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Chapter 693 - 291. Begins with roars_4

Chapter 693: 291. Begins with roars_4

Participating in such an event for the first time, Zhang Yang generally had a lot of fun since it all felt so new...

After relaxing for an afternoon, the next day Zhang Yang was back in the game-ready state, the highlight of this five-game road trip had arrived!

From early morning at around 9 am, multiple media outlets surrounded the Toyota Center training facility; it was another open day for pre-game preparations.

The first time he had participated in an open preparation session last season, Zhang Yang felt quite uncomfortable, as if secrets were being exposed, but he got used to it after doing it a few times.

Moreover, this was a privilege only popular teams enjoyed. Bosh had personally told Zhang Yang how envious he was of his media resources.

After the team’s closed-door meeting, during a training break, Zhang Yang was always the one surrounded by reporters.

Today, in front of the cameras, he was distinctly more relaxed than usual, not so "stiff" anymore.

Hill’s personality was lively and he loved joking around; Zhang Yang couldn’t really tell which intention was genuine from this forever young-at-heart guy, but today during the interview, he felt the benefits of yesterday’s exposure to different camera settings...

In the evening, after dinner, Zhang Yang and the team arrived at the Staples Center, where the facilities provided for the competing teams were small—only consisting of two full basketball courts, useful only for pre-game prep; otherwise, the Lakers wouldn’t have bothered to set up a separate training facility, nor would the Clippers rent an old house from an abandoned industrial area from the 1980s.

By 8:30 pm, the pre-game warm-up was finished and Zhang Yang and his teammates entered the away team player tunnel; every time he played here against the Lakers, he was thrilled, and this time was no exception.

Looking at the 14 championship flags flying above the court, the first time he saw them he was very envious, and now... still very envious, albeit back then the flags seemed out of reach, not so anymore; his team had some too, just not as many.

After a while, the entry ceremony began, the arena lights dimmed, and the spotlight hit the away team player tunnel as the Bobcats starters entered to the sound of the DJ’s introduction and amid the boos from the fans.

The atmosphere among the fans... was pretty good, but the boos Zhang Yang heard weren’t intense, it seemed they only booed because it was "expected" to boo the away players.

Zhang Yang, "Is this the arrogance of the Purple and Gold Legion’s fans?"

As the Lakers grew strong again, so did the arrogance of their fans.

Grumbling to himself, Zhang Yang heard the DJ announce his name, switched to a sunny, open expression, and jogged out of the tunnel... huh?

He heard quite a few fans cheering for him!

After the away team players had entered, the spotlight went out, and Zhang Yang heard Hill’s teasing: "No wonder you’re the number one high school player in California’s history, you’re so popular in Los Angeles."

Zhang Yang, "Grant, can we talk after the lights are back on? It’s so dark, I can only see your teeth moving, it’s kind of creepy."

Hill: "..."

Despite their teasing, Zhang Yang was quite happy about his solid fan base in the City of Angels; the California champion, Mr. Basketball title he earned was not for nothing.

Soon, the lights brightened a little, but not around the home team’s tunnel, instead, above the center of the court where a giant screen lit up.

A grim face appeared on the big screen, suddenly opened its mouth, and roared...

The fans, who had been casual and scattered, instantly grew frantic at the roar, erupting into wild cheers!