I’m Really Playing Basketball

When everyone outside was quarreling over the fact that Ray Allen and Chen Xiao were about to swap clubs.

Chen Xiao and his agent Fagan received a call from team general manager Rod Thorn, who informed Chen Xiao that the team currently had no plans to trade him, so that he would not be distracted by these rumors.

After ending the call with Rod Thorn, Chen Xiao was surprised.

Because Fagan helped him confirm that the Milwaukee Bucks had indeed taken the initiative to apply for a deal to trade Ray Allen for him, which was true.

Fagan told him excitedly that he was about to return to Milwaukee.

Chen Xiao could see that Fagan was very concerned about his return to Milwaukee.

Milwaukee is willing to trade him as the team's leader, but of course it won't be to trade him to Milwaukee as a second-string player.

Even if Milwaukee has the very old alien Cassel, there is Michael Reed, who is very highly regarded by George Karl.

As long as Chen Xiao goes to Milwaukee, he will definitely be the core of the team, at least one of the core of the team like Reid, and a joint leader.

According to Fagan, that is.

"Even Scottie Pippen, the second best player in the NBA, can't resist the temptation of being the first player of a weak team."

Chen Xiao was willing to believe what Feigen said.

In the NBA, the rights of the top boss and the second boss of a team are completely different.

Even if they are tied for the status of the first master, they cannot be compared to the second master.

Let’s talk about trading.

As the second-in-command of the team, Chen Xiao has no right to know about his transaction.

The team would not notify him about the trade at all.

Only when his deal is completed will the team notify him that he can pack his bags and leave the team to report to the next team.

In any team, the second-in-command is basically a tool, and even Pippen, the greatest second-in-command in NBA history, is no exception.

In the NBA, the only people who have limited control over their own destiny are the bosses, or players with the privileges of the boss.

If Chen Xiao goes to the Bucks, even if he is not the only big player, he will be the big player with the privilege of being the big boss. His status in the NBA will be a qualitative leap.

From a team's tool man directly to the team's partner level.

Of course, the boss of an NBA team also has class.

Big players like Key, Duncan, and Garnett are players who can completely control their own destiny.

But generally speaking, the boss of an NBA team is indeed very difficult for a role player to refuse.

Therefore, Fagan was very sorry when he was informed by Rod Thorn that Chen Xiao would stay on the team.

With Chen Xiao's popularity, if he goes to any team and becomes the leader or one of the leaders of the team, his career will make a qualitative leap.

Whether it is future or money, it will be completely different.

"There is indeed a gap between Rod Thorn's decisiveness and Jerry West's at times. He is worried that the arrival of Ray Allen will destroy the team's current good chemical reaction. The Nets have played for most of the season, and he dare not take a gamble. If it were Jerry West, he would definitely give priority to getting superstars. After all, superstars are players who have proven themselves in the playoffs. Getting Ray Allen would involve a gamble, but if the bet wins, the Nets will Get the championship, and Chan, you'll be free."

"In other words, for the Nets, if they want to go further in the playoffs and win the championship, it is more beneficial to acquire Ray Allen than to keep me?"

"That's right."

"But Boss Ji chose me instead of Ray Allen."

"So, it's not a rational choice."

After Fagan finished speaking with a smile, Chen Xiao also smiled.

"It's not a career choice either."

After Chen Xiao finished speaking, Fei Gen nodded.

Whether it's rational or professional.

Chen Xiao knew that Boss Ji's opinion played a key role in his decision to stay or leave.

Rod Thorn wants stability in the team.

The opinions of Chen Xiao, Martin, Richard Jefferson, and all Nets players cannot represent the stability of the Nets.

Only Kidd's opinion can represent the stability of the Nets.

Kidd’s opinion is that he wants to keep Chen Xiao.

If it were the beginning of the season now, Rodthorn would have a different choice.

But now, more than half of the regular season is over.

Rod Thorn didn't dare to gamble. He didn't dare to gamble as much as Jerry West, so Chen Xiao stayed in the end.

Fagan wants Chen Xiao to go to the Bucks.

For Chen Xiao, it doesn't matter where he goes.

But this season, he wants to stay with the Nets.

He wants to lift the championship trophy with Boss Ji!

He wants to repay Boss Ji's kindness to him!

It's very unprofessional to talk about favors in the NBA.

But, he doesn't care.

He couldn't live up to Boss Ji's trust in him.

Nets general manager Rod Thorn did not reject the Bucks' deal in the end, but chose to postpone it.

All decisions will be made after the season is over.

This is certainly not what George Karl wants to see.

Why should I be your backup tire?

So after receiving Rod Thorn's reply, George Karl directly stated that he would not wait for the Nets to delay the transaction, and the only way to get Ray Allen was now.

In response to this, Rod Thorn did not reply. The lack of reply means that he still wants to get Ray Allen, but he will not trade now. He will not refuse or agree. He will wait until the trade deadline passes and the Bucks will not trade. If Ray Allen is sent away, he can only send him away next season. When the time comes, it will be the Nets who take the initiative.

Rodthorne's move is very conspiratorial and clever.

He saw that George Karl wanted to get Chen Xiao.

If he didn't want to get Chen Xiao, he wouldn't trade a superstar for a role player.

George Karl was too impatient to reveal his truth.

It's difficult to take the initiative in front of a general manager who is as famous as Jerry West.

Just as Rod Thorn guessed, George Karl really wanted to get Chen Xiao.

Therefore, being dragged down like this by Rod Thorn, who owned Chen Xiao, he really had no choice at all.

Looking at the offers sent by other teams, George Karl felt less and less good.

For example, his former club, the SuperSonics, offered Gary Payton + Mason for Ray Allen.

Gary Payton is his former disciple, and it is a pleasure for the two to work together.

If Payton didn't only have half a year left on his contract, he would be willing to agree to the deal.

Payton now only has half a year left on his contract, which means that he can only have Payton for half a year. After half a year, Payton will definitely not renew his contract with the Bucks, but will go back to look for opportunities to win a championship.

In other words, Ray Allen is exchanged for Payton's usage rights for half a season, plus Mason.

For him and the Bucks, this is a deal that will cost grandma's family money!

If it weren't for Chen Xiao, who was eager to send Ray Allen away, he might have agreed to this deal.

After all, maybe Payton is willing to renew his contract with the Bucks because of his past mentoring relationship?

This might not be the case, but not much.

At that time, if Payton does not renew his contract and Payton leaves, he will get out.

Trading Ray Allen for Mason is such a genius deal. If he doesn’t get out, who will?

The Sonics' bargaining chip is very pit.

But actually it's the best.

There is no way, the Sonics can only give so much, and they are already very sincere.

The chips of other teams are even more invisible.

Most teams in the league want Ray Allen, but not every team can provide enough chips for George Karl.

George Karl either wants to be a superstar, or he wants a young player like Chen Xiao who he likes.

There are not many young players that George Karl is interested in.

As for the superstars, strong teams dare not trade at this time, and George Karl also looks down upon the stars of weak teams.

For example, Houston Mosaic is willing to trade Francis for Ray Allen.

The Suns are also willing to trade Marbury for Ray Allen.

These two people were completely dismissive to George Karl.

As for your defense, if I like it, Ray Allen and I won't have any conflicts.

It seems that George Karl once again set his sights on the SuperSonics' Payton + Mason offer.

This is a very bad deal.

But it is already the best deal.

Do you want to agree?

If Payton is unwilling to renew his contract, will he really die together with Ray Allen?

Thinking of this, George Karl's eyes flickered.

Chen Xiao?

Or Payton + Mason?

Finally, after thinking for a long time, George Karl sighed.

"Rodthorne, you won..."

I have to say that Rod Thorn, the founder of the Bulls dynasty and the greatest vice president in NBA history, really has George Karl under control.

However, in fact, as long as George Karl is willing to endure Ray Allen's hand, it is actually a better choice for the Bucks to trade Ray Allen in the summer.

After all, Ray Allen is different from Payton. Ray Allen still has two and a half years of contract.

As for Payton, he only has half a year left on his contract.

This season everyone is paying attention to Duncan's contract extension, and Payton's contract extension is actually not optimistic.

Fortunately, the Sonics are already making second-hand preparations.

As for Malone of the Jazz...the Jazz are not even prepared at all.

The deal between Ray Allen and Chen Xiao, a controversial deal, ended with both parties suspending the transaction, which no one could have imagined.

Ray Allen, who had already packed his bags and went to New Jersey, received notice from the team that he would continue to stay, which made Ray Allen feel like he was humiliated.

I don’t know whether he was humiliated by George Karl or the Nets.

He went to trade for that rookie, and such a deal actually failed.

In short, the failure of the deal between Chen Xiao and Ray Allen made everyone in the Nets, from coaches to players, breathe a sigh of relief.

On February 11, 2003, the Nets' first opponent after the All-Star Game was the Magic, now seventh in the Eastern Conference.

This away game against the Magic happened to be the time when the trade messages between Chen Xiao and Ray Allen were at their most intense.

In this game against the Magic, although Chen Xiao's trade comments were raging, it was the All-Star Game that affected the Nets' status more.

On February 9th, the four stars of the Nets played in the All-Star Game. On February 10th, the Nets returned to New Jersey from Atlanta. On February 11th, the Nets will play away from home in a last-ditch effort for the playoffs. Magic team.

Such a schedule is quite unfriendly to the Nets.

The Nets have four players participating in the All-Star Game!

Therefore, in this game against the Magic, the Nets played quite poorly.

In the end, the Nets lost to the highly motivated Magic 83-92 on the road.

In this game, most of the Nets players were in very average condition.

Kidd, the team leader, shot 5 of 21 in this game, 0 of 8 three-pointers, and scored 19 points by making 9 of 9 free throws.

Boss Ji's data is already very average.

But this is already one of the best performances by the Nets.

For example, Boozer, the Nets' starting power forward, went 0-for-5 in this game and scored 3 points on free throws. For example, Richard Jefferson made 3-for-13, and Kenyon Martin scored 2-for-9.

Chen Xiao's performance in this game was not very good either.

This is not because Chen Xiao was affected by the transaction message.

The main reason is that Martin, Richard Jefferson and Boozer were in such poor shape in this game.

This allows the Magic to defend Chen Xiao with all their strength.

It doesn't matter that Chen Xiao is always followed. In addition to being a tight defender, there is always a player assisting him in defense. After catching the ball, he will come over to double-team him at any time.

This is quite uncomfortable.

Boss Ji passes the ball to others, but others can't throw it in, and they can't throw it in the open space.

In the end, I can only look for Chen Xiao. No matter how strong the defense is, I can only look for Chen Xiao.

If Chen Xiao really has no choice, then he can only do it himself.

This is also the reason why Boss Ji played so much in this game.

Ever since Chen Xiao became a super handler, Boss Ji rarely threw so many pots on his own.

There is no way, there are too many pots in this game, no matter how much, Chen Xiao can't throw them away.

Chen Xiao made 8 of 25 in this game. He was constantly flanked and made various difficult shots, and he had already worked very, very hard.

To be honest, in this game Chen Xiao really felt how his idols Ke and Iverson were treated in the NBA.

In the past, Chen Xiao also felt that the shooting percentages of Boss Ke and Boss Ai were not that high.

But after this game, Chen Xiao felt that they could maintain a shooting rate of more than 40% in such a one-on-two environment all year round. That is the real Dior!

It is said that Ai LaoDa took 28 shots per game last season and only averaged 31.5 points per game, which was very inefficient. In this game, Chen Xiao took 25 shots in exchange for 23 points, which was even more inefficient.

In the previous confrontations with the Magic, Chen Xiao took advantage of the Magic's inability to cover the inside, desperately pulled out to shoot, and scored happily.

In this game, due to the poor state of his teammates, he was tricked by his senior Doc Rivers and was severely flanked throughout the game.

This can be regarded as good deeds and evil deeds being rewarded.

However, although Chen Xiao played hard all night in the game against the Magic, everyone on the basketball court was still very satisfied with him.

If it were the Nets last season, based on the state of the others in this game, the Nets would have to lose at least 20 points in the away game to start, and Big Brother would have to score at least 20 points to start this game!

In this game, when everyone was in such a bad state, the Nets were able to lose decently, which is really good.

After playing against the Magic, the Nets continued their away trip amid trade rumors about Chen Xiao and Ray Allen.

On February 12, the Nets faced the Memphis Grizzlies back-to-back away games.

This game against the Grizzlies is the first time the Nets have played against the Grizzlies this season.

The Grizzlies' record this season is not very good, but it is not bad either. With 23 wins and 25 losses so far, it can be considered a team on the edge of the playoffs.

Logically speaking, the NBA rookies in 2003 are considered to be the super platinum generation that surpassed 96. Like the Grizzlies, who are neither good nor bad, there is a high probability that they will not be able to improve. This season is more suitable for losing wildly in the second half of the season.

Although you can't get the No. 1 pick, getting other high-ranking lottery picks will be very valuable.

However, the Grizzlies have no intention of failing in the second half of this season.

Because the Grizzlies' draft picks this season are not entirely in their hands.

According to the agreement between the Pistons and the Grizzlies regarding Thorpe in 1997, if the Grizzlies cannot get the No. 1 pick this season, their pick will belong to the Pistons.

The Grizzlies themselves also want the No. 1 pick, but Jerry West, the Grizzlies' general manager, knows that this is impossible.

Of course no one would be willing to do something like making wedding clothes for others.

It will be very difficult for the Grizzlies to make the playoffs in the Western Conference this season.

But a team that can achieve a record of 23 wins and 25 losses in the Western Conference is definitely not a weakling.

White Chocolate, Eddie Jones, Shane Battier, Gasol, Lorenzen White, the Grizzlies' five starting players are all very good.

Five people have averaged more than 10 points per game this season, among which Eddie Jones and Gasol have averaged more than 18 points per game.

Eddie Jones, the player who was traded to the Grizzlies after Wade was robbed by the Heat, is a former Laker and Heat player and a direct descendant of Grizzlies general manager Jerry West. His performance with the Grizzlies this season has been quite outstanding.

The Grizzlies' record this season has improved so much compared to last season. The main reason is because of the arrival of Eddie Jones.

Although his performance with the Grizzlies this season was outstanding, to be honest, if Eddie Jones was given a choice, he would definitely not want to come to Memphis from the Heat.

Even if there is his old boss Jerry West here.

Wouldn’t it be nice to stay on the sunny beaches of Miami?

Come fishing here in Memphis?

The fish and shrimp in the Mississippi River are indeed plump.

But no matter how plump the fish and shrimp are, can they be as plump as the 'mermaid' on the beach?

Therefore, after arriving in Memphis, Eddie Jones has always been holding back his anger.

He wants to prove that Pat Riley is blind, and he wants to make Pat Riley regret it!

They actually traded him, an All-Star, for a rookie.

However, as Dwyane Wade performed better and better, Eddie Jones' mood became worse and worse.

Especially in the direct confrontation with Wade, he was completely defeated by Wade.

If the Grizzlies weren't shocked by Jerry West, Eddie Jones would have caused trouble long ago.

Especially after Wade was selected as an All-Star, Eddie Jones felt that his mentality was broken!

In this game against the Nets, Eddie Jones, who has been in a bad mood recently, is extremely motivated.

It is known throughout the United States that Chen Xiao and Wade are one and the same.

Gou Deng Sri trio!

He didn't win with Wade this season, but you are just a beginner, why can't I take it out on you?

He wants to use Chen Xiao to get back his status and face!

If he knew what Eddie Jordan was thinking, Chen Xiao would definitely feel like he was beeping.

Now that Xiaotai has offended you, why don't you go to Xiaotai? You have the wrongdoer and the debtor has the owner. What's the point of taking your anger out on me?

Of course, before the game started, Chen Xiao didn't know that Eddie Jones was going to regain face in this game.

February 12, Memphis, Pyramid Arena.

The Nets desperately needed a rebound in this game after losing the previous game.

As the first team in the league and the first team in the Eastern Conference, the Nets are not without opponents.

The Mavericks are now 38-10, and are actually not that far away from the Nets, who are 42-8.

Moreover, after the All-Star Game, all the strong teams in the league are at full strength and ready to sprint. The Nets need to tighten up. If they cannot tighten up, they are likely to plummet.

At that time, let’s not let the Mavericks catch up. If the Spurs or the Kings also catch up, it would not be beautiful.

Therefore, for the Nets, it has always been that they can lose, but they cannot lose consecutive games.

Now is not the time for teams to lose steam and prepare for the playoffs.

On the evening of the 12th, in the game against the Grizzlies at the Pyramid Arena, the Grizzlies, who wanted to rebound, played a very difficult game.

As one of the teams with the fewest turnovers in the league, the Nets actually made 19 turnovers in this game under the Grizzlies' very strong defense.

Among them, Baseball scored 4 times, and Richard Jefferson and Martin both scored 5 times.

why?

Because the Grizzlies' defense in this game was crazy about the Nets' passing and receiving.

Martin is short-handed compared to Gasol.

Richard Jefferson's hands are also not that long when facing Shane Battier.

In addition, Boss Ji's own condition in this game is also average. It's back-to-back away games, which is normal.

In short, in this game against the Grizzlies, the Nets made a lot of passing errors.

In the end, the Nets relied on Chen Xiao's three-pointer to defeat the Grizzlies 99-98 in Memphis.

In this game, with the Grizzlies frantically preventing the Nets from passing and receiving, Chen Xiao was considered the Nets' most stable receiving point.

He has long hands and is tall enough. Although Grizzlies player Eddie Jones is very fierce in defense, it is impossible to defend Chen Xiao like Gasol defends Martin and Battier defends Jefferson.

In the end, with Chen Xiao's outstanding performance of 9 of 21, 5 of 8 three-pointers, 6 of 6 free throws, and 29 points in the game, the Nets defeated the Memphis Grizzlies, the tenth team in the Western Conference, on the road. .

It can also be seen from this game that the strong teams in the Western Conference are strong.

No matter who the Eastern team is, in the Western Conference, it’s really hard to get along!

Relying on a buzzer-beater to win the game, it can only be said that the Nets were lucky to win this game.

However, no matter what, if you win, you will win.

Therefore, Chen Xiao and everyone on the basketball court were very happy after the game.

However, at this time, the happy Chen Xiao did not notice that there was always a pair of wise eyes staring at him in the stands.

"The sixth buzzer beater this season, and the hit rate is still 100%."

"With so many messages about the transaction, he was not affected at all."

"Larry Bird at guard?"

Interesting, really interesting.

Jerry West's eyes were flashing.

After beating the Grizzlies, I returned to New Jersey after two back-to-back away games.

The trade news between Chen Xiao and Ray Allen temporarily ended with the shelved trade of George Karl and Rod Thorn.

The world seemed to be calm again.

At least, on the surface it is.

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