-blind man on the court, and his shooting depends entirely on his touch. This makes him admire this guy very much.
On the 25th, Zhang Lili came over and invited him out for dinner.
During the meal, Zhang Lili accidentally mentioned the house. He currently lives in his parents' house at Qinghua University. It is a bit small and inconvenient. He wants to buy a commercial house in the capital.
"I have been working as a commentator for the past two years and have saved a little money. If I don't buy it now, the money will be spent later and I won't have a house. I just decided to buy one."
"Is it enough for me to lend it to you?" He asked immediately knowing that Zhang Lili had little money.
"It's close. My parents can get me some," Zhang Li said with a smile.
"Brother Zhang, if you say so, I also want to buy one. Can you recommend a suitable house?"
Zhou Quan thought that he would inevitably come to the capital in the future, so he might as well buy a house here. There was no shortage of money anyway. Houses in China were very cheap now and there was no property tax, so he discussed it with Zhang Lili.
However, Zhang Lili suggested: "Xiao Zhou, if you have money, why are you buying a commercial house? It's not about the sky or the ground. If I want money, I will buy a courtyard house, which is down-to-earth. It's great!"
"Siheyuan?"
He thought for a while and asked, "Is there any for sale?"
Zhang Lili said: "Yes, from the Forbidden City to the Second Ring Road and the Third Ring Road, it is all in the old city, and there are many of them. I heard the day before yesterday that someone sold a one-door courtyard of his house for more than 100,000, just in the Second Ring Road.
If you have money, buy bigger and better quality ones. You can't buy it in Prince Gong's Mansion. There are many other courtyards with three entrances and three exits. They are generally this type of courtyard.
The first and second steps are the courtyards of ordinary people. There are also some in the fourth quarter, where dignitaries used to live. There are not many Baylor Palace and Prince's Palaces in the Fifth Entry, and there are not many in the entire capital. "
Zhou Quan asked curiously: "When did you enter the Prince Gong's Mansion you mentioned?"
Zhang Lili laughed and said: "That one is not for sale. He Kun's mansion used to be a cultural relic. It used to be thirteen in and thirteen out, but now it should be seven in and seven out. It covers an area of nearly one hundred acres."
Zhou Quan also laughed and said: "Okay, Brother Zhang, you are a local, help me find out if there is a good yard, the kind that can be lived in, and does not require major repairs, I want one."
It doesn't matter how many times you come in or how many times you go out. You can help me negotiate the price. I don't know the market price, so I'll give you an agency fee of five points. "
"It's a deal?" Zhang Lili said happily.
"It's a deal." Zhou Quan nodded.
On August 27, the men’s basketball team arrived in Toronto, Canada.
The men's basketball team's group opponents include the United States, known as the second dream team, the South American champion Brazil, and the European powerhouse Spain.
Let’s not mention the second dream team. Brazil and Spain are both very strong. The men’s basketball team is not sure about any of them and can only fight hard. There is no second way.
The opponent in the first group is Brazil, and the men's basketball team is particularly lacking in confidence.
Because just a month ago, at the Friendship Games in Moscow, the men's basketball team had just been defeated by the Brazilian team, losing by 49 points.
But the reason why they lost by 49 points was because of Jiang Xinquan's plan. He hid several main shooters in order to confuse the Brazilian team.
Therefore, in this World Championship, the men's basketball team has only two tasks. The first is to defeat the Brazilian team, and the second is to advance out of the group stage because of Zhou Quan.
On September 1st, the men’s basketball team’s match against Brazil begins.
Liu Yumin and Jiang Xinquan were both nervous because this was Zhou Quan's first game with the national team and they didn't know how it would turn out.
NBA rules are different from FIBA rules. Although Zhou Quan played under international rules in the NCAA, after three years of playing in the NBA, they are definitely not suitable for international rules. They are mainly worried about this.
The biggest differences between the two rules are: First, there is no zone defense in the NBA, and the biggest limitation of zone defense is to break through with the ball. Zhou Quan is a point guard who breaks through with the ball, so the zone defense will definitely suppress him greatly.
Second, international basketball is very strict about walking, wrist turning, and physical contact, especially physical contact. Zhou Quan is used to the strong confrontation in the NBA and is prone to fouls.
In fact, their worries were right. Zhou Quan received three fouls in the first half, including an offensive foul and two violations, one for walking and one for turning his wrist.
But Zhou Quan still relied on his strong overall strength. In the first half alone, he made 7 of 10 shots, 2 of 4 three-pointers, and 4 of 4 free throws. While scoring 20 points, he also sent 7 assists and 3 steals. One shot was blocked, but there were 4 turnovers and 3 fouls.
But the men's basketball team still relied on his performance to lead the opponent by 14 points at halftime.
After the first half, Liu Yumin and Jiang Xinquan were relieved.
In the second half, Zhou Quan continued his efforts and scored 13 points, 7 assists and 2 steals. In the second half, he had only one foul and no mistakes.
Under his leadership, the men's basketball team defeated the Brazilian team, won by 19 points, got a good start, and completed the first task of this World Championship.
"Lao Hu, you played well. I will play in the NBA with you in the future."
After the game, Zhou Quan praised Hu Weidong who scored 21 points.
Among his 13 assists, 4 came from Hu Weidong's fast break scores. The fast break cooperation between the two was quite good.
When Hu Weidong heard this, he suddenly became excited.
But he soon became frustrated, because unlike Zhou Quan, he was trained by the provincial team and the national team. If he wanted to go to the NBA, he had to be like Ma Jian and sneak away at all costs, otherwise the national team would not tell him. The provincial team will not let him go.
Moreover, Liu’s mother single-handedly put him into the national team and trained him with all her strength. How could he just walk away like Ma Jian?
"By the way, Zhou Quan, how is Ma Jian now?" he asked.
When he asked, everyone else looked over.
Zhou Quan said: "He played at Detroit Community College for two years, and this time I got him to go to UCLA. It depends on his ability. He wants to participate in the NBA draft next year."
"Do you think he has a chance?" Hu Weidong asked.
Zhou Quan thought for a moment, shook his head and said: "His performance is average, so no scouts pay attention to him, at most he will be at the end of the second round."
The meaning of his words was very clear, and there was little hope, so Hu Weidong's desire to go to the NBA dropped a little.
At the beginning, Ma Jian's ability was good in the national team. Now three years have passed and it is difficult for him to be selected by the NBA. Then he might as well stay in China. The CBA is almost done. He will probably start playing next year and stay in China. It shouldn't be bad either.
…
The men's basketball team's second group stage opponent is the Dream Team II.
This Dream Team, because David Stern hopes to show the NBA to the world, has sent different stars from the Dream Team, all of which are new faces.
They are Larry Johnson, Shawn Kemp, Joe Dumars, Alonzo Mourning, Steve Smith, Dan Mulley, Kevin Johnson, Reggie Miller, Derrick Coleman, Mark Price , O'Neill, Wilkins.
The head coach was Don Nelson, the current head coach of the Warriors.
The night before the game, the men's basketball team held a tactical meeting, and everyone participated.
"Xiao Zhou, we don't have information on these people. You should know something about them, right?" Jiang Xiquan said at the beginning of the meeting.
"Okay, let me talk about it."
Zhou Quan nodded and said: "Larry Johnson is a power forward. Although he is not tall enough, he is strong. He can make a good turnaround jump shot after getting in. He has good skills at the basket and low post offense."
Having said this, he smiled again: "I know him best. The No. 1 pick in 1991 entered the NBA the same year as me. We were also tied for the best rookies that season."
He didn't say anything else, such as the conflict with Larry Johnson.
Then he introduced: "Sean Kemp is known as the number one ferocious player in the NBA. His physical fitness is very strong, he can jump and dunk well. Against him, our inside line will inevitably be blocked and dunked.
And he also likes to make some provocative moves after dunking. You should pay attention to this and don't be irritated by him. But if he goes too far, I don't mind teaching him a lesson. "
When he said this, strange looks appeared on the faces of Liu Yumin and others. They all thought of some of Zhou Quan's identities, such as the executioner in ice hockey and a professional heavyweight boxer.
Zhou Quan continued: "In addition, his mid-range shot is also good. He is not only someone who can only dunk. He is also good at catching the ball and carrying the defender into the penalty area, completing dunks or throwing small hooks. His skills are very comprehensive. .”
"It seems like they are very strong inside!" Shan Tao became worried when he heard this.
"Where are we now?" Zhou Quan laughed.
"Is there a more ruthless character?"
The expressions of Shan Tao, Liu Yudong, Gong Xiaobin and other inside players changed.
Zhou Quan laughed: "Alonzo Mourning, the second overall pick in 1992, averaged 20+10 per game and 3 blocks per game. In just two seasons, he became a famous top center in the NBA. The top four super centers are just shy of each other. If he were a little taller, he would definitely be the fifth super center."
A few people from Dan Tao look at me and I look at you, but they have no interest in talking anymore.
Liu Yumin knocked on the key and said: "Don't worry, everyone, we have to retain our strength in the match against the US team. Our task is not them."
When she said this, everyone relaxed.
Zhou Quan laughed and said: "There is a powerful center behind him. The No. 1 pick in 1990 is also a 20+10 player, no worse than Mourning."
"Is there anything more powerful?" Shan Tao asked, breaking the jar.
"Yes." Zhou Quan smiled.
"besides?"
Shan Tao almost bit his tongue.
Zhou Quan laughed: "O'Neal, the No. 1 pick in 1992, often dunked on rebounds and ripped off the basket. In just one year, he became one of the four super centers, whether it was Mourning or Coleman. , you can’t stand out in front of him.”
"The backboard was dunked? Is that still a human being?" Hu Weidong and others' eyes widened.
Shan Tao's several inside players shook their heads and lost interest in talking.
Zhou Quan smiled and said: "They are also good on the outside. Reggie Miller is my UCLA alumnus and is good at defense, breakthrough scoring, three-pointers, and trash talk.
Joe Dumars was my teammate in the Pistons. He was one of the core perimeter players at the time. He was a better defender than Reggie Miller and was more capable than Miller.
Dan Marley and Kevin Johnson have been the Suns' defense partners for many years. They have good offensive and defensive organization. Kevin Johnson could even compete with Magic Johnson in his peak period.
Mark Price is good at organization, and Wilkins is one of the four great flyers as famous as Jordan. He is called the essence of human movies, and his dunks are very good. "
At the end, he concluded: "In short, Liu Chu said it right. Our target is not them, but we really can't defeat them."
He didn’t know that he alone could defeat this second dream team. This second dream team had no weaknesses and was super strong inside. Anyone who came up could defeat them alone. The same was true on the outside. There was nothing they could do to break through the three-point defense. No, even if he can defeat the No. 1 position, he will lose all the other four positions.
…
On the 3rd, the men’s basketball team welcomed the second dream team.
"Hey, Iron Fist."
In the player tunnel, the Chinese and American teams met. When they saw Zhou Quan, Joe Dumars, Reggie Miller, O'Neal and others greeted him one after another.
Zhou Quan responded one by one, saying that only Auntie and Yuren in the second dream team had a bad relationship with him. The others were not good friends and their relationship was not bad either.
In the end, the men's basketball team lost this game, 85:105, a loss of 20 points.
Zhou Quan played 30 minutes and scored 31 points, 6 rebounds, 11 assists, 5 steals, 2 blocks, 2 turnovers and 3 fouls. He was the leading scorer, assist leader, and steal leader in this game.
On the 5th, the men’s basketball team welcomed the Spanish team.
In this game, Zhou Quan once again scored 30+, sent out 12 assists and 6 steals, leading the men's basketball team to defeat the last group stage opponent, and entered the knockout round with a record of two wins and one loss.
This is also the first time that the men's basketball team has made it out of the group stage, ranking eighth in the world at the bottom, making history.
Domestic media were excited and shouted that this men's basketball team is a golden generation.
In the knockout stage, the men's basketball team's first opponent is the Canadian team.
In the game, Zhou Quan faced 20-year-old Steve Nash.
Nash was selected for the Canadian national team in 1993 and is now the main point guard. He has been exposed to various sports since he was a child. He has played football, basketball, and ice hockey. He is also a three-time world chess champion. He is currently at Santa Clara University in the NCAA.
For Zhou Quan, the NBA Finals FMVP, the future Son of the Wind is still too young, and Nash was completely blown away and turned into a scum.
Zhou Quan scored 37 points, 10 assists and 7 steals on Nash and his two substitutes, causing them to commit a total of 14 turnovers. As a result, the men's basketball team defeated Canada, advanced to the knockout round, and then went one step further to reach the semi-finals.
In the semifinals, the men's basketball team faced the Russian team, a strong European team. Zhou Quan tried his best, but unfortunately still lost the game.
In the last game, the men's basketball team competed with Croatia for third or fourth place.
In the end, the men's basketball team finished fourth.
Although he was only fourth, he has made history repeatedly, so Zhou Quan's first trip to the national team was still very successful.
After playing in the World Championships, he returned directly to Seattle to continue his shooting training.
…
(End of chapter)
