Bales, Pierce, and the others piled on Wang Yi while he was down:
"I knew his form would decline this season. I just didn't expect it to happen so quickly."
"He's not the King he used to be."
"I'm reminding Wang Yi's fans to prepare themselves and accept the fact that his form is declining. He's only human, and humans can't defy the laws of nature."
Although Wang Yi's fans wanted to defend him as best they could, a 0–6 record was simply too hard to defend, so they didn't have much confidence when they spoke up.
Amid all this, the NBA season tipped off on October 22.
And the opening matchup was a big one: the Toronto Raptors vs. the Hornets.
In last season's Finals, the Kings had crushed the Hornets 4–0.
But this season, Wang Yi had joined the Raptors, who had lost all six of their previous preseason games.
Under the circumstances, almost no one believed in the Raptors.
Today's game was being played at the Raptors' home court, the Anta Center.
Anta had now reached a naming-rights deal with the Raptors' owner, Tamim.
Because of Wang Yi, Anta's annual naming fee was actually only two million dollars.
The contract ran for ten years.
In other words, for at least the next decade, the Raptors' home court would be called the Anta Center.
It was the first Chinese brand to secure the naming rights to an NBA arena.
In the past, something like this would have been almost impossible for a Chinese brand.
There were only 30 NBA teams and 29 arenas.
But countless brands wanted the naming rights to those arenas.
Because of certain prejudices, it was extremely difficult for Chinese brands to secure those rights. Even if a Chinese brand offered the same price as