My Name is Kobe Bryant

"This year's regular season." Stern sat at his desk and summarized with Xiao Hua before the start of the playoffs.

"The overall ratings increased by 27.3%! The ratings of the Lakers game increased by 43.7%! Our next broadcast contract will be able to ask for a sky-high price!" Xiao Hua looked excited, there is nothing better than this!

The NBA, founded in 1946, was relatively late among the four major professional sports leagues in the United States. It was not until the 1953-1954 season that the NBA had television broadcasts, but only 13 games. Through these 13 games, the NBA made a profit of US$39,000. For the NBA league in its early days, this kind of profit was already quite good.

Since then, both NBC and ABC have broadcast the NBA, but they have never paid the NBA a penny. This situation lasted until 1973. Starting from the 1973-1974 season, CBS signed a contract with the NBA and paid the NBA a total of US$27 million in broadcast fees for three years. Since then, CBS and the NBA have renewed their contract four times. In the 1986-1987 season, NBA broadcast fees have risen to US$174 million over four years, almost five times what they were 13 years ago.

On April 28, 1993, NBC, TBS, and TNT signed a four-year, $892 million (94-98) contract.

And this year is the year the contract ends! The 4-year contract expires and a new contract needs to be confirmed.

It is also a year when the league reaches a new peak!

Jordan and Kobe are another kind of superstars who have raised the NBA to a new level. They are no longer at the bottom of the four major leagues! The current NBA can almost compete with the football division!

After winning a huge broadcast contract, Stern will have enough funds to flex his muscles!

"There is no rush to negotiate this contract." A light flashed on Stern's glasses.

Not yet, not yet reached the highest peak!

The playoffs will be more exciting than the regular season!

This year's championship will be the most valuable championship in history! Two god-level players, a large number of superstars. Their collision in the playoffs will push the influence of the NBA to a higher level!

Let’s talk about everything after the epic playoffs are settled!

April 23, 1998, Los Angeles, Great Western Forum Arena.

"The playoffs are coming!" the magician's energetic message reached the ears of every audience in front of the TV!

"Welcome to watch the National Basketball Professional League broadcast on NBC! The opening game of the playoffs! The Lakers vs. Houston!" Kenny Smith was equally excited! Commenting on his home team, Kenny Smith was inexplicably shaken as he watched teammates like Olajuwon, Drexler, and Thorpe who had won championships together continue to struggle on the court!

"The Lakers and Houston played against each other in last year's Western Conference Finals! That series is still unforgettable, but this year's Lakers are still No. 1 in the Western Conference, while Houston has dropped to eighth in the Western Conference."

"If you underestimate the Houston Rockets, you are totally wrong! Houston can be said to be the least serious team in the league during the regular season!"

"The Big Three have taken consecutive breaks. They just want to perform at their peak in the playoffs! In addition to the Big Three, Houston this season also added Sam Cassell, the best sixth man who averaged 15.2 points per game. ! And Thorpe, Olajuwon’s former partner!”

"Houston is the first team to adjust its state to prepare for the playoffs. While the Lakers are still going all out to win 73 games, they have already begun preparing for this year's playoffs!"

"I believe that after taking such a long time and paying the price with record, the condition of Houston's superstars has been adjusted to its peak!"

"This game is the opening game of this year's playoffs and the most eye-catching matchup in the first round series!"

"The Lakers' starting lineup remains unchanged."

"Houston's starting lineup - Jim Jackson, Mario Eli, Clyde Drexler, Charles Barkley, Hakeem Olajuwon!"

"The game between the Lakers and Houston is about to begin!"

"Little fat man, you played very well this year." Olajuwon and O'Neal walked to the center circle and hugged each other in greeting. The league's number one center for many years finally has a satisfactory successor.

"Old guy, thank you for the compliment, but it doesn't make me merciful!" O'Neal rubbed his big hands with great interest. Being praised by Dameng made me feel a little bit happy, but I couldn't show it!

Barkley looked fierce!

He's been holding it in all season!

Between Olajuwon and Barkley, Houston must choose Big Dream! Barkley's thoughts of struggling in the regular season were suppressed.

The current flying pig! Just like a wild boar that has been starved for three days! Can't wait to turn everything over!

"Kobe, congratulations on winning the MVP." Drexler gave Kobe a hug.

"Thank you, Clyde." Kobe smiled.

The MVP will be awarded by Stern himself at the next game.

"Guys, are you ready? The game is about to begin!" Dick Bavetta came to the Lakers LOGO and called all the players together.

"Game start!"

The basketball was thrown high into the sky, and O'Neal narrowly won the jump ball.

"Push forward!" Kobe shouted while holding the ball and started to speed instantly!

The Rockets and Lakers are two familiar teams!

For this kind of old team, the pace must be fast! We can't let them play slowly and use the positional battle of Uncle Health Ball to drag the Lakers into the Rockets' rhythm.

After halftime, Kobe quickly played a pick-and-roll with Horry.

"Switch! Barkley switched in front of Kobe!"

"This is a more proactive defense change! It seems that Fliggy wants to compete with Kebi!"

"The Flying Pig has been suppressed for too long this season! If it weren't for the championship, he wouldn't have been able to endure such a situation, jumping from the Suns to the Rockets. As a result, the Suns were fifth in the Western Conference this season and the Rockets were eighth in the Western Conference!"

"This is a naked humiliation!"

Barkley gritted his teeth!

How could he not know that he had become a laughing stock!

The Suns left him, and his record remained almost unchanged. But Houston's record is getting worse and worse!

Two years!

In the first year of the regular season, Barkley still felt that this team was capable of winning the championship.

This year, Barkley is a little desperate.

Black Eight wins the championship?

This is the hype of the unscrupulous media. Even if Houston can defeat the Lakers with luck, there are still a lot of top teams behind it.

too difficult!

Even after enduring it all season, Barkley found it still difficult to win the championship.

And if you can't win the championship.

I am already 35 years old, how many more years can I play?

"Damn it! I'll vote now!" Barkley was stunned for a moment when he thought of this.

And Kobe captured this short 0.1 second!

Take action!

Three-point shot!

"Hit! Kobe, the new MVP, made a decisive three-pointer and scored his first point in this year's playoffs!"