You have to know this guy's height, but he looks more like an inside player than Draymond Green.
Although both of them are older rookies, Festus Ezeli is 2.11 meters tall.
And historically, the Warriors also used this draft pick to select Festus Ezeli.
Although after that, Festus Ezeli's performance was not very satisfactory, especially as a 'glass jade'.
But that is the future, and not everyone can predict it.
For now, whether it is to choose a player with immediate combat power inside or from the perspective of the player's future talent and potential, Festus Ezeli is more reliable than Draymond.
But……
"I've been intercepted... sickle, what should I do now?"
Donnie Wash was also a little dumbfounded. He didn't expect to be cut off, but the Knicks only prepared this one spot.
Since it felt like they were stuck, they didn't even have an alternative.
However, now the NBA staff will come to collect the Knicks' draft envelope soon.
The most important thing now is to quickly select a player.
In this regard, everyone on the draft team has set their sights on Lian Dao, and Donnie Wash is no exception.
Lian Dao looked at the expectant eyes of this group of people and suddenly felt very speechless.
"Isn't this supposed to be your fucking job?"
"Why do you always push me to the front to be the fire captain in the end?"
"I didn't get an extra salary as a general manager."
Of course, if Lian Dao is willing, I believe James Dolan will definitely be willing to give it.
Lian Dao rolled his eyes helplessly, but he really had two candidates in mind.
Khris Middleton and Jae Crowder!
Both of these guys are players who came back from the second round.
Especially Jae Crowder, his historical growth trajectory moved everyone.
It can be called a successful counterattack by a diaosi!
Since college, I have fought back from the second-level league to the first-level league.
After entering the NBA, Jae Crowder was often used as a trading chip by various teams.
Throughout his career, Jae Crowder has lived a life of ups and downs.
Even from the moment he was drafted, he began to experience a trading career.
But he never gave up on himself.
In each trading center, he kept himself angry at all times and turned this anger into motivation for progress.
Evolve, evolve, evolve...
Finally, in Salt Lake City, he completed the transformation from offense to defense and truly became a qualified 3D player.
From James to Durant, from Antetokounmpo to Butler, that year, Jae Crowder almost guarded all the top 3-position players in the league.
How effective is the prevention?
The Jazz's data tells everyone the answer:
In the 2017-18 season, the Jazz's defensive efficiency was 102.9, ranking first in the league!
But when history changes, can he still remain angry?
Can he still bloom like he did in his last life?
Can he still become an indispensable and ultimate puzzle piece on the road to the championship?
In the past, Lian Dao felt that under his leadership, there would be no big problems.
However, today's changes let him know that there are some things that he cannot decide...
"Kris Middleton!"
Lian Dao took a deep breath and named another player he was optimistic about.
Some people may be born to grow up wandering.
Suffering is not worthy of praise, but sometimes it is the catalyst for a player to complete his transformation.
"Kris Middleton? But according to the scouting report, his talent is not very outstanding, and he also suffered a torn meniscus in his right knee during college, so he is at great risk of injury!"
Donnie Wash also knows about this older rookie who is suitable for the third position.
Creative mid-range scorer, but lacks explosiveness and aggression.
But if that were the case, his draft stock would not drop to the second round.
The main reason was the injury problems during college, which caused this older rookie to fall to the second round.
If not for injuries, Middleton should be between the 15th and 20th picks in the first round.
But it's also because of injuries that some teams don't want to bet on Middleton's future.
"There is a risk of injury, but it's not a big problem. Besides, do we have any other options?"
"At least Middleton still has potential. If he can grow up smoothly, he will become an excellent wing scorer with his shooting ability."
"Of course, if you have a better choice, you can also choose other players!"
Lian Dao is also helpless. It is pure nonsense for Middleton to say that he has no talent.
The future second-in-command of the Bucks, the man who helped Antetokounmpo win a championship, a three-time All-Star player...
How could such a player have no talent? He just doesn't have outstanding talent.
But Middleton is a very hard-working player.
Although Middleton's current shooting is excellent, it is only limited to the mid-range.
Historically, he truly completed his transformation when he developed a stable three-point shooting and became a wing scorer.
The most important thing is that historically, after receiving a big contract, Middleton remained focused on basketball and continued to improve his shortcomings.
Even from 18 to 22, Middleton worked hard on three-pointers in four seasons and increased the proportion of three-pointers in games to 40%.
In addition, he is responsible for more positional attacks and one-on-one tough solutions, making up for Antetokounmpo's shooting shortcomings.
The most important thing is that his shooting frequency with the ball reaches 50%, and his effective shooting rate exceeds 50%.
This is an efficiency achieved when the ratio of three-pointers with the ball has nearly doubled, which can be said to be a huge improvement.
Completed the transformation from a wing fixed-point shooter to an all-around scorer.
The Knicks can take him with the 30th pick, and they will not lose money whether they keep him for themselves in the future or trade him for a higher bargaining chip.
However, the room the Knicks can give him for growth is not very large.
At the third position, although Gallinari will choose to leave this summer, Jimmy Butler is still there.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! If Middleton wants to show off in the Knicks, he must work harder and perform better than in history.
There is no way, championship teams are so cruel.
Especially in a team as talented as the Knicks, the competition is even more brutal.
In the end, Donnie Wash followed Lian Dao's advice.
This is not to say that Donny Walsh is a manager without any ideas.
Instead, he really looked through the list of trial players in his mind and found that there really wasn't anything suitable.
The most important thing is that the Knicks' 30th pick is really embarrassing.
A player with outstanding talent and potential cannot fall into this position.
The remaining players are a bit useless for the Knicks, whose goal is to become a dynasty next season.
It feels like: It’s tasteless to eat and it’s a pity to throw it away!
Simply, Donnie Wash listened to Lian Dao's opinion, wrote Middleton's name, and then submitted it.
After selecting Middleton, the Knicks still have a second-round pick.
However, Donny Wash really felt that he couldn't find any treasure, so he simply traded his second-round pick to the Portland Trail Blazers.
…
The draft after that won't have much to do with the Knicks.
At this time, Donnie Wash also raised the matter of contract renewal with Lian Dao.
When it came to contract extensions, both James Dolan and Donny Walsh were generous and offered a five-year, 103 million contract extension.
From the contract amount, it can be seen that James Dolan is indeed sincere.
The contract the Heat offered James in 2010 was only 6 years and 110 million.
But that's still James' third contract, and Lian Dao is just a rookie contract extension.
Although there is a "Lian Dao Clause", Lian Dao's second contract is larger than that of some stars.
But in fact, Lian Dao's second contract can only get a maximum salary contract that accounts for 30% of the team's salary cap.
Within this scope, James Dolan showed the greatest sincerity (amount).
Lian Dao has no objection to the contract amount, but further negotiation is needed on some contract details.
Lian Dao also left it to the brokerage team to communicate on this point.
However, Lian Dao and the Knicks have reached an agreement on the initial contract renewal.
The preliminary agreement to renew the contract with Lian Dao also made Donny Walsh secretly relieved.
You know, there are quite a few general managers and owners of major teams who contact Lian Dao openly or secretly.
Donnie Wash isn't worried that any team will pay more than the Knicks.
Not that James Dorando is rich.
Rather, if Lian Dao does not choose to renew his second contract with the Knicks, he can only sign a contract that accounts for 20% of the team's salary cap.
Of course, the amount is only one thing. Who knows if these team owners secretly used other methods to lure Lian Dao.
Although Lian Dao did not clearly express his position on the quotations of some teams.
But even so, Donny Wash is still worried that his boss's cash cow will be poached.
The cash cow has been poached, will New York still have its own place?