novelraw Chapter 379 - 114: This Is a Great Deal
Chapter 379 - 114: This Is a Great Deal
No wonder there’s been no task since Xiaowang signed on for so long, turns out this is the case, so what’s happening with Wang Zhizhi?
Equivalent to external loan? The rent is his lifespan?
Great, Xiaowang, become an excellent worker!"
With rewards up for grabs, of course you should aim to excel in every game as best as you can, that’s the best way.
As for not being selected... well, then you’re just not selected, at most being ridiculed by the media stirring public opinion.
The day of rest quickly passed, and by 10 PM, Zhang Hao was ready to shower and sleep when the phone rang.
It was Henry Thomas calling.
Once connected, Henry Thomas got straight to the point: "Aix, Nike has raised the offer, 3 years, 12 million!"
Henry Thomas’ tone was filled with excitement.
Zhang Hao was pleased as well, but slightly puzzled: "Wasn’t it only 2 million a year when I made the clutch shot against Jordan before? How come it suddenly doubled?"
"Aix, it’s all thanks to so many media digging pits today?"
"What do you mean? Is the offer contingent on me being selected as an All-Star starter to receive it?"
"No, if you are selected as an All-Star starter, there’s an additional 1 million bonus, though they consider it difficult for you to be selected as an All-Star starter."
"Then why?"
"Sponsors don’t necessarily want you to actually be selected as an All-Star starter; if they sign you and you are selected as such, they’d naturally be happy, as that reflects your popularity and they might sell more sneakers.
What they care more about is your never-ending topic presence; they’ve been increasing the offer precisely because of this, and this time, the topic surrounding whether you can be selected as an All-Star starter is astonishingly high, and finally, they’ve decided to offer a price that would satisfy us."
"I see, traffic again..."
"What?"
The recent exclamation was in Chinese, which the other side didn’t understand, so Zhang Hao responded, "I was saying ’Oh, that’s how it is’. Whether to sign the offer for 3 years, Henry, what do you think?"
Henry Thomas answered simply: "Sign."
"Then I’ll leave it up to you."
"Okay... By the way, did you hear about that thing?"
"What thing?"
"You really don’t know huh! I was wondering why you were still so calm, Sibaros got traded!"
"Watt?"
...
...
"Our team has been torn apart like this..."
Listening to Van Exel’s lamentation, Zhang Hao’s heart stirred as well.
Eddie Jones, Sibaros, Divac... It seemed they all left because he was coming or had arrived.
However, after experiencing a situation where he had bonded well with teammates and coaching staff only to be suddenly traded, he was much more accepting of such things.
Yesterday evening, the Lakers reached a three-team trade agreement with the Raptors and Warriors.
The Lakers traded Sibaros and received Warriors’ backup power forward Donyell Marshall, Raptors’ Doug Christie, and Raptors’ 1997 lottery-protected draft pick.
The Raptors traded Doug Christie, Oliver Miller, and a 1997 first-round lottery-protected draft pick and received Sibaros.
The Warriors traded Donyell Marshall and received Oliver Miller.
This trade was seen as the beginning of the Lakers’ effort to build a team around Zhang Hao.
It’s apparent that the partnership between Zhang Hao and the Magician on the front line produces better results, mainly because the Magician uses his rich experience and excellent organizational and offensive capabilities to lead Zhang Hao.
No doubt, originally a focal figure in conversation these past few days, Zhang Hao succeeded in becoming an even hotter topic among the media.
Tears bloom with the passing of time, Zhang Hao indeed did not like such changes, chiefly because he didn’t want to see teammates leave.
But since they’ve already left, he had no choice but to turn his attention to the new teammates rumored to be arriving at the team this afternoon - Doug Christie and Donyell Marshall.
Both are shooters!
Among them, Doug Christie isn’t just a shooter; he will be an established All-NBA Defensive First Team at age 33!
Though not quite at that level yet, he already has a defensive rating of 85!
"Logo Man probably didn’t expect that his attempt to bolster the guard line by trading this shooter back, who once played with us, would result in a player who, after wandering outside, honed his defensive skills."
From a roster rationality standpoint, Zhang Hao believes this trade isn’t bad, although... Lakers’ humanity stops at the superstar level; they may care for regular players, but when it comes time to treat them as trade chips, there’s no hesitation.
The trade itself isn’t lacking either; it’s a rare three-way deal where all parties feel they’ve gained.
Warriors obtained the tough interior player they wanted, Raptors obtained an All-Star level player.
Lakers acquired Donyell Marshall, the 94 4th overall pick, who in his rookie season scored 12.6 points, grabbed 5.6 rebounds, and blocked 1.2 shots, and Doug Christie, who recently rose this season, averaging 10.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.3 steals.
It appears none of the three parties feel they’re losing out.
The Lakers’ frontcourt structure is now more rational; the Magician can easily play a small forward role without vying for someone’s position, and the guard line is more supplemented.
While the duo attack lineup of Jason Williams and Sibaros was formidable, it still affected Jason Williams, reducing space efficiency, and switching to shooting-type Donyell Marshall improved the structure.
Of course, there’s also a downside — reduced interior attack capability.
However...
"If only the Raptors’ 97 draft pick wasn’t protected... But people aren’t foolish; a newly joined NBA team surely adds protective rights when trading first rounds, let me see... damn!"