When Grover and Xu Yong said they wanted to spend time with their family, they actually wanted to observe whether Xu Yong was worth cooperating with.

Now that he has taken the initiative to come to Tempe, it shows that he has made up his mind.

However, after the two really met, Grover said that he would have to test Xu Yong for two days, and only if Xu Yong passed the test would he decide to come out.

You are the ancestor of trainers and you have the final say.

Xu Yongyi should cooperate.

And this so-called test is actually training.

Practice three times a day, each time for 90 minutes, the earliest one is before breakfast, then at 2 pm and 10 pm.

In terms of time, it is similar to Xu Yong's previous training, and 30 minutes out of 90 minutes are shooting training, while the remaining hour is very intense.

Even during training, Grover had a medical kit next to him. After the training, he would come over to test Xu Yong's heart rate and other physical indicators.

If there is no problem, the training intensity will be increased in the next training session.

This is a very special training method that even Xu Yong, a reborn person, has never experienced before.

The intensity of training continued to increase, and by the second night, he felt that the intensity had reached his physical limit.

When the training was over, he was panting and supporting himself on his knees.

He thought that if Grover didn't want to be a trainer, it would be a good idea for him to be a prison guard.

"Don't do that. The weight of your upper body will put pressure on your knees, which is very harmful to the knee joints. Also, when you squeeze your arms inward, it will compress your lungs, making it even more difficult for you to breathe." Grover said as he walked towards him.

After hearing this, Xu Yong straightened his body. He didn't care whether it would hurt his knee joints, but he could feel what Grover said about the difficulty in breathing.

Such a small detail, this guy is really not comparable to ordinary trainers.

"If you are really tired, when you bend down, hold the bottom edge of your sports shorts with both hands. This way you can rest without hindering your breathing," Grover continued to demonstrate.

Xu Yong nodded. Although he knew that what Grover said was probably right, this action was too trivial, so he just had difficulty breathing.

"So you have decided to be my personal trainer?" Xu Yong asked. If not, there would be no need for the other party to waste these words.

Grover smiled and nodded, then put away his smile and said with emotion: "You are the best player I have ever tested."

Xu Yong smiled. Grover spoke very nicely.

"I'm not complimenting you. I never try to please my clients. I'm telling the truth." Grover said seriously after seeing Xu Yong's reaction.

His words are full of gold. You have to know that the people he has worked with, from Jordan to Hill, to Kobe, McGrady, and Wade, are all superstars.

"So I'm going to push you harder than ever before, and you have a chance to be a better basketball player than anyone else," Grover continued.

Xu Yong also put away his smile and nodded.

Regardless of whether this was Grover's rhetoric or it was really like that, he was ready to continue to become stronger.

Because Xu Yong had just finished training, Grover gestured for the two to sit on the bench on the sidelines to chat.

When Kobe teaches the puppy gait, it is more of an experience, but trainers are different, they have their own theoretical basis.

Grover is no exception, but his theory is also completely different from others.

Because in his theory, he would first divide athletes into certain types, from low to high: passive, controllers and rulers.

Grover does not give them precise definitions, but he gives some examples to make the distinction.

For example, a passive player can have a great game from time to time, a controller can maintain excellent performance for an entire season, and a dominant player can have a career that is always at the top.

For example, passive people rely on others to evaluate whether they are successful, controllers believe that completing the task itself is the best reward for their efforts, and rulers are never satisfied and feel that they can do better.

"This is the purpose of my testing you, to see if you have the potential to become a controller, or even a ruler," Grover continued.

Judging from the results, Xu Yong clearly has the potential.

After discussing the theory, the next step is practical training.

Grover will develop a strict training plan for Xu Yong.

The intensity of the training plan is the same as Xu Yong's previous extreme training, because Grover's training goal is to help people reach their physical limits.

When it comes to the specific training content, he does not talk about training the lower limbs or upper limb strength in general, but will be precise about the muscle groups.

For example, the calf triceps are closely related to breakthroughs, and the biceps are closely related to shooting.

He believes that only by strengthening these muscle groups can one perform more simply and efficiently in competitions.

Xu Yong certainly had doubts, for example, the biceps, special training for this would greatly affect the shooting feel.

But Grover explained that the touch can be maintained through other balance training, and the explosiveness of the biceps training will not only make shooting easy but also greatly improve the finishing ability.

Even his shooting training is different from others.

Generally speaking, trainers will simulate the way their teammates pass the ball to their clients, so that clients can perfectly connect with team training.

But Grover is not like that. The balls he passes are very difficult to catch, and even require the customer to move to catch the ball.

His reason is simple. In a real game, you can't receive too many comfortable passes. Most of them are interfered or destroyed.

Only when you get used to this in training can you perform as you wish in the game.

These were all new to Xu Yong and somewhat shocking, but he knew that they would definitely be useful to him.

Finally, regarding the weight gain plan, Grover said Xu Yong doesn't have to worry because he will not only arrange Xu Yong's training, but also a strict diet plan.

Gaining weight is part of the plan, but it will be gradual over the course of the season rather than a sudden burst of weight gain.

Xu Yong: You have the final say, let’s sign the contract quickly!

The two finally signed a three-year, $2 million contract.

Generally speaking, the price of a top trainer in this era is only $450,000 a year, and Grover's price is half more expensive than theirs.

But he is worth the price, not only for his ability, but also because most trainers have several clients, but Grover is one-on-one and his cell phone is turned on 24 hours a day, so he can be called at any time.

So it is definitely worth spending the money.

…

Time flies, and it is already mid-September. The training camps of various teams are about to start, and several people from Tempe are also preparing to start their respective new seasons.

When Xu Yong returned to Chicago, Yao Ming had already arrived and had found a house in the suburbs.

Then, he couldn't help but complain to Xu Yong.

"I thought Houston was already congested enough, but after living here for a few days, I realized that I am still young."

Xu Yong couldn't help but laugh when he heard this. Why do you think I chose the city center?

Los Angeles is congested, and Kobe uses helicopters as a means of transportation to catch up on training. But Chicago is the most congested city in the United States.

The two met and reminisced about the past, and Xu Yong acted as a guide, taking Yao Ming around Chicago.

Two days later, when the team training camp officially started, they both went there early.

When they arrived, there were already people training inside.

When I went in and took a look, who else could it be but Rose who was shooting three-pointers crazily?

"Derrick, you're just going to waste the whole summer here?" After watching Rose's shooting percentage for a while, Xu Yong couldn't help but ask.

Rose has practiced his three-point shot really well. Apart from anything else, it is definitely more accurate than at the same time.

Rose put down the ball in his hand with a smile, asked the trainer to wait for him, and then came over to greet Xu Yong and Yao Ming.

Although he didn't talk much, you could tell he was very excited.

But everyone would be excited about this. Last season, they were a playoff-level team, but this season they are directly competing for the championship and are full of energy.

After a while, other team members arrived one after another.

Artest was the first to arrive besides them. When he saw Yao Ming, he was like seeing his own brother. He hugged Yao Ming and laughed.

At this time, Artest had never won a championship. His coming so early showed that he was extremely eager for the new season.

After Artest, the next one to come was "The Big Shark" O'Neal.

O'Neal first gave Yao Ming a bear hug, and then smiled and fist-bumped with Xu Yong.

This was different from when Xu Yong saw him on the court last season. O'Neal's smile was genuine happiness from the bottom of his heart.

For him at this stage of his career, happiness is the first priority. As for whether he minds playing as a substitute? He is not Allen Iverson.

As we were chatting, Allen from the team came, Tony Allen.

Allen seems much more low-key and humble, and he looks more like Rose.

However, with James Johnson in front of him, Xu Yong knew that people like him were generally ruthless and didn't talk much.

Then there is the big but equally introverted O'Neal.

At this time, the three big guys stood together, and the three of them were on the same team. It was really a scene that I never dared to imagine before.

In less than an hour, all the members of the Bulls team arrived one after another. In addition to those with formal contracts, there were also some veterans who came to curry favor, as well as some young players and undrafted players.

Basically, Xu Yong can already see the team's 15-man roster for the new season.

Point Guard: Rose, Hinrich, Rafer Alston

Shooting Guards: Tony Allen, Kyle Korver, Bill Walker

Small forward: Xu Yong, James Johnson, Jerry Stackhouse

Power forward: Artest, O'Neal, Taj Gibson

Center: Yao Ming, O'Neal, Asik

The highlight of this lineup is its strong men and powerful horses.

Of course, they may face quite a few problems.

For example, in the rotation of the inside line, there are at most two inside substitutes in a game, but these three players all need playing time.

Kwame Brown's form last season was achieved through playing time. If there was no playing time, no matter whether it was O'Neal or O'Neal, they would eventually become mascots on the bench.

Another example is the tactical issue: are you really going to play with one big and four small players, or let O'Neal Jr. start at the power forward position?

Also, Tony Allen has absolutely no shooting ability, so how to play positional warfare is also a big problem.

No matter how good your defense is, it is impossible to have a defensive counterattack in every round, and Thibodeau is not a coach who excels in offense.

The players were still getting acquainted when Thibodeau arrived late.

Xu Yong was stunned when he saw it.

It's not because of Thibodeau, but the person who is closest to Thibodeau among the assistant coaches following Thibodeau.

Isn't that Mike Malone?

Malone is no small figure. Although he is not well-known in the NBA, he became a coach in college right after graduation and has been an official assistant coach in the NBA for seven years.

He had previously been an assistant coach for the Cavaliers.

But it makes sense if you look at it this way. James is gone, Brown is unemployed, and Malone must find another way out.

Now it seems that his professional ability is indeed good, and Thibodeau directly recruited him to be the chief assistant coach.

With Malone around, the Bulls would have faced fewer problems.

On the first day of training, Thibodeau did not arrange anything tactical, but instead asked the players to do some routine training to get into shape.

And like his former boss Jeff Van Gundy, he holds a small notebook in his hand, observes the players and records something.

Ma Long was communicating with him from time to time.

After the day's training was over, the players went back to rest one after another.

As for Xu Yong, there will be extra practice at 10 o'clock in the evening.

When he stopped the car, he found that Ross had also arrived.

Rose really gave it his all for the new season.

The two chatted as they entered the elevator, then went to the locker room together to change into training clothes and went to the training hall.

Training is a very boring thing, and it will be a lot more interesting with teammates as companions.

They talked and laughed as they pushed open the door of the training hall.

The training hall was exceptionally quiet at this time, but when they pushed the door open, they saw someone sitting on the sidelines, busy with something, and didn't notice them.

The bald forehead, reflecting the light as brightly as a mirror, was clearly Thibodeau.

The two exchanged glances for a while, then walked over.

Thibodeau looked up when he heard footsteps approaching.

"Are you here for extra practice?" Thibodeau asked when he saw the two men's attire.

The two nodded one after another.

"You guys just do your thing, I won't disturb you." Thibodeau said with a smile.

He looks so gentle.

"Coach, why are you still busy so late?" Xu Yong couldn't help but lean over curiously.

Ross also came over like a curious baby.

"I wanted to cut some pick-and-roll footage, but there was a short circuit in the office, so I moved here," Thibodeau said and continued to work.

Ross and Xu Yong did not ask any more questions upon seeing this, but went on with their training.

More than an hour later, the two finished their training, and Thibodeau was almost done as well and was packing up his computer.

Two people saw it and went over to help.

After helping to move the computers back to the office, Thibodeau asked with a smile, "Have you had dinner? If not, I'll treat you."

dinner?

Xu Yong and Ross were both stunned when they heard this.

So Thibodeau has been editing footage here since the afternoon training session?!

Even Xu Yong was somewhat shocked when he realized this.

Thibodeau is simply the worst of the worst.

And he suddenly remembered that Thibodeau is already 52 years old and has not yet married. This shows that he is really devoted to his work.

It’s hard not to respect such a head coach!