The Way of Basketball: Never Talk Shit to Him!
Chapter 515 - 223 Pacers, Is This What You Call Rebuilding a Team?!

Chapter 515: Chapter 223 Pacers, Is This What You Call Rebuilding a Team?!

Born in ’72, Shaquille O’Neal was now 36 years old.

He was well aware that he had reached the end of his professional career.

This year, after failing to take down Jason Kidd and the "Pistons’ 4 Tigers" in the playoffs, he became acutely conscious of that fact.

At this juncture, hearing about Kobe’s championship and seeing the media turn him into a clown deeply affected him.

He knew he had to hold onto the last vestiges of his prime.

The thought of seeking a buyout from the Brooklyn Nets crept into his mind and refused to be suppressed.

Billy King’s reaction to his buyout request hurt him once more.

Although he was mentally prepared, he hadn’t anticipated Billy King’s agreement would come so readily.

He really was getting old!

Shaquille realized this, yet again.

Both parties were of the same mind, so negotiations quickly entered the tug-of-war phase.

It was a well-known fact that Billy King was an honest man, often taken advantage of by others, while he himself rarely managed to do the same.

Shaquille O’Neal’s remaining contract was worth 40 million; eventually, both sides agreed: the Brooklyn Nets would pay out 14.5 million a year over two years, totaling 29 million for the buyout of Shaquille O’Neal’s contract.

By doing so, the Brooklyn Nets could save 11 million and would no longer have to worry about how to offload Shaquille O’Neal.

They were just about to use this year’s 11th overall pick to draft Brook Lopez.

He was a traditional center with excellent skills and unlimited potential.

The Brooklyn Nets’ scouting team had high hopes for him.

Whilst Brook Lopez would have likely replaced Shaquille O’Neal anyway.

This approach meant the Nets suffered less loss than they would have by including a draft pick in a deal to move Shaquille, who had been a great contributor to the team in reaching the Eastern Conference Finals but was now just a first-round exit and would be 37 the following year, a high-risk player often needing assets attached to be tradable.

Once the negotiation was set, the news quickly spread across the media.

Most media outlets reacted with nostalgia upon learning that the former "Number One in the League" had been bought out by his team.

Remember, Shaquille O’Neal was once the "Number One in the League," but now he had fallen to the point of being bought out.

And with Kobe’s recent championship shining over him, Shaquille’s situation seemed even more sorrowful.

However, the Cleveland media immediately took delight in his misfortune, declaring, "It was only a matter of time before something like this would happen; no team can stand a player like Shaquille O’Neal with his poor attitude!"

"They still think they are the Superstar of old—that’s their biggest problem!"

"The fact proves without Kobe, he is nothing!"

Shaquille O’Neal’s resolve, already firm, was bolstered after seeing Cleveland media’s mockery.

Such commentary from the Cleveland media was naturally attributed to LeBron...

Just wait and see!

We’ll see who falters without whom!

The outside world was actually very interested in Shaquille O’Neal’s next move after the buyout.

A 20 million Shaquille wasn’t attractive, but one with a significantly reduced salary was still very tempting.

Following the buyout, Shaquille O’Neal didn’t immediately make a move.

He too was waiting for news he wanted to hear from the Pacers.

At the moment, the prevailing opinion was that Su Wan would leave the Pacers.

And if Su Wan did leave, what difference would it make for him to join the Pacers than for an American soldier to fight in the Korean War or the Vietnam War?

He aimed to join a team with Su Wan, no, a team that had Su Wan!

In truth, he was quite inclined to see Su Wan leave the Pacers and join a new team. In that case, he would consider it as joining in.

That wouldn’t be considered "bandwagoning"!

Of course, if Su Wan ultimately decided to stay with the Pacers, Shaquille O’Neal joining would not pose an issue at all.

The Pacers had fallen in the Eastern Conference Finals last season, not even reaching the Finals. Outsiders believed the team had entered the "Dynasty Hangover" stage, with each subsequent year expected to decline.

This was generally the view of the Pacers from the outside.

And it seemed to have merit.

Young O’Neal returning from a major injury would certainly not be able to perform at his peak.

The departure of Artest created defensive issues on the wing.

The defense quality of the "Small Lineup" plummeted several notches with the departure and injury of these two, no longer qualifying as an ace card.

Dior, adept at pace transition, also seemed somewhat stagnant in offense due to these changes.

The rest were just a few insignificant players.

Shaquille O’Neal joining at this juncture would still likely attract criticism for "bandwagoning," but given Kobe’s championship win, the mockery from the outside world, and Boston’s "elderly Three Giants" accomplishing the same, his move could only be seen as a last-ditch effort for a championship.

On June 24th, the day before the draft, Larry Bird held a press conference with Su Wan.

They officially agreed on a contract extension, starting with 30% of the NBA’s salary cap of 58.68 million: 17.6 million, the second year at 19.3604 million, and the third year at 21.39 million—although for just three years, the contract amounted to 58.354 million, nearly 60 million. frёeweɓηovel_coɱ

With Su Wan’s 17.6 million, Zach Randolph’s 13 million, and young O’Neal’s 17.25 million, just these three players already accounted for 47.85 million of the Pacers’ salary cap. With Foster’s 8.5 million and Dior’s 9 million contracts as well, the total amounted to 65.34 million.

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