The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 384 - 4 Trip to Italy_2

When Doctor J slammed dunked on the big screen, some fans would run up to the screen and scream—Gan Guoyang’s game videos had the same effect.

Afterward, Italy’s media tycoon Berlusconi bought the CBS broadcasting rights for the NBA and fed the live signal into his Canale 5 television network, broadcasting across all of Italy.

By 1984, the NBA had already gained enormous influence in Italy, and that summer, the League sent the New Jersey Nets and the Phoenix Suns to Italy for a series of preseason exhibition games.

On the plane to their destination, Larry Fleisher told Gan Guoyang that his popularity in Italy was second only to Maradona.

"Moreover, Maradona’s market is mainly in South Italy, in Naples, in Northern Italy, Maradona is just a villain."

Last month Maradona had just led Argentina to a World Cup victory, but his "Hand of God" goal during the match had filled him with controversy.

In the Italian soccer world, he was a combination of an angel and a devil; the more the people of Naples in the south loved him, the more the fans of the northern powerhouses hated him.

Hearing Fleisher’s assessment of Maradona, Gan Guoyang said, "I don’t want to be any angel; I just want to be the devil."

Fleisher said, "You’re devil enough, killing off the Celtics in just two years, Auerbach is going crazy."

"Is that so? I’ve got Dr. Ogilvy’s number here; he’s very good with mental illnesses. Take it to Redhead, might be useful."

"Don’t be so mean, Sonny."

"He deserves it."

Auerbach was an outstanding basketball coach and manager, his theories and practices were pioneering, and he was a master at team building and player development.

However, some of his behaviors made it difficult for his opponents to appreciate him, and Gan Guoyang and the Trail Blazers players had been tormented during the finals, most likely under Auerbach’s direction.

After a 16-hour long-haul flight, crossing the entire United States and the Atlantic Ocean, as well as part of Europe, the group finally arrived at their destination, Trieste.

This was the first stop on Gan Guoyang’s Italian journey, a very important port city in Northern Italy and the terminus of the Maritime Silk Road, which could be said to have a close connection with China.

After checking into the designated hotel and adjusting for the jet lag, the next day, Gan Guoyang took Wang Fuxi, Gan Guohui, and others to stroll and wander the streets of Trieste.

Indeed, this place was very different from American cities, full of the unique charm of the European Mediterranean, with great weather in June, clear and dry, blue sea and sky—it’s no wonder that many American players were attracted to live and play basketball here.

However, it wasn’t long before Gan Guoyang realized what Fleisher had said was right; he was very popular in Italy.

His tall stature made him quickly recognized by passersby, and soon people came over to ask him for autographs, and tourists with cameras asked to take photos with him.

As more and more people gathered around, Gan Guoyang and his companions could no longer tour properly, and they eventually had to return to the hotel escorted by Quentin and Aiva’s security.

The next day, on the day of the event, Gan Guoyang met Michael Jordan at the Palatrieste stadium, their first encounter since the finals.

"Hey, Michael!" Seeing Jordan, Gan Guoyang was very excited to go over and greet him.

Jordan, however, seemed somewhat reluctant, tilting his head and returning a faint "Hi."

"You’re so cold, Michael, why haven’t I been able to contact you recently? Is your phone broken?"

"I don’t have a phone at home."

"Really? You don’t have a phone at home, then do you even have a television?"

"Yes, I forgot to pay the fee, what about it?"

"Then, I’m delighted to inform you that I’ve won the NBA championship."

"Oh, okay, congratulations, congratulations to you!"

Jordan certainly knew that Gan Guoyang had won the championship, which is why he kept silent, not wanting to contact this guy.

Little did he know that despite trying to avoid him, they ended up being in Italy together for a brand promotion event.

This summer, Nike had organized a European tour for Jordan to promote his new shoes, Air Jordan 2.

And like last year, Avia, taking advantage of Nike’s resources in Europe, dragged Gan Guoyang along to promote Skyscraper.

It was a mutual use, Avia took advantage of Nike’s extensive resources, while Nike used Gan Guoyang’s vast prestige.

With the success of last year’s cooperation, this year’s collaboration seemed natural, except Jordan wasn’t too happy.

Gan Guoyang’s championship win gave Jordan a huge stimulus, and also a great motivation to achieve something in the new season.

Due to the simultaneous appearance of the two new stars, the exhibition game today attracted a massive audience to the venue, with many unable to get in and only able to watch from outside.

Jordan represented the local Trieste Team, while Gan Guoyang wore the white jersey of the visiting Juvecaserta Team.

Before the game started, Gan Guoyang said to his temporary teammates, "Jordan is very good, but don’t worry, as long as I’m here, his team will not beat us."

Although it was an exhibition game, this was the first encounter between Gan Guoyang and Jordan in a year, and both were extremely excited, so the game was incredibly intense.

The two were clearly much better than everyone else in personal ability, and the game quickly turned into their personal show.

During the game, because the quality of the arena’s basketball hoop was not strong enough, it was shattered once by Gan Guoyang and once by Jordan, scattering glass all over the floor!

This crazy showdown drove the fans in the arena wild, with screams and shouts filling the entire gymnasium.

At first, Jordan shattered the hoop, and when a new one was brought in, and the field was changed in the second half, Gan Guoyang also broke the new hoop, and the entire crowd flooded onto the court, surrounding the two of them.

The result of the game no longer mattered; the fans just wanted to get up close and personal with these two basketball idols.

With the utmost effort from the security staff, the two were finally able to extricate themselves from the crowd and return to the locker room, waiting for the crowd to cool down before going back out.

"I’ve already smashed it once, do you have to be so strong? Don’t you know how to hold back?" In the locker room, Jordan reproached Gan Guoyang for not being careful with his strength.

"I didn’t even use much force! Think about it, if you could break it, how could I not? It’s just that the hoop’s quality is too poor," Gan Guoyang complained.

Just then, Larry Flesher came to the locker room and knocked on the door, saying, "There’s a little fan who wants to meet you guys, take a picture and get an autograph, do him a favor, buddy."

"Who is it, that you, Larry, would open a back door for?" Gan Guoyang asked.

"Joe Bryant’s son, seems his name is Kobe."