Chapter 32 BAD

On October 7th, the New York Knicks' preseason battles commenced with an 89-77 victory over the Chicago Bulls.

Without Pippen, the Chicago Bulls were not a top-tier team. Jordan was besieged, shooting less than 40%, scoring only 19 points for the entire game, giving the team a bad start for the new season.

Now, not only General Manager Jerry Krause but even the Chicago Bulls fans had begun to despise Pippen.

Pippen's contract was not worth it now, but the year he signed the 7-year $18 million deal, Jordan's contract was also just 7 years for $25 million.

Due to rumors that the broadcasting rights would be sold and players' salaries would soar, both Jordan and the manager advised Pippen to sign a short contract. But Pippen didn't believe it, firmly insisting on his decision, fearing no safety net if injured in the future.

Unfortunately, the NBA isn't like football; there's no concept of paying a breach penalty to leave a team. Pippen's delaying treatment for his injuries as a threat to the team was wrong. If the Bulls ultimately couldn't win the championship, he would be to blame.

Jerry felt that the Knicks played just as poorly, with little cooperation on the offensive end, and resorting to one-on-one strategy when spread out, lacking the dynamism of the Summer League.

Jeff would rather do all the work himself, making him an ideal leader for those just going through the motions. But his timeout calls were solely to arrange defense, focusing on contraction, double-teaming, and switching positions, utterly neglecting offense.

In the future, Jeff could lead a starting line-up with Latrell Sprewell, Wesley, McGrady, Uncle Ho, and Yao Ming to a top-three league defense; he was truly capable of arranging defensive systems.

Tom sat courtside with a notebook, like a diligent student recording strategies, earnestly learning. For Jerry, who favored offense, the game was torment.

By 1997, Jeff was already a defensive maniac. Jerry was continuously pondering how to correct his approach. Such tactics wouldn't showcase Jerry's ability and might wear Patrick out mid-season.

After considering, Jerry decided to watch more and do less, listen more and talk less, letting Jeff stubbornly finish the preseason before picking out his faults.

Jeff always disappointed the fans, so he didn't disappoint Jerry.

The opportunity swiftly arose as the New York Knicks lost consecutively to the Nets twice, playing terribly according to Jeff's style.

Chris Gatling and Jason Williams excelled in defense, preventing the New York Knicks from making inside shots.

Point guard Sam Cassell outplayed Charlie Ward and Chris Charles.

Nets' second overall pick Van Horn also performed well at the Nets' home court, scoring 26 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists, with a three-point shot tally of 4 hits out of 6 attempts.

After the second game against the Nets, as coaches exchanged greetings, Nets Coach John Calipari took the chance to throw a jab at Jerry.

Jerry had an unpleasant friction with John when he tried his luck at the Nets, which John had initially forgotten since their statuses were widely different, and it was unlikely they would encounter each other again. Then, to his irritation, he saw news in the summer that Jerry became the New York Knicks' assistant coach, even leading the Summer League team to victory.

Suddenly, he was a bit upset, as if he lacked insight for not recognizing Jerry's capabilities.

He was not a man of broad-mindedness and couldn't swallow this insult. He finally made up his mind to trouble Jerry.

"Mr. Jeff, I don't understand your thinking. You're young enough, yet you hire someone even younger than the players as an assistant coach. Someone who just draws a salary without doing the work, how could the New York Knicks possibly play well?"

John sneered at Jerry, instigating trouble.

He thought, ‘Come on, retaliate against me. Let Jeff know how arrogant and ill-mannered you are. See how you fare in the management after that.’

If Jerry didn't retort and Jeff didn't offer a defense, it would be tantamount to admitting Jerry's incompetence, equally shameful. Once the seed of "doubt" was sown, without real skills, Jerry could easily be ousted by the coaching team.

John still didn't believe Jerry had the capability because he was too young.

Jeff was irritated following consecutive losses and was about to respond when Jerry beat him to it without a hint of anger on his face.

Jerry looked puzzledly at Jeff, then toward John, blinked, and feigned ignorance. "Old man, although I don't know what grudge you have against Jeff, you shouldn't speak in such an insinuating way. Yes, we are young, but how can you say we don't work? You may not believe in me, but Jeff is the first to arrive and the last to leave every day; how can you spread falsehoods?"

Jeff's face grew even darker, replying coldly, "Mr. Calipari, this is the New York Knicks' affair, none of your business. Don't think that winning two preseason games means the Nets are better than the Knicks, don't forget that you were just a bottom-tier bad team last season, see you in the regular season."

John was stunned.

Jerry's "old man" confused him. Although his temples were gray and his forehead lined, making him look older, he was only three years senior to Jeff!

Jerry's subsequent words baffled John even more, clearly shifting the blame, pretending not to know him as though he specifically came to target Jeff today.

He couldn't explain; explaining would mean picking on him, appearing petty and even more foolish. It was just unfortunate for John that, aside from himself and the Nets' manager, no one knew Jerry had sought a job with the Nets.

Jeff stormed off toward the player tunnel without another glance back.

Jerry suddenly imitated Michael Jackson, spinning in place and raising his arms, using Michael's signature move to casually point at John. Gliding backward with the moonwalk, he smiled at John, waving goodbye, and with another swanky turn, strode into the player tunnel.

John stood dumbfounded, not recovering for a minute.

He was just too scheming!

The players had already left, and Jerry was last, brimming with confidence to act so playfully. If seen by others, it might have seemed a little disrespectful to the veteran. In 1997's preseason, there was no live broadcast, not even by local stations, so who would know?

After a two-day rest, the Knicks lost to the Miami Heat for a third consecutive defeat. Patrick was still searching for his touch, thoroughly defenseless one-on-one against Mourning, shooting 4 out of 16, utterly frustrated.

Allan shined but shot too little, 7 out of 9, with one of two three-point attempts and two free throws both made, totaling only 17 points, 2 rebounds, and 2 assists.

The Knicks beat the weak Rockets 85-81 to end the losing streak, yet more fans expressed discontent, criticizing the team's unattractive play, all set plays.

Afterward, the Knicks were heavily defeated by the Suns and the Los Angeles Lakers, with Patrick and Allan reducing their playtime. Jeff assessed the team's veterans and the Knicks seemed to forget how to play basketball.

Strangely enough, Jeff truly was assessing veterans, letting Buck Williams, Chris Dudley, Bowie, and others play for a considerable time, with appalling outcomes.

The league's second-highest-paying powerhouse lineup ended the preseason with a record of 2 wins and 5 losses.