Champions Creed

Chapter 288 Chapter 287: One suspense ends, but leaves the basketball world with another bigger suspense (ask for monthly tickets!)
"We are going through a 'divorce'. No matter what, I hope Steve can face the reality as soon as possible. The most important thing now is to properly distribute the property (equity)."

"I respect Steve, but it is obviously unwise for him to use his position as the boss to make the final decision on the contract. This is a free country, and there is no dictatorial emperor here."

"There's a popular saying in the NBA: If a boss can't gain the trust of his subordinates, then he has to learn to trust them first. If he can't even do that, then he has to learn to keep silent. I think Steve should know this now."

"The shareholder team has always believed that NBA Commissioner David Stern would take action. He would not tolerate things going in a worse direction. It turns out that David has lived up to us. The league will prosper under his leadership. We firmly believe in this."

Steve Belkin's experience fully demonstrates what it means to "help whoever wins."

Except for Beau Turner and Rutherford Seidel, two staunch supporters of Roger, who avoided the topic by praising Stern, almost all shareholders spoke harshly about Steve Belkin, who had already left, and accused him of wrongdoings when they were interviewed.

Because of the redistribution of equity, Bruce Levinson became the person with the most say in the shareholder team. No other shareholder could be on equal footing with him. He almost gained actual control of the Hawks, and no one was qualified to go against him.

After it was all over, Steve Belkin and Roger met and had dinner to say goodbye.

When he left, he smiled bitterly: "I didn't expect it would end here."

Belkin is a real sports fanatic. During his college years, more than one school offered him basketball scholarships. While studying at Cornell University, he joined the basketball team, tennis team, squash team and football team at the same time.

Unlike those who join the sports circle just to wear tights and take sexy photos, his love for sports is genuine.

In 1983, he wrote to the Celtics expressing his interest in purchasing the team, but after years of efforts, nothing came of it.

In 2000, he finally got his own NBA team, but the league taught him a lesson in just one year.

In the business alliance, sincere passion alone is far from enough.

For Michael Gillen and Bruce Levinson, when it comes to renewing Ben Wallace's contract, is salary or length of service more important?
None of that seemed to matter now; the only thing that mattered to them was the absence of Steve Belkin.

If you knew that in the original timeline, the famous basketball god Michael Jordan was deceived by Wizards owner Aby Pollin and worked for almost two years for nothing.

If you knew that Dwyane Wade opted out of his contract and took a pay cut in order to ensure the integrity of the team's roster, his teammates turned around and left without saying a word.

You won't be surprised by anything that happens in this treacherous alliance.

In the NBA, the struggle for interests and rights has always been as bloody as the struggle on the basketball court.

Under pressure from Roger, the shareholder team led by Bruce Levinson now reluctantly offered Ben a three-year maximum salary.

It’s just that a three-year maximum salary contract is not attractive at all in this year’s market.

When the Pistons' six-year maximum salary offer was placed in front of Ben, he still hesitated between leaving and staying.

On the one hand, Big Ben likes Atlanta and likes playing next to Roger.

And next season is a crucial year for the Eagles to win three consecutive championships, and he doesn't want to leave halfway.

But on the other hand, Ben will be 30 years old in three years. As a player who relies on his athletic ability, he cannot guarantee that he will be able to get another maximum salary in three years.

A six-year maximum salary is obviously safer for him personally.

After all, not everyone is like Roger, who is confident in his health and strength and dares to sign short-term contracts to constrain the team.

The Hawks also took into consideration that Ben Wallace's performance might decline around the age of 30, so they did not want to give him a long-term maximum salary contract.

The shareholder team led by Bruce Levinson does not want to sign another Scott Pippen.

Thinking about the fact that Pippen only averaged 10.2 points, 3.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game last season but still had to earn tens of millions of dollars a year, Bruce Levinson felt like his money was thrown into the sea.

As for the possibility that losing Ben might shatter the hope of three consecutive championships?
That was not something Bruce Levinson considered.

As a pure businessman, he only cares about profits.

In his eyes, the championship is not a goal, but just a tool to serve his interests.

The Atlanta Hawks have won three championships in the past four years. Do they still need a championship under such circumstances?

Of course it is necessary, it is better than nothing.

But paying the price of three max-salary, long-term contracts for that? It just doesn't make sense.

Scott Pippen's contract doesn't expire until 2003, which means Bruce Levinson will have to support this loser for two more years.

God knows if Ben will become a waste like Pippen in three years.

Anyway, as long as Roger is there, the Atlanta Hawks will be the most profitable team, and it doesn't matter even if they lose the championship temporarily.

Even if the dream of winning three consecutive championships is shattered next season, everyone believes that Roger will definitely win the championship next year. This sense of expectation will make fans buy tickets to the stadium tirelessly and sponsors will come to the door continuously.

After Roger lost the Eastern Conference Finals in 1999, the Hawks' revenue did not decrease in the following 99-00 season, but increased instead. This data convinced Bruce Levinson that the championship was not the key at all.

Therefore, giving Ben a three-year maximum salary is the biggest concession the Hawks are willing to make.

Even though he knew that this contract was not competitive with the Pistons, he refused to increase the contract term.

Where DPOY goes has become the theme of this summer, and even Jerry Buss is paying close attention to Ben's movements.

If Ben leaves, he is willing to keep the current lineup for another year.

If Ben stays, he might initiate a trade.

Anyone who truly understands basketball will not ignore the influence of that afro on the game. With him and without him, the Hawks are completely two different teams on the defensive end.

The impact of Ben's departure on the Eagles is like asking a warrior to throw away his shield to fight on the battlefield, or asking a man to throw away his protective gear to explore in a cave.

At three o'clock in the morning on the second day of the free agent market, Big Ben sat by the swimming pool of Roger's mansion.

Roger sat on the recliner with a glass of wine, glanced at the light in his room that was still on, and sighed: "I didn't expect you could defend me here, damn it."

Roger was making the final push with Bundchen when Ben called him and told him he was at the door.

Roger's buzzer-beating moment was ruthlessly interrupted by the best defensive player.

This was the most impressive defense in Roger's life.

"I didn't expect that you haven't been complained by the neighbors about disturbing the public in all these years. I heard the sound at the door."

"Hey, my whole house is double-laminated soundproof glass."

"But Giselle's voice still pierces the night," Big Ben laughed.

"Okay, enough joking," Roger put down his glass, "we can't keep doing this all night."

"I don't know, Roger, I don't know if I should take that contract."

"What do you expect me to say? I can't decide your future for you. A six-year contract is safer than a three-year contract, that's it. Of course I hope you stay, but if I let you sign a three-year contract and you can't get a second maximum salary after three years, I will blame myself for the rest of my life."

Roger knows that Ben will still have the ability to get a top salary in three years, but that is assuming nothing unexpected happens. Many things in this timeline have changed, and the experience in memory may not be completely applicable. How can Roger guarantee that Ben will not encounter injuries in these three years?
"But if I miss out on three consecutive championships because of this, I will blame myself for the rest of my life." This is what bothers Ben the most.

Roger doesn't want to say anything like "We can win the championship without you", and any statement that denies Ben's importance is stupid.

But everyone has his own path to follow, and Roger would never harm the interests of his good friend for his own benefit. No human being would do such a thing.

So the king of Atlanta could only tell his ministers: "Follow your heart. No matter what choice you make, I will not blame you."

Then there was silence for more than ten minutes. Finally, in the moonlight, Da Ben took a deep breath and said, "Forget it, let's talk about something relaxing."

"Okay, I recently learned a magic trick, would you like to see it?"

"uh-huh."

"If I snap my fingers, you'll forget you were ever gay." Roger said and snapped his fingers.

"Come on Roger, I'm not one."

“Look, isn’t it amazing?”

"Wait, I'm not!"

"Oh yes, yes, I know you forgot."

"No, stop Roger!"

"of course."

"Fuck it! I must use this trick on others, hahaha." Ben, who was originally furious, started laughing, and the serious atmosphere eased a lot.

But he knew this was not a way to avoid the problem, he couldn't spend the night with Roger relying on bad jokes.

So Big Ben stood up and stretched. It was time to make a decision.

"Roger, I want you to know that I have truly enjoyed my years in Atlanta." "I have also enjoyed playing alongside you."

"Then we'll have to wear different jerseys next time we meet."

"I'll make you struggle at the free throw line, I promise."

Big Ben finally left and Roger returned to the room.

Although the lights in the room were still on, Gisele Bundchen had fallen asleep and Roger had lost interest.

He looked out the window and secretly complained, "What a best defensive player."

The next afternoon, Ben Wallace released a farewell letter to Atlanta fans through the media, and at the same time announced that he would accept a six-year maximum salary contract from the Detroit Pistons.

This is almost certainly the biggest transfer news of this offseason.

Big Ben is willing to leave through a sign-and-trade deal to leave some assets to the Hawks, but the Pistons are only willing to give up Jerry Stackhouse in a sign-and-trade deal.

Bruce Levinson thinks Jerry Starks is a more wasteful choice, and Roger thinks Jerry Stackhouse is a complete garbage player. This guy who averages 29.8 points per game but is disliked by everyone fully illustrates why basketball games cannot be judged solely by statistics.

In short, if the bargaining chip is Jerry Stackhouse, the Hawks would rather not have it.

On this point, Levinson and Roger were probably on the same page for the first and last time.

So the team simply let Ben sign freely.

The loss of Ben has made Atlanta fans a little worried.

The Hawks lost Eric Snow and Clifford Robinson last season, but in the final analysis, one of them was just a substitute and the other dropped out of the main rotation early.

Moreover, Eric Snow is not too irreplaceable.

But this year, the Hawks lost their starting center, and a DPOY-level starting center at that.

Pete Babcock almost died last summer, but at least he got Jeff Hornacek to Roger, which proved to be an extremely successful signing.

But even if Pete Babcock stayed up all night this summer, he would not be able to find a replacement for Ben Wallace.

In other words, the Hawks failed to keep Ben, which is doomed to reduce the team's competitiveness next season.

In such a situation, Roger's mouthpiece certainly did not give up. Sports Illustrated was the first to question the Eagles management's determination to win the championship.

Roger said this through Sports Illustrated columnist Andre Sharp: "Once a team is split, it is definitely a blow, and if the rift appears at the top, it is likely to be a complete split. Roger said that the third step is destruction. This destruction is best described not by the Hawks themselves."

Roger agreed to Ben's departure, but that didn't mean he agreed with the management's approach.

Ben's departure seems to be his personal choice, but in the final analysis, it is because the shareholder team wants to save money.

Considering Ben's value, a three-year maximum salary is indeed insincere.

So the meaning of this sentence in the Sports Illustrated article is very clear. The so-called destruction means: if it is really difficult to cooperate, Roger does not rule out the possibility of opting out of the contract next season.

This was exactly the result that Michael Gillen feared. When he heard the word "destruction" on the night of the award ceremony, the worst possible scenario emerged in his mind.

That's why the Hawks invited so many fans to give speeches on stage during this year's championship parade.

Michael Gillen wanted to use this opportunity to create a feeling in Roger that "Atlanta is your home and the fans here love you" so that Roger would give up the idea of ​​leaving.

The Hawks' shareholder team would not openly turn against Roger. After a series of explanations regarding Ben's departure, they gave Roger the right to select free agents during the offseason.

But Roger is not a three-year-old child, he will not be made to laugh happily by such petty gains.

With the salary structure of the Hawks, the team can only sign one mid-level exception contract during the offseason, and cannot bring in stars. The so-called "right to select free agents" is actually pitifully small and more like a gimmick. In terms of selecting players, Roger's freedom is nothing compared to the real GOAT.

The fans were also unhappy with Ben's departure. They did not blame Ben for choosing a six-year contract, but only blamed the Hawks for being too stingy.

The Eagles management is unpopular.

As the incident continues to ferment, more and more media outlets are beginning to denounce the Eagles' shareholder team.

ESPN's Bill Simmons is not Roger's mouthpiece, but he still expressed his dissatisfaction with the Hawks' ownership group.

"When the damn Internet bubble burst, Atlanta fans never thought it would affect basketball games. Hasn't Ted Turner recovered yet? Come on, man, you only lost $70 billion, you should have recovered!?

Well, 70 billion is a bit much. Whoever buys the Eagles, I don't want to see a great team ruined by stupid management. How stupid are they? Even if the Eagles' shareholders were asked to execute the assassination of Sonny with a machine gun at the toll booth in the Godfather movie, they would probably mess it up and leave Sonny unscathed! Yes, it's that stupid!
At the closest moment to light in the Hawks' history, their ownership group is burying itself in an extremely stupid way.

Listen, I advise all teams in the league to prepare their salary cap space, Roger is likely to test the free agent market next summer. Hey, you all didn't forget that Roger has a player option to exercise next summer, right?
Roger doesn't need to be bullied by this stupid group of shareholders because he has the ability to be the best player anywhere.

If my prediction is correct, I am willing to accept a salary of tens of millions a year to be the general manager of a certain team. I am not kidding. "

Bill Simmons' words make sense. The impact of Ben's departure is interlinked. If the new management team of the Eagles cannot provide services for Wang, why doesn't Wang expand his territory?

The only question is, will Roger leave Atlanta, a city that has embraced him as a savior? His bond with the city is much deeper than Orlando's.

Also, can he fulfill his promise of three consecutive championships?

Big Ben's departure ended a suspense, but left another bigger suspense in the basketball world.

Roger didn't think so much now. He was not the kind of person who would think about where to go next season before this season was over.

He was indeed dissatisfied with the Eagles management, but he did not want such things to affect the cause of three consecutive championships.

The dilemma has already occurred, so the best way is to solve it first.

Right now, there is no player in the free agent market who can replace Ben, but the Hawks cannot be without a center who can protect the rim.

So two days after Big Ben left, the Hawks officially announced that the team had reached a three-year mid-level exception contract with Hakeem Olajuwon!

This is another explosive news. Although Hakeem Olajuwon averaged only 11.9 points and 7.4 rebounds per game last season and almost retired because of a blood disease that caused blood clots in his calf blood vessels, Hakeem Olajuwon is a superstar with a huge reputation.

In 1994, when the 18-year-old boy challenged the Dream, people would never have thought that these two guys would play together one day.

Today's basketball stars still have to save their dignity. After leaving Houston, Hakeem Olajuwon was a little embarrassed to face the fans, let alone do a live broadcast. He could only ask his agent to convey his thoughts through the media.

"Hakeem has lived in Houston for 20 years. He was heartbroken when he thought about leaving. However, many people said that he was old, that he was no longer good enough, and that he would never win a championship again. These voices were so harsh to a top athlete in the sports industry. So, Hakeem begged Houston fans to give the 37-year-old him this last chance to be willful."

Dream's departure from Houston was a win-win-win transfer. The Rockets can concentrate on complete reconstruction, Dream got a three-year middle-class retirement contract, and the Hawks got a center with rim protection ability.

There is no doubt that Roger made the final decision to sign Dream. The reason is simple: Dream is indeed useful.

Both are entering the twilight of their careers and both are leaving their parent teams. Although the fate of Dream's twilight years is similar to that of the gorilla, the two are completely different in terms of strength at this stage.

There is really no more money to be made from the gorilla, but Dream is still a qualified frame-protecting center.

If Roger remembers correctly, in the 01-02 season, Dream only played for more than 20 minutes and still had 1.1 steals and 1.5 blocks, and had two games with 9 blocks. Of course, this is not fake data, because in terms of defensive win contribution, Dream's level is even better than in previous years, and it can be ranked 52nd in the league.

In comparison, Eric Snow only ranked 54th.

The Gorillas' defensive win share value has dropped to 176th in the league.

Gorillas and Dream were two completely different levels of players at the end of their careers.

Therefore, Big Dream is still an option worth trying.

But he is a 37-year-old Dream after all. No matter how good he is, his contribution on the defensive end can never be close to that of Big Ben - Big Ben ranked first in the league in defensive win shares last season, with a contribution value of 7.2, slightly higher than Tim Duncan and far exceeding Dikembe Mutombo.

You can't count on Dream to maintain the Hawks' defensive level. At 37, he can't rejuvenate in Atlanta.

In fact, the Hawks can't even provide Dream with a stable starting position. Everyone should be clear about one thing: Dream can only play a role in some specific scenarios now.

Therefore, if the Hawks want to defend their title next season, the most direct way is to fundamentally change their playing style.

The Eagles can no longer fight with opponents on position or defense. From offense to defense, the system must be completely rebuilt.

Roger knew the vacation had just begun and he didn't want to disturb Lenny Wilkens' vacation.

But he still sent Lanny a text message.

"Portland had a frustrated assistant coach named Mike D'Antoni, who used to play in Italy and was Kobe's basketball idol when he was in Italy.

Those are not the point. The point is that you can try to contact him after the holiday, dig him over, and ask him something about the seven-second offense. Believe me, he can talk to you about this topic for three days and three nights.

What I can predict is that his tactical ideas will seem very subversive to you, and you may not accept them immediately.

But now, Lanny, we must change or we must die."

(End of this chapter)