The Legend of the Hungry Wolf in Basketball

Chapter 52 [The rookie who may squeeze the boss away]

Trading Kobe for a rookie... If Jackson's remarks are heard by reporters, it will be explosive news and will definitely hit the headlines.

Jackson wasn't joking, and his relationship with Kobe wasn't as harmonious as it seemed.In his book "Last Season, A Team Seeking Spirit" published in 2004, he revealed a lot of inside stories about the Lakers, among which he criticized Kobe the most, saying that Kobe was a selfish and good-hearted young man who didn't want to be with O'Neal , I always want to set up another mountain and establish a "new order" for the Lakers according to my own wishes.

Jackson said he had been trying to convince Kobe to be honest with him and work together, but Kobe just refused to cooperate with him.The most embarrassing thing for him is that at the beginning of each new season, Kobe always brings his own set of things.He felt on several occasions that he was engaged in psychological warfare with Kobe, and the trust between the two was pitifully low. The conflict with Kobe even led Jackson to hire a psychologist who specializes in narcissistic behavior at Los Angeles Public University. Experts, ask for help from time to time.

After Jackson took office in 1999, he proposed to then Lakers general manager Jerry West that Kobe would be exchanged for Kidd of the Suns. In January 2004, Jackson wanted to replace Kobe again. He rushed into the general manager's office more than once and told him that he must send Kobe away before the February trade deadline, otherwise he would be pissed off.But general manager Kupchak sided with Bryant, and Jackson had to decide not to renew his coaching contract in January.

After Kobe led the team to defeat in the 2004-2005 season, the Lakers spent a lot of dollars and Jenny Buss, and finally got Jackson back to restrain Kobe.

In Jackson's view, Kobe has a dual personality.One desperately wants to win the respect and friendship of his teammates and wants his teammates to regard him as a leader; the other intentionally or unintentionally isolates and alienates himself from the group in order to maintain his superior status.These two Kobes have never been able to find a suitable fit, which led to a split in his personality. Of course Kobe knows what is the correct way to play, but he often insists on going his own way.Once the defenders challenged him, saying that they were going to guard Kobe tonight, Kobe would be furious and had to use singles to tear his opponent apart, and at this time, the more he felt bad, the more he would shoot desperately.To this day, Kobe has not changed.In his opinion, the thing that can prove himself the most is scoring.

Divac was very surprised, and said with a smile: "Ye Feng can't be compared with Kobe at all. He can attack him with a few tricks. He can't make a mid-range shot, and he doesn't have a long-range shot at all... Are you so optimistic about him? Do you want him to be the core? ?”

Jackson said seriously: "I am very optimistic about Ye Feng. He has the potential to become a team leader and knows what he should do on the court. Playing against the Mavericks is a good example. I think he is smarter than Kobe. His skills It can be gradually improved, but the golf quotient is difficult to improve. Kobe is a top five player in the league, but his strength has already peaked, and there is no room for improvement. But Ye Feng...you can predict that this kid will reach What height? He is only 19 years old, and he has already reached this level after only a few months of exposure to basketball."

Divac swallowed, Ye Feng's growth rate was indeed frighteningly fast, something he had never seen before.Thinking back to Ye Feng's stupidity when he participated in the preseason training camp, and his suffocating defense against Nowitzki, it's hard to believe that he was alone.As long as he can practice dribbling and shooting well, with his extraordinary talent, he will definitely become a league superstar.

If Kobe represents the present, Ye Feng represents the future of the Lakers.

Jackson went on to say: "The thing that surprised me the most was Ye Feng's scandal. Why was Ariel Sterling not the one who was rumored with him? He knew that she was the daughter of the owner of the Clippers. Enai, I don’t mind other people guessing that he will join the Clippers. This is not bad for him at all. It not only makes him famous, but also leaves a way for himself. As long as the Lakers renew his contract with a high salary, he probably won’t If he refuses, the scandal will make him more loyal. If the Lakers trade him, he can also return to Los Angeles by joining the Clippers. At that time, he will be full of gimmicks and will definitely attract the box office. As long as the Clippers do not keep Brand, he may directly take over. "

Divac laughed and said, "Maybe it's just a coincidence, isn't his scheming so exaggerated?"

Jackson sighed: "This is the analysis of Jenny (Bass) and Bonnie (Laughlin). They think that Ye Feng and Ariel are not lovers at all, but good friends. When it comes to love, women's intuition is very accurate. If It's no good, will they pretend to be a couple? This is not a child's 'play house', he probably already guessed that he might become a bargaining chip. Once Kupchak trades Ye Feng away, he joins the Clippers... Kobe Bryant's state has declined after the year, who will the Lakers rely on to grab the box office with the Clippers? As long as Ye Feng becomes a star, Los Angeles is likely to become the Clippers' world from now on. So I will stop this deal, he must stay. If Kobe and him do not Cooperate, I will also offer to trade Kobe!"

Jackson has coached Jordan and Pippen, and he knows what kind of person is likely to become a superstar.Ye Feng's skills have not yet been developed, he is already very strong just by his talent, and he also has the mentality and golf quotient to become a superstar.

Let Jackson feel a headache is that Bryant has a "trade veto."This is written into the contract, and it is unconditionally vetoed by one vote. It is a real overlord clause.During the contract period, if the team wants to trade him, he must first agree with him, otherwise he can exercise his veto power and veto the transaction.This guarantees the player's interests to the greatest extent, and the team can trade him to his favorite team on the premise of ensuring that he does not want to stay.

The Lakers attached great importance to Kobe, which allowed him to have such an overlord clause.This also shows that Kobe drove away Shaquille O'Neal back then, it was purely fictional.It's true that they have conflicts, it's like a fight between the eldest grandma and the second grandma. When Mr. Bass saw that the grandma O'Neill was old and decrepit, he divorced and sold him, and then turned to comfort the second grandma who was in full bloom Grandma Kobe, I promise that I will not sell him like I sold my grandma in the future.

That's probably how it was.

Bass: "How can I be willing to sell someone as beautiful as you? Come on, Ruhua, let's sign the guarantee."

Kobe: "..."

So Kobe has the current transaction veto power.Jackson knew that Kobe didn't want to leave the Lakers at all. In the summer, he yelled and traded vigorously, shaking many teams out of their minds, and finally stayed.Kobe shouted "Either find a powerful helper, or trade me", and repeatedly made contradictory remarks in the media.He actually didn't want to leave, just to put pressure on the team.

Now here comes help.This helper has more potential than Kobe back then.Even if the two of them are fine now, after a few years, the conflict between the OK group may reappear.Sooner or later, the Lakers have to make a choice, grasp the present, or retain hope for the future.

In the evening, the New Orleans arena was packed.The tickets were sold out one day in advance, and the fans believed that the game was not only fierce, but also beautiful.Paul and Kobe ranked first and second in the regular season MVP selection, and their duel was eye-catching.The Hornets can play beautiful alley-oops in every game, and the Lakers also have a violent dunk against Ye Feng.

The Hornets are determined to win this game.Before the game, coach Byron Scott made a deployment. He believed that the Hornets had an advantage in starting. Paul had an obvious advantage against Fisher. Peterson and Chandler dealt with Kobe together, and West defended Ye Feng alone .Stojakovic defends Odom.

His biggest headache was not Kobe, but Ye Feng, the X factor.Since Ye Feng entered the rotation, the Lakers have won six consecutive victories, including the Celtics, Mavericks, and Suns.

As long as West can beat Ye Feng on both offense and defense, the Hornets will undoubtedly win.That's what Scott thinks.But seeing the Lakers' roster, Scott felt uncomfortable.Ye Feng sat on the bench, and the starting lineup was replaced by Bynum, Odom, Radmanovich, Kobe, and Fisher.He studied the videos of the previous games. Ye Feng was the starter, and the game would be easier. If he came off the bench, the Hornets' second team would have to bear a lot of defensive pressure.

Ye Feng didn't know that he was just sitting on the sidelines, making it uncomfortable for others to watch.He's going to take a closer look at how Paul plays.Paul is an MVP-level player, and it is not an exaggeration to say that he is the number one point guard in the league today.In this game, he must also have the opportunity to play against Paul.

The game begins.Bynum lost the jump ball, and Chandler, who is 216cm tall, is also of superman quality. He won the ball for the Hornets.

The pick-and-roll tactic is a basic tactic that every team will use, and the Hornets are particularly powerful because Paul's breakthrough is too sharp.After Odom changed defense, the Hornets players opened up to create singles opportunities for Paul. Paul took the ball on the right side and changed speed to break through. He passed Odom in one step, and took the ball while running. The ball goes in.Paul shot too fast, and Bynum had no time to make up the defense. 0 to 2.

Ye Feng has watched countless Paul's games on TV, and this is the first time he watched Paul's games up close. He imagined how to defend against Paul's breakthrough. It seems that this is more difficult than defending against Kobe.

(End of this chapter)