Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Xiao Yunan held the Clippers’ financial report in her hands. Compared to last month, the Clippers’ attendance rate at their home-court had shown noticeable improvement.
In Los Angeles, the Clippers’ attendance rate was worse than the Lakers’. Even though the Lakers didn’t have any star players this season, they could still attract 19,000 spectators to watch their games. Considering how expensive tickets to a Lakers game was, this was an excellent number.
The Clippers’ average attendance rate, even in the past when they were consistently getting into the playoffs, never reached 18,000 people. The Clippers had a very bad record this year, so the audience number had fallen to less than 17,000 people. Going by the standards of a city like Los Angeles, where the basketball market was huge, the numbers were really too low.
In other basketball cities, such as New York, even when the Knicks chose to tank a season deliberately, their average attendance rate could still exceed 19,000. The Chicago Bulls and the Philadelphia 76ers were also based in large basketball markets. Their audience numbers were above 20,000. The market for the Cleveland Cavaliers was not very big, but they could get an audience of 20,000 by relying on superstars.
The Clippers’ recent record had clearly improved. This had stimulated the enthusiasm of the fans. The multiple overtimes in the last few games attracted more viewers for the Clippers.
In the eyes of the fans, if a game reached overtime, it meant that the game was very intense. This was especially true if it went into the second or third overtime. Most fans may not be able to remember a game where a team achieved an overwhelming victory, but they would remember a game where there were three overtimes.
What’s more, the fans had already spent money to buy tickets. They also had to put in an effort to get to the stadium. Watching one overtime was equal to increasing the value that they were getting, as there were no extra charges for watching the overtimes. Although the Clippers’ tickets were not as expensive as the Lakers, they were still in Los Angeles, so the ticket prices were more expensive than they are in smaller cities. Fans spent the same amount of money anyway, so they would, of course, want to watch the game for a few more minutes.
…
Los Angeles Staples Stadium.
The Clippers were at home going against the Denver Nuggets
The Nuggets had always been on the brink of entering the playoffs and, in the Western Conference, teams that had a chance of entering the playoffs were not weak. The Nuggets were definitely stronger than the Clippers.
The two teams were neck-in-neck throughout the game. The Nuggets did not have superstars that could single-handedly help them win the game. If one were to look at the data, their players were average. This team did not have any clear advantages or disadvantages.
This type of team was particularly weak under the effects of “Evenly Matched.”
So far, the only team that did not go into overtime against the Clippers when “Evenly Matched” was used was the Thunder. They relied on their superstar’s three-pointer in the last second to defeat the Clippers. No one could’ve done anything to help in such a situation.
There were no players on the Nuggets who could score in such a miraculous manner. Their coaches were also very strict about maintaining discipline. The head coach did not let the players play however they liked, and he definitely did not allow his players to take risky shots. For teams that played like this, it was difficult to witness such plays that would turn a match around.
As was predicted, the game only ended after four overtimes. The Nuggets won with their superior lineup. This was the second time the Clippers played in a game with four overtimes this season.
In the history of the NBA, four overtimes had been played in a total of eight games. The most recent one had taken place in the previous century. In fact, since the NBA introduced the 24-second rule, the record for the most number of overtimes was only five. The Clippers under Dai Li had almost tied with this record.
In the Nuggets’ locker room, the Nuggets players were all happy. Although the Nuggets had always been a very resilient team, winning after four overtimes made it a hard-fought victory for them. This kind of victory also made the players feel that the victory did not come easily.
“Hey, Mike. Do you want to go to the nightclub together? I know a great that opened in Los Angeles recently. There are a lot of beautiful girls over there!” A player greeted his teammates.
“No. I’m not going. It is a bit too late right now. We played four overtimes and the game ended an hour later than usual. I’m going back to the hotel to sleep,” Mike said.
“This is Los Angeles, it’s a city that never sleeps! Even if it’s late, there are plenty of places to go.” The player then asked another person, “Steven, are you going? Let’s go have a look around, have a drink, and find a few beautiful girls.”
Steven also shook his head, “Having a drink would be fine, but forget about finding a girl. I just played for 60 minutes. Even if Helen Pepe stripped naked right in front of me, I wouldn’t be able to muster up any strength. ”
“Useless! I played longer than you! I can still handle three babes right now!” The player said with contempt.
“This was a high-intensity game, and it went on for a long time. Even ironmen wouldn’t be able to do it. Don’t forget that this was the second game back-to-back. If you really managed to get three hot girls this evening, I suggest you call the waiter and ask him to buy a few Viagra for you!” An old player next to him said playfully.
“Forget it, if you guys don’t want to go, I will enjoy it myself,” the player said with contempt. He quickly changed into casual clothes and got ready to go to the nightclub.
This player was named Raul. He was famous in the NBA for going to nightclubs.
However, in Denver, the entertainment industry was not developed. Although Denver’s population was not too small, it was ranked as the tenth largest city in the United States. It was located in the Colorado Plateau. One could see the Rocky Mountains just by lifting their heads. Its unique geographical position created a culture where the people in Denver would just go to sleep as soon as it got dark. Very few people would have a nightlife.
Staying in a place like Denver had stifled Raul. The nightlife in Denver was scarce. He had long gotten tired of the few nightclubs there.
Now that Raul was in Los Angeles, how could he not go to the nightclubs?
Los Angeles was the entertainment capital of the United States. It had the best nightclubs. This was a fatal attraction for Raul. After the game, Raul couldn’t wait to go to a nightclub he had been longing to go to.
…
In a private room, Raul took out a hundred-dollar bill and stuffed it into the hands of the nightclub public relations manager. The public relations manager smiled and accepted the banknote. He lowered his voice and replied, “Mr. Raul, I will help you find some girls right away!”
“I want the hottest girl here!” Raul paused and said, “I heard that there is a hot girl named ‘Red Pepper’ in this building!”
“It is true. Mary works here, but I’m afraid that she will not be able to come today,” the public relations manager said.
“Why?” Raul asked, looking displeased.
“Twenty minutes ago, she was invited to the private room next door,” the public relations manager replied.
“Then what about the one called Nana? I heard that she is hot,” Raul asked.
“If you had come half an hour early, I would’ve definitely called Nana to accompany you. Now, she seems to have gone to the private room over there,” the public relations manager continued to say.
“There is another one called Lucy…”
“She just went out with a guest five minutes ago.”
Raul was getting angrier and angrier. The few girls he had learned about from his fair weathered friends had all gone out with other people.
I should have been an hour early. No, I was still playing in the game an hour ago. It was the four overtimes. I was delayed for more than an hour. It cost me these girls.
…
Raul was an NBA player. His annual salary of more than ten million was enough to support his generosity in nightclubs. Raul was able to get a few beautiful women to drink and have fun together in the end.
A few hours later, after he had enough of partying in the club, he went to a nearby five-star hotel with two hot girls.
Raul was no stranger to doing such things. Every time he went to nightclubs, he would always bring two or three hot women with him to spend the night. Every time, Raul was always able to perform well. After all, as a player in the NBA, it was natural to be physically strong, so he would be better than most men in bed.
However, Raul felt that he was not able to do anything today. When he intended to do it a second time, a feeling of exhaustion filled his whole body. Raul then discovered that even if the babes who were opposite him attempted to stimulate him, he could not perform.
Back-to-back games were tiring enough on their own. Add to that four overtimes that were played just now, and it was no wonder that Raul didn’t have any physical strength left. A single match in the NBA required a large amount of physical strength. Even the extremely strong players might get a cramp in a 45-minute game. Raul played more than 60 minutes today. There was no way he could make love all night long to two beautiful women.
In this situation, he finally realized what his teammate’s words meant. “Even if Helen Pepe stripped naked right in front of me, I still wouldn’t be able to muster up any strength.”
The two hot women opposite Raul looked at him with traces of contempt in their eyes. It seemed to them that Raul was just a pretty face that could only be looked at and not used.
Raul was also vexed. He had finally come to Los Angeles, managed to get two hot women, but his planned all-nighter had ended just after one round. He also had to endure the disdainful look from the hot women. This hurt Raul’s self-esteem.
A man could be called ugly and poor. He may not refute those accusations and he might even admit that he was ugly and poor willingly. If one were to accuse a man of being unable to perform sexually, even if he were poor and ugly, he would argue and say that he was able to perform as well as a pornstar.
Raul could not justify his impotence. The two hot women looked at Raul with “unsatisfied” eyes. Raul could guess that by tomorrow, the nightclubs in Los Angeles would have rumors of his impotence.
Damn, this is embarrassing. If this gets out, I won’t be able to show my face in the Los Angeles nightclubs anymore! It’s because of those four overtimes! Damn Los Angeles’ Overtime Team! I hate overtime!