The Golden Age of Basketball

Kobe’s two missed free throws made the Trail Blazers lose a great opportunity to catch up in score.

Subsequently, Gan Guoyang caused Lafrentz to foul under the basket and calmly made both free throws, establishing the Glory Team’s victory.

Indeed, the older ginger is spicier; Gan Guoyang had been saving his strength until the final phase before exerting it.

Though Kobe had abundant stamina, fighting till the last moment inevitably led to a decline in offensive efficiency.

98:94, the Christmas Day match of 2006 came to an end, Kobe scored 47 points, exactly half of the team’s total.

At the end of the match, Kobe and Gan Guoyang hugged. Gan Guoyang looked at Kobe, who appeared somewhat tired and unhappy, and said, "You did very well, man, don’t push yourself too hard."

"I’m not pushing myself, I’m just trying to do my best."

"Your best doesn’t always mean the team’s best. I hope you can understand this. I’ve figured it out, and you can too."

With that, Gan Guoyang smiled, said goodbye to Kobe, and went to the sidelines to reunite and embrace his family, taking photos together and signing autographs for the fans.

Kobe walked alone back to the locker room. Every time he competed with Ah Gan, Kobe would gain some insights.

He had been learning from Ah Gan all his life but couldn’t fully master it. Later, he decided to forge his own path and succeeded. But now, it seemed like he needed to learn from Ah Gan again.

Gan Guoyang tonight scored 18 points, grabbed 16 rebounds, and made 4 blocks. Since Allen Iverson joined, Gan Guoyang’s scoring has been consistently dropping.

His average score is about to fall below 20 points; is it truly because he lacks the ability?

Clearly not, before Iverson joined, he averaged 25 points and scored 50 against the Lakers, truly an old steed in proper form.

Since Iverson joined, he willingly gave up ball possession because Iverson couldn’t protect the rim or grab rebounds, right?

Ah Gan went on defense, protected the rim, positioned himself, and fought for rebounds. At 42, he battled young players in the Three Second Zone every night.

In fact, Ah Gan had always been like this since he first entered the League, letting his teammates be themselves while he took on the leftover tasks.

Kobe recalled Ah Gan’s time with the Trail Blazers; wasn’t it the same back then?

Except Kobe was too young then to understand many things deeply or feel them profoundly.

Over the years, he experienced many ups and downs, falling to the bottom and scaling the heights, now he was tumbling downward again.

Ah Gan, he is the most lively, a teacher beside people providing reference and strength, from him, one can continuously learn excellent qualities.

Years after Gan Guoyang retired, many stars who fought and competed against him expressed that they learned many things from Ah Gan that benefited them for life.

"We must admit one thing: Since 1984, the NBA has been under the influence of two figures, one is David Stern, the other is Sunny Gan. The latter’s influence is greater than the former’s because he impacts the players’ spirit and conduct."

A great superstar can indeed have a massive impact on the court.

The originator, is there truly no successor? The power of role models is immense; if you start something, others will follow and continue it.

Iverson, Kobe, despite their poor conduct off the court, exhibit many commendable qualities on the court.

Of course, some are not influenced by Gan Guoyang, or claim not to be influenced by Ah Gan, never calling themselves Ah Gan’s disciples.

Ultimately, each person can freely choose their path; it doesn’t necessarily have to be an arduous one.

After defeating the Trail Blazers, Glory’s record soared to fourth place in the Western Conference, pushing the Trail Blazers to fifth, finally returning to the upper echelon.

After three years of dormancy, Gan Guoyang and Glory once again revealed their sharp fangs, becoming a significant threat to all strong teams in the League.

Of course, the current Gan Guoyang has restrained his edge, becoming Glory’s third point of ball possession in the offense.

The core offensive rights were handed over to Allen Iverson and Yao Ming, a sign of Gan Guoyang progressively delegating authority.

Gan Guoyang’s approach had always been like this, thoughtful and meticulously planned, never ignoring the details, thoroughly managing everything.

When he left the Trail Blazers, he left a championship foundation; honestly, with Kobe and Nike carrying such a foundation into two finals, only winning a single championship was definitely inadequate.

No wonder each time Kobe sees Ah Gan now, he feels uneasy, being pierced by Iverson’s statement that "everything you have is given by Ah Gan."

Now Gan Guoyang knows full well this is the last season, yet he hasn’t focused his energy and resources on a grand retirement tour or farewell performance.

Only a few key personnel vaguely perceive this; others don’t think this is Ah Gan’s final season.

Domestic media speculate that Ah Gan might play the 2007-2008 season and complete the 2008 Olympics before retiring and leaving.

With these optimistic expectations, everyone believes Ah Gan will play for another year, but in reality, Gan Guoyang is already preparing to leave.

Besides cultivating Iverson, it’s even more crucial to nurture Yao Ming. Over the past few seasons, with a civil servant style of play, Yao Ming has built a very solid foundation.

Now, it’s time to assign him more responsibilities, have him shoulder greater offensive burdens.

For instance, bear more output and possess the ability to control the situation and make key shots in crucial moments.

Under Gan Guoyang’s plan, Yao Ming steps steadily forward, refraining from blindly gaining weight, valuing flexibility training more.

He frequently engages in weight-free exercises during training, jumping rope, playing elastic bands, bouncing rubber balls, playing Pong, and so forth.