June 29, 1994
Hoosier Dome, Indianapolis
Tension engulfed the entire arena as just minutes remained for the NBA draft to start. Inside the Green Room, several promising rookies who had signed up for the draft were sitting anxiously waiting for the verdict on their future to be announced.
On the stage, David Stern, the President of the NBA, was readying himself to start the draft announcement. In the stands, a young black man waited eagerly in anticipation for the draft to begin.
Looking at the familiar figure of David Stern standing ready to commence the draft, Julius Creed felt a sense of Deja Vu in his mind. Combined with the nervousness he originally had due to being a participant, he felt slightly light headed at that moment.
In his previous life, he had seen this scene countless times on TV. As a common man, who worked a 9 to 6 job, watching the NBA was one of his relaxing hobbies in his past life. So, the figure of David Stern standing on the podium was not something new to him.
However, in this life, he was currently waiting for David Stern to announce the draft as one of the rookies who had signed up for the draft. It was like a man's wet-dream come true. He still couldn't believe that he had made it to this stage.
Taking deep breaths, Julius Creed ran his hand through messy dark hair trying to calm himself down. Feeling drops of sweat forming on his brows, he wiped it away carefully.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, Welcome to the NBA draft of Class 1994.”
David Stern opened the draft just them causing Julius to clench his hands. A strange sense of inadequacy enveloped him as he saw David Stern announce Glenn Robinson as the first pick of the draft of Class 1994. His hands began trembling slightly as he watched Glenn Robinson go up on stage and embrace David Stern.
“Jules, relax man, you will definitely get selected,” a fat black man sitting beside Julius reassured him seeing his state. “Didn't your agent promise you that you will get selected in the first round pick. At worst, you will fall to the second round. Don't sweat it.”
“Dave, shut the hell up! Are you cursing me at this moment!?” Julius hissed causing Dave to rise his hands in surrender.
“No way man, I have to rely on you in the future. The better your pick, the easier my life,” Dave chuckled, causing Julius to roll his eyes.
In a strange way, the chatter reassured Julius. He realised that it was nothing but last minute nerves that were affecting him. After all, he was moments away from changing his life. It was only natural to be nervous.
When Julius was reborn in this life, he had inexplicably travelled backward in time. In his past life, he belonged to the 90s generation. But, in this life, he was in the final year of his high school life when the 90s rolled in.
His family situation was a total mess compared to the single-parent childhood he had in his past life. Born in the slums of Brooklyn, his life was not a peaceful one. One wrong step, he could have strayed down the path of no return. Luckily, his rebirth came equipped with a Golden Finger. If not for it, he wouldn't be able to escape the fate of so many of his fellow brothers.
Gangs, drugs, and violence were the norm in the area where he grew up. Navigating the complex living environment and not straying into some irredeemable things was like living in hell mode. One small slip, his life would be altered severely.
Luckily, his Golden Finger activated when he first stepped foot on a basketball court. Having dabbled in web novels featuring such plots during the later years of his previous life, Julius was able to accept it after some initial bewilderment. With such a Golden Finger enabled, he was able to prevent himself from straying down the wrong path.
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Oftentimes, if a person is shown some light at the end of a dark tunnel, they would willingly walk towards it. In the chaotic living environment of his birthplace, the presence of this Golden Finger was like the light in the dark tunnel for Julius.
Julius knew that, with the Golden Finger, he would be able to succeed in life as long as he persisted in his chosen path. And his chosen path was already fixed after seeing that the Golden Finger was related to basketball. There is only one place to go for him even from a young age - NBA.
And now, after 20 years of toiling, he has reached the moment where his life would irrevocably change. Once he got selected, he would become an NBA player. The change in status was a qualitative improvement. This was the goal he had worked towards all his life. So, his nervousness at the moment was understandable.
As he watched Jason Kidd, Grant Hill, Donyell Marshal, and Juwan Howard walk up and embrace David Stern one after another, Julius called down slightly. The initial nervousness was now replaced with anticipation towards the announcement of his name.
Julius was aware that his draft prediction wasn't high. According to his agent, while he was likely to be selected in the first round, his position wasn't high. His draft prospect hovered around the 18th to the 25th pick. While it wasn't anything shabby, it wasn't sensational either.
Regardless, Julius was content with his status. As long as it is a first-round draft pick, he would be able to sign a good contract worth a hefty sum of money. That would be his ticket to get out of poverty.
The salary cap for rookies had not been established in the NBA currently. It would be established in the next season, only after The Big Dog's outrageous operation that would occur in the next few weeks. So, he still had some room to negotiate a good contract.
That was one of the major reasons for Julius to participate in this year's draft. If he missed this last train to fleece some good money out of the teams, he would not be worthy of a person who was reborn.
In fact, he just finished his sophomore year in college. He could naturally wait for another year to hone his skills and improve his draft prospects. His coach and several well-meaning individuals have indeed advised him to do precisely that. But, he refused to budge no matter who tried to convince him.
Are you kidding!? If he missed this opportunity, then he would be restricted like other rookies after this year. It would be incredibly disadvantageous for him. Moreover, Julius had a forward-looking plan as well.
According to what Julius knew, typical rookie contracts would last for 4 years. Player option for a final year might be possible if conditions permit, but they usually wouldn't extend past 4 years. If things progress normally, it would mean he would be able to finish his rookie contract at the end of 97-98 season.
As per the knowledge of his previous life, the most devastating lockout of the NBA will occur after 97-98 season due to salary issues. Player salaries will undergo revision at that time. A lot of reshuffling will also occur after the lockout. Julius wanted to pick up leaks during that chaotic time as well.
Being a free agent at that time would be far better for his career prospects than to be a contracted player. So, participating in this year's draft looked even more ideal than other draft years. Thus, Julius resolutely signed up for this year's draft.
To others, Julius's decision might look impetuous and lacking long term planning, but to Julius, this year was the perfect year in every possible way. Sure, his draft prospects weren't that bright this year, but being a first round pick was enough.
Furthermore, no one could predict what the situation of his draft prospect would be next year. There is no guarantee to increase his ranking to top 5. While he had confidence to accomplish it, the risks outweigh benefits in his opinion.
While his plan looked perfect, it couldn't alleviate the occasional self-doubt that emerged in his heart. But, since he had already reached this stage, it wasn't worth fretting over it anymore. Thus, Julius completely relaxed himself by the time the 15th pick was announced.
“We are nearing the predicted pick, get ready Jules,” Dave urged from beside him causing Julius to shoot an annoyed glare at his friend.
“I know Dave, just calm down man,” Julius said helplessly as the 16th pick was announced.
“Where do you think you will go?” Dave asked as the 17th pick was announced.
“My agent says that the 76ers are most likely to select me. They are currently rebuilding and need a point guard and shooting guard. So…”
“Let's hope they are more interested in a point guard then…”
Julius knew that the likelihood of him being selected by the 76ers is very high. He knew that they have their eyes on Iverson for the shooting guard position. Since Iverson will only participate next year, he wasn't worried about being passed over.
“20th pick of the first round of Class 1994…” David Stern's voice came over causing Julius to perk up. “The 76ers have selected… Julius Creed, Brooklyn, New York!!!”