Bishop of the Abyss

Chapter 213 213. Luke's next home, the Grizzlies?shares?This is indeed a big cake (5K words for subscription)

After winning the championship, the whole Minnesota fell into a festive and cheerful atmosphere.

Fans in cheering T-shirts can be seen celebrating in any corner of the city.

Even more than half of the stores consciously launched activities, such as entering the store and leaving a sentence "Tiger Wolves champion" to get a free bottle of drink and so on.

This is the third consecutive year that the Timberwolves have won the NBA championship, and Timberwolves fans can experience an atmosphere like this every year.

But even so, the team's every championship still makes fans excited and plunges the city into a long-lasting frenzy.

According to the experience of winning the championship in previous years, the Timberwolves management should start preparing for the next championship parade at this time.

The entire team's top management should be busy, and the vacation should be on vacation. The joy is no less than that of the fans.

But this year was obviously an accident. After winning the championship, the Timberwolves management not only did not celebrate as much as in previous years, but everyone fell into silence.

There seemed to be a trace of sadness behind this silent atmosphere.

Because owner Glen Taylor has held a high-level meeting to announce that head coach Luke will leave this summer.

After everyone bids farewell to Luke, the Timberwolves will announce the news to the outside world.

At that time, you don't need to think about it, but the news that Luke will leave the Timberwolves will cause an uproar in the league.

At that time, Luke will definitely receive phone invitations from many teams in the league, and even his door may be followed 24 hours a day.

So this time period is actually the last chance for Timberwolves insiders to get along with Luke.

At first, not many people knew that Luke would leave the team this summer. Except for the owner Glenn Taylor, there were only a few confidants including McHale.

Even though there are 1 reluctances in his heart, McHale also knows that Luke's departure is not the intention of the boss Glenn Taylor and Luke himself, but the alliance behind it.

Minnesota's ball market is so big, and the Timberwolves have won the league championship for three consecutive years. It is obviously impossible for the league to maximize its benefits.

And the Timberwolves have ruled the league for three full years, which also caused many teams in the league to lose money. As the president of the league, Stern must prevent this from happening.

Although it is not easy to dismantle the Timberwolves' championship lineup on the bright side, Ristern will definitely make some moves in private.

Luke's departure is precisely because of this. As a young coach who single-handedly built a championship team, Stern knows very well that if Luke does not leave the Timberwolves, the depth of the Timberwolves' lineup will remain as strong as ever.

After all, even the fans have seen it clearly in the past three years. Although McHale is the general manager of the Timberwolves, every transaction of the Timberwolves from top to bottom has to go through Luke's nod.

Wanting to disintegrate the rule of the Timberwolves, Luke is like the thread in the ball, so when the Timberwolves have seriously interfered with the league's revenue, Luke's departure has become inevitable.

Otherwise, once the alliance makes up its mind to forcibly intervene in this matter, the result will only be unpleasant for all three parties, and from the businessman's point of view, it is simply called three losers.

The arrival of Luke has changed the Timberwolves team. As the owner, Glen Taylor knows very well that without Luke, the Timberwolves would not be where they are today.

For Luke's upcoming resignation, owner Glen Taylor is probably the most reluctant existence in the entire team from top to bottom.

After all, all the profits created by the Timberwolves today come from Luke. Whether it is from the perspective of fans or businessmen, Glenn Taylor can't find a reason not to regret it.

However, Glenn Taylor is also a businessman. As a member of the alliance's shareholders, Glenn Taylor is very clear about the current bad situation of the alliance.

As for the Timberwolves, who have won the championship for three consecutive years, I am afraid that they have reached their limit. At least in the short term, the life of the Timberwolves will not be easy.

Fortunately, with the popularity that the Timberwolves have accumulated in recent years, even if the new season may be rejected by the league and other teams, the Timberwolves can still lead the league in terms of profitability.

Otherwise, owner Glenn Taylor really has to consider selling the team for cash, especially at this stage, the value of the Timberwolves will far exceed people's imagination.

Looking at the indifferent head coach Luke in front of him, Glenn Taylor first sighed, and then said sincerely: "Lu, you and I know the whole story, the separation is not our intention."

"It can only be blamed that the alliance is still in the stage of exploration and development, and the impeccable dominance of the Timberwolves has touched the interests of the alliance."

"I believe that after the league develops and stabilizes in the future, the problems the team is currently facing can be easily resolved."

"But no matter what you say, the team welcomes you back at any time, and the door of the management is always open to you."

"As long as you want to come back, you can choose any position in the management."

"Your contribution to the team will not dissipate with your departure, please rest assured."

As a profit-oriented business owner, Glenn Taylor's ability to say these words at this time is undoubtedly from the bottom of his heart.

Even if everything the Timberwolves currently have is created by Luke himself, once Luke chooses to return to the Timberwolves in the future, the owner Glenn Taylor will benefit.

However, Glenn Taylor can say in front of general manager McHale, "As long as you want to come back, you can choose any position in the management." Luke still feels that everything he has paid for the Timberwolves in the past few years worth.

"I guess Kevin's face will start to turn green if you continue talking." Luke joked with a smile, pointing at McHale's embarrassed but polite face.

"Don't think of me so stingy, but it's really embarrassing to say these words in front of me."

"Don't worry, if you want to come back to serve as the general manager in the future, I'm willing to help you at any time."

"Because only your team building ability really convinces me."

After adjusting his mentality, McHale said like an old friend.

"By the way, Lu, I don't know which team you plan to join during the offseason. I really don't know which team will be so lucky to welcome you."

"I heard that Tang had approached you before and hoped that you would consider the Warriors, but you mentioned that you want a share. Could it be that you plan to join the Warriors during the offseason?"

McHale is also curious about which team Luke will join this summer.

Luke had been avoiding talking about this before due to the finals, and it was not easy for McHale to ask Luke to talk about these issues at that juncture.

So now, instead, McHale and Luke are discussing this issue head-on for the first time.

Hearing McHale's question, even Glenn Taylor couldn't help but crane his neck, obviously curious as to which team Luke would choose this summer.

If it is really the Golden State Warriors, Glenn Taylor can only praise Joe Lacob for his courage in his heart.

Thinking in another way, Glen Taylor felt that if he was the owner of the Warriors, he would definitely not choose to give Luke shares in this situation.

Even though Luke has just led the team to win three consecutive championships, he has become the only active coach who has led the team to win three consecutive championships besides "Zen Master" Jackson.

But "Zen Master" Jackson has won nine championships in his career, and has won three consecutive championships three times. Even so, Jackson did not count the shares from the Lakers.

With Luke's various contributions to the Timberwolves right now, if Luke wants to continue to stay in the Timberwolves this year, the owner Glenn Taylor will most likely not refuse.

But standing in the position of Warriors boss Joe Lacob, Glen Taylor feels that the chances of this happening are not high.

Whether Luke was too ambitious, or Luke obviously underestimated the businessman's pursuit of profit, Glenn Taylor was not very optimistic about this matter.

The NBA has never lacked famous coaches. Luke's greatest ability is to build a team. From the perspective of a businessman, it is difficult to judge whether Luke is worth using shares to attract franchisees.

At the very least, Glenn Taylor thinks he doesn't have the guts to sell shares angrily in order to attract the "Zen Master" Jackson to join him. This kind of thing does not meet the standard of a businessman seeking profit.

The biggest difference between Luke and "Zen Master" Jackson is that Jackson never considers joining a small market team, while Luke seems to be more casual.

It is precisely because of this that Glen Taylor is eager to know which team Luke will join in the offseason.

Theoretically speaking, it is possible for Luke to join any team, no matter the team's ball market is big or small.

"I was just joking with Tang before. I know very well that Joe Lacob can't use the shares for me."

"What's more, the Warriors have been playing very well this season under Tang's coaching. Whether it is a black eight in the first round or reaching the Western Conference Finals, these are not enough for the Warriors to break the boat."

"But if you really want to talk about it, because this matter really has some unexpected gains."

Faced with Don Nelson's post-match invitation, Luke said that he could consider joining the Warriors, provided he had at least 3% of the team's shares.

If it is a team like the Bobcats that has just been established, and the team loses money every year, it does not make money at all.

Not to mention 3%, even if it is 10% of the shares, the Bobcat boss will not frown. After all, Luke's arrival has a high probability of solving the problem fundamentally.

But the Warriors have played well enough this season. The Black Eight Miracle has created a lot of profits for the team, and reaching the Western Conference Finals has far exceeded boss Joe Lacob's expectations.

So Luke just took what he said that day as a joke, and never expected the Warriors to surprise him.

"A windfall?" McHale frowned suspiciously.

"Well, it is indeed a windfall. Not long ago, Grizzlies owner Mike Heisley contacted me in private."

"This guy didn't know where he got the news. He expressed his willingness to sell 20% of the shares to me. It was clear that he wanted to tie me to the same boat as him."

"Although it might sound silly to be tied to the same boat as the Grizzlies, Mike is a courageous guy. It seems that the rumors are likely to be true. Mike really has no money to continue running the team."

Taking the cigar handed to him by Glen Taylor, Luke said thoughtfully.

The current owner of the Grizzlies is Mike Heisley, a businessman without much money. The Grizzlies were in Vancouver when the team was first established in 1995.

However, Vancouver belongs to the border of Canada. Although the football market is very broad, the temperature in Vancouver is cold in winter, and no star is willing to go to that place where the birds don't shit.

So in 2001 the Grizzlies moved back to Memphis, USA.

Memphis can only be regarded as a modest city in the United States. As of 2006, it only had a population of about 60.

However, competitive sports in Memphis are not well developed, which also led to the fact that the team did not make as much money as expected.

Although the Grizzlies have also reached the Western Conference playoffs for several consecutive years under the leadership of Pau Gasol, the team's annual net profit is still very limited.

Grizzlies owner Mike Heisley is a serious businessman. Unlike other bosses in the league, Heisley doesn't like basketball very much.

The energy invested in running a team is far beyond people's imagination, and when the team's income cannot meet expectations, Heisley backed down.

As early as last year, Heisley had reached an agreement with other owners to resell the Grizzlies, but due to some reasons, the agreement was aborted.

This matter is not a secret in the NBA circle. After all, this era is not as easy to make money as it is in later generations.

There are more than one or two teams that don't make money today. Even without the Timberwolves' three consecutive years of rule, there are still many teams in the league that are losing money.

Originally, Mike Heisley's idea was very simple, which was to raise the price as much as possible while the team was in the playoffs, and sell the team for cash.

But this season, the Grizzlies have only played a poor record of 22 wins and 60 losses. Not only is it difficult to sell the team, but even the team's star Paul Gasol is also starting to force the palace.

As early as the end of the season, Gasol publicly shouted to the management that if the team does not strengthen the lineup in the new season, he will apply for a trade and leave the Grizzlies who have played for six years.

The difficulty of selling the team and the internal crisis of the team appeared at the same time, which made owner Mike Heisley feel very headache.

Originally, it was very difficult to sell the team, but now Gasol's approach is undoubtedly worse.

At the same time, Mike Heisley learned that Luke will leave the Timberwolves next season and wants to have a stake in the team.

This incident seems to give Mike Heisley hope, and there is no need to question Luke's ability to build a team.

If Luke is willing to join the Grizzlies in the new season and has the ability to lead the Grizzlies out of the predicament, then it is not a problem to sell more shares to Luke.

Because once the Grizzlies get out of the predicament under the leadership of Luke, Mike Heisley will benefit the most in the end.

Even if Luke can't make the Grizzlies better, it won't delay Heisley's sale of the team.

From Heisley's point of view, as long as the Grizzlies and Luke can be tied together in the same boat, this is a decision that will do no harm.

The only bad thing is that the Grizzlies' record of 22 wins and 60 losses this season ranks last in the league, and Memphis's ball market is also not very attractive.

As the league's second Triple Crown coach, Luke has a high probability of looking down on the Grizzlies' family fortune, but Mike Heisley really doesn't want to miss this one of the few opportunities to save the Grizzlies.

So he simply gritted his teeth and contacted Luke, indicating that he was willing to sell 20% of the team's shares. The purpose was also obvious, which was to completely tie the Grizzlies and Luke to the same boat.

The Grizzlies got the No. [-] pick in the first round in the lottery at the end of May, and the team currently has many outstanding players such as Paul Gasol, Kyle Lowry, Rudy Gay, and Mike Miller.

As long as Luke works a little bit during the offseason, the Grizzlies can turn around in minutes with their current assets.

This is why Luke is more interested in the Grizzlies. Stars, draft picks, potential rookies, shares and the right to speak, when all these things are in front of him, it is difficult for Luke not to seriously consider Heisley's invitation.

As for the fact that the Grizzlies can only rank last in the league with 22 wins and 60 losses this season, Luke is not worried at all.

Although the Grizzlies record is very hip, but the background of the whole team is very sufficient, as long as the internal traitor Jerry West is cleared out after taking over, the prospect of the Grizzlies is still very optimistic about Luke.

The only thing that worries Luke a little is that Grizzlies owner Mike Heisley is a businessman who is really into money.

Compared with Glen Taylor, who is both a businessman and a fan, Mike Heisley only has money and income in his eyes, and he has no so-called love and expectations for basketball.

Although this kind of boss is more suitable for Luke to let go, as long as the team can make a profit, Heisley will definitely not interfere with anything within the team.

It is Luke who has the final say on who he wants to use in each position of the team.

But precisely because Heisley is a profit-seeking businessman, Luke was really afraid that just as he led the Grizzlies out of the ditch with his front foot, Heisley, the grandson of his back foot, would sell the team for cash.

Luke has no doubt that Heisley will definitely bypass himself before selling the team, and save a lot of salary space through a series of operations, so as to maximize his benefits.

After all, Mike Heisley is considered a man with a criminal record in this regard, and there are advantages and disadvantages to cooperating with this kind of pure businessman.

It's good from a money point of view, but bad from a basketball point of view.

Although after selling the team, Luke still holds the shares and can still enjoy the dividends from the team.

But sometimes, money can't buy everything. Compared with the urgency to make money, Luke also has a passion for basketball.

The Memphis Grizzlies are indeed a piece of cake that is very attractive to Luke at the moment, but until Luke is sure that other teams will not offer more tempting chips, the Grizzlies can only lie on Luke's observation list.

Even if it really comes to the moment when he decides to join the Grizzlies, Luke has to plan in advance how to digest this cake and maximize his own interests.

Partnering with a businessman is tantamount to seeking skin from a tiger, and preparing ahead of time can ensure that Luke will not at any time be tricked by that grandson of Hesley.

Luke and Glenn Taylor talked about money in the early stage and feelings in the later stage, but with a businessman like Mike Heisley, the first thing Luke needs to make sure is not to bring any feelings into it.

After all, talking about feelings hurts money...

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(End of this chapter)