Bishop of the Devil

The next evening, the draft officially began.

"Li, I haven't seen any movement from your Blazers this year. Are they not going to take action this year like they did in 1997?" Many coaches or team management who are familiar with Richard, saw Richard coming, and they started to fight. Say hello.

Richard smiled and waved his hand: "If you have a goal, the quality this year is pretty good..."

As soon as they heard this, everyone laughed. As long as the quality was good, what they were most afraid of was that this was a bad year for the draft, and they would pick a bunch of stinky tomatoes and rotten eggs.

However, there are six Purdue players participating in the draft this year, and it is unlikely that this will be a bad year for the draft.

"Li, I heard that the enrollment situation at Purdue University this year is not very good?" Adelman asked with a smile.

Richard nodded, "It's really not that good. Only one of my favorite players joins Purdue. The next season will be a difficult time for Purdue. The record of five consecutive championships may be abruptly ended." And that’s it…”

Thinking of this, Richard couldn't help but smile bitterly.

"It's not bad, five consecutive championships, God, it's scary to think about it! Except for UCLA, which was lucky back then, no one can win five consecutive championships..."

"Even if we are in the middle of the record now, it is actually a good thing, just like the Bulls did, establishing two dynasties, haha..." Adelman patted Richard on the shoulder and said with a smile.

Richard nodded. Adelman was right. Even if Purdue does not win the championship this year, it is actually not a bad thing for Purdue...

…

Because there was still some time before the draft started, coaches or management gathered in groups to chat.

Richard took a look and saw that there were about three groups in the venue.

The first group is the group headed by Jackson Jackson and Jerry Sloan. These two people hooked up together at some point. They are also surrounded by Danny Ainge, Carlesimo, Tang Shuai and others...

The second group is headed by Popovich, surrounded by Larry Brown, Old Dunleavy, Gentry, George Irving, George Karl and others...

Among them, the old Dunleavy is actually the father of Mike Dunleavy, whom Richard recruited before.

Now Richard almost understands why Dunleavy Jr. refused to join Purdue because his father is a member of Popovich's group...

Dunleavy Sr. played for the Spurs during his playing career and had a good relationship with Larry Brown.

Later, before the 1996 offseason, Dunleavy Sr. thought about finding a head coach position with the Trail Blazers, but the Trail Blazers rejected him and directly invited Richard.

Under normal circumstances, in the 1995-96 season, Dunleavy Sr. coached the Bucks, and in the 97-98 season, he began to coach the Trail Blazers. He also coached for many years and won the honor of the best coach...

It's a pity that with the emergence of Richard, he has no chance to get involved as the Blazers' coach.

Now the elder Dunleavy serves as the team operations manager in the Bucks...

…

The third group in the venue was Richard's group.

Nelson, Wilkens, Adelman, Grizzlies head coach Brian Hill, Larry Bird, Timberwolves head coach Saunders, new Bulls head coach Laimbeer...

And the Washington Wizards front office.

There is no doubt that among these three groups, Richard's side is higher in terms of number of people and alliance status...

Nelson, Wilkens and Adelman are all veteran head coaches in the league.

Richard and Bird are the most successful rookie head coaches in the league right now.

…

Judging from the situation inside the venue, the relationship between the head coaches is actually not as harmonious as the fans thought.

Factional strife.

Of course, this is also a situation that only emerged after Richard entered the league. Before Richard came to the NBA, even if the head coaches of each team had a bad relationship, they would at least chat a few words when they met.

But now they form cliques and maintain boundaries.

…

I'm afraid the entire league is aware of Richard's temperament, such as Larry Brown. Although Richard didn't say it explicitly, Richard had never had any communication with the coaches who were good friends with Larry Brown.

…

"Hi Lee, so nice to meet you!"

Richard was chatting with a few coaches he was close to, when suddenly a middle-aged black man came over.

Several old coaches frowned. They didn't recognize the man in front of them. This man rashly stepped forward to interrupt their conversation, which seemed very rude.

Richard was also startled and looked intently...

This middle-aged black man looked quite familiar. After thinking about it carefully, he suddenly discovered that the man who took the initiative to join in the fun was none other than Doc Rivers.

Rivers just became the head coach of the Magic a few days ago. He had never served as the head coach of any team before and was not well-known in the NBA.

It's no wonder that some old guys don't know Rivers at all.

He came to participate in the draft on behalf of the Magic today. He originally wanted to get to know the head coach more and expand his network.

After entering the venue, I was dumbfounded...

The coaching group is divided into three groups, like three small gangs. He is not a fool. He knows that if he rashly joins a group, it may have an impact on his future development.

After pondering for a long time, he finally found the target.

Richard...

His target is Richard.

Everyone is a young coach, and Richard is a small group with quite a few senior coaches. If he can get into this small circle, it will be of countless benefit to him in the future.

Therefore, he rushed over enthusiastically and said hello to Richard.

"You are?" Wilkens frowned and looked at Rivers dissatisfied.

Wilkens is a head coach who was born as a star. During his playing career, he had a domineering style. Now that he is a head coach, he is also very domineering...

Watching him coach the Eagles in games, he would often stand with his hands on his hips, like a bandit leader, shouting angrily at the court.

When asked by Wilkens, Rivers blushed and laughed.

"I forgot to introduce myself. I am Doc Rivers, the new head coach of the Magic. I would like some guidance from my seniors in the future."

Rivers is also good at what he says, and what he says is very nice.

After hearing Rivers announcing his home, several old guys looked better...

Richard didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Why did this idiot Rivers come to him? Looking at his attitude, he was going to follow him in the future?

"Hello, Doug, nice to meet you!" Richard smiled and stretched out his hand.

Rivers shook hands with Richard with a smile on his face. Originally he was worried that Richard would not look down on him, but now it seems that Richard is quite easy to talk to.

"Lee, the relationship between our group of people is so good, can't you give us some guidance on the draft?" Timberwolves head coach Sanders said with a smile.

He has always said that he and Richard are fellow villagers...

Both are coaches from the Big Ten Conference. In fact, they are incomparable...

After hearing what Sanders said, several people clamored for Richard to give them some guidance before the draft started.

Old Nelson and Wilkens smiled and said nothing. They had already gained something from Richard.

"I don't have anything to recommend. If you can choose Purdue players, try to choose Purdue players..."

"Among our group, the Bulls are the No. 1 pick, Laimbeer, but don't tell me that you Bulls don't know who to choose..." Richard looked at Laimbeer and said with a smile.

Laimbeer laughed naively: "It must be Brand. God, I'm afraid any team that has the No. 1 pick in their hands will definitely choose Brand!"

Laimbeer is right, because there is only one reliable big man this year, Brand. If other teams had the No. 1 pick, they would definitely choose Brand.

"Then it's over. You must choose Brand. Do you still need my guidance..."

Richard said speechlessly.

"But our Timberwolves, Lee, we are the sixth pick, and we will definitely be able to select a Purdue player. Tell us, who is more suitable for us to choose, or who do you think is the sixth pick from Purdue this year? The potential is greater..." Sanders asked eagerly.

Richard waved his hand: "It's all the same, man, there are players from Purdue University, and facts have proven that they are all good players! You can choose the one that suits you, not the best one..."

"Now that Barry has joined the Timberwolves, your goal now should be to choose a player who is good at defense and has ability off the ball, right?"

"Do I even need to say this? Do you really have no plan in mind..."

Richard was still speechless. Regardless of whether it was the Bulls or the Timberwolves, they actually already had plans. They just wanted to get more information from Richard.

Sanders smiled and nodded. Naturally, they already had a plan, with Szczerbiak as the first choice and Hamilton as the backup. Both of them are very suitable for the Timberwolves' lineup.

…

"What about that round pick? Li, are there any reliable players here..." Several people spoke. In fact, their main purpose was to ask Richard about the second round pick.

If the second-round pick can miss out, then he will really make a big deal.

Richard picked up powerful players in the second round for three consecutive years, such as Big Ben in 1996, Warriors Jackson in 1997, and Mobley in 1998.

"Yes, there is, but there is only one..." Richard said with a smile.

There was a look of regret on everyone's faces. There was only one fish that slipped through the net. Unless Richard was crazy, he would tell them who this fish that slipped through the net was...

Old Nelson smiled bitterly after hearing Richard's words.

He knew that Richard's purpose in trading the second-round pick was to get this fish that slipped through the net, and for this he paid for Li Nailong, a good player.

In fact, in Nelson's opinion, Li Nailong can be regarded as a fish that slipped through the net...

But obviously in Richard's view, Li Nailong is not a fish that slipped through the net at all, and is nothing at all.

It's really annoying to compare people to each other.