"Who lost the shooting competition at the studio last time?" Lu Ke said calmly.
Curry's laughter came to an abrupt end. He felt like something wasn't right in his head, but he couldn't pinpoint it. He could only quickly change the subject to hide his embarrassment. "Honestly, none of us expected the lockout to last this long. We missed the preseason and the start of the regular season. Now I'm not sure if my body has started to rust. I don't know what's going to happen this season."
"Hey, man, anything is possible until the future arrives. You've chosen to be pessimistic, and that's definitely not a good sign," Lu Ke said, trying to comfort him. "Every game has only two outcomes, a win or a loss. But if we go onto the court with the mindset of losing, should we expect the outcome to be what we want or the opposite? Obviously, we're all fighting for a win, aren't we?"
Curry let out a long sigh and scratched his head. "Yeah, I know. I know the logic. But..." The injury still affected his confidence. Even though Lu Ke's performance had been inspiring him little by little for the past two months, he was still a little nervous and scared with the start of the regular season right around the corner.
"One step at a time. Nothing can be done in one go. You can't get fat from one bite. To me, it might be difficult even with a thousand bites." Lu Ke's off-the-cuff joke finally made Curry laugh again. "So, have you watched the game tape of your opening opponent? How are the team's tactical meetings going?"
"Yes, they've started. I've already studied the opponents for the first two weeks of the regular season. Now I need to study them in detail, one by one," Curry said, his tone becoming relaxed again. "But it's definitely not as crazy as you guys. You and JJ are just crazy! Crazy!"
The lockout had ended, and the journey had begun. Although the regular season schedule was shortened this year, the new season was still going to be a tough and long-lasting battle. He still had a chance to adjust slowly. Choosing to back down before it even began was not his personality.
Fortunately, in this long journey, he had Lu Ke by his side. Every time he saw Lu Ke's unyielding will to compete on the field, his belief and determination grew stronger. He would never give up easily, just like Lu Ke.
After hanging up the phone, Curry thought for a moment and was about to start his training for the day. Then, a thought flashed through his mind, and he finally remembered what was wrong just now. "Ah!" The last time they were shooting an ad in the studio, no wonder Lu Ke was willing to use a basketball. No wonder Lu Ke's shooting was so accurate. Now he finally had a reason. That guy was clearly a basketball player before!
Curry picked up his phone, ready to complain to Lu Ke, and then realized that they had just hung up. "Damn it!" After cursing, Curry thought back to the scene from that day. As he thought about it, he couldn't help but chuckle and shook his head repeatedly. "I was fooled! Oh my God, I was actually fooled! Damn it, Bambi!"
On the other end of the phone, Lu Ke started sneezing, one after another. Was this because of his cold, or was it because someone was talking bad about him behind his back?
He turned around and noticed that Walter had left, but Leigh was still sitting in the lounge. Lu Ke looked out the window again. The journalists and the crowd were still surging, so it seemed like they wouldn't disperse anytime soon. He wondered if Sophie had dragged Walter down to answer the journalists' questions.
"Let's go. We'll leave through the back door and have lunch together," Leigh said. "As for your car, leave the keys here, and I'll have an assistant drive it back. After lunch, I'll take you directly to the training facility in my car. It's a recovery training session this afternoon, right?"
Lu Ke then remembered that this was the second time Leigh had emphasized lunch today, and he realized what was going on. "It looks like there's something important today. What, did another advertiser take an interest in me after yesterday's game? Did they send an endorsement invitation?"
Even though Lu Ke's face was still a little tired, his mental state had gradually recovered, which put Leigh at ease a little. "If I told you that the endorsement invitations haven't stopped since the game against the New York Giants, would you start wagging your tail?"
"Hey, am I that shallow?" Lu Ke complained with a righteous look on his face. But after he said that, he skipped over to Leigh. "So... is there anything worth signing? Are there any big contracts? Like for fast food or cars?"
Looking at Lu Ke's eyes, which instantly lit up, Leigh couldn't help but laugh.
The two of them left the hospital together, avoiding the surging crowd in the front. They got into Leigh's car in the back and the driver quietly left the hospital without alerting any journalists. After getting into the car, Leigh didn't rush to talk about business. Instead, he started chatting with Lu Ke. There was no fixed topic, just some mundane chitchat.
Unlike the "training maniac" impression he had on the field, Lu Ke was a very talkative person after training. He really enjoyed the time spent chatting casually. He could talk about all sorts of things, even profound topics like philosophy or astronomy. Only then could one truly realize that Lu Ke's decision to major in journalism was not a random choice. He genuinely liked it, and he was genuinely a good fit for it. If he hadn't become an excellent quarterback, he would have definitely become an excellent journalist. The knowledge he had was not to be underestimated.
In his career, Leigh had met all kinds of professional athletes, but he had to admit that spending time with Lu Ke was genuinely pleasant and easy. Not only because of Lu Ke's humor but also because of his vision and knowledge. His four years in college were not just for getting good grades. He genuinely learned something. Of course, this had no effect on his performance on the football field; it was just the player's personal charm. But to Leigh, it was the icing on the cake, and it could even become an extension of the player's commercial value and brand effect.
The car slowly stopped by the side of the road. In front of them was a normal residential area. On both sides of the street, they could see a bookstore, a convenience store, a theater, and a few Mexican restaurants. But Leigh led Lu Ke into a small restaurant in the alley next to them.
The storefront was the size of a door, and a wooden sign hung at the entrance. It was the size of a door number and read, "Antonio's Steaks." It was simple and even a little shabby. After they pushed the door open and went inside, there was nothing special about it either. It was elegant off-white and gray, with a little sapphire blue interspersed here and there to outline the entire space. An open kitchen allowed bright light to pour in from the other side.
After they sat down, Lu Ke realized that this was a private restaurant. There were only four tables in total, and they were all spaced out with huge gaps, separated by bookshelves and wine cabinets to ensure that every table of guests could maintain their privacy. The menu was simple and clear. There were only three main courses to choose from: a Kobe beef dish, a duck breast dish, and a deep-sea cod dish. But the wine list was a thick book.
Lu Ke was completely bewildered and had no idea how to order. Fortunately, after asking for Lu Ke's opinion, Leigh took care of all the ordering. He then noticed the curious look on Lu Ke's face and couldn't help but chuckle. "If you're interested, you can learn slowly in the future. Enjoying life isn't just about luxury cars, luxury homes, yachts, and private jets." A simple sentence, but it seemed to have a lot of meaning.
After the appetizer was served, Leigh finally got to the main topic. "So, do you have any specific thoughts about the future?" Lu Ke didn't know how to answer such a broad question. Leigh explained further. "I'm talking about your contract. When you signed your rookie contract, you only signed for two years." The subtext was that the first season was about to end, and the contract had already been fulfilled halfway.
Lu Ke then realized what was going on. No wonder Leigh was being so serious. NFL player contracts were very complicated. They included ordinary contracts and restricted contracts, as well as restricted free agents, unrestricted free agents, exclusive free agents, non-exclusive tags, exclusive tags, and transition tags. Just the rookie category alone included one-year contracts, two-year contracts, three-year contracts, and multi-year contracts of more than three years. And each type of contract involved different renewal and negotiation situations. It was no exaggeration to say that every rookie's contract was different, not just the difference between a first-round and a second-round pick, but also the difference between each draft pick.
Generally speaking, rookies temporarily didn't have the right or a reason to negotiate, and the team would have a slight upper hand in the contract. For example, for a rookie who signed a four-year contract, the team could activate a fifth-year renewal option when the fourth-year rookie contract was about to expire. This meant that the rookie couldn't negotiate and had to continue their fifth year of their career with this team.
When Lu Ke joined the San Francisco 49ers, no one had expected the current situation. The contract he signed was the most basic undrafted rookie contract. According to the contract, Lu Ke was not allowed to request an early contract extension before the two-year period was up. In other words, he wasn't allowed to request a salary increase early.
"I haven't thought about it." At this moment, Leigh suddenly brought it up, and Lu Ke couldn't help but chuckle. "So, this is the important matter you wanted to talk to me about today? Honestly, if you hadn't brought it up, I would have completely forgotten about it." Lu Ke told the truth. "This is only my first season. I want to focus on playing the game and see where we can go. As for the contract, I really haven't thought about it at all."
"Is it because you're an undrafted rookie?" Leigh asked with a gentle expression, without revealing any emotion.
Lu Ke nodded and then shook his head. "Yes, and no."
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