At 11 o'clock, the Suns flew to Salt Lake City to prepare for the next two away games.
At exactly this time, at the Suns headquarters, Colangelo's assistant took a guest away from his office as scheduled.
He is now the chairman of the Suns, and his son Colangelo Jr. serves as the team's president and general manager. The main work is handed over to his son. His main focus is on establishing the Arizona Cobras.
However, there is also some work for the Suns, and I come here to handle it every day, which takes about two hours.
"Hello, Mr. Colangelo, I am Hanwes John, representing the Robert Sarver Consortium." The guest, a white man in his thirties, said with a smile.
"Mr. Robert Sarver?"
Standing up and shaking hands, Colangelo muttered the name.
As an old man from Phoenix, of course he knew who this name was. Although he was engaged in sports, he was also a businessman. Although he did not belong to the same circle, he had crossed paths with him. However, the intersections were few and he did not know this person very well.
Three minutes later, he knew Hanwes John's intention. Robert Sarver wanted to buy his team and hoped to start acquisition negotiations.
This is not surprising. Now the Suns' market value has skyrocketed and people are interested in it. It is a natural thing to show that the team is valuable and well-run. His investment is successful. If no one is interested, then it is Nervous stuff.
From his point of view, the Suns' investment has made money, and someone is happy to buy it at a high price. If the price is reasonable, he can cash out at a high price.
It just so happens that he is now forming the Arizona Cobras. The amount of investment in this team far exceeds the original investment of the Suns. When the Suns joined the NBA, the franchise fee was not much. In 1995, when the Grizzlies and Raptors joined the NBA, each team's The franchise fee is as high as 125 million U.S. dollars, and if Cobra wants to join the MLB league, the franchise fee is also very high, as high as hundreds of millions of U.S. dollars.
And he left himself a lot of Cobra shares, more than 50%, so now he needs to raise a large amount of cash, and he also has plans to sell his shares in the Suns.
Therefore, he did not reject the acquisition and agreed on a time when the two parties would start acquisition negotiations.
That night, thanks to O'Neal's strong performance, the Knicks actually defeated the Bulls and won an away game.
"Is the bull really dying?"
Lao Wang was a little surprised to see that the Bulls actually lost their second home game.
If the Bulls lose on the road, he can still understand that losing a home game means that the Bulls will be somewhat passive in the future, and they must at least win an away game to get back.
"Both Rodman and Pippen are old, as are several substitutes. The average age is said to be thirty-two years old. Besides Jordan, how many others are really pursuing the championship?" Lightning said.
Lao Wang was startled, his pursuit of the championship?
Yes, the aging of a team is not only about age, but also about mentality. It has lost its pursuit of the championship. No matter how young it is, it is old and needs to be cleaned.
At that time, Mr. Colangelo chose to trade Barkley, but later chose not to renew his contract with the Glider. Maybe this is also the reason?
…
May 23rd, Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals.
The postman is indeed an iron man. He had three stitches on the back of his head and did not miss the game.
Seemingly inspired by the postman's minor injury, the atmosphere at the home court at the Delta State Center Arena was on fire, and the Jazz's performance was therefore very exciting.
As the visiting team, the Suns were affected, their performance was not understandable, and they finally lost the G3 game.
The two sides tied at 2 to 1 and will have a G4 battle on the 25th.
On the morning of the 24th, Colangelo Jr. received a call from his father. He learned that a consortium wanted to acquire the team and would immediately start acquisition negotiations with the other party.
This news did not affect him. The family business is a business and his work is a job. The distinction is very clear.
As for his father's plan to take advantage of the rising market value of the Suns to sell the team, he understands and supports it. It is normal to cash out after making money from investment.
At present, the market value of the Suns has actually reached a limit. Because Phoenix is so big, the population is limited, and the ball market is also limited. It is already very difficult to develop upward. So now, from an investment perspective, it is the right time to make a cash move.
suitable.
Moreover, his father's ideals are great. He wants to create a larger sports market in Phoenix. Investing in the establishment of the Arizona Cobras is the next goal. It is natural to divest from the Suns.
As for the development of the Suns, it is now on the right track. Even if the Colangelo family withdraws, the team will continue to develop and they do not need to worry.
But whether it will be sold in the end depends on the negotiation situation. That is something that can only be decided by his father. Moreover, the negotiation process should be very long and may last for several years.
That night, the Bulls and the Knicks changed places. Jordan scored 43 points in Madison Square Garden, shooting 57% from the field, and led the team to defeat the Knicks, leading by a score of 2 to 1.
"Still not old!"
After watching this game, Lao Wang had to admit Jordan's strength.
No. 25, Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals.
"victory!"
In the home team's locker room, led by postman Karl Malone, the momentum was already extremely high before they even took the field, vowing to win the second home game.
At 7:30, both sides announced the starting lineup.
Suns: Wang Tiejun, Rasheed Wallace, Robert Horry, Kidd, Kevin Johnson
Jazz: Campbell, Karl Malone, Brian Russell, Jeff Hornacek, John Stockton
In the tnt live broadcast booth, Bill Walton analyzed: "The Jazz should have a greater chance of winning in this game. With the strength of the home court and the strength of both sides being about the same, the visiting team will be suppressed."
Barkley and Bill Walton sang the opposite tune, saying: "I disagree with you, Bill, do you really think the Jazz are about as good as the Suns?"
"Don't you think?" Bill Walton said in surprise.
Barkley smiled: "Of course, you see, the Jazz need to use various means to restrict Old K, and will the Suns double-team a certain Jazz player?
In the first three games, not to mention the G2 game, the Jazz's touch was good in the other two games, but who can guarantee that their touch will continue to be good in the next games?"
Bass Felton also said at this time: "Yes, under the defense of Old K and Rasheed Wallace, the Jazz's low-post offense has never been large. They mainly rely on jump shots after the pick-and-roll. Once the touch is not good,
Then the result won't be too good.
As for the Suns, Old K is all about low-post offense, accounting for at least 30% of the Suns' shots. His low-post offense alone surpasses that of the Jazz."
Barkley smiled: "So the big score now is two to one, the Suns are in the lead, not the Jazz."
Bill Walton laughed and could only nod, unable to refute.
However, he did not surrender directly, and continued to argue: "But the Jazz's pick-and-roll tactics are very good. Every offense uses everyone's strength and cooperates with each other. They can get a lot of openings and dislocations in every game, so they always
Being able to maintain a good touch, although the Suns' defense is good, in the game against the Jazz, the effect of guarding the pick-and-roll was not good."
"This is a fact." Buckley nodded.
Bass Felton said at this time: "The media has been hyping up the internal strife in the Suns these past two days, saying that Old K has lost the trust of the coaching staff and his tactical status will be reduced. What do you think?"
"It's mainly the media in Salt Lake City who are hyping up the situation. The purpose is obvious. They are trying to interfere with the Suns," Barkley said bluntly.
Bill Walton said: "Old K's tactical status in the Suns is indeed very high, even higher than Jordan's tactical status in the Bulls..."
Barkley interjected: "That's because Old K is closer to the basket and is a greater threat, so the double-teaming on him is greater, and he has good passing ability, so giving the ball to him first is the best option.
A good tactic.”
Bass Felton said: "It is always right to give the ball to the strongest person, especially if this strongest person can average 6 assists per game."
"Jerry, what do you think?"
At this moment, in Los Angeles, in Jerry Buss' mansion, he asked Jerry West seriously.
Today he specially invited West to his home because of the media's hype about the Suns and Old K in the past two days.
Before the finals, the league will hold a lottery ceremony. Although Stern did not agree to him directly, he believed that Stern would not watch the Lakers' market shrink and remain indifferent, so the Lakers still have great hopes.
However, if there is hope of getting Old K, he can even use the No. 1 pick and the entire Lakers team to trade with the Suns.
Jerry West thought about it for a while and then said: "Jerry, the media that are hyping it are mainly the media in Salt Lake City. Based on my understanding of the Suns management, there is little chance, or even no chance."
Jerebus nodded with some disappointment and suddenly said: "If there is a chance, I will get Lao K at any cost."
"Understood." Jerry West nodded.
At this time, the game begins.
Rasheed Wallace and Campbell jump ball, the Suns attack.
Wang Tiejun first paused in the low post on the left wing. When Campbell came up, he suddenly turned around, bypassed his opponent and cut towards the basket.
Jeff Hornacek defended Kidd. The latter relied on his advantage to push the former closer to the top of the arc. Seeing Pharaoh's inward movement, he suddenly made a side hook and passed the ball in.
Postman quickly rushed to the basket, and Lao Wang quickly took off to catch the ball. He was blocked by the former and had no chance to complete an alley-oop dunk. After landing, he immediately fell into the siege of Postman and Campbell.
"Double-teamed under the basket?" Zhang Liang's eyes widened.
If it were before, he wouldn't be in a hurry because he believed that Wang Tiejun's chain could wipe out all the double-teaming forces by hitting enough, but now with K's Law, it's hard to say.
At this moment, Wang Tiejun, who was trapped in a double team, suddenly dodged and escaped from the double team. Then he quickly rose up and smashed the ball into the basket through the postman with a bang.
"Beep!"
The postman failed to react and did not take off in the legitimate collision area, so he was called for a defensive foul.
"Beautiful!" Su Qun praised.
Zhang Lili was also dumbfounded. Tie Jun used this jump step very well!
At the TNT live broadcast, Barkley also cheered: "Well done. Old K's ability to break double teams is limited by K's Law, but this jump step shows that he still has the ability to break double teams."
In Phoenix, Lao Wang's home, Da Meng who didn't come to the away game was shocked. What kind of pace is this?
A jump step? Of course he knew it was a jump step, but Lao K had never used a jump step to get rid of the defender before.
"Damn it, if a giant beast like Lao K can still move with such flexible steps, how can others fight him?" He shook his head.
In New York, O'Neal wiped his eyes and couldn't believe what he just saw.
It is not uncommon for a center to use a jump step. It is commonly used by the three super centers, especially Ewing's bunny hop, which is a jump step.
However, giant beasts like him and Lao K rarely use jump steps because they are too large, not easy to use, and unnecessary, and they hurt their knees. He just knocks away the opponent.
However, if he fell into the double-team of the postman and Campbell, he was not sure whether he could break through the double-team. After all, those two guys were both big guys with a tonnage of 130 kilograms or close to it.
"hey-hey!"
After picking up the postman, Lao Wang laughed excitedly.
The steps he just moved were from the plum blossom step. The plum blossom step has three steps: swing, retreat, and thrust. The one he used just now was the retreat method, which is the step of getting rid of the enemy.
However, without the integration of the system, he can't use it much, and he doesn't dare to use it more. He is afraid of making mistakes and walking violations. It was just an attempt just now.
"brush!"
Then he hit an extra free throw, making it two plus one.
The Jazz's offense was still a pick-and-roll. Jeff Hornacek cooperated with Mailman. Mailman dropped Rasheed Wallace, hit Kidd in a misplaced position, frightened Kidd away with an elbow, and then made a mid-range shot.
The Suns attack, Kidd gets the ball, and Hornacek defends.
"Shh!"
As soon as the visiting team got the ball, the home fans began to put pressure on the visiting team and disturbed the visiting team with loud boos.
"Whoosh!"
Still relying on his tonnage advantage, Kidd carried the defender close to the top of the arc, suddenly turned around, bypassed the defender in front, and passed the ball to the low left wing.
"Whoosh!"
Before the ball arrived, Wang Tiejun noticed the postman rushing towards him. He suddenly took a step forward, then jumped to catch the ball. When Campbell didn't catch up, he threw a one-handed towards the right corner and the ball flew towards Lashi.
DeWallace.
As soon as the ball was passed, he immediately rushed to the basket, preparing to grab the rebound.
The player one step inside the three-point line caught the ball, and Stockton jumped over from above, but the height advantage was too great to interfere with him. He took the shot calmly and the ball flew towards the basket.
"Bang!"
The ball missed a little, hit the basket, and bounced outward.
"Rebound!" Su Qun shouted loudly.
Under the basket, the postman and Campbell took off at the same time, but when they jumped up, a big hand grabbed the ball first.
"Don't even think about coming in!"
Postman and Campbell failed to grab the rebound. As soon as they landed, they both blocked in front of the basket, preventing Old K from entering the reasonable collision area.
"Go to hell!"
But at this time, Old K let out a loud roar in his throat, took off twice, like a hungry tiger, holding the ball with both hands, pulling back, and smashed it towards the basket behind the two of them.
"Don't even think about it!"
"Don't even think about it!"
Postman and Campbell tried their best to take off and block shots, trying to rely on their strength to prevent their opponents from attacking the basket.
But Wang Tiejun jumped even higher, forming a dive and crushing force on the two of them from top to bottom.
"Buckle!" Zhang Li shouted loudly.
"Bang!"
The next moment, the three of them bumped into each other heavily.
"Bang!"
As the violent slamming of the basket sounded, the postman and Campbell also rolled backwards at the same time, while Wang Tiejun hung his hands on the basket, rising and falling as the basket frame rose.
"oh!"
The boos all over the sky turned into shocking exclamations, and countless home fans stared at their own basket. They couldn't believe that there were two insiders with a tonnage of or close to 130 kilograms, and one of them was a superstar postman.
Both of them were actually dunked?
"yeah!"
Everyone on the Suns' court and on the bench burst into cheers.
"Ouch!"
Countless people in Fengshen Street cheered at this moment.
In the tnt live broadcast booth, Barkley shouted excitedly: "This is the dominance of Old K, do you see it? He is unstoppable under the basket!"
Bill Walton also shouted excitedly: "The giant beast is erupting. Sir, be careful. If you can't stop Old K, you will be eaten alive by him."
Bass Felton said with a smile: "Old K seems to be working harder in this game than in the previous two games."
Barkley laughed and said: "He is annoyed by being double-teamed and fouled by the Jazz every time. Do you think he is a good-tempered person? Wrong, his temper is not good, it is very bad."
On the field, Lao Wang had already let go of his hands and fell to the ground. His legs happened to be riding on the postman's body. He twitched the corner of his mouth and smiled silently at the latter.
"Old K, do you dare?"
The postman who was about to get up quickly did a sit-up, raised his upper body, grabbed his hands forward, grabbed Lao Wang's shorts, and pulled down.
"Damn it!"
The bottom of his trousers was pulled down a bit. Lao Wang hurriedly grabbed the top of his trousers and stepped back at the same time, breaking away from the postman's hand. He was so close that he almost lost his clothes.
"Kacha kacha..." The flashlight behind the bottom line flashed non-stop for an instant.
"Oh, it's just a little bit close!"
"The postman was slow."
A group of reporters kept sighing. If the postman had been faster, there would have been a good show today. With Lao K
His temper will make him think like a dog on the court.
"Postman, you idiot, you have gone too far!"
"You bastard, you are too much!"
"I learned this from Pi Er. If you go to him, if you pull my pants next time, I won't be done with you."
"I can't kill him with my elbow!"
Lao Wang and the postman cursed and ran towards the Jazz's frontcourt.
"Crack!"
Twenty seconds later, Lao Wang rushed out of the paint area and used a fierce shot to knock the ball thrown by the postman directly out of bounds.
"Come in and fight, you coward, do you only dare to shoot jumpers outside?" After blocking the shot, Lao Wang also spat out trash talk to humiliate the postman.
The postman was not good at trash talk. He gritted his teeth in anger and vowed to give Old K a good look.
The Jazz attacked again, with only five seconds left.
Stockton used the wall to break through, and the Suns followed closely. He didn't find his teammates running out of opportunities, and there was too little time, so he had to take action from the left elbow area.
"Crack!"
Lao Wang rushed up from the basket, took one step and flew two meters in the air, and then directly grabbed the ball thrown by Stockton from the sky.
"Yeah! Another big shot. Is Mr. K crazy today?" At the TNT live broadcast booth, Barkley jumped up with excitement.
"Ouch, the Jazz's morale has been hit by the consecutive big hits. The home court is very quiet now." Zhang Li said with a smile in the CCTV live broadcast.
"The black and white evil spirits are blocked one after another, which really hurts morale." Su Qun said with a smile.
At this time, the Suns launched a defensive counterattack, came down quickly, received a pass from Lao Wang, and hit a layup.
7:2, the offense was unfavorable, and the Jazz called a timeout in advance.
