Silent! Half a minute, a minute. Neither spoke.

David Stern lowered his head and didn't speak. This made Hayes feel a little uneasy. When he said this, he didn't ask for the opinions of others, it was completely his own thoughts.

It's bad, he's angry, he's really angry. I don't think about it too much, this NBA unspoken rule is probably the connivance of Stern himself, and I put forward this opinion, just like talking to Frieza who destroyed the planet about planetary environmental issues. Stern's heart was certainly not going to feel good. I'm like Vegeta now, and I'm still useful, otherwise he might have killed me right away.

The NBA does have shady scenes.

In August 2007, gambling referee Tim Donahy pleaded guilty and faces up to 25 years in prison.

In a public trial in U.S. federal court, Donashi faces two felony charges. After months of investigation, the FBI has enough evidence to make the decision to plead guilty after many discussions with his lawyer. One of the strong pieces of evidence is Judge Carol Yamon's phone recording, in which he reportedly told his "partner" which team to buy to win, and if the results were correct, Donahi would be paid $5,000 per game.

In the aftermath of the scandal, CEO David Stern said the reason the N.B.A. didn't do so at the time because he was worried it would affect the FBI's investigations. And at a public press conference last month, Stern said the Donaghi incident was an absolute "exception" and that no other player or referee would make the same mistake.

Is there really only such a "ghost whistle" as Donahi in the NBA? Only a fool would believe it.

Nothing in this world is ever absolutely fair, but the NBA sometimes goes too far and too much.

For example, Game 6 of 2002 Kings vs Lakers. That year, except for the World Cup with sticks, this game was the blackest.

Recall Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals. That year, the Kings had a super strong lineup, starting Divac, Webb, Stojakovic, Christie, and Bibby. There was also a bunch of bench bandits such as Bobby Jackson and Turkoglou sitting off the court.

Staples Arena, where the Kings lead 3-2. The Lakers fought to the death on the edge of the cliff and never retreated. 75 tied in the fourth quarter, and the Lakers suddenly became powerful. Four and a half minutes before the end of the game, when the Kings led 90-89, they were still dreaming of running to the Finals. But in the next three minutes, the Lakers had already rebounded to 99-96. From then on, the king did not lead until the end.

The Lakers had a whopping 27 free throws in the final quarter, compared to the Kings' nine, and the Lakers outscored the Kings 40-25 in the number of free throws made in the game, and the Lakers didn't feel good in the fourth quarter, and no one from the Lakers shot for the full six minutes -- but that didn't stop them from scoring. During this period, Kobe, Hawley, and Fox took turns making free throws. Sixteen of their final 18 points came from free throws.

Kings centers Divac and Scott Pollard, who were responsible for defending O'Neal, were both sent off, and Webb had to play as a cameo center to top the Sharks. After the game, the Kings immediately complained to the league about the referee, but the result was irreversible. In the end, the Lakers defeated the Kings 106-102 and won Game 7 to advance to the Finals.

Donahy's statement brought the hearts of Kings fans back to 2002, and Kings fans have begun to piece together the details of that year's game. They are trying to prove that it was the NBA that ruined their beloved king's championship dreams.

Donahy's testimony said: "In May 2002, referees A, G and F officiated the playoff series for teams 5 and 6, which was the sixth game, and if Team 5 won that night, it would have ended the series. However, referees A and F are 'company insiders' who represent the interests of the league and want to drag the game to the seventh game in order to increase the number of games. On that night, Team 6's individual foul was ignored, while Team 5 was unjustified for multiple fouls, giving Team 6 multiple free throws and causing Team 5 to be ejected from the game. Team 6 came from behind to win the series. ”

After Mr. Donahy's latest court documents were made public, Mr. Stern accused Mr. Donagi of mitigating his culpability, which he dismissed as baseless. And the Marouf brothers, owners of the Kings, also expressed their support for the league, saying: "We think Stern and the league are straightforward and candid, so we don't believe Donahy's words." ”

Divac, who was far away in Madrid, Spain, spoke to reporters by phone and was sent off in that game. He still hopes that what Donaghi said is not true, saying: "I knew something was wrong, and I think so to this day, but I never thought the league would be involved. ”

Retired referee Ted Bernhardt, who officiated that game, said: "I insisted that I had no problem with my decision in that game, and I was right at the time. ”

He mentioned "me" twice and emphasised that there was nothing wrong with "my" decision, but there were still two referees in this game, so there may have been something wrong with him saying something like that.

Another example is the 2005 Mavericks vs Rockets. Also from Donahy's testimony.

"I was scheduled to officiate Game 3 of the Mavericks vs Rockets series in 2005, and before the game I was called to a meeting by league officials, and they clearly told us (the referees) to go out of our way to blow Yao Ming for moving a screen foul and an inside walking error, when the Rockets were leading 2-0, but the Mavericks were unbelievably able to turn the Rockets through seven playoff games." Donasi explained in detail the before and after of the third battle of "Hei Yao" in '05.

After the game, Jeff Van Gundy publicly fought for his disciples, saying that Yao Ming became the target of the referees, and later the league fined Van Gundy $100,000 in order to cover up his shame. Van Gundy set a new NBA fine for revealing that "the referee took care of Yao Ming." And this is most likely true.

The poor penalty buried the Rockets, and Stern was ironically sitting on the sidelines watching the game.

Donahy's finger is directed at the league, the sinner who claims that the so-called "superstar rule" exists, and that the league told referees to blow technical fouls on superstars to open the net or risk hurting ticket sales and ratings.

After more than a minute of silence, Stern calmly asked, "Chuck, do you believe what Donahi said?" ”

"I only believe what I see, I can't help it...... Someone's four-step layup. Hayeston said. Anyway, there's no turning back from the matter, so let's just keep talking. When he was excited, he almost said, "I can't stop your godson's four-step layup." ”

"You're the first person who dares to say to my face that I'm talking to the whistle player, and the other players are tight-lipped even when they are interviewed by reporters. Have you ever thought about the consequences of saying these words? Stern laughed. At this time, he thought of Van Gundy, who had been fined that year. No wonder Hayes and Van Gundy became friends, these two people have similar surnames!

"I think there may be two consequences, one is that Mr. President and I have the same idea, and we are preparing to strengthen the supervision of referees in order to save the image of referees in the league and the hearts of fans. The second is that when I haven't said it, it's what it should be. I'm sure you have a lot of them, and you won't be as knowledgeable as me, a babbling boy. Hayes said. In his previous life, James's crab steps were recognized as legal, which shows that Stern is also a stubborn person. If Stern hated him, it would be miserable. As long as Stern said to the referees, "Hayes is too arrogant, and he blows him up in the game against the Bobcats." "That's bad.

"Interesting. You're such an interesting person. Ha ha. Stern laughed, and then said gently: "Chuck, for the sake of watching the game, as long as the action is coordinated and coherent, it will not blow the step." When star players attack, referees sometimes tend to blow for fouls on defenders, which is also for the spectators of the game. If the scale of blowing penalties is changed, the game will lose a lot of color, and no fan wants a lot of walking violations in a game, right? But you also have a good suggestion. That is the supervision of referees, I do intend to find a person who specializes in managing referees, to prevent referees from gambling and black whistles in the future, to ensure that the game is absolutely fair and just, I say so, are you satisfied? ”

"Of course I'm satisfied, the current state of the league is already very good. I'm just making a small suggestion on a good premise and hoping that the alliance will be better. Hayes smiled, relieved.

Stern now feels that the choice of Hayes as the face of the NBA was too correct. Because Hayes is indeed very decent, he is already a star, and when he heard that he could enjoy the privilege of the star whistle, he was not only unhappy, but also proposed to ban the star whistle in order to seek justice, which is really rare.

Stern still remembers when he first talked to James, James's arrogant expression, as if he had surpassed Jordan. At that time, James vowed that "I will rule the league in 3 years." Perhaps, James was thinking about how to use the advantage of the star whistle to score...... Therefore, when James practiced the "crab step" and was questioned by other teams, he also justifiably said that he played like this in high school and did not foul him. No high school coach would teach a player to play like this, and it's not a big deal to skip the game for the sake of the game. But if you take error for truth, it's not good. In Stern's mind, Hayes' mentality is much stronger than James's.

At this time, Stern no longer expects James to become the league's new "basketball god", and James is more like a spoiled older kid than Hayes.

Strong, tenacious, confident, and upright. That's what Stern had to say about Hayes. He believed that with a helper like Pippen by his side, Hayes would be able to build a dynasty.

Stern smiled: "Chuck, your advice is very good, this is an act of speaking for the fans and thinking about the league." As for your image, I don't need to say more. It's good now, even if it's an opponent, it's rare to say anything bad about you. All you need to do now is lead the team to win the championship. Although your individual ability is very strong, it is not easy, the Hawks and Magic have improved this season, and there are Timberwolves, Spurs, Mavericks, and Lakers in the West. Regardless of which of these teams, the Bobcats have no advantage in staffing. How many years do you think you can win the championship? ”

"If it weren't for Bagnani's injury, which weakened the team's attacking ability, I think there would be a possibility of challenging for the title this year. If it doesn't work this year, there is at least an 8 percent chance that the Bobcat will win the championship next year. Hayes laughed.

"I'm talking about the championship, do you think the Bobcats are already that strong? Young people, don't talk big. ”

"Certainly not a big deal. This season, the young players of the Bobcats have been trained and their confidence has grown. We also have a tacit understanding of cooperation, and the Bobcats have four first-round picks, and they will definitely make a difference in the draft. The new players who fit the team's tactics will also be my help, and by next year at the latest, the Bobcats will definitely win the championship. ”

Stern had never seen anyone as confident as Hayes. Is it possible to join a team that is at the bottom of the league and say that you will win the championship in two years?

If he does, maybe he can surpass Jordan in the future!

(To be continued)