Chapter 636 - 562: Trade Proposal

Chapter 636: Chapter 562: Trade Proposal

In the suite, Bolt awoke naturally and opened his eyes.

"You’re awake?"

Mills, who had been sitting beside him reading a magazine with his head tilted, was startled. He immediately got up, came closer, and asked Bolt how he was feeling.

Last night, after Bolt had slept for a little over an hour, Chen Yu had someone take the groggy sprinter back to his room.

Around eleven this morning, he’d been woken up again and made to eat something.

While eating, Bolt had been so drowsy he couldn’t even fully open his eyes.

He probably thought he was eating in a dream.

After he finished, Bolt went back to sleep and didn’t wake up until now.

The aftereffects of that semi-final run, which had pushed him beyond his physical limits, were far more severe than Mills had imagined.

So now, his heart was in his throat, and he was a nervous wreck, terrified something was wrong with Bolt’s body.

Bolt got out of bed, stretched lazily with a look of pure bliss, and said, "Good. Really good. I’ve never felt better."

After such extreme physical exhaustion, the recovery felt just as extremely comfortable.

The feeling of being so light and full of energy made him want to go back to the track and run a hundred laps.

"You’re sure?" Mills was still a little incredulous.

From last night until now, Bolt’s condition had been clearly off—the kind of state you get into when you’ve overtrained.

Getting injured from running was no joke.

Bolt nodded and quickly asked what time it was.

It was already past five in the evening.p>"Whew, I thought I’d overslept." Bolt breathed a sigh of relief.

Tonight was the 200m final. The race was at 10 PM, which was still four or five hours away, giving him plenty of time to adjust and prepare.

Bolt then asked where Chen Yu was.

He remembered Chen Yu pulling him aside for recovery training when he got back yesterday.

’The fact that I feel so comfortable and full of energy now must be thanks to Chen Yu’s methods.’

’It’s just too miraculous!’

Mills thought for a moment. "He went out. He probably went to watch the China Team’s game. Today is the men’s basketball quarterfinals."

"Alright, eat first. This is what Dr. Chen instructed before he left."

With the race approaching, he had to control his diet. Eating too much would be like carrying extra weight onto the track.

High energy, low carbs, and he had to chew slowly to aid digestion.

Watching Bolt eat, Mills hesitated before saying, "Usain, for today’s final, take it easy. Don’t try to break the world record again. Just aim for 19.5 seconds. I think that time will be enough to win the gold medal."

Bolt’s main rival, Shaun Crawford, ran a 20.05 in the semifinals. Judging by his form, it seemed unlikely he could reach 19.5.

"We need this gold medal."

The Jamaican delegation only had two medals so far: one gold and one bronze.

The only gold was from yesterday, when Veronica Campbell won the women’s 200m.

If Bolt won again today, Jamaica would completely dominate the 200m event.

And they were both young; they could dominate for years to come.

That’s why Bolt’s gold medal was so important.

Going for the world record in the heats and semifinals was one thing, but if he tried it again in the final and made a mistake, the regret would be unbearable.

Bolt froze for a second, then immediately asked, "Is that what Mr. Chen said?"

Mills subconsciously wanted to say that it was indeed Chen Yu’s idea, but he swallowed the words just as they reached his lips.

’I don’t dare!’

"Usain, this gold medal is really important, both for the country and for you personally," Mills said gravely.

Bolt understood. He thought for a moment, then grinned. "I get it, Coach."

"Good!"

Mills was overjoyed. He quickly motioned for Bolt to finish eating so he could start preparing.

But after the initial joy, watching Bolt focus on his food, Mills started to have second thoughts.

’This kid isn’t usually this obedient, at least not to me.’

’He’s not going to pull some stunt, is he?’

After all, he wasn’t the one running on the track.

「At the same time」

Chen Yu was in the players’ tunnel of the Hellenic Olympic Center, talking to Yao Ming.

Yao Ming was dejected.

"Dr. Chen, we gave it our all!" Yao Ming said, hands on his hips, sighing as he looked up.

"After we beat Serbia and Montenegro, I felt like the team’s morale was high. We fought hard in this game, we really did, but we still lost."

Over the course of the game, Yao Ming had shot 8-for-13 on mid-range jumpers, 13-for-15 from the free-throw line, and grabbed 11 rebounds, including an impressive 6 offensive boards, for an efficient and well-rounded 29 points.

His teammates had also played well, with Zhu Fangyu scoring 10 points and Li Nan contributing 19.

But they still lost by 20 points.

"We’re still too weak!"

Yao Ming let out another quiet sigh.

Throughout the game, he truly felt the gap in physical confrontation, in strategy, and in technical skill.

A gap in every single aspect.

"Dr. Chen." He looked at Chen Yu, his gaze trembling slightly. "If you were to take over the National Team, would we get better?"

His eyes were filled with hope. The despair and powerlessness of giving his all and still being unable to win were about to consume him.

What made it even more hopeless was that he couldn’t see any light at the end of the tunnel.

Perhaps the quarterfinals were the absolute limit for the Chinese Men’s Basketball Team.

But he couldn’t accept it. ’Liu Xiang could break a world record, so how are Chinese people any worse than anyone else?’

’Don’t talk to me about racial differences. If I can establish myself and make a name in the NBA, why can’t others from our great country?’

’Am I really the only genius in all of China?’

Yao Ming refused to believe it.

So the more they lost, the more he hoped the men’s national team could change.

Chen Yu’s arrival might just be the catalyst for that change.

Chen Yu wanted to say a few comforting and encouraging words to Yao Ming, but after thinking about it, he decided against it.

’Whether it’ll work or not, I have no idea either.’

"Go on back. Get some good rest. You still have a game the day after tomorrow."

Yao Ming nodded, gave Chen Yu one last look, and turned to leave.

But after taking a few steps, he suddenly stopped, turned around, and gave Chen Yu a deep, solemn bow.

"Go on."

Chen Yu waved his hand.

As he watched Yao Ming leave, Chen Yu was about to go himself when someone suddenly called his name from behind.

He turned his head and saw it was Little Nelson.

He wasn’t just a consultant for the Chinese Men’s Basketball Team; he was also an assistant coach for Lithuania.

"What’s up, Donnie?"

Before the game, Chen Yu had spoken with Little Nelson about the development of China’s national team.

He was a consultant, after all.

At the time, he had told Chen Yu that they could emulate the European Men’s Basketball Team instead of just copying the United States’ basketball model.

After all, on the international stage, the NBA’s methods weren’t always effective.

Little Nelson came closer, looked left and right to make sure no one was around, and then asked in a low voice, "Chen, since you guys chose to trade McDyess, is it possible that Shaq might also be on the trading block?"

Chen Yu was taken aback.

’This guy is certainly blunt. He’s got the nerve to say anything.’

Chen Yu sized up Little Nelson.

The Phoenix Suns’ trade of McDyess had two mainstream interpretations in the media. The first was to relieve salary pressure.

The Five-star Phoenix Suns were certainly a luxury, and it was great to have them, but the owner was probably wiping away tears in secret.

The second was that after three consecutive championships, the Suns’ desire to win had plummeted. It might be better to break up the team, lower the payroll, and gamble on rookies for the future.

So in Little Nelson’s view, if you could trade McDyess, why not O’Neal?

A 32-year-old O’Neal with that massive contract... if they weren’t chasing another championship, what was the point of keeping him? It would be better to trade him.p>’You Suns don’t need him, but other teams would kill for him!’

"Chen, Shaq’s contract is up next summer. You’re not really going to re-sign him, are you? At his age, you won’t be able to keep him without a five-year, 100-million-dollar contract."

"Even this year, his contract of over thirty million is a huge salary burden for you."

In the ’04-’05 season, the final year of O’Neal’s contract, he was making over thirty-three million dollars, the highest in the entire league.

Chen Yu smiled.

Little Nelson’s analysis was flawless, but an asset as prime as O’Neal wasn’t someone the Suns were in a hurry to trade.

So what if they gave O’Neal a five-year, 100-million-dollar extension next year?

’Would it really become a bad contract? Are we supposed to worry we wouldn’t be able to trade him?’

As long as the Suns wanted to trade him, they could do it anytime.

Chen Yu and the Kolangelos, father and son, had discussed this many times. The final decision was not to trade him yet, but to wait and see for another season.

If this season’s record and O’Neal’s performance didn’t meet the management’s expectations, and the cost-benefit analysis no longer made sense, it wouldn’t be too late to trade him then.

O’Neal wasn’t going to just leave as a free agent.

With such a huge contract, no contender had the cap space to absorb it.

So, O’Neal would leave sooner or later, but when it came to his trade, the Suns would always hold all the cards.

Before Chen Yu could speak, Little Nelson eagerly interrupted him. "Chen, don’t be so quick to refuse. Hear my offer first."

"Oh? And how do you propose to complete this trade?" Chen Yu’s interest was piqued.

’You’re not going to offer up Nowitzki, are you?’

Little Nelson said immediately, "It’s simple. Besides Dirk, any player, any draft pick. Take your pick."

’Just as I thought,’ Chen Yu said to himself.

The Mavericks’ most valuable trade chip was still Nowitzki.

But the problem was, besides Nowitzki, the Suns weren’t interested in anyone else.

Seeing the look on Chen Yu’s face, Little Nelson knew that kind of offer wouldn’t move the Suns’ front office. A fierce glint flashed in his eyes as he whispered, "Chen, to be honest, if you guys really want Dirk... it’s not entirely off the table."

As he finished, his own voice couldn’t help but tremble slightly.

But he still got the words out.

The Suns’ three-peat had proven one thing more and more clearly: without a top-tier center, you still couldn’t win a championship.

The Spurs’ Duncan was as dominant as they come, and he still couldn’t get past the Suns.

Nowitzki was strong, and he was talented, but if he couldn’t bring a championship to Dallas, then he wasn’t irreplaceable.

"Donnie, are you serious? Does Mark know about this?" Chen Yu was startled.

Kuban had stated publicly more than once that Nowitzki was his favorite and that he would keep him in Dallas forever.

’So it’s public displays of affection and a knife in the back behind the scenes, huh?’

’Still, the offer is pretty tempting.’

In terms of contracts alone, Nowitzki’s ten-million-dollar-range deal was far more cost-effective than O’Neal’s.

Trading away O’Neal, playing Nowitzki at the four-spot, letting Chandler start, and shifting the offensive focus in the paint from the five-spot to Dirk at the four would be a pretty good option.

Besides, judging by the developmental trends in the league, Stern was dead set on weakening the inside game.

Nowitzki’s perimeter-oriented style of play was actually right in line with that trend.