Three days later, at the Staples Center, at the Laker Training Center.
Xiao Yang stood in a private room on the second floor and looked at a skinny young black man on the training ground. He was wearing a Laker uniform and was being led by a trainer to perform a series of dynamic and static physical tests.
"He has a first-class physical talent, doesn't he?”Xiao Yang said to West with a smile on his face.
"Haha, it's just that your palm is a little small. You might not be able to receive a powerful pass in the game.”Although he said that, the smugness in West's eyes showed his master's excitement.
That's right, the young man on the training ground was Kobe Bryant, who was not even 18 years old yet. At this moment, Kobe looked a little immature. He did not have the arrogance of Peter Pan or the maturity of Black Mamba. However, the determination in his eyes reflected that he was a strong person.
"Hey, Kobe, how do you feel?”West and Xiao Yang had already come to the sidelines. They waved and asked Kobe.
"Hey, Jerry, not bad.”Kobe took a towel from the staff on the sidelines, wiped his sweat, and walked toward West." This is?”Kobe looked at Xiao Yang, who was standing next to West, in confusion.
" Let me introduce you. This is…" Xiao Yang waved his hand, interrupting West's introduction." My name is Yangshaw, you can call me Xiao." If nothing goes wrong, I will be your future boss.”Xiao Yang looked at Kobe, who was gradually becoming more and more shocked, with a wicked look on his face.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Mr. Xiao. I didn't expect you to be so young.”Kobe was shocked. He really didn't expect the new owner of the Laker to be so young. After all, it was a $2 billion deal. He thought it was a wealthy middle-aged tycoon.
"Haha, when everyone finds out about my identity, they all have the same reaction.”Xiao Yang raised his hand and patted Kobe on the shoulder. Although Xiao Yang was also 1.86 meters tall, he was still a head shorter than Kobe. After all, Kobe was 1.98 meters tall with bare feet.
"Also, don't call me so formally. Just call me Xiao. Other than my identity as the owner of the Laker, I'm just a diehard fan of the Laker. Maybe he'll be your fan in the future.”Xiao Yang said meaningfully.
"Okay, Xiao." Kobe was still a shy boy at the moment. He felt that this boss was easy to get along with. It would be a good result if he could be selected by the Los Angeles Clippers.
After getting to know Kobe, Xiao Yang and Jerry returned to the office where someone was waiting for them.
Arntelheim. West's good friend and Kobe's agent. "How is it? Did my customer make your eyes shine? Haha.”Talem laughed and hugged the two of them.
"He's a good seedling, but his technique still needs to be polished. He hasn't learned to use his physical talent yet.”West laughed and poured cold water on him.
"He's only 17 years old, man. He'll continue to grow. You can't judge him by the standards of a veteran.”Talem shouted that it was unfair.
"Alright, aren't we supposed to talk about the talent show?”Xiao Yang clapped his hands, signaling the two to focus on the draft in a week.
Despite Kobe's power in Philadelphia, his star was overshadowed by Tim Thomas and Mike Miller during the McDonald's High School All-Star Game. He was only 17 years old, and he had never chosen a high school guard in the history of the NBA. Therefore, the original draft pick for Kobe was only at the end of the first round.
The 1996 draft pick for the Los Angeles Clippers was the 24th.
"Jerry, listen, our draft pick is too low. It's not enough to guarantee that we'll pick Kobe. We have to trade up, at least in the lottery.”Xiao Yang turned to West and said.
"Well, I've already contacted a few lottery teams. They're also very interested in Divacs.”West nodded in agreement. "And I heard that when Kobe tried out for the Celtics, the old man was also very interested in him?”Xiao Yang looked at Talem and asked.
The old man that Xiao Yang was referring to was the Celtics 'anchor, Red Auerbach. Not only the Celtics, but the old man had great prestige in the entire league. After all, the Celtics were also a powerhouse in the NBA. After the Celtics retired, they entered the management and coaching staff of various teams in the league. Therefore, the old man's direct descendants could be said to be all over the league.
"Yeah, before Jerry contacted me, I contacted a few teams for Kobe to try out. When he was with the Celtics, the old man was full of praise for Kobe's performance.”Tylem really wanted his players to come to the Los Angeles team. After all, the market in Los Angeles was much stronger than that in Boston.
"Although the old man is very satisfied, his main focus is still on the sixth pick. He was certain that Kobe would be selected at most in the middle of the first round. He told me that he wanted the Suns to help pick Kobe.”Tylem continued. The Suns were ranked 15th, and their current general manager was Danny Ainge. He was once a player coached by the old man, a hardcore Celtics.
"Sun? 15？”West lowered his head and rubbed his stubble as he pondered. "If it's only 15, we can cut it off.”As long as the Celtics didn't use the sixth pick, West was confident in taking down Kobe.
"That's for sure. The old man won't choose Kobe as the sixth pick. If nothing goes wrong, they'll probably choose Raheem or Walker.”" Kobe also tried out for the Suns before," Tyrell said with certainty." Angie told me that he would definitely use the number 15 to get Kobe.”
"Who else in the lottery is interested in Kobe?”West looked up at Talem.
"It seems that only the Nets are slightly interested, but they didn't give me a promise. I don't feel that their intentions are particularly strong. Kobe should only be their plan C or even D.”Talem spread his hands.
"How about this, you leak some information to the media and tell them that Kobe doesn't like to play for a small city.”West looked at Talham and said," As long as there's a little bit of talk, even if it's just groundless speculation, the Nets will dispel their undecided intentions. After all, it's just a Plan C. It's not worth the risk.”
"Jerry, who are you going to trade with?”Xiao Yang stood aside and listened for a long time. Although he knew the result, he still asked.
"Wasps. They had 13 and 16 in their hands. Originally, they had only planned to use the 16th pick. Fortunately, Tailham had brought news from the Suns. Otherwise, they would have been able to intercept them.”West smiled and patted Talem's shoulder.
"Isn't the CEO of Wasps Dave Cowens?”Talem's eyes widened. "If I remember correctly, Cowens is a Celtics player, the old man's favorite student!”
"Haha, don't you know? When Cowens was playing basketball, he retired because his good friend was traded by the old man. His relationship with the old man isn't like the other Celtics.”West smiled. As one of the two giants in the league, the godfather of the Laker team liked to see the Celtics suffer.
"Then, let's do it this way. We'll use the salary that's left after the Divens deal to snatch Shark.”Xiao Yang clapped his hands and hoped that everything would go smoothly.
Xiao Yang tried his best not to interfere, lest he affect the course of history. F * ck, if he chose Kobe before he started to play, he would not know how to cry if he lost Kobe now. He would first get Kobe this year, and then show the world his showy moves later.
June 27th, 1996, NBA draft day, the golden generation of the 1996's.
Xiao Yang, West, and a group of team executives sat in the office, watching David Stern's opening remarks on TV. Xiao Yang was starting to get a little excited. In the past, he had watched it from the other side of the ocean. Now that he was actually doing it, he was still a little nervous.
" The first pick of the 1996 NBA, the Philadelphia 76ers 'choice is..."
"The guard from Georgetown University, Allen Iverson…"
A short black man walked up to the podium with a bright smile on his face. He took the cap from the 76ers and put it on his head. He shook hands with Stern and took a photo, revealing his big white teeth.
Xiao Yang looked at Iverson and almost drooled. AI, butterfly steps, gorgeous style of play. If he did not really like Kobe and did not have such high draft picks, he would have brought AI to the Los Angeles Clippers.
" The sixth pick of the 1996 NBA, the Boston Celtics 'choice is..."
Everyone in the office felt their hearts tighten. They were afraid that the Celtics would go crazy and pick Kobe with number six.
" The forward from the University of Kent, Anthony Walker."
Fortunately, Stern's name didn't drive the Laker executives crazy. A group of executives high-fived each other to encourage each other.
" In 1996, the eighth pick of the NBA, the New jersey Nets 'choice was..."
" The defender from Villanova University, Kricketts."
Xiao Yang's mouth twitched a few times. What the hell? 1996 was such a big year, a year where you could get an All-Star with your eyes closed, and the Nets 'number eight pick was this guy? Xiao Yang had never heard of this name in his later life. But who cares? It was fine as long as he didn't choose Kobe.
" The 13th pick of the NBA in 1996, the Charlotte Hornets 'choice is..."
" The guard from Marion High School, Kobe Bryant."
The team's on-site office was in an uproar. A group of executives hugged each other and high-fived each other, celebrating the fact that the 17-year-old genius high school student had been taken down by the Los Angeles Clippers.
"Hey, Dave, Divens is yours.”West smiled and made a phone call to the Hornets 'manager and president, Dave Cowens.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the draft venue, the old bishop couldn't even hold his cigar anymore. His eyes were filled with shock. Angie was holding the phone." Dave, listen up. Trade Kobe to me. The Suns 'chips will definitely satisfy you." What was that? Traded to the Laker? You can't do this, Dave. Hey…hey.”
Xiao Yang couldn't hold back his laughter. He could finally give it his all. Hahaha, the Laker Dynasty, here I come.
Some people questioned my writing, saying that there was no Charlotte Hornets in 1996. They said that the Hornets 'predecessor was the Bobcats. Uh, I want to say that don't expose your age. Old fans shouldn't ask such questions. Add it to my collection.
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