LeBron James, your house got robbed.

After calming his stomach, Chen Shuo leaned back in his chair and began to seriously consider the current situation.

Putting everything else aside, from a tanking perspective, Grant has done a pretty good job this season.

After losing James, Grant quickly dismantled the original roster, trading away as many immediate contributors as possible for draft picks and young players.

The consequence of this was that even with Chen Shuo's knowledge of the NBA, the Cavaliers' roster seemed quite unfamiliar.

The only two truly capable players in this lineup are Brazilian actor Varejao and offensive virtuoso Jamison.

Varejao was injured at the beginning of the season, causing him to miss the rest of the season, and 34-year-old Jamison also played intermittently.

As for the team's young players, from Chen Shuo's perspective, they don't have any particularly valuable assets.

Sessions, the Cavaliers' starting point guard, is a decent rotation player, but his career hasn't had any major highlights.

Daniel Gibson, an inconsistent spot-up shooter, barely makes it into the NBA rotation.

J.J. Hickson, with his outstanding athleticism at a young age, already had 13 points and 8 rebounds, barely qualifying as a quality blue-collar center.

Apart from these young players, all of them were unfamiliar names to Chen Shuo.

This only proves one thing: most of these players will fade out of the league within two or three years.

Grant also made a trade with the Clippers before the deadline.

In exchange for Mo Williams, nicknamed "Mo the Unyielding," the Clippers acquired Baron Davis and the Clippers' first-round pick for this year.

Although Mo is a selfish player with obvious drawbacks, he is still a player who can contribute immediately in line with his price tag.

As for Anthony Davis, after declining year by year, he has now become a complete liability on his contract.

Davis's maximum contract of $13 million has a full three years remaining, including this year. Keep in mind that the salary cap is only $58 million, so this contract alone accounts for nearly a quarter of that.

The essence of this trade is that the Cavaliers used their salary cap space to help the Clippers absorb Davis's bad contract and also sent away Mo Williams, whose performance has remained quite good.

The reward is the Clippers' unprotected first-round pick this year.

Historically, it was this very pick that turned into the number one overall pick in 2011, helping the team select Kyrie Irving.

If the Clippers' general manager knew this outcome, he would be kicking himself.

However, this decision is not entirely the responsibility of the general manager.

Although there are no related reports, as Clippers owner, Sterling is as stingy as Scrooge.

Chen Shuo would never believe that this was done without his authorization.

Of course, the boss can't take the blame, especially a terrible boss like Sterling, so the only thing that can happen is to make his employees suffer.

Chen Shuo stared at the Cavaliers' roster on the screen, then suddenly realized that he might have confused cause and effect.

The Clippers' first-round pick may very well become the number one pick if it is traded to the Cavaliers.

After all, throughout the long history of the NBA, the league office has made numerous decisions regarding the allocation of the number one draft pick.

Before 1983, the allocation of the number one draft pick was determined by a coin toss between the worst team in the Eastern Conference and the worst team in the Western Conference.

When Stern took office, he reformed the system, and the seven worst-performing teams, that is, the seven teams that did not make the playoffs, were drawn by lottery (at that time, there were only 23 teams in the NBA).

The method involves putting the names of seven teams in envelopes, which Commissioner Stern then draws out one by one to determine the top seven picks.

As a result, news broke that the 1985 lottery ceremony was rigged, which is the widely known "frozen envelopes".

Media reports indicate that the Knicks' envelope was frozen in advance so that Stern could select him as the number one draft pick, with the aim of sending Ewing to the Knicks.

Envelope lottery continued until the 90s, after which a weighted lottery method was adopted to make it fairer.

At that time, the NBA welcomed four new teams, bringing the total number of teams to 27. This meant that 11 teams would not make the playoffs and would instead enter the lottery.

Each lottery team will have multiple tables of billiards representing the team, with the worst team having 11, decreasing in number as the results decrease, and the team with the best record in the lottery having only one table of billiards.

This method should be considered fairly fair, but the Magic won the first overall pick in 92 and 93, allowing them to select O'Neal and Webber respectively.

This has reignited conspiracy theories surrounding the number one draft pick, with many believing that the league office wants the Orlando Magic to rise quickly and leverage Disney's commercial resources for better promotion.

As the lottery process progressed, it became more complex, which not only improved fairness but also made it easier to conceal underhanded dealings.

After all, most fans are too lazy to study these probability problems that are full of mathematical formulas.

Or, according to the direction of basic education in North America, most people do not have the ability to calculate.

Therefore, the number one pick in 02 was given to the Rockets, and the Rockets showed great enthusiasm and care for Yao Ming at that time.

Stern believed that the Great Wall of China would receive the best care in Houston, which would be the best arrangement for the league's promotion in the East.

The 03 number one draft pick was given to the Cavaliers, and the story of the prodigy saving his hometown was the route that Stern had arranged for James.

It's just that some people always want to take shortcuts.

The 08 number one draft pick went to Chicago, to Derrick Rose, a three-time Illinois State Championship winner. It was only natural that the Windy City Rose would revive the Chicago dynasty.

Kyrie Irving, the number one draft pick of the 11 Cavaliers, and Anthony Davis, the number one draft pick of the 12 Hornets (later the Pelicans), were compensation for owners of small-market teams.

Previously, they had experienced the departures of James and Paul, who went to the South Coast and West Coast respectively, both with large basketball markets.

The Cavaliers' subsequent two number one draft picks also raise suspicions that they were paving the way for LeBron James' return.

In 19, New Orleans fans experienced the same scenario again.

After trading their star player Anthony Davis to Los Angeles, they once again obtained the number one draft pick, and used that pick to select yet another American prodigy.

Shortly before Chen Shuo's time travel, the classic scene played out again. This time, Anthony Davis, the protagonist of the previous story, became a bargaining chip, sent to Dallas in exchange for the new generation superstar Luka Doncic.

The reason for this sensational trade was finally revealed in the 2025 lottery, where the Dallas team won the number one pick and selected the next generation's American prodigy, Flagg.

All of this aligns perfectly with the NBA's Texas strategy that was revealed by the media in February.

The new owner of Dallas, Dumont, as the son-in-law of the Las Vegas gambling tycoon family, will leverage the Mavericks to drive the rise of a combined industry of Texas gambling and real estate.

This new boss is also one of Trump's biggest financial backers, and their political demand is to legalize gambling in Texas.

The industry layout and legislation are expected to be finalized around 2030. At that time, the Mavericks will have 25-year-old American son Flagg, who will be at the peak of his career.

It is either a dramatic coincidence or a far-sighted strategy of powerful alliances.

Chen Shuo kept stroking his fingers on the table, and couldn't help but sigh from the bottom of his heart.

Since Stern took office in 1983, the NBA has finally evolved from a barbaric era rife with violence and drug abuse into a highly mature commercial behemoth.

Even Cardinal Auerbach, in this era, would find it difficult to replicate his eight-consecutive-title reign.

In this era, the NBA is no longer just about competitive sports involving players and games; it also involves more complex salary structures and business maneuvering.

As labor agreements become more comprehensive, the era of extravagant spending is over. Wage caps, luxury taxes, and the "tycoon" system have completely locked down the money-spending gameplay.

How to assemble a competitive lineup within a limited salary budget has become the first challenge facing every general manager.

At the same time, it is also necessary to take into account the commercial aspects, including the planning of the league office, the demands of team owners, and the interests of sponsors.

The NBA has become an extremely sophisticated and complex machine, with too many factors to consider both on and off the court.

Fortunately, as a pioneer familiar with the future, Chen Shuo has a huge advantage, which is far more than just opening his eyes to the future in the talent show.

The saying "each version has its own god" doesn't just apply to games; the same logic is implied in the ups and downs of the NBA.

Since Stern took office, the NBA has never stopped creating heroes and legendary stories.

The 80s saw a fierce battle between black and white, a clash between yellow and green, the 90s witnessed the clash between the four great centers and the basketball god, the four great shooting guards after Jordan's retirement, and later the LeBron, Durant, and Curry...

However, the league adopted an extremely clever approach, not relying on bias from the referee's side, but rather making macro-level deductions based on the changes in the rules.

The story of Jordan and the Bad Boys is widely known.

In typical storytelling, the piston is portrayed as a tough and ruthless villain.

As a hero, Jordan fell to the Pistons for three consecutive years. With the help of his trainer Glover, he trained hard to become stronger, fearless of the Bad Boys' violence, and finally defeated his arch-rival to ascend to the throne.

The standard main storyline also includes some popular subplots, such as the Breakfast Club.

However, in general, people tend to overlook the role of the alliance, whether intentionally or unintentionally.

Before the start of the 90-91 season, the NBA changed its rules regarding flagrant fouls.

Previously, a flagrant foul, like a regular foul, resulted in two free throws.

The revised rules stipulate that for flagrant fouls, in addition to two free throws, the team that was fouled will also gain possession of the ball.

Furthermore, a new system of malicious foul classifications has been added, clearly stipulating that Level 2 malicious fouls will result in immediate ejection.

This move directly punctured the chassis upon which the pistons depend for survival.

After all, Laimbeer's previous foul philosophy was:

"The referee can't call two fouls on me in the same possession."

Laimbeer will maximize the value of a foul, such as by hitting you a few more times in a foul, or by directly intimidating your opponent with a hard foul.

Humans are instinctively afraid of pain. Even Jordan wouldn't want to go inside the Pistons' paint after taking a few hard elbows.

However, this rule change, which conforms to the changing trends of the times, did not elicit much of a reaction.

Each major rule change that followed sparked a revolution in basketball.

The defensive three-second rule and zone defense hastened the end of the era of the four great centers of the 90s, greatly weakening the offensive influence of the big centers.

The no-hand-check rule ended the Pistons' tenacious defense and encouraged offense.

Manu Ginobili's breakthrough of the Pistons' defensive wall in 05 and Dwyane Wade's Finals MVP in 06 were both beneficiaries of this rule change.

Further changes to the vertical jump rule reduced the defensive threat of dominant centers to a minimum, blatantly paving the way for LeBron James.

This paved the way for tank-like forwards like LeBron James and later Giannis Antetokounmpo, and also revealed the future trend of basketball's frontcourt development.

However, the same tactics, when used in the era of internet media, naturally attracted even more criticism and condemnation.

At the same time, the league relaxed its standards for calling illegal screens, allowing a group of teams, led by the Warriors, to rise to prominence, with passing, cutting, and shooting as their foundation.

Chen Shuo didn't think it was unfair.

It's an undeniable fact that the league changed the rules to promote star players, but there is no absolute fairness in the world. Compared to those disgusting referees who engage in biased officiating, this is already relatively fair.

Most importantly, knowing the version's answer in advance allows you to always be at the forefront of new versions.

Players, systems, salary cap space, version of the game, league trends, broadcast contracts, sponsors...

Chen Shuo sat there blankly for the entire night.

The few sheets of white paper haphazardly piled on the table were all filled with his sloppy handwriting.

The thought of conquering this alliance with his own hands made Chen Shuo, who had stayed up all night, shine with excitement and showed no signs of sleepiness.

However, the most pressing issue right now is how to keep the general manager's position.

Fortunately, there was a good starting point right after I transmigrated.

Today marks the final matchup of the season between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Miami Heat.

The Heat had previously won all three of their previous games.

Public opinion is slowly shifting, and James has quietly transformed from a traitor to a ruthless controller.

A large number of media outlets entered the venue to promote the "winner takes all" rhetoric.

If James successfully wins the championship, public opinion will overwhelmingly side with him, and the Cavaliers will inevitably become a stepping stone and a clown.

A smile tugged at the corner of Chen Shuo's mouth.

Unfortunately, that's not how the script was written.

He wasn't like that before he transmigrated, and he's definitely not like that after he transmigrated.