God of NBA point guards

Chapter 496: NBA’s Four Years of Development Failed

On the 28th, Stern received the latest season ticket sales for each team.

He frowned. There were 29 teams in total. Only the Knicks, Lakers, and Bulls had completed 80% of their season ticket sales. Even the SuperSonics had only completed 60% of the sales. The sales of the other 25 teams were not good. In the end, The worse teams only completed 30%.

"Ugh!"

Seeing these data, he couldn't help but sigh deeply.

The next day, some data on season ticket sales were exposed by the media.

"The NBA has driven away its signature star, and now it is constantly tasting the consequences of its own sowing." New York Times.

"There are serious problems with NBA operations and bankruptcy is imminent!" New York TV Sports Channel.

"The NBA has fallen back to the fourth of the four major professional sports leagues in the United States and is now at the end of its rope." New York Sports News.

Ci La, with Stern's self-restraint, couldn't help but get angry and tear up these newspapers when he saw them.

Because the media that originally discredited Zhou Quan are the same media that are now mocking the NBA.

……

On the 30th, the new regular season is about to begin. Everyone at the SuperSonics is making preparations and is very busy.

General manager Whitsitt and other senior executives suddenly received a notice from boss Ballmer that David Stern will personally participate in the SuperSonics' new season opener tomorrow.

Since entering the NBA in 78 and becoming the league president in 84, Stern has never participated in any opening game. Suddenly he has to participate in the SuperSonics' opening game. What is the purpose? The SuperSonics executives don't even have to think about it. Know why.

Just because they know this, these senior executives are both happy and worried about the current situation of the alliance. They also hope that the Iron Fist King can return as soon as possible.

……

On October 10, the 31/97 NBA regular season kicked off.

That evening, Zhou Quan and Zeng Li drove out.

The old Center Arena has been demolished, and the new Seattle Center Arena was officially opened three months ago. It is luxuriously decorated and can accommodate up to 2 people. It is not only the home arena of the SuperSonics, but also the home of several Seattle sports teams. The team’s home stadium.

The stadium is jointly funded and built by the Seattle city government and Microsoft. The asset management rights still belong to the Seattle Sports Bureau under the city government, but Microsoft, as an investor, is the lifelong title sponsor. The full name of the stadium is the Seattle Microsoft Center Stadium.

He is not only here to watch the opening game tonight, but also to receive last season's championship ring.He knew that Stern was coming, Ballmer informed him.

"Di Di!"

"Beep beep!"

He drove a Ferrari sports car that he endorsed and was given as a gift by the manufacturer. Not many people in Seattle didn't know his license plate number. Along the way, people greeted him with loudspeakers. One after another, he lowered the window. Greet them with a smile.

"Iron Fist!"

"Iron Fist!"

Outside the Central Gymnasium, there was already a sea of ​​people. Seeing his car arriving, countless fans began to cheer.

The security personnel were well prepared and separated a lane of traffic with a barrier in advance and began to guide his car into the parking lot.

A group of team executives had been waiting in the parking lot for a long time. After Zhou Quan came off the field, he chatted with them and then, accompanied by them, visited the brand new stadium.

"Crack clap..."

Along the way, several media reporters who were allowed to follow kept pressing the shutter.

General Manager Whitsitt introduced the Sonics' situation. The lineup has changed drastically. Drexler and McMillan retired, Matt Geiger left after his contract expired, and Laettner was also traded away. Several Everyone on the margins has also left.

Of last season's important rotation, only four players including Rodman, Schrempf, Jose Hawkins, and Sam Perkins remain.

However, the team introduced All-Star forward Vin Baker to partner with Rodman in the paint, and also introduced All-Star swingman Darle Ellis to partner with Jose Hawkins in the backcourt. The lineup is still okay.

Zhou Quan came to the locker room first and was naturally given a standing welcome by everyone. He only stayed in the locker room for 2 minutes and did not disturb the team's preparations too much.

After leaving the locker room, Whithit said with a smile: "Iron Fist, we have received many sculpture submissions and would like to ask for your opinion. Do you want to take a look now?"

Zhou Quan smiled, waved his hand and said, "I can't interfere in this."

"You can rest assured that we will choose a sculpture with the most symbolic meaning." Whitcht promised.

Arriving at the stadium, Whitsitt pointed to a seat next to the home team's bench and said: "Iron Fist, this is an exclusive seat specially reserved for you. If you are not here, it will be empty."

"Thank you!"

Zhou Quan smiled and nodded.

At this time, a group of people came over. The leader was Ballmer, and next to him was David Stern. Zhou Quan took a few steps forward with a smile.

"Mr. Stern, I haven't seen you for a while. Are you okay?"

He saw that David Stern looked a little haggard. The president was not bad to him, so he asked with concern.

Stern was very helpless, don’t you know whether I am okay or not?

"Last week, the league has now carried out a series of anti-racial discrimination purges. From the teams to the headquarters, a total of more than 300 managers have been purged, including 37 executives and 68 referees. I hope you can see The league’s determination to fight racial discrimination and its sincerity towards you also hope that you can return to the league as soon as possible,” he said sincerely.

"I saw it, Mr. Stern. I'm glad you have such courage. I'm happy for the alliance, and I will seriously consider the possibility of returning to the alliance." Zhou Quan said with a smile.

David Stern felt a little regretful, but he already felt that his trip was worthwhile after receiving Zhou Quan's words. After all, Zhou Quan did not reject him directly.

Soon after, the stadium opened its gates and fans poured in from all entrances.

"Oh, it's King of Iron Fist!"

"Iron Fist!"

"Hello!"

Zhou Quan did not leave the stadium. The fans saw him as soon as they came in and cheered immediately. He also kept waving to them.

Within half an hour, the huge stadium was filled with fans.

David Stern was very happy to see the arena full. Unknown to other teams, at least the attendance of the SuperSonics' opener gave him a small sigh of relief.

Tonight's opponent is the Trail Blazers. At eight o'clock, both teams start the game, and then the championship rings are awarded. "King of Iron Fist!"

"Iron Fist!"

When Zhou Quan put on his fourth ring, the audience cheered.

……

On the afternoon of November 11, Stern returned to the New York headquarters and received the ratings and ticket status of the 1 opening games.

"Ugh!"

After comparing the data from last season, he couldn't help but sigh deeply and fell into a daze. The daze was followed by panic. After a while, a layer of fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

National ratings fell by 36%, and regional ratings fell by 21% overall. This is not the playoffs, let alone the finals, this is the regular season.

If this data is maintained, it means that the NBA league's ratings will return to three years ago, and the ratings increased by Iron Fist's influence will drop by [-]%.And this is just the beginning, it may continue to fall in the future.

This will bring about a series of problems, such as sponsors will run away, regional broadcasters will reduce the broadcast of the NBA and choose other sports events, the chairman of NBC will call him every day, and sales revenue from jerseys and other peripherals will be greatly reduced. , the ticket prices will drop again and again, but they still won’t be sold.

"How to do?"

He thought of getting Iron Fist King Zhou Quan back immediately, but that was simply impossible.

As the current No. 1, one of the greatest athletes on earth, he suffered racial discrimination from the referee in the finals watched by hundreds of millions of people. This was a huge humiliation for Zhou Quan. Since he chose to leave, how could he easily return?

Not to mention Stern's distress, Zhou Quan has received notice from Philip that Eddie Hearn and Frank Warren are willing to continue negotiations with them on a unification war.

"I have invited them to come to the United States for negotiations, and they agreed. This is a good sign." Philip said excitedly.

"Roger, what I'm after now is not money. I can give up some of my interests. The important thing is to get them to agree to a unified war." Zhou Quan said.

"I understand. Arum, Mr. Tangkin and I will try our best to ensure your interests." Philip said.

"That's best." Zhou Quan said.

Having said this, he asked curiously: "Roger, there has been no news about Tyson recently. Isn't he interested in a second fight?"

Philip smiled and said: "Some media in New York broke the news, saying that Don King and Tyson had a fierce argument in the hospital ward a few days ago, and then Don King left with injuries on his face."

"Tang Jin was beaten again? With Iron Man's temper, does Tang Jin want to cheat him out of his money?" Zhou Quan said amusedly.

"Zhou, Mr. Loudua contacted me recently. He said that Holyfield is interested in fighting you again." Philip said.

"I didn't agree on a second fight with him. He doesn't have a title, so I don't want to fight him again," Zhou Quan said.

"OK, I have rejected him." Philip said.

……

The new season of the NBA continues. Due to the sharp decline in ratings and sluggishness, operating income has also dropped sharply, and many sponsors have chosen to withdraw.

At the same time, labor negotiations are about to begin. The combination of many reasons has made the NBA league panicked and unable to see the future. Players' investment and attention to the game have declined, the quality of the game has declined, and the ratings have been affected. The league has fallen into a vicious cycle.

On November 11, Zhou Quan came to New York and checked into a hotel on Long Island.

He came to participate in the PGA Tour event held in Long Island, and he came alone. Zeng Li did not come and stayed in Seattle.

Exquisite Coffee has opened 95 stores and has begun preparations for listing. Although Zeng Li has not participated in the specific management of the company, as the boss and chairman, she still has to be at the headquarters at this critical time. There are many things that require her Make a decision.

There are a lot of golf courses on Long Island. There are several century-old golf courses that are very famous all over the world. They are ranked among the top ten golf courses in the world.

This PGA Tour event lasts for four days, with a total of 72 holes. There are 6000 holes per day, eight holes in the morning and eight holes in the afternoon. There are nearly 30 people participating this year. The scale is very large. The championship bonus is [-] US dollars.

The venue is Shinnecock Mountain Golf Club, ranked sixth in the world, as well as Bethpage National Park, ranked 52nd, and several other courses.

Except for one club that is not private, the other golf clubs on Long Island are all private membership clubs, but this is no obstacle to Zhou Quan. When Philip found a club, he was very welcome to come and train and said he would provide the best service.

He arrived at the stadium at around 9 a.m., met with the club's management, and allowed the media to take photos before he started training.

There are many people who train in this club, and they are all professional golfers who have signed up for the PGA Tour. Some golf stars who think they are a bit famous saw him and took the initiative to come over and say hello to him.

"Hey, Iron Fist King, I'm Woods, Tiger Woods, nice to meet you." A young black man ran over and shouted to him excitedly.

"Hello, lad."

Zhou Quan smiled and stretched out his hand.

Woods held his hand excitedly and said excitedly: "They all call me Tiger, and you can call me that too."

"Okay, I'll call you Tiger. How old are you? You look very young. How many years have you played professionally?" Zhou Quan smiled.

When Woods met Zhou Quan, he seemed really excited and shouted: "I am 22 years old. I started playing professionally last year. I won my first PGA Tour championship in Las Vegas last October. In April this year, Winning my second championship, the Masters Championship, this is my first four major championships.”

Zhou Quan said in surprise: "Good guy, Tiger, you are much better than me. You have won one of the four Grand Slam championships. I haven't tasted the taste of a championship yet."

"I will win more championships. I hope to achieve your great achievements in the NBA and professional boxing in golf and become the king of golf. I am very confident in myself." Woods said looking forward to it.

"Then I wish you can achieve your wish." Zhou Quan encouraged.

After four days of competition, Zhou Quan shot a good score, with a total score of 72 under par in 15 holes.

However, this result did not make it into the top five, ranking 6th, which is considered a good professional result.

Tiger Woods is two strokes ahead and doing very well.

Time quickly entered December. This month, Zhou Quan participated in two more rounds of the PGA Tour and achieved 12th and 7rd place respectively.

The number of exquisite coffee stores has reached 100, and the listing plan has been officially launched.

The year 1997 is over and time has entered 1998.

The new regular season of the NBA league has been going on for two months, and the ratings have returned to four years ago. The average national ratings of the 4 teams are only 29 million. The ratings that have been boosted by Zhou Quan's influence have basically dropped. Four years of development have come to nothing.

"Fortunately, we only gave a broadcast contract like the NBA, otherwise we would have lost money." NBC's CEO said at a public occasion.

On January 1, the first negotiation between the NBA's labor and management lasted for four hours and ended in a breakdown.

(End of this chapter)