In 1969, when Jabbar entered the League, if Russell hadn’t left, he would’ve been beaten badly by Jabbar.
Similarly, in 1989, when Jabbar retired and O’Neal subsequently entered the League, a wave of super centers were maturing, and by then he was already being beaten badly.
Gan Guoyang was not being beaten badly; on both ends of the floor he could still suppress players at his position around the League, but winning a championship really wasn’t that easy anymore.
In the 2003–2004 season, Sam Cassell signed with the Timberwolves and formed a three-headed monster with Garnett and Spreewell, taking the top seed in the Western Conference.
The fourth-seeded Glory battled them for seven games, and in Game 7 Gan Guoyang hit a game-winning three to knock out the Timberwolves and advance to the Western Conference Finals.
But in the Western Conference Finals, they ran into a more mature Kobe and Little O’Neal.
Kobe, after the baptism of the 2003 playoffs and the torment of the summer sexual assault case, went through a painful transformation in the 2003–2004 season.
He finally calmed down and faced Ah Gan with a peaceful mindset.
Glory exhausted their energy in the semifinals and ultimately lost to the Trail Blazers Team in six games in the Western Conference Finals; the Trail Blazers once again reached the Finals.
In the Finals, the Trail Blazers faced the Miami Heat, who had assembled O’Neal, Karl Malone, Gary Payton and a host of other stars, and once again finished the series in six games.
4–2. With averages of 30 points, 6 assists and 6 rebounds, Kobe captured the first Finals MVP of his career and finally, after Ah Gan’s departure, won a title that truly belonged to him.
That season, Kobe shuttled back and forth between the court and the courtroom, drained by the case; his family, reputation, and career all suffered heavy blows, and he went through the darkest stretch of his life.
But it was precisely this darkness that didn’t kill Kobe and instead allowed him to be reborn; this championship carried immense significance for him.
Holding the trophy, the newly crowned champion Kobe cried his eyes out; he finally realized what a true champion is, what a real championship means.
By the 2005 season, the Trail Blazers were determined to defend their title, but Big Ben was suspended after a conflict with Pacers forward Artest.
After that, a series of internal conflicts erupted within the Trail Blazers, and Big Ben was traded to the Detroit Pistons in exchange for Shawn Marion.
But the biggest trade that season wasn’t Big Ben-for-Marion; it was that in the offseason, Steve Nash returned to the Suns, swapping teams with Tony Parker.
Because the Celtics had fallen in the Eastern Conference Finals in both 2003 and 2004, Steve Nash’s frail defense was seen as the key reason the team could not take the next step.
Bobby Berman, under pressure from Auerbach and all of Boston, sent Nash back to Phoenix and got the young Parker in return.
This swap, however, produced an unexpected effect.
Nash returned to the Suns and led the team to play a League-shocking up-tempo offense in the 2004–2005 season.
Meanwhile, the Trail Blazers’ defensive holes were patched; although their regular-season record wasn’t as good as the Suns—they didn’t win 60 games—their overall strength was greater.
The two teams delivered a phenomenon-level season, and after slicing through opponents in the playoffs, both reached the Finals and met in June.
The two teams that had swapped point guards met in the Finals; the Celtics and Suns once again fought for the championship, 30 years after their last clash.
The Trail Blazers had been eliminated by the Suns in the semifinals, and Gan Guoyang missed the playoffs because of a back injury.
In the end, the Celtics captured the 2005 championship, and "defense wins championships" once again became a creed people firmly believed in.
Steve Nash went through a bittersweet season; his personal talent was further unleashed, and at 30, he was in his element with the Suns, winning the regular-season MVP, but losing to his old team in the Finals seemed to prove that he really was the reason the Celtics couldn’t win more titles.
At this point, Gan Guoyang began to be troubled by his back injury.
Throughout the 2005–2006 season, his playing time was limited.
And former Glory stalwarts like Van Exel, Barry, and Ross were all gradually declining and leaving Glory.
The real pillars were Yao Ming, Gerald Wallace, Raja Bell, and Andre Miller, and without Gan Guoyang as the spiritual core, this core lineup could barely hover around the edge of the playoffs; thinking about winning a championship was out of the question.
In the draft, Glory took Trevor Ariza in 2004, drafted Luther Head in 2005, and in the 2006 draft selected Rajon Rondo.
All perimeter players, all promising prospects, but they had yet to become true fighting force; by this time, the Glory Team no longer had the imposing, magical presence of that championship squad.
Dr. Carter evenly spread a special ointment over Gan Guoyang’s broad back, then used forceful massage to relieve the tension in his back muscles.
As the back muscles gradually relaxed, Gan Guoyang felt very comfortable; after more than ten minutes of therapy, he felt he could handle tonight’s game.
After he put on his clothes, Dr. Carter reminded Gan Guoyang once more, "The best cure is to walk away from basketball."
"That day will come," Gan Guoyang replied.
A little after three in the afternoon, Gan Guoyang drove to the Gump Center arena in Las Vegas.
This was the first arena in NBA history to be named after a player.
After two and a half years of construction, the arena opened for use in the 2003–2004 season.
It’s a massive multi-purpose arena that can hold more than twenty thousand people, equipped with the most advanced facilities and the most luxurious decor; it is currently the best arena in the NBA.
Gan Guoyang went straight to the Glory Team owner’s office; Wang Fuxi had arrived early to handle work, as the new season would officially tip off tonight.
She’d been on the phone the whole time; when she saw Gan Guoyang come in, she signaled for him to wait a bit. Gan Guoyang made himself a cup of tea and looked around, poking here and there.
Wang Fuxi hung up and said, "What are you rummaging through? Why are you like a little kid?"
"I’m just checking if you’ve got anything you’re hiding from me."
"Idiot. By the way, there’s something I want to discuss with you."
"Funny, I also have something I wanted to talk to you about."
"You go first."
"I’m planning to retire after this season."
A slight look of surprise flashed across Wang Fuxi’s face, then she reacted as if it were expected, even letting out a sigh of relief.
In fact, everyone had been waiting for this day. Ever since Jordan left in 2003, everyone felt Ah Gan should retire.
But he actually dragged it out till now, and especially in the 2005–2006 season, when he missed a large number of games due to injury, everyone thought the time had come.
"It is about time~" Wang Fuxi walked over and hugged Gan Guoyang.
Even at this age, the couple’s relationship was very good; in private they were still very affectionate.
Wang Fuxi hadn’t forgotten her original intentions just because she’d become the owner of Glory; the two of them still respected and deeply loved each other.
Gan Guoyang put his arms around his wife and said, "I’m really sorry for making you wait so long. You’ve worked so hard, you’ve worked so hard. Once I retire, I’ll take over a lot of the work, or hand it to a professional GM. We both need to take a break."
"It’s actually fine; I really enjoy the process of building a team. So, shall we hold a press conference this afternoon to announce the news and start your farewell tour?"
"No! No, I’m not going to announce it. I don’t want people to know I’m leaving. Not only can’t they know, this season I’m still going after the championship. I still want to win. I want to scare them, make everyone think, ’Why the hell is Ah Gan still here, still hanging around winning titles?’ I want to make them despair, make them think I’m back again. Then I’ll leave and let them breathe a sigh of relief. That’ll definitely be a lot of fun."
Wang Fuxi laughed and said, "You really are like a kid. At your age you still have these nasty little pleasures, you like to torment people?"
"This is my only amusement. In the last season, I’ve got to have my fun. Have every game turn into a farewell? No way. Clap while secretly happy that I’m finally gone? No, I want to win one more time."
Wang Fuxi agreed with her husband’s idea, not announcing that this would be his last season and instead focusing on preparing for the new season.
"Oh, right, what did you want to discuss with me?"
"Guess who just called me?"
"My mom?"
"Idiot! I haven’t even met my mother-in-law! It was Billy King, the GM of Philadelphia."
"Oh~ what great insight does he have? Wants to take me to Philadelphia?"
"No, he was discussing a trade with me. Who do you think it is?"
Gan Guoyang froze for a moment, then thought of something and said, "It’s Allen Iverson."