Chapter 25: When Did I Raise A Flag?
Madison Square Garden, Suns Draft Room.
The Suns have the 14th pick, and they have five minutes to make their decision.
General Manager Steve Kerr frowned, not because of the choice ahead but due to the phone call he had just ended.
The Suns' top target this year was Stephen Curry.
They had been trying hard to trade with the Timberwolves but failed. Just as Kerr was preparing to settle for the Warriors, the Warriors swooped in and selected Curry.
This was unexpected, especially since Curry's agent had warned the Warriors not to pick him.
Kerr suspected that the Warriors were trying to raise Curry's value to trade him later.
Before the Knicks could make their move, Kerr quickly contacted Warriors GM Larry Riley. After several rounds of negotiations, Kerr even put their All-Star Amare Stoudemire on the table, but in the end, the Warriors refused.
Kerr was puzzled— didn't they already have Monta Ellis?
"Steve, pick Han. He'll bring real defensive quality to our backcourt, and he also has the three-point shooting we need," Coach Alvin Gentry urged once again.
Gentry had already suggested this to Kerr before the draft.
"Alvin, I told you, I'm not crazy. I'm not using a lottery pick to choose a player from a lower division!" Kerr snapped. At this moment, all he wanted was to make one last effort to negotiate with the Warriors using the 14th pick and a future first-rounder.
"We could trade down," Gentry persisted, clearly fond of Han.
"I've tried. There's no good opportunity," Kerr said, signaling Gentry to hold off while he dialed Riley's number once more.
He wasn't just brushing Gentry off— he had truly explored this.
From picks 20 to 25, only the Trail Blazers' 22nd pick was available, but it had already been traded.
As for picks 25 to 30, according to Kerr's intelligence, Han wouldn't fall that low, so a trade was meaningless.
…
"You're saying the Grizzlies have traded for the Timberwolves' 18th pick and plan to draft me?"
Han was shocked after hearing from Thomas.
Although the Grizzlies had promised to pick him before the Thunder, jumping from late first-round to within the top 20 was completely unexpected.
Based on Thomas's earlier words, Han had thought the Grizzlies would trade for the Trail Blazers' 22nd pick.
Wallace truly had a deep affection for him!
"It's a long story," Thomas explained. Initially, the Grizzlies targeted the Blazers' 22nd pick, but when they learned the Thunder were negotiating for the Timberwolves' 18th, they jumped into the fray.
However, they weren't the only ones interested—the Nuggets also wanted that pick.
The Thunder and Grizzlies were aiming for Han, while the Nuggets had their eyes on Ty Lawson.
The Timberwolves, who held four picks (5, 6, 18, and 28), were thrilled. Even in a rebuild, having this many picks seemed excessive, so they put the 18th pick on the market, not expecting it to be so coveted.
Offers started pouring in, generally consisting of a future unprotected first-round pick and a promising young player.
For the 18th pick in a weaker draft, this was clearly price gouging.
The Nuggets were the first to withdraw.
Finally, the Thunder offered their 2010 first-rounder and D.J. White, while the Grizzlies offered their 2010 first-rounder and Darrell Arthur.
The Grizzlies won out, and the Thunder backed off.
D.J. White?
Han searched his memory and realized he had no information on this guy.
If he had to choose between the Thunder and the Grizzlies, he would have preferred the Thunder.
After all, Memphis was… well, it wasn't an appealing place. Plus, he wasn't worried about the Thunder stifling his growth— Harden was a perfect example of a player who used Oklahoma City as a springboard.
But he couldn't believe the Thunder gave up because of someone he hadn't even heard of.
If they had thrown in Ibaka, at least their decision would've made sense.
Han couldn't help but pull out his phone to search for D.J. White, finally finding some information.
The Thunder's 29th pick in 2008? And another power forward?
This surprised Han because the Thunder had already picked power forward Serge Ibaka with the 24th pick in 2008.
White had missed five months of his rookie season due to a jaw injury and played only eight games, averaging 8.9 points and 4.6 rebounds.
Well, looks like it's Memphis, then.
Han chuckled helplessly.
At least the Grizzlies were willing to go all out for him, and he would have more opportunities there.
And the 18th pick wasn't bad—it was close to lottery territory.
At that moment, David Stern took the stage again to announce the 16th pick, which belonged to the Chicago Bulls.
"With the 16th pick in the 2009 NBA Draft, the Chicago Bulls select… Hanson, a 6'7" shooting guard from Barry University."
Huh?
Han was still lost in thought when the sudden announcement snapped him back to reality.
What was going on?!
Not only Han, but even Thomas was stunned. With all his connections, he hadn't heard a thing about the Bulls picking Han!
It wasn't until Han's parents asked if it was him who had been drafted that he finally stood up.
At that moment, a staff member approached with a prepared Bulls cap.
Han took the cap, hugged his parents and Thomas, and followed the staff towards the main stage.
The spotlight focused on Han as the crowd buzzed with confusion.
Especially the Bulls fans in attendance— they looked bewildered.
Han's highest projected draft position had been 36th with the Grizzlies, so why had the Bulls taken him at 16th?
Had they picked the wrong player?
Han snapped out of his daze and began wondering— did the Bulls pick him, or had another team made a trade and had the Bulls select him on their behalf?
After everything Thomas had told him, the latter scenario seemed more likely.
The Bulls already had too many guards— Derrick Rose, Kirk Hinrich, John Salmons, and possibly Ben Gordon if he re-signed. If they added him too…
This wasn't mahjong. They didn't need to form a whole set.
But if it was a trade, it would be just as unpredictable as when the Hornets selected Kobe Bryant for the Lakers.
Han reached the main stage, and Stern smiled warmly, extending his hand.
"Congratulations, you're the sixth player from the Far East to make it to the NBA."
As a commissioner dedicated to globalization, Stern had invested more in overseas markets than any of his predecessors.
And with the Far East being the largest of these markets, it held special importance.
Seeing another player from that region drafted, especially this high, Stern's smile was sincere.
Han could feel Stern's genuine congratulations and decided to put all his doubts aside as they posed for pictures.
During the photo session, Han opened his jacket, revealing the Far Eastern flag stitched inside.
Before coming to the draft, Thomas had suggested Han do something memorable to leave an impression. This had been Han's first idea.
Since the NBA announced draftees by their college, not their country, this was the best way to represent where he was from.
After stepping down from the stage, Han had a routine interview with the media, where they asked the standard questions about his feelings and expectations.
"What changes do you expect to bring to the Bulls?"
"Everyone knows about Michael Jordan and the Bulls dynasty, but I know today's Bulls are different— young and full of energy, just like me. I'm excited to join them," Han replied, keeping it brief, as he didn't want to say too much without knowing all the details.
After the interview, he was about to head to a media session for the Far East when he saw Thomas rushing toward him.
Judging by Thomas's expression, Han knew his suspicion might be correct.
"It's not the Bulls," Thomas confirmed, immediately validating Han's guess.
"The Thunder?" Han thought it might be some elaborate scheme where the Thunder had leaked false information to mislead the Grizzlies, only to trade up and snag him.
Thomas shook his head.
"No? Then it's the Heat?" Han figured if there was anyone else, it had to be Pat Riley's "mastermind" moves.
"Riley did try to trade up, but the Heat didn't have the right assets. He only made an agreement with the Blazers for the 22nd pick," Thomas explained, shaking his head again.
Was there another major player?
Han was stumped.
It couldn't be the Magic, could it?
Like how the smartest people often don't appear that way- was the least expected team making the smartest move?
"It's the Cavaliers," Thomas finally revealed.
"What?!" Han burst out in Chinese, completely shocked.
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