Chapter 362: The Age of Great Contention (4)
“I will never fail again!”
Just as Murray was firing himself up, off to the side of the training facility, a young man holding a basketball watched the high-spirited Murray with a trace of envy in his eyes.
“Don’t rush it, kid. Your chance will come.”
Sensing the young man’s disappointment, Rose turned his head and offered a few words of comfort.
“It’s okay, Coach. I know I’m still young. But I’ll keep training hard and try to contribute to the team as soon as possible.”
Alexander nodded firmly as he spoke, his tone resolute.
That’s right—almost as soon as Alexander arrived in Sacramento, he sought out Rose and became his second protégé on the team.
After accompanying the two for a while during practice, Rose’s phone buzzed with a message. He glanced at the unread notification, then turned back to the two who were still training.
“You guys keep working on your own for a bit. I need to head back to the team facilities to take care of something.”
With that, Rose peeled off his sweat-soaked training gear, changed into his clothes, and left the gym.
Once Rose was gone, the two youngsters naturally struck up a conversation.
“Murray, does moving up on this team really mean grinding for seniority?”
“It’s not that exaggerated,” Murray said with a shrug.
“Look at Booker. He got into the regular rotation right away. After a few games, he became a starter and stayed there all the way until now.”
As he spoke, Murray gave Alexander a meaningful look.
“Draft position matters. Lottery picks like you are definitely given chances earlier. You don’t have to wait around like guys picked late in the first round or in the second round, stuck in the G League waiting for an opportunity.”
This topic had always been a sore spot for Murray.
Deep down, he felt a faint sense of wariness toward Alexander.
He had waited a full two years for his chance. Now that an opportunity had finally arrived, the team drafted Alexander—a player with a somewhat similar style—and at a much higher pick.
Could it be that the team had seen that frightening injury he suffered last season and started thinking about replacing him?
As Murray’s thoughts spiraled, Rose had already arrived at the team’s main facility.
“Boss, you were looking for me?”
Rose knocked and entered the office.
“Yeah, have a seat first.”
Chen Yilun looked up from wrestling with a cigar and gestured for Rose to sit.
“This cigar really is a pain to deal with.”
After finally lighting it, Chen Yilun took a puff and spoke slowly.
“How have those two kids been training lately?”
“Pretty well.”
The moment the conversation turned to his two proteges, Rose immediately spoke up for them.
“Murray goes without saying. And SGA has been extremely hardworking since the day he joined the team. He’s talented too.”
“You’re really biased toward them,” Chen Yilun said with a chuckle.
He took another puff, then rested the cigar in the ashtray.
“Want one? This was a gift from Riley, that old man—top-grade Colombian stuff.”
Seeing Rose wave his hand in refusal, Chen Yilun didn’t press the issue. Instead, he pulled out a contract from his desk and handed it over.
“Now that Richardson is gone, you’ll start at the beginning of next season. Murray will come off the bench for you. As for Alexander, let him wait on the bench for now. Old comrade, it’s your time to shine.”
“Don’t worry, boss. I won’t let you down!”
Rose nodded and accepted the contract.
“As for your extension, my idea is to sign for three years first. Since your role will increase next season, the salary’s been bumped up a bit as well. You understand what I’m getting at, right?”
The contract Chen Yilun offered Rose was three years, $16 million.
It wasn’t a huge sum, but for Rose—whose form had clearly declined and whose performance last season was only average—it was already a sincere offer.
And the meaning behind Chen Yilun’s words was obvious.
That extra money was essentially compensation for Rose helping the team develop its young players.
“I’ll do everything I can to train the younger guys,” Rose said.
After a moment’s thought, he added,
“But honestly, Murray already has the ability to be a solid starting point guard. He’s recovered really well from his previous injury.”
“I know,” Chen Yilun replied as he tidied up the clutter on his desk. “I’ve already seen the medical staff’s report.”
“You’re defending Murray this hard—aren’t you worried he’ll take your minutes?”
“Boss, what are you talking about?”
Rose shook his head with a smile.
“At first, I didn’t quite get what it meant to take on proteges. But over time, I’ve come to really enjoy this role. Watching young players grow little by little gives me a huge sense of accomplishment.”
“If he can take my playing time, then let him take it. I’d be more than happy to see that!”
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“What exactly is Sacramento doing over there?”
Inside a Boston office, Coach Stevens spoke with a puzzled expression.
“You’re asking me? Who am I supposed to ask?”
Ainge shot Stevens a glance, then ignored him and continued working through his paperwork.
“Richardson was playing great last season, and they just traded him away. And they didn’t even get any immediate help back. Are they not planning to defend their title?”
In response to Stevens’ doubts, Ainge let out a snort of disdain.
“They don’t want to defend their title? What team could resist the temptation of building a dynasty? Especially when Chen Yilun just re-signed Durant, Booker, Gay, and Rose over the past couple of days. That’s clearly a move aimed at repeating.”
Faced with Stevens’ eager, questioning look, Ainge sighed and set his work aside.
“With the way Chen Yilun is operating right now, there are only two possibilities.”
As he spoke, Ainge raised two fingers.
“First, Chen Yilun cleared Richardson’s $10 million contract because he’s saving up for a big move—maybe to trade for a better point guard. But that’s unlikely.”
“Why’s that?” Stevens asked curiously.
“Look at his follow-up moves. Whether it’s Rose or Gay, their contracts are either higher than last year or stayed the same. If Chen Yilun were really planning a blockbuster trade, those two would either have to take pay cuts or be moved. But he didn’t do that.”
“You could say that the cap space freed up by trading Richardson was basically redistributed to the rest of the roster.”
“That leaves only the second possibility.”
Ainge raised one finger and waved it lightly.
“They’ve got plenty of young guards on the team now. I’ve heard that Rose was personally mentoring Dejounte Murray last year. It’s possible that Murray has truly broken out—becoming stronger than Richardson and an even better fit for their system.”
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