Sports Medicine Master System-Chapter 109 - 83: How’s Your Jump Now? (Part 2)

If someone could get injured in a game with the intensity of an All-Star Game, you’d have to say they have terrible luck.

After the joint practice, Hill grabbed Tracy McGrady and insisted on taking Chen Yu and Lexi out to eat.

"By the way, why didn’t Tamia come?" Chen Yu asked curiously on the way to pick up Lexi.

The All-Star Weekend was supposed to be a relaxing vacation for the players, and many of them brought their families along.

Hill broke into the kind, proud smile of a father and said cheerfully, "She’s pregnant, so I had her stay home."

Chen Yu was stunned.

Even Tracy McGrady, sitting in the back seat, had a surprised look on his face. This was news Hill hadn’t even shared with his own teammate.

"Congratulations! When did this happen?" Chen Yu quickly asked.

Hill said, "It was during the time I was injured last year. She found out after you left Orlando. She’s over four months pregnant now."

Chen Yu realized. ’That must have been before the season started.’

’When I was in Orlando, she must have been in the early stages and wasn’t showing, so I couldn’t tell.’

"At over four months, you should be able to tell the gender. Have you found out?" Chen Yu asked curiously.

"It’s a girl."

A huge smile crinkled the corners of Hill’s eyes.

Chen Yu laughed. "You’re so handsome and Tamia is so beautiful—you’re bound to have a gorgeous daughter."

"Thanks." Hill was grinning from ear to ear. He then asked how Chen Yu and Lexi were doing, and when they planned to get married. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Ever since Chen Yu had said he would marry Lexi, she hadn’t been pressuring him about marriage as much.

After thinking for a moment, Chen Yu said, "We’ll see. We both have our careers right now. We can talk about it when things are more settled."

For a doctor, their thirties were just the beginning of their career. It would be disrespectful to ask Lexi to give up her own career at this point to devote herself to family.

Chen Yu was, however, considering asking Lexi to come to Phoenix once his own clinic was established.

Hill didn’t say anything more about it; not getting married in your thirties was no big deal.

As they were talking, Chen Yu’s phone rang.

It was Ronaldo, calling to ask if Chen Yu was free for dinner that evening.

Ronaldo had previously gone to Washington in an unsuccessful attempt to meet his idol. This time, since the All-Star Game was also being held in Washington and Jordan was sure to be there, he had tagged along.

"A friend of yours? Have him join us," Hill interjected.

’It’s not a private family dinner, so bringing a friend along shouldn’t be a problem.’

Chen Yu agreed, gave Ronaldo the restaurant’s address, and told him to bring Milanee along.

"Is that the soccer player? The one who was World Player of the Year or something?" Tracy McGrady chimed in from the back seat.

However, his tone made it obvious he didn’t understand the significance of the World Player of the Year award.

Hill also chimed in, "My father has mentioned him. I believe he’s considered the best soccer player in the world. Is his injury very serious?"

Chen Yu nodded. "Quite serious. A ruptured patellar tendon."

The other two sucked in a sharp breath. An injury like that was no less severe than a torn ACL.

"He’ll be fine. Since he found you, I’m sure you have a way to heal him." Hill had one hundred percent faith in Chen Yu’s medical skills.

After a lively dinner, the group went to the MCI Center together.

The main event today wasn’t the East and West team practices, but the Slam Dunk Contest and Three-Point Contest that evening.

Thanks to Chen Yu, Lexi was able to watch from courtside for the first time, wearing a brand-new, autographed number 23 Jordan jersey.

Her fan-girling mission was a success.

Ronaldo also had a successful fan experience. He wasn’t courtside, though; at Stern’s invitation, he was in a luxury box up top.

Amid the commotion on the court, Chen Yu saw Carter, and noticed that Tracy McGrady, who was beside him, never once went over to speak to Carter.

’Aren’t they cousins?’

But it was their business, so Chen Yu didn’t feel it was his place to say anything.

As he was watching the Three-Point Contest, a tall figure sat down beside him.

Chen Yu was taken aback for a moment.

’Isn’t that Olajuwon?’

He grinned, cheerfully extending a hand.

Chen Yu shook his hand, feeling a bit puzzled. Many players who weren’t selected for the All-Star Game used the break to relax or spend time with their families.

Ewing, for instance, hadn’t come.

’Olajuwon is in a similar situation as Ewing. Why didn’t he stay in Houston? Why travel all this way just to join the festivities?’

’I don’t think the Rockets have any players in the All-Star Game, do they?’

Olajuwon exchanged a few pleasantries before getting straight to the point. "Chen, you healed Grant’s cartilage damage. What about me? I have joint deterioration too, right?"

He patted his right knee.

Chen Yu understood.

The Rockets had previously submitted his injury report, and Chen Yu remembered it clearly: a sprained medial collateral ligament in his right knee, joint deterioration, and bursitis.

At the time, Chen Yu had specifically asked Mark Tatum to contact Olajuwon and see if he was interested in treatment, but nothing ever came of it. Chen Yu had assumed that Olajuwon, like Ewing, was heading for retirement.

His gaze fell on Olajuwon’s right knee.

The sprained collateral ligament wasn’t the problem. He must have rested for a period, and it had mostly healed.

The main issue was the joint deterioration. The cartilage in his right knee was severely worn down, with damage all over.

And his left knee was worn down as well.

Chen Yu furrowed his brow.

Joint deterioration usually boiled down to one of two causes. One was overexertion. For a professional athlete like Olajuwon, a heavyweight who had played for so many years, the pressure on his articular cartilage was immense. It was perfectly normal for wear and tear to appear.

Frankly, the fact that his menisci and everything else had held up this long—that he hadn’t suffered a major, career-ending injury like a ruptured ligament—was already a testament to his incredible physical condition.