The Golden Age of Basketball

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"...I met Ah Gan during the warm-up before the home opener of the 1981-1982 season. At that time, he was still a high school student, and in October, he was the hottest basketball figure in San Francisco. The game was Warriors versus Jazz, with just over 7000 spectators, the box office was dismal.

Sermonde brought Ah Gan to the game, saying he had questions to ask. A few of us really wanted to teach the guy a lesson, you know, putting the hotshot in his place is a tradition on the court, we've all been taught lessons like that.

Al assigned Larry and me to clear up his questions, and we exchanged looks. We both understood and were ready to show him the ropes.

Then... it's hard to describe the specifics, but from that season on, Larry Smith's performance on the court never reached his rookie season's level again. I think he might have been hit hard, haha."

————2017, extract from Bernard King's autobiography "Game Face".

Gan Guoyang followed Bernard King and Larry Smith to the court, warming up while joking around with Gan Guoyang.

Bernard King was a small forward who was traded to the Warriors last season, a talented but troubled young man dogged by drinking and various issues, the team's second best scorer.

And Larry Smith was the overall 24th pick of the second round in the 1980 draft, a strong 6-foot-8 (203 cm) power forward with amazing rebounding vigor under the basket, averaging 12 rebounds per game in his rookie season, 5.3 of which were offensive rebounds—Moses Malone was the so-called king of offensive rebounds with 5.9 in the '81 season.

"Buddy, you say you want to learn the turnaround jump shot. But I don't even know your level yet. Why don't you go one-on-one with Larry? Take a shot, and after I see it, I'll give you some pointers."

After warming up, Bernard King tossed the ball to Gan Guoyang, telling him to post up against Larry Smith at the low block.

"Come on, I'll be gentle, I won't go hard, just take a shot."

Larry Smith casually positioned himself on the side, waved to Gan Guoyang, who threw the ball back to King, then positioned himself post-up against Smith.

Smith was 23 years old this year, a graduate from Alcorn State University, weighing 220 pounds, a stout and strong, short statured inside player.

From his rookie season's offensive rebounding, one could tell that Larry Smith had proud combating abilities.

Hailing from rural Mississippi, his sturdy frame and farmer-like appearance matched his simple and tough style of play.

Facing off against Gan Guoyang, who looked lean and was only slightly taller than himself, Smith didn't take him too seriously.

However, at the moment of contact between the two, Larry Smith felt as if he were being pressed by a slab of steel.

Gan Guoyang firmly anchored himself on the side, getting a deep position where, once he received the ball, he could turn and shoot directly at the basket.

King passed the ball to him, but instead of attacking the basket, Gan Guoyang moved his feet outwards and chose to take a turnaround jump shot.

Larry Smith had just been pressed hard, and wasn't even able to jump to block when Gan Guoyang turned to shoot.

The ball easily dropped into the basket for two points. Gan Guoyang picked it up, tossed it to King, and said, "Just like that, a simple turn-around jump shot. But I feel, in a high-intensity game, it would be hard for me to execute it, it seems a bit slow."

Bernard King glanced at Larry Smith, thinking why hadn't he moved? Weren't they supposed to teach this kid a lesson?

King said, "You're right, your footwork is too rough and a bit slow…uh, try it again. This time, when you turn, don't step out, try stepping in."

"Inside?"

"Yes, many people like to step back when taking a turnaround jump shot, trying to create distance from the defender. That's wrong, it makes it easier for the opponent to block and disturb you, unless you make him lose balance with a fake. Normally, you should stick close, don't shy away, make physical contact with the defender, then turn after squeezing out space.

Remember, the space for the turn is created by pushing, not by hiding. Try again."

At the same spot, Gan Guoyang backed up against Larry Smith once more. This time Smith braced himself, determined to hold his ground against Gan Guoyang at the back, then disturb his catch.

Gan Guoyang felt Larry Smith's resistance increasing. He used the post-up techniques learned from Sermonde to engage in a back-and-forth tussle with Smith at the side.

Their arms got tangled, but Gan Guoyang's right hand was still free to receive the ball, while his core was steady and firmly planted there, contesting against Smith.

Recently, Gan Guoyang had been doing strength training, focusing on his legs and waist, with a little arm work and no chest muscle training, as it was useless for him.

Due to his physiology, his strength increased faster than normal people, and sometimes Beelman even suspected whether this kid was as rumored to be, a Bionic Man.

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Larry Smith was strong, but he wasn't as tall as Gan Guoyang, nor did he have a significant weight advantage. Gan Guoyang, trained by Sermonde and adept at body combat, was not frightened in the least.

"Pass the ball, pass it!" Gan Guoyang reminded Bernard King to pass the ball to him.

It was then that King reacted and tossed the ball to Gan Guoyang.

Gan Guoyang caught the ball and followed King's directions, dribbled, stepped inside, and forcefully shouldered past Larry Smith!

Smith staggered two steps back. Gan Guoyang jumped and took a close-range shot, scoring two points.

After the shot, Gan Guoyang asked Bernard King, "How was that? Was there any problem with my shot?"

Bernard King was somewhat dazed; he licked his lips and said, "Not bad, just a bit slow. And that bump you made was too forceful; it could easily lead to an offensive foul. Let me demonstrate for you."

Bernard King asked Gan Guoyang to observe from the side as he took position in front of Larry Smith with the ball and whispered, "What the hell are you doing? You just playing with this kid?"

Larry Smith said, "Bullshit, I defended seriously. Damn it, I couldn't withstand him!"

"Are you joking?"

"I am not f***ing joking. The kid is as tough as Moses Malone."

Bernard King still didn't quite believe it, so he demonstrated his own turnaround jump shot.

His footwork was very fast, his movements small, and the turn that contested the opponent, followed by a quick jump shot, was successful.

Gan Guoyang watched his shooting technique, a high-arm jumper, a forward choice in the paint to avoid being blocked.

The quickness of the footwork was indeed impressive, and also very agile, giving the defender little time to react, with the essence being in that moment of contact.

Bernard King said to Gan Guoyang, "Kid, come defend me for a bit, feel it firsthand."

King wanted to see if Gan Guoyang was as tough as Larry had described.

"You know how to defend the low post, right? Go all out, I'm pretty fast."

Bernard King reminded Gan Guoyang and then started dribbling, accelerating, breaking through, sticking close, turning, and making contact!

A series of coherent movements might seem simple, but they contained many details.

The start, the placement of the feet, how to determine the pivot foot, the speed of the turn, and when to jump after the contact.

All these determined whether an attack would succeed. Every seemingly effortless score on the court was backed by countless hours of hard practice.

King was confident in his shot. After emerging from the shadows of alcohol and sexual assault allegations, he had found new life in the Bay Area.

The horrible years were drifting away; King, who had been deemed rude and disrespectful while at the Nets, became more amiable after arriving at Golden State.

He started interacting with reporters, visiting community centers to play basketball with children—all was starting to improve.

He believed he would make more and more shots and become one of the true superstars of the League.

With a "smack," King's shot didn't make it off; it was firmly blocked in his hand, cleanly slammed away.

[Compared to Larry Smith, my situation wasn't much better. My attempt at demonstrating a turn and shoot was block by him, solidly pocketed. Honestly, I couldn't even remember the last time I was blocked like that, going head-to-head and still having the ball slapped away while in hand.

Although I was a bit careless at the time because I was demonstrating and didn't move as fast, it was indeed unexpected. There are two defenders in my career that I am least willing to face, one is George Johnson, my teammate at the Warriors, who knows a lot of details. The other one is Gan; he is just too smart.]

————2017 Autobiography of Bernard King, "Game Face," excerpt 2.