The Road to Stardom: Start as a Slam Dunk Master.

Chapter 280 The ownership of the No. pick

As soon as I arrived at school, I met Sakuragi.

This semester's rampage in the US high school, coupled with Payton's constant whispering in his ears, Sakuragi Hanamichi has become more and more confident in himself.

He heard that Lin Dong was going to participate in this year's NBA draft, so he wanted to give it a try.

Frankly speaking, Lin Dong felt it was a little early.

Starting from August last year to April this year, for more than half a year, Sakuragi Hanamichi's height continued to soar. This guy grew another 8cm taller... Sakuragi Hanamichi is now 4 centimeters.

Compared to his height, which reached 200 centimeters at the beginning of the year but has stopped growing since then, Lin Dong is really a little envious.

On the court, as long as one's own athletic ability can be guaranteed, every extra centimeter can be a centimeter advantage.

Fortunately, for a No. 3 position, a height of 200 centimeters is enough. Maybe after entering the NBA, he can slowly grow one or two centimeters in a year or two, which will make him more perfect.

But Sakuragi is different. His height is still growing rapidly, and based on the No. 4 position he plays, for a power forward, 203 centimeters does seem a little short.

"Oh, it's okay, Takato!" Hanamichi Sakuragi laughed and patted his chest, saying nonchalantly: "My ability to adapt is super strong. Payton said that this year the Sonics have two first-round picks. , you are more certain to sign me. If you wait until next year, if you play well and don’t have any high draft picks in the new season, then I may not be able to come to the SuperSonics. I like it here very much!"

Lin Dong talked to Sakuragi Hanamichi about this issue once and suggested that he go to the NBA a year later. As long as he is with the SuperSonics, he can still come to the arena to practice.

In the past six months, Rukawa Kaede has found a lot of presence in the US High School, but to be honest, he has also encountered a lot of setbacks in the SuperSonics.

Training with this group of people, and without Lin Dong who can help him with things, Rukawa Kaede's advantage in the US High School will naturally no longer exist, and he will be at a level where he can barely keep up with the rear of the car when he performs well.

"Allah, Payton also said that I will not be allowed to gain muscle or weight during my rookie season. I will just be allowed to adapt to the NBA with the team. The team can give me a year of growth. I will wait until next year. Let’s talk about it later!”

At the same time, the 4th position is a position that emphasizes physical confrontation. With Sakuragi Hanamichi's current physical strength, it is okay to deal with high school students, but to be dragged to the NBA to face those real warriors, in addition to gaining muscle and weight There is almost no other way out, and once he starts to gain muscle and weight, it is likely to affect his final height...

In the eyes of Coach Anzai, participating in this year's draft has two advantages for Rukawa Kaede. One is the age advantage. After all, he is only 18 years old this year. Age is also an important criterion for potential in the NBA's assessment of rookies. At the same time, this draft With Lin Dong and Sakuragi Hanamichi, Rukawa Kaede will not be so lonely when participating in the open trial. Having a helper by your side during the trial will not only cover up some of your shortcomings, but also help you adjust your mentality. .

Most of them are second-round picks, and there are also some low-ranking picks in the first round. Their performance in the NBA campaign last year was not satisfactory and they faced layoffs. Therefore, as soon as the major teams started to form affiliated teams, they signed up naturally as soon as they made announcements. Get involved.

"Hahaha, last time my mother was hospitalized, Takato-san, you lent me a lot of money. You know, I will tell you if I have something to do!" Sakuragi Hanamichi's voice didn't sound like there was anything wrong with it, but it made her Lin Dong no longer thinks about it.

Lin Dong looked at him dumbfounded.

Also coming was Rukawa Kaede.

But it's clear that this guy didn't listen to his own advice.

This year Rukawa Kaede has followed Lin Dong's advice and worked hard on ball control and shooting. Now his performance in these two aspects is quite outstanding. He is very accurate in 3-pointers from outside and his ball control ability is not bad.

However, limited by his height, weight, and athletic talent, it is difficult for him to make any progress in high school-level training.

What's more important is that coach Anzai can see that Rukawa Kaede actually doesn't have much potential to explore in high school.

He trained with the SuperSonics' affiliated team. Although it was just formed, most of the members of this affiliated team in the Development League were still drafted players from the NBA.

Therefore, whether it was the Sonics, the team's coach Bob, or Lin Dong, the advice given to Kaede Rukawa was to practice for another year, but coach Anzai actively encouraged him to participate in this year's draft.

Just because they can't make it in the NBA doesn't mean that their skills aren't good. At least in the US high schools, they are ruthless players who can kill everyone.

Coach Anzai has been calling them frequently for the past six months, and occasionally flies over to see them. He is quite familiar with the situation of Rukawa Kaede and Sakuragi Hanamichi.

"Let's go, let's hand in the application form together!"

"Are you encountering any difficulties at home?" Lin Dong felt that this guy's choice might be related to money, but Sakuragi said it all, and Payton promised not to let Sakuragi gain muscle within a year. Gaining weight would be a good thing, so I stopped trying to persuade him and just said, "If you need money, just tell me at any time. You know, I have so much money that I can't even find a place to spend it."

To put it bluntly, his potential in high school has been tapped out, and his physical talent is not enough to support him in practicing any new techniques.

If you want to make progress, you must first gain weight and strengthen physical confrontation training. Secondly, you must work hard on defense and develop into the 3D player that Lin Dong mentioned.

And these are not things that can be done on a high school level team like the Space Needle.

Therefore, in the view of coach Anzai, even if Rukawa Kaede trains hard for another year and improves his strength from 8.0 to 8.2, his performance will not be obvious and not enough to produce a qualitative change. Instead, he will lose one year of age advantage and lose the familiarity of teammates around him. Helping others, etc., will actually be more difficult than if he ran for office this year.

As for losing, if everyone loses this year, the result next year will not change.

According to NBA regulations, undrafted players cannot participate in the second year's draft, but they can use their status as free agents to find an NBA team to negotiate a contract, and with Rukawa Kaede's level, he can find a Development League team, such as Now he's training with the SuperSonics affiliate.

Coach Anxi is planning to ask Lin Dong for a favor even if he no longer has this old face... With Lin Dong's current status in the SuperSonics, as long as he is signed by the SuperSonics this year, he will be able to help. In short, it was just a matter of words to get Rukawa Kaede to be a substitute for a subordinate team of the SuperSonics.

Don’t underestimate these league-affiliated teams. They are basically trained as reserves for the home team. The training conditions are definitely not bad. They are at least a few levels higher than those of American high schools. At the same time, there are also strong Development League games. If you can survive here, you still have a chance to stand on the NBA court...

Before submitting the application, the three of them were a little excited, but after submitting the application, they felt dull.

It's just a matter of filling out a form and submitting it to the school, and it can be done in 3 minutes.

But there is another program today, the ownership of the No. 1 pick, which will be broadcast live on TNT Sports Channel.

This year's NBA, whether in Dragon Country or the United States, has set off a wave of craze.

Jordan's comeback in October gave the U.S. football market a shot in the arm, and even the entire U.S. stock market rose as a result, which shows his appeal and influence. On the Dragon Kingdom side, Yao Ming joined the Wizards, and the Qiao Ming combination formed with Jordan also excited the Dragon Kingdom audience. The domestic NBA ratings once exceeded 10%, and 3 million people were online at the same time, which was far better than before. Lin Dong's 3000% viewership rating at the World Championships.

It's a pity that the results are mediocre...

Dayao, who had just entered the league, was obviously not used to the intensity of the NBA. Although he occasionally performed amazingly, and once posted gorgeous statistics of 19 points, 11 rebounds and 5 blocks, his overall performance was not stable, especially in the confrontation inside. This lack of sex has made him quite criticized and controversial.

What's even more difficult is that he is on the same team as Jordan. The god of basketball has too high demands on his teammates...

Yao is rude to his teammates, and any mistakes may become a reason for being criticized. Since he has just arrived in the NBA, his English speaking skills are not enough, so Dayao also has some problems in communicating with his teammates on the court, and there are too many ineffective communications. , this is obviously something that makes the God of Basketball even more unhappy.

This Wizards is not the Rockets in history, which did not give Dayao as much training, nor did the Rockets Thomas in history give him a chance to start. Instead, under the strength of Jordan, until the end of the entire regular season, Still sitting on the bench.

With averages of 7.5 points and 3.6 blocks per game, the US media once called Dayao the top pick.

In the middle of the season, the media once spread rumors that Jordan wanted to pressure the Wizards management to trade Dayao. Although it did not become a reality in the end, it was enough to show that Dayao's life in the Wizards was not easy.

Fortunately, the basketball god is still strong.

Throughout the regular season, he averaged 29.7 points, 6.8 rebounds and 6.5 assists per game. Not only did he lead the Wizards into the playoffs with the fourth place in the Eastern Conference, but he also beat Kidd to second place with 25.6% of the votes. Tim Duncan ranked second in the regular season MVP nominations with 26.13%, and almost completed the feat of winning the MVP again after his second comeback...

The American media naturally praised the basketball god's performance, but in Lin Dong's eyes, history has obviously changed.

He may not be able to remember other people's injuries, but Lin Dong knows everything about the basketball god Jordan in the history of the world.

According to the historical trajectory, he should have suffered a recurrence of knee injury due to a collision with Thomas halfway through the regular season, and then missed 20 games. After that, his competitive state plummeted, and the Wizards finally missed the 01-02 season. It's the playoffs.

But now...

Sometimes when I see Jordan criticizing Dayao in the media, Lin Dong can't help but sigh. The God of Basketball really criticized the wrong person this time. If Dayao hadn't changed history, I'm afraid the God of Basketball would be gone now. Missing the playoffs, Dayao should be his lucky star.

Now the Wizards are also one of the popular teams in the playoffs, ranking second in the league in attendance, regardless of record and popularity.

And under Jordan's vicious tongue and high demands, how far can Dayao go in the NBA? Is he stronger than his previous life, or can he not reach the height of his previous life?

Lin Dong is actually quite optimistic about this.

He had several phone calls with Dayao and felt that his mentality was pretty good, and Dayao's words also impressed him deeply.

——I am standing here as the number one pick, and I have received a lot of attention. Behind me, I represent the Dragon Kingdom, and I represent the expectations of hundreds of millions of fans. To be kicked out by others amidst their expectations? The Dragon Kingdom cannot afford to lose this person, and I will never allow that to happen, even if it means death!

Dayao is only 21 years old now. The things this guy is carrying are too heavy. For the people of the Dragon Kingdom who come from 2028 and have absolute confidence, this is actually an emotion that is difficult to understand.

But Lin Dong could feel that Dayao was serious.

The Dragon Country players all grew up amid setbacks. They have gone through too many things to get to this point. Coupled with the pressure they carry, words like happy basketball have nothing to do with them.

So let’s not talk about skills, but the mentality and endurance are completely different from those American rookies who have gone through a smooth high school and college career and then enter the draft with full personality.

With such a mentality, if there is any newcomer in the world who can withstand Jordan's vicious tongue, Lin Dong thinks it is probably Dayao.

However, compared to the Wizards who have little contact with him for the time being, the team participating in the No. 1 lottery draw today is the highlight.

The SuperSonics achieved the league's last record as expected and will have a 25% chance of getting the No. pick, followed closely by the Phoenix Suns.

In addition, 14 teams including the Golden State Warriors, Grizzlies, Nuggets, Rockets, Bulls, and Cavaliers will participate in the competition for the No. pick today.

In the evening, the office at the SuperSonics Arena was filled with people early.

The host takes out 1 table tennis balls numbered from 14 to 14, puts them in a container, and randomly draws 14 balls from the 4 balls. Regardless of the order of numbers, a total of 1001 combinations can be produced, and 11-12 are removed. After the combination of 13-14-1000, there are exactly types left.

As the league's worst record, the Sonics have 250 combinations, with a 25% chance of getting the No. 199 pick, and postponed later. The second-to-last record has 19.9 combinations, and the chance is 14%. Among the 5 teams, the record The best one has only 0.5 combinations, with only a % chance.

You can see on the TV that SuperSonics boss Schultz has a very solemn expression.

It's going to be bad, but whether you get the No. 1 pick in the end still depends on luck.

Payton, Chandler, Sakuragi Hanamichi, Yuya and others all seemed a little nervous in front of the TV. Even Lin Dong, who had always been calm and calm, was staring at the screen closely.

The SuperSonics are undoubtedly the best choice for me at the moment. After all, I have been running in with the Sonics for a whole year in training and various intra-team games. I know enough about this team to cooperate with Payton. He is becoming more and more comfortable, and the team has already had a team-building idea with him as the absolute core, which can most effectively help him get through his rookie season in the NBA.

But if the No. 1 pick is obtained by someone else... Although Schultz will definitely spend a lot of money to get himself back, it will not only be a loss of money, but also some precious assets of the team, weakening his own team. Only fools can do this kind of thing about the team.

fortunately……

"9-14-3-8!" When the host read out the numbers on the table tennis balls, Schulz let out a long sigh of relief.

Everyone at the Sonics in front of the TV also cheered.

Payton laughed and stretched out his hand to Lin Dong: "Brother, we will be teammates from now on!"

Lin Dong smiled and said: "The open trial training hasn't even started yet."

Everyone was startled, and then Payton burst out laughing: "Don't worry, even if you do nothing during the open trial and sleep the whole time, you won't be a dick to anyone, and you will definitely be the No. 1 pick this year!"

(End of this chapter)