Chapter 554: 553. The Choice of the Pistons

"Ace, can you tell me in advance who our team is going to pick?"

"Yeah, Dinah really wants to know!"

"Didn't you say two days ago that you would have to watch the live broadcast to read out the surprises?"

"But now Dinah and Mom really want to know, uncle... tell Dinah, okay..."

"..."

Liu Manggang was about to tell Levia and Dinah, but felt that something was missing, something seemed wrong.

It suddenly occurred to me that there seemed to be one missing person who was very interested in the draft.

Liu Mang looked towards the living room, Alexia was messing with something.

"Senior Aida, don't you want to know who our team will pick?" Liu Mang shouted towards the living room.

"I'm not free, I'm preparing what to bring to China!"

"There is still one week left, why are you in such a hurry?" Liu Mang asked curiously.

"Of course I have to prepare early, Levia is so lazy, I have to choose double gifts, and I have to choose different ones."

"It's fine to just buy a few gifts. My parents don't pay attention to these things. We are just an ordinary family. In our country, it is similar to your middle-class families in the United States."

"It's different now! Ace, aren't you going to become a multi-millionaire soon? I checked, and you are now a billionaire in your China, of course it's different! Levia and I paid the money Those relatives and neighbors who prepare some gifts for you can’t lose face for you.”

"Listen to me, Senior Sister Aida, who did you learn this weird theory from?" Liu Mang asked with twitching corners of his mouth.

"Aren't all TV dramas in your country like this?" Alexia asked back.

Liu Mang knew that they should stop learning Chinese, and they have been exposed to so many cultures in China. Now the foreign girls are almost turning into local girls!

"Senior sister, don't watch those non-mainstream TV dramas in the countryside..." Liu Mang was speechless.

"non-mainstream?"

"Uh... just some feudal superstitions... Oh, forget it, as long as you are happy, I am very happy." Liu Mang felt that the foreign girl might become a real local girl soon!

Liu Mang has already returned to Atlanta, he has booked a flight ticket to Shanghai on July 7th, and then returns to his home in Jiaxing.

For Jiaxing, Liu Mang's impression is only rice dumplings...

In the part Liu Mang got, his mother opened a breakfast restaurant in the ancient town of Xitang in Jiaxing, his father was an electric worker, and his family was fairly well off. I have paid a lot to create a good learning environment for Liu Mang. Liu Mang went to the neighboring Shanghai to study from the beginning of junior high school, and then he was also in Shanghai for high school. It was okay in junior high school. He went back once a month. When I went back, I was still making up lessons in the summer. I went to Atlanta to study at the age of 17, and the impression of home in my memory was relatively vague.

Liu Mang was terrified of this matter at first, but now that he was ready to go back, his heart became very stable.

It's just that Liu Mang doesn't know whether his parents will be surprised or frightened when he brings two American girls and a little loli home...

Today is June 29, 2003, and the draft, which was postponed for two days, was held at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Liu Mang and Dinah are all waiting for the start of the draft.

After a lot of fuss, I finally decided to keep it in suspense, and wait until the draft starts to see who will be chosen!

For the team to choose the candidate he suggested, Liu Mang felt that there was no problem, because the picks had been improved a lot.

It's just that Liu Mang was very curious about who the other teams would choose.

Although Liu Mang knew who a team was going to pick after he started to work in the management team, if it was a poorly acquired draft pick, it was basically planned a year or even two years ago, unless it was Yao Ming and James must be selected, otherwise it is difficult for a team to choose who to choose by other teams, unless the one you want to choose happens to be robbed by others, or the candidate who was originally regarded as the No. 1 pick is not selected, It may lead to a series of upset drafts, just like the 2013 draft when the Cavaliers selected Anthony Bennett, and then a series of drafts became very weird, right? become very strange.

But Liu Mang is still looking forward to something different from what he knows. Anyway, those few lottery teams are playing. Liu Mang can enjoy watching what kind of tricks they make.

...

The draft starts at 6:00 p.m., Liu Mang and the others are waiting in front of the TV at 5:00 p.m. They say it will start at 6:00 p.m., but in fact, something else is already playing after 4:00 p.m.

Interviews with rookies, interviews with the owners of the teams, interviews with the coaching staff, and interviews with family members of some popular rookies, such as LeBron James' mother, who is already wearing a 1st T-shirt and yelling at the camera: "I said it, one day my son will be a millionaire! I said it!"

Finally at six o'clock, after an advertisement was played on the TV screen, David Stern appeared on the screen.

"Ladies and gentlemen..." David Stern began the same opening speech every year, "...First, we look forward to the selection of the first overall team, the Cleveland Cavaliers."

After David Stern finished speaking, he left the center of the stage, and the big screen behind the center of the stage began to play the highlights of the top picks, while the TV screen directly switched to and.

The Cavaliers have three minutes to think about it, but what else is there to think about with the No. 1 pick? The envelope that was prepared when I came here this afternoon was immediately submitted to the officials.

The highlights were played for more than a minute, that is, each of the popular rookies had a wonderful scene, and then switched to the top three favorites, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, and Darko Milicic.

James said this to his mother with a smile. He was not as excited as his mother, but the excitement in his eyes was indispensable, and he was finally going to make it through.

Anthony is sullen but has a domineering appearance, a standard bad boy, different from his shyness in front of Liu Mang, wearing a suit actually has the feeling of being a gangster, which has attracted the attention of many female fans.

Milicic, the standard boy, is different from the big fat guy in the Timberwolves era. Now he is a handsome guy with a wide body but still thin, and he doesn't have the rough feeling of Eastern European men. Instead... a little girl, because he is alone When he came to the United States, there was only an agent next to him. When the camera came to him, he was a little at a loss, which showed his ability to bear it.

At the end of three minutes, David Stern came to center stage again with an envelope.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the Cleveland Cavaliers' No. 1 pick is..." David Stern draws the end, "LeBron James from St. Mary's High..."

After David Stern finished speaking, the camera showed James with a very calm smile on his face. James kissed his mother on the cheek, didn't care about the tears on his mother's face, and hugged his mother and friends. Then came on stage and shook hands with David Stern.

Then David Stern left the stage immediately, not to mention the preparation of the next team. The next three minutes were a brief interview with James and broadcasting James' high school and various commercial games he participated in after the high school league. highlights.

There is no suspense about the ownership of the No. 1 pick. Even if Wade was once popular, Bosh and Milicic were once popular, but Anthony, who has always been popular, has no way to threaten James' No. 1 status, let alone others.

Liu Mang was not surprised to see James become the No. 1 pick. This is not to say that they can't be shaken by a wave of Wade, or a wave of Bosh or Milicic from a certain oily recruiter on the south coast.

The second pick, this pick is the most suspenseful, and it is the most likely to trigger a chain reaction, leading to a situation where the draft pattern of this year's high pick area is completely different from the previous draft predictions.

The main reason is that the Pistons are already considered a strong team, a team with more than 50 wins, and shouldn't have a second pick in the draft year. Strange thing, 1983 was a small draft year, and fewer than one rookie in that class became an All-Star.

In the 2003 draft, there were as many as 10 players who were considered to be the core talents of the team. The Pistons have a very good lineup, with core players and role players. It is difficult to predict who they will choose.

Of course, theoretically speaking, in the draft, the top pick is selected, and the second favorite, such as Anthony, is the best choice, but this kind of thing is uncertain.

In the eyes of many lottery team fans, the Pistons are a demon, manipulating the future of other lottery teams except the Cavaliers.

...

In the room of the Pistons, four pieces of letter paper were placed in front of the head coach Larry Brown and the owner Bill Davidson, who had just announced the joining of the Pistons. They were letter papers with the names of Anthony, Wade, Bosh, and Milicic respectively. .

When Larry Brown first arrived at the Pistons, he originally wanted to choose a high center to serve as a backup for Ben Wallace. Larry Brown still wanted to use a high center, so Milicic was the original plan .

The Yugoslavs, center forward, big and tall, give people the impression of defending the gate and having superb skills.

They have already planned the candidates for the power forward. Because Clifford Robinson is too old, when the Pistons knew that the Warriors used the middle class to poach Clifford Robinson for two years, the Pistons did not keep Clifford. De Robinson, Larry Brown's target is Rasheed Wallace, so the Pistons management made an inquiry.

Larry Brown knows Rasheed Wallace too well, because the two are alumni and have a good relationship. He knows that Rasheed Wallace is a very gentle person in private, and it is completely different on and off the field. People also donate money to charity together.

But the Blazers need a star perimeter, otherwise they will need the Pistons' No. 2 pick this year. Of course, Larry Brown is fine. Although they want a big center backup, they can get Rasheed Wallace. What kind of backup do they need? , but Pistons owner Bill Davidson firmly disagrees with this matter.

Just like Ainge, Bill Davidson doesn't want to pay too much for Rasheed Wallace at all, and he is not even willing to make an offer to trade Rasheed Wallace if Larry Brown has not strongly recommended Rasheed Wallace. - the Wallace thing.

This is the No. 2 pick in 2003! It is possible to select the next Jordan's pick!

Originally, Rasheed Wallace could not be traded directly, and Larry Brown was not in a hurry, because he felt that Rasheed Wallace could not be sold by the Blazers with such a big mouth, so he waited until the Blazers couldn't bear it. Just rob it when it's about to be sold, who knows that the Eagles stepped in and snatched Rasheed Wallace away!

Then the Pistons inquired about the Eagles, and the Eagles directly said that Rasheed Wallace was not for sale.

Now the Pistons urgently need a power forward, otherwise they can only use the Turkish insider Okur in 2002 as a power forward. Larry Brown is worried when he looks at his moving speed and single defense ability.

But now there are too many choices in front of the Pistons. They are still hesitating who to choose. Although they really want a power forward, Wade and Anthony are too tempting.

Alliance officials have come to urge.

Bill Davidson made up his mind, picked up a piece of letter paper, looked at it, put it in an envelope, and handed it to league officials. .

"..." Larry Brown didn't say a word, seeing the letter paper being picked up, it was acquiescence.

...

David Stern came to the center of the stage again. At this moment, the real suspense came. How will the Pistons "manipulate" this draft?

Watching David Stern open the envelope, the people in the Nuggets room were worried, and the oily heads in the Heat room were worried. Only the Raptors management with the fourth overall pick was completely fearless. The third pick goes first, and they take the rest.

After David Stern opened the letter, he didn't delay like a director whose hairline made a certain No. 23 player feel like he had found a loved one, but said directly: "Ladies and gentlemen, the Detroit Pistons are in The second pick went to Chris Bosh from Georgia State!"

The Nuggets management breathed a sigh of relief, and quickly wrote Anthony's name. As soon as the league officials arrived at their place, they couldn't wait to stuff it out.

Bosh is so excited, he has been promoted from the fourth or fifth pick to the second pick, and his salary has increased a lot! A big celebratory hug with friends.

Immediately after the third pick, David Stern said: "Ladies and gentlemen, the Denver Nuggets have selected Carmelo Anthony from Syracuse University in New York at the third pick!"

In addition to the Nuggets fans, New York fans cheered at the scene. Anthony is a native New Yorker. He grew up in New York and studied in New York. That's why he wants to play in New York so much in the future. And he is in New York. His popularity is much higher than that of Marbury, the so-called son of New York in the future. The local fans brought by the NCAA are very fanatical and loyal.

On the Heat side, although the oil head saw that Wade was not selected in the top three picks, he was still uneasy. Although the Raptors theoretically needed more insiders, Carter and the Raptors management disagreed. The decline in popularity has been serious, and it is not impossible for the Raptors to change their outside core.

Seeing that the top three picks were finished and David Stern stepped onto the stage again, Pat Riley's heart was already hanging.

It's just one step away!

David Stern opened the letter: "Ladies and gentlemen, the Toronto Raptors have taken Darko Milicic from Serbia with the fourth pick!"

Pat Riley almost burst into tears. He could have easily accepted Wade, but he was disturbed by others, causing him to spend more than half a month trying his best to promote Bosh and Milicic. Finally, see When the Raptors, who needed frontcourt players, accepted Milicic, Pat Riley finally accepted Wade!

The next update will be updated before 12:00 noon tomorrow at the latest~