The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 431 - 49 The High Wall

As Gan Guoyang had increasingly private interactions with Bird, he discovered that this forward, known for his arrogance and trash talk on the court, was surprisingly introverted and even a bit shy in life.

Unlike those stars who claim, "I’m quite introverted, I don’t usually like to socialize" (most of whom are just crafting a public persona), Bird was genuinely very introverted, a trait deeply influenced by his upbringing.

Although he was White, he grew up in the impoverished rural areas of Indiana, where difficult living conditions and his father’s suicide contributed to his complex personality.

The first time Gan Guoyang played at Boston Garden, he sensed Bird had the air of a problem child—they were of the same kind.

The prideful and egotistical parts of their personalities were fully unleashed on the basketball court, a stage where they could freely express themselves without fear of suppression or disdain but instead were met with cheers and praise.

This is the magical charm of sports, which establishes a new set of rules within a world governed by rules, creating a high wall of romance amidst the cold, realistic, and cruel reality.

Inside the high wall, knights charge in armor with lances, warships bombard each other with cannons; loyalty is still praised, heroes are still celebrated, wildness can be tolerated, and only weakness is despised.

Of course, this high wall wasn’t easy to build, and the NBA, along with David Stern, put a lot of effort into ensuring the wall wasn’t eroded.

The two things that most seriously erode this wall are gambling and drugs.

Gan Guoyang finished his midday activities, took photos, said goodbye to Bird, and wished him luck.

This time, instead of trash-talking, the two said a sincere farewell as friends, as great players always long to compete against each other.

Each time Gan Guoyang played against Bird, he could feel himself visibly improving; there was so much about Bird he could learn from.

They agreed to compete in the three-point contest at the upcoming All-Star game.

Since the Trail Blazers had left by bus in the morning, Gan Guoyang had to take a car to Philadelphia on his own, with Fleisher arranging a private car and hiring a driver to take him there.

The drive from Boston to Philadelphia took nearly five hours, while flying would only take one hour. The reason he didn’t fly was that, in January, the Northeast entered a period of rainy and snowy weather that caused flights to be significantly delayed or cancelled. To ensure he arrived on time, car travel was the more reliable choice.

The driver who took Gan Guoyang was an elderly Black man with graying hair and a distinct African American accent. He was from Philadelphia, and since his business trip to Boston had concluded, he could conveniently give Gan Guoyang a lift on the way back.

As for how Fleisher managed to arrange such a convenient ride, only heaven knows—this guy always seemed to have a wide reach.

The Black driver was an old basketball fan and a loyal supporter of the Philadelphia 76ers, having experienced their great season in 1967.

Throughout the trip, he talked about Jack Ramsey’s stubbornness, saying that Ramsey should not have had a falling out with Chamberlain and traded him to Los Angeles so hastily.

However, in the end, the old driver added, "Jack was a good coach. Regardless, he won the championship, and the teams he coached were always clean. He established a good team atmosphere."

Gan Guoyang agreed with the talkative old driver and fan, and from him, he learned that earlier that same day, while Gan Guoyang was attending the game release event, the NBA also held a news conference in New York’s Sheraton Hotel to announce penalties for the Houston Rockets.

David Stern announced that two Rockets players, Lewis Lloyd and Mitchell Wiggins, had tested positive for cocaine and would be suspended for a long term.

Only after two years could they apply to the league for reinstatement.

This was an additional blow to the Rockets, who were already influenced by Ralph Sampson’s injuries.

Lloyd and Wiggins were important parts of the Rockets’ rotation, and veteran player Lucas had already been suspended by Coach Bill Fitch due to drug-related issues.

Now, the League’s security chief, Hollins Palermo, had caught their drug activities due to the beady eyes of the security agents Stern had scattered all across America, and in accordance with the drug policy, had submitted the relevant information leading to their testing.

Hollins then informed Lloyd and Wiggins of the League’s ban in Houston.

Subsequently, the two players met with league officials and two counseling advisors, agreed to the NBA’s suggestions for drug rehabilitation, and were immediately sent to an adult drug abuse program rehabilitation center in California.

"The Rockets are finished; the West is now for the Trail Blazers and the Lakers to dominate," the driver said.

The Rockets collapsed, losing half their territory when Sampson got injured and two of their rotation players were suspended.

Though the dismissal of the two players also freed up some salary space for the Rockets, where could you sign new players at that time?

Those available for signing were all fringe players, none fit for major usage, and the once ambitious Rockets, struck by injuries and drugs, quickly headed towards collapse.

Gan Guoyang disagreed with this veteran’s opinion, saying, "Even if the Rockets aren’t finished, they won’t be our rivals."

Lloyd and Wiggins were the third and fourth players to be suspended for drug use after Richardson and John Drew.

This incident alone shows how determined David Stern and the NBA were to combat drug abuse.

However, even with four people suspended and one dead from drugs, the NBA’s war against drugs was far from over, it hadn’t even reached its climax.

The real curtain would not be lifted until April 1987, when everyone would see just how much darkness and filth was festering beneath the romantic, sacred wall of sportsmanship that the NBA had painstakingly built.

Gan Guoyang finally reached the Philadelphia team’s hotel after dark and, after meeting up with his teammates, went to his room to rest.

That evening, Jack Ramsey conducted a surprise room check like a high school teacher, aiming to prevent players from using banned substances in their rooms.

It was rare for NBA coaches to do this since everyone was an adult, merely colleagues. They usually turned a blind eye, knowing that society’s widespread issues couldn’t be resolved by the monitoring of one or two people.

But Ramsey was a serious and responsible man; upon hearing the news about the Rockets, he absolutely forbade such incidents from happening within his team, including the use of painkillers.

Therefore, the Trail Blazers had always been relatively clean. Earlier, Kolter had quit using painkillers after Gan Guoyang discovered it, and veterans like Kenny-Carl and Jones, who might have been tempted by cocaine, appeared normal these two seasons.

As more people were suspended and deaths occurred, the League’s atmosphere began to improve gradually.

The next day, the tired Trail Blazers fought the 76ers on their court and dragged the game into overtime.

Gan Guoyang dominated the last five minutes, scoring 11 points to help the team win, amassing a total of 39 points for the game.

After ending their road trip and returning to Portland, the Trail Blazers continued their victorious stride.

But during the January 18th home game against the Golden State Warriors, Kenny-Carl suffered a herniated disk in his spine.

He left the court holding his back, and Calvin later assisted him back to the locker room for treatment.

At the time, Karl didn’t think much of it and even joked after the game that he needed to find a few masseuses to work on his back.

Mychal Thompson teased him, saying it was his comeuppance since the League was tightly controlling drugs and gambling, and he had deceived his teammates over betting.

In the game against the Bulls, Karl claimed he was betting on Jordan to score more, but in reality, it was a reverse-psychology ploy; he actually bet on Gan Guoyang scoring more.

Ultimately, Gan Guoyang outscored Jordan by one point, and Thompson lost two hundred dollars and two dinners to Karl.

The team didn’t take his injury seriously, but after a thorough examination, the doctors believed Kenny-Carl’s herniated disk was incurable and advised him that the best course of action was retirement.

Kenny-Carl couldn’t accept this outcome. He insisted on playing in upcoming games and resorted to painkillers to manage the pain, after all, he was only 31 years old.

However, Ramsay, Walton, Thompson, and others all advised against it. Ramsay told him, "Playing through an injury is commendable, but times have changed. Think more about your future, you need to live a normal life just like everyone else."

Ramsay, once an advocate for Walton playing despite injuries, had changed his stance over the past ten years.

Inside the lofty walls of the NBA, playing through injuries can indeed inspire others, carrying a certain romantic, heroic charm.

But in the end, players have to leave these high walls and return to the bland reality of everyday life.

At the end of the season, Kenny-Carl announced his retirement, concluding his professional basketball career.