The Basketball Court Swordsman

"Do you think it is possible for us to get Jokic?"

Before boarding the plane to Washington, DC, Henson and Bird spoke on the phone for the last time. On the phone, Bird asked anxiously. There is no doubt that he also knows what it means for the Nuggets to deliberately shoot Nurkic.

"Maybe it can be better. Maybe they want to trade Nurkic because they have established other people as the core. This person is not necessarily Jokic." Henson proposed a hypothesis, although this hypothesis The probability is very low.

"So, we still have a chance, don't we?"

"As long as the trading market has not closed, we have a chance. Let alone, I have to board the plane. When I return from New York, we will make an official offer."

Henson hung up after speaking. On the plane, he had to spend time watching the Wizards game video. In the past two days, Henson has been very busy with Jokic's affairs, and there is not much time to watch the video.

To switch between the two identities of general manager and head coach is far less easy than he thought.

That night, at the Verizon Center Arena in Washington, DC, Henson stood on the sidelines and directed the game nervously.

In this match, unlike most people's expectations, the two sides played fiercely. The 12-14 Washington Wizards brought unexpected trouble to the 25-2 Pacers.

The source of this trouble is Bradley Beal.

In the first quarter, Bill made 3 of 3 3-pointers from beyond the arc. Danny Green had a hard time keeping up with Bill's running, which allowed the young second position to get too many easy-going opportunities.

So in the second quarter, Henson let George return to the second position and let Antetokounmpo play the third, defending Otto Porter. As a result, Henson had to let Channing Frye play the fourth position.

As a result, all-around forward Markieff Morris completely exploded.

Markieff Morrison is very skilled, with accurate shots and efficient low hook shots. Moreover, athletic ability is not bad.

Channing Frye worked very hard, but he was powerless, he couldn't keep up with Morris at all.

Subsequently, Henson naturally replaced Kevin Rooney, but as a result, the Wizards' defense instantly became a lot stronger. Because Rooney can't open up space at all, there is no offensive threat. The Wizards' No. 4 position can reinforce other people unscrupulously.

Coupled with the trident performance of Wall, Bill and Porter today is really good, which makes the Pacers into a hard fight.

Standing on the sidelines, Henson shook his head. As the season progressed, everyone got to know each other better. Therefore, even a small shortcoming will be infinitely magnified.

Looking at it now, the Pacers’ problem with the fourth position has become more serious. It seems that the plan to introduce Jokic is imminent.

However, the news that the Nuggets wanted to trade Nurkic made Henson a little irritable. If the Nuggets really plan to help Jokic, then he will have to use a backup plan...

"Pause, pause!" In the last 38 seconds of the game, when Bill used a jamming half-stop to catch the score by only 2 points, Henson called the game to a halt.

All Wizards fans were eagerly looking forward to it, but Henson's final tactics stifled the hope of the people in the capital.

With the Pacers' last attack, Paul George pretended to break through, and Antetokounmpo pretended to cut inside. But in the end, it was Brook Lopez who executed the last shot.

Without interference, Lopez succeeded with a three-pointer, helping the Pacers gain a 5-point lead in the final moments, completely ruining the Wizards' dream.

As always, Henson didn't play cards according to routines. Scott Brooks, who once led the Thunder and Henson to meet in the Finals but is now the Wizards coach, could not have imagined that he would choose to use Lopez to perform such a critical shot.

It's like back then, when he killed him, he never thought that Henson would spread false news that Paul was injured in order to win.

His courage really has to be admirable.

Seeing Lopez score, Henson was not excited, but let out a big breath. If you lose this kind of game that shouldn't be lost, Henson will be very upset.

But in New York the next day, Henson was not so lucky. Although after going to Madison Square Garden, Henson reunited with Spike Lee, an old friend he hadn't seen for a long time, which originally made him feel good. But the process of the game made Henson very worried.

The outbreak of Anthony and Rose caught Henson by surprise. In this game, Anthony shot 7 of 11 from beyond the three-point line! Henson can guarantee that this is the most efficient game he has ever seen Anthony.

But it was not Anthony's 7 three-pointers that really killed the Pacers, but the awe-inspiring Porzingis.

In order to contain Anthony, Henson asked Antetokounmpo to defend him himself. Then, the disaster happened again.

The fourth position, the fourth position, really hurt Henson's heart forever.

So in New York, the Pacers lost by 5 points, and the 13-game winning streak was ended.

Although their current record of 26 wins and 3 losses is still proud of the league, the problem with the fourth position has begun to burn eyebrows.

That night, Henson did not accept any reporter interviews, but rushed back to the locker room to watch the Nuggets game.

Tonight, Jokic played only 21 minutes, and Nurkic played almost the same time. Instead, it was Gary Harris, who played 32 minutes today.

Seeing this scene, Henson let out a sigh of relief. Perhaps it is Harris that the Nuggets want to right?

That night, Henson tossed and did not sleep well. He was still simulating in his mind how to negotiate with the Nuggets. Early the next morning, Henson boarded the plane back to Indianapolis.

It doesn't matter if you lose, the most important thing is to solve the problem of losing.

Nuggets general manager Tim Connery is undoubtedly very busy lately, as long as you open your eyes, the phone will ring nonstop.

The reason for all this is that the Nuggets wanted to trade Yusuf Nurkic and the news was leaked. In fact, this is the news that the Nuggets deliberately leaked.

They want to shoot Nurkic, but they don't want to take the initiative to trade. Because in 90% of transactions, the party that actively proposes the transaction is very passive. Therefore, the Nuggets deliberately spilled the news so that the other party would take the initiative.

As a strong body, a low offense and a soft shot player, Nurkic is naturally the target of all teams in the league. Nurkic’s upper limit is very high, and the lower limit is not too low. Therefore, Connery has received too many offers these days.

But he is not in a hurry to make a decision. The more offers, the greater his advantage. Because "buyers" will also compare prices with each other, which will make the Nuggets get more and more tiring.

Since 2013, the Nuggets have been making progress in an orderly manner. This shows that Tim Connery is indeed very effective. Now that the Nuggets don't know which newcomer to choose as the core trouble, not all teams have it.

Today, Connery's life is the same on weekdays. As soon as he arrived at the office, the assistant told him that he had a phone appointment.

"Who is so active? Call me early in the morning."

"Yes... you may not believe it, it's Henson Joe." The assistant replied vaguely. He never thought that Henson Joe would one day trade with the Nuggets.

"Henson Joe?" Connery was also surprised, "He already has Brook Lopez in his line, so what else is Nurkic doing? Okay, I get it, thank you, Mike."

After Connelly thanked the assistant, he thought for a few minutes. He knew very well that Henson Joe was a smart...no, a sinister and cunning guy!

You must be cautious when dealing with this guy. Look at his deal with the Nets this summer. It was a robbery! Going forward, the deal with Magic about Oladipo is also a classic robbery deal.

Connery would not allow Henson to rob the Denver Nuggets. Henson Joe calculated that others can, but don't calculate it to the Nuggets.

So Connery reminded himself over and over again that he should not be fooled by Henson Joe. No matter how much he blows, the Pacers must show sincerity for Nurkic.

Half an hour after he heard the news, Tim Connery called Henson back after he was ready.

But Connery smiled as soon as Henson spoke. This time, he cannot be fooled!

"You mean...you didn't call Nurkic?" Connery said to the receiver, he thought to himself that Henson has a keen sense of smell. Jokic only played a few good games, and he was caught up by Henson!

"As you just heard, I made this call to inquire about Jokic. That's right, I know you are selling Nurkic recently, but I am not asking him."

Henson replied confidently. Sitting in Bird's office, Henson was ready to add chips.

Henson has already thought about it. He will not provide the best chips from the beginning, but will slowly grind with the Nuggets. Waiting for other young Nuggets players to perform well, Henson will find a few reporters to walk around the news that Jokic may be traded.

Bird looked at Henson, a little nervous. He didn't know what the person on the other end of the phone said, only to find that Henson's eyes suddenly widened, then he answered a few casually, and the phone hung up.

"So fast? What did the Nuggets say? Are you going to have a face-to-face interview? Why did you hang up before you gave your offer?" As soon as Henson hung up the phone, a bunch of questions from Bird blurted out.

Henson did not answer immediately, but looked up at Bird.

"He said... Tim Connery said... Nicolas Jokic is not for sale. So they didn't listen to our offer at all."

Henson said, shook his head. It seems that not every time he wants to trade, he can get good results.

Should the risky backup plan be used?