Xie Hou had never considered leaving before.

Recently, people have often reminded that his contract will be released next summer, and various media have begun to fantasize about his potential next home.

Although outside voices usually do not affect the players' decisions, they are indeed influenced by them, and Xie Hou conceived the possibility of leaving.

If he wants to leave, he can leave without burden.

He has brought enough honor to the Pacers.

Moreover, there are indeed too many cities better than Indiana, and it is natural to play basketball in a better place.

If you don't leave, what's here to keep him?

The four words Indiana are definitely not the reason.

Honor? Even Xie Hou felt guilty in his heart that they had lost the competitiveness to impact the highest honor.

Xie Hou thought about it and found that there were almost no one left in Indiana.

Oh, by the way, loyalty.

Loyalty to the team.

After Garnett won the championship this year, in addition to the deafening sentence "Everything is possible", there is another sentence that is even more impressive.

"Don't let loyalty hurt you."

Kevin Garnett may be the first player in history to completely rewrite the league structure through continuous transfers.

On the 2007-2008 transaction, he was traded to the Sun by his old boss, Timberwolves.

The Suns became the Western Conference super team in one fell swoop. If the Pacers weren't blocking the way, Garnett would have won the championship a year early.

In the summer of 2008, Garnett identified the young bulls. They had space, had a young core, and, he was in a good style with Howard.

Before he joined, the Bulls stopped in the semi-finals. After he joined, they suddenly had the momentum of a dynasty team.

They are a bit like the Pacers in 2004, and the addition of Xie Hou has turned a young team with unlimited potential into a powerful championship contender in an instant.

This summer, Garnett was asked about his thoughts on recent years.

Garnett said that.

Garnett left the Timberwolves for glory. Xie Hou has received a lot of glory. Now is the time to verify whether he has a close relationship with the team.

So far, the idea about next summer is just an idea.

Xie Hou had no decision.

The boot camp continues.

The next day, Thibodeau held an in-squad match.

Xie Hou was in poor condition and he didn't play games for some days. During the offseason, his training focused on his body and lost a lot of ball training. In the first match, his touch felt as cold as if he couldn't play.

It feels bad, but the consciousness is still excellent.

Just by consciousness, he scored 11 points, 12 rebounds and 7 assists with a accurate triple-double.

Thibodeau intends to train him to the core of the high position, which is the way to play for the Bulls in the semi-finals. The coaching staff discovered its creativity and possibilities.

If Xie Hou can start "one-star shooting" at a high position, then the tactics will be more active.

It is too monotonous to have a spurt on the outside line or a low position, and there are endless possibilities to launch an attack at a high position.

In that position, Xie Hou doesn't have to use offense to attract teammates.

They can run first, or find someone to hand, or run back with an empty cut and pick-and-roll/cover, and as long as his passer is good enough, he can pass the ball in place.

Then another question came.

"The core issue of the ball-holder in launching tactics at the high level."

"You mean Arthur has a problem?"

Thibodeau listened to Vogel's suggestion, "In fact, this is a bit like Princeton's high-post tactics. The core of the ball is usually the inside line. They have strong bodies to provide close-range cover for the receiver. The high-post hand-passing hand, or the pass-cutting personnel use the ball-holder's body to flash over the defender and cut into the basket. These require the ball-holder to have a strong body as support."

Vogel said this and stopped.

"I heard that Arthur is less than 105 kg now..."

It's not Xie Hou's problem, it's Xie Hou's weight problem.

His weight makes him not of good quality as a wall, and he can't stand it when playing tactics with others.

"Do you want to remind him?" someone said.

"No, Arthur is a smart person." The coaching staff reminded Xie Hou that there were too many inappropriate aspects of weight problems.

On the third day, the confrontation continued.

Xie Hou is still in his position, passing the ball, guiding the teammates run well.

The second round pick AJ Price's shooting technique surprised him. He didn't expect that the rookie could adapt to the NBA's three-point range in training camp.

Unfortunately, his body cannot help him create the best opportunity.

Price's offense has been frustrated because of this, and he rarely cooperates with Xie Hou to shoot directly.

Xie Hou's team lost that confrontation.

Afterwards, he went to find Thibodeau.

"Coach, is my position on the offensive end? Is it an experiment or the norm for future games?" Xie Hou needed a definite answer.

Thibodeau said: "At present, the most suitable position for you to play is the high position. Arthur, do you feel something is wrong?"

Except for Xie Hou's weight, nothing is wrong.

He really wanted to laugh. He lost weight during the offseason for two consecutive years, but he wanted to gain weight for the sudden change.

He didn't know what this was.

"I understand." Xie Hou stood up, and the smile on his face made Thibodu feel relieved.

Just like the Xie Hou he knew.

Xie Hou did not say a word about the brand new arrangement, so he chose to accept it and left silently.

If he didn't want to accept it, he could say that Thibodeau would listen to his opinion. He just confirmed it to Thibodeau and carried the bag that the other party suddenly threw over.

Oh, this burden is too heavy, so he will make himself stronger.

That night, Xie Hou talked about this with the fitness coach in his private training team.

Fitness coach Alex Sanning clearly objected to Xie Hou’s weight gain.

In order to adapt to the positioning of the high-level tactical core, Xie Hou set a plan for himself to gain weight to 110 kilograms by February next year.

It should be noted that he has never been that big.

Even when he was in his best condition, he weighed only 108 kilograms. In two months, he would be 30 years old and would actually gain weight to 110 kilograms?

"You are kidding about your future!" Sanning said heavily, "All great players in history will make concessions to your weight until your age. You can't challenge the old man of time!"

Xie Hou joked, "I have been so serious about Alex. I have always believed in the gods devoutly and never thought of challenging them."

"When you were a rookie, you were often injured because of your weight. After that, years of stable muscle building helps you become an iron man who is not easy to fall. When you were young, your strong body was like Tony Stark's suit, but when you get old, it will also become a burden to you. Trust me, I can say at least five players who quickly lose their competitiveness after being injured due to excessive weight!"

"Five? Let's hear it."

"Wes Unseld, Charles Barkley, Larry Johnson, Elton Brand!"

"You can really tell..."

Xie Hou didn't expect Sangning to be so serious. They have been with each other for many years and are no longer simply a simple employment relationship.

Over the years, Sang Ning has made great contributions to his health.

Perhaps, Sangning is more familiar with his body than Xuewei.

"No matter what kind of ecstasy Tom Thibodeau has given you, you should refuse. There is no reason to change for the team's change. You should not be responsible for the Pacers, you should be responsible for yourself!" Sanning's words were very convincing.

Xie Hou was shaken for a time.

He did not change his mind.

Don’t he understand what Sangning said? He is not stupid. Sangning said a few years ago that he would reduce his weight when he was 30 years old, otherwise it would be difficult to maintain his health.

In my heart, he doesn't want to gain weight.

But at present, the Pacers are in a situation where he is the only core. If he does not accept the arrangements and does not make changes, they can only repeat the course of last season.

The regular season was stumbling and was eliminated in the semi-finals of the playoffs.

If it is a classic movie, it is necessary to revisit it repeatedly.

If it was a failure in the semi-finals of last season? Please, Xie Hou doesn't want to do it again.

Change may not necessarily succeed, but failure may certainly fail if it does not change.

"Alex, I'm calling you, not asking you if I should accept the team's arrangements. This has nothing to do with you. What I want to know is, what should I do to gain 110 kg by February next year?" Xie Hou asked.

Sang Ning was familiar with Xie Hou's personality.
To be continued...