The Godfather of Basketball

"A trade happened, the 24th pick in the first round belonged to the Golden State Warriors, and they had five minutes to think about it."

The atmosphere in the Thunder's draft cabin has gotten a little weird.

Tang Tian raised his head and glanced at the few people present.

This kind of card will make people suspicious no matter what.

Jones is his old subordinate, so there will definitely be no problem. The rest are Bernard and Joseph.

The two also looked surprised.

It may be just a coincidence that Tang Tian looked away temporarily, and the Warriors probably just have other goals.

Five minutes later, Stern came out from behind the stage again.

"The Golden State Warriors select Draymond Green, a 2-foot-1 power forward, from Michigan State."

When the Warriors announced their draft picks, the atmosphere in the Thunder lodge was even more eerie.

This is obviously a cut-off, and there is a high probability that someone inside the Thunder team leaked the secret.

Tang Tian didn't say anything more, this kind of thing is definitely not visible now, but in the future, he still has to find a way to assign people he trusts to each position.

"Use plan B, choose Middleton." Tang Tian continued.

Middleton should not need this pick, but there is no time for them to negotiate with other teams.

Joseph nodded when he heard the words, then wrote Middleton's name and put it in the envelope.

After a while, the staff came in and knocked on the door, and Joseph handed the envelope out.

"Case, hurry up to deal with the second-round pick." Tang Tian skipped the first-round deal and urged Jones.

The first round was brought up for discussion, and the second round was left unsaid, so there should be no further incidents.

After Tang Tian finished speaking, he got up and left the hut.

"With the 25th pick in the first round, the Thunder selected Khris Middleton, a 2.01-meter small forward from Texas A\u0026M University."

Thunder fans cheered.

As thin as Durant, with outstanding wingspan, and equally good at scoring, the Thunder are obviously looking for a substitute for Durant!

Although it seems that Middleton is not worth the pick, the fact that the team finally started to find a substitute for Durant itself is still very positive.

Middleton came to the scene, and he seemed very excited. The previous draft predictions were interrupted in the second round, but he jumped to the end of the first round. This is a surprise.

Seeing the figure of Middleton galloping towards the stage, Tang Tian felt that this selection is actually not that bad.

Middleton's words, after all, have strong immediate combat power, which is a good supplement for a team like the Thunder that reached the finals last season.

It can be regarded as a coincidence.

Middleton and Stern left the stage after taking a photo together, happy like a big child.

When he saw Tang Tian standing not far away, he was even more excited and trotted over.

"coach!"

He is very active, and it can be seen that his personality is more cheerful.

The few core personalities of the Thunder are a bit strange, and this kind of cheerful player should be compared with them.

"Chris, welcome to the Thunder." Tang Tian smiled and extended his hand to Middleton.

Middleton was a little flattered, and after shaking hands, he was a little incoherent: "Coach, I didn't expect to be selected here, I didn't expect to be able to play on your team, this is really...I want to say this is really too dreamy !"

"Come on, boy, the Thunder need you."

After chatting for a few more words, Middleton dragged her to greet her mother who came to the scene with him.

After he returned to the draft cabin, the second round of the draft had already begun.

The second round of transactions also went relatively smoothly. The Thunder quickly exchanged the No. 48 pick from the Knicks with the No. 57 pick and some cash in their hands.

Immediately following this pick, Adam Silver announced the Thunder's selection.

"In the 2012 NBA draft, with the 48th overall pick in the second round, the Thunder selected Kyle O'Quinn, a 2.08m power forward, from Norfolk State University."

O'Quinn didn't come to the scene, and Tang Tian didn't go down either.

With 2 picks, Middleton and O'Quinn are selected, which are not small additions to the Thunder.

But the Thunder's draft this year isn't over yet.

Tang Tian asked Bernard and Joseph to go back to the hotel first, and he brought Jones and Anna out of the draft cabin.

"Case, now go and contact a player named PJ Tucker. He has just returned from the German League and wants to sign him before the Suns."

After coming out, Tang Tian whispered to Jones.

Jones nodded, then turned to do it.

Regarding Green's interception, he also knew that someone on the team leaked the secret, so he didn't delay at the moment.

After Jones left, Tang Tian took Anna down the stairs and sat down in the auditorium.

Anna didn't speak. She was clean and quick, and she never talked too much. Tang Tian liked someone with such a character as an assistant.

But I don't know if it was because he slapped Hathaway who was wearing an office uniform before, Tang Tian didn't have the nerve to look at her more at the moment.

The draft continued, and Xiao Hua came in and out on the stage. Although the players may not necessarily come to the scene after reading out the team's selection, he still kept smiling, and it seemed that he had quickly adapted to the job.

In two years, he can start to read the first round of the draft.

Tang Tian looked at it for a while, then turned his gaze to the person sitting in the front row.

With a cropped head and a mustache and goatee, he looks a bit Japanese at first glance.

But this is a true American, from North Carolina, USA, and the school he graduated from is also very interesting, called Old Dominion University, a college that is basically not well-known in the basketball world, but the aerospace engineering major there is not bad.

Before Xiao Hua walked out of the stage this time, the young man's eyes burst out with a glimmer of expectation.

But every time, Xiao Hua didn't pronounce his name.

Again and again, his sense of anticipation slowly disappeared.

"With the 60th overall pick in the second round, the Los Angeles Lakers selected Robert Thackeray. The 2.13-meter center is from Canada. The 2012 NBA draft is over. Thank you for your participation."

After the Lakers made their last choice, the young man was still staring blankly at the stage.

At this time, the staff had already started to withdraw, and the rookies who arrived at the scene like him but were not selected also began to leave one after another.

Among this group of people, Tang Tian saw a somewhat familiar figure.

After thinking about it carefully, he remembered, isn't this the later "Imitation Emperor" Brandon Armstrong.

He didn't look much different from other undrafted picks at this time, and his expression was also very depressed.

Tang Tian didn't go up to say hello, but walked straight towards his goal.

Anna also got up and followed.