June 27, 2001, Madison Square Garden, New York.
This basketball mecca has once again become the focus of attention in the entire American sports world. The general managers, management teams, and young rookies in suits from various teams have created a tense and exciting atmosphere.
Amidst the commotion, David Stern, beaming, strode onto the stage. After his signature opening remarks, he smiled and opened the first envelope.
"In the 2001 NBA draft, the Washington Wizards selected with the first overall pick..."
The entire room fell silent for a moment, and all eyes were focused on the short, elderly Jewish man standing in front of the microphone.
" Chris Paul Gasol from Barcelona Club in Spain."
A huge gasp of amazement erupted from the audience, followed by thunderous applause.
"My God! We've witnessed a historic moment!" Kenny Smith exclaimed excitedly, slamming his fist on the table in the TNT commentary booth. " Chris Paul Gasol, a thoroughly Europe player, has become the first foreign-born player to be drafted number one in NBA history! The Wizards made an extremely pragmatic choice; they bypassed those tempting but highly inconsistent high school players and acquired the strongest immediately impactful center!"
Chris Paul Gasol, with his signature gentle smile, put on Wizards hat and walked onto the stage to shake hands with Stern.
This scene is destined to be recorded in NBA history.
Meanwhile, in the TNT commentary booth, Charles Barkley made a joke.
"Great draft, but that's only part of it. Listen, guys, I've been training..." Barkley declared to the camera, even calling out to Michael Jordan, who was attending the draft night, "I want to play, and Michael wants to play. Maybe next season, you'll see me and Michael wearing Wizards jerseys together!"
The broadcast camera immediately cut to Jordan on the sidelines. Before that, Jordan had shown his signature smile in response to Barkley's "taunts".
"I'm still the boss... Charles, I might not need you," Jordan joked to the camera.
"I might not make a comeback either, unless you do!" Barkley retorted without backing down.
This verbal sparring, full of probing and jokes, was even humorously interrupted by David Stern. Although it was obvious to everyone that this was most likely a joke by Barkley on a whim, it was enough to add a strong dramatic element to this unpredictable draft night.
Then, the main event began.
Prior to this, the Chicago Bulls had just completed a game-changing trade that shook the league, acquiring the Los Angeles Clippers Clippers' second overall pick in exchange for Elton Brand as the core player.
"Second pick, the Chicago Bulls selected..." Stern glanced at the card in his hand and raised his voice, " Kwame Brown from the Green Academy, Georgia."
Brown excitedly put on the red hat, his eyes slightly reddening.
With the top two picks decided, the spotlight is now on the Boston Celtics.
Lin Qi, holding the third overall pick, watched the countdown on the big screen. The Chicago Bulls selected Kwame Brown, which was entirely within his expectations.
Lin Qi handed the small piece of paper with his name written on it to the staff member next to him.
Three minutes later, Stern walked to the podium for the third time and opened the envelope with the Celtics logo on it.
" The Boston Celtics selected the third pick..."
The entire arena held its breath, everyone wanting to know which gem this mastermind behind the three-peat would take away from this position.
" Tyson Chandler Chandler from Dominguez High School in California."
A huge round of applause, tinged with amazement and disbelief, erupted from the audience.
Tyson Chandler Chandler, the rough high schooler who was defended so badly by Garnett during the Boston Open that he was even caught out and blocked by Garnett, was actually picked by Boston with the third overall pick!
Chandler himself was stunned. He had thought that after that nightmarish tryout and Lin Qi's extremely harsh media comments, Boston had completely closed its doors to him. He stood up excitedly, hugged his family tightly, then put on the Celtics ' hat and strode onto the stage.
Inside the private room, Lin Qi looked at the excited high school student on the big screen, a faint smile playing on his lips.
He knew, of course, that Chandler's skills were still raw, like a half-finished product, and he also knew that the kid's mentality needed polishing. But he knew even more clearly that Chandler possessed top-tier rim protection potential and defensive coverage that were extremely rare in this league. That extremely "humiliating" public workout was nothing more than a psychological smokescreen released by Lin Qi to lower Chandler's value and ensure that he could successfully snatch him with the third pick.
The draft is still ongoing.
The selection of the fourth pick elicited another gasp from the audience.
Stern stepped onto the stage and announced a groundbreaking deal that had just been completed at the last minute.
The Chicago Bulls have struck again!
In order to fully stockpile interior talent, the Chicago Bulls almost frantically cleared out almost all of their quality rotation assets except for Kobe Brian, and traded the fourth overall pick to the Atlanta Hawks!
The entire league understood the Chicago Bulls ' management's ambition: to build a dominant twin Twin Towers in the paint around Kobe.
"Fourth pick, the Chicago Bulls selected..." Stern paused, "... Eddie Stephen Curry from Thornwood High School."
Eddie Stephen Curry, nicknamed " Baby Shark "!
On the same night, the Chicago Bulls acquired two of the top high school centers! Kwame Brown's exceptional athleticism combined with Eddie Stephen Curry's low-post dominance, along with Kobe Brian on the perimeter, instantly made Chicago's revival blueprint incredibly clear.
The Golden State Warriors selected Jason Richardson with the fifth overall pick.
The atmosphere in the arena had been pushed to a fever pitch by the Chicago Bulls ' incredible play. Then, the Boston Celtics logo appeared on the big screen again.
Sixth in line...