Ever since the schedule came out, Zack's daily life had been a true reflection of sleepless nights, loss of appetite, and a general disinterest in food.
At times, Zack even suspected he was suffering from some kind of mental illness.
Because lately, as soon as he fell asleep, images of David Lee, Al Horford, and Joakim Noah would immediately pop into his mind.
Regarding this, Paul, who had a similar experience, told Zack, "To be honest, last year, before we played Illinois, all I could think about was Deron Williams."
Hearing this, Zack smiled and said to Paul, "But we're different, Chris."
Paul, puzzled, asked, "What's different?"
Inside the training gym, after retreating a safe distance, Zack said, "Chris, what you were thinking about then was probably how not to get completely dominated by Deron Williams."
"But what I'm thinking about now is how I can absolutely crush those talented big men on the Gators team."
Paul: "..."
Zack's "we're different" that day was like a heavy punch, slamming hard into Paul's chest.
For a moment, Paul felt like his heart was about to shatter.
Unfortunately, even if the truth was as sharp as a knife, Paul's broken heart still couldn't overcome Zack's subsequent sweet talk: "Of course, I was talking about you last year."
"Believe me, Chris... if it were you this year, even Jason Kidd and Steve Nash would have to call you the God of Point Guards."
After a pause, Zack added, "If you don't believe me, I can swear on my idol, Michael Jordan."
As Zack's closest teammate at Wake Forest, Paul, of course, knew that Jordan was Zack's only idol in this life.
So...
Even if I admit I'm not as good as you say, since I'm that good in your eyes...
"Don't worry, when we play the Gators, I'll keep feeding you the ball like crazy."
That day, to become the God of Point Guards in Zack's mind, Paul clenched his fists on the training court and said this to Zack.
Although he eagerly awaited the game, in September of that year, Zack had an even more important task:
—To spend time with his parents, who had traveled a long way to see him.
Originally, Kent and his wife planned to visit Zack in the US during the summer.
However, since Zack had to undergo Grover's grueling training during the holidays, after some discussion, the couple postponed their visit until after Zack started his junior year.
Compared to when he first transmigrated, Zack was no longer as resistant to "his" parents.
Especially after exploring memories and understanding how much "his" parents worried about "him"...
Zack had privately expressed his emotion for these parents more than once with the phrase "the selfless love of parents."
On the day he met his parents, as he watched his parents, who were much shorter than him, rush into his arms, Zack felt a mix of emotions and couldn't help but shed tears.
Then, Zack spent several hours helping "Zack" cover up lies.
Kent and his wife had no doubts about this.
In fact, what truly surprised Father Kent and Mother Shuki during this meeting was Zack's completely different demeanor compared to the past.
"They say a girl changes a lot when she turns eighteen, and our son has been alone in America for so many years, so how could he not have changed?"
In addition, Kent and his wife found Zack's much stronger physique compared to when he first went abroad to be incredibly unbelievable.
After all, the husband was a little over 1.8 meters tall, and the wife was around 1.7 meters...
"How did we give birth to a Shiyu who can lift a tripod?"
"Bah, bah, bah, Shiyu is unlucky! Do you want your son to commit suicide at River in the future?"
"Ah, indeed, good flowers don't grow in greenhouses. Look how independent our son has become since he went out on his own? Hey... wait, is he cooking for us?"
That day, watching the pork chop rice Zack personally made for them, Kent and his wife almost swallowed it with tears.
Of course, besides Zack's personal changes...
Kent and his wife were also very curious about Zack's stories, which had become legendary in hometown.
To make "his" previous lies more convincing, Zack specifically found Evans and helped Evans contact a translator.
This allowed his parents to learn about the experiences and changes of the two Zacks over the years from an outsider's perspective.
The eloquent Evans quickly won over Zack's parents.
When asked why The New York Times report said Zack had turned over a new leaf, Evans casually replied, "Hey, that's how it is in America. No matter how famous you are as a basketball player, you have to have your own story."
"Qin is no exception, because without a story, how do you attract fans and reporters?"
And when asked if Zack really had a chance to be the number one pick in the NBA Draft, Evans went into great detail: "You have no idea how amazing your son is right now."
"Let me put it this way, in North Carolina, if you ask about a person, the first one people think of is definitely Zack."
"He's the pride of Wake Forest, and the number one star in Winston-Salem."
"Honestly, I think you need to be prepared... because Qin is definitely your country's second Yao."
Next, Kent and his wife also asked Evans if Zack had a girlfriend in the United States.
Seeing this, after some calm thought, Evans decided to assist Rachel by saying, "He has a very beautiful girlfriend. That girl has excellent grades and a good character. You wouldn't believe it, when Zack successfully pursued her, all the male students at Wake Forest University wished they could duel him!"
Hearing this, Kent was shocked and asked, "They didn't do anything to my son, did they?"
Evans laughed, "With Zack's physique, who would dare to truly duel him? Don't worry, Zack is a respected star player at Wake Forest."
In short, after Evans's various embellishments...
Kent and his wife not only gained a new understanding of the current Zack but also deeply realized what kind of changes their family was about to experience.
Time quickly passed, and it was November of that year.
Originally, after accompanying Zack in Winston-Salem for a while, Kent and his wife had planned to return to to avoid affecting Zack.
"Even if you're going back , there's no rush right now. You should at least see how I play basketball in America before you leave, right?"
After spending this time together, Zack clearly knew how eager his parents were to see their son. In fact, if it weren't for "that incredibly scoundrel" trying to avoid "his" previous lies from being exposed, how could this couple have only reunited with their son in America today?
Therefore, considering the many hardships this couple had faced in the past, Zack insisted on keeping them there.
On November 8th, Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
With the explosive home music blaring, the Demon Deacons officially kicked off their 04/05 season.
For this game, in addition to being televised, many well-known figures were also in attendance.
On the court, sitting in the row behind the Demon Deacons' bench was none other than Wake Forest's former legend, Tim Duncan, who could freely enter and exit the arena.
"Duncan... is he talking to my son?" In the stands, Kent, who also watched the NBA, turned to Evans and asked with surprise.
Through the translator, Evans told Kent, "Tim is Qin's senior, and he's always been very fond of Qin."
"What are they talking about?" Kent asked curiously.
Evans shrugged, "How would I know that?"
So now the question is, what were Duncan and Zack talking about?
"I've been in a bad mood lately," Duncan said with an extremely wronged expression, making eye contact with Zack.
Hearing this, Zack, knowing that Duncan was in a bad mood because he had lost in the playoffs last season and then suffered a setback with the US men's basketball team in Athens that summer, smiled and said, "So... Senior, is there anything I can do for you?"
Duncan scrutinized Zack and said, "I remember you majored in psychology."
Zack nodded.
"I'm sick, can you take a look?" Duncan said.
Zack: "..."
I have to say, talking to Duncan...
It really requires a lot of imagination.
Because you never know what topic this guy will discuss next, or when he'll tell one of his dry jokes.
"Wait... is that Michael Jordan?" In the stands, Kent, whose gaze had temporarily left Zack, almost simultaneously saw the figure of that man.
Seeing this, Evans also said with shock, "That really is Michael Jordan! Oh my God, why is he here tonight?"
Why was Jordan at Wake Forest's home game?
Inside the arena, shortly after Jordan's appearance caused a stir, Charles Barkley also appeared beside Jordan.
And in another part of the stands, Lynn Merritt, looking at the big names who were gradually appearing that night, smiled and said, "It seems we're not the only ones interested in Qin's future."
Beside Merritt, Sonny Vaccaro shrugged and said, "The emergence of a天才 player always attracts worldwide attention; it's common knowledge in the basketball world."
After a pause, Vaccaro added, "But to be worthy of such attention, Qin must also deliver a corresponding performance in this upcoming game."
Merritt nodded, "Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown."
On the court, the players of both teams who were warming up also noticed the unusual nature of the upcoming game.
During warm-ups, Al Horford, who was arranged to start by Gators coach Billy Donovan tonight, had already secretly glanced at Wake Forest at least three times out of the corner of his eye in the past few minutes.
Seeing this, David Lee gave his junior a kick and said, "Focus on yourself, Al."
Beside him, watching the embarrassed Horford, Joakim Noah seized the opportunity to mock, "Al... if you're really that afraid of Qin, I can ask the coach to let me pair up with David."
Seeing this, Horford said with a wronged expression, "But that's Qin... People say he's a hot favorite for next year's number one pick."
His gaze followed Horford's complaint to Zack. Although Noah was also startled by Zack's solid muscles...
But after calming down, the next second, Noah still said to Horford with a trembling voice, "What's there to be afraid of? I... I'm not... I'm not afraid of him!"
At this moment, Horford chose not to argue with Noah.
Because from the other party's constantly dodging eyes, Horford had seen through everything.
It turned out that Ira Berkow's previous article in The New York Times indeed had a huge impact.
Compared to his obscure self last year, Zack now only needed to casually dribble the ball a few times during warm-ups to intimidate the freshmen on their opponent's team tonight.
Especially when Zack walked towards the Florida Gators' half-court as he had envisioned before the game...
Suddenly, all the players on the Gators team instinctively huddled together.
At this moment, looking at the Gators, who looked like they were facing a formidable enemy, Zack, who just wanted to say hello, smiled and said, "Don't be nervous, I'm just here to say hello. Have fun tonight..."
"And then, who's going to be the first one to die on the court later?"
As Zack's gaze swept around...
Facing such arrogant Zack, no one on the entire Gators team dared to make a sound.
"Forget it, no matter who comes to die... remember to tell him to give it his all, because I've been preparing for this game for a long time." After saying this, Zack returned to his own half-court without looking back.
The Gators, left in disarray by Zack, stood foolishly in place, looking at each other.
Until Noah was the first to realize there was no wind in the indoor basketball arena, "Are we just going to watch him provoke us like this and do nothing?"
Hearing this, David Lee's expression remained unchanged, "If you're unhappy with his provocation, then respond to him with your performance on the court."
In David Lee's opinion, Zack probably didn't take the Gators seriously at all.
But so what?
"His provocation will only lead to his own downfall," David Lee said to his juniors after a pause.
However...
Contrary to David Lee's thoughts...
Zack's provocation tonight wasn't because he didn't take the Gators seriously.
It was precisely because Zack knew the quality of this Gators team that his always outwardly reserved but inwardly flamboyant heart pushed him to provoke them.
In Zack's eyes, this Gators team was absolutely worthy of a massacre.
A massacre to test the results of his own progress!
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