"He has to be the leader of the Pistons, both in name and substance, so that the Pistons can really rebuild," McCloskey said.

Joe Dumas has actually lost his sharpness, and he has no chance of leading the team back to the top, and he is tied to the Assassins, and the result is that he was swept by Jordan in the Eastern Conference final last year.

Only when the team has a new, younger core and leader can it be truly energetic and sharp, and can stand in front of Michael Jordan again.

At the same time, only Iron Fist becoming the leader of the Pistons can really eliminate the negative impact of that locker room violence, otherwise even if we select a potential rookie in the future, they may refuse to report for duty. ”

Chuck Daly immediately nodded, "Established as such, I think it's time for Iron Fist to become the new leader." ”

McCloskey said: "If we don't make that clear, he's not right, and that's our thing, and we've got to show our attitude, we've got to step in and solve this problem otherwise other teams are going to play him up and we've got to treat him as a non-sale."

Also, I'm retiring soon, and I have to fix this before I retire, and I can't leave it to Troy.

Troy took over, but he still didn't have enough qualifications to deal with the problem, and maybe it would make a mess. ”

This Chuck Daley nodded again and again, and said, "Agreed, presumably Jo Dumas, and the assassins, they will not object." ”

McCloskey nodded, "Well, let's find an opportunity to communicate with Joe and Isaiah later, so as not to cause conflicts." ”

“OK。”

Soon after, the two called out the Assassin and Jodumas after taking a shower.

McCloskey got straight to the point: "Isaiah, Joe, there's one thing I need to inform you.

It's about the stability of the team and whether the rebuild goes well. ”

The two looked at each other and waited for the following.

McCloskey continued: "Iron Fist has met and even exceeded my expectations for him, he has met my requirements for a new core, and I think our rebuild has been partially successful, we have found a new core, and a new leader. ”

"Leader?"

The assassin Isaiah Thomas couldn't help but smile bitterly in his heart, is the management ready to straighten the iron fist?

However, his mood is okay, after all, his current form is long gone, and he recognizes the performance of Iron Fist, and there is another reason, if he dares to oppose the decision of the management, it is likely that what awaits him is a trade, which is something he absolutely does not want.

Moreover, Iron Fist has long been the de facto core and leader, and it is useless for him to oppose it, and he does not want to oppose it, and he also points to Iron Fist to help him deal with Jordan.

Joe Dumas was also stunned, and it felt a little abrupt to bring up the question in the middle of the playoffs.

But that's all, since Iron Fist knocked out Ranbier, he didn't treat this young man as a rookie anymore, and with Iron Fist's performance this season, whether on the field or in the locker room, he has become the de facto core and leader of the team.

"You're not objecting, are you?" McCloskey asked.

The two shook their heads at the same time, and Jo Dumas said, "I think it's acceptable for Iron Fist to be our leader. ”

Chuck Daly nodded with satisfaction, "Although he will officially become the leader of the Pistons, you are also the spiritual leader of this team. ”

The two looked at each other and couldn't help but laugh helplessly.

Joe Dumas is a little better, he is still strong, and he has a good relationship with Iron Fist, he has a high status in the team from the peak of the bad boy army to the present, and has even been one of the leaders, and is indeed qualified to be the spiritual leader of the Pistons.

But the assassin is not good, since the locker room violence, the prestige of the team has been gone, coupled with the iron fist's intentional or unintentional suppression, his own strength has declined too seriously, and the team has some newcomers who are not convinced of him at all.

His current status in the team has long since returned to what it used to be, how can he still be qualified to become a spiritual leader? If he hadn't bowed his head last time, he would have been traded long ago, or forced to retire.

With his retributive character, in fact, in his heart, the hatred for Zhou Quan has not been completely let go, but the reality is pressing, that violent incident not only ruined his reputation, made his historical status further decline, but also lost a large amount of commercial income, in order to stop the loss, so he must choose to bow his head.

Whether it is the reality or the spirit of Ah Q, now he has transferred his hatred of Zhou Quan to Jordan.

And as Zhou Quan's performance becomes more and more expected, he is even expecting the Pistons to shine again, so that he can also benefit from it.

Then Chuck Daly called Zhou Quan out again, and the five of them made a final decision on the matter.

Zhou Quan was a little surprised, was the management so eager to push him to the forefront? Then I heard that McCloskey was preparing to retire, and I understood.

"Joe, Isaiah, I hope everyone will continue to work hard for this team, and no matter how strong Michael Jordan and his Bulls are, I believe we can eventually get back to glory and be greater."

He stretched out his hand and looked at Jo Dumas and Isaiah Thomas as he spoke.

The two of them looked at each other, put their hands up, and said in unison, "We believe it too." ”

The five then entered the dressing room and announced it to all the players and coaches.

McCloskey said: "Ladies and gentlemen, starting today, the Detroit Pistons have completed the transition of the old core and leader, and let's welcome the new locker room leader and the center of the court, the boss of the team, Zhou Quan. ”

“……”

Everyone was shocked, it was too sudden.

Darnell Walker and several other newcomers who have only arrived at the Pistons this season reacted the fastest, whether they were rookies or old birds, and immediately cheered, applauded and shouted at Zhou Quan: "Boss." ”

Rodman shouted, "Iron Fist, you're in for a treat." ”

"Boss."

The others also reacted, and after glancing at Jo Dumas and Isaiah Thomas, they also shouted.

As a member of the Bad Boy Army, the old man of the Pistons, John Sailly was very emotional, a rookie actually became the boss of a team so quickly, and this team is still a former Bad Boy Army.

The boss of the Pistons can have a higher status on the team than Ranbier and Thomas in the past, which is a position that integrates the leader of the locker room and the core of the court.

In other words, Iron Fist will have a lot of say in this team in the future, even the management has to ask for his opinion on key matters.

Zhou Quan took a step forward, clasped his fists left and right, and said with a smile: "Brothers, I am under pressure to have the support of the management, Joe, Isaiah, and you to become the boss of this team."

There is pressure, but I am more motivated because I believe that I can lead you back to glory and even greater. ”

"Boss."

"Boss."

Darnell Walker shouted with his fists raised, and the atmosphere in the locker room was very lively.

Zhou Quan smiled and nodded, and said in a serious tone: "Now I have something to tell you. ”

The players were stunned, is Iron Fist going to establish rules? They immediately straightened up.

Zhou Quan smiled: "From today onwards, in my team, tenacity, toughness, iron blood and fearlessness are still our team motto, I hope everyone will keep this in mind and try their best to achieve it, understand?" ”

"Understood."

With such a serious atmosphere, coupled with Zhou Quan's always strong position, even Rodman didn't dare to be naughty, and immediately replied in a solemn voice.

Zhou Quan smiled again and said: "I also have a rule, in my team, no violence against your own people is allowed at any time, no matter what reason you have, you must never attack your own people, I must also implement this rule, what is your opinion?" ”

"The Boss is right."

"Yes, Boss."

Who would dare to object? Everyone nodded in agreement.

"You'd better shout Iron Fist, otherwise I'll think it's not a team, it's some underworld family." Zhou Quan said with a smile.

"Haha......"

The crowd burst into laughter.

McCloskey stood in the doorway, and suddenly motioned for Troy Weaver behind him to come out with him, came to a place where no one was, and whispered to him:

"Troy, we need more fresh blood, we need more spirit, and when you take over, you have to focus on that in terms of squad building, and you have to find some players who are hungry for a championship.

The existing lineup should be cleaned, and those who are no longer interested in honor are no longer suitable for us. ”

"Yes, sir." Weaver said respectfully.

Soon after, the post-match press conference took place.

The press conference hall of the piston was crowded, and under the rostrum, tripods were lined up, and the cameras were like a forest.

Zhou Quan and Joe Dumas, Isaiah Thomas, John Sely, Rodman, Mark Aguirre and so on, all the players were in attendance, and none of them were pulled.

"What's wrong?"

"Something big is happening."

Seeing all the players present at the press conference, all the reporters on the scene were very surprised and speculated.

The Pistons didn't sit down, they couldn't sit down at all, McCloskey and Chuck Daley stood in the middle, and Zhou Quan, Joe Dumas, and the assassin were on either side of the two.

At this time, McCloskey picked up a microphone on the rostrum, coughed, and said, "Ladies and gentlemen, before the press conference, I would like to announce something on behalf of the Detroit Pistons. ”

After everyone's attention was on him, he said very seriously: "Starting today, our team officially has a new leader, who will be the leader of the Pistons locker room and our center on the court. ”

"Oh, is Iron Fist officially in power?"

"He's been the leader of the Pistons for a long time, and Joe Dumas can't hold him down from his performance on the court, his personality, his influence, his popularity, and his ability to be a leader in the locker room."

"Then his status in the Pistons is higher than that of the previous Ranbir and the Assassins."

"Before the end of a season, you are officially on the throne, are you in a hurry?"

Suddenly, there was a lot of discussion at the press conference.

McCloskey added: "The reason why this matter was determined so quickly was that we were very satisfied with the performance of Iron Fist, and we could not find a better fit; The second is that I have to make sure about it before I retire. It's a bit of a rush, but who made Tekken so good, and I'm old? ”

"Oh! Mr. McCloskey, are you retiring? A reporter exclaimed.

"Yes, I'm officially retiring after the playoffs."

At this point, McCloskey pointed to Troy Weaver, who was not far away, and said, "My assistant, Mr. Troy Weaver, will take my place, and he will be the new general manager of the Detroit Pistons." ”

The successive news made the media below busy, and they raised their hands to ask questions.

"OK, let's move on to the Q&A."

McCloskey put down the microphone and stepped back, ceding the front position to Zhou Quan.

"Iron Fist ......"

"Iron Fist ......"

Many reporters couldn't wait for the flop and threw out their own questions.

Zhou Quan responded calmly and coped with the somewhat chaotic scene.

……

On the 7th, the media reported the news of Zhou Quan's ascension, and even the news of the game was suppressed.

"The Pistons are going to be the most violent locker room in the league, and somebody is going to crack down on the locker room with their fists, and he's going to be an iron fist." New York Daily News.

"With the strong style of Iron Fist, the Detroit Pistons locker room will have a real Iron Fist (power) tyrant." Los Angeles Daily News.

"Iron Fist pledges that it will inherit the original team discipline, and the Pistons will continue to be tenacious, tough, iron-blooded and fearless." Detroit Daily News.

"Iron Fist has publicly announced that any violence will be prohibited in the Pistons locker room, which will bring attraction to the Pistons, and the newcomers will have the highest security in the league in the Pistons' locker room." Detroit Sports News.

These news disappointed some well-intentioned people.

The Los Angeles Lakers were eliminated in the first round and nearly swept by the Trail Blazers, and the time has come for the team to look to rebuild.

General manager Jerry West had been hoping to bring Zhou Quan back to Los Angeles, but the news made him very disappointed.

Trading a Rookie of the Year is completely different from trading a team's boss, first of all, the possibility of trading.

Few teams will trade a boss in his prime unless management loses faith in the boss.

Charles Barkley, for example, is in his prime, but Philadelphia has put him on the shelf because management has lost faith in him.

As for trading a boss who is growing rapidly on the way to rebuilding, it is even more impossible, it is almost not for sale.

The Pistons pushed Zhou Quan to the position of the team's leader, and they no longer wanted to trade him.

Of course, it's not 100 percent, and if the Bulls are willing to trade Jordan, the Pistons should agree, or trade Zhou Quan for a super center, which is also possible.

But neither of these, the Lakers have.

That said, it's almost impossible for the Lakers to trade the weekly right now.

Jerry West sighed as he thought about the upcoming draw ceremony.

O'Neal, the top pick for this year's top pick, is a big guy who makes him drool, but unfortunately the Lakers didn't even have the opportunity to participate in the lottery ceremony, and he regretted that he didn't mess up this season.

The Lakers have a tradition of center, and Magic Johnson can also play center, Johnson's first championship was won as a center, and he actually prefers to get O'Neal compared to Zhou Quan.

While Jerry West was disappointed, in New York, David Stern was also thinking about it.

He is thinking about the balance between East and West, and he can't make the East stronger and stronger, and he can't let the finals lose suspense.

From the analysis of the current situation, Zhou Quan's performance is very eye-catching, if the lineup is strengthened, the introduction of a star or two high-quality role players, the Pistons seem to have the possibility of revival, which will undoubtedly strengthen the strength of the East.

And this time the Pistons pushed Zhou Quan to the position of team leader, which will undoubtedly accelerate the revival of the Pistons, which is not good for his balance strategy.

He had an idea before, because the contradiction between Jordan and Zhou Quan was very big, so big that he was rough off the field, and the Battle of Auburn Hills almost ruined the signboard he wanted to hold up, so he wanted to separate Jordan and Zhou Quan, and the best thing was to get Zhou Quan to the west.

But now, the idea has also become unfeasible, and it is basically impossible for the Pistons to agree.

Of course, it's not impossible to operate, as long as the chips are enough, there is still a chance.

For example, super center Olajuwon, like Barkley, he doesn't believe that Pistons management has no idea about these two peak superstars.

Olajuwon has a deep contradiction with Mosaic management, this time he didn't even make the playoffs, and the early contract extension talks collapsed, can he get him to the Pistons and swap teams with Zhou Quan?

Barkley, Philadelphia is already determined to trade, can there be a three-way deal to send Zhou Quan to the West?

He thought of the Lakers, the Magic retired due to illness this season, and the Lakers must rebuild, so whether it is Big Dream, Zhou Quan, or Barkley, they should all be the people the Lakers want to get.

The Lakers' ball market is what the league needs, and he also hopes that the Lakers can complete the rebuild as soon as possible.

That night, the Bulls beat the Celtics twice, and the Trail Blazers also beat the Suns twice, each winning two consecutive home games, and the momentum was like a rainbow.

Jordan's performance was not as good as the previous game, with 27 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals on 12-of-24 shooting, 3-of-8 free throws, with a shooting rate of 50% and a true shooting rate of only 49.1%, mainly due to inaccurate free throws.

The Bulls were 10 rebounds behind the Greens, grabbing just 32 rebounds in the game.

The reason why the Bulls can still win is that they rely on suffocating outside defense, forcing the Green team to make 23 turnovers and only 11 of their own, thus gaining a lot of ball possession and making up for the lost ball on the rebound.

The Trail Blazers scored 129 points in this game, and six people scored double-doubles, three of which were 20+, and their strength was extremely strong, especially the offensive firepower was unlimited.

The leader of the Suns, Lightning Kevin Johnson, scored a game-high 35 points, with a shooting rate of 47.4%, and the team had 20+ and five scored double-doubles, scoring 119 points, or losing to the Trail Blazers.

"Our offensive firepower is still some distance from them." After watching the game, Jo Dumas said.

Rodman grinned and said, "Don't worry, Joe, we won't touch them." ”

Zhou Quan put away his smile and sneered: "The strength of the Bulls, in addition to Jordan's offense, is their outside defense, but this is precisely our strongest, if we are allowed to enter the East Finals, as long as we dare to fight and dare to fight, who can book the deer to die?" ”

"Iron Fist, he still wants to sweep us again, isn't he going to donate half a million dollars?" The assassin perked up and immediately reminded in a cold voice.

"We had two wins and three losses in the regular season, and Michael Jordan didn't know what confidence he had to shout to sweep us." Rodman was also unconvinced.

"Dennis, how's your injury?" Zhou Quan asked.

Rodman's face was bitter, and he said helplessly: "There is no chance of recovery in the playoffs, sometimes it is good and sometimes it is bad, and these two days are not very good." ”

This casts a shadow on everyone's hearts, if Rodman's rebounding is not guaranteed, let alone the Bulls, the Cavaliers in front of them, they are not sure.

(End of chapter)