Zack was busy heading back to prepare for the Olympics. Meanwhile, Mullin used the team's mini mid-level exception to completely allay the concerns of Matt Barnes, who was set to become a free agent this summer. Barnes was eager to stay in Oakland and continue playing alongside Zack. So, Zack had Mullin tell team owner Cohan to handle it himself.
But what else could Cohan do besides satisfy Zack?
Currently, Zack was already above the entire team, even above Cohan himself. If he wanted something, the team had to deliver. However, as Cohan decided to sell the team early, he found himself less resistant to spending money on the team than before. After all, since Cohan wasn't planning to wait for the Warriors' market value to peak before selling, why should he care about making some modest investments in the team?
It was a simple logic. As long as Cohan sold the team quickly and decisively, then this Warriors team, destined to be a money pit, would no longer be his problem. Realizing this, Cohan's mood immediately improved. As for Barnes, who signed a new contract with the Warriors, his resolve to cling to Zack's coattails in the future only grew stronger. In Barnes' eyes, Zack, who could directly challenge the team owner for the sake of a teammate, was the perfect leader he'd always envisioned.
Even though Barnes' playing time was bound to be significantly reduced next season with Gerald Wallace returning from injury, as a role player, Barnes always had a clear understanding of his own position. Playing time? Tactical role? Those weren't things Barnes needed to worry about. Barnes' concern was who was feeding him, and he would pledge his loyalty to them. In Barnes' view, since Zack was the one who provided for him, his remaining life naturally belonged only to Zack.
"Matt, I need a few NBA players to act as practice partners. Do you have time to come ?"
"I'll book my flight right away!"
After re-signing Barnes, Mullin, feeling the sting of last season's defeat and convinced the Warriors' roster wasn't strong enough, picked up Anthony Morrow, a player destined to be a Warrior, from a heap of undrafted free agents. Morrow, who was named North Carolina's Mr. Basketball in 2004 and had faced Zack in college, was a player whose draft stock suffered because he played too long in college.
In fact, since Zack couldn't remember the detailed information of every single player, when he heard that Morrow signed with the Warriors as an undrafted player, Zack initially thought he had misheard.
"Are you sure you signed Anthony Morrow from Georgia Tech? How could he go undrafted?" Zack asked Mullin over the phone, utterly incredulous. You see, as a college teammate of Jarrett Jack and Will Bynum, Morrow was, in Zack's college memories, a top-tier shooter in the ACC conference.
However, that's exactly how it went down. After Jack and Bynum both entered the NBA, Morrow, who relied on teammates' passes to unleash his shooting talent on the court, lost his two top college guard teammates. As a result, his numerous weaknesses were exposed. For example, his individual ball-handling offense, which wasn't even outstanding in college basketball. Or his defense, which could even be exploited by some unknown opponents in college basketball. In short, because Morrow's four years in college felt like he made no progress, why wouldn't he go undrafted?
Zack didn't know that Morrow also entered the NBA as an undrafted player before his穿越 (transmigration), which is why he was so surprised by the undrafted status of this sharpshooter who had left a deep impression on him in college. However, Zack, unaware of how Morrow entered the NBA, knew better than anyone that Morrow was a top-tier shooter with a career three-point percentage over 40%. Especially in catch-and-shoot situations, Morrow was almost automatic.
Without a doubt, Chris Mullin, with his instincts as a legendary shooter, found a diamond in the rough for the Warriors in this summer's free agency market. Morrow's addition would undoubtedly greatly enhance the Warriors' perimeter firepower next season. Perhaps Morrow wasn't as famous as other players in the free agent market, but he was definitely the perfect fit for the Warriors. Moreover, Morrow, who played all four years in college, was also a player who could contribute immediately.
Jack and Bynum, who had already traveled to China to serve as practice partners for the men's national team, were also very happy about Morrow joining the team. The three former Georgia Tech players would reunite next season. To ensure Zack hadn't forgotten Morrow, Jack specifically said, "Trust me, boss, Anthony can easily beat anyone on our team, even in a three-point shootout from the NBA line."
Beside him, Bynum, who had just schooled Liu Wei and Chen Jianghua and usually only watched the water cooler for the Warriors, chimed in, "Anthony is a bona fide killer. Just give him a chance, and he'll prove himself."
Hearing this, Zack, knowing Jack and Bynum were trying to help their old teammate make a good impression on him, joked, "If Anthony isn't as good as you say, I'll personally trade him to Minnesota."
"..."
"..."
The Warriors' offseason reinforcements were complete. In every position, this team, aiming for a return to glory, could only be described as overflowing with talent. After several warm-up games, the men's basketball team's Olympic roster was largely confirmed.
---
It's worth noting that in the warm-up game against the US men's basketball team before the Olympics, Zack, knowing the US team was still finalizing their roster, not only sat out with Yao Ming due to "injuries" but also specifically instructed Jonas: "We absolutely must not use zone defense in the game. Just let them play."
"Why is that?"
"Because we have no obligation to remind this US team that they need to bring more shooters."
In August, the US team, fresh off a series of dominant warm-up victories, officially announced their Olympic roster:
Centers: Dwight Howard, Chris Bosh
Forwards: LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Carlos Boozer, Tayshaun Prince
Guards: Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, Chris Paul, Jason Kidd, Michael Redd, Deron Williams
How to describe this "Dream Team's" final twelve-man roster? Although American media praised this "Redemption Team" as star-studded, in Zack's eyes, this US team was riddled with problems. Due to the unspoken hierarchy within the US men's basketball team, players like Redd, Deron, Prince, and Boozer were destined to play minimal roles.
Then, after excluding these fringe players, you'd find that, aside from Carmelo Anthony, most of this US team's players would be significantly weakened under FIBA rules. Especially the US men's basketball team's interior. Previously, Zack had deliberately sat out with Yao Ming to prevent the US team from realizing they needed to bring Al Jefferson to counter Yao Ming.
After all, with his appearance causing massive ripple effects in this basketball world, Zack was truly worried that the US men's basketball team would change their player selections. But now, looking at this US team's interior, Zack just wanted to say that if he and Yao Ming couldn't tear apart this Dream Team's paint, then he'd join Yao Ming in coal mining!
Under FIBA rules, once Howard got into foul trouble, Zack didn't even know who else on this US men's basketball team could protect the rim. As for the US team's ultimate weapon in FIBA play—the full-court press? No worries, the men's basketball team had already mastered the art of countering a full-court press as early as the 2006 World Championship.
---
Shortly after the US men's basketball team announced their roster, the men's basketball team also officially released their Olympic roster:
Centers: Yao Ming, Wang Zhizhi, Yi Jianlian
Forwards: Zack, Zhu Fangyu, Du Feng, Wang Lei
Guards: Liu Wei, Sun Yue, Wang Shipeng, Li Nan, Chen Jianghua
Regarding this team, which boasted two FMVPs, two active NBA players, and one former NBA player, ESPN expressed concern after China announced its roster: "The US team absolutely cannot take it easy in the Olympics. In the previous warm-up games, we all clearly saw that the team wasn't playing at full strength."
Before the Olympic basketball tournament officially began, the men's basketball team's odds of winning were second only to the US. However, the American media's warnings seemed to fall on deaf ears among these superstar players. Just as Zack remembered, LeBron James was busy promoting his Beats headphones, which he co-owned with several figures in the rap world.
Before the Olympic games started, to prevent his teammates from getting bored during the long journey, the always considerate LeBron James specifically gifted each US men's basketball teammate a pair of Beats headphones. And as the Dream Team attended various events, these oversized headphones immediately caught the attention of fans. Undeniably, this was a classic example of marketing in business history. Because Beats headphones, unlike Nike and Coca-Cola, hadn't spent huge sums to become an International Olympic Committee sponsor. Yet, thanks to James' generous gift to his teammates, the entire Dream Team became their walking billboards during the Olympics.
Originally, James also sent Zack a few pairs of headphones. But as someone who'd seen it all, Zack wasn't really interested in these unconventional headphones, so he promptly handed them over to Evans. In Zack's opinion, if he accidentally broke gifts from a good buddy like James, wouldn't that seem disrespectful? So, Zack decided to cherish the headphones James gave him. This, of course, came as a surprise to James. Because James' original intention was to use Zack, a league icon, as an advertisement. He never imagined Zack would value the gift so much.
"Brother, you don't have to worry about breaking the headphones. If you want more, I can send you a few more pairs."
"No way, Brown! These are gifts from you. They must be forever locked in my treasure chest to show how much I value you."
"..."
James was busy selling headphones. Meanwhile, Anthony, who had been itching for action during the friendly games in Asia, spent his days with Wade, Howard, and others, constantly seeking out female athletes from other sports to "exchange experiences."
This was the state of the US men's basketball team before the Olympics began. Three consecutive major tournament losses clearly hadn't made them realize they had lost their former dominance. Even before the opening ceremony, a wager about the opening game was made within the US men's basketball team. Because Kobe told the US men's basketball team to be careful of his Lakers teammate, who was incredibly good at blocking shots, in the opening game against China, the US players, deeply skeptical, immediately declared that they would dunk all over Sun Yue in that opening game to prove Kobe wrong.
"Kobe's really losing it. He's telling us to be careful of a player who can't even get playing time in the NBA."
"Wake up, this team only has Messiah and 'Big-Yao' worth worrying about. As for the others? Don't forget, they lost to us by fifty points in the warm-up game."
"Messiah and 'Big-Yao' can't possibly erase a fifty-point deficit, and this year we've brought our strongest lineup!"
As arrogance and overconfidence appeared on every teammate's face, Kobe and Kidd, who had chosen to accept the US Basketball Association's call-up precisely to achieve redemption, immediately looked worried. But even so, Kidd and Kobe couldn't change the current situation. Because this year's US team, claiming to field their strongest lineup, had indeed proven their superior strength over other teams in previous warm-up games.
---
### The Olympics Begin: A Funeral for American Basketball
Now, setting aside their worries for a moment, it was 8 PM on August 8, 2008. As the drum array, composed of 2008 performers, began to beat, witnessed by over 90,000 spectators and hundreds of millions of sports fans worldwide, Zack, reliving the 2008 Beijing Olympics opening ceremony, found tears inexplicably falling from his eyes.
Before the Olympics began, it had already been customarily decided that members of the men's basketball team would continue to be the flag bearers. This time, the team broke with traditional thinking. At the Bird's Nest National Stadium, as Zack and Yao Ming, these two giants, walked side-by-side out of the tunnel, holding the flag, the CCTV commentator excitedly announced, "Now approaching us is the Delegation of the People's Republic of China, with our two renowned basketball players, Zack and Yao Ming, as flag bearers."
At this moment, Zack's emotions were undeniably beyond words. And Yao Ming? Zack had already noticed that Yao Ming was even more nervous than him, judging by the numerous times Yao Ming's large hands accidentally brushed against his own.
After the magnificent Olympic opening ceremony, even late into the night, Zack's emotions remained turbulent. If the fervent support of Warriors fans in Oakland had given Zack a sense of belonging and identity, making him want to turn the Warriors into his own team, then participating in the opening ceremony as a flag bearer on his home turf, and recalling the cheers from all directions, Zack gained something he could never get in the NBA: the feeling of coming home.
This wonderful and unique feeling lingered with Zack until he woke up the next day. Furthermore, Zack, who had been holding back for an entire year, could confirm that after attending the opening ceremony, his heart, eager to shatter American basketball's dream of redemption, had begun to beat wildly.
Opening the window and taking a deep breath of fresh air, then gazing intently at the date on the calendar, Zack knew clearly that that day would be the funeral of American basketball. And this funeral could only, and must, be orchestrated by him personally!
---