Chapter 467 Stern’s attitude

   A five-star hotel, Stern and Colangelo and his son sat down in a senior business suite.

Without turning around, Stern said bluntly: “Jerry, the finals are coming to an end, Jordan is about to enter the trade market, he is still at his peak, his whereabouts are very important, and the impact will be great, now the league is facing a change.

   Let’s be honest, because the whereabouts of old K is also very important. The two most influential super giants in the league, I hope they can go to the big market. ”

Colangelo and his son were shocked, especially Colangelo Jr. He is not a shareholder of the Suns, and he is not very clear about the attitude of the shareholders. His father didn’t tell him about some things. Now Stern’s words , It seems that it has been determined that old K is leaving the Suns?

  Old Colangelo is better. He knows the attitude of the shareholders. The shareholders no longer support the management to continue to invest heavily, and ask the management to reduce expenses and ask for dividends.

And if he doesn’t agree, even his relatives who hold 38% of the shares will probably oppose him. He only owns 20% of the shares, so he will no longer be able to control the Suns, and the shareholders are likely to expel him from the Suns. Team management.

   In fact, when the shareholders want to sell their shares, they are forcing him to pay dividends and stop competing for the championship. He is quite aware of this.

In fact, from the point of view of a businessman, he also believes that the Suns have reached their limit for the five-year triple crown. No matter how many championships they win in the future, it will not bring more benefits to the team, but will bring more benefits to the team. Bring a huge burden, and may even go bankrupt because of the championship.

  It is very possible for a small horse-drawn ship to go bankrupt, because the league has basically determined internally that it will renegotiate the labor-management agreement next year and prepare to implement the luxury tax system. In the future, the investment of the championship team will only be greater than it is now.

   Speaking of the football market, for example, the Celtics have won eight consecutive championships, 16 championships so far, and so many championships, but they have not made the Celtics the No. 1 market, so what about the Suns?

In fact, he is a little tired himself. To win the championship this time, it will be 3 championships in 5 years. There is also no thought of selling part of the stake.

   In fact, that’s why he started to form the Cobras, because the Suns’ market has reached the limit of Phoenix.

But that doesn’t mean he wants to trade the old K, because without the old K, the Suns’ market may not immediately drop from the second to the third, but it will fall back to the third sooner or later. Trading the old K, Just a short-sighted act.

   It’s just that he promised Old K that the team would continue to compete for the championship, so now he is looking for another solution to the problem, but he hasn’t had time to implement it yet.

   Facing Stern’s question, he thought about it and said, “David, our board of directors has not made a final decision yet. I will make a decision after the finals and before the draft.”

  Stern nodded, with a smile on his face, and asked, “Jerry, tell me what you think.”

  Old Colangelo showed helplessness on his face and sighed: “I personally hope that old K can stay in Phoenix forever, Phoenix fans, politics, business, as well.

   He attracted a large number of Chinese to relocate to Phoenix, and the city government even prepared a multi-billion-dollar Chinatown plan.

   In this year’s playoffs, there has been a large increase in the number of Chinese watching football at home. In fact, our football market is also slowly expanding. The Chinese who can move to Phoenix and start anew will not be poor, but there are a large number of middle-class people. ”

  Stern nodded, he could see that Colangelo didn’t want to trade old K, but he couldn’t bear the pressure from the shareholders of the Suns.

   He also heard that old Colangelo should have plans, and may use the power of the entire Phoenix to counter the opinions of shareholders.

   That is to say, the old K will not necessarily be traded.

   He thought about it and said, “Well, if the Suns decide to trade old K, as I said earlier, I hope he goes to a big market, Jerry, what do you think?”

Colangelo said sincerely: “David, K’s contribution to the Suns is too great, without him, we might not be able to win the championship in 1993, let alone the championship later, and when he came to the Suns, we didn’t have it. Pay whatever it takes, so if we’re going to trade him, I’ll let him make that decision and that’s our Colangelo family’s respect for him.”

   Stern nodded in appreciation, Colangelo really is a person with a big picture, unlike the accountant in Reinsdorf, who only cares about things.

   Colangelo’s requirements and his requirements are not exclusive. Old K will definitely go to a championship contending team, and the team that can undertake the old K super contract can only be in the big market.

   As for Old K’s bird rights contract, of course, it is dealt with with Jordan, and the receiving team can enjoy the right to virtual space.

  Whether we want to close this loophole in the future, the rules are determined by people, and we will talk about it later.

After    and Stern’s talk, the Colangelos took their leave.

   The two returned to the hotel where they stayed, and they talked again in the old Colangelo’s room. It was a communication between father and son, and it was also communication between management.

   “Father, I don’t agree to trade old K.”

   Little Colangelo looked at his father and said firmly: “Trade him, maybe we can share some more money in the next two years, but this is too short-sighted.

  Because once the old K is traded, his personal fans will immediately abandon the Suns, and our ball market will immediately shrink. For this, we can look at Jordan and the Bulls.

   And without the old K, do we have as many as fifty or sixty national broadcasts a season? Can we still make it to the Western Conference Finals and the Finals? Without the revenue of the Western Conference Finals and the Finals, without a large amount of broadcast revenue, our operations would be a lot less.

   Those shareholders only focus on our operating income, but don’t think about who gets these income. Five years ago, did we have such a good football market and so much operating income? ”

  Old Colangelo couldn’t help but nodded and sighed.

   Little Colangelo said excitedly: “Father, in the long run, it is the right thing for us to keep old K.

  Although his contract is big, he will also bring a bigger ball market to the Suns, more broadcast rights revenue, more stadium revenue, more playoff revenue, higher ticket revenue…

   By the way, we haven’t sold his peripherals in China yet, the economy there is developing, and sooner or later we will have a lot of income there…”

Old Colangelo looked at his son and nodded with relief: “Brian, I’m very happy that you can see this. I have a plan. There are too many small shareholders in the Suns. I’m going to find a suitable local big player. A businessman, a major shareholder who wants to keep old K, replaces those small shareholders with him, anyway, aren’t they going to sell shares, then I will fulfill them.”

   Little Colangelo said excitedly: “Father, this plan is good, but that Savor can’t, absolutely can’t.”

  Old Colangelo said solemnly: “That’s for sure, I’ll look for it. The most important thing at the moment is to not expose this matter, and don’t make it like a bull.”

   Little Colangelo nodded and reminded: “Father, I suggest that after the finals, take the initiative to communicate with Old K.

   The K Wuguan in his hands has a large number of local businessmen VIP customers, we can use the Kwuguan network to seek support, and we can also find suitable candidates. ”

  Old Colangelo was stunned and laughed, “Brian, if you don’t mention it, I really ignored his martial arts hall.”

Little Colangelo nodded and said with a smile: “Actually, we don’t have to worry, as long as old K comes forward, some of his local VIP customers will definitely be willing to pay to sell the Suns, I don’t think those people are willing to trade old K. ”

  Old Colangelo nodded repeatedly, and suddenly sighed: “Old K is indeed a talented person. In a few years, he has established such a large network of contacts in Phoenix.”

  Little Colangelo said with a smile: “There aren’t many rich people in Phoenix, and K Martial Arts Academy has more VIP customers in New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.”

   nodded, and old Colangelo said strangely: “It’s a pity that old K has completely wasted such a large network of contacts. It seems that he never thought of using that network to do anything.”

   Little Colangelo laughed and said, “He helped two Chinese martial arts stars have a few parties in Hollywood, and released a movie in the United States. I heard that there will be another release this time, that’s all.”

   Old Colangelo shook his head and said helplessly: “Poor old K, he has read too little, I have to advise him to read more.”

   Having said this, he said to little Colangelo: “Old K’s agent should have arrived. Maybe he knew something. He made an appointment with me. I plan to have a good communication with him and try to get his understanding.”

  …

   At this time, Pharaoh met his agent Lance Hoxman in the hotel room.

  Hawksman first wished him a third championship, and then passed some news to him.

  For example, the first phase of Mammoth’s domestic factory has been put into production, the cost of its products will drop significantly, and Mammoth will enter a rising period of benign development.

   There are also some previous sponsorship endorsements that have expired, this time I am going to replace some better brands and so on.

After chatting   , Hoxman naturally switched the topic to the topic of Jordan being traded by the Bulls, and contacted Pharaoh.

   He said, “Old K, do you have any idea of ​​leaving Phoenix?”

   Lao Wang did not hesitate, shook his head and said, “The contract is only for two seasons, and there are still five years left. If there are no special circumstances, I will not take the initiative to apply for a trade.”

  Hoxman nodded and said, “If Savor is the racist who wants to buy the Suns and takes over the Suns, or someone like that controls the Suns, then I will help you get out of there immediately.”

“certainly.”

   He nodded and asked with some doubts: “Lanqi, although Mr. Colangelo intends to sell some shares, but not many, do you think he will lose control of the Suns?”

Hoxman laughed: “In addition to him, there are some shares that he can influence also have the idea of ​​selling, as long as these shares are sold and then controlled by one person or a consortium, he may lose control of the Suns. ”

Pharaoh nodded thoughtfully, he didn’t quite understand this, but even if Colangelo no longer had control of the Suns, as long as there were no racists like Savor in the team’s management, he still wanted to stay in the Suns , The opportunity is rare, he hopes to defend the title, even the dynasty, if he leaves the Suns at this time, everything has to start all over again.

  Hoxman said: “The Suns have won two championships in four years and are about to win three championships in five years. The team’s market value has risen, and operating income has risen rapidly, becoming one of the few teams in the NBA that can make money…”

  Pharaoh interrupted Hawksman and asked in surprise, “Lance, are most teams in the league losing money?”

Hawksman said: “Of course, a few teams in the first and second markets can make money. In fact, the real money is the first market, and the second market is only Can barely maintain operations, the team owner wants to make money, he can only rely on the market value of the market to rise, and then cash out the shares, just like the shareholders of the Suns.

   Of course, there are exceptions. Like the Clippers and Mosaic, it is okay to rely on stars to sell tickets, not to compete for the championship. ”

Speaking of this, he gave an example: “For example, a second-tier market team like the Bulls is aiming to win the championship. It is the owner who is worried that the team will be aging, the record will decline in the future, the operating cost will be too high, and it may cause losses, and will be forced to trade Jordan. .

   Another example is the Suns. Although the operating income has increased significantly in recent years, the operating costs have also increased significantly, especially after the execution of your new contract, the operating costs of the Suns are approaching the limit.

   In the past few years, no dividends have been paid to shareholders, which means that the owners of the Suns have not made any money from them. The championship dividends have nothing to do with them, and are all earned by the league and players. ”

“what do you mean?”

   Old Wang more or less heard some meaning from these words.

  Horisman said solemnly: “Old K, just because the Suns shareholders did not make any money, they could only share the championship bonus by cashing out their shares, including the Colangelo family.”

   “What are the consequences?” Pharaoh asked immediately.

  Hawksman said thoughtfully: “From the history of the league, once a team in a small market is located, it is difficult to defend it.

  Because to defend the title, it is necessary to build a stronger lineup, which means more capital investment, which is precisely what is difficult for small ball markets to do.

   Therefore, after a small team wins the championship, the famous stars all want to go to the bigger market for development. The small team can’t keep people, and the team’s owners and shareholders also want to share the championship bonus and lose the motivation to defend the championship. ”

   Old Wang was shocked and said hurriedly: “Do you think the Suns can’t defend the title?”

  Hoxman shook his head and said: “No, the Suns’ market is similar to the Chicago Bulls now, both belong to the second gear, but this is already the limit, it is very difficult to continue to grow, very difficult.

   But depending on the current football market, it is possible to defend the title. After all, the Bulls have defended the title before, but this has a consequence. The owners and shareholders of the Suns are still unable to share the championship dividend. ”

   Old Wang frowned, at this time he somewhat understood.

   Pushing himself and others, if K Martial Arts Academy is always not making money, there is still the possibility of loss, can he still do it?

  No, because of his character, if the martial arts hall suffers losses, he will immediately reduce its size, and whichever branch loses money will be removed.

   Even if he does not make money for a long time, he can persist for a year or two, but he will not persist for a long time, and he will definitely choose to sell or close the martial arts hall.

  So, what will happen to the shareholders of the Suns who cannot make money for a long time, or share the dividends of three championships? Of course, it is to sell the shares to cash out.

   But he knows that Hawksman mentioned this matter, so the consequences may not be so simple, and the consequences have not already come out?

   At this time, Hoxman said: “Old K, in fact, selling shares to cash out is just a last resort, a one-time way to share dividends.

  There are too many small shareholders in the Suns. Now I am worried about a situation. If they want to share the dividends of the three championships for a long time, they may not sell their shares. ”

   “Don’t sell shares, but want to share dividends for a long time?”

   Pharaoh’s heart was shocked, there was only one result, reducing expenses and dividing the invested capital into dividends, and this result must cause the team to lose hope of defending the title.

“This will not work. The team must continue to invest. When I renewed my contract with Mr. Colangelo, I agreed that the team must support me in the championship. Every year, the goal is to compete for the championship.” He immediately shook his head and said. .

  Hoxman nodded: “Old K, if the shareholders push the management to cut expenses and give up defending the title, what do you think they are most likely to do?”

“doing what?”

  Pharaoh didn’t understand, but he saw Hawksman staring at him, and suddenly understood, stood up from the sofa with a snort of a tiger, and said angrily, “Do they still want to trade me?”

   Now he understands why Jordan hit Jerry Krause in a rage that day. If the Suns really want to trade him, his goodwill towards the Colangelo family will be wiped away.

“you are right!”

Slam, Hawksman snapped his fingers, motioned Pharaoh to sit down, and said, “Your contract is the largest contract in the history of the league, not only a 100 million-dollar contract, but also a 200-million-dollar contract, as long as Get rid of your super big contract, even if you find another All-Star to come back to maintain the team and roster, the Suns will save a lot of expenses every year, and the money saved will go into the pockets of shareholders.”

   “What’s so special!”

   Old Wang cursed depressedly.

  People are all selfish, he can understand that shareholders want to make money, but he is the bargaining chip, and the same thing cannot be understood.

   “What can I do?” he asked.

   shook his head, Hoxman said: “These are just some of my thoughts, I will talk to Mr. Colangelo.

  No matter what, your interests cannot be lost. If the Suns don’t want to defend the title, they can only leave. ”

“All right.”

   Old Wang also nodded helplessly.

   At this time, he thought of Jordan. He didn’t expect that he might follow Jordan’s footsteps now, and he couldn’t help but feel very depressed.

   Then Hoxman said goodbye, he had made an appointment with old Colangelo.