Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters

But there was one exception, the 40-year-old vice president, Susan O'Malley, hated this place, even though it was where she worked and where she had reached the pinnacle of her life, realizing her personal value.

Because there was a dictator named Michael Jordan.

Even today, the fact that Jordan's arrival in D.C. had allowed him to effortlessly wrestle all the power away from the existing management elders and become the overlord of the Wizards still seemed unbelievable.

But O'Malley understood entirely.

Since 1979, they had never been close to a championship, and ever since Jim Carter took office as president, the Wizards had never made a deep playoff run. The media mocked them, and the basketball market gradually withered. Batch after batch of players came and went, but whether as the Bullets or the Wizards, the team's performance remained consistently abysmal.

Therefore, when Jordan was unceremoniously let go by the Chicago Bulls in 1999, feeling the sting of humiliation, the Flying Emperor was eager to prove himself. He chose the Wizards—who were seen as outcasts in professional basketball and faced financial difficulties in Charlotte—over the latter.

Because Wizards' owner Abe Pollin promised him that he could control everything about the team.

Pollin desperately needed to reignite the fans' interest in his lousy team.

However, Jordan was convinced he should have unprecedented privileges among NBA executives. Jordan's demands included working part-time in Washington to ensure he had enough time for endorsements, television commercials, golfing, and gambling activities. He made it clear that he wouldn't be spending much of his time on the player draft, and his main workplace would be in his Chicago home. He planned to attend only a few Wizards games, undertaking only the most basic marketing and promotional responsibilities. From his words, one could sense that he didn't seem to be in a job interview, because he firmly believed that as a superstar, the team owner would—and should—surrender to him because he believed this failing team couldn't thrive without his magic.

And forget about the time during the lockout when Jordan said something to Pollin that almost led to a physical confrontation right then and there (footnote 1), His Airness was coming to D.C.

Jordan did indeed have magic; on the day the news leaked, the Wizards sold five hundred season tickets. Therefore, O'Malley could completely accept the status Jordan held because that was the standard of operation for her boss. Whoever brought him profit was the decision-maker of the team. That is why, when O'Malley sold the naming rights of the home arena for 50 million a decade ago, Pollin promptly promoted her as the first female president in NBA history. That is also why when Jordan arrived at the Wizards, she instantly went from the primary position to a secondary one.

As someone who climbed to the top using these rules of the game, O'Malley accepted that someone could kick her down using the same methods, but what she couldn't accept was why Jordan had such frightening privileges?

The fans' main motivation to buy season tickets was to witness Jordan in a luxury suite at games. Yet during his tenure as president of the Washington club, he adopted an image akin to that of Howard Hughes (footnote 2). He rarely appeared at home games, even when he was in Washington. He stayed alone in his office, closely following the progress of the match through the flat-screen TV.

As it turned out, even deities, as long as they don't play, have only a fleeting appeal to the fans. The Wizards continued to lose, and nothing had changed compared to the past. The reclusive Jordan swore through various channels that he would bring a 50% wins ratio, which seemed like a joke.

Alright, the Wizards were terrible, and that was an unchangeable fact. Precisely because they were so bad, they needed the head of the team to invest a lot of energy, but Jordan had already made it clear with the owner that he was only part-time. Apart from the Wizards' job, he had a lot of business to worry about; such a simple game as basketball wasn't worth all of his effort, right? If it were that simple, then His Majesty would not have allowed his lackeys to insult the management's elders shamefully, calling Pollin an "obstructive dwarf."

The ending in Chicago apparently hadn't taught Jordan a lesson: openly offending the owner of the rights would come at a price!

Susan O'Malley believed that Jordan would have his day of reckoning.

Today was a big day for the Wizards organization; they were to officially hold a workout with the legendary top draft pick favorite, Kwame Brown.

And they re-invited another top draft pick favorite, Tyson Chandler, for a second workout.

Chandler had performed well last time, but Jordan didn't believe his slender frame could survive in the NBA. He wanted to see Brown's performance.

This was what O'Malley needed to report to Abe Pollin.

When O'Malley entered the boss's office, before she could speak, Pollin preemptively asked, "Is he still determined to pick the high schooler?"

O'Malley replied, "Michael has worked out almost all potential lottery picks, but so far, no one has made him decide."

"I attended a lunch at China Doll last week," said Pollin calmly, "Red thinks the Spaniard is the best choice."

O'Malley did not like that old man who lunched at China Doll every week; he liked to lecture others despite not understanding the salary cap. Had he not picked a problematic player decades ago, perhaps the Celtics wouldn't have had such a long period of decline.

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Selecting that Spaniard with the top draft pick when you can't guarantee he'll be in the NBA next season? Omari's expression remained unchanged, "Michael said he wouldn't choose a European player he hasn't seen in person."

"He could have gone to see him himself, couldn't he?" Pollin said in an icy tone.

Omari tactfully chose not to respond.

Pollin didn't continue.

The room fell silent.

After a while, Omari came out and met her old partner Wes Unseld outside.

"Is Mr. Pollin in a good mood today?" Unseld asked about Pollin, with a tone and a flattering expression that utterly mismatched his rugged face.

Who would have thought that one of the toughest players in NBA history would become the owner's lackey after retirement?

"His mood is fine. Do you want to go and say hello?" Omari asked with a smile.

As soon as he heard the boss was in a good mood, Unseld couldn't suppress the urge to brown-nose, "Of course, of course, I haven't seen Mr. Pollin in a while."

Ever since Unseld joined the Wizards' management in the early '80s, he had been infamous for his mediocrity and incompetence.

The only reason he still held a high position was that he was extremely respectful to Pollin, just like a servant.

Omari had a good relationship with Unseld and enjoyed teasing this old man who was struggling in the professional basketball circles. If she didn't, she was sure she would one day be suffocated by the pressure from the boss and a bastard who thought he was more important than the boss.

Today, the Wizards will hold tryouts for four players, including three high schoolers: Kwame Brown from Georgia, Tyson Chandler from Chicago, and Frye from the State of Washington. The only college player is Brendan Haywood from the University of North Carolina.

Needless to say, the North Carolina underclassman and Yu Fei were both favored by Jordan, but even if the Wizards wanted to, they could only get one of them at most, so there was bound to be a showdown between Yu Fei and Haywood today.

The real main event is between Kwame Brown and Tyson Chandler; whoever stands out today is very likely to become the top pick in the 2001 draft.

Jordan is on site, along with Head Coach Doug Collins, assistant coaches, scouts... every member of the Wizards' coaching staff is watching every move of the four rookies.

Brown and Fei are paired up, while Chandler and Haywood are training on their own.

"Frye, throw me a few alley-oops. I want to show off a bit before we start!"

Fei reluctantly made three alley-oop passes to Brown, who surprisingly didn't fumble and caught them all, finishing with slams.

"I have to say, your passes are the most comfortable I've ever caught!" Brown exclaimed, "I really want to play with you."

Fei chuckled dryly in response.

Play together? Fei could only feel regret for the naive big guy who was all swagger, knowing the ordeal Brown was about to face.

This was probably his last happy moment before retirement. Enjoy it.

⑴ During the 1998 lockout, Jordan, to support the players during the labor negotiations, confronted Pollin, who was complaining "It's so hard for me, I'm losing money every year": "If you can't afford it, sell the team." Pollin retorted, "Whether it's you, Michael, or anyone else, no one can tell me when to sell my team."

⑵ Howard Hughes, a prominent American businessman, aviator, film producer, and inventor of the 20th century, was known for his eccentric personality, unique lifestyle, and reclusive tendencies. He was the inspiration for the creation of Tony Stark.

PS: The D.C. trial will be the last detailed tryout that Big Fei will describe. That means the tryout content is almost over. I can assure you that we will get into the NBA plot before the series premieres, and I have prepared a climax to occur before then.

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