The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 235 The Ultimate Match
After just one season in the NBA, Gan Guoyang had already adapted to the life of flying around.

Sometimes, he even feels uncomfortable staying in one place for too long and wants to go out and explore.

Coach Karp relayed John Wooden's invitation to him over the phone to participate in a basketball exchange event in Los Angeles.

On the third day, Gan Guoyang received an invitation card by mail. The event was to be held at UCLA, a university Gan Guoyang was familiar with, and the email included a one-way plane ticket.

Bobby Bellman received the same invitation and plane ticket, but he received a more formal invitation: the Pete Newell and John Wooden Basketball Coaches Forum.

It turned out to be an academic discussion meeting for coaches before the start of the new season. Bobby Bellman and Gan Guoyang said that the NCAA has started implementing the 45-second shot clock rule and there are rumors that the three-point line will be introduced soon. There will be a series of changes in college basketball, and the coaches need to get together to exchange ideas.

"The same goes for the NBA. There should be many NBA coaches attending this coaching forum. Every year, everyone tries to organize some activities to summarize and exchange recent tactical changes and trends in the basketball world, and to put forward new ideas on basketball tactics."

Gan Guoyang could tell that Bellman was very excited, after all, those who could attend such a forum were all well-known coaches in the American basketball world.

The two coaches featured on the forum, Pete Newell and John Wooden, are arguably the two most renowned predecessors in American basketball.

Newell retired from coaching early and later worked as an NBA general manager. During the offseason, he tirelessly organized various training camps to promote basketball.

Wooden achieved legendary status in the NCAA, and after retiring, he continued to run various training camps, becoming a evangelist for basketball and contributing to the further development and growth of the sport.

However, the two were bitter rivals in the 60s, with completely different coaching styles, forming two major schools of thought: the "rhythm control style" and the "fluid offensive style," which have profoundly influenced the basketball world to this day.

As they grew older, the two naturally let bygones be bygones, and the conflicts from their past competition were all laughed off.

The coaching forum organized by the two has had a significant impact on the basketball world, bringing together renowned coaches from the NCAA and NBA at UCLA.

In the fall of 1985, the exchange and intellectual collision of these basketball strategists would, to some extent, determine the direction of the sport's development.

The two arrived in Los Angeles on September 17 and went to the UCLA Auditorium early the next morning to attend the opening ceremony of the forum.

The entire auditorium was filled with elite coaches from the American basketball world, most of whom Gan Guoyang knew.

Coach K from Duke, Coach Lewis from Houston, Bob Knight from Indiana, Phillips from Notre Dame (Bellman's teacher), Takanien from the University of Las Vegas, Dean Smith from North Carolina, Thompson from Georgetown, and NBA players Pat Riley, Chuck Daly, Lenny Wilkens, Hubie Brown, and even Coach Ramsey came.

Gan Guoyang had no doubt that if he were to plant a bomb here and blow up the auditorium, the theoretical level of American basketball would regress by five or six years.

Coach Ramsey was surprised to see Gan Guoyang and asked, "Sonny, what brings you here? Are you planning to become a coach? Looks like it's time for me to retire."

Gan Guoyang said, "Coach Wooden invited me! My charm on the field must have won him over."

As Gan Guoyang spoke, he looked around but did not see Bill Walton. He had assumed Walton would come as well.

Looking at this group of famous coaches, Gan Guoyang always felt that he came here to be studied, like a guinea pig.

Bob Knight came over and greeted Gan Guoyang, "Hi Sonny, long time no see! Have you grown taller?"

Gan Guoyang said, "You've gotten shorter. Actually, I've lost weight; I've reduced my weight a little."

Bob Knight asked, puzzled, "Most big men gain weight in their second year in the NBA, but you've lost weight."

Gan Guoyang said, "They gained weight because they couldn't compete properly, and I lost weight because they couldn't compete properly."

Pete Newell is also familiar with Guo Yang; he was Bob Knight's right-hand man during the Olympic training camp.

For Knight, Newell was like a father figure; they worked seamlessly together and had a very deep bond.

Knight and Stu Inman are good friends, and Knight was very interested in Inman's recent team moves, asking, "Your Trail Blazers need a good backup center, why hasn't Inman made a move yet?"

Gan Guoyang thought to himself, "I want to know too. I came to Los Angeles this time to meet Walton and see if he is interested in returning to Portland."

But even after Wooden appeared at the venue, Walton did not show up. Gan Guoyang could only find a seat at the very back to see what this forum was all about.

Due to his illustrious record in college basketball, Wooden is considered a legend in American basketball.

But he is actually not that old. Born in 1933, he is not yet 60 years old this year, and is 7 years younger than Jack Ramsey.

He left the coaching position for two reasons: first, he had achieved so much that he had no further ambitions; second, he had a heart condition and could no longer withstand the immense pressure of being a basketball coach.

Therefore, he announced his retirement in 1975, leaving the stage at the peak of his career at UCLA, having won 10 championships, so as not to give his opponents a chance to defeat him.

This shows that Wooden was an extremely competitive person who could not tolerate failure. Later, the media always portrayed him as a kind old man, which is obviously inaccurate.

In reality, most famous NBA coaches have bad tempers. With this bunch of bad tempers gathered together, Gan Guoyang quickly realized there was no need to plant any bombs here; they would explode on their own in no time. After a simple opening ceremony, Wooden got straight to the point, pointing out the theme of the forum: discussing the future development of basketball after 1985, including both the NCAA and the NBA.

The discussion focused on two main points: the development of future defensive strategies and whether the three-point shot will play an increasingly important role in offense.

Everyone spoke freely, expressing their opinions and views. However, it didn't take long for the two sides to form opposing camps on these two major issues.

Some believe that defense will become increasingly important and will soon surpass offense as the decisive factor in victory or defeat.

Some believe that offense will always be the main theme of basketball. Judging from the average points per game in the NBA in the 80s and the introduction of the 45-second shot clock in the NCAA, the basketball world will enter a golden age of offense, especially with the three-point shot being developed extensively.

Another group believes that no matter how defense or offense develops, three-pointers will not become mainstream and should be eliminated from the world of basketball.

Another part points out that defense will become the main theme of the game, but precisely because the defense is becoming more and more tight, three-pointers will become the breakthrough point in the offense.

The group wasn't simply divided into two factions; rather, they held differing opinions. Everyone involved was a well-known figure in the basketball world, with solid achievements and championship records. When they argued, no one was willing to concede to the other.

At first, the discussion and exchange were relatively amicable, but later, someone got angry and started making sarcastic remarks, and the discussion became increasingly heated.

Gradually, the discussion shifted from these two directional issues to a discussion of basketball philosophy, and then they began to criticize each other's basketball tactics and strategies.

The notoriously hot-tempered Bob Knight directly targeted John Wooden, objecting to some of Wooden's principles and opinions, saying, "That's just one side of basketball. A basketball is a sphere made of eight pieces of leather. We can score and win by putting the ball in the basket from any direction or position on the court. I don't believe there's a universal rule that applies to any team and any person."

His words had clearly strayed from the topic and escalated into an attack on Wooden's basketball philosophy.

Knight had always been dissatisfied with Wooden, partly because of Newell; he felt sorry for Newell's experience in California.

Many people believe that if Newell hadn't retired early, UCLA would never have been able to attract such good students, such as Alcindor and Goodrich.

If the players all wanted to play for Newell instead of Wooden, UCLA would never have been able to build such a great dynasty.

In their head-to-head matchups, Newell and Wooden had a record of 8 wins to 7.

Wooden always presented himself as a gentleman, but that doesn't mean he was without temper.

He said sarcastically, "Any direction and position, including the coach's bench? Maybe you threw a chair instead of a ball."

The auditorium erupted in laughter. Knight's face flushed slightly; of course, he couldn't yell at his senior colleagues.

He suppressed his temper and said, "If John's philosophy is so effective, why are his successors all ineffective? This shows that it is not those philosophies that are effective, but John's other methods."

Newell, the oldest among them, then stepped forward and said, "Bob, this isn't the topic of our forum today. This is just the opening ceremony, so let's have a brief discussion. Over the next three days, we'll have seminars on various sub-topics, and then we'll address each other more directly."

Gan Guoyang watched these famous coaches bickering like middle-aged women in a market, even using sarcastic remarks, and thought it was really interesting. He sat in the back watching the show and found it very amusing.

Coaches with less experience, such as Bobby Bellman and Pat Riley, became less vocal in their comments.

Ramsey, a veteran among the coaches, said, "I have a player who is the best defensive player, but he can also shoot three-pointers very well. I think his opinion might be worth considering."

Gan Guoyang took a moment to realize that Dr. Jack was talking about his players, and then he realized that the player was none other than himself!

Everyone looked at Gan Guoyang, who was sitting in the corner. Gan Guoyang felt like a student being stared at by dozens of senior professors, and he felt like he was being watched by thorns.

I've never felt this much pressure before.

John Wooden said, "I invited Sonny to this forum. His competition experience is indeed very representative and inspiring. Sonny, what are your thoughts?"

Gan Guoyang thought to himself, "If I had known I was here to listen to a public lecture, I shouldn't have come. I should have just gone to Wharton. Coach Wooden is cunning; he tricked me."

He coughed lightly, gathered his thoughts, and said, "Looking at the trends in the NBA over the next ten years, defense will become the main theme because the NBA is a business league, and the league will change the rules to guide the direction of the game style. Increasing physicality is the trend. From the perspective of basketball as a sport, offense will always be the mainstream, and three-pointers will become an important tactic."

"Because the ultimate game is about launching an attack no matter where the ball is, starting from where you get the ball."

Gan Guoyang's words made the coaches thoughtful. Bob Knight asked, "Who taught you that last sentence? The Ultimate Game."

Gan Guoyang said, "It was Dr. Naismith who said it."

Dr. Naismith, the inventor of basketball.

(End of this chapter)