The No.1 Anti-Fans in Basketball-Chapter 132 - 102 Decision One

The date was a bit off from what Hansen knew.

There are two key bits of information here.

First, there’s a "freeze period" for NBA free agency signings, during which players can negotiate freely with teams, but official contracts have to be signed after the freeze period. Initially, the period was a month long, but after several changes, it started to last 13 days beginning from the 2004-2005 season.

Second, Hansen was well aware of "The Decision" because it was so sensational, he remembered almost every detail, including the date, which he clearly knew was July 9.

So now, James had postponed "The Decision" from the 9th to the 13th, the very last day of the freeze period.

Was this to make the decision more thrilling?

Or was there some different change?

Hansen couldn’t know.

But he checked the fans’ reactions on social media.

Well, how should I put it, his eyes were green with envy.

Because James had already started getting massively criticized.

"You think you’re Jordan or something with your decision? I’m a Kobe fan, your decision’s none of my business!"

"Don’t insult Jordan like that, Jordan always respected fans. Only media darlings like LeBron treat fans like fools!"

"I really can’t handle it anymore, just got beaten in the Eastern Conference Finals and then jumped to making decisions. Deciding what? To run away?!"

"I don’t know what you all are ranting about. LeBron personally comes down to give you all a monkey show, and you don’t even appreciate it!"

"LeBron: Stop arguing, I announce, I’m taking my Talent to the WNBA!"

...

Indeed, there were still LeBron fans speaking up for James, but they were overwhelmingly outmatched by the critics and drowned out by their spitfire.

The scene was somewhat unexpected for Hansen.

Because in his memory, James also got heavily criticized after making The Decision.

But on second thought, this unprecedented and cheeky maneuver truly wasn’t something a sane person could conceive.

After all, no matter how much the media builds you up, you’re essentially just an athlete.

People liking you is their freedom to choose.

But now, it was as if James and his team had stripped fans of their freedom, forcing them to focus entirely on him.

It wasn’t because of his inherent influence but because his choices could indeed alter the dynamics of the League.

Sure, he wasn’t the only one capable of causing that effect. That year, either Wade or Nowitzki could have done so as well.

For example, Wade announcing a move to the Lakers or Nowitzki to the Magic and so on.

But James was the only one who chose that path.

That made Hansen think of the true origin of the "Who is your daddy" meme.

Why did the Nuggets have such a grudge against the Lakers after winning the championship? ƒreewebɳovel.com

Were they just being too arrogant?

The answer was no. It was because after the Nuggets had won, James almost used a similar "I’m considering retirement" to forcefully capture fans’ attention.

Keep in mind that before this, the League was promoting Kobe’s back-to-back championships, but once that announcement was made, people stopped paying attention to it.

Good thing Kobe wasn’t as petty as the Nuggets, or a jab like "where are you, my brother" to mock James for not reaching the finals would have become yet another iconic meme.

The more Hansen read, the more envious he felt.

If he could really rent his system to James now, that would indeed make him soar!

Hmm?

Just then, the "epiphany" Hansen had been waiting for suddenly flashed through his mind.

If changing the date didn’t alter anything in the end, then James would end up joining the Heat to form The Big Three just as he knew.

By then, the criticisms he was seeing now would seem minor compared to what would come.

Of course, Hansen couldn’t actually rent the system to James since the system didn’t have that feature. But what if by that time, he spoke out for James?

It was a reverse logic, but predictably, he would certainly get trashed as well.

But isn’t this exactly what he wanted? Something that will get the whole internet, or at least the vast majority of basketball fans, to bash him?

Thinking of this, Hansen started to get excited.

Because this could give him more black fan value than needed to exchange for "Steel Bones"!

He suppressed his excitement and began brainstorming.

If he wanted to achieve that goal, the only thing he had to do now was to ensure that James’s "Decision" didn’t encounter any mishaps.

If the change in the date led James to stubbornly stay with the Cavaliers, all his plans would vanish like a mirage.

But now, with him and James being at odds, how could James possibly heed his advice?

Honestly, considering their current relationship, as soon as James heard his voice, he would certainly hang up the phone.

So what could he do to ensure James would hear what he had to say, even if he didn’t want to?

Hansen looked at the social media on his phone and entered editing mode.

After fingering the phone keyboard for a while, he typed out the sentence:

"LeBron, don’t let loyalty ruin you."

If Hansen were still with the Cavaliers, he could never send that message.

But now, he had been traded from the Cavaliers after shining in the playoffs, perfectly fitting the "victim" role.