NBA: Warrior godfather.

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At 11 PM, at the Oracle Arena, the Suns faced the Warriors in back-to-back games.

Due to the time difference with Washington, home games on the West Coast are typically scheduled at 10 or 11 PM, which coincides with prime-time viewing locally.

Liam González couldn't help but frown as he watched Stoudemire on the court receive an innovative pass and slam it home.

This play wasn't difficult for the Suns. The other players spaced out, and Stoudemire rolled to the basket. Nash took advantage of the temporary space and made a quick right-hand pass to lead with the ball. After receiving the ball, Stoudemire took three steps and successfully bombed the Warriors' basket.

Biedrins didn't lose his position and stayed close to Stoudemire, but his matchup wasn't as strong. The little bully used explosive power to push him aside and dunked the ball home.

Liam looked up at the giant screen in the arena. It was now 5 minutes into the second quarter, the score was 48-44, and the Suns were leading by 4 points.

Looking back, the Warriors attacked. Biedrins also set a pick-and-roll at the top of the arc. Curry passed the ball to Biedrins, who used his athleticism to get past Stoudemire.

But then the Suns quickly launched a counter-attack. Stoudemire kept running down the middle and pointed to the sky. He tossed the ball to Biedrins and jumped to dunk it in.

Liam sighed and sat down.

Biedrins reminded him of two controversial players from his past life: Gobert and Capela.

Capela is a very useful finishing center. He's exceptional in the restricted area, a great lob catcher. When paired with top guards, he can make a huge impact.

He's also a fantastic shot blocker and rim protector. He can defend both bigs and smalls well. He had solid performances with the Rockets and the Hawks.

But Capela only shines in the regular season and the first round of the playoffs. Once the game gets deeper, especially in the later rounds, Capela struggles. His ability to finish weakens, and against top defenders, his offense is almost nonexistent.

Gobert's situation is even more extreme. A three-time Defensive Player of the Year, he's the pillar of the Jazz's defensive system, but offensively, he's a liability. His ball-handling is unstable, and he can't finish near the basket when surrounded. However, he secured a max contract worth $200 million after the Jazz relied on his top-tier defense. Yet, when the Jazz reached deeper playoff rounds, Gobert's weaknesses were exposed. He was exploited by elite guards, and his rim protection, which was dominant in the regular season, couldn't hold up.

Biedrins' situation is similar. In the regular season, he can perform well with finishing, rim protection, switching, and rebounding, but in high-level games, his weaknesses are glaring.

The Warriors had already played the Cavaliers, Spurs, and Lakers. Biedrins was exposed against the Twin Towers of James and Duncan, as well as the Lakers. These are the Warriors' future main competitors, especially the Spurs and Lakers, two teams in the same region.

Biedrins didn't have an advantage against Stoudemire either. He was better suited for a later era, but not for this one.

This might be why, in Liam's past life, Biedrins' career quickly declined after a season of double-doubles.

In this game, Biedrins was dominated by Stoudemire, but his teammates stepped up. The other Warriors players were in excellent form after a great break, but the Suns were playing their third consecutive game. It was mentally and physically exhausting.

They held their lead until the third quarter, but then Curry activated "day-to-day" mode and hit 4 threes in just 4 minutes, pushing the lead to 10 points!

After Curry's shots, the Warriors' morale skyrocketed, and the Oracle Arena erupted into chaos. The Suns' players were facing not just a team, but an infernal road game filled with hostility!

They were nervous, overwhelmed by loud cheers and boos. The Warriors players on the other side seemed to be on stimulants. They desperately defended every possession and fought for every rebound. Their faces looked as fierce as if they had just emerged from hell, like a malevolent ghost from the depths, desperate to win this game.

Under the sudden increase in intensity, the exhausted Suns players were overwhelmed and lost all their energy. Both their offense and defense showed signs of collapse. Only Nash saw the bad opportunity and stood up to activate his offensive mode. The entire Warriors team stabilized the situation.

But clearly, this wasn't their area of expertise. The Warriors were like a mirror of the Suns. They were all soldiers, and they were even more competent defensively than the Suns.

In the end, the Warriors defeated the Suns 124–110. Curry had a double-double with 35 points and 10 assists, including 19 points in the third quarter, completely turning the game around in one go.

Six members of the Warriors team scored double digits, including Azubuike with 16 points, Butler with 13 points, Biedrins with a solid double-double of 15 points and 11 rebounds, Big Z with 14 points, and Reggie Williams with 12 points.

For the Suns, Nash stood out, hitting 14 of 22 shots, scoring 36 points and 9 assists, matching Curry's performance. But his teammates collectively slacked off.

Aside from Stoudemire, who dominated Biedrins in their matchup and scored a double-double with 24 points and 13 rebounds, only Channing Frye added 11 points. Other than that, no one else reached double figures.

But Liam knew that the Suns were in poor form in this game, which didn't mean much. It wasn't that the Warriors were truly strong enough to beat the Suns.

He praised Nash in an interview:

"There's no doubt he's the number one point guard in the league. He broke down our defense single-handedly. He's still at his best. As long as Nash is there, the Suns will be a super team in the league. What? Stephen and Nash's stats are similar? He just took advantage of the schedule. There's still a big gap between him and Nash."

Journalists were a bit surprised by Coach Gs humility. This wasn't common...

What they didn't know was that Coach G wasn't focused on the win. After the game, Liam immediately went to his office, opened the game replays that had just been uploaded, and started watching.

Naturally, his attention was on Biedrins. He carefully studied every play involving Biedrins until 2 AM, then drove home to rest.

…

At 9 AM the next morning, Liam woke up and arrived at the Oracle Arena.

Due to last night's game, the players' training time was also delayed. When Liam arrived at the arena, they had just started their practice.

He didn't stay long, simply walked through the training room, and then headed to his office.

Curry glanced at Liam's hurried figure and muttered to himself, confused:

"What happened in the past two days? He used to come early..."

Biedrins, who was standing next to Curry, smiled:

"Maybe the coach is too tired. We just need to train hard."

After Biedrins finished speaking, he walked to the other side with the ball and practiced rebounding positioning with the help of the assistant coach.

On the other side, Liam arrived at the office, and Larry Riley was already waiting for him.

"Larry, have a seat." Seeing Larry Riley stand up to greet him, Liam gestured for him to sit.

On the way to the arena, Liam had asked Larry Riley to wait in his office so they could discuss things.

They both sat down, and Liam spoke first:

"Do you have any thoughts on the trade?"

After discussing this matter with Larry Riley yesterday, the two hadn't communicated further. Liam now wanted to hear his thoughts.

Larry Riley thought for a moment and then cautiously replied:

"Boss, why do you want to trade Andris? His performance has been good, the team's development trend is improving, he's very young, and there's a lot of potential there. He fits well into the team's tactics..."

Liam sighed softly:

"You're right. I like Andris a lot too. He plays hard and does very well at everything I assign him. He fits my tactical system very well... but he has too many limitations. He can't make us a real interior barrier if we want to compete for the championship. The center position needs to be upgraded."

"Compete... compete for the championship?!" Larry Riley said in shock.

"What? Can't we compete for the championship?" Liam looked at him with a half-smile.

Larry Riley quickly waved his hand and explained:

"Of course we can. We have a potential star in Stephen, and he'll definitely do something big in the future... But it's a bit too early to talk about competing for the championship now. I think we should focus on developing the young players first..."

Liam shook his head:

"It's because Stephen is here that we need to build a championship lineup quickly. Otherwise, when his rookie contract and Jimmy's expire, we'll definitely have to renew them with big contracts, and the team won't have much salary space left."

Liam clearly remembered how much the Warriors paid in his past life to retain their core lineup after three championships in five years. He didn't want to end up in the same situation and needed to plan

ahead.

Seeing that Liam had made up his mind, Larry Riley didn't say anything else. He understood his role as a tool and trusted Liam's judgment. He immediately replied:

"Boss, I haven't had time to gather information on players, but do you already know who you want?"

He didn't think Liam would be asking him to make a trade without preparation.

Liam, however, had already thought this through. As soon as Larry Riley finished speaking, he said:

"What do you think of Tyson Chandler?"

"Tyson Chandler? Is he still recovering? With all due respect, his performance has been bad over the past two years, and he's been injured. His situation isn't good. He's prone to becoming an injury-prone player..." Larry Riley shook his head after thinking for a moment.

As the general manager of the team, Larry Riley had information on most of the players in the league printed in his mind. Liam had just mentioned a name and expressed a different opinion.

Tyson Chandler was a player who caused a lot of regret. He had been drafted second overall by the Clippers in the 2001 draft and was later traded to the Bulls for Elton Brand.

The Bulls valued Tyson Chandler highly, as he had outstanding talent and explosive athleticism, and they focused on developing him. However, under the Bulls' rough system, Chandler didn't develop his independent offensive skills and became more of a defensive-minded big man. He struggled with injuries in his second year, which slowed his development.

After two years of battling in Chicago, Chandler was traded to the Hornets. There, alongside Paul, he began realizing his potential. His scoring and rebounding numbers surged, his finishing efficiency was extremely high, and he continued to play strong defense. He became the backbone of the Hornets' interior defense, helping them reach the Western Conference semifinals before losing to the Spurs in seven hard-fought games.

However, he suffered a back injury the following season and struggled after returning in the playoffs, averaging just 3.8 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. He also struggled defensively, and the Hornets traded him for Okafor. He was then traded to the Bobcats, still recovering from the injury and yet to return to form.

Larry Riley didn't expect that the "elite defensive center" Liam was considering would be an injury-prone player, and he didn't agree with it in his heart.

In his opinion, Biedrins had unlimited potential, while Tyson Chandler posed too many injury risks. He didn't believe it was a good choice.

"I understand your concerns, but he hasn't reached his peak yet. He has height, wingspan, and mobility. He's one of the few centers who can anchor a defensive system. There are too many teams in the West with strong big men. If the Warriors want to go farther in the playoffs, they need someone with insider knowledge," Liam said slowly.

"Chandler's talent is certainly appealing, but he's already 28, and for a center who relies on his body to play, he could seriously decline after a major injury. Are we really putting our hopes on him? Isn't that a bit risky?" Larry Riley continued to insist.

Although he was just a tool, as the general manager of the Warriors, Larry Riley couldn't simply watch Liam make a decision that could be detrimental to the team.

Liam understood Larry Riley's concerns, but he knew that Tyson Chandler wouldn't suffer any major injuries in the following years. Otherwise, he wouldn't have helped the Mavericks win a championship and earn multiple Defensive Player of the Year honors.

He just couldn't explain this to Larry Riley outright. All he could do was say firmly:

"I believe it's a good deal. Tyson Chandler only has one year left on his contract. Even if he doesn't fit, we can cut our losses in time... Go ahead and contact the Bobcats. See if they're willing to negotiate and complete the trade before Chandler recovers and assess his condition. If we can keep Biedrins, that would be great."

"But... okay, I understand. I'll do it immediately."

Larry Riley wanted to say more, but when he saw Liam's determined look, he knew it was futile. He reluctantly agreed and left Liam's office.

Is there any general manager more miserable than me?

A feeling that hadn't arisen in a long time resurfaced in Larry Riley's mind.

End of this chapter

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