23: Chapter 23: 145,800 Fan Value!
The Battle Against the Guangdong Dynasty!
23: Chapter 23: 145,800 Fan Value!
The Battle Against the Guangdong Dynasty!
“145,800 Fan Value!” When Wang Zelin woke up at six o’clock in the morning, his first instinct was not to wash his face, brush his teeth, or check his phone.
Instead, he immediately closed his eyes and plunged his consciousness straight into the dark, vast expanse of the system space.
A floating holographic blue interface flickered to life in front of his eyes.
Looking at the glowing numbers on the status bar, his previous balance of roughly 80,000 Fan Value had officially skyrocketed by more than 60,000 points after his single monstrous opening-night performance against Shanxi!
The current total sat at an eye-popping 145,800 Fan Value.
“It already meets the requirements for a Black Iron lottery draw,” Wang Zelin murmured, staring at the revolving roulette wheel floating in the virtual hall.
However, after looking at it for a few seconds, he shook his head and closed the lottery menu.
To put it simply, he was no longer satisfied with a mere Black Iron lottery.
Black Iron draws only yielded minor physical attributes or low-level temporary skill cards.
If he wanted to build an unshakeable foundation capable of dominating the NBA across the ocean in the near future, he had to hoard his fan points for high-tier Bronze, Silver, or even Gold draws.
The famous Chinese literary giant Mr.
Lu Xun once wrote in his essays: “My great dynasty lacks many things, but it never lacks people!” This famous statement could be understood from either a positive or a negative perspective, and the exact same logic held true in the field of professional sports.
In late 2011, national sports icon Yao Ming had just officially announced his retirement from basketball.
At this precise historical moment, basketball possessed an absolute, unrivaled peak of cultural influence across China.
Don’t listen to those people arguing that football is the undisputed number-one sport in the world.
Even if association football holds the global title, what on earth does that have to do with the Chinese national football team?
Unless the national football team can somehow produce a world-class, Yao Ming-style global megastar on the pitch, basketball remains the absolute king of domestic sports influence in China!
The greater the sport’s influence, the larger the potential fan base.
Right now, what Wang Zelin needed to do was fight more and more bravely in the CBA, carving out his reputation game by game.
He wanted to convince every sports analyst, court reporter, and basketball fan in the nation to admit one undeniable truth: He, Wang Zelin, is the one and only new-generation leader capable of carrying the banner of the Chinese men’s basketball team after Yao Ming’s departure!
When that day came, let alone a mere 100,000 fan value, accumulating one million, ten million, or even one hundred million points would no longer be a distant dream.
After clarifying his long-term developmental blueprint, Wang Zelin broke free from the system space and opened his eyes.
It was barely six in the morning.
The sky over Quanzhou was still wrapped in a hazy morning mist, but continuous bursts of heavy rhythmic sounds were already echoing through the courtyard of a certain high-end residential community: papapa, papapa!
Any basketball fan walking by would instantly recognize the sound—it was the sharp, solid impact of leather violently bouncing off polished outdoor concrete.
Having a private basketball court built right inside your own residential villa compound was undeniably convenient.
You never had to worry about disturbing neighbors during early morning workouts.
The only minor inconvenience was that there was only one basketball available at home, meaning Wang Zelin had to constantly chase down his own rebounds after every single jumper.
After all, this wasn’t the team’s professional training facility; nobody keeps a rack full of twenty official game balls sitting in their backyard.
As for Wang Zelin’s parents, they had long gotten used to their son getting up early every single day to practice drills.
Older people naturally slept fewer hours anyway, and sometimes his parents even woke up earlier than him.
After practicing heavy-ball dribbling routines, post-footwork drills, and mid-range spot-up jump shots for a full hour, his mother, Lin Huiqing, walked out onto the court holding a warm towel and a breakfast tray.
“You silly kid,” Lin Huiqing nagged gently, wiping the sweat dripping off his chin.
“Every time you pick up a basketball, it’s like you’re possessed by a demon.
You don’t even know how to take a breather.
Look at how soaked your shirt is.” As a former professional women’s basketball player herself, Lin Huiqing understood the science of conditioning better than most.
She knew that to truly master complex basketball mechanics, an athlete had to train their body past the threshold of exhaustion so muscle memory could form faster.
But as a mother, watching her seventeen-year-old son push himself to the physical limit every single morning still made her heart ache.
“Don’t worry, Mom,” Wang Zelin grinned, taking a long gulp of warm milk from the glass.
“I know my own body better than anyone.
This little bit of morning training is far from my limit.
Once the sun comes up, I’m heading over to the club facility to meet with Tom Bruce for our formal strength and conditioning block.
He’s a top-tier professional trainer from overseas, so you can rest easy now.” “Alright, as long as you have your own proper boundaries.
Just don’t let your body break down.” “Got it!” While chatting, Wang Zelin devoured four eggs, three steamed meat buns, and a large bowl of warm porridge in under two minutes, sweeping away the food like a storm before returning to the court for a short cool-down routine.
Unlike the grueling 82-game marathon of the NBA regular season, the CBA operated on a far shorter, more concentrated schedule.
Here, teams generally played around thirty to thirty-four regular-season games per year.
For the 2011–12 campaign, the Fujian Sturgeons had exactly 32 regular-season games on their schedule.
As the regular season progressed, the opening-night shockwave that the Fujian men’s basketball team sent through the league did not fade away.
Instead, they continued their absolute dark-horse rampage across the country!
Under the absolute core leadership of their seventeen-year-old titan Wang Zelin, the Fujian Sturgeons mounted an incredible 12-game winning streak (12 wins, 0 losses), amassing 24 standings points (under CBA league rules, participating teams receive 2 points for a win, 1 point for a loss, and 0 points for a default).
They sat firmly at the top of the standings as the undisputed regular-season league leaders!
This 12-game winning streak not only shattered the Fujian franchise’s historical record for consecutive victories, but it also transformed the historically mediocre squad into a genuine championship contender.
After witnessing this historic breakthrough, Shi Kang—the owner of the Fujian Men’s Basketball Club and CEO of the powerful Xunxing Group—spared no expense.
He personally hosted a grand victory banquet at the city’s top five-star luxury hotel, inviting the entire roster, coaching staff, and executive team.
During the private celebration, the big boss didn’t forget to hand out thick red bonus envelopes to every member of the club.
As the team’s absolute MVP and super rookie, Wang Zelin received a massive six-figure bonus check, bringing a wide, satisfied smile to his face.
However, following their brief period of celebration, the Fujian Sturgeons were forced to immediately lock back in.
Up next on their schedule was the most dangerous, dominant team in Chinese basketball: the Guangdong Dongguan Bank South China Tigers.
At this point in time, Guangdong had just completed the second-longest five-consecutive-championship run in CBA history, standing as an unquestioned dynasty.
This season, their entire roster was united under one goal: win their sixth consecutive championship to tie the legendary Bayi Rockets’ record of six straight CBA titles!
Currently holding an 11–1 record, Guangdong sat in second place in the standings, right behind the undefeated 12–0 Fujian Sturgeons.
Media outlets across the country declared that the upcoming battle between Fujian and Guangdong would practically decide the ultimate destination of this season’s CBA championship trophy.
As for the third-ranked Beijing Shougang team, after suffering decisive losses against both Fujian and Guangdong earlier in the season, national sports commentators no longer considered them serious title favorites.
On the evening of December 21, the Fujian Sturgeons played host to the defending champion Guangdong Tigers inside a sold-out, thunderous Zuchang Gymnasium.
Although Guangdong had experienced a minor stumble early in the season by dropping a game to Qingdao, they had quickly regained their rhythm, riding a dominant 7-game winning streak into Quanzhou.
Guangdong ranked second in the league in scoring, averaging 107.8 points per game (behind Fujian’s league-leading 112.0 PPG), while allowing just 94.6 points per game defensively.
They were a true two-way powerhouse.
Even though Chinese superstar Yi Jianlian—who had signed with Guangdong during the NBA lockout—had not yet suited up for games due to ongoing contract details across the Pacific, Guangdong’s roster was still stacked with national-team stars and elite foreign talent: Zhu Fangyu: Overall System Rating: 56 Wang Shipeng: Overall System Rating: 53 Chen Jianghua: Overall System Rating: 44 Aaron Brooks (Foreign Import): Overall System Rating: 58 James Singleton (Foreign Import): Overall System Rating: 55 Is this the true power of a five-time CBA championship dynasty?
Wang Zelin thought, scanning the opposing squad with his internal system interface during pre-game warmups.
It looks quite intimidating indeed.
Originally, Wang Zelin was eager to test his skills against Yi Jianlian, the future pillar of the national team.
However, Yi Jianlian’s return to domestic play had been delayed.
In hindsight, Wang Zelin knew this was actually a blessing in disguise for Chinese basketball.
In his previous life’s memory, Yi Jianlian had returned to play in the CBA during the 2011 lockout, only to suffer an accidental knee collision with a teammate.
That injury hindered his transition back to the NBA with the Dallas Mavericks, accelerating the end of his NBA career.
Glancing across center court at Guangdong’s battle-tested veterans, Wang Zelin felt his blood begin to boil with raw competitive drive.
“This ferocious Guangdong team is no joke,” Wang Zelin murmured, adjusting his blue headband.
“I just hope Zhu Ba and Wang Qi can spark a real fight in me tonight!”