With the start of March Madness less than two weeks away, Duncan's sudden foray into romance had the head coach, Dave Odom, in a panic!
This unexpected turn of events completely derailed Dave Odom's original plan to discipline He Ximeng...
On the night Wake Forest University clinched the Atlantic Coast Conference championship, Dave Odom suppressed his anger and didn't berate He Ximeng for altering his tactics. After all, the team had won, and Dave Odom had to consider the bigger picture.
However, after returning home and calming down, Dave Odom meticulously re-examined the situation and suddenly realized that He Ximeng's final tactical choice was indeed more stable than his own "give the ball to Tim" strategy! It involved less risk and had a higher probability of success.
In other words, while He Ximeng had indeed modified his tactics, the consequences appeared to be positive rather than negative.
Even so, while a major outburst was avoidable, a minor reprimand was not!
As the head coach, Dave Odom still decided that He Ximeng needed to know who was in charge of setting tactics on this team.
Therefore, Dave Odom's original plan was to use these two weeks before March Madness to properly lecture He Ximeng, making him less defiant on the court and encouraging him to diligently execute the tactics he laid out, rather than coming up with new tricks during the upcoming national championship.
But then, Duncan's sudden development completely diverted Dave Odom's attention away from He Ximeng.
He Ximeng secretly altering tactics was a minor issue. Duncan's dating was a major one! It could potentially ruin his career.
After all, women are fiercer than tigers!
There are no lazy bulls, only tireless fields!
Duncan had maintained his purity for the first 20 years of his life, exhibiting incredible strength inside the paint. Once defiled by a woman, or worse, becoming addicted to the physical act, the consequences were truly unimaginable.
What made it even more unbearable was that Dave Odom couldn't interfere with Duncan's private life. He could only earnestly advise Duncan not to rush into relationships, and that once he became an NBA player, what kind of woman couldn't he have?
This argument had managed to fool Duncan for nearly three years, keeping him chaste. For some unknown reason, Duncan had suddenly awakened, broken his abstinence, and was now pursuing it with great intensity.
Dave Odom wished he could stake out Duncan's dormitory every night, only leaving after seeing him return to sleep, to put his mind at ease.
But all efforts were in vain!
Once the flames of love ignite, no force can extinguish them.
Fortunately, the outcome Dave Odom most feared did not materialize.
Although there was a minor rift between Duncan and head coach Dave Odom due to the Amy incident, Duncan managed to balance his love life and basketball well, not slacking off in training because of Amy. On the contrary, Duncan actively requested extra training sessions and worked even harder! This was because, according to the logic He Ximeng had instilled in him, he needed to maintain his strength consistently to firmly hold Amy's heart and prevent her from developing feelings for someone else.
Duncan was indeed a man of extraordinary talent.
Seeing the head coach's attention focused primarily on Duncan, engaging in a battle of wits with him, He Ximeng secretly practiced conventional offensive and defensive tactics with the other teammates. In the process, He Ximeng incorporated his own insights, optimizing Wake Forest's tactical rotations and player positioning, allowing the team to unleash its tactical prowess more efficiently under his guidance. Although the tactics themselves remained the same.
In addition to practicing basketball, He Ximeng also attended classes in the psychology department during the day. Compared to general science subjects, the theories in the psychology department were not as dry and were relatively more engaging. This was because the subjects of study were people's minds. At most, modeling and data analysis could be a little complex, but overall, for He Ximeng, it was like attending psychology lectures, enriching his knowledge in this field, which was beneficial and harmless.
During his free time, He Ximeng would hide in his dorm room, diligently writing the latter half of "Pirates of the Caribbean."
A while ago, with Duncan, the "update-demanding demon" constantly urging him on, He Ximeng's writing speed was remarkably fast.
But recently, Duncan had been busy dating Amy and experiencing the joys of love, so the "little whip" urging him for updates had clearly not reached He Ximeng.
He Ximeng's procrastination had returned, and his writing speed had noticeably slowed down. When he was in a good mood, he wrote 4,000 words a day; when he was in a bad mood, he wrote 2,000 words a day, taking his time and living a rather comfortable life.
At the same time, He Ximeng would call his mother every day to report on his studies.
Facing various beauties of different complexions who constantly knocked on his door to borrow things, He Ximeng politely declined them all, much like Duncan before he had opened up.
Of course, He Ximeng wasn't truly oblivious; rather, he needed to concentrate all his attention and focus on refining his basketball skills!
Compared to Duncan, this year's NCAA Championship was actually more important for He Ximeng!
This was because Duncan would likely choose to play another year in the NCAA, obtain his bachelor's degree, and then enter the NBA. He Ximeng, however, if given the opportunity, didn't want to waste another year in the NCAA.
Therefore, after daily training ended, while Duncan would clean up and go out to frolic with his beloved Amy, He Ximeng would return to the gym for solo practice.
Some techniques were not suitable for his teammates to see in advance.
Two weeks passed in a flash, and it was mid-March 1996. The highly anticipated March Madness was about to begin!
This year, the Atlantic Coast Conference had an unprecedented five at-large bids!
In addition to the automatic qualifier, the top-seeded Wake Forest University, Georgia Tech, North Carolina, Duke, Clemson, and Maryland also earned berths to this year's national championship, making it the conference with the most participating teams among all 32 conferences in the nation!
In terms of specific bracket placements, North Carolina was in the East Region. The strongest teams in that region this year were Georgetown University, led by Iverson, and the University of Massachusetts, led by Marcus Camby.
Georgia Tech and Duke were in the Southeast Region. The strongest teams in that region this year were the University of Connecticut, led by Ray Allen, and Mississippi State University, led by Erick Dampier. Of course, Georgia Tech, led by Marbury, honorable mention, and Drew Barry, was also a strong contender!
Clemson and Maryland were in the West Region! The strongest teams in that region this year included the University of Kansas, led by Raef LaFrentz and Paul Pierce, Syracuse University, led by John Wallace, and the University of Arizona, led by Mike Bibby.
Wake Forest University was in the Midwest Region. The strongest teams in this region were the University of Kentucky and Wake Forest itself!