The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 579 Poisonous Snake
On the evening of May 5th, at Memorial Arena, the Portland Trail Blazers faced the Phoenix Suns in Game 5 of the semifinals.

Before the game began, Trail Blazers owner Tang Jianguo officially announced that the construction funds for the new arena had been raised and the project was about to break ground, with completion and official use expected in January 1992.

The new arena will be put into use to host the 1992 All-Star Game – in order to meet the All-Star schedule, the construction period was shortened from two years to one and a half years.

To fund this project, Tang Jianguo, who was on the verge of bankruptcy, used all his energy to find investors, sell season tickets, raise funds, secure loans, and issue bonds. He even sold the parking fee collection rights for the stadium for more than $500 million, raising the last bit of money.

Through this series of operations, Tang Jianguo spent almost no money himself, while also acquiring a portion of the land ownership through transfer.

At the same time, he saved himself a lot of taxes by manipulating player salaries and team assets. That's why it's said that the United States is a paradise for capitalists and the wealthy.

As we all know, the United States has very strict tax system, and not paying taxes is a very serious matter. Even drug dealers who sell drugs have to pay taxes.

With strict tax collection, there are also many ways to avoid taxes. Moreover, the wealthier people are, the more they know how to avoid taxes. Professional football teams are a good way for owners to avoid taxes.

Back in 1948, Bill Vick, owner of the Cleveland Indians in MLB, raised his concerns with the IRS regarding tax issues.

He believes that the nature of an athlete's work is no different from that of farm animals, office printers, or cars, and thus constitutes a depreciable asset.

Paying players' salaries is like feeding cattle and horses; it's all consumed. To make up for this loss and devaluation, team owners should treat player contracts as losses and use them to offset future taxable income.

Surprisingly, the usually meticulous IRS agreed with Bill Vick's opinion and allowed the owner to avoid taxes through the team.

At the time, the main method of tax avoidance was to sell the team and treat player contracts as separate assets rather than as employment contracts.

These assets can be depreciated, and the depreciation cost can offset five years of taxes. Then, the new owner who buys the team can also use the contract assets in hand for depreciation to offset taxes.

Later, NBA teams like the Boston Celtics changed hands multiple times, partly because they could offset taxes by selling the team and treat player contracts as depreciable assets rather than human resources.

The IRS quickly discovered the loophole and attempted to overturn it, but Bill Vick appealed to the court and won.

However, the IRS also made some progress. In 1976, the cap on the allocation of depreciation of player contract assets was set at 50%, preventing owners from deducting all taxes without restraint.

Even so, the 50% limit still gives owners plenty of room to maneuver. They can use various pretexts to establish intangible assets, such as media rights, facility naming rights, stadium lease agreements, franchise agreements, etc., to increase asset depreciation and achieve tax exemption.

How could a shrewd businessman like Tang Jianguo not take advantage of these loopholes in the rules? He reduced or avoided many of his losses and taxes in other projects by using the depreciation of Portland Trail Blazers' assets, thus escaping bankruptcy.

The Trail Blazers achieved 82 sold-out games in two seasons, ranking first in the league in box office revenue. Despite rising ticket prices, Forrest Gump's box office appeal made it difficult to obtain Trail Blazers tickets.

After announcing the new stadium plan, Tang Jianguo tightly grasped Agan's hand and raised it high amidst cheers from the fans.

He thought to himself, "What kind of depreciated asset is this Agan? It's utter nonsense. It's clearly appreciating every year, so why would it be depreciating?"

Gan Guoyang cooperated with Lao Tang to make an appearance, and as he left the court, he warned Lao Tang: "You can do whatever you want off the court, but you're responsible for things on the court, leave it to me, Bellman, and West, OK?"

Tang Jianguo quickly said no problem, adding, "No one understands basketball better than you and Jerry. I have complete confidence in entrusting the team to you! I'm looking forward to reaping the rewards in June; I can't wait."

Since West joined the team this season, Tang Jianguo has indeed stopped getting involved in team building and has left basketball matters to professionals.

After failing in many other projects, he did not succumb to despair. Instead, he frequently appeared in the media and continued to expand his influence.

Previously, his outspoken remarks on public issues led to a warning from David Stern. After completing a private deal, Tang Jianguo learned his lesson and stopped participating in public discussions, instead focusing on his private life and romantic escapades. For example, in an interview with Vanity Fair, Tang Jianguo said, "When a man leaves a woman, especially when he leaves because of another woman, that's great, because there's a 50% chance he's also a sucker."

In an interview with The New York Times, he added, "You absolutely can't be too nice to women."

In an interview with Esquire magazine, he said, "Let me tell you, as long as you have a beautiful woman in your arms, it doesn't matter what others write about you."

He certainly didn't forget to praise the Portland Trail Blazers players. When asked about the secret to their success and making money, he said, "Go ask Forrest Gump how he played so well. He can't explain it to you in a few words. Me too, I do things by instinct!"

Gan Guoyang could actually explain it, but he couldn't expose the boasting his boss made, since Lao Tang had almost gone bankrupt by relying on his intuition.

Gan Guoyang doesn't play basketball based on intuition. Although intuition is very useful, it's only necessary to make judgments based on intuition in certain crucial moments, in a split second.

Most of the time, you need to plan rationally and play with your brain.

After seeing off Boss Tang, Gan Guoyang and his teammates gave a final pep talk before the game.

They faced the Suns in the playoffs last season, and the Suns won three games, which shows that they are a formidable opponent.

This year they are stronger in terms of roster and experience, so the Trail Blazers must be on their toes and not miss the playoffs.

"We will tear apart their defense with our offense and give them endless trouble with our defense. Everyone knows we are the stronger team, but where exactly is our advantage? We need to show it. Better passing, more accurate shooting, tougher defense, and better rebounding. We need to destroy our opponents in our best form, both physically and mentally, otherwise they will really think that the reason we were able to go to a Game 7 last season was because we were about the same level and we were just lucky."

Gan Guoyang participated in the 89 semi-finals while enduring grief, which greatly affected his performance. Coupled with the team's overall lack of strength, the match dragged on for seven games.

Gan Guoyang has always been bothered by this, as it took seven games to beat the Suns. This year, he will try to resolve the issue within five games no matter what.

Trail Blazers starting lineup: Sabonis, Gan Guoyang, Jerome Kersey, Hornacek, Terry Porter.

The Suns' starting lineup: Mark West, Kurt Rambis, Tom Chambers, Danny Ainge, Kevin Johnson.

Both teams stepped onto the field, the players greeted each other, and the match was about to begin.

Suns starting forward Kurt Rambis took a deep breath; he hadn't expected to face Forrest Gump again in the playoffs after so many years.

As time passed, the mark of fear that Forrest Gump left on him not only did not disappear, but became clearer and more terrifying, like a scar.

He glanced through his black-rimmed glasses at Forrest Gump, who was standing outside the center circle, expressionless, chewing gum, his eyes as cold as a viper.

Lambis's palms began to sweat; the match hadn't even started yet, and his breathing was already rapid.

He tried to calm himself down, breathing heavily, taking several deep breaths, and trying to keep his eyes off Forrest Gump.

But for some reason, even with his head down, Lambis felt that Forrest Gump's eyes were always staring at him.

Like a venomous snake eyeing its prey.

(End of this chapter)