Chapter 1 Becoming the Pelicans Owner

Tang Tian smiled and shook his head as he looked at the comments on social media.

Becoming the owner of the Pelicans would be his plan, but not now.

He hadn't lost interest in basketball like Jordan, quite the opposite, his interest was at its peak right now.

Time flew by quickly, and in the blink of an eye, another half month had passed.

It was already April, the last month of the regular season, or rather, the last half month in a strict sense.

The Pelicans had only 6 games left to play.

Except for the last game of the season against the Mavericks, which they lost, their current record was a terrifying 74 wins and 2 losses.

Before the season even ended, they had already tied the league's regular-season record of 74 wins, which they themselves had set two years ago!

Sweeping the Cavaliers, sweeping the Warriors, sweeping the Rockets, sweeping the Spurs, sweeping the Bucks...

Their performance in the regular season could really be described as a complete steamroller.

They had become a team unlike any other in history.

Moreover, they still had a chance to raise this record to a new dimension.

80 wins, that unattainable number.

However, Stevens' personality hadn't changed.

As before, he didn't force the issue of this record, but instead began to rotate key players, giving substitutes and bench players more playing time.

He didn't need to worry about the Four Hardworking Brothers' state, what he needed to do now was to get everyone else's state adjusted before the playoffs started.

New York headquarters.

"Go and tell the owners of the remaining teams that the Pelicans are rotating players now, it's their chance to win, they absolutely can't let them get 80 wins!"

Adam Silver said to his new assistant, Maine Soque.

Borgia had been fired not long ago for his lack of competence.

Soque might not be as quick-witted, but he was efficient.

After receiving the instruction, Soque turned around and went to work.

Silver turned his chair to look out the window, his face a dark shade of gray.

This season was a double torture for him, both physically and mentally.

The strength of the Pelicans had left him unable to resist, and the subsequent expression of other team owners of no longer supporting him to formally take over as president made him disheartened.

He had been lying low for half a year, only to be met with this ending.

His previous stepping down, relying on his skills, had turned a death sentence into a reprieve.

But now, he really felt like a death row inmate who had been sentenced to death, and even the execution date had been set.

All that was missing was time.

As for what he was doing now, it was like digging at the brick walls of a prison with his hands, making useless struggles.

April 1st, April Fool's Day.

On this day, the Pelicans visited Memphis, ushering in the last showdown of the season with the Grizzlies.

103 to 90.

Even though only Butler of the Four Hardworking Brothers played, even though the Grizzlies played extremely hard.

But led by Butler's 29 points and 6 rebounds, the Pelicans still won the game.

After winning this game, they also achieved their 75th win of the season, successfully breaking the NBA regular season record.

Double happiness.

On the same night that the Pelicans created a new regular-season record, the internal strife in the Pelicans' upper management finally made progress.

Gayle Benson won in Renee Benson's lawsuit, basically regaining control of the Pelicans.

With Tom Benson's parting gifts in hand, this was an expected result.

This was also good news for the Pelicans.

Tom Benson hadn't left the hospital for more than a year due to illness, and Gayle Benson had been managing the Pelicans' affairs, both big and small.

Although there was a gap in ability, her attitude was very good.

Including the super broadcast contract she signed with Fox before.

So her regaining control of the Pelicans meant basically no turmoil for the Pelicans, and it was also the best outcome.

However, just when everything seemed to be settled, a piece of news from the New Orleans Daily caused an uproar.

In its latest report, the media claimed that Tang Tian supported Renee Benson in taking charge of the Pelicans.

The report was detailed, describing the content of Renee and Tang Tian's communication.

It also claimed that Tang Tian would support Renee because he could get the opportunity to buy more shares of the Pelicans after retiring.

This media outlet wasn't big, but it was quite influential in New Orleans.

After the report came out, it also sparked heated discussions among fans on social media.

The report was well-founded, especially the point of Tang Tian being able to get more shares, which made many people believe it.

Even domestically, there was a chorus of cheers.

The more shares Tang Tian could get after retiring, the greater the possibility of him becoming an NBA owner.

Then it would really be another step closer towards a Chinese-owned NBA league.

When Karl told Tang Tian this news, Tang Tian couldn't help but shake his head.

It seemed that after failing in the power struggle, Renee wanted to use him as a lifeline for a last-ditch effort.

But unfortunately, she had chosen the wrong person.

Just as he was thinking this, his phone rang again, it was Gayle Benson calling.

Gayle didn't know if the report was true or false, she was calling to promise to increase the percentage of shares Tang Tian could buy in the future.

She promised to increase that number to a maximum of 15%, which was even more than what the New Orleans Daily reported.

Tang Tian was a little dumbfounded.

He had become the fisherman while the snipe and clam fought?

But he had no reason to refuse this kind of windfall.

This was truly a double blessing.

The Pelicans had only 5 games left, and they didn't stop their winning streak.

Against the Nets, Tang Tian rested, Davis dominated the paint, scoring a season-high 42 points and 15 rebounds, the Pelicans easily defeated their opponent, their 76th win of the season;

Facing the Pacers, Tang Tian and Butler were both out, the two teams played fiercely, and the victory wasn't decided until the last two minutes.

Walker scored 7 consecutive points at the last moment to kill the game, their 77th win of the season;

Facing the Celtics, only Walker of the Four Hardworking Brothers played, Walker scored 39 points, and the Pelicans easily defeated their opponent, their 78th win of the season.

After the game, Ainge looked at Walker, his eyes showing a faint sadness;

Against the Clippers, all of the Four Hardworking Brothers were out, Rose and Siakam performed well, scoring a combined 58 points to defeat their opponents, their 79th win of the season;

The further the game went, the fewer main players the Pelicans had, and in the end, it became all substitutes.

But the Pelicans' winning streak didn't stop.

Despite the efforts of these teams under Silver's instructions, their strength was too weak, and their efforts didn't work.

At this time, the season had reached the real end, and the Pelicans had one last game left in the season.

If they could win this game, then they would raise the NBA regular season record to that unprecedented dimension of 80 wins.

And considering their opponent, their chance of completing this record was very high.

Their final game of the season was against the Minnesota Timberwolves.