The Bobcats have improved significantly and there is a lot of harmony in the locker room. The veterans are not dissatisfied because of the playing time, Camby and Miller are here for the championship, as long as it is possible to get a championship ring, let them get a little less money, let alone less playing time?

As for last season's main player, Bagnani, he has experienced a serious injury and has not played beautiful statistics and has not won the capital. Although Azubuike and Weaver have shortened their playing time, and Weaver has even missed three games and has been put on the injury list, they have no complaints.

For the two, Hayes is Bole. If it weren't for Hayes, they wouldn't have had a championship ring now, and they didn't know where to mix it up, and maybe they wouldn't have had a chance to break into the NBA.

And the rookies who don't have many opportunities to play have not been able to prove themselves, and they are not qualified to express dissatisfaction with the coach's playing arrangements. Both of them like Anthony Morrow and George Hill have trained hard, honing their skills and waiting for their chances.

On November 10, the Bobcats hosted the Toronto Raptors. Won by a margin of 111 to 89.

In this game, Gerald Wallace, Durant, Hayes, and Billups felt extremely poor. Every team can encounter this kind of thing, the main players can't shoot in a certain game as if they are cursed, and such a game is usually lost.

The Bobcats trailed by eight points in the first quarter, 18-26. But after adjusting the lineup, the Bobcats quickly regained the initiative. The poor performance of the main players was a rare opportunity for the Bobcats' benches, with Bagnani and Rondo taking on the attacking load. Bagnani pulls to the outside and shoots very well. Long made many successful breaks, and made layups or good shots to revitalize the team.

When Hayes and the others adjusted their form in the second half, the Bobcats easily put the score out.

In the same game, the Nuggets lost at home, 102-106 to the Mavericks. The only teams left to maintain a winning streak were the Bobcats and the Lakers.

The two teams began to call out openly.

The trend since the beginning of the new season has once again verified that "those who win the inside line win the world"!

The Bobcats are widely known as the best on the inside, ranking first in the league in rebounding. Some media jokingly called the Bobcats "Charlotte Rebounding Team", and the starting five except Billups were all good at grabbing rebounds, and there was also a very good rebounding Rondo at the point guard position.

When the substitutes came on the court, the Bobcats' two interior players often blocked the opponent from the outside, allowing Rondo to grab the rebound and launch a fast break directly, which is also one of the Bobcats' usual style of play. Rondo averaged 19 minutes of playing time, with 6 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists and 1 steal, which was extremely efficient.

The Lakers have an interior line composed of Bynum and Gasol, which is also a strong combination. However, compared to the bench, the Lakers seem to be a little worse than the Bobcats. The power forward position can put Odom on the court, but when Bynum is off, he can only send Mbenga and "Birdman" Chris Anderson, and the attack power is reduced.

In the first week of the power rankings, the Bobcats occupied the first position. The Lakers are not far behind.

Hayes also won the Eastern Conference Player of the Week award. Although his scoring and rebounding are not high, his average stats are triple-doubles per game. The best player in the West was won by Pau Gasol, who averaged 18 points, 12 rebounds and 4 assists per game.

The Lakers have also been strong off the bench this season, and Odom needless to say, backup small forward Ali is solid and strong, has excellent defensive ability, and has a high shooting percentage from the spot. Shannon Brown is athletic and can complement Fisher as a backup guard, while Chris Anderson, despite his average ability, can contribute morale-boosting blocks and dunks, which is very popular with fans. Radmanovic, a big man who used to start, has now been reduced to a third bench, and Luke Wharton, who signed for 30 million in five years, is out of place.

Once upon a time, Wharton was one of the most suitable players in the triangle offensive system, and his passing ability made him a valuable player for the "Zen Master". Unfortunately, a series of injuries combined with a sharp drop in shooting percentage have made Walton a fringe player for the Lakers, and he has been regarded as a favorite to leave several times, but the big contract he is carrying has become the biggest obstacle for the team to trade him.

Wharton's performance last season was terrible, and this season, he can often be heard booed by the home fans when he plays. The Lakers have not traded Wharton because his family is very prestigious in Los Angeles, Luke Wharton's father is Hall of Fame center Bill Wharton, and the Lakers have to give old Bill face. Luke Wharton was lucky, maybe he hit someone with his car, and he could just say "My dad is Bill" and be fine...... Although China's defender "Sun Dasheng" is useless, he gets a basic salary. Wharton's contract is a middle-class contract, with a high salary but not the slightest contribution, which has caused Wharton's status in the hearts of fans to plummet, and the home fans give boos to a home team player, which is a rare occurrence, but Walton has encountered it. This scene is a good indication that the fans have had enough of Walton and they would love to see him go. Because the Lakers are aiming for a championship, fans naturally want to see the team have a stronger roster, and the current Walton can no longer help the team, on the contrary, he is still dragging the team back.

The Lakers have put Luke Walton on the shelf, and they're willing to listen to offers from other teams, but they're not quite to go around selling Walton. Trading Walton is a tough one, though, as he has four years left on his contract and is worth $21.6 million, and teams that want to sign big-name stars in 2010 are certainly reluctant to take such a contract. This season, Walton's position in the Lakers' rotation is not secure, averaging just 11.5 minutes per game, with 3.2 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists.

But there are always exceptions, because if the owners of the NBA have a good relationship with each other, there will be a lot of unknown insider trading. And the Lakers have never lacked insider information.

For example, after the failure of the finals in 04, the OK group parted ways and the sharks swam east. The outside world has always said that Kobe Bryant forced the shark away. Until the beginning of last season, Bryant blasted management because of the team's poor record and asked to trade himself. It was only then that people were able to find out what was going on.

In the summer of 2004, because his career had begun to decline, O'Neal Lions opened his mouth to ask for an annual salary of 30 million, and the same year was also Kobe's contract year, Kobe Bryant needed an annual salary of 20 million, so that the OK combination alone would add up to an annual salary of 50 million, and the remaining money in the salary cap was not enough to make up a 15-man lineup, so the Lakers management chose a younger and more box office appeal Kobe Bryant, and gave up the aging shark, which is the essence of capitalists.

There was nothing wrong with this matter itself, but then a person from Lakers management personally told the media that Kobe Bryant didn't want O'Neal to stay in Los Angeles, and the Lakers management had to transfer Shaq away because of this reason and Kobe Bryant was a free man! This is simply a naked planting, so that Kobe Bryant is still burdened with the black cauldron of driving away the shark. After nearly three years, Kobe Bryant faced the bombardment of the media, and the Lakers management knew the reason for this, but they didn't say anything. At the same time, Lakers owner Jerry Buss personally assured Kobe that the Lakers would immediately do everything in their power to keep the team in the ranks of championship teams in the new 2005 season.

Kobe Bryant got Jerry Buss' promise, and in the past three years, Kobe Bryant has not defended himself at all in the matter of Shaq, and what he has done is more silence. But in the next three years, the Lakers made countless bastard moves. The biggest trade of the Lakers in recent years is to send away future All-Star Caron Butler and trade parallel goods Kwame Brown.

Until Kobe Bryant threatened a transfer, the Lakers top brass was finally scared. Last season, the Lakers brought in interior star Pau Gasol through a series of. After being eliminated by the Timberwolves in the playoffs, the Lakers continued to strengthen and signed Artest, a big-name star in the free market, in the summer to form the Big Three.

With just five games to start the new season, the Lakers have already begun to brew new trades and have contacted the Raptors and Thunder (SuperSonics have changed their name). Originally, the Lakers and Bobcats had a good relationship, but this season the two teams have become rivals, and they are naturally unwilling to help each other strengthen the lineup.

As long as the two teams are willing to help each other, bad contracts and players will also be traded. The Grizzlies sending Gasol is an example.

On the 11th, Lakers general manager Kupchak and head coach Phil Jackson met big boss Jerry Buss in the office.

On the Lakers, Zen master Jackson has a lot of power. Because Jackson's wife, Jeanie Buss, is the daughter of Jerry Buss, the current vice president of the Lakers, and is a popular candidate to take over the Lakers in the future. After Jackson left the Lakers, Jenny also had a stiff relationship with her father for a while, and it was not until Jackson returned to the team that the relationship between father and daughter improved.

Bass first asked Jackson Artest, Kobe Bryant, and Gasol about the run-in. Then the bobcat is mentioned.

"How does our quality compare to the Bobcats this season?" Buzz asked. He believes that the Lakers are now capable of overpowering the Timberwolves and Nuggets. It's just that the momentum of the Bobcats is too strong, and with the super player Hayes in charge, it is likely to become a stumbling block on the road to the Lakers' championship.

The Los Angeles Lakers will have three players with an annual salary of more than $10 million in the new season, Kobe Bryant's salary is about $21.26 million, Pau Gasol's salary is about $15.11 million, and Ramar Odom's salary is about $11 million.

The Lakers' current total salary has exceeded the league's luxury tax floor, and Bynum's contract extension may also be the standard of tens of millions of annual salaries, so their only goal for such an investment is to win the championship.

"Compared to the starting lineup, we were on par with the Bobcats, they had Hayes, Billups. We also have Paul [Gasol] and Kobe. But on the bench side, I think the Bobcats are better than us, and their summer reinforcements are the most successful in the league. Jackson said truthfully.

"How's things going with Wharton?" Buzz asked again.

Kupchak's expression was ugly, and he said seriously: "There are currently two trading options. One is to trade Cappano for the Raptors. ”

Capono is a soft egg in the truest sense of the word. can only shoot three points without defense, and actually gets a salary of 6 million. The Raptors let him start last season just to trade this cancer out quickly, but unfortunately he was so bad that he couldn't change it if he wanted to. Capono played 22 minutes, scored 7.4 points and grabbed only 1.5 rebounds, which is incredible for a player with a height of 203cm. Regardless of strength or contract rubbish, he and Wharton are half a pound and eight taels.

Bass frowned and asked, "What about the other option?" ”

"Swap Adam Morrison with the Thunder." Kupchak said embarrassedly.

Morrison was Jordan's hand-picked parallel trader back then. He played 57 games for the SuperSonics last season before being reimbursed due to injury. played 18.6 minutes, got 4.6 points and 1.6 rebounds, and the shooting rate was only 36%. This level obviously doesn't help the Lakers in any way.

"What do you think?" Buzz said helplessly.

"I feel like I can trade Capo. Although his defense is poor, his shooting percentage is quite stable, especially the three-point shot. can increase the attack power of the substitute lineup. Moreover, his contract expired a year before Wharton. Kupchak spoke his mind.

Jackson thought for a moment and said, "I agree." ”

(To be continued)