The Rest, Only Noise

UPDATE: In Louie's past life, Billy Owens acted just like the Dominic Wilkins story 10 years ago.

In this life, Wilkins went to the Lakers smoothly, and there was no incident of "I hate polygamy the most" (1). So, Owens can only be a pioneer in this field and pave the way for Kobe and Francis to do the same in the future.

Future fans will have a hard time understanding how valuable Owens was to the NBA in 1991.

He's a combination of Tragic and Bird, and fans of the future will wonder about this and think he's the O.J. Mayo of the '90s, a C** that's known as the Janco combination.

But the problem is that Mayo no longer has absolute dominance before entering the university. After entering the NCAA, he was successively surpassed by Beasley and Rose.

And Owens, his potential has never been bankrupt, his hype has never stopped, until he played his first NBA game, fans all over the United States regarded him as a combination of tragic and Bird.

Considering the current status of the tragic master and Byrd, how strong is the combination of the two?

Therefore, as long as Owens is determined not to play for the Kings, there are countless teams willing to be the catcher.

What terrified Louis the most was that Lewis Shafir called and asked, "Is it possible to exchange Hank Gaithers for Billy Owens, coach Lu?"

Louie was originally very opinionated about his blind chicken trade with the Celtics, but he didn't expect his condition to worsen after the draft. .

He doesn't really think that the Miami media calls him the Godfather of the Heat, he really is the Godfather, right?

"If you want to make this deal, don't call me again." Louie said solemnly.

"Don't, Coach Lu, didn't I come to consult you?"

"My opinion is, you wash your head in cold water now, sober up, and then seriously inquire about intelligence, keep in touch with me, if you want to take advantage of this mess."

"Okay, I'll do as you say."

"Why are you still standing still?"

"Do I really have to wash my hair in cold water?"

Louis asked with a smile, "Do you think I'm joking with you? You just say you can't wash it, right?"

"Wash, wash, I'm going to wash."

Shafir hung up.

Louie finds Baylor and asks him to help him find out what's going on with Owens.

Currently, the Kings are not planning to give up Owens.

They wanted to sit down with Owens and have a good talk, but Owens was firm.

On the other hand, a very unusual piece of news came out of Portland.

Rick Pitino, who has been with the Blazers for four years, decided not to renew his contract with the Blazers after friendly negotiation with the team.

On the other hand, head coach cover letters are everywhere in the Blazers general manager's office.

The most high-profile of these applicants is former Lakers coach Pat Riley.

Also, Phil Jackson was sacked from the Bulls with the intention of returning to the Knicks, but Louie introduced him to Orlando.

The general manager of the Magic is John Nash, who has known Louie for many years. Their head coach just got out of class and is short of people.

Louie won't let Jackson back for two reasons. One reason is that the Knicks' coaching team has too many people. In the decision-making circle alone, there are Tomjanovich, Zhao Yuanzheng, Billy Donovan, Doug Mo and Jeff, who just turned from assistant to full-time assistant coach. Van Gundy. Another reason is the fear of introducing wolves into the house. At the beginning, he let Jackson be an assistant coach because of the opponent's reputation, the identity of the old Nick, and his lack of foundation when he arrived in New York.

Now that Louie has transformed the Knicks into his own shape, and Jackson has been the head coach of the Bulls for two years, will he be willing to be an assistant coach all the time? Thinking of his various deeds in the Bulls and Lakers, Louie didn't want the same thing to happen to him.

Keeping the status quo, he and Jackson still have friends who talk and laugh. If something goes wrong, they may not even be friends.

July 4

Louie meets Jack Hickma and Chris Jackson at the Blue House.

Hikma is a humorous white man who impresses Louie with his inside skills.

Although he offered to retire with the Knicks, Louie has no plans to extend his contract.

After all, he is over 35 years old, and in this era, only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar can still maintain a competitive state over 35 years old.

Last season, Sikma still averaged 10 points per game in the SuperSonics, but when he came to the Knicks, his role was different.

Louie wants him to be like Sam Bowie in 1989-90, holding up the team's second team.

"No problem, Coach Lu, I will do my best." Shikma said affirmatively.

Compared with Shikma, Louis's most important signing this summer, Chris Jackson, did not show the legendary eccentricity.

The rumored Jackson is an eccentric, self-serving, ineffective guard who can't see his teammates.

But the first words he saw Louis were: "Hello, sir."

Not the coach, not the dude, not starting with a black "what\'sup" but "hello" and "sir."

Is this what you call "eccentricity"? Not as slangy as a black man, but a little more educated young white man, weird?

Louie didn't think it was weird, but he also didn't think how good Jackson's character was.

He's a reserved, well-spoken man who reminds Louie of Dale Ellis.

"CJ (Jackson nickname), I won't give you a position right away, because you just arrived and I don't know you very well. Before training camp starts, you have to do a comprehensive medical examination, and then pass training camp and preseason. The performance of the game to win their position." Louie said calmly, "Except for Brad Rohos, the Knicks have no extra position for useless players."

"I see, sir."

The Knicks have also encountered a little problem with the extension of Stockton and Salley.

Baylor wants to lower the price, but both Stockton and Salley are the team's merits. They have finally ushered in their contract year. Of course, they also want to sign a big contract while the salary cap is soaring.

Stockton wants a multi-year deal worth $3 million.

Baylor wants to press to 2.5 million.

Salley also wants a big contract, despite his mediocre stats.

Perennial averages around 5-6 points and 5 rebounds, but he is a key player in murder pressing. If it weren't for the Knicks, his numbers would be better than he is now, and even to compensate him, a big contract should be given to him.

Baylor, however, believes that after Selly changed to a vegetarian diet, he would definitely not be able to maintain his state for a few years, and the big contract would definitely fall on him in the end.

After Louis heard the news, he came to Baelor himself.

"You're here, what do you think about the contract between those two guys?" Baylor wanted to find out Louis.

"General (Stockton)'s contract can be generous and give as much as possible, but a long-term contract is required." Louis paused, "As for Selly, try to keep the price down as much as possible, and limit the contract renewal period to 4 years. "

Louie remembers that in his previous life, Selly lay the crown in the latter three consecutive bulls.

Considering how little the Bulls lacked insiders, and how precious a mobile leader like him is, if he can only play as a substitute for the Bulls in the last three consecutive companies, it means that his competitive state has dropped significantly at that time, so , not only can't make a long appointment with Sally, but also find a way to find a spare tire.

Louie gave directions, and Baylor knew what to do.

On July 8, the Knicks agreed to a six-year, $21 million extension with John Stockton.

If the change in average player earnings hasn't been felt very much in Wilson, then Stockton is definitely a good case.

In 1988, Stockton and the Knicks reached a four-year, $4 million extension, which at the time was second only to the max contract.

But now, the million-dollar annual salary is just a cloud.

Stockton's annual salary has tripled in just four years.

Since Stockton, a white player who relies on his brain to play, has a long peak period, signing a long-term contract with him is guaranteed. He himself is willing to sign long-term contracts to protect his life. Only superstars like Wilson and Ewing would consider signing short-term contracts to maximize their personal interests.

Back then, Ewing had an annual salary of 3 million, and now there are so many top players with an annual salary of 3 million. Even John Sely signed a three-year, 8 million renewal contract a few days later.

The third year of Seley's contract is a team option.

Complete the extension of Stockton and Salley, in theory, the operation of the Knicks this summer has been completed.

Louis can safely focus his attention elsewhere, appreciate the chaos caused by Owens' illness, and maybe take advantage of the opportunity to make a profit.

July 10

Negotiations between the Kings and Owens' camp have officially broken down.

According to the sources, the King threatened Owens that if he failed to sign with the team and report to training camp on time, they would hold on to the other party's signing rights until he retired~www.novelmt.com~ Owens was even more stubborn, He told the Kings general manager in person: "If the only way I can play in the NBA is in Sacramento, I'd rather not play. I can go to Europe, Asia, even Africa, but never California."

The New York Times sneered at Owens: "Billy Owens has brought the moral standard of professional players to a lower level, far lower than Erwin's. Hayes and Rick Barry. You keep saying that you won't go to California, that's because the California team that drafted you isn't called the Lakers, and if it was the Lakers, you would climb to Los Angeles even if you climbed."

Owens dared to say so, not afraid of being ridiculed.

The king considers Owens their chosen son.

As a result, Owens is the son of the opposite. For the Kings, who are in urgent need of reinforcement, it is the only way to stop the loss by selling Owens' signing rights when the offseason is just beginning, when Owens is most valuable. way.

⑴The real Wilkins refused to report after being selected by the Jazz, and was picked up by the Eagles.