At three o'clock in the afternoon, Kupchak received a call from O'Neal's agent Leonard Amoto in Los Angeles, telling him that O'Neal requested a trade.
"Why?"
"Mr. Kupchak, do you think Shaq can still be on the same team as Kobe?"
"Let me think about it."
Kupchak hung up the phone, asked his assistant to bring him a cup of coffee, and started thinking about how to deal with this emergency.
Today is the 13th, and the zero-hour trading window officially closes on the 14th. It is now 15:00. If you really want to trade, there are still 9 hours.
He called O'Neal again, but couldn't get through, which made him basically sure that O'Neal really wanted to leave the Lakers.
But he had been mentally prepared for this day. Ever since Kobe said, "Shaq did it too," O'Neal and Kobe could no longer coexist.
He tends to choose Kobe because O'Neal's injury is more serious and he is older.
There is some chaos within the Lakers now, mainly due to the infighting within the Buss family. This matter may trigger another round of fierce struggle.
But fortunately, old Mr. Bass is still in charge. I hope he can handle this matter well.
He then informed Old Bass of the news. When Old Bass heard it, he seemed not surprised and said: "Mitch, try to keep him to finish the season. Tell his agent that there are only a few hours left.
It was simply impossible to complete the transaction.
His contract has one more season left. Doesn't he hope to renew it in advance? Have a good talk with him during the offseason and agree to renew it in advance and give him a contract. But he has many injuries and is older.
Old K is still one year older, so our contract cannot be too big."
"Boss, I'm afraid he won't stay."
"It doesn't matter, you still have to keep those who should be retained. After all, O'Neal is the most dominant center in active service besides Old K. In addition, if you can't stay in the end and make a decisive trade, it is best to trade Yao with the Nets. He is very young.
, is the most powerful center after Old K and O'Neal."
"ok."
After ending the phone call, Kupchak thought about it and felt that he might not be able to trade with the Nets because Yao had just signed a billion-dollar contract there.
He did not contact O'Neal's agent immediately and planned to wait until the trading window closed before contacting him.
But not long after, O'Neal's agent Leonard Amoto called to inquire about the results of the transaction.
"Mr. Amoto, the time is too short to complete the transaction. You should know the difficulties involved. I think it is best for O'Neal to finish this season. I hope you can persuade him. And we still hope to keep him, and we will
Renew the contract in advance, I hope you and Shaq will think about it carefully." Kupchak persuaded him kindly.
"Then let me give Shaq some advice."
In fact, Amoto doesn't want O'Neal to leave Los Angeles. There are many benefits to staying in a big city. If he forces the Lakers to trade and ends up being sent to a small city, it will be of no benefit to either O'Neal or him.
O'Neal was so eager to leave, but he actually had no conflict with the Lakers management. Now that the team agreed to renew his contract in advance, there would be no problem at all. He just had a conflict with Kobe because he received some stimulation.
After ending the phone call, he went to O'Neal's room and began to persuade.
O'Neal couldn't help it. He was too stimulated and took the initiative to apply for a trade on impulse. Now he has calmed down a bit as time has passed.
Amoto has figured out what just happened. There are so many people at the scene, and they can find out with a little inquiry.
But he didn't think there was anything between Lao K and Xiang Fei. After Lao K was suspended last time, he left the United States as soon as the Western Conference Finals ended, so there was no chance of contact with Xiang Fei.
Moreover, Lao K has a very good relationship with so many Hollywood actresses. With his wealth and connections, there is no woman he could want, even those fair and rich. There are many willing ones. Can he like Shanni?
As far as he knows, Lao K has never had any scandals with any black female stars since he entered the league.
However, there is a high chance that there is something wrong with Shanni.
However, he couldn't say anything because O'Neal played outside a lot.
"Shaq, don't be stupid. If you leave the Lakers, you will have no chance to compete with Old K for the championship, and the economic loss will be huge. Your contract only has one year left. If you are really traded to a small team
, the next contract is not guaranteed at all.”
"Remember, everything is fake, money is real, don't fight with money. Look at Old K, even if the league is targeting him, those All-Stars are still surrounding him. Why? Isn't it because he has money?
?”
After his repeated persuasion, O'Neal finally agreed to stay, which made him relieved, and then notified the Lakers, who also breathed a sigh of relief.
In the evening, a grand celebrity party was held at the K-era Club, the most luxurious private hotel in Los Angeles.
Now, Lao Wang doesn't need CAA to operate this kind of party. He can invite more celebrities to join in with just one word. The number of celebrities joining the club has long exceeded the scope of CAA.
Nowadays, the club is not just a service club, but a large social platform, with various parties held almost every day.
"Arnold, welcome to my party."
"Old K, it's great to see you!"
"Kevin, long time no see."
"Old K, your comeback was so violent, haha!"
Not only Governor Arnold came, but also Sacramento Deputy Mayor Lightning Johnson.
Dayao attended this kind of party for the first time. When he saw the room full of fragrant female celebrities, he felt a little breathless. He had to sit awkwardly in the corner and glance at Lao Wang from time to time.
The other all-stars rushed up to chat with the actress in a hurry, planning to have sex or something, or leave a contact information to create conditions for future sex.
But these are not the little stars and models at Lao Wang’s pool party. Those who can participate in this party are at least second-tier. How can they be so easy to get? And 90% of the actresses here are white. For these black people,
I have no interest at all.
"Old K, you wouldn't be so stingy, wouldn't you? You didn't notify me of a celebrity party?"
Lao Wang, who was chatting with Lightning Arnold and the others, suddenly received a call from Jordan.
"The media reports the news that you and your wife are divorcing every day. Why should I inform you? To speed up the process of your divorce?"
When Lao Wang thought about what happened to O'Neal at noon, he felt dizzy. He would rather demolish a temple than ruin a marriage. He didn't want to ruin other people's marriages.
"What does this have to do with you? I'm already here." Jordan said and hung up the phone.
"Here comes another gangster." Lao Wang muttered in a low voice.
"Old K, I won't talk to you anymore, I'm going to play."
Lightning, who had been ready to move for a long time, left a word and went to find the target.
"It's hard for a hero to be a beauty. Kevin is good at everything, but he just can't control his crotch. If he has problems in the future, it will definitely be about women." Lao Wang shook his head.
Arnold shrugged and said with a smile: "Old K, you are right, this is indeed his only weakness."
Soon, Jordan appeared at the party. Rich and handsome, as a rich and influential black man, he was quite popular with female stars and immediately became one of the focuses.
Not long after, Pippen arrived.
"Hey, Scotty."
When Jordan saw Pippen, he went over to say hello.
"Hey, Michael, why are you here? By the way, any business introductions recently. I have some spare money and need to find a big project."
Now Pippen is no longer the Pi Laoer who was about to go bankrupt. He followed Lao Wang in the trading business and now has a very rich net worth. When he saw Jordan, he also spoke with his chin high. In and out of his words, it was all about me.
It means money.
Jordan is really a little envious. He estimates that Pippen must have made a lot of money by holding on to Old K's thigh for so many years.
And he himself is in some trouble now. The lawsuit in China is still being fought. He lost the first lawsuit and is now fighting the second one. I am afraid it will take many years.
In terms of investment, he really envied Pippen for being able to embrace Old K's lap. Apart from the sneaker brand, he didn't have any decent business.
Within a few minutes, Buckley arrived, together with his wife.
"Charles, you should have come alone. Didn't you always come to this kind of party alone in the past?" Lao Wang joked.
Buckley quickly made a horrified expression and said: "Old K, please don't hurt me. When will I attend such a party alone?"
Maureen Brenhardt made an angry expression in cooperation and said in a feigned rage: "Charles, you actually do such a thing behind my back?"
Barkley immediately denied: "No way, honey, I can't be the same as Kobe O'Neal, I am a gentleman."
"Poof!"
The people around him burst into laughter when they heard this sentence.
At noon, the topic about O'Neal and Shani and "going alone to have sex" had already spread, and Lao K was involved in it, so many people knew about it.
Kobe and Vanessa happened to come in. When they heard these words, their expressions suddenly became very bad.
When Lao Wang saw it, he quickly shouted: "Come here, Kobe, Vanessa."
When Buckley heard this, he hurriedly took his wife and walked away. Lao Wang couldn't stop him from shouting behind her.
"The tongue-chewing fat guy!"
Kobe stared hard at Barkley's back.
"Okay, you are all shareholders of the trading company, don't argue, it's just a joke." Lao Wang persuaded him kindly, completely forgetting that he was the cause of the topic just now.
"Old K, when you went back to change clothes, you made O'Neal collapse. Is that intentional?" Kobe said with some dissatisfaction.
"Shut up! What does his shit have to do with me?"
Lao Wang glared at Kobe, and then said: "Do you think you have hope this year? Your Big Three, no, plus David Robinson, you are the Big Four, the f4 super lineup, haha! It's useless, which one of you is useless?
Injury? No one can devote all their energy to the game. I think the Lakers should prepare to rebuild. Maybe they can trade O'Neal for LeBron James."
"That won't work, it's best to trade Yao." Kobe said quickly.
He knows that James, the rookie, is a master who needs a lot of ball rights. If he brings him here, won't he make himself uncomfortable?
Yao is the most suitable for him. He is very honest, does not need the ball, and does not fight for the boss. Old K has not returned to the Lakers. He has always hoped to join forces with Yao.
"Are you serious? Will the alliance allow Dayao to leave the east?" Lao Wang shook his head.
Having said this, he shook his hand and said, "Okay, let's not talk about this tonight. Vanessa, let me introduce you to some good friends."
"Okay, old K." Vanessa nodded quickly.
Lao Wang took Vanessa around at the party, and Kobe also followed.
On the evening of the 14th, Staples Center, skills contest, three-point contest, and rookie challenge.
"Pa bang bang..."
When Lao Wang appeared on the court, countless Los Angeles fans applauded and he also waved.
Nash also participated in the skills competition, but in the end Baron Davis won the championship.
The dunk contest champion was won by Fred Jones, and the three-point contest champion was won by Watson Leonard.
These are the appetizers tonight. What attracts attention is the Rookie Challenge, because among the first-year players, there is LeBron James who only appears in 20 years.
And James did not disappoint the fans. He knew very well what the fans wanted to see. He cooperated with Carmelo Anthony and completed alley-oop dunks again and again, which attracted cheers from the fans.
There is also a dunker like Stoudemire in the second grade, who also dunks constantly.
The two teams combined, there were 48 wonderful dunks in the game, which made the fans excited. Some players even had the opportunity to dunk but didn't, and they were immediately booed by the fans.
But in the end, the second grader defeated the first grader, and Stoudemire won the MVP of the All-Star Rookie Challenge.
On the 15th, the All-Star Game.
The Western Conference is too strong, especially inside. After playing for a while in the first half and getting serious in the second half, after the third quarter, they led the Eastern Conference by 12 points.
In particular, Kobe and Lao Wang were very familiar with the internal and external cooperation. They assisted each other and dunked one after another. The two of them combined to complete 6 alley-oops in the game, of which Kobe had four alley-oop dunks.
.
However, Lao Wang didn't play very hard. He played for 28 minutes and then stopped playing, giving the opportunity to perform to the landlord Kobe.
In the end, Kobe won the 2004 All-Star AMVP.
On the 16th, the All-Star Weekend ended, and Lao Wang and his team returned to Phoenix.
We arrived at the airport at noon and rushed directly to the headquarters. After lunch, the Suns set off for Minnesota. The first game after the All-Star break was an away game against the Timberwolves.
Since Wang's return, the Suns have won seven games in a row, surpassing the Timberwolves in their record. In addition, there is a bit of turmoil between him and Garnett regarding the MVP ranking, so this game is still attracting attention.
On the evening of the 17th, at the Target Center, the first half of the game had ended. The two sides were fighting fiercely and the score was tight. The Suns only led by 1 point.
Garnett did not face Lao Wang on the defensive end. He did not want to have his bones broken by Lao Wang, but on the offensive end, he could not avoid Lao Wang. His offensive performance was not good. So far, he has only scored 11 points.
points, but the shooting rate is only 38%.
However, the combination of the three-headed monster is really powerful. Even if Garnett's offense is limited, the Madman and the Alien can still compete with the Suns.
Lao Wang had a big hit in the first seven games. He won't be able to take so many shots in the following regular season, so he didn't take many shots in this game. He scored 18 points in the half, and his main focus was on defending Garnett.
.
At the beginning of the second half, in the fourth minute of the third quarter, Wang pulled out, Stoudemire quickly cut in from the right wing, and played an alley-oop with Nash.
Since Stoudemire's rookie season, he and Nash have often played this way, and they are very popular with fans. He has already fallen in love with this pie-eating offensive method, and the two of them cooperate very well.
But this time, something went wrong.
When Stoudemire cut in, Garnett, who was guarding him, quickly rushed up and hit a big block from behind. He lost his balance in the air, turned his left knee when he landed, and fell to the floor with a cry of pain.
"What the hell!"
Lao Wang cursed secretly and ran over quickly.
"It's over, old K, I'm done!" Holding his left knee, Stoudemire kept shouting with a sad face.
"Don't worry, maybe it's just a small problem." Lao Wang consoled him.
"This, old K, this is none of my business. I didn't touch him." Garnett panicked and took two steps back before shouting.
"Coward!"
Lao Wang glanced at Garnett and was too lazy to pay attention. Am I an unreasonable person?
Xiaosi was carried off and then sent to the hospital for examination.
D'Antoni moved Marion back to the fourth position, and Zhu Fangyu was placed at the third position.
Although Stoudemire was injured, the Suns had decided to rush to the top. In order to ensure victory, Wang began to strengthen the offense and scored 16 points in a single quarter, destroying the Timberwolves' inside line.
Garnett's assist defense is very good, but the Timberwolves' main center Earvin Johnson was the 23rd pick in the first round last year. His strength is too rubbish. Together, the two of them can't guard against Lao Wang's offense.
In the end, Wang still scored 41 points and 17 rebounds, leading the team to defeat the Timberwolves and achieve their eighth consecutive victory since their comeback, with 41 wins and 15 losses, ranking second in the Western Conference.
Just after the All-Star break, the Trail Blazers lost to the Pacers on the road. There was only one win left between the Suns and the Trail Blazers.
"Zhu Fangyu, you played pretty well." After the game, he praised Zhu Fangyu.
The rookie played 14 minutes in the second half. He passed the ball to the rookie several times. He made 2 of 4 three-pointers and 1 of 2 two-pointers. He efficiently scored 8 points and also sent a steal.
"Brother, Xiaosi is injured, can I play the main role?" Zhu Fangyu came up to him with a smile and asked in a low voice.
"Don't ask me this kind of question, the coaching staff will make arrangements." Lao Wang said noncommittally.
