Drifting rain is washing the streets of Salt Lake City, leaving the city very empty and deserted.

Due to its proximity to salt lakes, the city experiences the Great Lakes effect 6-8 times a year. In addition to the heavy snowfall, storms are also one of the "masterpieces" of the Great Lakes effect.

Under the storm, few people are willing to go out. But at this time, an old man was standing in place with a black umbrella. Although his trench coat was already half wet, the old man still had no intention of leaving.

The old man with a black umbrella hung his head, and in front of him, there was a tombstone in the shape of a cross. This tombstone may seem indistinguishable from those around it, but the person buried under the tombstone is extraordinary to the white-haired old man.

The old man took out a white rose from the inner bag of his trench coat, and he bent down with great difficulty to gently place the rose in front of the tombstone. As they get older, they seem to be experiencing physical deterioration in their own way.

"I'm old too, man, I'm old too...... I think it's time for me to say goodbye to the world of basketball. You know, the excitement of the basketball court may not really belong to me as an old man anymore. The old man was talking to himself to the tombstone, as if he were talking to his old friend.

'It's been a good season, we've just won seven in a row. Although we lost Carlos, Millsap and Al filled the void left by his departure. But...... Delon doesn't seem to be getting along well with me, and your son, Greg, who doesn't love basketball as much as you do. I got less and less support in management, and I felt like I was going to leave, man. I think I may not have much time left to direct the team for you. The old man coughed dryly twice. In Salt Lake City in December, the temperature is not as pleasant as in Dallas.

"Okay, don't make a fuss, I just want to come to see you and talk to you today. Hey, do you remember the young man I told you about last time? Gordon. Hayward, he's a good guy, he's very talented, and he's very hard-working. Even if I'm not in Salt Lake City in the future, you can count on him to get the Jazz back on track. Alright, it's not too early, I should go back and watch those boys train. Tomorrow's game against the Dallas Mavericks, hopefully, you can bring us good luck. After the old man finished speaking, he stared at the words on the tombstone for several minutes. Then he sighed and silently turned away.

If it weren't for the one lying in the cemetery, the old man would probably have chosen to retire. But he just can't let go, the iron-blooded jazz he and that person built single-handedly. After all, this team has spent more than 20 years of hard work.

Jerry. Sloan and Larry. Miller, these two guys who love basketball so much, have made the Salt Lake City Jazz a formidable force to be reckoned with in the league.

The Houston Rockets, which are extremely loved by Chinese fans, have been rejected by the Jazz several times and have not been able to break through the second round of the playoffs.

Larry. Miller is a team owner who loves basketball very much, and he can unconditionally support Sloan for the team's results, and Sloan also has great rights. Even if there is a change in the team's personnel, the team's general manager has to call the shots.

But when Miller Sr. died of diabetes in 2009, his son Greg Sr. When Miller came to power, everything changed.

Sloan no longer has the right because Greg loves football, and basketball has no love for him, just business. Because of this, Greg didn't think so highly of Sloan Sr. as much as his father did. The team's management won't listen to Sloan anymore, the old man is just a head coach now, that's all.

As such, Sloan has not had a good time with the team in the past two years. After all, in the past so many years, the Jazz team counted him Jerry in addition to Miller Sr. Sloan is the largest. And now, even DeLong dares to kick his nose with him. This huge sense of disparity naturally made the hot-tempered Sloan very uncomfortable.

These various reasons, coupled with his own physical discomfort, made Sloan Sr. have plans to quit. He was undecided, on the one hand, the worsening working environment, and on the other hand, he and his old friend Miller had worked hard to create an iron-blooded master. It was this indecision that made Sloan come to chat with old Miller in the morning.

It's a chat, but the deceased can't give Sloan an answer. All decisions are made in the heart of this old man himself.

Although he struggles internally, as long as he is still in the position of head coach, Sloan will do his best to this team.

He was still the second to arrive in the team's regular training this morning. Because Gordon. Hayward, always ahead of everyone else.

"Good morning, Coach!" Seeing Sloan enter the training ground, a childish-looking Hayward greeted the gloomy old man.

"How's it going, Gordon?" Sloan didn't go back to his office, but stood on the sidelines and chatted with Hayward.

"Hey, it's not bad." The white striker scratched his head in embarrassment.

"Keep practicing Gordon and don't stop until the official training begins." Sloan isn't a coach who likes to use rookies, as evidenced by Hayward's average of 13 minutes per game. So after a brief conversation with Hayward, he was about to turn and leave.

But today, as Sloan was about to make his way to his office, Hayward stopped him from behind.

"Boss!" Hayward's voice echoed through the empty training ground.

"Any questions, Gordon?" Sloane slowly turned around.

"I ...... I recently ...... "Hayward knew that Sloan was a very fierce and stern manager, and after spending all this time with this old man, he also knew that Sloan was not a good-natured old man. So, this white striker was a little slurring when he spoke.

"If you want to go on like this, I'll go." In fact, Sloan had already guessed what Hayward was trying to say, and tomorrow, their opponent would be the Dallas Mavericks. In addition to the German, the most talked-about player in the Dallas Mavericks right now is Hayward's college teammate Yiyang.

When you meet your former teammates in the NBA, everyone wants to play well. And good results need more playing time to support. Hayward's current playing time in every game is naturally unable to support his performance.

"I feel like I've been in good form lately and I'm going to meet my college teammates in the next game. So...... So I hope you can give me more playing time, sir. Hayward spoke his mind, the big deal was that he was scolded by this old man.

Sloan wanted to say no, and then used his roar to let the young man know who had the final say in the playing time. But suddenly, Sloane swallowed his grumpy emotions. "Okay, if you do well in today's team training, I'll increase your playing time tomorrow."

"Huh!?" Even Hayward himself didn't expect things to go so smoothly.

"Imp, you'd better be clever for me. I'm not trying to fulfill your wishes, I just want to win. Players who are in better form deserve to play. With that, Sloane simply turned away and walked towards his office.

Why did he suddenly change his mind? BA Alliance, it's time for a change of dynasty. The era that belonged to him and the Iron Blood Sir is over, so let the young people make their mark in this alliance......

※※※

Dec. 3, Salt Lake City Energy Solutions Arena. Outside the stadium today, the fans lined up in a long line, and they all shouted frantically in front of the photographer's lens. Every night with a home game is a carnival of passion for this group of fans.

Seven wins in a row, 15-5. The Jazz's record this season is just as good as those of the top teams in the West. Today at home, even against the Mavericks, a strong opponent who is surging forward, the Jazz will be looking forward to extending their winning streak.

For a team that has won as many as seven games in a row, no opponent can scare them. In Salt Lake City, no one has it easy.

Yiyang walked into the players' tunnel, still carrying his and Terry's bags in his hands. When he followed his teammates into the away team's locker room, a guy who had been waiting against the wall for a long time made Yiyang's hands tremble with excitement.

"Smack!" Both bags fell to the ground at the same time, and Yiyang spread his arms and walked towards the white striker.

"Gordon!" Yiyang may not have imagined that he would become so excited when he saw Hayward again.

College, Bulldogs, Streaks, Championships, Belonging...... These things, no matter how long it takes, are the beautiful memories that linger in Yiyang's mind. And these good memories were all created by the white guy in front of him and him.

"Haha, welcome to Salt Lake City, man!" Hayward shouted, and the two hugged each other tightly.

"See what's going on outside? Those guys, they're all here to see us win. Naturally, Hayward said that it was a dense crowd of fans.

"Then I'm afraid your fans are going to be disappointed!" Yiyang is not to be outdone.

"Hey, today the coach said it would increase my playing time. When the time comes, I won't show mercy to your men! ”

"Just let it go, Butler's leading scorer!"

Hayward looked at his watch with a smile, but his smile froze. "I have to go back, or the coach will lose his temper again."

With that, Hayward turned and left. But after taking two steps, he suddenly stopped again.

"Also."

"Huh?"

"Come on."

"Hmm."

Hayward's back disappeared around the corner of the tunnel, and from that moment on, Yiyang knew that the Mavericks were about to face a troubled opponent today.

Let's get on the basketball court and keep fighting, man!