As a time traveler, Lin Yu naturally knew that the Heat had won. Mashburn had been reborn in Miami, even stronger. His three-point shooting percentage had skyrocketed, and his defensive ability had improved significantly, transforming him from a spearhead offensive player into a top-tier small forward with both offensive and defensive capabilities.
The Bullets were already short of a legitimate small forward, and Mashburn's trade value was extremely low. With such a valuable player right in front of him, within reach, Lin Yu couldn't see any reason not to acquire him.
Unfortunately, after hearing Twin Bone's evaluation of Mashburn, he had no interest in him at all.
"Mr. Unseld, do you want to disgust Pat Riley again?"
Lin Yu suddenly had an idea and thought of a way to convince Unseld to trade Mashburn.
"Naive! Who do you think I am?"
"Well, I don't have anything to do today, but I do have time to hear your detailed story."
Unseld leaned slightly to the side, his expression attentive.
He and Pat Riley were on the verge of becoming sworn enemies due to the "Uncle Ferguson" incident.
It's like having your wife kidnapped, even after getting a marriage certificate. Even if the court later returns her, can the victim forgive the perpetrator?
Unseld was intrigued by the prospect of disgusting Pat Riley again.
"My idea is to try to intercept the Heat's trade and acquire Mashburn."
"It doesn't cost much anyway. For example, if we trade Chaney, the Mavericks might even give us some in return."
Unseld hadn't finished listening when he immediately shook his head. "It certainly doesn't take much to trade Mashburn, but he's already useless."
"What if he's completely useless and remains at his current level? Then Pat Riley will be annoying me."
Lin Yu immediately continued, "Whether Mashburn plays or not, at least we disrupted the Heat's trade, right?"
"Besides, you can tell the world that I orchestrated this trade. If Mashburn doesn't perform, all the blame can be put on me, and Riley won't be annoying you."
"Think about it. What if we meet the Heat in the playoffs this year, and Mashburn explodes and helps us eliminate them? What would Pat Riley's expression be?"
Unseld was at a loss for words. Reason told him it was a foolish idea, but the scenario Lin Yu described was incredibly captivating.
"Damn it, Paulin's right. You shouldn't be a coach, you should be a governor!"
"How confident are you?"
Lin Yu smiled confidently. "At least 50%."
"Done! I'll call old Nelson right now. I hope that lunatic doesn't ask for exorbitant prices."
"Lin, if you get a chance, you should spend more time with old Nelson. I have a feeling you two have a lot in common. We're both crazy."
After that, Unseld called Nelson.
The Mavericks' current general manager is mad scientist Don Nelson, whose madness has reached an outrageous level.
This season's Mavericks can be considered his testing ground. Other teams generally have fewer than fifteen players; after all, the active roster is limited to twelve, and any more players won't be used.
The Mavericks' roster this year is extensive, with 27 players having appeared on the court.
Nelson has been either trading or in the process of trading throughout the season, having experimented with nearly twenty starting lineups in two-thirds of the schedule.
Lin Yu waited patiently.
After about half an hour, Unseld called.
"Lin, that lunatic agreed and then didn't. He's very interested in Chaney, saying he fits his vision for the future roster."
"But he also knows Mashburn's value isn't as good as Chaney's, so he wants to give us that ugly Cassell and ask us to give him more chips."
"Either give them Harvey or a first-round pick next season. I'm also planning to give them Lorenzo to ease our salary cap burden. We have no use for him anyway."
Lin Yu listened to Unseld's words with melancholy, honestly suspecting he was a time traveler. He couldn't help but ask, "Who was the first black president?"
Unseld wanted to reach into the phone line and touch Lin Yu's forehead. He suspected Lin Yu had a fever that had rendered him delirious.
Lin Yu's suspicion wasn't groundless. The old Bone Crusher had been incredibly lucky. In the previous trade with the Pacers, he'd practically snagged All-Star starting center Antonio Davis for free.
Davis was currently playing backup for Ben Wallace, making him a valuable asset.
This time, in the trade with the Mavericks, he was going to snag Cassell for free again. Even though Unseld hadn't mentioned his full name, Lin Yu knew it was Sam Cassell, nicknamed "Alien," based on his smolderingly ugly description.
This season has been an absolute nightmare for Cassell. He started with the Rockets and was then traded to the Mavericks. Even without Lin Yu's involvement, he would have played ten games with the Mavericks before being traded to the New Jersey Nets after the All-Star break.
Changing three teams in one season, his luck isn't necessarily any better than Jalen Rose's.
Like Webber, Chaney, and Mashburn, he was also a 1993 rookie and is now approaching his prime, averaging around 19 points and seven assists per game, a player no less capable than a fast-paced one.
However, in the Mavericks' testing ground, he wasn't given much play, so his numbers aren't very impressive.
Lin Yu even maliciously speculated whether Cassell's unusual appearance was the reason he'd been traded so often. Generally speaking, black, white, and Asian people have different aesthetic tastes, but in Cassell's case, the aesthetics were surprisingly consistent. He was truly unattractive.
"Promise them!"
"This deal is a steal! We're currently short of a small forward and a point guard. With these two, we might even have a fighting chance against the Bulls."
"Plus, if we face the Heat in the playoffs, I'm 90% sure we'll eliminate them!"
Lin Yu's confidence was overflowing. With these two players, the Bullets' roster could be considered luxurious.
The Bullets' roster was already quite impressive, boasting three All-Star caliber players. After Lin Yu arrived, he discovered or traded for Ben Wallace, Jalen Rose, and Antonio Davis. The General and Legs were practically negligible. Without the aid of their random auras, they were essentially accessory-level players.
If Monster and Alien were traded for them, the Bullets' roster would be truly incredible.
At center, they have Ben Wallace and Antonio Davis.
At power forward, they have Webber and Howard.
At small forward, they have Mashburn, at shooting guard, they have Jalen Rose, and at point guard, they have the likes of Steve Jobs and Steve Jobs.
They have no weaknesses at any of the five positions, with several All-Stars, all at full strength. Off the bench, they have scoring savvy players like Steve and Steve Jobs. Steve, in particular, can easily take over a game if he gets his three-point shooting going.
While they'd certainly be a bit underwhelming against a team like the Bulls, with so many rookies on their roster, they'd undoubtedly be at a disadvantage in terms of experience. Furthermore, without a decisive player like Jordan, their roster could easily lose its core in crucial moments.
But against the Heat or other Eastern Conference powerhouses, they'd be more than adequate, more than enough.
"Lin, what I admire most about you is your ability to maintain your confidence even when boasting."
"Forget it, this should be the last trade of the season. Do you think we should trade Harvey or a draft pick?"
Unseld asked.
After a moment's contemplation, Lin Yu decided to keep the general on the team and trade the draft pick to the Mavericks.
If it were any other draft year, Lin Yu would definitely not have been willing to trade the pick, because, with his clairvoyant perspective, a first-round pick was practically equivalent to an All-Star rookie.
But the 1997 draft was exceptional, producing only three legitimate All-Stars: No. 1 pick Tim Duncan, No. 3 pick Billups, and No. 9 pick Tracy McGrady. The Bullets were definitely going to make the playoffs, and their first-round pick was expected to be around 20th. With that pick, they wouldn't be able to get any quality players, so keeping it would be a waste. It would be better to keep General Harvey, after all, as his favorability rating was already over 50%, and Lin Yu didn't want to give up halfway.
That evening, before the game against the Spurs, Lin Yu received a notification from Unseld, officially finalizing the deal.
Lin Yu breathed a sigh of relief. After the trade, this lineup would likely be his final for the season. He had no idea how it would fare in the playoffs.
…
"Tim, weren't you disappointed not to see David Robinson on the court today?"
The game had already begun. Lin Yu, sitting on the sidelines with nothing to do, teased Brother Tuizi.
Brother Tuizi immediately understood what Lin Yu meant, blushing, "Don't listen to Rod's nonsense. How could they all have Robinson's face?"
"And even if they look like Robinson, so what? If I can't conquer the general on the court, isn't conquering him off it a pleasure?"
Lin Yu was speechless. Brother Tuizi was regressing further and further down his perverse path.
The Spurs were still using their same tanking lineup tonight. General Robinson had already been ruled out for the season, and core small forward "Superman" Sean Campliot had also been ruled out for the season a month earlier.
The Spurs on the court were a jumble of old, weak, and infirm players, led by 37-year-old Dominique Wilkins, a true gem of a human movie.
In his prime, Wilkins was certainly financially influential. He was a top-tier swingman. As a small forward, his skill was undoubtedly comparable to that of Carmelo Anthony. As a shooting guard, he was also among the top four shooting guards.
Unfortunately, he's so old he looks like something out of a black-and-white movie.
Jalen Rose's debut against Kobe was a complete disaster. He was in high spirits, hammering down old Wilkins like he was punching the Nanshan Nursing Home.
Just five minutes into the first quarter, Lin Yu substituted Ben Wallace and Webber for Davis and Howard.
Even so, the Spurs were completely overwhelmed, and the score gap widened.
Midway through the third quarter, Lin Yu even fielded the entire Michigan Big Five, which only managed to prevent the Spurs from suffering such an embarrassing loss.
The Spurs fans were very respectful, giving the Michigan Big Five a warm applause and full respect.
The two Tigers, now playing again, saw their favorability ratings towards Lin Yu rise again. Jamie King's rating rose to 75, and Ray Jackson's rating was even at 85, looking like they were about to hit their maximum rating, prompting Lin Yu to exclaim, "What easy boys!"