Jim Bass Ambition

Chapter 102 Tacos
After defeating the 76ers in an away game, the Lakers' trip around the United States came to an end. The last stop was Toronto, Canada, where they challenged the Raptors away.

Fortunately, Philadelphia is not far from Toronto. The players didn't waste too much time on the plane. After arriving in Toronto, they didn't go out for a walk in the heavy snow. Watching movies and playing cards in the hotel room in twos and threes became their only time. pastime.

During the game, the Lakers players were exhausted and in a sluggish state, but the Raptors were blooming more and more.In the first quarter, the Lakers trailed by 12 points.

Seeing the player's careless mistakes on the court and the defense full of loopholes, Zen Master made a decisive decision to give up the game and let the substitute play the second quarter.

After all, even he himself wants to go home to rest and have a relaxing Christmas, let alone the players who played a round of away games.

The only bright spot for the Lakers came from Carlos Boozer. His hair was so shiny that the entire arena was filled with light whenever he played. Garnett and Ben Wallace only played about 20 minutes each. Under the circumstances, Boozer played to the fullest and scored a team-high 24 points and 13 rebounds, both of which created new season personal highs.

Of course, this also takes into account the fact that the game entered garbage time too early and the defense was not so tight.

The Raptors had seven players in double figures and beat the Lakers 7-106.

It's snowing and freezing in Toronto.Los Angeles is warm and pleasant.

Rob Pelinka just celebrated his 33rd birthday.

Pelinka used to be a basketball player and served as the captain of the team at the University of Michigan. In that team, there were the famous "Michigan Five" such as Chris Webber, Juwan Howard, and Jaylen Rose. Tiger".

As one of the few seniors on the team, a top student and a scholarship winner, Pelinka's role is mainly a spiritual leader, and his average score per game is not even as high as his own GPA.

Soon, Pelinka realized that he did not seem to be suitable to become a professional basketball player, so he turned to find other outlets. In 1996, he passed the bar exam in Illinois, got his bar certificate, and Joined Meiya Law Firm - a law group with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston Washington, etc.

Pelinka's workplace is in his hometown of Los Angeles. By chance, he met Arne Telan of SFX Economic Company. Tailan dug Pelinka into his company, at first as a lawyer, and later transformed into During his time as Tailan's assistant, he showed a strong ability to work. Tailan intends to train him as his successor and let him take over some relatively important clients.

Carlos Boozer of the Lakers is now a member of Pelinka's banner.

Pelinka met Jim a few times when he was an assistant to Tylan, and this time, it was the first time he negotiated with the vice president of the Los Angeles Lakers as an agent-or just worked together dinner?
Ten minutes short of the estimated time, Pelinka had arrived early at a Mexican restaurant in the Central Market, waiting for Jim to arrive.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." Jim with his ponytail dressed up like a rock singer. Of course, after hearing his soul-piercing voice, no one wanted him to sing in front of their faces.

The two shook hands, and Jim sat down and looked at his watch, which was just pointing to the appointed time.

The relationship between the agent and the team management is sometimes a sworn enemy and sometimes an ally.On the one hand, the agent hopes to sign as many big contracts as possible from the team and collect as much money as possible. On the other hand, a good relationship with certain teams can allow the agent to get a wider market.

Agents today don't first befriend players like they did 10 years ago.They serve more as the only dialogue channel between the team and the players, in order to seek more benefits.

Pelinka is undoubtedly a ruthless character. Boozer's notorious anti-bone incident in the original trajectory was planned by him alone. As a result, the Cavaliers fetched water from a bamboo basket, and James' only possible reliable helper in the early stage slipped away in vain. One of the main players of the era made Yao Mai's Rockets hate the playoffs.Boozer got a big contract and data. Although his reputation is a bit stinky, Salt Lake City fans don't think about it.

Jim obviously doesn't want this to happen, but Pelinka, as a native of California, and Arne Tellan intends to transfer the agency rights of his superstar Kobe Bryant, he and the Lakers are still relatively consistent in terms of camp of.

In the first two months of Boozer's rookie season, he averaged about 16 minutes per game as a substitute and contributed 7.6 points and 4.1 rebounds. Rade Miller and other giants, this performance can be said to be quite good, at least the offensive efficiency is quite high, if converted to 36 minutes, it is not lost to Amare Stoudemire and Yao Ming, who have been so popular recently.

Although Pelinka's playing level is average, his vision is still very vicious. He believes that Boozer has great potential and may even become an All-Star, but he must not be here as a substitute for Garnett in his prime. , Moreover, Boozer also faintly expressed concerns about his future in the Lakers.

Therefore, when he heard rumors that the Lakers were negotiating with the Cavaliers, Jazz, and Suns to trade Boozer, Pelinka thought it was an opportunity. He hoped to talk to Jim to facilitate the deal and let Boozer Hall has a chance to start and get a big contract.

"Carlos is the best player we could have taken at that pick. He is undoubtedly talented. You and I can agree on that. But sometimes, Rob, the best is not the best fit. Trust you It can also be seen that his defense is quite problematic, and Phil is very dissatisfied with this." After listening to Pelinka's explanation, Jim thought for a while and replied.

"Since Coach Jackson doesn't like Carlos, can we start the transaction as soon as possible?" Pelinka thinks Jim is giving him the green light.

"You have to know that not only do you want Carlos to play good numbers, but I also hope that he can become a better bargaining chip. It is impossible for me to exchange the high-quality rookies I have selected for some cats and dogs." Jim said seriously road.

Pelinka looked down in thought.

"Yes, this is the problem, so I need time and have a good talk with Phil, which involves the playing time of Kevin and Ben, the adjustment of the team's tactics, and the possible impact on the record. Carlos Side, you know what to do, Rob, after Kobe Bryant officially becomes your client, we still have a long time to work together, and this is just the beginning." Jim took the Mexican corn from the waiter Burrito, handed Pelinka one.

"There's a guy named Wade who likes this, you should try it too."

　Tonight at three o'clock... It's quite cool to play in the afternoon to play a game~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)