Bishop of the Devil

After talking to Paul Allen on the phone, Richard recalled his previous impression of Tiana.

A rather shy little girl, she looks somewhat similar to the popular Ansany Hathaway...

Richard remembered the last time they met. This little girl must have just turned eighteen. Two years have passed and she is now twenty years old.

Girls of this age are full of fantasies about life, which is commonly known as dreaming...

Even if he is the daughter of the Allen family, I am afraid he cannot avoid this problem.

Richard is a realist. If he was born into a super-rich family like the Allen family, I guess he would be a super playboy and a prodigal...

Come to a shitty place like Detroit? No way, he will definitely be based in Los Angeles.

Although he felt that this matter was a bit baffling, Richard didn't take it to heart. He came as soon as he came. He would take him around Detroit with him when the time came, and he would be able to deal with Paul Allen...

…

The All-Star Weekend had just ended, and Richard's phone was buzzing with calls.

Mainly because Richard released the news before the All-Star Game and put the team's Nocioni, Crawford, Arenas and Birdman Anderson on the shelf...

What completely surprised Richard was that Crawford and Arenas didn't seem to be valued very much. Basically no one inquired about these two people anyway.

On the contrary, Nocioni and Birdman Anderson, who were less well-known in later generations, attracted more attention from various teams.

Richard thought about it and it seemed to make sense...

Nocioni is in the Pistons. Even though he doesn't have much playing time, his presence is quite strong.

The defense on the court is quite tough, even if you want to say that his defense is dirty...

A bright shoulder and a small flying kick from the hidden elbow, that's what makes him perfect!

Even though everyone is denouncing players with dirty playing styles, thinking that they violate competitive ethics, if such a team could go to their home team, I guess they would welcome it with both hands...

Nocioni's defense is very tough and he can defend from position 2 to position 4. Of course, the target player guarding position 4 must not be a very sturdy power forward...

On the offensive end, the breakthrough ability is quite strong. Although the basket is not stable, it is reasonable and can be used completely.

It makes perfect sense for such a player to be the favorite of every team.

As for Birdman Anderson's popularity, there is no other reason. The only reason is that this guy is an inside player who plays the fourth position.

No matter what kind of player they are, in this league right now, young insiders are valuable...

In terms of strength, Anderson is naturally not as good as Okur, but his defense and athletic ability make every team quite envious.

For such a young insider, who knows where his upper limit is. You must know that this is the player that Richard likes. No matter how bad he is, how bad he can be.

For those teams that are not very strong, the current Birdman Anderson is fully qualified to start.

He is still very young at the moment, but if his strength improves significantly in the future, he will make a lot of money.

The reason why Richard was willing to sell Birdman Anderson was actually because he felt that Anderson was a bit useless, mainly because he had no offensive ability and no value in cultivating...

If you really want to cultivate him, Richard feels that David Lee is more valuable to cultivate than Anderson.

Since David Lee has confirmed that he will participate in the 2003 draft, Richard might as well take this opportunity to sell Anderson first. Anyway, even if he enters the playoffs, Anderson will definitely not get too many performance opportunities.

The team has Yao Ming, Clark plus a Boozer, and Richard also has a mid-level injury reel and a intact Dan, which basically guarantees that the Pistons have enough inside.

…

It's not that no one wants Crawford and Arenas, their value is not too high...

…

"Mike, you have to give me a price, and then we can discuss whether to give you Anderson..." Richard said to the devil Bibby in a rather speechless manner.

Bibby has called every few hours in the past two years, but what left Richard speechless was that this guy never mentioned the chips.

"Coach, I told you, no matter what chips others offer, we will follow them as they are." Bibby was also a bachelor, so he directly offered a bargain that Richard could not refuse.

But just because Bibby said this, Richard felt even more painful.

Because the Kings really don't have much leverage at the moment, and their regular season record is so good that their draft picks are quite worthless...

For a young insider who seems to have unlimited potential, Richard can't just sell a pick at the bottom of the first round. That would be an absolute loss.

Therefore, even if Bibby sells his face to beg Anderson, Richard cannot make a deal that is too loss-making.

The current lineup of the Kings is actually not bad. The starting lineup is quite luxurious, but Richard estimates that Adelman will not be willing to trade the starting players for Anderson.

They want Anderson, and they are probably looking for ways to use him as a substitute. After the season is over, he will directly replace Divac as the starting center.

"Mike, to tell you the truth, your king really doesn't have any decent bargaining chips. You wouldn't use your bottom pick in the first round to trade for a young potential insider, right?" Richard asked speechlessly.

Bibi also fell silent...

"Coach, how about a three-way trade? Let's see if we can get some higher-ranked first-round picks and give you a second-round pick as a bonus. How about that?"

Richard nodded. If the king could really get a lottery ticket, he would be able to accept it with gritted teeth...

…

Nocioni and the Magic were keeping an eye on him. Doc Rivers and Tracy McGrady took turns bombarding Richard with phone calls.

Judging from this posture, they will not stop until they take Nocioni.

They favor Nocioni with a very clear purpose, which is to help McGrady share some of the pressure on the court.

Grant Hill just played about twenty games this season, and then he was reimbursed for the season.

If we can get Nocioni, who is tough on defense, then the Magic's lineup will at least be reasonable...

Otherwise, just count on McGrady and Mike Miller. The Magic's upcoming schedule will be really difficult. Even if they enter the playoffs, they will still be in the first round.

What is more embarrassing is that the Magic are currently ranked eighth in the Eastern Conference. If they enter the playoffs, they will face Richard's Pistons in the first round...

Logically speaking, Richard shouldn't agree to trade with Magic. After all, this is almost tantamount to subsidizing the enemy.

But to be honest, Richard really didn't take magic seriously. Even if he gave them Nocioni, would they be able to rebel? !

The Magic have no inside players, which is their flaw. No matter how hard McGrady works, he can only be considered a desperate struggle in front of the Pistons.

Even if McGrady has a McGrady moment in every game, Richard estimates that the Magic led by McGrady will not be a match for the Pistons.

After all, Richard didn't come up with this lineup just for fun.

…

After Nocioni was acquired, he went directly to the third position, McGrady continued to play the second position, and Mike Miller played the fourth position.

Such a lineup can be considered reasonable. It may push their regular season record forward and try not to stay in the embarrassing eighth position in the Eastern Conference.

The offer Doc Rivers made was their first-round pick in the next draft, plus a second-round pick.

It can be regarded as a relatively sincere bargaining chip...

After much thought, Richard directly agreed to the offer.

If the lion keeps asking for it, the magic side won't be able to give it...

Of course, Richard can also make deals with those lottery teams, but these lottery teams are more important to their first-round picks, and they are probably unwilling to trade it for Nocioni.

…

Just after the All-Star Weekend, the Magic and Pistons jointly released news and completed a deal.

The Magic sent Pat Burke, a 2003 first-round pick and a second-round pick to the Pistons in exchange for Nocioni.

This Bok is not an eye-catching player, not even a minor player. He can only be said to be a marginal player among marginal players. In this transaction, his role is to balance the salary.

…

The deal wasn't a big one and didn't get much attention.

Not long after, the Pistons, Kings and Knicks jointly announced a three-way trade.

The Pistons sent out the team's backup power forward Anderson and received the Knicks' 2003 first-round draft pick and the Kings' second-round pick.

…

After the two transactions were completed, Richard's draft picks became much richer.

One pick from the Grizzlies, two picks of their own, two picks from the Magic, a first-round pick from the Knicks, and a second-round pick from the Kings, a total of seven picks, four of which are first-round picks. Take away three second rounds!

With so many draft picks, Richard will definitely be able to select countless powerful players in the next 2003 draft.

As for Crawford and Arenas, it's not that Richard can't be sold at all. It's mainly because it's not cost-effective. The bargaining chips offered by other teams are quite deceptive. The contracts of these two people still have more than one year. I'm not in a hurry to sell...

Right now, the league is almost overcrowded with No. 2 players, No. 3 players, and players who are neither second nor third.

Crawford is a bit useless in the eyes of various teams.

There is some strength, but not so strong that it can be used as the cornerstone of a team...

It's useless for a strong team to come, after all, they all have core offensive players on the outside.

A weak team needs to be rebuilt, and it’s useless to have Crawford, and we can’t use him as the core of the team...

As for Arenas, he is nominally a player at the No. 1 position, but he has been playing in the league for a long time. Each team knows this player relatively well. He is completely a shooting guard wearing the garb of the No. 1 position.