The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 751 Let's lose weight first
Gan Guoyang decided to return in the summer of 1996.

However, things don't happen overnight or take shape immediately.

In fact, five minutes after speaking with Tang Jianguo, Gan Guoyang faced a rather serious problem.

He stood in front of the bathroom mirror, looking at himself who hadn't played a professional match or undergone systematic training for a year and a half, and a question popped into his mind:
Can I return to my peak?

Gan Guoyang felt the decline in performance during the 1993-1994 season, dropping to a level similar to Jordan's.

Age is not a problem; around 30 years old is the prime of one's physical condition. The key is still focus on the field and the quality of training.

Too many off-court factors interfered with his focus on basketball, resulting in a decline in both training and game quality.

Following the decline in concentration is the decrease in willpower and the desire to win. A person's mindset and willpower are actually closely related to their physical condition.

People with strong bodies and amazing physical abilities are bound to have stronger willpower than those with declining energy and poor health.

Gan Guoyang has always possessed a physique like that of a cyborg. Not to mention compared to ordinary people, even compared to all athletes who stand at the pinnacle of human physique, his body is still terrifyingly good.

He had no major injuries during his 10-year professional career, and even minor injuries were rare. The number of games he missed could be counted on one hand. He was truly an iron man.

In the year and a half since his retirement, Gan Guoyang has continued to focus on training and maintaining a good physical condition, but ultimately he can't compare to his professional days.

In order to maintain high-intensity training and competition, athletes often eat an enormous amount of food, and the energy they consume will eventually be used up on the field.

Once training, matches, and travel stop, energy expenditure will be greatly reduced, but the problem is that appetite has already been developed, and the amount of food consumed is no less than during the season.

Gan Guoyang is quite self-disciplined. In the year and a half after retiring, he ate a lot but was relatively restrained.

Some people who lack self-discipline will lose their external constraints and mental pressure once they retire, and will not be able to control their appetite, and their bodies will become fat like an inflating balloon.

For example, Magic Johnson attempted a comeback last season, returning to the Great Western Forum after a four-season absence from the court.

But by then Johnson's physique was no longer suitable for playing point guard; he was round like a basketball, dribbling a small ball on the court.

After training and weight loss during the offseason, Johnson's weight remained at 255 pounds.

This is the weight of a center, and it's becoming increasingly difficult for Johnson to fulfill the role of a point guard.

Berman placed him at power forward, allowing him to link up the team both inside and outside with Kidd.

This strategy worked well, and they achieved a record of 54 wins in the regular season.

In the playoffs, they made it to the semifinals, but ultimately lost to the Seattle SuperSonics.

After a season of trying, Johnson will become a free agent on July 1.

He is still undecided about whether to stay with the Lakers or try to extend his career with another team.

Compared to Magic Johnson, Gan Guoyang is in a much better situation.

After all, Johnson has been away from the court for four seasons and is already 36 years old, while Gan Guoyang is only 32.

But looking at himself in the mirror, pinching the slightly protruding fat on his stomach and the thickened flesh on his shoulders and back, he still felt worried.

Accepting that he has fallen to Jordan's level is Gan Guoyang's bottom line; he cannot tolerate becoming Charles Barkley.

Even at his peak, Barkley was already one of the best basketball players in the world, a regular season MVP.

For a fleeting moment, Gan Guoyang wanted to call Tang Jianguo again and tell him that he didn't want to make a comeback.

Ten seasons, seven championships—isn't that perfect enough? Should we continue?
However, Gan Guoyang quickly dismissed the idea of ​​giving up. It was June now, and he had plenty of time to hone his skills again.

The thought of returning to his beloved arena filled him with an irresistible excitement; he couldn't possibly give it up.

Body shape issues can be resolved by getting back into training, and the next issue is convincing your family.

Gan Guoyang decided to discuss it with his wife first. As long as he got Wang Fuxi's support, the opinions of others were insignificant.

It's not that fathers and children aren't important, but rather that no matter what I do, they will support me and not oppose me.

Only one's spouse would consider this issue more carefully, because once Gan Guoyang returns to power, Wang Fuxi will have to arrange and resolve many things.

Their living environment, children's learning and education, social circles, and the elderly's medical care and care will all face changes again.

After receiving Tang Jianguo's call, Gan Guoyang agreed on a whim without even having a chance to discuss it with his wife.

So he was a little uneasy. He had acted first and informed his wife later. What if his wife disagreed? That would be troublesome.

So, during dinner that evening, Gan Guoyang laid the groundwork by asking his son and father if they wanted to go back to Portland for a while.

"Summer is coming soon, California is too hot, Portland is much cooler, the weather is dry and comfortable, so we might as well go back to Portland for a while and come back when it gets colder and rains more."

Gan Wenshan is already 7 years old and of primary school age. He is scheduled to enroll in Palo Alto in September.

Once Gan Guoyang returns to Portland, he will be able to study there.

Upon hearing that he could return to Portland for the summer, Gan Wenshan immediately raised his hand in agreement, saying, "I agree! Stephen and the others will be in Portland this summer! I want to see them."

The kids got along exceptionally well; last summer they went to Charlotte together and had a wonderful vacation in Orlando and Miami.

Gan Youwei had no objections and said, "Staying in Portland for a while wouldn't be bad. I actually miss it there... Which state is Portland in again?"

Wang Fuxi remained silent. She knew her husband well and already understood what was going on when Gan Guoyang suddenly made this suggestion.

Back in their room that evening, Wang Fuxi asked, "Why do you suddenly want to go back to Portland for a while? Are you thinking of making a comeback?"

Gan Guoyang said, "Huh? I... I just think that California is a bit too hot in the summer, so it would be nice to go back to Oregon and breathe some fresh air in the forest."

Wang Fuxi said, "Don't give me that. Do you think I don't know you? You probably already promised Lao Tang that you would go back to play in the competition. You're going to act first and ask for permission later."

Seeing that he had been found out, Gan Guoyang simply laid his cards on the table and said, "That's right, I did agree to Lao Tang's request. However, if you really don't agree, I... I can go back alone."

Wang Fuxi thought Gan Guoyang would say, "I can choose not to return to the game," but he actually wanted to go back alone.

Gan Guoyang easily caught the pillow that Wang Fuxi threw at him and said, "When Lao Tang called me, I agreed on a whim. I'm not here to discuss it with you now."

Wang Fuxi rolled her eyes at her husband and said, "Discuss what? You're just telling me to clean up your mess and figure out how you're going to make a comeback."

Gan Guoyang, holding a pillow, leaned closer and said, "Aren't you a little tired of this mundane housewife life? How about we, as husband and wife, work together to get back into the spotlight?"

Gan Guoyang never denies the important role Wang Fuxi played in his achievements. Without her, he would not have a stable support system, and he would not have been able to play with peace of mind.

Wang Fuxi sighed. She knew her husband was determined. The news of his comeback would soon spread throughout the United States and even the world, and he would once again become the center of public opinion.

Helicopters will hover over their home, interview requests will pour in, and news about her husband will be all over the television and radio.

Various cooperation negotiations will be scheduled, Pan Am VIP Gold Card points will surge again, and life, which has been peaceful for a short while, will become busy again.

This kind of life may be tiring, but it is certainly full of ups and downs and is very exciting.

"Never mind, you know I'll support whatever decision you make in the end. But I have to remind you about Dad's health. You retired for Dad's sake, and now Dad's forgetfulness is getting worse and worse. Yesterday afternoon he met me in the yard and asked who I was. I said I was your daughter-in-law. Dad said, 'My daughter-in-law is so beautiful, my son is so lucky.'"

Are you sure he genuinely can't remember and isn't just trying to flatter you?

“Does Dad need to flatter me? That’s what he really thinks! But once he saw my mom and didn’t recognize her. He said, ‘Is this my wife?’ After he found out she was my in-law, he muttered, ‘She really doesn’t fit my aesthetic’s standards.’ This really angered my mom. She said, ‘Does this old man even know what aesthetics are?’”

Gan Guoyang was both amused and exasperated. Sometimes people become less and less serious as they get older, and Gan Youwei's condition was gradually worsening.

He certainly had considered this issue.

“I knew Dad’s memory was getting worse, which is why I considered making a comeback. You know, Dad can’t remember many things from the past, but if it was my basketball season that year, whether I won the championship or not, he remembers very clearly who we played against in the Finals. For example, in June 1986, he remembered that he was in Portland, we played the Celtics, the score was 4-2, and Walton returned from injury in the fifth game. Besides the game, his classmates from Gonzaga University came to watch the game, and he remembered exactly where he lived and what he ate. There are some things that I’ve almost forgotten, but he still remembers them.”

"It seems that Dad is using your career as a timeline. If that's the case, I have no choice but to support you. No one can stop you with this reason."

Gan Guoyang smiled and said, "That's one of the reasons. If I really can't play anymore, there's nothing I can do. Or I might find a coaching position. I can't accept declining too much and lacking competitiveness on the field."

Wang Fuxi came over and hugged her husband, saying, "I believe you'll be fine. You're the best basketball player in the world... But you should lose some weight first."

Wang Fuxi reached out and pinched Gan Guoyang's back and stomach, wondering if those rolls of fat would become an obstacle for him to return to the top of basketball.

Gan Guoyang sighed and said, "Yeah, I was also troubled by this this afternoon. I haven't played ball for a year and a half, and I've gained weight too fast. I shouldn't have set my peak weight so high in the first place."

Gan Guoyang regretted it somewhat, as he had pushed his weight to over 270 pounds, which was quite a heavy weight for his height.

Although the window of this weight gain was short, and Gan Guoyang subsequently lost weight again, it also led to a stronger metabolism in him.

His weight has now surpassed 280 pounds and is heading towards the super-heavyweight of 300 pounds. If he doesn't lose weight, he'll really turn into Barkley. "What should we do? If you announce your comeback, you'll have to hold a press conference right away, and you're not in the right state for a press conference."

"does it matter?"

"Of course it's related! If you want to make a comeback, you must put enough pressure on everyone and create psychological stress for others. You absolutely cannot look like a chubby, simple-minded person."

Wang Fuxi's words make a lot of sense; psychological warfare has always been Gan Guoyang's forte.

Since he was going to make a comeback, the struggle began from the moment he held the press conference.

The entire league will be watching him, watching the Portland Trail Blazers; that feeling of being at odds with the whole world is coming back.

"You're right. I'll talk to Old Tang and tell him not to release the full news right away. Let everything ferment a bit. I'll deal with Larry Bird first, and while I'm at it, lose some weight before announcing it to the public. I'm back!"
-
On June 28, 1996, a few days after the NBA draft, the new film "The Fat Professor," a remake of the 1963 film of the same name, was released in the United States.

This 96-minute film tells the hilarious story of a 400-pound super-obese professor who invents a magical weight-loss drug to make himself thinner, but at the same time, his personality changes drastically.

Upon its release, the film achieved both box office and critical success, becoming a critically acclaimed and commercially successful comedy in 1996.

On the same day, U.S. President Bill Clinton was nominated again for president at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

After his first four-year term, which began in 1992, Clinton will now make his run for a second term.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Senate released an 800-page report suggesting that Clinton may have abused presidential power.

The president's wife, the First Lady, has faced strong criticism, accused of being the "central figure" in numerous illegal activities and the real mastermind behind the president's schemes.

All of these accusations originated from a real estate company in Arkansas called "Whitewater".

The company had long since gone bankrupt due to poor management, but after a federal investigation, it was discovered that Whitewater's major shareholder was former Arkansas governor and later President Clinton.

The news that the president and first lady were suspected of evading taxes through Whitewater had a significant negative impact on the 1992 election, and the effects did not disappear after he became president.

In June 1993, White House Counsel Foster committed suicide by shooting himself in a park in Washington, D.C., which fueled the Whitewater incident. However, the deaths of Rashard Lewis and Petrovic during the NBA Finals at the time somewhat overshadowed the incident's impact.

Subsequently, Starr, the former Deputy Attorney General who was dismissed after Clinton took office, became an independent counsel and began investigating the matter.

In January 1996, the First Lady received the first court summons in White House history.

By June, prosecutors intended to launch another attack in hopes of making a splash in an election year and causing trouble for Clinton.

However, on June 28th, neither the critically acclaimed film "The Fat Professor" nor the president and his wife's ridiculous ideas made headlines.

Their limelight and popularity were completely overshadowed by those six letters.

The Oregonian's front-page headline that day was unusually concise and clean.

The entire page contains only six letters and two punctuation marks: I'm Back!
Apart from that, there was no explanation, no mention of who this "I" was, and no mention of where Back was going.

People reading the newspaper searched everywhere except the front page headline, but couldn't find any related reports.

However, these six letters and two punctuation marks sparked a storm across the United States.

In fact, everyone knows that since it was The Oregonian that published the headline, it was only referring to one person.

Forrest Gump.

All the phones in the Portland Trail Blazers' offices were ringing off the hook that day.

Buckwalt later recalled, “That day the whole building turned into the New York Stock Exchange, all the phones were ringing non-stop. I answered one call and said, ‘I don’t know!’ I hung up, it rang again, I answered again and said, ‘I haven’t received any information, it needs to be confirmed!’ People from every department were answering the phone, even the security office and the cleaning department were calling to ask if Forrest Gump was coming back.”

Buckwalt wasn't lying; he genuinely didn't know, and he hadn't received any prior news of Forrest Gump's comeback.

After seeing the newspaper and receiving a barrage of phone calls, Buckwalt tried to contact Gan Guoyang, but the calls went unanswered.

He had no choice but to go to his boss, Tang Jianguo, who was in New York and could only be reached via encrypted satellite phone.

"Boss, I heard that Forrest Gump is making a comeback."

"What do you mean by 'it is said'? Who do you think bought the front page in The Oregonian?"

"Is Forrest Gump really coming back?!"

"Bach, you're really getting senile. Be prepared, but we won't be announcing this anytime soon. We'll drag it out for a week, until the discussion is at its peak, before the next hot topic emerges, and then we'll announce the results and hold a press conference. Now, please be patient and absolutely do not reveal any more information."

"But I anticipate receiving tens of thousands of calls every day. How am I supposed to respond?"

"Just say you don't know!"

Tang Jianguo hung up the phone and urged the driver to drive faster.

He was eager to fly to Naples, Florida.

Larry Bird lived there after retiring, and he arranged to meet Bird there with Gan Guoyang.

As for the idea of ​​publishing "I'm Back" on the front page of The Oregonian without specifying who it was, Tang Jianguo and Gan Guoyang were of the same mind.

Gan Guoyang needs time to prepare, lose weight, deal with family issues, and mentally prepare himself.

Tang Jianguo needs public opinion, attention, and for cameras and microphones across the United States to be pointed at him again.

Compared to when Tang Jianguo first took over the Trail Blazers, their relationship has changed significantly.

At first, Gan Guoyang was resistant to Tang Jianguo, thinking that he was a profit-driven businessman and that they were incompatible in terms of personality.

However, as the owner, he is generous, does not interfere in team affairs, and fully supports the formation of a championship-winning roster, making him a good owner.

Later, he invited Jerry West, laying a solid foundation for the Trail Blazers' four-peat, and Gan Guoyang began to treat him differently.

Later, when Michael Jackson was attacked by public opinion, Tang Jianguo firmly stood by Jackson's side, and Gan Guoyang's opinion of him changed drastically.

During the 1993 finals, Lao Tang's words made Gan Guoyang realize that this guy was a rare, decisive, and clear-headed individual.

The two thus became very steadfast allies. Tang Jianguo consistently provided support for Gan Guoyang's retirement and maintained close contact with him throughout.

Because Lao Tang believes that Gan Guoyang will come back one day, and this cash cow, this ratings guarantee, will absolutely not be wasted in this society where money never sleeps.

Larry Bird is the key to Donald Trump's decision to bring back Forrest Gump and to rebuild the Portland dynasty.

On this point, Old Tang absolutely believes in elite, intelligent white people; West is one, and so is Larry Bird.

As for how basketball is actually played? Who cares? He doesn't have to play on the court himself; he just needs to use the right people.

Meanwhile, Gan Guoyang also took his private plane from San Jose and flew directly to Naples.

Before departure, Gan Guoyang requested that he not bring his own food on the plane.

He needs to go hungry for a while, reduce his calorie intake, and let his body fat gradually decrease.

I hope that when I appear before the public and the media a week later, I can be as sharp as a knife as ever.

However, halfway through the flight, Gan Guoyang felt extremely hungry.

It takes five hours to fly from San Jose to Naples, which is a bit too much.

Given his weight and energy expenditure, he needs to eat a lot every day, otherwise he will be very hungry.

It's like a tank powered by a super-powerful gas turbine, with amazing horsepower but also amazing fuel consumption, 380 liters per 100 kilometers.

Gan Guoyang watched Quentin eat a hamburger, swallowed hard, and said, "Quentin, if you share a hamburger with me, I'll give you a 30% raise this month."

Quentin shook his head slightly and said, "If I did that, Fosse would deduct 100% of my salary."

Quentin took a bite of his burger and said between chews, "Hey bro, do you remember when I was working as a security guard at the Warriors' home arena? You asked me to come work for you, and the first thing you asked me to do was lose 30 pounds. Oh, do you know how I got there?"

"I don't know, Quentin."

Gan Guoyang was so hungry that he was a little delirious and couldn't think straight.

"You'll find out soon enough, boss."

Quentin took another bite of his hamburger as he spoke.

(End of this chapter)