Jim Bass Ambition

Chapter 59 The Godfather's Dinner

After a brief conversation, Jim slowly put down the phone receiver.

"What's the matter? Who's calling?" Kupchak asked Jim in a hurry when he saw Jim standing still.

"It's Mr. Jerry West. He invited me to sit at his house on the weekend." After Jim finished speaking, he squeezed out a smile.

It has been a year and a half since Jerry West resigned as the vice president of the Lakers. Now, although he still holds the title of Lakers consultant, he is basically at home.

During the six months that Jim served as vice president, all decisions were not discussed with West, and the communication between the two was limited to mutual greetings during festivals.

On Sunday, Jim drove across Los Angeles in the afternoon and arrived at West's home at sunset.Some long-sealed memories were awakened again, and Jim looked at the familiar and strange memories in his mind, full of emotion.

When he was young, his father, Dr. Jerry Buss, would occasionally bring him here as a guest. The basketball hoop in the yard is still as spotless as it was 20 years ago. Jim is almost sure that if he and West, who is over sixty years old, have a single Pick, the one who loses the game will never be the opponent.

Jerry West's body is still tall and straight, and his penetrating eyes are as sharp as when he was young.He pushed open the door and welcomed Jim, who was a little embarrassed, into the house.

"Jimmy, you haven't been here for a long time."

Despite his success and fame, West's life has always been simple. His ex-wife has three sons with him, and his current wife Karen also gave birth to two sons for him. Now, five adult sons have their own lives. Come on, West is living a leisurely semi-retired life with his wife at home like an ordinary old man.

As if it was a normal younger generation visiting an old friend of their parents, the West and his wife entertained Jim and ate Karen's specialty Italian dishes, and West also brought out the red wine that had been preserved for many years.

Jim listened to West talking about the trivial things in the past, and occasionally responded with a few words, recalling the past time.The two tacitly agreed that neither of them mentioned basketball or the Lakers. In their view, talking about work at this time was a waste of rare rest time.

The dinner went much easier than Jim imagined. West drank a few glasses of red wine, and his face became more rosy, while Jim only drank some orange juice because of driving.The weather in Los Angeles in March has warmed up again. After dinner, the two came to the basketball hoop in the yard. With the breeze, they watched Orion sink into the bottom of the sea, and Leo's sickle gradually rose into the air.

"Jimmy, I have to admit that you are better than I expected." West's first words were sincere praises.

Jim hadn't figured out how to deal with it, but West continued, "There is no doubt that the few transactions and signings you planned have brought great improvement to the team. Even me, in the limited space Now, there's no better way. By the way, do you know John Gabriel?"

"He's from the Magic and won the league's general manager of the year in 2000." Jim nodded.

"He is a smart general manager. In a way, the two of you are very similar. Both of you are good at buying the best product with the least amount of money. But sometimes, the best product not only gets the highest price, but also Look at the sincerity of the buyer, do you want to hear a story from an old man like me?"

Jim was silent, and West continued talking on his own.

"In the summer of 96, there were two options before John Gabriel. Give the team's highest salary to O'Neal or Hardaway. You must know that there was no maximum salary limit, no luxury tax, and we had almost no ability. Fighting the Magic. But Gabriel made a choice he may regret for the rest of his life, and that gave Jerry and me a chance at the table."

"With the Knicks signing Alan Houston and Mutombo, Gabriel believes that his strategy is correct. There are fewer and fewer teams in the market that can offer O'Neal. But the Bullets signed Juwan Howard with a big contract, and the Heat signed Alonzo Mourning, which changed O'Neal's mentality."

West stared at Jim, his tone becoming serious.

"Shaquille O'Neal is a person with very strong self-esteem. When he feels that he has not received the respect he deserves, he will make the other party pay the price. In the negotiation with the Magic, he proposed a seven-year 7 million Contract offer. And Gabriel’s response is: “Please understand our difficulties, because your defensive attitude is not correct. In addition, we have to leave salary space to renew Hardaway. If he does not give him a maximum salary , he won't be happy.'"

"So the unhappy one becomes Shaq?" Jim laughed.

"Obviously. His agent at the time was Leonard Amoto, and he called me privately to discuss the possibility of moving O'Neal to Los Angeles. Although there was Vlad and Eddie on the team at the time. , Nick, Cedric, but I know that these guys are not enough to win a championship. So my answer is, 'Give me a day or two and I'll see what I can do.'”

Perhaps he taught Gabriel a lesson he will never forget. Jim knows the ability of the old man in front of him, his decisive and resolute style of action, and of course his vicious insight into people's hearts.

"I didn't get any comments from Shaq and Leonard. I sent out half of the team's main players last season, cleared the salary space, and then flew to Atlanta to complete the contract with Shaq." Wei Wei Ster laughed, as if he hit a free throw, as it should be.

"So, are the multiple-choice questions in front of me the same as Gabriel at that time?" Jim asked seriously. West invited him to dinner, not just to tell a story.

"Kobe is the choice of me and Jerry. If I were the vice president of the Lakers, I might make the same decision as you." There was a trace of loneliness in West's voice: "But I don't think delaying or fooling is the right thing to do. The right way to solve the problem, and that could spell disaster, and Gabriel had a hundred ways to solve O'Neal's problem, but he chose the dumbest one."

West pointed directly at the disadvantages of Jim and Kupchak, and it is clear that he is not idle at home.

"So, you're suggesting that I just go straight to Shaq's showdown? I'm afraid I won't be able to walk out of his house alive." Jim joked, trying to bring the conversation back to life.

"Pat Riley, Larry Bird, and the others, if they knew they had a chance at Shaq, they'd go straight to it, just like I did, and they'd do anything. And you, Even after being shot, I don't know where the bullet came from." West tightened his clothes tightly, and the night wind was a bit cool. "It's getting late, Jimmy, and it's time for me to rest. By the way, the Memphis Grizzlies invited me to be their general manager in the new season, and I agreed to their invitation. After that, we may not have the opportunity to sit like this again." Tell the story here."

"I love Aunt Karen's pasta, and I'll try to treat my stomach as often as possible before you go to Tennessee."

West laughed, and the two said goodbye.

No matter how many bad things happened, West was always a Laker, and that will never change.

"Fortunately, I have two advantages over Gabriel." Jim secretly made up his mind.

　I have to get up early tomorrow... Yali Shanda... Thank you all for your support!good night~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)