69novels Chapter 30 Is Money More Important Than People?
Chapter 30 Is Money More Important Than People?
After tidying up the newspapers on the table, Wang Kai threw them into the trash can, and then pasted the parts about himself that he had cut out from the newspapers into a notebook.
"Walter, hey kid, this kind of behavior wasn't popular when I was in elementary school."
"I like!"
Wang Kai did have a habit of collecting stickers when he was a child, but back then he collected stickers of various football stars; now he collects stickers of himself.
After the game against the Jazz, Wang Kai's performance immediately attracted the attention of the media across the United States, even though it was just an ordinary regular season game with only regional broadcasts.
However, as the most controversial rookie player of the 05-06 season, and a high school rookie at that, Wang Kai's performance in the game against the Jazz was indeed very shocking.
Mike Montgomery, a veteran NCAA coach who led Stanford University for 18 years, led the team to the NCAA Tournament 12 times and reached the Final Four in 1998. It can be said that Coach Mike Montgomery's fame and status in the basketball world are absolutely incomparable to Wang Kai's status in high school basketball.
However, this high school player, whom a well-known coach described as "unteachable," overwhelmed the Jazz's frontcourt defenders in a game against the league's defensive powerhouse, the Jazz, and scored the highest number of points among rookies since the start of the regular season with his highly efficient performance.
Public opinion always chases hot topics, and what are hot topics? As Kobe Bryant said before, they either make greatness or destroy it.
Previously, it was Wang Kai who was being destroyed; now it's Montgomery who is being destroyed.
In this era of the NBA, although the four major forwards and guards have a large number of fans and are highly praised by the league, and James is a newcomer to the league, he has capital behind him and his own popularity. However, it is defensive teams and team-oriented teams that win the championship.
With Jordan's second comeback and his eventual quiet retirement, the league was under immense pressure. Although fans were chasing after superstars, the superstars' performances were consistently underwhelming.
Therefore, the league is always paying attention to the rookie players that emerge each year. They hope that more players with superstar potential and more players who can bring change to the league will emerge.
David Stern had a keen eye for talent and achieved considerable success in promoting the NBA globally. As a result, in recent years, we have seen international players like Yao Ming and Kevin Garnett become number one draft picks. However, their performances during their rookie seasons were rather lackluster.
Although Wang Kai only played one game, he showed great "superstar potential," and the Bay Area needs a Chinese player like Wang Kai to attract more Eastern fans to pay attention to the NBA. Therefore, after the game against the Jazz, the league instructed relevant media to hype up the game.
Coach Montgomery refused all media interviews after the game and did not attend the post-game press conference, which resulted in a penalty from the league.
After the game, Warriors general manager Chris Mullin and team owner Chris Cohan met with Mike Montgomery.
"Either choose me or choose that yellow-skinned monkey. There is no other choice. And I will not resign. This is just a competition. His performance will not last long. I am quite certain of that."
Montgomery was very tough during the talks. He had coached Stanford for eighteen years, and no one had ever dared to criticize his coaching. No college player had ever dared to disrespect him like Wang Kai. It can be said that Wang Kai's performance had pushed Montgomery to the brink. If he compromised, it would mean the end of his coaching career, and his philosophy and coaching ability would be questioned by the outside world.
"Mike, I was the one who invited you here, but I think you still don't understand where you are. This is the NBA, not the NCAA. Players are paid by their owners, not college players who play for you for free. We have to be responsible for the team and for our owners."
Chris Mullin was fed up with Montgomery. Wang Kai clearly had outstanding skills and his performance on the court was worthy of recognition, but Montgomery just wouldn't back down.
Chris Cohan didn't say much. He wanted Wang Kai to play more games, but he didn't want to fire Montgomery, since firing him would require him to pay a large sum in breach of contract fees.
After negotiations with Montgomery failed, Chris Mullin met with Wang Kai again.
"Wang, congratulations on your excellent performance. Mr. Cohen is very satisfied with your performance, and I hope you can continue to maintain this level."
"Mr. Mullin, it is my duty to contribute my energy on the field. After all, Mr. Cohan has spent so much money and trained so many people, which is exactly what they are used in the game. There is no doubt about that."
"You're absolutely right, Wang. Mr. Cohan really appreciates you. You bring energy to the team, so rest assured, the team is on your side."
"Thank you, Mr. Mullin, and please convey my gratitude to Mr. Cohan as well. However, as you know, I have some disagreements with Coach Montgomery. In my opinion, there doesn't seem to be a good way to resolve these differences. He doesn't approve of me, and I don't trust him either. I will abide by the contract I signed with the team, but I can't guarantee that I will get enough playing time."
Wang Kai's decision to directly confront Montgomery may seem a bit reckless, but he is not a fool. Under Kobe's tutelage, Wang Kai has a clear understanding of the league's situation and some insight into the team's intentions.
"Don't worry, Wang, your performance deserves our recognition. The team will do its best to solve the problem. I hope you will be patient. The team will also make compensation for this."
"Mr. Mullin, I hope my patience will pay off before December. As you know, you need to play a certain number of games to compete for Rookie of the Year. I don't want to miss out on this honor, because if I miss it, I can't be a rookie again. So, if the team can't solve the problem before December, then please trade me. I don't want to waste too much time and energy on irrelevant things."
After hearing what Mullin said, Wang Kai made an accurate judgment about the team's thoughts. He knew that the boss did not want to spend more money, but given the current situation, the choice was either money or people.
So Wang Kai directly issued an ultimatum to Chris Mullin. Wang Kai valued the Rookie of the Year award highly, but Kobe valued it even more. Wang Kai didn't want to have any regrets, and Kobe needed such an honor to further explore opportunities to contact the current Kobe.
As for the idea of winning a championship in his rookie season, Wang Kai had fantasized about it before joining the NBA, but he stopped having that idea after joining. There are too many "beasts" in the league, and with Wang Kai's current level, he is not yet at the point of being able to crush most teams.