The third meeting with Karonsky II was like a reunion of two old friends.

"Hi, Scott."

"Hi, Koharu. You shouldn't call me II. The old man's full name is Scott-Kalonsky II, Yu Xiaochun still remembers the first time they met and introduced each other, and the other party corrected himself very seriously, but today the old man in front of him was obviously in a good mood, and he was happy to ask rhetorically.

"Scott." Yu Xiaochun shook hands with the other party, "I know you asked me to call you Kalonsky II, in order to distinguish the three generations of your family, you all have the same name." But I like to try something different once in a while, hello, Mr. Scott. ”

Karonsky II was still not angry, but only joined in the teasing, "You are very verbose today, Mr. Little Fish." ”

"No more verbose, where are we going? I'm dying of hunger. ”

"B.B. King Blues Club."

"Where is that?"

"The Great Wall of Memphis, a must-see. Come with me and you'll know. ”

1/

The place where Kalonsky II and Yu Xiaochun agreed to meet was Beale Street in Memphis. Beale Avenue is located in the middle of Memphis City about 3 kilometers long street, Yu Xiaochun has done some homework before going to the appointment, this street is one of the important birthplaces of American blues music, is the art symbol of Memphis, but today walking on the street during the day, it is still different from his imagination.

The streets of Beale Street are very narrow, the buildings have preserved the original appearance as far back as before World War II, most of them are two-story brick buildings, the storefronts are not wide, the decoration is simple and simple, and the styles are different, which makes people can't think of the fact that this was once the most prosperous mecca of American blues music, and the first live performance stage of countless giants. At noon, most of the nightclubs, bars and clubs are not open, the neon signs in front of the doors are dimmed, and only tourists of different looks from all over the country, like Yu Xiaochun and Kalonsky II, wander the streets in twos and threes and take pictures.

"Yiming's performance on the field has been good recently." Karonsky II, strolling along Biel Street, began to talk.

"It's okay." Yu Xiaochun has Chinese humility, "The statistics can be better." ”

"3-D players?"

"Hmm." Yu Xiaochun nodded and said with some embarrassment, "Coach Mike D'Antoni has set a task for Yang Yiming, and he hopes that he can win this year's Rookie of the Year." ”

"I see."

"I think it's better to make Yang Yiming a 3-and-D player with a distinct label than Ben Simmons and Jayson Tatum. What do you think? Yu Xiaochun briefly described his idea and asked Karonsky II rhetorically.

"What do I think?"

"Do you think it's possible? Is there any hope for Yiming? ”

"We're here, B.B. King Blues Club, let's go in first." Karonsky II avoided talking and reached out to push open the wooden door of an old bar for Yu Xiaochun.

2/

B.B. King is one of the most famous and iconic figures in blues music. He came to Memphis in 1946 and made his debut on Beale Street, where he performed until his death in 2015, performing throughout the Memphis-centric United States, 143 Beale Street, a blues bar and restaurant that honors the maestro and one of the most iconic locations on Beale Street.

This bar of more than 400 square meters retains the original brick wall style of the building, and the interior is divided into two floors by an iron frame, with dining seats on the top and bottom, and the stage is set in the middle of the first floor.

At noon, there was no performance in the restaurant, the stage lights were dim, and there were not many diners, so the two chose a seat near the window on the second floor of the iron frame and sat down.

"Thank you for your recommendation." After taking a seat, Yu Xiaochun got straight to the point.

"What recommendation?"

"Recommendation in New York, Nina. Do you remember? ”

Kalonsky II waved his hand, indicating that he did not care.

"Without her, Yang Yiming's performance would not be so good now." Yu Xiaochun still insisted on thanking him, continued, and the more he talked, the more excited he became, "His physical fitness has even improved." Speed, strength, bounce, stamina, and even height, you have to observe it! ”

"Hmm." Kalonsky II snorted lightly, and the waiter came over to inquire, and he ordered something for the two of them, "Be sure to try the grilled ribs here, the southern flavor, which is completely different from the Texas one!" ”

"Okay, I'll try it." Seeing that the other party had become a strange old man who played cards out of common sense, Yu Xiaochun could only temporarily give up the topic of basketball and follow Kalonsky II. Taking retreat as advance, it is probably the communication method he learned from Yang Yiming these days.

"Well, that's right."

The old man slapped his palms and looked extremely happy.

3/

Even without music, the B.B.KIng Blues Club's barbecue pork ribs are truly a musical feast for the taste buds. The ribs are simmered until soft, and the flesh and bones are gently torn to completely peel off. When you chew it, you will not only have the smoked flavor of firewood, but also the sweetness of honey, mixed with the meaty aroma of pork ribs, which is really a symphony of extreme deliciousness.

Karonsky II ate to his heart's content, completely abandoning the cutlery and cutlery, tearing open whole ribs with his hands, passing them one by one to his mouth and sucking and gnawing.

When Yu Xiaochun saw Karonsky II's appearance, he also followed the same example and feasted on it.

The two of them were relatively silent, and ate like this for more than twenty minutes.

Until Kalonsky II ate the last rib on his plate and sucked the sauce off his fingers.

"Let's talk, Mr. Fish."

Well? Yu Xiaochun still didn't fully accept the habit of Americans eating and sucking their fingers, wiped it with a napkin, and listened attentively.

"Let's talk, back in Memphis, you must have a lot to talk about basketball." Karonsky II finally got serious, "Except for the music, history, food, all sorts of nonsense that I just talked about. ”

"Sure enough, you're more verbose."

To say or not to say, the old man spread his hands and looked indifferent.

"Okay, I'll ask." Yu Xiaochun sorted out his thoughts and asked the first question, "So do you think Yang Yiming has a chance to fight for the best rookie?" ”

"I don't know, I guess there is. Statistical analysis is not my specialty, my specialty is to rate players. ”

"And what do you think of the positioning of a 3-and-D player?"

"Not bad, isn't it? I like players with strong characteristics, especially newcomers. It can be remembered, and the same is true for the reporters and judges. ”

Yu Xiaochun nodded, and finally had a positive message.

"So Yiming's rating has gone up?" He struck while the iron was hot.

"Nope." The answer is simple and crisp.

"How is that possible, or 78?"

"Well, it used to be 78 down, now it's almost 78 up, it's almost 79, but it's not there yet. So it's still 78, your friend Yang Yiming. ”

Unexpectedly, it was followed by a negative.

"But his physical..."

"That's right." Karonsky II seemed to fully understand the other party's thoughts, and directly interrupted, "But physical fitness is only one of the five dimensions, and his changes are not significant, so the impact on the overall evaluation is not as great as you think." ”

"So what to do?" Yu Xiaochun was anxious.

"You want to build him into a 3-and-D player, there are some important qualities that Yiming needs to focus on, three-point shooting, steals, blocks, offensive tactics, defensive positioning, decisiveness, concentration..."

"So how the hell am I going to get him to increase these stats, how do I add some more?!"

"I said earlier, I don't do these things."

Karonsky III?! Your son! Yu Xiaochun recalled the conversation the last time the two met, "Where is he?" ”

“LA。”

Others are in LA. Next month on the 4th, you're going to visit Stamp Arena, the Los Angeles Lakers. Call him then.

What a reunion of old friends!