After Gan Guoyang returned to his residence, he couldn't sleep with some excitement.

When he came to the United States four years ago, Gan Guoyang was curious about every new thing he saw, especially when he saw the NBA and NBA players in this era, and that magical feeling is still fresh in Gan Guoyang's memory, such as the first time he met Payton, the first time he met Russell, and the first time he met Chamberlain.

But as time went on, that feeling began to fade, especially when Gan became an NBA player himself, and those future superstars became his "colleagues" and competitors, no matter which basketball celebrity he saw, he no longer felt excited.

However, the feeling of seeing the Chinese men's basketball players is different.

Now Gan Guoyang is more and more understanding of the hometown complex that remains in Chinese's heart, and over the years in the United States, he has also had a lot of Chinese fans, but most of them speak standard English, and they also belong to Americans in terms of identity, this pure Chinese is not the same after all.

Therefore, whenever he gets the news of China in the United States and meets people from Chinese mainland, he will feel extremely cordial and happy, and the sense of blood connection brought by the same root and species is something that the Pacific Ocean cannot block.

But after the excitement, Gan Guoyang, who was lying on the bed, was also a little worried, he knew that as an NBA professional player, it was impossible for him to represent the Chinese national team in international competitions, and the ban would not be lifted until 1992.

It is impossible for Gan Guoyang to give up his identity as an NBA player to return to China to play, after all, this is the highest temple of world basketball.

Moreover, Gan Guoyang also found that the players of the Chinese team did not seem to be very interested in Gan Guoyang, except for the two coaches Qian Chenghai and Lu Changxin, the other players were not interested in communicating with Gan Guoyang, and just ate or watched performances there.

Gan Guoyang wanted to talk to them a few times, but the result was that he had a hot face and a cold butt, and only got a few few responses, which also made Gan Guoyang feel a little unhappy.

However, after all, Gan Guoyang is a person who has seen the world, not only has he seen the world, but he also knows the future, so he doesn't care about the players of the men's basketball team, he also understands the mentality of the men's basketball players, they are all young people, and they are also first-class players in the Chinese basketball industry. of Chinese basketball masters, they must all have unconvinced thoughts in their hearts.

"If you are not convinced, then I will convince you tomorrow." Gan Guoyang thought, but the phone in the room rang.

"Hello, this is Sonny Gan, who are you?" Gan Guoyang asked after lifting the phone.

"It's me, Bernard, and it's good that you're in the room." The caller turned out to be a Knicks player, a former Warriors star, Bernard King.

"Bernard! How do you know the phone number in my room? It's been a while since you've been in touch, are you in New York? When Gan Guoyang heard it, it turned out to be Bernard King, and since entering the NBA, Kim has become Gan Guoyang's better friend.

However, given the long distance between New York and Portland, there are not many opportunities for the two to meet, and Bernard King has also been hampered by injuries this season, playing only 55 of his 82 games.

Even so, he still won the title of scoring champion with an average of 32.9 points per game, which is enough to see the strength of his scoring ability.

"Yes, I'm in New York, the day after tomorrow the Knicks are going to play a game against the Chinese men's basketball team, I heard that you are also in New York, so I asked someone to check your room number, and you are really staying in the room. How about coming out for a drink? Bernard King invited.

"If I could, I'd like to be able to go to the pitch for a while, if your knee is okay. I can't stand the nightclubs in New York. Gan Guoyang has always stayed away from nightclubs, and the noisy and noisy environment is really not suitable for him.

"Yes, we can go to the Knicks' training ground, and I'll drive to the Intercontinental Hotel to pick you up."

The two basketball maniacs didn't choose to go to the gym at night, which may be the reason why the two were able to become good friends.

Soon, Gan Guoyang waited for Jin's car at the door of the hotel, and he made a taxi to come over.

Gan Guoyang opened the car door and sat down, but when he looked at Jin's face, he found that this super scorer, who had a square face and had always been full of energy, looked a lot fatter than before.

"Hey Kim, what's wrong with you? Because the light is not good at night? Long time no see, why do I think you're a little fatter? Gan Guoyang said bluntly.

"Oh, you know Gan, my cruciate ligament is torn, I don't know how long it's been since I touched the ball, how can I not get fat?" Bernard King said to Gan Guoyang as he started the car.

"Oh shit, I forgot about this, otherwise we'd better find a place to sit and talk, and stop going to the training gym." Gan Guoyang then remembered that Bernard King was in a game against the Kansas Kings in March, suffered a torn cruciate ligament in his right knee, and had season surgery and was completely reimbursed.

He also saw a pair of crutches next to Bernard King.

"No, it doesn't matter, I want to stand on the court for a while, I like the feeling of standing on the court, even if I can't play." Bernard King said and motioned for the taxi driver to drive.

Things have been pretty bad for the Knicks this season, as they lost their ability to compete in the East due to injury issues to key player Bernard King, ending the season with a 29-53 record and missing out on the playoffs.

To make matters worse, Bernard King's injury was not a minor injury, but a torn cruciate ligament in his eye, which in the NBA in the eighties could have ruined a player's career.

Now Bernard King is in such danger, he has been quite slow to recover after the operation, and he has not completely gotten rid of his crutches until now.

The two quickly drove to the Knicks' training gym, located in Fort Green, New York, a famous entertainment district in Brooklyn, but the two didn't come here for fun.

For Bernard King, whenever he wants to get into the gym is just a matter of words, and whether he is injured or not, he is the king of New York – at least until 1985.

Gan Guoyang has not practiced well in the training gym for a while since he left Portland, and just flying around the United States by plane has wasted a lot of his time.

"Hey Gan, do you remember being in San Francisco's Central Square? That night, I taught you how to practice the turnaround jumper, and you weren't as tall as me at the time, and now you're ...... You've become a center. Bernard King said as he watched Gan Guoyang warm up on the court with the ball.

"Of course I do! After that day, the rollover jump shot became my nirvana! Help us make it all the way to the finals in high school...... But later, I grew taller, my strength and weight grew together, and with the practice of hooking, I actually lost the turnover jumper! But I've decided that I'm going to come back in the summer. ”

Saying that, Gan Guoyang took the ball to the position under the basket, held the ball and made a feint, and then turned over to the bottom line to shoot!

"Huh!" The ball hollows into the net.

"It's too slow, Gan, your movements are very hesitant, the feints are too contrived, the opponent will not be fooled, and turning over is not smooth, you are really rusty. Also, although you are turning with your heels, the premise is that your posture must be steady, and only a stable posture can ensure the accuracy of your shooting. Although Bernard King is on crutches, he can see at a glance that Gan Guoyang is flawed in terms of movement.

As far as Gan Guoyang's current level of turnaround jump shot is concerned, it does not have the value of actual combat, and once it comes to a high-intensity game, it will inevitably not be used.

"Haha, I haven't used this trick for a long time, take your time, I'll practice well, and one day I can return to normal and let him become my regular weapon."

After saying that, Gan Guoyang began to devote himself to shooting practice, while Bernard King was coaching on the sidelines.

Everything seems to be back to that night, and Gan Guoyang seems to have returned to the starting point, re-honing this basic offensive technique.

…………

"Coach Qian, you see that let the players come to the team's confrontation training, it's still too relaxing to practice this group of boys so simply, after all, there is a game to play tomorrow, let them be nervous."

On the morning of the second day, in the same Knicks training hall, the players of the Chinese men's basketball team were practicing, wearing red sports shorts and white T-shirts, the front of the T-shirt was printed with the logo designed by the American side of the visit, and the back was printed with the words "China-US Friendship Tour Group 1985." ”

The intensity of the morning practice is not high, it is all some simple basic training, and there are also Knicks training staff on the scene who know that the men's basketball players are training.

The two coaches of the men's basketball team felt that this kind of practice was still too relaxed, and they should play a dozen confrontation games with intensity to wind up for tomorrow's game.

"Hey, what about that Gan Guoyang man, why didn't you see him in the hotel? Did he come along? Qian Chenghai cared about Gan Guoyang, and he hoped that Gan Guoyang could participate in the training of the men's basketball team, so that he could see the level of this NBA Chinese player.

"Oh, that Gan Guoyang, he will come over immediately, he didn't seem to stay in the hotel last night, and he won't be there in the morning." Translator Menray said.

"These American players, they just don't have self-discipline, it seems that even if they are Chinese, they are the same when they get here, and they don't know where to run to play at night." Assistant Teacher Lu thought that Gan Guoyang had gone to a messy place to fool around.

"Hey~ Everyone has everyone's freedom, and besides, people are not under our control, and it is his freedom to go wherever he wants...... You see, didn't people come over, and their clothes were changed. ”

Qian Chenghai instructed that Gan Guoyang had already entered the training hall in sportswear.

Gan Guoyang did not go back to the hotel in the evening, because he practiced late in the training hall, and then he and Bernard King opened a room nearby and slept for one night, and waited until the morning to come directly.

"Hello, Director Qian, hello, Director Lu." Gan Guoyang greeted the two coaches with a smile, and there was no trace of tiredness on his face.

"Hello, Comrade Gan Guoyang...... Well, you're in great shape, would you be interested in playing a dozen practice matches with my players? Qian Chenghai looked at Gan Guoyang in a basketball uniform, his whole body was full of strength, and the other Chinese players were significantly thinner than him.

"Of course I am interested...... I'm afraid they'll lose interest in basketball after they finish playing with me. ”