Chapter 237 236.2007 Draft
At around 7 o'clock in the evening, the live broadcast of the talent show began.

First up is a picture of the green room members and their families and friends entering Madison Square Garden before the draft.

Harden asked, "Jack, why didn't I see you enter the holy land of basketball when you were drafted?"

Zhang Yang: "I want to hit you to death with a stool."

Harden: "Why do you want to hit me? I haven't annoyed you recently!"

Seeing that the topic was about to go off track, DeRozan immediately changed it back: "Jack didn't go into the green room."

Harden: "Oh... ahem, DeMar, do you think we can make it in the future?"

DeRozan: “Yes.”

Zhang Yang: "I curse you to strain your groin on the day of the draft."

DeRozan: “…”

Harden: "Jack, why don't you curse me? I have a groin strain. It's very uncomfortable to walk up the stairs. When I was just injured, my walking posture was also very embarrassing. How can I go on stage and shake hands with Stern?"

DeRozan: "I want to kill you with a stool, too!"

Amidst the hustle and bustle, the talent show began.

Zhang Yang is looking forward to who his team will choose in this year's draft.

He was eliminated early last year. He participated in the team's tryouts throughout the process and knew who the candidates were. Although he had the unexpected surprise of robbing Muhammad, who was robbed from the Spurs and became an important part of defeating the Spurs, the draft picks were all players on the list that were discussed together.

This year, the team started the draft in the middle of last month, but this time their playoffs were not played until June 6. Bickerstaff and Jordan did not let their players participate in the tryouts. Zhang San didn't know much, and he was very curious about who his team would choose with the 23th pick in the first round... They only had this one draft pick, and the second-round pick was traded last year.

Without any suspense, the Trail Blazers selected Oden with the No. 1 pick.

The highlight clip played was Oden beating Horford and Noah one-on-one... He really didn't care about the lives of the other two lottery favorites. Don't they have any face?
The SuperSonics selected Durant with the second pick.

Yang Jing commented: "The SuperSonics got a bargain. They had a very low probability of getting the second pick, and they used the second pick to select Durant, who would have been the first pick in any other draft year."

Harden asked, "Jack, is Durant good?"

Zhang Yang: "Very strong, definitely better than me in my rookie year."

Harden: "Compared to you now?"

Zhang Yang: "I am stronger."

Harden: "Oh, bigger than rookie Jack, smaller than sophomore Jack... I have a goal for my freshman year! Just like Durant, bigger than rookie year Jack!"

DeRozan: “…”

Ronaldinho feels a lot of pressure. Erha and Zhang San are too talented. They must work harder...

With the third pick, the Hawks unexpectedly selected Al Horford.

Yang Jing: "Strange, didn't they say they wanted to strengthen the point guard position? They picked a forward again? Horford is less than 6 feet 9 inches barefoot, and they are still obsessed with the six-forward lineup?"

Zhang Yang: "It's probably the same as you, mom. You said you don't want to buy high heels, but when you see beautiful high heels, you still want to buy them. Dad doesn't want to go out with you anymore because you're almost as tall as him when you put on high heels, and he loses face."

Yang Jing narrowed her eyes: "Yang Yang, did your dad ask you to say that?"

Zhang Yang nodded: "No, Mom, don't talk nonsense. Dad definitely didn't do me any good. He didn't say he would give me a new computer, and he didn't ask me to hint at you."

Yang Jing: "Yangyang is so well behaved, worthy of being my good son."

DeRozan, Harden: "..."

Zhang San is such a rip-off!
The Hawks selected Horford, and the Grizzlies surprisingly picked up Mike Conley with the 4th pick.

In the Crazy Three-Draft Finals, neither Horford nor Noah could beat Oden, and the draft expectations of both of them were affected. Conley became the favorite for the third pick, and the Grizzlies got a bargain in this draft.

However, it is rumored that the Grizzlies' original goal was to compete for Durant. After failing to draw the top two picks, the logo man has resigned, and his general manager advisor Chris Wallace has become the new general manager of the Grizzlies.

When it came to the 5th pick, Zhang Yang was a little nervous. Would the Celtics choose Lian Mei? Tellem directly rejected Ainge's invitation for a tryout, but Ainge had been expressing their interest in Yi Jianlian.

Fortunately, Ainge did not take any risks and selected Jeff Green with the 5th pick.

With the 6th pick, Zhang Yang was nervous again, and Tellem also rejected the Bucks' tryout invitation... The Bucks did not take any risks and chose his junior, North Carolina's talented power forward Brandan Wright.

Wright was extremely successful in high school, winning four consecutive Tennessee high school league titles. In 9th grade, he performed better than those players who were 10 or 12 years old. He was as precocious as Jordan Farmar. He won the Tennessee Basketball Award for three consecutive years from 06th to 4th grade. He was finally ranked th among all high school students in the United States in and joined North Carolina.

Zhang Yang has some understanding of this junior. His performance in his freshman season was not satisfactory, but it cannot be said to be bad, just not as good as people expected. It was quite different from Oden and Durant's performance in college, as well as Zhang San's performance in the NBA. If he plays for another one or two years in college, he will probably fall out of the lottery zone.

With the 7th pick, the Timberwolves selected new MOP Corey Brewer.

The 8th pick was the pick the Bulls got from the Knicks.

Zhang Yang stared at the TV screen. Three minutes later, David Stern opened the envelope and smiled happily, and read out Yi Jianlian's name...

...

The Bulls are the ideal next home discussed by Zhang Yang, Tellem, and Yi Jianlian. Since there is no chance with the third pick, there is no difference between the fourth pick and the top 4 picks. Instead of fighting for a high pick, it is better to choose a team with more opportunities.

The Bulls have several centers leaving this summer.

The contract of veteran P.J. Brown, who is about to turn 38, is about to expire. The Bulls have no intention of renewing his contract, and he has stated that he will test the free market.

Tyus Thomas, the No. 06 pick in the 4 draft who was traded for Aldridge, averaged 5 points and 3 rebounds in his rookie year. The Bulls gave him a chance, but it was a complete failure and he was abandoned in the middle and late stages of the season.

Michael Sweetney, the Sweetheart from the 03 class, is a short and heavy power forward who was traded for Eddy Curry. He is undisciplined and overweight. He is already useless and most likely will not get a contract extension.

The only players the Bulls can play inside are veteran Ben Wallace and 29-year-old backup center Malik Allen, which is a good place to go.

In addition to the positions, there are two point guards who are good at passing, Hinrich and Chris Duhon, and Luol Deng and Ben Gordon also have good passing ability.

The hidden danger is that the Bulls may be destroyed by a crazy No. 24 and may have a bad season next season... but that may not be a bad thing for Yi Jianlian.

The Bulls selected Yi Jianlian. Noah, who was originally selected by the Bulls, almost fell out of the lottery zone and was finally selected by the Pistons with the 12th pick. This draft pick was obtained from the Magic and was protected in the top 5. The Magic ranked 12th from the bottom and did not draw the top three picks, so the Pistons took it.

Noah was also unlucky. In 06, he was predicted to be selected in the top 3 and wanted to continue to compete for the college championship. He was expected to be in the top 5 this year, but he was eliminated by Oden in the finals. Horford was still favored by the Hawks because of his height of about 206 cm, and Noah's ranking fell all the way...

After the lottery zone, Zhang Yang was not so focused anymore, waiting for the end of the first round.

Although 07 was a big year for the draft, Zhang Yang only remembers a few who made it to the draft, except for those in the lottery. Now they are hyped up a lot, but later there was no news about most of them.

More than half an hour later, the first round of the draft came to an end and Zhang Yang focused his attention.

The Rockets selected Aaron Brooks with the 25th pick.

The Pistons selected Jared Dudley with the 26th pick.

When Zhang Yang saw Dudley being picked off, a mouthful of blood blocked his throat.

This is the player he has in mind, although he doesn't know who the management is going to choose, but during the championship parade two days ago, Carlisle mentioned Dudley, and he also checked.

This is a 4-year-old player who has studied in college for four years, is 22 cm tall and weighs 201 kg. He has a highly mature physique and skills and is considered to be an excellent combat force who can play a role as soon as he enters the NBA.

The best thing about Dudley is that he made 51% of his long-distance two-point shots in his four years in college, and his three-point shooting percentage reached 45% in his senior year. He averaged 4 points per game in his four years in college and 15 points per game in his senior year.

Dudley can play three positions, 3-5, in college, and he should be able to play two positions, -, in the NBA. Although Dudley's single defense is not good due to his physical fitness, his teamwork and defensive awareness are excellent.

It would have been a great deal to have selected a player like this in the late first round, but the Pistons got there first.

After Stern returned to the stage, Zhang Yang put aside his depression and watched who his team would choose. He liked Dudley, but Boss Joe, General Bee, and Coach Carmelo Anthony might not be targeting this player.

Stern: "Ladies and gentlemen, in the 2007 NBA Draft, the Charlotte Bobcats selected Aaron Afflalo from UCLA with the 27th pick in the first round!"

DeRozan said in surprise: "Aaron! Jack, Aaron is going to be your teammate!"

Harden: "Do you know Afflalo?"

DeRozan: "He also graduated from Compton High School. When I joined the school team in grade 9, he was the core of the main team. Although we never played a game together, Jack and I served as sparring partners for him in the team's training games."

Harden: "So you were his younger brothers back then... Hey! Jack, Afflalo is going to be your younger brother now!"

Zhang Yang: "What little brother? I'm just an ordinary 19-year-old young player. I don't want to be the boss. I just want to shoot."

DeRozan: Can you two stay on topic?
Ronaldinho had to bring the topic back: "Jack, your team doesn't lack defenders, right? Why did you choose Aaron?"

Zhang Yang rubbed his beardless chin and said, "I think their purpose in choosing Aaron is not pure."

Yang Jing: "You can renew your contract in advance in your third year. Choosing your high school alumni shows how much we value you."

Zhang Yang: “It’s possible.”

DeRozan: "Aaron is good at defense and three-point shooting. You and he can both play small forward, so it's actually suitable for him to partner with you. Isn't it possible that Wallace will receive a maximum salary offer? Maybe Jordan is preparing for Wallace to leave."

Zhang Yang: "This is also a possibility..."

...

Several people talked about why they chose Aaron Afflalo. They didn't care much about the subsequent draft picks. The Bobcats no longer had any draft picks, and they didn't acquire draft picks through trades to select players.

In the second half of the second round, Zhang Yang noticed that Marc Gasol was selected by the Lakers.

Zhang Yang has considered recommending Marc Gasol Jr., but the team's primary goal at the center position is to renew the contracts of Perkins and Muhammad. Choosing Marc Gasol Jr. may lead to the problem of staff explosion at the center position.

Even if Marc Gasol is selected, he won't be able to come immediately, and even if he comes, he still needs to be trained. Moreover, selecting Marc Gasol will require using players as bargaining chips in exchange for draft picks, which does not fit in with their team building plan based on defending the title.

The Knicks are a lesson for us. It is enough to have enough talent among the players. Too much talent is not a good thing. It will affect yourself and delay others.

Two days later, on July 7st, a new month arrived, the NBA 1-06 season truly ended, and the free market opened.

DeRozan and Harden returned to Compton together. After the 12th grade season ended, the two of them traveled around, participating in various competitions. Later, they went to San Antonio to watch the finals, and then came to Charlotte to play for a week. They hadn't been home for several months and missed their mother.

Zhang Yang, after a few days of rest, is ready to get back into work mode and start off-season training!

In the afternoon, Zhang Yang attended the team's press conference.

Bickerstaff announced the end of his head coaching career, and Rick Carlisle became the new head coach of the Bobcats.

The press conference was very lively, with many media coming.

In the season that just ended, Bickerstaff became very popular. He was named the best manager, the best coach, and the championship coach, all three in one, the only one in history!

His operations in the playoffs that other coaches would never dare to think of were talked about by fans, and he also earned the title of "legendary coach".

Bickerstaff said at the press conference: "I thought I was just a transitional head coach in the early stages of the team's establishment, but I didn't expect to win the championship. My players are really great, but I no longer have the ability and energy to continue coaching them. The task of leading the players to move forward will be handed over to Rick, who is the most talented young coach I have ever seen, much better than me."

Carlisle smiled and said: "I still have a lot of areas where I am not good enough and I need to learn from Bernie. With Bernie's help, I think I will become a better coach."

When Carlisle was asked about being fired by the Pacers, he replied: "The Pacers have reached a new stage. They have to rebuild the team and no longer need a coach with my coaching style. I wish them all the best in the future."

Zhang Yang, who was watching, felt that Carlisle was much more low-key than he was back then. In 03, Carlisle was suddenly fired by the Pistons. When he was later recruited back by Bird, he angrily criticized Dumars at a press conference.

The conflict between Carlisle and Bird this time is much more serious than the conflict with Dumars at that time, but when it comes to the Pacers and Bird, he is not so excited.

After experiencing the beatings of society, Kashuai developed in the direction of being cunning and treacherous...

After the press conference, Zhang Yang came to the training ground and met alumnus Aaron Afflalo.

After the team selected Afflalo, Zhang Yang made a special effort to learn about the college life of an alumnus whom he hadn't seen for a long time.

After Afflalo joined UCLA in 04, he played as a substitute in his freshman year. In his sophomore year, he surpassed franchise player Farmar to become UCLA's star player and led UCLA to the semi-finals.

In his final junior year, Afflalo was shortlisted for almost all the university awards, and was successfully selected as the first team of the National College, the first team of the Associated Press, the first team of the Coaches Association, and the first team of the National News Award...

It was difficult for Afflalo to make further progress in college. UCLA was neither strong nor weak, and Westbrook was eyeing the core position. After his junior season, he left college and participated in the draft early for development considerations.

Zhang Yang and Afflalo were not particularly familiar with each other during their year on the high school team. It was only after Afflalo showed his talent in his 10th grade season that the two began to interact with each other. After Afflalo graduated from high school, the two hadn't seen each other for three years.

Now Zhang Yang, his former junior, has become the NBA's FMVP, and Afflalo has joined as a newcomer. When they met again, Afflalo was actually quite embarrassed.

But Zhang Yang was talkative and took the initiative to find topics to talk about. Afflaro gradually got rid of the embarrassment and talked to Zhang Yang about what had happened in the past few years.

Afflalo: "Josh insisted on going to USC, saying he wanted to follow the century-old tradition of Compton. But he couldn't stand partnering with Nick Young for a year, and he had a fight with Nick Young and came to me. He was so annoyed. But with him, we were able to reach the semi-finals in 06. He is so talented that he can easily score more than ten points per game in college."

Zhang Yang: "It's a pity that he is not interested in becoming a professional player, otherwise he might be selected in the first round of the draft."

乔希-希普，06-07赛季场均13.6分4.8板2.6助攻1.8抢断，UCLA首发小前锋，前场核心。

Afflalo: "He said that playing basketball is just a hobby for him and he doesn't want to get involved in money, which would ruin his basketball dream. In school, apart from playing games and training arranged by the coach, he hardly goes to clubs. He focuses more on studying and has joined the 'Future Elite Club'. Every summer, he goes to various parts of the world to participate in activities. His future is different from ours."

Zhang Yang: "That's not bad. He has his own firm goal..."

People like Ship are not considered "black" in the eyes of Americans.

Americans have a very utilitarian definition of black people. People like Kobe, Hill, and Battier were called "mixed-race" or "African Americans" before they became famous. They were called "black people" only after they became famous in the NBA or college.

If Ship can make a name for himself in the business world in the future, he will also be called a "black man". Now he is just a "rich second-generation African American".

After chatting for a while, Zhang Yang started training and Afflalo also continued his training.

Both of them practiced three-point shooting. After Afflalo decided to run for the draft early after his junior season, he began to adapt to the NBA's three-point line. After two months, his accuracy had become pretty good.

But watching Zhang Yang hit the target continuously...

During his three years in college, Afflalo felt how big the world is.

He worked hard to level up for two years in college. In his junior season, he met freshman Durant in the invitational tournament. Durant had just graduated from high school and had only played in college for a few months, but he was already better than him.

Look at Zhang Yang again, the junior who could barely dribble the ball four years ago, has now won the NBA championship and received the FMVP in less than four years since he started playing basketball.

After seeing Zhang Yang's performance, Harden and DeRozan became more ambitious, more self-centered, and wanted to surpass Zhang Yang. However, when Afflalo saw Zhang Yang again, he chose to accept his mediocrity...

This does not mean that Afflalo has lost his passion for basketball or his dream. Players who have played in college will better understand what "basketball has more than one role" means.

The two trained together for two days, and on the 3rd, Afflalo followed Randy Brown to Orlando to start the summer league journey.

Zhang Yang continued to train, and on the 7th, he received a prompt and his ability broke through again - his physical strength increased to 90!

(End of this chapter)