605 Too Talented (1/2)

The NBA announced the player of the week for the second week of the regular season in the Eastern and Western Conferences. The Clippers' center substitute, Karaby, was awarded the acclaim in the Western Conference.

His last season was not bad, but he was only ever able to get a double-double. This was common in the star-filled Western Conference. Getting a triple-double, on the other hand, was rare. Getting a triple-double was enough for him to get named the player of the week.

Karaby was very happy. At 35, he had regained his youth and been named the best player of the week. He hadn't even won this title in his prime.

Karaby treated the entire coaching staff and his teammates to a meal; they did not hold themselves back. They all came with the thought of using as much of Karaby's money as possible. They ordered a table full of luxurious foods.

In the private dining area of the hotel's restaurant, Karaby happily handed his credit card to the waiter. Karaby had earned tens of millions of dollars in his career, so the cost of such a meal wouldn't bother him. If he had to treat his team to a meal every time he achieved a triple-double, he would happily go bankrupt.

His teammates were very happy, but Gray was spacing out a bit.

As the substitute center of the team, Karaby had been maintained an average double-double of 10+10 this season. Now, he had gotten a triple-double through his blocking. In contrast, Gray had been plagued by fouls. He played even less than Karaby, a substitute.

Dai Li noticed Gray's worries. A starting player doing worse than his substitute would obviously make one feel depressed.

Dai Li went to Gray's side and sat down. After thinking in silence for a few seconds, he asked, ”Are you feeling worried?”

”Hhmm?” Gray was slightly absent-minded. He quickly composed himself and replied, ”No, no.”

”I thought you were worried about Karaby taking away your spot in the starting lineup,” Dai Li said with a smile.

Gray did not answer this time. He did indeed have this fear in his heart. After all, Karaby's performances were much better than his and Karaby was much more experienced. As long as Karaby maintained his current performance, he could play in the starting lineup of any team.

Dai Li said, ”The reason why I keep you in the starting lineup instead of Karaby is that I recognize your potential. Karaby has done well recently, but he has reached his limit. You are different. I cannot even see your limit.”

Dai Li was not trying to comfort Gray. Gray had a rare genius that only appeared once every 30 years. The detector rated him as an S+ level talent. He definitely had much room to grow.

”However, you need to solve your problem with fouls. You get too many. This fragments your playing time and affects your stats,” Dai Li said. An eccentric expression flashed on his face.

Gray was plagued by fouls. In 20 minutes of playing time, he was able to get an 11 + 8, plus 2.3 blocks. If this were converted to 36 minutes, it would definitely be a double-double.

Taking into account that his playing time was very fragmented, his stats could definitely improve. Dai Li also thought that if Gray could control his personal fouls like the other players inside the three-point line, he could very easily average 20+15.

Gray, who was sitting opposite Dai Li, listened to him. He agreed with him and nodded as he listened. He knew that he committed too many personal fouls.

”Coach, what should I do?” Gray asked.

”According to my observations, your fouls occur when you block and when you fill in. When you are defending during a one-on-one situation, your fouls are under control. You need to improve in these two areas.”

Dai Li extended his finger as he spoke. He then said, ”First of all, let's talk about blocking. You definitely can block, I might even say that you are good at it...”

Gray heard this and smiled timidly. His face looked very old, and a few wrinkles suddenly appeared on his face.

Gray could get 2.3 blocks per game with his 20 minutes of playtime. This proved that he was very good in this respect. If converted to the 36 minutes of playtime of an average player, Gray might get four blocks per game. He was able to be blocked shot leader by just by getting three blocks at the beginning of the year. If he got four blocks in a game, he could enter the hall of fame.

Dai Li suddenly changed his tone, ”You should not block for the sake of getting a block.”

Gray hesitated and then tentatively said, ”I don't do anything like that coach. I really don't. I'm not trying to push up my stats.”

”I didn't mean to say that you were deliberately trying to boost stats. I mean you always want to block the ball.” Dai Li paused and said, ”Sometimes, you don't need to block at all. You just need to interfere with your opponent's throw to keep the ball from going into the basket. Then you can get the rebound. Wouldn't that be easier?”