NBA: James wants to team up with me

After a series of big moves, the league finally gradually returned to calm and the holidays arrived.

Wang Chong also started his vacation, accompanying his wife and daughter on various trips around Los Angeles.

As for training, he can start it when there is one month left before the start of the new season, because for him, only by spending points on intensive training through training modules can his abilities be improved.

While Wang Chong was enjoying himself, the Lakers management was having a headache.

All previous operations of the Lakers were carried out under the remote control of Wang Chong. This was one of the conditions for Wang Chong to join the Lakers. Any changes in the team's players must be approved by him.

The Lakers have never given this kind of unreasonable privilege to any player, not even O'Neal at the time and Kobe later was so straightforward. The latter at most threatened to leave the team and demanded a change of head coach.

Wang Chong's move is equivalent to directly seizing the power of the general manager, which is simply unreasonable for a wealthy team like the Lakers.

But they still accepted it with a pinch of their nose.

There’s nothing we can do, after all he’s Wang Chong.

The successive successes of the Bulls and the Cavaliers have proven that Wang Chong’s talent as a general manager may be no less than that of a player.

But after Wang Chong's fancy trade, what was left to the Lakers was an extremely broken lineup.

The team has no point guard, no power forward, and no center. Instead, Kobe, Thompson and Jamal Crawford are all at the shooting guard position, which is simply inexplicable.

Lakers general manager Kupchak has been in office for 15 years, and Wang Chong's bizarre trading operation has made him question his life.

The Lakers clearly got Russell, a point guard with great potential through the draft, and Bosh in the interior can play as a power forward or a center in a small ball lineup, making him an All-Star interior player with quite good adaptability.

Wang Chong seemed to have nothing better to do, and actually traded these two players for Klay Thompson.

Thompson's performance in the Warriors is good, but his playing style is mainly based on off-ball movement and spot shooting. He is just a Hamilton with better three-point shooting ability. How can his value be compared with Russell + Bosh?

After the transaction was completed, Kupchak analyzed that Wang Chong might want to let the 2-meter-tall Klay serve as the Lakers' small forward, while he would play as the power forward.

In this case, the team will need a point guard and a center.

But Wang Chong subsequently traded and signed Jokic and Green.

What is this for? To supplement the team's bench?

Thinking this way, Kupchak is still looking forward to how Wang Chong will fill the vacancies at the point guard and center positions.

Then he got the news that Wang Chong took his wife and children out on vacation.

……

"What? The team's recruitment work?"

Wang Chong, who was lying on a beach chair and sunbathing, listened to Kupchak's voice on the other end of the phone and said in surprise: "Has the team's recruitment work been completed? There is basically no need to sign any more players next time. You can play freely as the bench substitutes. The players I have now are enough for the new season."

Kupchak: “…”

At this moment, he had a strong urge to scold Wang Chong, but he forced himself to hold it back, because he knew that if he dared to scold Wang Chong, he, as the general manager, would have to pack up and leave immediately tomorrow.

The relationship between the Lakers and Wang Chong is like that between a licker and a goddess. Do you dare not agree to the conditions proposed by the goddess? And you dare to scold the goddess? Do you still want to lick her in the future?

But from the perspective of a professional general manager like Kupchak, what kind of rotten fish and shrimp is this Lakers lineup? Apart from anything else, how will the team's starting lineup be arranged next season?

Kupchak patiently asked Wang Chong this question, and when he heard Wang Chong's answer, he couldn't help but feel dizzy again.

"The starting five for the new season are me, Kobe, Thompson, Green and Jokic? What? You're asking who will be the point guard? Kobe and I are both fine, or Green, and if that doesn't work, Jokic can be the point guard."

Kupchak opened his mouth and wanted to say something, but didn't know where to start.

Jokic plays point guard, you really have the guts to open your mouth!

But Kupchak didn't know that this unprepossessing white fat man would average 9.8 assists per game in the future and 7.3 assists per game in his playoff career, which is more than most point guards in the league.

Although Wang Chong said that letting Jokic play point guard was a joke, it is not impossible to let him play.

"Manager, let's stop here for now. Xiao Kexin called me. I'll talk to you in detail later when I have time."

After Wang Chong said something to Kupchak, he hung up the phone.

In the general manager's office, Kupchak sat there holding the phone for a few seconds, then slowly put it down, tilted his head back, closed his eyes, and let out a long breath.

"Next season... we might have a chance to get the No. 1 pick."

"No! The team's first-round pick next year has been used to trade Jokic!!!"

-

Wang Chong actually knew what Kupchak wanted to say, but he was too lazy to waste time explaining it to the other party, and he couldn't explain it clearly at all.

The Lakers' lineup needs time to grow, and Kobe also needs to completely retreat to the second line and play as a substitute sixth man. Of course it would be best if he is willing to retire.

As for the trade of Russell and Bosh for Thompson, it is definitely a great value for money. Even if Bosh doesn't retire due to illness, Thompson is worth more than Bosh.

Both Wang Chong and Jokic can perfectly fulfill Bosh's position.

However, a top 3D player like Thompson, who is also a shooter with historical off-ball ability, is really rare in the league and has a very high cost-effectiveness.

This is also because the Warriors don't have the Splash Brothers and their record has been lukewarm. The team doesn't attach much importance to Thompson, otherwise it would be hard to say whether they could get him in a 2-for-1 trade.

The development prospects and strength of the Lakers lineup are absolutely unquestionable, and there is no need to worry about the adaptability.

There may be conflicts between Wang Chong, Jokic and Green in terms of ball distribution, but what does it matter? It's a simple truth. Without ball support, can Jokic achieve the level of a second-team or third-team center based on his scoring ability alone?

Without the right to deal cards at the top of the arc, is Green's defense no longer at the top level in the league?

Wang Chong does not need Jokic, who has won three MVPs, nor does he need Green, who averages 14 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists per game. As long as they can play to their respective strengths, Wang Chong can lead them to win the championship.

The reason for choosing them now is very simple - they are cheap.

Jokic is on a rookie contract, and Green is on a three-year, $3 million contract, both of which are pretty cheap contracts, and it’s also pretty easy to get them.

Imagine if Wang Chong wanted to trade for Anthony Davis, what would the Lakers do?

Unless Wang Chong is used as a bargaining chip, it is simply impossible.

Jokic, who was already playing in the summer league for the Lakers at this time, did not know that he was already the main center of the Lakers in the new season, and even the most capable right-hand man of Wang Chong in the future.

Like Curry, Jokic, who follows Wang Chong, may have his personal honors reduced a lot, and he may not even get an MVP trophy, but he has the opportunity to win championships, many, many championships.

-

Time flies and soon summer is over.

The holiday is over and the players began to report back to the team in early September.

Wang Chong's biggest advantage of joining the Lakers was revealed.

He doesn't need to be away from his wife and children anymore.

In fact, it has been said before that the reason why Wang Chong considered coming to the Lakers was because the Lakers are in Los Angeles, that's all.

After all, Kupchak couldn't afford to offend Wang Chong, and did not dare to make any large-scale changes to the existing lineup. He just signed a few players on the existing basis to complete the team's 15-man roster.

It is worth mentioning that one of the point guards was signed by the Lakers for $1 million a year, which is not a very cheap price. This person is Jeremy Lin.

Although Jeremy Lin's career trajectory has changed a lot because of Wang Chong, his ceiling is still there. After his contract expires this summer, Jeremy Lin's market value has plummeted and he can only choose a contract that is slightly higher than the minimum salary.

There are two main reasons why Kupchak signed Jeremy Lin. The first reason is of course to please Wang Chong. In the league, Jeremy Lin is the only player with the same skin color as Wang Chong. The two have a good relationship. Jeremy Lin has publicly expressed his admiration and respect for Wang Chong more than once. It is obviously a good choice to let the two fight side by side on the same team.

The second reason is also very simple, because the Lakers do lack a point guard.

The Lakers have a rather bloated lineup at the shooting guard position, with a total of five players, namely Kobe, Thompson, Jamal Crawford, Jordan Clarkson and Nick Young.

But there really is no point guard to be found.

Therefore, among Kupchak's signings, three players are point guards. However, due to salary space constraints, he can only sign some ordinary minimum-salary players. Jeremy Lin is already the most famous and most expensive one among them.

After Jeremy Lin signed with the Lakers, he excitedly called Wang Chong to inform him.

Although Wang Chong was a little surprised, he was not too shocked.

The Lakers' interest in Jeremy Lin was not just now. In the original time and space before he disturbed the team, the Lakers acquired Jeremy Lin through a trade, which was last season 14-15 season.

Unfortunately, Jeremy Lin's experience with the Lakers was not particularly good, especially Kobe, who smiled at Jeremy Lin on the surface, but looked down on him in his heart. When he got angry, he even pointed at Jeremy Lin's nose and yelled, "You trash, get out!"

But now the time period is different and the situation is very different. Jeremy Lin should not be scolded by Kobe anymore.

Just as the Lakers management made great concessions for Wang Chong's arrival and almost lost their voice, Kobe also made great concessions for Wang Chong's joining.

This was best demonstrated at the media day press conference a few days after the team assembled.

On the Lakers media day, the team's complete lineup was unveiled to the public, and while accepting media interviews, they also took photos for the new season.

When the reporters saw the Lakers players for the first time, their eyes widened in shock.

What they saw was Wang Chong wearing the purple-gold jersey number 24.

Wang Chong actually wore size 24!

Although Wang Chong had always worn No. 24 in the past, the problem was that No. 24 of the Lakers was worn by Kobe not long after Wang Chong left the team.

The two No. 24s met in the finals many times in the following years. Wang Chong won most of the games, but Kobe also won once when Garnett and Curry were injured.

Everyone has been speculating before, how will Wang Chong choose his number when he returns to the Lakers this time?

Wow, no need to guess now, she just went back to size 24.

But Wang Chong wears No. 24, which means...

Sure enough, Kobe, who came on the court next, was wearing his signature No. 8 jersey.

In order to welcome Wang Chong, Kobe gave up his No. 24 jersey. The meaning of this is self-evident.

Kobe wants to delegate power to Wang Chong.

This is actually not something particularly surprising.

After Kobe suffered a serious Achilles tendon injury, his competitive level was bound to decline drastically, not to mention that he is already 37 years old. How could he compete with Wang Chong, who is in his early 30s and is at the peak of his career, for the position of team leader?

But knowing it is one thing, but hearing Kobe say it himself is another.

After eagerly taking the team's official photos, a crowd of reporters rushed into the press conference venue, eagerly waiting for the players to enter and began to ask questions.

After the Lakers general manager, head coach, Wang Chong and Kobe entered the venue, the interview began, and immediately a reporter couldn't wait to ask about the number.

Kobe's answer made the reporters very excited.

"I took the initiative to return the number 24 to Wang Chong. This number originally belonged to Wang Chong and it also has great significance to me. When I wore the number 24, it was my peak period. I won the scoring title, the MVP, and also won my first Finals MVP and the championship trophy that truly belonged to me."

"Giving the No. 24 jersey to Wang Chong means I am leaving behind a glorious past. Everyone will grow old, including Jordan and me. In the new season, Wang Chong will wear the No. 24 jersey and will become the absolute core player and leader of the Lakers. I will fully support him and help him win the championship."

Kobe's words were considered as his formal acknowledgment of giving power to Wang Chong. Wang Chong is the undisputed leader of the Lakers.

This move is similar to when O'Neal publicly admitted that he came to assist Wade in winning the championship, and when James released his power by 80% in the future, Wade publicly admitted that he would hand over the position of Heat leader to James for the sake of the overall situation.

The era of Kobe Bryant with the Lakers has come to an end, but a potentially more glorious era has begun.

Wang Chong, who is 30 years old and at the peak of his career, joins the Lakers. No matter what the Lakers' current lineup is like, they are definitely one of the favorites to win the championship in the new season and a strong opponent that no one dares to underestimate!

However, Wang Chong, who naturally took the position of the Lakers boss, was unusually low-key when he was interviewed by the media.