Chapter 692 - 617: Little Princess

Chapter 692: Chapter 617: Little Princess

In the end, Carter didn’t land in Phoenix. He went to New Jersey in a trade for Moning.

However, what Barbocock never would have imagined was that Moning was unwilling to report to the Raptors.

He publicly claimed that he didn’t want to leave the United States to go to the frozen-over Toronto.

This reason was suspect. Canada is basically the United States’ backyard; going there is like not even leaving the country.

Chen Yu personally felt it was probably related to his injuries.

The man had been in and out of the league a few times, had just made a comeback after a kidney transplant, and was getting on in years. He definitely didn’t want to waste his life on a team like the Raptors, which was committed to rebuilding and tanking.

Was he a man who was short on chump change?

But Chen Yu didn’t know the real reason. In any case, Moning refused to report, and the whole affair blew up.

It was no smaller than the Auburn Hills Palace incident in November.

That incident had already given Stern such a headache he was tearing his hair out. Now that Moning had set such a bad precedent, Chen Yu felt Stern wouldn’t show any mercy.

Stern was never some kind-faced, good-natured old man. Having controlled the league for so many years, his methods were ruthless.

From banning involvement with certain "bad things" to now even starting to restrict player attire.

Flashy clothes and big gold chains had become a thorn in Stern’s side. In his words, they "seriously damaged the league’s image" and were a "terrible influence on children across the United States."

Carter had even complained to Chen Yu about it before, saying the league had banned him from listening to his iPod during pre-game warmups.

But no matter how ruthless Stern was, there was still the Players’ Union.

Chen Yu figured the league would definitely punish Moning, but it wouldn’t go so far as to hold a gun to his head and force him to report to the Raptors, or else tell him to retire on the spot.

Moning was a tough nut to crack; getting him to back down wouldn’t be easy.

「January 16th.」

At 2:34 in the afternoon, in Chen Yu’s own clinic, good news came from the delivery room: Lexi had given birth.

Chen Yu wasn’t waiting anxiously outside the delivery room; he delivered the baby himself.

He had even spent the two months prior thoroughly studying obstetrics for this very reason.

It wasn’t entirely to enjoy the moment his daughter entered the world; it was mainly because he was afraid of complications.

With the Eye of All-Seeing watching, any risk factor could be eliminated in the cradle.

A lively little princess, weighing seven pounds and nine ounces.

The moment the little girl, Chen Yanfei, grasped Chen Yu’s finger with her innate reflex, he didn’t feel that so-called "connection of blood," but his eyes couldn’t help but well up.

’Xiaoyanfei, welcome to the world,’ Chen Yu thought.

The baby’s arrival added a lot of color to Chen Yu’s life.

Although they had hired a full-time nanny, Chen Yu still made time to be with his daughter.

In Brian’s words, Chen Yu was smiling a lot more.

「February arrived.」

As the trade deadline approached, the Moning saga was still not over.

The stubborn man was holding his ground to the very end. No matter who tried to persuade him, he absolutely refused to report to the Raptors.

It got to the point where Barbocock was forced to come out and save face, claiming that Moning was just a throw-in for the trade and they didn’t care whether he reported to the Raptors or not.

Once this response was out, it basically cut off any possibility of Moning going to the Raptors.

That left Moning and the Raptors with only one option: a buyout or another trade.

Conveniently, Moning had also been publicly stating that he didn’t want to go to the Raptors and wanted to join a team with championship potential.

And as expected, his team of choice was the Phoenix Suns.

Chen Yu was at home, holding his nearly one-month-old daughter and watching a TNT program.

On the show, Kenny Smith and two others were in a heated discussion about Moning’s potential destinations.

Just then, Brian’s call came in.

"Chen, what are your thoughts?" Brian asked, sounding a bit urgent.

A little after two in the afternoon, Moning had announced his desire to go to the Suns on a TV show, and now the news was everywhere.

"I’m not interested, whether it’s through a buyout or a trade."

Even though Moning had expressed his interest in coming to the Suns, the team really didn’t need him.

Chandler was playing very well. His offense was a bit lacking, but his defensive hustle was excellent, perfectly making up for the interior defense lost after O’Neal’s departure.

Under these circumstances, even if they brought Moning in, there was no way he’d be a starter.

And he wouldn’t even get minutes as a backup.

They still had Kwame Brown.

He had left the highly scrutinized Wizards and come to Phoenix.

It wasn’t that the Phoenix market was smaller than the Wizards’, but that if he had stayed with the Wizards, the fans and media would never forget he was their number one draft pick.

In Phoenix, the fans’ attention wasn’t on him at all.

Plus, coming off the bench, Brown didn’t have as much psychological pressure.

Skiles had even gotten his drinking problem under control.

So even if his offense still needed polishing, his defense was more than adequate.

With him as the backup center and David West as the backup power forward, there was simply no spot for Moning.

Dale Davis was in better shape than him.

And there was no way they were letting Mo Ke go, so the Suns had absolutely no room for him.

Bringing him in wouldn’t significantly improve the team’s strength and might introduce unpredictable changes to their harmonious locker room. Why bother with all the trouble?

Over the phone, Brian said, "Oh," his tone shifting. "Actually, that’s what I was thinking too. He did have a kidney transplant, after all."

Old Kolangelo and Chen Yu shared the same attitude, believing it was unnecessary to get Moning.

Brian had wanted him.

But since both owners were in agreement, he could only change his tune.

"Let’s not talk about that then." Brian changed the subject, asking curiously, "That group of kids you selected from China is coming to the United States tomorrow, right? I never got around to asking, did you find any talents on the level of Yao Ming?"

After several months of selection, tomorrow, a group of 35 people—23 for soccer and 12 for basketball—would arrive in the United States.

"I’m sorry to say, but no."

A player with Yao Ming’s height, that level of flexibility, combined with his basketball IQ, self-discipline, and other factors, was absolutely an all-time talent.

The tallest kid selected this time was only 6’11".

And he was just a little kid, six months shy of his 13th birthday.

The kid’s name was Zheng Zhun.

Originally, Chen Yu hadn’t planned on picking him because he was just too young.

And being 6’11" before turning 13, Chen Yu was genuinely worried he might have gigantism, especially since his parents weren’t particularly tall.

His father was an ordinary teacher, only about 5’11", and his mother was a housewife, only about 5’8".

Coming from a modest family background and without particularly good nutrition, the kid had grown to 6’1" by age 10, then shot up again, reaching his current height of 6’11".

Chen Yu had someone take him for a pituitary gland examination to check for gigantism caused by a pituitary tumor or hyperplasia, and also had his growth hormone levels checked. It turned out to be neither.

After careful consideration, he made an exception and selected him.

Because aside from his impressive height, his name, Zhun, which means "accurate," fit him perfectly—he had an exceptionally good shooting touch.

He had the talent to become a tall shooter.

Chen Yu thought it was worth developing a functional player like that.

"Ah, well, forget it then."

Brian’s tone was a bit dejected, but he immediately said, "Still, I’ll go with you to the airport tomorrow to pick them up. Aren’t you also planning for them to watch the game at night?"

The plane would arrive tomorrow morning, and it was also a game day, so Chen Yu planned to have them tour the US Airways Center and get a feel for the NBA atmosphere.