The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 70 - 10 Moon hook
Gan Guoyang came back to the hotel after his date, it was already past ten in the evening. In the hotel lobby, he encountered Beelman, who had been sitting on the sofa, waiting for him to return.
When Beelman saw Gan Guoyang coming back, he leaned in close and sniffed, muttering, "No smell of alcohol, no smell of smoke, and no scent of perfume... What kind of date was that?"
"Watched a movie, the terrifying kind."
"Gan, I know you have an abundance of energy, and now being young and full of vigor, it’s a time of raging desires. But I feel, if we want to make a name for ourselves this year, you’d better restrain yourself, just hold back a bit."
For athletes, the energy loss from bedroom activities is obvious.
In big tournaments, whether football or basketball, coaches often make their players abstain from sex to prevent them from getting diarrhea during high-intensity competitions.
The away warm-up games for Gonzaga were long, with many matches. If Gan Guoyang picked up some bad habits or indulged in sensuality, Beelman worried that he wouldn’t be able to control himself and it would affect his performance.
After thinking it over, Gan Guoyang asked, "Is it okay if someone just kisses me?"
Beelman waved his hand dismissively, "Don’t tell me what happened between you two, I’m just reminding you. Tomorrow we’re up against UCLA, you need to be in your best shape."
"Of course, I know that, I’ve been ready for a while. Speaking of which, Bobby, do you think John and his girlfriend have ever... uh...?"
"John? I can’t tell. With his coy look, probably. But then again, he might still be saving his first time."
The two parted ways to their rooms, not without making fun of Stockton for a bit.
The next day, the famous Pauley Pavilion at UCLA, This place witnessed the most glorious years of the 60s and 70s for UCLA, with twelve championships in ten years, including one streak of seven consecutive championships, growing from an ordinary NCAA school to the number one powerhouse in America.
Gan Guoyang was originally expected to start his college basketball career here too, continuing the tradition of great California centers and helping the Golden Bears out of the ’80s slump.
But UCLA, due to their negligence and arrogance, missed out on him, a mistake any prominent team or individual might make.
Once reaching the peak, they lose humility and patience, thereby missing opportunities they would not have let slip in the past.
Upon arrival at the venue, the Los Angeles fans were not too friendly towards Gan Guoyang and Gonzaga, with people heckling Gan Guoyang during the warm-up, shouting, "Not coming to UCLA was the biggest mistake of your life," "UCLA doesn’t need you," "Go back north, Southern California doesn’t welcome you!"
Because of the CIF finals’ loss in Southern California, the Los Angeles basketball teams were still holding a grudge against Gan Guoyang.
Gan Guoyang didn’t care to argue with these people. He saw Wang Fuxi and her basketball team friends come over to watch the game.
Apart from Wang Fuxi, the others all wore UCLA’s blue and gold T-shirts, only Wang Fuxi wore a white T-shirt and donned a pink baseball cap.
Gan Guoyang found the cap very familiar and asked, "What’s that cap? I feel like I’ve seen it somewhere."
Wang Fuxi responded, "It’s a Shui Zhong Team souvenir, I... I bought it a while ago..."
Gan Guoyang remembered back when Shui Zhong went around playing matches, similarly to Gonzaga, they produced a batch of T-shirts and caps with their LOGO on it, which sold well in San Francisco.
He didn’t know when Wang Fuxi had bought it.
Clearly, Wang Fuxi knew about Gan Guoyang longer than what he had thought.
Otherwise, that time in the school gym, she wouldn’t have recognized him at a glance. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎
"Nice, it looks pretty on you," Gan Guoyang complimented, then went back to continue warming up.
Meanwhile, Wang Fuxi’s classmates teased her with strange noises, making her feel embarrassed. She could only push the cap down to cover her somewhat blushing face.
During warm-ups, Gan Guoyang spotted another familiar face, the freshman Reggie Miller who had just joined UCLA.
After Gan Guoyang left, Miller led Riverbank Polytechnic High to win the 1983 state championship.
However, the scene of the championship, viewership, and influence couldn’t compare to the previous year.
In the 70s and 80s basketball teams, freshmen had to start as substitutes, no matter how talented or gifted they were; they had to begin from the bottom.
Miller was no exception; as Gan Guoyang stood on the court ready for the jump ball, Miller could only sit on the bench and watch.
This UCLA team was still quite strong, in March they entered the nationals as a seeded team, but were knocked out by the University of Utah.
There weren’t any major changes in UCLA’s roster this season, with center Stuart Gray entering his senior year, Brad Leight on the front line, Gary Maloncon, with guards Kenny Fields and Ralph Jackson.
All of these were players who could make it to the NBA.
Standing on the court, UCLA’s most significant feature was their height advantage.
Gray was 7 feet (213 cm), Leight 6’11" (211 cm), Maloncon 6’8" (203 cm), Fields 6’7" (201 cm), and Ralph Jackson 6’2" (188 cm).
This starting lineup, in terms of height, was outstanding not just in the NCAA, but also in the NBA.
On the bench, there was also substitute Reggie Miller, at 2 meters tall, making UCLA an undeniable team of giants.
Gan Guoyang was initially not favored by UCLA, partly because he was considered a small size for an interior player. Last year he was only 6 feet 9, and this year he barely grew to 6 feet 10, still not as tall as the opposing power forward.
This was a challenge Gan Guoyang had to face after entering college and the professional league. He would often encounter players taller than himself, his high school domineering presence was no longer there.
His weapons, however, lay in his speed, explosiveness, and skills.
Plus, Gan Guoyang’s long arms, big hands, and broad shoulders gave him an effective height that was taller than many interior players.
As soon as the game started, the Bulldogs initiated a fast-paced offense. Gan Guoyang quickly moved down to the low post after winning the jump ball, and Stockton’s pass was precise and rapid.
Receiving the ball, Gan Guoyang dribbled and turned for a jump shot to test his feel, but the shot didn’t go in.
He released the ball quickly, but Gray still managed to contest Gan Guoyang’s shot.
It was UCLA’s ball possession, and they immediately slowed down the pace, starting to settle into positional offense.
UCLA was famous for John Wooden’s UCLA system, not just for a handful or dozens of tactical routines, but for an entire set of philosophical basketball offensive principles, which ruled All-America for over a decade.
However, it seems that Wooden’s successors didn’t quite get the essence of the UCLA system, or perhaps the UCLA system was a bit outdated in the 80s when players were becoming taller, faster, and stronger, and needed improvements.
In any case, in UCLA’s repeated ball movement, the Bulldogs’ defense didn’t break down.
The Bulldog defense adhered to a principle: leave the three-second zone to Ah Gan, and the other players should hold their positions as much as possible. Coupled with the players’ strong physical fitness, this gave the Bulldogs’ defensiveness a lot of resilience.
On offense, Gan Guoyang began to showcase his new skill to everyone.
After two turnaround jump shots failed to connect, Gan Guoyang stopped going to the low post.
He moved to the 45-degree wing to set a pick-and-roll for Stockton, rolling after the pick to receive the ball.
UCLA set up two defensive lines, with Leight following close behind; Gray was waiting inside the three-second zone.
With Gan Guoyang’s explosiveness, he could have charged into the paint, shooting over Gray with a monster dunk or a forceful layup. But he could have been pinched by Gray and Leight and missed the scoring opportunity.
Gray was ready for combat, Leight stuck close, but Gan Guoyang didn’t dribble inward. Instead, he took two steps towards the baseline, then executed a move all too familiar to UCLA fans—a one-legged hook shot!
The ball traced a beautiful arc through the air and swished through the net cleanly.
Gray stood under the basket without moving, unaware of what had happened.
Leight attempted to interfere but couldn’t keep up with Gan Guoyang’s steps. Even if he had caught up, the high arch of that long hook shot—left arm blocking, right arm raised high—made it virtually impossible for Leight to contest it, even with Gan Guoyang’s 6-foot-10 height.
The effortless hook shot for two points led the crowd and the UCLA players to believe it was a fluke since most players had the technique of the hook shot, but no one used it with the mastery of Jabbar to make it a regular scoring method.
Yet, using the pick-and-roll cut and hook shot, Gan Guoyang continued to score outside UCLA’s three-second zone.
He could hook with his right hand on the right side and with his left hand on the left side.
Rolling after the pick-and-roll to catch and hook, dribbling from the face-up to drive inward, and then suddenly changing steps to launch a hook shot.
Scoring 10 points in a row, he left UCLA’s tall interior confused.
Coach Farmar cursed on the sidelines, scolding Gray and Leight about how they were defending.
Gray and Leight felt innocent; maybe you should try defending? You can’t keep up with him, nor can you block his shots—whether he scores or not is all up to his touch.
Farmar had no choice but to call a timeout to adjust the defense.
As they broke from play, Reggie Miller shouted to Gan Guoyang, "Gan, you should pay patent fees to UCLA and Jabbar!"
Gan Guoyang retorted, "Cut it out, Jabbar’s is the ’sky hook’; mine is the ’Move hook’!"
The "Move hook," a term coined by Gan Guoyang for his "moving hook shot," differs from others as they approach for a layup, he would initiate the hook shot while near the basket but not too close, making it difficult for the defender to guard.
Moreover, it was different from the typical hook shot. Like Jabbar’s sky hook, which mostly required a back-to-the-basket catch, dribbling, turning, and then shooting—a sequence both complex and slow.
The Move hook executed while facing the basket, eliminated the need for a back-to-the-basket stance and turning, effectively serving as a pull-up jump shot, yet more effortless and more unguardable than the traditional stop-and-pop.
This was a technique Gan Guoyang had developed through careful study and practice, designed to handle defenders who were taller but slower than he was, his excellent coordination, and flexible body allowed him to perform the hook shot with natural elegance.
Of course, he could also do a stationary turn and hook shot, just like the sky hook—the techniques were universally applicable.
As he used it more and more, it eventually became known as the "Moon hook," due in part to his relative shortness which gave the shot a higher and more rounded arc, almost reminiscent of the moon.
In previous games, Gan Guoyang had not used this move, as if he was waiting for UCLA.
During the timeout, Beelman even asked if it was specially designed to give UCLA a demonstration.
But Gan Guoyang shook his head and said, "Rushing in for a dunk is too tiring. I want to save energy in this warm-up game. We still have many games ahead. UCLA, what’s there to target against?"
