The discussion about Germany's accusations of dirty play by China's Dragon Country escalated after the game.
However, the sentiments were polarized domestically and internationally. Domestic fans naturally all supported Du Feng.
Kaman was clearly guilty of intentional fouls, and it was a miscarriage of justice that the referee didn't penalize him; everyone was condemning the referee for inaction.
International fans, especially those from Germany, were also extremely dissatisfied with the referee's calls. Du Feng clearly went for the player, yet the referee penalized both Kaman and him, which they also considered unfair!
Fans from both sides exchanged insults remotely, and various online personalities went wild with their opinions. Just as the heated arguments were reaching a fever pitch, a blog post by a freelance journalist suddenly appeared, completely overshadowing the public spat between the players.
Tang Long was dissatisfied with the Cavaliers' transfer progress and was considering defecting to the Lakers to form a new Big Three with Kobe and Gasol!
This news sent shockwaves through everyone.
Normally, such reports appeared from time to time, and people wouldn't take them seriously.
But this time, the leak came from an ESPN sports reporter who had accurately predicted several previous transfers, thus earning him a degree of credibility in the transfer market.
Gilbert immediately called Tang Long to ensure he hadn't contacted the Lakers, and only then did he slightly relax.
Next was James. After the United States defeated Spain, he rushed to find Tang Long early the next morning.
"Tang, are you really going to the Lakers? To team up with Kobe?"
"What's all this nonsense? Why is everyone saying I'm transferring to the Lakers?"
Tang Long claimed he had no idea why a reporter would write such a story.
The reporter, named Moric, had sworn on his journalistic integrity that Tang Long would transfer to the Lakers that summer.
If his scoop turned out to be inaccurate, he would publicly kiss a donkey's backside on air.
Tang Long didn't understand why these Americans were so fixated on donkeys' rear ends, but these inexplicable transfer rumors genuinely infuriated him.
Even though Tang Long stated it was just hearsay, James still looked at him suspiciously.
This season, the Lakers, in addition to Kobe, had Gasol and Odom.
With Bynum's return next season, the Lakers would be a formidable force. Add Tang Long, and they would dominate the NBA, a prospect too tempting for any player to ignore.
Playing basketball was ultimately for glory and high salaries, both of which would be readily available by transferring to the Lakers.
It was understandable that James couldn't quite make up his mind. He looked at Tang Long with a mixture of belief and doubt, "Really, there's nothing?"
"Absolutely nothing!"
"It must be Kobe," James said indignantly. "That guy has wanted you to go to the Lakers for a long time. I can't believe he's stooping to such low tactics now."
"I doubt it has anything to do with Kobe," Tang Long shook his head. "Perhaps this reporter just wants to grab attention and stir up a big fuss. I believe the team will address this."
"I'll have Gilbert hold a press conference to clarify things right away."
In fact, Gilbert didn't need James's reminder. After seeing the blog post, many Cleveland fans spontaneously went to the training facility to seek clarification from Gilbert and even Mike Brown. Many fans also held up banners supporting Tang Long.
Gilbert took this opportunity to invite a few reporters to hold a press conference, stating that the blog content was fake news and that the Cavaliers had already demanded the blogger remove it.
Simultaneously, in front of the fans and media, Gilbert showcased the team's future ambitions, vowing to bring Wade back to Cleveland next season.
This was the first official announcement of the team's target for offseason acquisitions this season.
The move was a bit audacious and would likely make the Heat owner demand an exorbitant price.
However, to appease the fans' emotions, Gilbert was willing to go all out!
Furthermore, he wanted to use this opportunity to express the team's ambition to Tang Long, showing they wouldn't rest on their laurels after winning this season's championship.
The fans were quite satisfied with Gilbert's press conference, seemingly putting an end to the matter.
But on the day of the Dragon Country versus Greece game, a reporter broke the news that Lakers owner Jeanie Buss was heading to Dragon Country, accompanied by executives from Adidas. The brand was apparently planning to support the Lakers in signing Tang Long!
Typically, for such deals, international brands like Adidas and Nike would contribute to the transfer, for example, if Tang Long were to join the Lakers, the brands would cover part of the transfer fee and salary, sometimes up to half.
The news that had just been quelled flared up again. This time, not only Gilbert was restless, but even Nike was getting a bit antsy.
As arch-rivals, both brands had numerous star endorsers and were constantly competing, each vying to encroach on the other's market share.
Currently, the hottest topics in the sports world were the Olympics and Tang Long. If Tang Long could lead his team to an Olympic gold medal, then this summer would undoubtedly belong to him!
Nike approached Gilbert, offering to sign Tang Long to a Nike endorsement deal if he stayed in Cleveland. Not only would they offer Tang Long a new max contract, but Nike would also sponsor half of it!
The two parties struck a deal and boarded a plane to Dragon Country.
Upon hearing this news, Old Wu of Red Star Erke couldn't sit still either.
Red Star Erke was currently on a strong upward trajectory, with other domestic brands struggling to keep up, and their market share abroad was also increasing. If Nike were to intervene now, their momentum might well be halted.
At this juncture, Old Wu also planned to re-sign Tang Long to an endorsement contract.
Thus, a rare scene unfolded.
Representatives from major sports brands were present in the audience of the game, along with those from luxury goods and many other big brands, all heading to Dragon Country.
"On such a hot day, you still want to watch some damn basketball? What's so good about it... Who are you? No, I won't sign. Have some manners, don't you know you're disturbing others?"
At the stadium entrance, Yang Anbi impatiently shooed away a fan, complaining to her agent.
"I just got wind that many big brands are coming to watch the game today. Don't you always want endorsements from brands like Bulgari and Chanel? This is an opportunity."
"Are you serious?"
Yang Anbi's eyes lit up.
She was now considered a second-tier celebrity in China. Although she didn't have any standout works, her fame was considerable.
The way they competed in this industry was a bit different. Only fans compared works; among themselves, they compared whose brand endorsements they had secured and which major directors they had worked with.
Yang Anbi also knew some major directors, but she lacked top-tier luxury brand endorsements.
She had been mocked by first and second-tier stars for this reason and had been holding back a lot of resentment. So, upon hearing that she could meet many big brand merchants today, her impatient expression immediately changed.
To be honest, her acting skills in this instance were far superior to those in her few acting roles!