[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-golden-age-of-basketball":3,"chapter-the-golden-age-of-basketball-the-golden-age-of-basketball-chapter-754":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","The Golden Age of Basketball",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1444171,1896,"Chapter 754 - 7 Generosity_2","the-golden-age-of-basketball-chapter-754",754,"\u003Cp>For instance, if a player could get a contract on the open market for about $1 million per year, Jerry Krause would directly offer a salary of $200,000, driving the player mad with what felt like an unreasonable proposition.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When both sides became irate and negotiation broke down, Reinsdorf would step in as the good cop, saying $200,000 was too little and offer to raise it to $800,000, imploring the player to accept the deal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In that era, many players disliked moving around a lot. Staying in one city to play was a common desire. By using this tactic of low-balling and then raising the offer, a player originally worth $1 million would end up staying with the Bulls for $800,000.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before standardized contracts and a comprehensive collective bargaining agreement, many team owners and general managers would operate this way, and Bird and Olajuwon had both experienced it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The problem was that Jerry Krause, playing the bad cop, drove too hard a bargain, causing the Bulls’ players to deeply despise him. Jordan felt this way, and of course, Pippen was no exception.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Pippen’s good friend Horace Grant had just renegotiated his contract with the Bulls that summer. True to form, Jerry Krause low-balled him, saying Grant was only worth $800,000 a year.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Obviously, Grant disagreed. After a drawn-out tug of war in negotiations, Reinsdorf timely stepped in and offered Grant a 3-year, $5.6 million contract, lifting his annual salary to $1.86 million and securing an additional $1 million per year, keeping Grant in Chicago.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, Jerry Krause was employing the same tactics with Pippen, who refused to negotiate with Krause directly. He went AWOL, and after training camp started, nobody could find him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This sent Krause into a panic. Facing Jordan’s questioning and media inquiries, Krause became restless and evasive, merely stating that Pippen had an injury and was recuperating.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eventually, Pippen’s agent, Jimmy Sexton, located him. The guy had run off to Memphis, hiding in a hotel and keeping tabs on the Bulls’ movements through Sporting News.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sexton went to Memphis to persuade Pippen, telling him that the 1990-1991 season was vitally important for the Bulls and for Pippen personally; he had to attend training camp for a good start to the new season.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He hoped Pippen would make the All-Star team that season, as that would be greatly beneficial for improving his contract value and length.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Contracts are not just negotiated; they’re earned on the court. You need to perform in the games, work hard in training. This could be your season.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ultimately, Pippen heeded Sexton’s advice and returned to Chicago for the team training camp, followed by preseason games in Vancouver, Seattle, Iowa, and other places with the Bulls.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even without a championship yet, the Chicago Bulls were welcomed with a frenzy across America; young fans clung to the Bulls’ bus, unwilling to let go, hoping for a glimpse of Michael Jordan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Most preseason games are merely walkthroughs, a warm-up for the new season, with only a sparse crowd attending.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, the Chicago Bulls’ preseason games turned into a craze with thousands of spectators coming to see them play live, all eager to see Michael Jordan in action.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jordan’s charm was not about the championships, but his style of play—fans loved Jordan’s cool, flying high on the court.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since Jordan entered the league in 1984, his popularity on the court has been unrivaled. Many fans come to the games not just to witness champions or victory, but to enjoy basketball itself, to appreciate the artistry of the \"Air\" on the hardwood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Toward the end of the preseason, the Chicago Bulls faced the Seattle SuperSonics in St. Petersburg, Florida, at the newly-built Suncoast Dome capable of accommodating 20,510 people.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This vast arena, originally the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ home field, was now filled with more than 25,000 fans not to see football, but basketball, more precisely, to see Michael Jordan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unfortunately, the Bulls lost to the SuperSonics in that game. Jordan went 0 for 7 in the first half, which made the attending fans impatient, and even prompted some booing; they were not content with Jordan’s performance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So in the second half, Jordan abandoned the prescribed triangle offense to go more for one-on-one play, continually attacking the SuperSonics’ basket.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His aim wasn’t to win the game but to satisfy the audience. In this ordinary preseason match, Jordan played for 35 minutes and took 18 shots.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the game, Bill Cartwright expressed his concern: \"I’m worried about one thing, that I’ve played in the league for so long, come so close to a championship, but end up with nothing. I want to win. Michael is talented and can do so much for the team, but I always think, unless he is willing to change, he is going to keep us all far away from the championship. Especially, he will not be able to defeat Ah Gan.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>-----------------\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Portland Trail Blazers’ pre-season for the 1990-1991 season was scheduled in Honolulu, Hawaii, where they had two exhibition games against the Lakers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Trail Blazers’ roster was fully intact, keeping 13 players for any contingency.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Reggie Lewis and Ed Pinkney made their first appearances at the training camp in Honolulu, drawing a lot of attention from media reporters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ed Pinkney graduated from Villanova University. In 1985, they made it to the NACC Finals, only to be narrowly defeated by Georgetown University.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And in an obscure corner, unnoticed amidst the radiant star players, was a short old man blending in with the crowd of giants.\u003C\u002Fp>",922,"2026-06-06T01:41:38.168Z",1,"novelbin.me","c36c4b64f7eca6450f42dff55398d204528c60f958b19a68c2bf6325413acb3e","the-golden-age-of-basketball-chapter-755","the-golden-age-of-basketball-chapter-753",2033,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-golden-age-of-basketball-cover.jpg"]