After Hansen’s decision was announced, some of the other prominent free agents in the market finally made their choices.
The most notable among them was Paul George.
He joined the Warriors directly with a 4-year, $137 million contract.
This also meant the Warriors gave up on renewing Cousins’ contract, who due to injury issues, had huge disagreements with the Warriors in negotiations, and even faced cold shoulders in the free market.
This is the harsh reality that players have to face: suffering a serious injury during a contract year significantly affects their market situation.
Speaking of George, as a star known for his 3D skills, he has an outstanding off-ball three-point ability, top-level defense, and now also has decent ball-handling skills, which can alleviate the pressure of carrying the ball and scoring from the perimeter, perfectly fitting with the Warriors.
The Warriors were forced to trade James last season, but signing George this summer can be seen as a blessing in disguise.
On the second day after the freeze period ended, Hansen prepared to depart for Sacramento.
Jokic took Hansen to the airport.
This summer, he also received a 5-year, $148 million early max extension from the Cavaliers.
Before saying goodbye, Jokic gave Hansen a gift.
When Hansen got in the car, he noticed Jokic carrying a shopping bag, thinking he had stopped by a supermarket.
But when he took out what was inside, Hansen realized it was a gift for him.
And this gift left Hansen completely stunned.
It was a shimmering... crown! Thɪs chapter is updated by 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝•𝖿𝗂𝗋𝖾•𝘯𝘦𝘵
While with the Cavaliers, Malone had a habit of presenting big gold chains to teammates after the game, although those big gold chains started off as plastic, later changed to copper-plated iron, mainly for the sake of ceremony.
But clearly, as a gift from Jokic to Hansen, it had to be made of pure gold, worth at least several tens of thousands of US dollars.
Of course, this gift also had more significance than value, as it was essentially "crowning" Hansen in advance.
Hansen couldn’t help but laugh and shake his head. Jokic’s sense of humor was quite impressive.
Moreover, after deciding to head to the Kings, he also checked out the external reactions, including O’Neal’s comment that "the Kings have welcomed a true King."
Even if he didn’t want to, he might end up with the nickname "the true King" once he got there.
"Boss, I still feel uncomfortable without you," Jokic couldn’t help but say when seeing Hansen off at the boarding gate.
Originally, he was the one charging behind Hansen, but now he had to become the leader, a change in roles that felt very uncomfortable.
Not to mention, his personality wasn’t really suited for such a role; he just wanted to be a regular employee.
Hansen, of course, could understand his feelings. He put his hand on Jokic’s shoulder: "Some people are born leaders, but more often, people are chosen by history to become leaders."
Still seeing Jokic’s grim face, he continued with a smile: "Keep confidence, I’m looking forward to meeting you in the finals."
Previously, Hansen had talked about meeting Jokic in the playoffs, and now that they have gone their separate ways, the only way to meet in the playoffs would be in the finals.
After getting out of the car, Hansen waved goodbye.
It wasn’t just Jokic who came to see him off; Cavaliers fans who had been waiting at the airport were there too.
With a wave, his career with the Cavaliers officially came to an end.
After taking a nap on the plane, when Hansen woke up, the plane was close to Sacramento.
The name Sacramento gives a feeling of remoteness, but in fact, it is the state capital of California, United States. Although it’s not as big as Los Angeles or San Francisco in the same state, it’s just a smaller city in terms of scale.
If one must compare, it has a bit of a Washington vibe.
Hansen certainly wasn’t visiting for the first time, but just like his first trip to Memphis, since he only came to Sacramento for the games, he was fairly unfamiliar with the city.
So before departing, he also made it a point to learn a bit about it.
After learning, he discovered that this city is quite rich in stories.
The city was initially established by the Swiss as a fort, later, when building a sawmill, they accidentally discovered gold in the local river, the Sacramento River.
Thus, the well-known California Gold Rush began here, attracting a large number of Americans chasing dreams of sudden wealth, and the city developed into a large metropolis as a result.
Hansen remembered that, in his childhood, the earliest Hollywood movies from the United States he encountered always featured gold hunting as an essential element.
Back then, he had no concept of the names of these American cities and didn’t expect that he would end up in a historically significant city.
Now, the gold must be all mined out, but many relics from that era have been preserved, making it one of the few historical and cultural heritages in the United States.
When he visits these places, it would be like a cross-temporal encounter with the American movies he watched in his childhood.
The plane landed at Sacramento International Airport, and to Hansen’s surprise, not only were the Kings’ executives there, but the mayor of Sacramento also came to welcome him.
Back when Hansen led the Cavaliers to win the championship, the mayor of Cleveland personally came to the airport to welcome him, but now the mayor of Sacramento had already come upon his arrival.
Besides the respect he received, it also had something to do with the person in question.
After NBA players retire, most choose to get involved in sports-related industries, like Hansen aiming to become an owner, others become coaches, or directly start training camps like Kobe.