Champion, please stay!

Chapter 76, Section 74: 'Small' Endorsement Contracts Continue
On the morning of May 31, the NBA officially announced the list of members of the Green Room.

Based on the performances of all participants in the joint tryouts, representatives from each team's management selected 17 players as 'lottery draft candidates'.

They are:
Guards: Rose, Westbrook, Mayo, Jerry Bayless, Brandon Rush, Eric Gordon, DJ Augustin;

Forwards: Yi Shui, Beasley, Love, Joe Alexander, Anthony Randolph, Darrell Arthur;

Centers: Brook Lopez, Brook Lopez, DeAndre Jordan, JaVale McGee.

There are also three NBA-invited members of the Green Room: Danilo Gallinari, Nicolas Batum, and Alexi Ajinca. All three are talented players who performed well in Europe and actively applied for the draft when they were 19 or 20 years old.

Some players' selections surprised fans, such as Darrell Arthur and Anthony Randolph.

However, both of them performed exceptionally well during the trials. Because there were so many good guards, the two of them were making incredible runs into the box during every training match.

The omission of some players has raised questions about the selection of players for the Green Room, such as Roy Hibbert, who was highly regarded throughout the United States in the early and mid-season, Mario Chalmers, who was famous in college, and JJ Hickson, who had explosive statistics.

The controversy surrounding the Green Room roster is something the NBA is happy to see, as it serves as a way to introduce new talent to the market.

But the hype didn't last long, as another team stepped in to steal the spotlight!
That evening, the Knicks announced in a phone interview that they would not conduct any workouts related to the first overall pick, as they already had a confirmed player.

On June 1, New York media reported that Yi Shui entered Madison Square Garden in the morning and left in the evening.

With these two pieces of news combined, other teams knew that they had no connection with Yishui anymore.

According to gossip media in the state, on the first day of the new month, Heat general manager Pat Riley got drunk late at night and took two South American women with him.

The two women later called the police, saying that the old man was on drugs, used the props without their consent, and caused them emotional trauma... and that he didn't pay them extra.

Although this incident was not officially verified and there were no subsequent reports, it still became a topic of conversation.

The strategist seems to have lost his temper, while the New York fans are going crazy!

They had witnessed Yi Shui defeat the Tigers, the "Kings of Comebacks" at Madison Square Garden, and had long coveted the team.

This summer, New York fans have come to accept Connecticut as part of New York! They've temporarily stopped viewing Connecticut as a rural-urban fringe area!
...

Although the Knicks did not explicitly state their intentions, their actions revealed who they would select, igniting public opinion and making Yishui the focus of draft-related topics, generating more news than all other draft participants combined.

His check-in at a hotel on Manhattan Island, when he goes to train at the basketball mecca, when he leaves, his stroll on the street, his purchase of a coffee without sugar... all of these things make the news.

He realized just how crazy the Big Apple really is; no wonder players with flashy personalities like to come here.

He didn't feel like he was making a fool of himself, although he quite liked that feeling...

This state of excessive exposure didn't last long, after all, once something was decided, there were fewer points to discuss.

Within days, news about other popular draft picks overshadowed Yi Shui, and the debate over who would be the second overall pick was even more intense than the debate over who would be the first overall pick.

There were only three candidates for the number one draft pick: Yi Shui, Mayo, and Beasley.

With the number one pick confirmed, the second pick is no longer limited to Mayo and Beasley. Rose, Westbrook, Mayo, and even the big center Brook Lopez are all considered potential contenders, since it's no longer a 'first pick' selection.

After the Celtics defeated the Lakers to win the championship, the topic of 'who was the second overall pick' became increasingly popular.

However, while the hype surrounding Yi Shui has died down, Bartelstein's busy schedule hasn't slowed down. This agent is in contact with various brands every day, unable to accept or refuse hastily.

They had already agreed on this when they signed the contract: short-term endorsement deals would be preferred, but long-term deals would also be acceptable, as long as the price was attractive enough.

This was clearly not in the brand's interest, and they couldn't reach an agreement. But Bartelstein wasn't in a hurry. He was busy, and he liked to make big profits. As June approached, he became even less anxious.

Finally, some brands couldn't sit still any longer...

On the afternoon of June 10th, Yi Shui suspended training and followed Bartelstein to an office building in New York to sign his first endorsement deal.

He was a KFC fast food brand ambassador, earning a total of $15 million over three years.

Originally, McDonald's couldn't sit still and was the first to offer a top-tier endorsement contract, worth 1200 million over 3 years.

Upon receiving the news, KFC immediately increased its annual budget by 100 million and promised to secure the top advertising spot in the Asia-Pacific region.

This price is the same as the price Yao Ming paid for renewing his contract with McDonald's.

However, the difference is that Yao Ming had already played in the NBA for 6 years, and was selected to the All-NBA Team as early as his second year, and had already become a superstar.

Yi Shui hasn't even participated in the talent show yet!

Despite the higher price and greater prestige, Bartelstein and Yi Shui did not hesitate to choose the smiling old man.

The signing was successfully completed, and now we just wait for the appropriate time to make an official announcement. Of course, the news will be released in advance to build momentum before the official announcement.

As stipulated in the contract, Yi Shui received 10% of the total endorsement fee in advance.

Of the remaining 90% of the endorsement fee each year, the brand pays half in July and half in February. This payment method differs from that of celebrities and is unique to North American athletes.

To prevent them from squandering the money and getting caught without paying taxes, which would be a significant blow to the brand image.

Of the $135 million that Yi Shui received, 10% was siphoned off by Bartelstein.

The agent's contract stipulates a basic commission rate of 20%, but this only applies when the total annual endorsement fee is less than 100 million. The higher the total endorsement fee, the lower the commission rate.

My first endorsement deal is almost at its peak; the agreed minimum commission is 8%.

But Bartelstein was not only not unhappy, he was eager to reach the minimum commission rate immediately and return the extra 3 yuan to Yi Shui.

The first thing he did after he got the money was to go to a bank that offered foreign exchange services and transfer money to his mother's ICBC card.

He longed to be like Giannis Antetokounmpo, sending all the money he earned back home.

But seeing that string of zeros and that it was in US dollars, he was afraid of scaring his parents, who had been teachers for half their lives, so in the end he exchanged more than 14 US dollars and wired it back.

Around 7 p.m., he figured it was about time and made an international call...

On the other side of the world, Yi Donglai answered the phone. After saying "uh-huh, okay, I got it" three times, he hung up and checked his text message inbox. Sure enough, there was a text message that he hadn't noticed in the early morning.

Yi Donglai counted the long string of zeros, calmly exited the text message interface, and lit a cigarette.

After he had finished smoking, he said to his wife, who was chopping vegetables in the kitchen, "Fanghua, don't cook yet. Pack your bags. I'm going to call Director Lin and apply to stay in the classroom dormitory!"

Chen Fanghua came out of the kitchen carrying a kitchen knife and asked curiously, "Why did you apply for a dormitory? Haven't you had enough of that tiny, shabby single room?"

"I reckon even more people will come to borrow money next, so let's hide for a bit."

"Why are you hiding? Didn't you say we're upright and honest, and if we don't have money to borrow, we don't have money to borrow, and we shouldn't pay attention to their gossip?"

"Yes, we were upright and honest back then, but now you're rich! Your son has really struck it rich; he just transferred a million to your account! He said it's for our allowance..."

He said he'd signed an endorsement contract and might be in the news soon! Let's hurry and hide at school!

Chen Fanghua immediately threw the kitchen knife into the kitchen...

...

Meanwhile, back in Yishui, his parents have already begun their battle of wits with some of their eccentric relatives and friends.

Most relatives and friends are actually quite normal, but who doesn't have a few relatives and friends who aren't quite normal?
If he knew about this situation, he would definitely transfer more money back, making the two elderly people even more anxious.

That's how filial she is.

With KFC becoming the first fast-food brand to offer a top-tier endorsement deal, other brands are starting to feel the pressure.

Some were originally thinking of trying to lower the price, after all, it was just a newcomer.

Some want to wait until the draft is over before determining the price.

But they were all afraid that their rivals would make the first move, just like McDonald's, where they weren't decisive enough in their bids and were outbid by their rivals.

As a result, Yi Shui's training was frequently interrupted for a period of time as he visited the various brands' locations...

He was excited when he signed the first contract, happy with the second, but by the third... he was a little numb...

Although the prices for these endorsements are lower than those for a 'small endorsement' like KFC.

The real big prize lies in sneaker endorsements, which are still in a long tug-of-war, with those brands having strong capital and greater resolve.

But little by little, the total endorsement fee quickly exceeded ten million, reducing Bartelstein's commission to a minimum of 8%.

By late June, Yi Shui had stopped training and was truly busy. Various brands he had signed were announcing their deals in New York one after another, and he was always there to attend; sometimes he had to go to three events a day.

The brands made the official announcement at this time to promote his draft. These brands that signed contracts "in advance" now hope that he can become the number one draft pick, even more than Yi Shui himself, so that their interests can be maximized.

The effect is great; Yi Shui has started dominating the screen again...

Finally, June 27th arrived, and the NBA Draft began!

Today, wherever Yi Shui goes, he becomes the center of attention.

If he were transported to this place, he probably wouldn't know where to put his hands, but after a crazy junior year season, winning the championship and becoming the focus of the entire United States, and then living in the Big Apple for almost a month...

The first set of photos released by The New York Times showed Yi Shui calmly handling the cameras and interviews, with the headline—"The Confidence of No. 1".

(End of this chapter)