Start coaching the Thunder, starting with Westbrook

Chapter 8 Lineup
After Bennett's explanation, Li Sheng and Presti knew the reason.

It turned out that in the sixth game of the finals, Bennett watched the live broadcast. At that time, he saw Li Sheng being pushed out by Popovich and remembered this person. After all, in the NBA where the players are full of blacks and the uniforms are full of whites, it is very rare for an Asian face to appear suddenly.

Especially in the uniform group!

But he didn't really take it seriously at the time, and in the end, he actually dreamed of Li Sheng when he was dreaming at night, and it was three nights in a row.

On the first night, he dreamed that Li Sheng was coaching the Warriors, and he led the team to the championship in the first season.

On the second night, he dreamed that Li Sheng led the Warriors to play against the Thunder, and the Thunder came back in the Western Conference Finals and advanced to the Finals.

Then on the third night, he dreamed that Li Sheng was leading the Warriors to play in the Finals again. The key is that the Warriors still have Durant! ! !

The dream was so real that Bennett shouted that he couldn't stand it, and then he began to reflect on this issue.

Unlike Chinese people, most people in Europe and the United States have their own beliefs. Of course, this does not mean that Chinese people have no beliefs, but our beliefs are not so single. We believe in our ancestors.

Europe and the United States believe in a single religion. After all, most of these religions are monotheistic, and each has its own exclusion. A few believe in everything. As a conservative Republican, Clayton Bennett naturally believes in Catholicism.

But he was not stubborn, and the priest could not give him an answer, so he simply went to a friend of Indian descent, contacted someone who had researched in this field, and got inspiration from him, so he decided that Li Sheng was "the man who saved the world."

In the dream, what he saved was the Warriors, who made it to the finals three times in three years and won the championship, so why couldn't he pull him over to the Thunder ahead of time and bring the Thunder to the top?
Other teams feel that the Thunder have been strong in the past few years, but in Bennett's view, it's useless if they can't win the championship.

After Westbrook was reimbursed for the second round this season, the coaches and players felt that they could make a comeback next season, but the boss was thinking about potential injuries and future contract renewals.

Winning the championship has to be done as early as possible, when the core is young and has impact, and when the impact of injuries is not too great.

Well, there are still times when the core is still willing to stay in the team-after all, if he does not win the championship, Bennett really feels that the dream of Durant leaving will become a reality.

At the same time, as a businessman, Bennett also felt that the Thunder's current performance was about to peak, and unless they won the championship, it would be difficult for them to be of any great help in business.

Although Li Sheng only proved it in his dreams, he was also part of the coaching staff of the new champions, but he lacked his own experience in leading the team, but with the testimony of his dreams, he somehow believed that Li Sheng could do it.

This cannot be completely attributed to ignorance and superstition, after all, the dream is too real, and it cannot be explained by science at all.

Besides, for Bennett, this is the same as the rookie draft, it's all a gamble, big or small.

To put it bluntly, coach Brooks is already visible, and the Thunder team he brought out looks like this. A different coach may have different gains.

After all, the basketball game is ultimately played by the players. No matter what tactics the coach arranges, it still depends on the strength and ability of the players. In most cases, the role of the coach is not as great as many people think.

At the same time, as a businessman, there is another layer of consideration for Li St. Bennett.

Because he is a Chinese, it is well known that the other side of the Pacific Ocean is the NBA's largest overseas market. After Yao Ming retired, the NBA urgently needed to find the next Chinese benchmark in the league.

Looking at the Chinese fans of Texas Xiaoqiang, Bennett is also envious.

Bennett's wife is the daughter of the Gaylock Consortium, which naturally gave him a different vision and pattern.

The Thunder is currently part of the sports company he founded, but the Thunder is Bennett's most important career at present, and it is naturally the focus of his attention.

So improving performance and opening up the market is what Bennett intends to bet on Li Sheng.

If he wins the bet, he and the Thunder will take off again. If he loses the bet, he will have to start all over again. At that time, he will have enough reasons to save money, and then he will start eating the rookie bonus in a fair and honest manner.

At this point, Mr. Presti is very experienced.

"Mr. Bennett, I'm surprised..."

Li Sheng didn't expect the system to impress Clayton Bennett in such a way and let him invite him.

No need to think about it, this abnormal dream form must be related to the system.

And it's almost like showing what will happen in the future as a slide show for Bennett in advance, except that Cole is replaced by Li Sheng.

A very important point for Bennett to be broken by this dream probably lies in Durant's "join if you can't beat it".

In fact, this is also the breakthrough point of many Thunder fans and Durant fans in the previous life, including Li Sheng.

"I'm also surprised, but that's the truth." Bennett shrugged, and then said with a smile: "How about it, Li, come and do something big with us."

Presti watched from the side, hesitating to speak.

In his heart, he felt that the boss's call was unreliable, and even wondered if it might be an excuse for the boss.

Because of the issue of the lineup in the previous contract extension, Brooks and Bennett did not have such a happy quarrel, and conflicts have always existed.

He still has to consider a question, if Li Sheng is really used to replace Brooks, how should the players appease them.

It has to be said that when a team owner has a decision to stick to it, even Presti, as the general manager, has a hard time dissuading him, he has to obey, and he has to figure out how to wipe his ass.

His only thought now is to examine Li Sheng carefully to make sure that he really has the qualifications.

If not, then he at least has reason to argue with Bennett.

If Bennett still insists, then he has something to say to the players.

Although Bennett is inexplicably determined by Li Sheng's unknown coaching ability, he is a practical businessman after all, so his thinking coincides with Presti's.

Originally, Li Sheng thought that this meeting was just an ordinary meeting, but later on, it turned into an interview.

It was already time for dinner, and Bennett had someone prepare dinner, and then called out his wife and children to chat with Li Sheng while eating.

In fact, no matter which country you are in, it is actually normal to talk about things at the dinner table, because at this time people can easily relax, and some difficult things can be said directly.

Bennett didn't ask Li Sheng's answer directly, but said: "Let's just chat casually. I don't know what Mr. Li thinks about the current situation of our team?"

I asked this when I came up, and the intention was already obvious, but Li Sheng didn't mind answering.

In fact, he has been thinking about this issue for a long time. If the Thunder wants to change, they have to improve their lineup advantage and change their style of play a little bit.

As for the style of play, in terms of lineup, he had actually thought about the Thunder's lineup in the past few years in his previous life.

The current lineup of the Thunder is naturally centered on the doubles and minors, and then there is a defensive giant Ibaka inside.

Serge Ibaka was Westbrook's rookie in the same year. He was the 08th pick in the first round of 24, but because of his contract in the Spanish league, he didn't log in to the NBA until 09.

The early "Thunder Four" were Westbrook, Durant, Ibaka and Jeff Green. Later, because of Ibaka's outstanding performance, Green was traded for Perkins, forming an inside barrier until this season.

At the same time, the Thunder selected James Harden in 09 and formed a new "Thunder Four".

Ibaka's defense is excellent, and his biggest advantage is that he relies on mobility to sweep through the penalty area. He is the two-time block leader, and he has two first defenses. He will also help the Raptors win the championship in the future.

It's a pity that next season's playoffs against the Spurs, Ibaka played behind closed doors. This was a career-changing decision, which also caused his defensive skills to drop sharply, and was eventually sent away by the Thunder.

In addition to these three internal and external offensive and defensive cores, the Thunder's starting lineup also includes center Kendrick Perkins and shooting guard Sefolosha.

Substitute sixth man Kevin Martin has become a free agent after the end of this season, and the Thunder is not expected to renew his contract; Fisher, as a veteran point guard with rich experience in winning the championship, should renew his contract for another season as long as he is willing, anyway, it is cheap.

The rest of Lamb, Reggie Jackson, and Perry Jones are still in the rookie contract period. Collison is the captain and the leader of the locker room, so there should be no changes.

This year, the Thunder won the No. 12 and No. 29 picks in the first round and the No. 30 No. [-] pick in the second round, so the biggest change in the lineup should come from rookies and the gold rush in the free market.

As for Li Sheng, even if he doesn't rely on the system, Guangguang will have a good performance in the draft with his advanced vision.

Especially this year, there are more than one rookies who have come up from the low post.

Including but not limited to the future two-time MVP, three-time DPOY, and many bench bandits...

(End of this chapter)