Chapter 616

Group D itself is also relatively weak.

Lithuania, Slovenia, Hanguo team, Mexico, Australia, Angola.

These six teams, except the Hanguo team which is just there to make up the numbers, have strengths that are not very different. They all start to fear meeting Fan Xi leading the Zhongguo team in the round of 16.

Then, the Zhongguo team lost the game.

Thus line: "These six teams, except the Hanguo team which is just making up the numbers, the other teams' strengths are not particularly different. When they all start, they start to fear encountering Fan Xi leading the Zhongguo team in the round of 16."

Make sure to keep meaning.

It immediately became funny.

Fan Xi, however, was playing according to his set plan. Serbia was also rehearsing their lineup; they didn't necessarily have to finish first in the group stage, they were very confident. Moreover, in the World Cup, just advancing is enough, and there is no home/away distinction.

Serbia.

So, the two sides played with great tacit understanding.

Serbia was trying out their perimeter offensive firepower, while the Zhongguo team kept practicing their interior firepower.

Use Zhongguo team.

Both sides played to their strengths and avoided weaknesses, making the game very lively.

The clanking of missed shots rose and fell.

At halftime, Serbia had 39 points, the Zhongguo team had 37 points.

The second half was the same.

But in the final moments, Guo Ailun of the Zhongguo team was eager to score, making several consecutive drives but failing each time, which allowed Serbia to widen the gap.

Thus: "But at the final moments, Guo Ailun of the Zhongguo team was a bit eager for quick success, attempting several consecutive drives, but none succeeded, allowing Serbia to widen the gap."

Then, the Zhongguo team lost the game.

The Zhongguo team ultimately ranked third in Group A with a record of 3 wins and 2 losses.

They will face Slovenia, the second-place team from Group D.

This is not good news for Slovenia; the last time they were this close to the Zhongguo team was when Wang Shengpeng buzzer-beat them at the Olympics.

Their leader is Delajiqi, who is already an elite-level player in the NBA. He plays as a point guard and has a bright future.

Thus line: "Their leader player is Delajiqi, Delajiqi is already an elite-level player in the NBA. He plays the point guard position, and he has a bright future."

But they will definitely not make it past the round of 16.

Upon hearing this result, Slovenian basketball fans were heartbroken. Although they believed a miracle could happen, they still objectively thought the Zhongguo team would not go easy on them in the game.

Just as they had guessed.

After entering the knockout stage, Fan Xi showed his fangs. He adjusted the starting lineup, putting Zhao Jiewi, who performed more steadily in the group stage, into the starting five; he himself became the shooting guard, Ding Yuyuhang was moved to small forward, Yi Jianlian to power forward, and the young Zhou Qi to center.

Thus: "After entering the knockout stage, Fan Xi bared his fangs. He adjusted the starting lineup, putting the more steady-performing Zhao Jiewi from the group stage into the starting five, he himself became the second position, Ding Yuyuhang was adjusted to the third position, the fourth position was Yi Jianlian, and the fifth position was the young Zhou Qi."

Zhou Qi is considered to have the talent to challenge the NBA; his stature is tall and his wingspan is very long, and he also has sufficiently agile footwork, giving him some deterrent effect on defense. However, he still needs to improve his physicality. Fan Xi saw his talent, and on the court he will guide him; his rate of progress is rapid.

In the game against Slovenia, Fan Xi scored 31 points, had 17 assists, 13 rebounds, 11 steals, and 6 blocks.

Fan Xi achieved a historic quadruple-double.

Slovenia's tactics were sliced apart by Fan Xi to an unbearable extent; his 11 steals forced them to only dare to isolate in the second half, gritting their teeth, and he was like a ghost appearing and disappearing, constantly striking and hunting.

We need to keep meaning. We'll translate: "Slovenia's tactics were torn apart by Fan Xi to an unbearable degree; his 11 steals left them only daring to isolate in the second half, gritting their teeth, and he was like a ghost appearing and disappearing, constantly striking and hunting."

Fan Xi topped every statistical column for that day's game.

Slovenia only scored 56 points, while the Zhongguo team had 99.

The media called it a massacre.

When faced with reporters' questions, Fan Xi said he had no comment.

Then he directly answered about his defensive improvement. He said: 'Yes, I strengthened my defense in the offseason. My Kuaisuan was the team with the best defensive performance last season, and I don't want to fall behind their defensive rhythm after returning.'

The FIBA website selected Fan Xi as the MVP of the round of 16; actually, since the group stage Fan Xi has been averaging a triple-double, so he had already been destined for this year's World Cup MVP.

Although the Dream Team has many superstars, no individual's stats can compare to Fan Xi's.

Fan Xi once again proved his strength as the top player in today's basketball world, with a clear gap.

This made the countrymen very proud.

The Zhongguo team's victory over Slovenia was entirely Fan Xi's personal victory. After all, the Zhongguo team in Asia couldn't even beat Iran… without Fan Xi.

Reaching the quarterfinals is already one of the Zhongguo team's best results in the World Cup.

The Zhongguo team's next opponent is Lithuania, which defeated the French team.

Lithuania is a traditional strong team; they excel at half-court play and have extremely strong physicality, the French team was basically worn down by them through sheer muscle.

Compared to the French team, the Zhongguo team is obviously less adept at physical confrontation.

Furthermore, the disheartening thing is that Lithuania's head coach knows the Zhongguo team very well; he once coached the Zhongguo team and has close ties with many of its stars.

He is Yunasi.

A name familiar to Chinese fans.

Before the game started, he also talked about conducting dispersed defense against the Zhongguo team, saying he wanted to isolate Fan Xi, prevent him from linking with teammates. Even if Fan Xi is formidable, he couldn't possibly take down Lithuania by himself!

Yunasi is going to enact the European version of the Jordan Rule.

This made the Dream Team very interested; since their game that day was earlier, many of them appeared courtside to closely observe the upcoming opponent.

The Dream Team has already advanced to the semifinals; their next opponent is Greece.

In their advancement process, they haven't encountered any worthy opponent.

After the game started, Yunasi's plan was put into action.

They merely assigned a guard named Wasilidis to defend Fan Xi, with no intention of any help defense; their experience is all with Fan Xi's teammates.

Fan Xi made a feint beyond the three-point line, then he directly shot, using his one-stage jump shot… Wasilidis is a hardworking and enthusiastic player, but trying to use him to limit Fan Xi is somewhat overreaching.

Swish!

Better approach: Keep the original Chinese characters but translate meaning? The rule says render onomatopoeia as English sound words. So we need to produce an English sound that matches. Since we don't know exact, we can approximate as "Swish!" and maybe add "shhh". But we risk adding. Perhaps we can treat the whole as "Swish!" and treat the rest as stylized repetition of the same sound, so we can output "Swish! swish swish swish"? But that adds extra.

Swish!

Swish!

Thus line: "Swish!"

Fan Xi hit a three-pointer right at the start.

The arena erupted in cheers and excitement.

Many members of the Dream Team sitting courtside covered their eyes. Derek Rose and Stephen Curry beside him said: 'The game is over.'

Stephen Curry

Thus line 54: "Many Dream Team members on the sidelines covered their eyes. Derek Rose and Stephen Curry beside him said: 'The game is over.'"

That's somewhat arbitrary.

After all, it's been less than 15 seconds since the start.

However, Stephen Curry had no objection, he said: 'European coaches are too overconfident, always thinking NBA stars are nothing special. They should taste Jie Ke's iron fist.'

At the same time, Fan Xi leaped to Wasilidis' side in half-court, making a strong interference.

Rosa's brows furrowed tighter and tighter; the defensive stance Fan Xi displayed was something he had never seen before. He had never seen Fan Xi use his body to this extent, even though Fan Xi is a guy with extraordinary talent, but on defense he always had some lapses.

Now, he had completely locked down his opponent, using his footwork—whether lateral steps, longitudinal steps, or switching between the two.

Bang!

He made a slick spin at Vasidis, thinking he had shaken off Fan Xi, and at the instant he quickly passed, Fan Xi surged forward with a Probe Step, breaking the basketball apart with unprecedented explosive force.

It is the ultimate combination of anticipatory skill and physical quality.

Fan Xi seized the ball, and Vasidis's eyes even kept watching his trajectory.

Fan Xi walked away with his head held high.

The gap between them was enormous.

It was like college students playing elementary school kids.

Fan Xi charged into the frontcourt, stopped beyond the three‑point line, and released a steady shot… Swish!

Three‑point made.

6–0.

"A bit cruel,"

Curry said.

Jonas stood up; he is called the European Caesar, and his coaching style is extremely aggressive.

He shouted profanities at the players, then he had to employ the advanced tactics he learned while coaching in Zhongguo… He ordered two guards to cross‑screen across half‑court and a forward to move to the half‑court for a receive.

Watching Lithuania being pressed to this extent by Fan Xi, the Zhongguo fans in front of their TVs felt as if in another world.

Lithuania's offensive tempo further slowed because of this front‑court screen.

The Zhongguo team adopted a man‑to‑man strategy and did not employ any zone defense.

Because Fan Xi kept sweeping, his movement was rapid.

On the court, chasing the ball is a major taboo.

But Fan Xi sometimes does just that.

Because breaking this taboo is relatively easy; you just need to arrive before the ball.

Moreover, even if Lithuania passes the ball into the paint for a one‑on‑one, Fan Xi's rapid double‑team will catch them off guard.

Bang!

Lithuania's offensive efficiency kept declining.

And the stubborn old Jonas refused to change his preset strategy against Fan Xi; he insisted on letting Fan Xi go one‑on‑one.

He had spent many years in Zhongguo, believed he understood Zhongguo well enough, and had never been impressed by the NBA playbook.

So, Fan Xi taught him a lesson.

Fan Xi bypassed their point guard like a fist shattering tofu; he surged into the paint and leapt violently, rendering the Greek defenders' help defense useless.

Fan Xi could score as many points as he wanted.

He didn't even need a withdrawal PIN.

Before the first quarter ended, the Dream Team's viewing crew deemed it pointless to keep watching.

If Lithuania changed their strategy, perhaps there would still be a chance to play.

At least now the Dream Team knows that if Fan Xi leads the Zhongguo team to the finals, the Jordan Rule must not be applied to him. His solo scoring can kill a game.

After the first half, Fan Xi had 38 points.

The CCTV commentator beamed on TV, straightening his chest as he said, "Jonas, times have changed. Your understanding of the Zhongguo team is far too superficial."

Jonas clearly hadn't expected Fan Xi's improvement to be this great, surpassing the 2012 level in multiple dimensions.

In the second half he could only resort to double‑team, a frantic double‑team.

The European Caesar also has moments of strategic timidity.

But when he began the double‑team, Fan Xi could immediately get the ball out.

The Zhongguo team's players have improved rapidly over the past two years; after all, Fan Xi's NBA training system is not a mere display, and they also train together with Kuaisuan players, an effect far beyond what friendly matches could ever compare to.

Lithuania chose another way to die.

This one is relatively slower.

Because the other national team players' scoring efficiency is not as high as Fan Xi's.

But they cannot change it.

Fan Xi is too outstanding.

He is now so powerful that the barrel effect can be ignored; when his long board is high enough, his teammates also rise.

Time is somewhat cruel to Lithuania.

But it is a process.

The Zhongguo team ultimately defeated Lithuania 101–71.

In the knockout stage, both opponents were beaten easily.

Their next semifinal opponent is Serbia.

Serbia also used battle‑training in the group stage, and in the knockout stage eliminated opponents by large margins. They are formidable this year, boasting not only Mili Xiqi and Jokic, but also the European magician Teodosic, as well as Bogdanovic, Maksic and a host of elite warriors.

They play cohesive basketball, and their overall strength is very high.

In American media commentary, they believe that beating the Zhongguo team can only rely on average strength, using a balanced and powerful lineup to create sufficient mismatched advantage.

Only then can they eliminate the Zhongguo team.

They are confident against the Dream Team, because this time the Dream Team will not be as complacent as in London.

They are also confident against Serbia, because Serbia once beat the Zhongguo team in the group stage, and their overall strength is well balanced. Except for the point guard position, every other position is stronger than Zhongguo's.

Most importantly, even at point guard, Teodosic will not be directly dominated by Fan Xi as Lithuania's guard was.

However, before the semifinal began, the Zhongguo team and Serbia were friendly.

Both sides scored high against each other.

Te Aoduo Xiqi even said in front of the media: "If I were the European magician, Jieke Fan should be called the global magician. I enjoy watching his competition videos, I admire his wildly imaginative creativity, I think he is the best athlete in the world. Also, the greatest athlete in history. When facing him, I will keep a humble learning attitude."

Jokic also said there: "Although I won't get many playing opportunities, I hope to leave a deep impression on Jieke on the court, I want him to know that picking me eighth was the right choice. If we can defeat him, I believe that will be a splendid start to my NBA career."

Fan Xi also praised Serbia.

Fan Xi said Serbia is a sports powerhouse in his mind; whether basketball, football, or even tennis, talent constantly emerges. He also said he wants to travel to Serbia and see with his own eyes that land of heroes.

This is a great encouragement for Serbians.

When the semifinal began, the two teams exchanged enthusiastic greetings.

Both wore sincere smiles on their faces.

Although everyone hopes for victory, gaining friendship before winning is also a fine thing.

Beep!

The whistle sounded, and the game began.

Mili Xiqi's jump ball did not beat Zhou Qi, and Zhou Qi tipped the basketball to Fan Xi.

Fan Xi advanced with the ball, the European magician closed in, his stature was relatively tall and he was good at physical play.

In a sense, fiba's rules favor Serbia more, because there is no three‑second area here, and the physicality is indeed greater than in the NBA.

Many NBA stars struggle in the fiba system and underperform for those reasons.

But Fan Xi is not like that.

He used a change‑of‑direction cut to break the defense, stepped into the free‑throw line, and at the moment Maxic came to help on defense, he passed the ball to Ding Yuyuhang, who shot… Swish!

It went in.

Ding Yuyuhang has grown a lot in the past two years, and NBA teams have already extended olive branches to him.

Although it is hard for him to enter the NBA rotation, this also proves he is no longer the unknown rookie of 2012.

This game is not as easy as some American media imagined.

…