The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 876 People with Unfortunate Fates
Compared to the previous season, the Portland Trail Blazers underwent many changes in the 1999-2000 season.

The biggest change, but one that is not easily noticed by fans, is that team owner Tang Jianguo sold a portion of his shares in the Trail Blazers.

As the 2000 general election approached, Tang Jianguo, who had been stirring up trouble in the business world, was gradually shifting his attention to the political arena.

On October 7, 1999, Tang Jianguo announced in a live broadcast on CNN that he would establish a presidential exploration committee, thus beginning his campaign.

The campaign required a large amount of money, and thanks to his investments in the Trail Blazers and the West Coast, Tang had long since recovered from the financial crisis of 1990 and possessed substantial assets.

Considering the massive cash investment, he decided to sell a portion of the Trail Blazers' equity.

However, outsiders speculate that Tang Jianguo did this mainly to distance himself from the Trail Blazers and Forrest Gump.

This summer, the Gan Guoyang spy case caused a great uproar. If Lao Tang wants to get involved in politics, he will have to make some choices.

This led people to anticipate that the era of Tang Jianguo, the pioneer who began in 1988, was coming to an end.

Eleven seasons and six championships—this was an incredibly worthwhile investment for Tang Jianguo, and now it's time to cash in.

The company that purchased a portion of Tang Jianguo's shares was none other than Nike, the sportswear giant of the Portland region.

Avia Group also made inquiries, but their offers were rejected because of their close ties with Gan Guoyang.

Nike, unable to beat Avia and Gan Guoyang on the court, is trying to find other ways to achieve victory.

Of course, the new shareholding structure will not affect the work of the management and coaching staff, and in the short term, it will have a limited impact on the players' on-field performance.

Tang Jianguo retains control of the team and continues to build a firewall between capital, coaches, and players, ensuring that basketball remains basketball.

This may be the last bit of affection Tang Jianguo left for Gan Guoyang, all for the sake of a third three-peat.

In terms of player roster, the Trail Blazers are another year older. With the addition of Charles Barkley and the return of Dell Curry, they have become even older.

With Barkley at 36, Curry at 35, Porter at 36, Sabonis at 35, A.C. Green at 36, Chris Mullin at 36, and Blake at 31, the Trail Blazers have become the oldest team in the league.

Terry Porter attempted to retire again, but Gan Guoyang rejected the idea, insisting that he play at least one more season.

Under the threat of Gan Guoyang and the lure of the league's ever-increasing salaries, Porter decided to stay in Portland.

The trade of Riddell to the Trail Blazers brought in 27-year-old Alan Henderson, providing the team with a small amount of fresh blood.

For the Trail Blazers, how to choose a playing style with a roster full of veterans will be a major test for the coaching staff.

Larry Bird had no desire for power within the coaching staff; after three years as head coach, he was content but also exhausted.

In three years, he got everything he wanted and very decisively retired from the head coach position, handing it over to the young Rick Carlisle.

Bird succeeded the retiring Buckwalt as the Trail Blazers' general manager, and he spearheaded all of the team's moves that summer.

Born in 1959, Carlisle, who just turned forty this year, has become one of the youngest head coaches in the league.

Gan Guoyang and Barkley, who were drafted in the same year as him, are still playing in the league, while he is already a head coach.

After Carlisle was promoted to head coach, the assistant coach position became vacant. Following the principle of keeping the benefits within the team, the Trail Blazers promoted the team's video editor and chief scout, Spoelstra, to the assistant coach position, while he continued to serve as a scout.

When Spoelstra was in high school, he worked as an assistant to the coaching staff for the Trail Blazers, responsible for editing and analyzing video footage.

He studied at Portland University for four years, and after graduating, he declined his father's offer to work for the Portland Trail Blazers instead of pursuing a job in Miami.

He has a good relationship with Gan Guoyang, and Gan Guoyang trusts his professionalism and hard work, and has always tried his best to protect his job in the team.

After years of experience, at only 29 years old, he is already competent to serve as an assistant coach, making him the youngest assistant coach in the league.

The average age of the Trail Blazers coaching staff has dropped significantly. Fortunately, Dick Hart is there to hold things together; otherwise, it would be strange if the coaches were younger than the players.

On the first day of training camp, Carlisle faced a daunting challenge: how to bring together this group of experienced veterans, not much younger than himself, and laden with honors.

Even with Gan Guoyang in charge, head coach Rick Carlisle must establish his own authority, because he cannot rely on Gan Guoyang to manage the team forever.

This season, Gan Guoyang is destined to be overwhelmed. It will be good enough if he can manage the field well, let alone control the locker room. That would be asking too much of him.

Before the training camp began, Gan Guoyang told Carlisle, "Richard, this season is going to be a season out of control, and it'll be up to you to do more."

Even Gan Guoyang, a seasoned control freak, felt that "everything was getting out of control," so one can imagine the pressure on Carlisle's shoulders.

Therefore, Larry Bird accompanied Carlisle to the Willamette University training facility on the first day of training camp, acting as a wardens and providing support for Carlisle.

During shuttle run training, Bird kept reminding Charles Barkley: "Charles, your pizza fell! Charles, your fried chicken fell!"

Barkley, unable to contain himself any longer, retorted, "You're heavier than Larry now!"

Barkley, who has successfully lost weight, does look much more muscular and lean, while Bird, who has been retired for many years, has obviously started to gain weight, and it is normal for him to weigh more than Barkley.

Bird smiled and said, "That's because I wear a few more rings than you."

Barkley had nothing to say and could only continue training in silence, knowing he would always be inferior to others until he won a championship ring.

Physical training, endless physical training, is a tradition of the Trail Blazers and a characteristic of Bird's training.

Carlisle spent the entire morning conducting basic physical training to awaken the players' bodies, which had been "dormant" for four or five months.

During the lunch break, Larry Bird reminded Carlisle that the Trail Blazers were an aging team and that he shouldn't spend too much time on physical training.

"Staying healthy and comfortable, reducing fatigue, and avoiding injuries are among your main tasks this season," Bird said.

Carlisle nodded in agreement and made appropriate adjustments to the training plan for the following period.

As a newly appointed head coach, Carlisle is more cautious, careful, and methodical.

Bird, on the other hand, was more easygoing and often left the business to his assistants.

Afterwards, Bird offered some advice on Carlisle's plans and strategies, helping Carlisle strategically through his novice period.

Of course, this situation won't last long. Carlisle is an experienced and very opinionated person with his own ideas about coaching him.

As an assistant coach, Carlisle focused on offense, designing a brilliant fluid offensive strategy around Gan Guoyang, which led to an amazing 1997-1998 season.

However, some aspects of the 1998-1999 season made Carlisle realize that when players' form declines, they get older, and their focus decreases, the effectiveness of fluid attacks is reduced.

This system is still too immature, especially since it relies heavily on Gan Guoyang's talent. Once Gan Guoyang's all-around offensive threat and superb supporting skills are gone, the Trail Blazers' fluid offense becomes quite mediocre. After considering the team's age and roster configuration, Carlisle decided to reallocate the Trail Blazers' offensive and defensive resources for the new season, slowing down the team's offensive pace and focusing more on the defensive end.

This is similar to the Trail Blazers during their first three-peat in the 1988 season. As they entered the competition for their third championship, the players aged, their competitive spirit weakened, and the team was in turmoil. At this point, it was not advisable for the team to take an offensive approach. Instead, it was appropriate to play defense and use defense, experience, and absolute talent to finish the entire season.

Carlisle's strategy has been approved by management and other coaches. In the preseason games, the Trail Blazers' tactical experiments have clearly slowed down the offensive pace, followed the current trend in the league, and added a lot of new defensive strategies.

Charles Barkley's debut at the Rose Garden was met with a warm welcome from fans, and Barkley was very keen to show off his muscular physique after losing weight.

However, due to his position overlapping with Gan Guoyang's, Barkley can only sit on the bench. After the start of the new season, Barkley will also play as a substitute and will have to compete with Jermaine O'Neal and Ben Wallace for playing time.

Jermaine O'Neal and Ben Wallace are developing rapidly. Their fourth season in the league is a crucial stage for them to make a name for themselves and whether they can make it to the All-Star game in the future.

Barkley's arrival intensified the competition within the team, both overt and covert. After all, both Jermaine O'Neal and Wallace had already won rings, and personal development and larger contracts were what they were after.

Fortunately, Barkley announced in advance that this would be his last season and that he would retire after it was over, so the younger players still showed him some respect.

Barkley has stated on multiple occasions that he does not want to hinder the development of young players and is willing to make any necessary contributions to the team.

"Including cleaning up Forrest Gump's ass!" Barkley said bluntly in a post-game interview.

Barkley's arrival added a lot of comedic atmosphere to the Trail Blazers team.

Of course, not everyone is satisfied with the Trail Blazers' strategy for the new season.

After the preseason had been underway for some time, Kobe Bryant's father, Joe Bryant, intentionally or unintentionally revealed to the media that he was not very satisfied with Kobe's role with the Trail Blazers in the new season, as well as the team's strategic choices.

In the eyes, or rather in the plans of Joe Bryant and his wife, Kobe should become the Trail Blazers' second core player in the new season, second only to Forrest Gump as the number one perimeter player, Forrest Gump's successor, and the next King of Oregon.

However, judging from the Trail Blazers' recruitment and tactical arrangements, Kobe's role in the new season is still similar to before. He is a powerful assistant to Forrest Gump, but his status on the team is still not as high as those veterans.

Kobe himself didn't have much of an opinion, but Joe Bryant and his wife were unhappy. They believed it would affect Kobe's development, especially his fame and commercial value.

This summer, Adidas and Kobe renegotiated the details of their 1996 contract and modified some of the terms.

The contract increased the proportion of resources allocated to Kobe Bryant, but also ended the clause that specifically paid for Joe Bryant.

Because Kobe was under 18 when he signed the contract in 1996, Adidas agreed to pay Joe, his guardian, an annual cash payment of approximately $15 in order to appease him.

Now that Kobe is an adult and has achieved great success, having made a name for himself in the 1999 NBA Finals, he no longer needs a guardian, and Joe Bryant's responsibilities naturally come to an end.

However, the Bryant couple did not intend to give up their control over Kobe. Although Joe had savings from playing in Europe and the NBA also gave him a pension, the money was far from enough for their daily expenses.

Their expenses were mainly covered by their son Kobe's income. As Kobe grew older and gained more control over them, the couple tried various ways to gain even greater control.

This summer, Joe Bryant encouraged Kobe to buy an Italian professional basketball team and run it himself, so that Kobe would have something to do.

Years later, after Kobe retires from the NBA, he can play in Italy like Joe, or even take over the club and continue to enjoy basketball.

Even a young Kobe thought it was a bit too crazy. Although he earned a lot, it didn't seem to be enough to support a club. He himself was earning a living by playing for the team.

But Kobe was ultimately drawn to his father's romantic long-term plan. In his heart, Italy was his second home, and he genuinely wanted to return to Italy after retirement to live with his wife and children, enjoying warmth and tranquility on the Mediterranean sun and beaches.

So, before the start of the preseason training camp, Joe Bryant and several partners jointly invested in and bought Olimpia Milano, the most famous team in the Italian league. Joe was not only the owner of the team, but also the general manager, responsible for the team's day-to-day operations.

However, once Joe took charge of the day-to-day operations, he discovered that running a team was extremely difficult, especially maintaining financial health, which was just as important and challenging as keeping a player healthy on the field.

Kobe ultimately only played for three years, securing a decent contract and some endorsements. In terms of financial income and asset size, he was far from comparable to the real big shots.

Although the operating costs of European teams are much lower than those of NBA teams, the need for millions of dollars in working capital was still a heavy burden for Kobe.

This led Joe Bryant to desperately want Kobe to shine on the court as soon as possible, become the core of the Trail Blazers in his fourth season, and then take over as the true number one player once Forrest Gump retires the following season.

This would allow Kobe to secure more and higher-value endorsements and advertisements, and to pursue a new, lucrative shoe contract, significantly increasing his assets to support the Italian team.

With everything pinned on Kobe's performance on the court, Joe Bryant naturally had his own thoughts and opinions about the Trail Blazers' player positioning and tactics for the new season.

However, Joe Bryant didn't dare to put direct pressure on the Trail Blazers' management and coaching staff, as Kobe wasn't at that level yet. He could only subtly hint through the media, hoping the team would pay more attention to Kobe's position within the team.

This highlights another problem facing the Trail Blazers: young players are increasingly focused on their own futures.

This is only natural. Even if Kobe and Jermaine O'Neal themselves didn't think this way, their family, friends, and agents would think this way on their behalf.

Veterans without championships want to fight for another one, veterans with championships want to relax for two more years and retire peacefully, and young players want to rise to the top and get bigger contracts.

This is a serious problem that almost every championship team faces in the later stages: the players are not truly united. It is unlikely that a team like the Trail Blazers of 1992 and 1993 will ever appear again.

The NBA's interests have become increasingly vast and complex, with championships becoming a base for stacked cash rather than a crown to wear on one's head.

Of course, for the Portland Trail Blazers in the 1999-2000 season, these familiar problems were not their biggest challenge.

Their biggest challenge lies in Gan Guoyang's decline and his entanglement in a spy investigation, leaving him little time to attend to many things both on and off the field.

This most powerful ruler in NBA history, this greatest giant, is now covered in nails and ropes binding him, like Gulliver being nailed to the beach in Lilliput.

On November 2, 1999, the Trail Blazers played their opening game against the Vancouver Grizzlies, who were in the same division. They would then return home on November 3 to face the Los Angeles Clippers in a back-to-back game.

However, as early as October 27, Gan Guoyang received a summons from the U.S. Department of Justice, requiring him to go to New York on November 2 for a hearing and investigation.

This means that Gan Guoyang will miss the season opener and home opener on the 2nd and 3rd, effectively removing the Blazers' core player.

Gan Guoyang had no choice but to leave for New York after finishing team training on the 1st.

As for why the investigation hearings were not held in Portland or a West Coast city, the Department of Justice explained that "the investigation is based in New York."

In reality, the jurisdiction can be transferred, but the Department of Justice is not prepared to do so; they want to keep moving it back and forth between the East and West coasts.

Clearly, this is just the beginning.

Charles Barkley, who had already prepared himself to be a substitute, was immediately promoted to the starting lineup.

Jermaine O'Neal might have been a better choice, but Carlisle, for the sake of team balance, decided to try starting Barkley.

When Barkley, wearing the number 34 Trail Blazers jersey, stood on the Grizzlies' home court floor on November 2nd, preparing to start the game, he suddenly realized that he had originally come to ride on the coattails of others, but now it seemed like he might become the one riding on their coattails.
Forrest Gump had always been fine, never missing a season, with an iron body that was immune to injury.

Now look what happened! He wasn't injured, but he was summoned by the Department of Justice and the fight was called off!
Barkley suddenly felt that his life might be a little bitter.

(End of this chapter)