Li Feng had always felt regret for Yao Ming's career, a lingering sadness, so he comforted Yao Ming.
"Brother Yao, I suggest that in the future national team games, your playing time can be more flexible. Don't play for so long."
If it were someone else saying this, Yao Ming might have gotten angry, because China's team couldn't afford to be without Yao Ming.
But hearing it from Li Feng touched Yao Ming deeply.
Finally, he could play more reasonably in the national team.
"Li Feng, honestly, these past few games, I've felt much more relaxed, and the team has won by a large margin. China is truly on the rise!"
Li Feng wanted to persuade Yao Ming to change his training methods, otherwise, he would retire early.
But he saw Yao Ming talking at length, discussing Olympic championships and league titles, with the fire of hope still burning in his eyes.
Li Feng knew that persuasion would be useless. Yao Ming was a basketball fanatic, and for victory, he wouldn't slack off in training.
As long as Yao Ming could achieve those honors, even if his career was shortened, he wouldn't have any regrets.
Yao Ming's alcohol started to take effect, and his words became more numerous.
He told Li Feng how to avoid pitfalls in the NBA and how to interact with teammates.
He also mentioned that some Black players had very direct personalities; if they liked you, they would treat you very well.
For example, Francis, who had been particularly good to Yao Ming.
At that time, when Yao Ming first arrived, he struggled to adapt to many things, and some players were very rude to Yao Ming.
So, it was a difficult period, but Francis stood up for him, making it clear to other players that Yao Ming was his good brother, and the core of their Rockets team!
After that, other players no longer dared to disrespect Yao Ming.
Yao Ming thought he was speaking drunkenly, but Li Feng was very clear-headed. He listened for a long time, committing Yao Ming's words to memory.
Later, Yao Ming couldn't hold on any longer and slumped onto the table. Li Feng and Yi Jianlian together helped Yao Ming back to the Olympic Village.
Li Feng returned to his room and brought up the system again. He discovered that below the [Badge Wall], a strange badge had appeared.
For example, [Repair the Great Wall].
This badge indicated the ability to adapt interior players to training methods suited for the current era, meaning the small-ball era.
Yao Ming could gain durability points.
With this training method, Yao Ming's career would be significantly extended.
Li Feng jumped up with joy. He desperately wanted Yao Ming to play for a few more years. Before his transmigration, Yao Ming had retired early, becoming a regret for many fans.
Therefore, having the system after transmigrating, he had to extend Yao Ming's career so that countless Chinese fans could enjoy Yao Ming's skills for a few more years.
More importantly, with Yao Ming playing longer, Li Feng could win more honors with him in the national team.
Li Feng felt no sleepiness and opened the basketball forum again. He then discovered that the news about Li Feng had already exploded across the internet.
Various media headlines featured Li Feng leading the Chinese team to outstanding achievements in the Olympics.
"China Sports Weekly," headline news: "Chinese Men's Basketball Secures Four Consecutive Wins in Group Stage, Advances to Quarterfinals!"
"Basketball Pioneer," headline report: "Li Feng and Yao Ming Combine for 50+, Defeat Australia Again!"
"Olympic Special," two consecutive news items: "Li Feng's极限 crossover stuns defender, breaking his ankle!"
"Another Comeback, Li Feng Becomes China's Secret Weapon!"
...
Although Li Feng felt the fans' enthusiasm on-site, he experienced a different kind of sensation on the internet.
And it wasn't just in China; the United States was also buzzing.
Fans of many teams started to worry about their own teams, leaving messages on official websites urging them to contact Li Feng quickly.
At this moment, Li Feng received a call from Curry.
"Hey, brother, do you know how hot you are right now?"
Li Feng chuckled, "I don't know. I'm just looking at the forums; it seems like there are a lot of discussions."
"Li Feng, I have some good news for you. ESPN is planning to do a documentary special about us, and they're calling us the Splash Brothers! What do you think?"
Li Feng was a little surprised because the Splash Brothers was a nickname that Curry and Thompson would later have. How did it appear now?
"Curry, this nickname... what do you think of it?"
"Which nickname?"
"Splash Brothers!"
"It's excellent! I think it's very fitting. Your three-point shooting is incredibly accurate. How did I not notice it before?"
"Heh heh, can't people improve? By the way, Curry, is there a team you want to go to?"
"I... I'm basically going to the Knicks."
"Heh heh, I bet you won't be able to go to the Knicks."
Curry was taken aback, not understanding why Li Feng would say that.
"The Knicks have already contacted me, so I want to go to the Knicks with you. How about it? We can rain down threes together!"
Li Feng smirked again, "I definitely want to be on the same team as you, but it might not be the Knicks."
"Alright, let's not worry about that for now. As long as I can be on a team with you."
They chatted for a long time, getting more and more excited, and finally agreed to train together at the Wildcats.
...
Bill Duffy was also closely monitoring Li Feng's performance and was very excited when he realized Li Feng's exposure had become so high.
Unfortunately, according to regulations, Li Feng was still an NCAA player and could not accept commercial endorsements.
In fact, many manufacturers had already approached Bill Duffy, hoping to sign long-term contracts with Li Feng for product endorsements.
Bill Duffy explained the situation to the manufacturers but didn't completely shut them down.
Actually, Bill wasn't in a hurry, because the prices offered by these manufacturers, while appearing high, were actually not worthy of Li Feng's value.
Bill had already figured out that with Li Feng's looks and skills, he would definitely be a superstar in the league, and his endorsement fees would far exceed current prices.
He had already planned many promotional activities for Li Feng, such as arranging for Li Feng to attend Hollywood red carpet events.
On Twitter, Scarlett Johansson proactively extended an invitation, hoping to meet with Li Feng.
In 2008, Scarlett was at the peak of her beauty and popularity, so her invitation immediately caused a frenzy on the internet.
It could be said that Li Feng, even before entering the NBA, had become a darling of the media.
Li Feng's Twitter, which had been quiet a few months prior, had been bombarded in the last couple of days.
However, Li Feng did not respond to Scarlett because he did not want to give his Chinese teammates the impression that Li Feng was interacting with American influencers.
This might make them think Li Feng had become arrogant after just a few games.
Of course, Li Feng was not that kind of person, and he himself was unwilling to get too involved with movie stars.
In fact, it wasn't just American movie stars; several Chinese actresses had also mentioned Li Feng on Weibo.
For example, Yang Mi and Sun Li had both congratulated the men's basketball team on Weibo.