You are the pearl, Mo Mengchen

Chapter 491 The Shy Big Shot
In the middle of March, most teams have completed half of the schedule.

The Pistons' record is far ahead.

Since the beginning of the season, they have only lost two games, with a record of 22 wins and 2 losses. The two teams that beat them are the Pacers and the Celtics.

In the game against the Celtics, Duncan showed great power and scored 34+20+10+8 blocks. In addition, Rick Pitino's full-court pressing strategy was successfully implemented, and the Pistons were caught off guard. Lost the game by double digits.

In that game, they lost relatively happily, because the Celtics were well prepared and suppressed the Pistons, and the loss was reasonable.

The end of one winning streak marks the beginning of another.

Today, the Pistons have won seven consecutive victories.

Portland is the largest city in Oregon and the second largest city in the Pacific Northwest of the United States after Seattle.

This is the base camp of the Trail Blazers.

The Blazers this season have extraordinary ambitions. In order to become a championship-competitive team, the management took drastic measures. First, they made a three-party deal that shocked the league last summer and harvested Chris Webber in one fell swoop.

After the lockout ended, they traded for Sprewell, who almost strangled Carlesimo last season.

In this way, the Trident to hit the championship has been formed.

Webb, Sabonis, Sprewell.The problem is, Sabonis is a good guy. Webber has been in his six-year career so far, and he can only be regarded as a talented and problematic player. As for Sprewell, a person who dares to lock the head coach, how can he be good?
The Blazers played and honed in as they played. In the first ten games, they played a 50% winning rate, which did not match their own luxurious configuration.

The team owner Paul Allen saw that this was not good, so he invited Webb and Sprewell to the party overnight to show his sincerity.

That night, Allen informed the two that they would renew their contracts at the end of the season.

You know, even with the current lineup of the Blazers, their total salary has reached 5300 million.

What concept is this?
The salary cap for this season is 3000 million, they are far beyond this line, and the luxury tax is only 3400 million, and they exceed the tax by nearly 2000 million.

Therefore, Allen not only has to pay a huge salary, but also has to pay almost as much luxury tax in a ratio of 1 to 1-how much tax is paid.

In other words, maintaining this lineup is equivalent to paying 7000 million US dollars.

If Webber, Sprewell and others are still to be renewed at a high price at the market price, starting from next season, the Blazers will be a veritable [-] million team.

But that's what Paul Allen is, rich and headstrong.

After that meeting, the Blazers opened up the two lines of Ren and Governor, won 19 consecutive victories, and currently rank first in the Western Conference with a record of 5 wins and [-] losses.

This is the battle for the top spot in the East and West.

It can also be said that since that meeting, they have not lost a game, and they have begun to show the momentum of the strongest team in the West.

The Jazz, who got off to a strong start earlier, lost their form in a number of back-to-back games.

The Pistons walked out of the airport, interviewed by the live media, and then went to the hotel.

After a while, Mo Mengchen and Hill received the news.

Trail Blazers owner Paul Allen invited them to lunch.

"Do you know him?" Hill asked.

"There is no intersection." Mo Mengchen couldn't understand this invitation at all.

Hill smiled freely: "Let's accept it, it's not a big deal anyway."

Does Mo Mengchen know that Hill is optimistic?Or optimistic?Or optimistic?Paul Allen who is that?The top rich man in the world; a genius who scored 1600 points in the SAT after graduating from high school; dropped out of college for two years and co-founded Microsoft with his younger brother Bill Gates; Gates' lifelong think tank; one of the shareholders of DreamWorks; a large number of charitable funds patron of the meeting.

How can it be "no big deal" when such a character invites them to lunch?
However, it was precisely because Alan was an unusual person that Mo Mengchen and Hill needed to attend the banquet.

Valencia
There are famous restaurants in Portland, but they are not under the name of Paul Allen, but Allen likes to eat here.

"You two are more punctual than I thought." Allen smiled lightly.

It seems that in his eyes, the players are not very punctual?

Maybe, maybe because his players didn't understand how good their boss was, so they snubbed him?If you think about it, that's impossible.

"Please sit down, here you can order food from anywhere, and they can cook it." Allen hoped that he would look more natural.

Hill and Mo Mengchen wouldn't believe it, and Alan sitting in front of them was a little nervous.

This one of the most successful people in the world actually appeared like a fan in front of two sports stars.

Mo Mengchen looked at the menu and glanced at Paul Allen from time to time. Could it be because of PS?Allen's skin looked different from the posters that were everywhere on Portland Road.

"Sir, this is the best restaurant I've ever seen in America, but you invited the two of us just for that?"

Some things are better explained in advance.

Allen suddenly calmed down, and smiled freely: "I am a pure basketball fan, and I like your game, so when you came to Portland, I finally had the opportunity to call you here for a private meeting." conversation."

Private?

Hill ordered, completely unaware that there was something in Alan's words.

"How private?" Mo Mengchen asked.

Hill looked up, too, wondering what the legend was about to say.

"Recruiting the two of you." Allen said in surprise, "Is it private enough?"

Hill didn't speak, and Mo Mengchen replied: "If Mr. President finds out about this, he will be happy to take away several million fines from you."

"The lion doesn't care if someone takes a mane from him, it only cares about what it wants." Alan let go and said, "No matter how much money you two want, I can satisfy you, please believe me. "

It's too direct.

Can money really do whatever it wants?In most cases yes.

Mo Mengchen and Hill looked at each other.

"It's probably not about the money," Hill said.

"My management told me that all the players are looking for money, so I think the success rate of this recruitment is very high." Allen was a little carried away.

After this conversation, Mo Mengchen found that Alan was not much different from the ordinary people we know.

The difference between him and ordinary people is that he has the free thoughts of ordinary people, but unlike ordinary people who can only think, he has enough financial resources to get everything he wants.

The dishes are here.

As strict as Mo Mengchen, it is difficult to find fault with the chef of this restaurant, who is indeed the world's top culinary skill.

"Sir, the season is continuing. I don't have any thoughts on this matter. Your conversation with us is also against the rules. So, why don't we change the subject?" Hill said with a smile.

Allen's main target was Hill, and Mo Mengchen didn't know why he wanted to target Hill.

Is there any reason?Hill's contract doesn't expire until the next year, isn't it too early to recruit?

Wait a minute. Maybe not the year after?

Mo Mengchen thought of player options.

"Well, I just want to let you know that as long as you are willing, I can sign you no matter how much money you pay." Allen, like those who got rich suddenly, really thought that money could solve all problems.

He put down the tableware after eating half of it: "Recently, my appetite has been getting worse.. I used to be able to eat two plates in one go."

After all, he coughed continuously.

"Sorry." He said sheepishly.

Suspected skin lesions, cough, poor appetite.
Combining these symptoms, and thinking of the non-Hodgkin's lymphoma that Allen suffered from in the 80s—Mo Mengchen suddenly said, "Sir, have you been to the hospital for a check-up recently?"

Hearing this, Allen looked at Mo Mengchen sharply: "I did."

Mo Mengchen asked: "Did you find anything?"

Allen smiled and said, "It's the same as you think."

"It seems that you discovered it in time." Mo Mengchen said.

Otherwise, they should be preparing for the funeral now, instead of recruiting him and Hill in idleness.

"What are you talking about?" Hill was dumbfounded.

Allen said with a smile: "I have been seriously ill recently, and Ethan can see it."

Mo Mengchen remembered that Alan controlled his disease in the 80s, which was a miracle. The recurrence rate of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma was very low, and a character like him had a high reexamination rate. It will not develop to the point of being out of control.

However, getting such a disease at that time was like walking through hell.

"How does it feel to recover from a serious illness?" Mo Mengchen asked.

Allen laughed and said, "I'm free now."

He's rich (28% of Microsoft).And, through this illness, he knew that life is short.

He was a shy Seattle teenager, but now that he's free, he decides to wander off in search of his love.For example, he built the largest toy collection in the world at that time; for example, he bought a bunch of his favorite old World War II fighter jets (real guys, not models); he collected guitars and records, and he donated them to the University of Washington in Seattle. $1800 million to build the library.As for his various charitable foundations, there are countless.

Allen talked about the illness and how he felt: "Since then, this event has become the most important tool I use to motivate myself to make major life decisions."

By the end of lunch, Hill still had no idea what they were talking about.

Before parting, Allen said: "I will go to the scene tonight, I can't wait."

Mo Mengchen and Hill had no choice but to express on the spot that they would go all out tonight to try to live up to his expectations and blow up the Trail Blazers from the inside out.

Wait, is this really what he expected?

(End of this chapter)