Just when Edison was worried about how to trade, someone came to apply for a player trade with the Magic.
Charlotte is the largest city in North Carolina and the 17th largest city in the country. It is also the second largest financial center in the United States after New York. In 1987, it hosted the city's first NBA team, the Hornets, but
Later, the Hornets moved to New Orleans during the 2002-03 season.
After the Hornets moved, Charlotte began to actively apply to the league to form a new team. On December 29, 2002, after a long period of discussion and research, the NBA Expansion Committee finally reached a consensus and approved the expansion plan.
It is not just one person who participated in the management and stock ownership of the team. Robert Johnson became the largest shareholder, and even the famous American rapper Shakey also participated in the investment. The entire home arena of the Bobcats was built in just over a year.
was completed, and other facilities and equipment were also in place. The team's mascot was named Rufus. And the famous coach Backstaff was appointed as the team's general manager and head coach. This man in the NBA
The veteran who has been working hard for nearly 30 years has become the first person in the history of the league to be a head coach and team manager concurrently.
The one who applied for a trade with the Magic was the Charlotte Bobcats.
"Hello Paul, I'm Beckstaff from Charlotte, and I'd like to make a deal with you." The voice on the phone was deep and deep.
"Hello, Mr. Backstaff, coincidentally, we also have a trading plan. I wonder if your plan can resonate with ours." Edison's eyes lit up when he heard it was a bobcat.
"Okay, let me tell you the truth. My team lacks a point guard and a center, so I hope to get your Bogans and Brandon Hunter."
After hearing this, Edison smiled secretly in his heart and said, Cao Cao Cao Cao is here. I was just thinking about how to replace these two players, and then someone came to inquire.
"So what are you going to trade for these two players?"
"You also know that we are a newly established team. I have nothing here, so I don't plan to pay anything in exchange for it?" Beckstaff said word by word.
"I don't plan to pay anything. What do you mean? This is not an evangelical church." Edison replied coldly.
"That's right, Paul, I've learned about both of these guys first. Hunter only has one year left on his contract, and you are definitely well over the luxury tax line, so you are unlikely to fulfill his contract next year.
Therefore, although we are two people, the real transaction between us is one Bogans. And Bogans’ contract is very small, less than one million, so it is difficult for us to find someone who can match it. Besides, trade him directly.
You can also reduce the salary burden by giving it to us.”
Beckstaff is indeed a veteran who has been in the league for many years. He caught the magic's Achilles' heel right away, but Edison is naturally not a fuel-efficient lamp.
"Mr. Backstaff, although your words are correct and your analysis makes sense, that's not how the accounts are calculated. I don't intend to say meaningless harsh words. Yes, we do not intend to fulfill Hunter's contract.
But if that happens, your Bobcats will compete with all the teams in the league who are short of backup centers, and it’s still unclear who will win in the end. Even if you finally sign Hunter as a free agent, I’m afraid it won’t just be the current contract price of 2.5 million. Besides,
Bogans, yes we have overpaid, but Bogans’ contract is less than 1 million, so having him or not has little impact. Compared to us, you really lack a point guard.
There aren't many point guards in free agency."
"Haha, you're right. So you mean you don't plan to trade?" Beckstaff laughed realistically, relaxing the atmosphere, and then asked pretending to be casual.
“No, on the contrary, I am interested in trading, but not them, but better candidates.”….
"Oh, there is a better candidate, which one are you referring to?" When Edison said this, Beckstaff was also confused and couldn't figure out the situation.
"Drew Gooden, what about this choice?"
In fact, when he heard that Charlotte was going to trade, Edison immediately thought of trading the two loaded contracts to them, because the Bobcats' current salary is far below the salary cap. Even with the 8 million contract, it is still under the salary cap.
Below. This is in line with the league's special standards. It does not need to abide by the transaction restriction that the salary difference does not exceed 25% plus or minus 100,000, but can be completed in the form of a special transaction. This can greatly reduce the Magic's existing salary.
, thereby meeting the requirements of Lao Pat and others.
Gooden was the No. 4 pick in the first round of 2002. He was selected by the Grizzlies at the time, but was traded to the Magic that season. However, Gooden still entered the All-Rookie Team in his rookie season and was also a figure who averaged a double-double per game.
.
When Beckstaff heard that it was Gooden, he immediately became very interested. You must know that now the Bobcats have made it clear that they want to build a team around Okafor, and Gooden can form an inside twin tower with him. Gooden is not as powerful as
Players who are vulgar but not showy are very popular with teams no matter where they go. Besides, Gooden, who averages a double-double per game, can get enough playing time, and his statistics should be able to
Further improvement. Then Beckstaff's eyes lit up and his tongue stuck out as if he had seen a naked beauty.
"Paul, you are not kidding, are you sure you are talking about Gooden, that Drew Gooden?"
Edison thought to himself, "Who the hell is Gooden?", but on the surface he was still polite.
"Yes, that's him. I'll pack Gooden, Bogans, and Hunter to exchange for yours... Wait a minute and I'll see what you have over there..."
"Okay, you can choose whatever you want." Beckstaff also knew very well that his team was full of garbage, and he wouldn't feel bad if no one was gone. Back then, the league held an expansion draft for the Bobcats before the NBA draft so that they could form
A basic team roster. Each team that joins the league first can protect up to 8 of its own players (including restricted free agents) from participating in the expansion draft, but each team must provide one player for the new team to select, and this
Players cannot be eligible to become free agents through options or ETOs. Restricted free agents are neither on the protected list nor in the expansion draft, so they can be ignored. Restricted free agents can become unrestricted free agents after being selected.
Escape (but they cannot re-sign with their former team). No team will lose more than one player in the expansion draft.
Because each team has 8 players that can be protected, the Bobcats' available targets are either with rubbish abilities or with rubbish contracts. It is impossible to have outstanding targets at all.
And Backstaff is also a refreshing person. He gritted his teeth and stamped his feet, and simply selected young and low-paid players. There was no big name. This is also the reason for the low salary of the Bobcats. So now Edison said to pick one from the team, Bakers
Taff is pure indifference.
But Gooden is different. Gooden is a player with relatively balanced skills. He has a hand shot, good offensive skills and footwork at the basket, and his style of play is also tough. Although his defensive ability is among the league's power forwards,
He can only be considered a mid-level player, but he can also average 10 rebounds per game. Overall, he is a blue-collar player with a relatively stable offense. He is 208cm tall, the same as Okafor, and can play both center and power forward positions.
Whether he and Okafor form two inside towers, or the two of them take turns playing. In a word, Gooden can directly make a leap in the Bobcats' inside strength. In addition, his contract is not bad, and he is still in his rookie period.
, with such good conditions, there is nothing to hesitate about...
So Backstaff also directly followed in the footsteps of Colangelo, Billy Knight and others.
Edison didn't have much hope at first. He just took a casual look and said that the purpose of the exchange was actually to engage in psychological warfare and stretch Beckstaff so that he could take the initiative in the subsequent conversation. He had no intention of actually getting anything in exchange.
So he opened the information and looked at the list of Bobcats lazily and aimlessly. As a result, he unexpectedly found a familiar name on the list, "It turns out that he arrived at Bobcats so early. It seems that Bobcats are not useless, and they have some good stuff."
Ah." He had a goal in mind, but on the surface Edison remained calm and made a little joke.
"How about just him, Emeka Okafor, this year's rookie?"
When Edison made the choice, Backstaff was very anxious, and he was thirsty when he was anxious, so he picked up the coffee he had brewed before and drank it while waiting. As a result, when Edison said something, Backstaff immediately sprayed
There was a table.
"Paul, please stop joking, this is meaningless." Beckstaff said helplessly.
"It's very boring. In this way, the three of us exchange for your first-round pick next year. How about protecting the top three picks?" Edison did not directly reveal his true thoughts.
Beckstaff has long heard that the new head of the Magic, Edison, has an unimaginable obsession with draft picks. Today, it seems that this is really the case.
"No, at least the top five must be protected." Beckstaff knows the rules and the strength of the Bobcats very well. With the current strength of the Bobcats, even with Gooden, they will definitely be in the bottom three, but the top three are not
This means the top three picks in the draft. Because all teams that have not entered the playoffs can participate in the lottery for the top three picks, even for the teams with the top three picks, the protection of the top three picks is still not
an insurance plan.
In fact, Edison did not point to Beckstaff to agree, but just gave it a try. So, if there is any chance, he will be hit three times first. It would be best if the Bobcat agreed, because Edison remembered Paul in 2005.
It's the fourth pick, just in case you get lucky. If you don't agree, forget it, and you can accept the protection of the top four picks.
However, Beckstaff's proposal to protect the top five picks was unacceptable to Edison, because originally, historically, the Bobcats were the fifth pick. Although everything is uncertain now, what if, what if, we still go by history?
, the Bobcats are really the No. 5 pick, then Edison will be a pure Lei Feng.
"In that case, the top four will be protected, and then I will choose someone at random. To be honest, Beckstaff, you should also know that if there is no miracle in the new season, you will definitely be in the bottom three. If that is the case, according to your
When talking about top 5 protection, you must be the third from the bottom, and the three picks drawn are all picked by the teams ranked fourth from the bottom or above, so that we can get your pick. This probability is too small, it is almost
It's impossible to happen. But in terms of protection in the top four, as long as you are not the worst, then we can still have a glimmer of hope. Besides, Gooden was the No. 4 pick at the beginning, so it is not too much to give you the protection of the No. 4 pick now.
Yes or no?"
In fact, Edison said that Beckstaff knew that if it was a top-5 protection, it would be almost impossible for the Magic to get this pick in the end. As the saying goes, when you are a person, you should leave a thin line so that you can meet each other easily in the future, so Becks
Taff was relieved.
"Okay then, just protect the top four picks. And who else do you plan to replace?"
"Then it's him, Gerald Wallace. Without Gooden, Marion will definitely go to power forward. It's not safe for our small forward to be left with only Hill."
Beckstaff originally wanted to see who Edison would choose, because Edison was famous in the league for his data summary and analysis. If the person he chose was the same as his intuition, then he would disagree and ask him to change to someone else. But Jay
Ladd Wallace, this person is really not a potential stock in Beckstaff’s mind…
After all, Wallace was just a rough guy in the Kings for three years. Although he had the ability to shoot the ball, he didn't have any spirituality in his game. It's not like he had stayed in a place like the Kings where the offense was full of poetry, romance, and imagination.
His appearance shows how low his basketball IQ is. In other words, his defense is tough and his physical fitness is relatively good, but there are too many leagues with this kind of physical fitness. But Beckstaff still has a question.
"Don't you have the No. 1 power forward in Howard?" When Howard first entered the league, because he was only 206cm tall, he was considered a power forward rather than a center.
"Oh, you said Howard, after our examination, he can still grow taller, so we will train him to play center."
Listening to Edison's additional explanation, the previous choice is very reasonable. Howard plays center, and without Gooden, the Magic's more reliable power forward is Uncle Huo, so it is inevitable that Marion's position will be improved.
At that time, the Magic really had just Hill as a small forward, as Edison said, and Hill's appearance rate was famous in the league. So it was reasonable for Edison to choose a small forward like Wallace. At this time, he was a millionaire.
Never would have thought that Gerald Wallace would later grow into Elvis Presley and achieve even higher results than Okafor.
For Beckstaff, he originally planned to get Bogans and Hunter, but unexpectedly he got an unexpected bonus. He got the almighty insider Gooden. Naturally, he was so satisfied that his nose was so beautiful that snot bubbles came out.
The Magic, on the other hand, cut wages and acquired future potential player Wallace as well as a good first-round draft pick. This can be regarded as an explanation for everyone, and it is acceptable.
So the two sides easily reached a consensus.
The Magic traded Gooden, Hunter and Bogans to the Bobcats for Gerald Wallace and a top-four protected pick in the 2005 first round.
No one scolded Edison for this trade by the Magic. After all, the purpose of the trade was to reduce the luxury tax, and this purpose has been achieved perfectly. Gooden 410+Hunter 230+Bogans 60 totaled 7 million.
Wallace's salary is 1.65 million, and his salary has been reduced by 5.35 million to 60.89 million. After calculation, the expenses for next season have been reduced by more than 10 million, which can be said to have an obvious effect. (Originally, he had to pay 535.
If your salary exceeds the luxury tax, you have to pay a tax of 535, which adds up to more than 10 million.)
Then Edison notified De Klerk and his agent that the team does not intend to honor the last year of your original contract and that you will become a free agent from now on. But since you are also a veteran of the Magic,
Yu Qingyi, now I'm offering you a one-year veteran's basic salary contract, it's up to you whether you accept it or not.
De Klerk is 31 years old and has played in the league for 10 years. It is impossible for another team to want him after leaving the Magic, so he can only accept it. In fact, De Klerk was originally fulfilling his last duty.
After signing a 250-year contract, he had nothing to play for and sadly retired.
As a result, the Magic's salary was cut by another 1.5 million, falling to 59.39 million, which initially met the requirements of Pat Lao and others.
The Magic's current lineup has 13 players. Centers: Howard, Varejao, De Klerk; Power forwards: Josh Smith, Uncle Huo; Small forwards: Marion, Hill, Gerald Wallace, Boris
Diaw (Here Marion and Diaw can play as power forwards and shooting guards: Iguodala, Tony Allen, and Kevin Martin (all three can play as point guards. Point guard: Nash.
It can be said that the staff is well organized, the troops are strong, and the sword is far ahead of the next season.
We can really only stay away from it because there are still more than 3 months.
