Chapter 38 End of the Trade Deadline

The Pelicans returned to New Orleans after their game against the Thunder.

The trade deadline was just a day away, and team management across the league was busy with the trade market, with the Pelicans' management also continuing to seek reinforcements.

It was at this time that Fagan called Tang Tian to say that the additional clauses with Nike had been finalized.

Nike was very serious about him and would develop new shoes specifically for him, with his first generation of shoes to be released this summer.

After that, he could take a share of Nike's shoe sales, the exact amount depending on the sales volume.

But with Nike's level of investment and his current popularity, it would definitely be a valuable source of income.

Having just scored 50+ points, Tang Tian's days after his comeback were quite comfortable.

And it didn't end there. Just after he hung up the phone with Fagan, Demps called him again.

At this time, Tang Tian originally thought it was about a trade, but Demps said he had something more important to discuss.

Moreover, team owner Benson would also be there.

When he arrived at the meeting place, Tang Tian saw Benson and Demps.

But in addition to them, there was also team coach Williams, as well as two other photographers carrying professional equipment.

The scene was almost comparable to when he was recruited.

Tang Tian was really curious.

"Tang, we're planning to have you compete for this season's MVP."

Benson was the first to speak, and Tang Tian looked surprised when he said it.

He had thought about the scoring title, but the MVP required team performance, and with the Pelicans' current lineup and record, his chances of getting the MVP were slim.

He didn't know why Benson would suddenly say this.

"Your performance deserves the MVP, but we also know that it's very difficult for the Pelicans to become one of the top teams in the West, so we need to use some external forces to help you."

Demps then explained.

"A documentary."

After Demps finished speaking, he turned to look at the two photographers next to him.

"They used to work for the Lakers, filming some clips of Kobe on and off the court, which provided a great boost to his MVP campaign at the time."

Demps' next words opened a new world for Tang Tian.

Although he was a basketball godfather in his previous life, he couldn't know everything, like what Demps was talking about.

This might not be something a normal general manager could get involved in, because you had to have a deep enough understanding of the league's rules.

The MVP, although linked to things like record and performance, was ultimately voted on by media reporters.

So the essence of the matter was not simply comparing performance and record, but how to win the support of those media reporters.

That was the significance of the documentary.

The extra practice after the game, the sweating scenes, the ice packs after the game, even the 4 a.m. scenes, these were all part of the documentary.

Its purpose, or rather its reason for existence, was to create momentum.

A hardworking image, an image of playing through minor injuries, an image of being willing to give everything for a championship... and so on.

Once these images were out there, the media reporters would naturally have a higher impression of you.

After listening to all this, Tang Tian had a new understanding of the NBA. It seemed that many parts of being a coach and a player in this league were really different.

And he also remembered something.

The MVP wasn't necessarily tied to the record.

Didn't Westbrook win the MVP as the sixth seed in the regular season?

And if you went back to the ancient times, Moses Malone's record in the 81-82 season wasn't good, and even Kareem Abdul-Jabbar didn't make the playoffs in the 75-76 season!

Anything was possible, it wouldn't hurt to try.

Even if he failed, his popularity would increase a lot.

And there wasn't much he needed to do, because those things were already what he was doing.

The photographers were just presenting these things to the fans and the media.

Tang Tian agreed.

Seeing Tang Tian nod, Benson's kind face was full of smiles.

He hadn't owned the Pelicans for long, and the team's status in the league wasn't high.

Moreover, his friendship with the league had ended with Stern's retirement, and he could only rely on Tang Tian to develop the Pelicans.

After talking about business, Benson chatted with Tang Tian about Chinatown in a casual way.

As a businessman, he was very sensitive to this area.

But this idea coincided with Tang Tian's previous one.

"We can put up a Chinatown sign at the front of Chinatown, not only because it's a habit, but also because of the 'Tang' character."

Because of the Tang Dynasty's influence on the world, most Chinatowns are called "Tang Ren Jie" (Chinatown).

But as Benson said, the "Tang" character was the essence. They could put up more promotional posters of Tang Tian in Chinatown, even some sporting goods stores.

Making this Chinatown unique in the United States would attract a lot of tourists.

After talking with Benson, Tang Tian still admired the owner.

He had vision and really knew how to do business.

But this was also reasonable.

When Benson bought the NFL's Saints, they were only a third-rate team, but two years later they made the playoffs and won the Super Bowl in 2010.

The biggest reason for this transformation was probably the owner.

Vision, willingness to invest money, enough investment, all of these were inseparable.

They were also a small-city team, but this was in stark contrast to Holt and the Spurs' consortium.

The next day, the NBA's annual trade deadline arrived.

This year it was still all talk and no action, with Rondo, Cousins, and even Jamal Crawford ultimately staying with their teams.

The Spurs sent Nando de Colo to the Raptors for Austin Daye;

The Rockets sent Aaron Brooks to the Nuggets for Jordan Hamilton;

The Pacers sent Danny Granger and a future second-round pick to the 76ers for Evan Turner and Lavoy Allen.

...

Most of the deals were small-scale.

The biggest name was Granger, who was plagued by injuries and in poor form, being traded away.

The luxury tax pressure brought about by the new labor agreement continued to reduce the number of trades between teams.

It was at this time that the Pelicans finally made a trade.

The Pelicans, Heat, and Bobcats reached a three-way trade.

The Pelicans sent Brian Roberts and Stiemsma to get Norris Cole.

The Heat sent Norris Cole to get Gary Neal.

The Bobcats sent Gary Neal to get Brian Roberts and Stiemsma.

This was a three-team swap of backup point guards.

The Pelicans were looking for a better defensive point guard;

The Heat continued to collect former Spurs players after tasting success with Blair;

The Bobcats needed someone traditional point guard to help Walker, while also getting an expiring contract.

This was a three-way trade that met each team's needs.

It was interesting that after the Spurs won the Heat last year, Tang Tian said to Cole, who he had a good relationship with, "Come to my team next year."

At the time, he wanted Cole to come to the Spurs to avoid years of not winning a championship.

But unexpectedly, he went to the Pelicans in the blink of an eye, and Cole miraculously ended up on his team after all!

The relationship between the two that started with the Heat's tryout really continued like this!