In August, Louis returned to the United States from China.
For the past three years, he had been traveling between China and the United States annually, and it had gradually become a fixed itinerary.
The biggest event this month was undoubtedly the trade between the Lakers and the Spurs.
Wilkins plus cash for David Robinson, the details of which were mentioned earlier, so no need to repeat.
The Knicks' signings went smoothly. Baylor first signed Billy Donovan to a non-guaranteed contract. Furthermore, as per Louis's instructions, Baylor included an interesting option in the contract.
"If both parties reach an agreement, other positions may be held under the team's arrangement."
Brad Roahos was signed with ease.
He signed a 5-year, $1 million contract.
Miller's contract negotiations dragged on for a month. Baylor was undoubtedly a bloodsucker. Miller's agent, Steve Greenberg, proposed a starting salary of $500,000, but Baylor managed to haggle it down to $350,000.
Finally, Miller signed a 4-year rookie contract for $1.5 million with a team option.
Upon learning the details, Louis could only say that choosing Baylor as deputy general manager was the right decision; he truly knew how to be shameless in arguments with players.
Moreover, he often presented himself as an old-school player.
He'd readily say, "In our era, rookies didn't earn this much money," and employ psychological warfare like, "Be content; you haven't proven yourself at all."
Outside of New York, an unexpected piece of news emerged.
The Lakers exercised the veteran clause, also known as the Kareem clause, signing Kareem for $4 million over two years.
Louis remembered West saying the Lakers weren't planning to keep Kareem. What was this all about?
A quick look at the Lakers' current roster made things somewhat clear.
Robinson would inevitably have to serve in the Navy, leaving a vacancy at the center position. Therefore, they needed Kareem to play for two more years. For Kareem, not taking free money was foolish, even though he had already completed his retirement tour. He still intended to play for two more years, and manipulating fan emotions wasn't new to him.
He might even think the fans owed him.
Other matters were minor. The Houston Rockets lost a head coach, the temporarily named Charlotte Hornets hired their own general manager, and the Warriors appointed Don Nelson as Vice President of Basketball Operations... these were all short-term, seemingly insignificant news items.
At the beginning of this month, Louis was still enjoying his vacation, while Lorraine was about to debut as Monica Bellucci.
Penny Marshall's film would start shooting next month, with Tom Hanks as the male lead and Elizabeth Perkins as the female lead, both actors Louis admired. However, interestingly, Hanks at this time was not yet the "Forrest Gump" figure he would later be remembered as, nor the squad leader in "Saving Private Ryan." At least, prior to 1987, he was an actor, but no one remembered his films.
Lorraine had a supporting role in the series. Penny promised to give her some scenes to showcase herself.
Louis felt the script was decent and quite novel. Perhaps every child had once fantasized about growing up overnight, wishing they could be "omnipotent" like adults. And perhaps every adult reminisced about their lost childhood, occasionally sighing.
The script for this series reminded Louis of Andy Lau's film "Little Big Soldier," which had made him very sad. Andy Lau gained the ability to grow up overnight, and when he regretted it, he found he couldn't go back. In this movie, the male protagonist's ending was much better.
He didn't know if this movie would be successful because he hadn't seen it.
Just looking at the script, if it were him, he would buy a ticket.
Lorraine was excited; this was the first stop on her acting journey, but she still had one matter to attend to – finding a reliable agent.
Louis would oversee this matter, ensuring her agent understood which roles were suitable and which were not.
If the other party didn't understand or showed any hesitation, Louis would not hesitate to dismiss them.
Ultimately, they settled on an experienced agent with no negative reviews, who maintained pleasant relationships with all his artists.
His advice to Louis was: "If you want Monica to be remembered for more than just her beauty, you should find ways to improve her acting skills."
Louis believed he made a valid point; without acting skills, she would naturally only be a pretty face.
Otherwise, no matter how much resources were available, she would ultimately face criticism like Jing ____.
In mid-August, Louis resumed work.
But it was forced because something had happened.
Dale Ellis was in a car accident in his hometown. According to reports, he was driving under the influence. This menace didn't kill himself; he was hospitalized with multiple injuries and was expected to need 2-3 months of recovery.
Upon hearing this news, Louis was so angry he couldn't even drink his cola.
He returned to his office and berated Ellis for 20 minutes in front of Baylor.
"Calm down, he's already in the hospital. Yelling at him won't help. Let's just wish him well. After all, Dale is our starting player," Baylor consoled him.
"Starter? Hmph, by the time he returns, who knows who the starter will be!" Louis sneered.
This summer, Miller had been staying with Wilson. They were college teammates back then, winning the national championship together for UCLA. Now, they were playing on the same team, a rare connection.
For players from UCLA, the Knicks were an excellent destination because they ran a system directly derived from the Bruins' own tradition.
Miller knew that the shooting guard position under Louis needed someone who could execute plays and hit outside shots, which were his specialties. This summer, he spent every day in special training with Wilson.
Louis recalled Miller as a rookie with high immediate impact. If he truly integrated into the system in his rookie season, he would definitely bench Ellis.
If Ellis became disgruntled about it, he would simply be traded.
After all, he had already earned a reputation as the league's top shooter in previous seasons, so he wouldn't lack suitors.
Louis had had enough of him.
In addition to Ellis, Song Tao also could not return to the team on time.
The Bangkok Asian Championships were scheduled from November 14th to 27th. He not only couldn't return on time but would also miss the first month of the regular season.
Regarding this matter, Louis had already informed him to serve wholeheartedly in the national team and return after completing his duties.
Louis had done considerable groundwork with domestic contacts for Song Tao to successfully reach the NBA. The most crucial point was the promise that the Knicks would not exert any additional influence if the national team or provincial team (National Games) issued call-ups.
Therefore, Louis not only refrained from exerting additional influence but also provided further assistance to the Chinese national basketball team.
As a result, the Knicks' roster at the start of the new season would only have 13 players.
This was not a major issue, as 13 players were sufficient.
Under normal circumstances, Louis would employ a ten-player rotation per game. If there was garbage time, he would let everyone play. Against strong opponents, he would likely use a ten to eleven-player rotation.
There weren't supposed to be so many issues, but Ellis's incident brought back Louis's unpleasant memories from last season.
Louis's affection for Ellis was evident in his sternness. If not for these potential problems, his starting position would have been as solid as a rock, unshakeable.
Now, as long as Miller played well, Louis would definitely replace him.
For a period afterward, the Knicks had little to deal with.
The news was all from elsewhere. The Knicks' only news concerned Ellis's recovery.
The New York media's evaluation of the incident was extremely harsh.
The Knicks last season could have been better. It was precisely because of Ellis's frequent absences and poor form that the team's chemistry was often suboptimal.
The new season was about to begin, and he had another car accident, resulting in an injury that would sideline him until December.
The trouble he caused off the court was enough for the media to overshadow his on-court performance.
Louis didn't even have the inclination to say a good word for him. When mentioning him, his attitude and tone were mostly indifferent.
The only thing he emphasized was that the Knicks would not descend into chaos due to anyone's absence.
From mid-August, Louis basically visited the Blue Palace daily, but there was nothing to do. He took the tactical design blueprints submitted by Zhao Yuanzheng home to study and contemplated how to improve the n.uCLA system.
Most of the time, his task was to be a good caregiver.
Lu Wuxia had transformed from a cute baby into a mischievous little devil. Louis felt like strangling her at least three times a day.
But Lu Wuyan still had over a year of cuteness left, so during this period, all his love was given to his daughter.
This was clearly favoring the daughter over the son. Those who understand, understand. When will little boys be able to stand up?