One Year Left to Play-Chapter 95 - 30: Cutting In!

Only players invited to the "Green Room" can enter the draft venue to wait, and they can also bring family and friends.

High school players like Zhang Hao don’t get such treatment, not just him, but the skinny guy next to him as well.

"Damn, you’re here too? Hope you get picked, otherwise crying won’t help..." Garnett’s mouth never stays clean, but this time there’s a hint of worry in his tone.

Garnett chose to skip college not because he didn’t want to go, but because his grades were too poor to get in. Of course, even if he got in, he couldn’t afford it. Given that he predicted having draft prospects, he had no choice but to enter the draft. Initially, he thought if he could make it into the lottery it’d be a blessing, and he didn’t expect McHale to promise the fifth pick for him.

But he thinks Zhang Hao skipping college to enter the draft is too irrational.

Zhang Hao doesn’t want to explain the reasons for this and responds, "Instead of worrying about me, you should tidy up your clothes. I think you’re about to get picked."

Garnett is quite confident about being picked. Although he’s not in the Green Room, he already has a team’s promise.

Zhang Hao and Garnett aren’t on the same wavelength, though they no longer dislike each other as they did initially, but they’re not the type to seamlessly chat together either.

Instead, Pierce, who came for the excitement, started chatting with Garnett.

"Kevin, what were you thinking? Going straight to the NBA after high school?"

"I had no choice. I couldn’t get into college, so I had to take a gamble. That guy though, I don’t know what he was thinking..." 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

The whole waiting room is noisy. There are several such waiting rooms at Madison Square Garden, all filled with draft hopefuls. Almost everyone brought friends along, while some brought agents. Garnett brought his recently signed agent, Fleischer Shire.

Zhang Hao ignored the trash-talkers and chatterboxes nearby and focused on the big TV in the waiting room, which was broadcasting the draft opening.

The camera panned over the Green Room members: Starkhouse, Rashid Wallace, Joe Smith, Antonio McDyess, Damon Stoudamire... A total of 16 players.

After a while, Zhang Hao saw the still gray-haired David Stern take the stage, and the boos from the venue came through the TV.

Zhang Hao didn’t know why, but it seemed New York fans particularly liked to boo David Stern.

If selecting a big man, start with a big man, Joe Smith and Antonio McDyess were selected in the first two picks. The Warriors picked Joe Smith with their top pick, while the Clippers picked Antonio McDyess with the second pick.

Zhang Hao didn’t have a deep impression of the latter, but he remembered the former caused Garnett’s Timberwolves to go without a first-round pick for five years.

Zhang Hao eagerly hoped for a "windfall" to fall on him with each pick, watching the draft intently.

Draft players were roughly divided into three types: one like Garnett, who had obtained a draft promise.

Another type had little chance of being selected, taking a gamble.

These two types were very relaxed, their noise adding to the environment.

Then there’s the type like Zhang Hao, who had a chance of being selected and not a small one, but were unsure when they’d be picked, or might go undrafted. There were quite a few like him in this waiting room.

At the fifth pick, just as Zhang Hao expected, Garnett heard the gasps of the people around him and had no unexpected expression.

Hearing comments like "That high schooler was picked fifth" and "Timberwolves are crazy," Garnett remained calm and even wanted to laugh out loud—envy, jealousy!

The Timberwolves had promised him during tryouts, so Garnett wasn’t surprised, but he was very excited to be picked. When staff came to take him to the venue, he left a message for Zhang Hao: "I’m headed to the NBA first, wait for you."

Despite saying that, Garnett wasn’t too optimistic about Zhang Hao’s draft journey.

It was only because of the Timberwolves’ draft promise; otherwise, Garnett wouldn’t be so calm. His experience trying out for several teams was quite similar to Zhang Hao’s. Because as high school players, they weren’t taken seriously from the start. No matter how well they performed, teams had lots of concerns and ignored their performances. What about players like Zhang Hao with an off-ball style?

Even fans, team management, and other draft players thought the Timberwolves were crazy to pick him.

Seeing Garnett’s departing back, Zhang Hao deeply felt a surge of envy.

What could he do? At this moment, he could do nothing but wait to be called...

Elsewhere, in the 76ers’ draft office.

John Lucas looked at the player his team selected, Starkhouse, and thought it wasn’t bad, but he couldn’t stop thinking about that high school student known for his exceptional mid-range shot.

Fortunately, their boss kept his promise this time, obtaining a second-round second pick. John Lucas hoped Zhang Hao wouldn’t be picked before that.

In the Lakers’ draft office, watching the Grizzlies pick Bryant Reeves at the sixth pick and the Raptors pick Damon Stoudamire at the seventh, Logo Man saw the eleventh pick nearing and started smiling.

He also hoped he’d be scolded initially, then Zhang Hao would play well and earn praises with a comeback...

Plus, one team had already picked a high school player ahead, so even if he picked Zhang Hao, he wouldn’t be scolded as badly by the Los Angeles fans.

Zhang Hao’s mid-range shot was NBA-ready. Logo Man had sharp eyes, seeing that Zhang Hao’s mid-range shot was among the best in the NBA already. Even if he only had a mid-range shot, it’d still be highly useful, and Zhang Hao was only 18 years old! His athleticism was excellent.

The key was Zhang Hao’s mid-range shot—having it at 18 meant they could develop other skills around it. Cultivating a player with an off-ball style to have a comprehensive scoring method is much simpler than developing a core player.

Then, with the eighth pick, the Blazers selected Sean Respet.

The eleventh pick was getting closer, and Logo Man struck a deal with the Bucks, who needed a scoring forward. The Bucks would help him pick Zhang Hao, and he would trade Sibaros for it once Zhang Hao was picked.

Although the Bucks also thought Logo Man was crazy, they would gladly take advantage, being quite impatient and eager for their pick.

Another 3 minutes passed, and David Stern returned to the stage.

After another round of boos, David Stern opened the envelope with a smile... He paused, then smiled even more broadly, seemingly suppressing laughter. If you listened closely, you could hear excitement in his restrained tone: "Ladies and gentlemen, in the 1995 NBA Draft, with the ninth pick in the first round, the New Jersey Nets select, from China, the high school student from Inglewood High School in Los Angeles, the talented forward, Zhang Hao..."