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As soon as the rumors were announced, they immediately attracted widespread attention across the league. After the shock wore off, everyone realized that this possibility wasn't entirely out of the question.
After all, the Los Angeles Lakers are the strongest giants in the league, and their natural geographic advantage, combined with the fact that the team's owner has never hesitated to spend money, has made the Lakers extremely competitive over the last few decades, with superstars emerging time and time again.
Wang Chong wants to join a major city, and his family is currently in Los Angeles, so joining the Lakers is obviously the best option.
As for the current poor structure of the Lakers' roster, should that be a concern? It's not pleasant to say, but even if Wang Chong doesn't win a championship after that, it won't affect his standing as the greatest player in league history, and he can already start the retirement mode early.
Furthermore, there are lessons from the past with the Bulls and Cavaliers. Are there still people doubting Wang Chong's ability?
Whatever team he joins, that team can win the championship, and with him joining the Lakers, why can't they win the championship?
Additionally, Kobe Bryant will be returning from injury next season. Although Kobe will be 37 years old and has suffered a major Achilles tendon injury, his level of play is expected to have decreased significantly, it's still Kobe, and to his fans, it should still be no problem for him to score around 20 points per game.
Of course, this is actually an illusion from Kobe Bryant's fans.
Kobe, returning from injury, has dropped significantly in strength.
The 2015-16 season was Kobe's final season, and the Lakers gave him a farewell tour that year. Kobe only averaged 17.6 points per game in 66 games, still accumulating points at the cost of a 35.8% shooting percentage, with the Lakers achieving the worst record in their history at 17-65.
But at this point, not everyone is clear on this, and many people still eagerly anticipate Kobe's return from injury and the return of the King.
Once Wang Chong and Kobe Bryant team up again, the Lakers will once again be the top favorites to win the championship.
And this matter was only confirmed a few days later.
On July 1st, the first day of free agency, the Lakers began selling off a large number of players, including star Chris Bosh, who was also placed on the trade block.
Although he will turn 31 next season, Bosh is still an All-Star caliber power forward, having averaged 21 points and 8 rebounds per game with the Lakers in the season just ended. His trade value is still quite good, and many teams are interested in him and have made offers to the Lakers.
The Lakers' extremely abnormal behavior was naturally connected to the earlier news.
Wang Chong really can join the Lakers, so the Lakers are unloading players at all costs to free up salary cap space. After all, if Wang Chong wants to join the Lakers, his starting salary will be at least $25 million.
The Lakers currently have Kobe Bryant and Bosh, both with salaries of over $20 million, and the salary cap space is a bit tight.
But still, no one expected the Lakers to be so determined to acquire Wang Chong.
On July 3rd, just three days after free agency opened, the Lakers successfully traded Chris Bosh.
It was the Golden State Warriors who made a deal with the Lakers.
The deal details were that the Los Angeles Lakers sent Chris Bosh, recently acquired D'Angelo Russell, and the Warriors' 1st round pick for Klay Thompson.
It was a three-for-one deal!
If Bosh and Thompson were swapped, the Warriors might have suffered a slight loss, even though Bosh is an All-Star power forward averaging 21+8 per game. Thompson, however, has emerged as a key player for the Warriors, especially without Curry, with Thompson contributing 24 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists per game in the regular season and being the team's absolute core.
Considering the age difference between Bosh and Thompson, Thompson is definitely the more valuable player.
However, with Russell also included in the deal, it becomes a different story.
As one of the top three rookies in the draft, Russell's potential is highly optimistic, and he is definitely expected to become an All-Star or even a superstar in the future.
In the two-for-one situation, the scales clearly tip in the Lakers' favor, and when the deal also includes the Lakers' first-round pick next year, it's safe to say that this trade could be considered a poor management move, even if questioned.
Lakers fans also had many complaints about giving away the team's half-sale, half-gift players, but anyone with an eye for talent can see that the Lakers are clearing salary cap space.
Bosh's salary is $22 million, Thompson's rookie contract ends this summer, and the deal with the Lakers is signed first, then traded, with an initial salary of just $15.5 million, under the maximum salary for a new contract.
Combined with Russell's rookie contract with a starting salary of $5 million, this deal alone frees up $11.5 million in salary space for the Lakers.
This is also possible because the Warriors have a lot of salary cap space, and even with the huge salary difference, they can match the trade.
Of course, this trade was suggested by Wang Chong, but even Wang Chong himself couldn't resist when he proposed the deal.
It's a bit ruthless towards the Warriors.
First, they quietly targeted Curry and Draymond Green, and now they're taking Thompson, especially knowing that Bosh only has one season left in his career and is being used as trade bait to the Warriors—this is truly a bit inappropriate.
However, this trade also includes Russell and a first-round pick, which could be seen as a minor compensation for Wang Chong.
Getting Thompson was just the first step in the Lakers' offseason moves.
Next, the Lakers signed free agent Draymond Green for three years, $18 million.
After spending three years with the Bulls, Green became a free agent but was cut by the Bulls.
Although Green was a player selected by Wang Chong that year, the entire Bulls team couldn't see his value except for his defense.
Originally, if there were no offers from other teams, the Bulls planned to keep him as the team's bench player for 3 years and $9 million.
Facing the Lakers' offer of $18 million for three years, averaging $6 million per year, the Bulls hesitated for a moment before decisively letting him go.
Even though they knew Green was likely to be selected by Wang Chong, the Lakers could actually create a performance that would regretfully shine.
But for this possibility, it was impossible for the Bulls to match the Lakers' offer of $18 million for three years.
After securing Green, the Lakers used their 2018 first-round pick to trade for Nikola Jokic's signing rights from the Denver Nuggets.
In last year's draft, after the Nuggets selected Jokic, they didn't sign him, citing concerns about his weight. He then spent another year in European League play and successfully lost weight.
Initially, Jokic was supposed to sign a three-year rookie contract with the team, and in his first season, he averaged 10 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 assists, quickly becoming the Nuggets' star. He would go on to win three MVPs, lead the Nuggets to a championship, and become the most successful second-round pick in NBA history.
But the Nuggets clearly didn't know Jokic's value at this time. When the Lakers called and expressed their willingness to trade for Jokic using a first-round pick, the management didn't hesitate and simply accepted the trade.
At this point, all the players Wang Chong needed were in place, so on July 7th, the Lakers officially announced they would sign Wang Chong for 2 years, $50 million, and Wang Chong would wear the purple and gold Lakers jersey to compete in the new season.
The Lakers' lineup with Wang Chong consists, of course, of the core players: him, Thompson, and Jokic.
In terms of combat strength, the Lakers are actually much weaker than the Cavaliers.
Jokic will take time to develop, and it will take at least two or three years before he can truly become an effective player.
Green's situation is special. Considering the Bulls wasted several seasons, if Green can show enough effectiveness as soon as he joins the Lakers, Wang Chong isn't sure.
Additionally, the Lakers also have Kobe Bryant, with a salary of $25 million annually, which is basically a negative force on the court.
Considering these aspects, Wang Chong doesn't expect to lead the team to win the championship immediately in his first year with the Lakers, and he may develop a bit during one or two years.
Now Wang Chong isn't in any rush.
After completing the final mission of the system, his professional life has been greatly extended, and he estimates it can't be worse than James.
At 39 years old, James still averages 25 + 7 + 8 per game, and the amount of time he's maintained his competitive state is truly unique in NBA history.
Although the price of these stats is that James has almost given up on defense, and due to various defensive lapses, his defense is incompletely exposed.
But the undeniable fact is that other players of James' age can't surpass his statistics unless they also defend.
James has many blemishes in his career, and many of his actions are not looked kindly upon by Wang Chong, but his strict self-discipline and body management really can't be criticized.
Who could have imagined before that a player who is almost 40 years old can still run up and down the court and outrun everyone else in a fast break? Who would have thought that an old man nearly 40 can still dunk on the court?
Even if Wang Chong uses James as a reference, at his current age of 31, he still has at least 5 to 8 years of peak potential, and by 40, he'll have 9 seasons.
In those 9 seasons, even if it's just a casual mess, he'll win more than 11 championships before retiring, surpassing Beal. It won't be hard for Russell to become the most successful player in NBA history.
Therefore, Wang Chong doesn't need to rush at all.
Additionally, with the Lakers' current pieces, assembling the current lineup isn't easy, and it's unrealistic to expect the Lakers management to trade these leftovers for a top-tier player like Davis from the Pelicans to help Wang Chong win a championship, right?
The news that Wang Chong joined the Lakers, although already known due to paparazzi revelations, still shocked the entire league when the Lakers officially announced it.
Wang Chong's return to the Lakers will undoubtedly pull the Lakers, who have been sinking for two years, out of their predicament and make them the biggest favorites in the league to win the championship again.
Wang Chong teaming up with Kobe Bryant also made many Lakers fans shout for joy.
In the summer of 2003, Wang Chong, as a rookie, was traded to the team by the Lakers, and teamed up with the OK combo to win the NBA championship in the 03-04 season, earning his first championship ring.
From that moment on, Wang Chong's magnificent career officially began.
Twelve years have passed in the blink of an eye.
Today, Wang Chong has won eight championships and is the undisputed strongest man in NBA history.
"Welcome home!"
This is the slogan most shouted by Los Angeles Lakers fans after hearing that Wang Chong is back with the Lakers.
In the summer of 2005, Wang Chong decided to leave the team and was traded to the Bulls by the Lakers. This year marks exactly 2015, and Wang Chong left the Lakers for a full decade.
After other teams learned that Wang Chong joined the Lakers, they were initially extremely disappointed, lamenting the loss of the chance to sign Wang Chong. However, their mood soon shifted to a burst of happiness.
The current Lakers lineup doesn't seem like a championship contender. The lineup is so bad that they finally have the opportunity to compete for the championship... Does this sound familiar? Didn't everyone say the same thing when Wang Chong joined the Cavaliers?
No, although the Cavaliers weren't favorites at that time, they had an Irving who had already played, but what do the Lakers have now? An aging Kobe Bryant who is destined to become a burden, a Thompson who can only shoot and has mediocre skills, and the team currently lacks a strong interior line—what can they win the championship with?
The front pages for several days were all reports related to Wang Chong joining the Lakers, showing his immense influence and popularity.
But this summer, Wang Chong is not alone in the big-name free-agent market.
In addition to him, several superstars are also about to become free agents.
Among them, James from the Heat naturally took the biggest hit.
Like Wang Chong, James signed a 1+1 contract with the Heat last year, and after the free agency market opened, James opted to leave the contract for the first time.
And he has no intention of staying with the Heat, as he has no hope of competing for the championship there.
In fact, James had already chosen a house that he thought was perfect, and after discussions, the other party was equally interested.
On July 12th, five days after Wang Chong announced his decision to join the Lakers, James made his own decision: he wanted to bring his talent to the Windy City and join the Chicago Bulls!
Once this news was announced, the sensation was even greater than Wang Chong joining the Lakers.
The Bulls themselves were the second-best team last season after the Cavaliers, and they were the only team that won two games ahead of the Cavaliers in the playoffs, being recognized as the best team behind the Cavaliers with Wang Chong.
Now they have another James, which is like a tiger with wings, and the combination of James and Curry will undoubtedly become the biggest favorite to win the championship in the new season.
But what will Butler do if James joins the Bulls?
The summer of 2015 was Butler's contract year, and Butler, who averaged 20+ points per game that season, was already an up-and-coming star, so it would be a shame to part with him like this.
But there's no way, the Bulls have limited salary cap space, and now there are two higher-paid players in Curry and Gasol Jr. They can only keep one of James or Butler.
The Bulls are not the Warriors who signed Durant in 2016, and Curry's salary is no longer a rookie deal.
Therefore, after James's decision was confirmed, Butler's situation became even more difficult.
Butler wants to stay, but if the team can't keep him, he can only look to free agency.
End of this chapter
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