NBA's King of Talking

Chapter 128 The Law

Jia Fei was somewhat speechless. The owner's refusal to pay the luxury tax in order to win a championship was actually quite demoralizing. Generally speaking, even owners of small-market teams, while unwilling to pay the luxury tax during the rebuilding phase, would be willing to give their teams a push once the championship window opened, as such opportunities are rare. The Thunder reached the Finals last season, their core roster is young, and their championship window had just opened, making them the most likely small-market team to win a title. However, judging from General Manager Putin's actions, owner Bennett is also a real penny-pincher.

Jia Fei suddenly thought of something: he was looking at the Thunder's total salary for next season. Assuming the salary cap and luxury tax threshold increase slightly next season compared to this season, and the Thunder currently have 10 players on their roster, totaling nearly $6000 million, they would need 5 more to reach a 15-man roster. Even if these 5 players were on minimum contracts, their total salary would definitely exceed the salary cap, though they would still be some distance from the luxury tax threshold. But that's assuming each of these 5 players' salaries doesn't exceed $200 million!

The crucial point is that Kevin Martin isn't among these 10 players! And if Kevin Martin were to re-sign, his annual salary wouldn't be lower than the mid-level exception. If they were to re-sign him, then the other four players on the team would only have minimum salaries plus non-guaranteed contracts…

A chill ran down Jia Fei's spine. If the Thunder didn't intend to pay the luxury tax, even getting a mid-level contract would be a pipe dream...

He felt that even an agent like Jeff Schwartz would find it difficult to negotiate a suitable contract renewal with Putin. No matter how powerful Putin was, it would be futile if his boss, Bennett, didn't agree to pay.

No wonder they let Harden go. It's obvious that Harden's talent is superior to Kevin Martin's. The only explanation the owner did this was to save money.

The thought was terrifying, and Jia Fei didn't want to think about it anymore. He figured, whatever, if they didn't give him a satisfactory contract, he'd just leave. It was that simple.

After spending two days in Los Angeles, Jia Fei got a little bored. Since Sharapova left, the two have kept in touch. The French Open is currently in full swing, and she is making great strides, still in the singles competition and aiming for the championship.

"Why don't I go to France to watch her compete?" The idea popped into Jia Fei's mind and grew stronger and stronger. No sooner said than done, he immediately set off and bought a plane ticket to Paris.

Compared to when he first transmigrated two years ago and was penniless and struggling financially, he has now played two seasons in the NBA. After deducting his contract and endorsement income from those two seasons and his daily expenses, he currently has over $100 million in his pocket, making a trip to France a breeze.

On the morning of June 3, Jia Fei boarded a plane in Los Angeles bound for Paris.

Whether in his past life or this one, this is Jia Fei's first trip to Europe. And of course, it's his first time visiting France as well. Romantic France is a place he's always longed to go.

Notre Dame Cathedral, the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe, the Seine River, the Palace of Versailles... Whether you're a man or a woman, the romance of France is irresistible.

Jia Fei arrived in Paris on the evening of the 3rd and checked directly into a local hotel.

After dinner, in his hotel room, Jia Fei sent a message to Sharapova.

"I'm in Paris!" That's all.

But there was no response from the other side for a long time. Jia Fei opened his phone to check and found that at 17:00 in the evening, the fourth round of the French Open women's singles was between Sharapova and Serbian player Jankovic.

It wasn't until around 10 p.m. that Jia Fei received Sharapova's reply.

"What, you're in Paris? Really?" Jia Fei could sense her surprise and excitement from the tone of her reply.

“It’s true, I’m here!” Jia Fei sent his location.

"That's great, Jia Fei! I didn't expect you to come to France so quietly!"

"Yes, I came to cheer you on. I didn't tell you; I wanted to give you a surprise!"

"I really like this surprise, Jia Fei. What should I do if I like you more and more?"

"What should we do? We'll just have to figure it out!"

Sharapova had a bye on the second day. Her next match will be the women's singles quarterfinals, which will start at 8 pm on the 5th.

Jia Fei told Sharapova not to meet with him on the 4th, and that she should rest well.

Sharapova felt even happier and warmer from her boyfriend's thoughtfulness, which boosted her confidence in winning the championship!

Jia Fei didn't go to watch the match or go out on the 4th. Sharapova thoughtfully asked someone to send him tickets for the women's singles quarterfinals tomorrow night. The seats are excellent, and if she hadn't sent them, he wouldn't have been able to buy them at all.

At 8 PM on the 5th, the French Open women's singles quarterfinals will feature Sharapova vs. Stevens.

The French Open, commonly known as the French Tennis Championships, is a tennis tournament held at Roland Garros in Paris, France. It typically takes place in May or June each year and is the second Grand Slam tennis tournament of the year.

Founded in 1891, this tournament is the only Grand Slam tennis competition held on clay courts, marking the highest honor in clay court tennis and the end of the annual clay court season.

Jia Fei has some knowledge of tennis. Of the four Grand Slam tournaments, the French Open is on clay, Wimbledon is on grass, and the Australian Open and US Open are on hard courts. Nadal is a clay-court god; on clay, he's not even afraid of Federer. It's worth mentioning that Li Na, China's top female tennis player, also won a Grand Slam title at the French Open. And the previous women's singles champion was Sharapova.

As the defending champion, Sharapova is also a strong contender for the title. She has already advanced to the quarterfinals, and the media believes that American player Stevens will be unable to stop her from continuing her progress.

Roland Garros, the venue for the French Open tennis tournament, is located in the western suburbs of Paris. It is the only one of the four Grand Slam tournaments to use clay courts. The stadium is named in honor of the French national hero, Roland Garros.

At the Philips Central Stadium of Roland Garros, Sharapova appeared in a blue and white jersey and a blue hat!

Several days later, Jia Fei saw her again. She had a different aura on the court and in life. Her opponent, American tennis player Stevens, was a Black player. The two, one white and one black, shook hands at the China Open, and a medicine popped into Jia Fei's mind—White Plus Black!

Jia Fei suddenly remembered something funny. In his past life, when he was in high school, a male classmate had a cold and kept dozing off in class. The teacher asked him what was wrong and whether he should go to the hospital. He said no, that he had already taken medicine and it worked very well. The medicine was the popular "DayQuil" (or "White and Black") at the time.