Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters

Although the first game of the new season against the 76ers was away, Yu Fei felt that he should be able to get eight tickets through Allen Iverson, provided that this guy, who could even miss the Hall of Fame speech of his own coach, was still there when the new season started.

Even if Iverson was not there, Yu Fei had other channels, and eight tickets were not hard for him to get.

Thus, he agreed to LeBron James without hesitation, and then they inquired about each other's recent situation over the phone.

James revealed his plans to enter the 2003 draft directly and excitedly mentioned that he had already met with Jordan.

"Oh? What do you think of him?" Yu Fei asked.

"He's really NICE, he taught me a lot!"

After hearing James's words about Jordan, Yu Fei inexplicably wanted to see the two of them as teammates, but since the new season might be Jordan's last, there seemed to be no chance.

"Alright, then I'll see you in Philadelphia when the time comes."

Yu Fei hung up the phone.

Although he attended the Hall of Fame ceremony today and was going to participate in a Reebok event locally, for him, this was already considered a day of rest.

The next day, Yu Fei hurried back to Milwaukee.

Thinking about the time, he had been in Milwaukee for three or four months. This city, known as "the Most Midwestern"—as every Midwestern city's residents tend to think of their own city—felt completely different from Washington D.C.

He grew up in Kent, whose style is close to Seattle, and Seattle could be said to be the opposite of Washington D.C. Moreover, Milwaukee is the opposite of these two cities. For instance, people in Kent and Washington D.C. might keep cats and dogs, while people here also keep animals, but they are more keen on going hunting outdoors. The people of those two cities are somber and aloof, while Milwaukeeans have an unusual warmth, and more than once, when Yu Fei was jogging in the affluent area he lived in, he was asked by nearby residents if he needed a "ride."

This was not because Yu Fei was recognized, but because they thought, "Yu Fei needs help, and I can help him."

Yu Fei knew that this was a rare moment when an American urban legend became reality—"the Friendly Midwest."

If Milwaukee's best scenery is its warm-hearted people, it implicitly means that aside from the people, everything else is unremarkable. The entertainment options are scarce, the infrastructure is outdated, and the market is bleak; it really made Yu, who had just moved from Washington D.C., feel a bit out of place.

Fortunately, Yu Fei was not someone who indulged in luxuries. The high-pressure life of his rookie season had made him accustomed to a reclusive lifestyle. Aside from business activities and mandatory team events, he rarely went out for entertainment.

September 29

On the second day of the preseason training camp, Yu Fei arrived at the St. Francis Training Center with Lawson and Assistant Clark.

The first thing Yu Fei saw when he entered the court was Devean George, who was practicing hard.

From afar, George greeted Yu Fei.

Yu Fei said with a smile, "See you in a bit."

The primary reason Devean George chose the Bucks during the offseason was money, and the secondary reason was that he wanted to play with Yu Fei.

Before joining the Bucks, George had called Yu Fei.

Yu Fei thought that his sharp three-point shooting was very suitable for himself, so naturally, he welcomed his joining.

As for why George wanted to play with him, Yu Fei didn't care.

"See you in a bit," Yu Fei said, then, carrying a small backpack, prepared to first check out the locker room.

It was still early, not the time for daily training to begin, but George seemed to have been practicing for a while.

His performance reminded Yu Fei of the first time he went to play at the Lakers' home court when he also arrived early at the Staples Center to shoot around.

The Bucks' equipment manager led Yu Fei to the locker room and pointed to the locker with No. 44, saying, "This locker is yours."

Yu Fei asked, "Has anyone used it before?"

"Glenn used it," the equipment manager said with a smile, "but he doesn't need it anymore."

After the equipment manager left, Lawson joked, "They even gave you Big Dog's locker, does it mean something... hmm, you know what I mean?"

Yu Fei always thought that the boss of the Bucks was Ray Allen, but in terms of seniority, it was indeed Glenn Robinson, but the problem was, neither of them had the temperament of a boss.

So it's very possible that the Bucks' era under Ray/Big Dog/Alien didn't have an absolute leader.

Thus, using Glenn Robinson's locker proved nothing.

Yu Fei changed into his uniform and put everything he didn't need for training into the locker, then got ready to warm up.

But just as he walked out of the locker room, he saw someone bizarrely dressed waiting for him outside.

The staff inside the St. Francis Training Center mostly wore loose short sleeves and shorts, yet this person was in full business attire. It could be said that a suit in a training facility is an unusual sight.

"Fei, I'm the Bucks' Director of Business, my name is Will Forte, can we talk for a moment?"

"It's not convenient, is it? I'm already a day late, and I should get into training right now."

"No worries," Forte said with a smile, "You inherited Glenn's locker, no one will mind."

Listening to Forte, was there really something to say about Glenn Robinson's locker?

"Well, since you say so, then all right."

Yu Fei and Forte went to the "tea room" on the second floor, which is said to be a place the owner frequents.

"The Bucks have been training at St. Francis for thirty years. During that time, one locker has been the most special," Forte began after they sat down. "That is Lou Alcindor's locker. He was very special, probably the most singular personality in professional basketball history. He didn't allow anyone to touch his locker because it always held a sacred 'Quran.' Big Lou didn't permit his teammates, who liked to profane the sacred, to touch it. Since then, Big Lou's locker became a forbidden area at St. Francis. Even after he left, it remained off-limits. Whoever owns it, owns the Bucks."

Because of Sway's claim, it seems like the person who owns it should be the boss.

How dare a fucking basketball player claim to be the owner of the team?

And who the hell is Lou Alcindor?

Yu Fei asked, "So you think I'm the owner of the Bucks?"

"I don't know, because that symbolic significance ended with Glenn Robinson, who was a man with no ambition. He secured a big contract too early, and the lengthy contract secured him for ten years. He had no motivation, and he didn't need to defend anything," Forte said. "But I believe there is a reason the team gave you this locker."

Well, there certainly is a reason, but definitely not the main reason why you, the Commercial Director, called me here to shoot the breeze.

Yu Fei directly said, "Did you call me here just to talk about this?"

"There's something else."

"Go on."

"It's funny, ever since Big Lou, although the owner of that locker has been considered the boss of the team, they lacked a connection with Milwaukee, because they didn't like being the face of the team. Can we see a change in you, Frye?"

Yu Fei almost fell asleep listening, "Just tell me straight up what you want me to do."

"At the start of the new season, the team will create a radio show for you to talk with the fans, once a week."

"Anything else?"

"The team will fully restore its community service activities, and we hope you will represent the team... and try not to be absent."

"Anything else?"

"Of course, there will be some commercial activities too, unavoidable if we do well this new season."

"Anything else?"

"That's all for now."

"Fine," Yu Fei said, "I'll consider the radio thing, everything else depends on my schedule."

※※※

For Latrell Sprewell, leaving New York was both a loss and a relief.

The loss was in business influence and value—unique advantages of New York—while the relief was that he no longer needed to endure the scathing New Yorkers and their critical media poking around at him.

As a Milwaukee native, it was pleasant to come back to play for his hometown team towards the end of his career.

So, when he came to Milwaukee, he expressed to the media his excitement for the new season.

It was true, he really felt that way.

He drove his newly bought SUV into the parking lot of the St. Francis Training Center, arriving earlier than usual today, and then, he pulled into parking spot No. 34.

Although the parking spots are arranged according to the jersey numbers of the players, they don't really pay attention to that when parking.

Or rather, most players don't care.

It's just a parking spot—what does it matter who parks there? First come, first served is the only rule.

Just as Sprewell got out of his car, a BMW drove in.

Clearly, it was heading for spot No. 34, not a random choice, but seemingly out of habit.

When the BMW's driver noticed that No. 34 was taken, he angrily pressed the horn.

Then he got out of the car.

"That's my spot!" he yelled angrily.

Sprewell took off his headphones; he recognized the man—Bucks' No. 34, Ray Allen—but didn't catch what he said, "What did you say?"

Ray Allen said sternly, "This is my spot!"

"Did you buy this spot?"

"No, but it's marked with the number 34," Ray Allen insisted stubbornly, "Everyone has their own number, you should park your car in your own spot!"

Sprewell laughed sarcastically, "Since you didn't buy it, it's not yours anymore."

"Six years, I've parked in spot No. 34 every time I came here, and you say it's not mine?" Ray Allen looked like his feathers were ruffled.

"Can't help you, buddy. If you wanted it, you should have got here earlier for practice. Now, it's mine," Sprewell said, and with that, he took his stuff and left, leaving a fuming Ray Allen behind.

For someone with obsessive-compulsive disorder, it's terrifying to suddenly have certain habits disrupted.

Since his arrival, Glenn Robinson, who had always been with the team, was gone, replaced by Yu Fei.

Latrell Sprewell took over the parking spot he had used for six years right in front of him.

All of this gave him the feeling that his time in Milwaukee might already be counting down.