Chapter 676 - 601: City Selection

Chapter 676: Chapter 601: City Selection

It didn’t take many words. Just the simple statement, "Dirk, you’re the core of the offense; you should be more decisive," was enough for Nowitzki to understand everything.

He was low-key and composed, friendly and open-minded—not the type to hold a grudge.

When he was traded to the Phoenix Suns, he had already mentally prepared himself to be the team’s second-in-command.

He hadn’t expected this kind of attitude from Hardaway.

He nodded at Hardaway, giving him a look of understanding, then turned to Chen Yu and said, "Thank you."

’He guessed that Chen Yu must have spoken with Hardaway on behalf of the management.’

’Otherwise, how could someone who was just traded here be made the core of the team?’

"I’m heading to China for a while," Chen Yu added. "You two are the heart of this team. If any issues arise, you need to communicate and sort them out quickly."

In some teams, the relationships between star players were like that of mortal enemies, and the locker room atmosphere was oppressive and tense, which wasn’t conducive to developing rookies.

Both men nodded.

"Oh, and Dirk," Chen Yu said, remembering something else. "Take David under your wing. He’s got a lot of potential."

Chen Yu had always felt West had a lot of potential and originally planned to focus on his development this season. But now that they had traded for Nowitzki, West would have to continue to bide his time.

"Okay." Nowitzki had heard from his agent that his own trade had almost fallen through because the Phoenix Suns were reluctant to include David West in the deal.

Just as they were speaking, a nurse came over and told Chen Yu that Oden had arrived.

He was scheduled to come in for surgery in the next day or two.

Hearing Oden’s name, Hardaway was instantly intrigued. He asked Chen Yu if he was really going to break Oden’s leg and add a piece to it.

Chen Yu nodded.

This type of limb-lengthening surgery wasn’t a new technology; it had been around for decades, initially used to treat soldiers injured in war.

However, the surgery was very risky, with a high chance of infection, osteomyelitis, and damage to blood vessels and nerves.

So, unless a patient’s case was severe enough to necessitate limb-lengthening, orthopedists generally wouldn’t recommend the procedure.

For Chen Yu, however, these issues weren’t a concern.

As for the other major risk of the surgery—postoperative biomechanical imbalance—this fell squarely into Chen Yu’s field of expertise: rehabilitation.

"If you think you’re too short, I could help you add a few centimeters," Chen Yu joked.

Hardaway shook his head frantically. He was already known around the league as a tall point guard; he certainly didn’t need to be any taller.

Oden arrived with his mother, Helen.

At the mention of Oden’s uneven legs, Helen couldn’t help but tear up. She was filled with regret; their family hadn’t had much money back then, so they had just found a random local hospital. The doctor wasn’t skilled enough, and she never imagined it would affect him for the rest of his life.

Helen was filled with gratitude toward Chen Yu.

Because of the show, Oden had gained an incredible amount of attention across the country. He was only a sophomore in high school, yet many universities were already knocking on his door, waving scholarships to recruit him.

Not to mention he ended up getting a Nike endorsement and the championship prize money.

Over two million dollars was an unimaginable sum of money for her.

Nevertheless, for the sake of her son’s future, she chose the surgery.

If he was cured now, with no underlying problems, Oden could earn tens of millions in the NBA.

The surgery itself wasn’t complicated. Chen Yu assigned an attending physician to him.

Busy with his own work and traveling constantly, Chen Yu was afraid the clinic would be overwhelmed, so he hired several more doctors.

However, most of the patients who came to the clinic were still there specifically for Chen Yu. Even if he didn’t have time, they were willing to wait.

In the new season, aside from the Phoenix Suns, the team Chen Yu was most interested in was probably the Pioneer.

The Pioneer’s season opener was an away game against the Warriors.

Chen Yu watched the live broadcast on TV.

There were still some rough edges to D’Antoni’s run-and-gun offense, but its potential was already beginning to show.

The starting lineup had improved astonishingly, especially after Iguodala was moved into it.

Iguodala could pass, play defense, understood help defense, and was willing to do the dirty work.

The Pioneer’s perimeter and interior players needed a connector like him.

The Pioneer crushed the Warriors 105-84, a 21-point blowout.

Milicic shot 2-for-4 from three, putting up 26 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 blocks, stuffing the stat sheet.

After a season of development and hard work, he was already starting to carry himself like a star.

After getting his affairs in order, Chen Yu didn’t stay in Phoenix for long. Together with Hill’s father, Calva, he boarded a plane to China.

The first stop was the Capital.

Yuan Weimin gave Chen Yu and his party a high-profile welcome.

In the car from the airport to the city, he was very excited. He said the leadership above had noticed their commercialization proposal and even issued a directive, deeming the approach of bringing in foreign investment to bolster the sports market a bold yet viable experiment.

The idea was to try it first and worry about failure if and when it happened.

"Dr. Chen, with this directive in hand, everything will be much easier," Yuan Weimin said, his spirits high.

As a veteran of the sports world nearing retirement, the chance to be brought back to contribute more to the nation’s athletics genuinely made him happy.

"By the way, Dr. Chen, have you considered which city you’ll establish the team in?" Yuan Weimin asked.

Since Chen Yu had chosen Plan B, he now faced a choice.

"I think the Capital would be a good choice. It has a fan base and a better market environment. I’ve also spoken with the municipal Sports Bureau, and they are very supportive, willing to offer many preferential terms."

Chen Yu and Hill exchanged a subtle glance.

"Thank you, Director Yuan. We will consider it seriously," Chen Yu said without committing.

In reality, Chen Yu had already considered that if he were to establish basketball and soccer teams, the Capital was not a good choice.

Because the city already had basketball and soccer teams.

On the basketball side, there were two CBA teams.

In soccer, there was Guo’an; the entire Capital were Guo’an fans. Another club, the Baxi Shengshi Club, had also been established this year.

It had a fan base, but it was someone else’s fan base.

Poaching fans was no easy task.

Just look at the Fast Ship in Los Angeles. They were always playing second fiddle to the Lakers, perpetually stuck in their shadow.

Therefore, Chen Yu was more inclined to choose a city that didn’t have any professional clubs.

He could cultivate a fan base from scratch, and such a city would also be more eager to have a professional club to stimulate its sports market.

In fact, he already had a target in mind.

Yuehai.

Although Yuehai already had the Hongyuan team, its home court wasn’t in the provincial capital.

Chen Yu’s initial idea was the Yuehai Province Capital.

Having arrived in China, a welcome banquet was a matter of course.

They didn’t rush to talk business the next day either. Yuan Weimin arranged for someone to show Chen Yu and his group around the Capital.

Chen Yu had been here several times, but it was Calva’s first time in China.

Yuan Weimin was also quite interested in the Vice President of Major League Baseball.

The physical attributes of Asians, in fact, were well-suited for baseball.

That evening, Chen Yu took his assistant by car to a restaurant in the city.

Su Jun had acted as a go-between and was there to accompany him, having helped Chen Yu invite Gong Luming.