"There's some truth to that."
While the star players of the United States were not particularly interested in participating in international competitions, they still paid great attention to public relations. Those unpatriotic stars appeared carefree, but in reality, public opinion was very unfavorable to them, and such players often could not maintain their professional careers for long.
For stars like James and Paul, they naturally did not want to incur negative consequences.
Anthony suddenly chimed in, "I say, this isn't necessarily a bad thing."
"What?"
The three of them looked at Anthony simultaneously.
"Macau is the most famous gambling city in Asia, on par with Las Vegas. While you won't enjoy Spanish beaches, let me tell you, Macau is a paradise for men."
Anthony winked, with an expression that implied, "We're all men, you should understand."
James and Wade immediately understood, and they joined Anthony in his amusement.
Paul was confused.
Why were these guys so happy? He had been to Las Vegas too, why wasn't he as happy as these three?
Anthony patted Paul on the shoulder, "Young brother, it's okay if you don't understand now. You'll know when you get to Macau."
Paul felt like these three were going to trick him, so he quickly changed the subject, "Dwight, how's your trade to the Cavaliers going?"
Anthony immediately turned to Wade, "Fuck? Are you really going?"
Wade nodded, "The Cavaliers are working on it, but it requires a four-way or even five-way trade, so progress is slow."
After speaking, Wade looked at James.
"Looking at me is no use. I don't know about management matters. At most, I can hurry them up for you."
"Thanks a lot, this summer's trade market is going to be chaotic."
Anthony couldn't help but complain.
It was foreseeable that the league's transfers this summer would be very lively. After four-way and five-way trades began, other teams would inevitably make moves in their acquisitions, and wealthy teams would definitely wave their checkbooks.
Anthony suddenly felt a sense of urgency.
Everyone was strengthening their rosters. If the Nuggets were still dreaming about last season, they might not even make the playoffs this season.
"I'm not thinking about these things right now. I'm thinking about the players' union. The union is planning to negotiate with the league about player contract lengths. What do you guys think?"
Anthony was stunned for a moment, the topic changed so quickly?
But they were also quite concerned about this player contract issue. After all, the longest contracts for players now were basically 7 years or even longer. If a player who had just emerged signed a 7-year contract, it would be obviously disadvantageous to the player, as a player's prime years were only about ten years. Signing for ten years at once, if they played well, they would lose tens of millions at least.
Players cared about this, especially stars like them. If they signed for five years, it would be difficult to get a big contract when they got older.
"I'm just afraid the owners won't agree."
James sighed. He knew the nature of these owners too well.
Even though Gilbert was now treating him as the star player, giving him many privileges, and even consulting him on player transfers, if there was a better replacement, the owner would unhesitatingly kick him out.
League players naturally stood on the players' side. In countries like the West, the reason why "scabs" rarely appeared was not only because of unions, but also because "scabs" were very ostracized.
"Of course the owners won't agree," Wade followed up. "The key is to unite the players. Besides the players from the United States, the foreign players who come to play in the league should also unite."
As soon as Wade finished speaking, the three of them looked at James uniformly.
"What are you all looking at me for? Of course, I agree."
"Nonsense, you would definitely agree," Wade said irritably. "We're talking about Tang. He's so popular in the league, and he has the powerful market of China behind him. This negotiation should at least get players like them to stand on the same front as us."
James looked at them in confusion, "Tang wouldn't be a traitor, would he?"
"We don't think so either, but don't forget, Tang has endorsements and investments everywhere. His net worth is almost catching up to your owner's. It's not impossible for him to stand on the same side as the capitalists. So, you still need to communicate with Tang on this."
"Okay, I'll talk to Tang later."
...
"The General Administration attaches great importance to this Stankovic Cup, so everyone must participate. This is also a big rehearsal before the competition, which can allow all players to integrate better."
Guo Qiang found Jonas, first to express the General Administration's intentions, and also to discuss the candidate list for this competition with Jonas.
Originally, they did not plan to let Tang Long and Yao Ming be regular starters, especially Tang Long. The finals had just ended not long ago, and he had less than a month to practice with the team. Guo Qiang was unsure about rushing things.
But now that they had to achieve results and train at the same time, the pressure increased significantly.
"I disagree with this."
Jonas jumped up immediately.
If it were just a friendly match to keep the teammates excited, Jonas wouldn't have such a big reaction. But to train and achieve results at the same time meant that training and arrangements would have to revolve around the cup competition during this period.
After the cup competition, the players would need to rest, and then there would be tactical training. The Olympic results would not be guaranteed.
Moreover, the physical condition of several main players could not keep up. Yao Ming had played a season's worth of games and returned to training with little rest. Coupled with the continuous high-intensity workload, his huge body was prone to injury risks. If he got injured in such a non-essential game, then the Olympics would be out of the question.
It was fortunate that Tang Long appeared, otherwise Yao Ming's career might have ended in 2011 due to these reasons.
At that time, after Yao Ming was injured, the doctor expected a year of recovery. However, he was recalled to the national team within a few months of the surgery.
The prolonged workload and weight gain directly shortened Yao Ming's career.
Therefore, when Jonas heard Guo Qiang say this, he immediately refused Guo Qiang.
"Jonas, I know the players need rest, but this is China, and you need to adapt to local customs," Guo Qiang said earnestly. "With Yao Ming and Tang Long here, the results are guaranteed, not to mention the viewership ratings. The General Administration also wants more people to pay attention to basketball and win more honors so that basketball can attract more spectators. You need to understand."
"I..."
Jonas's eyes widened. Although he didn't say it, his mouth movements revealed it... I understand your ass, why don't you understand me.