Basketball trainer, I created a super giant

Chapter 357 The Grand Finals, Full of Gimmicks

After losing the first game, the Sentinel newspaper turned against Rivers again, criticizing his inappropriate remarks after the game.

To say Rivers lacks fighting spirit is ridiculous. The series isn't even over yet, and you, as the head coach, are already complaining that the opponent is too strong, that you can't beat them, and that you're surrendering.

Does it fit?

They even suggested simply firing Rivers and replacing him with a more motivated head coach.

Midway through the series, the city's leading media outlet started clamoring for the team to change its head coach.

Only Florida would do something like this.

However louder the sentry's call was, it couldn't change the reality of a huge disparity in strength.

In the second game, the Knicks maintained their form, defeating the Magic 119-97, a 20-point victory.

McGrady scored 41 points in a losing effort.

In the third game in Orlando, Carlisle seemed to finally remember that this was the Eastern Conference Finals. McGrady had averaged nearly 40 points in the first two games, so it was time to target him.

Wallace alone limited McGrady to 21 points.

126:87.

In front of Florida fans, the Knicks delivered a ruthless 39-point blowout, pushing the Magic to the brink of elimination.

In the final game, the Magic did not pull off a miraculous comeback.

In the first three games, McGrady averaged 45 minutes per game, and Brown was about the same.

With such a high playing time, coupled with playing six games in the previous round, the Magic's stamina finally collapsed.

In the third quarter, McGrady was exhausted. He made a strong attack on the basket, but his jump height was not high enough. When he landed, his legs were weak, his foot twisted, and he fell to the ground.

His departure from the game effectively sealed the Magic's fate.

The Knicks swept the Magic 4-0, extending their winning streak to 94 games.

After the game, Tang Sen made a special trip to see McGrady.

It's nothing serious, just a common sprain.

Leaving behind the words "See you in the summer," Tang Sen returned to New York with the team.

Now we're just waiting for the Lakers.

The Lakers, on the other hand, also took a 3-0 lead and secured match point.

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, they will likely sweep Wolves 4-0.

After a few more days of rest, the finals are just around the corner.

The media has already begun to hype up this final round, providing comprehensive analysis of the two teams' strengths.

But no matter how you analyze it, the Knicks are stronger.

The Los Angeles Times gave Jackson a new idea every day, which really worried him.

The level of attention for this final round has reached its peak.

That's too much of a gimmick.

The Lakers' title defense game, the Knicks' revenge game.

A battle between the East Coast and the West Coast.

New York and Los Angeles, two of the most watched major cities in the United States.

Not to mention the Knicks' historic, undefeated championship win.

Everyone wants to know if the Lakers can hand the Knicks a defeat.

Not to mention the starlight.

The Lakers have four star players, while the Knicks' starting lineup is entirely composed of star players.

There's also a showdown between the world's best centers.

The media has been overjoyed these past few days; every little thing they write is a breaking news story.

Tang Sen couldn't help but marvel at Stern's incredible ability to tell stories and create buzz.

This year's finals are sure to have explosive viewership ratings.

There's also income.

The Wall Street Journal has already reported that a large number of Chinese companies, especially Yao Ming's sponsors, have contacted the NBA to sponsor this Finals series.

The hype in China has reached its peak, with discussions about this series going on everywhere online.

Stern has truly served up a feast for basketball fans around the world.

In the end, the Lakers swept the Timberwolves 4-0, eliminating them effortlessly.

The league immediately announced the schedule for the finals.

Both teams will have four days of rest before the match officially begins on June 3rd.

Fans around the world are already counting down the days, eagerly anticipating this epic battle that will feel like a comet colliding with Earth.

However, during this time, Tang Sen still had one thing to deal with.

That's the draft tryouts.

The Knicks have a first-round pick and a second-round pick. That day, Townsend, Redden, Carlisle, and the scouting team got together to discuss how to use those two picks.

Leiden hadn't considered not using it, because someone was bound to leave this summer.

It's not that the Knicks don't want it, but rather that they're definitely going to pursue a big contract.

For example, Swift, Demar Johnson, Kenyon Dooling, and McDyess should also be considered for whether to keep him.

And these players, like Swift, everyone knows that with his current ability, if he were to start on a weak team, averaging over 20 points per game would be a piece of cake.

He knows this himself, so his demands must be quite high.

His salary for his last season was $459 million. He played for the Knicks for two years and was eligible for an early bird contract extension.

175 percent, that's a starting salary of eight million.

Many teams might think it's outrageous to offer a starting salary of eight million to a player who doesn't even get a chance to play.

But Layden really thinks that even if the Knicks offer him a contract, Swift might not necessarily re-sign with them.

He might go to a team with salary cap space to pursue a higher and longer contract.

The championship is in hand, and after two years of hard training with Tang Sen, this is the most important contract after the rookie contract, so he will definitely sign as high a contract as possible.

In case someone is blind, they might offer him a top salary.

So, is the Knicks going to match that kind of contract?

The Knicks have plenty of money, but they still have a bunch of starters to re-sign, especially Yao Ming and Dwyane Wade.

Like Billups, who took a pay cut before, he should at least get a max contract this year.

With three players on max contracts and a bunch of role players earning several million dollars each, a salary of 100 million dollars is simply not enough.

Therefore, Leiden's plan was to talk to them to a limited extent, and ideally, to keep them at the lowest possible cost.

If you really can't keep them, then let them go and keep eight or nine of his core players.

At the same time, new talents will be added.

Townsend is leaving, but there's still a chance to send rookies to Townsend for training in the summer.

Therefore, you should choose promising rookies.

The direction remains the same: it all depends on physical talent and athletic ability.

Technical skills are secondary; we can practice them gradually later.

The group was engaged in a heated discussion when Leiden suddenly looked at Tang Sen and asked, "Tang, didn't you go to the McDonald's All-Star Game? Besides Dwight, who else in that game is talented enough?"

When asked about this, the first name that popped into Tang Sen's mind was naturally Telfair.

That's really fast.

But his height is a disadvantage. Iverson isn't tall, but he has long legs. At 180cm tall, he has legs that are 2 meters long.

Tang Sen said, "Telfel, if there's a chance, you could actually take a chance, but I doubt it."

He was in good form and was once predicted by the media to be a lottery winner.

Because of me, the demand for high school students is really rising.

Besides him, Tang Sen also noticed several other players last time.

For example, Rajon Rondo, and another big jumper, Rudy Gay.

However, neither of them ran for office this year; instead, they chose to go to university.

Another name popped into Tang Sen's mind. He looked at the published list of candidates and saw that it was indeed there.

"this."

Tang Sen pointed out the name to Leiden.

JR Smith, the guy who shared the MVP award with Dwight Howard.

He has excellent physical abilities and can jump very high.

However, the odds are not low, so it's estimated that it will be in the lottery zone.

He shared the MVP award with Howard, and Howard was a prodigy chosen by Tang Sen, so his market value naturally increased.

Leiden frowned and said, "His prediction is a bit too high; it's unlikely we'll get him."

The Knicks certainly have a bunch of quality assets; they could easily trade any one of them for a lottery pick.

But Leiden couldn't bear to part with it.

There won't be another Tang Sen anymore; his methods won't work like they used to.

After much discussion, they decided to stick to the old method: invite more players for trials and let Tang Sen have his opinion.

"Now that we're talking about trials," Tang Sen suddenly remembered.

It seems like Howard will also be trying out.

Although the Suns had already announced that they would only select Howard and would not trade the number one draft pick.

But the sun needs to be tested first.

At least we need to know how much Howard's strength has improved after training with Tang Sen for almost two months.

(End of this chapter)