CHAPTER 556: CHAPTER 273: ALL-STAR WEEKEND HOLIDAY_2

The promises made by Silva to Hansen had not changed, despite Hansen’s apparent indifference.

Perhaps Silva’s earlier promises were based on Hansen’s league status.

Now, the league’s official statement came out earlier than expected due to Hansen’s performance.

Hansen’s absence from this year’s All-Star Game was a foregone conclusion, and the league did not wish to see another year without him.

By mid-February, time had flown by.

The All-Star Game was about to commence in Memphis.

Just before the All-Star festivities, the league officially approved the Grizzlies’ trade, and Pera became the new owner of the team.

Consequently, Pera was present during the All-Star weekend.

It was on Media Day that he announced in front of many journalists that he would erect a statue for Hansen.

It was a surprising event.

Because usually, such honors as statue dedications come after a player’s retirement.

Yet, from Pera’s perspective, it made perfect sense.

Heisley had such a poor reputation in Memphis that as the new owner, Pera needed a powerful way to quickly gain the support of Memphis fans.

Indeed, he achieved his goal, as by the end of Media Day, the Grizzlies’ social media was flooded with a warm welcome for Pera.

On the same day, James made a statement on Media Day that put Hansen in the spotlight.

James had been asked about participating in the dunk contest, a frequent question at the All-Star Games.

"The person who said he’d participate and then didn’t isn’t me; I just haven’t found the right moment yet."

Although James did not mention Hansen by name, fans naturally knew he was referring to Hansen.

This quickly turned into a hot topic.

Regardless of why Hansen didn’t show up, the fact was he didn’t.

A considerable number of fans had been looking forward to his performance in the dunk contest, and disappointment is hard to avoid when expectations are not met.

The result was that Hansen, vacationing in Big Sky City, Montana, saw his negative popularity soaring.

He once envied the way James drew criticism and lamented that he could not borrow that system, but now he didn’t even need to borrow it—James had become the tool which increased his negative popularity.

Of course, Hansen wasn’t paying attention to that right now, because he was at the ski resort, watching Ajalee ski.

The long season is a test for a player’s physical and mental endurance, not to mention that now, as a star, Hansen had to participate in brand events even on his days off. He practically became a non-stop machine.

So, taking the opportunity of not having to attend the All-Star Game, he let Rondo cancel all promotional activities and took Ajalee on a proper vacation.

Skiing is, of course, the ideal outdoor activity for February.

However, due to NBA regulations, skiing is classified as a risky sport, and players are not allowed to participate before retirement.

Previously, Radmanovic of the Lakers was fined $500,000 by the league for skiing injuries and even earned the nickname "Ski Man."

Hansen could only watch with admiration.

At first glance, Ajalee seemed like an ordinary person, but as you get to know her, you realize she genuinely is a rich second generation; she is proficient in so many things.

Dance, music, diving, rock climbing, skiing, bungee jumping—there seemed nothing she couldn’t do.

Although Hansen earns a high income now, he found himself somewhat envious of Ajalee.

Because, fundamentally, he was still a worker, a long way off from retirement and enjoying life.

They couldn’t ski, but they could still stroll in the park.

They chose to ski here also because it was close to Yellowstone National Park.

Hansen had been in the United States for so many years, and he had never visited the renowned Yellowstone.

His biggest impression of the place came from the movie "2012," where the eruption of the volcano in Yellowstone fulfilled audiences’ fantasies.

The popular joke was: The simplest way to annihilate the United States was to let the Yellowstone volcano erupt once.

Some even speculated whether dropping an atomic bomb into the volcano’s crater could wipe the United States off the face of the Earth.

The geothermal scenery here is indeed quite spectacular, especially the Grand Prismatic Spring—its vivid colors are reminiscent of the Five-Flower Lake I saw in Jiuzhaigou, even in February.

But beyond that, the other natural landscapes are comparatively ordinary when set against Jiuzhaigou.

No wonder Curry was so excited when he first visited Jiuzhaigou.

However, this time they were mainly here for the wildlife, which was their key interest.

The wind was light that day, so they took a helicopter straight to the gathering places of wild animals.

It was only from this bird’s eye view that Hansen began to perceive the vastness, similar to the "great uncle of the wilderness."

Most of the United States is composed of plains, and the Rocky Mountains are one of the few major mountain ranges.

Especially when a herd of American bison were running across the snowy fields, the scene was truly magnificent.

"Maybe in the summer time, we could take a trip to Africa," Hansen thought, recalling the wildlife shows he often watched in his previous life.

Spring had arrived, the season of rebirth for all things...

The most abundant and appealing part of those shows was Africa.

Just in time for summer, his estate would be ready, and the pets he planned to adopt would also be brought over from there.

He had decided to adopt a young African Lion.

He had already thought of a name: The Young King.

On the day of the All-Star Game, Hansen and Ajalee were resting in the hotel room, with a bunch of snacks and drinks on the table, watching the live broadcast of the All-Star Game.

Having a girlfriend to watch the game with was something many people dreamt of.

After the game started, The West quickly took the lead.

The power gap between The East and The West was apparent this year, and even more so with Hansen’s absence.

But it was this situation that made this All-Star Game particularly "exciting."

James’s desire to score on the court was stronger than ever. Specifically, when Curry didn’t pass him the ball during a fast break, James went straight for the block.

Even though Curry dodged it in the end, the scene still caused a stir among the audience.

It’s just that after many years, James really wanted the MVP during the rare All-Star game without Hansen.

However, he soon encountered his biggest MVP competitor: his former teammate Westbrook.

Although Westbrook was selected as a substitute, he was a point guard.

Especially when James was on the court at the same time, Westbrook clung to the ball as if his hands were suction cups.

You want the MVP, James? No chance!

Back when they were teammates, Westbrook had to give up some control for the sake of team spirit, which almost resulted in him being traded.

Since James had been traded to The East, Westbrook hadn’t had the chance to exact revenge—now, come the All-Star game, it was time to settle both new and old scores.

The image of these two players on the court was even more thrilling than last year’s All-Star Game with Hansen and James together.

And Cole was quite interesting too; upon realizing Curry had little interest in the MVP, he gave Westbrook plenty of playtime, sitting back to watch the two battle it out.

After all, both the Lakers and the Thunders were direct competitors to the Warriors, and the more fiercely these two fought during the All-Star Game, the better for him.

The West ultimately won over The East with a score of 163 to 150.

Statistically, James had 30 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks—a classic stuffing of the stat sheet.

But Westbrook scored 41 points!

In this battle of stat padders, Westbrook, as the point guard, emerged victorious and won his first All-Star Game MVP of his career.

If the scores had been close, the award might have gone to James, but the difference was too great.

Hansen couldn’t help but laugh at the end.

This was even more exhilarating than an actual game.

Before the broadcast ended, Hansen was already practicing his ball-handling and post-up moves with Ajalee while they watched.

He couldn’t let the All-Star weekend go entirely to waste.