Chapter 449: Chapter 385: You’ll Regret It for a Lifetime
Crawford stood on the sideline, his eyes like a hawk, locked onto the court.
As Hardaway came off a screen and drove into the paint, he collided with Drew Gooden, who had shifted over to play help defense.
Though Hardaway was tall and lanky, he was surprisingly strong and unafraid of contact, managing to knock Drew Gooden to the floor.
Crawford instantly blew his whistle and signaled a defensive foul.
Drew Gooden didn’t bother selling the call on the floor. He shot to his feet and followed Hill over to complain to Crawford.
He thought Hardaway had committed a charge.
Crawford paid them no mind, waving them off and signaling for the free throws.
He still replayed the moment in his mind.
Drew Gooden hadn’t established a set position, but it was a borderline call. It all happened so fast that it was difficult to see clearly.
He had blown the whistle based on his first instinct.
Crawford made a mental note. It was a biased call, and he would look for an opportunity to make it up later to ensure things were as fair as possible.
As Hardaway walked to the free-throw line, Crawford turned his head and saw the Suns’ bench not far away.
Chen Yu was sitting right there in his usual spot in the second row of the bench, talking with Ronaldo, who was beside him.
As if sensing his gaze, Chen Yu turned to look over as well.
Their eyes met. Chen Yu’s face was expressionless; he looked away and went back to his conversation.
Crawford sighed to himself.
He had seen Chen Yu take a seat on the bench before the game.
Stu Jackson had said that Chen Yu wasn’t allowed on the bench.
’But Chen Yu had done it anyway. What could Crawford do? Was he supposed to march over and eject Chen Yu from the court on national television?’
’He had no desire to make tomorrow’s headlines!’
Helpless against Chen Yu, the conflicted Crawford came to a realization. He had delivered the message. Whether Chen Yu listened or not was out of his hands.
That was an issue between Chen Yu and Stern, and Crawford wanted no part of it.
Besides, according to media reports, Chen Yu was about to be promoted to vice president. The last thing he needed was for Chen Yu to hold a grudge against him over this.
Soon, the first half came to an end.
The Suns trailed 47 to 53, down by six points.
The players headed off the court, and the spectators in the stands rose to their feet, ready to hit the restrooms and buy snacks during the halftime break.
Ronaldo didn’t move. As a professional athlete, you could say he had a bladder of steel.
"Chen, you guys are behind," Ronaldo said, his eyes following Tracy McGrady on the opposing team.
"It’s fine."
Chen Yu shook his head. Having watched the first half, he didn’t think it was a big deal.
There were two reasons they were trailing.
Tracy McGrady had suddenly gotten hot near the end of the second quarter, hitting two consecutive three-pointers and scoring 10 points in a three-minute stretch.
Over the past two seasons, with Chen Yu’s guidance, he had truly developed his jump shot. He elevates with no warning, using pure core strength, and his release is exceptionally quick.
Coupled with his height and long arms, Poseidon simply couldn’t stop him.
’If Hill didn’t have to share some of the offensive load,’ Chen Yu thought, ’he could probably make a run for the scoring title with his scoring ability.’
The second reason was that the Suns had too long of a break and hadn’t fully gotten into their game rhythm in the first half.
They were rusty from the long layoff.
But as a veteran, championship-winning team, their ability to adjust was strong. They just had to find their rhythm in the second half and fight back.
Besides, this was a series. Even if they did lose this particular game, Chen Yu was confident the Suns would still win the championship.
In terms of overall talent, the Magic were still a fair bit behind.
In fact, the Magic’s roster wasn’t bad; it was considered top-tier in the league.
How else could they make it out of the East year after year?
Looking at their starting lineup, Hill was still the best small forward in the league—his skills, experience, and physical condition were all at their peak.
The same went for Tracy McGrady. People used to talk about the "Big Three" shooting guards, but in the latter half of this season, some in the media had started talking about a "Big Four," with Tracy McGrady being the new addition.
He was developing rapidly and had the potential to become a league superstar.
Darrell Armstrong, an old acquaintance of Chen Yu’s and a scrappy leader on the court, was still a solid starting point guard, good for an average of 10 points and 5 assists.
Drew Gooden, acquired in a mid-season trade and last year’s fourth overall pick, had an excellent regular season, averaging 12.5 points and 6.5 rebounds.
He would be a solid power forward for any team.
Of course, he had major flaws too: he lacked athleticism, and his defense was average at best.
Against an All-Star-caliber player like McDyess, he was simply outmatched in every aspect.
And this was the Magic’s greatest weakness. Their frontcourt duo of Drew Gooden and Steven Hunter was nowhere near the level of the Suns’.
You could say that aside from their shooting guard and small forward spots, the Magic’s lineup was far inferior to the Suns’.
"Chen."
To his right, Nelson stood up and called out to Chen Yu.
He shot Chen Yu a questioning glance, asking if he wanted to head back to the locker room.
Chen Yu turned and looked toward the sideline.
Just then, Crawford also happened to turn and look his way.
Their eyes met for nearly five seconds before Chen Yu finally stood up.
"Let’s go."
Chen Yu patted Nelson on the shoulder and headed for the locker room.
’Never mind a message relayed by Crawford,’ he thought. ’Even if Stern himself showed up, he couldn’t stop me from going into the locker room.’
’Worst case scenario, I’ll just quit the NBA.’
’There are plenty of other professional leagues in the world. Plenty of places to go.’
Watching Chen Yu disappear down the player tunnel, Crawford couldn’t help but let out a long sigh.
’But what could he do?’
Tom Washington walked over, glanced toward the Suns’ player tunnel, and said in a low voice, "Joey, why didn’t you stop him?"
Crawford shot Washington a speechless glance. ’Easy for you to say,’ he thought. ’Why don’t you go stop him?’
Washington read the meaning in his eyes, gave an awkward smile, and said nothing more.
「Inside the locker room.」
The first thing O’Neal did was flop onto a massage table. He turned to look at Chen Yu, who had just walked in, with an expression that clearly said, ’Get over here already.’
Chen Yu ignored him, telling Byron Howard to take care of it while he pulled Nelson aside to talk.
"Aaron, do you think what I do counts as cheating?" Chen Yu asked after a moment of thought.
Chen Yu had never really considered this question before.
It was just how he had always done things.
Nelson opened his mouth, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "It might be a bit unfair to the opponents."
Chen Yu folded his arms and said nothing.
His initial goal had been to keep the players healthy, to ensure they could compete in peak physical condition without any hidden injury risks.
But now it seemed that doing so during halftime was, indeed, unfair to the opposing team.
It was no wonder Stern was nominating him for the Hall of Fame and offering a promotion to vice president on one hand, while making a decision like banning him from the locker room at halftime on the other.
Seeing Chen Yu’s serious expression, Nelson joked, "Chen, it would be great if there were more of you. One for every team, so everyone could play healthy and at full strength. Those games would be incredible."
There were plenty of players in the league with chronic stamina issues.
"Then you’d have to chop me into pieces," Chen Yu said, a smile finally appearing on his face. "Alright, I know what to do about this."
’Before the game, there was no question. As the team doctor, it was his duty to ensure his players were in the best possible condition to take the court.’
But using his "system’s" effects again during halftime? That was, admittedly, a bit like cheating.
Across the room, O’Neal slapped his own rear and looked at Chen Yu with a puzzled expression, as if asking why he hadn’t started yet.
Chen Yu pretended not to notice and suddenly said, "Aaron, I’ve asked you this before, but if I were to really leave the team one day, would you be willing to come with me?"
Nelson’s heart skipped a beat. He quickly glanced around, and seeing that no one was paying attention to them, he lowered his voice. "Chen, are you really planning to leave Phoenix?"
The rumors were flying. Teams from all over the league, and even some from Europe, were scrambling to poach Chen Yu. But since Chen Yu had never made his intentions clear, Nelson had assumed he wanted to stay with the Suns.
Chen Yu shook his head. "Not leave Phoenix. My home is here, why would I leave? I mean leave the team, stop being the team’s full-time doctor, and take my career to the next level."
"What do you mean?"
Nelson didn’t quite understand.
Chen Yu said, "I’ve actually been thinking about this a lot lately. I love it in Phoenix, of course. It’s great here. But I want to take what I’ve learned—my abilities, you could say—and not limit them to just the Suns. I want to help more teams, let more players benefit."
Pushing the league to have every team hire a sports psychologist, establish sports science labs, and run potential-assessment training camps—it was all born from this same desire.
Simply put, I no longer want to focus only on my little corner here with the Suns. I want to use my system, combined with the experience and methods I’ve gained through practice—scientific medical management, scientific training methods—and promote them as widely as possible, so athletes all over the world can benefit.
It was a much grander goal, and one that Chen Yu was passionate about and willing to strive for.
"I have a preliminary idea: to establish a sports consulting firm. I could provide professional advisory services to any pro team, which would let me maximize my abilities and help raise the level of every team."
For the past two years, Chen Yu had tried to share his training methods and experience.
But the results weren’t great. Most of the materials he distributed were simply put on a shelf to gather dust.
The reason was simple: every team and every player is different. To achieve real improvement, you need customized plans, the kind a sports science lab can provide.
And that would inevitably require a lot of specialized talent.
That’s why Chen Yu wanted to bring Nelson with him. He was a true professional, world-class.
Nelson’s mouth fell slightly open, his eyes filled with shock.
He had never imagined Chen Yu would conceive of such an idea.
But in the next moment, a wave of excitement surged through him.
The career Chen Yu described—wasn’t that the very thing he was passionate about, too?
Just like with the sports lab: providing customized training and improvement plans for each player, then seeing them make tangible gains and get stronger. That sense of accomplishment was precisely what he had been chasing his entire career.
Taking a deep breath, Nelson said, "Chen, I have a feeling that if I turn you down, I’ll regret it for the rest of my life."
Chen Yu laughed. "Simple. Just say yes."
Nelson smiled too and nodded emphatically.
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