The Legend of the Hungry Wolf in Basketball

Chapter 34 [The Worst Boss Sterling]

Ariel asked Ye Feng on the way home: "Are you free after the game against the Clippers?"

After playing against the Clippers, the Lakers had a day off to play against the Suns at home. Ye Feng had nothing to do at night. "I'm free, what's your plan?"

Ariel sighed and said, "It's not me, but my dad. He wants to have supper with us and chat with you. You'd better be mentally prepared, he's an asshole."

Ariel has never said anything good about her father, Ye Feng scratched his head and said with a smile: "Uh... I would like to have dinner with him, maybe we will have a good talk?"

Ariel said sternly: "Trust me, he only talks about money. If he makes any excessive demands, you can ignore him."

It seems that things are not simple.Ye Feng asked: "What request will he make?"

Ariel sighed again. "He wants you to join the Clippers next year. You must not be interested, right? You said you want to win the championship with the Lakers. It is too difficult for the Clippers to win the championship."

It turned out that the owner of the Clippers, Donald Sterling, was not concerned about his future son-in-law, but was planning to win Ye Feng to join his team.If the Clippers don't renew Brand at the end of this season, Ye Feng is a good substitute, with good quality and low price.

Old Sterling just had a quarrel with team manager Elgin Baylor today.

Baylor wants to give Brand, who is reimbursed for the season, a maximum salary contract, and at the same time introduce Warriors star guard Baron Davis next season to form a luxurious star lineup.This is not a small amount, and it must pay a luxury tax.Sterling doubts how much status Brand can have after a serious injury. Many players are useless after one serious injury. He is not willing to risk hundreds of millions of dollars. Giving Kaman a big contract at the end of 2006 has already made him extremely angry. It is impossible for him to bear the fact that there are three people on the team with an annual salary of over [-] million.

What makes Sterling even more angry is that Maggette's agent also negotiated with the Clippers to renew his contract, wanting a long-term contract with an annual salary of tens of millions.Baylor believes that Maggette is also capable.He said: "Mr. Sterling, Maggette averaged 20 points per game this season and is the team's number one scoring point. Do you think about his request? Otherwise, he will definitely jump out of the final year of his contract after the season. "

Sterling didn't need to think about it, he just got angry. "You mean I want to sign four guys with an annual salary of tens of millions? What is their level together? What is our goal next year? 82 consecutive victories to win the championship? Do you think I look like a mentally handicapped? I have 'New York' written on my forehead?"

This year the Clippers have created less wealth for Sterling, and Los Angeles fans have always only valued the Lakers and ignored the Clippers, which made him very upset.Sterling made his fortune by relying on stocks. In 1981, he spent 1250 million US dollars to buy the Clippers. The performance of the Clippers has not been good, but it has also helped him make a lot of money. He is not like Bass who is willing to spend money. A person who hoards stars and competes for the championship, picks up cheap is his pleasure.

When Ariel suggested that the Clippers were poor this season, give up Brand next season, and select potential rookies as the core training, he was very satisfied with his daughter's plan.The Clippers can choose two good young players and send out those guys with high salaries and low abilities.This is what Sterling wants to see most.He doesn't want records, what he wants is banknotes.In his mind, money always comes first. For money, not to mention selling players, even the Clippers can be sold, but it depends on the price offered by the other party.Ye Feng is Chinese, and Alexander, the boss of the Rockets who owns Yao Ming, earns a lot of money. For this reason, Sterling has been jealous for several years.

Ye Feng has the memory of the future, he knows better than anyone how bad Donald Sterling is.If one word were used to describe him, perhaps the most appropriate one would be "abnormal"!
Sterling is famous, he is not as different as Mavericks owner Cuban, not as calculating as Bulls owner Reinsdorf, he is famous because of one scandal after another.

First, he's known for being mean. After purchasing the Clippers in 1981, he rarely offered big contracts to players, and he was very stingy with coaches and general managers.In the ranking of the worst bosses selected by "Sports Illustrated" in the United States, he has long been ranked first.When they first moved to Los Angeles, the Clippers' home court was the Los Angeles Coliseum, where the facilities were outdated, and the Lakers had not played in this arena as early as 20 years ago.In the first three years of coming to Los Angeles, the Clippers averaged less than 8500 people per game, but this number has doubled since they were in San Diego.Sterling didn't think about moving, because the average rent of this arena is only a few thousand dollars per game, and the team is more likely to make a profit.

Secondly, Sterling is a troublesome person, and the lawsuits continue. In 2003, he was sued by a woman for sexual harassment. In 2006, Sterling was also arrested for refusing to rent out his house to black people and women with children. sued. In 2010, he was also brought to court by the team manager, NBA star Elgin Baylor; and then he was reported by the media for refusing to reimburse the medical expenses for his assistant coach suffering from cancer. In the end, it was the Clippers players who chipped in to help the coach We got through it.When people saw the humanitarian care of the Clippers players, they were also convinced of Sterling's ugly face. This guy is the scum of mankind.

Not to mention Sterling's misdeeds in running the team.Under the leadership of Sterling, the Clippers have experienced countless stupid trades, disastrous drafts and endless injuries. Before Griffin arrived, perhaps only masochists were the most suitable loyal fans of the Clippers.

Owners who are not even willing to reimburse their employees for surgery are naturally unwilling to spend a lot of money in the free agent market.Even in the big city of Los Angeles, the Clippers lived a half-dead life before selecting Griffin and introducing Paul.

The above situation is considered normal, and Sterling still has some shocking things.

Sterling would laugh at his own players.Every home game, he likes to sit on the sidelines and then spout "trash talk" at the players of his team.

Sterling also disrespected fans. A fan won a Clippers shooting contest, and Sterling has been reluctant to give him a $1000 bonus.That fan happened to be a lawyer, and he took Sterling to court for fraud.

In order to save money, Sterling once asked the team coach Silas to wrap the bandages for the players himself.When the Clippers traveled to China for an NBA promotional event, Sterling hired a former model named Patricia Simmons as the team's deputy general manager and let her occupy the coach's office. After returning from China, I found that my things were piled up in the corridor.

Sterling also dared to lay off David Stern, which made a big joke in the NBA. In 2010, at the labor conference in Las Vegas, the bosses of various teams gathered, and Stern presided over the meeting.During the course of the meeting, the following dialogue took place.

Sterling: "You don't want to listen to me."

Stern: "No, I want to hear it."

Sterling: "You don't want to."

Stern: "No, let's hear it."

Sterling: "Well, I'm going to fire you. You've got a good handle on the market, but you're not tough on the league."

What happened next, the anonymous source did not reveal further.Perhaps it was because they both had the surname Si and were a family hundreds of years ago that they settled harmoniously. (Stern: Your surname is Si...)
Sterling's favorite hobby is that he often breaks into the Clippers locker room with his little girlfriend.He would point to the players in the shower after the game and say to his little girlfriend: "Look at these beautiful black bodies." The players fought repeatedly to no avail.

Ye Feng was a reporter in his previous life, he knew too much about Sterling.If the Clippers want to have a future, the boss must be replaced. If Ariel gets the control of the team, it will be a great blessing for the Clippers fans.As long as Donald Sterling is still the decision maker of the Clippers, he will definitely not join.He doesn't mind having a negotiation, this is a good time to fulfill Ariel.

On December 12, the Lakers VS Clippers derby started at the Staples Center.The floor was covered with Clippers carpet, but the fans were cheering for the Lakers before the game, and the scene was a bit strange.

Ralph Basil and Michael Smith are the commentators for this game.Ralph Basil was born in April 1938 and is already 4 years old this year. In his career as a commentator for many years, whether in the radio or television era, he has always been the voice of the Los Angeles Clippers.Smith has also cast for 70 years.

The two commentators first expressed concern about the prospects of the Clippers, and then commented on the Lakers lineup. They believed that due to the outstanding performances of Bynum and Ye Feng this season, the strength of the Lakers has risen to a higher level and returned to the ranks of strong teams. up.

When he played, Ye Feng was ranked fifth from the bottom, behind Radmanovic and ahead of Bynum.This was deliberately arranged by the Lakers, implicitly showing that Ye Feng's role in the team has surpassed Radmanovich.

When Ye Feng was introduced, the audience applauded continuously.When Bynum played, the applause was significantly weakened.After the appearance ceremony was over, Bynum stood beside Ye Feng and said with a wry smile: "Dude, you are so popular now, even if I play such beautiful statistics on the field, it doesn't have such an effect."

Ye Feng punched him lightly, and said with a smile: "Are you jealous? This time, if you have another big double pair, you will definitely surpass me in popularity."

The game was about to start soon, Ye Feng sat back on the bench.Ariel was sitting on the opposite side of the court, not far away was her father, Donald Sterling with his young girlfriend.Ariel beckoned to Ye Feng, Ye Feng immediately waved back.To his embarrassment, Sterling also stood up and waved to him with a smile, with a very friendly attitude.

This old man smiles so obscenely, if a reporter notices our actions, maybe there will be some news tomorrow, such as "The owner of the Clippers has accepted the son-in-law of the Lakers?" Ye Feng wondered in his heart.

The Lakers' starting lineup remains unchanged.Clippers starting five: Chris Kaman, Tim Thomas, Corey Maggette, Cuttino Mobley, Sam Cassell.

The referee throws the basketball into the air and the game begins!

(End of this chapter)