The rest is just noise

Yesterday's footnotes were too long, I should have published a single chapter. I'm very sorry, there won't be another time. As compensation, this chapter is free.

Joe Dumars signed with the Lakers for three years and $8 million.

The moment the signing was completed, Dumars became the lowest-paid, high-performance player in the league.

As a combo guard, he can serve as the starting position of two guards on most teams, and he has a balance of offense and defense with no shortcomings.

That is to say, a team with huge talent like the Heat looks down on it. There are many teams that want to sign Dumars with a big contract, but he chose to sign a pension contract with the Lakers that is far lower than his worth.

This is undoubtedly amazing.

"Perhaps Los Angeles is not an attractive city for free agents," a writer for the Los Angeles Daily News modestly wrote, "but who can refuse to play for the Messiah?"

Dumars not only signed a contract far below his worth, but also accepted a non-starting position.

Because the Lakers already have a young and capable number one position.

Dana Barros will hold the starting position at No. 1 for a long time in the new season. Dumars has no shortage of playing time as a combo guard. What he needs is to maintain a humble heart like he did with the Heat.

Provide high-quality offense and defense.

As long as he can defeat the Heat, Dumars is willing to do anything.

When signing the contract, Dumars said ambitiously: "I'm here to crush the Miami dynasty."

After Dumas left, Louis uttered a complaint that had been stuck in his heart for a long time: "Hasn't Miami been crushed by New York? And what kind of dynasty are they?"

West mocked: "Coach Lu, the Knicks in the early 1970s didn't even complete consecutive championships, but some people still called them a dynasty."

"You have to understand, Jerry, that as long as New York has achieved a small success, it can't wait to expand its influence infinitely."

Louis also disliked the behavior of the New York media.

Then, West also felt strange about Dumars' obsession: "Actually...after losing Ralph, Miami actually no longer has the strength to compete for the championship in the new season, regardless of whether JD comes to Los Angeles or not.

it's the same."

Louis could only shush.

Don't let Dumars know about this, just let him fight with his hatred for the Heat.

Later, West asked: "Coach Lu, after signing JD, our back line personnel reserves have overflowed."

"You mean Sedel (Treite), right?"

The arrival of Dumars gives the Lakers four players who can play the one position on the roster.

In addition to Barros and Nash, there is also a veteran signed last season that needs to be dealt with.

That person is Sedale Treat. When the Lakers pursued him, he was like an old wine, with a fragrant aroma. But as his soul was taken away by the colorful world of Los Angeles, he wandered around and flirted with women without knowing where to stay.

After many bastards, the Lakers, who were determined to move forward, no longer had a place for him.

Louis feels that Treate is still easy to deal with. He has certain strength and his contract is not big (4 million in two years). On the contrary, there are too many people at the power forward position.

Let’s not talk about Garnett’s ability to play four or five. The Lakers also have Wu Qi and Malik Rose at the four position. If the tragic star chooses to return, there will be four four positions on the roster.

So the choice surrounding Louis is actually very simple. Who should stay, Wu Qi or Rose?

Louis will not value Wu Qi too much just because he is his compatriot. After careful comparison with Rose, he feels that Wu Qi will not develop well in the Lakers. Therefore, it is Louis who decides which team to send him to.

It requires careful thinking.

This year is also a chaotic summer.

Only one of the two big fish, O'Neal and Sampson, has yet to be landed, but they are not the only superstars on the free market.

Karl Malone, who has been waiting for Salt Lake City for many years, has no hope of rising.

In Louis' previous life, this was the time when the Jazz management was working hard to introduce John Hornacek to solve the problem of lack of a second firepower point on the outside, and then take off.

However, the Jazz's current predicament can no longer be solved by Hornacek.

Times have changed.

Without three capable All-Stars or superstars, it is impossible to shake the dominance of the Trail Blazers, Knicks, Heat and other teams.

During the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Jazz formed the top team in the Western Conference through drafts and free market operations, but they were always defeated by the second generation of ShowTime led by the tragic star and Jordan's Trail Blazers.

Now, Mark Price, who has risen with Malone, has faded away. Mark Yinton has retired for several years. Tom Chambers, who helped the Jazz become the league's top team in one fell swoop, even died in New York the year before last.

He retired secretly after failing to win the championship with a veteran's minimum salary.

Malone cannot achieve anything if he is left alone and strong.

Now, Malone only has the last year of his contract left, and he feels that he needs to consider his legacy.

Patrick Ewing in the same class is already a generational king, with eight championships in hand. Throughout history, except for Sampson, who is really unbeatable, no other center can stand in front of him and pat his chest and say that he is better than Ewing.

.

Not to mention a guy like Dumas who got into the championship by holding on to his thighs. Why should he?

The more Malone thought about it, the more he couldn't calm down and took the initiative to ask for a deal.

As for the reason, it is also very straightforward.

"I don't see any hope of winning the championship here."

This sentence stunned the Jazz management.

Malone was drafted by the Jazz because he was betrayed by his college coach, which caused him to fall in the draft.

Although he had a bad reputation in college, he definitely worked hard during his years in Salt Lake City.

Now that he is in his thirties, it is reasonable for him to want to leave in order to win the championship.

The communication between Malone and the Jazz management was very positive.

The Jazz also know that guarding Malone will not change the status quo and will have no effect except ensuring a playoff spot.

Now that Malone is leaving, they can still use the other party's contract with only one year left in exchange for something. If they choose to stay, when Malone's contract ends, it is very likely that the building will be empty and he will get nothing.

The Jazz management, having figured this out, promised to make a deal.

At the same time, if Ma Long has a favorite club, he can take the initiative to tell him, and they will try their best to send him there.

As a result, Malone really had a choice in mind - now, the league's number one power forward is neither Malone nor Barkley, but Danny Manning.

However, neither Malone nor Barkley recognized this conclusion.

Why? Manning was just like them when he was with the Pacers. He didn't do much except play the Heat.

Now that I have won the championship with Sampson's thigh in hand, it has swelled up and forced Sampson to return to his old club. Could it be that he really regards himself as the number one power forward?

Malone felt that if even a guy like Manning could hold Sampson's lap and win the championship, if he and Sampson teamed up, winning three consecutive championships wouldn't be a problem.

Sampson!

Sampson!

Dear Mr. One and Only!

He is the strongest player in the league and the best center in history. Except for Manning, who doesn't want to play with him?

So, Malone told the Jazz management about his favorite team-Boston.

If it were a star from other places, he might really consider Boston's notorious racial discrimination tradition, but Malone is different. He has been in a place like Salt Lake City for eleven years. He feels that his state of mind has changed.

It has reached a height that cannot be shaken by any external factors and circumstances.

Boston has at least produced some black sports stars. Salt Lake City... Utah... has this place ever been associated with black people?

The news that the Jazz were putting Malone on the shelf only caused some commotion that few people noticed.

Compared with Louis' previous life, Malone was really dragged down by the team in this world line.

Everyone just thinks he is an average superstar.

However, Louis did not pursue Malone because he once stabbed Malone in the back after the Dream Team game. This problem has not been solved yet, and he is not the only choice. The focus of the Lakers management has been put on

On to another superstar who committed to the free market.

He is also a power forward, and like Malone, he is desperate to win the championship.

But unlike Malone, he feels that he has given a lot, and if he doesn't win the championship, it may be his fate.

I have worked hard for so many years, endured the abuse of Pat Riley, and endured the perverted test of Jordan. I worked hard for three years. What did I get in exchange? In exchange for being defeated by the New York Knicks in the Finals for three consecutive years.

Defeated in game seven.

His mentality has long since collapsed.

After being traded to the Los Angeles Clippers, he persuaded himself to try again, but the good times did not last long. He was not the kind of person who could devote himself to a goal for a long time. There were still people watching him in Portland, but in Los Angeles, no one

If people dare to speak loudly to him, naturally, he will gradually degenerate.

I believe you have already guessed that this brother is Charles Barkley.

Louis initially called Barkley with the idea of ​​giving it a try.

"Chuck, are you interested in bringing your talents to the Lakers?" Louis asked half-jokingly.

Unexpectedly, Buckley on the other end of the phone was silent for a few seconds and then shouted: "Holy MAMA!

!”

What's going on?

Louis frowned and asked, "Chuck, what do you think?"

"This is my honor, Coach Lu, my God! I have dreamed of playing for you, Coach. I'm so excited. I want to call my mother and tell my mother that I'm going to fucking play for Leader Lu!"

!”

Then he hung up the phone.

This made Louis wonder, was the pig playing tricks on him?

But if you think about it carefully, it's normal for Barkley to want to play for him. After all, he is famous for being easy-going.

But Louis never expected Barkley to react this way.

He just made a phone call to ask casually, but Barkley agreed and went to tell his family the good news without even talking about the treatment?

Should Louis be happy? It's really nice for a top power forward in the league to be so excited about playing for him, right?

The cautious Louis decided to call Wilson and ask him what he thought about being teammates with Barkley.