Chapter 40

Swish! Swish! Swish!

"Great job, Yang, that's how you shoot. Bend your knees, form two inward right angles with your right arm, jump, and release the ball smoothly. Very good!"

Rick clapped his hands, constantly praising Yang Mo. Training Yang Mo was a very rewarding experience for him. Because with just a little guidance, Yang Mo could immediately make remarkable progress. He loved this immediate effect, which made him seem very competent.

He was indeed very competent, but more importantly, Yang Mo had practiced for over a decade, day after day, year after year. This long-term, systematic training made his ball handling skills extremely perfect. However, due to his previous incorrect training methods, now that Rick had corrected him, it was as if he had suddenly unlocked Yang Mo's potential, making his progress seem incredibly fast.

Rick was particularly satisfied with Yang Mo as a student. Dribbling coach Bender was also very satisfied. Yang Mo's ball handling was excellent, and his long arms were very suitable for dribbling. However, he rarely dribbled the ball across half the court in games, so he always seemed a bit at a loss when facing intense pressure.

Under Bender's guidance, Yang Mo's ball protection skills improved significantly. Bender's techniques were quickly learned and mastered by Yang Mo. Such a student was undoubtedly the favorite of any coach.

Rebounding coach Blake liked Yang Mo even more. In his view, Yang Mo was a natural rebounding machine. Although his height was relatively short for an interior player, his skills, positioning, awareness, and keen judgment of rebounds were the best among the players he had taught. After teaching some techniques, he felt there was nothing else to teach, as Yang Mo's understanding of rebounding was even better than his own.

So, after three days of teaching, he voluntarily resigned to Mr. Pat Riley. Upon hearing his report and learning about Yang Mo's astonishing rebounding talent, Pat Riley was very pleased and agreed to his request to take a vacation in Hawaii.

Compared to the other coaches, the defensive coach seemed a bit less happy. It wasn't because Yang Mo lacked defensive talent, but because Yang Mo was too talented in defense, and there was a natural difference in their defensive philosophies.

Dudley's defensive philosophy was passive, such as when defending an opponent's post-up, his philosophy was to maintain position and prevent the opponent from scoring easily. On the other hand, Yang Mo's defensive philosophy was proactive, always trying to steal the ball or disrupt the opponent's offense in various ways.

Dudley insisted that his defensive philosophy was correct, so he brought in several trial players to have Yang Mo defend them. Unfortunately, none of these players could withstand Yang Mo's defense. Six out of ten times, their offenses were disrupted, and the remaining four times, their success rate was low, with at most one or two successful shots.

In the end, these frustrated trial players all left Miami. They hated being taught a lesson, especially by a shorter player.

After the trial players left, Dudley still insisted that his defensive philosophy was correct and kept telling Yang Mo, "Yang, you can defend successfully now because these guys can't even make it to the NBA. When you face NBA stars, you won't be able to defend them. Listen to me, follow their movements closely and use your strength to push them away from the basket."

"Okay, okay."

Yang Mo always agreed, but when it came to defensive training, he couldn't resist using aggressive defense, and his success rate was still quite high.

In the end, Dudley broke down. He walked into Pat Riley's office with a pained expression and said, "Sir, I really can't teach him anymore. He's too stubborn. He always wants to steal the ball in every defense."

"That's not bad, is it? At least it shows he has a strong fighting spirit," Pat Riley said, raising an eyebrow.

"But... that won't work in the NBA."

"Being a bit aggressive is good for a young player. Let him continue like this," Pat Riley said indulgently.

"Alright," Dudley sighed helplessly.

After Dudley left, Pat Riley became interested and quickly had his secretary call Yang Mo in. When Yang Mo entered, Pat Riley asked, "Yang, Dudley says your defense is too aggressive. Why don't you try to learn from him?"

"Coach's methods don't apply to me. Compared to interior players, I'm too short, but that's actually my defensive advantage. I'm more agile than many interior players, and I have a long wingspan. Plus, I'm not lacking in strength, so in one-on-one defense, aggressive defense is the most suitable for me." Yang Mo didn't hide his thoughts and said frankly, "If I defend the way the coach says, the opponent doesn't even need to push into the paint; they can just turn around and shoot. I hate it when people shoot over my head easily."

Pat Riley nodded in agreement and asked, "Then why don't you tell the coach that?"

"His coaching philosophy is very rigid. I can't convince him, so I just go along with him," Yang Mo shrugged and smiled.

"Alright, starting tomorrow, you don't need to practice defense anymore. Focus on your physical training, shooting, and dribbling."

"Okay," Yang Mo nodded happily.

Yang Mo trained enthusiastically in Miami's training facility. Perhaps because the media was bored during the off-season, they would occasionally mock him, saying he would be the worst lottery pick in NBA history, and some even discussed whether he could get playing time in the NBA.

These discussions became even more intense when Pat Riley announced that Yang Mo would not participate in the summer league. Everyone speculated about why Yang Mo wasn't participating, and most believed that Pat Riley regretted his decision and didn't want Yang Mo to embarrass himself in the summer league.

Yang Mo didn't care about the outside discussions. He trained every day and then went home to have barbecues and drinks with the girls from Girls' Generation, living a very relaxed life.

Pat Riley was even happier. To him, Yang Mo had become a secret weapon. He received good news from the coaches every day. Unconsciously, Yang Mo's status in his mind had surpassed that of the second overall pick, Michael Beasley.

In a conversation with the team's star, Dwyane Wade, Pat Riley even patted his chest and assured Wade, who had some doubts, "Dwyane, those reports are terrible. Don't believe them. If you saw Yang's training, you would think he will be the best partner you've ever played with. Every aspect of him fits you perfectly, and you two will have an amazing chemistry. Trust me, I've never lied to you, right?"

With Pat Riley's assurance, the Heat's star, Dwyane Wade, felt relieved. He trusted Pat Riley, so in interviews, he said, "Although I don't know why Yang isn't in the summer league, I absolutely believe he is a talented guy. Pat Riley never does anything that doesn't benefit him."

Yang Mo didn't pay attention to these things. On the second day after arriving in Miami, he bought a villa, showing an intention to settle down. The next day, the girls from Girls' Generation contacted him, and he enthusiastically invited them over. Later, he simply let them stay, as there were plenty of rooms. Their agent initially had some concerns about potential issues, but after spending time with Yang Mo, she agreed and even often stayed over.

...

[Second update delivered, thanks to the generous 588 donation from "Lonely Little Flower."]