The Whip of the God of Basketball

On June 26, it started to rain in New York. This metropolis located in a high latitude area is affected by two powerful warm currents, making the climate hot and humid in summer, with frequent heavy rains. The rain washed away the heat and dust brought by the city's operation for a day, bringing a rare freshness in summer. People who had been busy all day began to finish their work in the evening and left their workplaces to return to their homes. residence.

Danny Ainge, on the other hand, was standing in front of the glass window of the small restaurant on the 18th floor of the Four Seasons Hotel in New York, staring at the pouring rain outside in a daze.

Five hours ago, Celtics owner Grospack met here with Timberwolves owner Taylor. The two exchanged views on Garnett's trade and reached some consensus to a certain extent. As the team president, Ainge certainly knows that reaching a consensus is still two Pacific Oceans away from the success of the transaction. The meeting between the bosses only means that the terms of this transaction can be discussed openly.

Of course, this is already a big progress for Anji. After the meeting with McHale, he thought that once the Timberwolves reinforcement transaction was completed, the Celtics would have no hope. Unexpectedly, there would be such a sudden turn of events. out. That night, McHale called Ainge, hoping to raise the level of trade talks between the two teams from the general manager level to the owner level.

So on this day, Angie arranged a meeting between Grosspek and Taylor.

This is also the first time that Grospack has truly participated in the team's draft and trade since becoming the owner. Before, he trusted Anji extremely and left everything to Anji to handle. Now faced with such a major transaction that may require the team to pay a lot of money, Grosspek wants to personally participate in it to see how such a complicated and large transaction is completed.

However, even though it is personal participation, in the end all the details, decisions and operations still have to be handled by Anji. The two bosses chatted at the dining table for an hour and a half, chatting and laughing, but in the end they didn't come up with any substantive results.

Therefore, Angie misses Fox-Leon very much at this moment. When such rumors were flying all over the sky and it was difficult to tell whether they were true or not, Anji especially hoped that this guy with a sharp eye like a bald eagle would sit next to her and give her a heads up.

Although the two usually contradict each other and make trouble, at this juncture, Anji looked around and found that only Leon was the most reliable assistant. To complete this deal, many achievements are required. Anji can be sure that the recent rumors that are secretly beneficial to the deal must have been released by Leon through his influence in the New York media. To be honest, if these rumors leaked out of Boston, it would be too easy to see through, but the New York media is mixed and there are many and wide sources of news, which is a good place to fish in troubled waters.

Ainge had to admire that Leon had the foresight to give up trying to please those old guys in Boston and chose to cultivate his own power in New York, the largest sports media city in the United States.

Therefore, he especially needs Leon to clear his mind and make a good final kick in this somewhat chaotic situation.

There are many, many trade rumors in the NBA. Most of them look beautiful, but in the end they are difficult to take shape. In fact, most of the transactions that have been rumored are close to completion, and many trading plans are directly killed on the general manager's phone line. And most of those deals that are close to taking shape are aborted because of some seemingly insignificant details. It might be a physical examination, a word from a star friend, a phone call, or a piece of news.

In short, the next few hours will determine the fate of the Celtics in the 2003-2004 season, and even the fate of the Celtics for several seasons.

But just when Anji needed Leon so much, and Anji also heard that Leon had fallen to New York, there was no news from Leon at all in two days. Leon's call was never answered. Later he called Khomeinis. Leon seemed to have changed his mobile phone number for this draft. After that, he looked for Cowens and even Woj, but there was no way to contact Leon. He seemed to have disappeared from the world, as if to distance himself from all the rumors.

In addition to these two rumors, more than one team has also made a trade offer to the Timberwolves, including the Orlando Magic, Denver Nuggets, Atlanta Hawks, etc., but Anji can tell at a glance that these teams are all here. To raise the price, none of them could offer as rich a bargaining chip as the Celtics, and they didn't expect the Celtics to have been laying the groundwork for so long just to get Garnett.

Since Leon doesn't show up, Angie needs to think about many things by herself. Standing in front of the glass window and looking at the big fish, Anji made a calculation in his mind. Putting aside the difficulties caused by the NBA's complicated transaction process, there are currently several unstable factors, or difficulties, in this transaction.

First, the Timberwolves' asking price. The Timberwolves have not officially made an offer yet, but judging from McHale's tone, they are likely to want Antoine Walker plus Gilbert Arenas plus the team's second overall pick. Maybe With a certain addition, this can almost form a starter for an NBA team. Anji would definitely not agree to such a huge price.

However, Anji also knows that when it comes to transactions, selling a house will always ask for an exorbitant price to increase one's own bottom line. It can definitely be negotiated in the future, and he is not particularly worried about this.

The second point lies in the internal opinion of the Celtics. Until now, there is still a second voice within the Celtics. They believe that an arrogant player like Garnett is not suitable for the Celtics and they need a new player. He was selected by the Celtics from the beginning and is a pure green-blooded player who grew up in the Celtic culture. Because Crosspack is not the only owner, the entire shareholder group is now deeply divided.

If the Timberwolves agree to the trade in the end, but the Celtics veto the trade internally, it would be a joke.

The third point, which is also quite important, is the intention of the protagonist of the transaction, Kevin Garnett. Since the beginning of the offseason, Garnett has been involved in trade rumors. However, he has never made any remarks or statements. Instead, he is vacationing in his hometown of South Carolina. All the trends related to him are his. Exposed by my agent and friends.

There is no doubt that Garnett's own inner thoughts are the most important, and this is also the most unpredictable thing for Angie now.

The rain outside the window is getting heavier and heavier. There is still an hour and a half before the start of the draft, and Angie is about to leave.

……………………

At this time, hundreds of miles away in Mauldin, South Carolina, Kevin Garnett was in his hometown villa. The small town of Mauldin in the evening had a unique charm. This was Garnett's day. favorite time period. Because he still remembers that when he was in high school, he would play ball on a small court near his home park during holidays, and every evening, the park administrator would come over with a broom to chase him away. And he would pretend to leave, and then sneak back to the court, taking advantage of the afterglow of the evening to complete shots again and again.

Now, he has an independent basketball court in his own courtyard, with a solid carbon basket, plastic floor and excellent drainage system, but this cannot bring back the feeling of playing ball secretly in the small park until the sunset.

He has grown up. He is already 27 years old. Next season he will receive a salary of 28 million, becoming the highest paid person in the entire NBA season. He is the richest player in the league and a successful businessman. Countless people love him. , and countless people hate him. He loves basketball, loves Minnesota, and loves the Timberwolves. He is a man with rich emotions. He has thought more than once that he would pour all his blood into the ice and snow of Minnesota until the ice and snow there melt and bring them a total champion.

But eight years have passed with no progress.

Garnett looked at the slowly setting sun and thought about the recent trade rumors, the messages Andy Miller sent him, and the man in Boston who had been insisting for many years that he wanted to get him. , who was originally as firm as steel, found that his heart was shaken a little bit.

He also fell into distress and violent conflict because of this.

"The Finals..." One word flashed through Garnett's mind. The Boston Celtics actually reached the Finals this season. Just two years ago, in the All-Star Game, he said that they must fight for The qualification for the championship came to him. He laughed it off at the time, but now he has achieved it.

Nothing makes a man feel more excited and admired than fulfilling his promise.

The sun had completely set, and Garnett stood up from the chair on the balcony. He decided to watch TV at night and watch the draft. At this time, his wife Brandy downstairs shouted: "Kevin! Your friend is here!"

"Friend? Who could it be?"

(Sorry, due to network problems when I was writing the manuscript, the two chapters were mixed up when I saved them. The first half of this chapter can't be found. I added it in a hurry. I'm really, really sorry. But the big chapter will be published tomorrow. Once the recommendation is blocked, there will be a small explosion, and I hope all book friends will support me. I would like to say sorry again and send you a red envelope.)