NBA: Start by torturing Jordan and add points to upgrade

"I'm not considering leaving Butler University for the time being until I bring an NCAA championship here." The young man behind the table looked away from his computer and towards the three renowned top stars in front of him.

Then, as if suddenly remembering something, he abruptly stood up, stretched out his hand, and said, "Sorry, sorry, I was too focused. I'm a fan of all three of you at the same time! As an Indiana native, I admire you from the bottom of my heart."

"And honestly, I'm so proud of you! You are the eternal glory of Indiana."

This person is none other than Brad Stevens, the current head coach of Butler University, who is also known as the best young and promising coach in the entire NCAA.

A few years later, he became the head coach of the Celtics, building a championship roster with Tatum, Brown, and others as its core. Then he changed course again, succeeding Danny Ainge as the team's president, and won the NBA championship with the team!
Now, Stevens, born in 79, is only 31 years old this year, even younger than Lin Tian, ​​but he has led the little-known Butler University to the NCAA finals for several consecutive years!

Apart from Gordon Hayward, there was no other player in his roster who could be considered a star or have NBA potential.

In this year's final, they only lost to Duke by 2 points!

If Hayward had hit that incredible three-pointer with two seconds left, they could have achieved the ultimate myth and the ultimate dark horse legend, winning the NCAA championship.

Lin Tian also knew that if nothing changed, Butler University could still reach the finals next year, only to lose again. And without Hayward, a crushing defeat awaited them next year.

Even so, it is already a remarkable feat for an ordinary school to have an ordinary coach lead an ordinary team to the NCAA finals for two consecutive years. This is a feat that is worthy of being remembered by countless people.

Unfortunately, despite reaching the finals for two consecutive years, they were eliminated both times, and Butler University was unable to make any further progress in the following years.

But regardless of whether Butler University wins the championship, one thing is universally acknowledged: Stevens is a very promising head coach, and he will become one of the top coaches sooner or later!

"Your opening line makes it hard for me to continue." Lin Tian smiled and looked at Stevens, who also had a smile on his face, and shook his head. "I'm better at dealing with bastards."

"Why don't you come and watch our training? We're starting in 30 minutes, and you can also check out Gordon Hayward!" Butler exclaimed excitedly when talking about his protégé, "He's definitely in the top five of this year's class!"

"Although his projected draft position isn't high, believe me, he's definitely a top-five player in this draft! Drafting him is definitely the right move! You have the 11th pick, right? If he falls to that position, I really suggest you pick Gordon."

"Let's not talk about Gordon anymore." Lin Tian waved his hand and said, "Aren't you going to listen to my conditions?"

“Sorry, Lin, you’re my idol, one of my favorite basketball players!” Stevens shook his head and said, “But I don’t want to leave here. I want to bring a championship to this university!”

"And honestly, even if I were to enter the NBA, I would only want to be a head coach, not an assistant coach. I heard that Van Gundy is on your team? Then I wouldn't even be the number two."

"First of all, it's impossible for you to lead Butler University to the championship." Seeing Stevens's resolute tone, Lin Tian stopped arguing and went straight to the point: "You've reached your limit, haven't you?"

"Ask yourselves honestly, can you go any further next year? Besides the gifted high school students from Indiana, will anyone else join you? Will top talents really choose Butler University and reject top universities like North Carolina, Duke, Connecticut, and Kentucky?"

"What advantages do you have? Have you reached the NCAA finals once? Forgive me for being blunt, but every year there are dark horses in March Madness. This year it's you, next year it's him, but it's impossible for it to be the same team every year."

"Not to mention Hayward is going into the draft this year, right? He's leaving this year, and we've lost our absolute core. How are you going to maintain your roster and competitiveness next year? Rely on those mediocre juniors and seniors?"

"So stop fooling yourself. There won't be a top rookie joining the team to fill the gap left by Hayward's departure. You've reached your limit. Your chances of winning a championship aren't nonexistent, but they're definitely infinitely close to zero. So tell me, what's the point of you staying here and fooling yourself?"

"As for the other point, do you really think that any NBA team would hire a young man with absolutely no background or experience in the league who has only been an NCAA head coach for a few years?"

"You want to start your NBA career as a head coach? It's not impossible, but it will take at least 10 years. You'll have to waste at least 10 years here before you have a chance to be noticed by an NBA team and become a head coach."

"What have you learned and gained in these 10 years? Have you really thought about it? Besides getting thinner hair, getting older, and having sex less often each night, what else have you gained?"

"You haven't forgotten the days when you first came to Butler University and could only volunteer, barely making ends meet by working as a waiter in the cafeteria, have you?"

"How many years did you work as a volunteer and waiter? Five or seven years?"

"Let me be blunt with you: the opportunity I'm giving you this time is the best you'll get in the next 10 years! There's no other opportunity like it!"

"First, you'll get a lot of exposure in my team, and countless people will see you. Second, I can make you the number two in my team. It's just the title and position of chief assistant coach, right? I can give that to you."

"Third, and most importantly, Jeff has lost the will to continue as head coach. He's exhausted. As for me, I could leave at any time. It could be as short as two or three years, or as long as three or four years, and I'll be out of this position."

"At that time, who will take over my head coach position? I will also definitely give up the position of president of basketball operations and leave the management completely. For me, this is just part of my journey."

"Who will succeed me as head coach and president?"

Lin Tian stopped there and leaned back in his chair, saying, "How about it? Isn't the pie I've painted big enough?"

"By the way, if you want to have your own people on the team, or if you want to add someone from your own team to improve with you, that's fine too."

"I will find a way to get Hayward to come to the Bobcats with you. This is the greatest sincerity I can offer. If you still don't agree, then, to be frank, Brad, you are ungrateful."

“You’ve missed the best opportunity of your next 10 years! Okay, I’m always direct. Here’s my business card. You have three days to think it over. If you call me, the lead teaching assistant position is yours.”

"If you don't call me, I'll go find someone else."

"Who are you planning to contact next?" Miller, who had been silent until now, suddenly asked.

“Rick Carlisle, I think,” Lin Tian said with a wicked grin. “I heard he and Larry had a fight, they can’t stand each other, and they’re planning to split up.”

"FUCK!" Bird, who had been silent until now, also cursed. "What did you send Reggie and me here for? Not only have you not given us a chance to speak, but now you're even trying to poach my employees right in front of me?"

"Are you bored on the road? Find a driver or someone to chat with, otherwise I'll be lonely." Lin Tian stood up with a smile, pointed to his watch at Stevens, and said, "Remember, three days."

When Miller saw that Lin Tian was actually leaving, he couldn't help but ask, "Where are we going now?"

"Let's go to the training facility! The Pacers are down 2-0 to the Celtics. They need to defend their home court. As two veterans, we should go and cheer on our successors, give them some motivation and fighting spirit, and help them win the third game to keep the suspense going."

"No, you're not allowed to go." Bird refused outright: "Our training is off-limits to unauthorized personnel! You two, go somewhere else and cool off."

"Don't think I don't know, you two bastards are definitely trying to turn Rick against you!" "You have no confidence in your relationship with Rick? That's a real failure!" Lin Tian curled his lip and mocked Bird.

"Of course I'm confident! As long as I'm here, Rick won't leave Indiana!"

"Then what are you afraid of?"

"I'm not scared! I just really hate you, you idiot, is that so wrong?" Bird rolled his eyes and said, "Why would I send you to have a completely unnecessary conversation with Rick?"

“No.” Miller shrugged. “What’s it to me?”

The three men walked out of the office, cursing and swearing all the way, leaving Stevens, who was supposed to be the star of the night, standing there dumbfounded and at a loss.

What exactly are these three people doing here?
Who exactly is the main character? Did they even formally invite me?

In the time that followed, Lin Tian did not appear in public much, as he was quickly assembling his coaching team.

By May, when the playoffs entered the second round, Lin Tian's coaching team was basically fully assembled.

Stevens finally accepted the offer from Lin Tian, ​​joining his coaching team and becoming the team's chief assistant coach. Lin Tian assigned him a lot of tasks, from building the team's system to directing and managing training sessions; almost all of these were Stevens's responsibilities.

To put it more bluntly, he had to take on all the responsibilities of a head coach when Lin Tian was being lazy.

His work in the new season is destined to be quite demanding.

Van Gundy will be responsible for building the defensive system. He will focus on defense, and only on the team's defense. He and Stevens will have many opportunities to cooperate and communicate, and the two will definitely learn a lot from each other.

With Van Gundy on the team, no matter how the Bobcats play in the new season or who ends up on the roster, they will definitely focus on defense and make the team a force to be reckoned with in the league.

In addition, with Lin Tian's consent, the two quickly recruited and brought in several assistant coaches and trainers who were the best and most compatible with them in the past, and quickly gathered all the manpower that the team urgently needed in all aspects.

Although the Bobcats' season has ended, their coaching staff has been quickly assembled, making them one of the earliest teams in the league to prepare for the 2010-2011 season.

After Lin Tian's coaching team was revealed, many people who were initially skeptical of Lin Tian and thought he would have difficulty leading the team to success changed their minds.

Even if Lin Tianzhen is a complete incompetent coach, his status among the players and his prestige in the industry are undeniable. Coupled with the two assistant coaches, Van Gundy and Stevens, who can be described as a formidable force, many people feel that the Bobcats are truly on the verge of a resurgence.

While they may not be contenders for the championship, they will certainly be quite competitive.

Stevens was in charge of overall coordination, Van Gundy focused on defense, and Lin Tian was responsible for leading the team, motivating the players and appearing on the front lines.

This trio seems to have some potential!
This sparked another round of discussions about the Bobcats' situation next season.

The last time the Bobcats received this much attention and discussion was probably 7-8 years ago, when Jordan had just founded the team.

And then? Having consistently won the lottery and lacking any star players, they never really made a significant impact again.

Now, they are back in the spotlight, and their popularity has even surpassed that of the ongoing playoffs!

It's worth mentioning that as the playoffs progress, the various awards for this year have also been announced.

LeBron James finally won his first MVP award, but he and the Spurs were eliminated by the Lakers in the Western Conference semifinals, missing out on the championship again. James, whose contract has expired, will become a free agent this offseason, and he will have the opportunity to choose a team again.

At the same time as him, top players from the 03 draft class, such as Bosh, Anthony, and Wade, also had their contracts expiring. Many people predicted that this offseason was destined to be a bloodbath, with various earthquake-level trades.

Howard won Defensive Player of the Year for the second consecutive year, but the Celtics suffered a shock defeat to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference semifinals. After years of struggling in the first and second rounds, Wade finally led his team to the conference finals!
Evans, who led his team to an average of 20+5+5, won the Rookie of the Year award, but his team didn't even make the playoffs.

As the playoff semifinals came to a close, Lin Tian, ​​who was watching the rookies' training camp in Charlotte and giving them tryouts, finally met the person he had been waiting for.

“Gordon, I’ve been waiting for you for a long time. You probably already know that Coach Brad has joined our coaching staff. I’m always very direct, let’s not beat around the bush.” Lin Tian looked at Gordon Hayward, who was still green and hadn’t yet styled his handsome slicked-back hair, and said, “I want to draft you.”

"But as you know, our record is 11th from the bottom. Unless we have a stroke of luck, we only have the 11th pick in the first round of the draft."

"What I'm trying to say is, if you want to continue working with Coach Brad and want to play under me, then refuse all other team tryouts. You won't be going anywhere else; you'll be playing in Charlotte."

"What I can promise you, besides Coach Brad, is a starting position. I will make you the starting small forward for at least the first two months. But if you can't adapt to the NBA and perform at your best within two months, then you'll have to give up your position to someone else."

"Of course, you can also try out for other teams and see if there are better opportunities. What I want to say is that I think you are one of the top three in this draft, so no matter what position you are selected, I will definitely find a way to get you."

"The only difference for us is that I have to pay a little extra to get you if you try out for other teams and get selected at a higher draft position."

“I understand.” Hayward made his decision much faster than his mentor Stevens: “I will not try out for other teams. I will apologize to all the teams and wait for you to draft me, Lin.”

"Continuing to work with Coach Stevens in the NBA is something I've always dreamed of. You are my idol, as is Michael Jordan. Playing under both of you is also my dream. I will do my best to improve myself during the offseason and live up to your promise of a starting position!"

"No, I don't need any promises of starting positions. I will conquer you with my performance and energy, and then earn my starting position through hard work and skill! I will become the Bobcats' starting small forward!"

"You've got fighting spirit! I like that!" Lin Tian said with a smile. "Then you can go train and wait for the draft. If you have any questions during this time, feel free to contact me or Brad. In July, I will hold a small training camp for the team, and everyone will go. I hope you will attend on time!"

"understand!"

After trading Hayward away, Lin Tian has completed the first step of his plan to improve the Bobcats' roster this season by selecting a rookie!

Then his phone rang, and Jordan's somewhat regretful voice came through: "No miracle happened. 11th pick. Have you decided who to pick?"

"Of course, your task this summer is to take out your checkbook, sign it, and spend the money!" (End of Chapter)