The Golden Age of Basketball

Actively participating in the labor dispute was just a small episode in Gan Guoyang's basketball career.

He knew in his heart that the NBA, as a business, wouldn't decline quickly and would only grow stronger.

With this confidence, he was assured during the negotiations, knowing that neither the owners nor the players wanted to break this rice bowl.

As long as balance and coordination were well-maintained, this millionaire-making machine, the dream factory for basketball youths, would continue to operate and churn out more and more money.

Throughout this process, Gan Guoyang remained fair and strict as always, using his incredible energy, rich experience, and cunning tactics to stand on equal footing with David Stern.

Stern really had no way to deal with Gan Guoyang for a time; this top disciple of Larry Fleisher was indeed adept, and he had many resources he could mobilize.

Of course, Gan Guoyang wasn't as selfless as he appeared; he had personal motives.

First, the mid-level exception and veteran minimum contracts provided the Trail Blazers with more flexible salary cap management.

It facilitated future enhancements for the Trail Blazers; otherwise, Gan Guoyang's salary alone would exceed the entire salary cap, and the Trail Blazers would lose the opportunity to sign helpers.

With the Trail Blazers' current lineup, winning the championship would be quite difficult; apart from Ah Gan, one could say the old were too old and the young were too young.

To enhance roster depth in the future, some trades would be necessary to sign capable players, and the mid-level exception and veteran minimum contracts would be important tools.

Secondly, the new transition labor agreement left room for superstar contracts, allowing Gan Guoyang to sign a record-breaking $100 million contract over three years.

As a retired and then returned player, Gan Guoyang had many points for negotiation on the over-the-cap renewal issue, and the league gave the green light, providing a signing exception for the Trail Blazers.

His annual salary set a historical record in North American professional sports, with an income exceeding $30 million a year, befitting his status as a seven-time champion.

Otherwise, once the luxury tax was imposed, or if a maximum salary rule was established, Gan Guoyang certainly wouldn't have secured such a big contract.

After Gan Guoyang signed this unprecedentedly massive contract, in the summer of 1996, Michael Jordan, who became a free agent, also demanded a huge contract from the Chicago Bulls.

After repeated negotiations and back-and-forths, Reinsdorf finally gave Jordan a four-year, $118 million mega-contract.

Although this contract didn't surpass Gan Guoyang's in terms of annual salary, its total amount set a new historical record.

Shortly thereafter, the Seattle SuperSonics offered Ewing a contract with an annual salary of $18 million to continue their championship pursuit.

The SuperSonics' consecutive Western Conference appearances in the Finals were largely credited to Ewing's performance; his defense and low-post offensive ability were what the Supersonics desperately needed.

And his rebounding had improved; after all, the Supersonics' backcourt rebounding protection was already poor, bringing in Ewing was a significant enhancement.

Because of Ah Gan's presence, the status of the center was further strengthened in the 1990s.

During the Olympics, the Los Angeles Lakers reached an agreement with O'Neal, finalizing a 7-year, $120 million contract, once again setting an NBA contract record.

The Lakers' original plan was to offer O'Neal $96 million, but seeing the prevalence of hundred-million-dollar contracts, Jerry West very boldly increased the contract amount to $120 million.

As a result, the Orlando Magic no longer had the strength or sincerity to compete with the Lakers; they lost the best talent in their team's history and wasted a precious No. 1 draft pick.

In terms of annual salary, O'Neal's more than $17 million a year accounted for two-thirds of the salary cap, leaving only one-third for the other Lakers players.

But in reality, O'Neal's first-year salary was $10.71 million after moving to the West Coast, accounting for less than half of the salary cap.

The salary would increase each subsequent year, reaching $23 million in the 2002-2003 season, the final year of the contract, if O'Neal opted in.

From this, it was clear that players and teams were optimistic about the overall revenue growth of the League.

It wasn't just the NBA; in American cinema, Jim Carrey's salary also reached $20 million.

In Mike Tyson's first fight after being released from prison, he earned $65 million.

The shockingly high salaries at the top of the arts and sports industry, with "0"s that left ordinary people dizzy, essentially stemmed from the booming American economy in the 1990s.

With no fetters from the Soviet Union and under Clinton's administration, American society entered a golden period of development; they were truly the world leader.

The NBA seized this opportunity and expanded their market to all of America and even the entire world, and revenues naturally increased significantly.

The grand summer of 1996 was filled with the scent of money in the air.

Even Alonzo Mourning, who in the top teams of the 80s could barely serve as a second-in-command center, was taken by New York with a seven-year, $105 million contract.

He should have stayed in Charlotte, but starting from the third year, his relationship with Larry Johnson deteriorated sharply, and they went from friends and comrades to hostile enemies.

Johnson, who arrived a year earlier, already had a 12-year, $84 million long-term contract with the Hornets, and Mourning had a bad relationship with Hornets owner Shinn, so Mourning had to leave.

Senior alumnus Ewing and coach John-Thompson gave him clear advice: Go to New York, go there to fill the void Ewing left behind.