When pride still matters

Chapter 551 Dynasty Complications

After the Christmas game, the Supersonics started their road trip.

This also means that they will spend the New Year away from home.

After defeating the Nets, the high-flying SuperSonics hit a wall in Houston.

The Rockets, who lost Yao Ming, were considered a lottery team before the start of the season, but the Rockets were unwilling to give up. They believed that Harden was the one who could inherit Yao Ming's status, so they fought with all their might. They are currently ranked eighth in the Western Conference and barely made it into the playoffs.

Against the Supersonics, no one thought the Rockets could win.

But shortly after the game started, the Sonics' starting center Chris Bosh had to withdraw from the game due to a back muscle strain.

This is probably the curse of all those who force themselves to swing upward.

A fundamental metric for judging basketball talent is whether a player can smoothly swing from position to position, and swinging up or down makes a difference.

Those with exceptional talent can swing upward, and those with superior skills can swing downward.

Bosh used his power forward's drive to swing center, relying on his talent as a foundation, but he himself had never been fully prepared for this.

Without psychological preparation, physical preparation can be ignored.

As a result, the frequency of injuries increases.

Even if both preparations are adequate, the large amount of contact brought about by the upward swing still increases the risk of injury.

Bosh's injury is predictable. What worries the Sonics coaching staff is Yu Fei. The GOAT is also swinging upwards. Will he also get injured?

Such concerns did not materialize.

Yu Fei seems to be at ease no matter who he faces.

However, Bosh's injury did bring some bad luck to the Supersonics.

Everything went wrong for them tonight. They couldn't make three-pointers or shots in the basket. They had to rely on their stars to make one mid-range single shot after another.

On the other hand, the Rockets have Harden's unlimited pick-and-rolls, breaking through and passing the ball, with a simple and direct style of play. He has a hot hand from the outside, and inside there is a freak like Omer Asik - this guy can grab the frontcourt rebound after setting a screen at the three-point line, and return to the penalty area to block the shot after delaying at the top of the arc. Every second he is on the court is creating benefits.

Although his physical fitness is average, his skills are average, and his touch is rough, but putting these aside, his style is just right for the current Rockets.

Houston did everything right, and Seattle ended its winning streak after a slump throughout the game.

This is definitely a weird match.

于飞22投12中砍下36分10篮板5助攻，杜兰特20投9中拿下26分，罗伊18投8中拿下22分，三巨头合砍84分，明明巨头都发挥了，但除了他们三人之外，超音速无一人得分上双。

So, people on social media began to joke that Bosh was the real giant.

On the simplified Chinese Internet, there are endless memes about Coach Lu, Yu Fei, Roy, Durant and Bosh. The most famous formula meme is updated every game. The content is basically like this: Lu talks about the gains and losses of the game, Yu Fei pretends to be stupid, Roy agrees, Durant is absent-minded, and then Bosh criticizes him and is thrown off the building.

After this battle, Bosh's reputation as a "real giant" became famous.

But for Bosh himself, this injury came at a bad time.

He needs to rest for a week because of a muscle strain.

Now is his critical period.

This year is his contract year. Although he is already distracted and very interested in becoming a free agent next summer, he also hopes that the Supersonics can give him a prestigious maximum salary contract extension based on his performance over the past three years.

His idea is that whether to sign or not is my business, but you have to give it.

Bosh believes that he has made great sacrifices for Yu Fei's empire and that this is what he deserves.

At this critical juncture, Sam Presti and other Sonics executives were in a dilemma.

Is it even necessary to think about giving Bosh a maximum salary?
If they wait until the end of the season and let Bosh go, they will never be able to find a suitable replacement in the free market.

The problem is that the Supersonics still have three maximum salary contracts.

Carrying four maximum-salary contracts and striving for a fourth consecutive championship this season is already the limit that Clay Bennett can tolerate, especially after the league introduced a new income distribution system, it is certain that the team will not make much profit this season.

How could Bennett, who was used to counting money from financial reports, bear this?
Therefore, maintaining a healthy salary cap is Presti's main job.

The way to keep the cap sheet healthy with three maximum contracts is to not have any big contracts.

Therefore, the management is somewhat cautious about Bosh's contract renewal.

They know that Bosh's heart is no longer in Seattle. If they give him an offer, he will definitely not accept it. But what if he accepts it?
Moreover, it's not just Bosh. Jordan and Anthony Morrow, who are also entering their contract years, are seeking contract extensions.

These outstanding rookies, who were once regarded by Presti as the results of his work, have now become a sword hanging over his head.

After consulting, Presti offered Jordan a four-year, $4 million contract, and then offered Morrow a two-year, $5000 million contract.

Seeing that two rookies received contract extension offers before him, Bosh truly felt what disrespect was.

１７ Mar ２００４.

Today is Yu Fei's 29th birthday, and he formally proposed to Elizabeth Olsen at his birthday party.

His biggest surprise, however, came outside the party.

Bosh missed Yu Fei's birthday party because he had something big to announce.

Bosh decided not to wait any longer and held a press conference directly, announcing that he would enter the free market in the summer of 2012.

This means that he will not choose to renew his contract with the Supersonics. He is not happy here, so he will go to the free market to prove his worth.

The Seattle media was shocked and asked questions.

They first want to know whether the Supersonics are still an option for Bosh.

"I've had an incredible time here and these memories will never fade from my mind. Seattle is like home to me. Of course, the SuperSonics are still one of my options," Bosh said meaningfully, "assuming they are willing to give me a contract."

Any normal person can understand what Bosh meant.

So it's not Bosh who wants to leave, but the team doesn't want to keep him?
Is Sam Presti really crazy?

The media's emotions were easily provoked.

The accountability for Presti has begun.

At the same time, some sober media have pointed out the difficulty for dynasty teams to retain their roster under the current labor agreement.

However, public opinion will not consider the capitalists.

You made all the money, became the pride of the city, and will get a $500 million luxury arena in the future. Now you have to pay for it. You tell me the price is too high? The media and fans will not agree with this statement.

That’s when Presti came to life.

He announced that the team had offered Bosh a maximum salary contract, but had not received a response yet.

Bosh's camp confirmed that the incident was true, but because it happened suddenly, they were not sure whether it was a good thing. After all, the owner had officially announced that he would test the free market.

A few days later, Bosh's camp rejected the maximum salary offer.

The reason is still that the Sonics don't respect Bosh enough.

Because this maximum salary contract did not activate the "Yu Fei Clause". According to the Yu Fei Clause, Bosh could earn an additional $200 million per year, but the Supersonics chose to ignore this clause and only gave him an ordinary maximum salary. This is a manifestation of disrespect.

At this point, the negotiations between the two sides broke down. Although Bosh said that the Supersonics were still an option, everyone knew that he would leave the team in the summer.

Bosh's side was abuzz with controversy, and the contract renewals of the two rookies were also not going smoothly.

Morrow's camp wanted a four-year contract, while Jordan's camp thought it was too small.

This is exactly what Presti wanted to achieve.

According to current expectations, Jordan will receive a maximum salary as long as he enters the free market, which is something the SuperSonics cannot afford.

As for Morrow, he has a lot of off-court problems. As a pure shooter, he can be kept, but giving him a long-term contract will undoubtedly let this bad guy who lacks self-control let himself go.

Presti had a good idea. Perhaps it was because he thought too well that he was able to ensure that none of the players who needed to renew their contracts were able to do so.

After all the operations, Bosh was determined to leave, Jordan was determined to test the free market, and Morrow even threatened to apply for a trade because he was "insulted by management."

Yu Fei's empire turned into a circus in the middle of the season, with people from all walks of life appearing one after another, all trying to find their own place in this team full of infinite possibilities.

Yu Fei's attitude and position are very important in many matters, but few people ask him to express his views on this matter.

For example, Bosh, his meaning is very clear. He has devoted his life and blood to the team for three years, but can't he get a maximum salary in return?

He did come to join the GOAT, but not everyone wants the GOAT.

Bosh wants respect, not because he needs the millions, but because he wants an attitude from the management. If he needs Yu Fei's influence to gain respect, then what is the point of his efforts?

The glory of the empire lies in only one person, but the empire is made up of countless people.

The same is true for Jordan and Morrow, they are all players who have proven themselves in championship teams and have been recognized by the industry at a young age. Even if the team cannot give them a suitable salary, they can ask for the price in the free market.

Using Yu Fei's influence to get the contract? This would completely clarify the superior-subordinate relationship between the two parties. Although Yu Fei was the superior, this was different.

They respect Yu Fei as a person and acknowledge his superior position, but using the excuse of "I am Fry's man" to obtain the contract will change the relationship between the two parties.

This is probably the biggest difference between Yu Fei and other superstars.

The mentality of a superstar is to protect the people around him under his wings, but Yu Fei thinks, can't they protect themselves? Unless someone like Kwame Brown or Patrick Beverley voluntarily joins him, he won't think about protecting anyone.

Just like when he saw that Kwame Brown's skills and strength could no longer keep up with the increasingly advanced era of space basketball, he acquiesced to the coaching staff adjusting his status.

Yu Fei's standard for measuring his teammates is strength.

If you are his person but have no ability, he can only guarantee you a contract, and don't think about anything else.

Brown fully understood Yu Fei's thoughts, so he lay down happily now.

Although this contract renewal controversy has little to do with Yu Fei, he is still dissatisfied with the way the team handled Bosh's contract renewal issue.

Before Bosh came to Seattle, he and Yu Fei had already had a tacit understanding. But on the surface, Yu Fei was still Bosh's recruiter.

Now, he has done his part, made his sacrifices, and has hinted that his future is not in Seattle. Under such circumstances, is it so difficult to fulfill Bosh's dignity with a good contract?
He wanted to question Bennett, but he avoided him.

A few days later, Yu Fei calmed down.

What had happened had already happened. What difference would it make if I confronted Bennett? Was belated respect still respectable?
Even if Bennett really gives Bosh a maximum salary contract that triggers Yu Fei's clause as Yu Fei requested, Bosh, whose self-esteem has been damaged, will probably still think that his hard work in the past three years is not as effective as a word from the GOAT?

Hillbillies are hillbillies.

Even though this Russian bumpkin is now a heroic owner of Seattle, he is still a short-sighted redneck.

When he bought the SuperSonics and prepared to move the team to Oklahoma City, this might have been the greatest and most glorious thing in his life. But after being shocked by the star power of the GOAT, shocked by the basketball bull market in Seattle, and blinded by the terrible profits, his true face was exposed.

Moreover, he shamelessly sided with the small-market owners in the labor dispute. As a man with a net profit of hundreds of millions of dollars a year, he worked for those incompetent owners and exploited the interests of the players, which eventually backfired on him. Under the new profit-sharing system with the management, his profits have been reduced by one-third.

For such a person, the benchmark he uses is money. If renewing Bosh's contract will cause him to lose money for many years, then he won't renew it. Even though Bosh has made it clear that he will not stay in Seattle, he is not willing to take any risk.

From that day on, Yu Fei ignored Presti.

He saw through Bennett completely.

Although he shouldn't have had any illusions about the investors, this bastard who made hundreds of millions of dollars in a few years by leveraging his fame had no intention of giving back. He would rather hurt the team's competitiveness and make the contract renewal so disastrous.

It's impossible for Bennett to be unaware of Yu Fei's thoughts and attitude, but he still chose to do so.

Yu Fei took note of it.

This was the lesson Michael Jordan taught Kwame Brown during the Wizards' preseason training camp eleven years ago. Revisiting it eleven years later, it is still impressive.

Others can give you things, and others can also take things away. Don't think that one person cannot live without another.

In late January, the league announced the All-Star Game selections.

Three players from the Supersonics were selected, namely Yu Fei, Roy and Durant.

Bosh unfortunately lost the selection.

Because this season is definitely his worst season since his rookie season.

As he played center, his injuries began to increase, and his shooting percentage and statistics dropped significantly. Now he averages only 15 points, 7 rebounds and 2 blocks per game.

Bosh also has something to say about not being selected as an All-Star.

"I knew from day one that playing on a championship team would be difficult and that I would have to make a lot of sacrifices," Bosh told a media person close to him. "Now I find that being part of a dynasty is even more difficult."

The media person asked: "What about becoming part of the empire?"

As a result, Bosh just smiled and didn't give any answer.

(End of this chapter)