basketball player

Chapter 36 036: The First Decision

Before the start of the draft, the Pacers officially announced the resignation of Jim O'Brien, which made the local fans in Indianapolis cheer.Three years later, they finally ended O'Brien's "Dark Reign".Whether a head coach is successful or not can actually be concluded by looking at the reaction of the fans after he was fired.

When everyone is cheering because you're leaving, it's already proven what your status is on this team.

For three years, Jim O'Brien's performance was quite "stable".The first two years were 36 wins, ranking ninth in the Eastern Conference, only one place away from the playoffs.As a result, in the third year, O'Brien "went a step further" and only won 32 games. This was 14 wins in the last 10 games with 32 wins.If it weren't for Henson's intervention, O'Brien estimated that he could really bring a higher draft pick to the Pacers.

So Bird often joked with Henson: "You are really a stumbling block for the Pacers."

Having said that, Bird attaches great importance to Henson's magical ability. 14 wins in 10 games, the same lineup, the same configuration, just changing a person to coach and train, and there have been earth-shaking changes.If this team is handed over to Henson from the beginning, then the Pacers will no longer be just a dream to make the playoffs.

So the day after Jim O'Brien was fired, Bird called Henson back to his office. At this time, Henson was living a happy life of researching rookie profiles during the day and dating An Jiali at night.

He originally thought that Byrd asked him to go to witness the coronation of Frank Vogel, and then Byrd explained the work to them by the way.To this end, Henson also prepared a gift for Vogel.But when Henson walked into Byrd's office, he didn't see Vogel.

"Hi, Henson, did you give it to me?" Byrd, who was sitting behind the desk, pointed to the gift box in Henson's hand.

"I'm sorry Bird, this is for Frank. Why hasn't that guy come yet? He's never late." Henson looked around, and there were only himself and Bird in the office, not even Pritchard.

"Frank? Is Frank's birthday today?" Bird was confused by Henson.

"Birthday? I bought it as a gift to congratulate him on becoming the coach of the team. I said, you really need to take a good rest recently, Bird, just leave the matter of the draft to us."

After listening to Henson's words, Bird couldn't help but smile, but soon regained his serious expression. After all, this matter must be announced in a serious manner.

"Listen, tomorrow at two o'clock in the afternoon, I will hold a press conference at the Conseco Arena, and you must come to attend." Bird said, taking out a cigar.

"Press conference? For what?" As an assistant coach in the past, Henson rarely participated in press conferences unless O'Brien asked Henson to attend on his behalf.However, this kind of thing only happened three times in a season.

"To tell everyone, Henson Joe will become the new head coach of the Indiana Pacers." After speaking, Bird stuffed the cigar into Henson's mouth and lit it for him.

Henson took a puff on his cigar, but coughed from choking.

"I hope you won't be so embarrassing when you light the victory cigar in the future." Bird patted Henson on the shoulder and smiled.

So at noon the next day, under the cameras of many media reporters, Larry Bird officially announced that Henson replaced Jim O'Brien as the Pacers' new coach, while Frank Vogel continued to serve as an assistant coach to assist Henson in his work.For the next draft, Bird gave Henson full responsibility.

"I believe that Mr. Joe will be able to lead the team to develop on the right path."

When Byrd ended the press conference with these words, the reporters in the media reception room were in an uproar!A Chinese with only one year of experience as an assistant coach has become the head coach so quickly, isn't this speed too fast!
While the Pacers desperately need a new head coach, Bird still has plenty of options.For example, Jeff Van Gundy and Steve Kerr who are idle at home now, even Frank Vogel sounds more reliable than Henson.

But Bird used a rookie, a rookie coach who had never coached any team alone!What does Byrd want?Join the race for the No. [-] pick next season?

"Bird, why did you make such a decision!"

"Frank, do you feel that you have been treated unfairly?"

"Henson Joe, can you talk about your mood at the moment!"

After the press conference, the reporters were still shouting at the top of their lungs, but Bird ignored them and walked Henson and Frank Vogel out of the reception room.After closing the door of the media reception room, the hustle and bustle behind him disappeared instantly.

"That group of reporters talk a lot of nonsense." Byrd tidied up his suit impatiently. Reporters are best at complicating simple things.And Larry Bird, he only likes to make complicated things simple.

"Okay, boy, now you are an interim head coach. Don't worry, I will sign a formal contract with you before the start of the season. You and Frank, this draft will be handled by you. Whether it is Paul George or someone else, I only hope that you will bring the most suitable players to the Conseco Arena. You will set off in the afternoon and go to New York. By the way, Stephen Silas will pick you up. After today's incident, the whole world is waiting to see your performance in the draft. Work hard, I believe in yours vision."

Bird explained a few words casually, and after giving them the ticket, he left in a hurry.Bird has been very busy these days. I heard that there seems to be a new consortium involved in the team's management, hoping to become one of the shareholders.But those things were beyond Henson's jurisdiction.

"Congratulations, Henson." After Bird left, Frank Vogel also shook hands with Henson sincerely.

Before that, Bird actually talked to Vogel.Vogel has devoted himself to working as an assistant coach for so many years. He thought he could already handle it alone.But after comparing with Henson, I realized that I still have a long way to go from the head coach.And Frank didn't know if he could withstand the tremendous pressure of becoming the head coach.

Look at how sluggish Jim O'Brien was at the end of last season. Frank doesn't want to be like that.Therefore, he decided to work as an assistant coach for a few more years to gain more experience.Frank still hopes to start his own business, but not yet.

Henson reached out and held Vogel tightly. With Frank Vogel as a capable assistant, Henson's work will not be difficult.

"Let's go buddy, the first step, let's deal with the draft meeting first." Henson pulled Vogel out of the arena, like two couples who have just finished watching the game and are about to go home.

Um?The style is wrong.
※※※

In the 2010 NBA draft, this is the second time Henson has participated in the draft, so he is already familiar with all the procedures.

The goal of the Pacers this year is still very clear. To win Paul George in the first round, no one should compete with them.Because before the start of the draft, the Pacers did not disclose any news about George, and they will not be caught by others.And George's predicted pick is outside the 20th round in the first round.After all, no one wants to take a high pick and risk a player in the NCAA Division II, except for Henson who can see the player's potential and roughly estimate his upper and lower limits.

In the second round, Henson plans to take Marshall University's behemoth Hassan Whiteside.If Whiteside gets intercepted, Henson will use a backup plan to recruit Cincinnati's talented guard Lance Stephenson.

Regarding Paul George and Whiteside, the opinions within the Pacers are very consistent.But for Lance Stephenson, Frank was a little puzzled.

"Lance Stephenson? Unless you want the locker room to explode, Henson!" When the name Lance Stephenson was mentioned, Frank Vogel felt as if he had seen a ghost.

After all, Stephenson is also famous among this guy.Of course, the way he became famous was very special.In elementary school, he was the main force in the competition and offended his teammates. At the age of 17, he was suspected of sexual assault. At the age of 18, he wanted to participate in the draft. Because he was not old enough, he intended to follow Jennings to go overseas, and then stayed.He only played one season at the University of Cincinnati for a symbolic season because all the scholarships from prestigious basketball schools were allotted. At the age of 20, he hurriedly entered the draft. A few days ago, a scandal broke out that he pushed his girlfriend down the stairs because of a quarrel.

"I know he is a bomb, Frank, but it may not blow us up." Henson smiled, always so confident.

Others only saw Stephenson's "brilliant deeds", but Henson saw many different things.

Lance Stephenson High School studied at Abraham Lincoln High School in New York. Lincoln High School is a traditional basketball school. Marbury, Telfair and others all came out of here.Stephenson won the New York State regional championship for three consecutive years, and he always talked about surpassing Marbury and others. At that time, he was considered a future star with the same reputation as Wall.

Stephenson likes to challenge those recognized strong players, such as OJ Mayo, who was considered the best high school player in the United States at the time.In the Adidas training camp that year, Stephenson, who was only 12 years old, asked to single out Mayo, who was three years older than him.Not everyone has this courage.

Moreover, in 2008, Stephenson was selected to the U.S. U18 team. Although he was eventually cut off by the team due to "chemical reaction problems" and failed to play in the official game, it also proved Stephenson's strength.

Most importantly, on the day of the joint tryout, Henson saw Stephenson's potential, A-, and ball-scrambling ability, A+.In the second round, this potential value was second only to Hassan Whiteside.And the ability to grab the ball must be unmatched.

(End of this chapter)