"Of course I’m excited..."
At the post-game press conference, Milicic, who had just exploded for 29 points and 9 rebounds—nearly a 30-and-10 game—instinctively wanted to say in response to the reporter’s question, ’See? I was the second pick, and I can put up big numbers. What do all you people who called me a bust have to say now?’
And Larry Brown. Milicic wanted to shove his stats right in his face and ask him if he had any regrets.
But just as the words were about to leave his mouth, Milicic stopped himself short.
’You’re an adult now. You have to be responsible for what you say. Think before you speak.’
The words Chen Yu had told him still echoed in his ears.
"Humility is always a virtue. Some might call you fake, but the vast majority of people in this world still prefer someone who is humble."
"Be careful with reporters, but don’t hold a grudge against them. Most of them aren’t trying to hurt you intentionally. Their profession requires them to act that way. You can’t change them, so change yourself. Sometimes, a smile is the best answer."
"Always have a sense of reverence. Don’t think of yourself as the main character of the world. An occasional success might just be a stroke of good luck. You can be happy about it, but after you’re done being happy, you have to keep working hard."
"Instead of showing your raw emotions to the world, share your joy with your family and friends. They’re the ones who truly love you and will give you their most sincere congratulations."
Although Chen Yu had left Portland during Christmas, he had kept in touch and they often had video calls.
Chen Yu had told him many things.
Some words he hadn’t thought much of at the time, hearing them and then forgetting them.
But at this moment, they all suddenly flooded back into Milicic’s mind.
Looking at the faces below the stage—some excited, some indifferent, some mocking—it felt as if Milicic understood so much in that single instant.
So, the next moment, he smiled. "I’m very happy. I want to thank my teammates and my coach. My teammates kept passing me the ball, and the coach drew up plays for me. They were always supporting me from behind, and the team, they gave me this opportunity."
"And the fans in Portland. I’m grateful that they like me, and I like them too. I’ll work hard to play well and repay them with victories."
"Of course, there’s one person I have to thank in particular, and that’s Dr. Chen Yu. He taught me a lot of things."
As he finished, Milicic faced the camera and broke into a brilliant, handsome smile.
Alex, who was sitting next to him as his translator, turned her head and looked at Milicic, her eyes filled with surprise and disbelief.
Having been around Milicic for so long, Alex felt she understood him quite well.
She was always hearing him complain—complaining that the Pistons had given up on him, complaining that his performance wasn’t good enough, and that he had to train harder to make the Pistons and Larry Brown regret it.
Milicic might have trained hard, but he was driven by a desire for revenge against the Pistons.
This made Alex see Milicic as just an impulsive kid, not yet mentally mature.
But at this moment, she suddenly saw another side of him. It felt like the kid before her had grown up, had matured.
He’d become a man!
Alex chuckled softly, turned back to the cameras, and gracefully translated for Milicic.
After the press conference, on the way back to the locker room, Milicic ran into Chen Yu.
"Nice job," Chen Yu said, patting Milicic’s arm. He added, "Well said, too."
Chen Yu had invested a great deal of attention in Milicic and understood his true feelings all too well. He knew Milicic had been bottling everything up, desperate to prove himself and make the whole world regret underestimating him.
It was a common mindset for a teenager, and Chen Yu wasn’t going to be too harsh about it.
That’s why he had made a special trip over after Milicic’s high-scoring game. He was afraid Milicic would run his mouth off at the post-game press conference.
That would have only ruined his public image and made him look like a petty person gloating over a minor success.
Fortunately, he hadn’t.
Chen Yu could sense that he had truly grown.
Like a child being praised by an elder for doing something right, Milicic’s eyes were full of joy as he nodded vigorously.
"Go on."
Chen Yu waved him toward the locker room, then thought for a moment and turned to find Rivers.
The game might be over, but the coaching staff’s work was not.
They had to compile game data, watch the game tape, analyze the reasons for the team’s win or loss, discuss the problems players had exposed, and see if there were ways to improve.
They could do it tomorrow, but Chen Yu suddenly had a few ideas he wanted to discuss with Rivers and the others.
「In the video room.」
Chen Yu pointed at the TV screen and said, "Mike, this way of attacking the rim should look very familiar to you."
On the screen was a play from the end of the fourth quarter. Milicic made a cut to attack the rim. He took the ball, made a sudden, long stride to his left as he drove, slipped past Davis, and then threw down a one-handed dunk over Davis who was turning to pursue him.
Caught off guard by being called out, D’Antoni paused, watched the replay a couple more times, and said uncertainly, "Chen, are you talking about the Euro Step?"
"Exactly."
Chen Yu nodded. D’Antoni had played in Europe, so he would definitely know about this particular crossover step.
Beside them, Rivers folded his arms and said, "I remember a player, from Europe, named Sarunas-something-or-other."
"Sarunas Marciulionis," Maurice Lucas interjected.
Rivers nodded. "Right, that’s the name. I remember him. He made a name for himself with the Warriors."
Rivers hadn’t retired yet when Sarunas Marciulionis came to the NBA from Lithuania.
D’Antoni looked at Chen Yu. "Chen, what are you getting at?"
Chen Yu pointed at the TV. "What I’m saying is, Dako got a lot of points tonight because his opponent wasn’t familiar with him. They never expected him to actually be a threat from beyond the three-point line."
It was his three 3-pointers that had gotten Milicic to 29 points.
Without those 9 points, he would have only scored 20.
And of those 20 points, several were long-range mid-range jumpers.
"I imagine that in the next game, the opponent will definitely make specific adjustments for him. He won’t be able to get such comfortable shots again."
In the final quarter, even after Milicic drained two straight threes, Cheeks didn’t react much, probably assuming it was a fluke.
Davis also didn’t close out on Milicic just because he’d hit a couple of threes.
But once you’ve had a high-scoring game because of it, there’s no doubt the next opponent will target you.
With about eight key rotation players per team, across 29 teams, that was only a little over two hundred guys. Teams had more than enough energy to study every single one of them.
"Shooting is also streaky. So he still needs to find a stable offensive method that suits him and the team. And I think this is an excellent option."
Chen Yu tapped the TV screen.
If you want to make it in the NBA, how can you survive without a signature move?
And what makes a superstar is when everyone knows how you’re going to attack, but they still can’t stop you. The only one who can affect you is yourself.
"We run a lot of high-speed transition offense. When Dako moves to the power forward position, his range of motion will be outside the paint. He’ll initiate the offense more often from the high post with the ball in his hands."
"And he’s agile enough that when facing bigger power forwards, he can use this move to exploit his advantage. They won’t be able to keep up with him."
The aging Davis clearly couldn’t keep pace with a full-speed Milicic.
And attacking this way would truly play to Milicic’s strengths.
The coaches exchanged glances. They understood.
Rivers nodded thoughtfully. "Indeed, he needs to add more skills to his arsenal."
It wasn’t easy to establish yourself in the NBA without a few tricks up your sleeve.
With that, he looked over at D’Antoni.
D’Antoni folded his arms, lost in thought.
He knew more about the Euro Step, even its origins and evolution.
For example, in the beginning, the NBA didn’t have this so-called Euro Step, because its rules were different from FIBA’s.
In the traditional NBA understanding, a three-step layup was always done in the same direction and with the same rhythm.
Furthermore, the long second step of the Euro Step often looked like a traveling violation.
Therefore, in the early days, the NBA didn’t accept this move at all and would always call it a travel.
It was only as more and more European players entered the NBA that the move came to be considered legal.
However, very few players in the league used it.
Because it wasn’t how they were trained from a young age.
It was only in the last couple of years that a guy on the Spurs named Ginobili had started using this type of drive frequently.
"Chen, it’s a good offensive move, but it’s a technique for guards. Dako is a big man."
D’Antoni had never seen a big man use the Euro Step to drive to the basket.
A guy that big, weren’t they afraid he’d just trip himself up first?
"Besides, even with the three-second rule creating space in the paint, the hand-checking rule still exists."
You couldn’t use hand-checking in the high post, but you could once a player crossed the free-throw line.
With an arm in your chest, how are you supposed to drive?
"Mike, I understand everything you’re saying. It’s true no big men use this technique, but that’s exactly why it will be so powerful once Dako masters it."
"If you only have what everyone else has, how can you stand out? It’s what you have that others don’t that creates an advantage."
"I think he genuinely has the potential. His coordination is incredibly good, he can finish with both his left and right hands, and he’s not slow at all. As long as we specifically work on his explosiveness, there’s a high probability he can master it."
If they were really going to train him, they had to target their improvements.
For example, the explosive power in his calves. With stronger legs, he could execute those wide, direction-changing strides in an instant.
And for the finish at the end, without excellent explosiveness, you would lose too much momentum from the change of direction and wouldn’t be able to complete the play.
"As for what you said about hand-checking, how about this? I can give you a little inside information."
Chen Yu lowered his voice. "It’s possible the league will eliminate hand-checking after this season ends."
The moment he said it, the eyes of everyone in the room went wide.
"Changing the rules again?" Lucas exclaimed.
In the past few years, with the elimination of illegal defense and the introduction of the defensive three-second rule, it felt like all the league did was change the rules.
"Chen, are you serious?" Rivers asked urgently.
He knew that even though Chen Yu hadn’t become the league’s vice president, he had deep connections within the league office and definitely knew things they didn’t.
But he still couldn’t believe it. Just as Lucas said, it really felt like the league had done nothing but change the rules these past few years.
Chen Yu nodded. "Of course it’s true. The league office has already reached a decision. They’ll probably announce it to the public in May, as soon as the season is over. So it’s no big deal for me to tell you in advance."
He had chatted about this with David Stern the last time he was in New York.
"Doesn’t that mean it’ll be even easier for guards to score?"
D’Antoni frowned.
Once hand-checking was gone, those guards were going to take off.
Then that old saying about big men ruling the league might really have to change.

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