Y13 [EN]: Chapter 27

Y13-27 The Path Each Takes

May 21, 2010

It was the day all 14 teams eliminated from the playoffs had been waiting for. The NBA was currently in the Conference Finals. Today was the ‘Lottery Pick’ drawing, which would determine which of the 14 teams would have the right to select the top prospects in the 2010 NBA Draft.

The 14 teams that didn’t make the playoffs each had a chance to draw a ball based on their regular-season record, and the lottery picks were distributed through a fair drawing.

(In the NBA Draft Lottery, a probability game is played where 14 balls numbered 1 to 14 are used to draw a combination. There are 14C4 = 1001 possible combinations, but combinations 11, 12, 13, and 14 are invalid, leaving 1000 numbers to be allocated according to each team’s odds. It’s similar to a lottery where you match number combinations. However, actual balls are not used in the drawing.)

Based on the regular season standings, the bottom 14 teams are assigned balls in descending order of their record: 250 balls for the team with the worst record, followed by 178, 177, 119, 88, 63, 36, 35, 14, 14, 8, 7, 6, and 5. The order in which these combinations are drawn determines the order in which teams can select rookie players.

(Surprisingly, the team with the worst record has only gotten the first pick twice in the past 21 years.)

The remaining top 16 teams select rookie players in reverse order of their regular-season record, without any drawing. These standings do not differentiate between the Eastern and Western Conferences. For example, the 8th seed in the West might receive a lower pick than the 4th seed in the East.

“The 2010 Draft. First pick, the Washington Wizards!”

The Washington Wizards were chosen as the team with the best luck, earning the right to exercise the first draft pick. The order of the picks was determined as follows. Washington became the only team in 21 years to get the first pick while being in the bottom four.

1. Washington Wizards

2. Philadelphia 76ers

3. New Jersey Nets

4. Minnesota Timberwolves

5. Sacramento Kings

6. Golden State Warriors

7. Detroit Pistons

8. LA Clippers

9. Utah Jazz

10. Indiana Pacers

11. New Orleans Hornets

12. Memphis Grizzlies

13. Toronto Raptors

14. Houston Rockets

With the 2010 Draft Day usually held at the end of June, there was only one month left. During that month, the 30 teams were working hard to figure out how to use their picks, which players to select, and how to best position the team for the 2010-2011 season.

Youngjae had moved out of the school dormitory and was staying in a clean, reasonably priced hotel. Staying in the San Diego State University dorm wasn’t bad, but Youngjae felt it was time to leave the school environment. He had seriously discussed it with Coach Fisher, and after much deliberation, Youngjae officially signed with Bill Duffy a few weeks ago.

‘From now on, Yoon will need to put in bone-crushing effort to become an NBA player. Of course, I have faith in Yoon based on what I’ve seen so far, but as Yoon’s agent, I will provide as much support as possible to help him.’

Generally, NBA agents sign contracts based on a percentage of the player’s salary, typically less than 5%. It depends on the supply and demand between the player and the agent. If the player is desperate, the commission rate will be high, and if many agents are vying for the player, the commission will inevitably be lower.

If a player is picked in the first round, they typically sign a four-year contract with the team. This is known as the rookie scale contract. It’s essentially a three- or four-year contract with team options in the third and fourth years. In other words, it’s a 2+1 or 2+2 year contract, where the team option allows the team to decide whether to execute or waive the contract for that season, and the player has no authority.

The NBA office sets the salaries for first-rounders based on their draft pick (1st to 30th), so it’s fixed to the point where there are almost no exceptions. The base salary is determined by the pick number, and the final amount is decided between 80% and 120% of that base salary.

On the other hand, for second-rounders, the contract is the same as a free agent contract, so any form of contract is allowed as long as it complies with the salary cap for each year of service. At first glance, it seems like second-rounders have an advantage, but second-rounders have a lower chance of securing a spot on the team, and the team pays less attention to them, so it should be seen as a method that favors the team. Undrafted players (those who sign individual contracts without being drafted) are treated similarly to second-rounders.

Duffy predicted that Youngjae would be picked in the late first round or early second round, so he settled on a four-year contract with a 3.5% commission on the salary. Other details would be decided after the draft.

“Yoon. This is Bill Duffy.”

“Welcome.”

Looking at the documents sticking out of Duffy’s bag, Youngjae wondered how many of those documents concerned him. Youngjae, who had met Duffy several times, was taken aback by the sheer number of documents Duffy brought. Duffy impressively explained the contents that Youngjae might not know in a way that Youngjae could easily understand. Youngjae, predicting that most of the documents were his, cleared his mind and listened carefully to Duffy’s explanation. He trusted Duffy, but he thought it would be good for him to know the details as well.

“As you might have guessed, the lottery pick drawing ended a few days ago, and several teams have invited Yoon for workouts. It’s about time for workout invitations to come.”

At Duffy’s words, Youngjae nodded, thinking that the moment had finally arrived.

“The Oklahoma City Thunder, New Jersey Nets, Portland Trail Blazers, Dallas Mavericks, Detroit Pistons, New York Knicks, Indiana Pacers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Memphis Grizzlies, Orlando Magic, and Atlanta Hawks have sent invitations to Yoon. This document summarizes each team’s current situation, future prospects, and strengths and weaknesses.”

A total of 11 teams had picks from 21st to 30th in the first round and 1st to 10th (31st to 40th) in the second round. Considering that Youngjae’s Mock Draft prediction was between the top of the second round and the bottom of the first round, it was an understandable number of workout invitations. However, as Youngjae had memories of his past life, he couldn’t help but feel a little greedy.

Youngjae’s criteria prioritized teams with owners willing to invest, and capable front offices (president and general manager) and coaches. In addition, he preferred teams with good climates or a significant international player presence. And of course, he had memories of this time.

‘Oklahoma City Thunder, Portland Trail Blazers, Dallas Mavericks, Memphis Grizzlies. Come to think of it, they’re all Western Conference teams.’

This was almost inevitable. In the 2010s, the West was so dominant that conference realignment or changes to the playoff format were frequently discussed. The only teams that consistently remained strong in the Eastern Conference during this period were the Chicago Bulls and the Miami Heat.

The Oklahoma City Thunder, under the leadership of General Manager Sam Presti, drafted talented rookies over the next few years, building a strong championship contender team centered around Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Serge Ibaka, and James Harden (later traded to Houston). They completed their rebuild primarily through the draft, and continued to pick up solid players with lower picks. The downside is that they are a small-market team and struggle to pay the luxury tax [a tax imposed on teams exceeding a certain payroll threshold]. Also, coach Scott Brooks is a good leader but is often criticized for his lack of tactical sophistication and player substitution skills.

The Portland Trail Blazers have consistently repeated periods of rebuilding and being a strong team in the 21st century. The owner is Paul Allen (co-founder of Microsoft), one of the richest people in the United States. General Manager Kevin Pritchard is also considered quite capable. The team’s ace is LaMarcus Aldridge. The home stadium, Moda Center, is known as a difficult place to play for visiting teams. From 1977 to 1995, they had a sellout record of 814 consecutive home games, which is the longest-running sellout record in the four major American sports. However, the team has an unusually high number of injuries. This is possibly because they have the longest travel distance in the league, and the team tends to downplay injury history in their favor. Coach Nate McMillan is also a capable person with expertise in defensive tactics.

The Dallas Mavericks are the NBA Finals champions of 2010-2011, which will be Youngjae’s debut season. They were the team with the best combined winning percentage in the five years since 2005, and a strong team that has consistently made the playoffs for over a decade. The Dallas Mavericks have Mark Cuban, a quirky owner but with as much love and passion for the team as any other owner. The team includes Dirk Nowitzki, one of the best power forwards of his time, as well as veteran guards Jason Kidd and Jason Terry. General Manager Donnie Nelson is a cautious and stable general manager, and coach Rick Carlisle is one of the most renowned coaches in the league, known for his unconventional and diverse tactics.

The Memphis Grizzlies, with Mike Conley and Marc Gasol as their core, also became a team that would challenge for the title in the future by acquiring Zach Randolph in 2009 and Tony Allen in 2010, and later acquiring Courtney Lee and Jeff Green. Coach Lionel Hollins is a capable person with excellent defensive tactics. However, they have the weakness of being a small market and the city itself not having much basketball popularity.

“Duffy.”

“Yes?”

“I know I’m not in a position to be picky. And I think it would be more helpful for you if I participated in all the workouts. But, honestly, I’m getting greedy. I know I’ve received an evaluation that might be higher than I deserve, but I want to go to at least one of the teams I want.”

Duffy nodded, took the documents from Youngjae’s hand, and handed only four documents back to Youngjae.

“Aren’t these the four teams you want?”

Youngjae felt a lump in his throat. He had only thought it was amazing when Duffy picked out the Oklahoma Thunder and Memphis Grizzlies documents that he wanted, but he couldn’t help but get goosebumps when he saw Bill Duffy taking out the Portland Trail Blazers and Dallas Mavericks documents as the third and fourth ones. It was as if he knew that he was someone who had regressed in time.

“But you have to make a good choice. As much as you want these teams, the risk is also great, I think you know that. What I’ve felt while talking to Yoon is that you want to play on a winning team based on your confidence. More than money, you want the playoffs and the championship.”

Going to a contender team naturally increases the possibility of winning a championship ring that all players dream of. Just as strong teams are not strong for no reason, skills could rapidly improve through systematic training under a professional system. However, the competition for starting positions becomes more difficult in contender teams, and a momentary mistake could lead to losing one’s place. In losing teams, it is easier to secure playing time and improve skills if you show some level of talent, but in contender teams, that is highly unlikely.

“I know.”

Youngjae didn’t say anything else. Duffy also nodded without saying anything more.

“I know that Yoon will do his best in all workouts given his personality. My role is to help Yoon focus on basketball as much as possible and increase his value, so I will do my best to help in that regard. I will pay special attention to these four teams.”

============================ Author’s Notes ============================

★Thank you to those who gave pre-orders, recommendations, comments, and coupons!!

Youngjae prefers teams with a winning mentality. This is because his former team, the San Antonio Spurs, consistently won 50 games every year. Also, it is possible to secure a spot even if it is not a tanking team.

The West-East imbalance is severe this season as well. If the 6th-ranked San Antonio in the West went to the East, they would be 2nd, and the 11th-ranked Utah Jazz in the West have the same winning percentage as the 8th-ranked Boston in the East. It is even said that the Eastern Conference champion has an advantage over the Western Conference champion in the Finals.

우유동자님/// That’s right. So these days, the ALL-NBA team is selected by dividing it into only 3 positions: guard, forward, and center, instead of 5 positions.

AdYang님, 백예님/// Thank you!!

뽀잉뿌이잉님/// Thank you for pointing that out. I remembered it wrong. It is the American football agent.

뱅퇴유님/// Rose… I think he played beyond what his body could handle, although Thibs’ overuse is famous.

anwkdk님/// It is difficult to adapt to a city with few Koreans, but the protagonist has past life experience, so there will be no major problems.

dydqlsl님/// Yes. He went to college with Leonard. I chose the college and Leonard happened to be there.

서비스님/// It’s not a passionate cheer like the audience. Usually, bench players, as well as starters who are locker room leaders or captains, encourage their teammates while resting and boost morale by high-fiving during timeouts. Of course, veterans who do not have the physical energy and are suffering from injuries only rest.

And I think there is enough room for growth if you go back to the 19-year-old in the past.