On the morning of the 2nd, Gan Guoyang arrived in Toronto. He joined the team in the afternoon and participated in a shooting practice session on the morning of the 3rd to prepare for the game against the Raptors on the evening of the 3rd.
During the pre-game warm-up, Raptors’ general manager Isiah Thomas came over to greet Gan Guoyang with a handshake and a hug.
These former on-court rivals now have a rather good off-court relationship, laughing and chatting, far from the tense encounters during games.
Gan Guoyang once nearly knocked Thomas out with an elbow on the court, causing a dent in Thomas’s cheekbone. Later, due to issues revolving around Stockton and the 92 Olympics, their relationship soured significantly.
However, as Thomas, Bill Lambier, and others retired, and as they grew older, their relationship gradually began to soften.
At the 1996 All-Star Game, Bill Lambier met Gan Guoyang in an elevator and humbly requested Gan Guoyang to take care of his packaging business.
Originally, Lambier didn’t give it much thought, but unexpectedly, Gan Guoyang managed to land a big order for Lambier, providing packaging materials for China’s rapidly developing infrastructure, meeting a significant demand at the time. This order alleviated the urgent needs of Lambier’s factory.
At the same time, Thomas was expanding his printing business in the Michigan area, and also got a large order, rescuing a company on the brink of bankruptcy.
Nowadays, Thomas’s printing company is thriving globally, and even if Thomas doesn’t remain the Raptors’ general manager, he is still a capitalist in high society.
With the deep intertwining of interests, past on-court grudges became insignificant.
In 1998, Thomas had intense conflicts with other Raptors executives, discovering significant disagreements about future development, putting him on the brink of resignation.
At that time, Raptors’ core guard Damon Stoudemire wanted to leave Toronto, believing that playing in Canada was unpromising.
Thomas specifically sought out Gan Guoyang, hoping he could help solve the Raptors’ dilemma, as he also wanted to stay in Toronto.
At the time, the Trail Blazers finished the season with 77 wins and won the championship, in the limelight, while the Raptors, as a new team, were mired in financial troubles and player scandals.
It’s unknown what kind of under-the-table deals they made privately, but Gan Guoyang stepped in with solutions, recalling the Trail Blazers’ past assistance to the Indiana Pacers, trading Spoelstra to the Pacers, serving half a season as general manager, resolving a series of issues for the Pacers.
Gan Guoyang suggested trading retired Buckwalter to the Toronto Raptors in exchange for a second-round pick in the year 2000.
Buckwalter, renowned, was sent to the Raptors and first stabilized the team by vetoing the trade involving Camby and Stoudemire, believing they were talents and had future potential, and couldn’t be casually sent away.
Moreover, Buckwalter had high hopes for the Raptors’ draft pick, Vince Carter, believing that he must be developed well and become the core of the lineup.
"He will change this team and this city."
In addition, Buckwalter built new sales channels for the Raptors and devised new advertising and ticketing strategies, utilizing experiences from the Trail Blazers.
By the start of the 1998-1999 season, the attendance rate at Toronto Raptors’ home games soared, and their viewership ratings skyrocketed, solidifying their foothold in Toronto.
Buckwalter gracefully retired, leaving Toronto after half a season and returning to Portland to enjoy his retirement.
Isiah Thomas was able to remain in his role, continuing to serve as general manager while they are achieving success.
Thomas didn’t want a newcomer to reap the rewards.
Of course, neither Buckwalter nor Thomas were the direct cause or main reason for the surge in attendance rates.
The true catalyst for this change was the "Canadian Flyman," the Trail Blazers’ opponent tonight alongside Kobe, Vince Carter.