Chapter 409: Two Heroes Meet
Yang Mo came to Madison Square Garden and was going to practice shooting to warm up for the evening game. But as soon as she touched the basketball, she found that her hands were extremely sore, which was obviously the sequelae of tennis training. The aftereffects came too quickly.
There was no other way, Yang Mo had to find a physical therapist to massage and ice the team, and stopped the pre-match training. Fortunately, the opponent tonight was not very strong. As the perennial rotten ship of Los Angeles, this year they did not get any better than before, but became even worse. The No. 1 pick who was obtained by playing badly last year also announced that he would be out for the season early. This year, it seems that they are heading for the draft again.
Yang Mo slowly fell asleep under the massage of the physiotherapist. When he woke up, it was almost six o'clock. He didn't know why he slept so soundly, but after waking up, he found that his arms were not so sore. It seems that this sudden sleep has a restorative effect on the body.
After coming out of the physical therapy room, Yang Mo went straight to the competition venue. At this time, his teammates were seizing the time to practice together, and Isaiah Thomas was chatting and laughing with Karl Malone and Stockton on the sidelines. Yang Mo was about to go over to say hello when he found a large group of people coming through the player channel. The person walking in the middle and being surrounded by them was Tracy McGrady, who was dressed casually.
Yang Mo stopped, walked forward, took the initiative to shake hands with McGrady, and politely said welcome to join the Knicks.
Yang Mo's enthusiasm seemed to be a little bit reduced, but McGrady was particularly cheerful. After shaking hands, he took the initiative to hug Yang Mo and praised loudly, saying: "The way you blocked LeBron was very much like my style when I was young."
Forehead……
Yang Mo was slightly surprised when he heard this. He thought about it and thought, we have two completely different styles, okay? You play with the elegant style, but I play with the berserker style.
Although she was surprised, she still had to give him face, so she quickly smiled and said, "When I was in middle school, I imitated your pull-up jump shot very much. Now that we are teammates, you must teach me well."
"Haha!" McGrady laughed very cheerfully. He liked this kind of compliment very much, which could show his seniority and status in the industry. After laughing, he patted Yang Mo on the shoulder and said, "I'll give you some advice."
Yang Mo smiled and nodded, then led him to Isaiah Thomas. When they got there, Thomas, as the general manager, also shook hands with McGrady enthusiastically, expressing his welcome to him.
At this time, McGrady discovered the existence of the Utah duo. He was quite surprised and quickly greeted the two seniors. Yang Mo also took the time to greet Karl Malone. Karl Malone patted Yang Mo on the shoulder and said in a very approachable manner: "Little guy, I have watched two of your games. I remember your strength very clearly. It is very strong. I believe that with my help, your ability to control the restricted area will be improved to a higher level."
"Strength training should be postponed. Let me work on my passing skills first ." Stockton said quickly. He didn't want Karl Malone to cut in line, and when teaching apprentices, he also had to follow the first come first served principle.
"You teach your passing and I teach my positioning, and there's no delay." Karl Malone retorted with some fighting spirit.
"He doesn't have the energy to practice other things right now. What if he is distracted by practicing your skills and your passing skills fail?"
"Then learn mid-range and positioning first. He already has the basics, so it will be easier for him to get started."
"Why? Can I come first?"
"I've wanted to come here for a long time..."
Seeing the two arguing like this, Yang Mo was a little surprised. He had always thought that the Utah duo were good brothers who stood together, but he didn't expect that they would also quarrel. Looking at Isaiah Thomas next to him who looked accustomed to it, it seemed that this was not a rare thing!
Seeing the two seniors bickering like this, McGrady was a little confused. He quickly separated the two and asked in confusion: "You two, you two, why are you in New York? It seems that you have become Yang's personal trainer, what's going on?"
"We are not personal coaches, we are mentors." Stockton quickly corrected McGrady's wording.
Karl Malone also cooperated very tacitly, and his reaction speed was as fast as their pick-and-roll on the court: "Yes, we are mentors."
"Yes, they are all my mentors." Yang Mo quickly agreed.
"Uh..." McGrady was even more confused after hearing that. He quickly asked, "Then...how did you become Yang's mentor?"
"Because we are implementing a great plan." Stockton said mysteriously. When McGrady was about to ask about it, he added: "For the time being, we can't reveal the plan to you."
The more he talked about it, the more curious McGrady became, but he couldn't keep pestering her. After all, he was a superstar, so how could he act like a tabloid reporter? So he suppressed his curiosity and didn't ask any more questions.
At this time, Karl Malone patted McGrady on the shoulder and said earnestly, "Tracy, I was very optimistic about you when you were young. I thought you could surpass Kobe and even Jordan. Your talent gave me a big surprise. It's a pity that you were a little too relaxed in training, and your competitive spirit could not continue to the last second. This is the only place where you lose to Kobe. Look, Kobe is still the number one player in the league, but you... Hey!"
Malone's sigh made McGrady feel very uncomfortable. He always regarded Kobe as his imaginary enemy. In the early years, he could even slightly suppress him. But later, with the recurrence of injuries, he withdrew from the situation of the two heroes early. Now, with a major knee repair, I am afraid he will never be able to return to his peak.
"But don't be discouraged. Now that you have come to the Knicks, you may reach the second peak of your career." Malone said with some comfort: "You should assist Yang and help him grow. With his potential and desire for victory, he will definitely help you break through the curse of the first round of the playoffs."
Malone's words were meant to comfort him, but McGrady felt even worse after hearing them. Although he had accepted the fact that he was not as good as before, his strong heart had not sunk. As a player who had been a privileged player for more than ten years, it was too big of a gap for him to accept becoming a second-year player. How could he accept it all at once?
In this situation, it is extremely normal to feel a little uncomfortable.
At this time, Stockton next to him added: "By the way, Tracy, I think you can help Yang a lot in passing the ball. I think you are the one with the most outstanding passing ability among the forwards and guards. Yang is also a forward and guard now. You can provide the most direct help in this regard."
"Well, of course. I will definitely selflessly support the younger generations ." McGrady nodded with a smile.
Then, the five of them talked about some interesting things on the basketball court, mostly Utah's duo and Isaiah Thomas, all talking about things from the 1980s. When people get old, they always like to reminisce about the past.
