The Chinese fans’ phalanx at the Marosy Stadium today has once again expanded!
The thousands of fans who witnessed the last game against the United States were almost entirely present in the stands for this match. They had already seen the Chinese team create a miracle once, but they were not satisfied; they wanted the Chinese team to continue their miraculous run! They lovingly believed that their cheers and encouragement gave the Chinese team immense courage and strength. Thus, they not only invited friends and family but also recruited over a thousand more Chinese fans to cheer alongside them. Furthermore, they persuaded the Greek organizing committee to allow them to bring Chinese lion dance drums, ancient war drums, into the stadium!
In the stands, occupying nearly a third of the seating, Chinese fans, uniformly clad in red jerseys and waving red national flags, were led by two burly men with red headscarves. Between them stood a massive red war drum…
During the pre-game flag-raising ceremony, the enormous five-star red flag was unfurled once more. Several thousand Chinese fans, holding the large five-star red flag together, sang the national anthem in unison, elevating the pre-game atmosphere for China to its zenith!
Even the opposing Yugoslavian team felt the pressure from the fan phalanx, and the home team, China, felt even more strongly the conviction and strength for victory bestowed by the fans!
For this game, Hu Weidong adamantly requested to play: “Even if my professional career is ruined, I don’t want to miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!”
With Old Hu’s words delivered thus, head coach Zhang Bing had no reason to stop Hu Weidong and could only turn his gaze to He Xi Meng, signaling: What do you think we should do?
Consider it from He Xi Meng’s perspective: If he were in Hu Weidong’s current situation, with a minor injury, not serious, but still playable with a bit of perseverance, would he persist?
Facing the temptation of a World Championship title, perhaps He Xi Meng would also risk playing?
Ultimately, He Xi Meng agreed to Hu Weidong’s request to play, but only allowing him to come off the bench.
Whether starting or substituting, Hu Weidong had no objections. As long as he could fight alongside his teammates and contribute his share to this championship final, Hu Weidong was content.
Seeing that Hu Weidong was actually eligible to return, Gong Xiaobin became anxious. He dropped his crutch and also appealed to the coaching staff: “Coach, I want to play too! My knee injury isn’t that serious, a painkiller shot would fix it… Coach, coach… Xi Meng, talk to the coach for me…”
“Get lost… You just stay on the bench and cheer for us…”
He Xi Meng agreed to Hu Weidong’s plea to play but rejected Gong Xiaobin’s.
Hu Weidong had a minor injury; not letting him play before was to prevent it from affecting his recovery and becoming a chronic issue.
Gong Xiaobin had a serious injury; he might even need knee surgery upon return. This could not be taken lightly, as a single misstep could truly end his career…
This game was different from the one against the United States. The American team liked to attack the basket, while the Yugoslavian team excelled at shooting. Even their tall center possessed a respectable mid-range game.
Therefore, China could not replicate the "bus + Da Zhi" twin-tower lineup used against the United States. Da Ba’s footwork was too slow, making him prone to defensive lapses in the mid-range.
And if they paired Da Zhi with Sun Jun, China would lack interior height.
In the end, He Xi Meng recommended to the coaching staff that they take a gamble and promote Yao Ming to the starting lineup. Previously, in the group stage game against Germany, Yao Ming had started once, revealing both his weaknesses and strengths clearly.
In this championship final, such a crucial battle, if Zhang Bing were to choose, he would definitely opt for the more mature Da Ba, even if Da Ba’s footwork might be exploited by the opponent; he would rather stick with the familiar than try the new.
However, He Xi Meng had no such reservations. He knew that Yao Ming was not yet mature, but he also knew how terrifying the future Yao Ming would become. With Da Ba, there would be no surprises, and the outcome would be predictable. With Yao Ming, he could become an X-factor, adding a sliver of variability to this already low-probability victory.
Center: Yao Ming, Power Forward: Da Zhi, Small Forward: Liu Yudong, Shooting Guard: Li Nan, Point Guard: He Xi Meng.
Da Zhi and Liu Yudong’s positions were locked.
Li Nan, benefiting from Hu Weidong’s injury, had begun to make his mark on the national team. In these past few games, Li Nan, as He Xi Meng’s partner, had been a pleasant surprise. As Hu Weidong’s backup, Li Nan was not as versatile. However, Li Nan had his own strengths: more consistent three-point shooting and steadily improving defense. Under He Xi Meng’s deliberate guidance, Li Nan was rapidly evolving into a quality 3&D player…
In this championship final, He Xi Meng wanted to replicate the previous game against the United States, using his offensive firepower to help China gain a scoring advantage. However, perhaps due to being too hot in the last game, He Xi Meng’s attempts from beyond the three-point line in the beginning of this game missed twice.
Fortunately, the Yugoslavian team had also been thoroughly troubled by Greece in their previous match, so neither team scored in the first two possessions.
The world expected this championship final to start with the intensity of colliding planets, but instead, both teams were clanking their shots, making for quite a spectacle.
On the Chinese side, He Xi Meng quickly adjusted his mindset. Temporarily abandoning the idea of going solo, he faked a shot and drove to the basket, pulling his defender away before driving into the Yugoslavian interior. Then, before the opponents could double-team and surround him, he lofted a high lob pass from close range, sailing over the Yugoslavian center and to Yao Ming behind him!
He Xi Meng and Yao Ming had not played together for a long time; their actual time playing together only began in this World Championship. But Yao Ming’s basketball IQ was high, and in just a few months, they had established considerable chemistry.
With just a glance from He Xi Meng, Yao Ming precisely understood his intention. He gathered himself and executed a powerful two-handed alley-oop dunk, scoring the first points of the game for China!
Such a combination play was only possible with Yao Ming’s ability to keep up with He Xi Meng’s rhythm.
Da Zhi's height was still a bit insufficient; on the international stage, it was difficult for him to execute such a dominant alley-oop dunk.
However, Da Zhi also had his advantages. In the next possession, He Xi Meng used a drive to fake a drive towards the basket with Yao Ming, drawing the Yugoslavian defense’s attention. In reality, he threw a backward pass, splitting the ball to Da Zhi, who had retreated to the three-point line!
Da Zhi's height still gave him absolute dominance inside, but if he moved out to the three-point line… Honestly, as long as he shot with sufficient decisiveness, the opponent’s close-outs would essentially be unable to disrupt him!
On this play, Da Zhi's shot was very decisive. He caught the ball and shot, sinking the three-pointer steadily!
Led by their two tall centers, China’s start gradually became smoother.