Chapter 19

"Bro, is this the NBA draft you were talking about? Once you get selected, you can earn a million dollars a year?"

On June 30, 1993, at 7 PM, in Lin Han's home in Utah, Lin Han was staring intently at the TV, even though the NBA draft hadn't started yet. He didn't want to miss a single second of the draft, as he was very excited about it. After all, the Jazz had promised to try their best to select him in the first round.

"Yeah, it won't be long before your brother becomes a millionaire. If you want anything in the future, just ask me, and I'll buy it for you."

"But, bro, can you really get selected? I never knew you could play basketball."

Seeing the skeptical look on her little sister Lin Yu's face, Lin Han felt a bit embarrassed and chuckled, "There are a lot of things you don't know about me."

After saying that, Lin Han pinched her cheeks lightly to show his dissatisfaction and said, "Your brother is a genius. You shouldn't doubt me like this in the future."

"I know, bro, it hurts," Lin Yu said with a pained expression, even though Lin Han's pinching was very gentle. But as soon as she saw Lin Han retract his hands, the little girl immediately laughed and clung to him, tickling him all over. Lin Han, of course, couldn't let her get away with it, and soon they were both laughing together. This made Lin Wei, their second sister, who had just come downstairs, very annoyed.

"Hey, you two aren't kids anymore. Pay attention to your behavior," she said. When they were young, these two were always very close, even though they were three years apart. They seemed like they were the same age. In contrast, she and Lin Han used to fight or argue all the time and never got along.

Today was June 30, the last day of June, but it wasn't a Saturday or Sunday, so Lin Han's older sister hadn't come home yet. After playing with Lin Yu for a while, the NBA draft officially began.

Seeing her brother staring intently at the TV, Lin Yu imitated him, leaning on Lin Han and watching the draft with him, even though she didn't really understand what was happening.

This year's NBA draft wasn't a true draft year, not like the 1984 draft, which was called the Golden Generation. However, it wasn't a small draft year either. Several of this year's rookies had defeated the Dream Team last year. Although the Dream Team had underestimated them, even an underestimating Dream Team wasn't easy to beat. As a result, there were many talented players this year, making the top ten picks very valuable.

Of course, the top ten picks had nothing to do with Lin Han. These were reserved for the geniuses, like Penny Hardaway and Allan Houston. These players were invited to the draft site by the league. As for ordinary rookies like Lin Han, they had to buy tickets to enter the draft site and sit in the stands like fans. So, Lin Han didn't choose to go to the draft site at the Palace of Auburn Hills this year.

The media had been hyping up the NBA draft for a while. For example, there had been rumors that the Magic were seeking trades and might not use their first pick on Penny Hardaway. The Philadelphia 76ers, who had lost Charles Barkley the previous year, had been looking for a quality power forward. Recently, they had been trying to convince the Magic to use their first pick on Hardaway, while they planned to snatch Webber from the Warriors. As a result, news about the Magic, 76ers, and Warriors had been flying around.

Lin Han had been closely following the developments between the Magic, 76ers, and Warriors, even more so than his own draft position. He had declined many teams' invitations to try out, including the Lakers, so his draft position had been falling recently. Neither USA Today nor other major American media outlets were optimistic about his draft prospects. However, because he had received a promise from the Jazz, Lin Han was no longer interested in his draft ranking.

Just as Lin Han was staring at the TV, wondering if the Magic would really not use their first pick on Hardaway, NBA Commissioner David Stern finally gave the answer. The Magic announced that they had used their first pick to select the best big man in this year's draft, Chris Webber. When David Stern announced the Magic's selection of Webber, the TV camera deliberately focused on the management of the 76ers and Warriors. Clearly, from their expressions, it was evident that the Warriors and Magic had colluded, and the 76ers, if they wanted to retaliate, could simply select Hardaway to sabotage the Magic and Warriors.

However, the Magic and Warriors had their own reasons for colluding. The 76ers didn't lack a player like Hardaway. They had Jeff Hornacek, who averaged 19 points and 7 assists per game last season, and Jose Herrera, an All-Star guard who averaged 20 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists per game. Even at the small forward position, they had the 9th pick from last year's draft, Clarence Weatherspoon, who, despite not being the Rookie of the Year due to Shaquille O'Neal and Alonzo Mourning, averaged nearly 16 points and 7 rebounds in his rookie season. The 76ers were focusing on developing this promising rookie. Although Hardaway was more talented than these three, the 76ers didn't really need another perimeter player.

So, after the Magic and Warriors colluded to sabotage the 76ers, the 76ers ultimately decided not to retaliate. Instead, they used their second pick to select the second-best big man in this year's draft, Shawn Bradley. For the 76ers, this year's draft was all about big men, not perimeter players.

As a result, the Warriors quickly used their third pick to select Hardaway, who was originally the top pick. It was likely that Hardaway and Webber would soon be traded to each other's teams.

After the drama between the Magic and Warriors, the subsequent picks had some surprises, but they weren't as significant. The Dallas Mavericks used their fourth pick to select Kentucky's forward Jamal Mashburn. The young Minnesota Timberwolves selected the super guard Terrell Brandon, who had faced off against Lin Han in the rookie showcase. The Washington Bullets used their sixth pick to select Karl Poole Chaney, and the Sacramento Kings used their seventh pick to select the best point guard of the year, Bobby Hurley.

Vince Baker was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks with the eighth pick, and the Denver Nuggets used their ninth pick to select the super big man Rodney Rogers. The Detroit Pistons, who had missed the playoffs and were rebuilding, used the tenth pick they had traded from the Heat to select point guard Lindsey Hunter, and then used their own eleventh pick to select the super shooting guard Allan Houston. It seemed that the Pistons' rebuilding was on the right track.

As for Jerry West, who had been interested in Lin Han, the Lakers used their twelfth pick to select the promising small forward George Lynch, who had been bullied by Lin Han. Clearly, Lin Han's rejection of Jerry West had left the Lakers' patriarch feeling very embarrassed, and he wouldn't have selected Lin Han even if Lin Han had gone to the Lakers for a tryout.

However, what Lin Han found slightly amusing was that the Indiana Pacers used their fourteenth pick to select the big man Scott Hastings. When he saw the Pacers' choice, Lin Han's expression became very strange. The reason the Jazz hadn't given Lin Han an absolute guarantee and hadn't promised to select him in the first round was that they were also interested in this big man.

This year's NBA draft, while not a true draft year, didn't have many quality big men. In such a situation, almost every slightly outstanding big man was highly sought after, especially since the Jazz really needed a big man. However, the Pacers had beaten the Jazz to it.

Now, Lin Han was very curious whether the Jazz would select him with the 18th pick, given that they had been outmaneuvered. As an NBA team, the Jazz must have scouted more than one big man. With their first target gone, they would have second and third targets.

Lin Han didn't have to wait long. Soon, after the previous teams had made their selections, it was the Jazz's turn with the 18th pick.

"The Utah Jazz have selected with the 18th pick... the shooting guard from Utah Valley Community College, Lin Han."

After David Stern read the white slip with some surprise, the entire draft site was in an uproar. At that moment, Lin Han, who was at home, was stunned.