The Best Point Guard-Chapter 79 - 14: The Wanderings of Little Sheep Su Xi

Chapter 79: Chapter 14: The Wanderings of Little Sheep Su Xi

"This is great news for us!"

Jerry West told his boss, Michael Heisley, "Right now, Little Sheep Su Xi’s draft stock is constantly falling. This makes our 13th pick highly competitive."

"Of course I trust your judgment. We brought you here to completely rebuild the team. But lately, almost every rookie is claiming they can destroy him, and he’s too arrogant to participate in any workouts. Frankly, I don’t see anything special in this video. Any basketball enthusiast can shoot 3 for 5 from three-point range and make 4 out of 5 free throws."

Michael Heisley was a bit worried.

"No. Look who’s moving the chair for Jack in this video. It’s LeBron! LeBron has incredibly high standards. To get a chosen one like him to move a chair for you means Jack has earned his respect. Moreover, my sources tell me Nike is close to signing him. These endorsements, backed by real money, are far more valuable than irresponsible trash talk."

Jerry West said, "Kobe is also very high on him. I once made a great pick at number 13—that pick came from the Hornets. This year, I’m going to make another perfect pick at number 13, and this one comes from the Rockets."

When West finished, the owner was convinced.

He didn’t know much about basketball, but he knew West.

West’s eye for talent was beyond question.

...

"What did the Washington Wizards say?"

Larry Bird asked his assistant.

The assistant said, "They’re asking for the moon. They actually want Tinsley. Boss, the tenth pick isn’t worth that much. Jack’s stock isn’t that high right now. We could talk to Orlando about their fifteenth pick; we have a pretty good relationship with them."

"No. Tell Washington I’ll give them Tinsley, but they have to give us a draft pick as well," Larry Bird said.

His assistant’s expression changed drastically at his words.

’Trade away Tinsley for Little Sheep Su Xi? Tinsley is our starting point guard, and he’s near All-Star level. What if Jack doesn’t pan out after we trade him away just like that? His public perception is in a freefall; we could probably wait and ambush him with the 15th or even the 20th pick.’

But once Larry Bird made a decision, he never changed it.

...

"Trust me, draft him."

Bucks head coach George Karl said with absolute certainty, "I’ve seen his tape. He’s a reliable Point Guard. And his defense is strong. Imagine him and Michael Redd in the backcourt—one with a powerful offense, the other with powerful defense. What an interesting picture that would be."

"But we already have Cassell." General Manager Glenn Field was George Karl’s sycophant, but he was still a bit puzzled. "On the surface, there’s no difference between Cassell and Little Sheep Su Xi."

"Cassell just looks tough; he has no more room for improvement. If we want to take the next step, we must bring in fresh blood." George Karl’s tone left no room for doubt. "Have you seen that video? Jack has a lot of room for improvement in his shooting. He’s not someone who can’t develop a shot. And the power in that dunk of his reminds me of Baron Davis. The moment he drives to the hoop, he has a bit of an Arenas feel."

"But he won’t even come for a workout," Glenn Field said, worried his bootlicking would end with him having nothing. "Milwaukee is a small market."

"But he still sent the tape. That shows he just doesn’t want to be disrespected! As long as we show him enough respect, he’ll have no reason to refuse." George Karl stretched. "Besides, I don’t think any other team can offer him the ninth pick like we can. His current projection is 21st. If we show faith in him when everyone else is doubting him, how could an 18-year-old kid not be moved?"

"The art of managing people—you need to learn it."

George Karl lectured Glenn Field.

Glenn Field nodded vigorously. He was George Karl’s staunchest sycophant. He followed George Karl’s every word and supported whatever he said. This included trading away the first two of the "Big Three": Ray Allen and Glenn Robinson, promoting second-round pick Michael Redd, and giving him a 7-year, 91 million USD contract.

Now, George Karl was talking about trading away the third horse and drafting Su Xi.

He didn’t have too many doubts.

After all, since George Karl arrived at the Bucks in ’98, the team had gone from missing the playoffs for seven consecutive years to making the playoffs in four of the next five years. They even reached the Eastern Conference Finals in 2001. Although they were eliminated in the first round this past season, everyone was confident they would bounce back.

[Note: In 2003, Glenn Field followed George Karl’s orders and, against the owner’s instructions, drafted TJ Ford at the draft and traded away Cassell. This directly led to his dismissal. The first thing the new General Manager, Larry Harris, did upon taking office was to fire George Karl. After Karl’s departure, the Bucks did not win another playoff series until 2019.]

...

When Su Xi arrived at Grover’s high-tech training facility in Chicago, there were thirty or forty people training inside. They were divided into a high school group, a college group, a pre-draft group, and an NBA group.

The high schoolers were mostly local Chicago students just going through the motions. The college players were much the same, with one coach handling about a dozen of them.

There were five people in the pre-draft group, four of whom were international players: Zarko Cacakapa and Alexander Pavlovic from Serbia, Michael Pietrus from France, and Zoran Planinic from Croatia.

They were all there to adapt to American-style training. Switching from the FIBA system to the NBA system required effort in every aspect.

Besides these four, there was also Marcus Banks, the player who claimed he could destroy Su Xi anytime, anywhere.

So, when Su Xi walked into the gym personally escorted by Grover, Marcus Banks’s eyes went wide... He was currently in the top 15 on most draft projection lists, but he wanted to climb even higher.

What was the best way to do that?

Destroy Little Sheep Su Xi in the training camp and leak the tape.

Although Su Xi’s media image had already collapsed, he didn’t mind making the unlucky guy even more miserable.

Marcus Banks felt no psychological burden; he believed the weak were born to be foils for the strong. 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

But then, something happened that disappointed him.

Su Xi wasn’t assigned to the pre-draft training group. He was led to the most exclusive, high-level court, which had the top trainers, the best training facilities, the most scientific training plans... even the floor there was nicer than over here.

Su Xi would be training with three NBA stars, receiving the most premium, personalized service.

Three people were already there: the Hornets’ franchise player and All-Star, Baron Davis; the Warriors’ Most Improved Player, Gilbert Arenas; and the Bucks’ core player and All-Star, Michael Redd.

These three were all top players in the NBA. Two of them were already earning ten-million-dollar annual salaries, and Arenas wasn’t far from that milestone himself. This summer, many teams were extending olive branches to him.

That was why they could afford the six-figure training fees.

’How is that guy, Little Sheep Su Xi, so rich?’

Marcus Banks thought resentfully.

What he could never have dreamed of was... Su Xi was actually paying a little less than him, and his room and board were fully covered.

...

...