Before announcing his retirement, Barkley went to Los Angeles to have dinner with Yang Jian to apologize, saying that he would not be able to help the team defend the title next season.
Yang Jian did not blame Barkley and fully understood his choice. Last season, he signed with the SuperSonics with an annual salary of 1 million, which was a significant salary cut. It would be a huge loss if he renewed his contract with a continuous low salary.
And with Barkley's current appetite, it's simply unreasonable to try to get him to lose weight. He has lost the desire to win, and he can't play well when he returns to the court. The word "fly" in "flying pig" can be completely removed.
Already.
Barkley thinks his career is very satisfying, and now his mind is filled with barbecue and donuts. Having realized his dream, he can no longer maintain self-discipline.
There are several such players in the league who have lost their composure during this extremely long offseason. The first to bear the brunt is Cavaliers star power forward Sean Kemp, who weighs about the same as Barkley, also reaching 130 kilograms.
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There is also Rockets star power forward Vin Baker. He has never won a championship and has not been able to maintain a good figure. He has gained 10 kilograms and is drinking heavily.
As soon as the free market opened, Sam Perkins was poached by the Pacers for 6 million in three years.
As a veteran who is about to turn 38, this contract amount is not low. The Pacers' goal is to strengthen the interior's ability to withdraw, and Perkins can also play a role in the team's locker room.
This incident caused dissatisfaction among Sonics fans. Last season, the Sonics played the Finals with the Pacers. Isn't Perkins surrendering to the enemy?
Perkins himself doesn't care. After entering the league, he first played for the Mavericks, then played in the Finals for the Lakers, and then joined the SuperSonics. He is not a one-man, one-city player, so there is no need to be loyal to the Sonics.
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Bo Outero's premium is even greater. He joined the Grizzlies with a 6-year contract of US$3,000. The average annual salary of 5 million is the same as the price paid by the Heat when they dug up P.J. Brown. Bo Outero is just a blue-collar defensive player and has no shooting range on the offensive end.
Pick up the leak, the weakness is obvious.
The Grizzlies management believes that signing Bo Outlaw is better than renewing Bryant Revis with a high salary.
Levis looks like a fat guy. On the defensive end, he is easily passed by defenders when encountering pick-and-rolls. The emergence of Yang Jian has accelerated the overall offensive and defensive transition rhythm in the NBA. Levis, who is strong in offense and weak in defense, has entered the free market. Not many teams
interested.
In a parallel world, Levi's getting a six-year, $6,500 long-term contract with the Grizzlies with a high salary of $6,500 is purely ridiculous. Now the team prioritizes renewing Ray Allen's contract and doesn't even bother to give Levi an offer.
The same situation also happens to many blue-collar high forwards who have no shooting range. It is impossible for them to get big contracts. Swingmen with the style of Bo Outero at the 3rd and 4th positions are more marketable because they are fast and good at guarding pick-and-rolls.
, single defense is also excellent.
There was also an episode in the league. The Raptors traded Antawn Jamison, the No. 4 pick in the first round, for Vince Carter, the No. 5 pick of the Warriors. Many people considered it a stupid move.
Carter is a swingman with super physical fitness. He completed a reverse 360-degree dunk in college. Normally, people would think that his potential is better than Jamison. But because of Yang Jian, reverse 360-degree dunks are not uncommon.
On the contrary, the scouts felt that Carter was not fast enough, his breakthrough was not sharp enough, and his height of 198cm was too tall to play shooting guard.
In the past, the standard used by scouts to select shooting guards was 198cm. After Yang Jian led the SuperSonics to establish a dynasty, Carter received an "excessive" evaluation during the draft. There is no way, the best standard has changed. If not there is no better one in the future.
Choice, Carter can't even be the No. 5 pick.
Carter himself was not happy either. Although his cousin Tracy McGrady suggested that the management trade him and wanted to fight alongside him, who would be willing to start his career in Canada?
Carter's embarrassment is still to come, because after McGrady suggested that the management select Carter, he disappeared in 2000...
SuperSonics backup shooting guard Hoiberg also left and joined the Bulls with an annual salary of 1 million. The Bulls have begun to rebuild. Although Hoiberg can't get a high salary, his choice is very smart. He can get a lot of appearances in the new season.
Time, and even became a starter.
In a parallel world, Hoiberg reached his career peak with the Bulls, averaging 9.1 points, 4.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.3 steals per game.
Eric Snow joined the Toronto Raptors with an annual salary of 30 million in 6 years.
Snow feels that the Cavaliers have a good lineup, and they have an acquaintance like Sean Kemp. The most important thing is that he likes this team. Snow's hometown of Caton is very close to Cleveland, so he likes the NBA the most.
The city is Cleveland.
However, under Yang Jian's persuasion, Snow finally gave up joining the Cavaliers and chose the Raptors.
Yang Jian told Snow that Camp, like Barkley, became a big fat mess during the holidays. With Camp's character, he will definitely become more and more degenerate and hopeless.
The Cavaliers are very bad and have not been able to make the playoffs for many years in a row. Kemp's contract is a super garbage contract. He can't be traded since he doesn't perform well. Is Snow going to the Cavaliers to seek abuse?
Although the Raptors are located in Toronto, Canada, they have a better future than the Cavaliers. With Snow partnering with Carter and McGrady, it will not be difficult to reach the playoffs. Although the Raptors couldn't get past the first round of the playoffs before McGrady left, they can in the future
Producing results.
Snow does not lack a championship ring, but he lacks data. If he can put up good data, even if he only reaches the second round of the playoffs, he may sign another big contract in the future.
Yang Jian pointed out a clear path to his friend. The Raptors are perfect for Snow's development. After Damon Stoudemire left, there was no point guard on the team, so Snow would be the starter.
The Raptors management also valued Snow very much, and they were convinced by the flying squirrel's aerial defense. Snow's offense was not as good as the flying squirrel's, and his defensive ability was much better. The best thing is that Snow has rich talents and high-flying players like Carter.
Partner experience. Carter can catch the ball and shoot, can also play fast breaks, and also likes to dunk.
After listening to Yang Jian analyze the pros and cons, Snow happily signed a contract with the Raptors. He rejected invitations from the Cavaliers, 76ers, Rockets and other teams, and these teams all offered him similar contracts.
Another Sonics point guard, Mookie Norris, also left and joined the Golden State Warriors with a million-dollar annual salary.
Norris had a smart agent who suggested that he join the Warriors instead of staying with the Sonics.
The Warriors began to rebuild. They traded Joe Smith and, not surprisingly, also sent away "Madman" Sprewell. Norris joined the Warriors, a rebuilding team without a point guard, and partnered with rookie Jamison. How could he not have the ball?
?
However, Norris may not be able to play well. He is not an efficient scorer and is only suitable as a substitute. Giving him the ball is in vain due to his lack of ability.
In the first three days of the free market, the Sonics only re-signed small forward Bruce Bowen with a low salary, and all other free agents left.
A player with Bowen's style cannot get a high salary. He is too blue-collar and has almost no scoring ability. He has not yet perfected his three-point shooting. Last season, he only shot 33.3% from three-point range, and he was still in the game most of the time.
It was thrown when the bottom corner was shorted.
Bowen is self-aware and doesn't want to leave the SuperSonics. He is willing to renew his contract for 1.6 million in two years. Bowen has no ambition at all. He has never thought about becoming a star. He is satisfied if he has a ball to play and a stable job.
Coupled with the retired Nate McMillan and Terry Cummings, the Sonics are almost left with no one available.
Many Sonics fans are dissatisfied with the operation of the team's management and believe that as long as the Sonics retain the original lineup, they will be able to win four consecutive championships. With the current situation of the team, it is too difficult to successfully defend the title.
In fact, this is not the manager's fault. After the players have championship rings, their pursuits are different and they don't want to stay anymore.
In addition to retaining the outside core of Yang Jian and Payton, the Sonics were actually forced to start rebuilding. They could only dig low-paid players in the free market, and they also had to strive to bring in players with a stronger desire to win.
Fortunately, with Yang Jian as a signboard, SuperSonics is still quite attractive.
