Basketball's No. 1 Anti-Fan

Chapter 254 Cleveland Welcomes Back Their King
……

"You mean he only talked about the Clippers?"

Heisley frowned after listening to Rush's report.

He actually didn't want to trade Hansen, or he didn't understand why Hansen wanted to leave Memphis.

It was obvious that he could have solved the problem by dealing with the overvalued contracts of Randolph and Gay, but he had to make it like this.

Just because he asked Wallace to lower the price in the first place?

This is a very normal thing. After all, the players only need to play, but as a boss, he has a lot to consider.

If Hansen had been willing to sacrifice some salary, the Grizzlies wouldn't even have had to make the trade choice last season.

He has invested so much in the team, won't Han Sen consider his difficulties?

What's more, didn't he finally give Han Sen the super-max contract he wanted?

What made him most angry was that now, Han Sen only mentioned the Clippers.

What is this? This is the designated next home!

Han Sen didn't even consider him as the boss, and he never considered whether it was the best choice for the Grizzlies.

Yes, Hansen did win a dynasty for the Grizzlies.

But did Han Sen take it down by himself?
Could Han Sen have done it without the people he chose?

After all, Han Sen is just a basketball player.

The Grizzlies are his team.

"You contact the Clippers." Heisley said through gritted teeth.

Although rumors have already started, Han Sen has not yet taken the initiative to say that he wants to leave the team.

"But you also have to listen to offers from other teams. We have to do what's best for the team."

Before Rush left, he called the other party back and gave him specific instructions.

……

Han Sen was still surprised when he saw Gilbert.

He wouldn't be surprised if it was David Griffin who came to him.

After all, there are rumors starting to spread outside. It is no exaggeration to say that the other 29 teams will have ideas, and that will naturally include the Cavaliers.

A good horse never turns back, but stories of broken relationships getting back together do happen from time to time.

Gilbert sat down and explained his purpose.

"I feel like I always owe you an apology."

Although he asked Ferry to trade Hansen only after getting a verbal commitment from James, no matter what the reason was, he was the one who made the choice.

"Mr. Gilbert, that's all in the past."

Han Sen was calm. He was indeed angry when he was traded, especially when he didn't know the reason.

But after so much time had passed, especially after learning the inside story of the transaction, he felt relieved.

In fact, if someone else was in that position at the time, they would choose James over him.

Of course, he didn't have any thoughts like "I forgive you" because of Gilbert's apology. After all, if he hadn't typed it out, would Gilbert come to apologize to him?
This is also the reason why he is so polite. In many cases, politeness does not represent respect, but distance.

"Nike people came to me and hoped that I could cooperate with LeBron, saying that it was the best choice for me and the Cavaliers." After feeling Hansen's attitude, Gilbert chose to get straight to the point.

"But why should I give a traitor a chance to cleanse his past? If I can get you back, that would be the best option for us." Gilbert said as he looked at Hansen with anticipation in his eyes.

No one was more excited than him when he heard the rumor about Hansen's trade.

Because Hansen is the one who has tried his best for the Cavaliers, and he has unparalleled popularity in Cleveland.

Over the years, Cleveland fans have been repeating how stupid it was to trade Hansen, and the arguments between them and management could fill a book.

He is now willing to admit his mistakes and correct them, even if it will lead to ridicule from the outside world.

Because compared to welcoming back the traitor James, this is the choice he would rather make.

Han Sen looked at Gilbert, his mind racing with thoughts.

Cleveland is not a big-market team, but Gilbert is someone who is willing to invest heavily in the team.

James fans once cited "the Cavaliers management's unwillingness to invest" as the reason why James and the Cavaliers 1.0 era failed, which is simply nonsense.

Whether it is 1.0 or 2.0, the Cavaliers' investment in James ranks among the top in the league.

In fact, the total amount of luxury tax paid by the Cavaliers from 2003 to 2018 was second only to the Knicks in the league.

In "history", the Cavaliers won the championship in 2016 but suffered a loss of 4000 million because the team paid 5400 million in luxury tax that year.

To put it bluntly, the Cavaliers' lineup in those years was not bad at all, the only thing that was lacking was James.

You said that there were no superstars willing to go to Cleveland. Were there any superstars willing to go to other cities in the league at that time?
The popular trend in that era was "kings never meet kings", so the formation of the Boston Big Three in the summer of 2007 caused an earthquake in the league.

It was only later that times changed, and star players forming teams became the norm, that the saying began to emerge that no star player was willing to go to Cleveland.

But this is also the second problem that Hansen thought of. Returning to Cleveland means that no star players will come to him.

His only helper will be Irving, which will be a huge challenge for the championship.

Of course, the benefits of returning to the Cavaliers are also visible.

Gilbert is a flexible person. In "History", he obeyed James' orders. Hansen will receive the same or even better treatment after he returns.

Moreover, from UA's strategic perspective, returning to the Cavaliers could also disrupt Nike's plans.

And then there are the fans in Cleveland, the ones who yelled "MVP" after James, gathered at his doorstep when he left, and cheered wildly for him when he visited Cleveland as a Grizzli player.

"We were so close to the championship, but we failed because of that traitor. Now we have the opportunity to restart it." Gilbert called James a traitor all the time, and it was obvious that he really hated James.

He had no choice in "history", but now he has a choice.

"I want to go to the Clippers now." Han Sen replied.

While returning to the Cavaliers sounds like a good option, he now has better options.

Gilbert felt disappointed after hearing Hansen's answer, but he quickly calmed down and said, "I respect your choice, but we will not give up. Even if we fail in the end, I will wish you a new and wonderful journey in Los Angeles."

Gilbert's words made Han Sen look at him differently.

As an NBA boss, the first thing to consider is definitely profit. After all, if a businessman doesn’t talk about money, he will go bankrupt sooner or later.

Han Sen stood up and said goodbye to Gilbert.

When he reached the door, Gilbert turned to look at Han Sen again: "Anyway, thank you for meeting me today."

He had already prepared himself to be turned away.

"I told you that's all in the past, Daniel."

Han Sen remained calm and composed.

……

The draft is approaching and more rumors are beginning to emerge.

Because of the rumor that Hansen was leaving the Grizzlies, the Heat team, which was on the verge of falling apart, regained its confidence.

The team management is actively renewing the contracts of Wade and Bosh, trying to get them to make another breakthrough.

But there are also sources showing that the Heat seem to be interested in letting Wade and Bosh go and forming a new super team around Durant. At the same time, ESPN also began to report that the Cavaliers put this year's No. 1 pick on the shelf.

In the lottery held at the end of May, the Cavaliers had an [incredible] 5% chance of winning this year's No. 1.7 pick.

This year's No. 1 pick Andrew Wiggins is also called the strongest talent after James by the media.

This No. 1 pick is very valuable.

The Los Angeles media is also reporting that Kobe is recruiting stars to play in Los Angeles. He wants to win the championship in the final moments of his career and he is willing to make any sacrifice for that goal.

The day before the draft night, Rush came to Hansen's residence.

After Rush entered the room, he hesitated to speak. After sitting down for a while, he spoke:

"The Clippers can't provide the chips the team needs, we will send you to Cleveland."

As he said this, he coughed dryly and his body moved back and forth on the sofa. It was obvious that he was very insecure.

He really didn't have the confidence because this decision would offend Hansen and even the fans of Memphis.

But that's what Heisley just decided.

"Is this how you treat the person who brought the dynasty to the team?" Rondo slammed the table and stood up, very angry after hearing this.

"Actually, they didn't ask me to inform you now. The deal will be done tomorrow night. I...I shouldn't have taken over as general manager!" Rush's face was filled with shame. He was Wallace's assistant general manager and was the next in line to take over.

He now feels that Wallace is a smart man who has perfectly avoided the role of taking the blame.

Rush's reaction was unexpected, and Rondo didn't know what to say for a moment.

"Go tell Michael Heisley that if he really makes that choice in the end, he will regret it." Han Sen said at this time.

Rush felt relieved and left after giving Hansen an apologetic look.

"How dare Heisley do that?" Rondo was still very angry after Rush left.

Han Sen said nothing.

From a transaction perspective, this choice makes sense.

The Clippers don't have any talented newcomers, and the most valuable chip they can offer is Griffin.

But the Grizzlies have the black and white duo. If they trade for Griffin, he will just be a replacement for Randolph. The power forward position will not be improved much, and he will be sent away for nothing.

As for draft picks, just like the one James decided to give the Heat to the Cavaliers at one point, because the team has been competitive, those will become of little value.

In comparison, the Cavaliers can offer much more chips.

This year's No. 1 pick, last year's No. 1 pick Noel, last year's No. 4 pick Waiters, and Thompson, the No. 4 pick in the same class as Irving.

If the Grizzlies have an idea, the Cavaliers should not mind including Irving in the deal.

These are all potential players that the Grizzlies can use and can perfectly avoid taxes.

You can't even find a second team that can offer better or more suitable chips.

This should also be the reason why Gilbert came to find Hansen before.

But, this has never been a matter of trading returns.

He created a dynasty for Memphis and brought the Grizzlies to heights that they did not belong to.

But Heisley, as Rondo said, actually dared to ignore his request.

"Chris, go call Jamal." After a moment of silence, Hansen said to Rondo.

He originally wanted to leave peacefully. After all, after completing the dynasty, Memphis and the Grizzlies have become an important part of his life journey.

But if Heisley really doesn't send him to the Clippers in the end, then let this stingy owner pay the price for his choice.

The 2014 NBA Draft will be held at 6 p.m. on June 26 at the Barclays Center in New York City.

However, before the draft began, an official announcement from the league shocked the league.

骑士队送出了2014年的状元签、2013年的状元秀诺伦斯·诺尔、2012年四号秀迪昂·维特斯，2015年和2017年无保护首轮选秀权，以及一个价值500万的交易特例，从灰熊队交易来了韩森和詹姆斯·约翰逊！
Although there had been various rumors before, when the transaction actually happened, it still caused violent shocks.

It is no exaggeration to say that the shock of this transaction is comparable to when Jordan announced his retirement after completing his first dynasty.

There are also speculations from the outside world, and the mainstream voice is that Hansen may have lost interest in continuing to compete for the championship with the Grizzlies, just like Jordan did in the past.

After all, with everything he has done in the Grizzlies, no one would trade him unless he wanted to.

However, this voice did not last long, because just a moment after the transaction broke, Kalil published an even more explosive news on TNT.

"Hansen was ready to lead the Grizzlies to their fourth consecutive championship, but Grizzlies owner Heisley chose to trade him to avoid taxes."

He also disclosed details in the article, because Hansen had always opposed the trade of Gay and Randolph, which caused resentment between him and Heisley, and that was the reason for the trade.

Just as many people know that Windhorst is James' personal reporter, everyone also knows the relationship between Khalil and Hansen over the years.

So this first-hand news that broke out immediately caused Memphis fans to go crazy.

The fans all believed it because Wallace's previous resignation finally found a reasonable explanation. He was fired because he didn't want to trade Hansen!

Not only was Heisley criticized by Memphis fans, but the new general manager Rush also became the target of public criticism.

Heisley quickly refuted the rumor on social media: Hansen wanted to leave on his own! That was the condition when Hansen signed the super-max salary contract!

He even circled Wallace and Hansen's agent Thomas who knew about it.

But unfortunately, both Wallace and Thomas chose to remain silent at this time.

Not only them, the Grizzlies players also disappeared on this day.

Then comes the exciting part.

As Adam Silva walked out from backstage with a smile to host his first draft meeting as president, the local police in Memphis also announced the news that Heisley's mansion was attacked and set on fire.

Even his luxury car parked in the yard was smashed.

At the same time, a large number of Grizzlies fans gathered outside the FedEx Center, holding up signs and shouting "Get Heisley out of Memphis."

It is said that Haisley flew out of Memphis overnight.

He should have made some preparations and even taken some countermeasures, but he never expected that Han Sen would choose such a shameless way to retaliate against him.

What’s even worse is that now Grizzlies fans only believe what Hansen says.

Whether Memphis is in chaos or not, the fans have the final say tonight.

This scene can be said to be very similar to the fans' reaction after James made his decision, except that the protagonist of the story has changed from James to Heisley.

At that time, another group of protagonists in the story, Cleveland fans, also began to take to the streets spontaneously after learning the news.

They did not receive any call from anyone, but their scale was unprecedented.

Reporters from major media outlets who received the news also rushed to the streets to take pictures.

They saw many incredible scenes.

For example, many people temporarily made a large number of signboards on the way there, with slogans such as "Welcome home, Han" and "We miss you so much, Han" written on them.

For example, a large number of fans actually wore Hansen's No. 77 Cavaliers jersey.

It was at this moment that the outside world realized that Hansen’s popularity in Cleveland was not due to Hansen’s success with the Grizzlies, but was established during his rookie season with the Cavaliers.

Although some of them had gained so much weight after four years that the clothes looked like tights, that did not hide the excitement on their faces.

They began to gather outside the Quicken Loans Arena, shouting Han Sen's name.

The King of Cleveland is back!
(End of this chapter)