Presti closed the handbook, greeted the Hawks scout next to him, and walked down the stairs on the side of the stands towards the mixed zone in the arena.
A spring rain began to fall outside the arena, and the rainwater streamed down the eaves of Green Stadium, making the tunnels cold and damp.
Presti stood by a concrete pillar not far from the Wake Forest locker room, hiding behind several workers carrying equipment.
Outside the half-closed iron door of the locker room, Wake Forest's head coach, Prosser, was blocked at the corner of the corridor by two tall figures. They were Chris Paul's father, Charles Sr., and Chris Paul's brother, CJ Chris Paul.
Outsiders might think the Chris Paul family is loyal to Wake Forest University, but the family has long harbored resentment.
The Charles family were originally die-hard fans of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chris Paul had worn North Carolina blue jerseys since he was a child. However, when recruiting after high school graduation, the North Carolina coaching staff thought Chris Paul was too short and instead gave a full scholarship and a starting position to Raymond Felton, a classmate. The Chris Paul family couldn't swallow this insult, so they settled for Wake Forest University, which was closer to their home.
From the beginning, Wake Forest was merely a stepping stone for the Chris Paul family to prove themselves to the University of North Carolina.
Head coach Skip Prosser himself isn't exactly clean either. Three years ago, when he was coaching at Xavier's University, he confidently assured then-star player David West that he would never leave, only to jump ship to Wake Forest for a higher salary less than a week later. This is common knowledge in college basketball circles.
So when local North Carolina newspapers broke the news every now and then over the past two weeks that Coach Proser had been privately contacting Oak Hill Academy guard Rajon Rondo, the Chris Paul family had no doubts whatsoever and immediately assumed that this old coach with a history of misconduct was up to his old tricks again.
Moreover, the renovation of the Chris Paul family gas station in downtown Winston-Salem had already begun a week ago, and the down payment for the five-year contract signed by Converse and Monster Energy Drinks had been deposited into old Charles's account. With hundreds of thousands of dollars in his pocket, old Charles spoke with more confidence than he did last year.
"Skipp, why didn't you give the ball to Chris for the last two minutes?"
Old Charles, speaking in a low, harsh voice that could be heard several meters away, said, " Chris was double-teamed by two players on the court today, and your coaching staff didn't even call a single play to create space for him to go one-on-one. Instead, you insisted that he pass the ball to those two seniors in the paint who can't even hold the ball properly?"
Coach Proser, already looking grim after the loss, frowned upon hearing this. " Charles, this is college basketball. We need five players to pass the ball. Tim Duncan played four years at Wake Forest, and he played according to a team system..."
"Don't try to intimidate us with Tim Duncan!"
CJ Chris Paul, standing next to him, interrupted him, pulling out a copy of the Charlotte Observer from a few days ago and slapping it in his hand. " Tim Duncan stayed in high school for four years because back then, not many high school players went straight into the league and got multi-million dollar contracts! Besides, Coach, you're getting a high salary of $800,000 a year from the school, while Chris can play his legs off and not get a single penny! Do you guys think Chris isn't good enough and are already planning to bring in Rondo from the Oak Hill Academy to replace him? No wonder you've been limiting Chris's shooting opportunities these past few games; it's like you're making room for your new Rondo!"
"Those are just rumors made up by the newspapers!" Prosser's face turned red with anger, and his voice rose eight octaves. "When have I ever restricted Chris's possession of the ball?"
Just then, Chris Paul, having finished showering and changed into his workout clothes, walked out of the locker room with a backpack on.
He glanced at Proser, whose face was ashen, and instead of calling for the coach, he reached out and tugged at his father's sleeve. "Dad, don't talk to him anymore, let's go home."
The father and his two sons turned around and, in front of several assistant coaches, did not walk with the team bus. Instead, they pushed open the side door of the fire escape and walked into the rain. Proser stood in the corridor, his chest heaving several times, and then punched the concrete wall.
Presti took in the scene, then turned and left the arena through the other exit.
Ten minutes later, Presti got into the back seat of a black Ford sedan parked on the street corner, closed the door, and took out his phone to dial Boston.
After two rings, Lin Qi's voice came from the other end. " Sam, have you finished looking at Green's side?"
"I've finished reading it, boss."
Presti flipped open the manual on his lap and reported calmly, "His fundamentals are even more solid than what I saw on the video. His pick-and-roll judgment, ball-handling rhythm, and ability to draw fouls and fake calls are all at the level of a seasoned professional. His weaknesses are also obvious. He's too short, and when double-teamed by forwards over two meters tall, his vision gets blocked, making him prone to holding onto the ball at the top of the key. Also, this kid is completely different from the well-behaved kid portrayed on TV. He uses a lot of dirty tricks on defense, plays very dirty, and is so competitive that it borders on obsessive. When we're behind, he'll point his finger at a senior on the court and yell at him. After we lost, he even publicly shook off Coach Prosser's hand."
"What about old Charles?" Lin Qi asked.
"I just had a complete falling out with Prosser at the locker room door." Presti looked out the car window at the dense raindrops. "Prosser's shady past of switching schools from Xavier's, plus Rondo fake news about Chris Paul family completely distrust him. Just now, CJ Chris Paul confronted Prosser about Tim Duncan staying on, even questioning if he was planning to recruit another point guard to seize power. Now the Chris Paul family is all resentful, feeling that the school's coaching staff is betraying them. Plus, with the gas station and consultant contract penalties hanging over them, it's impossible for them to let Chris stay on as a sophomore."
The faint sound of Lin Qi turning over papers came from the other end of the phone.
"Well done. With the National Championships coming up in the next two weeks, let's get the news about the Wake Forest's internal discord between coach and players, Chris Paul's dissatisfaction with seniors taking up too much ball possession, to ESPN's draft column."
"Once Wake Forest is eliminated in March Madness, we won't need to urge him; old Charles will bring his son to the press conference announcing his candidacy. As for his domineering temper in the locker room, the Boston Celtics have Kevin, Chris Paul, and Gary to keep him in check; he can't cause trouble. If we were to trade him for Michael in the future, Charlotte would be exactly missing a tough guy like him who dares to yell in the locker room to discipline him."
"Understood, I 'Memphis tomorrow to see the next game."
Presti closed his phone and put it in his coat pocket. The car, with its hazard lights flashing, merged onto the main road, its wheels crunching over the puddle, and headed towards Raleigh-Durham International Airport.