On January 1, 2004, the first day of the new year, Li You, who had just celebrated his 26th birthday last night, had to continue to be busy.

The birthday party was held at his home in Manhattan with Knicks teammates and friends from New York, and on the first day of the new year, the party was more intimate and full of partners.

After the general meeting of Manchester United FC, Li You's name was completely remembered by the British melon-eating masses.

Both the BBC and the Mirror are gossiping, and Randall, the BBC's economics editor, joked in an interview:

"Manchester United is so close to being bought that it's like parking a tank car in the garden in front of someone's house."

In order to assert their sovereignty, Irish horse farm tycoons Maunier and McManus recently struck hard in the London stock market!

It has again bought a 3.4% stake from Dutch media tycoon De Moore, another major shareholder of Manchester United.

Red Football Capital holds 28.41% of the total, and the two major shareholders have a total stake of 28.89% in Manchester United.

The UK's sports media and financial circles have begun a gossip showdown, with both sides having a huge say in United's board of directors after owning nearly 29 per cent of the shares.

Interestingly, it was the invasion of red football capital that the Irish racecourse tycoons failed to completely control the club.

With both sides able to convene an emergency general meeting at any time, and with the appointment of three non-executive directors to oversee Manchester United, the board has become a three-pronged board.

Russian billionaire Larif Safin also wanted to join in the acquisition, but Maozi's internal attack on the domestic economic oligarchy made his enthusiasm for the acquisition decreased a lot.

Perhaps Manchester United has an internal devil, and the fact that the board of directors submitted a 13-page written report to Red Football Capital's legal team and Maunier's legal team respectively was also revealed.

The Mirror columnist's article was as if it were there, describing Manchester United executive Gil questioning the major shareholder:

"Do you really care about Manchester United?"

The answer to this question is naturally yes, after all, both sides are buying stocks with real money, and the pound does not lie!

Manchester United's recent share price rise, which has reached a market value of 700 million pounds, has been a constant protest from Manchester United fans, who support Ferguson and believe that the major shareholders are vampires who don't know how to play.

There was no snow after Christmas, but the maximum temperature during the day was only 3°C, and at night it was below freezing.

The peninsula estate is too large, and most of it is covered by forests, so the temperature is not very friendly.

However, this did not affect the atmosphere of the banquet, and the star of the evening was Stanley O'Neal, CEO and chairman of the board of Merrill Lynch.

Merrill Lynch Securities came to a lot of executives, plus Axes Capital and the surrounding neighbors, everyone came to join in the fun and eat melons.

As Merrill Lynch's first non-white executive, Stanley O'Neill was named "America's Most Powerful Black Executive" by Fortune magazine.

Gray-haired and looking like an "old slave", Stanley O'Neal smiled happily as he held up his glass.

The service staff of the party company constantly delivers delicious food to the crowd from the kitchen.

Although the music played by the pianist was soothing, there were a lot of beautiful model girls tonight, and many of them enjoyed themselves and entered a state of self-praise early.

Li You and the others did not fall into a carnival, and after chatting about family life, Stanley O'Neal laughed and joked:

"Our Wall Street sheriff seems to have invited Lee to a musical, pay attention to your emails, and remember to tell traders to be careful, this one won't give up easily."

The three Ziff brothers were also at the party tonight, and none of them liked Spitzer as the attorney general.

The other side is accumulating political capital to prepare for the gubernatorial election in the future, and many Wall Street companies are suffering under the "killing of chickens and monkeys".

Dirk Zief, dressed in a modest black suit, raised his eyebrows covertly, glanced at Li You and Bobby, and also teased the black CEO:

"He issued a fine of 100 million yuan to Merrill Lynch, don't you plan to express it?"

Stanley was able to rise to the top, and the process was not honorable.

The former CEO was his mentor David Komansky, who took over and fired Executive Vice President Thomas Patrick immediately after taking office.

The latter led Merrill Lynch's layoffs to get the company back on track, and as a result, the CEO was replaced, and this became the "scapegoat" to calm the emotions of employees.

Last year, the whole Wall Street followed suit, and after Stanley took office, he announced that he would change the "mom culture" of Merrill Lynch's job security, and even declared that he would beat Goldman Sachs to become a trading giant

This approach is somewhat similar to that of the attorney general, so after analysts at Merrill Lynch declared in an email that some stocks were junk and then recommended them to clients, many people thought it was "retribution".

Regarding the ridicule of the rich second generation, Stanley didn't care at all, but said meaningfully:

"We only do legitimate deals, and I'm actually personally behind Spitzer, at least he has earned Wall Street back the trust."

"Axes Capital will not be penalized, and our transactions are strictly followed by the rules."

"Actually, you could have sold us your shares, and without that, we would have been a bit passive at the club's shareholders' meeting."

Bobby stared at Stanley, he didn't like the other party's sassy operation, and the 3.4% stake was handled by Merrill Lynch, Manchester United's designated agent.

Li You looked at the atmosphere a little tense, and said with a smile:

"Don't worry about these Bobbys, it's a good thing that we have become closer friends with this deal, and we should have a toast to it!"

Driving up the stock price and making more money, Stanley is really not emotional, and he met Li You in 2000 when he was the president of the private client group.

At that time, everyone was not as rich as they are now, but Stanley's promotion and salary increase came out like this, helping the British to go against it.

A few people stopped talking about business, and Stanley finally made amends with a smile:

"Lee, David Messer was recently raising money to bring Marvel's comics to the big screen, and he turned to Merrill Lynch for help."

"Axes Capital can also participate, we co-fund, this is an opportunity to make money!"

Seeing the old guy blinking ambiguously, Li You knew that this was the qualification to "bring capital into the group" for him.

After responding with a smile, Li You secretly complained that the old guy was not on the road:

"Playing with a girl costs hundreds of millions of dollars? Are they all made of gold? ”

After the dinner, many people left with their favorite chicks to continue the nightlife.

In the study, Bobby talked about what happened to him at the Manchester United shareholders' meeting, and then complained about the inflated Stanley:

"If we get that share, the board of directors will be in full control, and he's warning us!"

Unbuttoning his neckline, Bobby stood up and walked around depressedly, as the fund grew in size and there were more and more competitors, and so did the bad things.

Li You also knows this, but it takes too long to make money just by buying stocks, and Wall Street does not have the option of making money in harmony:

"He's said to like subprime mortgage-backed CDOs? We'll have a chance! ”

"I met our neighbor, Nicholas Monis, the founder of Amaranth Advisors, at a banquet and they stole a lot of investors?"

Also founded in 2000, the hedge fund, headquartered in Greenwich, has grown rapidly in the past few years.

Monis was a portfolio manager at the Padma Fund, and Sussman, the founder of the Padma Fund, is a long-time donor to the Donkey Party.

"They did get more support, and Sussman was really prestigious."

For such an old opponent, Bobby also acknowledges the excellence of the opponent.

The Padma Fund, which has been consistently profitable and risk-averse to market volatility, has earned the founder praise as a time-proven hedge fund.

Li You touched his chin, thinking that it was already 2004, and suddenly said:

"New Orleans will be hit by hurricanes in the future, and maybe this is another God-given opportunity!"

“？”

Bobby had a question mark on his face, and he didn't seem to keep up with Li You's leapfrog thinking, but his memory was particularly good, and after looking back, he suddenly said:

"You mean Amaranth's energy deal? If there really is a hurricane."

Bobby, who was pacing back and forth, was a little short of breath, which meant hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue.

The two whispered for a while, and then Bobby hurried away, he needed to get everything ready from now on.

When Ivana came to the study with a snack, Li You was lying on a chair looking at the ceiling in a daze.

He decided to do more charity and buy psychological comfort

"I should have known that I should have prepared for law school in advance, and only Milinda could help you on such an occasion!"

Returning to Manhattan after Christmas, Ivana has been running the Peninsula Estate, and the blonde White Rabbit, who has not yet graduated, has no presence at such gatherings.

After all, she is still a young girl, and in the past few years, she has patronized and enjoyed life, so naturally she can't talk to the wives who have entered law firms or Wall Street after graduating from law school.

Ivana, who was sitting in Li You's arms, handed the snack to her mouth, and Li You ate it and sucked the other party's fingers.

Ivana, who was still wearing a white dress, gave Li You a coquettish look, and tonight she deliberately coiled her hair, leaving only a few strands of curly blonde hair on her forehead.

Although he is only 23 years old, compared with his girlhood, he has lost baby fat, plus he has recently controlled his weight well, his body is plump, and he has a different temperament.

"Don't think about it so much, Milinda has worked for many years, didn't your father let you go back to work in the group? Soon you will become a big entrepreneur. ”

Li You comforted in a low voice, and when he saw the other party's tangled look, he leaned into his ear to change the topic and said:

"What about the Milinda? Eat some more, we still have work to do. ”

Ivana thought of Milinda, who was preparing in the bathroom, her face was slightly red, and her body was even weaker after a pair of large soft ones were suddenly held.

The blonde white rabbit didn't speak, and his breathing became more and more rapid, Li You knew what to do, picked up the other party, and walked to the bathroom:

"You guys always have something new to play!"

After the start of the new year, new toys were also ushered in for Chinese fans, and Baidu Tieba was born at the end of the year.

Yao Ming, who came to play in the NBA, made more fans recognize Li You!

Although the Internet is not yet widely used in many places, with more and more reports from sports magazines and CCTV, Li You's popularity has skyrocketed.

In this era, most of the small essays in sports magazines are inspirational chicken soup, but after reading Li You's report, young fans will shout:

"Ox X!"

Most of the student party don't have time to watch the game, but Li You's collection is too beautiful to say, at present, the "national uniform" is still in the new stage, and the student party fans who watched the highlights will also shout:

"It's awesome!"

There are more and more winning honey, and the Chinese sports media only feel that the small essays are not enough, and the homogenization of the content of the magazine is extremely serious

The big city can get first-hand news, and the student party from a well-to-do family began to make efforts to buy Li You's signature sneakers, and the best sales are the pair of bubble Li You's generation with more than 1,000 soft girl coins.

The color change and cutting leeks can't stop these enthusiastic young fans, the actual combat performance of these shoes is average, but the X attribute is the biggest selling point.

"Ten years old fans" came uninvited, talked about the signature shoes very well, and even added additional attributes to this pair of shoes:

"Lee Yo defeated Michael Jordan in this signature shoe! When I put on the shoes, I felt the bounce increased! ”

“.”

At this time, there are no "big four quarterbacks", most of the winning honeys have become Li You's fans, and those who like Kobe, Carter, McGrady, and Iverson have become niche groups.

The logic of winning honey is also very simple, and a simple comparison leads to the conclusion:

The posture is not as chic as Li You, the flower work can't catch up with Li You, the data is very different, and there are few honors.

So much worse, why not support the winners?

Of course, there are also people who like tragic heroes, Iverson, Carter, and McGrady still gained some fans, although they didn't win against Li You, but their spirit is commendable!

As for Kobe, due to the recent illegal invasion incident, his image has been damaged, and his popularity has dropped a lot.

After the New Year, the Knicks played three games, including the game against the Nets, Lee Woo and Kidd played against each other, and finally had no choice but to usher in the first defeat of the new year.

Of course, this also has something to do with the absence of Gasol and Hill, who injured his shoulder and Hill in the game against the Bulls.

To be on the safe side, the coaching staff decisively sent the two to the injury list.

On the night of the 6th, in the away game against the Cavaliers, the Knicks clocked in for another three quarters.

LeBron James had a good performance, filling up the stats column, shooting 6-of-17 from the field and finishing with 14 points, 2 rebounds, 10 assists, 1 steal, 1 block and 4 turnovers.

After losing this game, the Cavaliers' record came to 8-26 and still ranked last in the bottom place.

On Jan. 8, the Knicks will host the Rockets on Saturday.

The Rockets were back-to-back games, losing 66:85 to their opponents in the away game against the Pistons.

Yao Ming played 27 minutes, made 2 of 5, and got 4 points, 5 rebounds, 2 blocks and 4 turnovers.

Leading scorer Mobley scored eight points on 2-of-12 shooting, while Francis scored a team-high 15 points on 6-of-16 shooting.

After the loss, the Rockets' record came to 19-15, and the record declined, which also made Mike Brown from a former future coach to the current "black bread".

The Pistons once again showed excellent defense, and Ben Wallace regained face, after playing the No. 4 position, he made 4 of 8 and cut down 9 points, 15 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 3 blocks and 2 turnovers.

As with last season, the Pistons are still lacking a strong big man, but their 23-13 record is firmly in the top half of the league.

At the beginning of the month, the NBA league announced the Player of the Month for December, and to the dismay, Lee Woo won the award again.

The Knicks finished with a 14-2 record in December, leading the Eastern Conference by a wide margin!

Li You played an average of 32.8 minutes per game, contributing 29.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 10.4 assists, 2.8 steals, 0.4 blocks and 2.4 turnovers per game;

He averaged 17.8 shots per game while shooting 51.2 percent from the field, 43.5 percent from three-point range and 92.6 percent from the free throw line.

The Timberwolves have an 11-2 record, and Kevin Garnett was named Player of the Month for December.

Compared with Li You's data, Garnett Excel is more beautiful:

Averaged 40.3 minutes per game, averaging 26.4 points, 13.2 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 1.8 steals, 2.5 blocks and 2.4 turnovers per game;

He averaged 19.6 shots per game while shooting 52.5 percent from the field and 76.1 percent from the free throw line.

seems to feel that his data overwhelms Li You, and Garnett has been blowing X again and again for more than a week at the beginning of the month:

"I'm just the best big man in the league."

"No one can match my impact on the game!"

With the blessing of record and data, Garnett's efficient performance has been recognized by ball critics, and at this time, everyone took the initiative to ignore Li You's fishing, and the league needs new stars!

As the season progresses, the intense schedule naturally tires the players.

Yao Ming, who came to Manhattan, was a little listless, and after the loss to the Pistons, some commentators began to attack him again.

Li You can not be evaluated in the accident world, after all, he can put up his left hand, and the championship represents everything.

Yao Ming naturally can't do this, he also represents Chinese basketball, so he will be depressed after every crotch pull.

When he was a guest at Li You's home on 82nd Street in Manhattan, Yao Ming could only taste the delicious food on the table.

"Benbang cuisine, most of the Chinese restaurants here in Manhattan have been improved, and Master Ye's craftsmanship is absolutely nothing to say!"

The tall and thin Master Ye came to Li You's side from time to time to take charge of the spoon, came to cook, and the ingredients were all included, plus Li You's generosity, this master smiled from ear to ear every time he came over.

Looking at Master Ye who was smiling and raising his glass, Yao Ming also laughed:

"Athletes don't have to suffer themselves, don't say anything in the accident world, as long as you are Chinese, they will support you!"

After Yao Ming got to know Li You in depth, he did find a different life as an athlete, but his situation was different, so he could only smile bitterly at this time:

"I like to surf the Internet, and every time I see the news, I always feel a little uncomfortable!"

Seeing that Yao Ming was in a state of "pattern", Li You shook his head and said:

"How much does the Rockets get paid? In the NBA league, if you want to achieve better results, you may not win the championship by spending more money, but if you don't spend money, there is a high probability that you will not win the championship. ”

"In 82 regular season games, everyone has moments of sluggish form, and no player can always be high."

"Some games are put in place, which is good for protecting your physical condition!"

As a big man of 2.20 meters, Yao Ming's physical fitness is naturally not very good, there are a lot of meat shields these years, and his body is too poor to play the inside line.

If you want to reduce consumption, you naturally have to fish appropriately, but Yao Ming has psychological baggage and can't do it like Li You.

Taking advantage of the dinner, Li You also taught Yao Ming his fishing skills:

"In the competition, increasing your expressiveness can allow you to gain more impression points!"

'It's not just about scoring goals and putting on a good defense, you also need to swing your fists at the camera.

"In some games, you don't have to think about retreating quickly, beating your chest and roaring twice, but you will get more praise."

"The big man can't get a big delay? Go tell your teammates to get them through the cover! That's the job of a role player. ”

"The core players will not sacrifice their strengths to serve the team, correspondingly, the team should serve the core players and make up for his shortcomings."

"There is never a shortage of players in the NBA league, and if the role players have an opinion, then change another batch! They don't do the job, some of them are players! ”

"Get a high salary, do your job well, and if there is a need, tell the team that basketball is a five-person sport, earn one money and do how many jobs? There is no such thing. ”

“.”

Yao Ming's eyes were straight when he heard this, Li You is simply a "basketball capitalist", putting his position above the team, which has a huge conflict with his concept, and he also has some doubts about the previous concept in his heart:

"Is this the secret of success?"

On the other side of the ocean, in China, CCTV Sports will naturally broadcast the Rockets' game on Saturday morning.

Encountering the Knicks in back-to-back games, coupled with Yao Ming's performance in the last game, Zhang Weiping began to fold the armor in advance:

"It's not a good game, and although the Knicks lost to the Nets the other day, they are still in very good shape overall."

"There are 4 games this week, there are no back-to-backs, the opponent is not strong, and Li You has not consumed it at all."

"Yao Ming can't do it, don't look at Francis as an all-star, if you meet Li You, you will definitely not be able to pass the ball."

"The Rockets are going to lose, unless Mobley can break out!"

This kind of away back-to-back games do test the physical fitness of the players more, and the host Yu Jia also agrees with this point of view, no longer talking too much about the outcome of the game, but changing the topic and saying:

"Winning the best player for two months in a row, does Lee Woo still have a chance to win the MVP?"

As soon as he heard this question, Zhang Weiping smiled and ridiculed the NBA's selection mechanism:

"It stands to reason that with the Knicks' record and Lee Woo leading the scoring and assist lists, there is basically no suspense about the MVP."

"But that's not the case in the NBA, the purpose of his awards is to encourage players, and the second is to make stars!"

"Stars have to have honors, and a star without an MVP is not a superstar."

"So, the situation now is that as long as Garnett keeps up this stats and performances, he can win the award."

"This year's All-Star, Lee Woo and Garnett are both selected for the 7th time, and in terms of seniority, it is Garnett's turn to win the award."

Hearing that the theories of the seniors' seniority came out, Yu Jia in the studio could only smile and nod.

The game was as expected by the two in the studio, with the Knicks frequently launching high pick-and-rolls.

Most of the rounds, Yao Ming could only watch the shot, or encountered Li Youqiang rushing to the basket and paid for the foul.

The Rockets suffered another scoring drought in the first quarter of the game, and Jim Jackson failed to continue his efficient performance in the last game and was completely limited by Artest.

At 14:34, the game fell behind by 20 points in the first quarter, which also made the two people in the CCTV sports studio depressed.

Before the start of the new season, the Chinese sports media blew again:

"Team Rockets are aiming for the championship!"

Dig deep into every player on the Rockets and try to create an illusion of strength for the fans.

was frequently blocked and "named" by Li You, and Francis failed to squeeze past the cover in many rounds, which made Yao Ming's performance on the court very undignified.

After falling behind by a big score, Yu Jia in the studio began to talk about other topics again:

"Our reporters in the U.S. interviewed head coach Mike Brown and asked questions about Yao Ming's direction."

"Coach Brown thinks that Yao Ming must increase the confrontation, that is, to build muscle, Coach Zhang, what do you think of this suggestion?"

Li You, who appeared again, hit a three-pointer on the left wing, and Zhang Weiping first shouted, "It's beautiful!" And then on this topic he said:

"If you want to establish yourself completely in the league, your body is really the most important thing, and Yao Ming has to increase his confrontation, which can make his scoring more consistent."

"The most important thing is that if you want to reach the division finals in the Western Conference, Yao Ming will meet more good big men."

"Maintaining competitiveness and polishing the body is definitely a necessary condition, Yao Ming can endure hardships, this matter will not be difficult for him!"

The two chatted freely in the studio, and the lackluster Rockets failed to fight back effectively.

At the end of the half, at 36:60, the game was out of suspense early.

Yao Ming, who was short of fitness, experienced a long switchback run, and began to gasp for air when he returned to the locker room at halftime.

The back-to-back away games still caused Yao Ming a lot of trouble, after all, the Knicks played a fast pace.

Coach Mike Brown returned to the locker room and saw the physical condition of the players, and he felt a little helpless.

He does want to give the ball to the interior, but the Knicks are very good at defending super centers.

The strategy for tonight's game was simple and rough, with Francis giving the ball to Yao Ming in the low post on the flank in some rounds, and there was no bag when he was stuck in position, but everything changed the moment he received the ball.

Li You usually slides quickly, disrupting Yao Ming when he releases the ball, and cooperating with his teammates to wrap up.

All Gasol has to do is push Yao Ming away from the basket!

Such a simple tactic made Yao Ming make three mistakes in the half.

3 of 8, 4 of 4 free throws, 10 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist and 3 turnovers, the interior core performance was mediocre, and the Rockets naturally fell behind by a large score.

"Cheer up, don't think about the outcome of the match, and being able to play against the defending champions is also an opportunity to learn."

"Steve, I need to see your response in the second half, I don't want to see you give up the game too soon, basketball is round, anything is possible!"

After saying this, Mike Brown pushed his glasses and then pulled the assistant coach to continue delivering chicken soup, without mentioning the slightest question about tactics.

In the third quarter of the game, the defensive intensity dropped, and the Rockets also regained some face.

At Madison Square Garden, the New York fans at the scene entered a state of self-praise early, and the record was far ahead, which is the source of happiness for the fans.

Yao Ming didn't play again after playing half a quarter, and in the face of the Knicks who continued to speed up, too many switchbacks made the big man unable to withstand it.

In the end, the much-anticipated game by Chinese fans ended in a crushing defeat for the Rockets.

At 82:112, the Knicks won by a wide margin, bringing their record to 34-3.

The New York fans at the scene were still the same, and they didn't pay much attention to the situation of the Rockets, and continued to shout Li You's name loudly after the game.

In New York, Yao Ming doesn't even get the support of too many Chinese fans, and here they are the purest "winning honey", and most of them are Li You's fans.

Francis had a mediocre night, shooting 5-of-14, 1-of-5 from beyond the three-point line, and 5-of-7 from the free-throw line to finish with 16 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal and 4 turnovers.

A lot of players don't like Lee, on the contrary, people resonate more with Iverson, and that's the case with Francis, who doesn't like the Knicks' current team culture at all.

The continuous cheers made Francis's face a little ugly, and after returning to the locker room, Yao Ming was depressed and suddenly whispered:

"That's my problem, it's hard for me to defend and we have to rebuild our defense."

Francis didn't expect the little brother to suddenly say this, and even Mobley looked up at Yao Ming.

Once the Rockets were on the bus, the assistant coach gave Mike Brown a little information about the situation in the locker room.

Black Bread showed a contemplative expression, he also felt that the current team's thighs were not thick enough, and finally whispered to the coaching staff to reassure:

'I'll talk to the team and maybe we need to think about reinforcements in advance.'

“.”

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(End of chapter)