The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 838 No Turning Back
The Rising Stars Challenge was held before the All-Star Game.

The dunk contest and three-point contest, which had been held previously, have been cancelled.

The league believes that these two competitions have become increasingly boring, failing to attract either big-name players or viewers.

The disastrous 1997 Slam Dunk Contest, in particular, led the league to decide to cancel this clownish performance.

Therefore, although Kobe won the 1997 Slam Dunk Contest, he himself did not consider it a remarkable honor.

Because the competition was not intense at all, the moves were not attractive, lacked creativity, and were full of mistakes and boredom, Kobe later even regretted participating in that dunk contest.

In the Rising Stars Challenge, Celtics center Zydrunas Ilgauskas won the MVP award, becoming the first player in NBA history to win the Rising Stars Challenge International MVP.

This demonstrates the league's intention to further promote the internationalization and globalization of the NBA. It can be said that David Stern genuinely treats the NBA as a business, taking it seriously, working tirelessly, and always thinking about promoting the NBA brand.

The All-Star Game is constantly being changed because it's a signature event for the NBA, a caravan used to promote itself.

From this perspective, David Stern is a qualified president. He has always maintained a strong belief and work ethic, and continues to move forward on the path of pursuing his goals.

Therefore, David Stern and Gan Guoyang were able to reach a certain understanding because, from a work perspective, they were the same kind of people.

At Saturday dinner, Stern and the Gan Guoyang couple sat together, eating and chatting, and appeared to have a close relationship.

Since Gan Guoyang secured deals with young players and agents last summer, ensuring that new contract renewals wouldn't be so extravagant, Stern has been very satisfied with the current stable operating environment of the NBA.

This season, Gan Guoyang led the Trail Blazers to another miracle, causing the viewership of a regular season game to influence the Super Bowl's ratings, which greatly boosted the NBA's reputation. Stern and the entire NBA Board of Governors were quite satisfied with this situation.

Therefore, at the All-Star Gala, the CEO would naturally sit down and dine with the top star.

The two chatted casually until Wang Fuxi left to chat with acquaintances at the next table. Stern then lowered his voice and said, "I heard you've been getting quite close to the White House lately?"

Gan Guoyang said, "I heard it? Who told you? Shaq?"

"What does this have to do with Shaq? Anyway, I advise you not to get too close to the White House; you won't get away with it."

Gan Guoyang nodded. The heat of the Clinton scandal has subsided recently, and the president's candor and the first lady's tolerance have led the American people to choose forgiveness.

Although Lewinsky continued to release bombshell revelations, including details of their relationship and the blue dress stained with tadpoles.

But all of this only became fodder for gossip and a source of amusement for the American public, making Clinton lose face, and nothing more; it could not shake Clinton's presidency.

Despite gathering ample evidence, the prosecution and opposition, led by Starr, were unable to deliver a fatal blow to Clinton.

They couldn't understand why the Clintons, who were known for lying and denying everything, were so open and prescient in leaking information beforehand.

By employing a strategy of retreating in order to advance, he ultimately protected himself and escaped this calamity.

Rumors quickly spread that Clinton had been advised by a powerful figure who had received advance intelligence that Starr's side possessed a wealth of evidence, which was why he prematurely revealed his secret.

However, no one can say for sure who this expert is or just how skilled he is.

Stern was always sharp-witted and well-informed; he must have heard some news from Washington.

"I know, my focus has always been on basketball, and I'm not interested in politics or anything like that. Besides, I'm Chinese."

"Just because you're Chinese, you have to be extra careful! Someone could use that against you at any time! Sometimes I find it unbelievable myself that our star player, our most influential player, is Chinese. I even wake up in the middle of the night and ask myself, 'This is fucking insane.' But you're special; you were developed by American basketball, and everyone loves you. But the deeper the love, the deeper the hate—you have to understand that. Be careful."

When facing Gan Guoyang, Stern always spoke very directly and clearly, never hiding anything.

Gan Guoyang understood that Stern made sense, and he asked, "If something happens to me, will you protect me?"

What's wrong? For example?

"For example... for example, I slept with a waitress in a hotel in a small town. Then the next day she called the police, saying I raped her, and everyone knows about it. What should I do?"

"What kind of problem is this? Of course I'll support you. Try to settle it through a lawsuit or by spending money. It's a small matter... unless, of course, the person you're sleeping with is Hillary Clinton, then I'll have to think twice."

They both laughed, and Stern continued, "Also, when something like this happens, the person you really need to deal with is your wife, not whether we support her or not. She's a tough one."

Gan Guoyang nodded in agreement. In fact, in American society, the issue of "lower body" is often not a big problem.

If even the president can be forgiven, it's perfectly normal for a basketball superstar who's been through the motions of fame and fortune to have some personal issues.

People who are so self-disciplined like Gan Guoyang seem abnormal to ordinary people. Isn't this guy too perfect?

"So what is the real big problem?"

“The real big problem… is something like Rauf’s problem.”

Mohammed Abdul Rauf, nicknamed the Moonlight Pistol, was a promising star player when he first entered the league.

He has excellent shooting ability and is extremely accurate at the free throw line, with a season-high free throw percentage of 95.6%. He averages 19 points per game and is a promising rising star.

But like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Hakeem Olajuwon, he converted to Islam and refused to appear during the pre-game national anthem in 1996.

This move angered fans, and some reported it to the league, arguing that Rauf's actions were highly inappropriate and that he should no longer play in the NBA.

The league launched an investigation, but Rauf insisted that his beliefs conflicted with the national anthem ceremony, so Stern decided to suspend him.

For each game suspended, Rauf would lose $31707 in salary. He then reached an agreement with the league that he could attend the national anthem ceremony but could choose to close his eyes or look down instead of staring at the American flag.

Rauf returned to the NBA, but his performance and reputation plummeted. He was booed by fans wherever he went, who felt he didn't love America and wondered why he was still playing there.

After the 96 season, Rauf was traded to the Kings, gradually falling from a near All-Star level player to a regular starter.

So far this season, he is on the verge of unemployment, fans don't support him and he is not welcome, and his performance on the field is getting worse and worse.

Compared to the issue of the crotch, which is considered a low-level matter, traditional American society places high demands on moral qualities such as patriotism. The Rauf issue is also a major headache for the NBA.

Fortunately, he was just a relatively ordinary near-All-Star player with little influence, so the league punished him by marginalizing him.

Stern dared not imagine what the league would do if Gan Guoyang encountered such a problem.
Suspension? Cut ties? Or protect them at all costs?

After Gan Guoyang retired, the league shifted its promotional focus to Michael Jordan.

Three championships in four years constituted a dynasty, but as a pure African American, Jordan also faced considerable public scrutiny.

Gambling and the death of his father are minor issues; Jordan's inaction in politics has been widely criticized.

As a Black man, he did not stand with other Black people, which led to him being attacked a lot.

The league will certainly do its best to downplay the issue in the media and prevent political rhetoric from getting on the NBA court.

Now that Forrest Gump is back, his influence in the NBA is even greater, but the trouble he carries might be even greater than Jordan's.

Gan Guoyang didn't care. He said, "Rauf doesn't love his country. I'm different; I can love my country."

Stern rolled his eyes at him and said, "What country do you love?"

"I love China."

"This is America! That's the problem." "I love America too. I pay my taxes regularly, provide exciting basketball games for the American people, and I attend every national anthem ceremony, even though I don't sing. I respect the patriotism of Americans."

"What would you do if the United States and China went to war?"

"Of course I'm going back to China, otherwise, would I stay here and be locked up in a concentration camp?"

"So, what will the NBA do?"

"David, are you crazy? There's a war going on and you're still thinking about the NBA? Why don't you say aliens have come and you want to cooperate with them to play basketball?"

"Stop trying to brush me off. You know what I mean, Sonny. You need to be more careful!"

Stern issued a warning to Gan Guoyang, but Gan Guoyang, knowing what was going on, didn't take it to heart.

The All-Star Game this weekend is a highly competitive and talked-about contest.

Because of Gan Guoyang's hype, the pre-match buzz surrounding Kobe vs. Jordan was even greater than that of the traditional Gan vs. Jordan matchup.

After all, Gan vs. Joe has been going on for so many years, everyone's getting a bit tired of it. It's the All-Star Game, after all, so we need something new.

Kobe, the youngest starter in NBA history, appeared remarkably slender among the strong Western Conference All-Stars.

But this did not intimidate Kobe. His adrenaline surged, and he was eager to show himself in the game.

Because of Gan Guoyang's presence, the Western All-Stars were happy to give Kobe the ball and let him play. Western All-Star head coach Larry Bird promised to give Kobe enough time to perform—provided that he didn't play too badly or miss too many shots.

Kobe did not disappoint those who trusted him, shining in the first quarter with a series of aerial stunts.

This included a 360-degree dunk, followed by an alley-oop dunk on the next possession.

In response, Jordan didn't attack the basket, but instead finished his offense with one simple fadeaway jump shot after another.

He saw his younger self in Kobe, the guy who loved to fly around the court.

Now that Jordan is 35 years old, it's difficult for him to have a strong competitive mentality in the All-Star game anymore, unless that person is Forrest Gump.

He knew that Agan was stirring things up in yesterday's situation, but he couldn't back down in public; he had to make his point.

Once on the court, Jordan's gaze was no longer focused on Kobe, but on Forrest Gump—this guy wanted to watch the show?
No way! He'd be more likely to step down from the stage and perform himself.

In the second half, the East team was leading by a large margin.

The reason is that Jordan dominated the game with his efficient and precise offense.

Although Kobe played a very flashy and attractive game, Jordan used his mid-range shots to help the Eastern team gain an advantage.

During halftime, Jordan yelled at Gan Guoyang, "You should step up, you softie. Are you always letting your underlings stand up for you?"

“Show me some respect, Michael. What’s wrong with you lately? Have you been losing too much gambling, or have you been getting into some kind of mental breakdown from all that backstabbing with Jerry Krause?”

"Fuck you, don't mention that disgusting guy. I just want to tell you, stop watching the show, come and play your part, and settle things once and for all."

It was clear that Kobe couldn't hold his own. He was playing very hard and was very talented, but he was ultimately just a second-year rookie.

Moreover, this kid is as disrespectful as ever. When Malone tried to set a screen for him, he told Malone to get lost and not interfere with his one-on-one game.

Gan Guoyang responded, "Well done. But don't say that to your Trail Blazers teammates next time, or I'll find a way to trade you to Salt Lake City."

In the second half, Gan Guoyang stopped pretending and went on stage to perform himself, no longer bothering with the show.

Gan Guoyang led the western troops in launching a counterattack in the third quarter.

This time, Gan Guoyang has completely moved to the small forward position. Anyway, defense isn't that important in the All-Star game.

The key is offense, quick counter-attacks, and scoring points rapidly.

Larry Bird thoughtfully substituted Stockton, whose partnership with Gan Guoyang was simply seamless in the low-intensity All-Star game.

The ball and player arrived at the same time, easily tearing apart the Eastern Conference team's defense and scoring quickly with numerous fast breaks and counterattacks.

The 12-point deficit in the first half was wiped out in just half a quarter, bringing the two teams back to the same starting line.

Jordan also started to get into form, making breakthroughs, pull-up jumpers, and layups with different hands, scoring all sorts of spectacular goals, making it hard to believe that he was already 35 years old.

At this age, Dr. J (Irving) is already past his prime and on the verge of retirement, while Jordan is still playing like an MVP.

Of course, the guy on the other side was the MVP, and the match became an arena for the two of them, with the competition becoming increasingly intense.

The fans in the stadium were on edge, wondering who would win tonight. It seemed like both teams were taking it seriously.

Eastern Conference coach Bobby Bellman used timeouts repeatedly at the start of the fourth quarter to make substitutions and even devise tactics.

Not to be outdone, Bird also fielded his strongest lineup, keeping Kobe on the bench to watch.

Kobe was unhappy and said, "You promised to let me play more."

Bird replied, "At this point, letting you watch is more important than letting you hit. Watch carefully."

Both sides entered decisive mode in the final moments, with everyone giving 100% focus to the game.

This was even more exciting than the Finals; you can't get 10 superstars going head-to-head in the Finals.

With Jordan hitting a difficult fadeaway jumper over Gan Guoyang's defense, the East team changed the score to 134-133 in the final moments, taking a 1-point lead!
The entire Madison Square Garden was filled with cheers. Although Jordan often beat the Knicks to a pulp here, New York fans all loved Jordan.

In the previous few rounds, Jordan had failed to score against Gan Guoyang's defense, but he made this crucial shot.

Larry Bird immediately called a timeout and substituted Kobe into the game as a decoy, because Kobe had once made a game-winning shot after receiving a pass from Gan Guoyang.

Bird then devised a very simple tactic: Gan Guoyang would set a screen for Kobe, and after receiving the ball on the wing, he would launch an attack directly.

Are you confident you can complete this attack?

"Of course, I am Sonny Gan."

A dozen seconds later, Gan Guoyang set a screen for Kobe on the wing, and Kobe took the defense away.

Gan Guoyang received the inbound pass from Stockton and, at a 45-degree angle on the right wing, 18 feet from the basket, turned and launched a hook shot!

A shooting move that only Gan Guoyang could make: with his back to the defender, he receives the ball, turns around, and hooks the ball toward the basket with one hand.

The ball flew smoothly into the basket from an extremely long distance and with an incredibly high level of difficulty, giving the West team a 135-134 victory over the East team!
After scoring, Gan Guoyang raised his right hand high, like the Statue of Liberty in New York, securing the victory and being named Star of the Stars.

When presenting the award to Gan Guoyang, David Stern couldn't help but exclaim, "He's a truly amazing guy. No matter what happens in the future, we have to protect him, or the league will be finished..."

The league has invested too much in Forrest Gump; there's no turning back now.

(End of this chapter)