Champion Rules

Chapter 42 039: Perhaps it is the note that determines fate (Please read!)

The crown of Europe was finally placed on Lynch's head.

After celebrating with teammates in the evening, early the next morning, before the champagne stains from the celebration party had dried yet, the Nike team was already stationed downstairs of the hotel where Real Madrid was staying.

From the moment Lynch lifted the European League championship trophy, his destiny crossed the ocean and was deeply bound to the North American basketball world.

The Real Madrid players all stuck their heads out of the window. No other star in Europe could enjoy such a high level of reception.

Lynch met Phil Knight in a suburban manor. On the lakeside of the private manor shrouded in morning mist, the founder of the Nike empire was fishing with a cigar in his mouth, and his fishing line drew tiny silver rays on the lake surface.

Seeing Lynch, the ruler of the sneaker world kindly extended his hand: "Congratulations, kid."

Normally, when a sneaker brand wants to meet with a player, they'll hire an advertising agency to create a full set of posters, layouts, and a comprehensive marketing strategy.
Reebok has done all of this. When Lynch was playing for Real Madrid, they would occasionally send a private jet to pick him up to visit their European headquarters and show him their future plans.

But Phil Knight believes that his name alone is worth all the fancy publicity.

Thanks to Michael Jordan's influence, no young person would not want to sign with Nike.

Last summer, they landed Carmelo Anthony in a day. Landing LeBron James was a bit more complicated, but they beat Reebok for less money simply because LBJ was so eager to get into the Nike family.

This is Nike's value, and their marketing revenue is here. Last year, Reebok and Adidas together had only half of Nike's marketing revenue.

So Phil Knight chose this place for the meeting, thinking that he didn't need to prepare anything special for the meeting.

Lynch and the old man just exchanged a few casual pleasantries, and then Misko started talking to the other party.

Misko got straight to the point: "I can tell you that the contract Reebok gave us is a seven-year, $9000 million guaranteed contract, plus a $1000 million signing bonus and a $1000 million incentive clause, for a total of $1.1 million. It would be difficult for us to accept an offer lower than that."

After hearing Misco's huge offer, Phil Knight just calmly took a puff of his cigar.

"Mr. Misko, as you know, Nike's annual financial report includes a 'demand creation fee,' which is the total cost of our endorsement contracts, marketing, and advertising. Generally speaking, Nike keeps these fees at 11% or 12% of annual sales.

Our 'demand creation expenses' this year are $12 billion, and all advertising, marketing, and contract signings rely on that $12 billion. Do you think we should allocate over $100 million of that to one person? That doesn't even include the cost of promoting Lynch. We just acquired Converse for a mere $300 million."

Phil Knight casually flicked the cigar ash, and sparks fell on the green lawn.

"If Lynch signs a $110 million contract, then his lottery ticket would have to pay out $900 million for us to not lose money. That's a huge number, and I hope you have a clear idea of ​​it."

Compared with Sonny Vaccaro, Lynch disliked Phil Knight's arrogant tone.

He certainly seems like the kind of guy who could say something like, "You better work for me, or if I can't stand you, I'm going to kill you."

"How much are you willing to pay?" asked Misko.

"7 million in three years."

"That's impossible," Misko waved his hand. "Who do you think Lynch is? He's worth much more, and the contract you offered isn't even as good as LBJ's. By the way, in your 'demand creation costs,' are the publicity and promotion expenses allocated to Lynch the same as those allocated to LeBron?"

Phil Knight glanced at Misko with an unfriendly look because he asked a question that he shouldn't have asked.

"Kobe had an incident in Colorado, and Carmelo is signed to a sub-brand. So right now, LeBron is our No. 1 guy."

He didn't answer directly, but the answer was clear enough: Lynch's status at Nike is not as good as LBJ, and may even be lower than Kobe.

In terms of publicity and promotion, Nike will focus on Kobe Bryant, and only then will Lynch get the leftovers.

"Ridiculous! New York might get the top pick next, and Chicago might too. Those are big markets. The New York media is already predicting that Madison Square Garden's box office will surge 40% next year because of Lynch. Not to mention Lynch has the backing of the Chinese market. On the night of the Champions League final, about 100 million people in China stayed up late to watch him play. Do you know what that means? 75 million? Phil, now is not the time to play the bargaining game."

"Don't get so excited, Misco. Why did LeBron sign with us instead of a bigger contract with Reebok? Because he's a smart guy. He knows we're the only ones who can create great players. Last year, Reebok spent $3 million on an AI documentary, and what was the result? Reebok stores were left with a backlog of sneakers until Christmas."

Misko immediately retorted, "That's because AI has only played 48 games. Since his brief glory days in 2001, he's only played in the playoffs once, and that was for just one round. This isn't a marketing issue; it's a result of performance. Everyone can see that AI is falling from grace, and not even you can save his commercial value."

Finally, Misko said something that made Phil Knight a little angry: "It was Michael Jordan who saved Nike, not Nike that saved MJ. It's you who need good players, but good players don't necessarily need you."

Phil Knight, the tyrant who controlled the global sneaker market, suddenly sneered. Previously, Sonny Vaccaro had thought Nike needed him, not him needing Nike.

The result.
"In short, Misko, this is our final offer. 7500 million, this is the highest honor I can give to a genius. Lynch, what do you think?" Phil Knight thought Lynch would be like LBJ, almost unable to wait to hug his thigh.

But Lynch just stood up. The young man had a polite smile on his face, but his eyes were dancing with a rebellious fire. "Sorry, Phil, Misco and I have to go to lunch. The steak is cold, which would be a shame for the good chef who came all the way from Madrid."

The cigar in Phil Knight's hand trembled slightly. He had seen too many young faces crazy about the Nike logo, but he had never seen anyone dare to leave like this in front of him.

"Kid, you're not nearly as mature as LeBron."

"Really? That's my luck."

A day later, Lynch officially signed the largest shoe contract in history with Reebok in Madrid, worth seven years and $1.1 million.

The contract amount was the same as what Misko told Phil Knight, 9000 million guaranteed, 1000 million signing bonus, 1000 million bonus clause, and a newly added clause: at least 50% of Reebok's publicity and promotion funds must be spent on Lynch.

Lynch's bonus terms include: being selected as an All-Star in the first three years of his career, reaching the playoffs in the first four years, and no negative incidents such as sexual intimacy, drug use, or any other legal red lines during the contract period.

When Lynch signed the contract, Reebok immediately gave him a check for $1000 million.

These are the two most expensive words Lynch has ever written, each worth $500 million.

After Lynch signed with Reebok, Nike's stock price began to fall. This young man, who refused to bow to the emperor, used two Chinese characters to pry open a sneaker empire worth hundreds of billions of dollars.

Nike even had to make a public announcement about it.

"While we believe Lynch can be a tremendous asset to the Nike family, the cost of a long-term contract far exceeded our willingness to invest. After careful consideration, and in the best interests of the company and its shareholders, we chose not to make an additional offer at the last minute. However, we remain proud of Nike's achievements, and our recent unparalleled success has put tremendous pressure on our competitors to bear this significant cost."

It is incredible that a multinational company had to issue a notice simply because it did not sign a contract with a teenager.

Moreover, Phil Knight was surprised by the speed at which Lynch signed with Reebok.

Is that child really so decisive?
In fact, the signing was quick mainly because Lynch told Misko two things in the car on the way back to the hotel yesterday.

"I want to make money standing up."

"Why should I have to eat LeBron's leftovers?"

These two sentences almost destroyed all possibilities for Nike and Lynch.

As for Adidas?

Oh, only God knows how much will be left on the contract when they hand it over.

After Lynch received the check for $1000 million, his black brother Louis Brock calmly stuffed a box of sports protective equipment into the sports bag tied with a Chinese knot, with a meaningful smile on his lips.

He was sure a certain charming sales consultant at a Rolls-Royce showroom was in for a sleepless night.

After all, in the luxury industry, providing exclusive transnational services to young wealthy people has long been an unspoken rule, not to mention that this 18-year-old Champions League upstart has amazing energy and financial strength.

Lynch did go find the female salesperson. When the salesgirl tied the ribbon on the gift box inlaid with mother-of-pearl, the sharpness in the boy's eyes turned into tenderness.

He wanted to use the first sum of money to buy his mother a set of the most expensive cosmetics.

This was something he had thought of a long time ago.
-
One morning a month after winning the European Championship, Lynch got up early.

When he walked out of the room, the makeup artist was already doing makeup for Wu Lan.

"Did I wake you up?" The mother turned her face to the side, and the pearl earrings reflected tiny spots of light in the mirror.

"No, I just can't sleep." Lynch replied.

He looked at the dining table, where toast, hot milk and a napkin with the Real Madrid logo were still laid out.

Well, many things have not changed, and these old things stubbornly maintain the daily life of the past.

However, looking around, the Sony camera on the tripod was flashing a red indicator light, the crane lens was hanging next to the chandelier, and even the gaps in the sideboards were hiding miniature cameras.

In the past, when he ate breakfast at home, there was no one at home. Now, the house is full of cameras and ESPN crews.

ESPN has turned Lynch's home into a photo studio. This mansion, which carries Lynch's childhood memories, has been transformed into a 360-degree transparent goldfish tank.

Today is the day when the NBA draft lottery ceremony begins.

This means that Lynch is very likely to know his approximate next team - almost no one doubts that Lynch, who achieved great success in European basketball at the age of 18, will fall out of the first pick.

Dwight Howard? He's the same age as Lynch, but he never played professional basketball.

Emeka Okafor? He has a perfect NCAA resume, but his age means his potential is far less than Lynch's. No, in terms of immediate combat effectiveness, Emeka Okafor is definitely not better than Lynch.

ESPN obviously regards this live broadcast as the highlight of the year. When North American audiences witness the results of the draft draw through the live broadcast, the split-screen image in the lower right corner will show every micro-expression of the talented young man in real time.

The on-site director in a suit was adjusting the reflector. Lynch was looking at the newly hung European League championship photo on the wall. The champagne sprayed in the frame seemed to be still flowing.

It has indeed only been a short time, but Lynch is indeed about to enter the next stage of his life.

At night, the ping-pong ball that determines fate begins to spin.

The Chicagoans and Washingtonians were the first to be disappointed, as they didn't even make the top three.

When the Charlotte Bobcats won the third pick, and when the Orlando Magic's blue team logo appeared on the ping-pong ball with the second pick, the dome of Madison Square Garden was almost overturned by the sound.

This is the second time the New York Knicks have won the No. 1 pick since the league's first lottery ceremony in 1985.

God knows how many conspiracy theories will arise from this, because it seems that only the New York market is worthy of Lynch's popularity, and New York "just happened" to get the No. 1 pick.

The camera turned to the Smiling Assassin, who was not very excited but nervous.

He glanced around, loosened his burgundy tie, and unconsciously stroked the Windsor knot on the lapel of his suit with his index finger, as if cold sweat of anxiety was oozing from every pore.

He knew full well that he would receive countless suggestions and unbelievable trade requests during this period, and his choice would determine the future of the New York Knicks and even the entire league.

He reached into his inner pocket with trembling hands, took out the note that he had put in his suit pocket on the night of the European League final, and took a look at it.

The broadcast camera suddenly zoomed in, the yellowed edges of the paper frayed under the overhead light, and deep within the folds lay ink marks that could upend the league. Perhaps it contained a shocking trade proposal, or perhaps Lynch's unknown assessment report.

No one knows what is written on it, but it is certain that the note determines everything.

The studio cut to a close-up of Lynch at the right time, with the boy hugging his mother, but Lynch didn't know whether this meant he would definitely go to New York to report.

You know, the NBA is unpredictable.

The camera was frantically capturing this expression worth hundreds of millions of dollars, but no one noticed that on the dining table next to them, the milk stains on the napkin had quietly covered the gold-embroidered Real Madrid logo.

(End of this chapter)