Chapter 3

Seven days later, at Beijing International Airport.

“Whoosh... whoosh whoosh”

A flight from the United States landed steadily, and after it came to a stop, the jet bridge opened. Passengers began to walk out, entering the long airport corridor.

“Tap tap tap tap”

“Wow, look at them, they’re so tall...!!”

Among the passengers, a group stood out. They were all exceptionally tall, with several over two meters and the rest around 1.9 meters.

At the front, several staff members hurriedly began coordinating the subsequent work arrangements. The coach, with a serious expression, was followed by the team's core player, Chen Jianghua.

“Five losses, the Chinese U17 Youth Team fails in America”

The coach could already imagine the media's reports. Although no reporters had accompanied the team, they were required to hold a brief press conference upon their return. The coach dreaded the sharp and critical questions that would be asked.

“Coach.”

Chen Jianghua, sensing the coach's thoughts, said, “Although we didn’t win, we made our opponents use their full strength to beat us. There was a significant gap in strength, and the U17 age limit is strict, so the older players couldn’t come. Losing is quite normal, right?”

“That’s true, but... sigh...”

The coach's face was clouded with worry. He shook his head and said, “Don’t worry, I’ll handle the questions at the press conference. You don’t need to say much; don’t give the media any handles.”

They walked out of the airport in silence, boarded a bus, and the exhausted players fell asleep immediately. An hour later, the bus stopped. Under the urging of the staff, everyone got off and entered the sports bureau building.

“Click click click”

As soon as they entered the meeting room, the sound of cameras and flashes made the players a bit uncomfortable.

“Everyone, listen up. Don’t say much; let the coach answer the questions.” Chen Jianghua, as the captain, reminded them.

They sat down, and the press conference began immediately. Various sharp questions from sports media reporters made the coach sweat profusely. Fortunately, with the help of the sports bureau staff and a prepared list of questions and answers, the session went smoothly without any major mishaps.

“Any more questions? If not, the press conference will end here.”

A staff member asked loudly. In the audience, a hand raised.

“Coach, I have a brief data sheet provided by an American colleague. There’s a detail I’d like to verify with you.”

“This...”

The coach was taken aback, looking back at the sports bureau leader, who also looked puzzled. This question wasn’t on the list provided by the media before the conference, and they were unprepared.

However, several cameras were filming the press conference. If he avoided the question, it could lead to negative news.

The sports bureau leader nodded. The coach wiped the sweat from his forehead and said, “Please proceed.”

“This data sheet was compiled by an American reporter during the games, not very precise.” The reporter took out a stack of printed sheets and said, “I noticed that a player named ‘Chen’ didn’t play in the first two games, only played 13 minutes in the third game, and then averaged 28 minutes in the last two games.”

“According to the data, in the third game, he made 1 out of 2 shots, scoring 2 points, with 1 assist and 2 turnovers, no blocks or steals. But in just 13 minutes, he grabbed 15 rebounds!”

“Oh...?!”

The reporter’s words stunned the other journalists, who became intensely interested in the statistics.

Generally, such practice matches wouldn’t have dedicated statisticians, so domestic media didn’t have the technical statistics, only the scores and the top scorers of each game.

But it turned out that an American journalist had done an amateur statistical analysis, which, while not perfect, was still highly credible given the country’s professional basketball reporting standards.

“15 rebounds in 13 minutes?? Is there such a player on the team??”

“Name is Chen, it can’t be Chen Jianghua, right!”

“Impossible, Chen Jianghua is a point guard, and he scored the most in the third game with 17 points. How could he have only 1 out of 2 shots for 2 points?”

The journalists were buzzing, and the reporter who stood up to ask the question nodded, knowing his bombshell had hit its mark. He smiled and continued, “It seems my colleagues are surprised. But what surprised me more is that of the 15 rebounds, 8 were offensive rebounds!”

“Wow...!”

The room erupted in shock. The veteran sports journalists knew exactly what 15 rebounds in 13 minutes, with 8 offensive rebounds, meant.

“Impossible, there must be a mistake in your statistics.”

“Exactly, 15 rebounds in 13 minutes is one thing, but 8 offensive rebounds?? Definitely a mistake, a mistake!”

“Ha ha...”

The reporter, hearing the skepticism, looked even more pleased. He waved the statistics sheet and said loudly, “And in the next two games, this mysterious player grabbed 21 and 19 rebounds, with 10 and 11 offensive rebounds, respectively...!”

“...What did you say?!!!”

This statement completely blew the room apart. Everyone’s eyes widened, and they desperately wanted to see the statistics sheet, preferably with photos and videos.

If such a player had emerged in the U17 national team during the overseas training, it would be a huge news story!

“So, excluding the third game where he only played 13 minutes, this Chen averaged 28 minutes, 20 rebounds, and 10.5 offensive rebounds??”

Everyone was utterly stunned. Such rebounding performance could be described as dominant. In this U17 team, there was no known powerful interior player, and the biggest star was an outside player, the captain Chen Jianghua.

“So my question is...” The reporter looked at the coach, “Is this statistical data basically accurate?”

“This...”

The coach was taken aback, glancing involuntarily at Chen Mu, who was pretending to sleep in the audience. He sighed and nodded, “Yes, it’s basically accurate.”

“No way!!”

“Heaven! This is a future star!”

“Quick! Get the roster and see who else is named Chen besides Chen Jianghua!!”

“Cough cough...!”

Seeing the journalists frantically searching the U17 roster, the reporter cleared his throat to attract attention, “No need to look, I’ve already seen it.”

“Shh”

The reporter took out another player list and pointed to a name, “Coach, is this player the Chen Mu who was recently promoted from the provincial youth team?”

The coach looked at the list, smiled wryly, finding it somewhat ridiculous to try to keep Chen Mu out of the spotlight, and nodded, “Yes, this rebounding expert is Chen Mu...!”

Hearing the coach say “Chen Mu,” Chen Mu, who was almost asleep, thought the press conference was over and quickly opened his eyes, standing up and shouting, “Here!”

“...Wow!!!”

This shout drew everyone’s attention to Chen Mu. Journalists took out their cameras to take photos, and cameras focused on this suddenly famous rebounding expert.

“Quick, check Chen Mu’s background. He’s the headline for tonight!”

“Find a way to contact the American reporters and get this statistical data. This is absolutely explosive news!”

“Click click click...”

After a flurry of activity, Chen Mu, who had been half-asleep, suddenly realized the press conference wasn’t over. He quickly covered his face and sat down, his large frame shrinking as if he wanted to disappear into the ground.

“Coach, I also noticed.”

The reporter, not letting up, knowing he had the most explosive news of the night, continued, “While Chen Mu is a rebounding expert, he doesn’t seem to have much of a role in the offense. His shots per game are in the single digits, and in the most he took, the fifth game, he only made 3 out of 5 shots for 6 points, and missed both free throws.”

“Is this due to Chen Mu’s lack of scoring ability, or a deliberate tactical decision by the coaching staff?”

The reporter’s question made the coach a bit awkward. He shook his head and said, “Chen Mu has excellent physical attributes, but his fundamentals are not yet solid. Therefore, our coaching staff has not yet considered giving him a primary offensive role...”

After that, no one was really paying attention to the coach’s words. All the journalists were focused on Chen Mu. How much potential did this rebounding expert, who had just been promoted from the provincial team, have? How high was his ceiling, given his ability to grab over 20 rebounds against the athletic American team?

“Clap clap clap clap”

Some journalists started writing their stories on the spot. Backstage colleagues dug up all the information on Chen Mu—his age, strength, performance in the provincial team, U17 team, and why he had limited playing time before the U.S. trip, his technical characteristics, and more. Chen Mu’s entire life was suddenly exposed to the media.

“Ha ha, Chen Mu, are you ready~?”

Chen Mu kept his head down, afraid to meet the coach’s death stare, but heard Chen Jianghua’s voice beside him.

“Uh... ready for what?” Chen Mu looked up, confused.

Chen Jianghua smiled mysteriously, seemingly recalling his own moment of fame from a few years ago when he scored a 360-degree dunk. He patted Chen Mu’s shoulder meaningfully and said,

“Are you ready for fame...?”