Chapter 94: When The Storm Finally Arrives
Xu Ling hung up the phone and remained silent for a long time.
At this time, the Grizzlies and Cavaliers game was about to begin, but he still couldn’t play tonight and could only watch from the sidelines as LeBron James dominated FedEx Forum.
Roderick Craig noticed his change and asked, “Eli, whose call was it?”
“LOGO Man’s call,” Xu Ling said. “He told me the trade was done.”
Trade
Craig was just about to ask what trade it was when he suddenly realized: “Rudy Gay is out?”
“And Pau, he’s leaving too,” Xu Ling said. “Possibly others, a lot of people are leaving.”
Suddenly, Xu Ling remembered a parody animation he had seen in his previous life, an NBA version of 《Game of Thrones》, which had an episode about the 18 Cavaliers, where LeBron James manipulated the trade in the darkness and blew up the Cavaliers team that was no longer worth leading, corresponding to the real-life story where the Cavaliers cleared out all the players led by Isaiah Thomas on the trade deadline.
As you know, LeBron James turned on Thanos mode in the subsequent playoffs, leaving only pure instinct like in the famous 《acting everything nothing》 series.
Xu Ling had never thought that after one minor injury, the team would change so drastically.
But this was definitely a necessary change.
It was just that he had just gotten familiar with his teammates, and not long ago he had exchanged Christmas gifts with Gasol, and now they all had to leave, which gave him a sense of loss.
Craig noticed Xu Ling’s unusual mood and knew how to untie this brother’s knot.
“Think positively, Eli. Although you have to say goodbye to Pau and the others, at least we’ve gotten rid of Rudy fucking clown Gay—this is absolutely a huge blessing!”
The effect of these words was immediate; Xu Ling instantly felt much better.
Moreover, it had a sense of déjà vu like history buffs joking about Li Shimin—um, Li Er might regret the final outcome with his eldest brother, but thinking about how he conveniently killed Li Yuanji in the process made him happy all over.
That was exactly how Xu Ling felt now.
Afterward, Xu Ling just watched the game boredly and had Craig keep an eye on outside news at all times.
At such a time, Xu Ling’s gaze inevitably fell on LeBron James.
After all, the opponent was the most noteworthy player on this court.
At that moment, after shooting practice, LeBron James habitually took off his long-sleeved warm-up jacket.
Henry, the little ball boy at the Grizzlies home court, had a flush of excitement on his face from being close to a superstar and trotted forward, devoutly extending both hands to catch it.
LeBron James’s gaze was following a camera on the sidelines doing a close-up on him. He saw the ball boy and then casually flung his arm in an extremely lazy, even performative posture—the warm-up jacket didn’t slip off his hand but traced a contemptuous arc, precisely avoiding Henry’s waiting little hands, and landed on the shiny floor in front of his feet almost like an act of charity.
The excitement on Henry’s face instantly froze, replaced by bewildered embarrassment.
He instinctively looked up at LeBron James, lips slightly parted as if he wanted to say something.
But LeBron James had already turned around, his back to him, as if he had just completed an insignificant routine. He didn’t even use the corner of his eye to check if the clothes were caught, just like brushing off a speck of dust.
Then, an even more uncomfortable scene happened.
LeBron James seemed to only then remember he had extra clothing on; while chatting and laughing with a passing teammate, he casually tossed his arm sleeve, then another training uniform, in completely the same careless manner, one after another in different directions nearby—he didn’t even look back or specify a target, like a king casually tossing coins.
Little ball boy Henry, like a puppet controlled by invisible strings, could only frantically bend down again and again to pick up those clothes stained with the superstar’s sweat from the floor.
Little Henry’s face no longer showed any excitement, only a numb service instinct.
Xu Ling saw the whole scene clearly.
He believed similar scenes played out every NBA home game day.
Athletes are mostly extreme egomaniacs—especially these million-dollar, billion-dollar princes. They might maintain a perfect image in public, but once no need to pretend, they easily reveal their true faces: they don’t really care about the feelings of low-level staff. Verbal politeness is the limit; the game is the only thing they truly value.
If you scrutinize a person with a moral magnifying glass, you can always easily find countless “death-deserving” flaws.
Xu Ling felt displeased not just because of LeBron James’s actions earlier, but more because that condescending posture easily pried open a not-so-distant memory of his.
That was at the NBA draft, in the negotiation scene with major sports brands. In the confrontation with Nike, many things happened. Xu Ling especially remembered that person: Maverick Carter, LeBron’s good brother. He represented Nike and also LeBron at the negotiation table, trying to use this dual identity to force Xu to accept an endorsement contract far below market price.
Carter’s attitude back then, that suggestive rhetoric of “LeBron sees you as a friend, don’t you want to be at the same company as your friends? Don’t you want to disappoint your friend?” completely enraged Xu Ling. That taken-for-granted, undisguised arrogance and contempt still churned in his heart to this day.
At this moment, sitting in the stands, Xu Ling found LeBron James’s demeanor identical to Carter’s back then.
A physiological disgust spread in Xu Ling’s heart.
The game soon began. The Grizzlies without Xu Ling were like a tank without an engine. Although Pau Gasol tried hard to hold it together and Rudy Gay seemed to play extra hard to escape his misery soon, against the Cavaliers who were superior in overall strength and discipline, the resistance seemed feeble.
LeBron James showed no mercy because the opponent’s core was absent. He fully controlled the game, with points, rebounds, and assists coming effortlessly, like an emperor inspecting his territory.
The score gap gradually widened. During this, after successfully defending Gay’s isolation play, LeBron James even shrugged at the former Grizzlies crown prince, muttering something with a playful expression. Though too far to hear clearly, it was undoubtedly rubbing salt in the wound.
Sure enough, Gay immediately lost his composure, repeatedly holding the ball in isolation but with low efficiency, unable to form an effective offensive push, instead giving the opponents chances for fast breaks, widening the gap further.
In the end, the game entered garbage time in the fourth quarter without suspense. When the final buzzer sounded, the scoreboard showed 89 to 108, and the Cavaliers took a thorough away victory.
LeBron James’s stats settled at 32 points, 9 rebounds, and 11 assists, nearly a triple-double, efficient and all-around.
After the game, LeBron James was once again surrounded by the media.
His sweat hadn’t dried yet, but LeBron James had already adjusted his expression, his tone full of self-deprecation and respect for the opponent: “As I said, the Grizzlies are a very tough team; they fought to the end. Pau played great. They were very resilient tonight without their top player, but I know it was still tough for them. I hope Eli comes back soon.”
At that time, Xu Ling had already left the scene, so he didn’t know what LeBron James said after the game and wouldn’t care.
But the next day, a 《Memphis Commercial Appeal》 reporter angrily exposed in the report how LeBron James disrespected the FedEx Forum ball boy.
Although this news spread quickly, it was still early 2008 after all, and unlike the social media era, a player’s negative news couldn’t spread worldwide in a short time.
Moreover, without follow-up from major media, this news only caused outrage among fans in the Memphis area and sank without a trace in fan communities elsewhere.
That was the Grizzlies’ status in the hearts of other fans.
Without Xu Ling, no out-of-town fans would care about their situation.
Xu Ling naturally knew this wouldn’t have any follow-up; after all, disrespecting an away ball boy on a victorious night was nothing compared to other headline-grabbing misdeeds by NBA players.
However, he still casually retweeted the 《Memphis Commercial Appeal》 news on Twitter and attached a quote from college basketball coach, the true GOAT John Wooden: “A person’s character is shown by what they do when no one is watching.”
After posting this tweet, Xu Ling happily began today’s training.
He would fully participate in team training today, and if all went well, he would return in the next game.
However, Xu Ling clearly underestimated the influence of his Twitter account.
As one of the Twitter accounts with the most followers at the time, every tweet from Xu Ling was retweeted by celebrities, insiders, and fans, so he inadvertently acted as “big media,” turning this originally ignored trivial matter into an NBA hot topic.
To third parties, this seemed like something that was bound to happen.
Because of the ankle sprain, Xu Ling had been quiet for ten days, and the Grizzlies had been low-key for ten days, but as he was about to return, he finally couldn’t help stirring up trouble again.
Angry LeBron fans played the “ignore the facts” card, then hit with an ace that Xu Ling and his fans couldn’t easily refute: “We’re all the same.”
LeBron fans pointed out that Xu’s most notorious point wasn’t openly ignoring live fans? When had he ever responded to fans’ cheers? Given them a good face? Cherished their support? For someone so stingy with basic respect, what qualification did he have to stand on moral high ground criticizing LeBron’s character?
The top-liked comment under Xu Ling’s tweet was: “Said by a bastard who never knows how to respect fans.”
This storm quickly reached LeBron James’s ears.
Upon learning of it, LeBron James first showed just the right amount of surprise, then a bit of disbelief, and responded calmly into the microphone: “I usually don’t pay much attention to online noise; that’s not my focus. You know, Eli Xu is my little brother; we were friends even before he entered the NBA. I won’t let outside rumors affect our friendship.”
However, before the debate about LeBron James’s character settled, a shocking league news broke from reporter Marc Stein: “Lakers, Grizzlies, Mavericks, Nets are completing a four-team trade; Kobe Bryant is about to leave Los Angeles after eleven years!”
Thus, at the end of January, this long-brewing storm finally hit the center.
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《Los Angeles Times》
【Exclusive】 Epic Four-Team Trade Completed, Kobe Era Ends
—Lakers send away Kobe Bryant, get lots of young players and future draft picks; Dallas finally gets a superstar.
Reporter: Mark Medina | Published on February 1, 2008
In an epic four-team trade that reshapes the NBA Western Conference landscape and ends an era, the Los Angeles Lakers officially traded team cornerstone and superstar Kobe Bryant to the Dallas Mavericks before yesterday’s trade deadline. This complex deal involving four teams and over ten players not only marks the end of a glorious era for the Lakers but also means the team will fully enter a rebuild around a batch of young assets and unprecedented draft pick reserves.
According to the official announcement, the core framework of the trade is as follows:
Dallas Mavericks get: Kobe Bryant, Derek Fisher, Pooh Jeter.
Los Angeles Lakers get: Devin Harris, Pau Gasol, Juan Navarro, Mike Miller, and three unprotected first-round draft picks （Dallas 2008, 2010, 2012）.
Memphis Grizzlies get: Jason Kidd, Josh Howard, Trevor Ariza, Vladimir Radmanovic, and Marc Gasol’s contract rights.
New Jersey Nets get: Rudy Gay, Diop, Trenton Hassell, Mo Ager, Keith Van Horn, and two future first-round draft picks （Grizzlies 2009 and 2011 first-round draft pick swap）.
For the Lakers, the core of this trade is not immediate combat power but absolute control over the future. They get three unprotected first-round picks from Dallas, undoubtedly the most valuable assets in the deal.
General Manager Mitch Kupchak said solemnly at the press conference: “This is an extremely difficult decision, based on a calm assessment of the team’s long-term interests. We thank Kobe for everything he did for Los Angeles and the Lakers over the past twelve years; he brought three championships, and his legendary status is undisputed. But now, it’s time to look forward.”
Meanwhile, in Dallas, Mark Cuban’s bold gamble shocked the entire league. He sent out the team’s core framework from the past few years—Harris, Howard—and all tradable future draft picks, just to get that superstar scorer who had been demanding to leave Los Angeles for months.
Cuban successfully found Dirk Nowitzki an All-NBA level partner, propelling the Dallas Mavericks into a strong contender for the Western Conference and even the championship.
“We know the cost is huge, but we believe Kobe’s competitiveness and Dirk’s talent are a match made in heaven,” Cuban said excitedly in a statement. “We have only one goal, of course, the O’Brien Trophy.”
This trade marks the official end of the “Kobe Bryant’s Lakers era.”
An era has ended. In Los Angeles, an era full of uncertainty but also breeding new hope is quietly beginning with the arrival of a large number of draft picks and young players.
