Porter listened to the coach and thought, I'm not hardworking, I'm just plain unlucky.
His fate was sealed from the moment he was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers in the 1985 draft and settled in Willamette Lake Mountain Park.
At that time, Gan Guoyang lived in a townhouse in Lake Mountain Park, staying with veterans like Vandeweghe and Mychal Thompson.
He was a first-round second overall pick with enough money to buy his own house in Portland.
Not far from the townhouse were the apartments where second-round and late first-round picks of the Trail Blazers lived.
Porter, along with Kolter, Kossie, and others, lived there, very close to the training venues.
When Porter first arrived in Portland, he was filled with confusion about the future, and the best way to break that confusion was to train with Ah Gan.
Back then, young Gan Guoyang would get up every morning to run in Lake Mountain Park. He often ran to the rookie apartments to call everyone up for a warm-up exercise.
Porter would always get up early, along with Cole, Kossie, and others, to run and get to the training facility early, hoping to survive in the NBA.
These days continued through the first three consecutive championships until after 1988 when Ah Gan's fame grew, and he moved into a larger house. He went out for morning runs less and less.
By this time, Porter was also wearing three rings, becoming one of the best Point Guards in the league. He no longer needed to get up early to run, nor did he feel confused about the future.
Time passed quickly, and he didn't realize that he had unknowingly played in the league for over a decade, filling both hands with championship rings.
When he came to Las Vegas to collaborate with Ah Gan again, he didn't expect to be dragged out of bed early by Ah Gan for a run and to train in the gym.
Porter thought, maybe as you get older, you're more inclined to reminisce about the years of hard work in your youth.
Back then, despite the hardships and some confusion, everything was possible in the future. The feeling of running towards the rising sun until it turned yellow is forever etched in his memory.
The problem is, beautiful memories are just memories, and getting up early to train at this age is truly exhausting to the point of dying!
If it was just morning exercise, it would be one thing, but the whole team training awaits as well.
If Ah Gan insists on giving everyone high intensity, just thinking about it is scary, it makes you want to throw up.
"Rudy, promise me one thing, never make me a starter again…" Porter said with a pained expression to Tomjanovich.
Tomjanovich had a hard time, thinking about how with the team's current lineup, with all the old and young guards, you're the only one who can start.
Close to 10 o'clock, all members of the Glory Team's training camp had arrived.
Besides the coaching staff and players, the team's board of directors, operations department, media department, and numerous reporters and photographers gathered at the Cox Center.
This wasn't just a simple training session, it was the first public appearance of the Glory Team.
As the main figure of this appearance, Gan Guoyang had already been training on the court for two hours.
Just as Porter said, he seemed to have returned to his younger days, seeking that vibrant energy.
But after all, with age, after two hours of practice, he was drenched in sweat and slightly fatigued.
After taking a shower and changing clothes in the locker room, he came to the court to meet with reporters and fans, taking photos, and displaying the new jerseys of the Glory Team.
The new jerseys, mainly in gold and white, complemented with red lettering, were filled with a fresh vibe. The gleaming gold looked like dazzling gold or a desert under the scorching sun.
There were three versions of the jersey: the predominantly white home jersey, the predominantly gold away jersey, and a red-striped away version.
To be honest, the design of the jerseys was somewhat simple and crude because the design team was given too little time, working overnight, and contacting the jersey manufacturer Adidas overnight, demanding the quickest finalized jerseys.
So, the design couldn't be too complex, or it wouldn't make the new season's launch.
Thus, everything was kept simple, discarding the exaggerated cartoon design patterns of the 1990s for a minimalist design.
The neon logo of the team was omitted from the jerseys. The home style had 'Las Vegas' printed on the chest, and the away style had 'Light' on it.
Even so, once these jerseys were launched, they immediately sold out in major stores.
The reason was simple; it was because of Gan Guoyang's comeback. Wearing the Glory Team's No.11, this jersey gained value.
If it were just the current training camp's shrimp soldiers and crab generals, probably only local Vegas fans would buy them, and it would be hard to sell elsewhere.
Look at the Vancouver Grizzlies jerseys, their design was very thoughtful, and the colors were beautiful and trendy.
Unfortunately, with the team's poor record and lack of star players, the jerseys and other peripherals sold very poorly.
As early as 1999, the Grizzlies were sold to NHL team owner Bill Lorry, who wanted to relocate the Grizzlies to St. Louis, but was rejected by the league.
This summer, the Vancouver Grizzlies and Vancouver City had another conflict, as the team felt it could not continue to operate in the city.
After approval from the league office, on July 3, 2001, the Grizzlies left Vancouver, relocating to Memphis, becoming the Memphis Grizzlies.
The Vancouver Grizzlies existed for only six short seasons before disappearing from NBA history.