The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 238 - 124: The Treasure of Women
"Sonny, say a few words to the fans in Portland, right now the whole city is crazy about you, bewitched by you, if you don’t say something, I’m afraid they won’t be able to turn off their radios and sleep peacefully tonight."
On April 20th, after the Portland Trail Blazers and the Mavericks had finished the second game of the first round of the playoffs, Bill Schonely pulled Gan Guoyang in front of the microphone at the sidelines of the Memorial Coliseum to chat with the listeners and fans in front of the radio.
Unlike Johnny-Most, Schonely’s commentary booth was not high up in the stands but right next to the Trail Blazers’ bench, allowing him to see the players at any time.
After proving he was not just a regular season player who couldn’t adapt to the playoffs, with a performance of 41 points, 21 rebounds, and seven blocks in the first game, Gan Guoyang once again helped the Trail Blazers win 115-110 over the Mavericks in the second game with a solid performance of 26 points and 13 rebounds, securing two consecutive home wins and taking a 2-0 lead in the series.
They were now only one victory away from advancing. If they could win the next game in Dallas, the Trail Blazers would sweep their opponent and make it into the Western Conference semifinals.
Gan Guoyang’s stability on the court was admirable, and his performance deeply attracted the fans in Portland and even the entire Oregon region.
According to the Nielsen Company’s ratings, Oregon Public Broadcasting is the most-listened-to public radio in America, especially when Portland people listen to or watch the Trail Blazers’ games, setting new records for viewership and listenership.
With the limited seating at Memorial Coliseum, the 13,000+ seats couldn’t meet the demand for viewing the games within the Oregon area, making TV and radio broadcasts particularly popular.
This year, after Gan Guoyang joined the Trail Blazers, he brought a peak in viewership. As for selling tickets, the Trail Blazers didn’t have any room to grow, except maybe making ticket prices a bit more expensive.
In terms of viewership, the Trail Blazers were almost three times other NBA teams, a figure that had reached an astonishing level, even prompting NBA officials to ask the Trail Blazers how they managed their TV broadcasting department.
Spoelstra, head of the department, simply said, "Because we have Ah Gan."
Gan Guoyang, sitting beside Bill Schonely, imitated Schonely’s deep voice and said, "Good evening everyone, I’m Sunny Gan. For those who couldn’t make it to the game, or couldn’t watch the live broadcast on TV, I hope tonight’s victory will bring you a good sleep and sweet dreams. Rip City!"
Schonely laughed at his side. Then he asked Gan Guoyang a few questions, and Gan Guoyang, with a calm tone and precise yet slightly elegant choice of words, chatted casually with Schonely at the courtside.
At that time, television media was not well-developed, and there weren’t many interviews with players, most of which appeared in newspapers in written form.
This was Gan Guoyang’s first season with the Portland Trail Blazers, and it was the first time he communicated with Trail Blazers fans using his voice.
When Gan Guoyang first arrived in America, his English was not proficient, but after being immersed in the language environment and studying at Gonzaga University, his English improved greatly.
He could fluently read English literary works; he enjoyed the writings of Hemingway, Hesse, Jack London, Faulkner, John Williams, and others. At Gonzaga, although he didn’t take a social etiquette course like Jordan did, he chose classical literature to further enhance his language skills.
Such learning and cultivation helped him use a range of vocabulary, phrases, metaphors, and allusions on the court to psych out his opponents as part of psychological warfare.
Otherwise, constantly saying "fuck, shit, asshole" was really degrading—it was necessary to be more civilized, after all, cursing is wrong.
Reading these literary works and studying classical literature had the side effect of making Gan Guoyang eloquent. His conversation with Schonely was smoothly composed and utterly different from his energetic, even aggressive, display on the court.
He talked with Schonely not just about basketball, but more about the city of Portland, about roses, Mount Hood, the Willamette River, beer, and even about the origin of the city’s name.
"Yes, I know how the name of the city of Portland came about. In 1845, two pioneers came here and decided to name the land by flipping a coin. One was from Portland, Maine and the other from Boston, Massachusetts, and clearly, the man from Portland, Maine, won. Otherwise, we might be called the Boston Trail Blazers, and I can’t imagine how we would compete against the Celtics—it would be quite comical."
Due to time constraints of the program, Schonely had to conclude the post-game talk, and Gan Guoyang was able to go back to the locker room to change his clothes.
What he didn’t know was that following this talk, Gan Guoyang’s voice and manner of speaking captivated a large female fan base.
Originally, Gan Guoyang had a substantial female following, but most of the girls who fancied him were young and enamored with his strong physique, handsome looks, and the potent pheromones he exuded.
This time was different, Gan Guoyang attracted more mature women.
In the Portland area, there were many middle-class white people with a rich cultural and literary atmosphere.
New York is the largest book distribution and consumer market in America, with city residents spending an average of 80 US dollars per year on reading, while in Portland, it’s 84 US dollars.
Those working, family-oriented urban middle-class women in their thirties or not yet forty, originally watched TV and listened to the radio with their husbands and children, without much interest in basketball.
An interview with Gan Guoyang suddenly sparked their interest in the sport.
After the sports program ended, the radio station received many calls the next morning, all inquiring about information related to Gan Guoyang.
The most common question was, "Is he married?"
The second most common question was, "When is the next game being broadcasted?"
On the 21st, Gan Guoyang and the team flew to Dallas. Before boarding the plane, Spoelstra, the team’s vice president, found Guoyang and told him that they had received a lot of letters and phone calls about him.
"Some were sent directly to the team, others to the radio station, but they’re all about you. They want to know when you can talk to Schonely again."
"Talk to Schonely? I can talk to Schonely anytime."
"Not just ordinary chit-chat but talking on the radio after the game. You know, a lot of female fans are fascinated by you? You’re now a precious gem to women."
"That’s normal, I’m almost enchanted by myself," Gan Guoyang said calmly.
Spoelstra suppressed the urge to slap him.
Gan Guoyang added, "Then they’ll have to wait a good while, because we won’t be coming back to Portland for this series of games."
-----------------
The plane arrived at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport in the afternoon of the 21st, and the players waited for their luggage at the baggage claim before taking it to the hotel to settle in.
This trip to Dallas, although winning just one game would secure the series, the players were prepared to stay at least five days.
Rest and train on the 22nd, a game on the 23rd, and if they lost the third match, another day in Dallas on the 24th, then the fourth game on the 25th, five days in total.
So everyone brought five days’ worth of clothes and some daily necessities.
After all, the players sweat a lot from training and games every day, sometimes needing to change their clothes several times a day.
Training clothes, underwear, and socks for athletes like them aren’t something you can buy just anywhere; they have to be custom-made.
Sometimes, after a night game, they might attend some social events or hit the bars, for which a suit or two of formal, fancy attire is essential, along with leather shoes, hats, in winter maybe a fur coat, scarves, etc.
Some players, when traveling for away games, can barely fit all their belongings into four or five suitcases and need special assistance at the airport to push their luggage.
Like when the Detroit Pistons went on a seven-game Western Conference road trip, it was a nightmare. With over a dozen players, they had to carry more than fifty pieces of luggage. It’s said that when the two small jets headed back to Detroit, the weight of their belongings almost caused the planes to exceed the weight limit and nearly prevented them from taking off.
But for this trip to Dallas, Gan Guoyang only brought a travel backpack containing two sets of clothes, three pairs of underwear, three pairs of socks, traveling light as he boarded the team bus.
Buckwater, in charge of the players’ logistics, asked Ah Gan, "Sonny, why have you only brought a travel backpack? Are you planning on not showering after playing?"
Gan Guoyang said on the bus, "I’ve brought three days’ worth of clothes. After the game on the 23rd, we’ll go home. You all packed so much for nothing."
The guys, accustomed to Gan Guoyang’s consistent confidence, were unfazed.
In their hearts, they felt secure but also were half-tempted to just lose the third game; that way, let Ah Gan run out of clothes to change in Dallas, stinking him up.
