72: 71.

To become a thorn in the eye of all California High School students!

(Please subscribe) 72: 71.

To become a thorn in the eye of all California High School students!

(Please subscribe) On October 17th, the first round of CIF Division I league games arrived.

There are two to three CIF Division I league matches every week, usually two.

Each school’s matches are scheduled at the same time to facilitate the recording of scores and data.

Compton High School’s opening game was at home, starting at 4 p.m.; Zhang Yang and DeRozan began their leisurely warm-up training at 2:40 p.m.

Having learned from Zhang Yang, last season DeRozan adopted a more professionally structured warm-up.

Initially curious about why his friend started warming up so early, after trying it once and realizing its benefits, he stuck with it, and it eventually became a habit.

At 3:45 p.m., players from Compton High School and Pomona High School entered the court.

DeRozan treated this game as the true beginning of his high school career and wanted to share his emotions with Zhang Yang, but he saw Zhang San standing there with his face stern and his posture upright.

DeRozan was completely confused, he admitted that his friend looked handsome, but even though he wasn’t always frivolous, he wasn’t usually this serious; what brought on this majestic demeanor all of a sudden?

Was his friend also considering this game as the true start of his high school career and was thus so serious?

No, DeRozan still felt something was off.

He looked around… damn it!

Zhang San, you bastard, seeing a camera and not even giving me, DeRozan, a heads up!

Are we still brothers?

DeRozan also stood straight, head up, chest out, butt out.

Since he was already wearing a serious expression, he didn’t need to adjust his face, thus DeRozan Number Two was born!

The preseason performances of Compton High School, and specifically those of Zhang Yang and DeRozan, had successfully caught the media’s attention, with several local California media outlets sending reporters to the scene.

There would be no live broadcast, but a Los Angeles TV station sent a cameraman to record the event, securing early footage in case Zhang Yang or DeRozan became big stars.

The others noticed the cameras too, but they didn’t act as regally; they just showed normal excitement, with Tatum going right up to the camera to introduce himself.

At 4 p.m., the game between Compton High School and Pomona High School started on time.

The performances during the warm-up games significantly heightened expectations for Zhang Yang and DeRozan, and they did not disappoint today.

Zhang Yang made 11 of 20 shots, including one three-pointer in one attempt and three free throws out of four, scoring 26 points, grabbing 9 rebounds, and recording 2 assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks.

DeRozan made 10 of 17 shots, including two three-pointers out of five attempts, and two free throws out of two, scoring 24 points, grabbing 2 rebounds, and recording 6 assists and 2 steals.

With contributions from Tatum, 10 points with 7 assists, Miller’s 8 points and 8 rebounds, and Keith’s 16 points…

Compton High School triumphed over the visiting Pomona High School with a score of 98 to 91, claiming their first victory of the season!

Pomona High School’s players were stunned; they weren’t a weak team, and their strength was considerable with several players being noticed by prestigious colleges.

Ten of their players were not as skilled as theirs.

In high school basketball, the gap in ability due to age differences is often a chasm too wide for most players to bridge—even for supposedly talented players like Tatum and Miller, facing them was no easy feat, as they too were considered talents.

But those two guys were outrageously strong!

During the preseason, Pomona High School had faced Darren Collison, a 17-year-old among the top high school players nationwide, and had already tasted what it was like to be dominated by talent.

This time, the blow was harder!

These two were younger than Collison but stronger!

In the world of basketball, there are always exceptional beings; they found it not so hard to accept the emergence of younger and stronger players.

If Compton High School had only one such player, Pomona High School’s players felt they could have won, as they had beaten Long Beach High School when most players at Compton High School were not as strong as those at Long Beach.

But having two such players on one team at Compton High School was simply unreasonable!

…

Zhang Yang was delighted with the auspicious start, and he was confident that he could deliver performances like this in official matches too.

At the end of last season, he had thought it would be tough playing in the starting team this season since no eleventh grader at that time was impressive, and even tenth grader Keith had been pulled into the starting lineup as a back-up to Afflalo.

Now, half a year later, he found that playing in the starting team wasn’t that hard after all…

his progress had even shocked him.

He recalled his first serious challenge, when at 17 and in the twelfth grade with the help of DeRozan and Tatum, he could play, averaging over 20 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, and 1 block per game, earning a full scholarship to the University of Arizona.

Here, having learned so much in his two experiences and adding eight points to his talents, it was normal for his progress and performance to be much better than his high school phase in the original timeline.

Moreover, DeRozan, a year his junior, was almost as strong as he was.

With DeRozan on his heels, Zhang Yang was not merely pleased with his current progress; he was even more motivated to improve.

He, Zhang San, had already surpassed DeRozan; he couldn’t let DeRozan overtake him again!

They had played nine games in the preseason till now, and Zhang Yang felt his teammates had changed a lot too.

During the reserve team period, Tatum and Miller often stole the show, and everyone else also somewhat tried to grab the spotlight.

But in the starting team, his teammates rallied around him and DeRozan, aiming to perform even better.

The team’s tactics had become more ‘centralized’ since the reserve team era, with Thomas often opting to initiate isolation plays.

He and DeRozan frequently scored more than half the team’s total points, largely due to changes in teammates and tactics.

He enjoyed the feeling of being trusted and relied upon, though it also brought its own pressures.

Fortunately, he was still making progress; he could feel, and indeed see, significant improvement from before the warm-up matches had begun.

His shooting had reached 84 (high school), but his three-pointers were still a bit behind, only at a level where he could make them.

Looking at his mid-shots alone, he felt he could score 85+ (high school).

He certainly couldn’t match DeRozan, and in the nine main team games he had played, he hadn’t encountered any high schoolers who could match DeRozan’s mid-shot ability, not even close.

Not to mention compared to DeRozan, there were few high schoolers he had met who could match his, Jack Zhang’s, mid-shot ability.

When it came to attacking the basket, he was already the strongest on the team.

His ball handling had reached 79 (high school).

Although it still primarily dominated, it wasn’t as good as the ball-handling expert Tatum, but it was better than DeRozan’s decent level.

His strongest aspect was still his use of physical condition, which had improved to 93 (high school).

It was his foundation in high school competitions.

In terms of skills, the Euro step, catching and shooting, fast-break attacks…

all were increasingly outstanding, and stop-and-shoot had already become part of his regular offensive arsenal.

He also took fewer three-pointers after screens; he still needed to practice more on three-point shots.

The day after the season opener, a new week began.

Zhang Yang, as usual, got up early for training, and upon arriving at school, he entered self-study mode; his self-study pace had already far exceeded the progress of classroom lessons.

As a test-taking expert, his learning direction was clear.

After school in the afternoon, he continued to train at Allen gym.

DeRozan was already there before him, and Tatum arrived shortly after, and they started studying together.

Not long into their study session, Miller, holding a newspaper excitedly, rushed toward them, “Jack, DeMar, DeMar, we’re in the news again…”

Before he could finish, Miller saw the three as swift as lightning, gathering around him and performing a vanishing act with the newspaper; his hand that had been holding the newspaper squeezed empty.

The Los Angeles Herald, a local Californian newspaper unlike those aiming for a national or international audience, carved out a niche by focusing deep on California’s local news, from local customs to campus culture.

This differentiation made it one of the top-selling newspapers locally in California and garnered a large audience nationwide.

Competitive sports was an important part of California campus culture, while other newspapers focused on the four major leagues or NCAA news.

The Los Angeles Herald continued its differentiated approach, focusing specifically on high school sports news.

This time, the front page of the high school sports section belonged to Compton High School!

Upon seeing the news, everyone was excited.

The Los Angeles Herald had called Compton High School potentially the biggest dark horse of this season’s CIF top division.

It also highly praised Zhang Yang and DeRozan’s performances.

It said the two had surpassed Afflalo, Hip, and Stuart to become the strongest players in the history of Compton High School’s basketball team.

The players with whom they were compared were highly exaggerated — LeBron James, Jordan Farmar, OJ Mayo.

James, at 16, was ranked fifth among all U.S.

high schoolers of the 2001 class, the youngest All-American.

Farmar had made a national sensation in the 2002-03 season.

Born in November 1986, at only 16 years old in 11th grade, he led his team alone to the California top division championship.

At 17 years old in 12th grade, he managed a 2-on-1 victory against Afflalo and Hip, two top-100 U.S.

high schoolers, leading his team to beat Compton High School and advancing to the championship semifinals, becoming an All-American.

Mayo, turning 17 next month, a sophomore currently playing in Kentucky’s second-tier league, scored 41 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists in the new season’s opener.

DeRozan couldn’t suppress his smile upon seeing such an assessment.

Zhang Yang was also excited, but at the same time, a bit troubled, “The Herald is really setting a high bar for us!

We’re probably going to be targets for all high school players in California now.”

DeRozan, “So what?

No matter who comes, you and I can beat them!”

Tatum, “Hey, hey, hey, include me too!”

Miller, “Yeah, don’t leave us out, okay!”

Zhang Yang clicked his tongue and shrugged his shoulders.

Being cautious seemed impractical now, so they’d better tackle things as they come — whoever comes gets beaten!

He also thought this was the right mindset for young guys!

…

…

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