Wallace moved quickly, arranging a trial for Hansen the sa day they finished talking, and then secured a one-year, minimum salary contract with West.
Though it was for a year, since the season was already into its latter half, the actual amount of the contract was roughly just over four hundred thousand US dollars, a small price to pay.
Moreover, Wallace dared to sign West because he had Hansen.
Hansen’s ability to handle problematic players was strong, not to ntion West initially joined the Grizzlies with Hansen.
Hansen also t West on the day of the signing.
If West appeared sowhat haggard during their initial months in mphis, by this ti, his decline was visibly pronounced.
Hansen seed to understand why West, with ntal health issues, could end up on the streets not long after leaving the NBA.
A person with ntal health issues, once they lost their goals, was like a lone boat adrift at sea, having lost their drive in life.
So in so sense, by signing West at this ti, the Grizzlies were extending a hand to him.
When he saw Hansen, a glimr of light broke through the despondence in West’s eyes.
Perhaps for him, Hansen was one of the few islands he could see in the vast ocean.
Hansen also went up to give him a hug.
"Good to have you back," Hansen patted West on the back.
West nodded vigorously, Hansen could feel his body shaking slightly.
West’s addition was a great complent to the Grizzlies.
Though Livingston was in good form, he had an injury history, and Joerger was conservative with his use during regular-season gas.
Plus, Livingston didn’t have an outside shot, which beca a target in so gas; West could step in to solve that problem.
Of course, most importantly, after joining the Grizzlies, West did not exhibit any locker-room-disrupting behavior.
Wallace’s gamble paid off; as long as Hansen was there, West’s negative factors would not surface.
Ti swiftly moved to late March.
The Grizzlies were still firmly holding the top spot in The West, but competition among other Western teams heated up to a boiling point.
The West was basically divided into two groups; the Grizzlies, Lakers, Spurs, and Nuggets had nearly secured the top half.
In the lower half, the Mavericks, Warriors, Clippers, Thunders, Rockets, and Jazz were engaged in a frenzied battle for the six playoff spots.
The most attention-grabbing was the Thunders.
While Jas’ arrival brought in a windfall off the court for the Thunders, they struggled to solve the compatibility issue between Westbrook and Jas.
Westbrook had already conceded, but Carrell’s article about "Jas opting out of his contract in 2014" made him reconsider.
The Thunders’ team atmosphere could only be described as a ss by now.
This was causing them to fall behind in the playoff-positioning race.
Without so change, Jas’ first season traveling to The West would inevitably miss the playoffs.
Not reaching the playoffs at his peak would be a severe blow to his reputation.
It was during this ti that the Thunders faced the Grizzlies for the third ti this season.
Since they were not in the sa division, this was their last encounter of the season.
The ga took place in mphis.
Even at the end of the season, the attendance rate at the FedEx Forum remained high.
mphis’ basketball market growth still needed ti, but it was significantly better than San Antonio’s.
During pre-ga warm-ups, the cara focused on Jas, whose expression was deeply solemn.
Hansen wasn’t surprised by the possibility of Jas missing the playoffs.
After all, in the "history" he knew, the competitiveness of The West could take Lebron, the previous year’s "Thanos Jas," and relegate him to "CBA teammate" level the next year.
Not to ntion Jas also had the infamous history of four "Top 75" players missing the playoffs.
Though Jas was younger and at his peak now, it was normal for the Thunders, riddled with internal problems, to fall behind given the hellish level of this season’s Western Conference.
Everyone knew the solution was to resolve the internal discord.
But that was precisely the issue they couldn’t solve.
Hansen even felt that if they really missed the playoffs this season, the Thunders might not want to trade Jas, but Jas himself would likely request a trade.
After all, if Nike’s top endorsent fell into a ditch and stayed too long, it would truly stink.
The ga quickly began, and surprisingly, the Thunders were in fine form tonight.
By the end of the first quarter, they matched the Grizzlies blow for blow.
In the second period, with Jas staggering his play, they montarily gained a double-digit lead.
Seeing this, Joerger called on Hansen and Little Gasol early.
Once on court, the Grizzlies’ quality at both ends of the floor quickly improved, with Hansen’s successive scoring helping to narrow the gap.
It was then that Jas increased his drives to the basket, and the frequency of whistles on court followed suit.
Ultimately, Stern had only given Jas a bit of discipline the season after "The Decision," and afterwards, his favorable officiating returned.
Nevertheless, this still didn’t stop the Grizzlies’ montum in catching up.
This season Stern had switched his disciplinary focus to the Grizzlies; however, unlike Jas, the Grizzlies showed their adaptability, already accustod to playing under such officiating.
Of course, the fans’ jeering was non-stop and grew louder, as they were about to overtake the lead.
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