htmlNanae Yamano, a 143-year-old full-time mother, lives in the suburbs of Tokyo. One morning a few years ago, she felt bored while washing clothes, so she turned on the TV and became a magical relationship with NBA. TV is broadcasting the 2012 playoffs, Spurs and the Thunder. She was not an NBA fan at that time, and in fact, she knew basically nothing about the NBA. Qihui's attention is all about one player. He is so unique, unlike all the players on the court. That person is Russell Westbrook.
"The first time I saw Westbrook playing, I thought, this guy is so unique," this is Qihui's English translation reposted. Her original words are, "Is he not unique? He is so unique!"
Westbrook is really so special. Since then, Qihui has been fascinated by Westbrook and his thunder that she can't forget.
basketball can bring people closer. Unlike the local Thunder fans in Ok City, Qihui lives in Ok City, and there are 15 time zones in between. She had never been to Oscar, to the United States, and had never even stepped out of Japan. "I don't even have a passport of my own," Qihui said.
But she bought NBA League, also has her own Twitter and Instagram accounts, and spent a lot of time on basketball, and she didn't worry about being too busy. "In fact," Qihui said, "I don't have a schedule." After she sent her son to school every day, she went back to watch the Thunder.
She transformed from a mother who knew nothing about the NBA and became a "Thunderbolt". In the 2016 season, she began to suffer from anxiety due to excessive attention to basketball. Like many fans, she was once worried that Durant might leave the Thunder. But unlike them, her way of relieving her anxiety is to build a world herself where Durant and Westbrook can coexist peacefully.
"I can't publish a book because I'm not a writer," she said, "so I started painting."
Durant and Westbrook, who wrote, are a bit funny. They will start to scare readers, and then bring them an inexplicable joy.
Unfortunately, things didn't go as expected. That summer, the Thunder lost the series against Warriors and also lost Durant.
In the disintegration of Dewey, Qihui has always been on Westbrook's side, and Westbrook is her muse. Westbrook's explosive style fascinated her and inspired her. "He really looks like an unpredictable person," Qihui said. "This is the only thing that will not change." This is why she likes Westbrook so much and can't help but want to protect him.
Westbrook matured and won the MVP trophy. Qihui also expressed her ideas through her works of art. Every time the Thunder plays a game, Qihui will upload a sketch, recording every bit of the Thunder season in chronological order. When Thunder wins, draw a color sketch, and when losing, draw a black and white sketch. Over time, these sketches became Qihui's unique works of art.
People know that there is such a person and have begun to pay attention to her works, including Thunder players.
Russia Center Steven Adams (Steven Adams) thought her sketch was funny, so he shared it with people in the locker room. "I sent all those sketches to my brothers," Adams said. "Her works are very special."
Not only Adams thinks so, but Domantas Sabon also retweeted a work by Qihui, in which he held Westbrook's hand. Not long after, Sabonis was traded away, which made Qihui a little depressed. “I miss Sabonis very much,” said Qiehui. But as a fan, she also understands that adjusting the lineup is to make the team stronger. Thunder general manager Sam Presti runs the team very hard during the offseason, which makes Qie very proud, so she paints an illustration of Presti in honor.
Qihui's fans asked her how she could buy her paintings, and also asked her where she lives in Oshicheng. Her answer is that if you don’t sell the paintings, you are in Japan.
Adams was so happy that he didn't know what to say. "Oh, this is really amazing!" he said.
Qihui said she really likes watching the Thunder play, even though the team is far away from the other end of the earth. She felt that she could not go to watch the football live, "That's too difficult," which was reposted by Qihui's English translator Reo Onishi. Lingyang is now operating a website called "Japanese Bull Secret". "I've been so happy to watch them play on League Link. If I could go to the scene, I didn't know what crazy actions I would do."
had a game before that in late Saturday night and early Sunday morning. That game was destined to make Qihui feel very moved. She held a football party at a basketball-themed restaurant in Tokyo called Ball Tongue, against both sides of the Thunder and the Warriors.
meal bar basketball atmosphere is strong, and Qihui's fanatical NBA dream is satisfied there. The dining bar is covered with posters of Rasheed Wallace and Latrell Sprewell, a Westbrook jersey hanging on the window, a flag with the Denver Nuggets mascot Rocky on the wall, a life-sized Penny Hardaway display board around the corner, and a Dream Team windbreaker hanging from a tube. On the cocktail menu, there is the "Greek Freak" which is made of Greek fennel, and the "Trust the Process" which is made of vodka.
Qihui promoted the event on her Twitter , so at the event, she was surrounded by a large group of NBA fans, drinking soup and eating curry potatoes together. She was talking to herself or chatting with others throughout the game. Her husband Ken said in an email, "When we talk about the Thunder and Westbrook, she usually keeps talking, and I listen quietly." When Draymond Green hits the iron, she will giggle, when the Thunder has a round of offense chaos, she will yell again, and when an offensive rebound turns into an open jump shot from Adams, she will also say, "Thank you!" The
game finally settled, and the Thunder lost 32 points, the Thunder's biggest loss this season. After the game, it's time for Qie to transform into Picasso again.
She picked up her iPad, opened the artboard, and started drawing on the artboard with an Apple stylus. What she drew was that Paul George (Paul George) was buried in his head and sat next to Westbrook with an upset look on his face. She carefully made the final touches, checked the style of their sneakers, and then prepared to post them on social media. The whole process took just 20 minutes.
Immediately afterwards, her fans were crazy likes, which made Qihui feel a little unreal. Qihui felt that it was already surprising that some netizens knew her, let alone that the Thunder players also knew her.
"I grew up in the countryside," she said, "I never really fit into a group, I'm just a weird guy, always." But after that, she met other NBA fans online and she no longer felt lonely. "They are just a bunch of 'weird people like me," Qihui said.
Statement: This article is compiled by Lazy Bear Sports from the Wall Street Journal, and the original author is Ben Cohen.
