When pride still matters

Chapter 122 This is the reality (Thanks to the only leader in the world for the reward)
The Wizards enter the final week of the regular season clinging to eighth place in the Eastern Conference.

This week, they need to win three of four games to secure a spot in the playoffs.

The news about Jordan's possible comeback is getting more and more intense.

To this end, the Wizards specially held a press conference, and head coach Doug Collins was the person responsible for responding to outside questions.

"Any news on Michael?"

Collins's shaking head shook slightly, and his voice rose slightly, not angrily, not unpleasantly, just enough to be unsettling, with a slight tremor.

"I spoke to Michael today," he said, "and he's feeling good and he's definitely thinking about coming back and well he went to Chicago today and he's obviously in good shape or he wouldn't have said that. We talked for about five Minutes, he said. Well, he's been training a few times a day and he's got a feel for the game and he really, really wants to be back before the end of the season. So, I guess his knee is healing pretty well and that's what I learned. basic situation.”

The key word in Collins's passage is "base case."When a professional basketball coach says, "Basically this is what I know," you can be sure he's not telling you everything he knows, basic or otherwise.

"Basically" is one of those words that gives all coaches and politicians license to lie and obfuscate.The media knows this, so any coach is using the word "basically."His subtext was basically this: Hey idiot, I'm messing with you.

Wizards team reporter Thomas Flynn, who is also a reporter for the Washington Times, asked a sensitive question that was difficult for Collins to answer: "What is Frye's attitude on this matter?"

"What did you say?" Collins couldn't believe Flynn would ask that.

Flynn thought he might as well speak out: "After MJ and Rip withdrew from the game due to injuries, many people thought that the Wizards' journey this year was over, but Frye stood up and kept the team in the playoffs. Now this is his team, does he want MJ to come back?"

This is what Collins is most worried about and the biggest obstacle to Jordan's comeback.

But in front of the media, it is impossible for Collins to admit that such a problem exists within the Wizards.

"That's a terrible problem!" Collins fumed. "Fry will never be a problem!"

"Fry can't, but what about Michael?" Flynn asked in a deep voice.

"Enough!" Collins roared, "I will not answer such ill-intentioned questions!"

Everyone here knows that Flynn is the Wizards' team reporter.

Since Flynn can raise this issue, it means that this problem has always existed in the Wizards.

Collins doesn’t admit it, so what?
The conflict between Yu Fei and Jordan is open and cannot be concealed.

Then, another reporter asked, "When Michael comes back from Chicago, will he join the team?"

"No, probably not," Collins replied.

"You don't know, or do you think Michael wouldn't do it?"

"I don't know, I don't know. I mean, he could show up at any time, you know. It depends on how he feels about himself. He could just pop up in front of me, get on the plane and say, let's Go. But for now, I don't know. He said his knee feels a lot better than it did before surgery, so those are positive signs."

Still, Collins declared that he would support Jordan if he were to return.

In other words, what is Jordan's will is what his attitude is.

"I think I would sit down with him and say, 'Okay, how long do you want to play? Do you want to play the second and fourth quarters? Do you want to come out and play from the beginning of the game?' I think that's His decision. Whatever he wants to do, I'm going to try to build the team around him."

A reporter asked: "According to general procedures, shouldn't Michael be allowed to participate in two or three training sessions, and then participate in five-on-five training before making a final decision?"

"It's not that troublesome." Collins became Jordan's biggest supporter. "Once he's ready, Michael will suddenly show up in DC, throw a few balls, and then say, 'I'm back.'"

The Washington Wizards play their fourth-to-last game of the season at home against the Philadelphia 76ers without Allen Iverson.

That afternoon, players spotted Tim Grover and Jordan's bodyguard at the Verizon Center.

This means that Jordan is back training.

Is he officially back?
When Jordan officially appeared, everyone felt an inexplicable loss in their hearts.

Jordan would be mortified if he knew about this.

That is, his return did not give the team a shot in the arm.

This team, teetering on the edge of the playoffs, is not excited about his return.

A few are still wondering, will this affect Frye?

They have to think so, because after Jordan and Hamilton retired from injuries, it was Yu Fei who led the team, and it was Yu Fei who led them to persevere. Yu Fei deserves the greatest praise, but now, Jordan is acting like the leader in Return of the King , as the actual leader of the team in recent times, how should Yu Fei handle himself?
"Is he back?"

When everyone gathered together, Yu Fei asked Collins this question.

Jordan was there, but he didn't shy away from it.

"He just wants to practice," Collins reiterated. "Michael hasn't officially come back yet."

But this is already on the agenda, right?

In fact, coming back now would be equally risky for Jordan.

His theoretical recovery time is two months. Even if he recovers faster than the average person, it will still take one and a half months.

And it's only been a month now.

For Jordan, he is no longer young, and his recovery speed will definitely not meet the theoretical standard of rapid recovery.

If the Wizards don't make the playoffs, Jordan will be out for the season.

But now, they still have a chance to make the playoffs, which brings a lot of variables.

During training, Jordan's running and lateral movement were subject to certain limitations. He definitely did not recover 100%. If he returns now and is injured again, he may retire completely.

For an athlete of his age, he cannot withstand a major ACL-level injury.

Accept it Michael, you're old and this is Frye's team now.

More than one Wizards player dreamed of saying this to Jordan, but when they walked up to Jordan and faced that majestic face, they all shut up.

They are not Yu Fei and cannot afford to offend Jordan.

Ultimately, Yu Fei needs to step forward on his own.

"Do you want to come back?" Yu Fei asked.

Jordan looked back at Yu Fei, "Do you support it?"

"Why should I support?" Yu Feixiao asked, "In the month you were away, I averaged 22 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists per game. Our winning rate is close to 50%. Why do you think I should welcome you back? You Do you think I like playing slow-paced games, or do you think I can’t do it without you?”

Jordan's face darkened.

He could feel that Yu Fei was not here to chat.

"What do you want to say?"

"Are you sure you want me to tell you?"

Yu Fei responded loudly.

Suddenly, everyone looked over.

Jordan glared at Yu Fei fiercely. I don't know since when, people in the Wizards training hall have become accustomed to people contradicting Jordan.

Because it was the same person who contradicted him every time.However, suddenly one day, Yu Fei escalated the confrontation into "humiliation".

He gained his authority by attacking Jordan.

And Jordan had no way to stop him.

Today, the same thing will happen again.

"It seems like you really want me to say that, so okay, who calls me a bad person?" Yu Fei stopped smiling, "We don't need you!"

"What did you say?!!!"

"We don't need you." After saying that, Yu Fei turned around and faced the other teammates. It felt good to be the center of attention and to be watched. "Everyone, you all know that this person's return will only bring destruction, but you are all good people with conscience. Even if this old man is self-righteous, you will tolerate him. But I am different. I'm sorry, I have no conscience, especially I have no conscience when it comes to dealing with this kind of person. I’m saying this today, we don’t need him!”

Yu Fei didn't even look at Jordan, but his voice became louder and louder.

"Everyone was insulted while he was here!"

"He played with injuries willfully and took us out of the playoffs from the top four teams in the Eastern Conference!"

"Then he left and we didn't need him from that point on!"

"Without him, we beat the Lakers!"

"Without him, we stayed competitive! To this day, we are still in the playoffs!"

"We didn't need him before, and we don't need him now!"

"We will make the playoffs without him, and the last thing we need is for him to stand up at this time and say like a damn egomaniac that we need him!" Yu Fei finally turned to Jordan, Even though the other party became angry and wanted to eat him alive, he still said his last words, "Sorry, we don't need you."

Yu Fei faced Jordan's death gaze without giving in.

"this is the truth."

Jordan looked at the others, those who usually complimented him, those who usually regarded him as God, those who never dared to disobey him.

Those people are still standing here, why has his rule disappeared?

"Is that what you all think?" Jordan gritted his teeth, and he didn't know how much anger he had to bear before he asked this question.

Dead!

The stadium was as quiet as a mass grave!
Can't even hear the sound of breathing!
They don't have the courage to stand up and say "we don't need you" like Yu Fei did, but they can quietly let Jordan confirm the "reality" in Yu Fei's mouth.

Silence is also an answer.

Jordan pursed his lips, and his brown eyes were bloodshot. He turned back and glared at Yu Fei fiercely, his eyes full of resentment and anger.

"OK"

Jordan nodded, turned and walked out of the arena.

Is this a symbolic moment that ends Jordan's reign?

That thought has crossed the minds of most Wizards players.

Only Doug Collins knows that this is not the end.

The authority Jordan lost today will be restored in another way tomorrow.

He is still Jordan.

He just couldn't fly.

But Air Jordan's influence and majesty are still there. Yu Fei shattered him in the Wizards. So what will Jordan do?
Collins knew the result, but for some reason, he didn't feel that Yu Fei had done anything wrong.

Yu Fei's only mistake was that he was picked by Jordan in the 2001 draft.

This led to another mistake - the Wizards traded his rights to the Cavaliers.

This triggered a series of subsequent conflicts.

But is Yu Fei really at fault?He is just a proud, dignified and passionate young man, just like Jordan when he first arrived in the Windy City and threatened to turn the Bulls into a respected team like the Celtics and Lakers.

At a young age, he had big dreams, but the gravity here was too heavy. Collins couldn't imagine how much Yu Fei had to pay to get to this point.

Maybe the facts will prove that Yu Fei's efforts are not worth mentioning to Jordan, but this does not mean that he is wrong.

Collins supports Yu Fei.

Confirming this fact, Collins felt his whole body tremble, like a loyal minister who has inadvertently betrayed his emperor.

Then, Yu Fei said: "Keep training, we will win tonight's game."

Verizon Center is back in shape.

It's like Jordan never came back.

Or, it's as if Jordan never existed.

This night, the Wizards faced the 76ers at home.

Due to the absence of Allen Iverson, the 76ers seem to lack offensive points than the Wizards.

Although Yu Fei didn't find his shooting touch tonight, his teammates were determined to prove themselves.

They wanted Jordan to know that "we don't need you" was definitely not an empty statement.

Halfway through the game, Yu Fei knew from the touch of his teammates that he only needed to defend and pass the ball well today to win the game.

In the end, Yu Fei, who focused on defense, rebounding and passing, scored his ninth triple-double in his rookie season.

With 15 points, 16 rebounds and 15 assists, he was easily elected the best of the game.

Larry Brown's praise of Fly is tantamount to black humor for those who know the details: "DC with only one Frye is already difficult to deal with. If Michael can return in the playoffs, I have no doubt about their competition. force."

Even if you are not a Wizards insider, the conflict between Yu Fei and Jordan is an open secret.

Brown's statement can be said to be nonsensical.

Yu Fei's NBC live interview after the game revealed some unknown things.

"Fry, you only need one more win to secure a spot in the playoffs, how do you feel about that?"

“It’s great, I’m proud of my teammates and I couldn’t be more proud that we can do this.”

"There is news that Michael may make a comeback in the near future. What do you think?"

"False news."

"Really? Is this fake news?"

"I hope this is false news, because even if Michael comes back, it will be difficult for us to win the championship, and without Michael, we can still make the playoffs. Rather than risking a comeback, it is better to take a good rest and leave hope to next season. This is me My thoughts, well, my thoughts alone.”

(End of this chapter)