Chương 57: Chapter 56: Air And Earth (06/18/1984)

DATE: Monday, June 18, 1984 LOCATION: La Jolla, California | The Sand Castle LOCAL TIME: 08: 00 PM PST The NBA Draft was less than twenty-four hours away, and the air in the subterranean bunker hummed with the electric tension of a massive temporal heist. I sat at the primary workstation, staring at the glowing green text of the Archstone terminal. Beside me stood John E. Patterson, fresh off his ruthless extortion of Donald Sterling. Archstone now officially owned the San Diego Clippers.

The ink on the paperwork was barely dry. Now, it was time to play god with the roster.

"Houston is taking Olajuwon at number one tomorrow," I said, tapping the glass of the monitor.

"That is an immovable object. He is a hometown hero and a generational center. Houston wouldn't trade that pick for the deed to the city." I slid a pair of heavy manila files across the desk.

"But we aren't here for the center. We are here for the dynasty. We are going to hijack the number two and the number five picks." Patterson flipped open the first file, his eyes scanning the dossier.

"Stu Inman. General Manager, Portland Trail Blazers."

"Stu is brilliant, but he has a systemic blind spot," I explained.

"He already has Clyde Drexler, so he thinks he desperately needs a big man. Tomorrow night, he is planning to draft a seven-foot center from Kentucky named Sam Bowie. Bowie missed two collegiate seasons with a fractured tibia. He is a glass tower waiting to shatter. But if Stu takes Bowie, the Chicago Bulls get the number three pick, which they will use to draft Michael Jordan." The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

I paused, letting the name hang in the cool, climate-controlled air.

"Michael Jordan will become a global, multi-billion-dollar economy unto himself," I said, dropping my voice to a dead-serious baseline.

"He will dictate the cultural heartbeat of the 1990s. He will win six championships and turn whichever city he plays in into the capital of the basketball world. I want him in San Diego. But I don't just want a king. I want an enforcer." I tapped the second file.

"Philadelphia holds the number five pick. They are planning to draft a rebounding anomaly out of Auburn named Charles Barkley. He's nearly three hundred pounds, he's furious, and he plays like a runaway freight train. Philadelphia's front office is secretly terrified of his weight. We are going to relieve them of that anxiety." Patterson looked up, calculating our draft capital.

"We hold the number eight and number fourteen picks. That isn't enough leverage to move into the top five twice. Not historically."

"We aren't doing it traditionally," I said, sliding a printed roster sheet across the desk.

"We are gutting the current team to build the future. We are trading Terry Cummings and Norm Nixon." Patterson's brow furrowed.

"Cummings is the Rookie of the Year. Nixon is an All-Star point guard. You're giving away the engine."

"Exactly," I said, leaning forward.

"You are going to call Stu Inman in Portland. You scare him with Bowie's medicals, and then you offer him Cummings and our number eight pick. He gets a guaranteed, elite power forward to pair with Drexler, and zero medical risk. He won't be able to say no."

"And Philadelphia?"

"Philly's championship window with Julius Erving and Moses Malone is closing fast," I countered.

"They need to win right now. Charles Barkley is a volatile project they don't have time to develop. Offer them Norm Nixon and the number fourteen pick. Nixon knows how to feed elite big men, and he has two championship rings. Philly gets their veteran floor general for one last title run." Patterson stared at the files for a long second, processing the sheer audacity of the board manipulation. Then, he picked up the encrypted heavy-line phone.

"I'll make the calls."

"Get it done, John," I said, leaning back in my chair.

"We are bringing Air and Earth to San Diego."