The Trail Blazers were arranged to stay at the Hilton on Boston's North Shore during the Finals. The luxury hotel had strict security measures to ensure the players' rest and safety.
Gan Guoyang was still assigned a single room. This was the first time in 14 years that he came to Boston to play the Finals in June.
Fourteen years had flown by like a snap of the fingers. Back in 1986, Gan Guoyang began his journey to conquer the NBA from this city with the most championships.
No one could have predicted that it was not just a miracle of an Asian player defeating a white city to win the championship, but also the beginning of a great dynasty's rise.
In 1986, the Trail Blazers also had their first two away games in Boston. Gan Guoyang remembered that as they left Portland for the East Coast, a large number of fans came to the airport to see them off, nearly causing the team to miss their flight.
When they returned from Boston with a win, tens of thousands of fans greeted them at the airport. The people sincerely welcomed them, and that lively scene was still vividly remembered.
A mere decade and a few years later, Gan Guoyang and the Trail Blazers had returned to the starting point. History seemed like a circle. After conquering all opponents, Gan Guoyang came back to where he started, as if it were fate's arrangement.
There couldn't be a more dramatic and nostalgic script.
Now the biggest suspense is whether Gan Guoyang can conclude his professional career journey with a championship, putting a perfect end to it all.
Because upon arriving in Boston, Gan Guoyang suddenly held a brief press conference announcing his retirement after the Finals.
The press conference was very small. Gan Guoyang only invited several local Boston media, the accompanying Portland media, and a Chinese media.
Without any warning, everyone thought Gan Guoyang would make some pre-game remarks, but unexpectedly, it was such a major news.
Similar to his first retirement, he held a simple conference before Christmas, announced his decision, answered two questions, and left the arena.
As expected, the smaller the news, the bigger the impact.
A single stone stirred up a thousand waves, Ah Gan finally confirmed his retirement!
This matter attracted more attention than the Finals itself.
Due to this news, the Nasdaq index plummeted the next day.
Since reaching its peak in March 2000, the Nasdaq had been sliding.
Gan Guoyang's retirement news initially had nothing to do with finance or the economy.
Yet at this moment, the US stock market, especially internet tech stocks, had reached a stage where even the retirement news of a sports star would cause a downturn as a sign of respect.
Of course, this sports star wasn't an ordinary star; he was the greatest, most legendary, and most controversially rich superstar of this era, akin to the sun.
This simple announcement made by Gan Guoyang changed the wind direction throughout Boston.
Previously, Boston's media had portrayed Gan Guoyang as the final Demon King on the Celtics' path to the championship.
Because of the spy incident, regardless of its results, Gan Guoyang had mixed praise and criticism, especially in the traditional blue blood New England Region.
Newspapers, radio stations, and television were filled with critiques and mockery of Gan Guoyang, believing that the Trail Blazers, who beat the Lakers in Game 7, were exhausted and wouldn't be a match for the young, energetic Celtics.
Gan Guoyang's image was further mocked by many fans, with some even drawing a mustache on his portrait to suggest he was the biggest villain.
But on game day, June 6th, the Fleet Center's square displayed a giant banner with Gan Guoyang's number 11 jersey and the words "Goodbye, Ah Gan."
Although it contained some "malice," it was mostly filled with blessing, regret, and reminiscence.
This was evident from the opening ceremony, where when Gan Guoyang appeared, fans erupted in cheers and applause instead of boos.
The applause was endless, and the visiting fans' cheers were the highest tribute to this greatest player, who was a basketball emperor that dominated the league.
Gan Guoyang wasn't stingy either, waving to the Celtics fans, though in the next two hours they would transform into fierce critics, this moment of warmth was unhindered.
Bobby Berman stepped forward to shake hands and embrace Gan Guoyang; the mentor and student finally met on the Finals stage.
After the Trail Blazers won Game 7 to enter the Finals, Berman and Gan Guoyang stopped private communication—they were opponents now.
At this moment, Berman held Gan Guoyang's hand, overwhelmed with emotion, saying, "Sonny..."
Berman was a bit choked up, his eyes slightly red, unable to speak.
He knew Gan Guoyang might retire, but when the news was released so suddenly, especially before the Finals, he had reason to suspect it was Ah Gan's psychological strategy.
He had originally planned to tease Gan Guoyang by saying, "You're finally running away, Sonny."
But standing in front of Gan Guoyang, he couldn't utter those words. Their deep emotion and camaraderie in basketball couldn't be summarized in a few words.
Gan Guoyang comforted Berman, patting him and saying, "Bobby, I'm just retiring, not dying, don't be like this."