The Whip of the God of Basketball

Darko Milicic, this young guy from Serbia, is still not very proficient in English, so he only understood what Stern just said: "Draft", "Celtics" and "TV" The words, of course, and his name, and that was enough.

The scene erupted into warm applause again, and compared with five minutes ago, this time the applause was obviously full of surprise. This is another international player after Yao Ming won the first pick in the draft last year. Three were taken away. Moreover, the value of this year's draft is not comparable to that of last year. Behind Milicic, there were also Anthony, Bosh, Wade, Hinrich, Ford, Kaman, etc. who were not selected. Several of them, let alone In other years, they might have been the top picks, but today, they were beaten by a Serbian.

Milicic walked onto the stage with a shy smile. On the way, the staff handed him a cuckold. There was no way, all the newcomers selected by the Celtics had to wear a cuckold. Milicic looked even greener with his hat on. He stepped forward to shake hands with Stern and showed a bright smile.

At this time, he only had a partial understanding of his situation. He participated in the Celtics' trial training and knew that the Celtics reached the finals this year. He knew that this was a team with a long history, and now he became a member of it. He has seen the Celtics head coach, the man with black hair and sharp eyes like an eagle, who is the most popular head coach in the NBA this season.

Milicic's heart is warm and bright, full of hope. He is full of expectations and longing for the Celtics team. Standing on the stage, he has already imagined himself on the parquet floor of the North Shore Garden. , the scene of fighting for the glory of Boston.

Of course, the most important thing is that at this moment he is out of poverty, out of the turmoil and war in his motherland, and he can win money and fame by participating in a game he likes in this developed country. He can support his mother who worked hard to raise him, and he can let his family live a comfortable life in a stable environment. He is sincerely grateful and grateful to the Celtics for this choice.

When he came off the stage to be interviewed by reporters, Milicic seemed a little excited, which is natural. When faced with reporters' questions, his tone seemed lively and cheerful. This boy who has always been taciturn, a little shy, and has poor English. , using his limited vocabulary at this time to piece together the beauty in his heart.

But half an hour later, he will experience for the first time the ruthless side of the NBA as a business league.

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On the other hand, Angie did not feel relieved after seeing Milicic selected. On the contrary, the real pressure and challenge had just begun. Most transactions will be completed on the day of the draft, starting from the moment Milicic is selected, which also means that Milicic's signing rights are put on the shelf by the Celtics.

The phone in his pocket began to ring non-stop. Managers from several teams had already expressed to Ange that they were willing to offer chips and even draft rights to trade for Milicic. There were some attractive bargains among them, but Ange refused them all for the time being. . He was waiting for McHale's call. Although he wanted to go to McHale directly, his phone could not be connected. It seemed that McHale was also constantly talking on the phone.

At this moment, Anji's cell phone rang again, and the name on the caller ID was "Fox-Leon".

"You son of a bitch...where the hell have you been? Have you kept me in the dark about everything!" Anji immediately answered the phone and said through gritted teeth in a low voice.

"First, Danny, if you dare to accept other managers' trade requests, I will resign immediately when I return to Boston. Second, immediately, call Kevin Garnett, communicate with him, calm down, and do a good job." Preparation for the transaction. Third, I will solve other problems in Boston. Remember to cooperate when the time comes." Leon's voice was as calm as ever, and there was no room for doubt in his tone. This is what Angie hates most about Leon. Because he himself is such a person and he doesn't like to be treated like this.

However, Angie really couldn't refuse or refute. Since Leon asked him to call Garnett, it could only mean one thing. Everything had been settled. With Angie knowing almost nothing, a sum of money had been made. A trade that could shock the league is about to happen.

"You...where are you? Are you still in New York?" Angie felt a little tight in his chest, which was a kind of nervousness caused by excitement. He even forgot to ask Leon for Garnett's phone number. He didn't.

"Garnett's phone number is, 67****98, let's talk to him. Also, remember to calculate the contract balance carefully. If something goes wrong because of this, Danny, you can die to apologize. ...I am not in New York now, I am in Washington, I will stay here tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, you'd better come too." Leon said.

Angie didn't have time to think about why Leon was in Washington. It was most likely related to Auerbach, but these were not important. What was important was that he wanted to complete the deal. Leon has shuffled and sorted out all the cards and handed them to Anji. As long as Anji plays the cards according to the rules, everything will be done.

The two of them didn't talk too much. After saying what needed to be said, Leon hung up the phone, and it was Angie's time.

He first followed what Leon said and called Kevin Garnett. The two did not have any friendship before. Because of McHale's relationship, Angie once visited Garnett's home, so the two were not familiar with each other on the phone.

"I'm ready, ready to accept this deal... However, I haven't called McHale. I hope you can express my apology to him later. I still love Minnesota, but I want to leave. "On the phone, Garnett's voice was a little low. It was obvious that he had gone through a process of inner suffering in the past two days.

"Okay, I understand, I will tell him. Also, welcome, Kevin, welcome to Boston." Angie's tone could not conceal his excitement. Of course, Ainge didn't know that Garnett was at the home of his friend Malik Siri at this moment. Since before the draft, Seeley has been around Garnett, acting as a lobbyist for the Celtics, constantly telling Garnett about the advantages of the Celtics, and reminding Garnett that he is likely to be in the Timberwolves. Continue to waste his career.

But before the draft, the news broke that the Timberwolves trade was under investigation and was shelved, and when Garnett's friend Smith was once again involved, Garnett finally felt helpless and angry. At that moment, he felt sorry for the Timberwolves management. His frustration peaked, and that's when he texted McHale to say he was considering being traded.

Then, Angie found Kevin McHale, who was also at the draft. The two sat down and discussed the details of the transaction. Then, the content of their discussion would be fed back to the headquarters of both teams, and then the bosses of both sides authorized an agreement. , jointly send an email to the alliance office to apply for approval, and then wait.

Everything is about to take shape.

When the first round of the draft was about to end, the league office sent out a news message, which immediately drew everyone's attention from the draft to the trading market.

"The Boston Celtics and the Minnesota Timberwolves reached a trade agreement. The Celtics sent Antoine Walker, Darko Milicic, Eric Williams and Abdul Warrick. In the future, A first-round pick and some cash to acquire Timberwolves power forward Kevin Garnett."

This short message made the entire venue boil, the basketball media circle in New York and basketball fans across the United States were excited.

A transaction that had been brewing for nearly two years was about to be completed on June 26, 2003, with lightning speed. In the eyes of many people, from this moment on, the green shadow will once again hang over the NBA. And few people know what happened behind this transaction.

At this time, the driving force behind the scenes was far away in Washington, sitting on a stool at the National Rehabilitation Hospital in Washington, reading a novel.