Wizards draft office.

Ernnie Grunfield put down the phone.

Just now, he made a choice.

In front of him were a lot of deals for the No. 5 lot.

They initially chose the chips offered by the Suns, the No. 14 pick + the offer of Leandro Barbossa.

But that offer was replaced by another team's offer once the draft began.

Even if Cole adds Robin Lopez to this foundation.

Because Barbosa still has three years left on his long-term contract and, more importantly, is not the striker they want most.

As for draft picks, they are not important to them right now, as Arenas is back from injury and they are desperate to return to the playoffs and save the sluggish ball market.

Therefore, that is, combat power is a priority for them.

Similarly, they rejected the Bobcats' trade offer with the No. 12 pick as the main one, because the Bobcats also didn't offer the kind of swingman they wanted (a cheap contract, capable of playing as a starter).

He finally made a choice between the following two offers.

One is from the Timberwolves, Randy Foye + Mike Miller, and then the Wizards sent the No. 5 pick + Etang Thomas + Oreksey Pecherov + Darius Sangella.

The other is from the Bulls, Tyrus Thomas + John Salmons, and then the difference between the chips they gave away and the first one is one less Pecherov.

Let's talk about the chips they gave out, Etang Thomas, a serious garbage contract, only played 26 games last season, averaged 3 points and 2 rebounds per game, and had a contract of more than 7 million, but there is only one year left;

Oreksey Pecherov, the No. 18 pick in 2006, a draft pick that has proven to be a complete failure, played two seasons, and the statistics were both 3 points and 2 boards, and they were all ready to give up the contract this season, and if they traded with the Timberwolves, they would be used for the third year of the exercise.

Darius Sangueira, a bench interior player with 7 points and 3 rebounds last season, and a 2-year, 9 million contract, is the only positive asset, but it is also of limited value.

So in general, they used the No. 5 pick to trade to get instant power, and then disposed of the garbage contract by the way.

Let's look at the rewards they get.

First of all, on the Timberwolves' side, Foye was the No. 7 pick in 2006, a two-way guard of 1.93 meters, and his performance in the first two seasons was average, but in his third year as a rookie, that is, last season, he averaged 16 points, 3 rebounds and 4 assists per game, and his 40% shooting rate was a bit low;

Mike Miller, a 2.03-meter swingman, was Miller's 9th NBA season last season, averaging 10 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game, a rotation-level instant force, and a one-year contract of 9 million.

And then let's talk about the Bulls.

Tyrus Thomas, the No. 4 pick in 2006, a 2.06-meter power forward, Thomas is a little special, he was considered the core of the team when he was drafted that year, a violent power forward, but he didn't get much opportunity with the Bulls in the first two years, and he didn't start the team until last season.

Then his entire career trajectory is upward, last season he averaged 27 minutes per game, contributing 10.8 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.9 blocks, which is the Bulls' interior barrier and an important factor in their return to the playoffs;

Salmons, a 2.01-meter swingman, was in his seventh season in the NBA last season, averaging 18.3 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game, shooting 47.2% from the field and 41.5% from three-point range, the peak of his career, and a one-year contract of 5 million.

Salmons experienced a trade last season, from the Kings to the Bulls, a master of chaos, and last season's playoff performance was particularly eye-catching, which was an important factor for the Bulls to play a tie-break with the Celtics.

So after the comparison, this choice is actually not that difficult.

And the Bulls came up with two starters from last season at once, and the sincerity was also very strong.

So in the final finalized plan, they sent the No. 5 pick + Etang Thomas + Darius Sanguella, and got Tyrus Thomas + Salmons + future second-round pick.

……

"I'm not going to Memphis, I'm going to Chicago?"

When Schwartz came over and told Xu Yong about the result, he was really a little confused.

Because he just said in front of reporters that he was looking forward to joining the Grizzlies.

"Yes, it was the Bulls who drafted you with the Roster pick, not the Grizzlies." Schwartz explained that while he also knew it sounded weirder, it was.

"You mean, the Bulls let the Grizzlies pick me?" Xu Yong smoothed Schwartz's words.

"Yes, they negotiated a deal, but you know the deal needs to be approved by the alliance, so that's the outcome." Schwartz went on to explain.

At this time, a staff member came over to remind Xu Yong that he was going to the press conference.

The selected players in the lottery area will also go to the designated press conference site after being interviewed by reporters on the sidelines.

Xu Yong nodded, asked Schwartz to go back first, and then followed the staff towards the press conference.

It's not a long road, but he thinks a lot.

He doesn't know much about the Bulls this season, but the Bulls shouldn't have the chips to change their names directly, and they don't know how they did it.

And the Bulls already have Rose as the outside core, which is not the same as the core he expected.

I don't know why the Bulls want him so much, you must know that the price of getting the list must not be too small.

However, fortunately, he is more optimistic, and his mentality has been adjusted before he walked to the press conference.

Thinking about it from another angle, going to the bulls is not necessarily a bad thing.

Because although he didn't know much about the Bulls during this period, he remembered that the Bulls would change dramatically in the summer of 2010, with new head coaches Thibodeau and Boozer coming to the Bulls, and the Bulls at that time were a serious championship team.

Unlike the NCAA, it is the highest honor to win the NBA championship, so it is of course a good thing to be able to compete for the championship.

And doesn't this give him a year to develop?

Even if the Bulls spend the cost to draft him with the roster pick, they will inevitably focus on developing him, which does not conflict with whether there is Rose or not.

After all, no one has stipulated that there can only be one core of the team, like the Celtics, isn't there three now?

And you must know that if history does not change, there will soon be a super team with three peak cores.

In the Bulls' tough triumvirate?

For someone of his character, it's exciting to think about!

What's more, the Bulls are the team Jordan once played for, and going to that team is also something to be very exciting for him.

Therefore, when he really sat down, his mood became very comfortable.

"Xu, we just got the news that the Bulls completed a trade with the Grizzlies with the No. 5 pick and a future unprotected first-round pick, and you're going to Chicago to report, how are you feeling at the moment?" As soon as he sat down, a group of reporters raised their hands, and one of the reporters who got up after being named asked.

Xu Yong quickly filtered the information given by the reporter.

The No. 5 pick and the No. 2 pick in the future first round, why does this sound so familiar?

By the way, there was a similar trade in the 2018 draft in history, when the Mavericks had changed their name to the Mavericks, and they traded the No. 5 pick and a future protected first-round pick from the Hawks for the No. 3 pick, and used the No. 3 pick to select Luka Doncic, the core of the team for the next ten years.

The Hawks, on the other hand, drafted Trae Young with their No. 5 pick.

A slap in the face does not make a sound, and the reason why this deal can be reached is the common result of the interests of both parties.

For the Hawks, they wanted to select Trae Young, but Young at that time did not have the prospect of a top-three pick, and it was too wasteful to choose directly, and trading down was the most profitable option.

As for the Mavericks, what they were most worried about was that the Grizzlies, the No. 4 pick, would cut off Doncic, so they paid an extra heavily protected first round to get past the Grizzlies.

So essentially, the Bulls are doing this to prevent the Thunder and Kings from cutting him off.

It's definitely a perfect score, because the Kings gave him the draft promise.

As for the Grizzlies, Schwartz also told him before that Thabit had a bad tryout, and Rubio and Harden didn't go to Memphis for the tryout.

It is not cost-effective for them to directly use the list to sign Tabit, and it is too risky to blindly select others, in which case it is understandable that they want to maximize their interests.

Maybe they know some of the Thunder and Kings draft insiders.

But the Bulls certainly cost more than an unprotected first-round pick next year, because the No. 5 pick itself doesn't belong to them, and it's the No. 5 pick that they pay for it.

Of course, these are just a flash in Xu Yong's mind, facing the reporter's question, his expression is calm, and he said happily: "The Bulls are a young and energetic team, and I am excited to join such a team full of futures." ”