Coach: Coaching the Grizzlies at the beginning, playing the bantam

Chapter 234: Targeting the next home, the wealthy Knicks!Reinforcement?Be a rich man and have fun!
On June 6, Lu Yong received a call from Knicks owner James Dolan.

"Hello Lu, I know you have been waiting for this call for a long time. Why don't we come out tomorrow night to talk about cooperation?"

"Okay, you decide the time and place." Lu Yong chuckled, and the highlight was finally here.

Although the Knicks entered the playoffs last season ranked sixth in the Eastern Conference, they were swept out by the Heat's Big Three in the first round.The management's dismissal of coach D'Antoni in the middle of the season was a sign of dissatisfaction with the status quo. If not, Lu Yong would not have turned down invitations from other teams and waited for the Knicks to take the bait.

Dolan's initiative to contact him was expected by Lu Yong. This guy had shown full sincerity in order to invite Larry Brown. Now that Lu Yong has just led the 76ers to win the championship, Dolan, who is rich and wealthy, cannot miss this opportunity.

The location they agreed on was at a star-rated hotel in downtown Miami. The owner of this hotel was very familiar with Dolan and arranged a private room with high privacy to ensure that reporters would not disturb their conversation.

After Lu Yong arrived, he entered the room and saw two people, the elegant Dolan, who was wearing a black striped suit and sitting on the sofa, and his number one confidant Donnie Walsh, who is also the current basketball manager of the Knicks. President.

"Hello, Lu, I'm glad you can come to the appointment." Dolan stood up and greeted him cordially.

"I hope our negotiations today go well." Lu Yong smiled and shook hands with Dolan.

"Of course, since I took the initiative to contact you, I came with sincerity." Dolan smiled. "This is my right-hand man, the current president of team operations, Donnie Walsh."

"I have admired you for a long time. I have read your autobiography. It is very exciting." Lu Yong turned around and shook hands with Walsh.

It’s not that Lu Yong was being polite to him. He had indeed read Donny Walsh’s autobiography. Not to mention that the old man in front of him had proven his ability by becoming Dolan’s confidant. Let’s just talk about his career resume. It's exciting enough.

Walsh was born in Manhattan, New York. In college, he was admitted to the famous basketball school North Carolina to join the school team. Later, he participated in the draft and was selected by the NBA Philadelphia Warriors. However, he never played in the NBA and became a basketball coach.

This guy first served as an assistant coach for several college teams, including 12 seasons at the University of South Carolina, working with McGurney, the head coach of the University of South Carolina Gamecocks.After that, he was selected by the Denver Nuggets to become Larry Brown's assistant. He served as the Nuggets head coach for a year and a half in 1979 before Doug Moe took his place.

He went on to become the Pacers' general manager and made a highly controversial choice in 1987, selecting Reggie Miller in the NBA Draft over homegrown hero Steve Alfoy of Indiana University. Virtue.

This decision is very far-sighted now. Miller is already a famous figure in NBA history, while Alford is just a mediocre player.After that, Walsh became the team president until the 07-08 season. During his tenure, the Pacers reached the playoffs 17 times in 16 seasons.

In 2008, he joined the New York Knicks and became the team's new president of basketball operations, and soon became Dolan's confidant by virtue of his personal ability. The reason is that after taking office, he immediately started to resolve several long-term contracts of the Knicks.

He first traded Jamal Crawford for Al Harrington, and then sent away Marty Collins and Zach Randolph in exchange for Cuttino Mobley and Tim Thomas.Although the players exchanged did not help the team much, their contracts all expired in 10 years, saving the Knicks $2700 million in total wages, giving the team enough salary space to sign contracts. Expired free agents.

Facts have proved that it was these operations that laid the foundation for the Knicks to return to the playoffs. Using the freed up salary space, the Knicks successively acquired "Little Overlord" Stoudemire, "Little Melon" Anthony, and J.R. - Smith has several tough players and even signed "Boxing Champion" Chandler from the free market.

It is no exaggeration to say that the Knicks are what they are today because of Donnie Walsh's single-handed operation. This is why Dolan trusts him so much.

No boss would dislike an employee who handles mistakes for him. Several junk contracts issued by Dolan were skillfully handled by Walsh. Let’s not talk about his ability. This operation can be said to be full of human connections and sophistication. I don’t want to be promoted. It’s hard to get a raise.

"I should say this. Coach Lu is now a popular player in the league. I have admired you for a long time." Walsh smiled and waved his hand, motioning for Lu Yong to take a seat.

Looking at the posture of the two people, Lu Yong knew that today's negotiation would be smoother. This interview was more of a meeting in a sense.

Donnie Walsh's power as president of basketball operations is greater than that of the general manager. It is impossible for him not to know that Lu Yong's coaching of the Knicks will definitely affect his work and rights.

Even so, Walsh still treated Lu Yong with enough enthusiasm, which shows that he and Dolan have communicated with each other for a long time. The result is self-evident. The two have reached a certain consensus and are ready to win over Lu Yong together. Brave.

After the food was served, Dolan said with a smile: "Lou, I know you are a smart person. You should have guessed that I would come to you, and you also have the desire to coach the Knicks, so I will get straight to the point and talk about practical matters." .I believe you have the ability to lead the Knicks out of the quagmire. Whether it is building the team or training new players, the management will support you unconditionally. Problems that can be solved with money are never problems. As long as the results satisfy me, you only need to follow your own path. When thinking about signings, you don’t have to consider the luxury tax.”

"I just like to talk about cooperation with a cheerful person like you, so I'll make it clear." Lu Yong said with a smile. "Actually, I am not greedy for power, but I can only say that there are certain conditions for winning the championship. I need to fully participate in the team's draft and recruitment. The management can provide suggestions, but the final decision-making power rests with me. . This is not a bad thing for the Knicks. I believe you should be very clear about my vision."

Dolan nodded, obviously making plans to delegate power to Lu Yong. "Of course it's no problem. Your eye for seeing people is top-notch in the league. If you can't show this bit of sincerity, I won't take the initiative to ask you out."

Lu Yong smiled knowingly. Dolan's willingness to delegate power to him basically solved most of the problems in the negotiation process.

The remaining standards are flexible. If you can fight for them, fight for them. If you can't win, it won't delay Lu Yong's efforts to build the Knicks into a championship team.

The most important thing is that in the SuperSonics and 76ers, he needed to find ways to save money for his boss, but when he coached the Knicks, he finally got rid of the trouble of money. This is a head coach's paradise, which is simply not too satisfying.

The Knicks have deep pockets and are profitable despite having the worst record in the league. To paraphrase Dolan, problems that can be solved with money are not problems at all.

After solving the most difficult rights issue, the atmosphere in the private room was obviously much better. Several people ate and talked about some details of team building, including helping Lu Yong set up a new coaching staff.

The Knicks' current assistant coaches are all left behind by former head coach D'Antoni. Lu Yong has his own people waiting to be promoted. Of course, resources must be reserved for Snyder, Hoiberg, Vaughn and others.

During the offseason, the first thing Lu Yong has to do is to recruit the entire 76ers coaching staff. With him gone, these people will naturally leave with him.Lu Yong did not discuss salary-related issues with Dolan. He knew that it would be meaningless to talk about such things.Salary represents the worth of a coach. James Dolan is not short of money and will certainly not let him down.

Wiping the corners of his mouth with a tissue, Lu Yong reminded: "By the way, we can sign an agreement first and not disclose the news of my joining the Knicks to the public for the time being. This will be conducive to the work in the offseason. If it is officially announced in advance that I will join the Knicks, The Knicks and other teams are definitely not willing to trade, and they will be in trouble if they want to pick up the slack."

"No problem, this is your usual method, I understand." Dolan smiled and said: "Lou, the team will be left to you in the new season. You can get everything you want in New York, whether it is popularity or status. I believe it. I, this will definitely be a win-win cooperation.”

"Of course, you have money and I have ideas. There is no reason for the alliance to fail." Lu Yong nodded.

Donny Walsh sat aside and spoke little, but his eyes under his glasses were full of wisdom.

He will have in-depth cooperation with Lu Yong in the next few years. Dolan is very happy to have gained two outstanding managers. He believes that the Knicks are not far away from the day they rise.

The meal was enjoyable. Walsh and Lu Yong left each other’s contact information and were responsible for connecting with him.

"By the way, Lu, do you have any suggestions for the draft? The team only has one low-ranking second-round pick this year. The first-round pick was sent to the Nuggets in the Carmelo deal. If you have a favorite candidate, we can add money and trade upwards. It's not too late to do so." Walsh asked seriously.

After Lu Yong joined, half of Walsh's rights were taken away, but he himself didn't care about it.Because Dolan communicated with him in advance, it is estimated that only the Knicks can do this kind of salary increase and pension in the NBA.

Walsh did less things in the new season, but received more salary. He originally wanted to refuse, but Dolan gave too much.

Lu Yong thought for a moment and said: "It's not easy to get a first-round pick, but it's best to get a pick that's early in the second round. I can use this second-round pick a lot."

Donnie Walsh waved his hand and said with a smile: "If it's just a second-round pick, it won't be a problem. The Cavaliers happen to have two second-round picks at the 3rd and 4th positions this year. I will communicate with the Cavaliers management. , take our No. 18 pick in the second round and add money to trade it up. They have a total of four draft picks this year, so there should be no problem with the money."

"Okay, I'll leave this matter to you. In addition, help me sign two people. They are both free agents. You can pay them as you see fit." Lu Yong said.

"Who?"

"JaVale McGee was traded to the Nuggets last season and performed well. The Nuggets will most likely not release him during the offseason, and they may have to spend money on him in the end."

McGee is 2 meters tall and weighs 13 kilograms. He has top-level athletic talent in history. He played for the Wizards and Nuggets last season, averaging 122 points, 11.3 rebounds and 7.8 blocks per game, and performed well.

Although Big McGee is not very smart, his physical fitness is so explosive. The Knicks have money and market, and Lu Yong also wants to experience the pleasure of being a rich man.

On the offensive end, McGee is good at cutting and eating, and on the defensive end, he has the league's first-class rim protection efficiency. It is very suitable to recruit Tyson Chandler to serve as a substitute.The Knicks' forward line is very strong in the new season, but the interior rotation is too weak. If they can lure McGee from the Nuggets, they will still be strong enough to compete for the championship even if the main force is injured. It is like spending money to buy more insurance.

"It's easy. I can get more contracts than the Nuggets. As long as JaVale is willing to nod, money is not a problem." Walsh nodded in agreement. "Originally, I planned to sign free agent Kenyon Martin to strengthen the interior. If JaVale is poached, will the team still offer Kenyon a contract?"

"There is no problem in joining with a basic salary, but if the Lions open their mouths, it is not necessary." Lu Yong suggested.

In his previous life, Kenyon Martin joined the Knicks with a basic salary of 180 million for two years in the offseason. Although he suffered a serious injury and was out of shape, he still averaged 7 points, 5 rebounds, 1 steal and 1 block in the regular season, playing as a substitute. It's more than enough to be a beast inside.

He and "Little Bully" Stoudemire are both brutal insiders, and both of them have potential injuries. Signing them can expand the depth of the lineup, and they can also be a starter when necessary. It is cheap and easy to use.

"In addition, it would be best to recruit the Mavericks' veteran point guard Jason Kidd. His three-point shooting has improved a lot. The team needs a veteran point guard to take charge." Lu Yong thought for a moment and said.

Kidd originally joined the New York Knicks this summer. Last season with the Mavericks, he averaged 6 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals per game. He is no longer suitable to be the starting point guard.But after all, Kidd is a star who has seen big scenes. Poaching him as a substitute can enrich the Knicks' defense line, playing tough games and interspersed with Raymond Felton.

This guy had the nickname "Basic Can't Shoot" when he was young, but since joining the Mavericks, his three-point shooting percentage has been much higher. Last season, he made 35.4% of his three-pointers. In his highest season, he shot 42.5%. %, can be said to be a typical example of becoming more and more demonic as he gets older.

There is another reason why Lu Yong hired Kidd. This guy has a high basketball IQ. Even if he doesn't play, he is not useless. He can also provide some suggestions to the coaching staff. He is more suitable for the role of communication between players and coaches.

Lu Yong also knows that Kidd will transition to coaching after he retires. At this time, he can label him as a "Lu family" in advance by recruiting him. He can lead him to experience for two years and earn him some face when he goes out.

Of course, it will definitely be useless to only deal with Kidd. The Knicks' number one position in the new season is still a bit weak.Fortunately, Lu Yong already has a candidate in mind. As long as the Knicks hire him as the head coach, he can lure him to New York at any time.

The next day, Walsh called Lu Yong and said that the transaction of draft picks went very smoothly.

The Knicks obtained the No. 18 pick in this year's second round from the Cavaliers through the No. 150 pick in the second round + US$4 million. The pick is not high, but it is enough for Lu Yong.

The Knicks' lineup for the new season is already very luxurious. No matter how you change the coach, they will have the ability to lock in the playoffs. Lu Yong's goal is to lead the team to compete for the championship. There are too many newcomers and no time to train them. The real big fish has not yet surfaced. .

(End of this chapter)