I've been playing in the NBA for three years, and this system is only now showing up?

Chapter 87: Conflict in the Locker Room! Lin Ze Suspected of Racial Discrimination? [Daily Updates of 20,000 Words, Please Subscribe]

Kobe's training regimen was extensive and varied, but one thing is certain: he barely rested throughout the summer, pouring countless drops of sweat onto the training court.

Even Lin Ze knew which aspects Kobe trained most intensely: jump shot and low post!

Because Lin Ze could feel that these two aspects had improved the most during the off-season!

Judging from this guy's training focus, it's clear that Kobe is targeting Lin Ze's strengths relentlessly! He wants to catch up with Lin Ze and surpass him in the areas where Lin Ze excels most!

Lin Ze could imagine what Kobe was muttering every day during his grueling training.

"I'm the number two boss in Los Angeles!"

To this, Lin Ze could only say: Hard work is good! Hard work is good! What I like most is a hardworking, diligent, and almost obsessive friend!

Keep on cheering!

When the training camp started, Lin Ze's 3-month muscle-fat conversion card had already expired.

His indulgent lifestyle must come to an end.

It must be said that the weight gain was not entirely satisfactory to him.

Despite his crazy overeating during the offseason, he only gained 27 or 8 kilograms of fat, which eventually turned into 9 kilograms of muscle.

When Lin Ze stepped onto the scale before the training camp began, his weight was 110 kilograms, a full 10 kilograms heavier than his 100 kilograms at the beginning of last season! And those 10 kilograms were all muscle!

His body fat percentage, which was originally just average and below the league average, skyrocketed to the league's top and most alarming level.

When Lin Ze took off his clothes, his increasingly prominent muscles were sure to turn heads and make countless girls drool.

If last season Lin Ze's strength was barely average among the league's power forwards, and couldn't compare to the behemoths at the center position, then this year Lin Ze's strength has definitely reached an excellent level.

Aside from players like Duncan and Malone, who are among the strongest power forwards, it's hard to find many power forwards stronger than Lin Ze.

In the new season, Lin Ze can play deeper and operate more under the basket. At the same time, if any team dares to use Rose or other small forwards to match up against Lin Ze, Lin Ze is confident that he can break their bones!

Greater strength, better physicality, and other related abilities that result, such as rebounding,

Their defensive and dribbling abilities will be significantly improved.

Besides the strength he gained through his own hard work, Lin Ze also achieved a significant improvement by learning from Kobe's relentless efforts.

His shooting will be more consistent, his ability to resist interference when shooting will be stronger, his breakthroughs and post-up moves will have more variety, and his lateral movement on the defensive end will also be slightly improved.

Lin Ze is much stronger this year than last year!

He will prove all those who doubt his abilities and think that his complete indulgence will inevitably lead to a significant decline in his performance wrong!

Full of confidence, Lin Ze arrived at the Lakers' training camp.

As soon as he arrived, he saw Kobe, who was silent but clearly stronger and more ferocious. However, the person sitting next to Kobe was no longer Rice.

Rice was traded by the Lakers during the offseason and went to the New York Knicks, the largest city in the United States.

The changes the Lakers made during this offseason were neither major nor minor.

On a grand scale, with the team's core trio all staying, the Lakers' tactics and offensive and defensive systems will not change much.

You could say they haven't changed much, but the team has seen a lot of players come and go this year.

Besides re-signing Lin Ze, the Lakers' biggest move this season was participating in a massive four-team trade, sending Glen Rice to the Knicks in exchange for a $750 million trade exception and a future first-round draft pick.

As for the other parties in this four-team trade, the most noteworthy is the Knicks, who sent Patrick Ewing, the team's icon and absolute leader for the past 15 years and one of their four great centers, to Seattle.

This move signaled the start of a rebuilding phase for the Knicks, marking the end of the Ewing era.

A brand new Knicks is coming.

Of course, at that time, no New Yorker could have imagined that what awaited them was not dawn, but at least 10 years of endless darkness and chaos.

Although this trade involved many people and teams, and Ewing was a big name, he was past his prime and no longer a top player. Last season's playoffs showed his age and complete decline, which is the real reason why the New Yorkers traded him.

This trade did not affect the overall structure of the league; at most, it just meant that the aging veterans did not receive a dignified ending.

If we're talking about the truly groundbreaking trade of this offseason, it has to be the sign-and-trade between the Pistons and the Magic.

Hill is a true top player in the league, currently at his peak, a star with top-notch skills, image, and popularity. However, his relationship with the Pistons has always been lukewarm. Detroiters don't like this middle-class gentleman; they prefer a lower-class villain like the Smiling Assassin.

Hill also seemed out of place in the rough and uncouth Detroit and was not happy there.

Now that his contract has expired, he and the Pistons, this pair who disliked each other, can finally go their separate ways.

Hill and the Magic reached a sign-and-trade agreement, and Hill went to the warm and romantic Orlando.

In this sign-and-trade agreement, no one noticed that an ordinary blue-collar center had come to Detroit, and he will become the core figure of the Pistons' next rise.

Accompanying Hill to the Magic was Tracy McGrady, a promising high school player the Magic had poached from the Raptors.

Although neither Duncan nor Lin Ze joined the team, and the Magic's envisioned "Big Four" lineup failed to materialize, they did acquire what was dubbed the "Jordan + Pippen 2.0" combination.

Of course, at this time, no one knew that the person who was more like Jordan in the end was McGrady, while Hill, who was highly anticipated, hardly ever played basketball seriously after joining the Magic.

Furthermore, Lin Ze was unable to join the Magic, Duncan stayed in San Antonio on a max contract to continue his twin towers combination with Robinson, and Jalen Rose also stayed in Indiana on a 7-year, $9300 million max contract.

In addition, something that saddened countless people in the league was that although "Iron Man" Alonzo Mourning signed a maximum contract extension with the Heat, he was diagnosed with a serious, life-threatening kidney disease during his pre-training camp physical examination.

With no other option, Mourning had to announce that he would be out of the game indefinitely until he recovered.

But many people know that: indefinite absence is just a nice way of saying it. For Mourning to survive such a serious disease that can take human life is already a feat—to return to the court?

Impossible!

In addition, there were other signings and trades such as the Celtics trading Ron Mosel and the Timberwolves signing Billups to a two-year mid-level exception contract, but these were minor incidents that were not enough to change the overall situation in the league.

On the Lakers' side, in that four-team trade, they not only sent Rice to get a trade exception, but also sent Horry, who had an annual salary of $500 million but contributed almost nothing in last year's playoffs except for one key three-pointer, to the Spurs.

In return, all they got were a trade exception and the signing rights to two overseas players that nobody knew.

In both of these trades, the Lakers only lost money and didn't gain anything, but they saved about $1200 million in salary expenses.

If you factor in the luxury tax, these two trades saved the Lakers a whopping $2400 million!

In addition, AC Green, the team's backup center from last season, also chose to leave the team and did not return to Los Angeles.

Of course, the Lakers can't just keep coming in and not make any reinforcements. As a team aiming for the championship, the Lakers can't be so unambitious.

They then used a mid-level exception to sign Grant, the starting power forward of the Bulls' first dynasty and a good friend and partner of O'Neal, to fill the team's frontcourt.

Although Grant is getting old, his task is simply to fill the void left by Lin Ze and O'Neal, a task he is absolutely capable of accomplishing.

The Lakers also selected white center Mark Madsen with the 29th overall pick in the first round of the draft. Madsen would later become known as the "Mad Dog" in the league for his tenacity and relentless play.

In addition, the Lakers signed Isaiah Riddle to a one-year minimum contract.

This signing is considered by many to be a robbery!

Because the 28-year-old Ryder is not only healthy and strong, but he also averaged 19 points per game with the Hawks last season. With his ability to drive and shoot, he is definitely at the level of a near-star player.

The reason why he was abandoned by the team while still in his prime and could only sign a minimum salary contract with the Lakers is simple: this guy is arguably the number one troublemaker and problem-maker in the league today!

Keep in mind, he used to play for the Trail Blazers! In the end, this troublemaker was kicked out of the Trail Blazers, a team known for its troublemakers and nicknamed "Portland Prison."

Because he's too troublesome and too difficult to control.

When even a community of troublemakers can't stand him, you know how difficult this guy is to deal with.

Since joining the league in 1993, he has been fined more than $20 by the Timberwolves for missing practice and games without cause. He was also arrested for assaulting a referee after a game.

After joining the Trail Blazers, he was suspended for a total of 12 games, and his tardiness and absences from training were countless.

For example, he was suspended and fined for going crazy at the airport and smashing airport facilities such as telephones because he was late and missed the team's flight.

He was fined for possession of marijuana, arrested for carrying an illegal phone and using it for fraud, suspended for spitting at fans, and publicly walked off the field before the game was over after arguing with the team's head coach, Dunleavy.

When he was with the Hawks, this guy did something even more outrageous: he asked the team for three days off to attend his grandfather's funeral, but not only did he fail to return on time, the team also found out that his grandfather's funeral was six months ago.

This guy is a complete beast, even a psychopath. If he didn't actually have enough ability, he would have been eliminated by the league long ago. The Lakers signed him this year to fill the void left by Rice's absence, and to gamble that this guy can turn over a new leaf.

Anyway, it's just a year's basic salary. Even if this guy causes trouble again, the team can still cut him and get rid of him without affecting the team's overall strength.

West has always preferred this kind of low-risk betting.

Lin Ze was also eager to see this guy; he wanted to see what kind of person this number one lunatic in the league really was.

Unfortunately, on the first day of training camp, the Lakers didn't get to see just how crazy this guy really was.

Or rather, everyone knew how serious this guy's condition was from day one.

Because on the first day, Ryder didn't even show up at the training camp.

Even on the first day of the new season, the entire Lakers team knew that they had brought in such a troublesome player, and many people wanted to see just how wild and unruly this guy really was.

As it turned out, Ryder did not disappoint everyone on the first day.

"This kid needs to learn who's the boss of this team," O'Neal said, annoyed. "I even arrived an hour early, and this bastard dares to skip it?"

"Does he think he's here to act like a big shot?"

"I'll teach him a lesson! How can someone who doesn't train deserve to join the defending champions? How can he be a member of our team?"

O'Neal's questioning prompted Kobe, who was standing next to him, to roll his eyes at him.

Indeed, it's true that O'Neal claimed to have arrived an hour early, but the problem is that while he did arrive, he didn't participate in the training at all. O'Neal used the excuse of discomfort in his toe to watch the entire training session from the sidelines.

This guy is just here to have fun.

Of course, even so, O'Neal was still much better than Ryder, who didn't even come.

In the following days, the Lakers' training camp continued, but Ryder never reported to the team. This disappearance even made many Lakers players suspect: had he been cut by the team but they had no idea?

In addition, what has shocked the players, coaches and management the most in the past few days is undoubtedly Lin Ze.

It's clear from the training sessions over the past few days that many Lakers players have worked hard during the summer and have shown significant improvement. For example, Fisher has become more muscular and his shooting has become more consistent.

Kobe experienced a comprehensive improvement and tremendous progress.

However, these two were far inferior to Lin Ze, who had become much stronger, with a significant increase in strength and remarkable improvements in all aspects of his abilities.

Lin Ze's improvement was so great that even Jackson was stunned.

Kobe and Fisher have improved, which was within Jackson's expectations.

But when did Lin Ze start training? How could he have time to train?

Has he been to the arena during this offseason?

Or is it that all the media outlets are talking nonsense and fabricating stories out of thin air?

That's obviously impossible.

But for Jackson, if his players have become stronger, what is there for him to not understand or worry about? As long as they didn't become stronger by taking drugs!

On the fifth day of training camp, the person who gave Jackson a headache arrived.

Early that morning, Ryder, who had disappeared for four days, swaggered into the locker room.

This guy is quite outgoing; he greeted everyone he saw as soon as he walked in.

However, he deliberately overlooked Lin Ze, and without saying a word to Lin Ze, he plopped down in the empty seat.

"Isaiah," O'Neal said, noticing the guy's expression. "Why didn't you come the other day?"

"Sorry, Shaq," Ryder said dismissively. "I forgot the start date of training camp and only remembered it today."

"Forgot four days? Your agent, Phil, and our management team haven't contacted you?"

"Unfortunately, I lost my phone. They may have been looking for me these past few days, but they haven't been able to find me."

Ryder's arrogant attitude and rude tone immediately ignited O'Neal's anger.

What are you, a player on a minimum salary, pretending to be compared to Shaquille O'Neal, a player with three MVP awards in a single year and a championship?

What makes you think you can act like that?

"This is Los Angeles lads," O'Neal said, tilting his head back and staring at Ryder. "You think you can call the shots here? We don't need undisciplined guys who don't train hard!"

"Sorry, Shaq." Ryder still had a big smile on his face, clearly not taking O'Neal's words seriously at all. Although he said he was apologizing, no matter how you looked at it, he didn't seem to have any intention of apologizing at all.

"You believe I can make sure you can't stay in Los Angeles?" O'Neal was also angry, standing up and saying, "We don't need a guy like you here!"

"So what do you need?" Ryder asked. "A well-behaved sissy, or a yellow-skinned monkey from the primitive world? I've never understood why you keep this yellow-skinned monkey around, a circus?"

"You smoked marijuana?" Lin Ze stood up and walked over to Ryder, sniffing it twice before saying, "You bastard, you brought that stuff into the locker room?"

"You want a little monkey?" Ryder reached into his pocket and pulled out something that was absolutely forbidden in the locker room: "I can have it—"

"Fuck you!" Lin Ze didn't even wait for Ryder to finish speaking. Instead, he grabbed Ryder's head with one hand and slammed it against the locker door in the locker room.

With a loud bang, a loud crash came from between Ryder's head and the cabinet door.

"Lin!" Hubble had sensed something was wrong earlier. He had seen Lin Ze and Jordan fight before, and he quickly stood up, wanting to rush between the two to break up the fight.

"Get out!" Lin Ze glared at Hubble and said, "Not just you, Ron, I'm talking about everyone."

"go out!"

"I'll fucking kill you!" Ryder quickly recovered after being hit and struggled to get up to teach Lin Ze a lesson.

But Lin Ze reacted even faster. He pressed Ryder's head down again and slammed it into the locker in the locker room once more.

Bang!

Another sound.

"Get out of here." Lin Ze turned around and looked at everyone in the locker room. "I need to have a good talk with this idiot."

"Let's go, get out." The first person to stand up was Kobe.

This guy took the lead in getting up and then walked out of the locker room.

Then Fisher, Fox, Grant —

Soon, only O'Neal remained in the locker room besides Lin Ze and Ryder.

"Don't go too far." O'Neal wasn't going to try to stop the fight. He had seen Lin Ze and Malone fight one-on-one before, and he knew how strong Lin Ze was. He had complete confidence in Lin Ze.

Just as he stopped to give instructions to Lin Ze, Lin Ze had already smashed Ryder's head into the locker for who knows how many times.

Regardless of how high Ryder's jump is or whether he has won the dunk contest, his current lifestyle is chaotic, he indulges in alcohol and women and even takes drugs he shouldn't. His body is no longer at its peak. Not to mention, he is facing Lin Ze, a monster who can dominate Malone in a one-on-one match.

The continuous heavy blows made Ryder's head spin, and he saw stars everywhere.

"You have five minutes." O'Neal gave the two of them one last look, then slammed the locker room door shut and stood outside with the others.

"What's going on?" Jackson walked over at that moment.

"Lin wants to talk to Ryder about some personal matters."

"What? Five minutes?" Jackson's eyes widened. "Are you crazy? Give him three minutes and he can kill someone! Who do you think Lin is? Didn't you see the muscles he worked so hard on this summer?"

"What should we do then?" O'Neal didn't expect that Jackson's first words would be to complain that he had given too much time.

"A maximum of 2 minutes and 50 seconds!" Jackson glanced at his watch. Clearly, the old man was quite dissatisfied with Ryder's absence from training and loss of contact for four days right from the start. This bastard was giving him a hard time, so he had to give him something even tougher.

Inside the locker room, Lin Ze finally took a step back and looked at Ryder provocatively, saying, "Stand up!"

'

Ryder shook his head, then his eyes hardened. He stood up from his chair and charged at Lin Ze.

But before he could even utter a harsh word, Lin Ze once again pressed his head down with one hand and slammed it against the locker.

Bang!

The advantage that Black people generally have in terms of small heads, which makes them look bigger, became a disadvantage at this moment. Lin Ze could completely grab Ryder's head with one hand, making it difficult for him to resist.

Lin Ze used tremendous force this time. After being hit hard again, Ryder could barely stand up straight. He was bent over, rubbing the back of his head with one hand. Just as he was about to curse again, there was another muffled thud.

Lin Ze used a hook punch this time, and from his superior position, he punched Ryder in the stomach, instantly turning the guy into a shrimp. He was lying on the floor, panting heavily. This time, however, Ryder kept quiet.

"Listen to this garbage." Lin Ze squatted down next to Ryder, pinching his head again with one hand: "I don't care what you're like on other teams, in Los Angeles, you have to follow the rules."

"If I ever smell even the slightest trace of marijuana or other junk on you again, I guarantee you'll be in even worse shape than you were tonight."

"Also, I don't like having scum on the team. I don't care what you did before, or how you behaved on other teams. In short, here, you'd better train on time, play on time, and play well."

"Do you understand?"

Ryder couldn't speak; he was in so much pain that his whole body was convulsing. Lin Ze's punch had made him feel like his internal organs were about to shift. But Lin Ze didn't care whether he could speak or not. He grabbed Ryder's collar and pulled him up from the floor, then slammed him against the locker in the dressing room with a bang, while pressing one hand firmly against Ryder's neck.

"I'm talking to you. Didn't your mother teach you what manners are?" Lin Ze looked at Ryder O with disdain.

"Damn it—" Ryder, whether from too much marijuana or just a tough guy, still wouldn't back down. After swearing, he raised his leg to knee Lin Ze in the stomach.

But how could Lin Ze possibly fall for such a sneak attack?

His free hand slammed down, hitting Ryder squarely on the thigh. It was a standard hard injury, with no lasting effects, but Ryder screamed in pain. Then, Lin Ze casually opened his hand, his five fingers forming a palm, and slapped Ryder's ugly face.

"Not only did you not have a mother to teach you, I now suspect you weren't even born." After slapping him once, Lin Ze slapped him again with the backhand. These two slaps weren't very lethal, but they were extremely humiliating!

"I'm asking you, do you understand?"

Outside the door, Jackson glanced at his watch and said, "Derrick, listen to the door. Is there any more sound?"

"Yes!" Fisher listened intently for a moment and nodded firmly.

"Then we'll wait three more minutes." Jackson shrugged, completely disregarding his previous words, showing no shame whatsoever.

Inside the locker room, Ryder felt greatly insulted after being slapped twice by Lin Ze. The beast-like man let out a low growl and then suddenly unleashed tremendous strength, trying to forcefully break free from the restraints Lin Ze had placed around his neck.

"You've got guts!" Lin Ze roared, then stopped holding back. He used one hand to press down on Ryder's head, while the other hand delivered three consecutive powerful blows to Ryder's stomach. Ryder, who had just recovered, was in excruciating pain again, and the immense force he had just unleashed vanished in the blink of an eye.

This time, Lin Ze didn't give him a chance to catch his breath. He grabbed Ryder and pulled him up again, in the same position as before.

"Can you answer my question now?"

"That's fine."

Despite taking several heavy blows, Ryder didn't vomit, which is a testament to his good physical condition and the fact that he hadn't eaten much before coming here.

"Then answer my question, you stupid black guy. Use your walnut-sized brain to answer me: are you going to play ball properly next, or should I find someone to send you to a plantation to fluff cotton?"

"I will play well."

"Good, you should have said so earlier." Lin Ze smiled, released his hand, patted Ryder's face, and said, "Now, go open the door and let everyone in. Tell them we're fine, there's absolutely no problem."

Ryder felt like he had been granted a pardon. Despite the pain, he limped to the door and opened it. Fisher, who had been eavesdropping by pressing his face against the door, immediately lost his balance and almost fell to the ground.

The entire Lakers team was watching from the doorway; clearly, no one was worried that Lin Ze would suffer a loss.

"Help me!" The moment Ryder saw the person at the door, his meek demeanor vanished, replaced by a rabid roar: "This guy is a damn racist! He's racist! He discriminates against me!"

"He just called me a Niko and said he'd send me to a plantation!"

"Are you crazy!" O'Neal roared. "Lin is our good buddy! How could he say such things!"

"He said it!"

"I didn't say that," Lin Ze said. "You can't spread rumors just because I beat you up!"

"I admit I beat you so badly you were like a dog eating shit and couldn't do anything but beg for mercy, but you can't slander someone's innocence out of thin air!"

"You can sue me and say I'm suspected of intentional assault. You can tell the cops that I beat you up like a salted fish that's been dried for three months. I admit to all of that."

"But I will never admit to anything I didn't do or say."

Ryder stared at Lin Ze in shock. He clearly hadn't expected someone to be so shameless, to deny what he had just said so cleanly and decisively.

"Of course Lin wouldn't say that!" O'Neal roared. "Isaiah, this was your fault to begin with, and now you're spreading rumors about our guy, giving him such serious accusations!"

"Go back and rest," Jackson said. "Come back to training tomorrow. Go back tonight and think carefully about why Lin only beats you up, but is a good friend to everyone else. Think about what you've done."

1

"By the way, what exactly did he do?"

At this point, Jackson suddenly realized that he had no idea what had happened.

Lin Ze didn't waste any words and said directly, "He brought marijuana, it's in his pocket, and maybe even other stuff."

"Fuck! You bastard, you brought marijuana into my locker room?" Jackson was furious. There were some things he could tolerate, but there were some things he absolutely could not accept.

"Are you all insane! You fucking believe a yellow-skinned monkey but not me? Are you all out of your minds? I'm going to tell the reporters everything that happened today! I'm going to tell the reporters tonight!"

"Let them know what kind of place this is!"

"I think you don't need to come anymore. I'll go and talk to Jerry." Jackson was furious. Of course, he knew what Ryder was before he joined the team, but Jackson was confident that he could handle him.

After all, Phil Jackson is the league's best coach at handling difficult players.

Rodman was as well-behaved as a kitten around him!

But Ryder's absence from four days of training camp and bringing marijuana into the locker room went far beyond his limits.

Even Rodman knows to ask for leave when he misses practice!

In particular, this guy doesn't know how to keep his mouth shut; he'll blurt out anything that happens inside the locker room to reporters.

This is absolutely beyond the bottom line for all teams in the league.

As for whether Lin Ze was a racist or not, or whether he actually said those words, he didn't care at all.

Because Lin Ze is a smart person.

Jackson could tolerate intelligent people, but he couldn't tolerate idiots.

Especially those who are both stupid and wicked.

This child must not be allowed to live!

He has to get out of here!

The good news is that this guy is just a minimum-salary player.

Even if he were to leave immediately, it wouldn't have any impact on the Lakers.

Ryder didn't say much after that, but immediately turned and left, clearly intending to go and expose the story to the media.

"I'm going to the bathroom." Lin Ze stretched his shoulders, and then rushed out after the guy.

"Should we stop them?" O'Neal swallowed hard and couldn't help but look at Jackson.

"No need." Jackson's eyes were cold. "I'm going to talk to Jerry. You guys go and practice in your groups first."

Ryder's first day with the Lakers was a complete farce.

Lin Ze followed Ryder all the way to the entrance of the parking lot. Just as Ryder was about to walk out and enter the parking lot, Lin Ze suddenly accelerated, grabbed him, and slammed him against the wall once again.

Then Lin Ze landed two more punches on the guy with a series of "bang, bang".

"Calm down, bro, calm down!" Lin Ze knew there were security cameras here, so the "nigger" from before became a "bro" now: "I'll give you two choices. I'll beat you up again, and then I'll drag you to find Jerry and have a chat with him."

"Or you can just be honest and come with me obediently."

"You fucking hit me! And you're still saying this?" Ryder felt extremely wronged; he had never felt so wronged in his life.

"So you chose the first one? To get beaten up first?"

"No!" Ryder was truly terrified; he had never seen anyone like Lin Ze before. "I'll go with you!"

'

"That's good! I hate violence too." Lin Ze released him, but didn't let his guard down, following behind to prevent him from suddenly running away: "You know the way to Jerry's office, right?"

A few minutes later, Lin Ze and Ryder pushed open the door to West's office.

Jackson was already seated there, clearly having already spoken with West for a while and explained the whole story.

"I think he should come here and have a chat with you guys. You should give him a good talking-to—I mean, you should," Lin Ze said with a smile and a shrug, "to talk him out of it. He said he's going to tell the media everything that just happened."

Ryder seemed to have found a savior once again, shouting, "He's a madman, Jerry! He's a madman!"

He just called me a Niko and said he'd send me to a plantation!

"Did you say that?" West asked Lin Ze.

Lin Ze said casually, "No, this is the most shameless and baseless slander I've ever heard. If he continues to say this, I will consider suing him for defamation."

"Then you go train, Phil too." West waved his hand, and Jackson and Lin Ze immediately got up and left the office.

"Can he handle it?" Jackson suddenly asked.

"He's Jerry West," Lin Ze said. "You think he's Jerry Krause?"

"Of course, even that fatso can be handled. He's just a troublemaker. Those cunning foxes are experts at this kind of thing!"

"Speaking of which, you and Jerry are really destined to meet! How many Jerrys have you worked with?"

"You really called him a 'nigger'?" Jackson asked abruptly, seemingly out of the blue.

"You believe him?" Lin Ze stared at Jackson, as if he had been greatly insulted.

"I believe him." Jackson nodded. "With his brainstem loss, he couldn't have come up with such a sophisticated lie. You definitely cursed him out!"

"I didn't!" Lin Ze denied. "Watch out, or I'll sue you for defamation too!"

"Alright." Jackson shrugged, clearly not caring whether Lin Ze had actually cursed or not. "Go train."

When Lin Ze returned to the stadium, the rest of the team were naturally all practicing.

However, as soon as Lin Ze arrived, they couldn't help but stop and a group of people gathered around to ask what was going on.

Especially Lin Ze, whose actions of chasing after the enemy just now have made everyone quite eager to see how things will develop.

"No, Ryder is gone," Lin Ze said. "He won't be on our team again, I promise."

"Furthermore, if anyone dares to bring that kind of junk into the locker room again, and if anyone is as undisciplined and lacking in teamwork as him, then we will have to take action."

As Lin Ze spoke, Jackson couldn't help but frown.

Lin Ze's words were not wrong, but the problem was that he shouldn't have said them.

He is not the team's leader after all, and the Lakers' current leader, Shaquille O'Neal, is notoriously sensitive.

Will it affect the team's chemistry?

"Especially if anyone dares to offend Shaq again, or dares to act nonchalantly or disregard his instructions, I guarantee you'll suffer the same fate as him!"

"That's right!" O'Neal, standing nearby, immediately patted his chest and said, "Lin is right!" when he saw the conversation had turned to him.

That little fox!

Jackson muttered something, but his tightly furrowed brows completely relaxed.

In short, by combining offense and defense, he not only established his authority but also made O'Neal feel comfortable, making O'Neal feel that Lin Ze was standing up for him and helping him vent his anger.

Jackson, for one, did not believe that Lin Ze would resort to violence just because Ryder talked back to O'Neal. He had clearly heard Ryder's racially charged insults.

He deserves his bad luck.

So, this important summer signing for the team just went down the drain?

Jackson didn't care.

As long as O'Neal, Lin Ze, and Kobe are there, it's fine. The fact that Rider would cause trouble was something the management expected. From the moment they signed him, they were prepared to fire him.

Besides, this guy didn't cause any more serious negative impact, so it's gone and that's it!

That evening, the Lakers updated their information.

Isaiah Riddle has terminated his contract with the team for personal reasons and will be leaving. The Lakers thank him for his contributions and wish him all the best.

The following day, West gave an interview to speak up for Ryder, saying that the guy hadn't done anything wrong and had left the team purely for personal reasons.

West's words gave Ryder a way out. After all, if he had come up and said that Ryder had missed four days of training and was out of contact, that he had angered the team's bigwigs on his first day and caused a fight, and that he had brought prohibited items into the locker room, then Ryder's career would have been completely over, and no team would have given him any chance.

Even if it's just a 10-day contract.

This was also an agreement reached between West and Ryder.

Therefore, Ryder did not make any further public statements about his fight with Lin Ze.

After all, even though this guy is mentally challenged and a lawless troublemaker, he still has to support his family and make a living.

He needs to continue playing in the league.

As for which team he'll go and cause trouble next, that's none of the Lakers' business.

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