Eight Hundred and Forty-Seven. Twelve People Activated the List, All Ready!

Time passed quickly, and it was June 26th. The NBA draft was held tonight. Topics always change quickly. At this time, the draft became the most popular thing.

In a villa area in Memphis, someone rented a villa and just moved the luggage in.

Sun Ce helped Nash carry the last suitcase into the living room and asked, "Steve, you are too fast. You moved it here?"

"The lockout is about to start. I need to communicate with the coaching staff quickly to understand how they use me, what I need to take on in the team, what I need to give up, and I need to get familiar with my new teammates. Go out and play in the summer." Nash responded.

Sun Ce took a look around, and the chatty sister went to the yard and joked, "Go out and play? Then you can find Paul, Zach, and Tony. The three of them like to go out and hang out the most. But, Steve, being single is different. I remember you were not like this before."

"Oh, I understand now. Men should not give up the whole forest for a tree." Nash did not mind Sun Ce's ridicule.

There is another reason why Nash left the Suns. Although he loves the Suns very much, it is already his sad place.

"Why didn't your children move here together?"

"They will go to school in Los Angeles next year, and my parents will move there to take care of them."

"Then you can completely let yourself go?"

"Let yourself go? That's a cool way to say it!"

"Let me introduce you to someone, Charles Barkley, he has a lot of Cuban models' phone numbers, ask Jordan for them..."

"I heard that Jordan just found a Cuban model girlfriend?"

"Yes, Cuba seems to be rich in cigars and models..."

...

After helping Nash receive the luggage delivered by logistics, Sun Ce sent Zu Ge, who wanted to visit the assist king's new home, back to his home, and came to a private club with Nash.

Nash came, and Sun Ce found Randolph and held a party today.

Conley, Darrell Arthur and Gay, who was still wearing a pressure suit, all came to participate. Except for Yi Jianlian and Haddadi, all the original Grizzlies players came, plus Nash and another new teammate Gary Neal who reported to Memphis from San Antonio two days ago.

In the deal with the Spurs, in addition to a first-round pick, there were two players. Alonzo Gee was cut when he arrived at the Grizzlies, and they had to choose forwards and guards. There was no need to keep Alonzo Gee, but Neal was a good point guard. He averaged 1.6 three-pointers per game in the season that just ended. This is another reason why fans and the media feel that the Grizzlies' strength has increased instead of decreased compared to the season that just ended. Gay was originally written off, and one more player would be an improvement.

It's just that the improvement brought by the return of a scorer averaging 20+ per game like Gay is far behind Gary Neal.

After all, even if Paul George is talented, it will take at least two years to become a player with an average of 20+ points per game. Moreover, it is unlikely that anyone except Sun Ce and Randolph can average 20 points per game in the Grizzlies.

Neil was retained by the Grizzlies. The management did not know how the pitcher that Sun Ce wanted would perform after selecting it. To be on the safe side, Neil was not traded or cut again. Anyway, there are still two years of partially guaranteed contracts.

Putting aside the qualitative improvement of the team's ceiling that Gay's return may bring, it seems that Sun Ce feels that turning Conley into Nash will make the team stronger than last year's playoffs.

However, the team lost three teammates at once, and according to rumors, Morrow also seems to have a tendency to leave the team, and Haddadi and Sam Young may not be able to stay. In other words, at the end of this season, up to six teammates may leave, and Sun Ce still feels very sad.

But after playing in the NBA for two seasons, Sun Ce has accepted the current situation except for the complicated emotions about the team's damn human touch.

Compared to Sun Ce, others were obviously more accepting of such things. After the party started, there was no sentimentality. Gay and Conley went to strong teams, so there was no need to be sad. They all worked in the NBA and just changed departments to become teammates. They had long been accustomed to such things.

After three rounds of drinking, Sun Ce had a private chat with Conley and Gay, and confirmed that both of them wanted to leave the team on their own initiative.

Sun Ce learned from the management that when the Mavericks showed their desire for Conley, Conley showed a very positive desire to sign first and then trade. It can be said that the Mavericks and Conley are like turtles looking at green beans, and they have a good impression of each other.

Conley is willing to accept the arrangement of renewing his contract and playing as a substitute. He is ready. He is a person who is willing to accept the team's arrangement if the team's strength can be improved.

But being willing to accept the arrangement does not mean that he will not fight for a better opportunity. It's just that in the Grizzlies, he knows that he can't compete with Sun Ce for a position anyway. When there is a next home that is more suitable for him and is also a strong team or even stronger, he will certainly want to use his status as a restricted free agent to promote the completion of the transaction.

And this deal is definitely a win for the current Grizzlies.

As for Conley, he may become stronger after improving in the future, but no matter how much Conley improves, even in his peak period, in Sun Ce's opinion, he is not as strong as Nash in the season that just ended. The two are not players of the same level.

And Sun Ce remembered that in the original time and space, Nash was the assist king in the 11-12 season... The assist king played as his substitute and was his teacher. Sun Ce was quite excited when he thought about it.

...

In the conversation with Gay, Sun Ce learned that Gay really wanted to go to the Spurs, and Sun Ce also felt that the Spurs were suitable for Gay.

As the saying goes, truth comes out after drinking.

Sun Ce felt that Gay's original intention was to give way to Paul George, and felt that changing teams might not affect the growth of himself and Paul George. After all, Gay is not yet 25 years old and is still in the progress period.

From an offensive perspective, Paul George's offensive talent is lower than Gay. It can be foreseen that in the new season, even if given the same playing time, the second-year Paul George will be much worse than the second-year Gay in offense. The second-year Gay... averaged 20 points per game! Even if Paul George is given unlimited firing rights, he can't play an average of 20+ points per game next season.

The only advantage of Paul George over Gay on offense is that he is more stable in spot shooting. Gay is not as good as Paul George in shooting after receiving the ball, but Gay is better in singles with the ball. In general, Paul George is far behind Gay in offensive talent.

The main potential on the defensive end is shown. Paul George is quite mature on the defensive end. What is better than Gay is that he dares to make physical contact on the defensive end without considering the intimacy of the players. Relatively speaking, George, who is more stable in shooting after receiving the ball outside and is more willing to use his body on defense and has top defensive talent, is more suitable for the current Grizzlies in terms of cooperation.

This makes Gay, who has been reimbursed for a season, feel that he has no need to compete with Paul George for a position.

It delays the development of the two too much. One person plays for 30 minutes, and the progress is definitely faster than the two people playing 24 minutes each. The progress period is only a few years, and it is really wasted if it is wasted.

Playing time is very important, whether they can fit together is secondary. Two swingman superstars who have grown to their peak in two different teams may work well together, but if two talented swingman are in the same team, it can be basically concluded that neither of them can grow to the peak level they should have.

Just like James and Wade, if they are selected by the same team, there is no talk of so-called brotherly basketball.

There are only a few tactical roles, and there are always key training and non-key training. Even if they are trained at the same time, there are only so many playing time.

This is why Sun Ce said from the beginning that he was unwilling to accompany the so-called potential stocks to grow. Sun Ce understands Gay's ideas, but if he comes, he doesn't have Gay's idea of ​​giving up power. He is unwilling to give the ball to a first- or second-year player. Why? He wants to play more and improve more.

And from the conversation, Sun Ce felt that Gay's ambition was not really that big. He could go with the flow, but he also wanted to play under a coach he liked more, and he also wanted to be more valued, but he was just unwilling to fight for it. When the team wanted to trade him, and the team he wanted to go to actively proposed a trade, Gay was no longer silent.

And the Grizzlies management was also worried about how to deal with the "two McGradys". McGrady himself played for the Raptors for three years and didn't play well, and there was only McGrady. Now Gay and Paul George are fighting each other. If one of them fails, not to mention the conflicts within the team, it is really possible that both of them will be delayed.

I heard that the Spurs took the initiative to propose the deal, and deliberately spread the rumor to make Gay want to go to the Spurs. Sun Ce felt that Popovich, the old monster, was really amazing. Although Gay was not as good as Leonard in his prime, he was definitely better on the offensive end than Leonard, who had not yet developed his independent offensive ability in the first few years of his career. Leonard only scored 20 points in his fifth year of his career, while Gay averaged 20+ in his second year. Moreover, Gay was only 25 years old and had potential to be tapped under Popovich. After all, Gay was seen as a representative of wasted talent.

As Popovich said, basketball is not just a business, at least not in the Grizzlies. The Spurs sent three first-round picks, and the Grizzlies went with the flow to satisfy Gay's idea and promote Paul George, who was more suitable for Sun Ce.

Sun Ce had purely put himself in the position of a spiritual shareholder before, without considering the objective reasons, and just thinking about who would lose in the trade, and only thinking about value and helping the enemy.

Moreover, the transaction itself is not a loss. What is the loss of three first-round picks? In terms of transaction value, the loss is at most that the three first-round picks will not be too high. The real loss is the fact that they aided the enemy.

But from the perspective of former teammates, friends, and current opponents, after the incident, Sun Ce felt very happy and excited about Conley and Gay's change of teams. If these two teammates go to weak teams, it will be meaningless to win in the future.

And from the perspective of teammates and friends, he has always felt that the trade of Gay and Conley is very good, especially when thinking about these two playing in strong teams and playing against them, Sun Ce has an inexplicable excitement.

…

As for Morrow, who is rumored to leave because of the lack of negotiation with the team… Sun Ce has not talked to Morrow yet, but Morrow came to Sun Ce first.

"Noah, I can't continue to play with you. I've talked to the team about the salary..."

"I understand. Money is important."

"Not only that, the Celtics don't plan to renew Ray Allen's contract and plan to replace him with me."

"Watt?" This surprised Sun Ce. He didn't expect this guy to hook up with the Celtics! After reacting, Sun Ce said, "It doesn't matter. You have to be careful to be teammates with Garnett. Don't beat him in shooting training in the team."

"Ah? Why?"

"If he can't beat his teammates in shooting, he will hit them. But don't be afraid of him. If he is fierce, you just need to be fiercer than him. If he wants to hit someone, you should fight back. He can't beat you."

"Uh... Noah, are you really giving me advice? Why do I feel like you want me to destroy the Celtics?"

"Yeah, you guessed it!"

"..."

...

...

After the lunch, Sun Ce returned home, took a shower, rested for an afternoon, and got up to watch the draft.

The past is over. Sun Ce calculated the current team list.

It is not known whether Haddadi will renew his contract. Yi Jianlian has already negotiated the renewal and is waiting for the official announcement after the team's operation is completed. As for Battier, Sun Ce knew at noon that he would renew his contract.

This is different from what Sun Ce remembered about Battier going to the Heat for a jump ball. The team that selected him has a chance to win the championship, so Battier naturally chose to stay. There was still doubt whether Sun Ce would force his departure. When Sun Ce decided to stay, Battier also stayed.

Gasol will definitely have to renew his contract, and it will have to wait until Sun Ce completes the contract renewal. Sun Ce remembered that the negotiation was settled in the middle of the season. Gasol is on a three-year rookie contract, and he has the bird rights, so he doesn't have to worry.

Sun Ce took out his little notebook and counted. In addition to him, the team currently has Nash and Vazquez as point guards.

Shooting guards are Tony Allen and Neil.

Small forwards are Paul George and Battier.

Power forwards are Randolph and Yi Jianlian.

Centers are Gasol and Jordan.

The team currently has 11 players. Sun Ce counted the draft picks. There are two first-round picks and one second-round pick this year. Klay Thompson will definitely be selected, so there will be 12 people.

Sun Ce doesn't need to worry about the team's affairs now. The team's talent has long been overflowing, and the problem of explosive talent in the interior will be highlighted in another year.

Suggest to select Leonard, Thompson, and Jimmy Butler together? Then he forced the team to keep Gay on the grounds that Neil failed the physical examination. He, Leonard, Jimmy Butler, Paul George, and Gay stared at a ball in a daze? And Leonard and Jimmy Butler have no skills on the offensive end. Paul George is okay. He is happy to play 3D. The other two...

Are they going to let Jimmy Butler and Leonard, who have no skills, guard the water dispenser? Without playing time, how can they improve? Milicic can destroy it, let alone others.

He, Sun Ce, can't do anything to ruin someone's future. They don't hinder him from making money. As for these two people, if they develop their talents in other teams and pose a threat to his championship...then they can fight with strength! Why do you have to ruin someone's future?

The team's structure is so good now, and there is no lack of talent. The lockout is coming soon, so just live your own life.

...

After dinner, Sun Ce and Zu Ge gathered in front of the TV to watch the draft.

Robert Pera had originally invited him to the draft, but he didn't go. The fans' mentality was to see how good the draft was, and the team had already confirmed that they would pick the person they wanted.

"Brother, is that Klay Thompson really that good?" Zu Ge had long known who the Grizzlies were going to pick, but Sun Ce finally told her after much persuasion.

"He's a great shooter."

"Better than Morrow?"

"Maybe not that good at the beginning, and it takes time to cooperate, but I think he'll be as good as Morrow soon."

"Oh...who will the other two picks be?"

"I don't know."

"Didn't you ask?"

"It's useless to pick him back. After Thompson was picked back, our 12-man activation list is almost full. I want to see who our team will pick to guard the water dispenser."

"Oh..."

Zu Ge didn't care about that, as long as Sun Ce was happy.

The two chatted while watching the one-hour "prologue" before the draft. The first hour was basically interviews with the families and friends of the hot rookies, and then some highlights of the hot rookies were played, and the commentators analyzed their potential, etc. At 8 o'clock in the evening, the draft began.

The Hornets picked Irving without suspense.

The Timberwolves continued to gamble on talent and drafted Derrick Williams with the second pick.

The Jazz selected Kanter at the third pick.

The top three picks were not unexpected. The Jazz wanted an inside player, and the Timberwolves would definitely bet on one of Derrick Williams, Biyombo, and Tristan Thompson. The picks of these three were the most difficult to judge. Some people even thought that one of them would fall from the green room to the second round like Jordan.

The Raptors took the white center Valanciunas at the fourth pick, the Wizards selected the Czech forward Jan Vesely at the fifth pick, and the Kings selected Biyombo at the sixth pick.

Fans watching the live broadcast online started to complain again. It was these two teams that dared to choose Derrick Williams and Biyombo. They were expecting whether the Grizzlies would choose Biyombo.

Sun Ce was also relieved. He really didn't dare to bet on his management's enthusiasm for the center with African + no skills + good physical fitness.

As expected, the Grizzlies took Klay Thompson at the seventh pick!

Sun Ce watched the 12 activations gather together, relaxed and rested his head on the thigh of the chatterbox sister, and asked the little sister to help pinch his forehead. When it came to the draft, he was still very nervous.

They were worried that a certain team would trade for Klay Thompson in order to prevent risks, and they were also worried about their own team's love for Biyombo...

I heard that during the tryout, the team management really liked Biyombo.

Just as Sun Ce was enjoying a massage on the big white legs, the Warriors draft office in Madison Square Garden, New York, exploded!