The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 575 - 2 The Wise One

Gan Guoyang took the soonest flight back to Los Angeles.

Because he knew that, shortly after the Finals ended, the draft would take place.

If it was true what Tang Jianguo had said on the phone, that Jerry West had resigned from the Lakers, then the Trail Blazers had to quickly secure this experienced and highly qualified general manager to be involved in the drafting and trading processes.

The Trail Blazers’ failure in the ’89 playoffs was indeed influenced by Fleisher’s passing, but that was just the immediate cause.

Just imagine, if the Trail Blazers had been strong and invincible like in ’86 and ’87, Fleisher’s death would only have motivated Gan Guoyang to turn grief into strength, and honor his late friend with a championship.

The reality was that the ’88-’89 Trail Blazers had too many gaps, and their margin for error was already very small.

If the team’s goal had been just to get through the regular season smoothly and become a strong contender in the playoffs, then they had done well.

But their goal was to win four consecutive championships, to climb one more step beyond three consecutive championships.

Clearly, they had not done enough.

Even if Fleisher’s accident hadn’t happened, their chances against the Lakers in the Western Conference finals would have been no better than even.

Even if Gan Guoyang had been explosive and advanced to the finals, facing the powerful Detroit Pistons, how much chance of winning did they stand?

Buckwalter was an excellent manager, especially in discovering low-ranking new talents and unearthing overseas players, he could be said to be second to none in the league.

Terry Porter, Jerome Kossie, Hornacek, Mark Bryant, Sabonis, Petrović, and this year’s draft prospect whom the Trail Blazers were closely watching, Cliff-Robinson, all reflect Buckwalter’s sharp eye.

But drafting is only part of a manager’s job. For teams that are rebuilding or rising, drafting is particularly important.

Once the lineup is set, and there is a need to patch the roster, scale new heights, or build a dynasty, Buckwalter seemed somewhat lacking.

The Trail Blazers’ three consecutive championships couldn’t have been achieved without Stu-Inman’s contribution. He sacrificed himself to bring back Bill Walton and got an early tip to help trade for Gilmore.

But now he had started working for the Miami Heat, and the two teams were as different as fire and water. Even with Inman’s heart still favoring his former employer and being a Trail Blazer forever, he had to prioritize his new one.

It was hard to believe Inman didn’t play a part in the Heat’s 1988 move that took Drexler away.

Besides building the team, general managers must also oversee the entire operation, be responsible for the team’s logistical support, resolve conflicts among players, maintain relationships with other teams’ management, and deal with the NBA office, among other tasks.

After Tang Jianguo bought the Trail Blazers, he implemented an expansion strategy and extensively marketed the team.

The Trail Blazers’ fanbase surged nationwide, the staff size swelled rapidly, and many new departments and positions were created.

The once small but fine Trail Blazers became big and chaotic, testing the general manager’s communication and management abilities.

Bill Schonely once complained to Gan Guoyang that when the Trail Blazers were first established, there were only seven or eight people in the management.

A president, a copy secretary, a manager, two trainers doubling as front desk service, a finance manager who also handled ticketing aided by two sales assistants.

Plus Schonely in charge of publicity and broadcasting, just a few people like that, was already enough to support an NBA team.

And now, "Our departments and employees are so numerous we could almost manage a small country," Schonely said.

Of course, that was an exaggeration, but the staff expansion was inevitable, not just for the Trail Blazers. After all, the team’s market value had reached hundreds of millions of US dollars.

A company worth hundreds of millions of US dollars could not be managed by just a few people, so Buckwalter, who started as a scout, felt somewhat constrained in management.

Moreover, he had an owner above him who liked to come up with whimsical ideas, organizing community activities and commercial stunts on a whim. Buckwalter often had to deal with non-basketball related work, which left him drained and under great pressure.

Mid-season, Buckwalter had the opportunity to trade Cheche Vandeweghe and bolster the team’s roster.

But Tang Jianguo disagreed. He liked Vandeweghe’s style of play, stating that purging champions was not his style, and he valued loyalty.

He said one couldn’t just demand loyalty from players to the team; the team also needed to be loyal to players, otherwise, it would be unfair, exploitation, and psychological bullying.

Tang Jianguo’s behavior, which pleased fans and the team and was meant to craft his image as a good boss, resulted in Buckwalter ultimately not being able to complete the trade.

For such an owner, when he called to say he wanted to hire Jerry West as general manager, Gan Guoyang was certain that he didn’t fully understand the significance of bringing West in to manage.

West, a manager who dared to stand up to owners, would not be as agreeable as Buckwalter, nor would he necessarily cooperate with his commercial promotions.

Tang Jianguo simply thought that West’s name was very prominent, a former Los Angeles superstar, and surely an asset for the team’s public image.

Mid-season, he had once considered inviting Wilt Chamberlain to coach the Trail Blazers to boost media impact.

Therefore, Gan Guoyang had to rush back as soon as possible, before Old Tang came to his senses, to try and see if he could help the team find an experienced, well-connected, iron-fisted leader with unique insights.

It’s said that the person who understands you the most is definitely your strongest opponent.

Gan Guoyang had played against the Lakers for five years, and he knew how much work Jerry West had done behind the scenes.

The Lakers had always been the Trail Blazers’ biggest enemy in the Western Conference, and West’s contribution was undeniable.

After more than ten hours of flying, the plane landed at Los Angeles Kennedy International Airport at night.

Gan Guoyang and his entourage got off the plane, and Tang Jianguo, accompanied by his men, was waiting for them in the VIP lounge.

Of course, outside the VIP lounge, there was a group of reporters and photographers lurking, invited by Tang Jianguo.

"Sonny! Welcome back to the embrace of your second homeland!"

Seeing Gan Guoyang, Tang Jianguo opened his arms wide for a warm welcome.

Gan Guoyang stepped forward and hugged Tang Jianguo tightly but whispered, "Is the news accurate? Otherwise, I’m going to give you a body slam right here."

Tang Jianguo’s body tensed up as he whispered back, "Absolutely true. Jack Nicholson told me! He resigned the day after the finals."

Having said this, the two men separated and turned towards the photographers’ cameras, with Gan Guoyang smiling in the flashbulbs while Tang Jianguo frowned slightly as always.

This was Tang Jianguo’s favorite thing, taking pictures with stars from sports and arts, appearing on the covers of newspapers and magazines.

Though it seemed like showing off, it was actually a business strategy. Tang Jianguo kept himself in a high profile, invisibly increasing his credibility.

Like those brainwashing ads, though simple and repetitive, yet repeated before your eyes and ears over and over, they gradually become familiar and thereby gain trust.

This allowed Tang Jianguo to always borrow a lot of money from the banks, on the one hand because he had a huge real estate to mortgage, and on the other hand, it was because of his well-known face.

This tactic has been used by many people throughout history and across the world.

Gan Guoyang briefly accepted the reporters’ interview.

After a few questions, Tang Jianguo, in an attempt to protect Gan Guoyang from harassment, led him away to head for the parking lot.

Sitting in Tang Jianguo’s extended luxury Cadillac, the two could finally talk business.

"You called a bunch of reporters again. Can you not survive without the media spotlight?"

"Yes, would die," Tang Jianguo replied with certainty.

"Let’s talk about Jerry’s situation. Is he willing to come to Portland? We did play four rounds of series after all."

"I don’t know, but we have to try, right?"

"Try? You mean, you’re gambling?"

"What else? Life is a gamble, Sonny."

"How do we gamble, tell me what to do," Gan Guoyang didn’t want to waste words with Tang Jianguo.

"Tomorrow at noon, me and Jack Nicholson are inviting West to play golf at the country club. You just come along with us."

"Nicholson? He’s a die-hard Lakers fan; will he really help persuade West?"

"Oh Sonny, what are you talking about? What does it mean to persuade West? Great people don’t make decisions by being persuaded but by being attracted. Like how I got you to come back home, did I persuade you? Only second-tier stars like Drexler get swayed by sweet words. Real wise men look at the situation and make their own judgments. What we need to do is help him see clearly. And you are the greatest player in the world; he needs to meet you."

Gan Guoyang mulled over Tang Jianguo’s words, occasionally finding him quite clever.

"Will you invite the press tomorrow?" Gan Guoyang suddenly asked.

"Oh—erm, that is, well, I do have a few journalist friends who said they wanted to come along, they are your fans..."

"This is a private meeting, Donald! You really won’t die from taking a few less photos, don’t let them come."

"OK."