The rest is just noise

Trent Tucker was like a frustrated ball: "So, everything last night was the 'Last Supper'?"

"Not really, we want you to have a great night, this has nothing to do with the deal."

Louis did not give Tucker any more information, but personally informed him of the transaction.

Tucker left Louis' office.

This deal was negotiated by DeBusschere. The Knicks had nothing not for sale except Stockton and Ellis, so the Lakers came to the door.

The defeat in last season's Finals made them realize that the team needs two to three players who can create space for Magic and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on the outside.

This season, they changed their original high profile and moved forward calmly.

In this trade with the Knicks, they sent Ronnie Lester and their 1985 first-round pick.

Tucker can immediately change the Lakers' lack of shooters.

This season, Tucker has produced the best statistics of his career under Louis, averaging 12 points per game, scoring 1.8 three-pointers per game, and shooting 38% from the field.

This is a player the Lakers desperately need.

After the transaction occurred, the New York media discussed it a lot.

The last time Walker was traded, it can be seen as a waste utilization, and the Alice that was exchanged can really play.

What about this time? Tucker had just played the best performance of his career and was sent away before the buttery smell of the mushy birthday cake in the locker room completely disappeared?

Moreover, what he got back was Ronnie Lester, who didn't look useful at all.

Lester has been in the league for almost five years and was a guard with great development prospects in the early days. However, when Louis was doing scouting, he concluded that it would be difficult for this person to achieve anything in the NBA. His skills were flawed and his body was not that healthy.

.

As a result, what hindered Leicester's progress was really his health.

Tucker left New York the day the trade was announced.

Lester barely passed the physical examination after half a day, and he met with Louis in DeBusschere's office.

Seeing his uncomfortable walking posture, Louis knew that this man wouldn't be able to fight for long.

"We are a team that seeks breakthroughs and progress, so Ronnie, you don't have to be nervous." DeBusschere comforted generously.

Louie communicated with him much less.

They just introduced each other and said a few words of greeting, then nothing more happened.

The lineup has changed continuously, and the atmosphere in the Knicks' locker room is not as active as before.

The successive trades made the players feel that no matter how well they played, anyone might be sent away.

Louis had no intention of reassuring people. He just talked to Stockton and Ellis separately. He gave them assurances and let them know that he was part of the team's long-term plan.

Others played a three-game losing streak with worries.

The night the Knicks lost three games in a row was the last day of 1984.

Louis, who was in the midst of it, had not realized how special 1984 was that was about to become history.

Not to mention other industries in the world, as far as basketball is concerned, this is the first year that the NBA implemented a salary cap, which has successfully brought some teams on the verge of bankruptcy back to life;

The development of cable TV and the NBA's professional performance in last season's labor negotiations won the appreciation of CBS. Therefore, through a multi-pronged approach, the 1983-84 NBA season became the focus of the TV media, with live broadcasts one after another.

, Bird and Magic met at the right time, leading the two teams with the most storylines in the league to reach the finals, pushing professional basketball to the top.

Next, the 1984 generation entered the alliance;

Then on the last day of this year, in a corner of the world unknown to Louis, in a dilapidated old house on the outskirts of Akron, Ohio, the 16-year-old girl Gloria gave birth to a child, who was later named:

LeBron Raymond James.

On January 1, 1985, Zhao Yuanzheng returned from a business trip for several months.

He completed 100 scouting reports and had 30 highly recommended candidates.

These reports were placed in Louis' office, and the training atmosphere in the Blue Palace became a little more tense than before.

The panic caused by the trade of Walker and Tucker continues to affect the Knicks' preparations for the game.

The day after Zhao Yuanzheng returned, Bernard King returned from injury.

Seeing him reminded Louis of his $900,000.

"Lao Jin, this is your first day of working for free, so you need to be more energetic." Louis encouraged him in a weird way.

The King of New York didn't know why Louis wanted to call him "Old King". If this was a way of showing intimacy, he would refuse.

To this day, Louis has not figured out what to do with Bernard King.

At first, he wanted to exchange this guy for some equivalent resources, but after a while, he found that if there were several games he wanted to win, this guy was the guarantee.

Although Jin didn't deal with himself, he didn't bring that emotion to the court.

At the beginning of the season, I was passive for a few games because I couldn't accept that I had to work for nothing for a year, but I recovered later.

He is the Knicks' most threatening player, and he can break down the defenses of every team in the league when he's in good shape.

If such a person is willing to play second fiddle like Wilkins next to Magic or Thomas next to Bird, he will definitely be a strong player.

But Louis could see that Bernard King was not someone who wanted to be inferior to others.

Therefore, how to trade him, who to trade him to, and how to maximize his value are what Louis and the coaching staff need to study.

Before determining his future, Louis naturally wanted to ease the relationship with him. Even if they didn't deal with each other, they couldn't be too stiff on the surface.

Jin himself knew that he could not publicly antagonize Louis, otherwise it would bring serious consequences to the team and himself. This was a lesson he bought with a year of hard work, which cost a total of 900,000 US dollars.

The Knicks took a break from the last day in 1984 until January 4, 1985.

The opponent they were waiting for was the Boston Celtics, the dominant player in the Eastern Conference.

The Celtics have had some internal problems recently, and Maxwell doesn't want to continue playing as a substitute because he has already developed a three-point shooting rate of over 30%.

Last season, Louis promised him that if he could develop his three-point shooting, he would give him a chance to compete with others.

Bird can't compete. Thomas and Long are not in the same position. After all, Sampson is the league's number one center, so it's normal that he can't compete. Laimbeer, he doesn't think he can't compare in any way.

K.C. Jones is a good guy. He can calm the atmosphere, but he can't resolve conflicts.

In tonight's game, the Celtics were obviously affected by the atmosphere within the team and actually allowed the Knicks to see the dawn of victory.

After the first half, the Celtics only led by 4 points.

Bird's touch was poor, Thomas sprained his calf in the opening game and left the game, Maxwell and Laimbeer couldn't deal with each other, and John Long was guarded.

The reason why the Celtics took the lead at halftime was Sampson's talent that transcended the entire game.

His evolution is beyond imagination.

This year, he developed a top-of-arc three-point shot with a shooting rate of over 35%. His turn-over jump shots and turn-around fadeaways after low post plays have become sharper and more lethal as his core strength has improved.

What's even more frightening is that Sampson combined his back-to-the-basket offense and face-to-basket offense into an offensive system.

Amid the chaos within the Celtics, Sampson averaged 24 points, 13 rebounds, 4 assists and 4.4 blocks per game, ranking first on the MVP simulation list.

His unprecedented style of play and the way he dominated the game was called "Mr. Unique" by Chick Hearn, the legendary announcer of the Celtics' rival Lakers.

The evolution that Sampson has achieved today convinced Louis that the plan he made for the other party was correct.

In the first two years, he was a substitute to strengthen his muscles, and then he learned positioning skills, starting from the basket leader, and then became a green leaf next to Bird and Thomas.

These are the foundations for Sampson's transformation. Now he has grown into an unimaginable monster on both offense and defense. It is logical.

In the second half, Dale Ellis' three-point touch gradually exploded.

After being limited to only 9 points by the Celtics in the first half, he scored 30 points in the second half, totaling 39 points.

However, his offensive firepower is fierce, and his defensive problems are also huge.

After coaching him for so many games, Louis finally knows what kind of player Ellis is like.

Not very good at grabbing rebounds, not very good at coordinating his teammates, but a master of catching and shooting, isn't this Michael Redd?

He is less capable of holding the ball than Reed and has more of a selfless heart.

Louis doesn't blame Ellis for his defense. He has maximized his strengths. The Knicks lost to the Celtics by 11 points.

Sampson played 37 minutes and dominated from the first second to the end of the game. He scored 44 points, 23 rebounds, 6 assists and 8 blocks with a shooting percentage of 80+% and only made 2 turnovers.

When Louis saw his old partner K.C, he looked helpless.

"How did that guy become so good?" Louis felt that Sampson was a level better than last season.

Sampson is definitely the number one center in the league now, and the only one in the league who has the most influence on both offense and defense.

He is the best defender in the league and one of the top five attackers in the league. This combination of offensive and defensive attributes is unmatched by Bird and Magic.

"He and Dave (Cowans) trained all summer long." K.C laughed. "It's all a result of sweat."

Because of the hard power loss, Louis had nothing to say.

"Tsk, tsk, if I had known better, I wouldn't have left." Louis made a little joke and advised, "A player of Ralph's size is very fragile, you have to protect him."

K.C said: "Of course."

The Knicks and Celtics met for the third time this season and still ended in failure.

Louis accepted the interview thoughtfully and then walked into the players' tunnel.

What should we do if our goal is to overthrow this Celtics team?

First of all, they have the best pure point guard currently in service; they have the league's number one player; and then, they have the league's number one center who is 24 years and 5 months old.

"What the hell, this is all!!!"