Sports Medicine Master System

Chen Yu saw Milicic.

He was sitting all by himself in a corner of the cafeteria.

The other players who had come over with him in the trade—O’Ku, Sura, and Rebrasha—were not sitting with him.

Sura and Rebrasha were sitting together, but O’Ku was also sitting alone.

There wasn’t much camaraderie between them.

Meanwhile, the original Blazers players were also sticking to their own cliques.

Rookies and veterans, white players and black players—the team was a complete mess, utterly fragmented.

If that were the only problem, it might have been manageable.

In professional sports, you don’t have to be friends off the court just because you’re teammates on it. Professionalism is all that’s required.

But this bunch had a real knack for getting into trouble off the court.

Before coming here, Chen Yu had done his homework.

One thing that left a deep impression was an article in Portland’s main local newspaper, *The Oregonian*, which had mocked the Blazers Team. It stated that the longest record for the entire team staying out of trouble and not having anyone in jail was a mere 17 days.

Throughout an entire season, they were constantly in and out of police stations.

They truly lived up to their name as the Jail Blazers.

Just as he was thinking about this, a sudden CRASH echoed through the quiet cafeteria.

It was Ruben Patterson. As he stood up to return his tray, he deliberately threw it hard into the return bin. With another CRASH, the ceramic plate shattered.

He didn’t seem to care, whistling as he walked away as if nothing had happened.

’Trying to get attention?’

’Or was that aimed at me?’

Chen Yu noticed that as Patterson left, he shot him a few defiant, couldn’t-care-less glances.

This guy was trouble.

During his rookie season, he was unhappy that Kobe had a higher status on the team than him. He deliberately targeted Kobe in practice and arrogantly called himself the "Kobe Stopper," which got him quickly kicked out by the Lakers and sent to the Supersonics.

He had a history of domestic violence against his wife. Last season, he used his veteran status to pick a fight with a rookie, Quinter Woods. Randolph got involved, seized the opportunity to punch Patterson, and fractured his orbital bone.

Randolph had done it because Ruben Patterson had previously threatened to shoot and kill him.

’His current display of dissatisfaction is likely because I publicly dismissed him, saying he wouldn’t get a chance to show his talent with the Blazers, combined with Jeff McInnis being traded away.’

’It seems he was on good terms with Jeff McInnis.’

’Perfect. He was on the team’s cut list anyway.’

’You want to leave? I’ll make it happen.’

Chen Yu paid no more mind to Ruben Patterson. He turned to Steve Patterson with a smile and said, "Steve, since we haven’t eaten yet, this is a perfect chance to see what your lunches are like."

With that, he gestured for Nelson and the others to help themselves.

Chen Yu picked up a tray and casually took some food.

The food provided by the Blazers was similar to that of other teams in the league.

It consisted mainly of fresh fruits and vegetables and various high-protein meat products.

Not that it was bad—nutritional meals are all more or less the same, and Chen Yu wouldn’t claim the Suns’ nutrition plan was better than any other team’s.

But when it came to execution—to creating customized meal plans for each player based on their physical condition—the Blazers fell short.

Holding his tray, Chen Yu scanned the room and then walked straight over to sit down opposite Milicic.

The young man was visibly stunned.

He immediately noticed that all the other players in the cafeteria were now looking their way.

On a sports team, rumors fly fast. With the Blazers suddenly deciding to rebuild and trade away their core players, word was already spreading that Paul Allen had made the decision based on Chen Yu’s advice.

Now that Chen Yu had arrived with his team, everyone knew he held their futures in his hands.

Everyone was watching his every move.

Seeing Chen Yu smile at him, Milicic’s heart began to pound. He hurriedly greeted him, "Dr. Chen... Hello."

His English wasn’t perfect, and he was so nervous that he stumbled over his words.

Chen Yu nodded slightly. Seeing that Milicic was almost finished eating, he said softly, "Go ahead and finish up. Stay behind for a bit afterward. I’d like to have a word with you."

Milicic seemed to understand. He nodded blankly, growing even more tense.

In this league, Chen Yu was no ordinary person.

Chen Yu didn’t say anything more to him and focused on his meal.

’You know, it’s not half bad,’ he thought.

Milicic quickly finished his food and hurried away.

Not long after he left, two middle-aged men appeared in the cafeteria and walked straight toward Chen Yu.

"Donald, long time no see."

Chen Yu immediately stood up and shook hands with the man in the lead, who had graying temples.

This was Donald Roberts, the Blazers’ Head of Medical. With his background in orthopedics, he was in charge of surgery.

The other man was about the same age as Roberts, in his fifties, but had a slightly thinner build.

His name was Tom Rice, also a member of the Blazers’ medical team.

He was a senior internist who was primarily responsible for internal medicine.

Unlike his former self, neither of them was a full-time team doctor.

Rice was a professor at Oregon Health and Science University and occasionally had teaching duties.

Roberts had been a Blazers team doctor since ’94, but he was still an orthopedic surgeon at Maine Medical Center and occasionally had to see patients and perform surgeries there.

Because of this, the day-to-day medical management during team practices was often handled by the head trainer, Jeff Clark, and Roberts’s assistant, Ted Austin, who was also an orthopedic specialist.

"Where’s Frank?" Chen Yu asked after the two had sat down.

He was referring to Frank Olinsky, the Blazers’ full-time psychologist.

Roberts’s eyes flickered for a moment before he replied, "He wasn’t feeling well today, so he’s resting at home."