RNP Chapter 117 The Joy of Los Angeles is Beyond Your Imagination!
Chapter 117 The Joy of Los Angeles is Beyond Your Imagination!
Chapter 117 The Joy of Los Angeles is Beyond Your Imagination!
"Kobe Bryant's emotions are fluctuating, resulting in a loss of 50 experience points!"
Lin Tian stomped on Kobe's stomach, who was lying motionless on the floor, and mocked, "Is this all you've got? You think you can be the best player in the league? Get up and play again! It's only 2 a.m. and you're already too tired to get up? Trash! Softie! Toilet paper! Show some of the spirit you had when you were ostracized in Italy and could only be a goalkeeper!"
"You just wait, Lin! You wait until I catch my breath, then I'll fuck you to death!" Kobe really wanted to stand up and slap Lin Tian across the face to show him how powerful he was.
Unfortunately, Kobe was too tired to get up at the moment, and a few days ago he had a falling out with Lin Tian, insisting on throwing away the basketball and having a proper game with Lin Tian.
And then...
He didn't even touch Lin Tian's feet before he was beaten so badly he was lying on the ground unable to get up.
Although Kobe was reckless, competitive, stubborn, and petty, he was self-aware. He felt that he still had a great chance of beating Lin Tian in basketball, but in a fight…
Forget it, let him step on my stomach. At least he's not stepping on my face, right?
"You two, aren't you going to rest yet? My gym staff are going to protest! Practicing until the early hours every day is good, but you two need to know when to stop." Magic Johnson pushed open the training room door, saw the two still practicing, and waved helplessly, "Go back and rest now, go back and rest immediately!"
"Some other people will be coming to train with you for two days tomorrow, so you'd better go home and get some sleep now, otherwise you won't have any energy tomorrow, and you can't blame anyone else!"
"Will Michael be coming tomorrow?" Kobe asked excitedly as soon as he heard that someone was coming to practice.
"Michael, Michael, Michael, is that the only name in your head?" Lin Tian rolled his eyes. This Kobe was simply a die-hard Jordan fan.
Well, if wanting to kill someone on the court counts as being a fan, then Kobe's love for Jordan definitely belongs to the most die-hard and loyal group!
This guy has been training with Lin Tian for about a week now, and the questions he asks most often are, "Does Michael know this move?", "If I do this, can Michael defend against it?", and "When you fight Michael one-on-one, what move is he most afraid of?"
There were even a few times when Kobe was so tired from training that he lay down on the floor of the training hall and fell asleep, muttering in his sleep things like, "McClean, eat this ball!"
This is too enthusiastic!
But as passionate as he was, Lin Tian's admiration for Kobe was absolutely genuine!
This guy is practically a mobile arsenal!
Kobe's personality is so explosive that he could explode at the slightest provocation. In just one week, Kobe gave Lin Tian over 500 experience points!
That's for sure. If they don't get along after just a couple of sentences, this guy will start yelling and shouting, wanting to have a fight. He's practically a honey badger with an off-the-charts fighting spirit!
I really doubt how such a thing could become the most ruthless killer in the NBA a few years later.
This special brew is certainly filled with murderous intent, but what about its cold-bloodedness and ruthlessness? It's basically an extremely fanatical and hot-blooded individual!
Lin Tian didn't see any of the Black Mamba's aloofness and pride.
"It's not Michael. He just finalized his contract and is currently vacationing in Panama. But I've already spoken to him, and if he has the time, he'll stop by Los Angeles before heading back to Chicago."
"Tomorrow's player is Lin's favorite point guard, 'The Smiling Assassin' Isaiah Thomas! Kobe, you can learn a lot from Isaiah. His passing, ball-handling, and scoring abilities are absolutely top-tier among point guards in the entire history of the NBA!"
"Yeah, of course. If this idiot tries to get you two to go to Detroit, just ignore him, give him the middle finger, and tell him to get lost!"
"Erwin, thank you for bringing Isaiah to me, but there's one thing you said that's wrong." Lin Tian smiled and walked over to Magic Johnson, giving him a high five. "You're my favorite point guard!"
Lin Tian's words made the magician laugh so hard he couldn't stop. At the magician's age and status, there's nothing more gratifying than having a junior you like who respects and cares for you immensely.
"Sycophant!" Kobe snorted, expressing his disdain for Lin Tian. "When Goodrich and Oscar Robertson came over a few days ago, you said they were your favorite point guards!"
"I call this emotional intelligence! Do you think everyone is like you, an idiot who only knows how to argue with you and shout 'One-on-one, one-on-one, one-on-one'? Do you think you're a husky who bares its teeth at everyone?"
"You two, that's enough! Let me tell you, Isaiah won't be the only one coming here tomorrow. If you keep causing trouble, you'll regret it when you don't have the energy tomorrow!"
……
The next morning at 7 a.m., Kobe arrived at Magic Johnson's training facility early and started shooting practice right away.
As for Lin Tian, who has difficulty getting up in the morning, he didn't wake up until 9 a.m. and didn't arrive at the training hall until 10 a.m.
He wouldn't be so crazy as to compare himself to Kobe in terms of who arrives earlier or practices more diligently.
Mr. Lin is not a masochist.
"Lazybones! Don't you use your morning time for training? You'll be left behind by me sooner or later!" Kobe, already drenched in sweat and clearly having practiced more than once, snorted smugly as soon as he saw Lin Tian.
"The gap in talent is something you can't bridge no matter how hard you try. If hard work were useful, what would be the point of having a genius like me?" Lin Tian and Kobe's banter was already a habit, just like when Lin Tian and Jordan were with the Bulls. Whenever the two met, they would inevitably start arguing!
Well... the only difference is that when Lin Tian went one-on-one with Jordan on the Bulls, his win rate was only around 30%, and at the beginning of the season, it was even less than 10%.
But here, facing Kobe, Lin Tian could easily crush the rookie Kobe!
A win rate of over 90% is easily achievable!
After playing against Kobe for so long, Lin Tian finally understood why Jordan loved to challenge people to one-on-one matches and why he loved to dominate them.
This feeling... he really enjoyed it!
Anyway, Lin Tian is now getting a sense of accomplishment from beating Kobe! No matter what kind of superstar you are, with two scoring titles, five championships, one MVP, and two Finals MVPs, you were still beaten to the ground by me and left lying motionless.
No matter how much of a superstar a player is, he still showed his amateur side to me, didn't he?
Just as Lin Tian and Kobe continued their bickering, the stadium doors were pushed open once again.
Two relatively short figures walked in at the same time.
The first line of dialogue that Lin Tian heard was incredibly familiar.
"Isaiah, even if you're only 25 years old, I can still beat you to a pulp!"
"Alan, you can't beat me! Don't think I'm only 35; even if I were 45, you still couldn't beat me!"
Oh, that familiar arrogant feeling and the personality of criticizing anyone without caring about anything else is exactly the same as Kobe next to me!
"A self-important little dwarf who doesn't know how to respect his seniors!" Kobe immediately commented from the side.
"No way, you have the nerve to say that to him? Have you ever respected your seniors?" Lin Tian showed no leniency towards Kobe's self-aware remarks.
"How am I disrespectful to my seniors? I have great respect for Erwin!" Kobe said emphatically, demonstrating his respect for elders and care for the young.
The magician clapped his hands with a big laugh and led the two newcomers to Lin Tian and Kobe.
"I don't need to introduce you, you all definitely know each other." The magician looked at the four people in front of him.
"A guy who imitates my moves, a kid who hasn't even grown his first hair!" The one called Allen is none other than Allen Iverson, the number one overall pick in Philadelphia's draft this year and the shortest number one overall pick in NBA history!
"Who's talking? I can't see you. Sorry, could you bring a chair over and stand on it? Otherwise, all I can see is your bald head, and all you can see is my nostrils." Kobe certainly wouldn't tolerate the arrogant Iverson, and even stood on his tiptoes, showing off his tall stature.
As for Lin Tian, he didn't even look at Iverson. Instead, he walked straight past him and went directly to Thomas, where he shook hands with him and said, "I've heard so much about you, Mr. Isaiah. I've always been a fan of yours."
"I thought all the young people these days were arrogant and unruly, but there are some polite ones too." Thomas laughed and patted Lin Tian on the shoulder.
"Hey, are you just going to ignore me like this?" Iverson said to Lin Tian from behind, "Isn't that a bit rude?"
"You're not worthy of my politeness, you little rookie." Lin Tian, who had been called a rookie for a whole year, finally felt triumphant. Looking at Iverson, he said, "Play two official games first, then talk about how strong you are. Otherwise, you'll just seem like an arrogant idiot!"
"Want to play one-on-one?" Iverson looked at Lin Tian with his usual arrogance: "I'll show you what a real crossover is!"
"If you don't come, you're not worthy. You'll have to fight Kobe first. Only if you beat him will you be qualified to challenge me!" Lin Tian pointed to Kobe next to him.
"Alright! Take out the underlings first, then deal with the boss, huh? I'll make you two beg for mercy!" Iverson looked at Kobe, eager to try.
"Who said I'm his underling? Why should I have to kill me before I can fight you? What do you think I am? Your watchdog? I'm not fighting!" Kobe reacted very quickly and directly refused the one-on-one challenge.
"Haha, I really didn't expect Kobe to refuse a one-on-one challenge! This is probably the first time in his life he's turned down a challenge!" Magic Johnson laughed. "Alright, guys, stop bickering. Come on, let's see what we can learn today!"
"Isaiah, shall we go first or shall we?"
"You go first, Erwin. I need to warm up; it's been too long since I've played a match."
……
After Iverson and Thomas joined the training, the number of people in the Los Angeles offseason training team suddenly increased to 5, and the arena became more lively. However, Iverson, Kobe and Lin Tian were still in a state of not giving in to each other and seizing every opportunity to bicker with each other.
"Youth is wonderful!" Thomas sat on the sidelines, his clothes soaked with sweat, and laughed. "Weren't we just as annoying when we were young?"
"Maybe you and Larry are annoying, but I'm not," the magician said with a smile. "I'm a heartthrob, nobody hates me."
"Fuck you! You're really annoying right now!" Thomas cursed, then said, "I don't care about the other two, but I'm taking that guy Lin with me tonight. I need to have a good talk with him."
"Are you going to try to explain to him how great Detroit is? Listen to me, don't waste your time." The magician laughed, "No Asian would want to go to a hellhole like Detroit! That's not their place! Los Angeles, a cosmopolitan city full of entertainment, is where he belongs."
"I knew you, you old fatso, weren't really here to train Chicago's point guard. You're obviously here to poach players!" Thomas laughed. "But Lin has a very tough personality; he's a real man! I heard he knocked out that scoundrel Karl Malone in one go?"
"A guy like that wouldn't stoop to the level of you despicable Los Angeles folks! He'd only choose to play basketball in a more masculine and purer place! There's no purer place in this league than Detroit!"
"Detroit is pure? I get it now. So poverty, backwardness, monotony, lack of entertainment, cold climate, and ugly scenery are what's called pure? Then Detroit really is fucking pure! You won't find a purer place in the whole of America!"
"What do you mean? You're saying Detroit isn't great? Let me tell you, Detroit is the best city in the world!" Thomas looked at the magician and gave him the middle finger.
"You can say Detroit is great, and I believe every Detroit resident would think it's the best city in the world, but sorry, no one outside of Detroit would think Detroit is a good place!"
"This place is absolutely terrible, Isaiah!"
"You fatso who only knows how to grin like an idiot!"
"You little dwarf who only knows how to lewdly laugh!"
"I swept your Lakers in the Finals!"
"I won the championship over your head before you swept me! Need me to remind you of the 1988 Finals?"
"The Finals MVP is Worthy's; Worthy beat us, not you!"
"The Finals MVP that year you won the championship was Dumars, not you, right?"
"The year we won the championship, I destroyed you. I scored twice as many points as you!" Thomas continued his tirade!
"God bless me, even the cashier at the supermarket next to my house knows I was injured that year, and I played through the pain!" Magic Johnson continued with a smile, "Want to see our head-to-head stats when we were both healthy? I averaged 21+13+5 with a 55% field goal percentage, and you? If I remember correctly, 19+9 with less than 43% field goal percentage?"
"Honestly, Isaiah, if you had scored two more goals, you might have won that year."
"FUXX! You damn fat old man! Come on, one-on-one!" Thomas jumped to his feet and strode onto the court. "Come on! Don't let me look down on you. Let me see how you're going to crush me!"
Lin Tian, Kobe, and Iverson, who had just been arguing not far away, paused for a moment, and then saw the two veterans aggressively starting a one-on-one fight.
"He's almost 40, and he still gets angry so easily," Kobe muttered, then shouted, "Kill him, Erwin! I'm on your side! Smash him!"
"You clueless idiot who doesn't know basketball!" Iverson muttered. "Isaiah! You can beat him! I believe in you! Let them see what small players can do!"
"Fuck his asshole!" Lin Tian shouted, waving his arms behind the two men. "Kill him! Cripple him, make him terrified of you from now on!"
"Whoever loses, their son will be born without a penis!"
"Tell him who the greatest point guard of NBA history is!"
"For the glory of the defenders!"
"Who are you actually supporting?" Kobe and Iverson stood on either side of Lin Tian, wondering who he was cheering for.
"Does it matter? Compared to the ultimate one-on-one battle between the greatest point guards in NBA history, who I support is completely unimportant!" Lin Tian said with a wicked grin. "What matters is who can splatter the other's brains out!"
What does it mean to be a spectator who doesn't care if things get out of hand? Lin Tian is a perfect example!
This ultimate one-on-one duel between the seniors, which was just a game at the beginning, took on a completely different flavor after Lin Tian and his two companions started trash-talking and taking sides.
These two are really going at it!
Even though their athleticism is gone, and even though their youthful, lightning-fast physical abilities have disappeared, a one-on-one match between two top point guards still has its unique flavor.
Brains! A true battle of wits! These two are probably the two guys with the highest basketball IQs in NBA history. Although there were no dunks, no fancy moves to blow past opponents, and no physical fights on the court, they still showed you what it means to play with your brain and to maximize your strengths!
Thomas's strengths are shooting and speed. He uses his agility to constantly push Magic Johnson out of his comfort zone and attack with his flexibility and shooting advantage.
Magic Johnson played even more shamelessly, turning his back to the basket every time he got the ball, using his back to the basket to force his way to the basket, and then ending the offensive possession with the simplest hook shot and shot.
Ultimately, it doesn't matter who comes out on top.
Because both of these old guys claimed to be in the lead and swore they had crushed the other.
Both players fully utilized their seasoned, thick-skinned skills, making the score a mess. Magic Johnson claimed he beat Thomas by 30 points (100-70), while Thomas swore that the two of them hadn't even made 100 shots combined, even though he clearly beat Magic Johnson by 25 points (55-30).
Even during the nightclub evening, the two continued their heated exchange, neither giving an inch.
How to describe this bullfight?
It's as if these two weren't even participating in a one-on-one match! Their descriptions and the events they described were completely different, not even the same thing at all!
Lin Tian felt as if he had created a parallel universe!
On one side, three thousand soldiers were killed; on the other, over ten thousand were captured.
Finally, after a few rounds of drinks, Lin Tian realized one thing: these two were talking nonsense!
Then, he completely immersed himself in the enthusiasm of the people of Los Angeles.
Well, it's worth mentioning that at this moment, Kobe was taking his anger out on a basketball in the training gym all by himself!
It's not that he didn't want to come, nor is it that he was really that diligent.
It's simply because... I'm not old enough to be allowed into nightclubs.
……
Iverson only stayed in Los Angeles for 3 days before he got tired of training. After trash-talking Lin Tian and Kobe, he left the arena and went off to have some fun somewhere. Thomas stayed there for about a week before leaving as well.
After that, Lin Tian trained here with Kobe and Magic Johnson for a while longer, and it was already mid-August.
One morning, O'Neal walked in triumphantly, wearing an Olympic gold medal, smoking a cigar, and covered in gold chains and rings!
Standing next to O'Neal was Jerry West, the godfather of the Lakers!
"Who wants to see 'The Big Diesel' win an Olympic gold medal? You guys don't even have one!" O'Neal said, puffing on a cigar as he gave himself a new nickname.
"Actually, I have one." Jason shrugged with a smile, indicating that he wasn't interested in the gold medal.
"I'll get some, at least two!" Kobe glanced at Shaq's gold medal and then went back to training.
"My buddy, my good buddy, Lin! What about you? You're not interested in the Olympic gold medal either?" Seeing that Kobe and Magic Johnson weren't paying much attention to him, O'Neal immediately turned his attention to Lin Tian.
"Didn't you promise me you wouldn't come to Los Angeles? Didn't you say Los Angeles wasn't on your shortlist at all? I thought you were going to Dallas or Portland!" Lin Tian showed no mercy, revealing his past conspiracy with O'Neal in front of West and Magic.
O'Neal was stunned by Lin Tian's words.
No... Brother, is it appropriate for him to say such things here?
Lin Tian said, "I just want him to be unsuitable!"
After training in Los Angeles for more than half a month, Lin Tian was full of complaints.
He gained plenty of experience points, but nothing else, whether it was a one-time trial card or a permanent skill or talent, dropped!
None at all!
Who knows if this system is dead? Lin Tian was about to curse Kobe's ancestors for eighteen generations until they crawled out of their graves to beat him up, but Kobe just wouldn't drop any equipment!
Lin Tian was also helpless!
With it almost time to leave Los Angeles and return to Chicago to prepare for the new season's training camp, Lin Tian decided to take a gamble!
Even if he offends everyone, he still has to take this opportunity to get something good, otherwise how can he face going back to Chicago?
I have no face to face my fellow countrymen in Jiangdong!
Sure enough, after Lin Tian said that, both Jason and West looked rather grim.
Are you kidding me? I treated you like a VIP, and you actually poached our players behind our backs? Even if Shaq wasn't a Lakers player back then, what do you mean by "you promised me you wouldn't come to the Lakers"?
If anyone at the scene wasn't embarrassed, it would definitely be Kobe. After saying hello, he went back to practicing his sharp crossovers. He was always unhappy because his crossovers weren't as fast as Lin Tian's and Iverson's, but he knew that there was nothing he could do if he couldn't outrun them. The other two were proper point guards, while he was a shooting guard.
Therefore, Kobe trained like crazy, trying to improve his range of motion!
"Lin, you're really joking." The magician chuckled dryly, trying to ease the awkwardness.
Lin Tian didn't respond!
He just won't answer!
Lord Lin, you should see just how awkward this situation is today!
Lin Tian believed that even extreme embarrassment could lead to something good!
"Actually, after we finished the Eastern Conference Finals, Lin and I were discussing where I should play next season. We analyzed it for a long time. Lin thought that Los Angeles had too glorious a past and too many superstars, so it would be difficult for me to build my own dynasty here."
While the group stood there awkwardly, O'Neal finally stepped forward and began to explain what was going on.
"Here, I'll always be told I'm standing on the shoulders of giants, that my success is all because of Los Angeles. So, Lin said back then, if my goal is to create my own dynasty and legend, to become someone like Michael or Hakeem, then the Lakers aren't for me!"
"However, after getting to know them, I felt the beauty of Los Angeles, I fell in love with everything about it, and I felt incredibly valued. Jerry and Irwin truly saw me as the hope for Los Angeles' revival! So after careful consideration, I decided to join them! I discovered that Los Angeles is my dream!"
O'Neal's confession can be described as showing extremely high emotional intelligence; at least he didn't reveal his true feelings.
"I couldn't help it, I originally wanted to refuse them, but the offers from the people of Los Angeles were just too much!"
Because O'Neal was unwilling to stay with the Magic, it meant he didn't have Bird rights. Any team that wanted to sign him had to keep his salary within the salary cap. This meant that O'Neal didn't receive many good offers no matter where he was.
Most teams would offer O'Neal a contract similar to the one the Magic offered.
At this point, the Lakers' 7-year, $1.18 million contract seems incredibly generous! Because the Lakers truly emptied their rotation for O'Neal, giving away everyone they could for free!
All I can say is that the Lakers are indeed clean and efficient in their business dealings, without any hesitation or fuss!
After O'Neal's explanation, the atmosphere on the scene was finally not so awkward. Just as West was thinking of saying something to smooth things over, Lin Tian made his move again!
"I thought you were in it for the money, that's a 7-year, $1.18 million contract! The biggest super contract in NBA history! And you come here and it has nothing to do with money, Shaq? If it were me, I'd definitely think about the money first!"
What does it mean to silence everyone with a single sentence?
Lin Tian's words are exactly right!
Apart from Kobe still dribbling the basketball, Shaq, West, and Magic Johnson were all stunned.
It's not that money is unacceptable, and it's not that this matter can't be discussed, but bringing it up directly in front of both parties will truly put both sides in a deeply awkward situation.
Even someone as approachable as Magic Johnson and as seasoned as West were speechless at this moment, since Lin Tian's words implied that "Los Angeles people are stupid and rich."
"Jerry West's emotions have fluctuated, resulting in a loss of 30 experience points!"
"Erwin Jensen's emotions have fluctuated, resulting in a loss of 50 experience points!"
"Shaq O'Neal's emotions have fluctuated, resulting in a loss of 20 experience points!"
Listening to the system's announcement, Lin Tian felt that it was about time. As long as there was one more sharp remark, he would definitely reap the rewards!
What should I say?
"Lin, what are you saying?" West shook his head and said, "We play in the NBA, besides our dreams, isn't it all for the money? If a team offers maximum financial resources, status, prestige, and future plans, why wouldn't we choose this place?"
West thinks that Lin Tian is upset that O'Neal joined the Lakers without telling him! After all, the two seemed to have a good relationship, and they talked for so long after the Eastern Conference Finals. But O'Neal was all set and then suddenly joined the Lakers without a word.
If Lin Tian felt uncomfortable because of this, then that's perfectly normal!
Young people, huh!
To be honest, understanding why Lin Tian was unhappy was one thing, but being willing to talk to him and coax him was another.
Given West's status and position, he wouldn't bother interfering if other players acted this way! But Lin Tian is different; Lin Tian is someone he has high hopes for and wants to bring into the team next season!
West was still hoping to form a brand new inside-outside duo with Lin Tian and O'Neal! So he didn't want to see any rift in the relationship between Lin Tian and O'Neal, and he certainly didn't want to see Lin Tian harbor any hostility towards the Lakers!
"I don't care about money. I don't even know how much my salary was last season." Lin Tian shrugged and said, "I'm too lazy to even hire an agent. If it weren't for the fact that I have so many business offers this season that they're practically begging for my attention, I really wouldn't bother with them."
"I play basketball purely out of love, not for money."
Lin Tian's utterly absurd words caused the eyebrows of the people present to twitch.
Is this kid putting on an act?
If you weren't doing charity for money, would you?
But ironically, what Lin Tian said seemed to be true. This guy didn't have an agent last year, wasting countless business cooperation opportunities for the entire year! Even though he found an agent this summer, it was a complete newbie who had just graduated from school and no one had ever heard of him.
This summer, it seems he only managed to get two or three collaborations for Lin Tian. This rookie agent does seem to have mediocre abilities.
This kid, he probably doesn't play basketball for money, right?
"Lin, you could actually find a more experienced agent; they can really help you a lot." West hesitated for a moment, then kindly said, "At least with your current popularity, you shouldn't only have two or three business deals. A good agent can at least double that number!"
"Besides, if I remember correctly, you haven't signed with any sneaker brand yet, right? That's the most lucrative thing for players besides their salaries, and it's also the best way to boost their popularity! Choosing the right sneakers can at least double your career earnings!"
"Take Michael, for example. His choice of Nike has allowed him to amass an almost terrifying fortune. Even if he retired tonight, he could instantly transform from a basketball player into a team owner! He really has that kind of money!"
"Sneaker contract? My agent has negotiated a sneaker contract for me, but there are still some final touches and minor details to finalize, so it hasn't been announced yet. If all goes well, it should be finalized this week."
"Is it almost finalized?" Jason asked curiously. "But as far as I know, neither Nike nor Adidas, nor even Reebok or Converse—brands a level below in terms of strength—have anyone in Los Angeles negotiating with you on this matter. Or did you find an even less well-known brand?"
"Lin, you have to listen to me on this. Sometimes the guarantees that lesser-known brands make to you can't necessarily be fulfilled. Compared to that little bit of profit, you really should consider and research those real big brands. At least they can give you the greatest protection in terms of reputation, sneaker technology, and safety."
"By the way, which company did you talk to again? I might be able to help you get acquainted with them and get them to increase your quote a bit more."
Seeing Jason's casual demeanor, Lin Tian knew that today's ultimate opportunity... had arrived!
"The company we're talking to, AND 1, seems to be a new streetwear brand originating from New York. But the contract and terms they offered are indeed quite good." Lin Tian continued to feign innocence and naivety, waiting for the magician to actually take the bait.
"AND 1? What's that?" Magic Johnson had indeed never heard of this streetwear brand, which had only been established for three years. After all, although AND 1 also sells basketball equipment, their main focus was completely different from Magic Johnson's, which meant that Magic Johnson knew nothing about the brand and had never even heard of it.
"Lin, listen to me. If the contract isn't signed yet, don't talk to them. These startups are unpredictable; they could collapse or even just run away! I've seen countless similar cases in my life! If you trust me, then play it safe and choose Nike or Converse!"
"I have connections at the top levels of both companies, so I can definitely put in a good word for them. What kind of contract did AND 1 offer you again? I'll talk to the people at Converse or Nike, and even if I can't replicate their terms 100%, getting 8% of them shouldn't be a problem!"
"The base contract is $2000 million over 5 years. If I achieve something like making the All-Star team or being selected to the All-NBA team, the base contract amount can reach $2500 million over 5 years. In addition, there is a 2.3% sales commission in the North American market and a 5.5% sales commission in the Asia-Pacific region. That's the general idea. There are some other details that I'm not too clear about. After all, I really don't care much about these things. I've left them all to my agent to negotiate."
Lin Tian continued to look at the magician with clear, seemingly foolish eyes, but this time, the magician no longer thought Lin Tian was foolish; he only thought he was foolish!
He truly regretted saying things like, "Although I can't give you everything, I can at least give you 80%."
The conditions for AND 1 are too good!
Nike and Converse wouldn't even give him 8% of the profits, given Lin Tian's current situation, he'd be lucky if they gave him half!
No wonder Lin Tian's agent didn't manage to secure many business deals for him this summer.
They're putting all their energy into securing sneaker contracts!
I must say, it was totally worth it!
If Lin Tian isn't exaggerating, this contract will definitely cause a stir in the league when it's announced!
This one sneaker contract alone is enough to make Lin Tian the talk of the town again, and it can also make Pelinka jump from an unknown to a top agent!
Lin Tian's contract with AND 1 is definitely the second-best shoe contract in the entire league!
Looking at the entire league, it's only inferior to Jordan and Nike.
Jordan's contract with Nike was the result of countless years of negotiations and collaboration before it was finally agreed upon.
This is Lin Tian's first sneaker contract in his career!
How embarrassing! Utterly embarrassing!
The magician felt that he had never been this embarrassed, not even when he admitted to having AIDS in front of his family and the world!
He had never been so embarrassed in his entire life!
The magician would rather his son be penile, or even a pervert, than be in this embarrassing situation.
Why is he worrying about this nonsense?
This has nothing to do with me, why should I say anything!
Now you're in a bind, aren't you?
Even though Magic Johnson is known as the NBA's number one social butterfly, famous for his excellent interpersonal skills and ability to handle all kinds of situations, he is considered the NBA's socialite.
But at this moment, he really didn't know what to say.
He laughed it off, then implied: "Just pretend I just farted?"
The magician's skin isn't that thick!
Just as the magician was going crazy with worry, Lin Tian finally heard the voice from the system!
"Irwin Jansen's emotions have fluctuated, resulting in the loss of the permanent skill: Performance Time LV1 (0/3000)!"
"Performance Moment LV1: Host's rebounding ability increases by 10%, ability to find teammates after grabbing a rebound increases by 7%, and if a teammate catches the ball during a fast break and shoots without dribbling, the shooting percentage increases by 5%! If a teammate shoots within 7 seconds of the start of the offensive possession, the shooting percentage increases by an additional 3%!"
Hey!
This is amazing! Absolutely amazing!
Lin Tian stared wide-eyed at the skill description.
The compatibility between this thing and him is beyond high.
100% match!
In particular, it can also fill the gap in Lin Tian's current weakest point: rebounding ability.
And more importantly, this is Lin Tian's first 'halo' type skill. This thing can actually provide buffs to teammates!
If Lin Tian can ever play a ball-dominant, one-star-four-shooter style of play, that one skill alone would be enough to make all the team's shooters burp!
Then, when Lin Tian saw that the LV1 skill required 3000 experience points, he immediately accepted it. The skill's bonuses were so numerous, and the range and target of those bonuses were so broad; even at 3000 experience points per level, it was worth it!
At the same time, Lin Tian suspected that this thing might be some kind of "innate skill" or "signature move".
Showtime, isn't that just show time? Isn't that what the Lakers relied on to dominate the league in the 80s?
His own words had embarrassed the magician so much that he had revealed his biggest trump card and strongest move.
A killing deal! An absolute killing deal!
(End of this chapter)