NBA's King of Talking

The next day, Jia Fei had a tryout at the Bobcats' training facility. Head coach Paul Silas and several assistant coaches were present at the tryout, which was quite a large gathering, demonstrating how much they valued him.

Jia Fei decided he had to make a good impression.

Halfway through the trial, he was pleasantly surprised to find a middle-aged man who was 198cm tall, wearing a black suit and earrings, coming into his field of vision.

Of course, Jia Fei couldn't possibly not recognize this man; he was none other than Michael Jordan, known as the "God of Basketball"!

Jordan was 48 years old at this time, and he was no longer the muscular basketball player with a body fat percentage of 3%. He had gained a lot of weight, and his waist was much thicker than it used to be.

But Jordan will always be Jordan. His sharp and arrogant gaze seems to tell you that even at 48 years old, he can still dominate you in one-on-one training.

With Bobcats owner Michael Jordan arriving, Jia Fei, excited, worked even harder during his tryout. He wanted to make a good impression on Jordan. He knew very well that although the person trying him out was the team's head coach, Paul Silas, whether or not he was selected was ultimately up to the owner.

After the tryout, Jia Fei immediately ran up to Jordan, looking travel-worn, and asked him for an autograph.

Jordan, of course, wouldn't refuse such an admirer. He grinned, revealing a set of bright white teeth: "Where should I sign?"

“It’s on the back of my jersey!” Jia Fei handed the pen to Jordan and then turned around.

After Jordan signed his name with one hand, he handed the pen back to Jia Fei.

"Do a good job!" Jordan said before leaving with his assistant by his side.

Watching Jordan leave, Jia Fei was deeply moved. He had actually met Jordan in person and even received his autograph. More importantly, Jordan, as the team owner, had watched his tryout. There couldn't be a better arrangement.

"Kemba, do you think the Bobcats will draft me?" Jia Fei asked.

Kemba Walker nodded vigorously: "Definitely. I watched your tryout, and it was great. I think a star like MJ is definitely not an amateur; he can see your strength and potential."

"Uh..." Jia Fei suddenly remembered something that made him doubt whether he would be selected by Jordan. You see, while Jordan was an amazing player, he wasn't known for his accurate judgment of talent. Back in his Wizards days, he had the team management use the number one pick to select Kwame Brown, and as everyone knows, Kwame Brown became a notorious draft bust...

Besides Kwame Brown, Jordan also used the third overall pick in the 2006 NBA draft to select Adam Morrison, the "successor to Larry Bird." However, this successor only played three seasons in the NBA before disappearing from the scene.

Jia Fei asked himself, "Will Jordan be pessimistic about me?"

He didn't know if Jordan's judgment had improved over the years.

After the tryouts, Jia Fei and Kemba Walker returned to their alma mater, Cornell University, where they met up with their two other teammates who were preparing for the draft (Art Mayok and Oriak) to train together.

On the evening of June 5th, in an upscale club in Charlotte, Jordan held a bottle of tequila worth $4000, a cigar thicker than many young men's, a large gold chain around his neck, and rings on his fingers. Beside him, a man sat timidly, or rather, stood rather than sat.

This timid and submissive man is Richie Joe, the general manager of the Bobcats.

Ricky Joe is certainly not like this in front of many people on the team, but he is like this in front of team owner Michael Jordan.

The truth of this world is cruel. It's not so shameful to act like a pushover for money and power. Many people would love to act like a pushover but don't even have the chance!

"Boss, what do you think of Jia's trial today?" Richie Joe asked cautiously.

"Is that the kid who asked for my autograph?" Jordan didn't even glance at him; his eyes were fixed on his beloved tequila.

“Yes, that’s him,” Richie Joe nodded.

"What do you think?" Jordan's sharp gaze swept over Richie Joe, making the latter afraid to meet his eyes.

Rich Joe spoke frankly: "Based on the tryouts, Jia's physical attributes should rank among the top two for a wing in this draft class. As a wing, he has excellent size, good shooting skills, and great defensive potential." He didn't comment on Jia's draft pick value; he knew how to speak tactfully in front of the owner.

"So do you think he's worth a first-round pick?" Jordan asked, looking at him.

After taking a deep breath, Richie Joe said, "I can't say for sure about the first round, but I think it's a good idea for us to pick him in the second round!" He originally wanted to say that they could use their 19th pick in the first round to get Jia Fei, but he was afraid that if he said that, it would be bad if the boss didn't think so, so he left himself some room for maneuver.

To everyone's surprise, Jordan laughed, shook the bottle in his hand, and shook his head at the same time: "I have never believed that an Asian wing player can achieve anything! Unless an Asian player can be as tall as Yao Ming at 7 feet 6 inches, I will not use any of my draft picks to select them!"

Richie Joe gasped, but secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Luckily, he hadn't tried to be clever by suggesting using the first-round pick to acquire Jia Fei, otherwise, being criticized by the owner would have been almost inevitable! He couldn't believe the owner disliked Jia Fei so much, even though he seemed quite satisfied when watching the tryouts!

At this point, Jia Fei, who had already arrived in Stokes City, was unaware that he had been passed over by Jordan. On the way, he was still fantasizing about the future of the Bobcats and dominating the Eastern Conference with Kemba Walker!

At Cornell University, Jia Fei met Art Mayork and Oriak, both of whom had completed their tryouts and were waiting for the draft in two weeks.

"Jia, I heard you saw Michael Jordan in Charlotte?" Art Mayor's eyes were full of admiration when he mentioned Jordan.

Jia Fei nodded: "Yes, I even got his autograph!" He took out a T-shirt with Jordan's name on it to show them.

Art Mayor said enviously, "I've never seen MJ in person! I'm so envious! Um, Ja, could you..." He didn't finish his sentence, seemingly a little embarrassed.

Jia Fei immediately understood, and he proactively stuffed the T-shirt in his hand into the other person's hand, saying, "Art, if you don't mind, take this T-shirt! If I'm drafted by the Bobcats in the future, I should have many opportunities to get Jordan's autograph!"

"This... Jia, thank you, thank you!" Art Mayork excitedly accepted the T-shirt. He hadn't expected Jia Fei to be so generous, without him even having to say anything.