Yu Fei knew about the Mariners, and it was impossible for him not to know, because SuperSonic's desire to pursue better competition venues stemmed from this.

The 1995 Mariners were just one step away from moving out of Seattle, and they wanted a new arena because the old old-fashioned Dome looked like a mobile restroom, with a foul smell and no way to keep fans safe. Then, the City of Seattle approved a financing package that gave the Mariners a luxury arena that cost $500 million.

As a result, the Seahawks, who also made their home in Seattle, were red-eyed and wanted a new arena as well. If that demand isn't met, they'll move the team to Los Angeles.

The Seahawks went even further than the Mariners in that they had already made relocation plans, and just before the plan was finalized, Paul Allen bought the team from the Seahawks' owners and then funded the next election with great fanfare, successfully obtaining municipal financing for the Seahawks to build a new arena.

It can be said that the Mariners vs. the Seahawks are the source of the problem.

Both Major League teams are sponsored by the city, which shows that Seattle is generous, and the NBA certainly wants the same support.

But they hit a wall.

Therefore, hearing Lenny Wilkens mention the Mariners, Yu Fei had a feeling of returning to the original point.

"I know they played well that year, so they had the support of the fans and the city approved the financing package at the last minute."

Yu Fei said in general terms.

"You don't know all about it." Wilkens elaborated, "Before that year, the Mariners didn't mean anything to Seattle, and the locals didn't care about them. They then made the playoffs and won the first round of the series in the team's 19-year history. Most importantly, they beat the Yankees. Although they didn't win the World Series in the end, it was enough to bring fans across the city together. ”

Yu Fei can probably understand why the Mariners were recognized by the city just by beating the Yankees in the playoffs.

Because the Yankees are a team with more influence than baseball, in the circle, it is the top of the top, and the large fan base has brought a huge number of brain-dead fans, coupled with the glorious team history, which has led them to have a huge number of black fans across the country.

It can be said that the Yankees in MLB are basically treated as "one side is in trouble, and all sides like it".

"But we're not the same sailors back then." Yu Fei said, "The supersonic won the championship in 1979, and we not only have a longer history, but also enough heritage, why do most Seattleites turn a blind eye to this?" ”

Wilkens has never seen footage of the 79 supersonic on YouTube, and despite copyright restrictions, there are almost no fans who have the footage, which is an indirect proof that the 28-year-old championship has limited impact.

The NBA at that time was much worse in terms of commercial impact than it is today.

Therefore, not many people feel that they deserve a brand new arena just because they have won a championship on their supersonics.

"What are we going to do to stir up an effect in the city like the 1995 Mariners?" Yu Fei asked.

Wilkens' mind crossed with a green streak.

"If you beat the Celtics in the Finals, maybe." "They have as many enemies as the Yankees, and besides, their fans are more hateful than the Yankees," Wilkens said. ”

Yu Fei could feel strong personal emotions from Wilkens' words, and one can imagine how he was haunted by the Celtics while playing.

Coincidentally, though, the Celtics did rise this season and are currently sitting at the top of the league by an overwhelming finish.

But Yu Fei very much agrees with Wilkens' words, if the SuperSonics can make it to the finals and beat the Celtics in the finals, the supersonics' reputation in Seattle will enter a new level.

Because in recent years, Boston's sports fans are evolving into the worst fan base in American history.

It has to do with their athletic performance.

A few years ago, the Red Sox broke the curse of the Holy Child and won the World Championship for the first time in more than half a century. And the Patriots, who have always been looked down upon by the Bostonians, have lifted the Super Bowl three times in the past five years after getting a fierce man like Tom Brady.

Although the last time the Bruins won the championship was in the early '70s, hockey doesn't matter compared to the success of baseball and football. Now, Celtic are also in contention for the title.

Bill Simmons often complains that he has been malice by many outsiders as a Boston sports fan.

Then, one of his New York readers wrote him an email: "That's the price of success, welcome to the club." ”

Winning the title would be a great medicine to turn around SuperSonic's reputation in the country, and it is also Yu's main goal this season.

But his concern is whether some force majeure will happen to make his efforts go to waste.

Now it can only be said that he has not seen a similar sign.

A day later, the SuperSonics beat the Bobcats at home.

Then it was the final game before Thanksgiving, and the SuperSonics faced the challenge of the Spurs, a traditional powerhouse in the West.

After sending Kidd to the Lakers, the Spurs further strengthened the wing (getting Caron Butler), but severely weakened their No. 1 position.

The Spurs' current strongest five are Duncan, Ginobili, Butler, Lore Deng and Bowen. They look like they have a lot of offense and defense, but they don't have a reliable engine because they can't find a reliable point guard in free agency.

Therefore, they can only renew the contract of Benno Youdri, let the European play as a pseudo-starter, and let Ginobili play as the sixth man, but he will play longer and take on more responsibilities than the average starter.

A well-known duality player like Ginobili, his upper and lower limits are unimaginable, and in the supersonic game, Ginobili touched the realm of God, playing 31 minutes, scoring 32 points and 8 assists, which can be said to have blown Roy on the outside.

Even if Yu Fei suppressed Butler and British Jordan, the consequence of Ginobili's single-point explosion of Roy was to let Duncan do whatever he wanted on the inside.

The SuperSonics lost the game at home by 10 points.

Although it's just a regular season game, it's not ordinary for some.

"He's the No. 1 center in the league." Duncan was serious about his opponent, Kwame Brown, "I just played hard. ”

In this game, Duncan scored 28 points and 15 rebounds, while the league's No. 1 center suffered from no one to feed him and almost starved himself to death, scoring only 4 points and 8 rebounds.

"Brandon, based on your performance tonight, I've decided not to prepare any Thanksgiving gifts for you."

The statistics make the fact that Roy was blown up look extremely clear.

Roy spread his hands and said, "No, you better give me a piece of shit and let me step on it, I've been so unlucky lately." ”

The word shit luck was coined by Kevin Lin in supersound, and Roy showed his ability to learn at the wrong time.

Yu Fei sneered: "You can produce and sell your own products, and it makes no difference anyway." ”

"you, I'm not a dog!"

Losing is unpleasant, but at the end of the day it's just a regular season, and all the professional players have to do is get used to accepting a day of failure.

If Roy had met the Celtics in the Finals and had been executed by Michael Reed in such a position, Yu Fei might have some opinions about him.

Now, a few words will be over.

On the way home, Yu Fei and his party encountered an unexpected situation.

Their path was blocked.

"What's the situation?" Lawson asked.

Kevin Lin, who was in charge of driving, took a look and said, "It's the person from 'MCCAIT' (1)." ”

(1) MCCAIT: Make Citizens Care About Important Things.

"What are these well-fed people protesting again?" Lawson asked curiously.

Lin Kaiwen said with a smile: "The mayor signed an executive order some time ago, as if to force the demolition of illegal tents in the city. ”

"Just blocking the road for this?" Lawson shook his head and said, "They're a bit of a misnomer." ”

Unbeknownst to Lawson, this was just a microcosm of the influence MCCAIT had in the Emerald City.

But Yu Fei knows that MCCAIT is the main force of public opinion that openly opposes the construction of a new home for the supersonic.

From the media to the public, more than two-thirds of the people support MCCAIT in the city.

Politicians like Nick Licata have dared to publicly say that the economic and cultural impact of hypersound on Seattle is zero, in large part because of MCCAIT public opinion.

Yu Fei knows how fierce the reaction of these people will be when the team submits a financing plan to the city government again early next year.

"Let's take a detour."

Yu Fei said.

This is also the only way, occupying the road to protest and affect the traffic order to force the relevant government personnel to come forward is the usual routine of these people, if you stay where you are and wait, you don't have to go anywhere tonight.

In the first game after Thanksgiving, the SuperSonics faced the Magic again, and the game was very anxious.

At the last minute, Yu Fei hit Dwight Howard's sixth foul, and the Magic, who had lost their interior pillar, collapsed in the final moments.

It was a timely victory for the SuperSonics, allowing them to breathe out the turbidity of the defeat to the Spurs and prepare for the upcoming focus battle.

On November 30, the SuperSonics will host the Los Angeles Lakers, who are currently ranked first in the West.

(End of chapter)