Chapter 40: Making a Name for Himself, Shoe

After this game ended, Fan Xi's reputation exploded completely across North America.

60 points in a single game, breaking the rookie scoring record—this was the first explosion!

An unprecedented 60-point super triple-double—this was the second explosion!

Before the game, Devin Harris was aggressive, claiming Fan Xi didn't deserve an eight-figure annual salary, only to be rubbed into the ground by Fan Xi—this was the third explosion!

Charles Barkley had belittled Fan Xi beforehand, but after the game, he shouted "Basketball God" at Fan Xi in front of the entire American audience—this was the fourth explosion!

Furthermore, there was the fawning from people like Kenny Smith.

In short, from that evening through the next day, the most dazzling figure in almost all basketball media and basketball news was… Fan Xi!

Moreover, this flame of madness spread to the entertainment section.

Disney's little princess publicly declared her love for Fan Xi. Although the American entertainment industry isn't as strict as Asia's regarding the dating of teen idols, this was still enough to stir up a heated public response. Of course, her agency subsequently came out to clarify: it was Jack's super performance that conquered Selena, and she is now a die-hard fan, plain and simple.

In fact, besides Selena's public declaration of love, Kendall Jenner—the most beautiful and only Kardashian family member loved by the public—also ran out, full of jealousy, saying: "Jack and I have always had a very close relationship; I fell in love with basketball because of him."

Little Jenner had quite the air of a "first wife."

Chronologically speaking, the public did indeed have a preconceived notion that she and Fan Xi were a couple.

But Disney's little princess was too aggressive; she launched a fierce offensive right out of the gate. Could Jack withstand it?

For a time, many media outlets were scrutinizing this love triangle, and at the slightest sign of trouble, they would impatiently churn out big news.

Being the focus of the media is a good thing for celebrities; it is only sad when no one pays attention.

Advertisers love players with high topicality and high popularity; Kobe Bryant and Lebron James are both examples of this.

Now, Fan Xi is rising like a comet.

The attention of those big-name brands is naturally concentrating on him.

To them, Fan Xi is charming.

A Chinese guard… naturally possesses a powerful appeal in the Asian market, and now that Asia has gradually become the most economically active region in the world, the purchasing power of consumers is growing exponentially.

No international big brand is willing to miss out on this market.

At the same time, Fan Xi's basketball skills are so outstanding; he secured an unprecedented contract, set an unprecedented record, and sent those who provoked him into "hell" in a ruthless manner.

Most importantly, he is handsome and charming, and surprisingly, he is deeply loved by North American audiences. In less than three days, fans in the United States cast 650,000 All-Star votes for Fan Xi. At the current trend, Fan Xi will soon break the threshold set by the NBA, and once he surpasses 1 million votes, he will become the starting point guard for the Western Conference All-Star team.

From an undrafted player to a rookie All-Star starting point guard—and not the kind of All-Star "ripened" by Asian fans like Yao Ming… this in itself is a legend.

So, this is why the Lakers' PR manager complained to Fan Xi on the plane: "Jack, you should choose an agent. I really don't know how to help you handle these commercial offers flying in like snowflakes."

"10 minutes ago, Nike said they are willing to sign you for 5 years and 30 million US dollars. And they also promised to launch a signature shoe for you."

The PR manager said.

Then, the Lakers players in the front row let out exclamations one by one.

A signature shoe is the mark of a superstar.

Moreover, while there might be twenty or thirty superstars in the NBA, only about a dozen have their own independent signature shoes.

The shoe sponsorship market is a true inverted pyramid.

The vast majority of NBA players do not have shoe sponsorships; instead, brands give them some vouchers to use when purchasing shoes.

Then there are some All-Star or elite-level players who can get sponsorships from shoe companies, but usually, the amounts are not large—a few hundred thousand dollars a year, or perhaps a million dollars.

They don't have their own exclusive signature shoes yet and can only wear the signature shoes of other stars or team shoes.

Then, there is the next step up.

When you become a superstar or a highly influential player, you can get your own signature shoe… (For example, Paul George, who struggled from a signed player to eventually having his own signature shoe).

However, signature shoes are also divided into different tiers.

Sponsors have flagship products, and there is a big difference in pricing.

Nike's flagship product is the Lebron James series, which is the most expensive. Of course, this is also related to James's high signing fee; James signed an 80-million-dollar shoe sponsorship before even entering the league, and it has now evolved into a more advanced model of revenue sharing plus a base salary.

Kobe is the same, except that Kobe gets less money from Nike than James, and his shoe prices in the North American market are also slightly cheaper than James's. The reasons are complex; one important reason is that Kobe was previously a player under Adidas, and the shoe industry hits those who switch camps hard… just like Vince Carter. He changed three shoe sponsors; initially, as the "Half-Man, Half-God," his sponsorship fee was higher than contemporaries like Kobe and McGrady, but the more he switched, the lower his income became. Now, he is basically in a "free-range" state with no sponsors.

In addition, another big-name player for Nike is Kevin Durant, whose endorsement fee also exceeds the ten-million level. At the beginning, his shoe prices were not high, but now, as his strength gets closer and closer to the top level, the positioning of his shoes is getting higher and higher, ranking only behind James and Kobe under the Nike banner.

In general, the shoe endorsement field is a very deformed inverted pyramid system.

The highest level is the Basketball God, Michael Jordan, who has his own independent brand and shares. Even after retiring for so many years, he still receives tens of millions or even over a hundred million in dividends from the "Jordan" brand every year.

This is basically a height that latecomers cannot reach.

The contract Nike offered Fan Xi is at the third level of the inverted pyramid.

The first level is Jordan.

The second level is James, Kobe, Durant, and Derek Rose of the Adidas team.

Fan Xi's 5-year, 30-million-dollar contract is at the third level. Because Chris Paul, who is also a point guard, signed with the "Jordan" brand, as did Carmelo Anthony and Westbrook—they are all considered superstars in this league, yet their endorsement fees are less than 6 million dollars.

This is the reason why those Lakers players on the plane were exclaiming.

They feel that Fan Xi has truly leaped over the dragon gate.

Once you have a signature shoe, brands with massive resources will do their best to package and influence them, and they will provide them with the best training resources.

As the world's largest shoe brand, partnering with Nike completely solidifies the power to cross social classes.

So, how could they not be envious?

But Fan Xi just smiled calmly.

He thinks this number is not that tempting; after all, that domestic shoe brand offered a price of 1 billion, although there are big traps, and although its influence cannot be mentioned in the same breath as Nike.

Ever since Fan Xi's heart experienced that intense fluctuation and even produced brain waves last time, he has become very peaceful about large sums of money; no number can make him lose his composure anymore.

"Jack, I can't believe this journey; it's only been a month. Jack, you've completed the transformation from an undrafted player to a star player. No wonder so many fans across the US are crazily chasing you; they treat you as a representative of the American Dream, as a model of overnight success!"

Lamar Odom said affectionately.

Fan Xi recalled it, and it was indeed so.

However, a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth. He knew that his glory was still far from arriving.

"But, Jack, the more amazing the pursuit you receive now, the more terrifying the challenges you will encounter next. Because the more prestige and fame you accumulate, the more others will want to treat you as an imaginary enemy, and the more they will want to pull you down from the heights to become the god chased by all of America themselves!"

Matt Barnes said to Fan Xi.

He was acting out of kindness.

"Yes, the higher you stand, the harder you fall!" Steve Blake in the front was also saying sourly.

He wished Fan Xi would fall as miserably as possible.

Fan Xi couldn't be bothered to deal with this kind of sour grapes; for people with this kind of weak mentality, it's not worth giving them a second look.

The plane flew steadily; the destination was Florida. The Lakers would fight a game against the Magic in Orlando and then head to Miami. The end of this road trip is also the focus of attention for fans around the world.

Kobe Bryant will fly from Los Angeles to Miami to join the team; two weeks of time allowed him to clear up his injuries. He will appear in this battle of the century… Ever since Lebron James made that shocking choice last summer: teaming up with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh at the peak of his career, he has become a destroyer of the league's order.

Before this, he had always been the future ruler expected by the league; he had the title of "NBA Successor" hovering over his head. In America, they called him the "Little King," and in China, it was localized as the "Little Emperor."

Everyone thought he would completely surpass Kobe to become the top superstar within 2 years.

However, no one expected him to leave his hometown and choose the most difficult path: teaming up with two other superstars.

Therefore, his reputation is undergoing some subtle changes.

There are some voices in the media that treat him as the NBA's big villain, or rather… the villainous demon king.

Because people had high expectations for him before, hoping he would become the next Jordan.

When he returned to Cleveland, the whole arena was booing; a large number of hurt hometown fans flocked to the streets to tear down his billboards and burn his jerseys.

Many Clevelanders don't want him to win the championship, so they hope that Kobe Bryant, whom they hated the most before, will defeat and crush James.

It's just… looking at the unstoppable momentum of the Heat, this possibility is becoming increasingly slim. Kobe is aging day by day after all. In fact, when he defeated the Orlando Magic to win the championship last season, he already showed some fatigue; he was no longer in control of the game as easily as before.

So, isn't there still Jack?

Voices about Fan Xi are gradually emerging among the fan base; of course, this is not mainstream. After all, no matter how much of a myth Fan Xi is, even if he hangs Devin Harris up to whip his corpse, it cannot make fans feel that Fan Xi is already a player on the same level as Kobe and James.

Fan Xi's attention at this moment is on the Orlando Magic.

The Magic were last year's Eastern Conference champions; they are closely united around the 2004 NBA No. 1 draft pick, the "Beast" Howard.

The Beast Howard is the league's number one center today; his athletic talent is terrifying, and his defensive influence is unparalleled. Head coach Stan Van Gundy built the world-shocking "semicircle tactic" around him, making the Magic quickly become a strong team in the East; last season, they even took down the Big Three Celtics and the Cleveland Cavaliers in succession.

He is also considered the man who drove Lebron James to despair and to his peak "super-team" formation.

However, since this season, some changes have occurred within the Magic; it's not just personnel changes… their core small forward, the Turk Turkoglu, has left.

At the same time, there is the conflict between Howard and head coach Stan Van Gundy.

Howard no longer agrees with Van Gundy's "semicircle tactic"; he thinks this tactic treats him as a laborer, making him do the dirty and tiring work in the paint, while four shooters outside desperately shoot three-pointers.

He wants more ball possession; he wants to have the tactical status of the four great centers of the 90s, or at least like Yao Ming before.

However, Stan Van Gundy firmly believes that the era has changed; now it is the world of the perimeter. Even Tim Duncan has lost weight and is running outside, so why are you still stubbornly guarding the paint playing inefficient post-ups?

Most importantly, some of Stan Van Gundy's words touched a nerve in Howard; he said Howard has no post-up ability, his tough physique lacks detailed changes, and he is far inferior to the four great centers of the past and the subsequent Yao Ming.

Howard is a stubborn person; since the head coach said so, he insists on doing it himself.

Therefore, the Magic, with the discord between the general and the coach, have slipped to fifth in the East this season.

Fan Xi doesn't care about the Magic's internal conflict.

He just saw the news on his notebook that the Magic's core guard, Nelson, has issued a challenge to him.

Nelson is a point guard who entered the league with Howard; his playing style is explosive, and he is a famous "little steel cannon." Unlike Devin Harris, although he has never been a leader and has always been serving Howard, he has been selected for the All-Star game.

Being able to be selected for the All-Star game proves that his strength is higher than Devin Harris's.

From the tone of his interview, it can be seen that he is somewhat indignant.

"My children and I are both fans of Selena; I refuse to admit that Jack is any great star."

"He was able to get 60 points in the last game because the Nets' defense was terrible, and Devin Harris didn't know how to defend at all. For a player like Jack, if you hold his lower body, he won't be able to move."

"Just watch, Selena, watch how I pop his star bubble."

Nelson treated Selena like a "lick-dog."

However, for Selena: Nelson? What kind of trash is that? You want to stop me from dating Jack?

…