harleyscars Chapter 840 The world's attention is focused here!
Chapter 840 The world's attention is focused here!
Team USA!
Of course, before they were dethroned from their throne as world champions by the Chinese team, they were also known as the Dream Team.
If you count on your fingers, this year is the Dream Team.
However, all of Dream Team 4 through Dream Team 7 were defeated by the Chinese team...
Well, it wasn't entirely the Chinese team's fault. Sometimes, the Chinese team wouldn't even get a chance against the American team before the American team got beaten by someone else.
In short, the current US team no longer has the face to call itself the Dream Team, including their head coach, Coach K, whose slogan is to make the US team great again, or MAGA for short!
In order to regain face this time, the US men's basketball team and Coach K went to great lengths. They started cultivating and training young players early on, and they were even willing to lose some games in major international competitions in order to build a truly powerful and invincible team.
The US team began using new players in 04, and by the 06 World Championships in Japan, they had undergone a major overhaul, selecting 12 young players under the age of 25 to represent the US team.
At that time, USA Basketball president Colangelo made an unprecedented move, signing contracts with all players who wanted to join the national team for the first time in history.
So if you want to represent your country, then no problem. If you come this time, then for at least the next two Olympic cycles, you must come to every competition whenever the country needs you!
In short, Colangelo is no longer blindly piling on big names, nor is he selecting players based solely on reputation and resume. He wants to build a stable, strong, and perfectly cohesive team! He has realized that the US team can no longer simply send out 12 players and win the championship as it has in the past.
He realized that the world basketball scene is developing rapidly. In addition to the Chinese team as the ultimate opponent, there are more and more top teams in the world, and more and more teams that can compete with the American team.
This is the Olympics with the largest number of participants in China's history! Their goals, of course, need no further explanation.
Dominate the medal standings!
As the Chinese team entered the stadium, almost every camera position immediately focused on them, continuously filming all the athletes and staff from various angles, directions, and distances.
After providing a full panoramic view, almost all the cameras once again changed direction in unison, aiming at the person at the very front of the Chinese team, head held high, holding the red flag.
This person is none other than Lin Tian!
In an instant, the entire stadium erupted in cheers, with the audience screaming Lin Tian's name wildly, which then turned into a unified roar of "MVP!"
Lin Tian is the world's number one basketball player and the king of the 100-meter race. He absolutely deserves the title of "the world's number one athlete"!
He is no longer just a player, but a cultural icon!
It represents China, basketball, and of course, the NBA!
He has the popularity!
During the few minutes that the Chinese team took to the field, almost all of the more than one hundred broadcasters around the world focused their cameras on Lin Tian.
Facing the camera that was stubbornly refusing to leave, Lin Tian held a flag in one hand, waved with the other, and gave a warm smile.
Countless girls and gay men were struck by this, leading to loud screams and frenzy.
In those few dozen seconds, Lin Tian's smiling face was recognized by the whole world once again, and the eyes of the whole world were focused on his face!
In just a few dozen seconds, Lin Tian gained countless more fans in the blink of an eye.
After all, in the world of athletes, his face is absolutely unbeatable!
If you add to that his tall, straight figure and the air of nobility that comes with a well-fitting suit, then he's a man who appeals to all ages and genders!
Then those who didn't know Lin Tian or didn't recognize him quickly opened Baidu, Wikipedia, or other encyclopedias to search, and saw Lin Tian's physique, his invincible achievements on the court, and his madness and bloodthirstiness in fighting.
What a tyrannical young nobleman!
It's so appealing!
Even more people like him now!
But while the fans went wild, Lin Tian just wanted to curse.
He's used up all his poses.
The cameras just wouldn't move, and he couldn't just stand there dumbfounded in one position. He also couldn't hand the red flag to someone else, so he had to hold the flag in one hand and make gestures with the other. His options for actions and poses were even fewer. In just a few dozen seconds, Lin Tian had used up all the poses he could think of. If the cameras didn't move soon, he would have to resort to abstract poses.
Fortunately, just when Lin Tian felt his face was about to freeze from smiling, perhaps he finally remembered that this was the Olympics and not his personal show, or perhaps he finally remembered that there were many other elements to film, the cameras on site slowly moved away, and Lin Tian finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Even he was somewhat nervous during that scene.
After all, this is a moment that truly represents the image of the entire country, which is completely different from the situation on the basketball court.
Thankfully, it's all over!
The Olympic Games opening ceremony has come to a perfect end!
The Chinese men's basketball team can rest for another day. Their opening game of the Olympics will start on August 10th!
Their first opponent is Argentina, a strong team in the Americas!
The group assignments this time were basically the same as the one Lin Tian remembered.
The only difference is that China was placed in Group A, while Iran, the other Asian team, went to Group B.
The specific teams in Group A are as follows: Argentina, Russia, Lithuania, Australia, Croatia, and China!
Group B: Iran, USA, Spain, Angola, Greece, Germany!
Overall, the group is fairly balanced. China's Lithuania and Argentina are both strong contenders for medals, while the United States, Spain, and Greece on the other side are all recognized top powerhouses.
The groupings on both sides can be considered fairly.
Several of Hebei China Fortune's opponents in the group stage were opponents they had faced in warm-up matches, and Hebei China Fortune had defeated them all.
Their first opponent, Argentina, once defeated the United States. Argentina's golden generation, composed of players such as Ginobili, Scola, Nocioni, and Delfino, is currently at its peak!
The Argentinians have been holding back for a long time and have long been determined to give the Chinese team a head-on blow. They want the world to know: Argentina is not only good at football and tango, but also at basketball!
"The Argentine team should not be underestimated. This group of players all came from the same training camp, and they've known each other since they were 7 or 8 years old, growing up playing together. Their teamwork and chemistry are arguably the best in this tournament!"
Before the match against Argentina, Jonas once again earnestly advised his players. He is a typical old-school European coach, and meticulousness and strictness are his hallmarks. So even though he has said these words countless times, he still has to repeat them one more time before the game!
"The Argentine team, like us, also employs a dual-core strategy, with Scola at the power forward position being their core inside player. Aside from his mediocre physical attributes, this guy is practically maxed out in every other attribute!"
"His ability to attack the basket, his footwork, his strength, his mid-range jump shot, his face-up drives, and his playmaking are all outstanding! When defending him, the most important thing is not to jump! Yi Jianlian, when you're matched up against him, remember that too, don't jump!"
"This bastard is all about feints. His footwork is definitely among the best of all the interior players in this Olympics. Remember, let him shoot directly, don't jump! Because jumping will at least result in a foul! If you don't jump, he'll only score 2 points at most!"
"Then there's their absolute core, Ginobili, who's also Lin's old buddy! This guy who once led his team to defeat the US team is practically a carbon copy of Scola, with the same kind of feints all over his body, and his physical attributes are also quite outstanding!"
"Defending against those two will be extremely difficult! But if you can contain them, you'll essentially shut down the entire Argentine attack!"
"The last one we need to be careful of is Argentina's sixth man, Delfino. This guy is a striker who goes on erratically. When Argentina is in trouble, he comes on and starts a furious attack."
"Sometimes he can pull the team out of a predicament and turn defeat into victory, and sometimes he can turn a team's predicament into a dead end! He's definitely a double-edged sword!"
"In short, apart from these two guys, the rest of the Argentine team is nothing to fear! They can compete with us in tactics, positional play, and teamwork, but we're not afraid of them at all, do you understand?"
"clear!"
"Do you have confidence?"
"I have confidence!"
"Our goal is!"
"Gold medal!" (End of Chapter)