Livingston had no idea that Min Congda was such a relaxed, open-minded and joking person.

In his imagination, the general manager who transformed the Clippers in three years must be an elite manager who is rigorous in governing the army and has a graceful bearing.

The N.B.A.'s management is full of white elites who are well-educated, enthusiastic, polite, and highly intelligent, but also ruthless in their determination when it matters most.

It's like a scumbag who gives his sister full marks, talks sweetly when they are together, and everything is perfect, but once he decides to break up, he must be ruthless.

Livingston is a person with experience, he reached the peak of his life at a young age, but the sudden disaster made him fall to the bottom, so he has seen the warmth and coldness of people, and has experienced what it means to turn his face like a book, and what it means to be displaced.

His experience of the enthusiasm and indifference of NBA management is too deep, and the reality of this league is outrageous.

But Livingston only sat down and chatted with Min Congda for a while, and he could feel that Min Congda was different from those white elites.

There was a clear stupidity in his eyes, and he spoke without purpose, without feeling any subtext.

It seems that giving Livingston a three-year guaranteed contract was not a decision he made at all, and he did not have any expectations or ideas.

It is as if Party A and Party B signed a contract and paid the money, and it stands to reason that Party A should make various requirements so that the money can be spent.

Especially for Party B with a major injury like Livingston, Party A will generally not be polite, and there will be no honeymoon period, but directly make requirements, what kind of performance must be played, and so on.

But Min Congda didn't, he just kept gossiping and joking with Livingston, and he was particularly concerned about his injury, asking him if he was in good health, but he had to rest well if he was not feeling well, and he should not be reluctant.

Livingston, of course, said that he had no problem with his injury and that he could play well.

But Min Congda shook his head and said: "The body is the capital of the revolution, and you must completely heal your injuries." You were injured in the past with the Clippers, and now that you are coming back, the first requirement for you is that you must take care of your body, and nothing else matters. ”

It was the first time Livingston had heard such a statement, and he didn't know what to say for a while.

It wasn't until the afternoon that the team trainer told Livingston, "Mr. Smart has always been like this, you have to get used to it." He never talks about winning, he just tells you to be yourself, enjoy basketball, enjoy the team. ”

"Is that all?"

"That's all? Hehe, you must have thought he was just pretending. Take your time and you'll get a sense of it... Oh yes, I'm the Clippers who only came the year before last, and you used to be with the Clippers, do you feel any changes in the team? ”

"Change... Everything is new, the gym, the gym, the cafeteria, the restaurant is really luxurious. Oh yes, and there's... The atmosphere is very different from the Clippers of the past. ”

Livingston couldn't tell, either, that the Clippers felt very different to him in the past, unlike any team he'd ever been on.

What's the difference? Perhaps, as the trainer said, it will take a while to find out.

On February 18th, a big event happened in the Los Angeles basketball circle, the owner of the Lakers, the legendary Jerry Buss, died.

The boss who created the legend of Zijin has completed his life as a winner.

As the general manager of the Clippers, Min Congda was invited to Jerry Buss's memorial service along with owner Shelly Sterling.

Min Congda's deepest impression of the old man is that when he first joined the league, he met him in a Las Vegas casino, and the two had some verbal conflicts.

At that time, Jerry Bass also wanted to teach Min Congda some successful experience, but was rejected by Min Congda, who was bent on bankruptcy!

Now that I think about it, Min Congda regrets it in his heart, and he should have listened to the outdated experience of Old Bass in the first place.

Looking at the current situation of the Lakers, maybe the Clippers have gone bankrupt a long time ago?

Although at Jerry Bass's memorial service, everyone was sad, O'Neill and others, who gave the speech, shed tears.

But everyone knows that the death of any group leader with power and wealth will inevitably usher in a bloody struggle.

The Buss family owns the Los Angeles Lakers, the biggest giant in the NBA, but the problem is that they only really own the Los Angeles Lakers, and the other professional teams they own are not worth mentioning in terms of market value or fame.

In addition, the Buss family has no other big industries, so this big family points to the Lakers.

When the old man dies, the children will definitely fight for this biggest family property, and at the same time ensure that it will not be taken away by outsiders.

Previously, because he was worried that Phil Jackson was too deeply involved in the affairs of the Lakers and made great contributions, he terminated the contract with the meritorious coach after losing the playoffs in 12.

Jenny Buss and Jackson's twilight romance also came to an end.

Now that the old Bass is gone, the battle for control of the team between Jenny Buss and Jim Buss is about to be put on the table.

This is actually a good thing for the Clippers, another team in Los Angeles.

The Clippers have been pressed by the Lakers for so many years, and now they have finally turned over, and if the Lakers fall into civil unrest again, the huge sports consumer market in Los Angeles and even California will be occupied by the Clippers.

Now, the Clippers' jerseys and merchandise are selling very well and are rising.

Previously, Los Angeles was full of purple and gold colors, and the Lakers' yellow and purple jerseys were everywhere.

In just two or three years, the red and blue color of clippers has become a new fashion trend.

Many young people say that the Lakers' jersey and color scheme look too old-fashioned, or the Clippers' red and blue are more vivid and trendy.

It's an indisputable fact that the Clippers are constantly attracting more young people.

Therefore, at the memorial service in Bath, although Shelly Sterling, who was sitting next to Min Congda, had a heavy face but a lot of joy in her heart.

As soon as the legend of Buss leaves, the Lakers are about to have civil unrest, the Clippers are on the rise, and Shelly Sterling's path to basketball queen will really begin.

As for Min Congda, he really didn't think so far, he only thought about the Huawei Center in his mind now, and he thought that when the Huawei Center was halfway built, the team would be short of money, and it would not be far from bankruptcy.

In fact, the construction of the Huawei center did encounter many problems.

The number one problem is that the arena is too big, and at the same time, it has to take into account comfort, beauty and practicality, which puts forward extremely high requirements for design and construction.

Budget overruns are almost a sure thing, and they definitely have to be added.

However, in order to realize her ambitions, Shelly Sterling gave the project enough financial support.

She thinks that Min Congda is in charge of basketball affairs, and she will solve the problem of money, and she even asked her ex-husband Donald Sterling for money, and she must let the project go ahead.

The boss and the manager obviously have their own agendas, but they can't see each other, and they cooperate quite well, so that everything can run in an orderly manner.

At the end of the memorial service, David Stern, who came to the memorial service, stopped Min Congda and took him to the parking lot to let Min Congda get in the car, and the two wanted to talk a few words.

Min Congda was very vigilant and said, "David, you don't want to kidnap me, do you?" ”

Stern waved his hand and said, "What the hell do you have in your head?" I have something to say to you, get in the car! ”

Min Congda got into the back seat, and after Stern got in the car, he went straight in and said, "Jerry Bass has passed away, what do you think about this?" ”

Min Congda was stunned for a moment and said, "What do you think?" Joy and mourning. ”

Stern thought Min Congda was playing stupid, and said: "The Lakers' Buss siblings will definitely have an internal struggle for power!" When the time comes, Los Angeles will be the world of your clippers.

Stern didn't say it, Min Congda actually couldn't think of this at all.

As soon as he said this, Min Congda said, "That's a good thing for us." ”

Stern said, "But it's not good for the league. ”

"You're all retired, why do you care so much?"

“……”

"Smart, I know that you were behind the previous Lakers Paul trade, right?"

"It's... It's me, what's wrong, I... I'm hoping that the Clippers will have a rival in Los Angeles. Such... In this way, the market can become bigger and bigger, isn't it? Look at how hot the basketball market in Los Angeles and even the whole of California is now, it is already the first in the United States! ”

Min Congda said something against his will, he asked Paul to come to the Lakers in the hope that the Lakers could suppress the Clippers, how do you know that the Lakers are not angry, Kobe Bryant has declined significantly, and Paul dropped the chain at a critical moment, why is it so useless?

Stern listened to Min Congda's words, but nodded again and again, and said, "What you said makes a lot of sense. Smart, you really have a very long-term vision, and many people have underestimated you in the past. ”

Stern almost said, "The league has decided, you should be the NBA president."

Although Min Congda has an average IQ, he can also hear the meaning of Stern's words and asks, "Do you want me to help the Lakers?" So that the Lakers can continue to compete with the Clippers in Los Angeles? ”

Stern said: "I know that this kind of thinking is very unathletic, but I don't hide it from Smart and you, and the business league needs to be balanced. Of course, we don't want to manipulate the results of the game, I want you to have healthy competition, so that the Lakers can stay competitive and unite internally. Only when the two sides work together can the market be bigger and better. ”

Although Stern's idea is right in Min Congda's hands, he was secretly helping the Lakers.

From the standpoint of a Clippers man, Min Congda felt unreasonable and said, "Why? When the Clippers were rotten like a piece of shit, why didn't the Lakers say that they would help the Clippers and make the Clippers strong enough to compete with the Lakers and make the market bigger? Now that our Clippers are rising and walking on a good path, the Lakers can't see it, but we have to help our own competitors, how can it make sense? ”

Stern nodded, he agreed with Min Congda's anger, but at the same time Stern pointed out sharply: "At that time, it was the Los Angeles Lakers who ensured that most of the NBA teams had income and food. Without them, the NBA's ratings would have dropped by a cut, and many losing teams would have to rely on the Lakers' earnings to make up for it. The Clippers were able to survive because of the Lakers' blessing in Los Angeles. ”

There are also transfers in the NBA, where profitable teams give subsidies to losing teams.

In fact, many professional leagues have such a controversy, where the big teams contribute most of the league's revenue, and then have to give blood transfusions to the small ball clubs, causing their own interests to decline.

At the beginning, if there is no small ball to "play", how can it highlight the strength of the giants?

Just like online games, local tyrant players certainly contribute most of the income, but it is also very important for a large number of ordinary players to play with them, which is a good game ecology.

Min Congda knew that what Stern said made sense, and said, "Then what do you want me to do?" Send Curry, Harden, and Gasol Jr. to the Lakers!? ”

Min Congda wanted to do this in his heart, but the system didn't allow it!

Stern shook his head and said, "I said, we're not trying to manipulate the results!" I hope the Lakers can maintain enough consistency within the team to make the team competitive. ”

Min Congda said: "Then who do you want me to support?" Jenny, or Jim? I think Jenny is good, and I can feel that she really loves basketball and this team. ”

Stern shook his head again and said, "No, you don't have to support it." ”

"Don't even need to support it? You're right, I'm a general manager of the Clippers, and it's useless to support anyone. ”

"Smart, I know, you sent someone to kill Donashe."

Stern suddenly said this, which made Min Congda break out in a cold sweat.

Almost two years have passed since the Donasi incident, and there is no sound anymore.

Stern suddenly said that Donasi was killed by Min Congda?

Min Congda shook his head and said, "Don't talk nonsense about David, I'll sue you for slander, Donasi's death has nothing to do with me." ”

Min Congda thought to himself, if you had a heart attack, you would really have something to do with me, and if you want to kill you, you will be killed.

Stern smiled and said, "The FBI already has a clue that Donasi's death is related to that Italian chef in your restaurant." You've sent him to China, right? ”

Min Congda's heart was shocked, could it be Christopher? It's possible, but he didn't tell Christopher to kill.

Min Congda didn't respond directly, but said, "What, you want me to kill the people of the Bass family?" You have a point, if the Bass family had only one child, there would have been no struggle. ”

Stern said: "No, it has nothing to do with the Bass family, you don't have to support any party, it has nothing to do with them." ”

"It has nothing to do with the Bass family, what do you mean, isn't it..."

Min Congda's IQ finally took over the high ground, and he understood what Stern meant.

The league hopes to kick the Buss out of the tournament and let another owner take over the Lakers.

As the biggest giant in the league, the Lakers have the poorest owner, which also limits the development of the Lakers to a certain extent.

Min Congda said: "You want to kick the Bass family out? But... What does this have to do with me, besides, you are retired David, can't you take care of your old age? ”

Stern said: "Because you have experience in this matter, isn't the owner of your clippers just changed?" ”

Stern helped his glasses and said very calmly, but it made a lot of waves in Min Congda's heart.

He thought to himself, "I didn't make you angry in the first place, what a mistake on my part." ”

(End of chapter)