The Whip of the God of Basketball

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With the success of European players such as Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker from the Spurs, Pau Gasol from the Grizzlies, and Nowitzki from the Mavericks, the league's scouts, coaches, and managers are increasingly looking to Europe. This is a virgin resource land that has not been fully developed. Although as early as the 1980s and 1990s, European players had already begun to enter the NBA and achieved good results here, such as Kukoc, Petrovic, Schrempf, and Sabonis, all of whom have shown outstanding performance in the NBA. Basketball talent and became a member of the championship team.

But apart from these top players with amazing talents, some other outstanding European players have not been able to get many opportunities in the NBA, especially the white European guards. No one has been able to truly prove themselves in the NBA. Until the Spurs discovered Manu Ginobili, the Argentine swordsman showed amazing brilliance in the NBA. But Ginobili is Argentinian, and his playing style shows more of the enthusiasm of American players. It is difficult for those European-style guards to find their place in the NBA.

In comparison, tall inside players are much more popular, especially those big men who have outstanding defense and good passing skills. They have become the favorites of NBA scouts and team managers. For example, Bargyani was elected as the No. 1 pick in the NBA in 2006. He was also the first European player in NBA history to become the No. 1 pick. And unlike Andrew Bogut the previous year, he had not played in the NCAA and was not in the United States. Growing up in a basketball environment.

Judging from the situation in the first season, Bargyani's performance on the court is still far from people's expectations for the No. 1 pick. In particular, many people position him as the next Dirk Nowitzki, but overall It seems that there is still a long, long distance between him and Nowitzki. Therefore, there are still many doubts about the selection of European players. Many teams like to use the second round picks to select European players. Firstly, second-round picks are not valuable. Secondly, many European players cannot come immediately after being selected. When playing basketball, they usually have contracts.

So, when the 2007 draft came to an end, Fox-Leon took stock of what the Phoenix Suns had gained in the conference this year. A Turiaf, a Marc Gasol, a Dudley, and a Brent Barry— -This was acquired from the Spurs by the Suns in exchange for Splitter, and by the way, the trade exception obtained from the Lakers was sent to the Spurs.

At the same time, on the day the draft ended, news came from Phoenix that Jaskovicius, who had previously terminated his contract with the Warriors, decided to stay in the NBA. He signed a two-year contract with the Suns, and the contract amount is still under negotiation. . In this way, the Suns acquired five players in one draft, and when combined, they formed a standard five-man lineup. The big money in the paper media has been hungry for a long time, and they all said that Leon will perform a major operation on the Suns. Draft trades, selections and signings will just form a new lineup.

However, the most controversial thing about this operation is the acquisition of two European players at once. One is unknown except that he has a famous brother; the other has been proven to be unsuitable in the NBA. More importantly, in order to complete these selections, the Suns lost their Brazilian Lightning, the best sixth man last season, which is undoubtedly unacceptable to Phoenix fans.

So, the day after the draft, Leon and D'Antoni returned to Phoenix together. At the Phoenix International Airport, some fans waiting for them held up a sign in the airport lobby: "Massachusetts green** ghost, please go back. East Coast.” “We want Brazilian lightning!” “Boston’s icebergs will melt in the Nevada desert.”

Leon was not angry when he looked at these slogans. Instead, he said that these slogans were well written, quite poetic, metaphorical, and rich in imagery. Although Fox-Leon has achieved great success with the Boston Celtics, his arrival in the Suns did encounter criticism and opposition from many Phoenix fans. Because in the eyes of Suns fans, the Boston Celtics under Leon are a more terrifying defensive team than the San Antonio Spurs. They don't want the Suns, who have set off a whirlwind in the Western Conference, to change under Fox-Leon. It became a boring team that focused on defense.

Fortunately for them, D'Antoni announced a few days ago that he will stay in Phoenix to assist Fox-Leon as an assistant coach. This gave many people reassurance. After all, D'Antoni definitely didn't stay for defense. However, many fans were dissatisfied when the Suns sent Barbosa away during the draft, especially since all they got from Barbosa was Turiaf and a senior small forward from Boston University. Many fans thought there must be something fishy about it. . And the finger is pointed at Fox-Leon, not Steve Kerr.

Under a little hype from the local media in Phoenix, there was this small demonstration at the airport, which was regarded as a showdown from Phoenix fans on Fox-Leon. Leon and D'Antoni did not delay at the airport and immediately drove to the team headquarters. They wanted to report to the owner and general manager on the results of this draft and their views on team construction this season. Now is no longer the time to brag. After completing a wave of operations, it is necessary to have practical operating concepts and team building policies.

Entering the conference room at the team headquarters, owner Savo, general manager Steve Kerr, team president Jerry Colangelo, chief operating officer Rick Wiltz and other team executives were all inside. Obviously everyone is waiting for Leon and his team to return, because this draft is basically handed over to Leon and the coaching team, and the Suns' own scouting team basically plays no role. Leon could see that Noel Gillespie, the team's chief scout, was sitting in a corner with a sullen face. The scouting report he handed over during this draft basically had no effect at all.

Leon didn't care about this, because he knew that one day Gillespie would get used to it, just like Leon Popper, the player director and chief scout when he was with the Celtics, and was finally transferred to the communications department. Assistant Director, you are also very happy.

Look at boss Savo again. He has no expression. The enthusiasm and politeness he had when he first became a coach have disappeared. Capitalists are capitalists. When they recruit you, they want to kneel down and lick your feet. Once you start working for him, , if it can’t bring him immediate benefits in making money, he will turn his back on others.

Finally, Leon glanced at Steve Kerr. This guy still had a sweet smile on his face, revealing two charming dimples, which were set off by his lovely golden hair. As expected, he was a man who loved everyone. guy. Anyway, if something goes wrong with this operation, Leon will be blamed in the end. It seems that the idea that the head coach would get a share of the profit and the general manager would take the blame was wrong. After all, it was the boss who recruited Cole, and it was Cole who recruited Leon. Cole can make mistakes, but the boss cannot.

Leon took about five seconds to scan the three people, instantly deduced the thoughts revealed by their expressions in his mind, and then used these five seconds to find a place to sit down. He didn't hold any documents in his hand, whether paper or electronic, those things were not necessary for him. If necessary, he could recite the Gettysburg Address to the people in the conference room right now.

Seeing that no one spoke, Leon cleared his throat and started talking without any more nonsense: "The draft and trade have been settled for the time being, and everyone must already know the results. Before the new season starts, before the game actually starts, I I won’t waste too much time on my team building ideas, because after I tell them, some of you will have countless questions. In order to explain these questions, I have to do countless explanations, which will lead to Countless questions. In fact, there is only one best way to answer these questions, time and games. There are only two explanations I have to explain now, one is about Marc Gasol, I want to say that he will not come this year NBA, because he is still under contract. But my observation of him started when I was with the Boston Celtics. At that time, he was still at Lausanne College. He was a slow, stupid fat guy, far inferior to His brother. After that, he did not stay in the United States, but went to Spain. I chose him because he attracted me on two points. First, he never called himself Gasol, because Gasol represents his brother. , there is always Mark printed on the back of his jersey; secondly, this year my scouts have seen him play and sent me photos and videos. He is no longer a slow and stupid fat guy."

Leon speaks very fast, but clearly and concisely, and his magnetic voice and firm eyes add to his own persuasiveness. After saying this, Gillespie seemed to have something to say, but considering the Suns' drafts in recent years and the Celtics' drafts, he had nothing to say.

Leon continued: "As for Barbosa, he is a very good player. He won the Best Sixth Man last year. Trading him away seems to be a very wrong thing. But I want to say, Barbosa Sar is a very good scorer and rusher, and I would keep him if he was someone coming off the bench, but he is the sixth man on the team. In my opinion, the Phoenix Suns' sixth man is only There can be one alternative, and that is Steve Nash. Obviously Barbosa is not. Steve is already 33 years old, and it is unfair to put everything on his shoulders. Of course, some of you will doubt Jia Scovicius' ability, that's normal, but you can't doubt my ability. I'm done."

After Leon closed his mouth, boss Savo thought about it for a moment, applauded, and then said: "Everything is left to you."