The Rest, Only Noise

Louie gave Baylor some standards.

Take Oakley's $400,000 annual salary. No one but Ewing should exceed that.

As a result, he signed A.C. Green with 4 years and 800,000, 4 years and 600,000 to sign Manute Bol, 4 years and 400,000 to sign Gerald Wilkins, and 4 years and 300,000 to sign Spot Weber.

Baylor is very good at lowering the price, probably because of his previous work for Sterling.

Although his vision is not good and his brain is often short-circuited, it is very stingy to sign a contract.

That's exactly what Louie wants to see, the NBA doesn't have a standard rookie contract right now. Phenomenal rookies can basically sign a quasi-max salary when they enter the league, and lottery picks are all starting-level contracts.

Like Ewing, it must be menacing, starting at 1 million.

Baylor did an excellent job of the dirty work that Louie had given him.

So, he became Louis' real partner.

The last time Louis wanted to expand his establishment, the headquarters gave him a grant of $400,000. Baylor used 200,000, and the remaining 200,000, he had to divide into two parts, part to expand the management, part to the coaching staff.

They desperately need a fitness-savvy specialist to help players gain weight.

Louie initially thought Ewing was the type of player with a big physique, but it turned out that Georgetown University allowed him to wear undershirts inside, and the reason Ewing was mighty and rugged, made people think he was strong.

In fact, his weight is only 240 pounds (108KG).

This weight is far from enough to play a center in the NBA. His card position, rebounding, and defense will all have problems.

Louie didn't think he'd worry about the weight of a center who played all four years in college.

"Don't panic, there is always a solution." Baylor was very optimistic, "I think Patrick has an old-fashioned temperament."

Louis joked: "Are you trying to say that he is old?"

"No, I think he looks a lot like the uncle I died," Baylor said. "I miss him a little bit."

Louis smiled and said, "Okay, just take your grief and anger, and give him a good show later!"

Today is the end of July, when Ewing and his agent, David Falk, begin signing negotiations with the Knicks.

Before the introduction of standard rookie contracts, how to decently sign with their own potential rookies was one of the headaches for many teams.

The Celtics almost fell out with Bird because the numbers didn't match.

A rookie like Ewing has the capital to bid at will.

The two sides will go through many rounds of negotiations, and have experienced "I won't play for a year if it's a big deal", "Okay, then you won't play for a year", "Agent: Don't make it so ugly, let's discuss it again", "One shot." Two break up!", "Okay, one shot and two break up, we'll leave tonight" - inexperienced fans will worry that the Knicks can't sign Ewing, and experienced ones are already betting on Ewing's final annual salary.

The Knicks are expected to be unable to sign Ewing until the deadline announced by the league closes.

That's why Louis desperately needed a "blue collar".

He really can't waste time on these things.

A few minutes later, Ewing and his agent Falk arrived at the Blue Palace.

"Hello, Mr. Falk, my name is Louis."

"I have long admired the name." Falke pointedly said, "I heard that there are some differences between you and Patrick, I hope this will not affect the new season."

Louis said lightly: "Of course not, Patrick and I only want victory."

Ewing, dressed in casual clothes, gave Louis a cautious look.

"Coach, are you not participating in the negotiation?"

Louie opened a bottle of Coke: "Although I am the general manager, this is just a name hanging on my head. The real general manager of the Knicks is Elgin, and you must know him. Today's negotiations, and future Negotiations, you can treat me as air, rain I have nothing."

"Then let's start." Baylor's words were like the first shot of the battle.

First, Baylor took out the contract the Knicks had drawn up.

22 million in 10 years

This number is dazzling for Louie, and even if Falke does not bargain, Ewing alone has more contracts than the other players on the Knicks combined.

Falk chuckled: "It's a good start, but we want more, Elgin, you have to give Patrick more respect."

When Baylor took the number to 24 million in steps of 500,000.

Falk shook his head and said, "You're still too conservative, Elgin. Do you think this number will satisfy Patrick and his family?"

Baylor was angry on the spot: "Then how much do you want?"

"30 million in 10 years."

"Don't even think about it!"

In this way, a negotiation called negotiation, which is actually a quarrel, began.

Ewing began to feel a little uncomfortable watching Baelor and Falk fight red-faced.

He knew that Falk was asking too much.

"Elgin, don't you think Patrick isn't worth 30 million? Do you believe that if you let him go to Los Angeles, Jerry Buss will offer him a 25-year, 60 million contract."

Baylor sneered: "I don't care how much other people charge, here, you can't get that number!"

"I think I can."

Louis, who claimed to be the air, suddenly opened his mouth.

Ewing was petrified, Falk thought he heard it wrong, and Baylor looked at Louis in disbelief.

"Coach Lu, what did you just say?" Falk asked in surprise.

"I said, 30 million in 10 years, you can sign." Louis smiled lightly, "My only question is, apart from this, you should have no other requirements, right? If I were Patrick, I would have no other requirements. , you should know that once this contract is signed, it means that Patrick's annual income ranks among the top three in the league. For a player who has not played an NBA game, this is enough to show our respect for him. ?"

"Wait, Lu..." Baylor only felt a clutter in his head, "Lu, are you serious?"

Louis did not reply to Baylor's words, but pressed Falk: "Are there any other questions?"

"This..." Since signing with Jordan, Falk has become a first-line agent in the league, and he has never seen any team negotiate like this.

He also knew that the Knicks couldn't agree to the numbers he reported. How could he have thought that Louis, who just said that he regarded him as air, would directly settle the matter?

"Patrick, 30 million in 10 years, okay?" Louis asked Ewing when Falk didn't know how to respond.

Ewing didn't know how big a number 30 million was, and he looked at Falke with a look of help.

"Coach Lu, are you serious?" Falk took a deep breath.

Louie laughed at himself: "What's the matter, I'm also the general manager of the Knicks anyway, so I still have this power. If you don't have any other requirements, I hope to reach an agreement now, I'll contact the media, and we'll get things done today, How about setting an example for the rest of the league?"

"No, Coach Lu, don't worry, I still... have a request."

Louis agreed to the 30 million offer, which made Falke's next request a bit underwhelming: "If...if in a certain year in the future, Patrick's annual salary does not rank in the top five in the league, he should have the right to Jump out of existing contracts and sign new ones.”

"Ridiculous!" Baylor slapped the table angrily, "I've been in professional basketball for decades, and I've never heard such a request!"

Louis asked with a hint of anger on the surface: "Patrick, is this your opinion, or David's?"

At this moment, Ewing actually felt a little guilty.

"I have satisfied your numbers and given you enough respect. If you insist on making such unreasonable terms, then we should also have corresponding stop-loss terms." Louis said coldly, "If Patrick is the first If he cannot be selected as an All-Star in 2019, only 80% of his annual salary will be guaranteed; if he cannot be selected to the All-NBA team in the next three years, only 70% of his contract will be guaranteed; To the semi-finals, his contract will only be 60% guaranteed..."

Now it was Falke's turn to not accept it: "This is absolutely not in line with the relevant terms of the alliance!"

"You only think about what is best for you, but you don't want to bear the unfavorable consequences. You put forward this clause, do you think that Patrick in the first year has the strength of the top five in the league? If he is the top five in the league, is he in the top five in the league? Stars, All-NBA, is it hard to get the Knicks to the semifinals? If he's a top-five, it's not that hard, and if he's not, why is he getting such ridiculous terms?"

Louis asked: "You tell me, why?"

Ewing's face became extremely ugly. He didn't know if it was shame, or he was provoked by Louis's words, or he was afraid of the situation in front of him.

Baylor did not expect Louie to control the negotiation.

At the end of the negotiation, Louie said to Ewing and Falk: "10 years and 30 million, we have agreed. I can tell you plainly that we can't have any more concessions, and we can't accept other additional terms. , either sign this contract or never! Don't forget, we have the exclusive right to sign Patrick!"

This was David Falk's most frustrating day.

His purpose has never been 30 million in 10 years~www.readwn.com~ This figure is indeed huge now. If Ewing signs it, he will immediately become one of the richest players in the league. However, next summer, the league will sign a new broadcast contract. At that time, the income will double and the salary cap will increase greatly. 30 million in 10 years is no longer an astronomical figure.

His real purpose was the absurd-sounding clause.

However, before he could start a long wrangling tactic, and finally set that clause with the Knicks through a short-term financial loss, it was completely destroyed by Louis.

The point is, Falk has absolutely no idea whether Louie has seen the future of the salary cap skyrocketing, or simply thinks Ewing is worth 30 million over 10 years. If it is the former, it is too insidious; if it is the latter, his generosity is enough to make Ewing bow to him.

"Let's sign it, David."

When walking outside the Blue Palace, Ewing suddenly said.

"Patrick, absolutely not!"

"Louis is right," Ewing said confidently. "I have to prove I'm worth so much before asking for more, and I'd do the same if I were the general manager."