The Whip of the God of Basketball

Time is fast approaching in July, and the Phoenix Suns' summer league is about to begin. They will start their first game at the Las Vegas training camp on July 9. D'Antoni changed from the team's head coach to an assistant coach and had to start directing the summer league. But what surprised D'Antoni was that Fox-Leon also wanted to participate in the team management and talent selection of the summer league, which puzzled D'Antoni.

Before departure, Leon explained: "A coach must start by understanding the most marginalized players and rookies before he can truly get in touch with the core of the team's culture. When I was in Boston, I liked to participate in the summer league. You You know, that old fox Pat Riley also likes to go to the summer league to hunt for treasures, so don't miss any opportunity to strengthen."

D'Antoni did not object, because if Leon accompanied him, he would feel better. D'Antoni has not fully adjusted to the psychological gap from head coach to assistant coach.

But this time in Las Vegas, Leon will not meet that old fox Pat Riley again, because the Miami Heat have always participated in the Summer League in Orlando, and the Las Vegas League is mainly for players in the Midwest. team. There are a total of twenty-two teams participating in the summer league this time, but the Suns will not play against every team. The current summer league format is a championship. The players on both sides are of course fringe players and rookies who participated in the team's training camp, and there are many hidden gems among them.

So after arriving at the hotel in Las Vegas, Leon turned on the computer and started looking at the information of these players at the table. Except for rookies, these players were all selected by the Suns' scouts and basketball talent department. Among them is an old face familiar to Leon, that is Marcus Banks. This guy was waived by the team after Leon left the Celtics. The Suns signed a short contract with him in the summer last year. After playing for a year, they asked him to continue playing in the summer league this summer to see if he continued to sign with him based on his performance.

It's so cruel in the NBA. If you have the ability to be a star, the team will wave a check and beg you to sign a contract; if you don't have the ability and are a marginal player, you have to work hard for a short contract and play part-time jobs and play in the summer league. , playing NBDL. Leon has long been accustomed to this. In a place where capital operations are extremely developed, it is so realistic and naked.

Leon quickly scanned these people's heights, game data, and scout evaluations in his mind, and used his unique picture memory method and super abstract thinking ability to evaluate each person. The result is that - except for the rookies who have not yet played, basically everyone in this group can be used.

"Did the Suns' scouts work for a living before? Or did the Suns in Arizona dry their heads? Every year in the summer league, there are so many players with potential and characteristics, and In this list, basically all those players have been skillfully avoided." Sitting at the table, Leon couldn't help complaining to D'Antoni.

The Suns are different from the Celtics. The Celtics' scouting system was basically built by him. He started from the most basic scouting work and groped little by little, and weaved one of the best scouting work networks in the league. one. Now, he can no longer use some resources, and the Suns' draft performance in recent years is really beyond praise. Since drafting Stoudemire in 2002, they've had several draft picks with little to show for it, including drafting Rajon Rondo in 2006 and then sending him to the Celtics -- after Leon had already left. Celtic.

"You know, people in Phoenix don't like the draft. They like to bring frustrated, down-and-out people here to be reborn, just like this city stands in the desert. Paul Westphal, Charles - Barkley, Steve Nash, there is a magic here, but this magic rarely works on rookies." D'Antoni was lying on the bed, talking to Leon like a troubadour.

Leon smiled and didn't say anything. In fact, D'Antoni was right. The Suns do have the magic power to bring stars to nirvana and elevate them to a higher level. In the Celtics, Westphal was a newcomer who couldn't live up to expectations. As a result, when he arrived in the Suns, he led the team to the finals and faced his old team, the Celtics; in the 76ers, Barkley could not find a breakthrough. , came to the Suns and experienced a dream in 1993; Nash was just an All-Star in the Mavericks, but became the MVP in the Suns for two consecutive years.

This is one of the reasons why Leon chose the Suns. He does not lack championships, but he wants to make new improvements in the coaching position.

……………………

In the afternoon, Leon left the hotel and prepared to visit the arena in Las Vegas. Today there will be a training camp at the Thomas \u0026 Mack Center Stadium, and the Suns have been allocated time from two to four o'clock to practice. The Suns' training coaches and staff had already arrived, and Leon told D'Antoni that he was going to drive out for a walk. It didn't matter if he went out for a walk, the security at the hotel and casino became tense again. Anyway, every time Leon arrived in Las Vegas, it was no exaggeration to say that the whole city was on alert.

But this time, Leon asked for a car from the hotel and drove directly to the suburbs. After receiving the news, the managers and owners of the casinos felt relieved, because in the suburbs of Las Vegas, all residents District and amusement park, no big casino. However, just like last time, the owner of the hotel and casino where Leon was staying still sent two security guards to follow him in a car. This was not because he was neurotic or was trying to stir up trouble, but because these big gambling lords must be treated with certain restrictions, otherwise once they take action They won't be able to stop.

Leon drove southwest, along 515th Avenue, which is the road to the Hoover Dam. The two hotel bodyguards thought Fox-Leon was going to the Hoover Dam. The managers and security guards at the Las Vegas casino knew that Leon loved going to the Hoover Dam and often stayed there all day. But when the car drove to Henderson, a suburb of Las Vegas, Leon found an intersection and got off, driving the car into a residential area of ​​Henderson.

Henderson is a satellite city of Las Vegas. It is located in the southwest corner of Las Vegas, at the junction of Nevada and Arizona. There are no casinos, amusement parks, Grand Canyon or scenic spots here. It is pure There are many single-family houses or small villas, and even manors located here. Because it is so close to Arizona, many Arizona residents come here to invest in real estate and buy houses.

Leon drove into a residential community, a suburban satellite city like the United States, with single-family houses with small lawns and gardens outside, clean and tidy roads, and lush trees on both sides. Some families with slightly larger houses will also have swimming pools and swings, which together form a picture of a beautiful home for middle-class American families. The same is true for the residential community where Leon arrived, but there is one thing missing here, and that is people.

Leon drove around this newly built community several times, but saw no one. The road, yard, lawn, and swings were all empty. Finally, he met two people, the two security guards who were following him in a car.

Leon stopped the car on the side of the road, and then two security guards in black suits also stopped the car. Leon waved to them. The two looked at each other, but walked over. For Leon, the security guards at various casinos had been trained on how to deal with it, and one of them was not to be dismissed casually. Now let the two of them pass, of course they would be happy to.

Leon took out two thin cigars from his pocket and handed them to the two of them. The two shook their heads and expressed their disapproval. Another rule of dealing with Fox-Leon was not to accept any small favors from him.

Leon smiled and said, "I just won some money in Las Vegas. You don't need to treat me like a serious criminal." Yes, after winning a little money, I directly won a casino with a cash flow shortage. Finally went bankrupt.

"Don't worry, I won't be gambling today. I will go back in a while, and I will attend a training camp in the afternoon. I just came to this place specifically to look at the house. Can you give me some advice?" Leon asked.

When I heard that Leon was going to buy a house here, it was scary enough that he was based in Phoenix, but he also wanted to buy a house in Henderson? But one of them still said, "It's so easy for you to buy a house here. But it’s best to move as soon as possible because house prices will continue to rise.”

Leon asked again: "Will it continue to rise? I don't think anyone lives here."

Another person said: "Although it seems that no one lives in them, in fact, these houses have been sold, and they are all owned by owners. Many of them are from Arizona and Phoenix."

"Have you bought a house here?"

"Well, no, our salary is not enough. But many dancers or waiters in the hotel have houses here. It is easy to get a loan now." "Yes, it is very easy."

Leon nodded after hearing this, turned around and got in the car, ready to go back to Las Vegas. Recently, he has no interest in harvesting casinos. He thinks that before the season has started, if he wants to harvest, he will make a big one.

Thanks to Deng Yao for the big red envelope!