Confronting Reporters

Five minutes after the Suns left, Wang Yi and James walked into the press conference venue.

The reporters' cameras immediately started flashing wildly.

Wang Yi had held press conferences before, but this was the first time he'd been photographed by so many reporters.

This was the exposure that came with being a Lakers player.

As a traditional powerhouse, the Lakers, located in a big city like Los Angeles, naturally received far more attention than teams in smaller markets.

So here, as long as you could play well, you wouldn't lack exposure.

After the two sat down, the reporters began to ask questions.

One reporter asked James:

"LeBron, Wang once again had an efficient performance tonight. It seems he has the potential to be an important helper by your side. What do you think about that?"

James glanced at Wang Yi beside him and replied with a smile:

"He's indeed a good teammate. With him on the court, he can share my pressure. I look forward to seeing his next performance."

The reporter then asked James several more questions.

But these questions were basically all related to Wang Yi.

After being asked his fifth question about Wang Yi, James couldn't help but joke:

"I feel like I'm a bit redundant. If you want to ask about Wang, why not ask him directly? He's right here."

In reality, these reporters were quite clever.

Although Wang Yi had played three good games, he didn't have much fame.

Moreover, he hadn't scored over 30 points in these games, so there wasn't much to brag about.

Therefore, if they only reported on Wang Yi, there wouldn't be much of a story.

So they had to interview James first to get his evaluation of Wang Yi.

Then they could freely choose their headlines:

James's Best Helper

LeBron is Praising Him Too

LBJ Can't Stop Praising Him

This way, the story would have much more appeal, and readers would be more interested in reading it.

Finally, the reporters had pretty much finished asking James their questions.

A reporter began to ask Wang Yi a question.

"Wang, you had a double-double tonight with 28 points and 10 blocks. As a guard, how did you manage to get 10 blocks? Do you have a secret?"

Wang Yi smiled and said:

"The secret is to eat less. The less you eat, the lighter you are, the higher you jump, and the easier it is to get blocks."

This was, of course, a joke.

It caused a burst of laughter in the room.

Then, another reporter, a fatty, pushed up his glasses, a hint of cunning flashing in his eyes, and asked:

"Wang, you've scored nearly 30 points for three consecutive games. This performance can be considered representative of Chinese players today. What are your thoughts on this?"

Wang Yi: "I'll watch it sitting down."

The reporters were stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter again.

Wang Yi continued:

"Actually, saying I represent Chinese players is incorrect. I am Chinese, and I deeply love my country. But I am just myself. I can't be arrogant enough to say I can represent anyone. Of course, I don't think anyone can represent me either. We shouldn't impose our will on others."

The portly reporter looked slightly disappointed and nodded, "Thank you for your answer."

Then he sat down.

In fact, this fatty reporter was trying to set a trap for Wang Yi.

Their country advocates independence and freedom—at least on the surface.

So he had just thrown out bait. If Wang Yi dared to say he represented China, the reporter could have made a big deal out of it.

He could have said that this Eastern country was not free, too dictatorial, and so on.

But Wang Yi didn't fall for his trap.

At this moment, a female reporter who hadn't asked many questions raised her hand.

She was a blonde woman.

Even in her professional attire, it was evident that she had a great figure.

She wore a smile that made people feel as if they were basking in the spring breeze.

She seemed very approachable.

She spoke:

"Wang, the NBA is currently the highest level basketball league in the world. And you are the only Chinese person in the NBA. My question is, with 1.4 billion people in China, can't you even find five people who can play basketball?"

As soon as she said this, the atmosphere in the room changed.

Everyone fell silent.

This question was different from the one the fat reporter had asked earlier.

The fat reporter had dug a hidden pit for Wang Yi to fall into.

But this beautiful female reporter had directly asked such a sharp question, clearly showing no friendliness.

Of course, many reporters were secretly excited.

They were waiting to see Wang Yi make a fool of himself.

James frowned and turned to look at Wang Yi.

He shook his head slightly.

He knew Wang Yi was already getting angry.

Anyone would be angry with such a question.

But Wang Yi couldn't make a bad move at this moment.

If he did, the reporters here would blow the incident out of proportion, which would be very detrimental to Wang Yi's future development.

So he used his gaze to urge Wang Yi to be patient.

Would Wang Yi be patient?

Of course not!

If it were about himself, he might have endured it.

But when it concerned his country, he couldn't tolerate it one bit.

His eyes burned as he looked at the beautiful female reporter.

He asked, "May I ask which country you are from?"

The female reporter still had a smile on her face, making people feel as if they were in a spring breeze.

She replied, "I am American."

Wang Yi replied proudly:

"With 300 million people in America, can't you find even one person who can play table tennis?"

As soon as he said this, the room fell silent.

The smile on the female reporter's face instantly vanished.

The vast majority of the reporters present were American.

They had come expecting to see Wang Yi embarrassed, but now they all felt as if they had been stabbed in the heart.

Wang Yi looked intently at the female reporter, waiting for her answer.

The female reporter couldn't utter a word for a long time.

It was true that the level of basketball in China was indeed not as good as the NBA.

There were also many problems with China's system and other aspects.

But if someone with ulterior motives wanted to use this to mock China, Wang Yi absolutely could not tolerate it.

It was like how many graduates might criticize their alma mater for its shortcomings.

But if others dared to speak ill of their alma mater, they would definitely get into an argument.

At this moment, the room was silent.

Wang Yi paused and said:

"Everyone has their own strengths, and every country has its own strong sports. Your country's basketball level is the highest, and our country is the overlord in table tennis. We should not mock others' shortcomings because of our own strengths, nor should we ridicule other countries because of the sports our country excels at. If you do, then it is a problem with your personal cultivation and character."

With a few words, Wang Yi shifted the issue from the national level back to the personal level.

This skill was not low.

The female reporter, being publicly criticized by Wang Yi for her personal cultivation and character, could not refute him.

She only felt as if all the eyes around her were piercing her like needles.

A moment later, a reporter suddenly started clapping.

About half of the reporters around also joined in clapping.

Clap clap clap clap clap--

Wang Yi's words earned applause from many people present.

Of course, there were still a few American reporters who were unconvinced.

They were itching to speak up.