Y13 [EN]: Chapter 67

While Youngjae spent his holiday meaningfully, other players also had meaningful times, but some endured the pain silently, experiencing even more difficult times than the season itself.

“Kuh…”

A player grimaced in pain while receiving a direct ligament injection in his knee. He had short, blonde hair and a towering figure, well over seven feet tall. It was Dirk Nowitzki.

“Nowitzki, no matter how I look at it, this isn’t right.”

The doctor tried to dissuade Nowitzki, his tone laced with worry, but Nowitzki shook his head, gritting his teeth. Though not violent, his unwavering will left the doctor with nothing but a sigh.

Nowitzki’s exact injury was Iliotibial Band Syndrome [an overuse injury causing pain on the outside of the knee]. It occurs when the knee joint is used excessively, and the iliotibial band rubs against the bone during intense exercise, causing pain. Fortunately, Nowitzki’s iliotibial band wasn’t ruptured or causing extreme pain, so he opted for conservative treatment combined with periodic check-ups rather than surgery.

After receiving the injections, Nowitzki got out of bed, using crutches to avoid putting weight on his knee, as the doctor instructed.

“How long do you think I’ll need treatment?”

At Nowitzki’s question, the doctor pursed his lips, then shook his head and spoke.

“It’s not a serious condition, which is why I prescribed injection therapy and rest—conservative treatments. However, the purpose of injection therapy is to regenerate the ligament. In other words, you currently have inflammation and some ligament damage. It’s not ideal.”

The doctor sighed slightly and took a long drink of water from the cup in front of him.

“Besides, Nowitzki, you were born in 1978, and you’re over seven feet tall. More than anything, you’re an athlete, right? The knees and ankles are the first to show symptoms if a basketball player puts even a little strain on them. In my opinion, you should rest and receive treatment for at least a month.”

Nowitzki pondered the doctor’s words.

“Nowitzki, listen carefully. A minor injury can derail your career if you push yourself too hard, especially for someone your size. This is not an exaggeration. And whatever decision you make, I will write a report and send it to Rick Carlisle.”

Nowitzki looked troubled, but he smiled and shrugged.

“I have no choice, Doctor. No matter what you say, I have to play as soon as possible.”

“Nowitzki!”

The doctor jumped up and shouted without thinking. As the Dallas Mavericks’ team doctor, he knew how difficult it was to tell the team’s aging captain to ‘rest.’ But he had to stop him.

“There’s a game next week. The Mavs… the Mavs, who have a chance to repeat their success from 2010 and 2011, are a team that can aim for another championship. I can’t be missing from that.”

“I’m not saying you should be missing! Just rest for a month, or at least three weeks, and the symptoms will subside!”

“No. I’m going to play until Coach Carlisle tells me to rest. If he tells me to rest, then I’ll have to rest. But my resting place will be the bench.”

Nowitzki thanked the doctor again and left the office. The doctor took a deep breath and sat down at his computer to email Nowitzki’s condition to Coach Rick Carlisle.

Nowitzki emerged, using his crutches, and got into the car of the player who had accompanied him, letting out a deep sigh.

“Why, is it not good?”

“No. He just said… he told me to rest for about two weeks.”

The player sitting next to him was none other than Steve Nash. It was a short two-day break from the game in Phoenix on the 23rd until the 25th, but Nash had rushed to Nowitzki to spend time with him and check on his injury.

Looking remarkably like the actor Ben Stiller, Steve Nash, with an ordinary build that wasn’t particularly outstanding by basketball player standards, was already a legendary point guard for Phoenix, known for his amazing passes, dribbling, and even top-notch shots. He had won back-to-back MVP awards as a point guard in the 2004-05 and 2005-06 seasons.

So much so that Youngjae, in his past life as a member of San Antonio, remembered Mark Cuban saying, “The second biggest mistake I made as the owner of Dallas was not holding onto Steve Nash.” Nowitzki and Nash treated each other as friends, despite their four-year age difference.

“Then you should eat something delicious and get plenty of rest.”

“Yeah, that’s right. I have to, so I can play in the game.”

The two spoke casually and then fell silent for a long time. Steve Nash, who had been driving for about ten minutes, cautiously spoke to Nowitzki, who was staring blankly out the window.

“Does it feel good?”

“Yeah. It feels good.”

Nash didn’t say anything else.

“It’s been years since I’ve felt this way.”

At the same time, another Dallas member was causing a commotion elsewhere.

“Isn’t this too much?!”

Rick Carlisle’s office was in an uproar due to the unexpected outburst. The player who requested the meeting was none other than Brendan Haywood. He seemed very dissatisfied with his current situation, raising his voice at Carlisle.

“You clearly said that you would use me as a starter when we re-signed in the offseason!”

“I did.”

“Isn’t that why I signed a long-term contract?!”

Carlisle remained calm.

“You certainly signed a long-term contract. I am well aware that I have an obligation to pay you an average of $9 million every year for six years.”

Brendan Haywood was about to explode with frustration as he watched Carlisle speak calmly, point by point.

“You said in the preseason interview that I was the starter, right?!”

“That’s what I said back then.”

Carlisle got up from his seat and glared coldly at Brendan Haywood.

“This is the pros, Brendan Haywood. How long did you think I would keep protecting you?”

“Wh-what?!”

“Let me tell you frankly. I compared your play with Chandler’s play and made a judgment as a coach, but there was nothing you were superior in any way. Skill, personality, everything. Your physical condition was also terrible in the preseason, so much so that the fans’ reaction was, ‘Chandler is already the starter.’ So I publicly named you the starter to quell that. But you miserably failed my expectations in the preseason.”

Brendan Haywood’s face was red, and he was now breathing heavily, repeatedly inhaling and exhaling. Coach Carlisle couldn’t hide his frustration and continued.

“Thinking I was giving you one last chance, I gave you about the same amount of playing time as Chandler, even though I knew about your slump. Do you know what your stats were when you played for about 20 minutes? 4.7 points and 5.4 rebounds, and steals, blocks, and assists are less than 0.5, so let’s leave them out. Turnovers are over 1. Do you know what this means? You show about half the game that Chandler does when you’re put into the game. It’s hard to find a starting center worse than you on a playoff team. As a coach, should I have to use you as a starter?”

“Are you a coward who doesn’t keep his promises! If I just get a little bit of a slump, if I just get a little bit of a feel…”

Carlisle sneered cynically and shook his head as if he didn’t need to listen.

“I’m a coward. I’m a coward. Does that make you feel better now?”

“Ugh!”

“A little slump? Already 28 games have been played. What efforts have you made in the meantime? Befriending teammates like Tyson Chandler, encouraging and boosting teammates even when you’re tired from playing the game. He even came to me personally to learn the team tactics as soon as possible. As a result, Chandler gets along better with his teammates than you, even though he just transferred and has been working with them for half a year. Haywood, are you being confident while making these efforts? Tell me. What efforts have you made? Hurry?”

Haywood was about to explode at Carlisle’s logical rebuttal. Haywood even grabbed Carlisle by the collar and shouted. People outside thought something was going to happen and rushed into the office, but Carlisle didn’t change his expression and held them back.

“You’re the coward. Is all you can do is shout and punch when the screws come loose?”

“Keuk!”

Haywood trembled, his hands gripping Carlisle’s collar, but eventually let go without doing anything.

“Let’s pretend nothing happened today. All I can tell you is one thing. If you want to play as a starter on the Mavs, you’ll have to work hard to get out of the slump you’re claiming to be in.”

“……”

Carlisle pulled on his crumpled shirt collar to straighten it and stared into Haywood’s eyes, who remained silent. Anger, and anger, and finally, just anger. There was pure anger in them, without a hint of understanding.

“Get out.”

But Coach Carlisle didn’t push Haywood any further. If Haywood was a professional, he would play basketball with a professional attitude. But if he was no longer a professional, but just making money and settling into his position, Carlisle would no longer have a place for Haywood. It would be a mistake to think that he would continue to use him because he had signed a long-term contract.

“Are you okay?”

When the Dallas officials saw Haywood stomping out, they came to Coach Carlisle to see if he was okay. Carlisle gave a faint smile and reassured them that he was fine.

“You had a shouting match yesterday, too. During the interview with DeShawn Stevenson…”

Coach Carlisle nodded, saying it was nothing serious.

“Everyone is full of energy, so that’s what happens.”

“But, to protest against the coach like that…”

“I can’t help it. They can’t admit it. They think they can do better, and that they can play well enough now. It’s just a temporary slump… They’re covering themselves with so many assumptions and excuses that they can’t face reality. If they just tried to get out of that world and learn about reality, they could become players who could develop to the next level.”

The officials couldn’t say anything to Coach Carlisle’s heartfelt words. That’s how the Dallas Mavericks’ holiday was ending so differently. These were inevitable troubles when leading a team with many players with starting-level skills and strong egos.

Chesapeake Energy Arena. Oklahoma City, OK

After a week-long holiday, the Dallas Mavericks players arrived at a hotel near the Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City and were enjoying some personal time.

“Oh~ Celebrity!”

The first to greet Youngjae was Tyson Chandler, as expected. Chandler also seemed to have read the article, approaching Youngjae while imitating a zombie, saying, “Eueoeoeok- Walker-“.

“That’s disgusting, Chandler. And Walker doesn’t say eueoeoeok, it’s eukeoeolk—something like that.”

“That’s the same thing. How did you find out? It’s really amazing.”

“You said you read the article? Then you know everything.”

Chandler said that people’s work was really amazing and naturally started talking to Youngjae. Then Nowitzki, who was listening silently next to him, casually joined the conversation, saying, “Is *The Walking Dead* fun?”

“Hey, isn’t it better not to watch it? You have to think about your age.”

Nowitzki made a face that said, ‘What’s wrong with my age?’ looking at Tyson Chandler, who was making a sly joke, and then flicked the back of Chandler’s head with a snap! It wouldn’t hurt, but the cheerful sound echoed, and Youngjae and Nowitzki couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Oh! It’s too much to hit the back of my head in front of a rookie!”

“I don’t know… my hand slipped because you said I was old to a young person.”

The three of them sat on the bench and talked happily for a while, then naturally moved to the gym next to the hotel. Whether it was an away game or a home game, the three of them always enjoyed exchanging stories, warming up, and practicing before the game as a habit.

============================ Author’s Notes ============================

★Thank you to those who gave advance reservations, recommendations, comments, and coupons!!

@Phew, the first graduation exam is finally over. The second one is in the second semester, so it’s a bit later… Thanks to you, it seems to have ended well. Now, I just hope the answer pleases the professor, haha.

@There was an all-time game between Houston and the Clippers. It’s a shame I didn’t see it live. I send my condolences to the Clippers fans and congratulations to the Houston fans.

@In fact, Brendan Haywood fought a lot with Rick Carlisle during the season. It was because he lost his starting position to Chandler, but in the end, the club sided with Carlisle, and Haywood had no choice but to surrender because his justification was weak. Carlisle guaranteed him a starting position when he re-signed, but the difference in skill between him and Chandler was too great. DeShawn Stevenson was already in the last year of his contract, and his importance was low in the previous year, so his emotions were less intense than Haywood’s. If it wasn’t for Youngjae in the first place, DeShawn would have been the starter, so there wouldn’t have been any fights. This problem often occurs when there are many players with high reputations when forming a roster.

Sosimjjijil inferior man/// Congratulations on 1 comment^^.

Brilliant Legacy/// Hehe, I wonder what it will be like.

huhcafe, Goddess Yuri Praise, Lapir and Jint/// There’s still a lot of season left, haha.

Painen Sia, misscherry, Omari On, Kundara///Thank you for your comments as always!!

Yabes, Ruthless Pirate/// Josh happened to explode on that day.

Cheonsangbyeolli/// Thank you for the coupon!! Thank you for your support as always.

Ithilien/// It’s similar, but the Sixth Man refers to the bench player, so Terry’s role is more similar to Ginobili’s. Penetrating guard defense, leading when Kidd is not there. These two are the ‘keys’ that Carlisle uses Youngjae for. In terms of playing time, Youngjae seems like the Sixth Man, but haha.

Khan/// Hehe, the development is a secret!