The strongest unicorn in basketball

Chapter 225 This is Business
After the finals, the Thunder's championship parade has not yet cleared up, and the draft is about to begin.

There is no big difference from the draft in the original time and space. The No. [-] pick is still "Big Eyebrow Brother" Anthony Davis, and it was won by the New Orleans Hornets.

There is no big difference between other high-ranked rookies, mainly the Thunder's pick, which became the No. 30 pick because it is the league's No. [-] pick.

In the end, Presti used this pick to select Kyle Contemporary Bird Golden Bomber Change All League Singler, that's right, that Singler who will always hurt in the hearts of Thunder fans!
It is the Singler who has not received his salary in the Thunder until 2023!

In the original time and space, the Thunder selected Perry Jones this season, known as Durant Jr. His talent could not have been reduced to the end of the first round, but it was a pity that he suffered a serious injury.

However, due to the lower pick, Perry Jones was cut off by the Bulls.

That's right, another bull!
After the draft, followed by a long offseason, everything became turbulent as free agency reopened.

Li Pu originally thought that the Thunder, which had already won the championship, would not experience any major turmoil until he got a call that day.

"Prince, I'm going to be traded!"

Li Pu in the car, recalling what Harden said to himself on the phone with a crying voice, he was so angry that he slammed the steering wheel hard, and then stepped on the accelerator even harder!
Coming to the arena, Li Pu went straight to the office of the general manager Presti. He was about to knock on the door, but he heard the sound of a fierce argument coming from inside the room.

"Why? Why trade James?"

It's Westbrook's voice!

He actually came earlier than himself?

"Calm down, Russell!" Then came Presti's voice.

Hearing the conversation between the two, Li Pu suddenly decided not to go in, but to listen to what Presti had to say.

"Do you know what the salary cap and luxury tax are for this year? This year's salary cap is $5804.4 million, and the trigger line for the luxury tax is $7030.7 million. Do you know how much our Thunder salary is now? It's already exceeded 5500 million!"

"Isn't there still room for 1500 million?"

"What about Jeff? What about the other players? More importantly, the crisis is not in this season, but in the next season!

The contracts of Serge and James are about to expire, and the combined contracts of the two will be 3000 million. In the next year, there will also be Lee, who has also reached the Ross clause. The contract must start at least 1600 million. I can't Leave you all behind! "

The so-called Rose Clause means that after a player has executed his rookie contract, he can get a salary equal to 30% of the team's salary cap (a 5% increase from the old contract) when signing the second contract of his career. Maximum salary contract.

Of course, there are extremely strict thresholds here: being an MVP in the first four years of a rookie contract, or being selected to the starting lineup in the All-Star Game twice, or being selected to the All-NBA Team twice.

Speaking of which, the Thunder's luck is really bad. Who would have thought that the first person to enjoy Rose's terms was not Rose, but Durant?

When Durant enjoyed the Rose Clause, the Thunder even reached the threshold of this clause, even Westbrook and Li Pu, the conscience of heaven and earth, Li Pu is a second-year rookie!
If these three people are signed, the salary of the three people alone can reach 90% of the salary cap. How can I sign Ibaka and Harden?

"I don't want Ross terms!"

"what?"

"I said, I don't want the Rose clause, so can I sign James?"

When he said this, Westbrook didn't hesitate at all. Even Li Pu, who was eavesdropping outside, couldn't help admiring Li Pu.

In NBA history, the only player who gave up the Rose clause is Westbrook.

"If you want to give up the Rose clause, I will thank you for the team, but the money is still not enough!"

However, Presti's next words still ruthlessly destroyed Westbrook's heart.

"I..." Westbrook didn't know what to say for a while.

"Okay, you go back first, the NBA is like this, personnel changes are very common!"

In the end, Westbrook walked out of the office in a daze.

However, just as he closed the door, he was dragged into the corner by Li Pu.

"What are you doing? Shock me!"

Seeing the appearance of the person clearly, Westbrook put down his hand that was about to hit him.

"I just didn't expect that you would come earlier than me!"

"Did you hear that?"

Westbrook suddenly realized that it seemed that Li Pu had been outside the office for a long time.

"Yes, I heard it all!"

"What do you think? Do you also want to give up the Ross clause like me?"

Westbrook grabbed Li Pu's arm and was very excited. He thought Li Pu had the same idea as himself.

Li Pu pulled Westbrook's hand, and said to him in a very serious tone: "Russell, don't you understand? This is just a business!"

"What do you mean?"

"At first, I also thought that maybe I could sign James by giving up the Rose clause, but the team has made a lot of money in the past two years, especially this time we won the championship. I am afraid that the income will be more? Compared with In other words, can the team really afford such a small luxury tax?"

"Are you angry with the team?" Westbrook understood now, and he quickly persuaded Li Pu: "Prince, don't think so, we are not only for the team, but also for the fans. , and the community, and the…”

"Stop talking, Russell! I still say the same thing. In their eyes, we are just commodities and have no right to speak! So, don't give up the Ross clause and get the money you deserve!" Li Pu told Westbrook warned.

"You're breaking up the team!" Westbrook said angrily.

"No, it wasn't me who broke up the team, but Clay. Believe me, James is just the beginning!" Li Pu said firmly.

Just as Westbrook was arguing with Li Pu, Thunder general manager Presti was on the phone in the manager's office.

"Clay, this is a championship team! Is it really going to be broken up like this?"

"Harden is just a substitute, how much impact will it have on the team? I still say that, you can't pay the luxury tax!" Bennett's almost warning voice came from the phone.

"What about next year? What about the year after?"

"Sam, I believe in your ability. Since you can help the team win the championship, you will definitely be able to do so in the future, but you also know that my funds are limited and I cannot provide more support to the team!"

Although Bennett didn't say it clearly, the meaning couldn't be clearer, that is, even if the team can't win the championship, I will never pay the luxury tax.

"……I understand!"

After a long silence, Presti replied.

A day later, a news that shocked the league was announced: the Houston Rockets sent Kevin Martin, Jeremy Lamb and the 2013 first-round pick to the Thunder for James Harden and Cole Aldridge , DeQuinn Cook and Lazar Hayward.

　Harden was actually traded 3 days before the start of the new season. For the needs of the plot, it was moved a few months in advance. Please ignore this bug!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)