"Adam, how are things going?"

On February 1, 2007, at the NBA headquarters in Manhattan, New York, NBA commissioner David Stern saw his assistant Adam Silva come in and looked eagerly at the league's new vice president with a pile of papers in his hand.

The last two years have been the most unpleasant two years for David Stern, and it is also the most embarrassing two years of David Stern's NBA president career, in his past decades of NBA president career, the NBA has been thriving and upward in his hands, although the NBA was in the dark period of the year, the ratings were less than 10%, but they are rising every year.

It's just that in the past two years, after the Chinese retired, the league's ratings under his leadership have been declining, although he has successfully picked up Kobe, Maddie and Anthony stars, but these people want to really reach Zhuang Fei or Jordan has the ability to support a league is impossible, even if it can reach Carter's influence is difficult to say.

No, in this year's All-Star vote, Carter, who has just passed his thirtieth birthday, still occupies the position of the league's vote king, and the advantage is extremely obvious, as for Kobe, although Maddie and Anthony have entered the starter, there is still a gap between them and Carter.

Therefore, David Stern also knows that these three have not met his expectations so far, and when these three meet his expectations, it is not very clear whether the NBA will be able to recover, of course, although the last two years have made him very aggrieved.

But there has been good news recently, recently in New York, the owner behind the newly built East River Park Arena under their noses has finally made a move. The billionaire from China, surnamed Zhuang, bought the Atlanta Hawks for $450 million and was ready to move the team to the new arena in New York. For this matter. David Stern was extremely pleased.

In September of this year, he discussed with the person in charge of the East River Park arena about the New Jersey Nets moving to New York, and was finally rejected directly, originally thought that the world's most luxurious and largest basketball park would take another year or two to be able to use, but now it seems that it can be used now, in this case, he will naturally not have any resistance to the new owner of Atlanta who wants to move the team from Atlanta.

If any team wants to move to New York, he and the NBA will not stop it and will support it strongly. What's more, after the rise of the Bobcats, Atalanta's status in David Stern's heart is not a little bit low, and the effect of this team staying in Atlanta to challenge the ACC League has basically zero, and moving away in this case is also the best option.

"President, the matter has been settled, the Atlanta Hawks will move to the East River Park Arena in New York on February 20, after this year's All-Star Games, but the city of Atlanta doesn't seem to want the team to move, and if the team wants to move, it will have to change its name. Leave the team's history behind, the owner of the Atlanta Hawks has agreed," said Adam Silva as he looked at his expectant boss in front of him. He knows his boss is rejoicing that New York has another NBA team to play lately.

"It's not a small deal, I actually gave up the team history of the Atlanta Hawks, this is a team that has won a championship" David Stern also smiled and nodded after hearing his assistant's words, he was still very satisfied with his assistant's ability to do things, and it only took less than a week to move the team to New York.

Of course, the new owner of the Hawks dared to give up the history of the Hawks also surprised him, although the Hawks are not a giant team like the Lakers or the Celtics with a rich history, but the Hawks are also a team with a historical tradition, the former NBA champion winner, although recently a little down, but to inherit the history of this team means that this team will have more selling points, in the NBA, harmonious selling points have very huge benefits, But now it seems that the boss from China, surnamed Zhuang, does not seem to care about these interests.

And every time he thought that the owner of the Atlanta Hawks was surnamed Zhuang, David Stern was also a little confused, because it made him think of his favorite Chinese head coach, the Chinese who single-handedly promoted the third development of the NBA, but soon these NBA presidents did not think about it again, although Zhuang Fei has money, but let him take close to 500 million US dollars to buy an NBA team, and then spend billions of dollars to build the world's largest basketball park in Manhattan before, such a thing is impossible to happen, Even if he believes that Zhuang Fei can come up with 500 million US dollars, he does not believe that Zhuang Fei can come up with 5 billion US dollars, although he does not know how much money the world's largest basketball park spent, but there are still a minimum of 5 billion US dollars.

"Since they don't carry on the history of the Atlanta Eagles, the name of this team needs to be changed, has their new name been chosen?" In the end, David Stern looked at his smiling assistant with some curiosity and asked, and after David Stern asked, Silva handed over a piece of information to David Stern.

"Hey, they're really well prepared," David Stern said with some surprise after receiving the document from his assistant, because in addition to the name of the new team, the document also has the team emblem and so on, and it is clear that the owner behind the Eagles has prepared this before buying this team.

"yes, I heard that they were ready to buy the Eagles four years ago, but the Eagles owner refused to sell it for $700 million at that time," Adam Silva also nodded, confirming David Stern's speculation.

"700 million dollars, it seems that Ted Taylor, that old guy has lost a lot" David Stern put down the file in his hand and said a little happily, he is not interested in Ted Taylor, the former top ten richest people in the United States, in recent years he almost crippled the Hawks, originally two years ago, the league pillars he intended to cultivate were not only Maddy, Kobe and Anthony, but also LeBron James, whose statistics are very good. The team's record is very bad for young forwards. Just looking at the Eagles, that lineup and that boss. David Stern can only give up hatefully, it can be said that he has long wanted to kick Ted Taylor out of the NBA, and that old guy is losing money is a very happy thing for him.

Of course, at this time, David Stern was laughing at Ted Taylor's affairs, and Silva on the side kept smiling, of course he knew what his boss was thinking, in fact, no one in these NBA executives liked the former owner of the Hawks, including himself.

"Adam. This team is now in full charge of you, they try to meet any requests, this team is important to the league, do you understand" In the end, David Stern did not laugh at the former Eagles owner but commanded Silva with some seriousness, and Silva nodded cautiously.

After Adam Silva withdrew, David Stern picked up the document that his assistant had just brought in and looked at it carefully.

"Manhattan Challenger? It's not a small ambition," said David Stern at the end, seeing the name of the new team again and the cartoon beaver as the mascot and emblem.

Now David Stern in New York is happy that the NBA has an extra New York team, and Zhuang Fei in Los Angeles is just as happy at this time, after four years, this team has finally been brought down, and the NBA league has no obstacle to the team's relocation. It can even be said that the green light has been given all the way, which is also to allow this new team to be able to operate immediately. And it is also possible to move to New York immediately, which is a good thing for this team and Zhuang Fei.

"Chris, well done, I didn't expect to be able to do everything so quickly" Zhuang Fei looked at the assistant in front of him and said with a smile, at the end of December last year, Zhuang Fei gave his assistant a month to acquire the team, and the time for his assistant to move the team was half a month, so the deadline for completing all this Zhuang Fei gave his assistant was completed after the end of this year's All-Star, but it was obvious that his assistant was more than half a month faster than the time he gave, This means that Zhuang Fei has more time to operate this team.

It's just that in the face of Zhuang Fei's praise, Chris smiled a little helplessly, comparing buying the Hawks is not his first choice, and the team's completion of the relocation is also due to the strong help of the NBA League and Zhuang Fei's decision, after all, Zhuang Fei told him that there is no need to quarrel with the Atlanta town government, this team can do without team history, in this case, it is not a difficult thing to complete everything for the team in such a time.

"Zhuang, although the team can move to New York now, what about the team's management? Do you want to use the original cast of the Eagles? ”

For the acquisition of a team, the most critical point is not how much money was spent to buy the team, but how to arrange these original personnel in the team, just like Adelson bought the Boston Celtics, after he bought the Boston Celtics, the managers and staff of the Boston Celtics are all gone, for him, replacing these staff with his own talents can make the team more effective, but for Zhuang Fei and Chris, He doesn't have as many staff as Adelson, after all, Zhuang Fei is not engaged in industry, and in this case, he can only use the original team of Atlanta, but it is obvious that this team is moving to New York, and most of the managers of Atlanta are Atlanta natives, in this case, it is indeed a little inconvenient.

"If you are willing to go to New York with the team, we will stay, if you don't want to, then forget it, let's sign in New York, although this will make the team mess up for a while, but it is also a must" In the end, Zhuang Fei frowned and said, and after listening to Zhuang Fei's instructions, Chris also nodded, this is the best way.

"Is the team's general manager and head coach Hai kept?" Of course, for a team in the NBA, the rest of the staff can be ignored, but the people in these two positions can't be ignored, and now the two most important managers of the Hawks Zhuang Fei also know, the general manager Billy Knight is a former Celtics player, but he is not very good in ability, and he is not very bad, he is always a mediocre general manager with a little ability, as for the current head coach of this team, Mike Woodson, the head coach's rating on the dynasty system is not very low, It can be said that he is a head coach with first-class ability and potential in the league.

"Billy Knight will resign, and you will replace the general manager of the team for the time being. The team's head coach, Mike Woodson, stayed. If he wants to stay with the team as an assistant coach. The salary is the same as when he was the head coach" Finally, Zhuang Fei pondered for a while and said thoughtfully, and Chris also nodded after listening, but he was soon stunned.

"You're saying keep Woodson as an assistant coach? So does this season's manager need to pick a new one? "It's understandable that Billy Knight fired him, but why did Woodson keep him as an assistant coach and let him coach soon after this season, with the current Hawks ranking 12th in the East, is it necessary to change another head coach? It's impossible to enter the playoffs anyway, so Zhuang Fei's agent doesn't understand Zhuang Fei's request very well. After all, Zhuang Fei is coming back next season, there is no need to hire a head coach now, and then resign this head coach after the end of the season.

"I'm going to be the head coach of this team now, and he can naturally only be an assistant coach," Zhuang Fei said with a speechless look at his agent. And Chris was even more shocked at this time after listening to Zhuang Fei's words.

"Didn't you just come back next season?" This Zhuang Fei's agent looked at Zhuang Fei with some dumbness and said, at this time, the open mouth can definitely stuff two eggs.

"Who said I was going to come back next season?" Zhuang Fei looked at his agent with some confusion at this time and asked, Zhuang Fei asked, Chris was directly dumbfounded, Zhuang Fei really didn't say that he was going to make a comeback next season, this was just his speculation, in his opinion. This year's Hawks are no longer saved, and even God can't take this team to the playoffs. Coupled with the lineup of this team, even Zhuang Fei, who is known as the god on the sidelines, is unlikely to do anything, you know, the gap between the twelfth in the East and the eighth in the East is like a moat.

"Zhuang, you're not kidding, do you know the situation of the Eagles now? Even if you coach this team now, you can only smash your own signboard, no matter how strong your ability is, can you lead this team to success? It's impossible, you have to think about it."

At this time, Chris doesn't care what kind of decision Zhuang Fei makes at this time, for him personally, Zhuang Fei's comeback this season is definitely not a good thing, just like Jordan's comeback in the middle of the season after retiring for the first time, and finally the basketball god achieved Hardaway's prestige, and the Bulls at that time were not a little better than the current Hawks, and the results were better than a little bit, Jordan's comeback at that time was understandable, But Zhuang Fei's comeback at this time is a little incomprehensible to him, and it is estimated that many other media experts will also be incomprehensible after Zhuang Fei's comeback.

"Is this time the best time to come back" Looking at Chris Zhuang Fei, who was a little excited at this time, also said with a smile, and at this time, seeing Zhuang Fei's recognition of his words, Zhuang Fei's agent was also relieved, but soon, Zhuang Fei continued to smile and said: "But now that I have been off for a year and a half, I can't wait to stand on the side of the court, besides, since the whole world thinks that it is impossible for the Eagles to enter the playoffs, isn't this a more challenging thing for me?" ”

When Zhuang Fei finished the last sentence, Zhuang Fei's agent was speechless again, this is indeed a very challenging thing, if Zhuang Fei does it, then Zhuang Fei can gain a great reputation, the same, if Zhuang Fei can't do it, then he will lose a lot of reputation, but for Zhuang Fei in such a position, the reputation he gets is a bit chicken, besides, how to look at the probability that the Eagles will not enter the playoffs is far greater than the probability of entering the playoffs.

"Zhuang, this is not child's play, you have to be clear, you know, the No. 1 team in the East this season is the New York Knicks, do you want to lose to Phil Jackson once?" In the end, Chris came out with the New York Knicks, the No. 1 in the East this season, this team signed Gary Payton with a free market base salary last summer and signed and then traded for the former New York veteran Sprewell and the high-quality interior Nenei, although this team now has the league's first salary space, but this team is also currently the strongest team in the East, and the people who sit on the bench are all All-Stars, Chris knows, Zhuang Fei has said before that he will not lose to the New York Knicks and Phil Jackson, but it is obvious that as long as Zhuang Fei comes back this season, even if he enters the playoffs, he will be humiliated by the New York Knicks.

"Are you so sure I'm going to lose" Zhuang Fei looked at his agent and said with a playful smile, and at this time Chris looked at his boss and was speechless again, even if he was confident, he had to be self-aware, but at this time Zhuang Fei obviously couldn't listen to his advice at all, and he could even say that he had made up his mind, and he also knew his boss very well, as long as he decided that no one could change it, So in the end, Zhuang Fei's agent could only sigh helplessly.

Of course, Zhuang Fei naturally knew that Chris was for his good, but at this time, Zhuang Fei really wanted to make a comeback immediately, and for him, he couldn't wait at this time.

"Do you need me to declare you in the Lordship now? Although the season is now halfway over, the sooner you accept the Hawks, the more games remain, and the more chances you have to enter the playoffs" In the end, Chris, who had no choice, also suggested to Zhuang Fei again, now most teams in the league have played about 44 games, and there are about 38 games left in the end, and at this time the Eagles' record is 15-29, if Zhuang Fei can win 26 games in the next 38 games, the Hawks' record will reach more than 50%, And the threshold of last year's Eastern Conference playoffs was 44-38, which means that if the Hawks look at the threshold of last year's playoffs, even if they are 41-41, there is no hope, at least they need to win 29 games or die 30 games in the next 38 games.

But no matter what, since Zhuang Fei wants to pay, since the sooner he takes over the team, the better, if Woodson loses a few more games, Zhuang Fei's difficulty will be greater, but what makes Chris collapse is that Zhuang Fei doesn't seem to want to take over right away at this time.

"Not now, I need to make some changes and trades to the Eagles, I'll take over the game after the All-Star, if I take over the game now, some transactions are difficult to achieve" Finally, Zhuang Fei pondered for a while and said with some caution, and Chris was completely speechless at this time.

In the end, Zhuang Fei's agent also left Zhuang Fei's house with great melancholy, and it is estimated that he can only mourn for Zhuang Fei.

After Chris left, Zhuang Fei was not idle and continued to study the lineup of the Eagles.

The performance of the Hawks in recent seasons has been very devastating, this is a fact, but this team is not as incorrigible as the outside world says, which is also true, especially in Zhuang Fei's view, this team has killed some very good young players, such as the team's leading player LeBron James, not to mention, this year's team's No. 8 show Rudy Gay this season can also contribute an average of 15 points per game, And the team's 2005 No. 11 pick Channing Fry is also able to contribute an average of 11 points and 6 rebounds per game, which is a relatively new star pitcher in the league, and the other team's second leader, organizational guard Nelson, the guard reached the peak of his career this season, averaging 15 points and 5 assists per game, although he does not have many assists because of James, but his scoring efficiency is not low.

It's just obvious that in addition to these few young players in this team, the other players are really miserable, and even none of them have reached more than 70 in terms of ability, most of them are hovering around 65, if such a team is not for James and these three young players to perform well, it is not surprising that it is at the bottom of the current NBA.

Of course, just like Zhuang Fei thought, this team is really bad, but it is not to the point of hopelessness, but even if you want to save it, it is not so simple.

"There is a long way to go," Zhuang Fei finally sighed with a smile after closing his dynasty system.

Although it was difficult, Zhuang Fei was full of confidence. (To be continued......)