Mamba Spirit: Starter

In 1998, the NBA was in turmoil. Jordan took off his sixth ring and ended his magnificent career without letting the pursuers touch his immortal back. The NBA players' union and bosses began protracted labor negotiations so that they could draw more of a pie of benefit for themselves.

It's a whole era of change. The throne that Michael Jordan had occupied for a long time was finally vacated. The NBA's successor Jordan, who was cultivated in advance, finally ushered in the moment when the princes competed to wear the dragon robe. As Jordan's huge backs passed away, the supporting characters of his time began to fade away—as if their original starlight existed only to reflect Jordan's greatness. Charles Barkley was setting in the sun with a back injury, "Glider" Drexler retired with Jordan, Olajuwon began to age, Mitch Richmond left his sacramento, David Robinson gave up his Spurs head card role to Tim Duncan, who had just played for a year, Joe Dumas confidently entrusted the Pistons to him when he saw that Grant Hill had grown, and Patrick Ewing finally fell injured after ten years in Ironham. Rodman and Pippen moved away from the crumbling dynasty of the Bulls with Jordan's departure, and the steely John Stockton and Carl Malone seemed to have spent too much effort in the two-time war-torn finals in 1997 and 1998, and finally showed a little fatigue.

In 1999, a long labor dispute. Salary caps, luxury taxes, and transfer rules are further refined, no less effective than the Bosman Act of 1995 in football. This round of labor disputes allowed the offseason to be extended indefinitely. The summer of 1998 arrived, followed by autumn and then winter. Fast forward to 1999, and the "summer of the offseason" of 1998 continues.