I've been playing in the NBA for three years, and this system is only now showing up?

Chapter 84 Main Quest Rewards and New Main Quest! A deluge of negative news! [Please Subscribe]

"Let's congratulate Shaquille O'Neal, who averaged 39.5 points, 17.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 4 blocks per game in this series, on becoming this year's Finals MVP!"

'

"What a pity!" As O'Neal excitedly lifted the Finals MVP trophy and began his speech, Sun Zhengping couldn't help but say, "Xiao Lin didn't get the Finals MVP!"

"Lin played exceptionally well. In other years, he might have actually won the Finals MVP." Su Qun was worried that Sun Zhengping's statement would cause some unnecessary public opinion, which would affect Lin Ze.

So he quickly added, "39 points, 17 rebounds, and 4 blocks per game in the series! O'Neal's stats are truly terrifying! I can't even believe that these are stats that can be seen in the 21st century NBA."

"When was the last time we saw this kind of statistic in the Finals? I'm not sure, maybe Chamberlain, maybe Moses Malone, but it must have been a long time ago!"

"O'Neal's performance was truly unbelievable! He played his best in 3 out of 4 games, so he deserves the MVP award."

It's only fair to give it to him; Kobayashi is certainly great, especially considering he saved the team in Game 3 of the series, changing the course of the entire series.

"In four games, Xiaolin was undoubtedly the Lakers' second-in-command, scoring over 20 points in all four games!"

""

「27分5篮板2助攻2抢断1盖帽，21分7篮板5助攻1抢断1盖帽，42分5篮板3助攻2抢断2

盖帽，还有今晚的25分6篮板3助攻3抢断1盖帽。」

"Over the course of four games, Xiaolin averaged 28.75 points, 5.75 rebounds, 3.25 assists, 2 steals, and 1.25 blocks! His shooting percentages for these three categories were 49%, 44%, and 89% respectively!"

"His performance was versatile and efficient; he was the Lakers' second-best player throughout the entire Finals series!"

"Teacher Su is right," Sun Zhengping said with a smile. "Xiao Lin's performance was indeed excellent, but it wasn't as shocking as O'Neal's. If a Chinese player were to put on such a crazy performance on the court, it would definitely be a classic moment we'll remember!"

"Alright, that concludes our broadcast for tonight. Let's look forward to seeing Kobayashi on the court again!"

The joy after winning the championship is simple and direct.

The celebrations on the field, the revelry in the locker room, the champagne spraying everywhere, the deafening roars—

The entire Lakers team was in a frenzy, so excited that they spent two hours in the locker room before finally leaving.

If there was anything less than perfect tonight, it was that the Lakers failed to win the championship in Los Angeles, and there were no fans, family, or friends to celebrate with them and to commemorate this historic moment.

But the Lakers team wasn't planning to stay in Indiana for even a single night. They didn't even return to the hotel; they went straight from the locker room to the airport. The team was heading back to Los Angeles overnight. They couldn't wait to be worshipped by the fans and to start their celebrations back in Los Angeles!

Even though the entire Lakers team was extremely excited tonight, it was already past midnight when they arrived at the airport, so most of them were already asleep on the plane.

A few people who were still awake, like Kobe, who wasn't playing tonight, sat next to Lin Ze.

"Lin, Lin? Are you asleep?"

Lin Ze didn't sleep, but he couldn't be bothered to talk to Li Kebei.

He has more important things to do!

Mission accomplished!

"Host has finished their season. Mission completion assessment in progress."

"The host has surpassed Pippen in regular season stats, playoff stats, on-court impact, clutch moments, and team status this season, becoming the Bulls' second-best player after Jordan! Mission completion rating: Excellent!"

The task completion rating was only excellent, not perfect, which was within Lin Ze's expectations, since his data had not surpassed Pippen's in every aspect.

"Excellent rating reward issued! Host receives one Fat-to-Muscle Conversion Card!"

"Fat-Muscle Conversion Card: Within 3 months of use, the host's increased fat will be converted into muscle at a ratio of 3:1, and the muscle gained through training will be converted into fat at a ratio of 1:3!"

Good guy!

This means that for every 3KG of fat gained, it will automatically turn into 1KG of muscle, and after sweating it out at the gym and building 1KG of muscle, it will turn into 3KG of fat.

What could Lin Ze say as he looked at this thing?

It's not that I don't want to train! It's not that I don't want to play, it's just that the system won't let me!

Isn't this system clearly prohibiting me, Lin, from entering the training facility and the stadium during the off-season?

Then Lin Ze started calculating again. If he wanted to gain 10KG of muscle within the validity period, he would have to gain 30KG of fat. If he wanted to gain 15KG, he would have to eat 45KG of fat!

Note that it's fat, not body weight!

That's no small amount!

This damn system! It's forcing me to commit a crime! It's forcing me to eat braised pork, braised pig's trotters, pig's head meat, and hot pot with beef tallow!

Cheese, cola, hamburgers, fried chicken —

As Lin Ze thought about it, his mouth started to water.

He basically gave up these foods that he used to love most, starting from his university days.

This time, the system forced him to eat.

Well, I guess I'll have to do it reluctantly.

What else can we do?

It's all about becoming stronger!

"A new main quest will be released in 24 hours! Please check back!"

Hey!

Thinking of something, Lin Ze opened his eyes and looked at Kobe beside him: "Don't talk to me, I need to rest!"

"I have to train tomorrow!"

Even Kobe Bryant thought Lin Ze was crazy after hearing that: "Tomorrow?"

Lin Ze also felt that this was somewhat of an exaggeration, so he said, "What I mean is, next week—well, next month! I still have to train next month."

next month?

Kobe snorted and ignored Lin Ze.

I'd be a fool to believe you!

You bastard, you're definitely going to start practicing tomorrow!

I have the utmost contempt for people who keep saying they're not going to practice and that they're going to play all off-season, but then secretly work hard!

Are you planning to secretly become stronger without telling me?

Holy crap!

I'm not falling for that!

I'll definitely be no worse than you, you bastard, next season!

Kobe ignored Lin Ze and started to close his eyes to rest.

Training! Training starts tomorrow!

"A party after I get back to Los Angeles, anyone want to come? It's at my villa, I'll be asking girls out as soon as I get back!" O'Neal suddenly got excited for some reason, raising his hand and shouting.

When it comes to throwing parties, Shaquille O'Neal will always be the GOAT of Los Angeles.

"Me!" Lin Ze followed closely behind, waving his arms. He was the executive vice president of the Los Angeles party scene.

As for Kobe, who was standing there dumbfounded?

Who the hell cares about him!

For the next two weeks, Lakers players could be found in nightclubs, parties, and yacht parties all over Los Angeles, either in groups of three or five, as a team, alone, or with their families.

In any case, wherever they went, they received countless cheers.

They are heroes of Los Angeles, bringing back the championship that had been absent from Los Angeles for 12 years, and they deserve to enjoy the unconditional love of the people of Los Angeles.

Of course, the most noteworthy among them is Lin Ze.

In the two weeks leading up to the championship victory and the championship parade, the entire Lakers team went wild, and Lin Ze was definitely the one who went the wildest!

Even Shaquille O'Neal would miss some gatherings and take a few days off to rest and recharge.

But Lin Ze is everywhere; you can see him all over the place.

Of course, except for the basketball court.

Just by looking at the gossip media reports, you can tell how busy Lin Ze has been lately.

"Beverly Hills Bloodbath! Lin Ye Leaves Bath Villa with Two Blonde Beauties!"

A late-night swimsuit party was held in Shaquille O'Neal's backyard, sparking rumors of a romance between Lin and a Latina girl!

Lin was spotted on a yacht with a Victoria's Secret supermodel; are they getting married soon?

Lin Ze was spotted at Nicholson's private dinner! His female companion turned out to be Brad Pitt's ex-girlfriend, Paltrow!

Various news stories, some true and some exaggerated, swept across the United States. Lin Ze's various scandalous stories were countless. In fact, this guy made no attempt to hide or restrain himself. During this period, his footprints covered the entire Los Angeles area.

From nightclubs, bars, yachts, and private parties to Los Angeles amusement parks, cinemas, and other entertainment venues, he can be found everywhere.

Until the Lakers' championship parade day!

On this day, the entire Lakers team, from the owner to the video analyst, from O'Neal, Lin Ze, and Kobe, to John Salley on the far side of the bench, all came out. They stood on the roofs of several huge open-air buses, interacting with the fans and celebrating excitedly along the way.

Starting from Staples Center, the convoy headed south, passing through many streets in Los Angeles, filled with enthusiastic fans, and displaying a wide variety of Lakers jerseys on both sides of the street.

According to the Los Angeles Police Department's previous predictions, the number of participants in this march would exceed 20. This massive influx of people presented a significant challenge to the LAPD, and Los Angeles City Hall was deeply concerned about the march, which was even disrupted as a result.

It died young.

Ultimately, when Mr. Bass generously contributed $150 million for the venue costs, road closure costs, LAPD's hard work expenses, and other related costs for the march, the situation improved.

The LAPD chief immediately stated that he was a Lakers fan of 50 years and that he would ensure the march was safe and stable, without any accidents, even if it cost him his life.

The mayor stated that the Lakers' championship parade is the most important event in Los Angeles, an honor for the entire city, and that such a celebration must be held, and it should be a grand affair, a city-wide carnival!

The march ended at Memorial Stadium, the home stadium of Lin Ze's alma mater, the University of Southern California's football team!

This is a giant stadium that can hold 10 people. On the day of the parade, the huge stadium was packed to the brim with enthusiastic fans.

Then, members of the Lakers team took turns giving speeches.

Kobe, Rice, Hubble —

Of course, although it's called a speech, because of the large number of people, each person only gets about 2-3 sentences, at most interacting with the fans before moving on to the next person.

Lin Ze was the second-to-last player to take the court, which can be seen as official recognition from the Lakers: he is indeed the Lakers' second-in-command!

Walking to the center and taking the microphone from Kobe, Lin Ze smiled and said, "Shall we do it again?"

"One more time! One more time! One more time! One more time!"

The fans roared and screamed like a tidal wave; no one can ever have too many championships.

They really hope to come again next year!

"I believe I will win many championships!" After everyone quieted down, Lin Ze held up his finger and said, "It's definitely not one, not two! I don't think it's three, not four, not five, not six, um—"

At least seven!

No sooner had Lin Ze finished speaking than Jackson stepped forward and practically snatched the microphone from Lin Ze's hand, then laughed and said, "He's talking nonsense!"

To be honest, Jackson was very well-mannered.

In 1988, after the Showtime Lakers won their second consecutive championship, Pat Riley wanted to say during the parade that the team could win three in a row. However, before he could even say the word "three," Worthy and Magic Johnson covered his mouth and pulled him aside. Meanwhile, Jackson watched as Lin Ze counted all the way up to seven.

Jackson's speech was as humorous and concise as ever. He quickly put aside Lin Ze's claim of winning seven championships and then handed the microphone to a cheerful and excited O'Neal.

As for Lin Ze? He was, of course, completely unburdened at the moment.

After all, he never said he would win seven championships in Los Angeles.

After O'Neal gave an impromptu rap performance, it was time for the last person to appear today: team owner Jerry Buss!

"What do you need me to do?" Bass asked the fans with a smile on his face.

"Preserve the forest! Preserve the forest!"

"Keep Lin on the team!"

"Keep the full roster!"

"Give Lin the maximum salary! Give him the maximum salary for 10 years!"

"Dynasty! Dynasty! Dynasty!"

The fans roared and screamed, releasing their emotions. Buss smiled and spread his hands, signaling for everyone to quiet down, then said, "I will do everything I can, and so will Jerry!"

"Leave Lin! Leave our complete lineup!"

"Then, just as Lin said, let's do it again next year!"

"One more time! One more time!"

The fans continued to roar wildly.

Standing next to Lin Ze, Rice nudged Lin Ze's arm with a hint of jealousy and said, "I really envy you! Everyone loves you! Nobody asks me to stay, nobody calls my name."

"You're not a free agent, why are you leaving?" Rice's contract still has several years left.

"If you stay, then I'll have to leave, won't I?" Rice shrugged and said no more.

"Actually, someone was calling your name." Lin Ze also felt a little embarrassed and quickly changed the subject: "Listen carefully, they keep calling your name!"

"What?" Rice listened for a while longer, and he even began to wonder if he had misheard.

"Leave Lin! And everyone else!" Lin Ze said, "Isn't that what they're shouting? 'Everyone else,' doesn't that include you?"

"Fuck you!" Rice cursed.

Rice is quite aware of his situation with the Lakers.

Kobe's multi-million dollar contract, signed in advance, is about to begin, and Shaq's annual salary next season is approaching $2000 million. It's almost certain that Lin Ze will be offered a multi-million dollar contract to stay with him.

In this way, the total salary of the three core members exceeds 4000 million!

More importantly, according to the new collective bargaining agreement reached in 99, the luxury tax will be officially introduced into the league next season. All teams that exceed the luxury tax threshold will have to pay an additional $1 penalty to the league for every $1 they exceed the threshold.

Rice's agent told him that the luxury tax threshold for the league next season would be around $4000 million.

With the combined salaries of these three players exceeding this figure, Rice's annual salary of over $750 million next season will almost certainly lead to him being released by the Lakers.

After all, he is not an irreplaceable player for the Lakers now.

Under these circumstances, it is understandable that Rice would say goodbye to the team and Lin Ze in advance.

Anyway, he's won a championship and an All-Star MVP, and he's not young anymore. Rice really doesn't have much to look forward to in his career. He can just retire and wait for his retirement.

With this mindset, he didn't feel that Lin Ze had taken his position and job. On the contrary, he was quite friendly to this younger brother who had fought alongside him for a year and with whom he had a good relationship.

"Everything went well!" Lin Ze also extended his hand to shake Rice's hand. Although it seemed inappropriate to talk about this during the championship parade, the team would be officially on vacation after today, and the next time they met, they would no longer be teammates.

At the same time, Lin Ze also felt that because of his arrival, not only Rice would leave, but other players with lucrative contracts, such as Fox and Horry, would also find it difficult to stay with the Lakers.

After all, the Lakers are one of the two NBA teams with the highest market value and the best market, but Buss is the poorest owner in the league.

For Jerry Buss, the only player in the league who treats running a team as his primary business, the luxury tax is an extra expense that requires careful consideration.

Of course, this little incident did not dampen everyone's spirits for celebration, and today's victory parade came to a perfect close amidst everyone's jubilation.

This season is now completely over!

The next big event in the league is the draft in a few days.

However, although the draft took place at the end of June, that was during the 2000-2001 season.

Moreover, those things have nothing to do with Lin Ze.

After the championship parade, Lin Ze spent two more days having fun before his agent, Schwartz, finally cornered him at his apartment.

"Are you crazy?" Schwartz almost blurted out a curse when he saw Lin Ze: "I have something to talk to you about."

"Does it have to be now?" Lin Ze sighed. "I have an appointment."

Schwartz rolled his eyes, walked into the room and sat down: "I'll only take up a few minutes of your time."

"Or have you forgotten how important this offseason is to you?" Schwartz said. "A new shoe line, a new contract, and countless business collaborations!"

"You're now the second-best player on a championship team! You're from China, and you're with the Los Angeles Lakers—well, for now, you're still a Lakers player! Don't you know how valuable you are?"

"Of course I know," Lin Ze said innocently. "Of course I know how much money I can make this summer."

"But why should we be in such a hurry? Shouldn't it be those who want me to make money and are trying to slip us checks who are in a hurry?"

Schwartz rolled his eyes at Lin Ze's calm demeanor. "Then why don't you just tell me? Even a text message would be fine!"

"I thought we talked about this during the All-Star game!"

"Do you believe I'll send you to Milwaukee or Cleveland?" Schwartz threatened, Lin Ze's current state infuriated him.

"I have security cameras in my house," Lin Ze said, pointing to the dark camera lens above the doorway. "They can put you out of a job tomorrow."

"Fuck!" Schwartz finally swore, then stood up, grabbed a beer from the nearby liquor cabinet, opened it, took a sip, and said, "Now let's talk this over. What are you thinking?"

"We don't need to rush, but I need to know what you're thinking. Don't put it off until tomorrow or the day after, let's do it now!"

"Okay." Lin Ze sighed, then got up, took a bottle of cola and a large tub of fried chicken from the refrigerator, and put them in the microwave, saying, "I want to make the most money!"

"Have you been eating this since you won the championship? Do you know that this stuff will cause your performance to decline and your weight to skyrocket? If you want a great and long career, not just to make a quick buck and be done with it."

"You must take it in moderation."

"Don't worry, Jeff," Lin Ze said, "I know what I'm doing!"

Lin Ze was well aware of this. He had already planned out a food map, and in the coming months he would eat every unhealthy food he could think of that would cause him to gain weight rapidly.

Who told him he only had three months? The pressure to gain weight was immense!

Schwartz sighed: "When I get back, I'll put together some biographies and highlights of people like Vin Baker, Sean Kemp, and Lun Bias, and I hope you'll actually know."

"Now let's get down to business! First is the team contract, because all your other contracts, endorsements, and business collaborations will be related to this. The shoe contracts you get if you go to Cleveland will be at least 10% more lucrative than if you stay in Los Angeles."

"If you go to Milwaukee or Cleveland, there will definitely be some partners who will give up on working with you."

"Why do I have this feeling that you really want to send me to that kind of hellhole?"

"Yes, that's what I think too." Schwartz watched as Lin Ze took out fried chicken from the microwave and sat down in front of him, and he really wanted to sign Lin Ze up for some courses.

On financial management, on staying away from being skinny and fleshy, and on body management.

He looked at Lin Ze, and then thought about Lin Ze's image in the public and media over the past two weeks. He felt that Lin Ze really needed this kind of course.

"Didn't you say we were going to talk about serious business?" Lin Ze took another big gulp of iced cola and leaned comfortably back into the sofa. "Stop talking nonsense, I have an appointment later."

"What are your thoughts?" Schwartz suppressed the urge to punch Lin Ze. "Stay, or leave? Is there a city you'd like to go to? New York? Back to Chicago? Or somewhere else?"

Schwartz said, "This is a decision that will affect your entire career. I can tell you that, as of now, five teams—Portland, Dallas, New York, New Jersey, and Chicago—have contacted me, and they all hope to have a good talk with you."

"Then let's talk about it," Lin Ze said. "If there are other teams that want me, I can talk to them too."

"As for my true thoughts, if the Lakers offer me a max contract, I will stay with the Lakers. If the Lakers are unwilling, I will go to the place that offers the most. Of course, don't forget to take into account the business revenue I might lose if I leave Los Angeles."

"Understood." Schwartz quickly got into the swing of things: "Prioritize the size of the contract and the Lakers."

"Only a more lucrative contract," Lin Ze corrected. "The contract term doesn't need to be too long."

"Oh?" Schwartz said, "I thought you really liked Los Angeles and hoped to stay here until you retired! After all, this is Los Angeles."

"I didn't intend to do anything like 'one man, one city,' so of course I'll go wherever I feel comfortable." Lin Ze shrugged. This was the third team he had played for in Los Angeles. If you include college, this was already his Los Angeles 2.0 era. Lin Ze had almost completely replicated the career of the executive vice president GOAT.

"But that doesn't prevent you from wanting a longer and bigger contract."

"It's actually very simple," Lin Ze said. "I'm not quite there yet to be the team leader, and leaving the Lakers would cost me a lot of money, so there's no need for me to leave for now. As for me, I definitely want to be the team leader, but we'll talk about that later."

When the topic of the team leader came up, Lin Ze thought of the new task issued by the system, which was really annoying!

"A brand new main quest has been issued to the host: Become the team leader!"

When Lin Ze looked at this task, he really wanted to drag the system out of that intangible space and beat it up.

According to the system's timeline, I'm still at Bulls.

Be the team leader?

Lin Ze thought it might be easier for him to compete with George W. Bush for the next US presidential election.

This task will almost certainly not be completed next season.

However, Lin Ze was not in a hurry.

After all, although it may not be possible to complete it next season, it is definitely possible to complete it the season after that!

According to the timeline of this system outage, I'll be in Dallas the season after next.

That season, Dallas was a complete bottom-feeder, so completing the task would have been a piece of cake.

"Okay, I understand. So next up is the shoe contract." Schwartz nodded. He recognized Lin Ze's ambition and was no longer worried about him. It seemed that the guy had just indulged himself after the season ended.

How could someone with that kind of ambition possibly ruin their own career?

"Do you have any particular favorite brands, or are there any brands you would absolutely never consider?"

"No," Lin Ze shook his head. "I chose the one that offered the most and had the best terms!"

"Very good, so will the same principle apply to future business collaborations and other endorsements?"

"I don't accept contracts from particularly strange brands! I don't want my head ending up on some fake Dick's packaging!"

"Fuck!" Schwartz spread his hands and said, "Do you think I'm some third-rate street-smart agent? Why would I let my players sign that kind of stuff?"

"Who knows? I'm not a mind reader!"

"Go to hell!" Schwartz stood up. "You can go to whoever you're supposed to be with!"

"Wait for my news."

"Also, I really recommend that you attend the training course organized by the league. This year, the league invited Kemp, who will talk to you about how to avoid having too many illegitimate children and the importance of maintaining your physique."

"Don't worry, the women I've chosen hate illegitimate children even more than I do," Lin Ze said with a smile. "They're either richer or more famous than me."

Schwartz was so angry that he didn't want to talk to Lin Ze anymore. He quickly opened the door and left.

For the next week, Lin Ze was constantly appearing at various nightclubs and private parties in Los Angeles, just like he was trying to meet KPIs. The speed at which he changed female companions was faster than the speed at which Rodman's hairstyle changed. At the same time, people could always see him in various restaurants in Los Angeles.

In short, this guy didn't go on vacation, but he didn't train either. He just ate, drank, and had fun, completely indulging himself.

At first, everyone was indifferent to Lin Ze's behavior.

It's the off-season, so it's only natural for players to let loose a bit after winning the championship.

But gradually, almost a month has passed, and this guy is still eating and drinking like crazy?

In particular, many of the things he ate were not what professional athletes should eat.

As a result, many doubts began to emerge.

Many media outlets and fans began to question Lin Ze's professionalism, and some even believed that his career would decline rapidly next season.

Some media outlets have even created lists, such as:

Players who sign lucrative contracts but quickly fall from grace and end up with worthless contracts.

Lin Ze ranks first in several similar lists!

Many people believed this, including Kobe!

Then, before flying to Hawaii for vacation, this guy went to see Lin Ze once.

He wanted to advise Lin Ze not to be too indulgent.

Then Kobe saw Lin Ze eating pizza with his upper body bare.

"Hey Kobe, what's up? Want a pizza? How about we grab some fries at the dock later?" Lin Ze greeted Kobe after taking a sip of his iced cola.

Then?

Kobe left without saying a word, slamming the door behind him.

He knew: those idiotic media outlets had all been fooled by Lin Ze!

The muscles on this guy's body... you're saying he's been indulging for almost a month?

You're kidding me!

Then Kobe wanted to cancel his flight and not go to Hawaii.

In other words, he and Vanessa were deeply in love at the time. After Vanessa's persistent pleading, Kobe finally didn't cancel his flight, but instead reduced his original 45-day vacation to 15 days.

He absolutely refuses to lose to Lin Ze!

Meanwhile, Schwartz, after running around and talking to various people for a long time, also brought news to Lin Ze.

"Regarding the team, although West didn't say it explicitly, he hinted that the team is willing to offer you a 7-year maximum contract with a starting salary of 25% of the salary cap and an annual salary increase of 12.5%! Normally, the Lakers have your Bird rights, and they are the only team that can offer you a 7-year maximum contract, which is theoretically the longest and largest contract you can get."

"Other teams can only offer you a six-year contract with a starting salary of 20% and an annual increase of 10%."

"So what do you mean? Should we meet with other teams to put pressure on the Lakers? Or should we talk to West directly?"

"Is he willing to offer me a three-year maximum salary? That is—" Lin Ze did a simple calculation based on the estimated salary cap for next season and said, "31 million over three years? That's really not much."

"Theoretically speaking, he would definitely be willing to give you a short-term contract," Schwartz said. "Although he acted as if the team couldn't wait to sign you to a 7-month contract, for the team, a short-term contract is actually more in their best interest as a player like you who has suddenly exploded and whose future is not 100% certain."

"After all, you're not Shaq. We can't rule out the possibility that you'll only have a breakout year and then become a fraudster the following year, right?"

We all know there are quite a few players like that.

"And you're right, short-term contracts will cause you to lose a lot of money that you could easily pocket, but if you're willing to sign a long-term contract, I'm confident I can help you land a 7-year contract worth about 100 million."

"You're just unlucky. If it had been before the collective bargaining agreement was reached, a team might have been willing to give you 1 million for 6 years."

Schwartz was referring to the league before the collective bargaining agreement, that is, one season ago.

Back then, the league had a salary cap, but no luxury tax, and no standardized contracts like they do now.

Before the lockout in 1998, if a player had been with a team for three years, the team would have his Bird rights and could renew his contract regardless of the salary cap.

Therefore, theoretically speaking, as long as the boss is willing to pay and thinks you are worth it, a salary of 100 million or even 1 billion a year can be paid without violating any regulations.

这就是为什幺在这个工资帽2—3000万的年代，乔丹能拿3000万年薪、尤因1800万、马龙1500万、米勒1200万，奥尼尔能和湖人签7年1.2亿，加内特更是和森林狼签下了那份让联盟停摆的巨额合同的原因。

If Lin Ze had played like he did this year in his contract year before the lockout, and given his market position, while an extravagant contract like Jordan's was out of the question, signing a contract similar to those of Malone, Olajuwon, or Robinson—like 4 years for $6000 million or even 6 years for $1 million—would have been absolutely no problem!

Unfortunately, after the lockout, the league formalized and standardized all contracts.

There are clear regulations on the maximum size and duration of a player's contract.

For a player like Lin Ze who has played in the league for less than 6 years, he can sign a contract with his current team with a starting salary of up to 25% of the salary cap, an annual increase of up to 12.5%, and a maximum of 7 years.

If Lin Ze signs with a team other than the Lakers, he can only sign a contract with a starting salary of 25% of the salary cap, an annual increase of no more than 10%, and a maximum term of 6 years.

This rule is also to protect the interests of the parent team, especially those from smaller cities.

Otherwise, if a rookie is developed, plays for four years, and then leaves for a big city, the league will definitely not be able to operate healthily and normally, and those small teams will eventually quit.

Of course, this collective bargaining agreement will continue to be revised and supplemented as times change, and various clauses will be added. The NBA's collective bargaining agreement will also become more and more stringent and complex over time.

This means that the contract Lin Ze can get now is actually certain.

Judging from Schwartz's confident demeanor, Lin Ze knew that West and Bass were willing to offer him a maximum salary contract extension.

Of course, the specific amount, duration, whether there are additional clauses, player or team options, etc., can only be discussed in detail after both parties actually sit down at the negotiating table.

For other teams, if the Lakers offer Lin Ze a 7-year maximum contract, they will have no chance. However, if they try to negotiate with Lin Ze and cause a rift in the relationship between the two sides, then their opportunity will come!

That's how the Lakers snatched Shaquille O'Neal from the Magic back then.

"So, what's your decision?" Schwartz asked Lin Ze one last time.

"I'll stay with the Lakers, but the contract will be for a maximum of three years. If the team wants to sign me for more, I'm open to a 3+1 or 3+2 contract with a player option."

"That way, you can completely control your peak period. If you can truly become an MVP-caliber player in three years, you'll once again shake the entire league," Schwartz said. "But I still maintain that you need to think this through!"

"Because if your performance declines after 3 years, or if you suffer an injury, or if you are unable to maintain a stable level of performance through training."

"Then you'll lose a lot of money!"

"Me too, I'll lose a lot of money too."

"So, Lin, whether from a friend's perspective or an agent's perspective, I have to ask you one more time: are you really sure? You want to sign a short-term contract, instead of putting more money in your pocket?"

"If it were me, I would really suggest you choose the longest possible term and the most money."

"I'm very sure about Jeff," Lin Ze smiled. "I have absolute confidence in myself!"

"Don't worry, your commissions will only increase!"

"I understand now." Schwartz stood up as he said this: "To put pressure on the Lakers and give us more leverage over contract terms, we'll talk to them one last time."

"Our trip begins on July 1st, starting in Portland."

"Remember the message you sent to other teams: Be the leader of your team! Build your team around you and continue to contend for the championship!"

So, over the next few days, Lin Ze finally stopped his Los Angeles restaurant exploration plan and boarded a plane to Portland.

In Portland, Linze was received by the team's head coach and general manager, and also had dinner with the team's owner, Allen.

The Portlanders have indicated they are willing to offer Lin Ze a seven-year maximum contract, but this requires the Lakers' cooperation and a sign-and-trade deal.

Then Lin Ze and Schwartz, like two scumbags, said they would consider it and that the others should go back and wait for their notification. After that, they left Portland and headed to Dallas.

Dallas's reception of Lin Ze seemed far less enthusiastic than that of the Trail Blazers.

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