Jim Bass Ambition

Chapter 54

Generally speaking, the All-Star Game is not a stage for practical big men like Tim Duncan and Dirk Nowitzki.

Fans like to watch the thunderous dunks of Carter and Francis, the dazzling brilliance of Iverson and Marbury, the elusive passing of Nash and Kidd, and the elusive passes of Kobe and Tracy McGrady. Elegant and smart singles.

And O'Neal's various unexpected comedy scenes, as well as Jordan's return of the king.

The Lakers selected O'Neal and Kobe as All-Star starters. They were replaced by head coach Phil Jackson just after halfway through the first quarter, while Duncan from the Spurs and Webber from the Kings got plenty of playing time and played almost the entire first quarter. one period.It was only at the end of the quarter that he was replaced, allowing the two shooters Peja and Szczerbiak to show their faces a little and made two three-pointers.

At the beginning of the second quarter, the Western Stars lined up on the court with point guard Garnett, shooting guard Nowitzki, small forward Webber, power forward Brand, and center Duncan's five major lineups, except Garnett and Webber In addition to being able to play two show passes, the rest of the time was full of Duncan's mid-range shots, Nowitzki's fadeaway mid-range shots and Brand's free-throw line mid-range shots. The scene was once very ugly.

"Hahahaha, I've been looking forward to this lineup. Phil really gave me face." Jim, who was watching the game from the sidelines, laughed, and beside him was Kupchak who was dragged by Jim to watch the game.

"Jim, I regret that no team is currently interested in Mike James. We can only keep him on the team until the end of the season."

The transfer market is about to close, the Lakers failed to sell Mike James, and there are no suitable candidates in the free market. Kupchak's work in the second half of the season is relatively easy, otherwise he will not appear in the far away in Philadelphia.

"It was my mistake. I thought he could be a strong addition to the bench. Fortunately, Gilbert has returned and is in good shape. We have four draft picks next year, and I'm ready Let's do it."

Kupchak stared at Jim without saying a word.Feelings This person is not here to watch the All-Star Game, but to discuss work. Do you have to discuss work in the audience of the All-Star Game?
"First of all, Anthony will be 37 years old next year. Although he is in good shape, we need a younger small forward to start. In addition, Anthony's contract has more than 3 years and more than 1300 million US dollars. Question," Jim continued.

"Don't we still have Stephen?"

"Yes, we still have Stephen, and even Bruce can fill the starting small forward position, but I already have a better goal, and Stephen, he will not be satisfied as a long-term substitute."

On the field, Zen master replaced Brand and replaced O'Neal, forming the ultimate death five.

"Mitch, look, how many good inside players there are in the west. Even if we have Ben, I still don't feel safe. We need to make a fuss about the front line and the inside line. As for the backcourt, there are Kobe and Gilbert. Don't worry, the good swingmen are in the East."

Kupchak looked at the five Eastern Conference lineup consisting of Iverson, Carter, Tracy McGrady, Pierce and Walker, nodded, and then wondered: "But we have Shaq, he is the best insider. , shouldn’t it be the opponents who should be worried? Jim, shouldn’t you be... I have to remind you that such thoughts are crazy, we shouldn’t demolish a castle by ourselves.”

"Yesterday I received a call from my father, and Shaq's agent reminded us that they hope to renegotiate a contract extension." Jim said this in a low tone.

"Didn't we reach a verbal agreement last year that after his contract expires, we will renew his contract with a three-year contract of 8800 million US dollars? Why do we have to renew the contract?" Kupchak was a little confused.

"Supposedly, Shaq's team wanted a five-year max deal so he could stay with the team through 2009."

Kupchak remained silent. In 04, O'Neal's contract expired, and then he continued to sign a five-year maximum salary contract, which meant that the Lakers would give the 5-year-old O'Neal an annual salary of about 2009 million U.S. dollars in 37. It's almost unacceptable.

O'Neal's team chose such a time point to request for a contract extension, which is exactly what the Lakers need to maintain a competitive core lineup in order to win consecutive championships. Today, O'Neal is still the most dominant player in the league. Any team that gets him will instantly become a favorite for the championship.

But if you sign a five-year maximum salary with O'Neal, after O'Neal's peak, the salary space will inevitably be blocked. Under the limitation of the salary cap, not only will he not be able to make reinforcements from the free market, but the renewal of Kobe and other rookies will also become a problem in the future. , and relying on the old Sharks at that time, it was impossible to make a breakthrough in the playoffs. If such a situation occurs, it means that both Jim and Kupchak will step down.Jenny Buss made no secret of her desire to control the Lakers.

"What do you think, Mitch?" Jim patted Kupchak on the shoulder.

Kupchak organized his speech and said: "Our first goal is to win this season's championship. There is no doubt about it. Fortunately, the trade deadline is coming soon. Let's try to stabilize Shaq first. On the one hand, postpone the negotiation until the end of the season, lest the other party put pressure on the media by leaking the news, which will cause the team's people to be unstable. As for whether we will renew the contract or trade after the end of the season, this issue still needs to be discussed, including Phil opinion is also important.”

Jim was silent, O'Neill's forced palace came earlier than expected, is it the butterfly effect brought by himself?Big Ben, Okur, Anderson and others were gathered in the interior, and they also played well during O'Neal's truce, which made the Sharks feel insecure. Need to prepare in advance?

On the court, facing Jordan's defense, O'Neal did an exaggerated crotch dribble, which attracted constant cheers and laughter from the sidelines.

"What a lovely guy, isn't he?"

In the second half, Zen Master finally considered the feelings of the audience, and put more players with gorgeous styles such as Kobe, Francis and Nash on the court, bringing the audience a visual feast at halftime. McGrady contributed a self-throwing The self-defeating alley-oop became the best shot of the game, and Kobe, who was trying his best to perform in front of his hometown crowd, finally won the All-Star MVP trophy amidst boos and applause.

"If it can be done in one step like the old man signed the magician, how much trouble can be saved." Looking at O'Neal who gave Kobe a high-five, Jim was filled with emotion.

　NOTE: Magic and the Lakers have a 25-year, $2500 million contract...

　　
　
(End of this chapter)