Chapter 152

The Oklahoma City Thunder are coming on strong this season. The talent they have hoarded, after several seasons of fermentation, has finally ushered in a bountiful harvest.

Kevin Durant has surpassed Carmelo Anthony this season to become the league's second-best small forward. As the youngest back-to-back scoring champion in history, many people have high hopes for him, believing that he will become the league's new ruler.

In fact, in many of the league's official promotions, his name is ranked only behind Kobe and James. He is already the de facto third-in-command of the current league.

He also finished second in the regular season MVP voting this season; he lost to Derek Rose.

A point guard so excellent that even the wind can't catch him, he led the Chicago Bulls to the best record in the Eastern Conference, and it was a single-core team, which is outrageously heaven-defying.

Therefore, Rose won the regular season MVP with an unquestionable record. He is the biggest dark horse and the most shining superstar in the NBA this season.

Fan Xi is the second biggest; Fan Xi is the Miracle Child. The difference between Fan Xi and Derek Rose is that people already knew Rose was very powerful, but didn't expect him to be this powerful. Fan Xi is someone people never thought would be this powerful, and it turns out he is this powerful.

Rose has already entered the realm of superstars. Starting next season, his name will inevitably enter the discussion list of the league's top five. Fan Xi, on the other hand, still has a short road to travel.

Because he is not yet the absolute leader of a team.

On this matter, Westbrook is very, very depressed. He and Derek Rose have similar playing styles; both are open-and-close styles, both are known for their physical fitness, with extremely fast speed, extremely strong explosive power, very powerful body control ability, jumping ability like a thunderbolt, and amazing endurance... returning is like starting.

These are the common advantages that describe them.

However, Rose has become the most watched superstar in the NBA, and he has won one of the most supreme honors for a player: the regular season MVP.

Westbrook is still empty-handed and is regarded as the second-in-command beside Kevin Durant.

This makes the proud Young Master Wei always feel uncomfortable.

He feels that if he were in Rose's position, maybe he would do even better than Rose.

Yesterday, he was still on the phone with Fan Xi. At that time, the US media was reporting overwhelmingly on Taylor Swift's flying kick to Joe Jonas.

He took this opportunity to care about Fan Xi.

But they talked more about things in the current point guard circle.

"Nash and Kidd are old and frail. Tony Parker only knows how to accelerate and spin like a top."

"Chris Paul, the so-called pride of a generation, is nothing more than a ball-hogging core with a hollow name. When it really comes to the critical moment, what use is he?"

"Deron Williams only knows two crossovers and a bit of pick-and-roll. Now that his physical fitness is declining, he will soon leave the league."

"And what about Rajon Rondo, a mere brute who doesn't even know how to shoot."

"Don't look at how fierce Derek Rose is now, but that playing style of his is hard to sustain. Therefore, of all the point guards in the world, the only ones who can persist to the end and stand on the mountaintop are Jack and Russell!"

Westbrook put a high hat on Fan Xi.

He thought so from the bottom of his heart.

Fan Xi of course didn't pretend to be afraid of thunder and shake his phone; after all, this is not a conversation between Cao Cao and Liu Bei.

"What you said makes a lot of sense, Russell." Fan Xi followed Young Master Wei's words: "I think so too, but we have to add my good brother Stephen. Stephen will be very strong in the future."

"Stephen? Which Stephen?" Westbrook asked in surprise. There are indeed many point guards in the league named Stephen who play very well, but aren't they all in the past? Two-time regular season MVP Stephen Nash, self-proclaimed world's number one point guard Stephon Marbury.

Fan Xi smiled and said: "Stephen Curry. My college classmate, he is already the boss of the Golden State Warriors now."

"I'm talking to you seriously." Westbrook frowned.

"I'm not joking either." Fan Xi was also super serious.

Then, the two had nothing more to say. "You're being a bit boring."

Westbrook hung up the phone.

He felt that Stephen Curry was just a three-point shooter with ordinary athletic ability, not in the same league as him at all, and even compared to Jack, he was far behind.

How could he be mentioned in the same breath as us?

"Russell! Russell!"

Head coach Scott Brooks pulled Westbrook's drifting thoughts back. Brooks is a very conscientious head coach; he always does twice or even three times the work of other head coaches before the game; he is very hardworking.

After arriving in Los Angeles, he and the coaching staff talked to the players one after another.

Today is Westbrook.

"Have you watched Jack's highlights? Did you notice?"

Scott said in great detail: "Jack's physical fitness is somewhat similar to yours. His speed is also extremely fast, his explosive power is top-notch, and he has very skilled and superb ball-handling techniques. Moreover, his coordination and strength are both very good."

"However, in my heart, his physical fitness is still not as good as yours. He has many amazing talents, but also many mediocre ones. Agility, hand-eye coordination, reaction speed... many hidden talents are not as good, and his stamina is not as abundant as yours. So, you have to work hard in these areas."

Scott Brooks analyzed Fan Xi's pros and cons very seriously with Westbrook. He also specifically emphasized: "Where Jack is better than you is his off-ball shooting, and he has a calm head. Russell, when facing him, you must be calm!"

Westbrook, however, appeared indifferent.

He considered himself very clear about the comparison of pros and cons between himself and Fan Xi. He had watched Fan Xi's tapes until he was almost sick of them. He felt that it wouldn't be a big problem for him to blow out Jack. Although their relationship is quite good, but... how could Jack withstand all this impact of mine?

The day before the Western Conference Finals began, Fan Xi's sneakers were officially released, released globally simultaneously.

The popularity of the Fan-x-one in the Asian region was predictable. Fan Xi's status in Asia had long been equivalent to Michael Jordan. In any corner with yellow skin, he was worshipped, just like Liu Xiang in 2004, and Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan who swept the film world.

In the East Asian market, the Fan-x-one was hard to find, scalpers raising prices became a trend, and media reports were also overwhelming.

And what made the Fan-x brand and Nike drop their jaws was that on the streets of New York, a long line of over 1,000 meters formed at the entrance of the specialty store. Even the release of LeBron James's signature shoes didn't have such a scene, unless it was those particularly popular and limited-edition collaborations that had this effect.

"As a New Yorker, it's hard for me not to like Jack. He is a basketball elf. He is not omnipotent, but he is always unexpected, just like my freestyle. He is also a trendsetter in the fashion circle. His outfits are always on point, and he also has a covetable charm. So many super female stars chase after him. If I don't have a pair of his sneakers, my entire hipster circle will mock me."

When a reporter went to interview a trendy-looking black man, he expressed his love for Fan Xi with a machine-gun-like statement.

And a white man wearing a New York jersey said: "I hope he comes to New York City to save us. We need a miracle. We have been rotten for too long, so I have to put on his sneakers. I want to tell him that New York welcomes him."

"Taylor's kick infected us. We all need to put on a pair of sneakers that make self-righteous men pay the price. This is our latest fashion!" two young girls expressed their reasons when interviewed.

"......"

It can be said that on the streets of New York, you can find dozens of reasons to buy, and they are so sufficient.

This shows how wide Fan Xi's influence radiates.

This is a star the NBA has never had before. If you really have to find a similar one, you can only go to the football world; Beckham is a bit like him.

The sales data in New York City on the East Coast is so booming, so one can imagine Los Angeles on the West Coast.

This is Fan Xi's home base.

This is not only the Lakers' lair, but also a stronghold of Hollywood.

There are a total of 19 stores in Los Angeles selling Fan Xi's sneakers, and outside each one is a shocking long line. Among the people queuing here, more than thirty percent of the fans are wearing Fan Xi's No. 10 jersey.

Lakers fans have a strong desire to wear Fan Xi's sneakers to watch the Western Conference Finals.

In the evening, the day's sneaker sales data hadn't come out yet.

But the television was already reporting crazily on the sensational effect of this release.

Although some commentators pointed out sourly that Fan Xi's sneaker distribution this time was not wide.

However, what Fan Xi knew was that the first batch of 280,000 pairs of shoes in North America was already close to selling out. The rest were either too large or too small in size, but basically, they could be completely digested within a week. This batch of shoes was originally intended to be sold until the start of the new season.

Who knew... overnight!!!

And the number of users who left a deposit exceeded 100,000.

Calculated at an average of 180 US dollars per pair of Fan Xi's sneakers, the sales amount has already exceeded 50 million US dollars.

This sales data is enough to make James panic. James is the hegemon in the North American sneaker field. His signature shoes have annual sales of about 300 million US dollars, and his sneaker prices are 40 or 50 US dollars higher than Fan Xi's.

More intuitively, last year, Kobe Bryant's total sneaker sales were 78 million US dollars, and Kevin Durant's were 79 million US dollars.

This means that Fan Xi might only need two weekends, as long as Fan Xi's sneaker production is timely, to surpass Kobe and Durant.

Hiss!

Fan Xi clearly heard the Nike chairman gasp in front of him. He had thought that Fan Xi was a cash cow, but he never dreamed that he would be so profitable.

If he had known... if he had known to spend another 200 million US dollars, even if it meant increasing the share by another ten percent, he would have made a fortune.

Fan Xi's sales figures were quickly passed to the ears of the league's top superstars.

When Kobe Bryant heard it, he was stunned at first, his heart unable to hide some loss, but then he felt happy for Fan Xi.

His loss is a manifestation of the ego; no one can calmly accept that their little brother surpasses them in business.

Joy is a manifestation of the superego; he knows that the better Fan Xi is, the better he will be. The more money Fan Xi earns, the greater the motivation he has to chase victory and help himself achieve a three-peat.

Durant learned of this news, and he was stunned for about 10 seconds, then he asked his assistant to hand him a calculator, and he began to calculate how much Fan Xi could earn from it.

Fan Xi has shares, and he has a guaranteed endorsement, and Fan Xi and his parents together have absolute, absolute, absolute control; Nike only occupies a small part.

Moreover, according to this trend, Wall Street capital will inevitably enter to inject capital, and Nike's shares will be further diluted.

Jack is very likely to become the richest man among active NBA players because of this. Although it will take some time for his sales data to catch up with James, James is just a wage earner.

James learned of this news, and his entire face was twisted; he was too painful.

He has spent his whole life chasing excellence; he tattooed "Chosen One" on his body to show the nobility and uniqueness of his Heaven's Chosen Son.

But now, in the business field he is best at, he has been hit hard by Fan Xi.

"This must be the credit of that hype. So many super-first-line female stars brought goods for him and even hit people for him. He must have eaten some dividends. Give him another chance, he definitely won't be able to do it."

James said indignantly. "He is just an idol type."

His agent nodded repeatedly beside him.

Obeying the will of King James.

"If he loses in the Western Conference Finals, he will definitely be forgotten. Now those capital crocodiles waving checks and wanting to enter the market to make a profit will definitely turn their guns and eat him up in one bite."

"Without strength, it will always be just a flash in the pan."

James continued to say.

But what can these words represent? At least it can't affect the present.

Joe Jonas was greatly affected. He had previously belittled Fan Xi in his words, saying that Fan Xi relied on playing basketball to make money and that this job had no future. But when Fan Xi's sneakers sold well, he was immediately subjected to cold mockery from the media.

The Hollywood Chronicle satirized him: "The money Jack Fan earned in one night is enough for Joe Jonas's past ten years of career. Don't forget, Jack also has brand appreciation."

Sports media added insult to injury, mocking Joe Jonas, which for a time further promoted the popularity of Fan Xi's sneakers.

This is a scene that has never happened before.

David Stern was also stunned.

He told Deputy Commissioner Silver: "I never dreamed that before I retired, I would encounter such a phenomenal star. Jack's commercial value reminds me of Jordan in his prime."

Undoubtedly, this incident is changing many original established ideas.

And Fan Xi also ushered in the challenge of the Western Conference Finals.

His opponent is Westbrook.

And Kevin Durant.