"Alright, alright. I got it."
Chen Yilun sat in his office, listened to the report from the other end of the line, and hung up the phone.
"Smoother than expected."
He swayed over to the liquor cabinet and poured himself another glass of sherry.
If the moves in Philadelphia were something Chen Yilun deliberately put on display for his own people, then the changes brewing in Washington were something he had personally nudged into motion.
Of course, saying that the entire mess the Wizards were in now was Chen Yilun's fault would be an exaggeration.
But ever since the DeMarcus Cousins trade was completed, Chen Yilun had already been keeping a close eye on Washington's trajectory.
With his perspective on the future, he naturally understood the enormous hidden risks buried within this Wizards team.
Whether it was John Wall's slip in the bathtub or DeMarcus Cousins' subsequent injuries, any one of them was enough to push the team toward the abyss of collapse.
And even if his butterfly effect might alter the career paths of these players to some extent, the fact that a single team's three core figures were all offense-heavy and defense-light meant that this squad was never going to go far.
Under those circumstances, there was no reason for Chen Yilun to show the Wizards any mercy.
But right now, there wasn't a single one of his people inside the Wizards organization. If he wanted to fan the flames and push Grunfeld out, he would need an insider.
Coach Scott Brooks was the perfect fit for that role.
As Durant's mentor, Coach Scott Brooks shared a very close bond with him.
More importantly, Scott Brooks had almost no real foundation within the league.
Logically speaking, Brooks had been working in the league since the early 2000s. After so many years, it would seem impossible for him not to have built up some connections and influence.
That, however, involved a rather awkward historical background.
Before becoming a head coach, Brooks—like everyone else—started out as an assistant. Back then, he served as an assistant coach with the Denver Nuggets, whose head coach at the time was none other than the notoriously stubborn George Karl.
Brooks was part of the George Karl faction.
Elsewhere, it was usually protégés who dragged their masters down. With Brooks, it was the master who dragged the protégé with him.
Because of Coach Karl's terrible temper and rigid, dogmatic philosophy, Brooks found very few circles in the league willing to associate with him.
This situation reached its peak after Coach Karl retired.
Brooks was left like an outcast, pushed to the margins of the league's coaching community.
Against this backdrop, Chen Yilun connected with Brooks through Durant's mediation. Although Coach Brooks had not formally joined Chen Yilun's team, under Chen Yilun's incentives, Brooks had no issue giving things a little push.
That was how today's situation came to be.
"Grunfeld…"
Chen Yilun leaned back into his executive chair and murmured to himself.
This Grunfeld wasn't particularly outstanding among the league's general managers, but he was still firmly in the "above average" tier. Bringing him in would definitely be helpful for Chen Yilun's future plans.
As for the Wizards position that was about to open up, Chen Yilun had little interest.
The current Wizards were a hot potato, and to a large extent, he himself had helped heat it up. Taking over the Wizards now would be far too expensive, and it would mean giving back some of what he had already taken.
That was absolutely out of the question.
"Knock, knock, knock!"
While Chen Yilun was deep in thought, a knock on the door interrupted him.
"Boss!"
Prince stepped in. "It's almost noon. We should head over."
"Oh, alright."
Chen Yilun straightened his clothes and strode out.
The large conference room was already packed with people.
"Is everything ready?"
Chen Yilun asked, sweeping his gaze around the room.
"All set."
Divac walked over and nodded. "The final negotiation results are in. Take a look."
Chen Yilun took the documents from Divac and skimmed through them at a glance.
It was basically the price he had already settled on earlier.
"Alright. Submit it."
As soon as the clock passed twelve, messages flew in from all over the country toward NBA headquarters.
After a brief wait, Divac looked at the reply on his computer screen.
"It's done!"
At the same time, Woj—who had also been staying up late waiting for news—was staring intently at his own screen.
"Any updates yet?"
Woj asked his assistant, forcing himself to sound calm.
"Not yet, boss. Don't worry. That kid can't beat us."
Seeing Woj nervously shaking his leg, the assistant couldn't help but try to reassure him.
As the undisputed GOAT of basketball journalism, Woj was under enormous pressure at this year's trade deadline. What happened tonight could very well decide the balance of power in the basketball media world going forward.
The story went back to 2017. After being completely outpaced by Yahoo in terms of breaking basketball news, ESPN decided to flex its financial muscle and spent heavily to bring in Woj and his team, The Vertical.
It should have been a routine story. Woj was already prepared to enjoy ESPN's generous paycheck together with his team. But something unexpected happened during the acquisition process.
His most prized protégé, Shams, suddenly chose to leave and strike out on his own. Instead of going to ESPN, Shams stayed with his old employer, Yahoo, and joined another company, The Athletic.
Just like that, mentor and protégé went their separate ways. Having personally groomed Shams, Woj knew his former protégé's abilities better than anyone and had already marked him as his strongest rival.
And this year's trade deadline was their first direct showdown.
Just as Woj was about to speak, someone stumbled into the office.
"It's out! Shams tweeted!"
"What?!"
Woj stared at his phone in disbelief—it showed no new notifications—then quickly opened Shams' Twitter feed.
Two updates were right there at the top.
"The Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings have completed a trade. The Lakers send Ivica Zubac and a 2021 first-round pick to the Kings in exchange for Willie Reed, the Kings' 2023 first-round pick, and the Spurs' 2023 second-round pick!"
"The Kings trade Caris LeVert to the 76ers for Robert Covington and a 2023 second-round pick!"
How did he get the news so fast?!
Woj felt the world spin around him. His own protégé had gotten the scoop before him.
It's over. It's all over.
Woj slumped back in his office chair, his face full of defeat. Only then did his phone begin to buzz.
A new message had come in.