One of the most surprising investments was when the Nike Group formed a consortium to acquire the Portland Trail Blazers in 2000, and Michael Jordan became one of the minority shareholders of the Trail Blazers.
This was once the kingdom of Gan Guoyang, the team that had defeated Jordan and the Bulls in three finals. Now Jordan had become a part of it and even served as a manager for a while.
He became the Chief Operating Officer of the Portland Trail Blazers and, as a former greatest adversary, tried to leave his own mark on the Trail Blazers in this position.
However, he soon discovered that all this was futile.
In Portland, everyone liked Jordan, welcomed his arrival, and when he walked the streets of Portland, people warmly greeted him, asking for autographs and photos.
This surprised Jordan; he thought the people of Portland would hate him, miss Gan Guoyang, and reject him.
The reality was different, and Jordan thought that maybe Gan Guoyang's influence was just like this.
Until one day, when Jordan was visiting the Trail Blazers' training camp, he couldn't resist going on the court to play one-on-one with Kobe, to stimulate the players' competitiveness.
But Kobe didn't want to play one-on-one at all, saying, "Michael, you better just watch on the sidelines, don't risk your old arms and legs."
The two began trash-talking each other, but Kobe just didn't want to play one-on-one with Jordan, stating that he wasn't interested.
In a moment of excitement, Kobe said, "Michael, do you really think there's a place for you here? People like you only out of courtesy and respect, like seeing a circus bear with a hat dribbling a ball on the street; anyone would take a picture with it!"
"How can you think of surpassing Gan Guoyang? Gan Guoyang is a god here, Jesus Christ. The god tells us to love, to embrace, we won't hate a bear for this, but don't even think about leaving your name here, you've never even won a championship here."
Jordan almost got into a fight with Kobe, and they were pulled apart by teammates, worsening their relationship.
Since then, Jordan never appeared at the Trail Blazers' training camp. Shortly after the start of the season, he resigned from his position as an executive at the Trail Blazers, keeping only his minority shareholder status.
It wasn't just because of Kobe's trash talk; rather, Jordan soon realized that Kobe was right.
Portland belonged only to Gan Guoyang, whether he was present or not, their loyalty was dedicated to him.
For Jordan, the painful part was that he couldn't return to Chicago.
Jordan used to think about finding a key position within the Bulls, or even joining the management team as an owner.
But owner Reinsdorf had never considered this possibility; he knew that if Jordan joined the management, Jerry Krause would have to leave, as their conflict had become irreconcilable.
Furthermore, the Bulls' shareholders insisted that Jordan earning a fortune for them on the court was one thing, but wanting to join the management off the court was another; the two shouldn't be conflated.
Before Jordan joined the Bulls, the Bulls' management and board were known for being rigid and stubbornly conservative; the good side was that they were highly loyal to each other, but the bad side was being obstinate, narrow-minded, and resistant to change — the Bulls were the only team in the League whose logo had never undergone any changes.
This characteristic was common among teams on the East Coast, where owners were personable, and employees could work with the team for decades, with strong emotional bonds.
The issue was that the NBA was highly competitive, with a rapidly changing environment, and everyone was seeking innovation and change.
In contrast, Western Conference teams were more open, diverse, and had more changes, with less historical baggage.
This was one of the reasons why Western Conference teams gradually overshadowed Eastern teams entering the 21st century.
After leaving the Trail Blazers and unable to return to the Bulls, Jordan learned of Gan Guoyang's plan to rebuild a team in Las Vegas and that this guy was also planning a comeback.
Having long since hidden his competitive desire, Jordan had resumed normal training even before 9/11.
Now he finally found a target, found the silhouette he could continue to chase.
On September 30, 37-year-old Jordan held a press conference to announce his comeback and fight in the NBA 2001-2002 season, continuing to vie with Gan Guoyang.
— From the 2016 publication, Roland Lazenby's biography "Michael Jordan: The Life," excerpted.
"You're full of it, Michael; I don't believe you're doing this just to beat me!"
"Believe it or not, that's exactly what I think; I just want to beat you."
"I don't believe it; you want to gain shares in a team. Why don't you just come to me? I'll give you shares, and plenty of it!"
"Forget it, Sonny. I'm planning to sell all of my shares in the Trail Blazers; I never want to go to that damn place again."
"Portland is a nice place; don't they welcome you? Portland fans are very polite."
"They welcome me, and they're nice to me, but I know that place will always be yours."
"No kidding, why don't you just go to Chicago, then? If you come to Las Vegas earlier, I could count you as a founder of the team. Otherwise, if you go to another team, I'll beat you again."
"We'll see about that, Sonny, I'm quite confident in myself."
"Okay, Michael, you…alright, I can't persuade you for now. But I'll tell you, don't think you can play a couple of years and then get a share in a team; kill that thought. All team owners are vampires, all are liars, the biggest ones, don't believe a word from any of them, none of them."
"Aren't you one of them?"
"I'm different, my wife is the owner, not me."
On the phone, Gan Guoyang consistently advised Jordan as a friend, while Jordan, as always, had his own ideas.
According to Gan Guoyang's understanding of Jordan, his comeback had a dual meaning; wanting to compete on the basketball court with Gan was definitely part of it, but not the main purpose.
The main point was the second level of thought; to take this opportunity to break into the NBA owners' circle and become a true tycoon.
Gan Guoyang had ten championships under his belt, plus years of accumulation; after the 9/11 event, he transitioned from player to owner.
Even so, Gan Guoyang still took to the court, dragging his old arms and legs to continue playing.
Love for basketball was one aspect, but another was to fulfill the stipulations of the agreement.
If Gan Guoyang didn't come back, with those so-called "potential picks" on the expansion draft list, whether the live tickets could be sold out would be a big question.
Once Gan Guoyang returned, it was different; just recently, the Glory Team's sales team announced the season ticket sales hotline, and the phone line was overwhelmed.
The original plan to sell 5,000 season tickets was nowhere near enough, it was directly increased to 12,000, and even then, it wasn't enough.
But they had to reserve some ticketing channels and couldn't sell all the seats.
As a result, many people started registering and queueing up, waiting for ticket returns, or for transfers.
Just the ticket revenue from the arena would reach a very high level; Gan Guoyang only regretted that the MGM Hotel's stadium had too few seats, with only over 17,000 seats, and not many VIP boxes, otherwise, more money could be made.
In terms of championship and fame, Jordan lagged much behind Gan Guoyang, but he was a solid second during the '90s, the only one able to contend with Ah Gan.
It was obviously much more difficult for him to become a big team owner.
In Portland, he couldn't feel a sense of belonging, and with Nike there, he'd always be a minor character, a small owner, far from becoming a big boss.
Therefore, he sought to come back, using his fame, combat power, and money, to hold a real shareholder status.
Then, in future developments, look for opportunities to become a big boss of a team, a dominator.
This was Jordan's real intention, even if he didn't admit it, Gan Guoyang knew it would be this way.
Not because Jordan lost his original intention, but because at such an age, one had to consider more things.
In your twenties, you might only play basketball for basketball, but approaching forty, naturally, you have to juggle playing, making money, and becoming an owner.
As expected, after exchanging views with Gan Guoyang on the phone in the morning, in the afternoon, Jordan held a press conference to announce to all of America his comeback: "I will return to the beloved NBA court to continue striving for victory. In such a sad and depressing moment, I need to stand up to keep fighting, giving everyone confidence to overcome current difficulties and continue towards our greatness and prosperity."
As Jordan said, he chose to join a team located on the West Coast, the arch-enemy of Portland, the Emerald City, Seattle.