A week later, in late July, Charles Barkley arrived at the American Basketball Academy in Mackenzie Valley— a basketball training center built in a forested valley, following the address given by Gan Guoyang.
This center was established in 1997, funded by Gan Guoyang, a few partners, and Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Walton.
The center serves basketball enthusiasts and professional athletes from Oregon, surrounding states, and all over the world, providing them with a conducive training environment while researching and offering advanced basketball teaching concepts.
During the off-season, Gan Guoyang would spend some time training here, maintaining his condition, instead of always flying to New York or Los Angeles like in his younger years. After all, his family is in Portland, and the training base in Oregon is more convenient.
Apart from these three NBA giants—Gan Guoyang, Chamberlain, and Bill Walton—many basketball celebrities from the West Coast are affiliated here, forming an advisory committee to provide suggestions or aid the development and construction of the training center.
The advisory committee members include luminaries like John Wooden, Dale Brown, Pete Newell, Jerry Lucas, and Jack Ramsay, making it an impressive lineup.
This was Charles Barkley's first visit to the American Basketball Academy. Seeing the center's name, he thought, "Ah Gan is really boastful, building a training center and directly naming it 'American.'
Why not simply name it Portland or Oregon Basketball Training Center?"
Once inside, seeing names like Chamberlain, Wooden, and Walton enshrined on the list in the hospitality hall, he realized that the 'American' designation truly held significant weight.
To Barkley's surprise, besides Gan Guoyang, Sabonis, Terry Porter, Chris Mullin, and Dell Curry were all there at the training center.
"What's going on? Sonny, what do you mean? Are you planning to form a new Trail Blazers?" Barkley wondered, as he contemplated why a bunch of old guys would gather to train together.
Sabonis came over to explain: "The Chinese National Team is training here, and we were all called by Ah Gan to be sparring partners."
Barkley then understood; Ah Gan was representing the Chinese National Team at the Sydney Olympics. Barkley, Sabonis, Mullin, Porter, along with Curry, actually formed a decent lineup.
Gan Guoyang came over and touched Barkley's belly, saying, "Go weigh yourself, Charles. See if you are under 300 pounds yet?"
Barkley replied, "If I'm not below 300 pounds, does that mean I can leave?"
"No, I will supervise you until you get below 300 pounds."
"..."
Charles Barkley didn't expect that just a few days into retirement, his challenge would appear again.
But he couldn't help it. Ah Gan offered too much; upon seeing the contract, he understood that he wouldn't have to worry about work and money for the next decade.
Presumably, Sabonis, Mullin, Porter, and Curry also received generous rewards. Otherwise, at this age, mere camaraderie wouldn't suffice to attract them for mentorship.
The best part of having Ah Gan as the leader is that he never makes empty promises; instead, he ensures the pies are more than enough, satisfying everyone who follows his leadership in terms of honors, money, and reputation, never lacking in any aspect.
So everyone is willing to stick around with Ah Gan, embracing his leadership, ensuring they acquire everything they need—championships, money, fame—all fully guaranteed.
Not long after this group of retired Trail Blazers veterans arrived at the training center, in the early morning of the 17th, the Chinese Men's Basketball Team finally arrived at their destination after a 30-hour layover air journey and a more than two-hour coach trip.
Gan Guoyang and Bruce O'Neal, the head of the training center, greeted the young men from the national team, leaving them pleasantly surprised and honored.
Jiang Xingquan, the head coach of the National Team, dragged his exhausted body forward as the first to shake hands with Gan Guoyang, expressing, "There's really a lot of hardship on your part, a lot of hardship."
Jiang Xingquan's words had multiple meanings: firstly, it was already past three in the morning, and Gan Guoyang personally came to the parking lot to welcome the National Team, which wasn't necessary, but he did it anyway.
Secondly, Gan Guoyang, having retired at the age of 36 and endured a torturous season, could have rested well, yet he chose to rejoin the national team for the sake of national honor, arranging training in America single-handedly, a heartfelt gesture indeed.
Furthermore, Jiang Xingquan became a deputy chairman of the Basketball Association after the 1992 Olympics, working in the capital city, accessing more top-level information.
Jiang Xingquan was aware through various channels that Gan Guoyang made outstanding contributions in multiple areas for the country, well beyond basketball, deserving a state flag-covered casket posthumously.
Therefore, his "There's really a lot of hardship on your part" conveyed deep respect.
Subsequently, Jiang Xingquan asked the members of the national team to shake hands with Gan Guoyang one by one, marking an introductory encounter.
This time on the national team, only two veterans from the Barcelona era, Hu Weidong and Sun Jun, were present, with Hu Weidong appearing to be in good spirits and excellent condition.
At the end of the 2000 regular season, Hu Weidong left the Boston Celtics as he was not on Bobby Berman's 12-man playoff roster.
The reasons were many: part of it involved physical conditioning and injuries as consecutive high-intensity games and training took their toll on Hu Weidong's body.
Therefore, Hu Weidong preferred returning home as soon as the regular season ended to rest and maintain his condition in preparation for the September Olympics.
Consequently, Hu Weidong missed the chance to meet Gan Guoyang in the finals. Of course, if he had stayed with the Celtics, his playing time in the finals wouldn't have increased significantly.
Others like Wang Zhizhi, Liu Yudong, Bartel, Li Nan, and Zhen Wu are members of the 1996 national team, now in their prime with strong combat capabilities.
Several players, including Zhang Jingsong, Li Qun, and Guo Shiqiang, were also participating in the Olympics for the first time. The last one to shake hands with Gan Guoyang was the tallest player, Yao Ming.
As Yao Ming awkwardly came over to shake Gan Guoyang's hand, his towering 2.26 meters felt overshadowed by Gan Guoyang's 2.09 meters.
He greeted Gan Guoyang in a deep, slightly muddled voice, appearing a bit flustered as this was Yao Ming's first encounter with the national idol face-to-face.
Yao Ming once watched Gan Guoyang's match live in Shanghai. When Gan Guoyang held events, Yao Ming observed from the stands from a distance.
That's the idol and dream of young sports-loving people all over China, a totemic figure—a true sports mythology.
People often say that the legendary figures often disappoint when you meet them in person.
For instance, someone described as wise and mighty might turn out to be just a little old man or an ordinary middle-aged person with no aura at all in person.
Ah Gan is an entirely different existence; everyone who meets him in reality will say, "He's more awe-inspiring than on TV," "far more charming than expected," "He is practically like a god, emitting divine radiance."
Yao Ming's current thoughts aligned exactly with those people. Standing before him was a god-like figure, making you want to bow, even kneel.
Smiling, Gan Guoyang greeted Yao Ming and jokingly commented, "Is the air up there fresher?"
It was a joke Charles Barkley used to make about Sabonis; Yao Ming was even taller than Sabonis.
Inside, Gan Guoyang felt quite emotional, a reminder of a distant memory from the night that changed his life.
It was because of hearing about Yao Ming's retirement that this miraculous journey began, and now he stood with the newly-entered basketball world Yao Ming.
It was like an ouroboros, the snake biting its own tail, forming a perfect circle.
When Yao Ming took photos with Bruce O'Neal afterward, he seemed much more poised and confident, with firm determination shining in his eyes.
Under Gan Guoyang's influence, the younger generation of Chinese players are confident, optimistic, ambitious, and full of dreams about the future.
Take Hu Weidong, for example. Although his Celtics journey had ended, he wasn't planning to return to China to play; he was considering staying in America to look for job opportunities after the Olympics.
Wang Zhizhi spent a decent season with the Atlanta Hawks, averaging 11 points and 4 rebounds per game, showcasing his potential and value for development.
Now, Wang Zhizhi is very popular in Atlanta, always sporting a cheerful smile on his face.
Others like Liu Yudong and Bartel also have the possibility of joining the NBA, which has higher economic value, while the Basketball Association also hopes they'll gain experience in high-level leagues to raise the national team's standards.
In the recent draft not long ago, Bartel was selected as the 42nd pick in the second round by the San Antonio Spurs, where he will play next season.
In summary, under Gan Guoyang's leadership, China's basketball youth talents have a bright future ahead.