Chapter 87: 2000 NBA Draft

　　 Besides them, Zhang Weiping was also inside.
　　 Only compared with those big media, he only has one position, the position in the corner is slightly shabby.
　　 There is no alternative. The Chinese market is huge, but the NBA hasn’t opened up much yet, so the media people’s attention is naturally limited.
　　 So I can also imagine why Zhang Weiping went to the Staples Center on purpose.
　　 As the first domestic media player to set foot in the NBA, he is the person who most hopes that Sun Hao will be selected besides Sun Hao.
　　 Think about the reaction of Wang Zhizhi being selected to the domestic fans, and you know how much impact Sun Hao would have if he entered the first round and landed in the NBA.
　　 The star effect is the most obvious in sports.
　　Sun Hao and their location are not far from the media area.
　　 After everyone else sat down, he and Su Qun went to the media area to chat with Zhang Weiping.
　　 Zhang Weiping's face was full of smiles, and he couldn't hide his joy.
　　 He has been a reporter based in the United States for several years, but he is lonely in the corner every year.
　　 In the past draft, he was basically looking at flowers in the fog and watching the moon in the water, which had nothing to do with him.
　　 It was hard to wait until Wang Zhizhi was elected last year, but it turned out that people couldn't come in China.
　　 This is the first time in so many years that he has been able to chat with the Chinese who participated in the draft.
　　 That kind of joy really cannot be hidden.
"Xiao Sun, you have been chosen to take a photo with Stern on stage. I have a small flag, which can be pasted. You put it on the inside of your suit and show it when you take a photo. This is also our Chinese no. 1."
　　 Sun Hao smiled and took it and glued it to the inside of the suit.
　　 "Don't be nervous, I have already talked to Kupchak, people are really satisfied with you, you just wait to get on stage."
　　 Zhang Weiping leaned in and said in a low voice. After speaking, he couldn't help laughing and patting Sun Hao on the shoulder.
　　 "When you come off the stage, there will be ESPN reporters interviewing you. After that, there will be other media. Finally, we will have an exclusive interview with CCTV. You can think about what to say in advance."
　　 Sun Hao nodded, Zhang Weiping was really more dedicated than himself.
　　 was chatting, Sun Hao noticed that Youdao looked at him and turned his head to see that it was a "magic".
　　 Johnson is the first point guard in NBA history, even though he only played 13 seasons.
　　 If it were not for AIDS, his career might extend to 15 seasons or even close to 20.
　　 After all, the career of a point guard is the longest of all positions.
　　 But there is no if.
　　 After retiring from AIDS in 1991 and returning to play for a season in 1995, Johnson completely gave up professional basketball.
After 　　 retired, he used his excellent double business to create a personal business empire, and the assets of "Magic Johnson Entertainment" reached 2 billion.
　　 He also became a special guest of the NBA leisurely, and went to the commentary to experience it from time to time.
　　 When Sun Hao looked over, the magician gave him a sweet smile.
　　 Sun Hao also responded with a smile.
　　 Fortunately, the magician is not the son of a magician.
　　 Johnson is a Lakers legend, the kind of person with the label of "Lakers" in his bones.
　　 His smile only represents one thing. He has already regarded Sun Hao as a "Laker".
　　 It seems that everything, Sun Hao has gone to decide the Lakers.
　　In fact, this kind of thing is normal in the NBA draft of this era.
　　Because of the lack of information, many teams may choose people who other teams do not know at all.
　　 So that kind of cut-off things usually happen to hot rookies.
　　Sun Hao can't catch up with the hottest.
　　 After talking with Zhang Weiping, Sun Hao and Su Qun returned to their positions and waited.
　　 It was only then that Sun Hao found out that Paulo Fu had returned.
　　 This guy hasn't seen anyone for a whole day.
　　 "Where did you go?"
　　 Sun Hao couldn't help asking.
　　 "Go and meet the general managers of each team. I just finished talking with Zannick."
　　Fu Paul finished speaking and took the mineral water and poured it into his mouth. It seemed that he was too busy to drink water.
　　 "What are you talking about?"
　　 "I said you are a Christian."
　　 "......"
　　 Sun Hao nodded his head.
　　 Most people in the United States know that Utah is the center of Mormon believers.
　　 Mormonism is considered to be a branch of Christianity, and Rich Paul is a kind of close-knit and thick-skinned kind.
　　 But this is completely understandable. If he can impress the Jazz, Sun Hao can soar to the 23rd overall pick.
　　 The higher the pick, the more attention the team will pay.
　　 This is also the reason why Sun Hao asked him in Fu Paulo, and he said he should take priority.
"you are Christian?"
　　 Su Qun suddenly came over and asked.
　　 He is just a curious and questionable baby.
　　 This is also a common problem of literati, because I am thinking about articles all over my head, and sometimes I don’t pay attention to it. I don’t seem to be very clever.
　　 Sun Hao and Rich Paul looked at each other, and then couldn't help laughing.
　　 You, let's write your article.
　　 After a while, the draft teams of each team began to enter the field.
　　 There are many offices on the second floor of Madison Square Garden, which will be arranged for each team during the draft.
　　 During the draft, each team will print the final draft results on a slip of paper, and then put the slip in an envelope and seal it to the league draft office.
　　 Finally, Stern took the envelope to the front desk to announce the final result.
　　 This is why fans see Stern open the envelope every time they draft.
　　 Even if information is developed in the future, this tradition will continue.
　　 Sun Hao and the others were chatting, suddenly a tall figure appeared behind them.
　　 Sun Hao turned around and found that it was old Nelson.
　　Old Nelson is also a retired professional player. He is nearly two meters tall. He has developed after retirement. He is huge in size and gives people a great sense of pressure.
　　 coupled with his usual roaring style in coaching, makes people not angry and arrogant.
　　 But when he saw Sun Hao, he was smiling all over his face, and he took the initiative to stretch out his hand.
　　 This old man seems to be very interested in him.
　　 He chatted with Sun Hao for a few words, all of which were irrelevant. When Harris was yelling over there, he also smiled and shook hands with Sun Hao before leaving.
　　 "I am waiting for you in Dallas."
　　 Before leaving, Old Nelson dropped such a sentence.
　　 Domineering president.
　　 It felt like he would go to Dallas.
　　 Sun Hao was confused after hearing this.
　　 The Mavericks' second-round pick this year is the 31st pick, very high, but the Lakers are the 29th pick.
　　 Didn’t the Mavericks receive the information that the Lakers wanted him?
　　 This is unlikely.
　　 Or did the Mavericks receive a message that the Lakers did not choose him?
　　 Or, could the Mavericks choose him with the 12th overall pick?
　　 Sun Hao thought about shaking his head.
　　 The more I think about it, the less reliable it becomes.
　　 As expected, I don’t know what will happen until the beginning of the draft.
　　 A little bit of time passed, and on the media side, Barkley and the others have already started to become popular.
　　Who will be the champion?
　　 Turkoglu, who was supposed to fight for five and three, fell all the way after the trial. Where will it drop?
　　 Predicted lottery pick Jamal Crawford will face "Streetball King" Alstom heads-up in Rock Park today, and the two are tied.
　　 The tacos made by Barkley’s wife today are super delicious.
　　……
　　 From basketball to basketball, from basketball to something completely unrelated to basketball.
　　 In the commentary, Barkley is really free to put it back and forth, and accurately grasp the audience's mind.
　　 Because they are so close, Sun Hao can probably hear what they are talking about.
　　 "Kenny, have you brought enough dollars today?"
　　 While chatting, Barkley suddenly asked.
　　 Kenny Smith didn't react for the first time, and only after reacting did he realize that he was talking about the previous betting.
　　 "How did you think about it?"
　　 Smith replied with a smile, Barkley felt like he had won.
　　 "Christina is about to celebrate her tenth birthday. I'm ready to buy her things. She likes hats near Broadway."
　　Barkley is really thinking about it, even where to buy it.
　　 These words made Ernie Johnson and the magician laugh.
　　 "I can give Christina a hat as a birthday present, but you lose tonight, Magic, tell him who the Lakers are going to pick tonight."
　　 Smith can't wait to see Barkley embarrassed.
　　 The magician laughed and said nothing. Now that the draft hasn’t started, he doesn’t know anything about it.
　　 It's really fun to fight between these two people.
　　 Sun Hao listened very happily behind, don't tell me, this scene really resembles the cross talk in China.
　　 Watching the cross talk, time flies quickly.
　　 More than two hours later, Stern smiled from behind the scenes to the front of the stage.
　　 Sun Hao also turned his eyes to the stage.
　　 Stern is now fifty and eight, and his hair is mostly white.
　　 Just like when people realized the greatness of his paintings after Van Gogh's death, in history, fans didn't realize his contribution to the NBA until Stern retired.
　　 It is this rare old man who has pushed the NBA to the world step by step and made the basketball flourishing.
　　 Smart and wise, foresight.
　　 Of course, the fans haven't realized it yet.
　　 When he came out, the scene booed.
　　 The NBA ushered in the fourth timeout in history last year. Stern's tough attitude in the negotiations attracted dissatisfaction from many fans.
　　 In addition to the usual referee scripts and other things, all dissatisfaction was vented in the draft.
　　Especially, New York fans are the majority at the scene, and most of them are the ones who watch the excitement.
　　 Stern was very calm, lowered his head and didn't speak. After the boo stopped, he smiled.
　　 "Gentlemen and ladies, good evening everyone, I warmly welcome everyone to the draft contest..."
　　 With the familiar voice of Stern, the curtain of the 2000 NBA Draft was officially opened.
　　 "The No. 1 pick in the first round in 2000 belonged to the New Jersey Nets. They had five minutes to consider."
　　 Stern, after talking about the ownership of the top pick, went back behind the scenes.
　　 This night, he will go in and out through that door twenty-nine times.
　　 After Stern left, the scene was extremely noisy.
　　Who will the Nets pick as the No. 1 pick? This is what fans and the media have been discussing before the end of the season.
　　 is still far from where he might be, and Sun Hao's mentality is relatively relaxed.
　　 Many familiar fragments were also recalled in his mind.
　　 The New Jersey Nets were founded in 1967 and are one of the first 11 teams in the ABA league.
　　 Basketball in the 1960s was not so popular, and the team’s experience in that era was as difficult and turbulent as most other teams.
　　 Even this team can also be described as being displaced. They played back and forth between six different cities in the first season.
　　 But this team has a very special place. He is a New Jersey team under the New York label.
　　 As the name suggests, this team that was originally labelled as New Jersey because it was founded in New Jersey is actually in New York most of the time.
　　From the Cormac Arena in Long Island, New York, to the Island Garden Arena in West Hampstead, and even the Barclays Center Arena in Brooklyn.
　　 What they have been doing is getting close to New York, the most beautiful goddess in North America, and entering her.
　　 So for New York fans, although the Nets are called the New Jersey Nets, they all know it is the New York team.
　　 This is another reason why the scene is so noisy.
　　 The Nets are their second home team.
　　The advantage of being a traverser is that Sun Hao is like a now, he knows that Martin will be elected the champion.
　　 So when Su Qun and Lasso argue about who is the champion, he can be like a happy melon-eating crowd.
　　 Five minutes later, Stern appeared on the stage again.
　　 "The first pick in the first round of 2000, the New Jersey Nets chose... Kenyon Martin, a 2.06 power forward, from the University of Cincinnati."
　　 After Stern announced the result, the New York fans cheered.
　　 The argument between Su Qun and Lasso beside Sun Hao finally stopped.
　　 Martin, like Duncan, did not enter the NBA after four years of college, with excellent college data and outstanding physical talent.
　　 However, the styles of the two players are actually completely different. The Nets chose him when the latter is injured, which is actually somewhat helpless.
　　 They are lucky, with only 4.4% chance of getting the No. 1 lottery;
　　 But unfortunately, they caught up with a draft where the talent was almost out of gear;
　　 The last rookie has Brand, Francis, and Odom, and the next one has Tyson Chandler, Paul Gasol, and Joe Johnson.
　　 But this time, they have no choice but Martin.
　　 The so-called champion is the kind that can be used to build a team.
　　 Swift can indeed run and jump as Barkley said, like a male deer, but even if he jumps out of outer space, he can't change the fact that his technology is rough.
　　 Darius Miles and Marcus Fitzel, not to mention, they are much worse than Martin.
　　 But Sun Hao doesn't think so as a traveler.
　　 Whether a rookie can become a talent is actually related to the environment.
　　 If Kwame Brown didn't go to Jordan's Wizards, if Milicic didn't go to Larry Brown's Pistons, their achievements would be better than in history.
　　Similarly, you put Ross and Wade into this era, because of the existence of the handcheck rule, their performance is definitely not as good as history.
　　 There are few historical super giants like O'Neal and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar that are strong enough to change the rules. Most players still have to adapt to the rules and the environment.
　　 The draft is still going on, and the team's choices are not too different from what Sun Hao knows.
　　The Vancouver Grizzlies, who was the second overall pick, chose the springman Swift;
　　Darius Miles, the 2m-10 big man of the Los Angeles Clippers with the third overall pick;
　　The Chicago Bulls with the fourth overall pick selected the short and stout insider Marcus Fezer with 2.03 meters and 117 kg;
　　 The Orlando Magic with the fifth overall pick selected 2.03 meters forward Mike Miller;
　　 The choice of each team is the same as Sun Hao knows.
　　 Four of the top five picks are inside players!
　　 Because Jordan retired for the second time, super insiders like O'Neal and Duncan began to dominate the league.
　　 Just like when the team used forwards and swingmen to defend Jordan, the current team is also targeting the big men to the death.
　　 Don't ask for the next Duncan O'Neal, but also choose one who can compete with them on the court.
　　 Even at this moment, Sun Hao suddenly felt that the size of the domestic height is the same, and to a large extent it is also affected by the NBA.
　　 It's just like most things, it's just a way to learn, and to save trouble, it cuts out the problem across the board.
　　 When he first crossed, he didn't think too much, but now he suddenly realized that instead of bothering to reform, it is better to solve this problem from the source.
　　If the person who rules this era is not O'Neill or Duncan, but he becomes him.
　　Then the NBA will move from the swingman era of Jordan to the insider era of O'Neal Duncan, and it will naturally turn to his dual guard era.
　　 The domestic ethos will naturally change.
　　 This can be called: the guiding force of the first person in the league.
　　 This is really the case. If he doesn't experience it personally, even if he is a traverser, he can't think of this level.
　　 And when he was in Europe, he had set the big goal of making basketball the number one sport in the world.
　　 Then before that, he became the first person in the NBA to be another big goal he wanted to accomplish under that.
　　 While he was thinking, his mind was pulled back by the voice of Barkley and the others.
　　 Unknowingly, the draft has reached the 11th overall pick.
　　 After Stern announced that the Celtics used this pick to select Jerome Moiso, another 2.08-meter inside big man, Barkley's talk began again.
　　 "I just saw old Nelson greet the Suns in the past. Do you think it is possible for the Mavericks to choose him with this pick?"
　　 Kenny Smith throws up a topic.
　　 "You are crazy, Kenny, you are crazy!"
　　 Barkley speaks loudly.
　　 "Who would use the lottery show to choose a 1.83-meter point guard, he is not Isaiah Thomas, nor Allen Iverson."
　　 "Well, I just said, but the Lakers will choose the Suns and I will still win."
　　 Sun Hao didn't understand what the sun meant at first.
　　 After they chatted for a few words, he realized that it was a name before he realized that the sun was referring to himself.
　　Barkley and the others, the temporary nicknames they gave him on the show that day, really just used it.
　　 After a while, Stern came out again.
　　 He announced the Mavericks' 12th overall pick.
　　 Itan Thomas, 2.08 meters, 117 kg inside.
　　 Same as in history.
　　 No matter how old Nelson likes Sun Hao, it is impossible to use the lottery show to choose him.
　　 "Kenny, it's not that I want to hit you, but as a boss, I must tell you some cruel facts."
　　 Barkley gained the upper hand and began to pursue the victory.
　　 "Do you know who the Lakers coach is? Phil Jackson! Do you know what kind of point guard Phil likes? Tall point guard!"
　　 Barkley's sharp blade unsheathed and took Smith's head straight.
　　 This one really made Smith speechless.
　　 Phil Jackson likes to play triangle offense, and he especially respects triangle offense.
　　In this offensive system, the inside line and the guard are the dominant players, and what others have to do is cut in and defend.
　　 So this is why he loves tall guards.
　　 Because the tall guard has a large defensive area, coupled with the partner's shooting guard and small forward, the opponent's offense can be completely blocked from the free throw line.
　　 The reason for Smith's speechlessness is also the same. Although he is not as famous as Barkley, he has played against the Bulls during his time in Houston.
　　 What Barkley said is not wrong.
　　 Sun Hao unconsciously rubbed his hands at this time. He felt that the draft promise was not so stable.
　　 And slowly, as the draft picks continued to fall, he became uncontrollably nervous.
　　 The draft is going very fast, and it will be the Jazz soon.
　　 Sun Hao's nervousness reached a peak at this time.
　　 Among the teams he tried out, the Jazz ranked first.
　　"The 23rd overall pick in the first round of 2000, the Utah Jazz chose Di...Sean Stevenson, a 1.96 shooting guard, from Fresno Washington United High School."
　　 The Jazz chose Stevenson.
　　 This choice is also reasonable. The Jazz have always been known for their iron and blood. They prefer the outside line with strong defensive ability.
　　 As for whether it is suitable for pick-and-roll tactics, as Zanike said in a previous interview, their coaching staff will solve this problem.
　　 In the media area, Barkley continued to yell at Smith.
　　As the first round of the draft is getting closer and closer~EbookFREE.me~ his chances of winning the bet are getting bigger and bigger.
　　 "Sun, don't mind, the European defender never even made the first round before."
　　 Lasso opened his mouth to comfort Sun Hao. When chatting during the day, he also knew about Sun Hao's training situation.
"I know."
　　 Sun Hao's mood didn't fluctuate too much.
　　 In fact, this result is expected.
　　 Several other teams have given him draft promises either in person or in private.
　　 The Jazz didn't. It was normal not to choose him. It was a surprise to choose him.
　　 The Jazz was not selected, and his nervousness slowly relaxed.
　　 If that's the case, he just waited for the Lakers.
　　If the Lakers did not choose him in the end as Barkley said, then he would go to the Mavericks.
　　 There is nothing wrong with playing with Nowitzki under the old Nelson.
　　 And there is another advantage in the second round. At this time, there is no Arenas clause. He can seize the opportunity to get more money.
　　 After all, the rules are not perfect at this time, and it is easy to make more money in the first round of the second round than at the end of the first round.
　　 Even he can take the opportunity to turn the Arenas clause into the Sun Hao clause without losing money.
　　 "Where is Rich Paul?"
　　 Su Qun said at this time.
　　Sun Hao also noticed that his agent didn't know when there was no one again.
　　Originally, after he relaxed, he wanted to complain about the other party's use of a Christian condom almost to no avail.
　　 "The 24th overall pick in the first round of 2000."
　　 Stern walked out of the backstage for the 24th time.
　　"The Chicago Bulls chose...Sun Hao, a 1.83-meter point guard from China."
　　……