Jerry West, after saying his piece and embracing Kobe and Hexi Meng one by one, left the Hornets' representative seat with satisfaction.
Kobe, having already known about the trade between the Hornets and the Lakers, was not surprised. He greeted Hornets General Manager Bob Bass and followed Jerry West.
Hexi Meng still wanted to confirm some matters with Bob Bass and did not leave with Kobe.
"Mr. Bass, about the trade..."
"There's no harm in telling you! The Lakers originally planned to trade Divac for Kobe. But not long ago, Jerry suddenly called me and said he wanted to revise the trade assets. He hoped we could select you with the 16th pick in the first round, and then they would select Tony Delk, whom we wanted, with the 24th pick! As compensation, the Lakers would also give us a future second-round pick..."
"So, I was dragged into the Kobe trade?"
"Yes, you can understand it that way!"
"I have a question! If Tony Delk is selected by another team between the 17th and 23rd picks, wouldn't the Hornets lose out big time?"
Bob Bass burst into laughter upon hearing Hexi Meng's question, patted Hexi Meng on the shoulder, and said, "Dear Mr. Fundamentals, if that situation occurs, we would at least get you! Don't underestimate yourself. Between you and Tony Delk, our management was already decided to pick one of you!"
"Because of an extra second-round pick, you were more inclined towards Tony Delk?"
"No, no, no! The second-round pick was secondary. In fact, we were more eager to complete the Divac trade! There aren't many excellent big men in the league, and Divac is very tempting... Jerry used the pause on the Divac-Kobe trade as leverage, making it difficult for us not to comply with his wishes..."
Alright, the truth is now out!
The logo man had his eye on Hexi Meng and pulled him into the Kobe trade. This meant that the Lakers would send the All-Star center Divac, this year's 24th overall pick Tony Delk, and a future second-round pick, in exchange for this year's 13th overall pick, the number one high school player in the nation, Kobe, and this year's NCAA championship team member, Chinese point guard Hexi Meng from Wake Forest University!
When this trade was reported by the media, it caused an uproar!
Most people believed that the Lakers were at a huge disadvantage in this trade!
Trading an All-Star center for two unproven rookies was already an unequal exchange, and to also include a first-round pick and a future second-round pick was an absolute disaster!
But Jerry West remained unmoved! Because he was playing a long game!
Acquiring Kobe was, of course, due to his talent.
Acquiring Hexi Meng was not only due to his talent and the recommendation of assistant coach and scout James Worthy, but Jerry West also saw the potential of the Chinese market behind him. He had insider information that Commissioner Stern would lead an important delegation to the other side of the ocean that summer to explore the Chinese market, expecting significant breakthroughs...
Hexi Meng could help the Lakers get a head start on the rest of the league and capture the Chinese market!
In addition, by involving Hexi Meng in the Divac-Kobe one-for-one trade, it would also reduce the internal resistance and pressure on the logo man to push for this trade!
This was because most of the media and fans, as well as some within management, were unhappy about Jerry West's audacious move of trading an All-Star center for a 13th overall pick...
Although Jerry West could ignore these voices and push forward with his plan, any reduction in resistance and pressure was beneficial!
This was because Jerry West's true intentions could not be revealed before they were achieved!
The logo's firm desire to send Divac away had an even deeper purpose: to clear the way for the acquisition of the Magic's O'Neal!
Yes! If the All-Star center Divac was still on the team, how could O'Neal confidently fly from Orlando to Los Angeles?
Clearing a spot and freeing up salary cap space... was actually the biggest motivation for the logo to overcome all obstacles and push for this trade!
In a sense, O'Neal played a significant role in Kobe being able to don the purple and gold of the Lakers...
After a series of maneuvers by Jerry West, the Lakers successfully lured O'Neal to Los Angeles with a lucrative seven-year, $120 million contract!
The Magic did have opportunities to retain O'Neal, but their management made a series of poor decisions. First, they offered O'Neal a small contract of $80 million for four years. Upon learning that O'Neal wanted $115 million for seven years, they then launched a poll among all Magic fans asking "Is O'Neal worth $115 million?" in an attempt to pressure O'Neal through the fans...
At that time, the Hornets' Mourning had just been poached by the Heat with a massive seven-year, $105 million contract!
O'Neal wanted $115 million for seven years precisely to prove he was better than Mourning...
As a result, the Magic made things difficult. After the Lakers offered $120 million for seven years, they stubbornly held firm at $109 million for seven years! A difference of $11 million over seven years, which was only an additional $1.5 million per year, was it that the Magic couldn't afford it? No, the Magic management arrogantly believed O'Neal wouldn't want to leave Orlando, wouldn't want to leave Hardaway...
That season, the combination of O'Neal and Hardaway had reached the Eastern Conference Finals! They were just waiting for Jordan's retirement to challenge for the championship.
The Lakers? Who was on the Lakers?
Because of this inexplicable confidence, or a severe misjudgment of O'Neal, the Magic ultimately managed to annoy O'Neal, and then benefited Los Angeles, watching helplessly as O'Neal donned the Lakers' number 34 jersey...
Of course, these were all later moves by Jerry West.
After the draft, at Popovich's insistence, Hexi Meng had dinner with his mother, John, Duncan, and Popovich!
Although he didn't get to go to his preferred Spurs, going to the Lakers was at least much better than staying with the Hornets!
Because Hexi Meng knew that he would soon be teaming up with O'Neal and Kobe. If nothing unexpected happened, Hexi Meng should be able to coast to three championships and collect three championship rings...
During their dinner, Popovich also encouraged Hexi Meng to perform well in Los Angeles, and after establishing his value, welcomed him to transfer to San Antonio for his next contract...
Uh... the timing of Hexi Meng's next contract seemed to coincide with the imminent establishment of the Lakers dynasty...
But as a seasoned individual, Hexi Meng naturally agreed to Popovich's invitation, and whether he would transfer from the Lakers to the Spurs three or four years later would be a decision for three or four years later...