The Boston Celtics president's office on the eve of the draft.
Amidst the turbulent trade market, Boston acquired the 7th overall pick in the first round of the New York Knicks draft from the New Jersey Nets by sending Kirilenko and Wang Zhizhi.
The Milwaukee Bucks approached them as soon as the high draft pick was secured.
The Milwaukee Bucks have been struggling in the mire for a long time. The team's core Big Dog, Glenn Robinson, has been plagued by off-court problems. He is not only a locker room cancer, but his long and cumbersome contract is also a major hindrance. In order to get rid of this trouble, the Milwaukee Bucks' management is extremely eager to trade up the value chain.
Their offer was simple and straightforward: Glenn Robinson, plus the Milwaukee Bucks ' 13th overall pick in this year's draft, in exchange for Boston's 7th overall pick.
Lin Qi agreed to the trade, but with one condition: the Milwaukee Bucks had to acquire Anfernee Hardaway as a tiebreaker.
For the Milwaukee Bucks, although Hardaway's contract, like Big Dog's, was notoriously long and cumbersome, Hardaway had a mild personality and extremely high professionalism, still averaging 12 points per game last season. After weighing the options, the Milwaukee Bucks' management decided to make the trade, trading a locker room cancer for a quality veteran who could stabilize the team and ensure a smooth transition, plus the 7th overall pick in the first round.
Trading the No. 7 pick for the No. 13 pick and getting rid of Hardaway was just the first step.
The real problem is that Boston currently has two bloated contracts on its roster: Vin Baker (acquired from Seattle ) and Glenn Robinson (acquired from the Milwaukee Bucks ).
These two ticking time bombs must be defuse completely before the trade is officially reported to the league.
Lin Qi set his sights on the Los Angeles Clippers and their owner, Donald Sterling, who is arguably the most eccentric person in the entire league.
Looking at the NBA as a whole, Sterling's team-building philosophy is quite distorted. He is operating the Clippers as a "real estate project" in Los Angeles: buy in good locations ( Los Angeles ), invest as little as possible, and rely on league revenue sharing, arenas, and visiting star players to sell tickets.
Sterling doesn't care how bad the team's record is; all he cares about is the cost. For the past two decades, he has vehemently opposed offering long-term contracts to the young core players he's nurtured. Countless high-draft lottery picks in Clippers history have left the team after proving their worth because Sterling refused to pay them. At the same time, Sterling desperately needs "star players" to appear in Los Angeles to sell tickets. He even goes so far as to frequently advertise visiting team stars in Los Angeles ("Come see Jordan / Barkley play the Clippers!"), or bring in a few big-name but past-their-prime semi-stars to bolster the team's appeal.
Lin Qi packaged Ving Baker and Glenn Robinson together, along with an irresistible lure for Sterling: the 16th overall pick in the first round of the 2002 NBA draft (acquired in a previous Pistons draft trade).
Although the Clippers had just acquired Stephen Marbury in a previous trade, their total salary was still shockingly low on the eve of the draft... less than $20 million. They had a massive $20 million in Clippers space before the league's salary cap. If they used that space to sign two more contracts, the Clippers could instantly assemble a very impressive roster on paper.
For Sterling, he didn't care whether Vin Baker had declined in form and become an alcoholic, nor did he care whether " Big Dog " Glenn Robinson was a troublemaker in the locker room. He only cared about their "reputation": Vin Baker was at least an All-Star caliber center who once averaged 20 points and 10 rebounds per game, and he also averaged 14 points per game last season. And " Big Dog " Glenn Robinson was still able to consistently score 22 points per game for the Milwaukee Bucks last season.
If the trade goes through, the Clippers will have an incredible lineup of three superstars: Stephen Marbury, Glenn Robinson, and Vin Baker. This roster, whose fame far exceeds its actual value, might be a disaster in the regular season, but it would be a perfect showcase that would generate massive hype and frantically sell tickets in the Los Angeles market.
What's more, he gets the 16th overall pick in the first round for free as compensation, and can just sign a minimum salary contract for the rest.
The Clippers unsurprisingly agreed to take over, using their salary cap space to acquire all the assets.
On the eve of the draft, while the entire league's management was still scrambling to prepare for the draft, Boston had already completed a series of complex asset transfers.
The original 7th pick was moved down to the 13th pick. Lin Qi only paid the price of the 16th pick to completely clear out the contracts of Hardaway, Vin Baker, and Glenn Robinson.
With all obstacles cleared, Boston, with its healthy salary structure and draft picks, awaits the ringing of the bells at Madison Square Garden.
[Draft pick assets]
2002 first-round draft pick (from the Milwaukee Bucks, acquired in a trade involving Vin Baker and Glenn Robinson ): 13th overall in the first round.
2002 first-round draft pick (from the Portland Trail Blazers, Rasheed Wallace trade): 21st overall in the first round.
2002 first-round draft pick (from the Sacramento Kings, Eddie Jones trade): 28th overall in the first round.
2002 first-round draft pick (owned by the Boston Celtics ): 29th overall in the first round.
2003 first-round draft pick (from the Miami Heat, traded for Sean Battier, top-three protected).
2003 first-round draft pick (from the Chicago Bulls, acquired in the Tracy McGrady trade, unprotected).
2003 first-round draft pick (from Phoenix Suns, traded for Anfernee Hardaway, unprotected).
2003 first-round draft pick (from the Seattle SuperSonics, traded for Gary Payton, unprotected).
2003 first-round draft pick (from the San Antonio Spurs, traded for Bruce Bowen, unprotected).
2003 second-round draft pick (from the Golden State Warriors, traded for Troy Murphy, unprotected).
2004 first-round draft pick (from the Philadelphia 76ers, acquired in a trade to the Pistons, unprotected).
2005 first-round draft pick (from the Chicago Bulls, traded for Tracy McGrady, unprotected).
2005 first-round draft pick (from the Miami Heat, traded for Sean Battier, unprotected).
2005 first-round draft pick (from Phoenix Suns, traded for Anfernee Hardaway, unprotected).
2005 first-round draft pick (from the Seattle SuperSonics, traded for Gary Payton, unprotected).
2005 first-round draft pick (from the San Antonio Spurs, traded for Bruce Bowen, unprotected).
2007 first-round draft pick (from the Phoenix Suns, traded for Anfernee Hardaway, unprotected).
2007 first-round draft pick (from the Seattle SuperSonics, traded for Gary Payton, unprotected).
2009 first-round draft pick (from Phoenix Suns, traded for Anfernee Hardaway, unprotected).
2009 first-round draft pick (from the Seattle SuperSonics, traded for Gary Payton, unprotected).