The Way of the Center

As Ricard and Moore expected, the press conference for Divac to join the Cyclones coaching staff went very smoothly. After receiving the news, many media rushed to participate. However, because Wu Hua wanted to interview An Jie, he accidentally became the only Chinese reporter who participated in the press conference, and "Sports Pioneer" also got an exclusive news because of this.

For the joining of Divac, some older fans are very excited. And some fans with a slightly younger age seemed a little disapproving. They think that Divac was just a mediocre guy when he was a player, so what should he care about now as a coach.

Those who say that Divac is mediocre are only relative to that era. You know, that era was a golden age for centers. Shaquille O'Neal, Admiral Robinson, Gorilla Ewing, Big Dream Olajuwon, Iron Man Mourning. Competing with such a group of centers, it is only natural that Divac is underestimated under their light. Divac is definitely an undoubted European basketball legend. Among the big players from Europe, only Paul Gasol and Dirk Lowitzki are expected to surpass Divac.

Wu Hua and Cox finally fulfilled their wish to do an exclusive interview with An Jie, but they only asked some questions about An Jie's life experience in the United States and his first NCAA competition. After that, An Jie's life returned to calm, and no media came to bother him anymore. After all, he is just a college player, playing in the college league. No matter how high the level of NCAA is, its attention cannot be compared with professional sports.

Just after things had calmed down, Iowa State played two more regular-season games.

On November 20th, Iowa State University played against Texas Tech University at home. Anjie still maintained a strong momentum in this game, scoring 16 points, 10 rebounds and 3 blocked shots. In addition, Mike Taylor also had 13 points, 8 assists and 3 steals, and Morris had a quasi-double-double of 11 points and 9 rebounds. In the end, the Cyclones beat Texas Tech University 51 to 77 at home, ushering in two consecutive victories.

On November 28, the Cyclones played an away game against the University of Colorado Buffaloes. This was the first road trip for the Cyclones this season. However, the buffalo, which is much larger than the wild cat, still cannot break through the violent whirlwind. In this campaign, Anjie scored 18 points, 8 rebounds and 2 blocks, while Taylor scored 19 points and 5 assists. Morris finally tasted the sweetness in the face of opponents who were far inferior to him. He scored 15 points and 11 rebounds and scored a double-double for the first time in the season. The final score was fixed at 49 to 70. The Cyclones won the first away trip, and the winning streak reached three games.

The start of the regular season has achieved three consecutive victories, which makes the fans of the Cyclones very happy and crazy. You must know that the Cyclones won only a pitiful five games last season.

But apart from the local fans in Ames City, fans in other places believe that although the Cyclone has indeed improved a lot, it can still be regarded as a mid-level team. Except for the Wildcats in the opening game, the last two opponents of the Cyclones are already weak. Winning these two opponents does not prove that the Cyclones are very good.

As for An Jie, he hasn't encountered any decent opponents in three consecutive games. Anyone can squeeze a persimmon, so An Jie's strength has also aroused doubts among the crowd.

Because of this, the Cyclones' next game has become the focus of many people's attention. Iowa State University challenged Texas A\u0026M University in an away game. Texas A\u0026M University also won three consecutive victories in the opening game, and one person's performance was very eye-catching.

The player hit 16 consecutive goals in the first three games, breaking Mickey Moore's Big 12 record of 13 consecutive goals held by the University of Nebraska in 1988.

This player is also a center forward, but he is different from An Jie. If Anjie is the representative of technical centers in the Big 12, then this player from Texas A\u0026M University is the representative of physical centers in the Big 12. This guy has the same name as the god of basketball, he is DeAndre Jordan.

This strong dialogue between the two is the moment to truly test An Jie's strength.

Of course, the above are just discussions among fans. As for An Jie himself, his heart is very peaceful. I still train hard every day, accept Divac's guidance, and then continue to train myself at night. Day after day, without interruption.

………………..

Speaking of Divac's guidance to Anjie as the center coach, it actually started from the first day he came to the team.

As a person who can't jump high, is not strong enough, and has no surprises in the NBA in terms of talent and quality, he was able to fight against the top centers in the league in the 1990s without falling behind. It can be done by falling. Therefore, there are too many things worthy of Anjie to learn from Divac.

Divac was one of the most notorious inside villains of the year, and Angie was really worried that he might break a few ribs during training. However, Divac was surprisingly gentle in the training a few days ago. The first lesson he prepared for these center boys was actually shooting.

"A center's first goal is of course the basket. A center who can only shoot from the outside is not a center at all. If you think about Yao Ming and Okur, you know that you can shoot and you can only shoot from the outside. Everyone here is not O’Neal or Howard. Even if people like them don’t shoot, even if others know that they can only play inside, there are not many people who can stop them. We don’t have such a physical advantage. You can’t limit your own development because you don’t have a range. It’s not bad for you to diversify your offensive methods.” Divac’s mid-range shooting ability was very good back then, but he mastered the ability to shoot. It's a balance between outside shooting and that makes him a well-rounded big man.

A perfect shot definitely requires a standard technical movement as the basis. As a wild ball player, An Jie, even though it seems that his shooting is already very good in the center, but such a standard system of training is still very important for An Jie. It is necessary. As a big man, Divac can also teach Anjie many essentials that big men need to master when shooting.

Of course, as Divac said, his identity is the team's center coach rather than Anjie's personal coach. So besides Anjie, Asakin and Morris also got the teaching from Divac. But because the two of them don't like to shoot for so many years, their touch is already very soft. Therefore, the improvement of the two of them in shooting is not as obvious as that of Anjie.

In the next few days, Divac's training was also all-encompassing, including confrontation under the basket, blocking under the basket, rebounding, back-up skills, and even small offensive and defensive moves and diving skills. Of course, Divac couldn't pass on all his lifelong learning to An Jie in a few days, and what he taught this young man now is only the superficial.

"On the basketball court, you must be fierce to me, especially Anjie! You can maintain your humility off the court, but on the court, you have to show blood! You must let the opponent's players know that the penalty area is yours. If they dare to rush in, they will definitely die a miserable death. After the block, you can't just walk away with a blank face. Instead, you should look proudly into the eyes of the guy you blocked, and then tell him Said: You dare to break into the penalty area again! Don’t be too honest when defending and attacking. You can do it for me as long as it makes others uncomfortable. I will add all the small moves that should be added. If it makes him upset, he will move too much. , the referee is calling him instead!" In addition to the practical training in technical movements, the tricks used by Divac as an inside butcher have also become part of the course. An Jie is not only not disgusted with these contents, but learns them with relish and style. It seems that there is really a demon living in An Jie's body.

An Jie learns quickly and is willing to learn. Now what he looks forward to most every day is Divac's special training session. Learn something new every day and watch yourself get better day by day. This made Anjie more and more enthusiastic about hard training, and his progress became faster and faster.

Time is just like An Jie's progress, moving forward rapidly every day. Before we knew it, it was December, the day before the Cyclones played an away game against Texas A\u0026M University.

At this time in China, New Year's Day is about to come, and the atmosphere of Christmas in the United States is getting stronger and stronger. The old year is about to pass, and people are full of longing for the new year.

What will An Jie's life be like next year? This matter has upset An Jie for the past few days.

Divac suggested that Anjie sign up for the draft and embark on the road of professional basketball. But Anjie is not very confident about this. You must know that he only received his first formal basketball training in September this year. When he came to play in the NCAA, he just wanted to play in the NCAA out of his love for basketball. As for the path of professional basketball, he has never considered it.

Signing up for the draft means giving up your college studies. According to the NBA's draft rules, even if you fail in the draft, you can only become a free agent and cannot return to college to continue your studies. My parents have worked hard for most of their lives and used almost all their savings to support me to study abroad, not to make myself a professional player. It would be fine if he was selected, but if he was not selected and his studies were wasted, how would An Jie explain to his parents. Therefore, An Jie hasn't told his family about this matter yet.

An Jie tossed and turned in such an upset state, without any sleepiness. Tomorrow's game, he will face the popular DeAndre Jordan. The matter has also been thrown out of the sky by him...