Perhaps Hansen’s words reminded JR of his time in the CBA, a period he referred to as "humiliation."
"Shoot ten baskets a day, until I think you’re qualified."
JR’s face turned red when he heard it. It was a completely unfair treaty because Hansen would make all the subjective judgments.
He was so angry, he turned around and left.
But he hadn’t walked a few meters before he came back, puffing out his cheeks and huffily said, "Deal!"
In the following days, Hansen played one-on-one with JR after each practice. For him, it was also a form of entertainment.
Or perhaps, he was willing to do it because he was actually making a comparison.
After all, if James could tame JR in "history", couldn’t he do the same?
However, once they started, Hansen realized things weren’t going as he had anticipated.
Talent decided the upper limit of defense, and Smith wasn’t lacking in that department; not everyone has a nickname like "Highlight Reel Jordan."
But attitude determines the lower limit of talent, and JR seemed to naturally lack that.
After a week, Hansen was already prepared to give up on JR.
Good advice is hard to follow for a damned soul, great mercy can’t save those who cut themselves off.
It was during a break in that day’s training as he sat on the sidelines that Lue suddenly came over and handed him a cup of warm water.
"I know people from East University like to drink warm water." Lue was really something else.
Then he looked toward JR on the other half of the court, "He’s got his own story too."
Lue must have known about Hansen training JR. He couldn’t not know after a whole week had passed.
Hansen took a sip of the warm water and looked at Lue. You must have figured out the ins and outs of most of the team, haven’t you?
Seeing that Hansen didn’t refuse, Lue continued, "Have you noticed the tattoo on his neck?" ᴛhis chapter is ᴜpdated by novel※fire.net
Hansen shook his head. He wasn’t interested in tattoos; in fact, he was rather averse to them, to the point of not selecting movies with tattooed actors.
What’s more, JR was covered in tattoos.
"There’s a name tattooed there: Andre Bell. That’s the name of his best friend."
Hearing this, Hansen had a premonition that this person named Bell was probably dead. Otherwise, no one would tattoo a friend’s name on their body.
And indeed, that was the case.
The young JR was a complete asshole. He would spit on someone for rejecting him at a bar, post his girlfriend’s intimate photos on social media for everyone to enjoy, and even throw coffee in an assistant coach’s face simply because he was dissatisfied with his position on the team.
Compared to that time, the current JR had toned down a lot.
And the person who caused this change was Bell.
In the 2007 off-season, JR took Bell out for a drive and ended up speeding into an SUV parked on the side of the road.
Neither of them wore seat belts, and they both were flung from the car.
JR only had some scrapes, but Bell wasn’t so lucky; he suffered a severe head injury and died.
Hansen frowned as he listened. Sometimes it’s hard to understand the customs of black people, such as their first reaction to seeing the police isn’t to cooperate but to confront them.
But Bell’s death hit JR hard. Since then, he had reined in a lot and tattooed Bell’s name on his neck, signifying his intention to live for both himself and Bell.
"He should have had the name tattooed on the back of his hand," Hansen said.
"You won’t often look in a mirror, but you’re sure to often see the back of your hand."
After saying this, Hansen got up. He thought of a way.