The longest river

Chapter 247 The plan has changed; let's go straight for the championship!
Gilbert is a mortgage lender. Unlike Allen or Ballmer, who bought NBA teams out of their love for basketball, this businessman, who founded a mortgage lending company at the age of 23, formed a consortium to compete for the Cavaliers more for business investment.

So he really didn't know who Byron Scott was.

Whether it's clear or not is not important; what's important is that it was Yang Shuai's choice.

He knew the reasons behind the Cavaliers' soaring value and that retaining Yang Shuai was the most crucial part of preserving the team's value.

Yang Shuai didn't expect Gilbert to say such things right away, but he could feel the sincerity in the other's words.

As a time traveler, he immediately recalled the well-known feud between James and Gilbert.

James' departure from the Cavaliers in a "Decision" manner infuriated Gilbert, who wrote an open letter denouncing James as a traitor. However, in 2014, he welcomed James back to the Cavaliers as if nothing had happened.

This guy is genuine and flexible, making him quite unique among NBA owners.

After a conversation, Gilbert's impression of him was basically correct.

Just like when he initially said that Scott would be the coach, Gilbert's message was that the Cavaliers would operate around Young, and the management would do everything they could to meet Young's needs.

Yang Shuai had previously said he wanted to become a trader after retiring, and now Gilbert has given him a trial card.

Now, it's truly confirmed that General Manager Yang is indeed the one in charge.

After the meeting, Yang Shuai had more confidence in helping the Cavaliers rise again.

Following that, the Cavaliers management skipped the coach selection process and called Scott to Cleveland to sign a five-year contract.

Gilbert wasn't two-faced; he genuinely arranged for people to carry out his promises.

After signing the contract, Scott found out that Yang Shuai was near the stadium and headed straight there without saying a word.

When Yang Shuai came to Cleveland, it wasn't just him who came; the sponsors who had signed contracts with him also flocked to the city.

The area around Gund Arena used to be relatively quiet, but now the shops have been snapped up by sponsors, making it bustling with activity.

When Scott found Yang Shuai, Yang Shuai was at a Reebok event.

Because Yang Shuai was busy, he didn't go up to disturb him. It wasn't until more than an hour later, when Yang Shuai finished his activity, that he went to greet him.

Yang Shuai turned his head and saw that familiar and friendly face. He smiled and went up to shake hands and bump shoulders with the other person.

He knew Scott would be in Cleveland today, but he didn't expect him to come to the event.

Yang Shuai is a pragmatist. After catching up for a while, he pulled Scott to his locker room and started talking about the team's new season.

In fact, besides those reasons, another important reason why Yang Shuai chose Scott was Scott's defensive counter-attacking tactics.

This tactic is relatively simple and is well-suited for teams with many new players.

After all, tactical training takes time, but fast breaks don't.

Scott was overjoyed when he heard Yang Shuai's approval of his tactics.

If their identities weren't so inappropriate, he would have knelt down before Yang Shuai and said, "If you would not abandon me."

"Who are you planning to appoint as the first assistant coach?" Yang Shuai asked another question. Although he had brought in Scott, the coaching staff would still be assembled by Scott himself.

Tom Thibodeau.

The appearance of this name startled Yang Shuai for a moment.

It wasn't that the other party was particularly famous at the time, but rather that he had just heard of the renowned "farmer"!
This was in 2003.

After seeing Yang Shuai's reaction, Scott quickly introduced Yang's resume.

Thibodeau is actually a very experienced assistant coach. He entered the industry in 1989 and is best known for his five years with Van Gundy on the Knicks from 1995 to 2000.

Scott approached him because Thibodeau was very good at coaching defense.

The foundation of counter-attacking is defense. The best defensive coach currently available is Jeff Van Gundy, but Van Gundy obviously won't come to be Scott's assistant coach. This choice is not wrong.

Yang Shuai nodded in agreement. "Making Thibodeau the head coach isn't a good thing. He could easily ruin the players. But he's perfect as an assistant coach in charge of training. He's a tough guy who chose not to get married for the sake of basketball."

After talking with Scott, Yang Shuai rushed to the next event location without stopping.

For him, this summer after the transfer is destined to be busy.

In addition to the brand's events, he will also attend the film festival for the documentary "Road to Conquest," then go to Hollywood to film a cameo role in "The Day After Tomorrow," and even have a trip to China in August.

Just as Yang Shuai was busy, the Cavaliers received some good news.

They used the middle-class exception to reach a two-year, $9.5 million contract with veteran Robert Horry.

Horry briefly joined the Cavaliers in the Pippen trade, and later played for the Pacers and Spurs. His contract expires this summer.

The Spurs offered him a similarly priced contract extension, but he ultimately chose to join the Cavaliers.

Horry is a player with a very professional instinct. Before, he didn't have a choice because he didn't have control over his contract. Now that he has a choice, he naturally knows where is the best fit for him.

Horry's arrival is important for the Cavaliers, a team largely composed of young players.

By the end of August, Yang Shuai had finally finished his busy summer and began systematic personal recovery training.

He used to travel around a lot, and could only train intermittently in his spare time.

This summer, he mainly improved in two aspects.

One is to maximize the team's defensive capabilities through the A-level physical fitness package.

The other option is to exchange for A-level flexibility, which is mainly to improve injury prevention capabilities, and incidentally also provides high-difficulty finishing abilities.

The former is to adapt to Scott's defensive counter-attacking tactics. There are relatively few opportunities for a direct, face-to-face steal; interceptions through help defense are more likely to occur.

The latter aims to minimize the risk of injury due to defensive confrontations. Injuries are more likely to occur in the small-ball era because of the fast pace of the game, which is also a characteristic of defensive counter-attacking tactics.

It's already early September, and the Cavaliers' training camp will officially begin in just one week.

Paul then approached Yang Shuai and told him about a cycling plan.

This cycling trip is not the same as the cycling sport that Yang Shuai participated in before his crossing; it is a public welfare activity.

Specifically, Yang Shuai will participate in a cycling marathon around Cleveland with children from Cleveland.

The funds raised through this campaign, including advertising for a bicycle brand, will be used to help children in Cleveland.

Take Yang Shuai's own experience as an example. Due to the continuous decline of industry in Cleveland, there are quite a few children with similar experiences to him.

In addition to sponsoring children, it can also enhance Yang Shuai's influence in Cleveland. After all, Cleveland's basketball market is only so big now, and it needs to attract more people to pay attention to basketball through other means.

Yang Shuai approved the plan.

After a week of preparation, the cycling event took place before the start of the Cavaliers' training camp.

The cycling event went very smoothly, and could even be described as a grand affair, with large crowds gathering on both sides of the road. To the uninitiated, it would have looked like a major cycling race.

At the end of the event, Yang Shuai announced the establishment of his personal foundation to specifically help impoverished children in Cleveland, and that such cycling events would be held every summer.

This caused a sensation in Cleveland.

Because of Yang Shuai's personal experience, this kind of charitable activity not only draws attention to the children in Cleveland, but also subtly shapes the Cavaliers' image of humanistic care.

For a rebuilding team, team culture is also a crucial element. This has led to a continued rise in Cleveland fans' interest in the Cavaliers for the new season.

Amid this attention, the Cavaliers' preseason training camp for the 2003-2004 season officially began.

At the opening dinner of the training camp, Scott also set the tone for the team's new season with his speech.

"I know this team went through its darkest period last season, but that won't happen again. Our goal for the new season is to compete for the championship."

Before Scott could finish speaking, the scene was already in an uproar.

The Cavaliers were a league-worst team with only 17 wins last season, and Scott is now saying he wants to contend for the championship?!
Scott didn't continue speaking, but waited until the commotion subsided before speaking again.

"You may not believe me, but you must believe Hansen. If Jason Kidd and I can double the Nets' record, why can't Hansen and I lead the Cavaliers to a championship?"

Scott's words instantly silenced the commotion in the room.

The idea of ​​competing for the championship does sound absurd, but Scott's words make a lot of sense; Yang Shuai is much stronger than Kidd.

Seeing his teammates' emotions gradually change, Scott breathed a sigh of relief.

Actually, he was quite shocked when Yang Shuai told him that they would compete for the championship in the new season, but Yang Shuai's words convinced him.

The Cavaliers' poor record last season was largely due to instability. Now, with a roster featuring Young on the perimeter and Ilgauskas in the paint, these two star players form the core.

As for role players, with LeBron James, Ricky Davis, Carlos Boozer, Robert Horry, and Darius Miles, this lineup is already quite good in the Eastern Conference.

With Yang Shuai in charge, the strongest tactic is to directly hand the ball to Yang Shuai in crucial moments, so there's no need to worry about the team's ceiling.

The only problem that needs to be overcome is the lack of experience among young players.

This is actually why Scott set the tone for the opening banquet in this way.

Competing for the championship doesn't necessarily mean winning it, but it will give the team a sense of urgency and allow young players to grow quickly.

After the dinner, Horry and Thibodeau were eager to try their luck. Horry was there for Yang Shuai and the championship, while Thibodeau couldn't wait to go online with his "farm owner" persona.

Of course, many team members still seemed somewhat worried.

The shift in mindset from tanking to competing for the championship takes time.

James hasn't experienced tanking, but he seems to be under even more pressure.

Rookies need nurturing and room for error; going straight to championships means they don't have that stage, or that stage is compressed indefinitely.

This pressure led him to seek out Yang Shuai before leaving.

As a shrewd man, he naturally knew about the relationship between Scott and Yang Shuai, and also knew that Scott was just Yang Shuai's mouthpiece.

"Should we transition for a season or two?" James's request was reasonable.

"LeBron, do you think you can surpass 'Magic'?"

Yang Shuai did not answer directly, but instead asked James a question.

Why Magic Johnson? Because LeBron James' draft comparison was him.

James nodded. Jordan and Yang Shuai were still a long way off for him, but Johnson was someone he was determined to surpass, otherwise he wouldn't even make the All-Time Team in the future.

“I think so too.” Caught off guard by James’s gaze, Yang Shuai reached out and patted James on the shoulder. “Believe in yourself.”

Johnson won the Finals MVP in his rookie season, and James felt he could surpass him. Even if he didn't win the Finals MVP, he should still be able to put on a stellar performance.

This is also the difference between superstars and ordinary players.

Those top superstars were already in their semi-complete form when they entered the league; Jordan, Olajuwon, Duncan, and O'Neal were all examples of this.

Although high school students need a period of growth, Coach Yang did not expect James to take on everything from the start. In fact, with James on the Cavaliers, there was no need for him to do that. As long as James does what he is supposed to do, he can grow gradually.

To be honest, James has been lucky.

These high school players, whether it was him, Kobe, Garnett, or O'Neal, all had their playing time reduced when they first entered the league, but James had plenty of playing time with the Cavaliers.

The Cavaliers' training camp officially began the following day.

The team members trained enthusiastically on the field, and the overall atmosphere was very positive.

After a night of reflection, most of the team members have changed their mindset.

After all, everyone who makes it into the NBA is their own Jordan in their own story. If there's a chance to contend for the championship, who would want to tank?

Especially when they saw the strength Yang Shuai displayed in training, they felt that anything was possible as long as Yang Shuai was there.

Yang Shuai was also observing his teammates during training.

Among them, rookies like Boozer and James are his key targets for observation.

James and Yang Shuai are highly compatible with each other's expectations.

When Yang Shuai and Kobe entered the NBA as high school students, physical contact was the first hurdle they needed to overcome, but LeBron James' physical contact ability was unlike that of a high school student.

Even at the small forward position, it would be difficult to find another player in the league who is as tall and as fast as him.

Saying it charges like a tank is a bit of an exaggeration, but it really is like a raging bull.

However, his weaknesses are also obvious. His ball handling skills are average, and his shooting is even more of a struggle. His mid-to-long-range shooting ability is at a level where he can be left wide open in NBA-level games.

Fortunately, these things can be changed through training.

Boozer's performance surprised Yang Shuai.

This power forward, who caused Yao Ming so much trouble in history, already possessed a considerable level of skill in both the high and low post, even though he was only in his second year.

His rebounding ability is underestimated. Although his height and wingspan are not outstanding for an inside player, his explosiveness, positioning and ability to judge the ball's landing point are excellent.

In comparison, his offensive capabilities are not much weaker than Rashid Wallace's.

However, his weaknesses are also obvious. His slow lateral movement and average defensive willingness make him much worse than Wallace on the defensive end.

After the first day of training, it will seem even more accurate to say that the Cavaliers made the right decision to bring in Scott.

Because the defensive counter-attacking system can rely on teammates to protect Boozer's defensive weaknesses, it can also allow James to play to his strengths and avoid his weaknesses.

Or rather, this tactic allows the Cavaliers to maximize their floor.

However, some minor incidents did occur during the training camp.

During the filming of a street promotional video, Ricky Davis spotted a homeless man in the audience and turned to James, saying, "I heard you signed a big contract, give some to that guy."

James thought Davis was joking and didn't do anything, but Davis immediately took off his shoes and took out a stack of bills wrapped with rubber bands from his pocket, about five thousand dollars. He gave the shoes and the bills to the homeless man.

The crowd erupted in cheers, while James looked quite embarrassed.

And this was just the beginning. During the subsequent training camp, Davis not only made James carry his bag, but even made him carry his shoes.

Pranks by NBA rookies are common, but Davis was clearly targeting James.

(End of this chapter)