LeBron James, your house got robbed.

May 9, Cleveland.

As soon as the Cavaliers' closed training session at their suburban training center ended, a large number of reporters and media flocked to the site.

This is the Cavaliers' first public media day since their sweep of New York, mainly because today is the day the MVP will be announced.

Although the league has not yet announced the MVP results, the Cavaliers are already generating enough buzz for these reporters.

Sweeping New York, the 58-point massacre, the controversial 33-game winning streak, and the future opponent, the Pacers.

In yesterday's game day, the Pacers and Heat each defeated their respective opponents, advancing to the conference finals with a score of 4-1.

The Bulls and Philadelphia 76ers, on the other hand, were locked in a fierce and evenly matched battle.

After the closed training session ended, the players continued their individual practice.

Therefore, the reporter could only target Chen Shuo and the coaching staff on the sidelines.

As a reporter for the Cavaliers, Alva naturally asked about the Pacers' series.

Avoiding tactically sensitive issues, Chen Shuo chatted casually with Alva, causing a sudden commotion among the reporters present.

Chen Shuo guessed that the MVP result was most likely announced.

Just then, Alva's colleague stepped forward and whispered something in his ear, which made Alva's expression change drastically.

Chen Shuo noticed Alva's expression, and a bad feeling arose within him.

Alva quickly composed himself and asked:

"The league office just announced on its official website that LeBron James has won the MVP award."

What are your thoughts on Paul missing out on the MVP award?

James?

Chen Shuo glanced at Paul, who was focused on mid-range shooting practice on the sidelines.

Paul's injury has changed many of Chen Shuo's prejudices against him.

Despite the lure of the MVP award, Paul did indeed pass the ball to rookie Thompson.

In a league as hierarchical as the NBA, no matter how well Thompson performs, he is still just a rookie.

Even LeBron James, who is known as the pride of the nation, has to carry bags for "boss" Ricky Davis.

Paul was willing to share the ball, allowing Thompson to try some offensive options that he didn't think were reasonable.

This is the truth.

At Chen Shuo's request, Paul gradually became a better leader.

He tried to help his teammates achieve better performance, rather than simply making demands and criticizing them.

On nights when Thompson doesn't play well, Paul will tell him how to adjust and how to deal with those little tricks.

Off the court, Paul studies every opponent's game video and memorizes their tactical system, which allows him to make reasonable choices on the court.

With Chen Shuo's demand for decentralization, Paul began to try to share these insights with his teammates to help them understand the opponent's tactics, thereby enabling them to make better choices.

Since he couldn't concentrate the ball in his own hands, he tried to get his teammates to make the right choices as well. While adapting to the team's system, Paul insisted on the philosophy of rational basketball in his own way.

He began to learn how to be a good on-field commander.

It's not about concentrating possession of the ball and meticulously working on every single detail, but about maintaining overall control of the game.

When the pace needs to be increased, speed up the rhythm to launch counterattacks; when the team's offense is chaotic, control possession of the ball and play positional warfare, reducing mistakes and ensuring a high success rate.

Read the opponent's defense, and when the opponent's forces are positioned on the strong side, give the ball more to Garnett and Klay, allowing them to initiate off-the-ball tactics on the weak side.

Especially towards the end of the season, Paul truly elevated his understanding of the game to a higher level, focusing on the big picture and letting go of the small details to control the game rather than controlling every single possession.

Paul's love for money and honor is true, and Chen Shuo doesn't see it as wrong.

He really puts in a lot of effort when playing basketball.

Chen Shuo genuinely believes that Paul deserves this MVP award.

It's worth it from any perspective.

Chen Shuo could barely contain his anger and launched into a tirade directly at the camera:

"This selection result will permanently lower the value of the MVP award."

"Last season, the team only won 19 games, ranking last in the Eastern Conference. After a long and desperate 26-game losing streak, everyone thought the team was going to start tanking and rebuilding."

"Look at this season, we won 57 games in the shortened season and swept New York in the first round, achieving the longest winning streak in history at 33 games."

"Doesn't all of this deserve an MVP award?"

Chen Shuo's anger left Alva speechless for a moment, but her professionalism compelled her to continue digging for juicy gossip.

"LeBron James won the MVP award. What are your thoughts on his performance this season?"

Chen Shuo asked the camera to be pointed at him, and spoke into the microphone, word by word:

"LeBron, see you in Cleveland."

After finishing his sentence, Chen Shuo turned around and ended the interview.

Amy's words from two days ago were like a belated lightning bolt, finally illuminating the doubts in Chen Shuo's heart.

The old Toyota, pounding the accelerator, speeding along the state highway, was almost a true reflection of its inner rage.

Even Chen Shuo himself couldn't explain it.

It was dissatisfaction with Paul's always falling short of expectations.

I'm still worried that external forces might disrupt the team's recent positive chemistry.

Before meeting Gilbert, Chen Shuo received a call from Grant, who informed him of the details of the MVP voting.

James received 65 first-place votes, while Paul only received 35.

Paul received 76 second-place votes, while James only received 34 votes, with the two separated by only 6 points.

It looked like a fiercely contested MVP award, with James winning by a slight margin.

If nothing unexpected happens, media outlets will soon be analyzing James' advanced stats to emphasize the criteria used in this MVP selection.

The press release was probably written long before the MVP was announced.

Chen Shuo met Gilbert, and the scene was almost the same as it had been a year ago.

However, Chen Shuo's face lacked that spirited confidence.

A year ago at this time, Chen Shuo was a general manager who was about to lose his job. Holding that hastily written plan, he was convinced that he had Gilbert under his control.

Today, Chen Shuo has become the most successful general manager in the league, single-handedly pulling the Cavaliers out of the mire and onto the road to the highest honor. He is hailed by the media as the dictator of Cleveland.

However, I'm not entirely sure what Gilbert is thinking.

Why do this?

When Chen Shuo learned that Paul had not been selected as MVP, he was initially filled with great regret and anger.

After venting his anger on camera, Chen Shuo, once his rationality returned, instantly realized that this matter was unusual.

Chen Shuo understood that his rule within the Knights had always been a top-down system, and that Gilbert had given him the power of life and death at will.

This allowed Chen Shuo to carry out his plans at will.

But every loss has its gain. Top-down management meant that Chen Shuo had no control over the lower departments, and it was Grant who was helping him to deal with it.

Chen Shuo was quite happy with this situation, enjoying the peace and quiet.

Cleveland was never a permanent destination in his plans.

Gilbert gained the traffic he needed most, and he gained achievements, honors, and qualifications. It was a win-win cooperation, and Chen Shuo didn't need to get involved in every aspect of the Cavaliers' internal affairs.

But this does not mean that Chen Shuo was completely unaware of the internal workings.

Linda was a close confidante of Gilbert.

The reason she had time to go shopping with Amy two days before the MVP announcement now seems to be because she already knew that the MVP award had nothing to do with Cleveland.

Even Linda, who was the public relations manager and had access to local media resources, was part of the whole affair.

Gilbert was not angry at Chen Shuo's question. He calmly handed Chen Shuo a glass of red wine, which was the same wine that had been served to Chen Shuo a year ago.

"Chen, you're smarter than I thought, but you can be even smarter."

"If I were you, I wouldn't be here."

Chen Shuo took the wine glass, casually placed it on the table, and stared directly at Gilbert.

"It's not worth it; it's killing the goose that lays the golden eggs."

Gilbert then handed a document to Chen Shuo.

It was the document that Chen Shuo had compiled that showed that James' departure from the Cavaliers was widely controversial, but his commercial value had increased by 30%, far exceeding the boost from the Miami basketball market.

"A year ago, you told me that controversy generates traffic."