Chapter 938: Chapter 560 That Man_2 Chapter 938: Chapter 560 That Man_2 Van Gundy didn’t like this pick, because no matter how one looked at it, McGee needed time to develop, and he wasn’t the kind of player who was ready to battle right away.

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Did the GOAT have time to wait for him?

Not good, he might leave next summer.

Therefore, Van Gundy’s choice was Bradley Beal.

“This young man has the potential to be a better scorer than Eric Gordon,” Van Gundy said, “In my opinion, he could easily average 20 points per game in the NBA, and moreover, his position and playing style would not clash with those of Brandon Roy.”

Another Chris Broussard also chose McGee.

The reason was not much different from Bias: he felt that without Anthony Davis, McGee was the ideal choice for the second pick.

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It’s said that laypeople enjoy the show, but professionals see the essence.

Being an NBA general manager is a job that requires a high level of professional theory, and while it seems like those in this job are all smart, the history of the NBA is filled with foolish trades and drafts.

So, here’s a counterintuitive phenomenon.

Smart GMs are actually the minority.

Presti was one of the few smart people in management, and from the start, he disregarded the highly praised McGee.

He didn’t have foresight, couldn’t see into the future, and he might have been wrong, but he just felt that McGee’s technical shortcomings were already so large that his talent and great character couldn’t make up for them.

This is one of the most unfair things in professional basketball.

Because McGee was a wing, which is the position that demands the most in terms of overall quality.

To become a great wing, having great talent and character is not enough; one also needs great technique.

McGee was the antonym of great technique; his skills would drag down his development, and thus slow his progress.

Presti couldn’t be optimistic about McGee’s future, and moreover, their urgent priority was to change Yu Fei’s perception of the team.

Since the season ended, Yu Fei had been staying in Los Angeles.

Looking back, during the entire lockout season, Yu Fei’s life revolved around Los Angeles.

His Hollywood career was flourishing, his fiancée was an ambitious actress, and while Seattle might have the world’s most affluent middle class, if one wanted to go further in Hollywood, staying in Los Angeles was the right path.

Negative emotions pervaded the Supersonics’ internals, which was not what a four-time championship team should have.

It was as if the 1998 Bulls had lost Pippen and Rodman, but Jordan hadn’t retired, and while people had reason to believe their championship window had closed, was it necessary to feel hopeless?

Yu Fei’s estrangement from the team gave the management a sense of crisis.

This made it necessary for Presti to think beyond “Whether this person is suitable for the team” when considering the second draft pick.

McGee wouldn’t do, Bradley Beal seemed like the perfect pick, but Presti’s gaze fell on two others.

Duke University’s sophomore guard Kyrie Irving and Weber State University’s Damian Lillard.

From a positional standpoint, these two would clash with Roy.

But Roy, by nature, was a shooting guard who had evolved into the league’s top combo guard alongside Yu Fei.

Presti wanted to break this pattern.

He liked Irving’s talent and appreciated Lillard’s readiness for battle and his character. If McGee was great in everything except talent, then Lillard had great skills and character, while Irving had great skills.

However, the impact of carrying the burden of greatness is different for different positions.

Presti’s heart ran wild towards Irving and Lillard like an untamed horse.

In the face of talent that could be developed and a reliable character with strong immediate combat capability, Presti leaned towards the former.

He didn’t know if Irving could be better than Lillard, but he had to consider the possibility that Yu Fei might leave, and if things took a turn for the worst, they would at least have an Irving who could continue to develop.

Roy’s personal interests were not within Presti’s consideration at this point.

Because Roy was a good guy, he liked to consider the big picture, he even risked coming back in the playoffs for the sake of honor, and he had the title of Seattle’s son, so he was the least likely of the Supersonic players to leave.

Such a person is naturally easy to become a victim.

When Presti made decisions, he wouldn’t consider Roy’s thoughts, because Roy himself would sacrifice his interests for the team.

So, the decisive moment arrived.

Stern stepped forward, faced the audience, and announced the SuperSonics’ pick.

“In the 2012 NBA Draft, the Seattle SuperSonics select… Kyrie Irving from Duke University!”

It was an absolutely unexpected choice. Before this, Irving, although a top-five favorite, was a point guard—a ball-dominant one at that. Despite showing great skill in his second college season, convincing many of his potential All-Star caliber, how would he coexist with Yu Fei and Roy?

Everyone was shocked by the outcome.

Including Irving himself.

He had been prepared to fall to the fourth or fifth pick because the SuperSonics wouldn’t choose him, and the Cavaliers already had John Wall, so they wouldn’t pick him either.

His most likely team was the Wizards.

Yet, with all eyes on them, the SuperSonics made the most show-effective choice.

“I’m actually going to be teammates with the GOAT?”

As Irving walked towards Stern on stage, his mind brimmed with all sorts of wild ideas.

He wasn’t as pessimistic about his future as the outside world was.

“Congratulations, kid,” Stern said with a smile as he embraced Irving, “Welcome to the NBA.”

Irving couldn’t help asking, “Mr. Commissioner, what kind of person is Frye?”

“A good man.” Stern replied with a sardonic smile, “You can’t stay up here; go on, go take the interviews below!”

It was a tone that contained a command, but Irving didn’t pay it much attention.

The ripple effect of the entire draft was spreading.

It took half a minute before a few at ESPN came to their senses.

“Sam Presti really picked someone unforeseeable!”

Webber immediately sought Van Gundy’s opinion, “Jeff, what do you think about the SuperSonics’ choice?”

Van Gundy’s receding hairline seemed illuminated as he smiled subtly, “That’s exactly the question I want to ask Frye right now.”

Yu Fei himself didn’t pay attention to this year’s draft.

It wasn’t until Presti called to tell him the team’s confirmed number two pick that he realized, oh, it’s Draft Day?

“Whatever, you guys decide,” said Yu Fei.

So when he heard Presti say they were selecting Irving, he was quite surprised.

“Really?” Yu Fei said, “Okay then.”

Yu Fei having no objections was the best news Presti could have hoped for.

With peace of mind, Presti made the choice.

Meanwhile, Yu Fei was pondering other things.

Has it been that long?

To Yu Fei, Irving could be called his basketball enlightenment in a past life, or rather, it was Irving’s intriguing ball-handling moves and killer mentality in clutch moments that got him interested in basketball.

However, as he neared puberty, the things Irving did became less comprehensible to him.

Gradually, he was no longer a fan of Irving.

Time flew by, and he found himself in another world, until today, when Irving showed up at the draft and, by some twist of fate, ended up on his team.

He was almost a full cycle older than Irving, who definitely had the right to say he grew up watching Yu Fei play.

How incredibly ironic was this twist?

In the end, Yu Fei accepted the outcome. To him, Irving was like the initial Durant, an interesting figure worthy of observation but ultimately one who would part ways with him.

This time, however, the one to leave might just as well be himself.