"No other choice—sell off those players at rock-bottom prices!"
Chen Yilun rubbed his hands in frustration.
"Start with the forwards. Forget the price—sell whoever you can."
With Durant's arrival, the Kings' frontcourt was overflowing with talent.
Strictly speaking, Butler and Durant alone were more than enough to meet the team's needs at forward.
So now, Chen Yilun didn't feel the slightest hesitation about offloading some of them.
The Kings' forward depth was unmatched—easily in a tier of its own across the league.
In the original timeline of the NBA, this year's free agent market had a major shortage of forwards, causing several to sign outrageously large contracts.
Notable examples included Luol Deng's 4-year, $72 million deal, Chandler Parsons' 4-year, $98.5 million contract, and our very own "Mr. Joe's" infamous masterpiece—Nicolas Batum's 5-year, $120 million deal.
After that one, "Mr. Joe" was forever nailed to the wall of shame.
So in theory, if Chen Yilun wanted to sell, plenty of teams would be lining up. But the problem was, everyone knew he was desperate to clear space, so they were all quietly driving down the price.
After all, the Kings were the ones rushing to free up cap space. The rest of the league still had a long offseason—they could afford to wait.
"Can't you just talk like a normal person?!"
Chen Yilun snapped into his phone, clearly irritated.
"Connelly, Connelly! I thought you were one of the good ones with that honest face. Who knew you had such a sly streak in you!"
On the other end, Nuggets GM Tim Connelly chuckled.
"Yilun, you can't blame me for that. You've already eaten most of the cake—can't we at least get a few crumbs?"
"But your offer's way too low," Chen Yilun said with a bitter smile. "You'll lose a friend at this rate."
"Then don't blame me. I'd love to help, but if I open that door for you, I'll never survive in this business again. The others would eat me alive."
"Fine, fine. Enjoy your little corner of the league."
By now, Chen Yilun knew the deal was dead. He made a few polite remarks before hanging up, already bracing for more bad news.
"No good news on your end either?"
Chen Yilun picked up his coffee, took a sip, and looked across the table at Peja.
"Nope," Peja replied with a wry smile. "The Raptors and Grizzlies both said the same thing—no interest unless we make a big price cut."
That was the Kings' current dilemma.
If they had a bad contract, it'd actually be easier—Chen Yilun could just buy it out to free cap space, or throw in a first-rounder or pick swap to get another team to take it.
But the Kings didn't have any bad contracts.
The only mildly overpriced one belonged to their cornerstone, Rudy Gay.
And unless things got desperate, Chen Yilun had no intention of trading him.
"Um... boss."
Seeing the negotiations hit a wall, Peja looked at Chen Yilun helplessly. "Maybe you should ask your mentors again? See if they'll lend a hand?"
"Ask them again?"
Chen Yilun's expression darkened instantly.
"I'm their junior, not their dad! They're not going to bail me out every single time!"
Just then, his phone rang.
When he saw the caller ID, his eyes lit up as if he'd found a lifeline.
"Coach! You're here to help me?"
"Get lost!" Buford said with a hearty laugh. "Don't call me Coach anymore—you're the President of Basketball Operations now! I should be calling you 'Sir'!"
"Cut it out, this isn't the time for jokes." Chen Yilun quickly cut him off. If he let the old man keep going, he'd probably get roasted before help arrived.
"Alright, alright," Buford said, dropping the banter. "So, what's the deal with that Crowder kid of yours? He looks solid—might make a good backup for Kawhi."
"Crowder? Oh, Crowder's great!"
Sensing Buford's genuine interest, Chen Yilun jumped at the chance.
"Listen, Coach, this kid's a gem I've been developing for over a season and a half. He's got the size, the strength, plays great defense, and can hit the three. If it weren't for this situation, I wouldn't even consider selling him."
"Then don't sell him!"
Buford's blunt retort shut down Chen Yilun's sales pitch on the spot.
"We'll give you our first-round pick next year—take it or leave it."
"No way! That's a total loss for me!"
Crowder's rookie contract had expired last season. Back when the salary cap hadn't yet exploded, Divac signed him to a four-year, $29 million deal with partial guarantee on the final year.
At the time, it looked like a perfectly normal mid-level deal.
But now, that contract was an absolute steal.
Just look at the comparison: a few days ago, the Rockets signed Ryan Anderson from the Pelicans—similar role, a bit more seasoned—on a fully guaranteed four-year, $80 million deal!
That comparison alone showed just how much of a steal Crowder's deal was.
"And you call yourself my Coach? You drive a harder bargain than anyone else!"
Chen Yilun wailed. "Just before you called, Connelly offered a future first and a second-rounder! And you're trying to get my Crowder for just a late first-round pick?"
"Enough whining!" Buford finally said sternly.
"The best I can do is this year's first-rounder plus two second-round picks. Forget about two firsts—nobody's paying that in this market."
This year's Spurs first-round pick was a measly 29th overall—worse than Chen Yilun's own.
Hearing that, Chen Yilun hesitated.
"Alright, fine—but you've got to add one more second-rounder and take Casspi off our hands too."
Buford paused for a moment, then nodded.
Casspi had signed a two-year, $5.6 million deal last year, with $3 million left on the final season. Trading a second-round pick for a serviceable, expiring player like Casspi was a low-risk move that made perfect sense.
"Deal," Buford agreed.
"Don't go anywhere. I'm in Oklahoma right now—I'll come by tonight to finalize the details."
That evening, another trade headline hit the league.
The Spurs sent their 29th overall pick, their 2018 and 2020 second-round picks, the Hawks' 24th pick in this year's second round, plus the rights to Davis Bertans—the 42nd pick in 2011.
The Hawks' second-rounder, in fact, was one Buford had just bought outright with cash.
In return, they received Jay Crowder and Omri Casspi from the Kings.
It was a clear loss on paper, but with this move alone, Chen Yilun managed to clear nearly $10 million in cap space.
...