Chapter 760 - 685: You’d Be Embarrassed Not to Go

Chapter 760: Chapter 685: You’d Be Embarrassed Not to Go

The Phoenix Suns still had no one who could stop Kobe.

Chen Yu’s thoughts began to crystallize.

’If the Phoenix Suns are going to make a run for the championship, they still need a defensive specialist at the shooting guard position.’

’It doesn’t matter if their scoring ability is a bit lacking, because we still have Hardaway and Nowitzki. Their firepower is sufficient.’

’Give Marion a few more touches, and he could put up 20-plus points, too.’

A few of the league’s famous defensive stalwarts popped into Chen Yu’s head.

For example, Battier.

But the Grizzlies would definitely not let him go.

In West’s mind, Battier was a crucial part of the Grizzlies’ rise.

Then there was Bowen.

Bowen relied on dirty plays for his defense, and against the league’s top stars like Kobe and Tracy McGrady, he wouldn’t dare to get too rough.

Besides, he was getting old.

What about Prince?

Last season in the East finals, facing Prince’s defense, both Hill and Tracy McGrady struggled a bit.

However, Prince’s excellent defense was more a product of the Pistons’ overall defensive system.

Chen Yu also thought of the Pioneer’s Tony Allen.

The rookie had good defensive potential.

Iguodala, too. He could swing to the shooting guard position and become a great defender.

But they were all too young and needed to be developed slowly.

After thinking it over and over, one name popped into Chen Yu’s head.

Doug Christie!

A multiple-time All-Defensive Team selection, his defense was said to be surgical.

And while providing excellent defense, he also had an outstanding mid-to-long-range shot, wasn’t afraid to shoot in clutch moments, and could provide offensive firepower.

Unfortunately, he was already old.

He was 35 this year.

In the Summer, he left his old team, the King, and went to the Mavericks.

His goal was clear: to chase a championship.

After all, the Mavericks had O’Neal.

’Thinking back, if the Phoenix Suns had made him an offer back then, he probably would have come to the Phoenix Suns.’

’Then there’s no one suitable.’

No!

Chen Yu shook his head. ’We have someone on our own team.’

Poseidon!

When they first got Poseidon, it was precisely for his defense.

And he was a tough defender who could guard positions two through four.

During the Phoenix Suns’ second championship run, he was a starter for a time and performed quite well.

But as the Phoenix Suns’ roster became more and more stacked, he lost his starting spot, was relegated to the bench, and became a role player.

Since there were no good options on the market, they could only dig from within and make good use of Poseidon.

They could move him directly into the starting lineup and have Ben Gordon play the role of a sixth-man scorer.

Actually, Chen Yu had another excellent choice in mind.

LeBron James!

’With his physique, guarding positions one through five wouldn’t be a problem.’

’Unfortunately, even if we offered Hardaway, the Knight would never trade James away.’

Chen Yu decided to go back and have a serious discussion with Skiles.

They had spent so much money this year; it would be a huge loss if they didn’t win the championship.

Previously, Chen Yu had thought that this year was the last window of opportunity for the Lakers to win a championship.

But by the same token, this year and next were also the Phoenix Suns’ championship window.

If they couldn’t win the title, he would just blow up the team. While keeping Hardaway, anyone could be traded away to try and get Oden or Durant and enter a complete rebuilding cycle.

The second quarter began.

Although it was a preseason game, both teams clearly intended to test each other’s limits, so the starters were quickly subbed back in.

Just because it was the China Game and Yao Ming’s home turf didn’t mean Kobe would hold back. He began to take over the game in the second quarter.

Ever since O’Neal was traded in ’02, Kobe had become the Lakers’ absolute core. In three years, his skills had also evolved to their peak.

He was healthy and experienced. Tracy McGrady was tough to guard, but was Kobe any easier?

Post-ups, drives, drawing fouls.

Tracy McGrady’s defense was decent, but even he couldn’t contain Kobe.

Tracy McGrady had screens, but Kobe had even more.

Both Yao Ming and Odom could provide quality screens.

Jackson’s strategy also revolved around Kobe.

In a single quarter, Kobe exploded for a full 13 points, his offensive firepower on full display.

Seeing this performance, Chen Yu felt a bit overwhelmed.

In the current NBA, guards were really starting to carry the banner.

The Phoenix Suns’ roster was considered good, but now it seemed they were missing a top-tier scorer.

Chen Yu’s thoughts turned to Durant again.

’If there’s a chance to get him, I will definitely convince Old Kolangelo to pick Durant.’

’The meta is already changing. We can’t go against the trend.’

In the end, the Lakers won the preseason game.

The Magic’s bench was even weaker.

You could only say that the Magic’s management was too cheap. This was the tragedy of a small-market team, unlike the Lakers, who were truly willing to splash the cash.

The entire event concluded successfully.

At Chen Yu’s request, Baggio and the others made a point to stay behind and join Kobe’s group in signing autographs and interacting with the fans.

’The tickets are so expensive, and they’ve come all this way. We can’t just act like divas.’

The Lakers and the Magic still had to travel to the Capital for the next China Game.

The Pioneer’s league was on a break, so Batty and the others could continue to rest.

Baggio also had a series of commercial activities.

Chen Yu’s company was responsible for these, so he didn’t need to worry about them.

So, on the third day after the exhibition game ended, Chen Yu left China and flew to Germany.

This year, the World Cup was a very important event for Chen Yu.

He was a medical officer for FIFA.

He was also the chief medical officer for the United States Team and a member of the United States Soccer Federation’s preparatory committee.

The 32 qualifying teams were about to be finalized.

The World Cup draw was on December 10th.

In Germany, Chen Yu had to represent the FIFA Medical Committee to review and inspect the medical preparations for the event.

He also had to conduct inspections on behalf of the United States Team to determine their base camp.

This was a very important job.

Who could blame them? The United States Team had always been a thorn in the side at major international events.

The threat of being attacked was no joke.

Besides, the United States Team itself wasn’t very well-liked.

Just like during this year’s Central and North America World Cup qualifiers, wherever the United States Team went, they received plenty of "special attention" from the local fans.

You could say that for every match, the host country was on high alert, with security maxed out.

For example, in a previous match against Guatemala, the organizing committee not only changed the venue at the last minute but also deliberately scheduled it in a remote jungle area. Alina had complained to Chen Yu that they had to take a Bus and jolt through the mountains for more than three hours just to get to the stadium.

The key was that their reasoning was legitimate: they were afraid something would happen to you.

Therefore, it was the same for this World Cup. When choosing a base camp, safety was the top priority.

Finally, Chen Yu also had to attend the World Cup draw with Contiguglia.

So, he had a lot on his plate recently.

「His first stop in Germany was Berlin.」

Beckenbauer personally came to the airport to greet Chen Yu.

Chen Yu’s subordinate, Dr. Randy Duran, the Medical Director of the Medical Committee, had already arrived in Berlin ahead of time with his team.

They would rendezvous with Chen Yu to inspect the first phase of the German organizing committee’s medical preparations, identify any problems, and urge them to make corrections.

In the car on the way to the hotel, Beckenbauer brought something up. "Chen, there’s a favor you absolutely must help us with."

When Chen Yu gave him an inquisitive look, he continued, "Next May, after the league season ends and the National Team assembles, we want to go to the United States to have you conduct a physical examination and adjustment for all the players. This is to ensure they can compete in the World Cup in peak condition."

"This is also Jurgen’s idea. By the way, he knows you’re coming and wants to meet you."

Next year on May 13th, the Bundesliga would end. Then, the National Team would assemble and begin their final warm-ups.

But the new head coach of the German National Team, Jurgen Klinsmann, had proposed setting aside a period of time, about a week or so, to go to the United States and have Chen Yu perform physical check-ups and conditioning adjustments.

If there were problems, they could be solved promptly. If not, the adjustments could still alleviate the fatigue from a long league season and get the players’ conditions to their absolute peak.

In the entire world, only Chen Yu could do this job.

"Since you’ve put it that way, how could I refuse?" Chen Yu said with a smile.

It was perfectly normal for Klinsmann to have such an idea.

The league season would have just ended, and the players would be physically exhausted. If they didn’t get their bodies right, it would not only affect their performance in the World Cup, but they would also be more prone to injuries during the tournament.

The World Cup only comes once every four years. If an injury to a key player or poor conditioning led to a disastrous result, the regret would be immense.

The money spent would be trivial in comparison.

"Then it’s settled," Beckenbauer said, thanking him. "But I have a feeling that when the time comes, every team will be heading to the United States to find you."

’If he could think of it, couldn’t other teams think of it too?’

It had been a long time since ’02. Back then, Chen Yu’s reputation wasn’t as great.

But over the next two years, he had seen reports in Europe about the slick moves those NBA teams pulled, going to Chen Yu for physical maintenance and conditioning adjustments.

Therefore, at such a critical time, even a fee of millions of US dollars would be a trivial amount for the various national teams.

Especially for powerhouses like Germany that were aiming for the championship, it would almost be embarrassing not to go!