lakers championship

Chapter 421 The troubles of happiness

Bill Simmons was powerless to slap SkyOcean in the face, and could only bear it silently. Instead, ESPN, where Simmons worked, published an article pointing out some shortcomings of the Lakers and SkyOcean.

The whole article lacks logic, the main contents are:

"In the entire 2017-2018 season, the Lakers only have 14 games left. They have achieved an impressive record of 59 wins and 9 losses. They are only one game away from passing the 60-win mark. The last time they accomplished such a great achievement, It must also be traced back to the 08-09 season, during these 10 years, the Lakers fell from the peak to the trough, and now they are rising again, thanks to Tianyang."

"But Tianyang also brought some troubles, such as the growth of several other rookies. Randall, Ingram and others have never enjoyed the training that Tianyang has, never had unlimited firepower, and almost no training. They have handled key shots, rarely had stunning performances and were completely overshadowed by Tianyang's light, which is not very beneficial to their future development."

"Another problem brought about by this is that once Tianyang cannot play, the Lakers will be very passive. For example, in the 2 games he was suspended in February, the Lakers suffered a 7-game losing streak."

"In the 08-09 season, the Lakers won the championship. If they want to win the championship this season, they need to step up training several other rookies to handle the key ball in the last month. Otherwise, once the Warriors or Rockets season If Tianyang is locked up in the playoffs, the Lakers will face a situation where no one can attack. Some people may mention Kobe, but he is old, and the Lakers had better not count on him on key shots."

As soon as the article was published, it was immediately reposted in large numbers, which quickly set off a wave of discussion.

...

On March 3, the Lakers training base, inside the president's office.

Jim Bass tapped his fingers on the table with a solemn face, his brows were furrowed, as if struggling with a certain decision.

"I think I can agree to the Randall team's request for an early contract extension." Kupchak, who was sitting on the other side of the table, suddenly raised his head. Judging from his facial expression, he seemed to have just made up his mind, "Randall actually After only playing for 3 years, with Tianyang and Ingram present, he averaged 16 points per game as the third player. It can be said to be very rare. I really can’t think of another rookie who can do it. There may be many Famous veterans are not enough. We can also provide qualification quotations first, but it is easy for other teams to snatch them away, and then we will be very passive.”

Qualification quotation is a buffer way for the team to continue to investigate a player who has just finished his rookie contract. Very optimistic and often basically directly renew the contract in advance. Like Embiid, the rookie contract has not yet been completed. The 76ers directly provided a five-year $5 million maximum salary contract. Although there are many restrictions, they are full of sincerity.

In October last year, Randall's team had already negotiated with the Lakers on the early renewal of the contract. .”

For a hard-working player, this will be a blow, and even affect the subsequent playoffs.

Jim nodded when he heard the words, but did not answer immediately. Instead, he pondered for a long time before asking: "How much do you think he is worth in the free market? Which teams might rob us?"

"Let me think about it first." Kupchak looked up and recalled, waiting for about 8 seconds, "The Mavericks, Bucks, Knicks, and Pacers are all possible teams, and they can all provide more than 1500 million per year. Contract, Randle is worth the price."

This remark is very pertinent. Although too many junk contracts were signed in the summer of 16, and the pace of the game is getting faster and faster, the average of 16.1 points, 8 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game is still very good. In terms of defense, it can also defend against small players. It belongs to the Lakers An important part of the five small lineups, if other teams offer invitation offers, it is likely to exceed 1500 million.

"Oh! Actually, I also know the value of Randall." Jim shook his head, "But we will renew the contracts of Tianyang and Ingram in two years, and we will renew the contracts of Kuzma, Hart and Tatum in three years. All five of them are excellent, and Tianyang alone occupies 30% of the salary space. If Randall is renewed with a maximum salary, he will not be able to introduce superstars later."

Kupchak didn’t know what to say for a while. The current Lakers are a bit like the Warriors back then, and it’s more complicated than the Warriors Curry, Thompson, Green, Durant, and Iguodala. I lost one person, neither did I encounter the good luck of Curry, the two-time MVP player who signed 1000 million in a row, but also had a good time to catch up with the 16 salary cap surge.

At that time, even if the Lakers can renew the contract above the various salary caps and are willing to pay the luxury tax to maintain the main lineup, they will still lack space to reinforce the bench lineup.

"There is another plan, which is to persuade Randall to accept a non-maximum salary extension." Kupchak shook his head helplessly, "But in the future, we must persuade the other five people to also reduce their salaries, otherwise it will be unfair to Randall. "

"If Randall is willing to take the initiative to cut his salary..." Jim stopped in the middle of his sentence.Randall is the same agent as Russell who was sent away at the beginning. It is too difficult for Randall to take the initiative to cut his salary.

When the two were frowning, the door of the office was pushed open.

"To celebrate the end of the team's three-game losing streak, Tianyang specially ordered a batch of rare nuts to distribute to everyone. He is really considerate of the team. Do you want to try it?" Jenny - Buss holding a cardboard box Walking in the door, "Oh? Are you talking about work? Then I'll put it here first."

The two of Jim didn't react for a while, but they seemed to think of something at the same time, and looked at each other with surprise on their faces.

"I thought of a possible solution." Kupchak rubbed his hands.

"I thought about it too, you go first." Jim nodded.

"We can talk to Tianyang. As long as he is willing to cut part of his salary, all problems will be solved. It can not only guarantee the renewal of the maximum salary of his other five players, but also ensure that there is room to sign some functional substitute players."

"Haha, same as I thought."

"What are you guys talking about? Why did Tianyang cut salary?" Jenny asked curiously.

Jim waved his hand, indicating that there is no time to explain, and said: "His off-court income is at least ten times higher than the other 5 people, which is completely acceptable. The most important thing is that he is already engaged to his girlfriend, I can safely ask Nicholson and others help his girlfriend to advance in her career, which can be regarded as additional compensation to him, and it is not a secret deal, this arrangement is completely feasible."

"Well, I also think that SkyOcean's salary cut may yield unexpected gains." Kupchak nodded.

Jenny finally understood, and said with a smile: "I agree, as long as he is willing to agree, at least it will be a powerful counterattack to ESPN."

"Then here comes the problem." Jim showed worry, "How can we talk to Tianyang?"

"Say it straight!"

(End of this chapter)