When pride still matters

Chapter 587 Frye says he's not here
There is a fog surrounding Jokic.

This fog is created by scouts.

Modern NBA scouts are a far cry from the past, with a wealth of data and detailed film to evaluate young players' prospects. This is a stark contrast to decades ago, when even legendary coaches like Red Auerbach relied heavily on recommendations from college coaches when drafting players.

Auerbach believed in his own channels and vision, so he might have missed Chet Walker because of his friends' negative comments. He also believed in his own judgment and started planning to select Dave Cowens after only watching two of his games.

So what do modern scouts, with the best possible viewing conditions, believe?

It can be roughly summed up in one sentence: they believe "what you see is what you get".

Statistics and videos are enough to reveal all the secrets of a young player.

They only needed a dozen games of tape to see that Andrew Wiggins had the highest ceiling in the 2014 draft class, but also to judge that he lacked the fight and competitive mentality required to achieve greatness.

But it doesn't matter, his talent is enough to make professionals ignore Wiggins' character flaws.

Jokic is also a player whose strengths and weaknesses can be observed with the naked eye.

Moreover, it doesn't take too many games to see through him, one game is enough.

His speed and athleticism are completely below NBA standards, and his static talent is also slightly mediocre. Although he has good shooting skills, he definitely cannot bear the reputation of "Nowitzki". His basketball IQ is very high, but what can a high IQ bring without sufficient talent?

Scouts evaluate Jokic based on the established fact that he can't play up to his basketball IQ in the NBA.

So, when Yu Fei insisted that Arn Tellem choose Jokic, Tellem felt that they were making a wrong decision.

However, after calming down, Tellem recalled Yu Fei's decisions at the draft over the years. Has he ever made a mistake?

If nothing else, before joining the Clippers last year, Yu Fei suggested that he choose Giannis Antetokounmpo. It turned out that the Greek player was indeed the most promising player in the 2013 draft class.

Yu Fei's high regard for Jokic is not as simple as it seems.

So the Clippers invited Jokic for a one-on-one tryout.

During the workout, some of Jokic's obvious qualities were further amplified.

Kwame Brown was involved as a trialist.

As a result, by the end of the tryout, Brown began to consider retirement.

He felt that he had become a useless person.

At first, he was reluctant to help the team with the tryout during the holiday, but after receiving a call from Yu Fei, he finally agreed. Facing Jokic, the European fat boy, he didn't take it seriously at first, thinking that the other party had no conditions to gain a foothold in the NBA, and even thought that even in his current state, he could easily beat the other party.

However, Jokic made Brown look like a clown in the workout.

Brown didn't grab a single rebound over Jokic and didn't make a single successful defensive play.

Jokic exhibited two traits that shocked the Clippers' front office.

One is his coordination with the ball.

When Yu Fei heard that Giannis Antetokounmpo did not receive professional basketball training until he was 13, he expressed regret on the spot. Due to the lack of ball sense cultivated since childhood, Giannis is destined to not be able to attack as freely as Durant, which will greatly limit his offensive influence in high-level games.

Jokic, the seemingly rough-technical European "white bear", is actually a technically sophisticated player, and he plays completely at his own pace.

His amazing coordination between man and ball was on full display today.

Second, his hands.

Generally speaking, when professionals compliment a player's hands, they are referring to the player's wingspan or hand size.

But the magic of Jokic's hands lies in themselves. In Jokic, these seemingly ordinary hands can deliver the most beautiful passes in the world, make the most bizarre shots, grab the most incredible rebounds, and even make up for his shortcomings on the defensive end by interfering.

Jokic has a pair of omnipotent "hands of God".

After the tryout, Kwame Brown was disheartened and called Yu Fei to say he wanted to retire because he was beaten by a European who was as slow as a turtle.

Yu Fei said to him, "That's not necessary."

"Da Fei, do you think I have fallen to this level?" Brown asked.

"No, what I mean is that it's not your problem, but your opponent is too strong." Yu Fei said very seriously, "The kid you are facing today will become the best player in the 2014 class. One day, he will become the best player in active service."

After hearing this, Brown felt that he should retire.

In order to comfort himself, Da Fei even told lies without thinking.

But in the end, Brown only retired verbally.

Because he still has a contract, and he doesn't know what to do after retirement for a while anyway, he might as well stay in Los Angeles, earning several million dollars a year, and if he's lucky, he can even win the GOAT championship again.

The Clippers have become serious about Jokic.

Originally, Jokic was ready to withdraw from the election.

Because no NBA team has made a draft commitment to him yet, although teams like the Spurs and Nuggets have expressed "interest", none of them have shown the sincerity of "not wanting anyone else but him".

Jokic doesn't understand that the draft is a hidden front in the NBA.

Teams that don't have lottery picks but think they've found a treasure are unwilling to let the news know.

The same is true for the Clippers, who quickly extended a second tryout invitation to Jokic after the tryout ended.

This tryout is a non-public secret tryout.

Moreover, the content of the tryout was not as hardcore as the first time.

It is more of an examination of Jokic's own character.

This kind of tryout is more like an interview with a large company than a professional basketball tryout.

It takes a long time and is more complicated.

Jokic, who still hasn't received any draft promise, is a little impatient and he really doesn't want to waste time.

"I've done everything I can, you guys are not going to be like San Antonio, are you?"

Tellem asked warily, "Like San Antonio?"

"They were very happy with me, but they didn't give me anything!" Jokic said. "Listen, I can go back to Serbia and I can accept any result!"

Jokic accidentally revealed a piece of news that made Tellem even more excited.

The Spurs also took a fancy to Jokic.

You know, in addition to examining the potential of players in the draft, the Spurs will also evaluate the players' personalities.

The players they favor are most likely those with good personalities.

Trem smiled and said, "Nikola, I can now confirm that you are the one we have been looking for."

That night, Tellem invited Jokic and his agent to dinner.

Tellem then made his draft commitment official on behalf of the Clippers.

"Don't withdraw!" Trem said solemnly, "We will definitely select you and let you play in the NBA next year!"

For Jokic, whose draft prospect is only in the second round, this is a promise that cannot be refused.

Of course, withdrawing from the election was just an angry statement, but it was also one of his options.

As an unnoticed draft player, the competition in this draft year is too fierce. If the market situation is not good, it is a very normal decision to withdraw and wait until next year to participate in the draft.

However, as long as he has the opportunity to enter the NBA, it will be a guarantee that his income will increase tenfold in the next few years.

That's how it was settled.

The Clippers need to wait for the draft day, and before that, turn their attention to the trade market.

The trading market has not been calm these days.

Dwight Howard, who thought he was very loyal, lost his memory after the season ended.

He forgot his loyalty and resolutely opted out of the contract and entered the free market.

When Carmelo Anthony saw that Howard was leaving, he also announced that he would test the free market.

With two of the Big Three gone, Paul knew that he could not succeed in New Jersey, so he simply announced that he would test the free market.

When the Nets Big Three were first formed, they were very impressive. However, they ran into the Supersonics and the rising Heat. The three were originally incompatible, and after a series of failures, the conflicts between them became difficult to reconcile.

It was so glorious when it was at its peak, but its fall now is even more regrettable.

However, as the saying goes, "When a whale falls, everything grows." The collapse of a super team may give rise to multiple emerging strong teams. The Clippers are in urgent need of strengthening their inside line and have also set their sights on Howard. However, Yu Fei made it clear that he does not want to work with star players who put happiness first. Therefore, the Clippers management decided to focus on the draft.

But fate sometimes helps old relationships reunite.

Since being eliminated by the Clippers in the playoffs, the Warriors have been looking for reinforcements in the interior. Howard's entry into the free market is a good opportunity for them, and perhaps they can get this player who still enjoys the title of "No. 1 Center" through a sign-and-trade.

However, Howard's shady dealings in New Jersey have damaged his reputation.

If the Warriors have a choice, they would rather get a player who looks more reliable. In addition, their main goal is to clear Tyreke Evans's garbage contract.

So they contacted the Clippers again.

The Clippers were also "not happy" with Griffin.

To be precise, it is the Clippers' supporters who are dissatisfied with Griffin. They think that Griffin is not a player who can be entrusted with the future. Although the Clippers' management has a high opinion of Griffin, they think that he is not completely suitable for flying.

Some of the criticism of Griffin is valid. If Griffin needs the GOAT to take the initiative to play inside to share the pressure for him, then what is his value to the GOAT?
The inability to withstand pressure in the interior is the original sin.

The mismatch of technical styles can be solved through running-in, but it is a headache if it is not useful at the critical moment. Therefore, although the Clippers will not take the initiative to trade Griffin, Tellem's attitude remains the same as before-the trade is not good, but I will not hang up the phone.

The Warriors still remember how Griffin abused them in the playoffs.

Although Griffin performed poorly in the Western Conference Finals, the Warriors first considered getting him. As for the possible defects after having him, we will talk about it after having him.

Their call again went to Triumph's office.

They hope to carry out the transaction according to the original agreement.

But Tellem told the Clippers that they needed to have serious discussions before they could come up with an answer.

After hanging up the phone, Tellem informed Yu Fei of the Warriors' intentions.

At this time, Yu Fei was on vacation in Miami.

He's not going anywhere until the draft.

In addition to resting, he also wanted to sound out Yao Ming's attitude.

If Yao Ming really enters the free market, he has a 70% chance of convincing him to come to the Clippers. Even so, he still has to do a good job of preliminary work.

We can't ignore those details just because the relationship between the two parties is good.

Yu Fei had to take Triumph's call seriously.

The Warriors still want Griffin?

In fact, after the end of this season, Yu Fei's evaluation of Griffin was positive. If the full score was 100, Griffin would be at least 85 points.

He is not the best, but looking around the league, there are few better than him.

That being said, Antetokounmpo is already on the team, and he will move to the inside sooner or later. If Jokic is selected in the draft in a few days, and Yao Ming is persuaded to join the Clippers in the offseason, then Griffin will not be that important to the Clippers.

Griffin just had a first-team caliber season, and if the position allocation for the best lineup wasn't so abstract, he should have been in the first team.

Even if he doesn't perform well against the Spurs, this is when his trade value is the highest.

On the contrary, Klay Thompson, the Warriors' main bargaining chip for the trade, performed poorly in the series against the Clippers.

The Warriors' rebuilding core is Leonard and Lillard. Thompson's value is to provide space on the outside, but he did not do so in this year's semifinals. Therefore, the Warriors concluded that the inside advantage is more important.

Yu Fei knows Thompson's weight. If all the planned reinforcements come true and Griffin is replaced by Thompson, the Clippers' goal of winning the championship in the new season will no longer be an empty talk.

"You can trade, but you have to inform Blake before the trade." Yu Fei made a rational decision. "However, we should get more in return because Blake is more valuable than before."

Yu Fei's attitude determines the prospects of the transaction.

After hearing Yu Fei say this, Trem knew what to do.

In the subsequent negotiations, in addition to the Warriors' original offer, Tellem also asked the other party to give up this year's first-round draft pick No. 27 and a future draft pick.

The Warriors trembled in the face of this predatory price increase and were unable to make a decision for a while.

They didn't leave the table, but they didn't give in either. This situation was very delicate.

Trade rumors continued until the day of the draft.

So much so that before the draft began, experts were discussing the possibility of trading Griffin.

Then there is this year's draft.

Due to timeline changes, this year's lottery teams are very different from the main timeline.

The Toronto Raptors received the No. 1 pick.

Ever since Bosh left the team, they have been in a rebuilding state, but now Canadian basketball is experiencing a talent explosion, with super talents like Wiggins emerging, and then, somehow they got the No. 1 pick.

Adam Silver clumsily repeated David Stern's words: "Basketball is back in Toronto."

Stern said this during the infamous 1985 lottery, when the New York Knicks won the No. pick and it was widely believed to be a result of behind-the-scenes manipulation by the league. Now, Silver's reiteration of this quote seems to have some meaning.

The Chicago Bulls got the second pick.

Fate is truly amazing.

The Toronto Raptors won the No. 1 pick, and the favorite to be the No. 1 pick in this draft happens to be Canadian.

Chicago drew the second pick, and one of the "three kings" of this draft, Jabari Parker, is from Chicago.

NBA is always a place where miracles happen. It always allows talented players to go to the right team.

The Kings got the third pick.

Following them are the Pacers, 76ers, Pistons, Bobcats, Celtics, Pelicans, Nuggets, Suns, Jazz and Magic.

The draft process was uneventful. The Canadian genius went to Toronto, the Chicago Son 2.0 went to Chicago, and Embiid went to the Kings.

The Pacers selected Australian genius Dante Exum with the fourth pick, the 76ers selected Julius Randle with the fifth pick, the Pistons selected Aaron Gordon with the sixth pick, and the Bobcats selected Noah Vonleh with the seventh pick...

This year's draft was unusually dull, with no team in the entire lottery making any surprising choices.

When the Lakers selected Zach LaVine with the 15th pick in the first round, ESPN's Lakers hater Bill Simmons couldn't help but sneer: "Unless Kobe wants to request a trade, I really don't know why they would choose a rookie in the same position as Kobe."

Just as they were talking about the Lakers' selection, an unexpected trade disrupted the entire draft day.

Bill Simmons' partner Jalen Rose said in surprise: "A big deal just happened - I can only say that this day has finally come!"

"The Clippers sent Blake Griffin to Golden State in exchange for Tyreke Evans, Klay Thompson, this year's first-round pick No. 27 and future draft picks!"

Upon hearing the news, Bill Simmons said: "Frye is becoming more and more like No. 23 in his DC days."

Subsequently, the full details of the deal came to light, with the Clippers also receiving an additional 2016 first-round pick and the right to swap first-round picks in 2018.

The moment the deal was done, the Clippers immediately made headlines.

But for them, the work isn’t over yet.

It wasn't until the end of the first round of the draft, when Jokic was still on the list of options, that they felt comfortable selecting him with the Warriors' 27th pick in the first round.

As for the 28th pick in the first round, the Clippers selected Jokic's Serbian compatriot Bogdan Bogdanovic.

"Curse! The curse is coming again!" Bill Simmons exclaimed, "Donald Sterling's ghost is still there, he is everywhere, possessing everyone on the Clippers! Only the Clippers in the Sterling era would make such a decision! It's crazy!"

In less than half an hour, Clippers general manager Arn Tellem was scolded by angry Yu Fei fans and Clippers fans and became a hot topic on social media.

At least on the surface, he did deserve it.

He sent away the league's top power forward in exchange for a premium ball-handling wing whose functions overlap with Yu Fei's, and a 3D player who completely missed the mark against the Clippers in this year's semifinals. As for future draft picks, what's the point? If you have the GOAT, you should win now!

Then, he used two first-round draft picks to select a fat Serbian center who was ranked in the middle of the second round in the latest draft predictions, and a Serbian guard who had already renewed his contract with his parent team and was not considering entering the NBA in the next two years.

"I'm not being alarmist, this is the truth - Arn Tellem murdered the Clippers' future in half an hour!"

At this moment of "murdering" the Clippers' future, the planner and initiator was basking in the sun in Miami, holding his fiancée in his arms, and said proudly: "Let Arn suffer first, and I will let him take the center position when we win the championship next year."

The fiancée picked up her phone and saw a call from Trem.

"Frye, your general manager called."

"Just say I'm not here."

So, the GOAT's fiancée answered the phone and said mischievously, "Frye said he's not in."

(End of this chapter)