Basketball's No. 1 Anti-Fan

Chapter 24 2009 NBA Draft
On June 6, the Lakers defeated the Magic on the road, eliminating their opponents with a score of 14-4 and winning the NBA championship again after 1 years.

This was also the first championship Kobe won with the team after O'Neal left, and Kobe also won the first FMVP trophy in his career.

On June 6, Hansen appeared at Madison Square Garden with other rookies to participate in the 25 NBA Draft.

It is worth mentioning that not all rookies will be present at the event.

This has nothing to do with the draft situation, but with the draft rules.

Contrary to what many people imagine, there are actually not that many players who register to participate in the NBA draft every year.

For example, this year, only 103 people signed up, including those from overseas, and then 55 people withdrew before the withdrawal day, leaving only 48 people left.

Will the NBA not have enough players?
The answer is of course no.

Because of the rules, there is an age threshold of 22 for NBA rookies. Those under 22 need to register to participate, but when they reach 22 years old, they will automatically participate.

These 48 people refer to the number of people who registered for the draft, and more of them voluntarily entered the draft when they reached the age of 22. This is why this year will be a small year for the draft.

The draft is about potential.

As far as Han Sen knew, Wang Zhelin was selected by the NBA in his sleep, which was actually based on this rule.

Theoretically, let alone Wang Zhelin, any ordinary person has the possibility of being selected after the age of 22.

Most of these players who automatically qualify for the draft will not come to the scene, except for a small number of them who have participated in tryouts.

The main stage of the draft conference is set up in the stadium, with a super-large electronic screen as the background, plus three small mobile screens, and a podium in the center.

Below the main stage, there is an enclosed area with more than a dozen round tables. On the tables are some snacks and fruits. From a distance, it looks like a place for banquets in China. It is the legendary little green house.

Members of the green room are invited by the NBA officials, and the invitees are players with lottery prospects. These players can bring their relatives and friends to participate.

Han Sen naturally did not receive such treatment. Like the other rookies who were not invited, he sat on one side of the stands.

But he was not alone. Although Thomas was in the green house with others, his parents were also there.

Time passed quickly as we asked about each other's health and talked about family matters.

When the rookie clip was finished, there was a huge booing at the scene.

Amid boos, league commissioner David Stern came out from backstage and began his opening remarks with a smile, thus officially opening the curtain for the 2009 NBA Draft.

There are 60 picks in the first and second rounds. The first round is announced by Stern, and the second round is announced by his assistant Mark Tatum. Each draft consideration time is 5 minutes.

These are all visible to the fans. What the fans cannot see is that on the second floor of the arena, in the offices arranged by the league for the managers of each team, the war without the smoke of gunpowder has entered a white-hot stage.

Every year's draft is accompanied by a lot of trades, and all kinds of exciting stories will happen at this stage.

For example, the Lakers' trade of Divac for Kobe has always been talked about by fans.

However, it is worth mentioning that all transactions in the NBA have a process of submitting an application to the league office.

Therefore, all these transactions have a lag. For example, a team selects a player, but has actually traded him away long ago. The reason for selecting him is just the instruction of the trading partner.

For example, although Kobe was selected by the Hornets, it was actually the Lakers who selected him.

Of course, these transactions are usually reported by well-known media people, so the outside world can also know about the transactions in advance.

The Clippers picked Griffin with the first pick;

The Grizzlies took Thabeet with the second pick;

The Thunder selected Harden with the third pick;

……

After the draft began, Hansen focused all his attention on the court.

He discovered that most things in this parallel world were the same as the "history" of his world.

The Timberwolves had the fifth and sixth picks, but they didn't choose Curry, which made him a little anxious.

He felt that if he were to travel through time and space and become the general manager, he would also be able to achieve something.

Curry was eventually picked by the Warriors with the 7th pick, which also drew huge exclamations from the audience.

You should know that the Warriors were not on Curry's tryout team, and his draft prediction has always been the Knicks.

But this is just a draft, always full of variables.

In order to deal with these variables, every team needs a backup plan. Sometimes the backup plan even fails, and many unexpected options will emerge.

Just then, Thomas came to Hansen.

"Nervous?" Thomas asked after he sat down. Hansen nodded.

Although I knew there was a good chance that I would be selected, it would be a lie to say I wasn't nervous.

There is a lot of uncertainty about his draft position right now, and no one knows when he will be called up.

"Don't worry, the first round won't be a problem." Thomas comforted with a smile.

Han Sen nodded, turned his head to look at the main stage, and rubbed his hands subconsciously.

Entering the NBA is the dream of every basketball fan, and it is also his dream in his previous life.

No matter which pick he gets, tonight will be a dream come true.

"I just got some very interesting news."

"Is it related to me?" Han Sen turned back. He knew that Thomas must have suddenly run out of the little green house not just to comfort him.

"It's also related to the Bobcats." Thomas nodded.

"Larry Brown wanted to select you in the first round, and he successfully convinced Bickerstaff, but..." Thomas paused.
"This plan was vetoed by Jordan."

"That sounds like fake news." Han Sen shook his head.

As optimistic as he is, he also knows that his draft stock is unlikely to jump from the end of the first round to the lottery.

"Bickerstaff proposed trading down the draft pick, and their target is the No. 22 pick in the hands of the Trail Blazers."

Thomas continued talking, and Hansen didn't say anything at this time because it sounded possible.

The Trail Blazers are now in the youth era led by Brandon Roy. The team is full of high-quality young people. Jerryd Bayless, the 11th pick they selected last year, can't even get 20 minutes of playing time per game.

In this case, and since it is a weak draft year, the Trail Blazers can either choose an overseas rookie to train or trade the draft pick.

As for the 22nd pick, it is possible that he could be selected here, which is not far from the highest committed pick he received, the Thunder's 25th pick.

"But Michael vetoed it because he wanted Gerard Henderson."

After listening to Thomas, Han Sen's expression became a little strange.

Hansen had some understanding of Jordan during the tryout with the Bobcats.

Jordan gave him a lot of black fans, but after he was accidentally injured, he specifically asked Bickerstaff to comfort him, which shows that Jordan is the kind of person who is narrow-minded in small things but sensible in big things.

So it is impossible that "Jordan did not allow the Bobcats to select him because his two ribs were broken by his elbow."

I can only say that Boss Joe’s vision for draft picks is indeed stable.

"This is good news," Han Sen said.

"Yes, your draft stock is on the rise." Thomas nodded as well. This was the real reason why he came to see Hansen.

Although each team keeps the content of the tryout confidential, there is no impenetrable wall in this world.

After talking with Hansen, Thomas returned to the small green house.

Soon, as Thomas had said before, the Bobcats selected Henderson with their 12th pick.

The Pacers then selected Tyler Hansbrough with the 13th pick.

Hansbrough stood up and hugged his family, friends and his agent, Thomas.

Thomas didn't sign any other quality rookies this year, but he was able to help fourth-year player Hansbrough get into the lottery, which is also a reflection of his strong connections.

The lottery draft has also come to an end.

There are still a few unlucky guys left in the green room, and I don’t know if anyone will end up sitting in the second round like DeAndre Jordan did last year.

Han Sen felt a little tired.

Always in a state of high tension, which is very mentally exhausting.

Moreover, when watching the draft in previous years, people would probably have turned off the live broadcast after seeing this.

After all, what is really attractive are those lottery picks.

He stretched his joints and saw Thomas hurrying toward him again.

"The result is out, 18th place..."

Thomas was a little out of breath because he was walking so fast.

(End of this chapter)