"Not bad!"
Chen Yu patted Westbrook’s arm.
The kid was pretty built, all lean muscle.
For him to have a growth spurt and go from a player eliminated in the open tryouts to a McDonald’s All-American was quite the comeback story.
This was exactly the outcome Chen Yu had hoped for. It was the entire purpose of that show and the meaning behind distributing those souvenir sets.
He hoped that more and more talented players like Westbrook would find the right training methods and cash in on their potential.
Chen Yu suddenly had an idea: he wanted to write a book.
Famous people, after they got older, would often write a book—an autobiography or something—to brag a little about themselves and make some money on the side.
As for money, Chen Yu had plenty.
He didn’t need the fame, either.
But writing this book to pass on his years of experience combining medicine with sports and training, allowing more players like Westbrook, as well as the many coaches and industry professionals with limited knowledge, to benefit—that would be enough.
The NBA, a top-tier league, looked glamorous on the surface. But behind the glamour, like a pyramid, countless bodies of those who loved sports and yearned to change their fate through it were crushed beneath.
Chen Yu even felt that for a genius to develop, it required not just talent, but also luck.
They had to pass through many trials.
For instance, the first trial: at a very young age, poverty might force them to drop out of school to support their family, causing them to fade into obscurity.
If they were lucky enough to attend school, they might not meet a good mentor who could discover their talent.
A coach needs a discerning eye.
This trial alone would filter out another batch of talented kids.
And even if they met a coach with a discerning eye, that coach might not be skilled enough, or the training might not be scientific. They could get targeted out of jealousy during a game and be deliberately injured, falling once again.
Who knows how many people were eliminated through these successive trials.
Even if they passed all the trials, there were still accidents.
For example, that super-talented kid from Chicago, Ben Wilson.
Or take Messi. If Eli Lilly hadn’t developed HGH, he would have remained a 4-foot-4 short guy his whole life.
Chen Yu hoped to use a book to teach these kids how to train correctly from a young age, how to eat correctly, how to avoid injuries, and even how to get the right treatment after getting hurt, instead of listening to the flawed treatment plans of various quacks.
They would know the potential consequences of every treatment and be able to choose the best plan.
They would know how long to rest an injury, when they would be fully recovered, and not end up paying the price of their entire career just because they returned to play too soon.
In that instant, Chen Yu even came up with a title for the book.
How to Make Money in Professional Sports, Starting from Zero.
’Professional sports is about making money. It’s that simple.’
Chen Yu didn’t talk much more with Westbrook; he wasn’t that interested in him.
Although he had shot up in height, in Chen Yu’s eyes, his talent was still mediocre. Even though he averaged 30 points per game in high school, players like that were a dime a dozen in the NBA.
Durant was another story.
Chen Yu called Durant over and asked him if he had decided which university he was going to attend.
Summer was just around the corner, so it was time to start thinking about it.
Durant had to stoop down to hear Chen Yu clearly, but he kept his hands behind his back and listened intently, appearing very respectful.
"No, sir. A lot of schools have contacted me, but I haven’t made a decision yet."
Durant shook his head.
That one show had made him famous across the United States.
You could say that besides James, there had never been a second high school student as popular as him.
Even Oden was a step below.
It was all because of the show, where Durant made his incredible choices and was betrayed twice, moving countless Americans to tears.
So, ever since finishing the show, which was at the start of his sophomore year, he first transferred to the better Oak Hill High School. Especially after the league changed the age limit for the draft, he had been receiving attention from universities all over the country.
"You have no idea, sir. My mother has to answer calls from several universities every day, from all over the country. They’re promising all sorts of benefits, so I really don’t know how to choose."
"Oh, right, my teammate wants me to go to North Carolina."
He pointed at Ty Lawson.
’North Carolina?’
’Jordan’s halo effect is as strong as ever.’
"Do you want to go there yourself?"
Chen Yu asked in return.
Durant nodded, then shook his head. "Michael is my idol, so of course I want to go. But to be honest, I feel like I could go anywhere. I don’t think going to a lesser university will affect my performance. I know I’m strong. I have no rivals in high school, and it’ll be the same in college. They can’t guard me."
Chen Yu raised an eyebrow slightly.
’This kid isn’t humble at all.’
’But who’s to say he isn’t telling the truth?’
After participating in his show, even a reject like Westbrook had made a comeback. Not to mention Durant, who was a captain from the start and had battled his way through so many super-talented kids from across the country to win the championship.
He had followed the training regimen tailor-made for him by the show’s staff—it was the most elite training possible. His skill level was already leagues ahead of the competition.
It was only natural for him to feel like he had no rivals in high school, or even in college.
If he couldn’t even dominate in high school, then participating in the show would have been a complete waste.
As far as Chen Yu knew, he was the undisputed core of the Oak Hill High School team.
His performance was even more explosive than Westbrook’s, averaging 35.8 points per game.
That number was ridiculous, and its quality was countless times more impressive than Westbrook’s.
From this perspective, no matter which university he chose, he would only play for one season before entering the draft, and he was bound to be a strong contender for the number one pick.
"Since that’s the case, have you considered coming to the University of Arizona?"
Chen Yu didn’t beat around the bush and stated his purpose directly.
’If he can go anywhere, why not just come to Arizona?’
’It’s close by, which will make it convenient for the Phoenix Suns to recruit him later.’
In fact, if Arizona State University’s basketball program wasn’t so terrible, Chen Yu would have preferred for him to go to the state university.
State University is in Phoenix, while the University of Arizona is in Tucson.
Of course, the distance wasn’t that far—only about 105 miles as the crow flies.
He could even become teammates with Curry. Then, when draft time came, maybe Curry could ride on Durant’s coattails a bit.
Durant hadn’t expected Chen Yu to say this to him and looked at him nervously.
"Don’t be nervous. I’m just giving you an option," Chen Yu said with a smile.
Having Durant come to the University of Arizona would certainly offer some advantages when it came to drafting him, but it wasn’t a sure thing. It would still depend on how the Phoenix Suns handled things.
But the University of Arizona was actually a great choice.
It might not be on the same level as North Carolina, Duke, or Syracuse, but it was still one of the nation’s top basketball schools.
"By the way, you know Lute Olson, right?"
Chen Yu asked.
Durant froze for a moment, then nodded quickly.
In the NCAA, Lute Olson was a legendary coach. In ’83, he came to the University of Arizona, one of the worst programs in the country at the time, and became the savior of the university and its Arizona Wildcats. He led the Wildcats all the way to a championship.
From ’83 until now, he had coached at the University of Arizona for over twenty years, developing numerous NBA players.
"Lute is very high on you. He thinks you’re exactly the player he needs. You should know, the Wildcats’ tradition has always been shooting and offense. Offense is everything!"
Phoenix is nationally known as a retirement city, and the sparsely populated state of Arizona has a similar slow pace.
But the University of Arizona was different.
If D’Antoni kicked off fast-paced basketball with the Pioneer, then back in the ’60s and ’70s, there was someone at the University of Arizona who had pioneered that style of play.
That was the first Black head coach in NCAA Division I, Fred Snowden.
He believed in a guard-oriented, speed-first philosophy, and he led the little-known University of Arizona to the Final Four two years in a row.
And Lute Olson was his successor.
You could say that the DNA of guards and shooting flowed through the veins of the University of Arizona.
There was Cole, the Wildcats’ all-time leader in three-pointers.
Bibi, Arenas, Little Flying Squirrel Stoudemire, Terry—every top guard who came out of there was an excellent shooter.

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