Second Contract

6 Second Contract

When Wang Yi took the $100 and turned to leave,

a rush of hurried footsteps sounded, and the Lakers Players had already hurried over.

They had thought Wang Yi had blocked the Warriors' locker room door to settle things with that Afro-haired guy.

So they had all rushed over, partly to stop Wang Yi and keep things from getting out of hand.

They were also worried that Wang Yi was outnumbered and might get bullied by the Warriors.

Especially their leader, James.

His teammate was going to stand up for himself, so naturally, he had to back him up.

He couldn't let his teammate get pushed around.

But at the same time, he couldn't let things escalate.

If they did, it would be bad for the team, and bad for Wang Yi too.

But now, they saw that Wang Yi was not only fine, he was also tossing a $100 bill in his hand, a satisfied smile on his face as he walked toward them.

Everyone was stunned.

"Wang, are you okay?"

"Wang, how did it go?"

James came up to him and looked him over.

Then he glanced at the players standing by the Warriors' locker room door.

They clearly didn't look like they'd been in a fight.

He breathed a sigh of relief and asked, "Wang, what happened?"

Seeing so many of his teammates come rushing over warmed Wang Yi's heart a little.

He shook his head. "It's nothing. I just happened to win a bet."

Hearing that, everyone relaxed.

James said, "Wang, next time something like this happens, make sure you explain it to us. Otherwise, you'll win some money, and we'll go fight someone without knowing what's going on. We'd be the ones getting the raw end of the deal."

The players all burst out laughing.

That was James for you. He could always crack a joke that made everyone happy.

That was also why the Lakers players got along so well.

You could say his jokes were the glue that held the players together.

When they got back to the locker room, a staff member was waiting for them.

He saw that everyone had returned and seemed to be in good spirits, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

Then he said to Wang Yi,

"Wang, General Manager Pelinka wants to see you."

Wang Yi's heart stirred.

His ten-day contract was over.

If the Lakers didn't want to sign him again, they would simply call his agent to let him know.

Only if they planned to re-sign him might the general manager call him in to give him an early heads-up.

Hearing this, James was happy for Wang Yi too.

He said, "Wang, I told you. Maybe tonight is the start of your good luck."

Wang Yi nodded. "Thanks."

Then Wang Yi went to General Manager Pelinka's office.

Pelinka was a quiet middle-aged man.

He often stood at the far end of the stands, watching the team play without saying a word.

No one knew what he was thinking.

Now he was sitting behind his desk. When Wang Yi entered, he also said nothing.

Only when Wang Yi spoke did he respond. "General Manager, you wanted to see me?"

Pelinka finally spoke.

"Wang, your performance tonight surprised everyone. As you know, Schroder is still injured and hasn't returned, so we're short a scoring guard. Would you be willing to sign another ten-day contract with us?"

Pelinka was a very tactful speaker.

He didn't say, "We're willing to sign you," but instead, "Would you be willing to sign with us?"

The two meant much the same thing, but the first put the team in a superior position.

The second sounded more respectful toward the player.

Wang Yi had already guessed that his performance would impress the Lakers' management and earn him another ten-day contract.

But hearing it directly from the general manager still made him happy.

"Thank you, General Manager. I don't see any reason to turn it down."

Wang Yi felt that landing another ten-day contract was already great.

As for a guaranteed contract, the Lakers certainly wouldn't offer him one yet.

After all, their starting point guard, Schroder, would be back in about a week.

Then the Lakers' backcourt would be crowded, so there was no way they'd give Wang Yi a guaranteed contract.

Unless...

He put on an outstanding performance during this second ten-day stretch.

Thinking of that, Wang Yi remembered the sign-in system.

He clenched his fist quietly.

Pelinka continued, "This second ten-day contract is worth $20,000. I hope that works for you."

Wang Yi nodded. "Thank you. I'm very satisfied."

Ten-day contracts could be worth anything from a few thousand dollars to tens of thousands, depending on a player's past performance.

Wang Yi's previous contract had been for just $8,000.

Now it had gone up to $20,000, which would make his life a lot less financially strained.

When he left the general manager's office, point guard Caruso was already waiting for him.

Wang Yi was staying at Caruso's house, so Caruso always waited for him after home games.

"Wang, how did it go? Was it a guaranteed contract?"

Caruso asked.

Wang Yi shook his head. "A short-term contract."

Caruso patted Wang Yi on the shoulder.

"That's okay. As long as you can keep up tonight's performance, I'm sure they'll turn it into a guaranteed contract."

Wang Yi nodded without saying much.

Then he climbed into Caruso's pickup, and they drove out of the Parking Lot.

As they passed the main entrance to Staples Center, Wang Yi saw seven statues standing beneath the night sky.

The Logo man, Jerry West.

Elgin Johnson.

Sky Hook Jabbar.

Shaquille O'Neal.

Elgin Baylor.

Kobe Bryant...

Every name was legendary.

Wang Yi looked at Kobe's statue and silently thought, Boss...

When they got back to Caruso's house, Wang Yi ate a simple dinner.

Then he returned to the bed in the garage.

Caruso's house wasn't very big to begin with, and it was already cramped with his family living there.

After Wang Yi arrived, the only place he could temporarily stay was the garage.

Lying on a simple bed, Wang Yi finally began to study the sign-in system carefully in his mind.

"System, introduce yourself."

The system's voice came quickly, still as mechanical and cold as ever:

This system is called the Legendary Superstar System. It exists to help its host become a legendary superstar.

Before each game, the host can sign in. The rewards are temporary Experience Cards for various skills.

Hearing that, Wang Yi wasn't excited. Instead, he frowned slightly.

Experience Cards were ultimately just a cheat.

If the system disappeared one day, wouldn't he be back to being ordinary?

Even with a cheat, he couldn't become a useless player who could only rely on it.

He asked, "Is there any way to turn these Experience Cards into skills of my own?"

The system's voice came again:

This system also includes a training system. Completing the training tasks released by the system can improve the host's abilities.

Hearing that, Wang Yi was delighted.

The system had now issued a task:

Task: Make 1,000 three-pointers

Task reward: Three-point accuracy increased to 45%