Chapter 254: Change
When Anthony, Owen, and Thomas Jr. swapped owners when the shocking deal was completed, Roy was still in his dream with Abby, you and me, and they were affectionate.
When Roy woke up on the morning of November 16, 2016, he found the world talking about this earth-shattering deal.
Is the deal done? So suddenly.
Roy is both impressed by the efficiency of the NBA general manager and saddened by his involuntary role as a player. Will you also get a call from the team's general manager before going to bed or waking up one morning to tell you that you have been traded? That's brutal.
Anthony gone? Yes. Although Roy hadn't seen the team's star for days, there was still an indescribable emotion when he really heard the news of his departure.
Jay Crowder, . Smith, Jaylen Brown are coming? It's almost there. Not to mention Jay Crowder, who has never played against him, Smith and Jaylen Brownroy still know each other, especially the old enemy Jaylen Brown, who actually came to the Knicks. I have to sigh that the NBA is such a magical place, the guy who was an enemy yesterday can become a teammate today.
As for the Cavaliers and Celtics after the trade? I'll go, the Cavaliers are unimaginably strong, James, Anthony, Thomas Jr., Love, the "Big Four" in the angry group? Swept east, did you? It's the same with the Celtics, even if others don't know, isn't Roy who has the "ball king system" still unclear? Irving, who has an overall ability of 89, must be a lot better than Thomas Jr., who has a comprehensive ability of 82, and with this deal, the strength of the Celtics' main lineup will also be greatly improved.
Of course, just on paper, the Knicks didn't lose much. lost the "Zhuge Liang" Anthony, who had a comprehensive ability of 88, in exchange for three "stooges" of Claude, who had a comprehensive ability of 80, Smith, who had a comprehensive ability, Smith, who had a comprehensive ability, and Brown, who had a comprehensive ability, who had a comprehensive ability of 69. If nothing else, bench depth has definitely strengthened a lot. Besides, Anthony has been sidelined, and these three players and a draft pick are equivalent to giving it for nothing.
After reading the news, and then looking at the voices of the major media, they are also full of various opinions.
The Los Angeles Times, under the headline "Anthony abandons his self-esteem to seek the championship", lashed out at Anthony for openly going to the Cleveland Cavaliers to hug his thighs and rub the championship. It seems that the proud Angelenos still remember how their peers criticized the Los Angeles Lakers for huddling together to form "F4". When Durant joined the Warriors this year, the Los Angeles Times took the lead in giving criticism, and this time Anthony hugged again, and he hugged James's big thick legs, and the criticism was undoubtedly greater.
SLAM magazine worked overnight to draw a cartoon of the Fantastic Four on the cover of its latest issue. However, the Fantastic Four in the comics have become the avatars of James, Anthony, Wade, and Paul "The Dust Four". In the painting, James pulls Anthony and rushes to the championship trophy, and turns back to Wade and Paul and says, "Melo is here, what are you waiting for", and the point expressed is self-evident.
"ESPN" gave an authoritative score to this big deal, and the Cleveland Cavaliers received an A+ rating without any suspense, and experts agreed that the Cavaliers exchanged a Irving who was not in line with James for Anthony and Thomas Jr., two All-Stars, and this year's Eastern Conference championship can almost be said to be pre-booked; The Boston Celtics got a B+, and they had no problem with this deal, and Thomas Jr., who was plagued by minor injuries and illnesses, was not a top star in the first place, and it was unrealistic to expect him to lead the team to a championship. However, the only flaw for the Bostons is to return the Knicks' draft pick, which is a small miss for the shrewd Danny Ainge; The New York Knicks only got a C+ rating, and the problem was obvious, and Anthony was a failure if he didn't move to a star of the same rating. Although they traded Anthony for three players who looked pretty good, Smith is a well-known locker room "bomb", and if he doesn't use it well, it may be counterproductive, and Crowder is still in the recovery stage, and it is unknown how much he will recover, not to mention how much energy rookie Jaylen Brown can play.
Compared with the harsh foreign media, the local media in New York are unexpectedly tolerant this time, probably they are also fed up with Anthony's "evil deeds" of inaction every year, and this time they can ask Anthony, who has the right to veto the deal, to leave, and what they give is a cheer.
"Sending Anthony away, getting the draft pick back, patiently developing Roy and Porzingis, maybe the Knicks can play well in two or three years."
"Anthony is finally gone, and the ninth-paid player in the league (and fourth last year) has proven to lack the leadership qualities to lead the team to success alone, and his departure is a good thing for everyone."
"With Anthony gone, the Knicks are about to usher in the Roy era, and I think this year's rookie of the league should be ready to take over, right?"
Compared to the media, the attitude of the fans is more distinct. Anthony's fans instantly defected to the camp of the Cavaliers, and in addition to counting Phil Jackson's various crimes, they also hacked Roy by the way. They believe that Roy used the strong background behind him to force the team to make a choice and squeezed Anthony out of the team.
Knicks fans are divided into two factions, some lament that Anthony left Cleveland before he could build an inch and hugged the thigh of "Emperor Zhan"; There is a pity that Anthony's generation of superstars has only been exchanged for such three ordinary players; There are also those who are glad that Anthony is finally gone, and the team is in ruins and the rise is in sight.
Of course, Chinese fans all support Roy, except for a very small number of "Luo Hei" who quickly became popular with Roy, almost everyone thinks that Anthony's departure is more beneficial than disadvantageous. They also analyzed the gains of this big trade for the Knicks, looking for evidence of the team's earnings, such as how Crowder is practical and cost-effective, such as Brown's young and promising and high potential, such as getting back the 2017 draft pick, which is absolutely wise, and even Smith, who has always been criticized, is boasting that he is a desperate big heart and a cold-faced killer.
Roy watched so intently that he almost forgot the training time after a long time, and if it weren't for Abby's phone call to remind him, he would have been really late.
Abby also only learned about the trade this morning, and her online media outlet, 120 Sports, reacted quickly and updated the explosive news in the middle of the night. And now, they immediately sent Abby to the Knicks' training gym to interview Knicks head coach Hornacek and the team's No. 1 newsmaker, Roy.
Before Abby arrived, Roy finally arrived at the training hall on time, and it was really different in the arena today.
The first change is the locker room, the locker with the names "Anthony", "Randle" and "Endor" has changed owners, and the "Anthony" cabinet placed in the innermost cabinet now has the name of "Rose" written on it, indicating that the team's current nominal boss is Derrick Rose. That's certainly what Phil Jackson and Hornacek meant, and given that Roy, Porzingis, and Noah can't take on the role, it's certainly a good idea to have Rose, the former MVP, act as the locker room boss.
In addition, in addition to the change in the position of Rose's locker, the position of the other players' locker has also been fine-tuned, adding the locker with the names "Crowder", "Smith" and "Brown" interspersed with it.
However, the three of them did not show up in the locker room today, and it looks like they should be attending the team's medical exams or on their way to New York.
The second change is the mood of the players.
Player trading will definitely have a big impact on the rest of the team. O'Quinn and Thomas, who have a good personal relationship with Anthony, are obviously a little depressed, Anthony was originally their big tree, their backer, and their boss, but now the big tree has fallen, the backer is gone, and the boss is gone, what will be their fate?
Several marginal people were also worried, seeing Anthony leave the team, Holiday and Kuzminskas probably thought of their own situation back then, and they all bowed their heads and remained silent. They know that after a big deal is completed, there will definitely be follow-up actions, either layoffs or continued trading.
In addition to the always unrestrained Frenchman Noah in the dressing room, who maintained his usual style, only another teasing Spanish boy, Hernangomez, was still chattering.
As soon as he entered the locker room, Hernangomez never stopped, and he kept asking Roy what he thought about the deal.
"Hey, Roy, congratulations, Anthony is gone, the Knicks will be your team in the future."
"Hey, aren't you stupid, don't say these things are good? Do you want me to be the public enemy in the locker room? β
"Load, keep loading. Honestly, Roy, did you secretly rejoice when you learned about the deal? β
"No, of course not, Anthony's departure means we don't have an All-Star on the team, what's there to be happy about?"
"Hey, you're lying to me, Anthony didn't give you any good fruit when he was there, I was really afraid that you would fight with him at that time, why are you still sorry for him now?"
"That's enough, Anthony and I are really fine......"
While Roy was joking with Hernangomez, the door to the locker room suddenly opened, and two black men walked in, a skinny beard full of tattoos, and a stout beard with a big flat head. That's right, they're two of the protagonists of this big dealββ. Smith and Jaylen Brown, and they're coming......