The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 97 - 4 Sparring Partner

"During downtime in training, I was usually Bob Knight’s stooge, the target of his biting jokes, which reporters lapped up like thirsty dogs. One day he said, ’Getting Charles down to 215 pounds is like sending Raquel Welch (a famous sex symbol from the 60s) for plastic surgery.’"

Someone told me this, thinking I’d blow up, but I just laughed it off. I thought it was a witty remark and saw no reason to get mad over something like that.

But then Knight made a comment that did tick me off. He said, ’Gan’s rebounding is much better than yours’, which I couldn’t stand because I’ve always taken great pride in my rebounding abilities.

After that, I started to compete with Gan, determined to out-rebound him. Sadly, this ambition hasn’t been realized up to now, but I still refuse to concede."

————Excerpt from Charles Barkley’s autobiography "Outrageous!" published in 1992.

(Raquel Welch)

Gan Guoyang remembered that when he first arrived in Spokane, he had filled out two addresses for correspondence.

One was Stockton’s home, the other was his dormitory—the address at the dormitory was mainly for receiving letters from his family and Wang Fuxi.

The address pulled from the records was Stockton’s home, no wonder the mail was delivered there.

What puzzled Gan, however, was why the American Olympic selection committee would send him a letter?

Guoyang had been in America for three years, but he was still a Chinese citizen and had no intention of becoming an American. He still dreamed of representing China at the Olympics.

"Hey Gan, the Olympic selection committee wants me to join the basketball team selection training camp at Indiana University in two weeks! What about you? Were you invited too?"

Gan Guoyang re-read the letter and found that the American Olympic selection committee had invited him to the basketball team selection training camp as well, though the wording was different, offering an "observation and experience" opportunity.

Guoyang thought to himself, so they just want me to be a practice player, huh?

"The selection committee wants me to be a practice player for you guys. That’s a great chance to play," he mused.

"So you’ve decided to go?"

"Of course, I’m going. I’m getting bored staying at school. It’s break time in two weeks anyway. Let’s get ready and go together!"

The two were quite thrilled. Stockton knew that being selected for the Olympic training camp meant his skills had been recognized by the American basketball community.

Although they had won the NCAA championship that year, being an NCAA champion didn’t guarantee a spot in the NBA. In fact, many players from championship teams never catch the eyes of professional scouts.

Professional teams are interested in raw talent and potential. NCAA championship honors are just icing on the cake—without the right talent and potential, there’s no entering the professional basketball world.

As a short white guard, Stockton had always been worried about his future in basketball, given that the NBA draft prospects for players like him were never too good.

Now that he was targeted by the American Olympic selection committee, an NBA draft spot seemed certain.

And Guoyang was excited because it meant he could play basketball seriously. He then called Kevin Fleisher to inform him of the invitation.

To his surprise, Fleisher already knew about it as he had arranged for it.

"This is for the American national team selection. As a foreigner, you wouldn’t normally have a chance. But I talked to Bob Knight, explained the situation, and he’s aware of you. He’s very keen to have you join to test the strength of other players. So it’s a great opportunity for improvement," Fleisher informed him.

Gan asked who else had been selected aside from the two of them.

Fleisher listed a host of names, all young talents from the American college basketball scene—Charles Barkley, Karl Malone, Terry Porter, Joe Dumars, Dell Curry, AC Green, Audie Norris, Kevin Willis, Johnny Dawkins, Patrick Ewing, Chris Mullin, and Michael Jordan, among others.

More than 70 people were chosen to attend the training camp, from which most would be cut, leaving only 12 to represent America at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.

Gan was familiar with these names; some of them had been defeated by him, like Johnny Dawkins, Ewing, and AC Green, while he hadn’t encountered others in match-ups.

"Anyway, I can’t be selected for the final lineup, but I can stay until the end, right?"

"In theory, yes, as you are a practice player. But it all depends on how Bob Knight decides to run the camp. If he’s not satisfied with you, you could be kicked out on the first day. He’s not an easy person to deal with; he’s known for his temper."

Bob Knight was infamous in the American basketball community for his volatile temper, and it was anything but ordinary.

In 1979, when he led his team to the Pan American Games in Puerto Rico, he clashed with local police, was ordered to be arrested by the authorities, and later refused to appear in court.

He had even thrown chairs onto the court during games, and cursing or mocking were minor incidents by comparison.

"It’s okay, I have experience in dealing with hot-tempered people."

Gan Guoyang recalled Bobby Beelman, who was also a foul-mouthed drunk with a temper when he first met him, but later he became compliant, didn’t he?

Gan had encountered many bad-tempered people since he was young. Besides a few whose temperament was due to a hypermasculine physiological nature, most stemmed from a fear of disorder and irritability.

These people generally have a strong desire to control, and any person or event that makes them feel out of control would send them into a rage. They long for control over everything but just can’t control their own emotions.

Many basketball coaches from the 50s to the 80s were known for having explosive tempers, not only due to the basketball philosophy of the time (coach-centric team leadership) and the nature of the job (coaching doesn’t go well with a good temper), but also because many coaches had served in the military.

They had either fought in World War II or experienced the Vietnam War, and their military and war experiences profoundly reshaped their personalities.

Single-parent families, multi-child households lacking love, and impoverished childhoods also led to uncontrollable emotions in adulthood.

Later, Gan Guoyang discussed with Fleisher about the press conference; he had to decide before May 5th whether to enter the 1984 NBA Draft, or the opportunity would be invalid.

Therefore, on May 4th, Fleisher rushed to Spokane and organized a press conference for Gan Guoyang at the Kennedy Gymnasium of Gonzaga University. Journalists from New York, Boston, and Los Angeles all came to witness the moment Gan officially announced his participation in the 1984 NBA Draft.

To Gan’s surprise, there were two Chinese journalists at the venue. Fleisher explained that he had specially invited them from New York. They were not professional sports journalists but international news reporters.

Fleisher said that a Chinese man achieving such basketball success in America and about to enter the NBA draft must have his story reported back to China.

One of the journalists was named Tang Yizhou, and Gan specially set aside half an hour for an exclusive interview with him, inviting him to eat at Jack and Dan’s Bar and talk over food.

Tang Yizhou was very interested in Gan’s basketball experience in America. Having arrived in the country just two months ago, last month’s NCAA final had shocked him tremendously.

"But currently, there is very, very little information about you in China. The news and entertainment there are too closed off, too backward," Tang Yizhou lamented, pen and paper in hand, as he sat in the bar.

The cultural shock and awe for Chinese people arriving in America in the 1980s were tremendous.

So many Chinese people who came over were reluctant to go back, as the gap was indeed too large.

"Everything will get better. China will become more and more open, its understanding of the world will grow deeper and wider. It’s a process," Gan responded calmly to these disparities.

"Would you consider playing for the Chinese National Team in the future?"

"Of course, it has always been my dream."

"But there’s no chance after becoming a professional player."

"There will be a day when restrictions are lifted, nothing is constant."

"Have you ever thought about taking up American citizenship? After all, you’re going to live and work in America long-term."

"No, I’ve never considered it."

"Why not?"

"I need to know who I am. Without clarity on that, it’s impossible to walk steadfastly."

Gan’s answer gave Tang some food for thought. He fervently scribbled notes and began to conceive a lengthy feature article about Gan Guoyang in his head.

He even thought about switching to being a sports journalist, but he quickly squashed the idea.

Is there really a future in sports?