After the Warriors and Timberwolves reached a deal, Zhao Feiyang did not stay any longer. Perhaps completely disillusioned with the city, he packed his bags and headed to Minnesota the next day.
Minneapolis, the city where the Timberwolves are located, is relatively remote. The average temperature there is very low, even lower than that of Toronto. It spends most of the year in ice and snow.
More importantly, Taylor, the owner of the Timberwolves, is stingy and is reluctant to spend a lot of money to build the team. The management is also relatively mediocre. Even if they once got some good cards, they were ruined under their arrangements.
Such a team fundamentally does not have the strength and ambition to win the championship.
Even if the team lineup is not considered, it will be difficult for them to compete for the championship.
Several hours of flight made Zhao Feiyang exhausted. By the time he arrived in Minneapolis, it was already evening. Originally, the Timberwolves called and said they would send someone to pick him up at the airport, but after Zhao Feiyang got off the plane, I waited here and there in the cold wind, but no one from the Timberwolves was there.
So he could only set off on his own to the apartment he had rented in advance.
After settling in the apartment, Zhao Feiyang was able to lie on the bed and rest. However, as soon as he lay down, the other party called.
"Hey, where are you? We're getting ready to go..."
"Oh! God! I've already arrived at the apartment... Fortunately, I didn't wait in the cold wind for too long, otherwise I would have been frozen to death..."
"Sorry, we remembered the wrong time..."
Zhao Feiyang hung up the phone helplessly.
When he first arrived in this city, he felt twice as cold as here.
If it was just "cold" in terms of temperature, Zhao Feiyang wouldn't think it was anything, but this ignored "cold" was what disappointed him.
Through small things like picking up people, it can be seen that the Timberwolves' management does have problems.
After a night's rest, Zhao Feiyang finally regained his strength.
By noon, after lunch, he rushed to the Target Center Arena, the home of the Timberwolves.
Before arriving there, Zhao Feiyang called and contacted the other party's management in advance. This time, there was no further delay. When he got out of the car, the Timberwolves' general manager Philip Sanders was already at the arena. Wait for him at the door.
What's interesting is that the team's general manager, Philip Sanders, is also the team's head coach and one of the team's minor owners.
It can be said that he wears many hats.
"Zhao, welcome to Minneapolis."
"How does it feel?"
Philip Sanders is an old man who is nearly 60 years old. He has a lean face and looks very serious when he has a straight face. Even if there is a slight smile on the corner of his mouth, he still gives people a serious feeling.
He took the initiative to shake hands with Zhao Feiyang and patted Zhao Feiyang on the shoulder.
"There is only one feeling, that is, it is very cold..."
What Zhao Feiyang said seemed simple, but in fact it was a double entendre.
Of course Philip Sanders heard it, and just smiled, "The climate here is like this. You just came here, it must be difficult to adapt... It doesn't matter, you will get used to it if you stay here longer." You will fall in love here... I promise you..."
The two of them entered the arena as they talked.
After the procedural handover in the conference room, Zhao Feiyang also proposed to go to the training hall to take a look. Phillip Sanders readily agreed and even took the initiative to lead the way to the training hall.
After arriving at the place, Zhao Feiyang was simply shocked.
There was no one in the training hall. There were only three or four players training on the court. The venue facilities also looked old, and some places had not been cleaned at first glance.
The entire training hall is not big, so of course it is enough, but the gap will undoubtedly become clear when compared with other teams.
Especially compared with the Lakers, Zhao Feiyang even felt that this place was a bit too shabby.
"Where are the people?"
Zhao Feiyang asked blankly.
Phillip Sanders didn't have any strange emotions. Instead, he said calmly, "It should be...it hasn't arrived yet! It's nothing... today is the weekend, even if everyone takes more rest It’s not surprising at all, the team has just played two away games recently...”
"We have a cold climate here, so training usually takes place at noon or afternoon. If it's difficult to travel due to bad weather, you can also ask for leave from the team..."
Philip Sanders' words caused Zhao Feiyang to fall into silence for a moment.
The other party thought that Zhao Feiyang was very satisfied, so he took the initiative to ask, "How is it? Our conditions are very good, right? No team in the NBA can be like us... We will not be too harsh on the players." Our training...it's very free here..."
"Of course, we will not let the players go crazy. There are training volume targets every month, and this must be completed..."
Zhao Feiyang and everyone were dumbfounded.
No wonder the Timberwolves have an average record and have been at the bottom in recent seasons. After playing for so long this season, they have lost many more games than they have won.
Not to mention the icy and snowy weather conditions, with this kind of team atmosphere, it is indeed difficult for people to have the desire to win.
This place is more suitable for living or retirement.
It's no wonder that some outstanding players gradually become mediocre after arriving here. The impact of the general environment on people is too great, and an environment that is too comfortable is not suitable for people to struggle.
"There is a game tomorrow. If you want to participate, you can participate tomorrow... Of course, if you want to take a day off, you can also ask for leave from the team tomorrow..."
Philip Sanders' words left Zhao Feiyang speechless.
If he has played in the NBA for many years and wants to relax at the last moment of his career, then it would be a good choice to hang out here.
But he is in his second year in the league, and in his limited career time, dawdling is definitely not an option for him.
"It's okay, I will participate..."
Soon, the next day's game day arrived.
In the evening, Zhao Feiyang entered the gym early for training. This is a habit he has always had and was developed with the Warriors.
Most players will arrive an hour and a half early to take advantage of the time to warm up and shoot more balls to get a feel for the game.
However, when he arrived at the locker room, he realized that he seemed to be early.
There was no one in the locker room.
Zhao Feiyang didn't think too much, put on his coat and went to the infield to warm up. But after he entered the infield, he discovered that no fans in the arena were there. There were only a few staff on site, and the entire arena was almost empty.
If this were held in Los Angeles, fans would have already entered the stadium by this time. Even if the number was not large, these people would come in in advance and find ways to interact with the players to ask for autographs or take photos.
But here, it looks completely different.
"Maybe it's just the weather!"
Zhao Feiyang sighed heavily, and then practiced shooting alone.
