At the end of September, the Trail Blazers held their rookie training camp as usual at Willamette University.
Gan Guoyang, Petrović, and Sabonis all participated in this training camp with the purpose of recovering from the Olympic pace and regaining the feeling of playing in the NBA through the camp.
The Olympic battles were undoubtedly exhausting, and both Petrović and Sabonis suffered varying degrees of injuries, with Sabonis’s knee feeling increasingly burdensome.
The 1991-1992 season, combined with two weeks of the Olympics’ schedule, took a great toll on the players’ bodies. They urgently needed to find a balance between health and good form.
Participating in the rookie training camp was a good way to achieve this. As veterans, they didn’t have the same pressure as the newcomers and could train more lightly, maintaining a state of half training and half recovery.
At the Trail Blazers, it was a tradition for veterans to attend rookie training camp. Gan Guoyang had been mingling there since his rookie days, judging the worst class of rookies each year.
This time, Gan Guoyang handed out a 1992 revised edition of the "Gump Basketball Recipe" to everyone. It was the book’s fourth edition, and it had made it to the bestseller list in North America this summer.
The book typically contained an advertisement for a funeral home, making people wonder what exactly the purpose of this recipe was.
When the first day of rookie training camp ended, and the new recruits, including PJ Brown, lay on the ground unable to move, they started to understand why the book had a funeral home ad and why training with Ah Gan was so exhausting.
"You are the worst batch of rookies I’ve ever led! Get up! Your salaries are getting higher and higher; why is your physical condition getting worse and worse!"
While everyone else was exhausted, Gan Guoyang remained energetic, planning to practice three-point shots after the training ended.
PJ Brown was already on the sidelines throwing up into a bucket, while Sabonis chuckled, sitting on the floor and stretching his legs.
The veterans were exempted from full participation, only attending in small quantities, while the new recruits had to keep up with the pace or pack their bags and leave the next day.
"This is the Portland Trail Blazers training camp, not a homeless shelter. Keep your spirits up, get a good rest at night, and don’t waste money and energy at strip clubs."
Besides PJ Brown, who was confirmed to stay and sign a contract, the Trail Blazers had one final slot for a new player to receive a guaranteed contract, completing the team’s 13-man roster.
To secure a guaranteed contract with the Trail Blazers, the undrafted players gave it their all. Everyone knew that if one could establish themselves with the Portland Trail Blazers, they could find work in the NBA in the future.
After all, if it’s Gan-certified, it must be top quality.
However, on the second day of the rookie training camp, several recruits were suddenly missing from the previous group of ten or so.
The number quickly fell below ten, not even enough to play a team scrimmage.
Curious, Gan Guoyang asked what happened, and Adelman told him: "Some people quit; they couldn’t handle the intensity of the Trail Blazers’ rookie camp. Others were just here because of your reputation, wanting to train with you for a couple of days. When their goal was achieved, they left."
"But... only by completing the training camp can one have a chance to stay."
"There’s only one chance here, but there are more opportunities outside. They can go to Europe, the CBA, or Puerto Rico. There are many more avenues to play now than before. Moreover, other teams are also fine. Now there are 27 teams with 13-man rosters, so there are plenty of job opportunities. Why..."
"Why what?"
"Why endure your torment in Portland, Sonny."
Adelman’s words gave Gan Guoyang a feeling of time passing and things changing.
Unknowingly, he had already been battling in the league for 8 years, transforming from a rookie resisting the coach and organizing the team, to a "veteran oppressing the newcomers."
Eight years was not long, but in the sports world, it meant more than half of a professional athletic career, or at least over a third, as no professional player had maintained their status for 25 years yet.
Plus, over these 8 years, from the ’80s to the ’90s, the NBA really went through many changes.
He remembered that in the ’80s, when there were fewer teams, entering the NBA was challenging.
Some teams would rather leave a roster spot open than sign a player casually, like the then Los Angeles Lakers, who kept 11 players for a season, with the 12-man roster always incomplete.
It wasn’t because the Lakers or NBA teams had particularly high demands on players, being so high that they completely disregarded those who didn’t meet them, but because they were poor.
Adding one more person meant more expenses, and even a championship team like the Lakers sometimes didn’t want to incur extra costs for a 12th man.
That was in the ’80s, and earlier in the terrible ’70s and ’60s, players often had to work part-time jobs, working during the day and playing games at night.
After going through an entire season and earning a decent salary, the team would collapse or disband the following year, leaving players jobless.
Nowadays, stars have become celebrities and millionaires, while life for the lower-tier players has improved markedly. Everyone still works hard, but they don’t have to push themselves as much anymore.
Being able to play in the NBA is naturally a good thing, but Europe isn’t bad either, where American players are treated as honored guests and can play comfortably.
The CBA and Puerto Rico leagues are also thriving, with the success of George Karl and Phil Jackson showing that talent isn’t exclusive to college and the NBA.
On the second day of rookie training camp, Adelman reminded Gan Guoyang, "Sonny, don’t push yourself so hard and torment others. No one can keep up with you, and you can’t motivate them because you’re too far ahead of them. It’s only those nearby stories that can inspire, like the guy next door working hard and becoming a millionaire, so I start working hard too, learning to do business and make money like him. But no one, after seeing Newton get hit on the head by an apple, sits under an apple tree hoping to discover the secrets of gravity."