The Golden Age of Basketball

"You wear a fine suit but have cheap shoes, you look like a country hick, a clean and tidy hick with a touch of taste. Good nutrition makes you tall and strong, but you're still the descendant of poor white people, right, Coach Larry Bird? You try desperately to shake off your accent, the pure Indiana cornfield accent. Dear, what do your parents do? Farmers operating combines in the cornfields, or butchers hammering cows to death? You try to cover your deep inferiority with arrogance, you don't want to marry a country girl, have seven or eight kids, and follow your ancestors' life on the farm. You dream of escaping and joining the NBA~."

Bird looked at Gan Guoyang as if he was a monster, and said, "Don't tell me you're Dr. Hannibal, f**k you, I'm done. Let Rick be the head coach, I don't want to be eaten by you."

Successfully mimicking Dr. Hannibal's first line to Agent Starling in "Silence of the Lambs," Gan Guoyang felt very proud, laughed heartily, and said, "You can't escape now, Larry, being eaten by me is the fate of every NBA player."

Bird listened to Gan Guoyang's words and felt this joke was half-serious.

Yes, who hasn't been eaten by him? Only those who retired early and those who never got into the league.

The last week of September, the long-awaited Trail Blazers rookie training camp for both Gan Guoyang and Bird was finally about to begin.

The training location was as usual arranged at the scenic Willamette University gym.

The day before the training started, rookie Kobe Bryant was too excited to sleep.

Around three in the morning, Kobe called regardless of whether Gan Guoyang was resting or not.

Fortunately, Gan Guoyang had already changed the noisy bell to an electronic beep, which made him less irritable when woken by the phone.

"Who is it, is it China calling?" Gan Guoyang asked calmly.

Because sometimes he would receive high-level overseas calls from China,

"No, it's me, Kobe Bryant!"

"F**k you, Kobe, what time is it? It's not even four in the morning!"

Upon hearing it was Kobe, Gan Guoyang's voice immediately became irritable.

"But I can't sleep."

"If you can't sleep, don't sleep. Why call me? Am I a late-night hotline?"

"Uh... I wanted to discuss the rookie training camp situation with you. I've heard many rumors, saying every rookie training camp is the worst in your opinion."

"Calling me at three in the morning like this, if you're not the worst batch, who is?"

Facing Gan Guoyang's anger, Kobe didn't think he had done anything wrong.

Instead, he continued to vent his excitement on the phone, repeatedly asking Gan Guoyang about training.

His questions were so many that Gan Guoyang didn't know how to answer.

Gan Guoyang felt like a fly buzzing in his ear, yet he couldn't bear to hang up.

Because he felt Kobe's passion for basketball was so infectious.

It's a passion that ordinary people find hard to understand and impossible to accept.

Only fellow fanatics like Gan Guoyang, or Larry Bird, could understand.

They must also appreciate Coach Bill Fitch's mode of coaching, though such players are few and far between.

Eventually, Gan Guoyang drowsily talked to Kobe for an hour on the phone, he couldn't remember what he said.

After hanging up, he couldn't sleep either. He got up, did some warm-up exercises, took a bath, and prepared himself breakfast.

At around six in the morning, when he felt it was time, Gan Guoyang decided to call Little O'Neal.

In over two months, Kobe had frequently reached out to Gan Guoyang, asking about everything.

Whereas Little O'Neal needed Gan Guoyang's reminders, not because he was lazy, but because he was shy and introverted around Gan Guoyang.

Kobe needed some restraint, and Little O'Neal needed guidance and encouragement, this was Gan Guoyang's initial assessment.

"Jermaine, you should get up, stop rolling in a girl's arms, and get up early to prepare for today's training. It's the first day of rookie camp, I don't want to see you late."

"Oh... okay... I'm not with a girl; I'm living alone."

"Really? Can you promise to live alone for the entire first year of your rookie season?"

"I... I don't know."

Jermaine O'Neal rented an apartment near Willamette University as a temporary residence.

In high school, he was once caught "in bed" by a girl's father, which nearly had a negative impact on his career.

Fortunately, the girl was willing, and they were in a relationship rather than forced or deceived.

Gan Guoyang knew about this incident and knew that after entering the NBA, the temptations would be abundant.

Especially women, lust is a knife that cuts to the bone. When Drexler was around, he would give rookies the "Portland Strip Club Guide" every year.

Now the prostitution in Portland is rampant, and young black players who earn a salary find it nearly impossible to resist the temptation to play there.

While Gan Guoyang couldn't interfere with where his teammates go, he would offer reminders to young players; whether they listen is up to their fate and awareness.

Especially Little O'Neal and Kobe, who are high school graduates and haven't attended college, are prone to getting lost in the glitz.

Especially Kobe, who's considered quite handsome among black people, most likely to attract attention.

At this age, it's the prime time to improve their game; there'll be plenty of opportunities to play in the future.

At seven in the morning, Gan Guoyang arrived on time at the Willamette University gym.

In the past, Gan Guoyang was always the first to arrive, sometimes even before dawn to train at the gym.

Today, however, he heard the sound of bouncing basketballs coming from inside; someone was already playing.

It turned out to be Kobe Bryant, who was wearing the Trail Blazers training outfit, playing alone on the court, dribbling, shooting, running.

He was highly focused and committed, with every move tense and meticulous, occasionally pausing to think and analyze his actions, muttering to himself to make adjustments, then repeating the next move, repeat, repeat, and repeat again.

Gan Guoyang watched him from afar, as if looking at his former self.

At this moment, someone suddenly called him from behind, "San… Ah… Mr. Gump!"

Within the Trail Blazers Team, the only one who respectfully called Gan Guoyang "Mr. Gump" was Little O'Neal.

Gan Guoyang turned to see Little O'Neal standing behind him, panting, and asked, "What's up? Did you run over here yourself?"

"Yes, I live nearby, and I don't have a car, so I ran all the way here."

In America, besides children, it's rare not to have a car; kids have toy cars, and disabled people have disability cars.

Little O'Neal had just signed a contract, handed most of his salary to his mother, and hadn't kept much for himself, so he hadn't bought a car yet.

Gan Guoyang said, "I'll give you a car, provided you train well. Since it's the first day, you can first have a one-on-one with me."

"Ah? Mr. Gump, this…"

"On the first day, you should perform well. From now on, just call me Gan or Sonny."

"OK, Mr. Gump."

"..."