Chapter 451 Season Miscellanea

December 24, 2004.

The Sonics, which had just completed their 21st consecutive victory, ushered in a short three-day rest period.

Christmas is coming, and for most other players, this is a rare free holiday. Naturally, they want to have fun and relax, but Lin Dong's schedule is already full.

As soon as the game ended on the night of the 24th, I went straight to the airport and boarded a flight to Spain.

Mitsui Hisashi's side has just taken over Mobistani and the team is now on the right track.

There were six Asian players in the first batch, but almost all of them were Japanese players who were pulled over by Mitsui Shu.

Akira Sendō, Eiji Sawabita, Masashi Kawada, and Shigehiro Mori, who entered the second round of the draft last year but was laid off after only half a year of NBA experience.

The Japanese center who relies on his body to make a living may be regarded as a type of explosive physical talent when looking at Asia. He can also play in the US High School, but in the NBA, his physical condition is not enough. He can only be said to be passable, but relatively rough. His skills and his free throws were so bad that even O'Neal could make fun of him, but there was really no room for him to survive in the NBA.

These are all at the mid-to-upper level of the NBDL league, and they can barely make it into the main rotation in La Liga. Moreover, the rigor, physical intensity and team basketball model of the European League are also a good place for them to gain experience. A national player who has high hopes from the Japan Basketball Association.

But there were only two people from the Dragon Kingdom, Chen Jianghua and He Ning.

He Ning was in the Seattle Storm before and experienced a year of NBDL experience. Now he is at a good level and is a standard 3-point shooter.

Chen Jianghua sat on the bench for more than half a year in Guangdong Hongyuan last year. After all, his position overlapped with Wang Shipeng's. Chen Jianghua, who was too young, was far inferior to Wang Shipeng in terms of stability, and he did not have Wang Shipeng's closeness. The tacit understanding of the whole team.

He does not have a big contract, and he is not the type that Guangdong Hongyuan is absolutely reluctant to let go of.

Two little people who seem insignificant in the country...

Frankly speaking, the resistance to sending domestic professional basketball players to the Spanish league is much greater than Lin Dong imagined.

I thought that if I did everything with my own money, the Basketball Association would be quite supportive of this matter.

But I didn't expect that the Basketball Association's attitude this time was surprisingly strong in opposition. Even Lao Li, who has always been the most supportive of Lin Dong, did not stand up to speak for Lin Dong.

In the words of the Basketball Association, what you, Lin Dong, are thinking about is training this group of people to cope with the 2008 Olympics, but what we are thinking about is the overall environment of Longguo basketball. You have taken away all the strongest people in the CBA. What will happen to the CBA? ? What to do about the domestic basketball environment? Do you want the spectacle of the game anymore? Will CBA continue to develop? Will CBA be reduced to a village BA?

Those who are more opposed to this are clubs and teams, such as Guangdong Hongyuan.

Seeing that Bayi is dying now, all the veterans have retired, and the big guys like Yao and others have also gone to the NBA. Finally, the time has come when I, Guangdong Hongyuan, can dominate the CBA and win a championship, but you want me At this time, giving up the core players that have been cultivated for several years just to let them go to La Liga for further studies? Fulfill the so-called 2008 Olympics and fulfill your righteousness, Lin Dong?

Damn it... I'm a sports team, not a charity. I'm mentally ill and I'll help you!

The teams that were extremely unhappy about this not only held on to the contracts of good prospects in their hands and showed no support, but they also used their own energy to use the media to blackmail Lin Dong and try to Use public opinion to put some pressure on them.

You, Lin Dong, are awesome, but now you are turning your elbows outward and trying your best to send good prospects abroad, regardless of the development of domestic basketball. You are worshiping foreign countries and showing personal heroism!

Coupled with the previous marriage to Yuya, the current domestic public opinion environment is indeed not friendly to Lin Dong, and it is a mixture of praise and praise.

Lin Dong was also helpless.

Frankly speaking, I think this is a bit too simple.

They only thought about how to quickly improve the strength of the Dragon Kingdom men's basketball team, but they didn't expect that this move actually involved too many interests and affected many people's cakes.

Even if people like Zhu Fangyu support themselves, their own destiny is in the hands of the team, so their words naturally have little weight.

In addition, the Basketball Association's concerns are actually not entirely unreasonable.

If all the good prospects are poached, the overall strength and level of CBA will further decline, which will definitely be detrimental to long-term development.

It's not that there is no solution. What Lin Dong thinks of is to use his current reputation in the basketball world to bring in foreign players to CBA. This can not only improve and balance the level of CBA, but also use the competitiveness of these foreign players to compete with those in CBA. The boss completed the exchange of players and made them willing to let them go.

To put it bluntly, it is to use the international arena to train the elite players of the Dragon Kingdom, let these elite players go global, and then use some powerful foreign players who are only leftover to improve the overall level and enjoyment of the CBA, and cultivate this big fish pond.

But this won’t happen overnight, you have to take your time.

For now, Lin Dong is focusing his selection on the youth training of Long Country.

Fortunately, thanks to Lao Li's drastic reforms of youth training in recent years, the increase in domestic college basketball and youth training competitions has allowed many good prospects to emerge.

In the CHBL high school men's basketball league that just ended last month, a name from Wuai High School in Shanghai attracted Lin Dong's attention.

Xu Yong.

Although he only led the team to two wins and two losses in the group stage and failed to enter the semi-finals, Lin Dong went to the scene to watch the whole game because of this special name. The 16-year-old young player has already shown strong personal talent in the game.

Frankly speaking, in terms of talent alone, Lin Dong thinks Xu Yong is even comparable to himself at the same age in his previous life.

The sixteen-year-old child is already 199 cm tall and weighs 97 kg. He has excellent running and jumping ability, excellent arm span data, and static talent is off the charts.

In the history of the Dragon Country men's basketball in another world, the name Xu Yong is just like the ancient story of "Shang Zhongyong" in Dragon Country, which left a deep impression on Lin Dong.

This basketball star who fell due to injury once led his team to face the United States in the U19 World Youth Championship in another world. He scored 22 points alone when the whole team was in a slump. His amazing jumping ability and basketball IQ made him the second "Dragon Jordan" by the domestic and foreign media at that time.

Later, he was selected for the 2008 Olympic training list, but was diagnosed with "malignant central osteosarcoma of the spine" before the Olympics, and was forced to withdraw from the national team and the basketball world.

This is a rare genius No. 3 in the history of Dragon basketball, a super scorer, but was destroyed by injuries, which made the Dragon basketball world in later generations deeply regretful.

It would be fine if Lin Dong didn't see this name, but when he saw it, he would naturally think of this past event, and naturally he would want to save it.

Malignant central osteosarcoma of the spine is a disease that often occurs in adolescence, mostly due to exposure to radioactive substances, as well as irregular eating habits and exercise habits.

Lin Dong didn't know what Xu Yong had experienced in history that led to this disease, but he chose to take over his training, living environment, eating habits, etc. four years ago, and check regularly. He thought there was a great chance to keep this genius.

A few days ago, he had contacted Xu Yong's family through the Basketball Association and invited him to a trial in the name of the La Liga Mobis team. This time he went to Spain to watch his trial and to arrange his life and training deployment in Spain for him. After all, only he knew Xu Yong's experience in another world, and he couldn't tell these things to others. After all, only he could do these things himself to feel most at ease.

Beep beep...

The plane hadn't taken off yet, and Lin Dong was thinking about his worries, but his phone rang.

He picked it up and frowned immediately.

He pressed the answer button.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Lin!" A very enthusiastic laugh came from the other end of the phone: "It's been three days, are you free now? Come over tomorrow to shoot that set of commercials, the effect last time really didn't pass the test."

"I've seen the sample, I think it's good." Lin Dong responded: "The European and American style is quite suitable for the current aesthetics of Longguo. I know Longguo better than you."

"Hahaha, that's for sure! But Knight can't pass that test, and I can't do anything about it. He just wants a different style, a style with obvious Asian characteristics. You know, Knight's requirements are so high..."

"Then I can't control it. I have already shot the commercials in the contract. I can't do anything if I'm not satisfied. You can do the special effects for any style you want. I won't come to reshoot. I'm already on the plane to Spain. I don't have time to go back these days. Okay, it's time to take off. I won't talk to you anymore."

Beep-beep-beep--

The busy tone came from the hands-free phone, which made several Nike executives in the conference room look embarrassed, but they didn't dare to say anything more. They just cast their eyes on Phil Knight who was sitting in the front of the conference room.

Phil Knight's face looked a little ugly. He played with a pen in his hand and tapped the table from time to time.

He tapped for a full minute or two before he suddenly laughed coldly.

"Hateful yellow monkey!"

Hearing that the boss finally spoke and clarified the conflicting targets, the senior executives around him were relieved and echoed: "It's too uncontractual!"

"He has the final say on how to shoot an advertisement. What is our creative department for?"

"Different markets require different styles. That guy knows nothing, and Michael is not as famous as him!"

"He only signed a two-year short contract. I don't know what bad intentions he has. This kid is a freak, and all yellow people are freaks!"

"Don't think about it. If we hadn't stopped him, O'Neal would have gone to the Cavaliers this year and blown up the Supersonics! In order to protect him, we did so much and gave him so much money, but this kid actually He always refuses to shoot an advertisement..."

"Recently, the reputation of that guy in Dragon Country is not very good. First, many people criticized him for his marriage, and now he has a La Liga team, which has also attracted a lot of criticism in Dragon Country. His popularity is not as good as last year, and I feel he is not as popular as Yao Ming."

"Speaking of which, American fans are a little tired of that guy now. Recently, his Dragon series has not seen much sales growth for two consecutive months."

"After all, he is just a Dragon Countryman... Before, the fans were fresh to him, but now countless American superstars are suppressed by him, and many fans are dissatisfied with him."

"How about..." The senior executives said what they were thinking, but they didn't say it completely. At this time, they all looked at Phil Knight again. To put it bluntly, it still depends on the boss's intention.

"No, it's not time to fall out yet." How could Phil Knight not understand the thoughts of the senior executives? He said with a smile: "Although he is not as popular as last year, that guy is still the hottest star in the basketball market. Right now we need him to further stabilize the Asian market, not to mention that the contract still has one year... at least use this year to squeeze Adidas out of the Asian market. As for one year later... haha, short contracts also have the advantages of short contracts! "

Everyone in the conference room understood instantly.

To put it bluntly, Nike has developed rapidly in the past two years. Now its only competitor is Adidas. The European market is firmly controlled by Adidas, but the US market is now almost owned by Nike. Therefore, if you want to decide the winner, you have to rely on Asia. Let the market differentiate between high and low.

And relying on the endorsements of Lin Dong, Sakuragi Hanamichi and Yao Ming, Nike has now seized an absolute advantage in the Asian market. As long as it has one more year to completely squeeze out Adidas, it will complete the U.S. market and the Asian market. A unified Nike will become a truly global behemoth. By then, Lin Dong will no longer be needed.

If Lin Dong recognizes the reality and lowers his attitude by then, then everyone can naturally continue to cooperate, but if he dares to put on airs like now...

"I will continue to increase my investment in the NBA this year. I want to have a certain say in the league. I can't always count on the old guy Stern to change his mind!" Phil Knight said coldly: "We can make Lin Dong famous in the United States. If you can clear the way for him to win the championship, you can also step on him and set up obstacles for him! If you give him a Yao name in the Olympics, won't he still lose? "

"As for the commercial, let's put it in first and see the effect. We won't break up with him for the time being. We will ask him to shoot it again after this season is over. When the time comes, we will toss it and let him rework it. If he continues If he refuses to cooperate...then he should be tougher. The market has been won, and he is a dispensable role. "

"Haha, doesn't the media always say that he is an insurmountable peak for others? Then when the time comes, I will let him know what a truly insurmountable peak is!"

…………

The three-day trip to Spain went quite smoothly. I saw Xu Yong. In private, he seemed to be a shy big boy, but on the court, he seemed to be sharp, full of energy, and confident.

Only with strength can one have personality, Lin Dong has never objected to this.

Since Lin Dong was interested in someone, the trial training was obviously just a formality. He signed a 2-year short-term contract with the team on the spot, becoming the youngest player in the Moebius team.

And going to Spain with Lin Dong was Stephen.

As Lin Dong's previous personal trainer, Stephen has also worked with the Sonics for two seasons.

He is obviously very good at his job as a trainer. Although he usually has a lot of fun, his rigorous attitude towards work is still widely praised by the Sonics. He is also one of the most trustworthy people around Lin Dong.

Let him come here this time so that he can be solely responsible for the personal training of Xu Yong, Chen Jianghua and He Ning, and also serve as the assistant coach of Moebius.

Lin Dong specifically told him that he was concerned about the health of the players. With this guy's level of attentiveness, Lin Dong was relieved to hand over these future prospects of the Dragon Kingdom men's basketball team to him.

For Stephen, leaving his hometown is something he has long been used to. As long as he has enough money, this guy doesn't care whether he stays in Seattle or Spain. Besides, Spanish girls are famous for their fiery passion, which is exactly what he wants.

Of course, in addition to interviewing Xu Yong, Lin Dong also came here with a mission.

Mainly because of the newly purchased Mobis team, the original main players have to make room for the 'rookies' who have just joined the team, causing the team's already poor performance to decline further. The record ranks first and last in La Liga. The record of 3 wins and 18 losses is really hard for local fans to hold back.

Even though the two bosses no longer care about results, they still have to appease the local fans.

So during the past three days, Lin Dong frequently appeared in the stadium, interacted with local Spanish fans, and so on. With his super popularity, which is now the number one in the world of basketball, he gave Moebius a huge boost. A wave of fans.

At least it feels like local fans can tolerate the team losing a few more games.

Lin Dong was also helpless.

As a boss, you also have to be a spokesperson. I have no choice but to worry about these new talents.