Champion Rules

Chapter 222, Section 218: Now is Lin Qi's Era (Seeking Monthly Tickets!)
Two days after LeBron James announced his move to the Detroit Pistons on "The Decision," the Pistons held a grand welcoming ceremony for him.

Pistons owner Karen Davidson viewed the ceremony as a show, a showcase aimed at enhancing the Pistons' value.

Just as the Los Angeles Lakers had to acquire Luka Doncic to sell for a record $20 billion, the Detroit Pistons need to showcase the star players they currently possess if they want to sell for an even higher price.

When LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Deron Williams, and Richard Hamilton walked into the Palace of Auburn Hills, Pistons fans became the happiest fans in the world.

This is an unprecedented lineup, and its impact even surpasses that of the Lakers' former F4 and Big Three combination.

Of these four men, only Richard Hamilton was over 30.

The three most dazzling core players—LeBron James, who is only 24 and a half years old, Carmelo Anthony, who is 25 years old, and Deron Williams, who is 25 years old—are all at the peak of their careers.

More importantly, their reunion was not solely due to team operations.

They actively chose to stick together.

This transfer was not negotiated between the Pistons, Cavaliers, or Jazz.

Instead, it was LBJ, Deron Williams, and Carmelo Anthony who made their choices and joined forces.

This was a player-driven, premeditated transfer.

As the four star players of the Pistons appeared on screen, Isaiah Thomas, the "Smiling Assassin," had a complex expression.

Throughout the long history of the NBA, the story of the Detroit Pistons has always been inextricably linked to and resonated with this city steeped in blue-collar spirit.

They are dirty, tough, resilient, and a team. This team has had its share of superstars, but the foundation for their past glory has never been solely based on the brilliance of those superstars. Rather, it is the deep-rooted collective grit and blue-collar spirit that has built their success.

But at this moment, looking at those four stars wearing Pistons jerseys, the scene before me seemed so absurd.

From owners focused solely on rapidly increasing the team's market value to strategically astute general manager Joe Dumars, they all seem to be deeply entrenched in a fanatical belief: that as long as the stars they gather are dazzling enough, they can surely illuminate the entire path to the championship.

This approach is very, very un-Detroit Pistons-like.

In the ensuing Q&A session, the host asked them some trivial questions.

When asked, "Your purpose in being together is definitely not just for a championship, right?", LeBron James interrupted Carmelo Anthony, who was about to answer.

“Of course not,” LBJ said confidently. “Our goal isn’t one, not two.”

A burst of good-natured laughter erupted from the crowd, which truly reflected their sentiments. Three superstars in their prime had gathered in Detroit, and one or two championships were clearly just the beginning.

“Not three,” LeBron James continued, his smile unchanged.

Carmelo Anthony, RIP, and Deron Williams continued to laugh and chime in, talking about aiming for an unprecedented four-peat in modern basketball history? It sounds exaggerated, but it's not entirely out of the question.

“Not four.” LBJ showed no sign of stopping; his tone remained calm, but Carmelo Anthony’s smile had begun to stiffen.

A sense of foreboding swept over him, and he screamed inwardly, "Enough, LeBron, stop this, don't go too far!"

"Not five."

The smiles on Carmelo Anthony and Deron Williams' faces vanished completely; they looked at each other, their faces full of question marks.

They could already imagine that if they failed, someone would use the same actions and words to mock them.

"Not six." LBJ hadn't stopped yet.

The cheers at the stadium were starting to wane, and even the fans thought it was a bit over the top.

Carmelo Anthony lowered his head, mechanically rubbing his knees. Facing the focus of countless cameras, he felt a wave of shame and embarrassment wash over him.

Stop, buddy, please stop!

LeBron James glanced at Carmelo Anthony and prepared to put down the microphone.

Melo breathed a sigh of relief, but the next second, LBJ raised the microphone again: "Not seven!"

Carmelo Anthony:
This is definitely the most abstract moment Carmelo Anthony has ever experienced.

When Chinese fans look back on this moment in 2025, they will probably give LBJ a new nickname: Xiang Zuo of the basketball world.

Their mastery of abstract art is already approaching that of Pablo Picasso.

Carmelo Anthony and the others could only awkwardly force a smile. Melo, who had won two championships, knew very well how difficult it was to have the last laugh in a long season.

LeBron James had absolutely no concept of this, or rather, he spoke without considering the consequences, only thinking about his momentary pleasure.

Sure enough, after the celebration, the internet was flooded with videos saying "not one, not two, not three".

In some respects, LeBron James' moves this summer were successful.

Through "The Decision" and the phrase "not one, not two, not three," LBJ's popularity successfully rivaled that of Lynch.

This is something he has never done in the past five years.

While LBJ was attracting public attention with all sorts of astonishing methods, Lynch had already renewed his contract with Reebok two years ahead of schedule.

The astonishing 100 million dollar shoe contract given to Lynch five years ago was the foundation for Reebok's ability to regain its footing in the basketball arena.

Therefore, Reebok continued its bold approach in Lynch's new contract.

Reebok's president of basketball operations, Sonny Vaccaro, played a crucial role in this, advocating that Reebok offer "an unprecedented price in the shoe market" to retain Lynch.

Because he knew very well that Lynch was Reebok's totem, an absolutely indispensable soul.

Thus, in addition to a signing fee of up to $5000 million, the two sides also reached an agreement on the profit-sharing ratio of the lifetime contract: Lynch will receive 7% of Reebok's total global profits each year.

Unlike Michael Jordan, who only receives 5% of the profits from his personal sub-brand Air Jordan, Lynch's share covers the entire Reebok brand, not just his own signature product line.

This means that in the future, sales of shoes from Stephen Curry, James Harden, or any other Reebok-sponsored star, as well as sales revenue from all Reebok product categories, including unrelated areas such as yoga pants, will generate income for Lynch.

Lynch undoubtedly prefers yoga pants now.

As Sonny Vaccaro put it, this is indeed "an unprecedented offer in the sneaker market."

This contract completely distanced Lynch from other star players.

Because among all active players, no one other than Lynch has a lifetime contract, let alone the privilege of directly receiving a share of sales revenue. LeBron James's starting point in the sneaker market was very similar to Lynch's, but his second contract widened the gap between them.

Seeing Lynch sign a revenue-sharing contract with Reebok that every player dreams of in just five years, LeBron James was overwhelmed with a strong sense of frustration.

At this time, his contract renewal negotiations with Nike were progressing very difficult.

Nike doesn't like everything LBJ did this summer. When Cavaliers owner Daniel Gilbert published an open letter mocking LeBron James as a coward, and when images of Cleveland fans burning jerseys swept the internet, this brand, which created a commercial miracle in the 90s, had to re-evaluate LeBron James' commercial value.

It's fair to say that LeBron James' reputation is completely ruined and has hit rock bottom.

Aside from Detroit fans, he has virtually no goodwill in any other part of the United States.

He successfully portrayed himself as the ultimate villain.

Under these circumstances, the only measure of its value is the championship.

Next season, he cannot afford to fail; he cannot tolerate the slightest mistake and must secure the championship trophy.

Otherwise, he would lose more than just honor and face.

There are also real commercial contracts.

For a shrewd businessman, this is an unacceptable loss.

The Detroit Pistons certainly understood that the moment the four stars came together, their only goal was the championship.

Any other achievements are weak and unconvincing.

So they started scavenging for championship pieces in the free market.

Meanwhile, other established championship contenders in the league have also taken similar actions.

The Knicks made the first trade, with Sam Presti sending Steve Blake to the Los Angeles Clippers in exchange for the Clippers' 2010 and 2011 second-round draft picks.

The main purpose of this move is to free up a valuable 12-man roster spot.

Steve Blake's performance in his two seasons with the Knicks has proven that he is incapable of contributing in the deep rotation of the playoffs, and it would be a waste for the Knicks to have a player of his caliber occupy a spot.

Meanwhile, the growth of young point guard Goran Dragic has surprised the team, and trading away Steve Blake was also to provide the Slovenian with more room for development.

With a roster spot freed up, Sam Presti began pursuing Ron Artest, a hot free agent this year, and has maintained close contact with him.

Although the Knicks already have Wilson Chandler and Shane Battier anchoring their frontcourt, a team can never have too many top-class defensive wing players.

Currently, several championship contenders are actively recruiting Ron Artest.

This includes the Knicks, Lakers, Heat, and Magic.

Yao Ming had also suggested that the Spurs recruit Ron Artest, but the Spurs did not accept the suggestion. Since Dennis Rodman, the San Antonio Spurs have had a clear bottom line: never recruit troublesome players who could potentially disrupt the team, no matter how good they are.

The Knicks' disadvantage is that they cannot guarantee Ron Artest playing time and a starting position.

With the Lakers, Phil Jackson promised he would be a starter.

In Miami, both Dwyane Wade and Paul Pierce were willing to swing down a position to make room for Ron Artest to start at the small forward position.

In Orlando, the Turkish player Turkoglu plays entirely as a point guard, which doesn't conflict with Ron Artest's role.

It is widely believed that the Knicks have little chance of winning in such a fiercely competitive environment.

Just before Artest's team was inclined to accept the Lakers' terms, Sam Presti made one last, and most direct, communication.

He personally dialed Ron Artest's number, his tone calm, yet every word carrying immense weight:

“Ron, I understand that every offer you receive is tempting. Los Angeles is legendary, Miami has a great climate, and Orlando has a bright future. But let’s talk about something more fundamental—what kind of success are you really looking for?”

The other side answered almost without hesitation: "Of course, I want to win a championship as a core member to prove my worth."

“Very good,” Sam Princeton said confidently. “Then let me tell you a simple fact: only under the wing of a man can you truly touch the kind of success you crave. In this league, what can give you the most solid guarantee and let you clearly see the road to the ring is not the glorious history of Los Angeles, not the beaches of Miami, not the monster in the paint of Orlando, but a name—Lynch.”

"Kevin Garnett's frustration after being completely outplayed in overtime—you should remember his words: 'He completely dominated me tonight.'"

That's Lynch's dominance!
Never make an enemy of Lynch!

In New York, alongside Lynch, he could elevate every warrior who gave their all to the podium. He not only won himself, but also ensured that those who followed him basked in the glory.

Sam Presti paused for a moment, then his tone was almost a direct declaration: "Joining the Knicks and following Lynch is the only right choice for you to reach a championship and have your name engraved on the Larry O'Brien Trophy."

To Ron Artest's surprise, the recruitment call was devoid of lengthy negotiation details, empty promises, and even the question of when he would be available.

Only by starkly and domineeringly pointing out the league's sole and most crucial attraction—Lynch's absolute strength and charismatic leadership—can the league guarantee a championship.

All of this is far more real and impactful than the numbers in a contract or vague promises about key positions.

Ron Artest felt an instinctive desire to be among the true victors, to be protected by that powerful force, and to share in that unquestionable glory.

Hours later, Sam Presti received a definitive message from Ron Artest's agent: "Ron has chosen his hometown of New York, and he has chosen Lynch."

The defending champion Knicks ultimately signed Ron Artest with a mid-level exception, a result that shocked and puzzled other competing teams, especially the Los Angeles Lakers who came very close to signing Artest.

In the battle for Ron Artest, the New York Knicks were not the chip leader, but they recruited him with just one simple yet invincible trump card.

As Ron Artest said in an interview:

"If I give up the opportunity to follow Lynch, I'll be going against the championship."
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LeBron James, that coward, at least kept one promise: he won't wear number 23 next season, but number 6. Thank God, Kings, that great number will finally no longer be insulted. —Stephen A. Smith's show.

Yes, there's only one reason I chose the Knicks, and that's Lynch. — Ron Artest on his decision.

The Detroit Pistons re-signed their veteran center Ben Wallace to a minimum contract. Can they really assemble a championship-contending roster from a bunch of minimum-salary players? — NBA Time and Space.

All I can say is that Ron made a bad decision. — Kobe Bryant on Ron Artest's crucial move to New York.

From the Detroit Pistons' necessity to assemble a super team to Ron Artest's decision to join New York, these actions essentially testify to Lynch's unparalleled influence and dominance. Only by joining forces can star players challenge Lynch, and veterans yearning for championships have only one option. Lynch's influence has permeated every aspect of the league, affecting everyone's behavior. Therefore, we can confidently say that this is the era of Lynch! — Sports Illustrated

(End of this chapter)