13. Do you want to go to Compton?

After breakfast and a short break to digest, the three of them each occupied a half-court to start training.

Although Harden complained, once he started training, he was as serious as the other two, practicing the corner three-point shot with great focus.

Today, DeRozan was practicing his sidestep mid-range jumper. After so many days of training, Zhang Yang noticed that DeRozan was particularly enamored with the mid-range shot.

He remembered that even in the era of small ball, DeRozan's three-point shooting was poor, setting the record for the lowest number of three-points made in a season by a player averaging over 20 points per game during the small ball era. He seemed to have made only 9 three-pointers in a season, which was less than most centers.

However, he didn't 'remind' DeRozan. Currently, DeRozan was also in the stage of building foundations. It was more important to practice the shooting areas he liked and was good at.

Zhang Yang also started practicing mid-range shots today, not just shooting casually as he did on the first day. The first spot was free throw practice.

It was a tough period of "resisting instincts" again.

In his past life, when he played intra-college games, he also shot free throws, but back then, he would jump when releasing the ball.

You can jump during a free throw.

There were two reasons he used to jump during free throws back then; one was that he hadn't received professional free throw training, and the other was that he was an average person in both height and strength who needed the momentum from the jump to help him exert force better in the shot.

But now he didn't need to anymore. Even if he didn't use his legs or waist, he could smash the ball against the backboard with one hand using only his shoulder and elbow.

After practicing 20 free throws in one set, Zhang Yang understood why he never saw anyone taking jump shots during free throws in professional games.

The stability of shooting standing was much higher than jump shooting. Just in terms of the strength of the core muscles, the demand was much lower.

Looks like the future "Sun and Moon's Female Center" not leaving the ground when shooting wasn't just due to a lack of jumping ability.

With Yao Ming's height, not many people could block his standing shot.

After resting for 1 minute, Zhang Yang continued with the second set.

Once Zhang Yang finished the second set, DeRozan from the adjacent half-court couldn't stay put any longer. He came over to correct Zhang Yang's power transition and shooting technique.

Zhang Yang sneakily made a gesture signifying the loss of the South Korean market.

Seriously tight control there, snake-like player!

Compared to power transition, Zhang Yang valued DeRozan's corrections to his free throw shooting technique even more. The former could be adjusted gradually through practice, while the latter, once settled... Rick Barry was beckoning to him.

A standard shooting posture is actually very pleasing to the eye. DeRozan's shooting form is currently very standard and, combined with his explosive jumping ability, his jump shot posture is very aesthetically pleasing.

Setting aside Jordan's preference to wait in the air for opponents to fall first, and Kobe's penchant for creating difficulty where there was none and insisting on a forced fadeaway, their movements were actually pretty standard. The differences in detail actually showed the signature characteristics of their playing style - the common ground between these two players was: when you have the ability, you can afford to be capricious.

For Zhang Yang, he also planned to start with the standard shooting form, and then adjust the details of the shooting technique according to the actual situation during shooting.

Some people are suited to high-angle shooting, so their shooting hand will be closer to the top of their head; others have flatter arcs, so their shooting hand will be closer to their forehead when releasing the ball... If conditions permit, Zhang Yang hoped his form would be as cool as possible.

With the help of DeRozan, who had a 'mid-range shot obsession', Zhang Yang progressed much faster in adjusting his power transition and correcting his shooting technique than he would have on his own.

Once he mastered the technique, he would then practice diligently. Just like adjusting his layup form and force habits, he would practice until his body got used to the movement; only then would he consider the basic adjustments complete.

Time always flies when immersed in training; at 9:30 in the morning, DeRozan said goodbye to Zhang Yang and took Harden home.

Being a teacher was quite fulfilling if the student was willing to learn earnestly and did well.

He was looking forward to the evening's training. He liked little buddies like Zhang Yang, who were talented and diligent.

The only thing he was troubled about was that he only knew so much, and Zhang Yang was learning so fast that he feared he would soon run out of things to teach. Zhang Yang's basics were poor, and what he could teach was limited to begin with.

Fortunately, there wasn't much time left in the summer break, and he estimated he had saved enough to teach for that duration.

A few minutes later, DeRozan and Harden returned to his grandmother's house, where an unexpected figure appeared, chatting with his uncle.

Surprised, DeRozan asked, "Coach Thomas, what brings you here?"

The visitor was none other than Tony Thomas, the head coach of the basketball team at Compton High School, where DeRozan was about to enroll.

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Thomas laughed and replied, "I came to see you about something, and I didn't expect you to be so diligent, heading out for training at 6 a.m. ... By the way, do you know that player named Jack who played with you yesterday afternoon ..."

...

At 5 p.m., Zhang Yang started dribbling the ball from his house to the park.

He wasn't carrying anything in his hands, which allowed him to apply more force to his dribbling and have the other hand as an aid. This time, he jogged all the way to the park without losing the ball, his days of breakthrough training hadn't gone to waste.

Feeling the progress he had made, his motivation for training was through the roof.

When he arrived at the basketball court, Zhang Yang saw DeRozan training alone and asked, "Where's James?"

DeRozan answered, "His mom called him at noon to come home; he took the 3 p.m. bus, he should be home by now."

Zhang Yang said, "If I had known he was leaving today, I would have invited you guys over to my place for lunch at noon."

DeRozan said, "He said the same thing on his way to the bus station."

He felt the same, but he didn't say it.

There was another matter ... how should he bring it up without seeming too eager? Otherwise, if the other person didn't feel the same way, it would be awkward for him.

Just as Zhang Yang was about to start training, he noticed DeRozan looking troubled and asked, "What's wrong, DeMar? Is something up?"

His buddy was so sharp! DeRozan deliberately spoke in a casual tone, "Jack, the high school you attend, Hidden Mountain High, is not a CIF top-tier school, right?"

Zhang Yang thought DeRozan was going to ask something important; was this it?

Slightly puzzled, he still replied, "Right, Hidden Mountain High doesn't meet the standards of a top-tier school."

Wasn't he clear enough? DeRozan emphasized, "If you want to play in the NCAA in the future, you'll have a better chance from a top-tier school. Of course, you could apply to a team after getting into college, but it's tough to get as much attention as the talents coming from top-tier schools at the start."

So his buddy was worried about this! Zhang Yang said, "I've thought about it too. The difference between top-tier and non-top-tier schools is not just in terms of college teams' attention; the level of training available in high school is also a big gap. But I'm still too weak right now, a top-tier school's team would surely not want me. I'm planning to aim for our school team first, to train for a year ..."

DeRozan was baffled; no need to beat around the bush, he interrupted directly, "Would you like to go to Compton High School?"

Zhang Yang, who was talking about his high school plans, was stunned. This was quite unexpected. After a moment of surprise, he moved closer and put his arm around DeRozan's shoulder, saying, "You want to recommend me to your school team? You haven't officially joined the team yet, right? Wouldn't they think you're being pretentious, being from Southern California ... cough cough, I mean, wouldn't they think the best middle schooler in the world is getting too big for his britches? Man, that's some loyalty!"

That's brotherhood just like that? And the best middle schooler in the world? His buddy sure was realistic!

DeRozan pushed away Zhang Yang's arm, not taking the credit for himself, and said, "It's not that I want to recommend you, our school's head coach is also from Hidden Mountain City. He's here on vacation these days, and when he heard I had a game yesterday, he came to watch and spotted your talent. He wants to recruit you."

Zhang Yang understood the situation and guessed that DeRozan didn't want to seem like he was taking advantage, so he hooked his arm around him again, "It's still thanks to you. If it weren't for you, your coach wouldn't have come to the game ... Wait! We fought yesterday, right? Could that affect your coach's opinion of me?"

What an odd concern. DeRozan pushed Zhang Yang's arm away again and said, "How many players haven't been in a fight? Coach Thomas will be here at 6 p.m.; if you're interested in Compton High School, you can talk to him later."

After speaking, DeRozan walked over to the corner of the court to start training. For some reason, he felt emotionally drained and sensed that the days ahead would bring even more mental fatigue ...

Zhang Yang snapped back to reality, realizing he had overthought things. Indeed, most American athletes were black, and there were hardly any who hadn't fought during their school years.

Even Jarett Young and Harden, who were strictly disciplined by their mothers, had fought their share, and DeRozan probably had too.

Thinking about the upcoming meeting with the head coach of Compton High School, Zhang Yang got excited; it was all so sudden.

He went to the free-throw line, controlled his emotions, and began training.

Did meeting with the Compton High School head coach conflict with his dedication to training? Not at all.

"In the company of three, there is a teacher for me." That was the valuable trait he learned from DeRozan.

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