After breakfast, Zhang Yang, holding a basketball and a thermos, returned to the park.
His home was about a 15-minute walk from the park. With a quick jog, he arrived in a few minutes. Upon entering the park, he checked the time: 8:12 a.m. Nearly 40 minutes had been spent running there and back, plus eating breakfast. The morning exercise and meal at home didn't delay his training and even served as a short rest.
There were already some people in the park, but it was still early. When he reached the basketball court, the only other person was the same young man he had seen before, practicing his shooting on the farthest court.
Zhang Yang slowed his pace to watch the other's training... No wonder he's so cocky!
The youngster before him would shoot the ball, then immediately dash under the hoop to catch it as it bounced off the ground, run outside the key, turn around, and keep shooting, sinking basket after basket... "Swish, swish, swish," several in a row before missing one, then back to "swish, swish, swish"... Impressive!
It was like during the heyday of League of Legends when a Platinum or Diamond player would speak louder than anyone else in the internet cafe.
This young man on the basketball court must be considered a boss, so a bit of arrogance seemed warranted.
After the other's set of shooting drills ended, Zhang Yang said hi again without waiting for a response, then ran to the middle court to continue his training.
On the way there, he had analyzed things and decided to start with practicing layups.
This drill was good for training both layups and dribbling.
A mid-range shot was worth only two points of shooting value and with such a low hit rate, it wasn't necessarily more beneficial than practicing layups.
If he had been good at three-pointers, he would have considered training that first, but he wasn't.
The young man in the corner had noticed that Zhang Yang had returned. He had thought Zhang Yang wouldn't bother with him again, but to his surprise, Zhang Yang greeted him once more. The young man froze for a moment, then when he was about to respond, Zhang Yang had already started his practice, leaving him no choice but to let it be.
He went to the sidelines to drink water, stealing glances at Zhang Yang's practice... uh... clunky dribbling, lousy layups... but he ran fast, perhaps even faster than him, and jumped quite high, not as high as he did though, strength was hard to say... a basketball rookie with outstanding physical qualities?
He watched covertly for a while until his curiosity was worn away... It was just too pitiful to watch!
...
After 9 a.m., the park gradually filled with more people.
The park was large, with areas for playing table tennis, tennis courts, and even open spaces for baseball or gatherings and speeches.
Morning visitors to the basketball court were sparse, so Zhang Yang didn't need to give up his space.
At 9:48 a.m., Zhang Yang saw his shooting value reach 300 points and stopped his training. He had been there since 6:25 a.m., and aside from the 40-minute break to eat, he had been training the whole time, starting to feel fatigued.
However, his stamina was better than expected. Despite the long duration of focused and intensive training, he only began to feel truly tired now.
Of course, he was very happy about this. Not to mention how important a talent for stamina is for an athlete's potential, just in the present, it was crucial for his ability to maintain long training sessions.
Approaching 10 a.m., Zhang Yang took a sip of water, picked up his basketball, and headed home.
Leaving the park, he glanced at the far court, noting that the 'boss' had already left at some point.
After returning home, Zhang Yang rested for a while, took a shower, and at 11 a.m., went to help out at the family restaurant.
Their restaurant was doing well, with reservations often booked two or three days in advance. Although they didn't earn big money, the income was substantial.
During his school terms, he recalled, his parents wouldn't let him help out at the restaurant, insisting he focus on his studies, but during breaks, if he was free, he was expected to help with odd jobs around the restaurant during business hours. Sometimes, his father would even get him to help in the kitchen, to learn some life skills.
The business hours ended at two in the afternoon, and after a late lunch, Zhang Yang didn't continue to the park for training, but instead went to the library and video store to borrow books on basketball fundamentals and rent training DVDs.
On his way home, he passed by the park and took a glance. As expected, the sports facilities were overflowing with people in the afternoon. The basketball courts were split into six half-courts across three full courts, and one had to wait in line. There was no space for him to practice.
He could have lined up to play half-court basketball since there were always teams short of players. His height wasn't remarkable in the school team, but he was considered tall among the park players, and if he queued up, teams lacking players would surely want him. In the morning, while he was practicing, passers-by would often pause and watch him for a while.
But now, if he wasn't careful with his dribbling, he would end up kicking the ball. If he played on court, his teammates would surely disdain him. Even if they didn't kick him out right there, he probably wouldn't get to touch the ball much. He might as well read professional books and watch instructional videos.
Learning professional knowledge, making a training plan, improving training efficiency... he thought these were also very important.
By 5 o'clock in the evening, after spending a couple of hours on instructional books and videos, Zhang Yang could no longer restrain his urge to train.
Every time he threw the ball into the hoop, there was a 'progress bar increase,' akin to gaining experience in a video game, which could get 'addictive.'
Zhang Yang went to tell his mother that he wanted to practice.
Yang Jing didn't refuse; the store wasn't short of help even without her son's assistance. But she was a bit curious, "Basketball? You're not playing baseball anymore?"
Zhang Yang replied, "I suddenly find basketball more fun."
Yang Jing didn't doubt him. It was normal for a child to develop new hobbies, and now that her son was nearly 1.9 meters tall, it wasn't strange that he suddenly liked basketball and volleyball, sports that taller people play.
She cautioned him, "Go ahead, but be back before 8 o'clock."
Zhang Yang acknowledged and, with a water bottle and basketball in hand, he headed out, not planning to practice too late.
The public safety situation in Hidden Mountain city was quite good.
In the 1970s and 1980s, Hidden Mountain city took over a large number of low- and medium-end manufacturing industries from deindustrialized megacities like Los Angeles and Long Beach. With plenty of job opportunities, the social situation was relatively stable, and public safety was better than in most cities. Hidden Mountain city attracted a large number of workers from East Asia and South Asia based on these industries, which is why Zhang Yang's parents chose to settle in this city.
However, safety was relative. Walking the streets after 9 p.m... Zhang Yang would consider anyone doing so as quite brave.
When Zhang Yang got to the park, by coincidence, he ran into the morning's 'big shot' again.
A thought suddenly occurred to him...
Normally at 7 a.m., there would be no one in the park, but the 'big shot' came to practice. After 9 a.m., when it became crowded, the 'big shot' left.
In the afternoon, around five or six, as the park emptied, the 'big shot' was back.
Could it be that the 'big shot' wasn't aloof, but had social anxiety?
What a coincidence, Zhang Yang had social anxiety too. He greeted, "What a coincidence, are you here to train too?"
After speaking, he stared intently at the 'big shot.'
The youth stopped in his tracks, expecting the other to leave for his training after the greeting, but instead, he kept looking at him.
The young man felt panicked, unsure where to put his hands. What should he do now?
It took him several seconds before he responded, "Yes, it's a coincidence, meeting you again."
Zhang Yang guessed right! He introduced himself proactively, "Hello, my name is Zhang Yang, I'm Chinese, my English name is Jack, and it's nice to meet you."
Having already started speaking, the youth no longer hesitated with his second utterance, "My name is DeMar DeRozan, and I'm also happy to meet you..."
Before the other could finish, Zhang Yang exclaimed, "DeRozan? The number one middle school player in Southern Cali?"