After leaving the head coach's office, Zeng Xingyang returned to the training hall.
Then Zeng Xingyang also put on a brand new jersey and took the new season's team and individual promotional photos with his teammates.
NCAA does a very good job in this regard, ensuring that each player has their own promotional picture.
Once everything was done and out of the training hall, Zeng Xingyang felt that the air was so fresh.
The sky was no longer oppressive either, and his life had become better.
Joining the Wildcats reduced his short-term pressure, and he no longer had to constantly worry about being eliminated.
After the new season starts, his name can also be found in the NCAA event statistics.
After breathing in several big gulps of fresh air, Zeng Xingyang took out his phone and quickly dialed his father's number.
Even though it should be around 11 PM at home, Zeng Xingyang couldn't wait to share the news with his parents.
His parents knew it was the day the list was released, and if he didn't tell them, they would worry.
The call connected quickly, and Zeng Xingyang said, "Dad, I made it into the Wildcats. Next season, you, mom, and brother can watch me play online."
Hearing Zeng Xingyang's words, his dad's voice was noticeably a bit excited: "Is this true? Coach Calipari has the ability to send players to the NBA. Being selected by him is such an honor. Son, you're amazing. I'm proud of you. I'll go tell your mom and brother."
Soon, Zeng Xingyang's family knew the news, and the whole family was happy for Zeng Xingyang making it into the Wildcats.
Now, Zeng Xingyang is considered the only one in the NCAA from China. Even if he fails to break into the NBA, there will be teams in the CBA that want him. The future won't be too bad.
His parents don't demand any particular achievements from Zeng Xingyang. They just hope that his life in the future can be a bit better.
His parents repeatedly instructed Zeng Xingyang to train hard, get along well with teammates, listen to the coach...
After hanging up the phone with his parents, Zeng Xingyang posted on Weibo: "Successfully entered the school team! Hey, keep it up and work hard to achieve the next goal."
At this time, Zeng Xingyang was more determined about his goal of entering the NBA.
"I need to intensify my training during this period and get into the team's rotation as quickly as possible."
"Having enough playing time is needed to put up impressive stats."
"Only impressive stats can catch the attention of scouts, and then there will be a chance of being selected."
The presence of attributes gave Zeng Xingyang confidence now; he knew his progress and how to train for the best results.
He believed that as long as he firmly executed his training, he would get closer and closer to his goal.
...
After lunch, Zeng Xingyang returned to his dorm for a rest and then went back to the basketball court in the afternoon.
Coach Calipari organized a team tactical training session.
The new Wildcats practically consisted of only five non-freshman players, and the other ten were freshmen, making this almost an entirely new team, which was a significant challenge for Calipari's coaching.
More newcomers meant the team's tactical system needed to be rebuilt, and players' coordination needed to be adjusted again, with the new season not far from starting.
However, the University of Kentucky has always been the juggernaut of the Southeastern Conference, having won the conference championship 26 times in total. The intra-conference games could be considered their time of adjustment.
For the University of Kentucky, the NCAA national championship is the most important; they just need to be ready by March Madness.
The NCAA basketball tournament consists of 32 conferences, divided into four stages.
The first stage is the invitation stage, where each school organizes its games, with performance recorded into rankings.
The second stage is the conference stage, determining intra-conference rankings, with performance recorded into rankings.
The third stage is the championship stage, where teams, determined by conference stage rankings, play single-elimination games to decide the conference champion.
The champions of the 32 national conferences automatically enter March Madness.
After the first three stages, an NCAA basketball committee selects 36 teams based on regular season performance, popularity, team strength, etc., to enter the final "March Madness."
The fourth stage is March Madness! After entering March Madness, the four lowest-ranking championship teams and the four lowest-ranking teams first play an elimination round, removing 4 teams from the 68, and then the remaining 64 teams are divided into four regions, each playing a single-elimination game to determine the "Final Four."
After entering March Madness, it becomes truly a win-or-go-home scenario. This type of competition is highly unpredictable, and even strong teams must put forth all their effort to face the challenge, or there could be upsets.
On the day of the finals, the NBA regular season gives way to this game, with the ultimate champion having the chance to visit the White House to meet the president.
The University of Kentucky's goal is undoubtedly to become the national champion!
Coach Calipari began explaining his tactical concepts to the players.
Calipari also assigned tasks to each player, explaining what role they needed to play in the tactical execution.
His five assistant coaches each guided three players for specialized training.
In particular, Zeng Xingyang was tasked primarily with defense and positioning for open three-point shots on the court, with Kenny Paine assisting in his training.
Besides Zeng Xingyang, Kenny Paine also trained Towns and Booker.
As the chief assistant coach, Kenny's tasks were heavy, as he was responsible for both of the team's core players.
Of course, his focus remained mainly on Towns and Booker, with Zeng Xingyang seeming like an additional piece.
Zeng Xingyang was happy with this; it gave him more time for specialized training.
......
Zeng Xingyang's first specialized training was confrontation training.
The most distinct difference between street court players and professional players is the level of confrontation.
Many street court players who seem strong and impressive fall into mediocrity in higher-level competitions, largely because their level of confrontation can't keep up.
Physical confrontation is crucial for enhancing a player's technical and tactical capabilities. If the confrontation can't keep up with the rhythm, it will hinder the execution of techniques and cause shots to deform.
Enhancing confrontation mainly involves improving core strength.
Zeng Xingyang was not very clear on improving core strength and specifically consulted Kenny Paine.
Kenny Paine explained to Zeng Xingyang: "There are many ways to train core strength, such as neck loads, straight-leg deadlifts, knee-ups, and strength..."
"When conducting core strength training, avoid muscle imbalance caused by single type training. I'll help you develop a complete training rhythm, gradually increasing the intensity."
After joining the school team, Zeng Xingyang clearly felt the effects of professional training.
These trainings were obviously more efficient than his amateur methods.
Aside from confrontation, Kenny Paine also developed defensive enhancement, dribbling enhancement, and other training plans for Zeng Xingyang.
Under Kenny Paine's guidance, Zeng Xingyang quickly activated three attributes.
[Power: Level 1]
[Experience: 12/100]
[Note: Level 5 is the highest.]
Regarding his physique, if he had power like James, it would be impressive.
James could often drive through opponents to score an and-one, showing that his strength is dominant enough.
Although O'Neal's strength is likely more terrifying, Zeng Xingyang felt that no matter what, he couldn't train to be like O'Neal. That was a bit beyond his limit.
...
[Defense: Level 1]
[Experience: 44/100]
[Note: Level 5 highest, Level 4 reference: Kobe Bryant]
Kobe, in Zeng Xingyang's memory, had won many All-Defensive First Team honors. Outstanding physical qualities and an exceptionally positive attitude were crucial to his defense, which Zeng Xingyang urgently needed at the current stage.
Level 4 could reach Kobe's standard, so Level 5 would be even stronger.
However, gaining defensive experience is much harder than shooting and requires various combined training to improve even slightly.
Training methods related to defense are nearly as numerous as those for offense.
.....
[Dribbling: Level 1]
[Experience: 11/100]
[Note: Level 10 highest, Level 10 reference: Kyrie Irving]
Irving's dribbling ability is not necessarily the strongest because he requires many dribbles to beat opponents.
In terms of dribbling capability, Irving ranks among the top historically.
For now, Zeng Xingyang only needs to elevate it to the average level to be qualified.
Currently, he may not be proficient, but he can't be entirely incapable.
....
The appearance of these attributes has made Zeng Xingyang's training goals more precise.
He also knows where to focus his efforts.