Cleveland Clinic.
Chen Yu and James Parriott walked together, leading a group of residents and interns into the Enke couple’s hospital room.
The moment the La Liga season ended, Enke had rushed to the United States to be with his wife and prepare for this major fetal cardiac intervention surgery.
Teresa was seven months pregnant now. Her belly was quite pronounced, even affecting her normal movements. She lay on the bed with some difficulty while Enke massaged her back to help her relax.
The fetus was a bit on the large side.
This was actually a requirement Chen Yu had suggested after discussing it with the obstetricians.
Normally, a healthy pregnancy involves careful attention to nutrition and exercise to prevent the fetus from growing too large, which facilitates a natural birth.
But in Teresa’s situation, natural birth was out of the question. The advice was to eat more, move less, ensure the fetus received ample nutrition, and let it develop as much as possible.
Developing inside the womb was always better than developing after leaving the mother’s body.
The better the development, the lower the surgical risk.
As for the baby ending up overweight, they would just perform a C-section.
So, compared to two months ago when she had looked somewhat gaunt from the shock of the bad news, Teresa’s face now had a bit of extra flesh on it.
Seeing the group of doctors, Enke looked a little uncomfortable. He immediately stood up and greeted everyone stiffly.
Parriott and the obstetrician went forward to check her pre-operative condition, but Chen Yu didn’t physically examine her. A quick scan with his Eye of All-Seeing told him more clearly than anything else if there were any abnormalities.
"By the way, Robert, are you planning to stay in La Liga next season?"
Given Teresa’s condition, even after the baby was born, she would need long-term treatment. Later on, she’d also need a cochlear implant to address her congenital deafness. There was a long road of treatment ahead.
If Enke continued to stay in La Liga, traveling back and forth between two places would probably be a huge hassle.
The main problem was that Barça didn’t want him.
He was a goalkeeper, a special position. Since he wasn’t getting any playing time at Barça, it was almost impossible for him to stay.
Victor Valdes, just 22 years old this year, was a goalkeeper developed in Barça’s own youth academy. After becoming the starting keeper this season, the young player’s performance hadn’t been bad at all. At his age, he could guard Barça’s goal for at least another ten years.
Under these circumstances, Enke was really better off leaving.
Enke shook his head, then hesitated for a moment. He glanced at his wife, who was being examined, and said softly, "Actually, I’m thinking of coming to the United States to see if I can find a job in the MLS. Maybe with the Columbus Crew. They’re very close to Cleveland, so I could take better care of Teresa and the baby."
Chen Yu looked at him, surprised.
"Don’t. You absolutely shouldn’t be thinking that way."
The Columbus Crew SC was based in Columbus, the capital of Ohio, only 200 kilometers from Cleveland. Just as Enke said, it was very close.
But the problem was, why would a perfectly good player from one of the Five Major Leagues come to the MLS?
Putting aside whether he could even improve his skills, the salary alone would definitely be far less than in the Five Major Leagues.
Back in the day, after a failed investment, Pele, on a whim, remembered an invitation from the Americans. He made a call and was shocked to learn they were offering him 7 million US dollars for seven years.
That was in 1975, when even top NBA players were only making a few hundred thousand US dollars a year.
Only a fool would turn down that kind of money. Pele, along with other world-class stars like Beckenbauer, immediately ran over to the MLS—no, back then it was called the NASL, the North American Soccer League—to cash in.
At that time, the United States was just waving cash around, buying up past-their-prime stars from all over the world.
But that was in the past. When it became unprofitable, the overly shrewd Americans weren’t going to keep mindlessly throwing money around.
Now, the MLS was developing slowly and the salaries were extremely low. An annual salary of one or two hundred thousand US dollars really wasn’t enough to cover Enke’s medical expenses in the United States.
"Robert, you’re only 27. You’re in your prime. I know you want to be by your child’s side, but you have to understand that Lala will need long-term treatment in the future. All of that costs a lot of money."
"In fact, I wouldn’t even recommend you stay in the United States for treatment after the baby is born. You should go back to Europe. You’ve covered the cost of the surgery, but routine care and check-ups are also a huge expense. By staying in Europe, you can save a significant amount of money and use it where it’s most needed."
In Lala’s case, after the in-utero surgery and another interventional procedure after birth to repair the ventricular septal defect, you can return to your home country for ongoing treatment. There’s no need to stay in the United States. Without health insurance, paying for everything out-of-pocket would be astronomically expensive.
"Even just for the money, you should stay in Europe, work hard to improve your skills, and fight for a big contract."
It was a harsh reality, but with Lala’s condition, she would be a money-devouring beast from the moment she was born. Enke had no choice but to find a way to earn more.
Enke lowered his head and thought for a moment before nodding. "Dr. Chen, thank you. I’ll consider it seriously."
Chen Yu patted his shoulder and smiled. "Don’t overthink it. Medical technology is advancing. Everything will get better and better."
After finishing the rounds and scheduling the surgery for the afternoon, all that was left was to wait.
The lead surgeons for the operation were once again Chen Yu and Pavin.
While preparing for surgery, Pavin, a huge basketball fan, couldn’t help but chat with Chen Yu about who got the number one draft pick last week.
"Chen, was it really fixed?" Pavin asked.
The draft lottery was held on the 27th. Now, on June 2nd, several days had passed, but sports media all over the United States were still chattering endlessly about who got the number one pick.
The uproar was comparable to when the Nicks got the number one pick back in the day.
The most common take was that the league office had hit a new low. Before, they at least tried to hide it, but this time, they didn’t even bother.
Some sharp-tongued media outlets even bluntly suggested just canceling the draft lottery altogether.
After all, you thirty teams are one big family. The owners can just sit down together, discuss who’s the most pitiful and who can win a championship, and just assign the number one pick directly.
"How could that be? Of course not," Chen Yu denied without hesitation.
In reality, apart from the fans, there wasn’t much noise from within the league.
Of course, Sterling and Tanenbaum were bound to complain and make a few comments to appease their own fans, but it was all just talk. They wouldn’t actually do anything.
They didn’t really find what the league did unacceptable.
They were owners. Making a profit was one thing, but if the entire NBA market did well, the value of their teams would continue to rise.
This year’s rookies, unlike James last year, couldn’t single-handedly drive a whole market’s profitability.
If the Raptors got the number one pick, could they really contend for a championship?
Besides, they already had Bosh. Whether it was Howard or Okafor, either would affect Bosh’s development.
The Fast Ship was in the same situation. With Brand and Olajuwon, they also didn’t need another inside player.
And in this year’s draft, if you had the number one pick and didn’t choose Howard or Okafor, you were guaranteed to lose out.
So even if the Fast Ship and the Raptors got the number one pick, they wouldn’t necessarily keep it.
And look, there were already trade rumors saying the Fast Ship was planning to trade away their number two pick, with the Bobcat as the target.
That’s why the league tried every possible way to give the number one pick to the Magic, hoping they could win a championship and revitalize the East market. At least the other teams in the East wouldn’t have major objections.
So in the end, it was just the fans and the media making a fuss. For the league, the meat was still in the pot—it didn’t matter who got to eat it.
Of course, Chen Yu couldn’t say any of this to Pavin.
Pavin sighed, probably recalling the tragic experience of his Knight losing the number one pick.
"Oh, right, have I congratulated you on winning the Western Conference Finals yet? You’re about to win the championship, right? A three-peat! Chen, you Phoenix Suns are incredible. When will we in Cleveland ever get a championship trophy?" Pavin added his congratulations.
Chen Yu waved his hand. "Don’t say that. The Finals haven’t even started yet."
He said it as if the Phoenix Suns had already won the championship.
Over in the West, the Spurs had no opportunity to use any off-court tricks in Phoenix, and the Phoenix Suns gave them little room for hope, working together to win both home games.
Back on their home court, even though the Spurs, with their backs against the wall, gave it their all—with Duncan putting up a spectacular 38 points and 12 rebounds—they were still no match for the Phoenix Suns, losing by 4 points and getting eliminated.
This result wasn’t surprising. Before the series, the media had generally favored the Phoenix Suns.
In the media’s words, did the Spurs really think that bringing in an aging Mutombo could replace David Robinson?
Most importantly, the Phoenix Suns were playing without Carl Malone.
If he were to be urgently reactivated and Carl Malone returned to play, the Spurs would have an even harder time winning.
Meanwhile, in the East, the result was a complete surprise to everyone.
The Pistons had actually eliminated the Magic 4-2.
The reason Chen Yu was being modest and said the Finals hadn’t started was because he had watched the Eastern Conference Finals and realized the Pistons were far from as weak as he had imagined.
The addition of Rashid Wallace was a qualitative improvement for the Pistons.
Their overall defense was just too good. Throughout the entire series, the stats for Hill and Tracy McGrady, that supposedly strongest forward duo, had declined to varying degrees.
As for how the Magic lost, the media had plenty of analysis, but after carefully studying the series with Nelson, Chen Yu had formed some of his own ideas.
The media said the Magic’s inside game wasn’t strong; they made the Finals year after year, and lost to the Phoenix Suns year after year.
That was certainly one reason.
But the problem was, the Pistons’ inside game wasn’t that strong either. Aside from his defense, Da Ben’s offense was a complete mess.
Even if they let Da Ben go all out on offense, he could never rack up numbers like O’Neal.
Others said the Magic’s bench was bad and lacked depth, but the Pistons’ bench was only average too.
Then there was the argument that the Magic were too reliant on Hill and Tracy McGrady’s performance.
But they were the stars. Who else were you supposed to rely on? And their performance was normal; it wasn’t like they completely fell apart.
So, in Chen Yu’s view, the Magic’s loss was due to a combination of several factors.
But the fundamental reason that plagued the Magic and prevented them from making a breakthrough, Chen Yu believed, was the team’s positioning of Hill and Tracy McGrady.
Right now, the Magic’s number one guy was Hill. He was an all-around player, Jordan’s successor, and immensely popular. The Magic had brought in Tracy McGrady specifically to support Hill.
Tracy McGrady had transformed from a defensive specialist into the offensive powerhouse he was today, one of the so-called "Four Great Shooting Guards," largely by reaping the benefits of playing with Hill.
But Chen Yu believed Hill might have already reached his ceiling.
Compared to Tracy McGrady, who had more offensive talent, Hill was actually better suited to be the second-in-command.
He was unselfish, willing to share the ball and elevate his teammates—a true all-around warrior. But his offense just wasn’t elite enough.
If the Hill and Tracy McGrady duo was modeled after Jordan and Pippen, then Hill shouldn’t have been Jordan with Tracy McGrady as Pippen. It should have been the other way around, with Hill playing the Pippen role.
Plus, Hill was getting older now. He really should have stepped back and let Tracy McGrady take the lead.
But they were already eliminated, so there was no point discussing it now.
"Alright, time to prepare for surgery."
Chen Yu stood up.
The upcoming surgery would not be easy. Even with the Eye of All-Seeing, the fetus in the womb wasn’t going to cooperate with him. One moment of carelessness could cost a life.
This level of difficulty was far greater than swinging a hammer to break a bone; if you messed that up, you could still amputate.
The surgical observation room was filled with doctors.
This wasn’t a world-first, groundbreaking surgery, but the difficulty of the procedure itself was still like a jewel in a crown, awe-inspiring to all who beheld it.
On the operating table, Teresa was breathing rapidly, her heart far from calm.
As the fetus developed, she could feel it move, feel her child interacting with her.
Lala hadn’t been born yet, but she was already her child.
"Dr. Chen, I can’t lose Lala." As Chen Yu turned, Teresa suddenly reached out, gently tugging on his surgical gown as she spoke timidly.
Her gaze was deeply moving.
Chen Yu was taken aback for a second. He gently patted the back of her hand and smiled. "Don’t worry. It’s the weekend. The Grim Reaper is off today."

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