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Tonight was destined to be a sleepless one.
Yu Fei's words quickly swept through the sports programs currently being aired on TV; this was breaking news.
And the next day, those who preferred to get their sports news from the newspapers would also find out what had happened with the Wizards tonight.
"Frye, do you remember what I told you?"
"Not to do things beyond redemption?"
"You still remember..."
"Because I don't wish to redeem myself anymore."
Arne Trem organized his thoughts and felt that the current situation was not disadvantageous for Fei.
The only thing Fei might lose in this affair was part of his fan base.
Rumors of Fei's lack of respect for Jordan had been circulating for a long time, and tonight's interview confirmed it. Moreover, it was not just a lack of respect for Jordan; there was a hint of blasphemy. It was certain that Jordan's team would release a statement tomorrow revealing the other part of the truth, besides "he said he wanted to trade me."
By then, Jordan would be forgiven. He bullied Kwame Brown out of love for talent, cherishing talent, to strengthen the young man's will, but what about Fei? Didn't he grow under Jordan's "encouragement"? Why didn't he have a sense of gratitude? What did he mean by stopping Jordan from educating a rookie? Did he want to be the boss? Even if he had the potential, it was too early now.
It was certain that the media offensive from Jordan's team would put a final seal on the entire affair. By then, Jordan would still be Jordan, and Fei would have to bear the name of a troublemaker.
"Which team do you want to go to?" Trem asked.
"Anywhere but the Clippers," Fei replied.
"I understand. Go and rest. This matter is a big deal, but it's actually not unmanageable. History has seen many players who caused bigger scenes but ended up staying put," Trem advised. "The trade market changes in the blink of an eye, so until a trade actually takes place, you still need to be prepared to stay in D.C."
"I'm fine with that, since it's not me who'll be embarrassed if the trade doesn't go through."
"If I had known that you and Michael didn't get along..." Trem regretted allowing Fei and Kwame Brown to attend the Wizards' trials together.
Fei hung up the phone with Trem.
Just as he was about to rest, Quint DiMio called.
"Big Fei, how come you created such a big news story without any noise? The headquarters are going crazy!"
Fei retorted, "They disagree with my actions?"
"No, they have been wanting you to leave D.C. for a while now. As long as you're in D.C. even if you play well, you're just promoting MJ's shoes and nobody will notice your 'The Chosen One.' You need to go to a team that can build around you," DiMio said. "You've made a big move this time, but we were completely unprepared, so they're frantic!"
Yu Fei officially went on the market, becoming an item for consultation.
It was also from this day that the Wizards, under the pretext of protecting Yu Fei, aside from letting him participate in daily training, no longer allowed him to play in games.
The first game Yu Fei missed was the Wizards' second battle at home against the Miami Heat.
From the moment news of Jordan wanting to trade Yu Fei was leaked by the person involved, Pat Riley immediately called Jordan.
And Riley's offer was truly heavyweight.
"Michael, you can have anyone from our team, I can also throw in three additional first-round picks!"
Only someone like Pat Riley, who values the future, would gamble the future in such a way if he believed that Yu Fei could bring a future that no one on his team nor the next three first-round picks could possibly bring.
Jordan did not immediately agree to Riley.
Looking at the standards of the offers, Riley's bid was already high—a standout high-potential rookie for any Heat player + three first-rounders, a chip that could be used to trade for an active All-Star player.
But Jordan didn't want to give in because he felt he might regret it one day.
In that night's game, Riley wished his players could all turn into supermen, just to show Jordan how formidable they were.
Without Yu Fei playing, the Wizards were disconcerted in all aspects. If not for the Heat's poor strength, coupled with Jordan's "high" 38% shooting percentage that night, they might have actually lost.
82 to 80
It was an ugly game with no highlights, and the Wizards won without Yu Fei. That was probably the only outcome that could satisfy Jordan.
Afterward, the Wizards waited at home for the second battle with the Knicks.
It must be said that Jordan and Hamilton did their utmost for victory, both performing above average, but they were the only ones from the Wizards who did.
The Knicks had six players score in double digits, the Wizards had two, and under such circumstances, losing was inevitable.
Then, the Wizards received another offer.
The Houston Rockets wanted to trade Eddie Griffin and the 2003 first-round pick for Yu Fei.
The proposal was rejected on the spot.
"Eddie Griffin? What kind of trash is that?!" Those were Jordan's exact words.
Offers, counter-offers, tugging... Jordan was resolved to trade Yu Fei but couldn't get a satisfactory return on the market because it was clear to everyone that the one in a hurry to make a trade was Jordan, so why should they go straight to their bottom line? Experience more tales on mvl
It was only Riley, who had a bit of a relationship with Jordan and really had no chips for trading, who could only gamble with the future for a swift victory, and the more Riley wanted, the less Jordan wanted to give.
Things stayed awkward there, yet Yu Fei wasn't anxious at all, training when he needed to train and resting when he needed to rest. Since he didn't have to participate in games, he didn't go the home games or follow for away games. He came home in the evening to see Vince Carter score 35 points teaching his senior a lesson while incidentally defeating the Wizards, and today was another perfect day.