No one would have imagined that after Jerry Buss' memorial service, his old friend David Stern was already plotting to change hands with the Lakers.

After all, this piece of fat has been stared at by many people for a long time, the golden sign of the Lakers is too bright, and Jerry Buss and his family are really poor.

The little doll holds a gold brick in her hand, which will inevitably be coveted.

However, Stern hopes that the Lakers will change the owner not out of selfishness, but hope that a stronger owner can drive the Lakers and inject more vitality into the league.

Once the Lakers-Clippers duo can go head-to-head in Los Angeles over the next decade, the NBA's influence in the California region will definitely surpass that of other professional leagues.

California has always been the region with the most developed sports industry, the largest number of people engaged in sports, and the best economic situation in the United States, and is the top priority of major professional leagues.

It can be said that for the sake of this long-term strategic layout, Stern put on his old face and reputation, and by the way, he made some unsightly communication and transactions with Min Congda.

As Min Congda, who has traded a team sale, he has gradually clarified the whole process of this action.

First of all, it is always the outbreak of public opinion, and then it ferments under the impetus of the promoter, followed by the intervention of relevant departments, and then becomes the target of the public to be forced to sell assets.

Because Min Congda has the "NBA-Batman" as a weapon of public opinion, he has the ability to shoot anyone in the back.

However, Min Congda, who only wanted to complete the task and take away the money, would not use this key weapon unless he had to.

After conspiring with Stern, he did not immediately plan, but told Stern that he had to wait, waiting for a perfect time.

"Now that the old Bass people have just left, the Bath family will be naturally sympathetic in public opinion, and it is unreasonable to attack them at this time. The best time to do it is to wait until what they have done is angry and resentful, and then give a heavy blow. ”

Stern nodded and said, "Also, they are also very united internally now, let them sell the team at this time, they will definitely not do it, they will be unanimous with the outside world." Only if they go through a struggle, with cracks inside, will they have a chance. ”

Stern added to Min Congda's words.

The two foxes, one old and one young, nodded again and again, expressing their approval of each other's words.

It must be admitted that although Stern doesn't like Min Congda very much, what this guy does is very much to Stern's appetite.

Stern even thought that if Min Congda could enter the league ten years earlier, he would definitely find a way to train Min Congda to be his successor.

It wouldn't have occurred to Stern that if you groomed him as a successor, his daily goal would be to bring the NBA out of business.

After the two reached an agreement, Min Congda got out of the car, came to his car, and drove home.

On the way back, he thought in his heart that in the short term, there would be no benefit to letting the Lakers change owners.

However, in the long run, once the Lakers have a "money unlimited" boss like Ballmer, their combat effectiveness will definitely be further enhanced.

If you look at the lineup during the Lakers' three-game and two-game championship periods, you can see that except for an elderly version of F4 in 04, the Lakers have no lineup that can really be called a galaxy battleship, and they have never formed a big three.

The OK combination, Gasol + Kobe, are all dual-core.

And Kobe Bryant during the OK period and Gasol during the two-consecutive championship period are not top superstars.

The reinforcement of the Lakers in the offseason every year can only be said to be just right, the management has a unique vision, but the lineup is really not luxurious.

The Bath family has been quite generous in paying the luxury tax, and since 2001 they have been the team that has paid the most luxury tax seasons, so they have won the most titles.

However, because of the luxury tax and salary cap system, the Lakers can no longer form a super-luxury lineup that has reached the Finals in 11 years and 9 in the 80s.

In this era, if you want to continue the glory of the past, it is not enough to rely on the fame of your ancestors, you must be able to spend real money.

For a person like Ballmer who can't spend enough money, Min Congda naturally doesn't want him to come to the Clippers, but it's really good to let him go to the Lakers.

The Heat and Cavaliers are in the East after all, and the Lakers are not only in the West, but also a team in the same city, and it is really good to set up a city opponent for the Clippers.

"In order to bankrupt the Clippers, I decided to lay out another important plan of mine, the 'Bath Plan'! Strive to make the Lakers change their name and rise again in the short term! ”

From this conversation tonight, Min Congda had another important, long-term plan in mind, which he himself named the Bath Project.

The purpose is to let the Lakers change hands, change to a more wealthy owner, and block the development of the Clippers.

It was also from tonight that Min Congda's focus shifted from the Clippers to the Lakers.

A general manager of the Clippers doesn't care about the construction of his own team, but instead worries about the team next door.

However, the Clippers really don't have anything to worry about Min Congda, and the whole team is in a good and upward state whether it is the lineup, tactics or the atmosphere within the team.

The Clippers' record in the past few years also shows that a stable, untossed and unscathed management is enough to ensure that a team moves forward steadily.

On the contrary, many times, some championship-level teams are wiped out by various manipulations by the management.

From February to the All-Star break, the Clippers' record and on-court performance have become more and more consistent.

This is inseparable from Mike Malone's adjustment and transformation of the team.

Leonard + George's double-small front starting combination is becoming more and more powerful defensively, and they have considerable defensive control on both the inside and outside.

At the same time, on the bench, Harden, Butler, and Anthony Davis form a strong talent bench combination.

The Clippers went from slaughtering opponents with offense at every turn, to gradually controlling the margin of points in each game to about 5 to 10 points.

Their wins are becoming more economical and comfortable, and they are quite good at controlling points.

To put it bluntly, I want to win you a few points, and if I use a little more force, I will win by 20 points and surrender and lose half.

In the All-Star Game, the Clippers' starting four were selected as All-Stars, with Curry, Harden, Gasol Jr. and Randolph playing.

This is the second time that the league has seen such a grand occasion since the Pistons were selected as All-Stars in 2006.

At that time, the Pistons were because they had a super record that led the league.

In terms of record, the Clippers were not as impressive as the Pistons at that time.

However, the popularity of the Clippers, especially among young fans, can be described as high.

In the three-point contest, Stephen Curry lost to Kyrie Irving and did not win the three-point contest.

And LeBron James, who has always claimed to participate in the slam dunk contest, still hasn't fulfilled his promise.

As he gets older, so does his odds of competing in the slam dunk contest.

After all, for James, if he loses the dunk contest, or if the dunk is not perfect enough, the posture is too ugly, etc., it will become an indelible stain in his image building.

Instead of adding black spots to yourself, it is better not to participate, and save shame.

After the All-Star break, the regular season schedule is gradually entering the final stage, and the results of each team have become clear.

Those at the top of the league are starting to grab home-court advantage, either to maintain their strength or to prepare tactically for the playoffs.

Those who are on the verge of the playoffs are naturally going all out to win every game and try to make the playoffs.

And those who have already missed the playoffs, because there is no relegation in the NBA, of course, are for the high level of next season.

The same drama is staged every season, but the difference is that the protagonist who sings on stage is singing and I appear.

By the end of February's trade deadline, the league had not staged a trade drama that pressed the line.

In the past two years, with the further tightening of the luxury tax policy, the salary pressure of each team has increased suddenly.

So, every team is quite cautious about mid-season trades, and unless it really makes a qualitative difference, it's a small fight.

A lot of the deals are not so much about strengthening the team as it is about optimizing the salary structure and saving the team money.

From this point of view, the system of salary cap and luxury tax does make the alliance more balanced, but at the same time, it also makes the alliance less competitive.

Many times, managers have to put a lot of effort into reading and understanding complex collective bargaining agreements and various contract terms.

When dealing with players, contracts, and transactions, the first thing they consider is not whether it is beneficial to the strength and development of the team, but whether they can save money, whether they can squeeze out space for next season's salary cap, and whether they can optimize the team's salary structure.

After more than 20 years of development since the introduction of the salary cap system in the 80s, the collective bargaining agreement has become so complex that it is difficult for ordinary fans and basketball people to understand.

This is very much in line with David Stern's identity as a lawyer and the characteristics of the United States as a country of "rule by the stick".

Regulate all corners and corners with complex clauses, and once your rights and interests are violated and you need help, you must hire a professional lawyer and manager to handle the relevant matters for you.

However, the Clippers did not have this trouble, and the Clippers management adhered to Min Congda's strategic policy of "no toss" until the trade deadline.

The Clippers' general manager's office has a lot less phone bills than before, and the managers of the teams know that the Clippers don't want to trade anyone in their hands, so they don't call much at all.

There is one exception, though, and that's the general manager of the Houston Rockets, Darryl Morey.

He has been the general manager of the Rockets for several years, and as soon as he made a name for himself in '09, the Rockets had a cliff-like avalanche.

Yao Ming was reimbursed for consecutive seasons, Ron Artest threw himself to the Lakers, Maddy's career was hit hard and there was no possibility of recovering to his peak, and the three cores didn't even break up after they couldn't play a few games together.

After that, Morey did not follow the traditional strategy of swinging badly to obtain high draft picks, but has been trying to maintain the box office with his record, and at the same time kept cultivating and mining low-post picks, saving gross tickets for whole money, hoping to use these gross tickets one day to get a rising star and become the core player of the Rockets.

It's a pity that the Rockets belong to that kind of team in the league, which is a bit famous, but everyone is not very welcome.

Free agents are basically reluctant to come to Texas, and big-name players want to trade, and they won't make the Rockets.

They produced an Olajuwang in history, won two championships, and they already burned high incense, and later got Yao Ming, and further developed the overseas commercial value, and the boss made a lot of money, and he couldn't get a championship.

Morey knew that he had no vision for picking potential high-level shows, and thought that instead of cultivating himself, it was better to steal other people's semi-finished products.

Looking at the whole alliance, who has the most semi-finished products and the best? It must be the Los Angeles Clippers!

The excellent semi-finished products that the Clippers have cultivated in the past two years are almost going to make Morey cry.

Take any one over, Morey feels that he can become the core of the team to cultivate, and he has to wake up with a smile in his dreams.

Of course, Morey like Curry can't think about it, but Harden, Butler, George, Leonard, and Morey all want to be traded to the Rockets.

Especially Harden, before Harden was a double star, Morey didn't have much hope, but since Mike Malone came to the Clippers and Harden became the sixth man, Morey believes that with the change of Harden's status in the Clippers, his psychology is likely to fluctuate, maybe he wants to go to another team to be the boss?

Before the trade deadline, Morey kept calling the Clippers' office and telling Olchea that he hoped to trade for Harden, or settle for the next best thing, Butler or George.

As a result, Olchea said that Mr. Smart would not agree to these deals, and that the Rockets really didn't have any good chips, just some broken metal.

It's just that with the tactical bonus of the Rockets, they played a decent performance, and there is actually no potential to be tapped.

It dragged on until the trade deadline passed, and the Clippers remained unfazed and didn't make a single trade.

Morey knew there was no hope for the season, and he put his hope in the offseason, hoping that there would be conflicts within the Clippers and the young people falling apart.

At that time, this will be a gluttonous feast for the Alliance, and Morey must be the first vulture among them.

For this reason, Morey did not hesitate to find a way to contact Harden privately.

Because Harden doesn't have an agent, the agent is his mother, so Morey found a way to contact Harden's mother.

As a result, Harden's mother told Morey, "Harden is not going to leave Los Angeles, this is his home, he is going to play here, don't think about it!" If you call me again, I'll report it to the Alliance! ”

For Harden to play on the Clippers, Harden's mother is a million supporters, and the Clippers welfare is really good, and she also takes great care of the families of the Clippers players.

Not to mention, Los Angeles is Harden's hometown, and who wouldn't want to play in that hometown?

Morey hit a soft nail, he still didn't give up, thought about it, and felt that he still had to have a relationship with the supreme ruler of the Clippers, the general manager of Smart, who was a good word.

By this time, it was already March, and the pattern of the playoffs was gradually becoming clear.

And Min Congda is indulging in the preparation of the "Bath Plan" and cannot extricate himself.

He doesn't care about the team's trades and tactics at all, and thinks about Fa every day to hear news related to the Lakers.

At this time, Morey came to the door and sent a text message and an email, saying that he wanted to communicate with Min Congda.

For Morey as a person, Min Congda had some contact before, and he didn't have a good feeling, an overly shrewd and calculating person.

While trading with someone like this would be good for the Clippers' decline, the problem is that the system doesn't agree with it, and he can't help it.

After being harassed several times, Min Congda finally answered Morey's call and greeted him politely for a while.

When asked if there is any possibility of trading young players in the team, Min Congda gave an affirmative answer.

This made Morey's heart happy, and he thought that he really had to find the right master.

But Min Congda thought, if it weren't for the system to stop it, one of the team would be counted as one, and they would have all been sent away!

When talking about the conditions, Min Congda also said generously: "Do your best, my price has never been high." However, this offseason, the value of the players on my team is likely to go up, and if we win the championship, it's going to be hard to trade them. ”

Min expressed his concern, and he is now less confident that the Clippers will not win a championship.

Although I haven't watched much of the game lately, just looking at the video and the score, I know that the Clippers are quite stable and tough, and he really sweats for the Heat and the Cavaliers.

In Morey's ears, Min Congda is really confident, but the Clippers do have the confidence to be confident.

With initial contact and communication between the two sides, Morey believes that the channel for a trade to get Harden or a young player has been opened.

Like the Clippers, they have so many young potential stocks, they will definitely not be able to keep them all, and when the time comes, they can pick one up and cultivate it well, and the great cause of rebuilding can be achieved!

Min Congda thought that the Rockets were also a powerhouse in the west at the beginning, but now they have fallen into such a field, in fact, they should also be supported.

So, Min Congda said: "Morey, I think instead of thinking about a trade, why not try the draft? The draft is always the best way to rebuild. ”

Morey was embarrassed and said, "My draft level is far worse than yours..."

Min Congda was very embarrassed when he said this, and he thought that he would have known that you would come to help me choose, otherwise the Clippers would not be so strong.

Min Congda patted his chest and said, "Don't worry, if you have a high position show, I can provide draft suggestions!" I've always been a helpful person. ”

What a shrewd man Morey was, he didn't believe that Min Congda would really help him, but in order to improve his relationship with Min Congda, he promised to come down.

Anyway, the Rockets' results this year are really not good, and they have won the lottery for two consecutive years, and there is no way to support it anymore.

You have to put it badly, find a way to make a high-level show, and change the luck of the team.

I don't know why, Morey feels that since 10 years, the fortune of himself and the Rockets has been bad.

Many of the transactions he conceived and presided over, and many of the players he fancied, ended up being a bamboo basket.

It seems that since Yao Ming's retirement, luck is no longer on the Houstonian's side.

(End of chapter)