The Wizards' morale boost after the win over the Pacers led to two more wins and a 16-13 record heading into the final day of 2001.

On December 31, 2001, Wizards owner Abbie Bolin hosted a dinner for the players and coaching staff.

At the banquet, Pauline raised his glass to himself and laughed at himself: "Long before the start of the season, I predicted that we would make the playoffs, and at the Owners Summit, almost everyone was laughing at me, now see where we are?" Where are we located? ”

Wes Unseld chimed in, "We're fourth in the East, Mr. Pauline!" ”

"Fourth in the East!" Pauline laughed and said, "Fourth in the East!" We can get better! With the outstanding leadership of Michael and Doug, we can do even better! ”

Then, he began to thank specific people, especially the two whose names he had highlighted.

He praised Jordan as the best leader the Wizards have ever had since Unseld, and the nearly 40-year-old Flyer is still a role model for everyone.

"We all know we wouldn't be here without Michael!"

Yu Fei listened to Bolin without saying a word, and some thoughts popped up in his heart from time to time.

Can't get here without Jordan? What if I didn't have an average of 16 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists per game?

Pauline then thanked Collins: "Doug is a smart coach and he's doing a fantastic job," especially when it comes to breaking Kwame's confidence and messing around with the starting lineup, he's really good. "He likes to work hard and I like him. He shows the players every day what is most important. "What's the most important thing? Get down on your knees and call Jordan Daddy? "It's tenacious defense, teamwork and hard work! As you can see from the last few games, they have all learned! ”

Collins listened with emotion, as if his work had been appreciated.

"Of course, it also depends on the hard work and dedication of other players, such as." Is it finally my turn? Come on, thank me hard, you're welcome. "Rip, I really like this young man, he reminds me of the 'Greatest Generation' who has very little left, who works hard every night like the 'Greatest Generation' and never complains." Damn yellow-toothed troll, do you think he doesn't want to complain? He just doesn't have the guts! "And poor Christian Leitner, who even fought to the bone, and his absence is a big loss for us!"

Okay, okay, even the sword mound is lined up in front of me, right?

Pauline's "snub" in his speech was expected by Yu Fei.

Who made him refuse the solicitation of the big boss?

If he had accepted Pauline's offer, the big boss would have put him in the sequence of Jordan and Collins today, but he didn't, and the big boss would have to put him, a young up-and-comer who really made a difference, to the end like he lost his memory.

"Of course, there are some fantastic young players, Tarron, Frye, Kwame. Your performance is just as important to the team. "What should I do, I really want to use the foie gras on the table to block the stinky mouth of this yellow-toothed troll and make him stop talking." Really, I'm so proud of all of you and happy for myself! "Be less happy, a boss like you will only bring misfortune." We finally have a team to be proud of! Michael made them, and the people are really excited to see the Wizards at MCI because you're always getting better and winning games. We are very competitive, mainly thanks to Doug and Michael. That's what we should be. Now, I'm looking forward to the playoffs in a few months. I think we'll get there I mean, let's move on! Let's move on! And, as I said to everyone, I knew Michael was going to lead us there! ”

Well, it's finally over, Yu Fei can eat normally like a nobody, without caring about what the boss is saying.

Thomas Flynn, a reporter for The Washington Times, seized the opportunity to get up close and personal with his boss.

Because Steve Whitch of the Washington Post is a reporter designated by Jordan, Pauline is not close to him, but the Times reporter Flynn who temporarily opened the back door to join in is the media person that Pauline is willing to contact.

Flynn approached Pauline and asked, "Do you keep in touch with Michael, Mr. Boleyn?" ”

"We keep in touch." Pauline gave a general answer.

Flynn didn't want that answer, but what did he want?

At that point, items with the Jordan label sell out quickly from the shelves. His jerseys range from $35 to $169, making the market a hot one. And in the last two consecutive wins, as is often the case at MCI, people chanted his name — Michael, Michael — not just as an inspiration, but as a pleasurable slogan, more revered than fanatical. Sometimes when he scored a soft layup instead of a dunk, some fans booed him, a soft boo, not an expression of anger, just a friendly expression of disappointment: most of the boos came from middle-aged fans who were carrying heavy burdens.

Reality erodes Jordan's idol. Even on the night of his outstanding performance, some fans would leave the stadium with a strange sense of loss and thought they were missing something, but it was difficult to pinpoint exactly why. Their boredom had nothing to do with Jordan's output, but rather with the experience: a picturesque step-back jumper in the evening brought them far less enjoyment than a tomahawk dunk. The art of Jordan is not in the total number of points, but in his word flyer, but he is about to lose the magic of the flyer.

Collins confided to Steve Witch about people's propensity for dissatisfaction with Jordan's desires: "A lot of people say that Michael is no longer flying high, no longer performing spectacular moves in the air like he did in the 1991 Finals, but so what? I don't think it's a problem, he's just getting older, and it's hard to understand that older people will do things that are older? ”

I really like what Jordan said: age is not an issue, it's an excuse for sissies and people like me.

Yu Fei ate quietly and barely spoke.

Flynn's attempt to extract bad words about Jordan from Pauline seemed ridiculous to him.

Don't look at how much Jordan has done him well? Even if he is dissatisfied with Jordan, he will not show the slightest thing in public.

Unless Jordan can't help him make money anymore.

However, Yu Fei does not think that Jordan still has a lot of attraction to the new generation of fans, because Jordan has not played for 5 of the past 17 years, and 3 of those 5 years have occurred in the last three years. Three years is enough time for some stars to rise and replace 6 in his place.

In the latest All-Star poll, Jordan was significantly behind Iverson, Carter, Kobe, O'Neal and Garnett in popularity.

It can be said that Jordan has lost the favor of children and young people, and in turn, has lost control of advertisers. His core audience is now more inclined towards the older group, but even within that group, the fascination with him has waned. Even Nike has said it will use young athletes to market Jordan's upcoming $200 shoes. Even though he is the best player in basketball history, he has become stale these days with a young and fresh fan base. The brutal truth is that he loses his admirers at the same rate as he loses his bouncing power.

In the New Year, the Wizards flew to Toronto, Canada, to take on the Raptors.

It's a battle of focus.

It is no exaggeration to use any words to tout Vince Carter in 2001, who was the media's designated successor to Jordan, but he was tired of the hype, and Jordan didn't like him as a successor because he didn't defensive.

Although both are from North Carolina, Jordan obviously doesn't want another player similar to him in North Carolina, and due to past grievances between the two sides, Carter was brilliant tonight, scoring 22 points in the first half.

Then in the second half, when Carter passed Jordan in one step, Yu Fei suddenly flew out from the side, knocked Carter down in the air, and gave him a block.

It's a foul, there's no doubt about it.

Yu Fei is a rookie, Carter is a superstar and is at home, and the referee will not miss this decision.

Yu Fei also raised his hand simply and admitted his foul.

On a star who is generally a little arrogant, being fouled like this shows that the opponent is anxious, and he is about to respond with all his might.

However, Carter is a man who "has no anger", and Yu Fei's rough foul is like a basin of cold water, dooming his fighting spirit.

Carter's shot was out of touch, and frustration was sweeping over him.

Yu Fei had to sigh that a heart that is not strong enough will make players choose to retreat when they encounter things, Carter is this kind of person, and this was shown when he led the Raptors to the playoffs for the first time - at that time, Maddie was still on the team, it was Carter's take-off year, they faced the Knicks in the first round, although they were knocked out by strikeouts, but the point difference in every game was very close, but Carter didn't become Jordan in those moments when he was expected to be Jordan, he passed the ball out.

Tonight, Carter originally wanted to prove that his young self was not comparable to the aging Jordan, and he did well in the first half, but Yu Fei's violent foul directly extinguished his fighting spirit.

Then, when Jordan's layup was violently blocked by Carter, the referee blew the whistle as well.

As a result, Carter sneered at the referee: "You can keep saving him, it's a good way to help him get out of trouble." ”

Jordan gave him a cold look, and suddenly, everything changed.

It's hard for Yu Fei to say what has changed in Jordan, he is still the annoying old man, tenosynovitis is the source of all his unstable performances, but Jordan can suppress Carter at both ends of the offensive and defensive ends, shooting, breaking through and even pulling out three points, and when he is excited, he even holds the ball to break through the bottom line and draw a circle layup, which is his signature trick before his second retirement.

That's what the Wizards players know as Jordan.

He often finds that form in training, which is rarely seen in games.

The unfortunate Carter hit the muzzle.

No matter how well he played in the first half, it was now meaningless.

Carter, who was in a collapse, began to shoot a lot of three-pointers, and none of these shots missed, and Yu Fei collected these long rebounds and led the team to fight back with speed.

Yu Fei dunked by himself, and also passed the ball to Hamilton, and finally even Jordan enjoyed the fun of counterattacking.

From the time Yu Fei started the game, this was the best game for their chemistry.

Jordan, who scored only 4 points in the first half, scored 26 points in the second half, with 30 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists, leading the team to four consecutive wins.

After the game, Carter, who didn't want to be "misinterpreted" about the game, stubbornly said: "This is a Toronto game, and MJ and I are just one of them." ”

Why did Carter suddenly understand the truth that the individual is only part of the team?

Would he have said that if he had suppressed Jordan?

Yu Fei explained the violent foul he gave Carter: "It was an accident, I went for the ball." ”

No one was happier than Jordan.

"He's a tough guy to play against," Jordan pretended first, "and it took me half a game to understand his tendencies. ”

When Jordan said this, the smile on his face was palpable, and the smug expression was a manifestation of what he had told Steve Wye in his office at Verizon Center a year earlier.

Finally, Jordan said in a victorious tone: "I did a little bit of research on him at halftime and then took away his rhythm. He still needs to improve his defense. ”

So Yu Fei's rough foul doesn't matter? What about Yu Fei?

'It felt good between us, he took my guidance, you know, I've been trying to coach him, he's not the kind of person who is easy to take other people's opinions, but I'm starting to see changes in him in our structured attack. Jordan ended the conversation in a vague but positive tone: "I think he's understanding the game in its entirety, and I hope he can learn from that kind of game." ”

The Wizards, who are firmly in fourth place in the East, look all right, Jordan, the perfect leader, Hamilton, the top two, and the rising superstar Yu Fei, who are even better than Sports Illustrated predicted before the season (seventh in the East), will there really be a new year?

(End of chapter)