pertwk Chapter 68: Invitation to Participate in the Olympics, First Round Playoffs Recap!
Chapter 68: Invitation to Participate in the Olympics, First Round Playoffs Recap!
After hanging up the phone, Li Xingchen's expression was somewhat complicated.
He now understood why the system had specifically mentioned "other basketball events" when explaining the scoring element; it turned out they were referring to the Olympics and the Olympic qualifiers.
The call was from the head of the Chinese Basketball Association. After a few minutes of back and forth, we mainly talked about two things.
First, congratulations to Li Xingchen on achieving the "Black Eight" miracle with the team, and for her excellent performance in the playoffs; second, what are Li Xingchen's thoughts on the upcoming Tokyo Olympics...
To put it bluntly, they want to call him back to the national team to participate in the Olympic qualifiers and the main competition.
Since the other party didn't say it explicitly at first, Li Xingchen naturally gave vague answers, intending to gloss over the situation for the time being.
Later, the other party probably realized that probing was pointless, so they went straight to the point and asked Li Xingchen about his intention to return to the national team to play in the Olympics.
Li Xingchen naturally couldn't agree directly, but he didn't completely refuse either. He just said he needed to think about it and consider the upcoming schedule.
After making the call, Li Xingchen still had mixed feelings.
To be honest, when he went to the NBA alone, the Chinese Basketball Association did provide him with some assistance.
Later, he played intermittently in the NBA, with his performance fluctuating, and the Basketball Association never inquired about his situation again.
Now that you've finally made it big and improved your skills, have you finally remembered that there's such a person as 'Li Xingchen'? So you're preparing to recall him?
It feels like they're trying to take advantage of the situation.
Li Xingchen flipped through the calendar and studied the schedule of the Olympic qualifiers and his own playoffs.
Logically speaking, there should be no time conflict between the Olympics and the NBA playoffs, otherwise how would the US team compete?
Even though this season is a special one with a delayed schedule, the NBA cannot stand idly by and watch such an absurd thing happen.
Therefore, the only event that could directly conflict with the playoff schedule is the Olympic qualifiers.
After all, the US team qualifies directly for the World Cup and doesn't need to participate in this thing.
As for why Li Xingchen had to go back to participate in the qualifiers, it was naturally because if Li Xingchen wasn't in the qualifiers, the Chinese team wouldn't have any main matches to play, and they would most likely not win a single match in the qualifiers, let alone advance.
Li Xingchen still remembers his previous life, when the Chinese national team had participated in the men's basketball competition of nine consecutive Olympic Games since the 1980s.
The 2021 Tokyo Olympics marked the first time the men's basketball team missed the Games.
In other countries, the flag bearers of the national Olympic delegation are usually the men's basketball team leaders, but in that year, the flag bearers of the Chinese delegation were the women's volleyball team members, which made many people realize the decline of the men's basketball team.
The main reason is that the Chinese team did not achieve the best result in Asia at the 2019 Men's Basketball World Cup, thus losing its qualification for the Olympics.
If we play in the qualifiers, our opponents in the group stage will be Canada and Greece. After advancing from the group stage, there will be a knockout stage, which will basically be a six-to-one format. Our chances are indeed slim.
Under these circumstances, it's understandable that the Basketball Association is anxious.
Having finally found a talent like Li Xingchen who had suddenly transformed in the NBA and emerged out of nowhere as a lifeline, they certainly didn't want to miss this great opportunity, which is why they sent an invitation to Li Xingchen during the playoffs.
The schedule shows that China's two Olympic qualifying matches will be held in early July in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.
The Basketball Association knows that Li Xingchen is still playing in the playoffs, so they don't dare to expect him to return to the team early and complete joint training with the other players. They just hope that he can find time to participate in the games.
After all, judging from the strength that Li Xingchen has shown so far, even without any adjustment period, he is definitely much stronger than the current Chinese national team players.
"The distance isn't too far. From this location in Canada, it takes about three and a half hours to fly there, which is about the same time it usually takes to go to the East Coast."
"It's mainly a matter of time..."
The qualifying rounds for this Olympic Games are scheduled for late June and early July.
If we look at the local time, the two group stage matches should be scheduled for July 1st and July 2nd respectively.
If they advance from the group stage, the next two knockout matches should be held on July 4th and July 5th respectively.
Two consecutive back-to-back matches are extremely intense.
Of course, it's not time to consider the intensity of the competition yet, because just looking at the timing of this qualifier, it's clear that there may be some direct conflicts with the schedule of the NBA Western Conference Finals and the NBA Finals.
If there is a direct conflict, or an extreme situation where teams face each other back-to-back, then Li Xingchen would absolutely not participate.
Even without considering anything else, the penalty for breach of contract with the team alone is something he can't afford, and besides, the team is unlikely to let him go.
Therefore, there are only two possibilities for his successful participation in the Olympics.
Either the team is eliminated early and doesn't make it to the Western Conference Finals; or the Western Conference Finals are completed in fewer games, and there will be a relatively long gap while waiting for the Eastern Conference Finals, which can be used to play the Olympic qualifiers, and the timing is right.
Li Xingchen vaguely remembered that in his previous life, Luka Doncic, who was born in Slovenia, returned to his national team after being eliminated in the first round, and eventually led the team to the Olympics, where they achieved a commendable fourth place.
But I always feel that such a thing can only be achieved if the right time, place, and people are all in place.
In short, this is not something that can be decided right now; we need to see how the upcoming matches go before making a decision.
Li Xingchen decided that he would wait until at least the second round of the playoffs was over before considering the matter in light of the team's situation.
If we start thinking about it now, there are still too many uncontrollable variables.
After putting the Olympics out of consideration, Li Xingchen reviewed the playoff standings in the league up to date.
All four first-round series in the Eastern Conference have concluded. The Bucks swept the Heat early to advance, while the other three series were also swept by the Brooklyn Nets, Philadelphia 76ers, and Atlanta Hawks, respectively.
It seems that the gap between most of the teams in the first round is still quite large.
In contrast, the competition in the west is much fiercer.
The Denver Nuggets have defeated the Portland Trail Blazers 4-2, while the Phoenix Suns, after trailing 1-2 in the series, won three straight games to defeat the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers.
LeBron James was eliminated early in the first round, dashing fans' hopes for a Western Conference Finals showdown between the Lakers and Warriors, and a James-Curry duel.
Then there's the Golden State Warriors, who pulled off a Cinderella run, sending the Western Conference-leading Utah Jazz home.
In the entire league, only one first-round series remains unfinished: the fierce battle between the Los Angeles Clippers and the Dallas Mavericks.
Their decisive Game 7 will take place tomorrow night, and the winner will become the Golden State Warriors' opponent in the second round!
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The original plan was to include an Olympic Games storyline, but I was worried that people wouldn't be interested.
So whether or not to write about the Olympics is up to everyone to choose:
1. Write about the Olympic Games as if they were playoffs;
2. The main character will participate in the Olympics, but this is only mentioned briefly.
3. The main character can simply not participate.
Also, I'll try to release the second update at midnight today!