On June 24, 1998, the NBA Draft quietly kicked off in Vancouver.

For this rookie, the media's evaluation is very average, thinking that it is not as good as last year, let alone the '96 golden generation' in advance.

No one would have known that these experts were destined to be eyeballed, because this rookie class had an extremely high success rate, and even several All-Star players appeared.

Every year's draft is often the beginning of the first round of trades for each team, especially when it comes to the operation of draft picks.

Despite the average media reviews, many teams are still interested in getting more draft picks or trading up for higher picks.

As long as the offer is tempting enough, every draft pick has a chance to be a trade chip, and the lottery pick is no exception.

In the NBA draft, players who accept an official invitation to enter the 'Little Green House' are generally voted on by the general manager of the NBA team, and the final decision is made by the vice president of the league.

Since the top 14 picks in the draft each year are called the lottery area, at least 14 or more players will be invited, depending on the intention of each draft team that year.

At the same time, the lottery area is also the focus of the annual draft, with a total of 14 players invited this year, including Michael Olovocandi, Reeve Lafrentz, Mike Bibby, Antoine Jamison, Vince Carter and many more.

Looking at the little green house on TV, Ikegami was full of envy. He was not invited and is still residing at Wake Forest University.

Last year, Ikegami joined the Wake Forest Devils Deacons, where he quickly gained the attention of his coach and became the core of the team, eventually leading the team to the NCAA Final Four spots.

Although he became the top four, Ikegami was not favored by the media, in addition to being too short to become famous, he also had skin color problems.

During this period, the NBA did not see the yellow race at all, and if Ikegami was selected, he would become the second yellow player to join the NBA.

As for the first yellow player, it dates back to 1947, and his NBA career was only a pitiful 3 games and 7 points, and it is no wonder that the media will despise Ikegami.

That said, due to Ikegami's achievements at Wake Forest University and his outstanding performance in the joint tryout. In many media's draft predictions, they have not been pushed to the end, but predicted that Ikegami will be selected at the end of the first round or the first round of the second round.

While Ikegami was sitting upright, Stern, wearing a pair of black-rimmed glasses, began to appear.

However, when Stern came out, he was booed by the audience, which has become a common practice in the NBA since the NBA began to promote commercialization.

Stern's expression remained unchanged, he was used to such boos.

"Now I'm announcing that the 1998 NBA Draft is going to take place, and the Los Angeles Clippers have the first pick, and they're going to have five minutes to make a selection!"

As soon as Stern finished speaking, the big screen behind him began to count down.

At this time, the cameraman on the scene began to focus on several top hits, such as Michael Olovocandi, Mike Bibie, Antoine Jamison and Vince Carter.

This year's champion is full of suspense, and the evaluation of the top few in the draft prediction can be said to be almost the same, and anyone has the possibility of becoming the champion.

Soon, Stern was back on the podium, holding an envelope with the name of the champion written on it, and it was clear that the Clippers had already made a decision.

"In 1998, the first pick in the first round, the Los Angeles Clippers chose ......"

As he read this, Stern paused and then continued, "Michael Olovokandi!"

As soon as the words fell, there was a round of applause at the scene.

Olovo Kandi hurriedly stood up, with a smile on his face, and then put on the Clippers cap handed over by the staff and went up to the stage to hug and take a photo with Stern.

In the college league that season, Olovo Kandi was able to average 22.2 points and 11.2 rebounds per game, and all three technical statistics ranked first in the NCAA Midwest Division.

Unfortunately, Ikegami knows very well that Michael Olowokandi has limited future achievements in the NBA, and he is a well-known parallel import.

After the Clippers made their choice, the Vancouver Grizzlies, who were signed to the top of the list, quickly made their choice.

"In 1998, with the second pick in the first round, the Vancouver Grizzlies selected Mike Bibby from the Wildcats!"

After hearing his name, Mike Bibby was visibly relieved, and after hugging his loved ones and agents around him, he then put on a Grizzlies cap and went on stage to hug Stern.

It didn't take long for the Denver Nuggets, who were given a probe sign, to select Reeve Lafrentz, a quality white interior player.

Then came the main event, with the Toronto Raptors selecting Antoine Jamison and the Golden State Warriors choosing Vince Carter.

Then, it was revealed that the Raptors and Warriors had made a deal, with Vince Carter and Antoine Jamison swapped.

Although Antoine Jamison is also very good and even became an All-Star, he is undoubtedly a notch behind Vince Carter, one of the four quarterbacks.

"With the 9th pick in the first round in 1998, the Milwaukee Bucks selected Dirk Nowitzki!"

King Nuo was chosen, and then ...... He also became a bargaining chip.

The Bucks traded Nowitzki for Robert Trayler, who quickly became reckless, and Nowitzki would go to the Mavericks to become Dallas' irreplaceable Noberts.

The draft was in full swing, and Ikegami, who was sitting in front of the TV, was a little nervous, and subconsciously wanted to look for the Spurs' team room on the TV.

Some time ago, Ikegami tried out with the Spurs and was valued by Popovich, coupled with the potential factor of senior Duncan, although there was no commitment, according to Ikegami's observation, the Spurs had a high probability of selecting him.

Not long after, Stern came to the podium again and pulled out the note in the envelope: "No. 23 pick in the first round in 1998, the Denver Nuggets chose Ryoji Ikegami from Wake Forest University!"

Hearing this, Ikegami's eyes widened and he showed an expression of disbelief.

The reason is simple, he didn't go to the Nuggets for a tryout, but he was drafted by the Nuggets.

Ikegami was speechless, originally he thought that he would be drafted by the Spurs, and he would be able to lie down and win a championship with the Spurs.

Now it's good to be drafted by the Nuggets.

The 1997-98 season was a terrible season for the Nuggets, with the team nearly breaking the NBA record for the fewest games won in a single season, winning just 11 games all season, only better than the 9-73 set by the Philadelphia 76ers in 1971-72.

In addition, the 23-game losing streak also tied the longest single-season losing streak in NBA history, and only the Cleveland Cavaliers lost 24 games across the season set in 1982.

The Nuggets' poor record is in some ways a good idea for Ikegami, as it means that the Nuggets are a rebuilding team and that he could get more playing opportunities when the new season begins.