Chapter 385 The No. 7 pick in the first round of the Suns
"Ladies and gentlemen, I'm glad you're here for the 1996 NBA Draft..." After a gorgeous speech-like opening, the draft officially began.
The first pick, Philadelphia Digital, handed an envelope to the staff and then put it into Stern's hands.
Iverson and other rookies at the top of the prediction couldn't help but get nervous. Who doesn't want to be the No. 1 pick? That represents the team's status, means getting the best contract, and even large commercial sponsorships.
Stern opened the envelope, took out the letter paper, looked at it, and said with a smile: "The Philadelphia Digital Team selected a guy from Georgetown University with the first pick in the first round..."
"It's me!"
At this moment, there was huge joy in Iverson's eyes below, and his adrenaline surged instantly.
"...Allen Iverson."
With Iverson's excitement, Stern read out his name, and the audience burst into warm applause.
"I will be stronger than him."
Kobe from behind looked at Iverson who stood up and clenched his fists.
Next, the Raptors selected Marcus Camby, a center with obvious talent who can also play power forward.
Then the unlucky Grizzlies used the third overall pick to select Raheem, an extremely talented Muslim forward.
"Damn it, why haven't you reached me yet?"
Marbury wiped his forehead and took a breath. He was a little nervous!
Next to me, Kobe Bryant is very quiet. His predictions have never been in the top ten, so he doesn't have that extravagant hope.
Next, Marbury heard his name was called and he was drafted by the Bucks.
At this time, Colangelo Jr. contacted the Clippers and proposed a deal, using the No. 13 pick in his hand, Ben Wallace, for the Clippers' No. 7 pick.
This is something he has carefully considered. The Clippers are currently the only team that hopes to trade with the Suns.
Because from the information collected previously, he knew that the Clippers wanted an inside player, so he specially sent Ben Wallace.
When playing against the Jazz, Ben Wallace had a pretty good defensive effect on the superstar mailman Karl Malone. Although he couldn't really defend him, the effect was already good, very practical, and he showed a very strong performance.
Confrontation ability, the media recognized his performance.
He has already renewed Ben's contract in advance because Tisdale is already old. He wants Ben to be a substitute for Old K next season, give up the main position of the fourth position to Rasheed Wallace, and trade Kidd and Rasheed.
When DeWallace was hired, he would rather take two first-round picks than trade big money, but now he can no longer care about it and can only use him as a bargaining chip.
Sterling, the owner of the Clippers, was really interested when he heard it.
But what made him tempted was that he wanted to get a bargain, and he was reluctant to spend money.
Big Ben's contract extension is too small, only 1.1 million for two years. It's so cheap, and it can still compete with the postman. Where can you find such a practical person? What's more, there is a No. 13 pick. As a Jew, he
I think it’s profitable no matter what.
The general manager of the Clippers is Elgin Baylor, the famous Baylor. The person he likes is Helenzen White. Although he is good, he is too thin. He is only 102 kilograms now. With this tonnage, in the future, he will meet Old K in the paint.
Even if there is a k-rule now, it will not work.
Hearing that Colangelo Jr. wanted to use Ben Wallace as a bargaining chip, he thought it was good. Although he was an undrafted player, his performance in the playoffs was indeed good, and his defensive and rebounding abilities had potential, so he immediately started to make a deal.
The gains and losses therein.
But at this time, Stetson made a decision and said: "Elgin, agree, that short guy inside is pretty good, he can carry it like a postman, he's super giant, and he's better than the taller one you're interested in."
Used too much."
Seeing that Sterling agreed, Colangelo was ecstatic.
At this time, the Timberwolves had already selected Ray Allen with the fifth pick, the Green Team selected Anthony Walker with the sixth pick, and it was the Clippers' turn to pick the seventh pick.
"With the seventh pick in the first round, the Los Angeles Clippers selected...Kobe Bryant from Lower Merion High School in Philadelphia."
Following Stern's words, Kobe was stunned below.
"Have I been cut off?"
In a daze, he looked back at Colangelo, only to see his opponent smiling and nodding to him. He suddenly had an epiphany in his heart, and a burst of ecstasy filled his heart.
"Damn it, what are Donald and Elgin doing? Don't they want an insider? Why are they robbing me?"
At this time, Lakers boss Buss was unhappy.
Donald Sterling is an old friend of his. He helped the Clippers when they moved to Los Angeles. Unexpectedly, he was intercepted by his old friend this time.
"Jerry, I'm going to find out about the situation. If possible, I'll switch over." West said immediately.
"Let's go together." Old Bass said uneasily.
But when the two came to the Clippers, they saw little Colangelo and immediately felt something bad.
Sure enough, the Suns had completed the deal with the Clippers, and the Lakers were helpless.
At this time, the Nets selected Kidders, whom the Suns had favored, with the eighth pick, and then the Mavericks picked Samakie Walker with the ninth pick.
Next is the No. 10 pick, which originally belonged to the Pacers, but is now in the hands of the Magic. The Magic have no center. They wanted to choose a center, and they selected Jermaine O'Neal.
Next is the Warriors' No. 11 pick, which is now in the hands of the Lakers.
Kobe was intercepted by the Suns, and the Lakers chose Peja.
Peja still has two years of contract in Greece and may not come to the NBA until the 1998/99 season, but the Lakers have no better choice, so this draft is a waste of time.
Next, Nash was selected by the Clippers.
After the draft, Kobe excitedly ran to a corner with his cell phone and called Wang Tiejun. He had Wang Tiejun’s contact information in China.
"Old K, I was selected. The Suns traded the Clippers' seventh pick, and I was the seventh overall pick..."
"Seventh pick?"
Lao Wang was a little surprised. Did Colangelo think so highly of Kobe? The No. 13 pick was not enough, so he traded the No. 7 pick?
"Do you know what the deal was?" he asked.
"Oh, it seems to be Ben Wallace..."
"What?"
Lao Wang was shocked and sold the book?
Big Ben is very useful. Although he is not a good match for him, he can be used as a substitute for him and play center in the substitute lineup. He and Wilkins are definitely a perfect match, and they can attack and defend well.
"Old K, aren't you happy?"
Kobe was a little confused. Am I not even as good as Ben Wallace?
"No, you are you, he is he, each has its own use. Well, No. 7 pick, congratulations on joining the Suns."
"Thank you, haha!"
"Kobe, listen to me. I hope you can practice shooting a little more this offseason. You should know that your current shooting is not very stable. Last time, a brat said he had the potential to be a great shooter. You
Do you know who said that? I want to settle the score with him."
"Okay, I understand."
Kobe was a little embarrassed, of course that kid was me, who else could it be?
But he was very excited and said: "Old K, please teach me the pace of post-up play. After my post-up play is strengthened, my ability to get rid of defenders will be strengthened, and my shooting will definitely be more stable."
"I will participate in the Olympics in a while. You go to Atlanta and wait for me. I will teach you there."
Lao Wang said something and then warned: "Also, remember, you must especially strengthen the emergency stop jump shot after the breakthrough. Jordan is best at this skill, you should be very clear. Also, you must practice three-pointers, better than Jordan
The three-pointer is better. You have to know that as a shooting guard next to me, you can not only break through, but you also have to be able to open up, shoot and pass suddenly, and you need to be more versatile, which is also conducive to your growth."
"I understand, starting from tomorrow, I will get up at four o'clock every day to practice." Kobe said in high spirits.
"Don't you kid? Who are you trying to fool? Four o'clock? Do you want to get up at four o'clock to pee?"
"hey-hey!"
"By the way, you have to start gaining weight. Now it's time for you to gain weight. If you're too light, you can't fight from behind."
"Okay, I'm 90 kilograms now, and I'm the same height as Jordan, 198 centimeters. I plan to gain weight to his tonnage, 98 kilograms."
Lao Wang thought about it and decided that either 98 kilograms or 100 kilograms would be fine, but it should take two to three seasons to complete the weight gain process.
…
As the draft ends, rookies are sold to various companies, and the trade window opens, so does the free market.
However, in the next week, the league needs to calculate the salary cap for next season based on last season's data. Therefore, during this week, each team can conduct transactions, contact players, and reach agreements, but to officially complete the transaction, it must
After one week, this week belongs to the transaction freezing period.
Before this, various teams had been secretly carrying out the activities, and the media was also ready to move. Now that the restrictions are lifted, some hot news suddenly broke out.
First of all, the news that the Heat extended Alonzo Mourning's contract with a huge contract of 100 million yuan directly shocked the entire league.
Then, the news that the Knicks had renewed O'Neal with an even bigger contract worth 100 million yuan sent the entire league into a state of numbness.
At the same time, two billion-dollar contracts were revealed, causing the media to shout that the NBA has entered the era of billion-dollar contracts. This has also inspired many top and first-class players to pursue big contracts.
Seeing these two pieces of news, Mutombo said he was very aggrieved. Each of them had signed a contract worth 100 million yuan. He only asked for tens of millions of dollars at the next level, but the Nuggets refused to give it to him. How could he be embarrassed?
On the 29th, early in the morning, just after seven o'clock, the president with dark circles, Dave Chacot, rushed to the Knicks headquarters. At this time, even the doorman had not gotten up yet.
That bastard Jordan tricked him, causing him to waste a lot of time and delay opportunities for reinforcement. He had to rush back, otherwise the boss would fire him.
Little Mason has also left. Originally, he wanted to stay, but because of damn Jordan, there was no room for him, so he had no choice but to let him go.
Back before Jordan was done, he once wanted to trade Larry Johnson, and then wanted to bring in Alan Houston from the Pistons, but stopped because of Jordan's plan. Now he wants to pick it up again. Fortunately, these two people
The news hasn't spread yet, it's still too late.
However, only one of the two can be left, because after the introduction of O'Neal, there is no room to eat them both at the same time.
In the end, he chose to bring in Alan Houston. Larry Johnson should let him stay with the Hornets. He already had a billion-dollar contract with the Sharks, and the Knicks simply couldn't afford his share of the billion-dollar contract.
Then he contacted Alan Houston's agent. Houston was a restricted free agent with very good potential. Together with Grant Hill, he was known as the Detroit Twin Stars. He offered a 7-year, 56 million contract, and the other agent agreed immediately.
.
At noon that day, the Orlando media broke the news that Ewing took the initiative to apply for a trade and went to the Pacers.
This news was broken by the Magic management on their own initiative. They were angry at Ewing's behavior and wanted to give him some trouble.
Unexpectedly, on the contrary, the media did not target Ewing, but instead ridiculed the Magic management's mysterious operation.
In the sports news of TNT TV station at 2:30 noon, the male host said: "When Old K turned out to dominate the Western Conference, another giant O'Neal should have received the greatest respect, because only he could compete with Old K.
k, but look at the magic options?
So I agree with Ewing's decision. He has no future at all if he continues to stay in the Magic. If he joins forces with the Pacers and Reggie Miller, he can compete for the championship next season."
There are many other statements like this, which have been recognized by the majority of fans, and the Magic management was ridiculed.
While the news about Ewing was still being wildly hyped, another piece of news was revealed by Mosaic's boss Alexander.
He complained to the media in an accusatory manner: "Olajuwon is just a white-eyed wolf. I gave him a big contract, but he turned around and defected to the Lakers. He is a traitor."
This news also shocked the alliance.
Who can believe that the team that just won the championship disintegrated in an instant?
Houston fans were angry. A large number of radical fans ran to the headquarters and began to burn Dameng's jerseys, accusing him of betraying the team and them.
Dameng also stood up immediately and listed the stinginess of the team's two bosses towards him, dragging the former boss into trouble and being scolded by the angry fans.
…
At this time, Wang Tiejun also got some news about the league from his agent Hawksman, knowing that Dream was going to the Lakers, Jordan was returning to the Bulls, Ewing was going to hug Reggie Miller, etc.
In addition, the Pacers have become extremely powerful and should become one of the most powerful teams to compete for the championship next season.
In addition, what do the Lakers want to do by bringing in Da Meng?
Just when the NBA free market was in turmoil, he reported to the national team on June 30.
The training base of the national team in the capital is still the basketball hall of Tsinghua University. It has a lot of new equipment. He got it from abroad and got it last year. The money was obtained from the basketball office and he exchanged it for US dollars.
After officially reporting for duty, he received a reward of 1,000 points, which was not a small amount. The first NBA MVP only had so many points. He was very happy.
He immediately exchanged two skill optimization cards to optimize hooks and punches.
The new hook and paddle did not lose level, they were still level 95, which gave him a feeling of surprise.
After he checked in, the lineup of the men's basketball team for this Olympic Games was truly determined.
Wang Tiejun, Wang Zhizhi, Bart, Gong Xiaobin, Liu Yudong, Wu Naiqun, Hu Weidong, Li Nan, Zheng Wu, Wu Qinglong, Sun Jun, Li Xiaoyong, a total of twelve people are on the roster.
It turns out that the big-name domestic basketball star Adijiang was also selected for this national team. He was also the captain. He is good at passing the ball and is called the magician of China. Unfortunately, when the national team was training in Liuzhou some time ago, he
He took his wife to the base secretly and neglected training many times, so he was fired by Laogong.
Therefore, in this men's basketball team, there is only one real point guard, Li Xiaoyong.
It had only been more than an hour since he reported for duty, and Liu Yumin, who was trustworthy, rushed over from the Sports Committee and took him to discuss the future of the men's basketball team in this Olympics with the coaching staff.
The draw for the men's basketball team has been completed, and China has been assigned to the death group. The other five countries are Angola, Croatia, Argentina, the United States, and the Li Tao Bowl.
Among these five countries, except Angola, the other four men's basketball teams are very strong. The Basketball Office and the coaching staff have discussed it countless times and decided on a strategy, which is to eat Angola and compete with Argentina. As long as they beat these two
A country can advance to the group stage.
But there is also a surprise, that is, if these two men's basketball teams upset the other three men's basketball teams, the Chinese team will not be guaranteed to advance to the group stage.
Head coach Gong Luming said: "The other three teams are stronger. After discussion, we decided to be more conservative..."
"Give up? No, Liu Chu, Director Jiang, and Coach Gong, I feel like even the American team can give it a try, so why give up?"
Lao Wang felt incredible. Didn't the coaching staff take his fighting ability into account?
He doesn't know much about the strength of the national team, but he knows something about it. This men's basketball team is not weak. It is the dominant player in Asia. It has a whirlwind fast play, which is very distinctive. It is similar to the fast break play of Old Nelson in the NBA.
Fa, why are you so unsure of yourself for the Olympics?
Hearing this sentence, coaches Liu Yumin and Jiang Xinquan each had their own thoughts.
But one thing they have in common is that they all feel that the powerful enemies in their eyes are nothing in Wang Tiejun's eyes. Even the invincible American Dream Team seems not to be in his eyes.
Liu Yumin explained: "Tie Jun, this is because you have just played in the NBA and your physical fitness is definitely not that good, so we can only adopt a conservative strategy and let you exert your strength in the knockout stage."
When Lao Wang heard this, he realized there was some truth to this. He had played hundreds of games during the eight-month season and was indeed tired.
"Let's see, Liu Chu, the coaches, you called me over because you wanted to hear my opinion, right?" he asked.
Liu Yumin and others nodded. They don't care about the attitudes of other members in the men's basketball team, but Wang Tiejun is different. They want to hear his opinion.
Lao Wang said: "In the group stage, against Angola and Argentina, two teams you think are weak, my playing time can be controlled to reduce physical consumption. Of course, the premise is to ensure that we win these two games.
As for the other three group matches, the strongest American team can give up as you said, but I hope to give the other two teams a try. If we can beat them, we can ensure that we will reach the top eight. At the same time, we will be in the knockout rounds.
The situation in China will be better.”
Liu Yumin and the others looked at each other and after discussing it, they felt that this was a good idea and agreed.