Chapter 1301 Zhuang Shen Wants the Ball

Li Ba noticed a few young people, who were fresh and energetic. Compared with them, he felt that he was old.

He pointed at Garnett and Nene and asked Drummond and the other rookies: "Do you have any idea of ​​getting promoted?"

The rookies saw Garnett and Nene's eyes sweeping over them, and they were a little nervous. They didn't know what to say.

Li Ba waited for a few seconds, but no rookie took the initiative to speak. They were all very restrained.

He didn't wait for long and said: "I hope you can be more proactive. If you think you have the ability and hope to get more opportunities, you can ask me or Gary for playing time directly. This is your power here."

Jimmy Butler was a little excited. He opened his mouth in silence, but still didn't speak.

"You are... Jimmy Butler?" Li Ba obviously noticed Butler and asked.

"Yes, yes, boss." Jimmy Butler replied nervously.

"What do you want to say?" Li Ba asked with a smile.

"I, I, I want playing time." Jimmy Butler stuttered.

Li Ba laughed, looked back at Payton, and then turned to Butler and said, "But I heard that you didn't perform well last season?"

Jimmy Butler was a little surprised and shut his mouth because he felt that the boss didn't like him very much.

But he was not surprised. He was not likable since he was a child. Even his biological parents abandoned him. He had no place to live since he was a child. If his adoptive mother hadn't taken him in, he would probably be a homeless person now.

"How much time do you want?"

Just when he was immersed in his own thoughts, he heard the sound of the boss's hammer.

"Ah?" He looked at Li Ba with some confusion.

"I asked how much playing time you want?" Li Ba asked again.

"Ten...ten minutes?" Jimmy Butler said nervously.

Last season, his performance was really not good, and his data was not good, so the requirements were not high, just a little more than last season.

Li Ba looked back at Payton and said, "Gary, can you give him unimportant games?"

"Of course." Payton smiled.

"Thank you, boss!"

Jimmy Butler was happy in his heart, at least he didn't have to worry about not having any chance to play at all.

Jimmy Butler, who performed the worst, met all the requirements, which made Drummond and other rookies very excited and shouted.

"How many ball rights do you want?" Li Ba asked Drummond. He just heard this year's rookie asking for ball rights.

"Ten times, boss, ten times is okay?" Drummond asked excitedly.

"But I heard that you don't have the ability to shoot? Your low-post offensive skills are also poor. What will you do after you get the ball?" Li Ba asked curiously.

Drummond, who is known as the God of Zhuang in the future, said awkwardly: "Boss, I can dunk."

"Then you can learn from Howard, the Warcraft, and dunk by yourself. What do you want ball rights? Rookie, do you think you are Webber?" Li Ba laughed.

Ball rights are not as good as playing time, and they cannot be given randomly. Moreover, he knew that this rookie's offensive skills were very poor, and he was still a center, so of course he would not agree.

Drummond touched the back of his head and dared not ask again.

Next, the media who had been waiting for a long time were invited in.

There were a lot of media present, standing in most of the training ground, a sea of ​​black, and cameras everywhere.

After a while of shooting, the interview session began.

"Tiechu, judging from your performance in the Olympics, your state seems to have continued from the 10th to 11th season, and has not declined. This shows that you are still in your prime. So what is the Suns' goal today?"

The first person to be called was John, a local sports reporter and the Suns' team reporter.

"Our goal has never changed." Li Ba said lightly.

His words were not unexpected. Except for the sound of pressing the camera, there was only the sound of breathing, and then the second ESPN reporter who was called began to ask questions.

"Iron Hammer, what do you think of the Suns' lineup in the new season? Do you think this lineup of new and old players has the strength of a championship team?"

Li Ba smiled and said, "We have good potential. Whether it is inside or outside, we have good young people, and we don't have to worry about possible injuries. We will have strong competitiveness in the new season, and as long as I am in the team, we will definitely have the strength of a championship team."

"Which young player do you think is the best in the team?" asked the third TNT reporter.

Li Ba glanced at the rookies on both sides and said, "They are all good, but I am not Michael. I can't tell who has the most potential, so I never participate in the draft. They can choose whoever they want."

"Haha..."

Everyone laughed when they heard Li Ba teasing Jordan.

Another reporter asked, "According to media evaluation, there are a total of 5 championship teams in the new season. They are the defending champion Heat, Lakers, Spurs, Thunder, and Suns..."

"Oh, this is good news. You rarely list our Suns as a championship team." Li Ba said with a look of surprise.

Some media laughed, while others were embarrassed.

The reporter who asked the question smiled and continued, "In addition to the five championship teams, there are also quasi-championship teams such as the Celtics and the Grizzlies. Which of these teams do you think can hinder the Suns from winning the championship?"

Li Ba said indifferently: "The Lakers and the Heat have been strengthened. They paid more than 100 million US dollars in luxury tax. They are really rich! But they want to become an obstacle to us, which may be difficult.

No matter how many sheep there are, how can they defeat lions and tigers?

I have said long ago that beasts walk alone, while cattle and sheep walk in groups. Today I will send this sentence to these teams that are in a group again. Don't struggle in vain. Submit to my feet obediently. This is your predetermined fate."

Hundreds of people watched Li Ba pretend to be 13 alone quietly. There were only camera flashes and the sound of recorders and breathing at the scene.

Zhang Heli, Yu Jia and Xu Jicheng were also among the reporters. They happily watched Li Ba pretending to be 13 there, and they were very happy in their hearts.

In the next few days, the team conducted internal training.

Li Ba was also carefully observing the situation of several rookies.

He found that Drummond's rebounding ability was indeed very strong, but in the training game, this rookie showed a bad point, that is, too many shots and too many requirements for ball possession. Although he seemed to score a lot, his offensive efficiency was not high.

"It depends on the situation. Andre Drummond doesn't want to be just a blue-collar player." Li Ba and Payton discussed.

"Of course, you were also a blue-collar player at the beginning, but what about now? You are his template. Do you think he will be willing to be a blue-collar player?" Payton laughed.

"I didn't have such a strong desire to attack as he did at the beginning. I still focus on defense until now. Gary, I think he should also focus on defense. I hope he does so. If he continues to play like this, limit his ball rights and don't develop his bad habits."

Li Ba said seriously.

Payton nodded and said, "Unless his shooting is practiced."

"Of course."

Li Ba nodded.

"What do you think of Chandler Parsons?" Payton asked again.

"He is more suitable for small forward." Li Ba said.

"I think so too. He lacks confrontation ability and is not good at power forward. Then our starting lineup needs to be changed, Nene or Garnett?" Payton asked.

"Nene and Garnett are both fine. But we still need to train the rookies. Let Drummond get used to the atmosphere of the game first, and then we can let him try the starting center position, and I can go to the four position." Li Ba said.

"OK."

Payton nodded and did not ask Li Ba about his opinion of other rookies.