Chapter 52: On the road

　　 Between September and November 2000, something happened in the basketball world, some of which were major events, and some, although not major events at the time, may have far-reaching effects in the future.
First of all, on September 15, the 27th Summer Olympics was held in Sydney. The dream team, as the representative of American basketball, participated in the first sports event of the 21st century. This team featured Kevin Garnett, Vince Carter, The fourth professional dream team in history composed of stars such as Alonzo Mourning and Ray Allen won the Olympic basketball gold medal as expected.
Although the process has not been as relaxed and enjoyable as the 1992 Olympics and 1994 World Championships, they almost lost to the European powerhouse Lithuania in the semifinals, which also shows that the level of basketball in other countries in the world is less than ten years. The gap with the United States is constantly narrowing.
Therefore, this Olympics has also become a feast for scouts. Scouts from the United States flock to Sydney to watch every game between national teams. Their goal is not those NBA stars who have earned a lot of dollars, but Players from Europe and Asia, there is no doubt that this is a virgin land that has not been fully developed. Many foresighted teams and scout groups have begun to dig this treasure.
　　 From this time on, the NBA free agent market is about to begin an international era.
　　 On September 20, five days after the start of the Olympics, a multi-party transaction occurred in the United States and the NBA. The participants included the New York Knicks, Los Angeles Lakers, Seattle Supersonics and Phoenix Suns.
The Knicks acquired veterans Glenn Rice and Telvez Best from the Lakers, Luke Longley from the Suns, and Maxwell, Stampania and Lazaru from the Sonics. Burrell.
　　 The players they get can almost form a team, and there are some talents in them, but that's all a long time ago.
　　 Correspondingly, the Knicks sent out their once superstar, the cornerstone of the team, the generation of king Patrick Ewing who played for the Big Apple for 15 years, and threw him to far away Seattle.
　　 The Lakers won Hollis Grant, Greg Foster, Chuck Burson, Emmanuel Davis.
　　 As a transit point, Tai Huo got Chris Dudley and a future first-round pick.
　　 For the Lakers, after completing the first crown in the new century, their goal is to defend the title. Jackson's old subordinate Hollis Grant and smart forward Greg Foster will be a powerful help on the way to defend the title.
For New Yorkers, an era is completely over. They think that sending away the old Ewing will win new light, but judging from the results of their transaction, they will only be greeted by endless dark.
　　 Seattle and Phoenix, one thinks that the once superstars can still play their residual heat, and the other thinks that the future draft will have a red envelope, but the reality can only be resigned.
On September 25, Paul Pierce was stabbed in a bar. More than half a month later, on October 23, in the preseason game against the Orlando Magic at Amway Arena, Paul Pierce returned and played in the game. He scored 11 points and 6 rebounds in 19 minutes. Before the game started, Pierce was surrounded by three bodyguards to protect his safety. After the game, three bodyguards escorted him back to the hotel. Obviously, the violent attack gave him a psychological shadow.
Of course, this matter is not all bad for Paul Pierce. After experiencing the test of the edge of life and death, he has a new perspective on the world. He began to truly grow and start to treat basketball with a more serious attitude. Compared with life, Antoine Walker has become more and more casual. Because of this incident, Gemini's life has become different.
On October 25, less than a week before the start of the new NBA season, relevant NBA staff were busy moving around, and a small incident occurred at the NBA headquarters in New York, which was not even reported by any news media at the time. This matter is that after the preparatory meeting of the NBA Development League, after two weeks of collective consultations, a small scout group was formally established. Their main task is to provide each team with some unqualified players and The scouting report of the fringe free agent recruits players and builds a player database for the development league to be established next season.
This small team of scouts is made up of little-known basketball players, including Fox-Leon, as well as some minions from other teams, or some sports media reporters, and even some columnists. People, in short, since this scouting team serves the little ones among the players, naturally they are also little ones.
　　Although these guys are nominally a group, they don't work together. There is no office together, no organizational structure, no superiors, no work schedule, no work plan. They all have their own jobs, but they have contact information with other people, and occasionally meet together, plan a schedule, and report several scouting reports to their only person in charge, Adam Silva.
　　 Then one day they may disband silently, and they will not even leave a name in the history of the alliance. Under the writings of those critics who only write superstars, the space left for them will only be zero.
　　 No one knows how powerful they will be.
　　……………………
On November 1, the NBA regular season has kicked off. The first game of the 2000-2001 season of the Boston Celtics will begin at their home court, North Shore Gardens, and their opponents played against them in the late 1980s. The Detroit Pistons are in the same situation, although they are already hard brothers at this time.
The Celtics just changed coaches, and the Detroit Pistons sent away their top star in August this year. Grant Hill, who is known as Jordan’s successor, got a two-meter-high, rough technical except for defense. Ben Wallace, a short center who knows nothing.
Regardless of his situation and opponents, this is the first game of the new season. However, as a member of the team, Leon did not stay in Boston to watch the game with ease, but was exiled to Las Vegas. Si, come here to watch a low-level league, which is also part of working as a member of the scout team.
An hour before the start of the game, Leon arrived in Vegas by plane, and then in a stadium with another member of the scout team, a guy named Adrian, resisting the camera and preparing to record the game. Doomed to be a boring game.
For low-level games like this, Leon has watched no less than ten games from the 25th to now, sometimes there will be three games a day, those who either lack talent, lack self-discipline, or are too old and have no potential. The old ball skins mingled together, fighting the court for a basketball dream that was visible and intangible.
"Sometimes I don't know why I want to join this scout team. Is it just to lose a few hundred dollars in a Las Vegas casino after watching a game like this?" followed Leon and called Adrie. Ann complained that his current job is as a writer for a magazine in New Jersey, and he joined the scout team in order to dig out more inside information about the American professional basketball circle.
Unexpectedly, when the NBA kicked off, as an avid basketball enthusiast, I couldn’t go to the scene to watch the NBA in person. Instead, I had to go to Las Vegas for a business trip to watch this kind of game without highlights. I really didn’t know Adam Xi What is the significance of these matches arranged by Alva?
"If you follow me to gamble, you won't lose money... It seems that there are really no players worth paying attention to here. Maybe our requirements are still too high. Didn't you say it? If you think he only has thirty points , Then multiply one by two and give him a sixty. It can’t be more demanding. This is just for the development of the league.
Leon reminded Adrian that for them who are used to the NBA, these low-level leagues are really good. Can't see.
　　 "That number 11 looks good... if he can jump a little higher, shoot more accurately, or dribble better... well, no, not at all."
The two people sat on the sidelines and watched the game for an entire hour and a half. Finally, three players who performed well were placed on the watch list and asked for their phone calls after the game. If you are lucky, among them One of the people will receive a trial call someday.
Now Leon has finally started to use his phone book. In the past, when there were only a few contacts, he didn't need an electronic phone book at all. But now he knows more and more people, from Boston and from the scout team. , The players he is optimistic about, the agents who are optimistic about the players, the high school coaches or their parents who are optimistic about the players, those media workers.
His relationship network began to gradually become more complicated. Although they are all seemingly low-level ~EbookFREE.me~ relationships that don't have much energy, but in the basketball circle, he is no longer the kind that can only analyze and write reports. 'S robot scouts, and he is slowly becoming a node in a huge network.
　　 He started on the road. This is exactly what Auerbach wanted.
　　 After the game, Adrian decided to invite Leon to go to the casino to play together, but Leon shook his head and did not speak. Finally, he followed Adrian.
When he arrived at the casino, Adrian knew why Leon shook his head. It was not that he didn’t want to come, but that the casinos refused to let Leon enter. It seems that Leon’s gambling name is not only in the Star City of Sydney, but in Las Vegas. Vegas, he was also blacklisted.
　　 Finally, the manager of a certain big casino directly came forward, took five thousand dollars in cash from the counter and stuffed it directly to Leon, and politely refused him entry, so the two men gave up and left.
On the way back to the hotel, the two discussed a lot of issues, from basketball to life, from history to nature. This gentleman Adrian with glasses is the best match for Leon in the scout team. Two People have established a cooperative relationship to deal with the future work together.
Arriving in front of their respective hotel rooms, Leon asked Adrian the last question: "Adrian, you know I have a great memory, but I can't remember your last name, because your last name is really It’s weird, you are of Polish origin? Can you tell me your name again? I promise I won’t forget it.

Adrian smiled. It seems that he is not the first person to ask him such a question. He cleared his throat and replied: "Remember, my name is Adrian Wojnarowski~ EbookFREE.me~Book friends are welcome to visit and read. The latest, fastest and hottest serial works are all at ~EbookFREE.me~ mobile phone users, please go to read.