Staples Center Arena.
In the office of Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak, the team was holding an internal meeting at this time. This meeting is a special meeting, which has traditionally been held once a month.
On weekdays, team meetings are mainly attended by senior executives from various departments, while special meetings will be attended by boss Jenny Bass.
Although she leaves most matters to general manager Mitch Kupchak, she still comes to inquire about the team's status from time to time. Unless the team is in trouble, she generally does not interfere in team affairs.
This time, after listening to the reports from various departments of the team, boss Jenny Bass's face was not good-looking. She sat in silence on her chair for a long time before speaking.
"The team's record has been very poor recently, and some teams we were able to beat last season have lost this season... If this continues, how can we make it to the playoffs?"
As soon as Jenny Buss said this, General Manager Mitch Kupchak's face suddenly looked a little unhappy.
Although he is not directly blamed, he is the executive initiator of all matters, and the team's poor performance must have the most direct relationship with him.
"Boss, I'm sorry!"
"It's just that Kobe's injury is not optimistic. The doctor recommended that he rest for four to five weeks, so it will take some time before he returns to the team..."
"It is precisely because of Kobe's absence that the team failed to find a suitable leader. We do have a big problem now, but I promise it will be solved..."
Mitch Kupchak's rhetoric is not convincing.
However, Jenny Buss did not care too much about him. She chose to believe in Mitch Kupchak as usual, but accidentally mentioned, "I heard that a Chinese player in the Development League just scored 44 points. If The team temporarily needs players who can score, and it would be good to recall him to his home team..."
"Okay, boss, I will pay attention to this matter."
Mitch Kupchak was still a little surprised. He didn't expect that his boss would hear about the Development League. However, considering that the Los Angeles media reported a lot, it was not surprising that the other party would know.
According to his understanding of Jenny Bass, the other party should have just heard about it, otherwise he would definitely call out Zhao Feiyang's name.
After the meeting, after everyone else left, Mitch Kupchak also retrieved Zhao Feiyang's information.
Videos of Development League games will be saved in the team database, and any player's performance there will be stored in the file, and even individual players will receive comments from the assistant coaching team.
After looking through it for a while, Mitch Kupchak couldn't help but nod. He was quite satisfied with Zhao Feiyang's performance in the Development League.
However, Zhao Feiyang was previously transferred because of head coach Byron Scott. If he were to recall him, he would definitely need to communicate with him.
Otherwise, if the two of them continue to ignore each other and cause conflicts, it may be troublesome for the stability of the team.
"Help me inform Coach Byron and ask him to come to my office!"
After Mitch Kupchak gave the order, Byron Scott rushed to his office not long after. Mitch Kupchak didn't hide anything from the other party, and quickly told him what boss Jenny Buss said today, and also explained to him the team's current situation.
He was the one who pushed for the signing of Byron Scott in the first place, but now the two of them are like grasshoppers on a rope. If Byron Scott does not do well and cannot achieve a good record this season, then Mitch Kupchak will most likely be kicked out at the end of the season.
"No, absolutely not."
Byron Scott was very excited after hearing Mitch Kupchak's description, "Mitch, do you think we can make the playoffs?"
"I don't think we can do it at all. Kobe is old and he can no longer help the team go further. So what if the Chinese kid comes back? Can he save the team?"
"He can't do it. The team's record will still not be good by then! Once the team's record is bad, you will be fired by the team and I will be fired too. This is not what you and I want to see... .But if we change our strategy, even though we fail to get the team into the playoffs, what if we help the team develop a super rookie?"
Byron Scott's words made Mitch Kupchak look solemn.
"Super newbie?"
Mitch Kupchak asked.
"Yes. Steven's talent is great, and he is fully qualified for this matter. Even if the team's record is not good, if he is allowed to show his fame and strength, the team will not blame us... It is even possible for the team to train Steven as the cornerstone of the team..."
After Byron Scott finished speaking, he looked at Mitch Kupchak very calmly.
The two have long had a friendship and have a common goal. He believes that his words will definitely make the other person's heart flutter. As long as they join forces, they can not only avoid being fired, but also achieve new goals.
After a long time, Mitch Kupchak breathed a sigh of relief.
"All right!"
"You are right! A small Chinese player is nothing to us. Cultivating new team building blocks is our real goal..."
Byron Scott nodded with a look of relief on his face, as if he was very happy to see Mitch Kupchak doing so well.
"More than that, I need you to do one more thing, otherwise that guy will come to bother us..."
One day later, the South Bay Lakers had another game.
This time they played away from home. The players took the bus to Sioux Falls, South Dakota, early in the morning. Their opponent was the Sioux Falls Tianli, the Heat's affiliated Development League team.
This team is of average strength and is in the middle of the Development League this season. It is the first time this season that they have played against the South Bay Lakers.
The game will still be played at noon.
Perhaps it was because the 44 points he scored in the last game was too amazing. This game had not even started yet. As soon as Zhao Feiyang arrived outside the arena, he saw many Chinese fans holding up signs and cheering for him. There were not too many of them. , but seemed quite excited.
In order to thank these fans, Zhao Feiyang also took the initiative to wave hello to them and also helped some fans sign autographs when the team bus stopped.
Before the game was about to start, the players changed into their uniforms and walked outside one after another. Zhao Feiyang walked at the back. When he was about to step out of the locker room door, a person suddenly stopped him.
"Zhao, wait a minute, I have something to tell you."
The person who stopped Zhao Feiyang was the team's head coach Raul Green.
Zhao Feiyang didn't think too much, thinking that the head coach was telling him what tactics to implement on the court, so he stopped and walked aside with Raul Green.
Unexpectedly, Zhao Feiyang was shocked when the other party opened his mouth.
"Coach Raul, what happened?"
"Zhao, I'm sorry to tell you that the team management has made a decision. When this game is over, they will officially fire you!"
