Champion, please stay!

Chapter 73, Section 71: The Only Opponent?
Elementary school students actually ran for office!

During the quarterfinals of the Madness 3 tournament, Yi Shui saw old Nelson sitting in the third row opposite the technical table. Oh right, he remembered that the president of the neighboring company, Walsh, was also sitting nearby.

It was unlikely that Don Nelson would come to see him. The Warriors were still pushing for the playoffs at that time, and their records were roughly the same as the Nuggets and Mavericks. Meanwhile, he had defeated Mayo and was already considered a top-five pick.

However, the Warriors have won 48 games this year, the best record among lottery teams, and they will most likely only get the 14th pick, with a combined probability of only 0.5% for the top three picks.

Curry, although he was not selected for the All-American First Team as originally planned, scored 40+ points twice in four games during the March 4rd Crash, and was also selected for the All-American Second Team. He should still be considered a lottery pick, right?
It's hard to say whether the Warriors will be able to draft Curry; things are taking an interesting turn.

Two nights later, April passed and May arrived.

On the morning of the 1st, Yi Shui woke up, saw the date on her phone, and habitually opened the file.

"System Files (NCAA):..."

Height: 202 cm, wingspan: 218 cm, weight: 96 kg...

Speed ​​93, Strength 89, Jumping 93, Agility 93, Stamina 91…

Sure enough, it has grown again.

After winning the Associated Press Player of the Year award and first place in the Wooden Award, he earned four physical attributes: one point in strength, two points in speed, and one point in jumping.

At that time, my strength increased from 87 to 88, and with the subsequent weight gain, it rose to 89.

Speed ​​increased from 92 to 94, and jumping ability increased from 92 to 93.

Now, speed and agility have both dropped to 93, correspondingly, the 'weight limit' has reached 100 kilograms.

He suddenly remembered something, opened the growth card interface... and exclaimed "Yay!"

Yesterday, as before, he completed the training arranged by Clark, and then did extra training until exhaustion on 'Day 7', meeting the training standard for 'strength transformation', and the progress became 1/30!

He believes that the improvement in strength will definitely be of great help to his tryouts, and whether he can quickly adapt to the level of competition in the NBA is definitely a key focus for the management.

However, players usually don't focus on strength training before the draft. With such a short time, it would definitely affect their technique and basic skills, which would be counterproductive.

This growth card also includes reminders.

However, he felt that with his current training intensity, he should be able to avoid the impact; if he couldn't avoid it after a significant increase in strength...

So he changed his morning run warm-up to square dancing to burn off some energy before training.

...

Day after day, Yi Shui devoted himself wholeheartedly to the trial training and preparation for the upcoming match.

Clark was used to Yi Shui's level of focus, while Gwyn was once again shocked.

They really don't rest!

Gwen has seen plenty of geniuses, hard-working people, and geniuses who work hard, but he has never seen anyone like Yi Shui before.

On the evening of May 10th, the trio of Huang, Bai, and Hei gathered in Yad's dormitory to watch the draft lottery live on a large color TV.

This year's draft is exceptionally popular, with Yi Shui, Mayo, and Beasley, three players considered 'top draft picks' by many, all participating.

In previous years, people usually only paid attention to which team would get the number one pick. This year, fans are eagerly anticipating who will get the top three picks.

However, this popularity is also related to the ongoing 'magic clash'.

At first, the agents simply did what they always did: when attacked, they retaliated.

But then they discovered that doing this could generate continuous traffic... and they couldn't stop.

Yishui is widely recognized as the biggest favorite to be the top draft pick.

Of course, he was also the most attacked, and other agents would include him in their 'indiscriminate counterattacks'.

There were also serious attacks, such as bringing up that he was born in June 1987 and was already 21 years old when the draft was held.

Bartelstein's approach was clear: he wouldn't mention Yi Shui's talent or anything like that; if anyone brought that up, he would buy a press release about Mayo—born in November 1987.

Mayo will find a way to handle this issue.

Using Yi Shui's sophomore year as an example, Bartelstein was even more delighted. He personally stepped in front of the camera to launch a full-scale attack—"Brook wasted a year. No one in college could rival him. Did those opponents really train hard? Or did they just not have the talent to play in the NBA?"

Since then, no competitor has brought this up again.

In the "Madness 3" series, Yi Shui defeated Rose, Mayo, Love, Westbrook, and even Curry, who had defeated Beasley, was defeated by Yi Shui. In this respect, Yi Shui had a huge advantage.

However, with the draft lottery approaching, Yi Shui still had some worries.

If the Bulls still get the number one pick, then he probably has no chance; his status as a number one pick isn't as high as Duncan's or Oden's.

The Bulls had been in a slump for years after Jordan's retirement. They finally started to rise again, but Kobe's statement, "I'm going to the Bulls," ruined their chances. Their support in the local market plummeted, and their attendance at the recently concluded season was almost on par with that of the Hornets back in the day.

Getting the number one pick and not selecting the local state's basketball player of the previous year, or a top-five prospect... it's unthinkable.

Yi Shui is looking forward to change, but if there really is change, there are still two teams that make him worry.

今年摆烂区球队有6支，抽到状元签的概率，14胜68负的热火队第一、19胜63负的超音速队第二、20胜62负的森林狼队第三、灰熊队21胜61负第四、尼克斯队22胜60负第五、快船队24胜58负第六。

Between the Grizzlies and the Thunder, the Grizzlies have Gay, who averaged 20 points per game in his second year, and the Thunder have Durant, who averaged 20+ points per game in his rookie year. They are more likely to choose a point guard.

If you don't get selected as the top draft pick, the "loan" on your growth card will at most be deducted from your future growth card, and you can just pay it back.

But there's only one draft!
Soon, at 8 p.m., the live broadcast of the draft lottery ceremony began.

After Stu Jackson finished speaking, he asked the notary to check and show the 14 balls used for the draw to the camera. Then, the representatives of the 14 teams took turns drawing their respective team combinations.

概率第一的热火队，有250个组合、第二的超音速队199个、第三的森林狼队有156个，第四的灰熊队97个、第五的尼克斯队58个……

After the notary placed the ball into the transparent lottery machine, Stu Jackson pressed the start button.

Yi Shui stared at the lottery machine. At that moment, he really felt like he was buying a lottery ticket and waiting for the draw. He also understood why teams that didn't make the playoffs were called 'lottery teams'.

20秒钟后，出口打开，4个球先后掉出……9号、4号、5号、8号……    电视画面里安静了一会儿，各队抽签的人都在自己身前的屏幕上找对应组合。

Soon, gasps rang out, the camera zoomed in, and James Dolan, a middle-aged man with a stubble beard, appeared on the television screen, yelling incoherently.

The group affiliation was then displayed on the large screen at the scene.

Stu Jackson announced: "Congratulations to the Knicks for winning the first overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft!"

The trio of yellow, white, and black people in front of the TV had already jumped up and were yelling and screaming!

...

Yi Shui watched the interview footage, where the usually domineering fortune teller was now cursing like a shrew... It was indeed quite funny.

But it's no wonder the fortune teller broke down; back in 03 when the Heat were tanking, he even pushed his apprentice out to take the fall.

This year, he personally stepped up, threw away all pretense of dignity, and went to extremes to tank, achieving a record of 14 wins and 68 losses...

如果是19胜63负倒数第二的超音速队以19.9%的概率抽到状元签，或者21胜61负倒数第三的森林狼队以15.6%概率抽到状元签，易水估计神算子不会这般破防。

But the Knicks, with only a 5.8% chance of getting the number one pick, were the team that won!
Yi Shui pondered that if it were still the same as in the original timeline, with the Bulls having a 1% or 2% chance of drawing the number one draft pick... then the fortune teller might not be able to break his guard.

Yi Shui took out his phone to check the specific order of the lottery in the text message. When the results of the first overall pick were first announced, Bartelstein also called, but he and his two buddies were yelling and shouting and didn't hear it.

尼克斯队状元签、热火队榜眼签、森林狼队探花签、超音速队4号签、灰熊队5号签、快船队6号签、雄鹿队7号签、山猫队8号签、篮网队9号签、公牛队10号签、步行者队11号签、国王队12号签、开拓者队13号签、勇士队14号签。

Yi Shui recalls that, apart from the number one pick changing, the other four picks were the same. Later, the Timberwolves and Grizzlies swapped draft picks to make some extra money.

He actually really hoped the Heat would get the number one draft pick, as teaming up with Wade would be a great option, given his outstanding abilities and willingness to sacrifice...

But now he's more curious about where Rose will go.

...

With the Knicks winning the lottery, Yi Shui's chances of being drafted have greatly increased. The news he saw also said that he was a shoo-in for the number one draft pick.

However, he was calmer than before, and the next day he continued to focus on his trial training.

Promises are the least reliable things, and besides, no one has ever formally made a promise... It's safer to improve your own strength and eliminate all your opponents.

Clark was initially worried that Yi Shui would get arrogant because the team next door got the top pick, after all, there had been precedents.

But seeing Yi Shui training even harder, he was completely relieved.

From the time they came to Yishui to study preparatory courses until now, the two have been together for four years.

Even though Clark had been on campus for nearly 20 years and had many students he got along well with, Yi Shui was the most special one.

This is the 'Little Shakespeare' he personally mentored!
Two weeks later, on May 23rd, the pivotal Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Pistons and the Celtics arrived. But today, basketball fans were more concerned about something else—this year's five-day Chicago Combine began!

Yi Shui, Mayo, Beasley, Love, Rose, Westbrook, the Lopez brothers, Gordon, Curry, and 80 other talents were invited to Chicago for tryouts.

The media's main focus is naturally on the three top draft picks: Yi Shui, Mayo, and Beasley.

On the first day, during the morning physical tests and technical demonstrations, the three of them were the most surrounded by cameras. However, at this stage, the reporters focused their interviews on the management personnel from various teams who came to inspect the teams. The photos of the three of them were only used as news illustrations or cover stories.

Among them, Walsh, Pat Riley, and McHale, the three executives who held the top three picks, were besieged by the media. However, the first two are seasoned veterans, and the latter has learned to laugh it off after suffering many losses.

In the afternoon, as is customary, the organizer, the Bulls, selected 30 players from the draft pool who participated in the tryouts, divided them into 6 teams, and held 3 practice games.

The joint tryouts needed attention and buzz, and all the hottest rookies were selected for the roster.

The organizers were well aware of what the media wanted to film and what the fans waiting to see the news wanted to watch, so they put Yi Shui and Beasley in two different teams in the same group!
Yi Shui has defeated all the other popular draft picks head-on, except for Beasley.

As for Yi Shui defeating Curry, who had previously defeated Beasley, Beasley firmly denied the claim of "indirectly defeating" in an interview.

Regarding the Kansas Wildcats' upset loss in the first round, Beasley's agent has offered a new perspective—the Wildcats lost, but Beasley, who scored 26 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, didn't lose.

Time has blurred the specific memories, and with his thick skin, Beasley has actually managed to turn public opinion around on this issue.

At the United Center competition venue, major media outlets had set up their cameras to film, and team management was already waiting in the stands.

All the players participating in this joint trial also came to watch Yi Shui and Beasley face off for the first time.

Most people think Yi Shui is stronger, and Feng San's performance was so exaggerated.

But Beasley also rose to fame at a young age, averaging 25.9 points per game in his freshman season, ranking second in the first division league, and was known for his individual ability.

Everyone is curious about the outcome of this matchup between the two... some are overwhelmingly supportive, while others are very conflicted.

Rose and Westbrook both thought Yi Shui was a sure thing to win, after all, they had both lost to Yi Shui, so why would Beasley be a mere nobody?
Mayo was the one who was conflicted. He hoped Beasley could defeat Yi Shui, but he was also worried that if Yi Shui lost, he would become number three... He never thought of personally defeating the two of them in this training camp.

A primary school student who had been hiding from Yi Shui since arriving at the hotel yesterday also secretly hid in the crowd to watch the match.

He was certain that Yi Shui would win, having faced both of them before.

At 2 PM, the training match between the onlookers, dubbed the 'BIG Team' and the 'Beasley Team', began.

BIG's center DeAndre Jordan easily defeated white center Costa Koufos to win the jump ball, giving BIG the first possession!
Point guard George Hill didn't steal the show; after advancing the ball up the court, he passed it to Yi Shui, who was calling for the ball at the right 45-degree angle, just like you see on TV.

He didn't actually want to participate in the competition; he preferred to be a spectator. He also wanted to see who was better.

Standing guard in front of Yi Shui was naturally Beasley, and all eyes were focused on the two of them.

Curry predicted that Yi Shui would use a similar rhythm to his to change direction and get past Beasley.

Others had similar guesses, believing that Yi Shui could easily get past Beasley using his skills.

Soon, Yi Shui began to act. He dribbled to the side, took a step to create space for a breakthrough, and then, without any other change of direction, accelerated directly... knocking Beasley aside and driving into the paint!

Koufos, who was watching the game from under the basket, was suddenly interrupted by Yi Shui's charge. Before he could react, everything went black...

(End of this chapter)