NBA: Start by torturing Jordan and add points to upgrade

Lin Tian gave Bird the middle finger, then lazily sat opposite Bird and began to flip through the rookie reports that Bird had given him.

How should I put it? The Pacers' drafting ability is still very good!

Bird's condensed report for Lin Tian this time only included about 10 people, among whom were players who were selected at this position at the end of the first round and played well, including Leandro Barbosa, Josh Howard, Carlos Delfino, Kendrick Perkins and others.

Among those predicted to be slightly higher in the draft, which are difficult for the Pacers to select, are strong players such as David West and Travis Outlaw.

As for the ones at the end of the second round, they were even more diverse. Lin Tian saw names like Kapono, Korver, Maurice Williams, Matt Bonner, James Jones and others.

The half month of overtime work that Bird and his team put in was not in vain.

"How much money do we plan to spend during the offseason?" Before giving Bird advice, Lin Tian first asked about the team's goals and budget for the new season.

After all, the Simon brothers want to save money, and they don't hide it at all. This year, two people on the Pacers need to renew their contracts.

Big Ben and Arenas.

The contracts of these two players have expired, but the Pacers also have their Bird Rights. In other words, if the Pacers want to keep them, they can both stay, but the luxury tax will definitely explode!
Judging from the Pacers' current salary situation, Lin Tian's seven-year super contract has come to its last year. This year, Lin Tian's salary is as high as 7 million. He will officially become the second player in NBA history with an annual salary of more than 3277 million!

In addition, Weber's salary will reach 1700 million. The salaries of Lin Tian and Weber alone are almost 5000 million!

These two people account for about 90% of the salary cap!

而联盟02-03赛季的奢侈税起征点是5800万美金，按照如今联盟的财务状况，下个赛季的奢侈税起征点大概率是在6000-6200万美金之间。

In addition to these two, the Pacers' combined salary of Christie and Brad Miller is more than 1100 million US dollars. Just the salaries of these four people will almost make the Pacers have to pay luxury tax.

The good news is that apart from these four, the Pacers do not have a fifth person on the team who earns a salary higher than the minimum salary and rookie contract.

The bad news is that even so, the Pacers' total salary next season will be at least around 7000 million, and they will have to pay at least 1000 million in luxury tax.

Even so, the team has made no effort to strengthen its roster, let free agents go, and only signed players with minimum salaries.

As for Arenas and Ben…

Keeping any of them would require the team to double their salary next season.

The price is too high!
What's more, these two are not players like Jordan who can bring huge commercial benefits, and their commercial attributes cannot even be compared with Carter!
Therefore, for one of these two people, the annual luxury tax and salary expenses will exceed 2000 million. The Simon brothers obviously will not even think about it and will directly refuse.

This is also the reason why Lin Tian asked Bird this question.

The answer he wants is simple: Should we add players to the current roster next season, or strengthen the roster after Ben and Arenas leave?
For example, if the team has Arenas and Ben Wallace, then the team does not need to select players for positions 5 and 1-2, and can just focus on position 3.

But if they left...

Well, if they leave, we will have to find someone to fill every position, and there will be many vacancies.

"But there is a possibility that they may not get the high salary and offer they imagined."

"Larry, let's stop talking nonsense." Lin Tian interrupted the gloomy Bird and said, "The draft will start in 30 minutes. Let's at least reach an agreement on this!"

“好吧好吧。”伯德无奈的举手投降道：“按照市场价，本最少会签下一份4年3500-4年4200万之间的合同，市场上最少有3-5支球队愿意给他提供这个金额的合同。”

"So, it's basically impossible for us to keep Ben."

"Then there's Gilbert, whose market value is slightly lower than Ben's. After all, he doesn't have that many opportunities to perform. According to my estimation and the market reaction, Gilbert's annual salary will most likely be between 500 and 800 million. If it's this amount, we can match it."

"In other words, we need to add someone to the inside position, right?" Lin Tian continued to look at the draft report in his hand.

"That's the theory," Bird scratched his forehead and said, "but in reality, there may be some discrepancies."

"In and out?" Lin Tian thought for a moment, then asked, "You mean, someone will maliciously rob us?"

"Yes." Bird nodded and expressed his concern.

The so-called malicious poaching actually means using a premium contract to snatch players from the Pacers.

After all, the league has been dominated by the Pacers for so long, and there are many people in the league who dislike the Pacers and hope to break up their dynasty team.

Especially those tank teams with ample salary space, they have long been coveting the main rotation players of these strong teams. As long as there is a chance, they will definitely make a move to grab them!
再加上如今步行者队的薪金状况那可是所有人都再清楚不过的，都知道你不想交太多的奢侈税，4年4000万你会匹配的话，那4年4800甚至4年5200呢？
Still matching?

The value of important players in this kind of dynasty team would have been higher than their normal price. Now, with all the teams eyeing the Pacers and wanting to break them up, the contracts they may offer in the future are likely to be higher than the "market price" that Bird mentioned.

Whether it's Arenas or Ben Wallace, if their annual salary is 2-500 million higher, that might be the price they will actually receive in the free market!

From this perspective, the Pacers will most likely not be able to keep anyone...

"If that's the case, then I actually have another idea." Lin Tian threw the stack of rookie reports on the table and said, "When it's our turn to choose, we'll choose whoever is available, the best one instead of the most suitable one."

"Because next season, I think we are short of people in every position except No. 1!"

"I thought so too." Bird nodded, then picked up a large stack of rookie reports and said, "Let's take a look at this first. These are the guys who are expected to be selected in the late second round or undrafted."

"After the draft, we have to find more players for the summer league, or we can form two teams, because I think this year, our roster will depend on them."

For the next few dozen minutes, Lin Tian and Bird continued to chat, waiting for the draft to begin.

During this time, Lin Tian’s cell phone kept ringing.

After hanging up several times in a row, Lin Tian simply turned off the phone.

Irritated! Too lazy to answer!

"Who is it? Did you get some girl pregnant?"

Bird was gossiping when his phone rang. He looked at the caller ID and found it was Donnie Walsh, general manager of the New York Knicks?

Bird frowned. Why was this guy calling him?
A guy who has the No. 29 pick is planning to trade it for the No. pick in his hand?
"What's wrong, Donnie?" Bird answered the phone with doubt.

"I'm James! James Dolan! Larry, I'm a very straightforward person and I don't like beating around the bush. Please ask Lin if he wants to play with Anthony or cooperate with James. We have 10 minutes left before the draft!"

Bird: ????

What the hell?
I was gossiping and eating melons, and I got myself into trouble? What's the difference between this and the yellow-haired guy calling the victim and asking the girl what posture and brand of umbrella she likes?
This is like cursing someone in the face!

"Choose your mother!" Bird has never been the kind of person who indulges others. Lin Tian still has one year left on his contract, and you guys are now asking for trouble?
Hanging up the phone angrily, Bird looked at Lin Tian and said, "Why don't you go to the next room and talk to them?"

"You look like a jealous woman right now." Lin Tian leaned back in his chair and said, "I won't answer the phone, why are you answering it stupidly?"

"FUXX!" Bird cursed, and suddenly felt unsatisfied. He picked up the phone and called back: "Hello? Donny? Tell that damn bastard Dolan that Lin said to choose Michael Sweetney!"

After saying this, Bird hung up the phone.

I don’t care whether you listen or not, I just want to let out a little bit of anger!
…………

In the Knicks draft office, Walsh looked at Dolan with a bitter face and said, "Boss, I told you that calling Bird won't work. This guy is a jerk!"

"I know, and I'm not prepared to get any answers from him." Dolan took a big sip of wine and said, "I just want Lin to know that we haven't forgotten him and are still waiting for him. This is a trick I have summed up from my years of experience in chasing girls. You can also learn it."

"Then who should we choose?" Walsh now displayed the skills and attributes that a top general manager should have.

obedient!

"I've already made up my mind. The last time I asked Lin, he gave me the answer!" Dolan was full of confidence. "Just wait and see!"

In the draft office in San Antonio, Buford is very busy at the moment. His phone keeps ringing, and he keeps picking it up, chatting for a few words and then hanging up.

There are really a lot of people who are interested in their second pick. Teams keep coming to inquire about the price, and two teams even made offers for All-Star players in their prime.

To be honest, if it weren’t for his old partner Popovich who said he would not sell this draft pick no matter what, Buford would have wanted to trade this draft pick long ago!
But at this moment, Popovich really took a fancy to James!

For example, this guy is still spreading news everywhere, saying how great Anthony is and that he is the player of his dreams.

In order to cooperate with Popovich, Buford even called the Knicks last night and expressed his desire to trade the No. 2 pick for the No. 1 pick, with the goal of selecting Anthony or someone like that.

The main goal is to use a smokescreen to try every means to make James fall to second place.

The draft was about to begin, and Buford was so busy that he even remembered to call the Knicks to ask them who they would choose, whether they would sell the draft pick, and whether everything could be discussed.

Unfortunately, Walsh simply called him and hung up.

You, the Spurs, know what's going on, but are we, the Knicks, stupid?
Could it be that Walsh didn't know that this was a smokescreen? Did the Spurs want James?
Unfortunately, Dolan just refused to say who he would choose, which put Walsh in a very passive position.

If you had told me earlier, I could have made some preparations. Whether it's a trade or a direct pick, it would have brought some benefits to the team.

But Dolan was very willful: No need, we want Lin to see our sincerity.

Bullshit sincerity.

Walsh cursed Dolan countless times in his heart, but who asked Dolan to pay him?
On the surface, he still showed an expression that said: the boss is wise, the boss is awesome.

For the sake of life, I can endure it!
In the draft office in Portland, a group of people were busy, trying to figure out who to pick: Serbian Milicic? Or a face-up four-position player like Bosh?
The group of people had different opinions and made all kinds of suggestions. Some even said why not ask the top two scorers whether they would sell it.

This proposal was rejected by everyone with disdain.

If I could buy it, why would I wait until now? I would have gotten it long ago!

They have already confirmed it: Not for sale! They will never consider selling it!

Similar scenarios are constantly playing out among teams with top ten draft picks, such as the Cavaliers, Heat, Clippers, and Bulls. Everyone is busy discussing who to choose and what choice to make.

At the same time, teams that want to give the team a new look in the new year and want to make some big moves are also continuing their overt or covert actions and negotiations.

As time flies by, the first suspense of tonight is revealed!
The Knicks are about to make their selection!

"Boss, who should we choose?" Walsh asked Dolan again as time was running out.

"Last time when I suggested choosing James, Lin explicitly refused! So let's choose Anthony! And Anthony is from New York. He is not like James, a country bumpkin from a small city. He has seen the world and he deserves New York!"

Dolan slammed the table confidently, indicating that we should choose our own people in New York!

As he slapped the table and made his analysis, he seemed very confident and stylish.

But Walsh cursed in his heart.

Why didn’t you choose Anthony earlier?

It's no surprise that the Spurs next door want James. That's like Napoleon wearing a crown and ascending the throne a long time ago!
If you had just told me earlier that we wanted Anthony, we could have traded the No. 1 pick for the No. 2 pick, and then extorted some money from him. Wouldn't that be great?
If you choose directly now, won’t people think you are an idiot?
Walsh couldn't stand this question any more. He asked directly and gave his suggestion again: "Let's choose James, and then trade him for the Spurs' No. 2 pick. In all likelihood, we can get two more draft picks!"

"No!" Dolan refused without thinking: "Donnie, you are a good person, but don't you know that when you give someone a gift, you can't give them a second-hand one?"

"Lin said he wants Anthony, so we will give him a brand new Anthony, not the Anthony after the exchange!"

"This has nothing to do with draft picks or immediate combat effectiveness. This is all about sincerity and intention! Do you understand?"

I know you, banana-bara glass teapot yo-yo! Walsh looked at Dolan's face and wanted to smash his face with a stool.

This is the boss, boss, boss, boss, who pays my salary!
Hold on, hold on, hold on!
Walsh muttered several more sentences in his mind, then opened his mouth again and asked:
"Boss, then, when did Lin tell you that he wanted Anthony?"

This was Walsh's last effort. He swore that if Dolan gave him another bullshit answer like giving gifts must be sincere, he would quit his job on the spot!

I can tolerate it for the sake of living, but I can't tolerate you insulting my IQ!

"You were there that time, Donny." Dolan looked confident and self-assured at the moment. He sat there with his arms spread out. The ring on his hand representing power and the martini on his hand proving his personal taste all demonstrated Dolan's wisdom.

"On the day we got the No. 1 pick, I called Lin and asked him who he would choose. I said Anthony, and he didn't refuse. But when I said James, he refused very vehemently! This proves that Lin wants to play with Anthony!"

I believe in your evil!
Walsh found his heart beating rapidly, he found his blood pressure rising rapidly, and then he found his hands were already on the back of the chair, ready to lift the chair up and hit Dolan in the face at any time.

Then the office phone rang.

The weird and sinister atmosphere just now disappeared in an instant, and Walsh picked up the phone.

"Knicks, who will you pick as the No. 30 pick? There are seconds left before the president goes on stage to announce your pick."

"Hurry, hurry, hurry! Hurry up your grandma's legs! Are you in such a hurry to reincarnate? Damn it, if I had thought it through, I would have told you a long time ago! Hurry, hurry, hurry, I will hurry you up!"

"I'm picking Carmelo Anthony! It's fucking endless!"

Walsh spoke furiously, then slammed the phone on the table.

Then, when he looked up at Dolan, his eyes were replaced with a peaceful and flattering smile again: "Boss, these bastards in the alliance are really annoying. I really don't know why they are so annoying!"

"That's what I said." Dolan picked up the wine glass and shook it towards Walsh. "But you have to change your temper. The league staff is also working. What's the point of scolding him like that? It only makes his job more difficult. Don't do this again next time."

"Have a drink, Donny. Don't do this again next time. After all, you are about to become the general manager of a dynasty team!"

Wang Chao you flat teapot yo-yo!
Walsh once again suppressed the anger in his heart!

For the sake of living, he can endure it, and he can also endure humiliation of his IQ!

Who made Dolan give him a lot of money?
"With the first pick in the first round, the New York Knicks select... Carmelo Anthony!"

"Wow!!"

"Dolan is awesome!!"

"Long live!!"

"Mero!! Mero!! Mero!!"

"Our God! Our beloved Mello is here!"

"New York will always be your home!"

Unlike most previous drafts, today, on this night, in Madison Square Garden, when Stern called out this year's No. 1 pick, the entire Madison Garden went crazy!
Crazy celebrations, crazy cheers.

They love Anthony!
They like this New York native! They think Dolan made the right choice!

How can James, a guy who is praised to the sky and comes from a place like Akron, be worthy of our Big Apple?
With an excited smile and anticipation on his face, Anthony put on a Knicks hat, walked onto the stage and took a photo with Stern.

Tonight was definitely a dream come true for him.

What New York kid doesn't want to play for the Knicks?
Inside the Spurs' draft office.

"Hurray!" Popovich raised his hands to the sky and shouted excitedly, "We did it! We got James! Hahahaha, RJ, I said we could do it!"

"I told you those Knicks idiots would be fooled and they would keep LeBron!"

"I am a f*cking genius! I am destined to be the greatest head coach! Tim Duncan! If you dare to run away, I will beat you to death next season!"

"Well, forget it, it's the season after next. I'll beat you to death!"

"Okay, let's call the league and tell them our choice. Then, RJ, come and see if my suit is messy. We have to have a good chat with LeBron later."

"In the next 10 or even 15 years, we will fight side by side together!"

"With the second pick in the first round, the San Antonio Spurs select...LeBron James!"

Unlike Anthony, James was met with a series of boos and cheers when he walked onto the stage.

In other words, except for Anthony, every rookie tonight will probably be criticized by New York fans.

It’s not that we hate these rookies, New Yorkers just want to have fun!

Do you really think that the more than 1 fans who flocked to Madison tonight are here to watch the draft?

The people of America's number one fun city come here to have fun!
Booing is one of the ways they have fun!
In addition, when James walked onto the stage, his smile was very forced. He was not as happy and cheerful as Anthony. He seemed to have something on his mind, with his brows furrowed the entire time. He only managed a forced smile when taking photos.

And when James walked off the stage, he started cursing in his heart.

"I am the KING!! I am the best in this class!! I will let Carmelo and the Knicks know how wrong they are!!"

"LeBron, can we interview you for a few minutes?" Under the stage, the TNT reporter who had just let Anthony go quickly grabbed James and asked, "Are you satisfied with your draft pick?"

"I am very satisfied! Really, this is like a dream! I can't believe it in my dreams. I was still a high school student yesterday, and today I am the second pick in the greatest league in the world! This is a dream come true! Thank you San Antonio, thank you for everything!"

"I will play for San Antonio all my life, I will be a San Antonio native all my life, and I will bring it a championship, and I believe, not one, not two, not three, but many!"

On the stage, Stern walked up for the third time and announced: "With the third pick in the first round, the Portland Trail Blazers select... Chris Bosh!"

Then, Stern walked onto the stage again and again, announcing tonight's draft results again and again.

“With the fourth pick, the Denver Nuggets select…Darko Milicic!”

"With the fifth pick, the Cleveland Cavaliers select... Dwyane Wade!"

"With the sixth pick, the Miami Heat select...Kirk Hinrich!"

I have to say, these first few picks are really a mess.

It was completely different from the draft that Lin Tian remembered. Not a single player went to the same team he had been on before. The only similarity was perhaps that Wade was selected with the fifth pick and went to Cleveland.

As for the others, it was really a mess.

However, this result is definitely much more lively than what Lin Tian remembered!

James finally made his debut in a team with a top coach and a top uniform team. Anthony came to New York, which he had always dreamed of. Milicic went to a bad team that wanted to rebuild with him as the core and will definitely get many opportunities. Bosh can also shine in Portland.

And Wade finally doesn't have to be PUA by Riley, and he doesn't have to go out and wander in his later years without getting a top salary.

As for Riley, let him try to pua Hinrich and see if he can succeed...

Of course, these have little to do with Lin Tian. Even if these bad teams successfully select a new core that the team really needs, they will need 2-3 years of growth period before they can meet Lin Tian in the playoffs.

As for tonight, Lin Tian and Bird's attention is on the area at the end of the first round.

"With the 26th pick in the first round, the Dallas Mavericks select Kendrick Perkins!"

"With the 27th pick in the first round, the New Jersey Nets select Leandro Barbosa!"

"With the 28th pick in the first round, the Los Angeles Lakers select Brian Cook!"

"FUXX!!!"

Bird looked at the choices made by the three competitors in front of him and couldn't help but swear continuously, then threw away several pieces of paper.

Bird wanted all of these players.

But now that these few have been selected, Bird only has three pieces of paper left.

"Come on Lin, who do you choose?"

Bird spread out the remaining three draft reports and placed them in front of Lin Tian.

Luke Walton, Jason Kapono and Josh Howard.

"Logically, we should choose Howard, but I remember you said we don't want ugly guys on our team? This guy's face is comparable to Cassell's, so how do you decide whether to choose him or not? Or should we choose Walton? Walton is pretty handsome!"

"Did Charles eat your brain, Larry?" Lin Tian couldn't help rolling his eyes. He just said that casually back then, but Bird took it seriously?
It's about selecting a coach. That's because the actual levels of Carter and Jamison are not much different, so of course it's about selecting a coach.

But the levels of these people now are not that far apart, but they are definitely not on the same level!
When Howard was not making trouble, he was the top outside attacker in Dallas for a period of time and was selected as an All-Star!

And in those two years, Dallas was a top team with 60 wins!

Can defend, shoot, play one-on-one, and break through!

Howard's offensive ability and personal one-on-one ability are definitely first-class, if not top-notch.

The top outside player of a top team, with this level and title.

Isn’t he 30 times better than the three-point contest champion Capono and the son of a famous player, Prince Dun?
When there is such a big difference in ability, do you still care about looks?

"Then choose Howard." Bird smiled, picked up the phone, called Stern and told him his choice.

The Pacers' first draft pick is considered a sure thing.

Then when it came to the second round of the draft, the pace was even faster. Not only was it twice as fast as the first round, but Stern no longer went on stage to take photos with the players. This job was handed over to his deputy.

Then, just halfway through the second round of the draft, a shocking deal suddenly broke out that was enough to shock the league!

The Philadelphia 76ers are rebuilding!

The 76ers sent Allen Iverson ($1200 million) to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for former All-Star guard Trial Brandon ($1100 million).

In addition, the Timberwolves selected Travis Outlaw with the 22nd pick in the first round this year, as well as the Timberwolves' four first-round draft picks in 04, 06, 08 and 10, and the 05 Lakers draft pick and 06 Jazz draft pick obtained in previous trades by the Timberwolves.

A total of 6 draft picks and a first-round rookie who was just selected!

The Timberwolves completely overdrew their future in an instant, and what they got in return was Allen Iverson, a small scorer who had been active in the top five or even top three of the scoring list in the past few years and had won the scoring title!

This deal is definitely a shocking deal!
As soon as this deal came out, the 76ers directly announced to rebuild, and everyone knew that their goal of this deal was to free up salary space and the seven draft picks. As for Trier?
He used to be an All-Star player, but Trier didn't play a single game last season due to injury. Although this season hasn't started yet, everyone knows that he can no longer play in the NBA!
As he grows older and suffers from injuries, he doesn't even have to report to Philadelphia. After receiving tens of millions of salary for the last year of his career, it's time for him to say goodbye to the NBA!

The 76ers have to break down before they can build up. After losing in the first round and Iverson's disturbance, the team finally decided to rebuild. The chips they got this time are definitely not bad! I just don't know when they will rise again after Iverson leaves.

I hope they can trust the process! (End of this chapter)