"I'm going to strip you bare—let's see if you've got the guts to go through with it!"
West's words hit Morey like a sledgehammer.
The man wasn't even pretending anymore—this was straight-up robbery, and Morey had no way to stop it.
Over the past two seasons, the Rockets had managed to reach the playoffs each time, but they were consistently crushed beneath the Spurs, Warriors, and Kings.
With Howard's departure, Harden's offensive brilliance had been fully unleashed, and he was quickly becoming the league's premier scorer.
Under those circumstances, strengthening the roster had become Morey's top priority. If he didn't make a major move soon, he'd be wasting Harden's prime years.
After what felt like an eternity, Morey finally lifted his head.
"Fine. You can have Lou Williams, Beverley, and Hernangomez. But you'll need to take a couple of my fringe guys to balance the salaries. I'll give you one first-rounder—no more. I can throw in a second-round pick to make it work, how about that?"
Seeing that Morey had finally caved, a faint smile tugged at the corners of West's lips.
"Good. Then let's talk about which years those picks will be."
When the meeting ended, West leaned back in his chair and let out a long, weary breath.
With age, his body had begun to fail him little by little. Negotiations this intense wouldn't have fazed him two years ago, but now, a single meeting left him so drained he could barely stand.
Doc Rivers, seated nearby, quickly noticed the old man's fatigue. That was why he'd stepped in earlier to wrap things up.
"How are you holding up, Jerry? Want me to call the team doctor?" he asked with concern.
"I'm fine, I'm fine!" West waved him off, dismissive as ever.
"Just getting old. Not what I used to be."
Then his eyes sharpened again.
"Trading Paul was only the first step. Next, we deal with Griffin and DeAndre Jordan."
West's return to the Clippers' front office was, in part, driven by owner Steve Ballmer's decision to rebuild after two underwhelming seasons.
By doing so, they could sell their core pieces at peak value and sidestep the Western Conference power struggle dominated by two juggernauts.
It was the perfect time to reset and build for the future.
So West's first major move after taking charge had been to swing the axe at Chris Paul.
"Griffin might not be so easy to move," Rivers reminded him.
Paul, as one of the league's elite point guards, had a market of his own—his vision and control of the game were unmatched.
But his longtime frontcourt partners, DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin, were another story.
Griffin, the 2009 first overall pick, had once been dubbed the "White Beast." But his biggest problem was that he'd never proven he could lead a team. He'd always hidden behind Paul's shadow, benefiting from his leadership.
Worse, Griffin's playstyle was starting to fall behind the modern game.
Though he'd gradually developed some mid-to-long range shooting in recent years, it was inconsistent and not a reliable scoring weapon.
So selling Griffin wasn't the problem—selling him for the right price was.
West narrowed his eyes, deep in thought.
His mission now was clear: trade every valuable piece he had for as many future assets as possible, then lie low and wait for the right time to strike again.
"I heard Golden State's scrambling to strengthen their roster too," Rivers said casually. "Your protégé, Myers, has been all over free agency lately."
"He's been pushed into a corner," West replied, a knowing smirk forming.
He'd heard the reports—Myers shouting through the media about chasing star reinforcements.
"He's not like us," West said with a faint chuckle.
"We can afford to tear things down and start over. Golden State can't. No matter the situation, Myers has no choice but to push forward."
That one line revealed everything about why West had walked away from Golden State.
After failing to land Durant the previous year, he'd realized the Kings' rise was inevitable—and before the new season began, he'd resigned and distanced himself from the coming storm.
"So, any inside scoop?" Rivers asked quietly.
With the Clippers entering rebuild mode, he was content to sit back and enjoy the chaos elsewhere.
"Can't say," West replied mysteriously, a strange smile flickering across his face.
"All I'll tell you is—next season in the West won't be peaceful. Chen Yilun's not walking to another title so easily this time."
...
In Golden State's conference room, Myers and the Warriors' front office sat stiffly, staring across the table.
It had been a year since West's departure, and Myers had slowly managed to stabilize the franchise.
Now, across from him sat representatives from the Indiana Pacers—a team he'd dealt with before.
But this time, it wasn't "Larry Legend" Bird leading the negotiations.
After the season ended, Larry Bird had stepped down from his position as President of Basketball Operations, handing the reins to Kevin Pritchard.
The reasoning behind it couldn't have been clearer: Paul George was my guy. Trading him would always be personal. Better to hand the job to someone with no emotional ties—someone who could maximize George's trade value.
Facing Bird's successor, Myers wasn't taking any chances. In fact, he was more alert than ever.
This man had one job—get the best possible return for Paul George.
"You're making things difficult," Pritchard's voice pulled Myers back to the present.
"You won't give up your young players, you're stingy with draft picks, and you refuse to touch the Curry–Draymond–Klay trio. I'd love to send George your way, but this offer is ridiculous."
Pritchard flipped through a report on the table, speaking with calm confidence.
"Well, George already said he's heading to LA next summer. How can we justify paying a premium for one rental year?" Myers replied with a practiced, conciliatory smile.
"If you won't pay, someone else will," Pritchard shot back coldly. "Oklahoma City's offer has been very sincere."
Just like in the original timeline, the Thunder had offered Oladipo and Sabonis—two young, high-potential prospects.
It was the kind of deal that perfectly fit the Pacers' current direction: trade George, tank, and rebuild with youth.
Myers hesitated for a moment, running through his options.
"We can add young players!" he finally said.
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon com / GhostParser