Zhu Fangyu, let's take a look at the joy of a general manager after stepping down.

During the offseason, a major personnel change spread across the Chinese basketball scene:Zhu Fangyu officially stepped down from his role as general manager of the Guangdong Southern Tigers Club.

Although it hasn't been officially announced yet, it's said that the internal handover process has already been completed.

Just kidding: after all, if President Zhu left any fine wines in the club's stash, it would take some time to take them away...

When I saw the news yesterday, I wasn't that shocked, to be honest.

But what really struck me is that the opening line of Zhu Fangyu's social media posts will have to change.

Brother Di has also come up with a new one:Come check out the joy of a team general manager after getting laid off...

Wouldn't it be nice to become a full-time food blogger?

In May 2017, Zhu Fangyu officially took up the post of general manager of Guangdong Southern Tigers, and nine years have passed since then.

Being able to serve as general manager of one of China's most watched basketball clubs for nine years is no small feat in itself.

I know that President Zhu's work on signing foreign players has been criticized quite a bit over the years, and indeed, there have been many detours.

But those three championship banners are right there...

I remember mentioning long ago that the general managers and management of Guangdong and Liaoning have the toughest jobs.

When you succeed, you seem to be in the spotlight.

But failure is the main theme of competitive sports.

Moreover, different teams have very different definitions of "success."

For some CBA teams, just making the playoffs is a historic achievement, and they can celebrate, party, and pocket bonuses.

What about Liaoning and Guangdong?

Forget about finishing in the top eight; even if you take the runner-up spot, you'll be labeled a failure.

It's hard to explain to the fans, the boss, and even the local officials.

Before the playoffs started this year, we said that if Guangdong lost to Beijing, it would be a tough situation to explain.

And then, President Zhu ended up "explaining" himself out of the job...

But as Yang Ming said when he stepped down as Liaoning's head coach, there's really nothing to miss about this position.

That's even more true for Zhu Fangyu.

Given his experience, connections, popularity, and, well, his drinking capacity, if he wanted to continue in management, he wouldn't be short of offers.

And if he chooses a different path, he'll still be a hot commodity.

They say the endgame for everyone is to become a livestreamer selling products. Even if he goes back to Guangxi to sell fruits or snail noodles, he'd still make a good living.

A single commercial deal for a self-media influencer can be quite substantial, let alone if he gets Guo Ailun to take him along to film variety shows...

When he was the general manager, although he also enjoyed himself, due to the special nature of his position, he had to be cautious with his words and actions, with many restrictions.

Like G.E.M.'s song... you're not truly happy.

Once he steps down, President Zhu can finally let loose... Since he couldn't figure things out on the court and the public wasn't satisfied, why not take his talents to the late-night food stalls in Guangdong.

It's just like what Wan Shengyi said to him back then: "I've got a lot of things to do over there..."

Not long ago, President Zhu's "8+1 weight loss" video had me laughing my head off.

Now, Brother Di is talking about this in a slightly humorous tone.

I know that both the general manager himself and Guangdong fans will feel a sense of reluctance. Emotionally, that's normal.

But the simple emotions of fans are the least valuable thing.

The 11-time champion Guangdong Southern Tigers have reached a crossroads.

This summer, an era has come to an end.

The reason for this massive change isn't just about performance on the court.

A privately owned team and club have their own unique characteristics.

Let's not go into details.

First, there will be a shift in internal power.

Second, for CBA private teams these days, just surviving is already a good outcome.

Third, I don't think the team will look for another professional manager; it's hard for anyone else to do as well as President Zhu did.

Fourth, wait for news about Du Zhiding...