Swift was now his girlfriend, and while he didn’t mind, he couldn’t help but care for Swift’s feelings.
Swift didn’t say anything further, but simply buried her head back in Hansen’s embrace.
Hansen pondered what he should say next, but by the ti he decided to speak again, he found that Swift had fallen asleep again.
After all the turmoil last night, and waking up to a barrage of public opinion this morning, she must have been completely exhausted.
This ti, Hansen waited until Swift was sound asleep before gently placing her back in bed and properly covering her with the blanket.
He then took a shower in the bathroom.
Bathrooms are the best places for humans to get inspired.
It was during the shower that Hansen had a new idea.
A hot topic could not only be naturally cooled down but also be overshadowed by another hot issue.
When he first arrived in mphis, he said he would bring a championship to the Grizzlies, and the main reason the blacklash hadn’t reached the expected level was the arrival of free agency.
In essence, that was a case of overshadowing.
If he could do sothing that shifted people’s attention from this issue to another hot topic, he could achieve the sa effect.
He thought of sothing.
After showering, Swift was still sleeping soundly. Hansen took his phone out to the balcony and made a call to Carrell.
That afternoon, Hansen drove Swift to the airport.
Swift didn’t wear sunglasses this ti and shared a kiss with Hansen before parting.
The TMZ report sparked intense debate, but it also confird that the two were in a relationship.
Now that it was public, there was naturally no need to hide it anymore.
Not long after Hansen saw Swift off, Carrell shocked the League with a report on TMZ.
Carrell described an incident from last season with the Cavaliers, the day after the Christmas battle, when Hansen led the Cavaliers’ third string to demolish the first and second strings, proclaiming, "You guys so f**king need ."
"Who’s the most talented on this team? LeBron!
Who’s the most experienced on this team? Shaq!
Then who’s the one who can help the team win? !
Without , you couldn’t beat the Magic; without , you couldn’t beat the Celtics; you guys so f**king need ! Without , you wouldn’t even make it to the finals!"
This statent, even if only appearing in Carrell’s report, was still very shocking.
LeBron fans imdiately ca out to question it.
Their biggest doubt was that they couldn’t believe Hansen could actually do all that.
Keep in mind that during that ti, both Jas and O’Neal were on the Cavaliers, and the idea of rookie Hansen blowing them away was ludicrous!
The second point of contention was, if such an event really occurred, why was there no inkling of it at the ti? Was there any evidence?
However, as LeBron fans expressed their doubts, many fans subconsciously believed its credibility.
It sounded exactly like sothing Hansen, known for running his mouth, would say.
And importantly, what he said was all true.
During the regular season, Hansen was crucial in their victories over the Magic and the Celtics.
This beca even more apparent in the playoffs.
With Hansen, the Cavaliers beat the Celtics.
Without Hansen, the Cavaliers lost to the Magic Team.
And the key point was, without Hansen, the Cavaliers indeed didn’t make it to the finals.
Social dia erupted with a "self-conceit showdown."
Even at this mont, another incident was also brought to light.
During a previous season’s Cavaliers practice, Hansen blocked Jas, and the dia captured photos, but were then asked to delete the footage.
Back then, because Jas was still with the Cavaliers, the reporters had no recourse, but now, the timing was just right for the incident to be leaked.
Fans’ teasing shot straight up the search rankings.
"Want a video of LeBron’s team? No way in hell!"
That was truly a boorang strike that hit its mark.
And to confirm these matters, aside from video evidence, there’s actually another way – that is, to seek validation from the Cavaliers players who were present at the ti.
If Jas was still with the Cavaliers, this approach would never work, because the Cavaliers would definitely order the players to keep tight-lipped.
But now, LeBron has beco Cleveland’s "traitor," and so players have also left the Cavaliers.
The Dallas dia moved the quickest, interviewing the "Big Shark" O’Neal as their first target.
Everyone thought O’Neal would beat around the bush, but he was quite candid.
"Yes, he said those things. I was very angry at the ti, but afterwards, everything he said proved to be true—he is soone who can help the team win."
O’Neal’s response was very genuine; he’s living the good life in Dallas now, and with the Mavericks having a decent season with a shot at the championship, of course he’s happy.
And all of this was thanks to Hansen’s initial suggestion. He could help Hansen and rely had to tell the truth, so why not?
Following that, Cleveland’s reporters also interviewed several of the Cavaliers players and received affirmative responses.
For them, affirming this incident was also to validate the legitimacy of their previous ga’s defeat.
After all, Hansen led the Cavaliers’ third-string to an explosive victory over them, so it made sense for him to help the Grizzlies thrash them as well.
Finally, Miami’s reporters also managed to interview Ilgauskas.
"It wasn’t a pleasant experience because he blew us out. We underestimated his abilities and determination at the ti, but he indeed achieved what he said he would."
Ilgauskas was still the "Big Z," and although he’s still with Jas on the sa team, he didn’t twist the truth.
After this round of interviews, even without a video, the situation was essentially confird.
What’s more, the issue of Jas confiscating the videos also ca to light.
When it rains, it pours. Just when the story was gathering montum, a report by TMZ delivered the final verdict.
This leading Arican entertainnt dia sohow got their hands on a videotape and published it on their official website.
It was the infamous 2009 "Dunkgate" footage that people wanted to see but couldn’t.
In the sumr of 2009, Nike organized a training camp, where Jas, as Nike’s leading man, appeared.
Being the top of the mountain naturally attracts challengers looking to scale it.
Just like Jordan, who faced such challenges throughout his career.
Jas was no exception. Even the organizers, to bolster the players’ confidence, announced that anyone who dunked over Jas would receive a reward of 500 US dollars.
Driven by money and desire, the youngsters were all fired up.
Jordan Crawford, a well-known sophomore from Xavier University, was one of them.
He seized an opportunity and executed a slam dunk over Jas.
In the end, he didn’t get the 500 dollars, but instead, the two reporters in charge of filming had their footage confiscated.
Despite denials from both Jas’ team and Nike about the incident’s credibility, even though those present, including one of the recording journalists, Ryan Miller, validated the event, a lack of conclusive evidence combined with Nike’s full-force PR left "Dunkgate" unresolved.
But unexpectedly, TMZ managed to get the video at this critical mont.
Of course, the footage could not possibly co from an official perspective, but rather from an audience mber’s recording.
Nike may have confiscated the caras, but they had no authority to confiscate the mobile phones of the audience at the ti.
Although not from the best angle, the scene was recorded clearly.
This truly tied all the events together.
Even Carrell, the instigator of the incident, had an old news headline dredged up.
"Jordan brought Nike to the altar, Nike put LeBron on the throne—that’s the difference."
That statent couldn’t be more fitting now.
Hansen didn’t expect the aftermath that his maneuver would stir up, but it perfectly attained his initial objective of achieving widespread interest.
And for Jas, the "victim" of the incident, his days on the court beca harder, and off the court, he faced an unprecedented crisis.
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