Sports Medicine Master System

Chapter 651: Chapter 577: You’re Digging a Pit for Them

Meanwhile, in a luxury suite at the top of the arena, Chen Yu was gathered with Jordan and four other legendary superstars.

"Chen, have you heard anything from China yet?"

Jordan lit a cigar, the smoke swirling around him.

Chen Yu nodded.

In early September, Chen Yu had gone to China and spoken with Yuan Weimin for two days. He even had a meeting with Yuan’s superiors to once again lay out his commercialization plan for the league.

Both sides had laid their cards on the table.

Just as Su Jun had said, there was indeed opposition.

Yuan Weimin’s side also had its reservations.

But overall, things were still moving forward.

So the final outcome was to wait. Now, almost a month had passed with no news.

Jordan muttered, "Doesn’t that mean we’ll miss this season?"

"That’s a given."

The basketball season starts in November.

Soccer starts even earlier.

The detailed schedules had already been released, so no matter what, we’ve definitely missed our chance for this season.

"This season was never part of our plan anyway."

Even if they agreed, implementing all the changes would take time.

The ideal plan was always for next season.

Jordan sighed. "I’m just worried something will go wrong. From what I understand, they have pretty strict restrictions on foreign investment over there."

Foreign investment was strictly prohibited in both soccer and basketball.

And he was absolutely desperate to become a team owner.

"Don’t worry. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: it’s not a big problem," Chen Yu smiled, full of confidence.

’The timing, the place, the people—everything has aligned perfectly. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and the chances of success are high.’

"Oh, right, Michael." Chen Yu remembered something else. "If we do get in, then at the very beginning, to generate some buzz for the league, would you be willing to..."

Before Chen Yu could finish, Jordan held up a hand to stop him.

He looked at Chen Yu warily. "Chen, you’re not thinking of asking me to come out of retirement again, are you?"

His third comeback had been to boost the market for the Wizards.

And how did that turn out?

Jordan would remember the lesson from that experience for the rest of his life.

Not to mention making a comeback for a team in a foreign country.

’I’m already 41, and I’ll be 42 next year. You can’t just keep fleecing the same old guy.’

"Where is your mind going?" Chen Yu quickly shook his head. "At your age, even if you did come back, do you really think you could still play? What I mean is, if the plan succeeds, I’ll need your help, especially during the first season. I need you to go to China often for promotions and marketing."

’The man had already been in and out of retirement three times; Chen Yu had never even considered asking Jordan to come back again.’

’Even if it was the most perfect option.’

’Just imagine if Jordan made a comeback in the Jia A league—the tickets would sell like crazy.’

’In China, Jordan’s popularity was off the charts.’

Jordan let out a sigh of relief and quickly said, "Promotions are no problem, of course. After all, I’m the team owner."

After a pause, Jordan grumbled, "Chen, are you looking down on me? Believe it or not, if I came back right now, I could still school a lot of people."

’Especially those kids in the Jia A league.’

"I believe you, how could I not?"

Chen Yu waved his hand dismissively. He was long used to Jordan’s competitive nature.

"Alright, it’s about time. Let’s head out."

Chen Yu stood up and led the five others to the main floor.

Down on the court, everything was ready.

One half of the court served as the main stage, while on the other half, the 16 teams were lined up on the left and right.

First, a video montage played, recapping the long, ninety-day regular season.

Over a thousand games, moment by moment, there were many memorable highlights.

And among them, the scene of Durant choosing Beasley was, of course, included.

When that moment appeared on screen, all the players on the floor turned their heads to look at Durant.

Durant’s face was stern, his heart completely unmoved.

"Kevin, have you thought this through?" Presti asked in a low voice.

Beside him, Harden and Little Jordan also looked at Durant.

Their team had gone through quite a few twists and turns and suffered some setbacks, but in the end, their salary cap had been raised to twenty-eight million.

It was enough to trade for one captain and one player of near-captain level.

Durant nodded. "You don’t need to say any more. I’ve already made up my mind."

Even though Harden and Little Jordan had said they were willing to sacrifice for the team.

Presti sighed and said no more, turning the conversation to how they would handle the upcoming trades.

’There was still the question of who would get to pick first.’

After the video ended, Chen Yu came on stage. Following some words of thanks and a summary, he announced the most important change for the next phase of the show.

Live broadcasts!

For the upcoming playoffs, ABC Television would be selecting certain games on each game day to broadcast live.

This announcement startled everyone present.

Even Jordan and the other four legends waiting backstage were left speechless.

They hadn’t known about this beforehand either.

"Live broadcasts... and the finals will be broadcast nationwide." George Gervin took a sharp breath. "That’s the kind of treatment the NBA gets."

Jordan and the others nodded in agreement.

Only a top-tier league gets that kind of treatment.

And Chen Yu’s show was just a competition for a bunch of kids.

"Can’t be helped. The show is just that popular," Magic Johnson said with a smile.

Over the past few months, the show had truly become the most popular program in the entire country.

So, to boost the show’s viewership even higher, it was no surprise that ABC had chosen to broadcast it live.

ABC already had the broadcasting contract for the NBA, so this could be seen as a warm-up for the upcoming NBA season.

Just then, Chen Yu, having handed things over to Ernest on stage, returned backstage.

"Chen, impressive."

Jordan gave Chen Yu a direct thumbs-up.

Chen Yu waved his hand.

’If the show hadn’t been so popular, there’s no way ABC would have made a decision like this.’

On stage, Ernest was explaining the procedure for the rest of the recording.

It was actually similar to the previous draft.

The trade order would be determined randomly.

"Huh? Why isn’t it based on their records?" Owen asked curiously.

The number of eliminated captains was limited, and their skill levels varied. To the legends, the fairest option seemed to be deciding the order based on team records.

Chen Yu said, "That was our original plan, but I ultimately decided against it."

Determining the order by record could balance the teams’ strength and potentially make the playoffs more exciting.

But after thinking it over, Chen Yu had rejected the idea.

The random method added uncertainty, which would require every team to prepare several different draft strategies.

And the uncertainty of the final rosters would also enhance the show’s dramatic effect.

"In other words, I want them to understand that they aren’t guaranteed to get the players they want," Chen Yu said, looking over at the numerous teams whispering amongst themselves.

After a pause, Chen Yu added in a serious tone, "Most importantly, I want them to have to make a choice: when they don’t get the player they want, should they forgo the trade and stick with their current teammates?"

The legends were all taken aback.

But they soon figured out what Chen Yu was thinking.

"Chen, I’m just realizing, you’re setting a trap for them," Magic Johnson exclaimed.

Seeing Jordan look at him, Johnson explained, "Think about it. The players they’d trade for are captain-level. They might be stronger, but that brings at least two problems. The first is ball distribution."

He held up one finger.

"Three core players on one team—do you really think that won’t cause problems?"

It dawned on Jordan.

With only one ball on the court, there would always be issues with its distribution.

The old saying "too many cooks in the kitchen" was no joke.

Johnson continued, "Then there’s the problem of teamwork. Their current rosters have been gelling for three months and their coordination is smooth. But after swapping out two teammates, they have to immediately start the playoffs. In a short one-month, single-elimination tournament, they’re very likely to run into problems with tactical execution and team chemistry, leading to an unexpected early exit."

Star players are great, but when you put five of them together, a lot of problems can arise.

Everyone wants to be the star, but you need people willing to be supporting players too.

"So a trade isn’t necessarily the best choice. And when they do choose to trade, they also have to give up teammates they’ve spent three months with. That’s another test of friendship and a difficult decision!"

Johnson turned to Chen Yu and couldn’t help but say, "Chen, they’re just kids. Don’t you think it’s a bit harsh to keep designing all these difficult choices for them?"

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