Chapter 1 The Scene at the Draft House

Tang Tian saw this scene at the draft house.

Embiid, Nowitzki, plus Booker now, and Carlisle, with enough salary space, they're going to rise next season.

His transmigration has changed a lot, and even his competitors have changed as a result.

Warriors, Rockets, Spurs, Clippers, Grizzlies, Mavericks, the competition in the Western Conference will be even more intense next season.

Especially the Southwest Division with the Pelicans, with the Texas Big Three plus the Grizzlies and Pelicans, the new season is truly a death division.

The draft continued, and the lottery picks were selected one after another. The Pelicans' favorite, Bobby Portis, was still in the green room.

It seemed they had a good chance.

The draft proceeded to the 23rd pick without anyone realizing it. This draft pick had already been traded to the Wizards, and Woj had revealed that the Wizards were interested in Portis.

"We have a trade."

Just then, Demps put down the phone and said to Tang Tian.

"The Wizards?"

Tang Tian asked.

The Pelicans wanted to get Portis, and the only trading partner now was the Wizards.

If they could reach an agreement, they would be able to sign Portis at the last minute.

"No, it's related to Eric."

However, to Tang Tian's surprise, Demps said it was related to Gordon.

He frowned slightly, it seemed Portis was gone, and they could only choose others from the remaining players.

"What trade?"

Portis was gone, so there was no point in thinking about it. Tang Tian listened to what Demps had to say.

"The Nets proposed it. They want to use a sign-and-trade to trade Thaddeus Young and this year's 45th overall pick for Gordon."

Young's contract with the Nets expires this season, and he is now a free agent. The Nets are trying to get something for nothing!

Although Gordon only has one year left on his contract, and his performance last season was not very good, the Nets' trade was a bit of wishful thinking.

Tang Tian was about to refuse directly, but at that moment, he suddenly thought of someone.

When the Pelicans and Nets made a trade last season, initially, at Tang Tian's suggestion, they wanted Bojan Bogdanović, but the Nets refused, and after discussion, they changed it to Mirza Teletović.

"Try trading Gordon for Bojan Bogdanović."

Tang Tian said.

Demps nodded and continued to communicate with the Nets.

Because of the team's tactical system before, the Pelicans already had many three-point shooters, and now with D'Antoni taking over, they would need even more.

Bojan's three-point shooting is excellent, and if he could be traded, that would be great.

The Pelicans now have Dinwiddie controlling the ball on the bench, and a player like Bojan who can play off the ball is what the Pelicans need more.

The negotiations on Demps' side seemed to be going on for a while, and because it was almost the Pelicans' draft pick, Tang Tian and Lausha began to confirm the candidates.

Portis had already been selected by the Wizards with the 23rd pick, and their remaining candidates were Little Nance, Osman, and Harrell.

Finally, at Tang Tian's suggestion, the Pelicans decided to choose Harrell.

Portis was a ready-made player, and Harrell was a potential stock.

The arrival of the small-ball era was irreversible, and Harrell could play the center position in the small-ball era.

Rookies have a four-year contract, and Harrell could be developed and would definitely be useful in the future.

The Cavaliers selected Osman with the 27th pick, and their thinking was similar to that of the Pelicans.

It is difficult for this kind of late first-round rookie to get playing time on a championship-contending team, so it is better to choose a rookie with potential.

After the Cavaliers made their selection, Adam Silver walked to the front of the stage for the 28th time.

The boos at the scene were even louder.

The next pick was the Pelicans', and they knew that the Pelicans' loss to the Warriors last season had a lot to do with Silver.

"With the 28th pick in the first round of the 2015 NBA Draft, the New Orleans Pelicans select Montrezl Harrell, a 2.03-meter power forward from the University of Louisville."

Harrell excitedly stood up when he heard that he had been selected by the Pelicans.

The Pelicans are now strong and are one of the favorites to win the championship, and the Pelicans don't have a real power forward right now, which is a great opportunity for him.

The Pelicans fans at the scene were also cheering.

In the past, this kind of short power forward was not very popular in the league. Derrick Williams and Beasley were typical examples.

But now that the small-ball era has arrived, Harrell is an inside player who is suitable for this era.

After the Pelicans finished their selection, the Nets (the Hawks' draft rights were traded over) and the Warriors also made their selections one after another, and the first round of the draft ended.

The Pelicans didn't have a second-round pick this year, and if they wanted to select someone, they could only buy it.

However, there were not many suitable candidates in this year's second round, and the Pelicans' lineup was complete. Spending money to buy a draft pick and ending up with the same result as Tyler Johnson last season didn't make much sense.

In other words, the Pelicans' task in this year's draft was already completed, and if there were no other trades, they would be ready to leave early.

Demps was still communicating with Nets General Manager Sean Marks over there.

And from the content of his conversation, it could be heard that this seemed to be more than just a trade between two teams, but also involved a third team, the Cavaliers.

After a few minutes, Demps put down the phone and told Tang Tian and Lausha the latest situation.

The Nets were willing to give Bojan to the Pelicans, but they needed to get more in return.

The Cavaliers were interested in Thaddeus Young, but because they wanted to renew Kevin Love and Tristan Thompson's contracts, they didn't want to sign Young now, but wanted to use a trade exception and filler to sign and trade for Young first.

Now the three parties had reached a three-way trade.

The Pelicans would give up Gordon to get Bojan and the Cavaliers' trade exception, as well as filler players;

The Nets would give up Thaddeus Young and Bojan to get Gordon and more in return;

Now, for the trade to succeed, the first thing to determine was who the filler player was from the Cavaliers, and the second was to find a way to give the Nets more in return.

Tang Tian asked Demps to show him the Cavaliers' current roster.

After scanning it, his eyes quickly locked on one person.

Joe Harris, this Cavaliers' second-round pick from last year basically didn't get much playing time on the Cavaliers.

If the Pelicans wanted him, the Cavaliers would definitely not refuse.

"Take him."

Tang Tian gave Demps a very clear message.

He knew about Joe Harris, a future top-notch three-point shooter.

As Morrow's age increased, it was inevitable that his condition would decline. Like Harrell, getting Harris was a preparation for the future.

With an answer, Demps turned around and continued to work on the three-way trade.

With Harrell selected, the Pelicans' draft this year was basically up to standard. If they could also get Bojan and Harris, these top-quality role players, then it would be an absolute over-fulfillment.

When Demps put down the phone and said the three-way trade, it showed that the three parties had basically reached an agreement, and what was left were just the details.

Sure enough, after a while, Demps put down the phone, indicating that the trade had been reached.