Chapter 84: Watching the Show
After the Kings defeated the Raptors at home, Chen Yilun boarded a flight to Cleveland, braving Sacramento’s biting cold.
“It’s getting colder by the day.”
Pulling his coat tighter, Chen Yilun slipped into the cabin and found his first-class seat.
“Boss, isn’t it a bit much for us to fly first class on a business trip?”
Tang Zhou timidly sat down beside him.
“What kind of nonsense is that!”
Chen Yilun shot him a glare.
“I’ve given so much to this team! Don’t I deserve to enjoy myself a little? If anyone has a problem with it, tell them to say it to my face!”
After scolding Tang Zhou, Chen Yilun took the hot towel offered by the flight attendant and wiped his face.
He sighed to himself—these young guys really don’t understand boundaries.
When I wasn’t GM, I couldn’t enjoy myself. Now that I am, I still can’t? Then what’s the point?
Tang Zhou, having just been scolded, quickly changed the subject.
“By the way, Boss… why do you need to make this trip yourself? Shouldn’t Coach Finley or another assistant be bringing me along?”
“No choice. We’re short-staffed, so I have to step in.”
Chen Yilun pulled a newspaper from his briefcase and began to read.
“The other coaches need to prepare for tomorrow’s game against the Hawks. You’re still too green—if you went alone, you wouldn’t understand much. So it has to be me.”
The purpose of this trip was to scout a potential Eastern Conference Finals venue. That night, the Cleveland Cavaliers would face the fully-staffed Washington Wizards at home for the first time.
Of course, there was another reason Chen Yilun hadn’t mentioned: if things didn’t turn out the way he hoped, he wouldn’t mind tossing another log onto the Eastern Conference fire before the trade deadline.
...
That night at Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland fans poured in with their families, waving flags and cheering for their team.
Chen Yilun and Tang Zhou were seated mid-tier. As soon as they sat down, Chen Yilun called over a vendor and bought a drink to sip slowly.
With tip-off still to come, the stands buzzed with energy.
Chen Yilun sipped from his cup, half his face hidden, and scanned the crowd left and right.
“Boss, what are you looking at?”
Tang Zhou glanced around but didn’t see anything noteworthy.
“Looking for colleagues.”
Chen Yilun set down his cup and replied casually.
“We’re not the only ones here. Look over there.”
He pointed down below.
“That guy on his phone? That’s Sean Sweeney, Bucks assistant coach and one of Kidd’s right-hand men. And over there, the one looking around? Raptors assistant coach Tom Steiner, one of Casey’s protégés.”
“You’re amazing, Boss. How do you know everyone?”
“Cut the flattery.”
After scanning the crowd, Chen Yilun leaned back in his seat.
“Spend enough time in the league, and you’ll end up knowing just about everyone. There aren’t that many people.”
The league’s front office circle is somewhere in between—not too big, not too small.
Small, because staff are spread across the globe, with contacts on every continent.
Big, because the real core is just a handful from each team—across 30 teams, that’s only a little over a hundred people. Stick around long enough, and you’ll know almost all of them.
“Chen Yilun? What’s he doing here?”
While Chen Yilun was observing others, others were also watching him.
Tom Steiner frowned as he looked in Chen Yilun’s direction.
“What’s a Western Conference guy doing in the East?”
Steiner’s assistant stole a glance at Chen Yilun.
“No need to be so tense. He’s out West—he can’t affect us here.”
“Not necessarily.”
Steiner shook his head.
“Chen Yilun is trouble. Wherever he shows up, something happens. My guess is he’s already set his sights on something. Don’t underestimate him.”
...
As the front offices played their own games, the battle on the court began.
With Irving sidelined by injury, Mo Williams took the starting spot.
The Wizards, on the other hand, were at full strength.
Cousins beat Thompson on the tip, and the ball went straight to Wall, who pushed it upcourt.
This season, Wall was still the undisputed top point guard in the East—his speed and explosiveness at their peak.
Crossing half court, Wall received a strong on-ball screen from Cousins.
The moment Cousins set his pick, Wall exploded. His lightning-fast first step carried him straight into the three-point arc.
Thompson had no choice but to step up defensively.
Meanwhile, Cousins rolled to the weak-side three-point line. With Williams stuck chasing, Cleveland’s defense was stretched thin.
That left Wall isolated against Thompson on the strong side.
Without hesitation, Wall shifted left and right, then blew past Thompson cleanly.
Thompson scrambled to recover, whipping his head toward the paint—only to find no sign of Wall.
Wall had only pretended to drive. After two steps inside, he pulled back with a step-back jumper, creating space from Thompson.
The shot fell cleanly.
“Cousins is really buying into Wall’s lead.”
Watching the play, Chen Yilun couldn’t help but click his tongue.
Cousins’ biggest issue was the same as Dwight Howard’s. Both big men were used to dominating the paint, overestimating their own importance, and reluctant to run pick-and-rolls for the perimeter.
That meant their screens were often weak, letting defenders slip past with ease.
At their physical peak, they could get away with it through sheer talent. But once athleticism faded, that kind of play would get them pushed out of the league fast.
Yet on this first possession, Cousins had set a perfect screen for Wall.
“No wonder Wall was the big man on campus—he really knows how to get Cousins to listen.”
Back in college, Cousins and Wall had been teammates at Kentucky, where Wall was already recognized as the clear-cut top point guard in the NCAA.
Cousins had always respected him, basically serving as Wall’s right-hand man back then.
“Take note.”
Without turning his head, Chen Yilun spoke to Tang Zhou.
“Cousins has strong chemistry with the team. The Wizards show no obvious offensive weaknesses right now.”
Before he finished, the Cavaliers struck back.
LeBron brought the ball to the top of the key, suddenly accelerated, blew past his defender, and hammered home a tomahawk dunk.
“Keep that note going. The Wizards’ weak spot is their frontcourt defense. If they face the Cavs in the East playoffs, containing LeBron will be a huge problem.”
It couldn’t be helped. To acquire Cousins, the Wizards had traded away their starting power forward Otto Porter and their freshly drafted rookie Oubre Jr.
With Cousins’ massive contract on the books, the Wizards had no resources left to reinforce their frontcourt. In the offseason, their only moves were signing veteran Caron Butler and pulling up a forward from the G League as a stopgap.
But with a thin front line like that? Against LeBron, it’s nothing but an easy meal.
Comments (0)
Please login or sign up to post a comment.