Reborn Industrial Tycoon

Chapter 568: A full meal or a full meal?

Li Weidong doesn't know whether a lifetime contract can lure Carter, but this is the biggest bargaining chip he can give. Whether it succeeds or not, he can only give it a try.

James Bond then said: "This year's draft is about to begin. Do you have any young people you are optimistic about? Are we going to draft another millionaire this year?"

Li Weidong pondered for a moment and then asked, "Among the young people this year, who is more famous?"

"Of course it's Lamar Odom! If you have paid attention to the draft in the past two years, you must have heard of this name. There have been many predictions that he can get a good ranking. This year he is finally confirmed to participate in the draft."

James Bond spoke.

Of course Li Weidong knows Lamar Odom. As early as when Kobe Bryant participated in the draft, the name Odom had already appeared in front of Li Weidong.

Odom became famous at a young age. He can play from position one to position five. He is a rare "all-around fighter". This type of player is very popular in high school basketball where the competition is not very fierce.

In high school, Odom had grown to 2.06 meters, but he had the skills of a defender. No one on the court could guard him.

In addition, Odom is a New Yorker. Playing in a big city like New York will naturally attract more attention, so Odom has also earned the title of the strongest high school student in the United States.

Odom's academic performance was relatively poor. Due to failing courses, he did not have the opportunity to play in his senior year. He once wanted to run for the draft as a high school student. However, because many universities still offered him an olive branch,

So Odom decided to go to college.

As a result, Odom was so capable that he went to Las Vegas and was arrested for soliciting prostitutes, which resulted in him not being able to go to college.

However, Odom is well-known after all, and many low-level league teams are still willing to recruit Odom. The Continental Basketball League in the United States offered the highest annual salary of US$100,000 in history to invite Odom to join.

The overseas club's offer for Odom reached half a million US dollars, which is already more than the annual salary of an NBA second-round pick, which is enough to show how famous Odom is.

In the end, Odom deferred for a year and then entered the University of Rhode Island. After one year of college career, he finally decided to participate in the NBA draft. And he is also the most famous rookie in this class.

Odom is a guy who eats, drinks, whores, gambles and smokes. He borrowed money from Kobe Bryant when he owed gambling debts. He suffers from strokes and heart attacks from time to time. Moreover, his wife showed affection to others in front of him and was cuckolded in front of him. Such a bad image, don’t

I hope I can sell the sneakers.

Therefore, no matter how famous Odom is, Li Weidong will not let Odom endorse sneakers.

Li Weidong thought for a while and then asked: "Who will the American media predict to be the No. 1 pick?"

"Let me see, in addition to Odom, Duke's Elton Brand, UCLA's Baron Davis, and Maryland's Steve Francis are all likely to be the No. 1 pick.

." LeBron James replied.

"Boss Fu is here too!" Li Weidong thought to himself.

Francis was Chairman Yao's teammate back then, and Chinese fans are relatively familiar with him. Unfortunately, this three-time All-Star's peak was too short. Before he was thirty years old, his condition declined seriously. By the time he was in his early thirties, he was no longer good.

The ball is ready to hit.

As for the bearded Baron Davis, the situation is similar to Francis. He was indeed a top scorer in his peak years, but once he turned 30, his condition declined rapidly and he soon had no ball to play.

This kind of player whose "flowering period" is relatively short, and who has not reached the level of a superstar, is definitely not suitable for sneaker endorsements.

Elton Brand is the No. 1 pick in this class.

"Captain" Brand comes from Duke University, a famous basketball school, and was personally trained by "Old Coach K" Krzyzewski.

Last season, Brand was the best post player in the NCAA, and he also won a lot of awards, such as NCAA Player of the Year, All-American First Team, John Wooden General, and Naismith Award.

Wait, he took it all in, almost replicating Duncan's success in college.

Brand's physical condition is very good. He is 2.06 meters tall but has a wingspan of more than 2.20 meters. He is a typical long-armed player. On the technical level, he is also similar to Duncan, especially his one-handed back-up skills.

, very similar to Duncan.

Therefore, Brand has been nicknamed "Little Duncan" before he entered the NBA.

The 1998-1999 season happened to be the year when Duncan showed his prowess. In this year, Duncan led the Spurs to the championship and made the entire NBA realize how terrifying this top power forward was.

Facing the Spurs' championship, "Little Duncan" Brand's draft momentum naturally increased with the tide. Every team wanted to copy the Spurs' success, hoping to get a second Duncan, and Brand was also pushed along the way.

The position of the top pick.

Of course, with Brand's strength, he deserves to be the No. 1 pick. Without injuries, Brand is second only to the four forwards of Duncan, Garnett, Nowitzki and Webber.

It's just that the sneakers of insider players have never been very easy to sell. Even if it is a genuine Duncan, he has not sold a few pairs of sneakers, so how can you expect a "little Duncan" Brand to sell sneakers.

In fact, the 1999 draft was full of talents. Although there were no superstars, there were several All-Stars and many successful role players who were considered the mainstay of the NBA in their prime.

Among the rookies in this class, the one with the most honors should be the Argentine "Demon Sword" Ginobili. Although he was selected by the Spurs, he played in Europe for two more years and won the European Basketball Player of the Year before entering the league.

To the NBA.

Before Ginobili came to Europe, he was already a well-known international player. After becoming famous in Europe, he had already received an endorsement contract from Nike.

During Ginobili's career, he mainly endorsed Nike's Air Max series and ZOOM Air series. These two shoes are Nike's core shoes and have very good sales.

Another relatively powerful star player in this class is "The Hacker" Shawn Marion.

When he was young, Marion had excellent physical fitness and could be considered a spring man. In his peak period, he was a player with both offense and defense.

Especially in terms of defense, Marion's ability is even more outstanding. He is one of the few players in the NBA who can defend from position one to position five. He is a defensive master. He has not been selected to the best defensive team.

One of the biggest regrets in my career.

Marion's contribution to the team is not only reflected in personal data, so he is very popular with the team, and the team is willing to pay him a high salary.

But when it comes to selling sneakers, this kind of player is definitely not popular. Fans still like the more distinctive stars.

Among this new generation of rookies, the one with a stronger defense than Marion is "AK47" Kirilenko.

Kirilenko has also been selected to the All-Star, won the block title, was awarded the All-Defensive Second Team twice, and was once All-Defensive First Team.

It's a pity that he was born at the wrong time. If Kirilenko had appeared in the small ball era, he might have become an enhanced version of Dream Chaser Green and might have averaged a triple-double every season.

It has always been difficult to sell sneakers for defensive players like this. What’s more, Kirilenko is a Russian, which means he will not be very popular in the American market.

In addition to the above players, this year's All-Star players include Richard Hamilton, Szczerbiak and Meta Walder-Pease.

In addition, there is an assists leader, Andre Miller, and a Sixth Man of the Year, Jason Terry, who are also well-known players.

Meta-Wold-Pease is the literal translation of the English pronunciation. According to the meaning, the translation is charity-world-peace, which is the Ci Shiping familiar to Chinese fans.

Ci Shiping is probably the one who sells shoes best among these well-known players.

At this time, Ci Shiping was still called Ron Artest, but he was already a famous "dynamite bag" on the court.

He is also a New Yorker. He once teamed up with two other fellow New Yorkers, Brand and Odom, to play in an amateur league. As a result, before the game was over, he started fighting with Brand.

In the 1999 draft, Ci Shiping would be selected by the Bulls. At that time, the Bulls had just lost their two leaders, Jordan and Pippen. It could be said that the people were distracted, and this also gave Ci Shiping, a newcomer, room to play.

.

As a rookie, Ci Shiping was relatively restrained in his "fighting talent", but once his two-year rookie period was over, his true colors were revealed.

In the 2001 summer training camp, Jordan laughed at Ci Shiping. As a result, Ci Shiping broke two of Jordan's ribs during the confrontation training.

Later Ci Shiping joined the Pacers and was involved in the infamous fight at the Palace of Auburn Hills. He also received the most severe punishment in the NBA at the time, being suspended for 73 games and fined $5 million.

This record for the most severe punishment was broken in 2009 by the incident in which "General" Arenas pulled out a gun in the locker room.

At that time, Arenas actually took out a real gun in the team locker room!

If he had taken out a shotgun, he should not have been punished.

It is worth mentioning that the Chinese player was also a rookie in 1999, but his NBA experience was not successful and he returned to China a few years later. His development focus is still domestic. If Li Weidong wants to sign him, go directly from

You only need to spend RMB to sign a domestic visa, and there is no need to spend US dollars.

After thinking for a long time, Li Weidong still felt that he could consider signing Ci Shiping. There was no need to give him signed sneakers, he just needed to be a sneaker endorser.

Letting Ci Shiping be the spokesperson is a double-edged sword. His bad temper and tendency to get into fights will indeed affect the image of the endorsed brand.

But I can’t bear the high profile of Ci Shiping!

Not to mention anything else, just changing your name from time to time can attract a lot of media reports. With a little hype, it will definitely become a top trending content.

This kind of player who is always doing tricks, making appearances in the media, and causing some controversy has always been very popular with sponsors.

To put it bluntly, Ci Shiping was equivalent to a traffic-based Internet celebrity of that era. He had some strength in his own right, and with various means of gaining popularity, he became popular easily.

Moreover, Ci Shiping is not a superstar-level player after all, and he is a time bomb, so the price for endorsement is not very high.

Another advantage of Ci Shiping is that it is more cooperative with sponsors’ publicity.

In the future, Ci Shiping will sign a contract with Peak, and he will never refuse various promotional activities held by Peak. Not only will he come to China every year to promote, but he will also cooperate to hype up the news.

For example, when I came to China for promotional activities, I hyped up a Chinese girlfriend. When she wanted to join the CBA, she clamored to change her name to "Friends of the Pandas." Other stars wouldn't have such good cooperation.

Thinking of this, Li Weidong said: "There is a young man named Ron Artest, do you know?"

"Let me take a look." The voice of flipping through the information came to mind on the phone, and then James Bond said: "Found it, Ron Artest, from St. John's University.

The information shows that he is of average height, overweight, and has mania. His efficiency on the offensive end is average, and his evaluation on the defensive end is very good. Boss, do you want to sign him as this year's millionaire kid?"

"Please note that it's not a millionaire, it's just an ordinary endorsement." Li Weidong said.

"With all due respect, this is a very risky move. I understand that mania is a disease. It is like an active volcano. I don't know when it will erupt." James Bond said.

"What you said makes sense. To be on the safe side, don't rush to contact him now. Wait until the games start next season and see his performance before deciding whether to sign him." Li Weidong said.

…

When the cell phone rang, Carter looked down and said to Tracy McGrady next to him: "It's my agent."

"I'll get that glass of water." The follower Maddie walked aside knowingly.

Carter picked up the phone and asked, "What's the matter?"

"Vince, there is something I think I need to tell you. The president of Feiyue Sports contacted me again and hopes that you can become their spokesperson." The agent said.

"I have been wearing their shoes recently and they feel very good." Carter then asked: "How much are they willing to pay?"

"Half as much as Puma," the agent replied.

"Offering half the price is like poaching people? Do you think I'm a fool?" Carter smiled disdainfully, and then said: "I am very grateful to Feiyue Sports for providing me with comfortable shoes, but thanks are thanks, business

Back to business.”

"You are right, business is business, so they also put forward additional additional conditions." The broker said.

"You're talking about dedicated signature sneakers, right? They put forward the same conditions before participating in the draft last year." Carter's tone was very cold, obviously unmoved.

The agent said: "Not only are they signed sneakers, they are also willing to provide a lifetime contract."

"Lifelong contract?" Carter was shocked.

At that time, a lifetime contract was a treatment that only Jordan could have. Except for Jordan, there were so many superstars or legends in the NBA who had never received a lifetime contract.

Therefore, something like a lifetime contract is more like a recognition of "the best player in the league".

Carter certainly knows that he is still far from the best in the league, but which player doesn't want to be treated like Jordan?

What's more, Carter still wears the hat of "Jordan's successor" and enters the NBA. If he can get a lifetime contract as a sneaker sponsor, it will be equivalent to taking another step closer to Jordan.

This is a kind of forceful style and a kind of card face. For young people like Carter, they still care about the card game and card face very much.

From the perspective of economic gains, Carter did not suffer.

Although the quotation offered by Feiyue Sports is not as good as that of Puma, it is still an easy choice to have a full meal and a full meal.

At this moment, Carter's heart moved.

…

Kobe also received a call from his agent.

"The president of Feiyue Sports told me that if you are willing, they can provide you with a lifetime contract!" the agent said.

Kobe was slightly surprised, then said with a smile: "Feiyue Sports are always so discerning!"

Kobe has always been arrogant. This season, the Lakers traded away starting guard Eddie Jones, and Kobe successfully became the starting player. Although the season was shortened, Kobe has already played All-Star statistics and standards.

The Lakers even renewed Kobe's contract ahead of schedule, signing a six-year, $70 million max-salary contract. Many sports reporters have begun to compare Kobe with Jordan and Lakers legend "Magic" Johnson.

If Kobe before was only regarded as Jordan's successor, Kobe this season has been regarded as someone who can challenge Jordan.

The Lakers' contract extension also means that Kobe has become the cornerstone of the Lakers' future.

So when he learned that Feiyue Sports was willing to offer a lifetime contract, Kobe was surprised, but with his arrogance, he was not very moved.

Kobe is confident that he will definitely reach the heights of Jordan in the future, and it will be a matter of time before he gets a lifetime contract.

So Kobe said: "Thank you Feiyue Sports for me. But I don't think there is any need to worry about the lifetime contract. I will have plenty of opportunities in the future."

"I think so too," the agent continued; "But I also got news that in order to poach Vince Carter from Puma, Feiyue Sports also offered him a lifetime contract. It is said that Carter has agreed.

The two sides are now conducting further negotiations."

"Vince Carter? He's still a rookie! How can he get a lifetime contract?" Kobe said with a trace of anxiety in his tone.

Carter is one year older than Kobe, but Kobe participated in the draft after graduating from high school and joined the NBA two years before Carter. Therefore, when Kobe talks about Carter at this time, he feels like a senior.

The agent continued: "Although Vince Carter is only a first-year player, his statistics are not much worse than yours now. He has already shown the potential of a superstar."

Kobe pouted with an unhappy face. His statistics in his rookie season were far inferior to Carter's. In this regard, Kobe did lose a game.

Carter's statistics this season are only slightly lower than Kobe's.

Kobe and Carter have many similarities. Both are shooting guards, both are 1.98 meters tall. Both are hailed as Jordan's successors, and both are very powerful young people.

One of these two people is in Los Angeles and the other is in Toronto. There are not many opportunities for direct contact. Even in games, they only meet a few times a season.

However, the similarities between the two people caused them to unconsciously develop a sense of competition and became competitors with each other.

And Kobe's character is extremely competitive. How could he tolerate Carter getting a lifetime contract before himself?

"If Carter has a lifetime client, but if he doesn't, wouldn't he lose to Carter! Doesn't it mean that I am inferior to Carter! But others ask me, Carter has a lifetime contract, why don't you? How shameless I am!" Kobe said in his heart

Secret passage.

At this time, Kobe was like seeing the toys that other children were buying. Although the toys the other children picked were not what he liked, he still wanted them!

Thinking of this, Kobe said: "I agree to Feiyue Sports, I want this lifetime contract, and I have to negotiate with them as soon as possible. I want to sign before Vince Carter!"

Today's update is delivered. Thank you for subscribing. It's the end of the month and I still have more than 200 monthly passes. Some book friends would like to support me. Today is Christmas. Although I can't pass this foreign festival, my blessings are still sincere.

, I wish you all a happy new year.