Jim Bass Ambition

Chapter 97 Not Just a Vase

The feedback from Stevens was that business was business as usual, at least on the surface.

Except for Kobe, the rest of the main players are all people who have experienced storms, and they have long been familiar with things in the business field.

Jim, who was still worried, called Arne Tyran and Andy Miller respectively, reiterating that his previous agreement on Kobe and Garnett's contract extension is still valid.In any case, there should be no problems with the team's core skeleton, and the two agents have been working in the circle for many years, so they naturally know that the big names they hold and Stephen Jackson, a fringe player who has not yet made a name for themselves, do not have the quality. Comparability, after receiving a call from Jim, also said that if there is no major accident, they will continue to fulfill the agreement.

"A big accident? I want to see what big accident you guys dare to make." Jim dismissed this kind of official answer. The verbal agreement can be torn up at any time, and the current phone call is just to express his attitude.

After temporarily settling these chores, Jim also ushered in the alliance's investigation team.

With the convincing testimony of Stephen Jackson, coupled with the efficiency of the lightning signing at the time, after a series of so-called investigations, the league quickly determined that the Lakers had illegal recruitment in the signing of Stephen Jackson. Although the matter has passed One year, but David Stern obviously would not let go of this income-generating opportunity, and a $20 fine made Jim extremely heartbroken.

"The entire league is recruiting illegally, but Stern, an idiot, is only staring at me! If he doesn't win the championship this season, I'm sorry for his care for us!" Seeing that 20 dollars were deducted from his account, Jim put a A doll with a photo of David Stern slammed onto the ground.

Laughlin came over, kicked the Stern doll into the corner, and handed Jim some documents.

"What's this?" Jim asked angrily, without reaching out to take it.

"Next year's popular rookie, we now have the draft pick." Laughlin opened his eyes and said seriously.

"I said, LeBron James has nothing to do with us, unless Jim Paxson, Kiki Vandeweghe and old man Pat's brains are all smashed, otherwise we can't get the top five next year. Draft pick." Jim hated iron and iron, and secretly slandered Old Bath's decision to send Laughlin here.

"It's not them. We analyzed the Magic's record, combined with the latest rookie rankings, and the data sent back from your scouting system in Europe, and selected a few alternative targets." Laughlin rarely joked .

"Tell me."

"Although they got Stephen Jackson, the Magic's lineup is not complete, and Tracy McGrady also has potential injuries. We expect the Magic to have a big deal before the All-Star Game to strengthen the inside, and their final The ranking will be between seventh and tenth in the East, so the pick we get from the Magic should be around 12th to 19th." Laughlin analyzed.

Jim nodded, motioning for her to continue.

"So, these are the rookies that are available in this range. Michael Pietrus, Boris Diaw, these two Frenchmen you are more familiar with, and we originally learned that they are also from the tapes you brought back from the previous two years. On. Then David West, Xavier University Musketeers senior forward, solid technology, strong body; Laughlin introduced the above players one by one.

"I want to feel sorry for the Dream Five...Is there anything else?" Jim was not surprised by these candidates, after all, they were basically selected within that range in the original trajectory.

"This, Brazilian Leandro Barbosa, from Brazil's...Baorutiqueira team? It probably means this, fast, good at breaking through, and strong scoring ability; Josh Howard, from Wake Forest University, comprehensive skills, balanced offense and defense; and this one, Maurice Williams from the University of Alabama, the best rookie in the United States last year, good scoring ability, but relatively average defense..."

It was only then that Jim was surprised by Laughlin's ability to work. The previous options were quite satisfactory choices, but the current options were really unexpected. Barbossa and Howard were both in the first place in their original trajectory. At the end of the round, Mo Williams fell to the 47th overall pick in the second round before being selected.Being able to pick out these few players from hundreds of players shows that Laughlin's scouting team still has a way of seeing people.

“… Kendrick Perkins, a high school center for the Oakland Warriors, strong but rough. Creighton’s Kyle Korver, a good [-]-point shooter; Zha Pachulia..." Laughlin read the player's profile on the sidelines.

"Enough is enough, we have two first-round picks, now I'm sure we'll take at least two of them, well done Bonnie, now the thing you guys have to do is keep in touch with the rest of the front office, especially us Potential trade partners, such as the Utah Jazz, need to find new power forwards and point guards after Karl Malone and Stockton retire." Jim held out his hand and gave Laughlin a high-five with a smile.

After being publicly bombarded by Stephen Jackson, the league's eyes were fixed on Jim. For the sake of the wallet, coupled with the lessons learned by the Timberwolves, Jim did not dare to recruit free agents as before. strong focus.

But too many rookies in the team will also have many problems. The simplest point is that if there are not enough playing opportunities, it will be difficult for rookies to meet expectations.But if the performance is too outstanding, other teams will face high salaries, which will put a lot of pressure on the team's operations.

Arenas last season can be said to have been cultivated with a lot of playing time and the team's third shot right, but the team did not have a stronger point guard at that time. Now the team has five starting players plus Brad Miller has a solid position, so there is not much room left for rookies.

Therefore, Jim's eyes are more locked on those good role players. It is best to have a skill. Much depends on will.

After Stephen Jackson left the team, rookie Matt Barnes appeared more often as a backup shooting guard. Compared with Jackson, Barnes' skills are much rougher, and the offensive end is basically useless, but Barnes can often be seen After his teammate shoots, Ernes rushes to the restricted area lined with many people and grabs offensive rebounds. Although he can't grab the rebound in many cases, he can still shoot the ball to his teammates, or shoot out of bounds to prevent the opponent's fast break.

Soon, Barnes established himself in the rotation.

　Making mistakes is an inevitable process for everyone, and the protagonist is no exception. Thank you for your comments and suggestions, because of your reminders, this book will become better.Thank you again for your support and recommendations, but the additions can only be saved until the weekend... I will try to make more.

　　


(End of this chapter)