The rest is just noise

While the Lakers signed Barkley, their old rivals the Boston Celtics were also actively operating.

Celtics management did three things at once.

First, they spent a lot of money to sign Chuck Daly, who had been away from coaching for nearly four years.

Since ending his coaching career in Detroit, Daley has been working behind the scenes.

Sometimes, he will be a guest on ESPN.

Sometimes, he accepts TNT's commentary invitations.

He has many jobs, but none of them are fixed.

The Celtics, who have welcomed back Sampson, have become competitive again, but if they want to return to the top ranks, they must recruit a good coach.

Although Reed Auerbach insists on using his own people, Dave Gavitt feels that Daly is the best candidate among all the unemployed coaches at the moment.

The Celtics signed Chuck Daly to a franchise-record four-year, $7 million contract.

Then Gavitt did something that pleased Auerbach.

He invited Yinthiah Thomas to join the Celtics' front office as assistant general manager.

The Smiling Assassin gladly accepted Gavitt's invitation.

When Louis heard the news, he inexplicably felt that the Celtics were doomed.

No one knows why a player with Thomas's high regard for honor would believe that the interior combination of Zach Randolph and Eddy Curry would succeed.

Thomas had proven in his previous life that he would not be a good administrator.

If the Celtics train him as Gavitt's successor, Louis can't imagine what will happen next.

At the same time, the third thing the Celtics management did was actively promote the trade of Karl Malone.

Especially after the Lakers signed Barkley at a very low price, the Celtics felt that change was urgent.

The Atlanta Olympic Games are in full swing, and Karl Malone, who was not drafted by the Dream Team, came to his answer after a seemingly endless wait.

Boston Celtics will receive Rasheed Wallace, Derek Harper, Dino Radja (Dino Radja C), Greg Miner (Greg Min/SF), 1997 first-round draft pick,

In the 1998 first-round pick swap, the 2002 first-round pick was sent to the Utah Jazz in exchange for Karl Malone, Steve Kerr and this year's second-round pick Shandon Anderson (Shand).

According to "Boston Globe" writer Bob Ryan, the Celtics initially wanted to send Wallace and Turner away as a package, but the Jazz only wanted Wallace and other young players as well as draft picks.

right.

The most promising young man in the Celtics team is Hill, who is also not for sale to the team. Since young players are needed, the only way is to bring others along with Wallace, and then use veterans like Harper to balance the salary, plus 2

First round and 1 first round s

Louis feels that the Celtics have made a lot of money this time.

He didn't expect that the Jazz would only swap two first-rounders and one first-rounder.

In exchange for Louis, the Celtics don't want to take Malone away unless they spend 3 first-rounders and 3 first-rounders in exchange.

Then, Louis studied the Celtics' draft pick structure and found that it wasn't that the Jazz didn't want it, but that the Celtics couldn't give it to them.

Not long ago, Louis sent Turner to the Celtics. In addition to getting their draft picks, they also gave up their 2000 first round pick.

This first-round pick year is very interesting.

2000, the year of the millennium.

Although the quality of the rookies that year was historically low, Louis just wanted something more and didn't think much about it.

According to the Ted Stepey rule, NBA teams cannot trade away first-round picks for two consecutive years. Therefore, when the Jazz asked the Celtics for the first-round picks, the Celtics had already transferred the 2000 first-round picks.

Given to the Lakers, the first-round picks in 1999 and 2001 cannot be used directly.

The fact that the Jazz didn't ask for more first-round swaps was something Louis didn't expect.

Maybe he overestimated Malone's market price.

Maybe the Jazz overestimated Wallace's potential.

Someone always overestimates something anyway, but it doesn't matter now.

For the first time since Bird retired, the Celtics have two powerful superstars.

The inside combination of Sampson and Malone cannot be underestimated.

Although Sampson is older, he can still play well for at least 30 minutes per game, and Malone is a well-known late-blooming player.

The next two seasons will be Malone's true peak period.

This means that Sampson will be paired with the second top power forward in the league besides Manning.

Super centers are generally not lucky enough to be paired with super power forwards. They should be content with a guard who knows how to pass the ball. However, Sampson seems to be the chosen one affected by the butterfly effect and blessed with luck.

No one could have imagined that Sampson, who returned to Boston, would have a chance to pursue the highest honor.

Strangely, the outside reaction to Malone being traded to Boston was not as big as that of Louis.

After reading the transaction, Louis felt that the Celtics would rise again, not to mention winning the championship, but they would definitely give the Heat and Knicks a chance to compete. The outside world just felt that Malone's joining would make the Celtics a strong team in the Eastern Conference.

There was no discussion within the Lakers.

They were so calm that Louis felt like he was overreacting.

Every big fish in the market has found its destination.

Shaquille O'Neal, who is currently playing for the Dream Team II, is still struggling with Orlando.

The Magic want to lock up the Sharks with a six-year, $120 million contract.

Shark believes that this contract is not worthy of him. He wants the biggest in the league and the biggest in history.

Therefore, the Sharks' agent offered a shocking six-year, $150 million contract.

If the Magic choose to sign this contract with the Sharks, then in Louie's previous life, Garnett's criticized big contract will be nothing.

This is also a problem caused by flaws in the rules.

The NBA now has a salary cap and rookie contracts, but they have no regulations or restrictions on maximum salary contracts.

In other words, the maximum salary is unlimited.

Even if the Sharks want a six-year, $600 million contract, that's within the rules.

Since the amount of the maximum salary is not regulated, the new contracts of these superstars who grew up in the AAU era mainly depend on personal appetite, market expectations and the ability of their agents.

Louis estimates that O'Neal will not leave Orlando this year.

There were two main reasons why the Sharks in the previous life left the Magic. The Magic Control and the local media actively created conflicts. Secondly, a metropolis like Los Angeles, the center of world entertainment, was the place that O'Neal cared about. So even later,

The Magic raised the salary of the contract to a point where the Lakers could not follow up, but O'Neal headed west without hesitation.

Now, the Lakers have no need to pursue O'Neal. In Miami, Manning has just squeezed out Sampson. He has no interest in competing with another super center for the top spot. New York has a bunch of contracts waiting to be renewed, and the Blazers' top priority is to renew.

About Mourning...Super teams all have their own plans and thoughts, but none of them have anything to do with O'Neal.

O'Neal looked left and right, and sooner or later he would come to a conclusion: Since we can't live without him for the time being, let's just make do with it.

In addition, there is news from the New York Knicks.

The team's meritorious forward Alex Stevens decided to retire.

Stevens was traded to the Knicks in the middle of the 1985-86 season and played for New York for a total of ten years. He was an important rotation player during the Knicks dynasty's seven consecutive championships. Although Stevens has been a substitute for many years, he has played a major role in the New York dynasty.

He has a decisive say in the team and is recognized as the locker room leader.

Last season, Stevens was able to play a full season with the Knicks, averaging 6 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist per game. It stands to reason that he still has the ability to continue playing.

But Stevens, who is only 34 years old, said that as the young people in the Knicks team grow up, his position has become more and more marginalized and he can hardly find the fun of being a player.

His career was reshaped by the Knicks, and leaving New York to play for other teams was unacceptable to him.

After much thought, Stevens chose to retire at an age when he could still fight.

The Knicks promised to retire Stevens' No. 43 jersey and strongly invited him to stay in the team and continue to play his role.

However, Stevens declined the Knicks' invitation and went straight to Los Angeles.

Louis and Stevens met and the two caught up with each other for a while.

Then, Louis asked Stevens what his next plan was.

"I do want to continue a basketball career, but I don't know what I can do."

If he doesn't know what he can do, he shouldn't refuse the Knicks' invitation, right?

Louis instantly recognized Stevens's voice and invited him to join the Lakers' coaching staff on the spot.

"Coach, am I really qualified?" Stevens asked humbly.

"It may be a little uncomfortable at first, but I believe in your ability." Louis smiled, "I have prepared a special position for you on the coaching staff. It will be very interesting."

Stevens readily accepted: "Coach, my coach, I am absolutely willing to serve you!"

The long-lost "coach joke" made Louis roll his eyes: "Okay, come to the forum to sign the contract in a few days, and I will give you a holiday by then. The most important thing about moving from New York to Los Angeles is the change in mentality.

You can call me anytime if you have any questions.”