After David Stern hung up the phone, the president's office fell silent.
Sam Presti closed the folder in his hand and looked up at the regular season schedule hanging on the wall.
Today is March 15th. The Boston Celtics have completed 66 regular season games with a record of 54 wins and 12 losses, leading the second-place New Jersey Nets in Eastern Conference by a full six games. They had already secured the top spot in the Atlantic Ocean Division last week.
What the American sports media are talking about even more than his record is Kevin Garnett's almost absurd personal statistics this season.
From December of last year to February of this year, Garnett swept the Eastern Conference Player of the Month awards for three consecutive months. So far, he is averaging 28.3 points, 13.9 rebounds, and 8.2 assists per game, and he has far surpassed Tim Duncan of the Spurs and Peja Stojaković of the Sacramento Kings in the various media's predictions for the regular season MVP.
Since Rick Carlisle moved Mehmet Okur into the rotation and increased Wade's cuts to the basket, Garnett, positioned at the free-throw line and elbow area, has become a nightmare for opponents. If not double-teamed, his turnaround jumper is unstoppable. And if double-teamed, he delivers a precise high-low post pass or corner dish. Last night against the Milwaukee Bucks at home, Garnett scored 31 points, grabbed 16 rebounds, and dished out 11 assists in just three quarters, watching the fourth quarter from the sidelines chewing gum.
The reason USA Basketball's Stu Jackson kept sending faxes to Boston was because he was envious of Garnett's performance this season and dreamed of bringing the near-MVP to Athens to team up with Tim Duncan in the frontcourt.
" Stu Jackson will be furious when he receives this fax this afternoon."
Presti looked down at the four medical reports in his hand, just signed by head trainer Ed Lasset, and couldn't help but chuckle, " Kevin just got a triple-double on national televised last night, and the report we sent him today says he has chronic patellar tendon strain in both knees and will need injections immediately after the NBA Finals. Chris Paul has right shoulder bursitis, Big Ben has plantar fasciitis, and Rasheed has bone spurs in his left ankle. The entire starting lineup is affected."
Stu knows what's going on, but he can't do anything about it.
Lin Qi picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said calmly, " Kevin has to play nearly forty minutes on both ends of the court every game this season. He has to protect the rim, grab rebounds, and be the team's playmaker. In April, he'll have to play four tough games in a row for the playoffs. If he goes to Athens for another month in the summer, even an iron body will be worn out. Since David Stern has already given his approval on the phone, the Chinese Basketball Association will just go through the motions and cross his name off the list."
"As for Dwyane," Presti said, stuffing four medical reports into a sealed manila envelope, "I'll go and tell the team doctor to send his medical certificate to USA Basketball."
"Go ahead, and while you're at it, call Rob Pelinka in Los Angeles and tell him to get ready for the official notification from the Chinese Basketball Association this afternoon, and arrange for Kobe to hold a press conference at Staples Center."
Lin Qi glanced at his watch and instructed Presti, "Once you're done with this, go downstairs and call Dwyane and David Blatt up. Since we're sending Dwyane to Athens to deal with Larry Bird Brown, there are some things we need to discuss with him beforehand."
Presti responded, took the envelope, and turned to leave the office.
Lin Qi was the only one left in the room. He leaned back in his large leather chair, his fingers tapping lightly on the table, going over all the events in his mind.
After Kobe got into that lawsuit in Eagle County last summer, McDonald's's, Sprite, and Italy Ferrero all dropped him. Although Lin Qi later helped him suspend the case indefinitely and secured a lifetime contract with Converse, major brands that target family consumers are still watching and none of them dare to be the first to reinstate him.
The current withdrawal crisis of the United States Men's National Basketball Team has conveniently provided a golden opportunity to step up their game.
The Madrid train bombing had just occurred, and the alarms were being broadcast on television news across the United States every day. At this critical moment, top-paid stars like Vince Carter, Kidd, Ray Allen, and O'Neal Jr. all made excuses and became cowards, drawing fierce criticism from sports columnists across the country.
At this moment, Kobe Brian stepped forward.
Once USA Basketball issues the call-up order and NBC airs Kobe's footage in their Olympic promotional video, it's tantamount to official approval. Traditional sponsors, who were initially hesitant due to concerns from women's organizations, can immediately capitalize on this and, under the guise of patriotism, re-sign commercial contracts to Kobe Kobe. As a partner holding the lion's share of Kobe's off-court commercial profits, Lin Qi's company will be able to pocket a substantial sum this fall.
More importantly, there is competition in the sneaker market.
Reebok's acquisition of the official podium uniform sponsorship for this year's United States. Olympic team has left Nike executives feeling uneasy. Everyone remembers the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games, when Michael Jordan draped the American flag over his right shoulder to cover the Reebok logo on the podium. This year, Nike's basketball head, Lynn Merritt, pressured USA Basketball to bring LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony to Athens, hoping these two rising stars, signed for hundreds of millions of dollars, could generate some exposure for Nike at the Olympics.
Now that Lin Qi has included Kobe and Wade, both top Converse stars, in the roster, he has directly disrupted Nike's plan to seize the limelight.
At 2 p. m., the storm that originated in Boston caused a sensation throughout the American sports world.
Lin Qi turned on the television on the wall of his office and tuned it to ESPN.
On the screen, the popular live interview program " Pardon the Interruption " temporarily cut off the discussion about the university championship, and a bold red scrolling news item at the bottom was particularly eye-catching.
USA Basketball officially announced that four key Boston Celtics centers and forwards will miss the Athens Olympic Games. Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Brian and Celtics Dwyane Wade have officially accepted their call-ups to the United States Men's National Basketball Team.
The television feed switched to the press conference room at the Staples Center Los Angeles.
Dressed in a sharp dark suit, Kobe sat behind a long table, facing a packed audience of reporters and a barrage of flashing cameras. With a serious expression, he spoke into the microphone, "When the national team needs you, you shouldn't consider overseas security risks, nor should you make any excuses to back down. I'm honored to wear jerseys with 'United States ' on them alongside Tim, Allen, and Dwyane. This August, we'll go to Athens and bring back the gold medal."
In the studio, renowned host Tony Cohen, watching the live broadcast, couldn't help but slam his fist on the table and exclaim, "Look at that! Whether you like Kobe Brian or not, compared to those millionaires who use marriage and honeymoon as excuses or knee pain to hide at home in air conditioning, Kobe at least had guts! Stu Jackson finally did something decent!"
Michael Will, standing next to him, went even further, directly targeting Boston: "And the Boston Celtics! Last night Kevin Garnett had 31 points, 16 rebounds, and 11 assists, and today he's saying he has a knee injury and can't go to Athens? Lin Qi has kept his prized possessions hidden away, only throwing out a rookie to fill the void. Larry Bird Brown must be furious right now!"
Watching the two hosts arguing heatedly on TV, Lin Qi picked up the remote and turned the volume down.
Public opinion was moving exactly as he had predicted.
The more the media thought Boston was just sending Wade to fill a quota, the more impressive the contrast became when Wade played in Athens in August.