NBA: LeBron James wants to team up with me

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On July 1st, the day the free agency market opened, many players immediately announced they would be opting out of their contracts, and among them, the players of the 2003 generation were particularly vocal. Several stars, previously predicted by the media, including Wang Chong, James, Wade, Anthony, and Bosh, chose to opt out and become free agents.

The minds of almost all the teams in the league were on high alert. Whether the 2003 generation stars collectively opted out to renegotiate big contracts with their respective teams or simply became free agents, there were now opportunities with other teams. There was a chance for acquisitions.

And after James lost once again to Wang Chong and the Bulls in the playoffs, he made it clear that he wanted to leave Cleveland.

Although James had been overshadowed by Wang Chong of his generation throughout his career, it was undeniable that, in terms of personal skill, James was definitely the best player in the league after Wang Chong. Even when facing Wang Chong, James, even if he lost, could at least ensure his personal statistics didn't suffer too much in Wang Chong's hands.

After James opted out of his contract, Cleveland fans expressed their heartfelt emotions, hoping to retain James and keep the strongest player the Cavaliers had had in decades.

But Wang Chong knew all of this was in vain. James had already decided to leave the Cavaliers to win championships together with other stars; he just hadn't decided where to go after becoming a free agent.

Since this time and space had become very unpredictable due to Wang Chong, even Wang Chong was not sure if James would make the same decision as before and take his talents to the South Coast.

Wang Chong was still waiting for the news to see the excitement, but he didn't expect to receive a phone call. The owner of this call was actually James.

"Hey Wang, how was your vacation in Hawaii?"

Wang Chong was stunned when he heard James' voice.

To be honest, the two had basically never interacted before. Due to their competitive relationship, James had always hated Wang Chong, who stole much of his limelight, and James didn't even have Wang Chong's phone number.

Why did James know his personal phone number? Wang Chong thought for a moment and had the answer in mind.

It must be Wade.

Among James' close friends, Wade and Wang Chong had a relatively close relationship.

Of course, the relationship between Shaquille O'Neal and Wang Chong of the Cavaliers wasn't bad either, but O'Neal had not been happy with the Cavaliers this season. He had some minor frictions with the team's management, including James. After the season, he had even mentioned that he planned to retire officially.

Therefore, it was unlikely that O'Neal had called James himself. It must have been Wade.

But the question was, why was James calling him at this time?

"Could it be...?"

Wang Chong had a vague guess in mind, but since he thought it was so unbelievable, he still couldn't quite believe it at first.

"I won't beat around the bush. Now that you and I are both free agents, I want to ask if you're interested in joining forces with me. If the two of us team up, we could definitely dominate this league for at least ten years and surpass Jordan's championship count, or even surpass Bill Russell. No problem!"

Wang Chong's mouth couldn't help but drop open, feeling both burned on the outside and tender on the inside from James' words.

What kind of behavior is this, Durant-style?

Join if you can't beat them?

The James Wang Chong knew wasn't like this. In the eyes of many, James' decision to team up with Durant in 2010 was seen as much more noble than Durant's defection to join the enemy. James couldn't beat the Celtics, so he teamed up with his brothers to surpass them.

But Wang Chong was different from Wade and Bosh. He had taken the Bulls to defeat and eliminate them many times in the playoffs. The two were almost mortal enemies.

In such circumstances, did James really want to join forces with him? Was it because he wanted to win a championship?

Wang Chong, who had returned to his senses, thought for a moment and guessed at James' illusions.

In fact, if the two teamed up, Wang Chong, who had already won four championships, would definitely be the team leader at first. But who was James? Seizing the central position of the team's tactics, James' control of the ball and style of play would eventually overshadow Wang Chong. He would gradually become just a spot-up shooter. The honors and championship content would be taken from him.

Sound familiar? This was Wade's experience with the Heat.

Thinking about this, Wang Chong laughed inwardly and said lazily,

"Sorry, the Bulls' current salary cap makes it impossible to offer you an appropriate contract. Unless you're willing to take a significant pay cut, we could consider signing you to a mid-level contract."

As soon as these words came out, it was James' turn to be confused.

A huge pay cut? Mid-level contract?

This response was completely different from what James had imagined. In his mind, Wang Chong should have shown enough magnanimity and talent thirst after voluntarily giving up his place. After all, he was currently recognized as the only player in the league who surpassed him in strength. Didn't he want his team to be stronger?

But Wang Chong's words clearly had the intention of humiliating him!

As the best superstar in the league, accepting a mid-level contract at the age of 25 was impossible, even if you thought about it with your toes.

James had not expected Wang Chong to be so cruel in rejecting his proactive invitation. He felt embarrassed for a moment and didn't know what to say.

After a while, he coughed twice to cover his embarrassment and said, "What I meant is, you and I could choose another team with good potential to join forces in that way. You have to understand that no matter how much you try in the Bulls, you can never replace Jordan's place in the hearts of Chicago fans, but if it's another team, the two of us would have the chance to become true legends."

It turned out to be this kind of illusion.

Wang Chong sneered, shook his head, and said, "Sorry, I still prefer to stay in Chicago, at least for now. And there's one thing I don't believe. Are you sure I can't replace Jordan in the hearts of Chicago fans?"

James was speechless.

How could he not hear the sarcasm in Wang Chong's words? Wanting to team up with his rival?

After a moment of silence, James decided to hang up the phone resolutely.

Jessica, who had been lying in a beach chair next to him, approached curiously.

"Who was that?"

"Nothing, just a clown."

Wang Chong chuckled and hung up the phone.

Compared to James' invitation, Jessica's temptation in front of him was obviously greater.

(Jessica, Limited Edition Beach Swimsuit)

As for the decision James would make after being rejected by Wang Chong, it actually had little to do with Wang Chong.

At least, the Heat's Big Three in their first year didn't pose any threat to the Bulls. As for the Heat during their two consecutive championships, they were strong, but by then, the Bulls would also have completed the replacement of the old with the new according to Wang Chong's plan. Their strength would improve to a higher level, not necessarily weaker than the Heat's Big Three.

--- No one else knows the content of the phone calls between Wang Chong and James, except for the two of them.

However, the commotion following the opening of the free agency market continued.

On July 2nd, the second day of the free agency market, the Bulls could no longer bear the pressure from Wang Chong and quickly moved to renew Marc Gasol's contract.

58 million over 4 years, with a starting salary of 13 million in the first year.

Gasol became the first rookie in 2007 to receive a major contract, ahead of Kevin Durant in the same draft class.

Of course, this was directly related to the fact that Gasol, as a second-round pick, had only signed a three-year contract with the team, while Durant, as a first-round pick, signed a four-year deal.

Gasol secured a major contract early, but the price was that when Durant renewed his contract next year, the maximum salary he could earn would be much higher than Gasol's, with a starting salary of at least 15.5 million dollars.

By the way, Greg Oden, known as the number one overall pick in the 2007 draft, was selected without any surprises.

Even in the Memphis Grizzlies, Oden didn't meet the so-called "veteran" of the Trail Blazers. Oden still suffered from repeated injuries. In the process of recovery, even if he briefly played some games, he was soon sidelined for the season due to injury.

The Grizzlies were all stunned. They thought they had finally marked the beginning of the team's revival, but they didn't expect the person they selected to be a washed-up player.

Seeing that Durant, the neighbor, had grown to the point where he could compete with Wang Chong for the scoring title, no one else could accept it.

But one could only say they were unlucky. Perhaps Oden in good condition could indeed be the super center who could dominate the league, but a talent that cannot be realized is like having nothing.

Just one day after the Bulls and Gasol completed their contract extension, Wang Chong finalized his contract extension with the Bulls.

The lightning-fast renewal of two key players by the Bulls surprised many. After all, Wang Chong had been vacationing in Hawaii recently, and his attitude had been under scrutiny. Many had

thought the Bulls would want to renew Wang Chong's contract for much more, but things turned out much smoother than expected.

However, what was slightly different from what everyone thought was that although Wang Chong had the Bird Rights and could sign a super-max contract for 6 years with the Bulls, he didn't choose to maximize the contract. Instead, he signed a 4-year, 76 million dollar contract with the Bulls, with an average annual salary of 19 million, a starting salary of 17 million in the first year, and a player option in the last year.

Why wasn't Wang Chong willing to sign a long-term contract with the Bulls? Obviously, the Bulls were at their peak and would likely be the favorites to win the championship in the coming years. Wang Chong could very well recreate the legend of Jordan's two three-peat dynasties here.

Soon, some people in the industry leaked to the media that Wang Chong was leaving the Bulls because the team had overlooked him when negotiating an extension with Gasol, which made Wang Chong feel unsatisfied, so he had escaped after the finals. In fact, Hawaii was meant to pressure the Bulls.

This was also the reason Gasol renewed his contract first with the Bulls, and Wang Chong followed immediately.

The 3+1 contract extension with the Bulls was also a move to warn the Bulls.

Three years later, Wang Chong would be only 28 years old, still at his peak as a basketball player. His strength and dominance would be even better than now. If the Bulls didn't choose Wang Chong as the player, in the next three years, keeping him as the Supreme Emperor, once the three years were up, Wang Chong would likely opt to skip the contract and leave immediately.

In the entire league, there were many players with outstanding abilities, but very few players like Wang Chong could threaten the team's management and have absolute power within the team. Basically, they could be counted on one hand.

Wang Chong's predecessor in the Bulls, the basketball god Michael Jordan, could be considered one. Kobe Bryant's period with the Lakers when he wore number 24 could also be considered one, and James' period with the Cavaliers could be counted as one as well.

This kind of authoritarian approach naturally sparked discontent among many people. Some journalists publicly condemned Wang Chong's dominant behavior.

"As a player, I think Wang Chong only needs to care about the things on the court and play well in every game. The team's operations have rules. If every player acts as recklessly as Wang Chong, wouldn't the entire league fall into chaos?"

"I think Wang Chong will pay the price for his arrogance sooner or later."

Most people who criticized Wang Chong simply didn't like or even hated him. They couldn't find any faults with Wang Chong on the court. If they ever got a chance, they would naturally go all out to tear him down.

But their voices were somewhat muted.

Wang Chong had just helped the Bulls win three consecutive championships and create a dynasty. He had also averaged 44 points per game in the finals and broke the single-game scoring record in the finals.

In this case, who would care about such a small flaw? Moreover, in the eyes of many common people, there was nothing wrong with Wang Chong's behavior, and on the contrary, it deserved strong applause.

Gasol had made significant contributions to the Bulls in the last three years. Instead of being rewarded, the team management asked him to take a pay cut and accept a contract with a salary of 8 million per year.

To put it bluntly, the Bulls wanted to reduce the players' salaries as much as possible because they didn't want to pay a high luxury tax.

But the problem was, the Lakers, who had faced the Bulls in the Finals for three consecutive years, paid an astronomical luxury tax every year. Despite paying so much, the Lakers had lost to the Bulls three times in a row.

The Bulls had earned fame and fortune, but they weren't even willing to pay any luxury tax. What's your last name? James? Are you daddy?

"Well done! It's the fault of Wang Chong. We should teach those evil capitalists a lesson like this!"

Just as the league was having a heated discussion about Wang Chong's contract extension, James, who had been standing by, finally decided to announce his decision in a much-anticipated live broadcast.

End of this chapter

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