Basketball trainer, I created a super giant

Chapter 461 The Story of the New Era Can Only Be Told Well by You

Stern's stern attitude deterred some teams from tanking.

Given this situation, it's not easy to give up; defeat is truly hard to come by.

However, it's obviously impossible to get the team to give up tanking.

They went underground.

We started calculating the schedule and opponents, and began to tank in a targeted and methodical way.

Instead of mindlessly losing, they now lose subtly.

In other words, play normally, control the pace of the game, exert your strength in the final moments, and try to lose the game.

This has led to a series of games throughout the season that left fans breathless.

That is to say, they played very well for the first 45 minutes.

Just when victory seemed within reach, the head coach made a disastrous substitution, and a role player committed a fatal mistake.

There were also games where they had a clear chance to win, but they missed both free throws, thus losing the opportunity to win.

The media jokingly referred to it as such.

Last season, head coaches were discussing how to win, but this season, their desks are filled with strategies for losing.

This also indirectly proves how attractive Durant is and how prestigious Townsend's brand is.

Tang Sen said he wants to cultivate the next Jordan.

However, since last year, the training has been in seclusion, and no one knows how far Durant has progressed in his training.

But the teams stubbornly believed Tang Sen's words and began to tank without thinking.

In this situation, players like Ainge are practically counting on their fingers, calculating the Celtics' rankings and their head-to-head wins.

Because now that the season is almost over, the winning percentage difference between the teams in the East and West is very small.

It's possible to move up two or three places by winning just one game.

Moreover, they used every trick in the book.

You announce that your key player is injured and out for the season, but others can still do the same.

At this final moment, who cares about saving face?

In the conference room, Tomjanovich was anxiously calculating which games he was going to lose next.

He wanted to lose everything, but he couldn't.

Furthermore, the remaining nine games in April are all against Eastern Conference teams, which will directly impact the Celtics' ranking.

Several people had to calculate their own situation, and also their competitors'. By the end, the calculations were incredibly overwhelming.

Klaus scratched his thinning hair hard and threw the problem at Tomjanovich.

"Rudy, if you just try your best and lose all the remaining games, we'll definitely get the number one pick." Ainge looked at Tomjanovich expectantly.

Tomjanovich is also in a terrible predicament.

Last summer, when Angie invited me to sign a five-year contract, he also described his grand vision to me.

At the time, Tomjanovich didn't think much of it and even thought the team was tanking so he could have an easy season.

Who knew the league would turn out like this?

The thought of having the easiest season turned into an absolute headache for him.

What's even more frustrating is that I'm actually having a headache over how to lose the game.

"I'll try my best," Tomjanovich sighed.

Tang Sen was well aware of the situation in the league; Stern had discussed this with him more than once.

Tang Sen felt okay.

They even felt that this was how it should be.

He himself has publicly stated that he wants to develop a player of Jordan's caliber, and believes that Durant has that talent.

Jordan.

If you have a chance to get it, you'd better not slack off.

This is the kind of scene you'd expect from a player of Jordan's caliber.

Of course, the team's tanking won't affect Durant.

Connors, on the other hand, was extremely nervous. The league draft lottery was on May 24th, and there was still more than a month to go.

During this period, Connors frequently traveled to New York, worrying about Durant's training progress and who would get the number one draft pick.

The mystery was finally solved after April 19th.

The Timberwolves, a team that was a playoff contender last year and boasted a superstar like Garnett, stubbornly tanked despite league penalties, ultimately finishing last in the Western Conference. Unfortunately, not last in the entire league.

Towards the end of the season, the competition in the Eastern Conference was incredibly fierce.

There are a total of 5 teams that could finish last.

In the end, it all comes down to who's more ruthless.

Riley is such a ruthless person.

The Heat, who made it to the second round of the Eastern Conference last year, have somehow managed to tank all the way down to last place in the East.

They are still ranked last in the entire league.

The Celtics followed closely behind with the same record, but ranked second to last in the Eastern Conference and second to last in the entire league simply because of their head-to-head record.

Fourth from the bottom is still from the East, and it comes from the Bulls.

The fifth from the bottom is the West's supersonic.

The probability of winning the lottery for the fifth-to-last spot is 8.8%, which is already very low.

Of course, there are examples like the Knicks and the Suns, who are lucky enough to be among the first to succeed.

But going further down the line, like the sixth-ranked Lynx, with a 6.3% probability, that's just too low.

Therefore, the media generally predicts that the number one draft pick will be chosen from these five teams.

With the results finalized, fans of these teams started counting down the days, dreaming that their teams would be drawn for the top draft pick.

Fans around the world are equally concerned.

The league has repeatedly tried to stop it, but everyone knows that this season is going to be a season of competition to see who is worse.

This crazy tanking is enough to prove Durant's worth.

Everyone was curious to see who would be the lucky one.

The league certainly can't let this level of attention pass by.

They directly announced that they would change the rules and move the lottery to Madison Square Garden.

NBA headquarters.

"David, do you mean I should announce the draw results?" Tang Sen looked at Stern with some surprise.

In previous years, the draw was announced by Ras Granick, the nominal first vice president of the league.

Why did you suddenly ask me to come?

With such high levels of attention surrounding this year's draw, Tang Sen once thought that Stern would personally step in to decide the draw results.

Because once it's announced, it's tantamount to directly deciding Durant's future.

It's unlikely any team would be willing to trade their number one draft pick.

Even if it produces a Yao Ming or a Kobe Bryant.

At the same time, it also has a symbolic meaning.

Stern single-handedly nurtured Jordan and propelled the NBA to global prominence, bringing it to its pinnacle.

When talking about Jordan, one cannot ignore Stern.

When Jordan retired, Stern was also looking for Jordan's successor.

Now, Tang Sen has found a potential candidate for him.

In this situation, his announcement is precisely a continuation and a legacy.

Stern maintained his smile and said, "Don, you are the Vice President of the League, you are qualified to preside over the draw."

"At the same time, I also have some selfish reasons for doing this."

“I think it’s a symbol, belonging to Michael in my generation.”

"Now that Michael has retired, if Kevin can become the next Michael, then it will be a new era."

"I want you to announce this new era."

He looked at Tang Sen with a smile, a strange glint in his eyes behind his glasses.

Tang Sen's heart skipped a beat, and he instantly understood what Stern meant.

He ushered in the Jordan era.

Then it's up to him to start the Durant era, if he can become the next Jordan.

So, does that mean I should be benchmarked against Stern?

In other words, Stern will give his position to Durant after he retires, because only he can tell Durant's story well.

(End of this chapter)