My days of working at the NBA

Chapter 72 The Galloping Black Horse

Originally, many people thought ESPN had gone crazy when Duze jumped from the 27th pick to the 16th pick, believing their predictions were inaccurate and extremely exaggerated.

Why?

Because before the tournament started, there was no such person as Du Ze on the mock draft website.

In other words, before the tournament began, he had no draft prospects whatsoever; to put it bluntly, he was not even qualified to play in the NBA.

result.

锦标赛他一鸣惊人，一场20+10+5，一场21+15+12，直接冲进选秀模拟榜单；

He then easily defeated the championship favorite Memphis in the round of 16, and his draft prospects looked very promising. In the end, Missouri won the championship and Duze got his wish and was selected 8th in the first round.

The problem is that countless gifted young talents have put in countless hours of hard work, spending years accumulating experience and proving themselves, just to barely make it onto the mock draft list.

Du Ze, in just a few games, went from being a nobody in some unknown corner to becoming a first-round pick. His path to fame is already quite dreamlike.

When the physical test results came out, he jumped a lot and came up sixteenth in the draft.

Such a leapfrog draft simulation is unprecedented in draft history; it's simply outrageous.

Let's see what Du Ze's draft report says.

Strengths: Top-tier athleticism; explosiveness, jumping ability, speed, and strength are all among the best for a forward. Excels in fast breaks, rebounding for second-chance points, and has exceptional finishing ability on pick-and-rolls; also possesses decent passing vision.

Defensively, he has a huge coverage area and is top-notch in rim protection. His excellent physical gifts and judgment allow him to contribute many blocks and deter players from attacking the rim. He also has a keen sense for rebounds and is a good rebounder.

Weaknesses: There was a huge disconnect between his regular season and tournament performance. During the regular season, he almost never shot three-pointers, and he barely attempted any mid-range shots either.

In the tournament, his three-point shooting percentage was 57.6%, and he made one three-pointer in every game, which seemed very strange. His mid-range and long-range shooting was extremely inconsistent.

Even more fatal is that he is already 20 years old this year, and his technical characteristics are basically formed, but he has no dribbling ability.

That's right.

Not at all.

This is a fatal weakness, indicating that his future can almost only be used as a functional piece of the puzzle, with poor plasticity, and he can only contribute defense and transition offense on the field.

Another point is that his positioning is very vague.

As an inside player, he lacked low post, back-to-the-basket, mid-range, and hook shots; he had absolutely no inside footwork or skills.

His barefoot height of 203cm is also an insurmountable weakness. In the NBA, where tall players abound, he will be at a disadvantage in physical battles in the paint.

If he swings to the small forward position, he will lose the ball-handling threat and all opportunities to develop and utilize his outside offense, making him an easy target for opponents.

In addition, his outside shooting is extremely inconsistent, and the NBA three-point line is further away, so he has almost no offensive advantage at the small forward position.

Without a clear role, a player can easily become a mediocre player.

In summary: A raw talent with overflowing potential has the ceiling of an All-Star and the floor of a benchwarmer; success or failure depends entirely on their role and adaptability.

Best template: Shawn Marion.

If things go smoothly, he could become an all-around forward like Marion, a defensive stalwart and help-defense sweeper, the best offensive weapon in transition, and a ace finisher of pick-and-roll plays.

Worst template: Stromeyer-Swift.

Swift, the second overall pick in the 00 draft, was dubbed the "second Shaq" before the draft, but ultimately became a "bull" who could only run and jump. If Duze cannot adapt to the NBA, he will eventually become a low-budget version of Swift.

The entire draft report directly pointed out Duze's strengths and weaknesses, and indicated his future development direction.

The evaluation is quite fair.

Can a 20-year-old forward still develop ball-handling skills?

The answer is harsh: almost impossible.

Because once a technical skill is established, it is difficult to change. Most importantly, ball feel and ball control cannot be developed in a short time. Which famous star did not develop their ball control and rhythm in their teens?

You're 20 years old now, and you can't even dribble properly when you drop the ball. How are you going to train?

The results of the shooting practice were also announced, and Du Ze's poor shooting skills were hard to reassure.

Therefore, many fans generally believe that predicting Durant to be selected 16th in the first round is too high, because the overall floor is too low, the uncertainty is too great, and he could easily be a bust.

A ranking of 20 would be more reasonable.

As a result, you directly rejected the Chicago Bulls' offer?

That's incredibly arrogant.

Meanwhile, the person in question had already boarded a flight to Indiana with the beautiful woman.

Lawrence is quite a shrewd guy; I don't know how he managed to get the girl to buy tickets for them.

When Du Ze found out, he really had the urge to kneel down and become his disciple.

A true role model for us all...

After spending two days in Indiana, enjoying food, drinks, and entertainment, they traveled to Detroit and Phoenix.

The entire trial training wasn't actually that tough.

Because he doesn't have to pay.

Accommodation has also been arranged.

The tryout process is pretty much the same: a simple demonstration of dynamic and static talents, some shooting practice, followed by 3v3 or 5v5, the difference being that there are tactical drills.

In real competition, Du Ze's performance was far better than in simple shooting practice.

Anyway, after the tryout, the general manager of the Detroit Pistons personally interviewed him, which shows that he really valued him.

Then-Phoenix general manager and president of basketball operations Steve Kerr, and head coach Alvin Gentry were amazed by his physical gifts.

That expression was just like a monster seeing Tang Sanzang, grinning sinisterly while wiping away drool.

It's clear that both teams are eyeing his physical gifts and are satisfied with the abilities he demonstrated during his trial.

That afternoon, just after finishing her interviews with Cole and Gentry, Xu Chunjiao called.

When the call connected, the voice on the other end sounded tired: "Get ready, we're flying to Toronto immediately."

Du Ze's heart skipped a beat: "The Raptors are interested in me too?"

The Toronto Raptors hold the ninth overall pick this year. If the Raptors also hold a workout for him, his expected draft position of sixteenth will have to be moved up again.

as predicted.

Rumors have surfaced that the Raptors will extend a one-on-one tryout invitation to Duze.

The industry was once again in uproar.

Are you crazy?

Holding the number nine pick, yet trying out a raw talent expected to be a mid-to-late first-round pick?

What's even more puzzling is that the Raptors already have All-Star Bosh, so why would they need to try out a forward?

I don't understand at all...

In fact, Du Ze also couldn't understand how Xu Chunjiao had convinced the Raptors' management to extend a tryout invitation to him.

Generally speaking, teams are very cautious about extending individual workout invitations. Either you are within the draft's expectations, or you fit the team's needs. In short, the team will only extend an individual workout invitation if they are interested in you.

Du Ze is not compatible with either of them.

Many people suspect this is just a smokescreen, and the Raptors' tryout invitation is not reliable.

Two days later.

The New York Knicks also extended a separate tryout invitation to Duze.

This signal acted like a booster, silencing all doubts.

For a moment, everyone was in a daze, feeling as if it were all unreal.

It seems... Duze's refusal of the Bulls' tryout was to be expected.

Given this trend, it's impossible for him to fall to the sixteenth pick.

This runaway dark horse is going to go all the way!