Basketball UFO

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On June 1997, 6, Charlotte, North Carolina, was crowded with many young athletes.

This year's draft will be held in Charlotte, and David Stern is already in place.

Carter did not go to the scene. He declined the invitations of Duncan and McGrady, not wanting to take away the rookie's limelight. Last year, Carter was one of the rookies, and this season, he has become a star in the league.

There is no problem with the San Antonio Spurs' choice, it is still Tim Duncan.

Popovich and David Robinson in the audience were so excited that they grinned behind their ears. They saw the bright future of the Spurs. Idiot is about to start a glorious journey that will last for 19 years.

"I'm going to teach Duncan a lesson in the training ground." David Robinson smiled mischievously, preparing to show off to the No. 1 pick. He was also the No. 1 pick and brought a good record to the Spurs, just short of the championship.

"Don't make it too ugly." Popovich also smiled, contentedly, "I will let Duncan feel the atmosphere of the NBA in the summer league."

Duncan didn't play well in the summer league, scoring only 14 points and 8 rebounds in the first game. It is worth mentioning that Wenbanyama also seemed to pay tribute to Duncan. In his debut in the summer league, he scored 9 points, 8 rebounds and 5 blocks.

Of course, even though he was abused in the summer league, Duncan easily defeated David Robinson in a one-on-one duel. Let Popovich quickly order the doors and windows to be closed and the curtains to be tightened, otherwise the team boss would be beaten up. It would be too ugly.

With the second pick, the Philadelphia 76ers also selected inside player Keith Van Horn, a player the media hyped as being comparable to Duncan.

With the third pick, the Boston Celtics selected Chauncey Billups. However, the Celtics have no intention of cultivating Billups and do not pay much attention to it. Their minds are already in a mess...

Carter didn't pay much attention to the next few players. Seeing the ninth pick, McGrady was successfully picked by the Raptors.

History repeated itself, McGrady became a member of the Raptors and was indeed selected in the top ten picks. Carter secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, there was no big change in the draft results.

On the TV, McGrady heard his name, clenched his fists, and waved excitedly, finally getting into the NBA as he wished, "My cousin said I was a top-10 pick, and it was true. Raptors, here I come."

It is actually not easy for high school students to get a good pick. Currently, the highest pick is Kevin Garnett at No. 5; Kobe is at No. 13, McGrady is at No. 9, and O'Neal is at No. 17.

Of course, before that, there was Moses Malone who graduated from high school and participated in the draft with the fourth overall pick. However, he participated in the 1974 ABA draft and did not enter the NBA until 1976. In the future, there will be high school players selected as the top pick in the draft. Kwame Brown was the first, then LeBron James, followed closely by Dwight Howard, who all made a name for themselves.

Good or bad reputation is reputation.

Carter turned off the live TV, which was similar to the choice of parallel time and space. It's just that this Nets performed well and made the playoffs. Naturally, they didn't have the option of the seventh overall pick, and they traded it out early.

After watching the previous live broadcast, Carter couldn't even remember the names of the first few picks. Among the players in this draft, the success rate is not high, and Tim Duncan stands out.

John Nash selected Stephen Jackson with the 40th pick, the most accomplished player in the second round of the 1997 draft. However, he is just an unpolished player now, and it is impossible to perform at his peak.

Carter's idea was just to let him hone his defense, train with him, and use the opportunity to exert some energy on the bench.

After the draft, John Nash began negotiating a contract with Stephen Jackson, preparing to give him a two-year minimum salary contract.

First-round picks must be given guaranteed contracts, and lottery picks have strict salary level regulations. There are gradients in the money received by the No. 1 and second overall pick. There is no guaranteed contract for second-round picks, and it depends on the negotiation situation between the player and the team.

Most of the second-round picks are ready to play. If the team needs them, they will stay. There is no need to lose a few years. It is normal to retain the right to sign or give up the signing directly.

"There are still interior lines that need to be strengthened, but Ben Wallace, whom Vince recommended, is only a second-year rookie and doesn't have any decent data. We still need to strengthen more." John Nash discussed with Calipari, "The only one is The reason should be that Ben Wallace has a good relationship with Vince. His arrival will make Vince happy."

"That's enough. Marginal players don't need to pay too much. In addition, Ben Wallace's upper body strength is very strong. If given time, he will become a good defensive player." Calipari gave a definite answer.

Cheap players, you can't ask for too much. If it’s more valuable than your salary, that’s great.

"What options do you have for other reinforcement players?" John Nash has been particularly in tune with Calipari recently. Both of them want to achieve better results and gain more say.

Carter recommended Charles Oakley, but Oakley didn't come, so he recommended Dominic Wilkins, who also didn't come. Instead, he recommended Ben Wallace, and this one came.

And Stephen Jackson, this one is coming too.

"Neither of these two are handsome guys," Calipari joked, and then said seriously, "As for reinforcement options, I think we should focus on marginal players. The main players have been basically finalized. The main partners for next season There will be a better understanding and better results.”

Calipari thought for a moment, "How attractive is our team?"

"Basically, we only come to us if others don't want them. It's hard to find good players." John Nash smiled bitterly. It's not like he didn't ask well-known players, no one was willing to come.

If Carter hadn't brought attention to the Nets, no one would have paid any attention to this team. No player would take the initiative to defect to the team.

"Choose a few marginal players who are a little bit more reliable? We probably won't be able to set high standards for those who don't have contracts or whose contracts have expired." Calipari thought about the free agents on the market. Not many, and not to the Nets. Especially inside players, almost every team is not for sale. It is difficult for the Nets to get good stuff.

The most important thing is that the Nets cannot give him a high annual salary. The management is very smart and announced to the outside world that Carter will be the core. Carter's annual salary standard is almost the Nets' maximum salary. If the annual salary is too high, it will squeeze out Carter's large contract amount after the expiration of his rookie contract.

Ben Wallace is in Las Vegas.

With Carter, he threw away the chips in his hand and said with excitement on his face, "Vince, my contract with the Bullets expires on July 7st, and I will sign directly with the Nets when the time comes. Hehe..."

Carter gathered the chips in front of him, dialed a few to Ben Wallace, and dialed a few to Kendall Gill. Poor Kendall had lost all.

"This is a good thing. We will play side by side next season. I have been so poor recently that I have to win some living expenses on this table." Carter laughed at himself and started a new round. Fortunately, he won tens of thousands of dollars, otherwise he would have lost everything. Not enough for summer expenses.

He had no new expenses recently and was living a tight life. Most of the funds were either in the stock market or in funds, and a considerable part of them, a full US$1 million, was used to purchase large amounts of Thai baht and Indonesian rupiah.

First, exchange US dollars for Thai baht and Indonesian rupiah. Thousands of US dollars will be invested directly. The repayment will be done in about half a year. The first batch will be repaid in August. The Indonesian rupiah funds will also be repaid at the end of the year. All repayments will be made directly in US dollars at the end of the year. .