Chapter 526: Expected 40

Chapter 526 Expected 4:0

Collect some evidence of your recent collusion with league management? That's of no use, so, it's the referee?

If Stern has collected evidence that he bribed the referees, and there were indeed unfair penalties in the finals, then he can take advantage of the current craze of attention of hundreds of millions of people in the United States and publicly release the evidence he has, accusing Nike of manipulating the league and undermining the fairness of the game. To be fair, that would not only cause Nike to be sued, but it would indeed plummet Nike's reputation in the United States, and even directly defeat Nike's market in Asia, giving Nike a fatal blow, making you fall as high as you climb.

However, the league does not belong to David Stern alone. Team owners, sponsors, investors, league veterans, etc. all have numerous shares. Even if David Stern collects evidence that he bribed the referees, he will not be able to win the league. If you want to publish it, you must get the approval of the league's board of directors.

And he is the league's largest sponsor in terms of sports brands. Those shareholders who want to share money are unlikely to agree unless...

Unless David Stern has found a sponsor!

This is a huge crisis... This is a fatal flaw!

Philnet stood up and walked back and forth in the room, his mind racing.

There is only one rival in North America that can provide equal sponsorship to the NBA and Nike, and that is Adidas and Reebok. Only they have the financial strength to give the league more than 1.5 billion in total annual sponsorship fees.

I heard that Adidas is currently negotiating a merger with Reebok, trying to join forces to fight Nike in the North American market. If these two companies intervene to ban themselves... maybe the old guy Stern has already talked with these two companies.

There is a high probability that they are looking for Paul from Reebok. Adidas' current strategic focus has shifted to Europe, and Reebok's headquarters is still in North America after all.

There is no way to discuss this matter with Paul. The guy is an opportunist, and he has already had a grudge against Nike during the years of competition. He will not give up the opportunity to take a bite of Nike.

Phil Knight frowned and pondered for a long time before dialing a number.

"Haha, dear Haobert, how are you doing lately?"

Haubert Heiner, Adidas's CEO who took office in 2002, took only three years for Adidas to double its market value and gain a firm foothold in the European market.

Phil Knight's thinking is clear.

Reebok alone is unable to take over Nike's sponsorship deal with the NBA. It can only join forces with Adidas.

Then all I have to do is convince Adidas.

There are two ways. The worst case scenario is that you have to pay a certain price and let Adidas withdraw from the competition. If there is only one Reebok, it will not be able to make any waves. Their current financial statements are extremely tight. Even if they can see the huge potential of the NBA, There is no way to satisfy the appetite of the people on the league's board of directors. Of course, this involves certain risks. After all, Reebok can go to venture capital companies.

The other way is to pay a sufficient price to Adidas, and then let Adidas continue to complete the acquisition of Reebok, and use the reputation of the two mergers to gain control of Reebok's voice first, then everything will be foolproof.

We chatted on the phone for a long time, and the final result made Phil Knight feel a little sad.

Phil Knight's original plan was to give up the European market and part of the Asian market, and help Adidas become a sponsor of the 2008 Olympics. After all, as long as Lin Dong loses, there will be an opening up for the Asian market. , enough to get Adidas in.

The European market is not Nike's main battlefield. Just like it annexed North America, it will be annexed by Adidas sooner or later. Giving up is not too difficult for itself to accept, and Adidas can also speed up the pace of unification. Obviously Acceptable by both sides.

As for the Asian market, Phil Knight was never willing to give up. However, Lin Dong's determination made him know that the piece of fat that had reached his mouth would fly away sooner or later, or at least a large piece would be chewed off. He took the initiative to 'give it up' in advance as a bargaining chip for Adidas to help him complete the unification of North America.

It's a pity that the old guy Haubert is obviously very clear about the current NBA and national landscape. These two conditions can no longer fully satisfy his appetite. Since Phil Knight took the initiative to come to the door, he will naturally not let the lion go. Opportunity.

He wants to leave Nike, which lacks nearly 20 patented technologies...

Flyknit, Air sole, cleat assembly... include upper knitting technology, flexible air bags in the soles, and scissor-like rib support to strengthen the soles and other technologies.

In return, Adidas also shared 15 patented inventions with Nike. Of course, Phil Knight didn't like that... it was almost equivalent to a fair form.

Then the European market is given to Adidas, the North American market is given to Nike, and the Asian market depends on its own ability.

Each of the two families occupies half of the sky and divides the world equally.

At the same time, Nike will provide an aid of 1 billion US dollars, which will be paid off in installments within two years. Adidas will be responsible for quickly completing the acquisition of Reebok at a high price, and promises never to intervene in the North American market or participate in the official sponsorship of the NBA.

There are also many detailed clauses... After half an hour of phone calls, the legal departments and teams of both parties were called up and worked overtime until the early hours of the morning to finalize various details.

There is no other way, it must be fast.

Adidas' acquisition of Reebok and its right to control must be done before the end of the finals, so that all of Stern's back-up players can be strangled in the board of directors, and even take advantage of Stern's deliberate long-term fishing. Big Fish' will be completely emptied out, and by that time, it will be really unclear who is the fisherman and who is the fish!

Phil Knight, who had been busy all night, finally lay down with his tired body.

He temporarily thought of Under Armor, which had recently re-emerged due to Lin Dong's endorsement, but then he shook his head.

After two years of shrinkage, Under Armor has become very small. Although it is now vigorously developing with the help of Lin Dong's momentum, it is not known that he has attracted any strong financial backing. The company's changed ownership structure is all in Lin Dong's favor. and Plank, so it is nothing more than Plank's own savings and Lin Dong's shareholding supporting their current expansion.

The little money these two people have can't even meet Under Armour's current production line update needs, let alone sponsor the NBA and satisfy the appetite of the board of directors.

Nothing to worry about!

Phil Knight smiled.

Even though he paid a huge price for Adidas, Haobert is still confident enough to do things. The guy is not only reputable and capable, but also resolute enough. Now he can finally sleep well...

…………

On May 22, the G4 game between the Lakers and SuperSonics started.

Countless fans gathered outside the Staples Center and couldn't squeeze in, and superstars and celebrities gathered inside the venue.

After three consecutive losses, the Lakers have reached the edge of the cliff. Although they are in a desperate situation, they are ready to go into battle lightly and no longer have any psychological baggage.

In the first half, the Lakers showed a strong desire to attack and re-engaged Yao Ming's high-post tactics to start and attack the Sonics.

Obviously they have learned lessons from the previous games. Kobe and Yao Ming played a lot of pick-and-rolls, which made Hanamichi Sakuragi really uncomfortable with the mismatched confrontation. He once occupied the absolute initiative in the game, and Yao Ming restricted the outside line in the high position. , coupled with the roaring and tsunami momentum at the scene, which also suppressed the SuperSonics' outside performance, the Lakers' lead was even close to 20 points.

This undoubtedly allowed many Lakers fans to see the dawn of victory, but unfortunately they still failed to withstand the Sonics' counterattack in the second half.

Rukawa Kaede became the biggest contributor to the SuperSonics in this game. In the third quarter, with the help of his super touch and Lin Dong's passing and control, he made 8 of 9 shots in a single quarter, including a 3+1, scoring a personal high in a single quarter. 25, helping the Sonics tie the score in one fell swoop.

And when the SuperSonics' outside line opened, the internal and external linkage put the Lakers into a state of focusing on one thing and losing the other.

Although Yao Ming desperately stood on the court until the last second, and even though Kobe struggled with cramps in his right leg, he still could not withstand the Sonics' offensive from both ends.

107:111, the SuperSonics narrowly defeated the Lakers with a slim 4-point advantage and won their eighth consecutive playoff victory!

The Staples Center arena gave the most sincere blessings and applause to the tearful Lakers generals, including of course the SuperSonics generals' applause, and the players from both sides hugged each other.

Kobe and Lin Dong exchanged jerseys.

"Don't lose to the Cavaliers and this league." Kobe Bryant said meaningfully to Lin Dong: "I don't want to be the loser's subordinate. Maintain your complete victory and wait for my challenge next year!"

Yao Ming exchanged jerseys with Hanamichi Sakuragi. He touched the head of the Japanese boy who invented the forward tactic and continued to limit his performance in this series, and said with a smile: "I wanted to go to the finals to prove it." Asian centers are the strongest... It seems that this task has to go through you. If you can resist that big shark, if you lose to him, I will be looked down upon too!"

Nash chose Rukawa Kaede to exchange jerseys. Nash also admired this guy who regarded himself as a defensive vulnerability and kept shooting 3-pointers on his head.

Probably because they are all non-Americans, and probably because both of them have had the experience of not being taken seriously by other teams, but in the end they were finally recognized through their own efforts.

"Although I'm not willing to lose to you... but at least we enjoyed a few wonderful games." Nash said with a smile: "Non-American players always need to pay more if they want to be recognized in the NBA. If you have time, you can give I called to communicate..."

Odom chose Iguodala. In this series of matches between the two, Odom had a certain advantage, but he could also feel the terrifying potential of the guy in front of him. He was too young, much younger than himself. This makes him quite optimistic about this functional outside player.

Doug Christie hugged Payton.

They are all old rivals, brothers and buddies, and more importantly, both of them are almost at the point of retiring.

Not to mention Payton, he has already confirmed that he will retire after playing this year. At the same time, Yang Dong has also arranged for him to be an assistant coach in the children's team, which is considered a certainty.

What Doug Christie signed with the Lakers was only a one-year short contract, and the price was very low. He came here just for the championship. If the Lakers win this season, then Doug Christie may be able to regain his former worth in one fell swoop and compete with the Lakers. They signed a two- to three-year veteran mid-level contract, but now... Next year's Lakers are facing high salary pressure, but they haven't even made it to the Western Conference Finals in the playoffs, so they must break the restructuring.

Yao Ming and Kobe Bryant are the core that the Lakers cannot give up. Nash has another five-year contract. The easiest ones to be cleared are naturally Odom and Doug Christie.

Because of the former's youth, many teams still want him, but Doug Christie...either gives up face and continues to accept a veteran's basic salary, or he really has to retire.

...Bynum handed Chandler his jersey. The pure rookie that the Lakers just recruited this year, although he has talent that is visible to the naked eye, but...

Chandler: "???"

Don’t I deserve to exchange jerseys with the main players? What the hell? After all, I can carry Yao Ming, and after all, I am also a quasi-All-Star...

The dumbfounded boxing champion had no choice but to act like a senior and exchange his jersey for Bynum. However, this was supposed to be a reminder to the Lakers and SuperSonics, reminding them not to lose to the Cavaliers and to be careful about who and what. , turned into Chandler's pale praise for the rookie: "Well played!"

The friendly atmosphere between the two teams is just like the cleanliness on the court in this series. The only regret is that the ratings of G4 still failed to exceed 100 million. On the contrary, it was slightly lower than that of G1, only reaching 91 million.

Not to mention this G4, even if it is the Western Conference Finals on June 1st, the Spurs will face the SuperSonics at home at the SBC Center in San Antonio; and the Eastern Conference Finals on the same day at the WIN Arena in Cleveland, the Cavaliers will face the Pistons. I am afraid of the ratings. All will decline further, and may not even break through the 90 million mark.

However, everyone knows that this is because the entire Internet has been attracted by the almost determined two sides in the finals.

Facing the still invincible SuperSonics and the surging Cavaliers this season, the Pistons and Spurs are already trembling. No one in the world is optimistic that they have the possibility of winning. No one is even optimistic that they can win even one game, including them. Own!

This year’s finals will surely attract everyone’s attention!