Chapter 254: Boiling Point (6)
Listening to Peja, Chen Yilun nodded to himself.
For CJ, that first post-rookie contract wasn’t actually the key point. At least from Chen Yilun’s perspective, joining the right team mattered far more than chasing the biggest paycheck.
CJ was going to have a long career. What he needed was to join a high-level team, stay competitive, and set himself up for the real major contract later. Plenty of young players made a name for themselves early, only to sign with flawed teams for a little extra money and fall off the map when those teams couldn’t support their growth.
“If he wants to go to the Spurs, we shouldn’t hold him back.”
Chen Yilun figured this was probably the highest offer CJ could get on the market anyway.
“Alright then. We won’t match the Spurs’ offer. Let CJ go.”
Peja let out a sigh of mixed emotion.
“Got it. I’ll file the report.”
Barely ten minutes later, Woj updated his Twitter feed again.
“The San Antonio Spurs have signed restricted free agent CJ McCollum to a three-year, $67 million contract. Final year is a player option.”
“That was fast.”
Seeing the tweet, Chen Yilun couldn’t help but marvel at Woj’s terrifying speed. He had just hung up the phone, and the news was already out.
“Who’s his mole in our building? Is it you?”
He glanced at Malone.
“How could it be me?”
Malone waved his hands rapidly, insisting on his innocence.
“I bet it’s that old guy Peja.”
He deflected instantly. “Think about it—we literally just made the call, the team probably hasn’t even fully informed everyone yet, and Woj already tweeted. It has to be him.”
“Whatever.”
Chen Yilun said casually as he slid into the car. “Peja’s worked his tail off these past two years. Whoever the mole is, he knows what can be leaked and what absolutely can’t.”
And truthfully, Chen Yilun didn’t care much about Woj’s insider within the team. The informant actually had excellent judgment—staying completely silent during the Butler negotiations, the Durant talks, and Jokić’s extension, giving Chen Yilun the space he needed to operate quietly.
“This news is going to blow up the media again,”
Malone said as he climbed into the car.
“There really aren’t many good free agents left.”
...
Just as Chen Yilun finished speaking, in a conference room in Boston, Danny Ainge sat at the head of the table while the people below him argued themselves hoarse.
“He’s too expensive! Why do we need a player that expensive?!”
An assistant coach slammed the table.
“So what if he’s expensive?!”
Ainge’s assistant shot back without hesitation.
“All those moves we made earlier were specifically to open up space for now! This is the going rate. Prices are only going to rise!”
Since the start of free agency, Ainge had looked inactive but had actually been preparing meticulously behind the scenes. Trading Avery Bradley, letting Olynyk and Jerebko walk—all of it was to clear cap room for this moment.
“Alright!”
Ainge raised his voice, signaling everyone to quiet down.
“Right now, the question isn’t whether we sign someone—it’s who we sign. Which one. Because honestly…”
Leaning back into the plush chair, Ainge spoke with a hint of dry humor.
“We can’t possibly rely on that little guy again next season.”
Muted laughter filled the room.
Isaiah Thomas, still sitting at home expecting the Celtics to roll up with a truck full of money to re-sign him, had no idea he was already on the trading block.
If he had been paying attention, he could have seen it coming—most of the players the Celtics had let go recently were the very wings who provided defensive cover for him on the court.
Seated below were mostly long-time Celtics personnel, with only Coach Stevens sitting silently, deep in thought.
“I still think Hayward is the best option,”
one assistant said. “In terms of fit, age, and reliability, Hayward checks all of our boxes.”
“But as a white wing, his physicality and toughness in high-level matchups have to be evaluated!”
“Come on! If we can steal that guy from Cleveland, with our current roster, even James won’t be enough to stop us!”
“One step at a time.”
Ainge stood.
“First, we trade Isaiah Thomas while his value is still high. Then we move forward with negotiations on the other front.”
...
A few days later, Chen Yilun was in his office preparing next season’s operating budget.
“BANG!”
Peja once again kicked open the door.
Seeing him rush in, breathing heavily, Chen Yilun glanced at his poor office door with mild distress.
“If you break that door, I’m deducting it from your salary.”
“Forget about that…”
Peja finally caught his breath.
“Another huge trade just dropped! What is going on lately? Everything is chaos!”
“What now?”
Chen Yilun asked, suddenly energized.
“East first.”
Peja pulled out a chair and sat down.
“The Celtics traded Isaiah Thomas, Amir Johnson, Ante Žižić, and a future first-round pick to the Cavaliers for Kyrie Irving, then immediately signed Gordon Hayward to a max contract in free agency!”
Even after losing Crowder, the Celtics used their remaining pieces to land Irving anyway.
Before Chen Yilun could react, Peja continued.
“And in the West—get this—the Thunder executed a sign-and-trade with the Clippers, sending Victor Oladipo and a future pick for Blake Griffin. Then they traded McDermott, Kanter, and a second-rounder to the Knicks for Carmelo Anthony!”
“Insane!”
Chen Yilun slapped his thigh.
After Paul George signed with the Warriors, Presti immediately pivoted toward Los Angeles. West, already prepared to strike, teamed up seamlessly.
“This is getting wild.”
Chen Yilun stood, pacing excitedly around the room.
With those two moves, the Celtics now had Irving, Hayward, and Al Horford as their three-man core, plus the young Tatum-Brown duo—an instant top-tier contender.
And by swapping Isaiah Thomas for Irving, the Cavaliers were significantly weakened. With Thompson and Love declining, the 2018 lone-warrior LeBron James arc was about to begin.
As for the Thunder, under Presti’s maneuvering, they had carved out a trio of Russell Westbrook, Carmelo Anthony, and Blake Griffin—a brute-force superteam.
“See that?”
Chen Yilun stopped and looked at Peja.
“A new era has arrived. The league has officially entered the era of superstar alliances.”
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