020: NCAA's top scorer meets high school's top scorer
Jerry Krause felt he had lost weight recently, his chin going from a quadruple layer to a triple layer.
The Bulls were experiencing continuous internal troubles lately, which put enormous pressure on him.
The team was currently trailing the New York Knicks 0 to 2 in the Eastern Conference Finals.
The achievement of a three-peat seemed to have turned into an unrealistic dream.
Horace Grant was drifting apart from the team, scoring only 6 points with 2 rebounds in Game 2 of the series, shooting a measly 16%.
After the game, he claimed he had an ankle injury.
And here's how the great Jordan showed concern for his teammate, "Ankle injury? Are you trying to say you're a fucking coward who's afraid of getting hurt? It looks like Krause isn't stupid, at least not giving a big contract to a coward is the right decision!"
As for Jordan himself, he was not giving Krause any peace of mind either.
In fact, Jordan's issues accounted for 90% of Krause's worries.
Right after the Bulls' brutal loss to the Knicks in Game 2, Dave Anderson, a reporter from The New York Times, revealed that Jordan was still "battling" in the casinos of Atlantic City, New Jersey, in the early morning before the game.
At this time, Richard Esquinas, the former general manager of the San Diego Sports Arena, released a book titled "Michael and Me: Our Gambling Addiction."
The book exposed his and Jordan's involvement in various gambling activities, and most crucially, it claimed, "The great Michael still owes me $1.25 million in gambling debts!"
The Atlantic City gambling controversy combined with the publishing of this book pushed the matter to its darkest depths, prompting media outlets to start asking, "Could the gambling-addicted Jordan be involved in betting on games?"
NBA immediately established an investigatory panel to look into Jordan, and amidst these scandals, Jordan's public image plummeted to rock bottom, much like James Worthy's did following an entrapment operation by a female police officer that led to his solicitation scandal in November 1990.
Krause couldn't sleep at night, he loathed Jordan who never showed him any respect, but he needed him more than anyone else. So he didn't want Jordan to get into trouble, nor did he want the scandal to affect Jordan's performance.
He was genuinely afraid that the next day he would wake up to news of Jordan being taken away for investigation.
He was genuinely afraid that in the crucial Game 3, the Bulls would be completely dismantled by the Knicks.
Amidst all these troubles, Krause received another piece of not-so-good news.
"Are you saying, Roger refused our tryout invitation!?"
Krause looked at Dukan in front of him, finding it hard to believe.
The Bulls had the 25th overall pick in this summer's draft, and if Roger performed well in the workouts, Krause intended to pick this high school rookie in the first round.
This was a first-round pick, could a high school kid ask for more?
And yet, he refused?
"Why?" Krause asked Dukan.
Dukan honestly replied, "Roger's agent Eric says that his client is unlikely to fall to the end of the first round because he has already received invitations from several lottery teams. If we are indeed interested in Roger, we should prepare a lottery draft pick in advance. In that case, he might consider arranging for Roger to come to Chicago."
"Cunning bastard!" Krause cursed.
He was well aware that Eric didn't want Roger to be a stepping stone for others.
Trying out for lottery teams and competing against NCAA players with lottery prospects meant that even if Roger performed poorly, Eric could say "Roger only lost to the top few college players, but he is undoubtedly NBA material."
But if Roger went to a lower-ranked team's tryouts and lost to those NCAA players without lottery prospects, everyone would know Roger wasn't ready for the NBA.
It's like losing to Jordan, you could still be considered honorable in defeat. But if you lost to Drexler, the whole world would know you're weak—that's the difference.
So, Eric only arranged for Roger to work out with lottery teams. Even if Roger lost, he'd be losing to "Jordan."
Krause scoffed at these petty tricks.
He admitted Roger had potential; in fact, Krause was one of the few general managers who took a keen interest in Roger.
But if it meant exchanging a lottery pick for this scratch card, the cost was simply too steep.
However...
Krause thought Roger would eventually come to Chicago for a workout. Once he found himself unable to cope in the workouts with lottery teams, he'd find a way to step down gracefully.
Meanwhile, Roger and Eric arrived in Detroit, the first stop on their workout tour.
In the NBA of the eighties and nineties, Detroit was absolutely a place everyone wanted to beat.
The Detroit Bad Boys had unprecedented success in the late '80s and early '90s, bringing a blue-collar and resistant color to the map of the basketball world.
But their near-murderous style of play also made them the league's thorn in the flesh.
With the rise of Michael Jordan, Detroit seemed to be cursed by fate, becoming nothing more than a backdrop in history.
Yet, the team retained pride from its past and was desperate to rebuild quickly.
This summer, Detroit held the 10th and 11th lottery picks, which meant they could enjoy double the pleasure.
Of course, if they chose poorly, that would mean double the waste.
Therefore, the new general manager of the Pistons, Billy McKinney, took this draft very seriously.
He convened college prodigies with lottery prospects all at once, including Allan Houston, Lindsey Hunter, Doug Edwards, and Vin Baker.
Of course, there was also "The Truth," who had created a miracle during the McDonald's All-American Game.
Billy McKinney didn't want to let go of any possibility, and from a personal standpoint, he thought that Roger would be a very good choice.
Inside the Pistons' training facility, Roger saw many familiar faces.
The king of mid-range shots, Allan Houston, with his near-perfect shooting form, repeatedly put the ball into the hoop.
Vin Baker showcased his versatile offensive skills in the low post.
However, the most eye-catching on the court was Shawn Bradley, a giant standing 7 feet 6 inches tall, who stood out even among basketball courts crowded with tall players.
How terrifying was his height? After 1991, he hadn't played a single proper game but had become a full-time missionary instead.
Even with two years off the court, he still had the prospects of being selected in the lottery.
This goes to show how attractive his height is to NBA teams.
When people mention Bradley, they often recall the famous scenes where he was brutally dunked on.
From the fans' perspective, Bradley is quite soft. But as a player sharing the same court with him, Roger deeply realized the courage required to confront him head-on.
He also deeply understood why NBA teams were so fascinated by him.
As Roger and Eric entered the gym, the new Pistons general manager, Billy McKinney, came up to welcome their visit.
And he told Roger very kindly, "Don't be nervous, just play to your talents."
In contrast to McKinney's warmth was the head coach who had also just joined the team, Don Chaney.
He simply nodded at Roger, then somewhat coldly said, "Kid, this is different from high school. If I were you, I would at least play two seasons in the NCAA."
Roger could feel the indifference in Don Chaney's tone, as well as that touch of haughty pride. It's normal for a professional team coach to look down on high school players.
But inside, Roger just wanted to retort, "Are you teaching me how to do things?"
Don Chaney indeed felt that having a high school student try out for the team was a waste of time.
He had wanted Terry Dehere, the leading guard from Seton Hall University, to come for the tryouts. The Big East Conference MVP of the last season was averaging 22 points, had a well-rounded offense and even somewhat of an assassin's shadow.
But general manager McKinney replaced Dehere with Roger, much to Don Chaney's chagrin.
Don Chaney eagerly hoped McKinney would realize how foolish his decision was, giving up a college talent for a green high school student.
Yet immediately after, Billy McKinney was smiling wider than anyone.
Because Roger's physical measurements far exceeded expectations!
Standing at 6 feet 5 inches barefoot, 6 feet 6 inches with shoes.
Weighing 192 pounds, with a wingspan of 6 feet 11 inches.
A vertical leap of 40 inches off a running start, a 3/4 court sprint time of 3.12 seconds.
Both his static and dynamic talents were top-notch!
Even if Roger were to be placed in the NBA's shooting guard position right now, he would be a player who would not be at a size disadvantage and would possess tremendous athletic abilities!
This data did not bring Roger joy because it was all the result of his hard work over time; he already knew he could achieve such results.
But McKinney was quite pleased; Roger's level of preparedness for the NBA was higher than anyone had anticipated!
He suddenly felt that Roger had nothing to be nervous about.
Now, it was those clear-eyed yet foolish college students who should be anxious!
Speaking of which, McKinney had always been looking forward to Roger competing with Allan Houston on the same court.
When NCAA's top scorers and the top high school scorer met, what kind of sparks would they create?
Well, then let's put them on different teams and see!
"The Truth" and whether he could continue his streak in a higher level of competition, everyone would know soon!
After setting up the matchups, McKinney, excitedly standing on the sidelines, said, "I feel that kid is going to surprise us all. His body has already met NBA requirements. That kid didn't declare for the draft on a whim, he came prepared."
Don Chaney, however, was disdainful, "Have you ever seen anyone get an MVP with physical measurement data, Billy? Let's talk after watching the game."
In the eyes of the new Pistons head coach, that kid indeed would shock everyone.
He would, in a very embarrassing manner, make everyone exclaim, "This is America's number one high school student?"