Chapter 382 Disintegration of the Big Three + The Lakers Want to Dig Big Dreams
In the capital, Wang Tiejun spent a long time dealing with fans at the airport before he was able to leave.
He will go to Japan tomorrow. Hawksman is waiting for him in Tokyo. After attending business activities, he will return to China, rest until the end of the month, and then report to the national team.
The 1996 Atlanta Olympics were held from July 19th to August 4th. He had to report at least half a month in advance to run in with his teammates on tactics.
The second Iron Army summer camp will open as usual in a few days. Zhang Liji told him the day before yesterday that he had resigned from the national team to work exclusively as his commentator, so the summer camp would continue to be managed by him.
…
Over in the United States, with the end of the season, although the trade window has not yet opened, as big fish enter the free market, various teams, as well as some players and agents, have begun to get busy.
The first is Jordan, the biggest fish. With the end of his contract, he became a completely free agent. David Falk announced his entry into the free market on his behalf.
Then Olajuwon, Barkley, Mutombo, Cobra Grant, Reggie Miller, etc. all announced their entry into the free market.
However, the free market has not yet opened, so all actions can only be carried out secretly underwater and cannot be exposed.
In New York, O'Neal's agent Leonard Amoto and Knicks president Dave Chalcot finally negotiated and reached a contract extension. The Bird rights extension was over the cap, worth $130 million over seven years.
This negotiation has been going on for a long time. Originally, the Knicks hoped to renew the contract in advance, and the contract offered was 7 years and 110 million US dollars. Unfortunately, Amoto rejected it, so it has been delayed until now.
In Miami, Pat Riley also reached an extension agreement with David Frank on Mourning, worth $105 million over seven years.
This is also a Bird Rights over-cap extension, and the Heat still have room to pursue a big-name star in the free market.
…
Houston, Dameng, Barkley, and Drexler gathered together and were discussing their matters.
With the championship, the three old guys have basically lost their morale. Drexler just signed a contract last year. He will definitely stay in Houston, while Barkley and Dream have decided to enter the free market and fight for a job.
Big contracts.
They used to have small contracts, but this time they want to get a pension contract.
"Hakim, you are really nothing. You brought me here, but you ran away first." Drexler complained with a smile.
The words were complained, but there was no complaint in the tone. This is his hometown and he has always wanted to come back, so the fact that Dameng and Barkley were leaving would not affect his mood. It was just a joke.
"You've won two championships, just enjoy yourself." Dameng said angrily.
He is still a little envious. These two old guys each have two rings, and he only has one. Will he be at a disadvantage when he is ranked in the future?
But now he is not willing to hug anyone for the championship. The most important thing now is the big contract.
"You are just having fun. Ewing was sold to the Magic. Jordan will still have O'Neal to suppress him in the future. David Robinson is trapped in the Spurs. Can he succeed under the old K in the future? Among the three super centers, you have the highest status.
Yeah." Buckley smiled.
"hey-hey……"
Dameng laughed happily. The three super centers have competed for many years, but he still won.
"Where do you want to go?" Drexler asked.
"Whoever gives you a big contract can go there," Barkley said with a smile.
"Hakeem is okay. He has the strength to be a core player, but you are just trying to trick people." Drexler joked.
Barkley said angrily: "What do you mean by cheating? My current state is not bad. I averaged 21 points per game in the finals, which is two points more than you. You are not as good as me."
"Haha..." Dameng heard it interestingly and laughed.
"Why are you laughing? Will you be in such good shape next season?" Barkley said angrily.
Dameng chuckled. Next season he will definitely not be as energetic as this season. In fact, his physical condition has gone downhill in the past two years. The reason why he remains at the peak is that his skills and game experience have reached their peak, and his overall strength
Still at its peak.
Barkley suddenly sighed: "I was born at the wrong time, Larry Johnson, Old K, there will be O'Neal in the future, and contracts worth 100 million yuan will come out soon, and you and I can only watch those young people take them.
"
"well!"
The dream and the glider sighed at the same time.
Especially Da Meng, whose strength is still there. He just led his team to win the championship and won FMVP. However, it is very difficult and almost impossible for him to get a 100 million yuan contract.
Not only him, but in his estimation, even Jordan would have a hard time getting a 100 million yuan contract.
There is no other reason than that they are too old. No team will be willing to give them a long-term contract of more than five years and put the team's future on a veteran.
"Charles, has any team contacted you?" Dameng asked.
Barkley had a bitter look on his face. I had just won the championship and we were still one of the Big Three. Why didn't any team contact me? No, yes, they just wanted to take advantage of him. No team was willing to give a big contract.
Looking at Fatty's face, Dameng understood that he was in the same situation as him.
A strong team has no room, and even if you want to give them a big contract, you can't sign them, because there is a salary cap that is holding them back.
Weak teams will not give them long-term contracts. Instead, they will sign a one-year short-term contract and may give them tens of millions of annual salary, but that is not what they want. They want a long-term contract, at least three or four years.
A large contract worth tens of millions.
Drexler asked Dream: "Hakeem, won't Alexander give you a big contract?"
At the mention of this, smoke started to come out of Dameng's nose, and he cursed: "Don't talk about that stingy guy, he just wants to give me a basic salary."
Drexler sighed: "Actually, if Mosaic is willing to use your bird rights, there will be no problem with our space, and Charles may stay."
Dameng looked at Barkley and said, "Charles, what is your bottom line?"
Buckley thought for a while and said tentatively: "At least 50 million in three years, right?"
"You might as well go and grab it." Dameng said angrily.
"I won't talk about the 100 million yuan contract. Why is it not worth 50 million yuan in three years?" Buckley said angrily.
"I don't even dare to say that. You still want 50 million in three years? Then I can say 100 million in five years." Dameng said disdainfully.
Drexler is too lazy to pay attention to these two idiots. This one is 50 million in three years, and the other is 100 million in five years. I only have 20 million in three years, so am I not at a loss?
At this time, the Mosaic team management was urgently discussing how to renew Dameng's contract.
Boss Alexander had just fired his former general manager and hired old assistant coach Dawson as the new general manager. At this time, Dawson proposed to him to use bird rights to renew the contract with Dream, and then offer an annual salary of five million to keep Barkley.
We can maintain the lineup of the Big Three and still hope to win the championship next year.
"Dameng is already over 33 years old, what size of contract is appropriate to give him?" he asked distressedly.
Dawson had already made a plan and said: "He should be satisfied with 60 million to 65 million in five years."
"So big?" Alexander asked in pain.
Dawson advised: "Da Meng's condition is better than that of Barkley and Drexler. Without his outstanding performance in this finals, we would not be able to beat the Bulls at all. He should be worthy of this contract.
In addition, as we win the championship, the football market will definitely enter a period of development, so we must maintain the lineup and maintain the trend of winning the championship to prevent the football market from falling into a low ebb."
When it comes to the football market, this strikes a chord with Alexander. His business strategy is to make money by selling tickets. Honors and other things are not in his plan at all, but if Dameng and Barkley leave, his football market may
It's really going to collapse.
"Well, it's a bargain, so let's renew him." He said helplessly in the end.
"Okay, I'll contact Dameng and his agent right away." Dawson said happily. It was really not easy to convince this stingy boss.
While the Big Three were talking nonsense, Dameng received a call from his agent Fagan.
"Five years and sixty-five million?"
This offer, even if it doesn't make him throw away his phone, is an average of 13 million per year. The important thing is that it is a five-year long-term contract.
"Okay, I'll be right over."
He has nothing to be particular about. In the past two days, he has announced that he will enter the free market, but he has not gained much. He does not want to bother anymore.
At this time, Buckley's phone rang, and it was David Frank contacting him.
"Damn, it's only ten million in two years? That idiot Hakeem can sign for five years and sixty-five million, so why should I only get ten million in two years? I won't sign." He said sadly and angrily.
Dameng, who was about to leave, said awkwardly: "You idiot, it's not the price I gave you, why are you blaming me?"
Barkley said angrily: "The space has been given to you, leaving me a middle-class person. Do you want me to agree? I have already won two championships, how can I not get 10 million in two years? Believe it or not, I will return to the Suns.
?”
Dameng and Drexler looked at each other, what should we do?
Dameng and Barkley had originally agreed to enter the free market in order to force the management to give them a big contract. Unexpectedly, the management now gave Dameng a fairly large contract. Barkley
Nothing fell here.
"Then why don't you leave? But forget it, the Suns. They can't give you a big contract, otherwise they wouldn't have traded you three years ago." Dameng asked.
He has already won the championship, and it doesn't matter whether Barkley can stay or not. I do hope that Barkley can go to other teams and get a big contract.
Barkley nodded and before hanging up the phone, he said to David Frank: "David, I will definitely not sign this contract. Please help me contact other teams."
"Okay, you wait for my news." David Frank said.
…
The Indiana Pacers' management is negotiating with Reggie Miller's agent to discuss how to renew his contract, which is a bit troublesome.
There was no problem at first. The Pacers originally prepared a seven-year, 70 million contract, and Reggie Miller agreed, but something happened due to another incident.
After the Magic were eliminated in the Eastern Conference Finals, Ewing's agent David Frank suddenly contacted the management and revealed that Gorilla was interested in leaving the Magic and was interested in the Pacers.
This made the management extremely happy, as if a golden pie fell from the sky. Although the main center Rick Schmitz is not bad, how can he compare with Ewing?
But David Frank put forward Ewing's salary requirements. After the contract expires next season, the new contract must be more than five years and the total amount must be at least 75 million US dollars.
So now they are having a headache, how can the team accommodate two star contracts with an annual salary of tens of millions at the same time.
There is only one way to make Reggie Miller cut his salary, and this is what they can think of.
The specific method is that because Ewing only has a contract of 3 million next season, Reggie Miller's new contract this time can copy the contract the Knicks gave Ewing last year, giving a high salary next season, and then getting a lower salary in the following years.
The salary gap is huge.
But no matter what, the management cannot offer a seven-year, US$70 million contract, and the total amount can only reach a maximum of 55 million.
The management suddenly changed its mind, which was a big surprise to Reggie Miller and his agent. However, Reggie Miller really wanted to win the championship. If Ewing could come, it would be a very happy thing for him, so he did not directly
Rejected the new contract offered by management and launched new negotiations.
…
It is said that David Frank was in New York with Jordan. He had just contacted the Pacers management and planned to get Ewing to the Pacers when he suddenly received a call from Knicks president Dave Chalcot.
"You still want Barkley?"
He was startled. Are the Knicks planning to trade Oakley?
Jordan next to him also heard it. He had a good relationship with Oakley. He quickly picked up the phone and walked aside and dialed Oakley's number.
"Charles, does management want to trade you?"
"Michael, who did you listen to?"
"They want Barkley."
"Damn it! They took away Patrick, and now they want to clean me up." Oakley on the other end was very angry, but could do nothing.
Jordan curled his lips. He knew that Ewing and Oakley teamed up to force the Knicks management to go away during the regular season. This was very suspicious. Once the team chose to rebuild, it was natural for the old man to be purged. The Knicks acquired O'Neal.
It's no different than rebuilding.
Oakley has good abilities, strong rebounds, defense, not to mention good mid-range shooting ability, but unfortunately his contract has ended and he has not yet reached a contract with the Bulls. This time he is here to negotiate a contract with the Knicks.
, so there is nothing we can do about Oakley, otherwise it would be a good idea to find a way to get the bull.
But if he joins the Knicks, he would rather have Oakley than Barkley.
In the finals, he could see that Barkley was not very good anymore. Moreover, Barkley had won two championships. He would probably enter a retirement state and would no longer play hard. He was not as useful as Oakley.
Over there, David Frank hung up the phone.
We just briefly discussed that the Knicks want to build a luxurious lineup with center O'Neal, power forward Barkley, small forward Anthony Mason Jr., shooting guard Jordan, and point guard Derek Harper, so they need to trade Oakley and John Starr.
kes.
This lineup, if Jordan's contract is settled, Barkley's contract also has some problems and cannot be accommodated at all.
O'Neal is a Bird Rights signing and occupies a virtual space of 8.55 million. Mason will have 2.78 million next season and Harper will have 1.3 million. These three people occupy a total of 12.63 million. The salary cap for next season is calculated as 25 million, leaving 12.37 million.
, this little space wants to accommodate Jordan and Barkley. Even if Jordan can use other contracts to make up for it, it cannot be too small. There is no room for Barkley at all.
Now the Knicks want to talk to Jordan first, but they asked David Frank not to rush to find a home for Barkley. He just agreed. Anyway, tomorrow is the day to negotiate with the Knicks, and it won't take long.
"If I came to the Knicks, I would rather have Oakley." Jordan said.
David Frank was startled and nodded immediately, but did not contact the Knicks again. He knew that Barkley would not come to the Knicks. There was no way the Knicks could give Barkley a decent contract and they just wanted to get some bargains.
…
In Houston, Dameng was about to sign a contract with his agent. The car was almost at the headquarters when suddenly his agent received a call from Lakers general manager Jerry West and the car stopped on the side of the road.
"Hakeem, 70 million in five years, the Lakers want you." After hanging up the phone, agent Dan Fagan said to Dameng excitedly.
"What?"
Da Meng was also a little excited.
"Hakeem, let's go to the Lakers."
Fagan said excitedly: "Although it's only five million more, it's still money, isn't it? And in the Lakers, you should be able to get more business resources."
"To the Lakers?"
Dameng gritted his teeth, suddenly took out his cell phone, called Barkley, and said, "Charles, I'm going to the Lakers. You ask David Frank to renegotiate the contract with the management. I'll leave the space for you."
When Dan Fagan next to him heard this, he couldn't help laughing, turned on the turn signal, shifted gears, and turned his car around.
After Buckley heard what Dameng said, he was startled for a moment, then laughed and cursed: "Hakim, you bastard, you found a better dock and you gave me the space? Damn it to you!"
"Haha, so be it, I'm going to negotiate a contract with the Lakers now."
Dameng smiled and hung up the phone and asked Fagan: "Where are the Lakers?"
"I will finalize a contract with Jerry West right away." Dan Fagan said excitedly.
A few minutes later, the phone call ended and he said excitedly: "It's settled, Hakeem. I'll rush to Los Angeles immediately to sign a bilateral agreement with the Lakers and finalize the contract first so that there won't be any changes."
"Okay, I'll wait for your news." Dameng smiled.
As long as a bilateral agreement is signed, it means that the contract is finalized. Only when the free market opens can the contract be formally signed.
