Reborn in 96, I started by taking charge of the Dallas Mavericks.

Whether it's Damon Stoudemire or Sharon White, they're both smokescreens put out by Don Nelson.

His only real goal is the Raptors' second overall pick.

To be honest, Thomas was indeed tempted by Don Nelson's decision to target Sharon White in a trade.

But after careful consideration, Thomas decided to squeeze another penny out of old Nelson. "Don, I can trade White, but you'll have to give me a little something extra."

"Oh, what kind of reward?"

“This year’s second-round draft pick,” Isaiah Thomas said casually.

The Dallas Mavericks have two draft picks this year: the 9th pick in the first round and the 58th pick in the second round.

The second round of draws wasn't very competitive, so we accepted them.

But Nelson's target wasn't Sharon White at all, and he had no reason to agree to the deal.

Old Nelson flatly refused, "No, Sharon White isn't worth that price."

Thomas knew, of course, that Sharon White wasn't worth that price; he was just testing old Nelson, in case he succeeded.

Just as he was about to agree to the deal, old Nelson spoke up again.

"Isaiah, how about this? I have another deal here, I wonder if you'd be interested?"

"tell me the story."

"I wonder if you're interested in Jamal Mashburn?"

"What do you mean?"

Jamal Marsh was one of the Mavericks' Big Three, so Thomas was naturally interested, but he didn't express his thoughts.

Seeing that Thomas remained unmoved, old Nelson gritted his teeth and continued to raise the stakes.

"Jamal Mashburn, plus Jim Jackson, plus the two from before, four for one in exchange for your second overall pick this year."

At this moment, old Nelson finally revealed his true colors.

At that moment, Old Nelson's heart raced, fearing that Thomas would refuse outright.

A 4-for-1 trade was the limit he could offer, and two of those players were starters for the Mavericks last season.

Old Nelson waited anxiously for Thomas's reply, while Thomas himself was breathing rapidly.

He didn't expect that Old Nelson's target was their second overall pick, and that he was even willing to give up Jamal and Jim for it.

It's worth noting that these two players averaged 23.4 and 19.6 points per game last season, respectively. If these two players, who are ready to contribute immediately, were to join the Raptors and team up with Damon, they would definitely have a chance to make the playoffs.

The thought of the Raptors making the playoffs in their second year in the league made Thomas want to agree immediately.

But as Thomas was about to speak, he suddenly remembered that Jamal Mashburn had only played 18 games last season before being sidelined for the entire season due to left knee surgery.

"Tang, why are you in such a hurry to trade Jamal? Is it because of his injury...?"

Upon hearing this, old Nelson immediately said, "Isaiah, what are you thinking? I can guarantee with my life that Jamal is healthy. His surgery was a success, and he is currently recovering well."

"With his ability, if he is healthy next season, he is fully capable of competing for the All-Star spot. At that time, you will have an All-Star level star, which is definitely a win-win situation for the Raptors."

"Thomas, if you're really not interested, then I'll have to talk to the general managers of the Grizzlies and Bucks."

"Wait a minute," Thomas said hastily. "Don, can you give me some time to think about it?"

Upon hearing this, old Nelson on the other end of the phone immediately smiled.

The fish is hooked.

"Okay, but I hope you can give me a reply as soon as possible."

"Don't worry, I will give you an answer in one day."

The offer from Don Nelson was too tempting for him to refuse, but he had only recently taken over and hadn't fully established himself with the Raptors.

He couldn't make such a big decision as trading for the second overall pick on his own.

Therefore, he needs time to discuss the matter with the team's management and also needs to assess Jamal Mashburn's injury to confirm that there are no problems before the trade can proceed.

The next day.

Led by Isaiah Thomas, the Raptors' professional team flew to Dallas.

In Dallas, after a thorough examination of Jamal Mashburn, the Raptors' team doctor found that his injury was progressing well and he was fully fit to play next season.

The Raptors and Mavericks completed the trade that same day.

The Mavericks traded Jamal Mashburn, Jim Jackson, Tony Dumars, and Puopoulos Jones to the Raptors for the second overall pick in the 1996 NBA draft.

The news of this trade shocked all the teams, who considered it an absurd deal and immediately began emergency discussions.

For players, the battlefield is on the court, but for team general managers, their battlefield is during the offseason and the trade period.

Every offseason, general managers of each team will use all sorts of methods, even resorting to extreme measures, to strengthen their teams.

After securing the second overall pick, Don Nelson immediately announced that they would be joining the race to sign Allen Iverson.

If the Philadelphia 76ers don't get the number one pick to select Iverson, they will not hesitate to select Iverson with the second pick.

Old Nelson did this to mislead people and prevent them from guessing their true purpose.

It's a mix of truth and deception, making it hard to figure out.

……

"Boss, we got the second overall pick."

"Well done!"

When Old Nelson told Chen Fang the news, Chen Fang was immediately excited, but also a little worried.

I worry that if I, like a butterfly, flap my wings, I might cause a Category 10 hurricane.

"Tang, you still need to trade for more draft picks, especially the first-round pick next year."

"It would be even better if we could trade for the Spurs, 76ers, Celtics, or Grizzlies' first-round draft picks next year."

"Okay, boss!"

After saying that, the two hung up the phone.

96 is widely recognized as a great year for the NBA draft, but the 97 draft was no less impressive.

Duncan, Billups, and McGrady are all outstanding players in this class.

Duncan will undoubtedly be the number one draft pick next year; his talent is widely recognized in the league.

Back then, in order to acquire Duncan, more than a dozen teams in the entire league started tanking, both openly and secretly, and in the end, the Spurs won the contract.

Under Duncan's leadership, the Spurs won a total of 5 NBA championships.

Although Chen Fang knows that Duncan will be the number one pick, he is not sure which team will get the number one pick next year.

After all, from this moment on, the entire course of history was changed because of Chen Fang.

Therefore, Chen Fang can only try his best to acquire the first-round draft pick of the team that is among the top four in the draft next year.

Currently, Duncan has not indicated whether he will participate in the draft next year, so Chen Fang can take advantage of this time difference to start making plans in advance.