The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 455 Golden Branch
In James George Frazier's anthropological masterpiece, *The Golden Bough*, the opening describes the following legend:
In the forests of Arica, on the shores of Lake Nemi near Rome, there is a temple to the forest goddess Diana, whose priests are a runaway slave.

Once a runaway slave becomes a priest, he is no longer a slave, but instead acquires the title of "King of the Forest".

However, he did not live a life of luxury; he had to guard a sacred tree near the temple at all times.

He was to guard the tree day and night with a sharp blade, constantly on guard, lest anyone approach it, for any other slave who could break off a branch from the tree would gain the right to duel with the priest.

If the slave can kill the priest in a duel, he can replace the former priest and become the new priest and "King of the Forest," thus living a life of fame and fear.

The branches broken off from the sacred tree are the golden branches.

The Larry O'Brien Trophy is the golden branch of basketball. When we win the championship, we become the king of the forest, transforming from slaves into priests of the temple, guarding the sacred tree at all times and waiting for the next challenger to arrive.

This is the cruelest part of the NBA: after you win an honor, you don't even have time to enjoy it before you have to do everything you can to protect it.

1988 was the most painful and agonizing year of my coaching career, even more painful than losing Bill Walton in 1978.

In the summer of 1987, we won the championship, and then we began to think about winning a three-peat.

However, soon after, the team's vice president, Spoelstra, resigned and left the team to go to Florida with Inman.

To be honest, I don't really like this guy. He's always thinking about how to make money instead of how to make the team better.

But when he left, he was certain that the team wouldn't get any better because of it; he was a good guy.

The bigger blow was Rick Adelman's departure. He came to my house the day he resigned and told me about his decision.

He's going to be the head coach of the Golden State Warriors. He said he felt a lack of presence in Portland and wanted more space to showcase his abilities.

I know there's a rivalry between Rick and Bobby, and Bobby is Forrest Gump's teacher, so Rick isn't confident about it.

Actually, I'm more inclined to let Rick be my successor. He understands everything about me, and he will become the new leader of the Trail Blazers.

But he left. That's just how the world is; things won't always go according to your plans, just like players won't always play according to your tactics.

We succeeded in the 1987 season, but I was not satisfied with my performance. I could feel that my tactics and system were gradually falling behind the times, my control over the team was getting worse, and I even doubted how much of a role I could play in the team.
Even if I were replaced, could the Trail Blazers still win the championship?
I punched Chuck Daly in the Finals, partly because the Pistons' brutal style of play was infuriating, and partly because of my own self-loathing.

I missed the fourth game, but the team still won, which was a blow to me. Sure enough, they could win without me.

Of course, winning the championship is still a joy. In the summer, I worked hard to improve myself. I dragged Bobby to participate in a triathlon, and then spent a lot of time learning new basketball theories and tactical thinking. I participated in a basketball coaching training camp in Hawaii and also went to the Middle East to teach a basketball coaching training course to promote the exchange and development of basketball in the world.

This exchange activity made me relax, but back in the United States, back in the coaching seat, and thinking about how we have to fight for a three-peat, tension and anxiety overwhelmed me again.

I know I may no longer be the right person to continue as an NBA head coach.

Therefore, before the start of the 1987-1988 season, I was certain that, win or lose, this would be the last season of my coaching career.

The departures of Rick and Spoelstra solidified this point, and as far as I know, Larry Weinberg was already considering selling the Trail Blazers at that time.

For the sake of a three-peat, we'll keep these things to ourselves and talk about them after this season ends.

People might wonder why, after achieving success, everyone wants to leave, and the team even faces the risk of falling apart.

Because the championship is never just an honor; it is also the curse of the NBA, a golden curse that makes you fight forever.

I was in agony before the start of training camp for the 1988 season because I didn’t know how to plan the tactics for the new season.

The league introduced new rules in the summer, prohibiting isolated one-on-one play, which has caused us some trouble.

It's ironic that I, who used to hate singles the most, became incredibly reliant on singles last season.

I have a lot of tactical ideas in my mind, but I can't make sense of them or find the one that's best suited for the team.

If you want to develop a new system, one season is definitely not enough time to make it applicable, and the old one-on-one system and the old high-post center playmaking system are no longer applicable.

This was the first time in my coaching career that I had encountered such a situation. I lacked confidence and even considered resigning immediately.

Fortunately, there's Forrest Gump; he always steps in and uses his confidence and abilities to solve your problems.

—Excerpt from "Dr. Jack On Winning Basketball," published in 2011 by Jack Ramsey and Neil Waller.

As usual, Gan Guoyang participated in the Trail Blazers' rookie training camp held in early October.

Second-year players Hornacek and Dell Curry also participated, and their level has visibly improved significantly compared to last year. Both have made great strides in three-point shooting, with Curry's three-pointers being particularly accurate, while Hornacek is more well-rounded.

Gan Guoyang was very satisfied with their performance. In terms of three-pointers, the Trail Blazers must take the initiative. As the league continues to see more and more three-pointers being shot, they will eventually become a crucial part of the game.

Greg Anderson was a goofy kid who got very little playing time in that epic 1984 game, as Hakeem Olajuwon's backup.

He had a confrontation with Gan Guoyang once, and that was the first time he felt Gan Guoyang's unparalleled strength, which made him completely unable to push against the basket.

The memory of that confrontation followed him until he entered the NBA and joined the Portland Trail Blazers. He was extremely nervous when he learned that he would be teammates with Forrest Gump.

However, after a few days of training at the rookie camp, he discovered that Forrest Gump was a good person, better and friendlier than any NBA star he had ever met or heard of—off the court, of course.

Gan Guoyang had no recollection of Anderson from his college days, after all, the guy was just a nobody in the NCAA finals.

Gan Guoyang was not very satisfied with his fighting ability. Although he was very muscular, his body fat was a bit high, and he lacked a good butt and his legs were not strong enough. He needed more training to survive in the lower ranks.

As for the second and third round picks besides Anderson, it was even worse; none of them turned out to be successful.

Gan Guoyang ultimately gave a precise assessment: "You are the worst class of rookies I have ever coached, even worse than the last one!"

After the rookie training camp concludes, the preseason training camp will officially begin in mid-October, signifying the imminent start of the new season.

When Gan Guoyang entered the preseason training camp, his weight had reached 265 pounds and his body fat percentage had further decreased, indicating that he had gained muscle.

Apart from Gan Guoyang, Drexler, Cauchy, and Gilmore all looked much more fit and muscular.

Drexler, in particular, did not perform very well in the 1986-1987 season. He was in terrible form at the beginning of the season, and although he recovered somewhat in the middle and later stages, his overall performance was still mediocre, and he was not selected for the All-Star team.

Summer training and improvement are extremely important.

Drexler is entering the final year of his contract this season, so he can't afford to be reckless this summer.

He spends most of his time in the gym and stadium, working on his strength and improving his skills.

After a summer, his arms became noticeably thicker, his shoulders broader and stronger, and of course, his hair thinned out, with the M-shaped hairline on his head becoming more and more prominent.

As usual, Gan Guoyang gave each player a newly compiled "Forrest Gump Basketball Cookbook" to guide their diet, and also included a funeral home advertisement so that anyone with a funeral could call the number on the advertisement.

The Trail Blazers were probably the first NBA team to focus on the dietary management of professional players, and also the first team to fully emphasize strength training, all thanks to the influence of Gan Guoyang.

The first day of training camp was relatively easy. In the morning, we did some simple recovery training, and in the afternoon, we did defensive training.

What puzzled the players was that the coaching staff did not conduct offensive tactical training. Normally, tactical training should be conducted on the first day to set the tone for the tactical system of the new season.

But Jack Ramsey barely spoke throughout the entire training session, and Bobby Bellman arranged the training content.

After Rick Adelman resigned, the team was left with only one assistant coach, and the management had no intention of hiring another one.

Gan Guoyang sensed that Dr. Jack was acting strangely, so he went to his office to find him after the training session.

In the office, Ramsey stared blankly at the tactical blackboard, which was covered with many lines drawn in a messy manner.

Gan Guoyang cut to the chase, saying, "Jack, are you a physicist now? Instead of studying basketball tactics, are you studying the three-body problem?"

Ramsey never discussed tactics with Gan Guoyang because Ramsey knew that Gan was the singularity, the black hole, that disrupted the physical rules of his basketball world, and the source of his troubles.

Ramsey shook his head and said, "No, I... The league has banned isolated one-on-one play, I need to think about it... We need a new system."

Gan Guoyang spread his hands and said, "What new system do you need? Just give me all the balls, and I'll solve all your problems. I can pass the ball, and I understand tactics."

"You'll encounter more double teams."

"Jack, double-teaming has never been a problem. I'm even stronger this season."

Looking at the confident Gan Guoyang, Ramsey recalled the scene before Game 5 of the 1986 Finals.

Trusting him is never a bad thing.

(End of this chapter)