At this time, Albert suddenly broke the news and said: "I received inside information that the Suns management has been seeking to trade up this year's first-round pick. They want to get a top-five or even top-three pick.
I have contacted the Raptors, the Grizzlies, and several teams with poor regular season records, but with no success."
"Really?"
John Hanks looked shocked and asked: "If they succeed, I wonder who the Suns want to draft?"
Albert analyzed: "According to the draft predictions of major media, Iverson, Camby, Raheem, Marbury, and Ray Allen all have high draft picks, and they will basically not leave the top five.
Position, maybe the Suns want one of them."
John Hanks immediately used his brain to analyze: "Although the Lightning is in good shape this season, he was injured again this time. He is really old. The Suns' first goal should be to find a successor for him, so these five
Among individuals, Iverson and Marbury are the most suitable."
Albert laughed: "In all media predictions, Iverson has never left the top three positions. In more than half of the media's predictions, Iverson is the No. 1 pick, and the Suns may indeed want him.
John, do you remember that before last year’s draft, Iverson had a one-on-one challenge with Old K in New York’s official summer camp, maybe Old K hoped to get him?”
"I don't know, but if the Suns have Iverson, then no matter how strong the Bulls' perimeter defense is, they won't be able to lock down the Suns' perimeter." John Hanks laughed.
"That's for sure. His speed and ability to break through with the ball will give the Bulls a headache. As long as he breaks in and hands the ball to Old K, everything will be fine," Albert said with a smile.
…
At this time, Iverson was sitting in front of the TV in a dormitory at Georgetown University. Hearing the analysis of the two commentators, he was very emotional and excited.
If he could go to the Suns and play with Old K, it would undoubtedly be a happy thing for him.
Although his idol is Jordan, it is his wish to defeat his idol with his own hands. Old K has defeated the Bulls twice in the finals. If he goes to the Suns, he has a great chance.
And he is very willing to play beside Lao K and feels safe.
At the same time, Jordan's agent David Frank was in New York, watching the game with Ewing.
Ewing was in an extremely bad mood and had not reported to Orlando yet. As his agent, David Frank must of course be by his side to help him solve the problem.
Ewing does not have to choose between a big contract and a championship now. There is still time. He will be a free agent after this season and has plenty of time to make a choice.
Of course, Frank was not stupid enough to persuade Ewing to give up his big contract and help Jordan. If that were the case, no star would be willing to sign with him except Jordan.
At this time, he heard the analysis of Albert and John Hanks, and was a little stunned. The Suns want Iverson?
As Iverson's agent, he will rush to Washington to meet with Iverson about the details of the agreement he has just reached with Reebok to prepare for the signing in the near future.
Iverson will become a contracted star with Reebok for $50 million over ten years. This is his draft gift to Iverson.
Ewing felt very interesting at this time and asked: "David, if the Suns really have a chance to select Iverson, do you think Michael still has a chance to beat Old K?"
As an Iverson alumnus, he often goes back to school to watch Iverson's games, and is very familiar with this junior's abilities. If the Suns have Iverson on the outside, it will be a sharp knife that pierces the heart of the Bulls.
, the Bulls no longer have the possibility of locking down the Suns' perimeter.
David Frank looked serious and said: "If that's true, then Michael is really in trouble. However, the Suns' upward trade did not succeed. Although they have four picks, the Cavaliers are good and they will definitely not be lottery picks. The Hornets
There is a slight possibility. As for their own picks, they should be at the end of the first round. Mosaic's picks will not be very high. The Suns' chance of getting the top three or five picks is still very small. The chance of getting Iverson
Almost non-existent."
Ewing laughed and said: "What if I get hit by a wasp?"
David Frank was stunned for a moment, then thought, it was absolutely impossible, there was absolutely no way Stern would let the Suns win the No. 1 pick, that would definitely destroy the balance he cared about most.
He shook his head and said: "It should be impossible. The Suns should not even be able to get the top five picks."
"Alan, are you looking for me?"
At this time, his cell phone suddenly rang. When he saw it, it was Iverson's and he quickly connected the call.
"David, do you think the Suns will draft me?" Iverson asked excitedly there.
David Frank was stunned. He didn't know that Iverson wanted to go to the Suns?
He quickly said: "Allen, it's basically impossible for the Suns to draft you. They can't have such a high pick."
"Really?" Iverson said a little disappointed.
David Frank analyzed: "Listen to me, Allen, you are not suitable for the Suns..."
"Why?" Iverson asked.
David Frank said seriously: "Because the Suns use Old K as the core of their tactics, if you go to the Suns, the most likely thing is that you will become a person responsible for passing the ball to him. This is not something you are good at, and
You will lose yourself because of this, is this what you want?"
Iverson was startled. He knew what Frank said was right. With his proud personality, he would not allow himself to be controlled by anyone, and would not be willing to be under anyone, not even Jordan or Old K.
On the court, he doesn't obey anyone.
David Frank continued: "When a team has a dominant behemoth like Old K, his presence will inevitably suppress the teammates around him, thus affecting their development and career.
Take the teammates around him as an example, such as the Lightning. Before Old K appeared, he mainly focused on penetrating breakthroughs. After Old K appeared, he mainly focused on passing and lost his penetration ability.
For example, Robert Horry had a very good breakthrough in Mosaic in his rookie season, but in the Suns, have you ever seen him break in for dunks? No, because there is a giant beast there, and there is no room for him to break in. The Suns
I won't let him rush in, because there is no need for him to rush in and fight.
Another example is Wilkins, who has strong breakthrough ability, but has no use in the Suns and can only be reduced to the sixth man.
Allen, you are extremely talented. You can definitely become the master of a team and cannot be the vassal of others. You have to remember this. Like Jordan, you can personally lead a weak team into a strong one. This is what you do.
mission.”
"I see."
Iverson then hung up the phone.
Although he doesn't like David Frank's overly controlling desire, this top agent is still very reliable. He just negotiated a big contract with Reebok for him, and he will soon become a rich man. For Frank
Very trusting.
Ewing sat aside and listened to the exchange between Frank and Iverson, and couldn't help but wonder if his agent had other ideas.
Are you worried that Iverson teaming up with Old K will affect Jordan?
But this has nothing to do with him. He is extremely unlucky right now and has to report to Orlando tomorrow. Leaving the Big Apple and going to a small city really makes him very depressed, extremely depressed.
…
Lost to the Bulls, 35 wins and 5 losses, the Suns are still ranked first in the Western Conference.
The Bulls, on the other hand, have 38 wins and 3 losses, leading the Suns by two and a half games despite having one more game.
"Ben, you played well today."
Back in the locker room, Lao Wang praised Ben Wallace. Although this guy's statistics today were not very good and his rebounds were lower than his average per game, his actual defensive effect was good. That's how he did the dirty work of defense.
The data is not shown, it depends on the specific effect.
Assistant coach Danny Ainge smiled and said: "Ben's performance has indeed improved during this period. Old K, you need to help him more. I now think he can practice it."
"Let's make an agreement first, Ben. When you get a big contract, you must join K martial arts gym and spend at least one hundred thousand dollars a year, otherwise I won't help you." Lao Wang said.
"Definitely." Daben said excitedly.
He knows his situation very well. The boss and coach are just motivating him. In terms of strength, he really is not qualified to play the main force in the Suns.
Westphal glanced at Robert Horry, who was sitting in front of the closet in a daze, and shook his head slightly.
This young man actually got a lot of opportunities in the Suns, but his position is not clear. He has no advantage in playing the fourth position. He is not competitive enough. He is not good at offense and defense in the low post. He has no rebounds and cannot help the old K.
Not as useful as Ben Wallace without offense.
Playing the third position, this season's performance is indeed more stable than last season, with defense, three-pointers, pull-up jumpers and breakthroughs. However, if the team wants to train Michael Finley, he can only be included in the substitute lineup.
In other words, Horry's competitor now is not Ben Wallace, but Finley, but he is already in his fourth season and has long passed the training period. What happens next depends on whether the team has room for him.
I won't give any special chance.
Horry is indeed in a bad mood right now. He really practiced extra during the offseason and practiced very hard, but he was not taken seriously by the team and was robbed of his starting opportunity by an undrafted player.
When he came to the Suns, because there was a giant inside, he began to transform according to the requirements of the coaching staff, from being within the Mosaic team's three-point line to outside the three-point line, reducing breakthroughs, strengthening three-point shooting training, and becoming
He recruited a shooter outside the three-point line, while strengthening defense and transitioning to 3D. Later, because the team lacked ball-holding points on the outside, he strengthened ball-holding training.
But unfortunately, he had many opportunities in the first two seasons, but his transformation took time, and he did not perform outstandingly, and his performance was very unstable. But this season, his transformation has begun to be successful, and when it comes time to produce results,
But fate played a joke. The team had one more Michael Finley, who took away his starting opportunity at the third position, and another one, Ben Wallace, who took away his opportunity at the fourth position.
Both rookies were trained by the team and played a lot of playing time, leaving them sitting on the bench waiting for few opportunities.
Now, his future is already bleak, and it will be a matter of time before he is traded by the team.
He still has one year left on his contract, and next year is the contract year. If he can't perform outstandingly, his future will be really worrying, but now he doesn't even have a chance.
"Do you want to take the initiative to apply to leave?"
He couldn't help but have this idea in his mind, but he didn't want to think about it. The atmosphere in the Suns locker room was very good. Although Old K was not satisfied with his strength and treated him poorly on the court, he actually treated him well off the court, and
After his performance became stable this season, Old K passed more passes to him, and he was actually very willing to stay in this team.
"Hey, can anyone help me out here? Bring my towel. It's in the closet. I forgot it." At this time, Lao Wang shouted in the bathroom.
"Oh, here it comes."
Horry reacted quickly. He quickly got up and went to Lao K's closet, picked up the towel on the bed and ran into the bathroom.
Daben, who got up from the corner and was about to come over to help Wang Tiejun get a towel, looked at Huo Li and sat down again.
"Thanks, Robert."
Lao Wang sat in the medicine bucket, took the towel and wiped his sweat. He looked at Hori and found that the guy's face was not good and he looked like he was constipated. He asked curiously: "What's wrong with you? You have hemorrhoids."
?”
"Ha ha……"
A group of people taking a bath burst into laughter.
"No, boss, I'm fine." Horry chuckled and shook his head.
In fact, Lao Wang is not stupid. After thinking about it for a moment, he will know why Horry is in a bad mood. It is just a matter of team position, what else can it be?
He glanced inside the bathroom and saw that the two rookies Finley and Ben had not come in yet. They were the last people taking a bath, so he waved to Horry to come over.
Hori was startled and quickly squatted down.
"Come a little closer."
Lao Wang reached out and grabbed Horry's head with a slap, and whispered: "Robert, Finley is not suitable for us. I think he will leave sooner or later. Don't worry about your position."
"..."
Horry was startled, is this true?
"Practice your three-point shooting and defense well, and don't let your position be taken away by the rookies we select in the future. In addition, in the second half, I will improve the record, and you will have more opportunities." Lao Wang whispered again.
Horry suddenly realized that if he wants to compete for MVP, he will not relax in the second half. Whether it is Finley or Ben Wallace, these two rookies may have physical reserve problems in the second half, and he will have the opportunity to return to the game.
It started, and it should be the same in the playoffs.
This thought made him suddenly excited.
"Okay, you go out first and stop staring at Tisdale's butt. He won't let you succeed." Lao Wang shouted at this time.
"What?"
Horry was shocked, got up and ran away.
"What?"
Tisdale, the veteran under the showerhead, reacted instantly. He covered his butt with his left hand and threw the towel at Horry with his right hand. He laughed and cursed: "Damn boy, no wonder you have hemorrhoids."
"I didn't, I wasn't..." Horry hurriedly escaped from the bathroom.