The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 1847 - 76: Boundless Horizons

Gan Guoyang’s vow hit the headlines of the news media on August 21st and 22nd, but it didn’t cause much of a stir.

After all, this matter has been going on for too long, and the peak of its hype has long passed. In 2000, Gan Guoyang won the championship and had a grand retirement ceremony.

Then in September, he would represent China Team to participate in the Olympics, with the first match against Team USA, which would definitely create a storm in the media.

Therefore, the topics about Gan Guoyang are fully packed from past to future, and the "spy case" has become an outdated focus of attention.

After such a case ended, it’s quite normal for Gan Guoyang to complain a bit or even curse, it’s no big deal.

Thus, the headline reports just briefly mentioned it without triggering much related discussion.

Over the years, criticism and attacks on America have been countless, with experts giving sharp critiques and citizens complaining.

Gan Guoyang’s few words were really innocuous, lacking significant impact, and everyone was more concerned about whether he’d bring substantial damage to the Dream Team at the Sydney Olympics.

After all, unlike the star-studded teams of 1992 and 1996, the roster for professional players representing America in the 2000 Olympics indeed didn’t quite stand out.

The current league’s most popular and strong players all declined to participate, such as Shaquille O’Neal and Tim Duncan, who for various reasons, could not represent America.

O’Neal refused the Dream Team’s lineup, he’d participated in the 1996 Olympics when he was still young, but now in his prime, and with Ah Gan retired, he’s the undisputed top center in the league and even the world.

But O’Neal expressed that he had lost interest in the Olympics, and there were many excellent interior players on the team, so his absence wouldn’t matter.

Of course, this is just O’Neal’s surface excuse, and no one believes it. Many speculate that O’Neal didn’t want to join the Olympics and end up facing Ah Gan in games.

Ah Gan has finally retired from the NBA, and O’Neal no longer has to face Ah Gan in matches, only to run off to Sydney to be tortured—it’s insane, isn’t it?

Another explanation is that O’Neal was resentful of the unfair treatment he received in the 1996 Olympics, as he only got 1 minute of playtime in the finals.

Although Team USA eventually won the gold medal, in Atlanta, at the home of Team USA, O’Neal sat on the bench the entire final, which made him feel ashamed.

O’Neal, known for holding grudges, was deeply resentful about being left out in 1992 for Reiner, given limited playtime in 1996, and now being asked again in 2000 to endure suffering? "I’m done with you all!"

Reflecting on 8 years of entanglements and conflicts between O’Neal and the United States Olympic Committee, it’s perfectly normal that he didn’t participate in the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

As for Tim Duncan, he was willing to participate in the Olympics, joined the training, played games, but had to withdraw due to a knee injury during training.

Duncan’s knee injury not only prevented him from participating in this Olympics but also cast a shadow over the Celtics’ championship path next season. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Since Bobby Berman left Oregon, he’s been worried about Duncan’s injury, often lamenting why he can’t be like Ah Gan, never getting injured.

Without O’Neal and Duncan, the two most talented giants on the inside, Team USA couldn’t recruit geniuses like Kobe Bryant and Allen Iverson on the outside.

Kobe’s reason for not participating was due to considering marriage plans in the summer, after winning the 2000 championship and achieving an early three-peat, Kobe temporarily shifted his focus back to family.

His relationship with Vanessa was the talk of the town, and his home was in chaos, with his parents adamantly against Vanessa entering the household, while Kobe was determined to marry her.

With such a dramatic situation, Kobe had no time to consider the Olympics, although deep down, he wanted to go because he wanted to defeat Ah Gan in the games.

When the Chinese Men’s Basketball Team was training in Eugene, Kobe made a special visit, serving as a sparring partner and playing a practice match against the Chinese players.

Kobe found that Gan Guoyang’s condition was quite excellent, possibly even better than during the playoffs and finals.

After undergoing regular, scientific training, his weight, stamina, and skills had reached a very good level.

Seeing Ah Gan in such great condition, Kobe couldn’t resist the urge to join the American Men’s Basketball Team, as he could substitute in anytime given someone else’s withdrawal.

However, after Grant Hill withdrew due to injury, Kobe pondered for a while and ultimately gave up the substitute opportunity.

Because next season would be the first after Gan Guoyang’s departure from the Trail Blazers, Kobe would take the lead as the Trail Blazers’ main star.

The era of Ah Gan in Portland was over, and Kobe would face immense pressure and challenges, so he didn’t want to risk participating in the Olympics.

After resolving family issues, he needed to pour all his energy into training, fully preparing to be the leader in the next season.

Without Kobe, O’Neal, or Duncan, the best talents in the league couldn’t enter this Dream Team.

However, the league still assembled a well-capable Olympic team with Kevin Garnett, Alonzo Mourning, Vince Carter, Ray Allen, Jason Kidd, and Tim Hardaway.

But when it came to choosing a coach, the United States Olympic Committee fell into trouble again: no coach was willing to coach this Dream Team, as everyone felt enormous pressure.