When it came to veteran players, He Xi Meng had not yet found any with good value.
However, He Xi Meng could not directly dampen Collins' enthusiasm, as he was a favorite of Mr. Boss.
Therefore, He Xi Meng gave him a little hope, saying they would first integrate the current lineup and then consider trades and reinforcements after the season started, depending on the situation. After all, the trading window would not officially close until after the All-Star break.
Collins found He Xi Meng's reasoning to be sound. Firstly, it would give him more time and opportunities to connect with the players. Secondly, it would help him maintain his presence for a longer period. He readily agreed.
He Xi Meng had finally managed to curb Collins' surging trading passion, temporarily preserving the Celtics' large roster.
Next, it would be up to Kerr to discover two players from the current lineup who could fill the power forward and small forward starting positions.
If Kerr failed to develop them, Collins would initiate new trades at any time. By then, He Xi Meng's efforts to block them would likely become increasingly difficult.
However, the Celtics' draft picks over the past three years were all elites selected by He Xi Meng from the draft pools of those years. They might not all be top-tier rookies, but they were at least ranked within the top 10 of each class, representing the most cost-effective players.
He Xi Meng believed that with the inherent potential of these rookies and Kerr's coaching ability, the Celtics would not lack players.
As for He Xi Meng himself, he would likely be unable to help Kerr coach the rookies this summer.
Because the summer of 2006 would feature the FIBA World Championship!
The head coach for this year's World Championship was still Zhang Yide, and the core players were the same veterans from the Olympic Games in Greece two years prior. However, these players were now getting older, and many were injured.
Despite this, the Chinese Basketball Association's high-level officials had set ambitious goals for Comrade Zhang Yide: to contend for the championship and, at a minimum, secure a top-three finish!
After consecutively winning the World Championship twice, the mindset of some leaders had become overconfident. They could no longer return to the era where simply advancing from the group stage was considered a victory. They were now accustomed to setting their sights on being the world's number one.
He Xi Meng knew that such a mindset would eventually lead to trouble.
But He Xi Meng did not expect the trouble to arrive so quickly.
Before the group stage was even completed, Ba Te'er re-injured himself and was forced to withdraw from the competition, casting a shadow over the Chinese team's advancement.
In the Round of 16, the Chinese team faced their old rivals, Germany.
Nowisky had just lost to He Xi Meng and Yao Ming in the NBA Finals this year. Facing them again, Nowisky was naturally filled with a desire for revenge on the world basketball stage.
Therefore, Nowisky played with great intensity in this game, almost single-handedly carrying Germany's offense.
Although the final outcome was not in doubt, with the Chinese team, boasting multiple NBA players, defeating Nowisky's Germany once again, before the game ended, Nowisky executed a "Golden Rooster Stands on One Leg" move directly onto Yao Ming's thigh...
Yao Ming collapsed to the ground, becoming the second core player of the Chinese team to withdraw from the competition, following Ba.
If Ba's injury had only slightly diminished the Chinese team's overall strength, then Yao Ming's injury was a severe blow, causing their strength to decline by at least one level.
If the original Chinese team was considered a championship contender, then the current Chinese team could at best be considered a top-four contender.
In the quarterfinals, the Chinese team faced the challenge of Greece!
The Greek team in 2006 was considerably strong. In the original timeline, they had progressed steadily, defeating France in the quarterfinals, the United States in the semifinals, and advancing all the way to the finals.
On one side was the historically strongest Greek team, and on the other, a Chinese team that had lost its vital pillars. He Xi Meng had never played such a grueling match!
In this game, to help the Chinese team advance, He Xi Meng truly exerted all his might, scoring a remarkable 48 points. He accounted for nearly half of China's points, narrowly defeating Greece by a margin of 2 points. Single-handedly, he carried the Chinese team into the top four, thus living up to Coach Zhang Yide's "nurturing grace"!
However, in the semifinals, the Chinese team's opponent was the powerful Dream Team VII!
This year's Dream Team VII was built around the players from the 2003 draft class.
Head coach Coach K appointed three captains simultaneously: James, Wade, and Anthony!
In addition to these three captains, other members included Arenas, Battier, Bosh, Bowen, Elton Brand, Howard, Brad Miller, Paul, Jamison, Joe Johnson, Hinrich, and Stoudemire.
It was evident that the previous generation of top NBA players had not joined. The Dream Team VII members were generally very young. Despite their talent, they lacked experience. This was also why, in the original timeline, this Dream Team VII ultimately fell to the Greek team.
If the Chinese team this year had not been plagued by injuries, and under the leadership of He Xi Meng and Yao Ming, with their team-oriented playstyle, they would have had a good chance of defeating this young Dream Team VII.
But now, that possibility no longer existed.
Without Yao Ming's assistance, could the Chinese team, with Da Zhi, Old Hu, and the young Yi Lian, withstand the onslaught of the Dream Team VII?
The answer was almost certainly no.
Therefore, He Xi Meng had no expectation of winning this game before it even started.
However, as the game began, the Dream Team VII played worse than He Xi Meng had imagined. The players played individually, relying solely on their talent, with very little synchronized teamwork and frequent turnovers, gifting many opportunities to the Chinese team.
On the Chinese side, Da Zhi and Old Hu played with renewed vigor, their outside shooting raining down threes, while the young Yi Lian inside was also playing admirably, attacking the Dream Team VII's basket without hesitation!
With the back-and-forth, the game actually turned into a hard-fought battle. He Xi Meng suddenly realized that if he didn't give his all, he would not only be letting down his teammates and the vast number of Chinese fans but also, it seemed, the opposing players who were constantly providing opportunities...
So, He Xi Meng attempted to unleash his full power.
This exertion of his full power resulted in the breaking of his decade-long immunity to major injuries!
While making a quick change of direction to get past Wade, He Xi Meng heard a sharp snapping sound, followed by searing pain in his right Achilles tendon. His body then lost control and he crashed heavily onto the floor...