The start of the new season was not affected.
October 1st, New Season Media Day.
Chen Yu headed to the US Airways Center early in the morning.
There were tons of reporters at the entrance to the parking garage.
He was blocked by reporters the moment he arrived.
Chen Yu sighed and rolled down his window, asking what they wanted to know.
"Chen, will Hardaway be able to return for the preseason?" The reporters swarmed his window, their biggest concern naturally being Hardaway.
The Phoenix Suns had only announced that Hardaway had returned to the team, but there was no timetable for when he would officially play in a game.
And the person who knew the most about the situation was, of course, Chen Yu.
"Yes," Chen Yu said after a moment’s thought, giving a rare, straight answer. The news would be announced soon anyway.
"Alright, can you let me through now?"
Once the reporters cleared a path, Chen Yu drove into the parking garage.
Glancing at the cars, Chen Yu didn’t leave right away. He decided to wait in the garage.
Hardaway hadn’t arrived yet.
Hardaway had gone back to his own house last week.
Now that the new season was starting, Chen Yu wanted to see what his mental state was like and whether he was ready.
Before long, J Kidd drove up.
He got out of the car, took off his sunglasses, and came over to give Chen Yu a hug. Then he asked with a grin how Chen Yu’s vacation was.
"Vacation?"
Chen Yu stared at J Kidd speechlessly. ’That’s cold, man. Real cold.’
"I should be asking you what you were up to during the offseason. It looks like you’ve put on some weight." Chen Yu sized up J Kidd. His face was looking fleshier.
J Kidd laughed. "Didn’t you tell me to get some good rest?"
"Don’t give me that," Chen Yu said, exasperated. "I remember my exact words were to balance work and rest, not *only* rest."
As he spoke, Chen Yu glanced at J Kidd’s lumbar spine.
Still the same old story: a bulge.
But as long as it stayed that way, it was fine. If it became a true herniation, they could deal with it then.
J Kidd flexed the muscles in his arm. "Don’t worry, I feel like I’m in great shape right now."
As they were chatting, a Ferrari drove up in the distance.
It was Hardaway’s car.
The car pulled into the spot next to them, and Hardaway got out, greeting them with a smile.
"New season. How are you feeling?" Chen Yu asked as the three of them walked toward the arena.
Hardaway thought about it seriously for a moment, then said, "Can’t wait. After all, I’ve been resting for way too long."
"That’s good to hear."
Chen Yu nodded to himself. It seemed Hardaway was mentally prepared.
Unlike Hill back then, who felt the pressure of returning mid-season, Hardaway was different. He had gone through a long recovery, a gradual process, and had made ample preparations.
"You guys go on ahead."
Exchanging greetings with people along the way, Chen Yu told them to go to the locker room first at a junction, while he headed for the office area.
The members of the medical team had already arrived.
After catching up, they all changed into their matching uniforms and went to the media day event. They had to take their official season photos soon.
The Phoenix Suns were getting quite a bit of attention this year.
Hardaway was back, and they had also signed the two legends, Olajuwon and Ewing.
Regardless of their current skill level, at least their names were huge.
At the photoshoot, Hardaway and the others were surrounded by reporters. Chen Yu found Brian and waited for things to wrap up over there.
"Chen, I’m really regretting it now. If Michael had come, the number of reporters here would have at least tripled." Brian held up three fingers, his face full of frustration.
Chen Yu didn’t know whether to laugh or cry looking at Brian.
In the end, Jordan still chose to join the Wizards.
Privately, Chen Yu had heard that Jordan had apparently reached some kind of agreement with Abi Polin regarding shares.
But then again, it wouldn’t have been a good fit if Jordan had really come.
Of course, it wasn’t that Brian didn’t want Jordan.
He was *Jordan*. Who wouldn’t want him?
After he announced his comeback, tickets for the Wizards’ first preseason game sold out instantly.
No matter Jordan’s skill level, he was worth it even if he just sat on the sidelines to sell tickets.
The key issue was, if he had really come to the Phoenix Suns, what would they do with Hardaway?
They couldn’t have Jordan playing as a substitute, could they? That would be a joke. Even Hardaway wouldn’t dare let that happen.
So it was better to let Jordan go to the Wizards. With that garbage roster, he could mess around however he wanted.
Anyway, Jordan wasn’t aiming for a championship with this comeback. It was more for symbolic reasons.
"Alright, it’s not like he was planning to come anyway. What’s the point of regretting it?"
Brian might have wanted him, but the man never gave him the chance to even ask.
Speaking of which, the guy said he wouldn’t, but in the end, he still used that classic phrase, "I’m back," to announce his return to the world.
Perhaps, in everyone’s eyes, only those words were worthy of Jordan’s kingly return.
Brian sighed, then asked Chen Yu gossipily to what extent Jordan could recover.
Jordan himself had already said he would stay in Phoenix to train for a month, rejoining the team at the end of the month.
He would come over right after Media Day.
"How would I know? But if he can really lead the Wizards to a championship, that would be truly divine."
But thinking about it, that was pretty much impossible. With the Wizards’ roster, even God would have a headache.
After finishing the interviews and happily taking their official photos, the new season began without much fanfare.
The new season’s roster wouldn’t be finalized until after training camp.
But Brian had really leaned into the "team of the old, weak, sick, and disabled" moniker.
Before the season started, to bolster their perimeter defense and offensive firepower, he had rummaged through the scrap heap again and signed former Phoenix Suns player Dan Majerle from the Heat.
He was an aging veteran who could swing between the shooting guard and small forward positions. He was once an excellent perimeter defender and had a decent three-point shot.
Last season with the Heat, he still had a 31 percent three-point shooting average and scored 5 points per game. Looking at the stats alone, he was a decent-enough substitute.
The problem was, he was already 36 years old. If the Phoenix Suns hadn’t signed him, he most likely would have retired directly.
But then again, a 39-year-old Ewing was still playing, so what was 36?
Then, Brian also wanted to find a point guard, but he had no trade assets and no salary cap space. He could only go treasure hunting among the undrafted players, signing two to training camp contracts, with no telling who would ultimately make the cut.
None of this had much to do with Chen Yu, who was quite busy himself.
Ronaldo and the others still had some final work to wrap up, the National Team had games, and soon Jordan would be arriving for training.
At the clinic, on the rubber track surrounding the soccer field.
Jordan’s personal trainer, Tim Grover, clutched a stopwatch and blew a small whistle, constantly urging Jordan to run faster.
Jordan stopped in front of Chen Yu, panting heavily.
"Tim, shut up!"
Before Tim Grover could urge him on, Jordan shot him an angry glare.
Grover obediently shut his mouth.
"Chen, I can’t take it anymore! I feel like my lungs are going to explode, and my legs are about to break." Jordan leaned on his knees and pointed to his calves. "See? They’re shaking."
Chen Yu, holding a clipboard, ignored Jordan’s pleading gaze. "Don’t worry, your lungs won’t explode, and your legs won’t break. As for the shaking, it’s fine. It’ll stop shaking in a bit."
With that said, he gestured for him to keep running.
Jordan stared fixedly at Chen Yu for a full three seconds, then a "Fack!" burst from his lips as he turned and started running again.
’Shit! What the hell was I thinking? Why did I come back?!’
Jordan muttered trash talk under his breath. He regretted it.
With this much effort, wouldn’t it be more fun to go live it up in Las Vegas?
"What are you yelling at me for? You’re the one who wanted to make a comeback. Didn’t I try to talk you out of it at the time? You wouldn’t listen. Faster, faster! My grandma runs faster than you!" Chen Yu wasn’t about to coddle Jordan.
At his age, if he wanted to make a comeback, he really had to go all out.
"Fack you!"
Without looking back, Jordan flipped Chen Yu the middle finger.
Chen Yu ignored him, watching silently from the side.
For Jordan, the biggest problem right now was improving his physical fitness. Skills and whatnot could take a backseat for now.
Running, various indoor endurance exercises... Chen Yu didn’t call a stop until Jordan was so exhausted he collapsed on the ground.
Just as he was about to tell him the morning session was over and they would continue in the afternoon, Chen Yu suddenly received a system notification.
[Congratulations, Host. You have obtained a Bronze Level Sports Training effect.]
Chen Yu froze for a moment, then quickly checked the system.
’I finally managed to grind out a training effect.’
Chen Yu had actually been trying to grind for a Sports Training effect for a while, but he just couldn’t get it.
It was probably related to the small amount of experience he was gaining, since Chen Yu rarely participated in the players’ training.
[Bronze Level Sports Training Effect: Designate 1 to 3 people to increase their training effectiveness by 5%.]
Glancing at the effect, Chen Yu was surprised to discover it was a multi-person effect that could apply to up to three people.
’No wonder it was so hard to grind for. It’s one effect that does the work of three.’
’What about higher levels? Would they be able to cover more people?’
’It seems I’ll have to figure out a way to grind more experience in this area.’
Snapping back to his senses, Chen Yu saw Jordan was still lying on the ground and immediately urged him to get up.
"Come on, time to wake up."
Chen Yu pointed to the cryotherapy chamber.
Jordan shivered, struggled to his feet, and climbed into the chamber.
After a harsh jolt to his system, Chen Yu called for Jordan to lie down for acupressure massage.
With training this intense, he wouldn’t be able to handle it without applying a recovery effect.
He casually applied a Bronze Level recovery effect, and Jordan soon felt so good he was about to cry out. He grinned and joked, "Chen, if you opened a massage parlor, you could definitely take it public."
Chen Yu paid him no mind.
After the massage, Jordan got up and moved his body around. Needless to say, he felt like he’d been brought back to life.
Nearby, Grover nodded silently, his eyes filled with disbelief.
This trainer, who had once single-handedly helped Jordan bulk up and was a behind-the-scenes hero of Jordan’s first championship, had initially disapproved of Chen Yu’s train-to-death intensity.
But on his first day in Phoenix, after seeing Jordan, who had been trained to within an inch of his life, become lively and energetic again the next day thanks to Chen Yu’s massage, he immediately changed his attitude. He even started to think Chen Yu’s training was too gentle and that the intensity should be ramped up a bit.
"Tim."
Chen Yu looked at Grover and pointed at Jordan. "Keep an eye on him during lunch. Don’t let him spit out the medicine again."
He was talking about Physical Fitness No.1.
This formula was perfectly suited for Jordan’s current fitness training.
Grover nodded with a chuckle.
Jordan rolled his eyes at Chen Yu. He had never tasted medicine that bitter.
The next day, after arranging things at the clinic, Chen Yu hurried to meet up with the National Team and head to Jamaica for the eighth round of the final stage of qualifiers.
This was Chen Yu’s first time in Washington since that incident.
Inside the airport, police officers were patrolling everywhere.
Walking out of the airport, National Team leader August Martin came to pick Chen Yu up, and he even brought security personnel.
"Is it that serious?" Chen Yu noticed the security personnel were armed.
Martin gave a wry smile. "If it wasn’t absolutely necessary, the higher-ups would have wanted to cancel this match. They’re afraid we’ll become targets for an attack while playing abroad."
Hearing this, Chen Yu fell silent. ’Is it too late to go back to Phoenix now?’

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