At this moment, the screen displayed the draft report prepared by CNN for Duncan.

Tim Duncan, center, 19 years old, 207 cm, 220 lbs.

Comparison: Floor—David Robinson or Moses Malone; Ceiling—surpassing Hakeem Olajuwon.

“屮!”

Seeing this draft comparison, Henry Bolton blurted out in shock.

If Henry Bolton didn’t already know how awesome Duncan was, he would have thought the media that made this draft report was crazy.

Sure enough, when Pierce, who heard Henry Bolton curse in Chinese, came over to take a look, he also blurted out an F-word.

“The guy who made this draft prediction must be insane, right? Drunk or something? Floor is David Robinson? I’ve seen this guy play, I admit he’s good, but compared to Olajuwon? If he can surpass Olajuwon, I, Pierce, will streak naked down the streets of Los Angeles…”

Pierce is a chatterbox and a big mouth, and now he went into full-on roast mode.

Even though Henry Bolton knew Duncan was that good, he was still stunned—who on earth would dare to rate Duncan this highly?

At this point, the TV switched to an interview with Lakers GM Jerry West, with footage in the background from the recent March Madness round of 64 to 32, Wake Forest Demon Deacons vs. University of Alaska. Although Wake Forest lost, Duncan went 15-for-23 from the field, 7-for-14 from the line, and exploded for 37 points, 26 rebounds, and 6 blocks…

Wake Forest’s team this season was actually pretty average, and it was only thanks to sophomore Duncan drawing triple teams every night that they barely made it into March Madness.

After watching this game, Jerry West was interviewed and said: “Tim is outstanding. If he enters the draft this year, he’ll definitely be the number one pick. If he declares, I’m willing to pay any price to trade for the first pick.”

Later, experts analyzed that the Lakers did try to trade for a lottery pick before the All-Star break this season, but nothing came of it—obviously, the deal didn’t go through.

Jerry West’s draft acumen has always been highly praised. Since becoming Lakers GM in 1982, he used the first pick that year to select James Worthy, who fit Kareem and Magic better than the more famous Dominique Wilkins; in ’83 he traded for the 4th pick and got Byron Scott; in ’85 he picked A.C. Green at 23rd in the first round, building the Lakers’ third championship dynasty. In ’89, he picked Divac at 26th in the first round, giving the Lakers a new lease on life after Kareem’s retirement. If Magic hadn’t ruined his own career with his off-court choices, the Lakers could have stayed strong in the West for years thanks to Divac’s impact. In Magic’s last season before retiring, he was not even 32, averaging 19.4 points, 7 rebounds, and 12.5 assists.

After Magic retired, the Lakers collapsed, going from a Finals team to barely making the playoffs. In the three years since Magic’s retirement, in three drafts, the Logo Man picked Anthony Peeler, Nick Van Exel, and Eddie Jones—each almost NBA starter-level as rookies, none picked particularly high, and Van Exel was even a second-rounder.

Even George Lynch, the underperforming sophomore 12th pick in ’93, averaged nearly 10 points and 6 rebounds as a rookie. But Eddie Jones was just too good, so the Lakers let Lynch go.

In the past three years, the Logo Man had five picks—three first-rounders and two second-rounders—and picked four rookies with NBA starter potential or immediate impact. That kind of draft ability is hard to doubt.

So, after the Logo Man gave such an evaluation of Duncan, Duncan, already a college superstar, became even more hyped. It felt like no matter when he entered the draft, he’d be the number one pick.

However, CNN’s draft report on Duncan… really was a bit over the top.

It’s foreseeable that whether Duncan stays in the NCAA or declares early, he’ll be targeted like crazy.

But Henry Bolton thinks, for Duncan… maybe Duncan will just silently dominate every opponent and make All-NBA First Team and All-Defensive Second Team as a rookie, taking down Malone…

The gap between the future greatest power forward in history and the second greatest is… like a test with a max score of 100, and someone else giving their all but still falling just short of a perfect score.

As for his college days, Duncan is only a sophomore this year, and he can already put up 37 points, 26 rebounds, and 6 blocks in a single game while being swarmed by defenders.

But after hearing Pierce’s streaking declaration, Henry Bolton quietly said, “Paul, a man has to keep his word, no matter what he says.”

Pierce, who was in the middle of roasting CNN, suddenly fell silent… He thought carefully about what he’d just said—this devious friend has a scary good memory! If he said something, this guy would definitely remember—wait, did our West Coast big guy just say he’d streak if Duncan surpassed Olajuwon?

Tch! As if that’s possible. What center could surpass Olajuwon? Unless Kareem, Chamberlain, or Russell turned 30 again!

If Duncan could surpass Olajuwon, then Pierce would… eat—on second thought, Pierce didn’t say it, or else this devious friend would definitely remember.