the rest, only noise

Chapter 1211 Hurricane in the East

While the Lakers signed Barkley, their archrival Boston Celtics were also actively operating.

The Celtics front office did three things at the same time.

First, they spent a lot of money to sign Chuck Daly, who had been away from the coaching job for nearly four years.

Daly has been working behind the scenes since leaving Detroit.

Sometimes, he'll be a guest on ESPN.

Sometimes, he will accept TNT's commentary invitation.

He has many jobs, but none of them are permanent.

The Celtics, who welcomed Sampson back, are competitive again, but if they want to return to the top ranks, they need to recruit a good coach.

Although Reid Auerbach insisted on using his own people, Dave Gavitt felt that Daly was the best candidate among all the currently unemployed coaches.

The Celtics signed Chuck Daly to a franchise-record four-year, $4 million contract.

Gavitt then did something that pleased Auerbach.

He invited Isiah Thomas to join the Celtics' front office as deputy general manager.

The Smiling Assassin gladly accepted Gavitt's invitation.

When Louis heard the news, he inexplicably felt that the Celtics were going to be over.

No one knows why a player with such a high regard for pride like Thomas believes that the inside combination of Zach Randolph and Eddie Curry will be successful.

Thomas in a previous life had proven he wouldn't be a good administrator.

If the Celtics train him as Gavitt's successor, Louis can't imagine what will happen afterwards.

At the same time, the third thing the Celtics management did was to actively promote the Karl Malone trade.

Especially after the Lakers signed Barkley at a very low price, the Celtics felt that changes were urgent.

The Atlanta Olympics competition was in full swing, and Karl Malone, who was not recruited by the Dream Team II, waited for an answer during a seemingly endless wait.

Boston Celtics trade Rasheed Wallace, Derek Harper, Dino Radja C, Greg Minor SG/SF, 1997 first-round pick, 1998 first-round pick swap, 2002 first-round pick, to Utah Jazz for Karl Malone, Steve Kerr and this year's second-round pick Shandon Anderson derson SF/SG).

According to "Boston Globe" writer Bob Ryan, the Celtics initially wanted to send Wallace and Laettner away, but the Jazz only wanted Wallace and other young players and draft picks.

The most promising young man in the Celtics team is Hill, who is also not for sale. Since he wants young players, Wallace can only pick up others, and then use a veteran like Harper to balance the salary, plus 2 first-round and 1 first-round swaps.

Louis felt that the Celtics made a fortune this time.

He didn't expect the Jazz to only have 2 first-round and 1 first-round swaps.

To change Louis, the Celtics don't want to take Malone away if they don't take out 3 first rounds and 3 first round swaps.

Then, Louis studied the Celtics' draft structure and found that it was not that the Jazz didn't want it, but that the Celtics couldn't give it.

Not long ago, Louis sent Laettner to the Celtics. In addition to changing their draft pick, they also let them spit out the first round of 2000.

The year of this first-round pick is very interesting.

2000, the year of the millennium.

Although the quality of rookies that year was historically low, Louie just wanted something more and didn't think so much.

According to Ted Steppy's rules, NBA teams cannot trade away two consecutive first-round picks. Therefore, when the Jazz asked the Celtics for the first round, since the Celtics had already given the first round of 2000 to the Lakers, the first rounds of 1999 and 2001 could not be moved directly.

The Jazz didn't ask for more first-round swaps, which Louie didn't expect.

Maybe he overestimated Malone's market.

Maybe the Jazz overestimated Wallace's potential.

Somebody always overestimated something anyway, but it doesn't matter now.

For the first time since Bird retired, the Celtics have two powerful superstars.

The inside combination of Sampson and Malone should not be underestimated.

Although Sampson is old, he can still play at least three 10 minutes per game, and Malone is a famous late bloomer.

The next two seasons will be Malone's true peak.

This means that Sampson will partner with the second top power forward in the league besides Manning.

A super center is generally not blessed to be partnered with a super power forward. A guard who knows how to pass the ball should be content, but Sampson is like the chosen son who was influenced by the butterfly effect and was lucky.

No one could have imagined that Sampson, who returned to Boston, would still have the chance to chase the highest honor.

Oddly enough, Malone's trade to Boston didn't get as much buzz as Louie did.

After reading the deal, Louis felt that the Celtics were going to rise again, not to mention winning the championship, but they would definitely be able to confront the Heat and the Knicks. The outside world just thought that Malone's joining would make the Celtics a strong team in the East.

There is no voice of discussion within the Lakers.

They were so calm that Louie felt like he was overreacting.

All the big fish in the market have their destinations.

Shaquille O'Neal, who is playing for the Dream Team II, is still pulling with Orlando.

The Magic want to lock the Sharks with a 6-year 1.2 million contract.

The Sharks don't think this contract is worthy of him. He wants the biggest in the league and the biggest ever.

Therefore, the Sharks' agent offered a horrific six-year, $6 million contract.

If the Magic chooses to sign this contract with the Sharks, then in Louie's previous life, Garnett's criticized big contract is nothing.

This is also a problem caused by rule flaws.

The NBA now has a salary cap and rookie contracts, but they don't have any regulations or restrictions on maximum salary contracts.

In other words, the maximum salary is unlimited.

Even if the Sharks want a six-year, $6 million contract, it's in line with the rules.

Since there is no standard maximum salary amount, the new contracts of these superstars who grew up in the AAU era mainly depend on personal appetite, market expectations and the ability of agents.

Louis estimated that O'Neill should not leave Orlando this year.

There are two main reasons why the shark in his previous life left Magic. Magic Tube and the local media actively created conflicts. Second, a metropolis like Los Angeles, the center of world entertainment, is where O'Neill always misses.So even if the Magic raised the salary of the contract to the point where the Lakers could not follow up, O'Neal still traveled westward without hesitation.

Now, the Lakers have no need to pursue O'Neal.In Miami, Manning just squeezed out Sampson. He is not interested in competing with another super center. New York has a lot of contracts waiting to be renewed, and the Blazers' top priority is to renew Mourning.

O'Neill looked left and right, and sooner or later he would come to a conclusion: since he can't do without for the time being, let's make do with it.

In addition, there is a news from the New York Knicks.

The team's meritorious forward Alex Stevens decided to retire.

Stevens was traded to the Knicks in the middle of the 1985-86 season and played for New York for a total of ten years. He was an important rotation player for the Knicks dynasty during the seven consecutive championships.For many years, although Stevens was a substitute, he had a decisive say in the team and was recognized as the leader of the locker room.

Last season, Stevens was able to play a full year with the Knicks, averaging 6 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist per game. It stands to reason that he still has the ability to continue playing.

But Stevens, who is only 34 years old, said that with the growth of young people in the Knicks team, his position has become more and more marginal, and he can hardly find the fun of being a player.

His career was reshaped by the Knicks, and leaving New York to play for another team was unacceptable to him.

After thinking about it, Stevens chose to retire at an age where he could still fight.

The Knicks promised to retire Stevens' No. 43 jersey and strongly invited him to stay with the team to continue to play his remaining heat.

However, Stevens declined the Knicks' invitation and headed straight to Los Angeles.

Louie and Stevens meet, and the two catch up for a while.

Then, Louis asked Stevens about his next move.

"I do want to continue in basketball, but I don't know what I can do."

If he doesn't know what he can do, shouldn't he turn down the Knicks offer?

Louis recognized Stevens' voice in an instant, and invited him to join the coaching staff of the Lakers on the spot.

"Coach, can I really do it?" Stevens asked modestly.

"It may be a little uncomfortable at first, but I believe in your ability." Louis smiled, "I have prepared a special position for you in the coaching staff, it will be very interesting."

Stevens readily accepted: "Coach, my coach, I'm absolutely willing to work for you!"

The long-lost "coach meme" made Louis roll his eyes: "Okay, the forum will sign the contract in a few days, and I will give you a vacation. The most important thing about moving from New York to Los Angeles is a change in mentality. You can call me anytime you encounter problems."

(End of this chapter)