The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 942 List of Two People

Gan Guoyang agreed with the name "Light," although he personally preferred a slightly less common team name.

For example, deep down, his preferred name might actually be "Las Vegas Twin Towers" or "Las Vegas Air Raid," or even "Las Vegas 91s," which would also be a good idea.

However, as a commercially viable team that aims to generate profit, a neutral and balanced team name is still very important. A name that is too strange or unusual is easily mistaken for a small team. Furthermore, Gan Guoyang's idea does not align with the current social atmosphere in the United States following the terrorist attacks.

A name that is upright and symbolizes positive energy can bring more attention to the team.

Moreover, the name Light has multiple meanings, which fits the characteristics of Las Vegas very well.

With the name Light finalized, the basic design for the team's logo was also established.

Using the famous neon signs of Las Vegas as the core design element, combined with sunlight and basketball, it will be highly recognizable.

When it came to choosing a team mascot, everyone was in agreement: they chose the famous bighorn sheep of Nevada as the model for the mascot design.

Although images like rattlesnakes, vipers, scorpions, and vultures are cool, the image of the bighorn sheep is still more popular due to positive and profit considerations.

In the American basketball world, many schools use the bighorn sheep as their mascot, and it is very popular among Americans.

If merchandise is sold in the future, fans who watch the game as a family unit are more likely to buy Bighorn Sheep for their children than Snake Vulture.

Gan Guoyang is considering giving these relatively obscure team names and mascots to lower-level development league teams in the future.

After deciding on the team name, the design team immediately started working overtime to produce drafts so that they could begin promoting the team as soon as possible.

The team's design team was brought directly from Avia by Gan Guoyang. Back then, they were the ones who released a bunch of Skyscraper commemorative editions, collector's editions, and championship editions every year, making Gan Guoyang's Skyscraper the most varied and bizarre sneaker in history.

Therefore, this design team is very experienced and has a good relationship with Gan Guoyang. They can start using it right away and are quite efficient.

Three days after the first board meeting, Wang Fuxi held a press conference to officially announce the new team's name, logo, jerseys, and mascot.

The team's jerseys are primarily gold, red, and white.

White and gold represent dazzling light, while red represents the fiery passion of Las Vegas.

In these three days, the new team not only designed the team name, jerseys, and logo, but also looked for managers at all levels, streamlined the work of each department, and expanded the recruitment of personnel to quickly roll out all tasks.

In Las Vegas, the Glorious Team's various advertisements and logos appeared on streets, buildings, hotels, casinos, and other places in a very short time, at a speed that was astonishing.

The Nevada State News bluntly stated that the speed of "light" is simply too fast.

However, while the team's overall structure was rapidly built and quickly became more complete, Glory still faced a major, fundamental problem: team formation.

This is like a car; the body, seats, steering wheel, tires—everything is there, the basic shape of a car is there, but the most important part, the engine, is nowhere to be seen yet.

The only player that can be confirmed in the basketball department of the Glory team right now is Gan Guoyang.

Furthermore, the Glorious team does not yet have a general manager specifically responsible for basketball affairs.

This most important position had been vacant for a long time, and Gan Guoyang was using his connections to find a suitable candidate.

Out of respect, he was the first to call Pat Riley and ask if he would like to come to Las Vegas to sunbathe somewhere else.

Riley certainly wouldn't come, because he owns shares in the Heat; he's not just the general manager and coach, but also a minority owner.

So Riley knew that Forrest Gump was joking with him, so he complained and vented to Gan Guoyang on the phone.

"Why did you come back when you were perfectly fine? Because your return has thrown everything into chaos. Players are being pulled away, the schedule has to be rearranged, and even training camp and preseason games are affected."

"Sonny, our team is short-handed right now. When we expand the draft, please go easy on us and don't take any players from my team, okay? Also, some of my team members are eager to go to Las Vegas, so please be gentle with them."

Riley and Gan Guoyang have been at odds for so many years, but Riley has never gained the upper hand.

He already knew that if you were stubborn and act tough, just back down, or he would beat you up.

Gan Guoyang called Riley, partly to find out about the situation of each team.

The fact that the new team wants to join the league as quickly as possible will have a significant impact on other teams.

The roster and schedule will be affected, and with Agan coming back, the management is complaining bitterly and opposing the addition of a new team, or saying that it should be postponed for a season or two.

But management is ultimately just employees; the bosses' ideas are the deciding factor.

Forrest Gump has given so much that the owners don't care about the roster or the schedule.

You get paid so much, so fix it for me, work overtime for me, and don't complain.

It's just a matter of having more teams, fewer players on those teams, and the league issuing another schedule. What's the big deal?
You're losing so much money and dividends in a year, can you make up for it? If you can't, then shut up.

In addition, the entire United States was looking forward to the new team joining the NBA, hoping it would boost the economy and national confidence in the new season, so some dissenting voices in the public opinion quickly disappeared.

After receiving a barrage of complaints from Riley, Gan Guoyang called Bird, West, and many other managers he knew.

Everyone's attitude was very clear: although your arrival is a nuisance, we have no choice but to welcome you. As for me being a manager, I really can't do it; I'm incapable.

The new season is about to start, the contract has been signed, and preparations are underway. You should probably look for someone else.

Gan Guoyang didn't actually want to invite these famous managers to the team; one of his purposes was to put psychological pressure on each team, which was one of his usual tactics.

The season hasn't even started yet, and the intimidation has already begun. Coupled with the expansion of the draft, it has created a climate of fear throughout the league.

As for the new team's general manager, Gan Guoyang already had someone in mind. He was just waiting for that person to come to him and offer their services. He believed that the person would definitely be eager to join.

Sure enough, three days after the team's name, logo, and mascot were unveiled in Las Vegas, a phone call came to Gan Guoyang's office at the MGM Grand Hotel.

The call was from Eugene, Oregon, the place where Gan Guoyang used to train the Chinese men's basketball team.

“Sonny, it’s me, Danny.”

"Oh, Danny! Long time no see, how have you been?"

"Stop talking nonsense, Sonny. I heard your team is looking for a team manager, is that right?"

"Who did you listen to?"

“Stu Inman, I’ve seen him in Portland. Don’t pretend, I want this job.”

The caller was Danny Ainge, who had resigned after serving as the Suns' manager for a while and was currently unemployed.

Although he had a strained relationship with the Trail Blazers and Gan Guoyang during his playing career, he is a native of Oregon and a sports star from Eugene. Even after retiring, he has maintained contact with people from the Trail Blazers.

When Gan Guoyang established his training base in Eugene, he also received help from Danny Ainge, and the two had a good relationship.

Angie has a strong personality, is shrewd and calculating, likes to show off, and is easily annoying to others in private.

But from a work perspective, he is indeed a good player, which is very similar to his teammate Larry Bird.

Gan Guoyang admired Anji's drive; without that ruthless spirit, a good-natured person would never be able to be a general manager.

However, Gan Guoyang knew Anji was arrogant. If he took the initiative to invite Anji, the bastard would be swaggering. The new team structure was already established, and if he were too arrogant and domineering after his arrival, it could easily lead to internal conflicts and discord.

So Gan Guoyang passed the message to Danny Ainge through Inman, while simultaneously making numerous phone calls to other acquaintances in the league, ignoring Ainge completely. This finally made Ainge lose his patience, and he went to Gan Guoyang's door to offer his services, thus suppressing his arrogance.

Gan Guoyang thought to himself, "Anji doesn't have much self-control. He couldn't help but make a phone call after only three days. Americans don't really understand the word 'patience'."

Since Angie recommended him, Gan Guoyang naturally wouldn't let him go and agreed to let him come to Las Vegas for an interview.

The next day, Angie flew from Portland to Vegas. Gan Guoyang drove to the airport to personally pick Angie up. To reduce the chances of being recognized, he wore a Western cowboy hat and oversized sunglasses. He drove a 2000 Sunset Gold Ford Mustang GT Convertible, which had been specially modified to accommodate Gan Guoyang's tall figure.

Anji was flattered that Gan Guoyang would personally drive to pick him up. As he got into the car, he asked, "Aren't you afraid of being recognized and kidnapped?"

Gan Guoyang said, "Las Vegas is a young city with few residents and many tourists. People there are well-traveled and don't easily get surprised when they see celebrities. It's no big deal."

During his year in Vegas, Gan Guoyang's biggest takeaway was the relative indifference people had towards celebrities; they were truly used to it.

“You’re no ordinary celebrity, Sonny. Your fame is now second only to the President and Bin Laden.”

"Don't let fame get you down. We're all pretty much the same. Welcome to Las Vegas, Danny."

The two shook hands in the car. On the way to headquarters, Danny Angie complained again about how strict security checks are now required to board a plane, and how everyone is on edge and terrified.

"The good news is that airfares are much cheaper and there are plenty of empty seats."

"If you have money, you can consider buying some airline stocks. They've already halved in value, but they'll recover quickly."

How much salary are you going to pay me?

"I'm not the boss, I'm just the driver who brought you to the interview. The boss is my wife."

"Oh shit, I'm doomed. My dream of a high-paying job is shattered."

"Don't say that. At least you didn't let your wife be your boss."

Angie was quite confident in himself. When he met Gan Guoyang at the airport, he knew he was destined to become the general manager; otherwise, Gan wouldn't have come to pick him up.

Of course, the interview process still had to be followed, and Angie performed exceptionally well.

He has been involved in the professional sports world for many years, with both coaching and management experience.

He is very intelligent, strong-willed, and energetic, and most of his connections and networks are located in Nevada and Arizona, which is of great benefit to his work.

Moreover, Ainge felt both nervous and excited about the challenge of the new team.

He knew that, so far, the Las Vegas Glory only had Gan Guoyang as their player, and no one else.

The preseason training camp will begin in October, and it will be no easy task for the team to put together a roster of at least 12 players in just a few weeks.

It's worth noting that in the past, every time the league expanded its draft, the teams were reluctant to participate and would secretly sabotage the process, not wanting to lose their valuable players.

For example, they might put players on the injury list, or they might include overseas players who were selected 10 years ago but were not signed, thus creating a smokescreen.

Privately, they still use all sorts of means, such as asking for favors, making promises, and bribing, to keep quality players on their team.

In the end, the new team was filled with misfits, the old, the weak, and the disabled.

The Glory are in an even more difficult situation this time because they have missed the most important 2001 draft and can only rely on the expansion draft.

Even though Ainge has been in the league for many years, this problem is still a major headache for him.

Finding gold in the dung is a job that not just anyone can do.

However, after Angie officially signed with Gan Guoyang, he said, "Danny, your top priority right now is to build a coaching team and set up medical, training, and logistics support. You don't need to worry about player selection at all; leave it to me. When the expanded draft roster comes out, I'll tell you who to pick."

As Gan Guoyang's old rival, Anji had long heard of the guy's strength, domineering nature, and extraordinary talent.

Everyone who has worked with Gan Guoyang, even a basketball prodigy like Larry Bird, has praised him, saying, "This guy is a fucking genius, a true genius."

Angie had never experienced this firsthand before, but with the expansion of the draft, he finally had a real understanding—Gan Guoyang completed the roster for the expansion draft in just one hour, and then handed it over to Angie to negotiate and handle the specific matters.

That day, the day after Ainge took over as the team's general manager, the two came to the office.

The Glorious team's headquarters are located in the MGM Grand Hotel office building, where two floors are their workplace.

After the new stadium is completed, we will move to the office area of ​​the new stadium.

Gan Guoyang sat down and asked the team's personnel manager to print out the list of 29 teams that had submitted their candidate lists and bring it up.

Each team has eight players on the protected list, and all other players, except those on the injury list, who are not unrestricted free agents, are available to the Glory team.

Of course, this does not include first-round picks. If the Glory team wants a first-round pick, they need to negotiate a trade with the other team.

Future draft picks or cash can be used to purchase them, provided the other party agrees.

The list contains 179 people, averaging about 6 players per team, and they are mostly old, weak, sick and disabled.

Gan Guoyang asked the HR manager to arrange the names in alphabetical order, first finding the letter "P" and circling Terry Porter.

When Ainge saw the name, he thought it was the obvious answer. Porter had been trying to retire with the Spurs for the past two seasons, but it looked like he was going to go back to work for his old friend.

“I heard Porter has been talking about retiring lately. You call him and tell him not to retire, but to come to Vegas and play with me. Give him some perks and make him comfortable, don’t be stingy.”

What if he doesn't want to?

"If he doesn't want to, then you can hit him."

"..."

Then, Gan Guoyang quickly circled one name after another.

For each circle drawn, Gan Guoyang would tell Anji about the player's general situation, how to communicate with him, and how to arrange his role and identity after he joins the team.

It seems he knows every player in the league perfectly well, even rookies and fringe players.

How much preparation did this guy do behind the scenes to know his enemy and himself to this extent?
No wonder he won 10 championships and beat the Dream Team to win an Olympic gold medal; he's truly amazing.

Even an arrogant person like Anji admired Gan Guoyang greatly. He had no idea how much work was involved in all those circles and drawings.

In just one hour, Gan Guoyang circled 11 people, making a total of 12 people including himself.

The league's roster has now expanded from 12 to 13 and then to 15. Gan Guoyang has reserved 3 spots for Anji, allowing him to play freely, which is his right.

With the 11-man roster in hand, Ainge needs to contact these players and their parent teams to discuss ways to quickly transfer them to Vegas and form a new team.

Angie, however, had a nagging doubt: Was Forrest Gump's choice of men reliable? Could he have just picked them randomly?
However, Angie didn't think much of it. He figured if he had to choose, he wouldn't know who to pick anyway, so he decided to listen to Forrest Gump.

The list of these 11 people is as follows:
Terry Porter (Spurs), Raja Bell (76ers), Eddie House (Heat), Brad Miller (Bulls), Mark Jackson (Timberwolves), Scott Paget (Jazz), Kevin Willis (Rockets), Isaiah Riddell (Lakers), Gerald Wallace (Kings), Steve Kerr (Trail Blazers), Gilbert Arenas (Warriors).

(End of this chapter)