The Golden Age of Basketball

( ) Inglewood, a satellite residential city of Los Angeles.

Apart from the Great Western Forum, the most famous thing here is the crime and violence in the area, which makes all Los Angeles people talk about it.

Yesterday Gan Guoyang bought a ticket and went for a walk on the street, but he only walked around the periphery of Inglewood, and did not go deep into the area.

On the night of June 6st, after the nba finals, Gan Guoyang stepped into the violent neighborhood shrouded in thick darkness by himself under the bright moonlight.

During the two full months from April 4st to today, two questions have been tormenting Gan Guoyang, lingering in his mind.

The first question stems from the incredible dunk in the North Division Finals on the 28th.

Among Gan Guoyang's talents, his dunk value is only 50, which is the most basic average level.

Simple dunk tricks such as back dunks and alley-oops are basically his limit.

But the breakthrough dunk in the second half of that game surpassed this level, although it was just a seemingly simple one-handed dunk.

In the words of Behrman after the game, this dunk reminded him of the scene of Julius Erving dunking Bill Walton in the 1977 Finals.

For Gan Guoyang, who just watched the 76ers game today, Dr. J Irving's dunk is simply out of reach. The seemingly effortless take-off, graceful gliding, and stretched limbs, no matter from which angle you look at it, it is amazing. It's a slam dunk art picture.

Gan Guoyang was walking on the gradually darkened streets of Inglewood, and he couldn't help but think of Irving's bird-like dunk in the game, although the 76ers lost the game.

But he is also reminiscing about the wonderful dunk he sent in the battle with Kevin Johnson.

"This is by no means a level that can be achieved with a value of 50 points." Gan Guoyang thought again in his heart.

Since he had this doubt, he began to fall into crazy training, and an important part of training is jumping, waist and abdomen, and dunking.

Gan Guoyang knows that the level of shooting, blocking and passing will be reflected differently depending on the level of the opponent.

For example, if he plays against a team with poor defense, his shots may be very accurate, and if he plays against a short team with poor offense, he will block a lot of shots.

But the dunk will not change because of the change of the opponent. If you have the opportunity to dunk, you can make a dunk that meets your level.

Gan Guoyang began to test his dunk as if he tested his jumping at the Shanghai airport a long time ago.

In addition to training for other sports every day, he dedicated an hour to bombing the basket in all directions 360 degrees, using every posture he could think of to try to smash the ball into the damn basket.

What disappoints him is that although he feels that his dunking skills are getting more and more mature and his palms are getting more and more painful, it seems that he can no longer make the dunk of that game.

The second question is, if he can block the opponent in the last ball, what will be the result?

Gan Guoyang knows that there is no regret medicine in this world, but he has experienced rebirth through time travel, but he has to believe that there is really a "regret medicine" in this world.

Because of this, he couldn't stop the endless thinking in his mind, imagining what would happen if he won that game.

He even thought that if he had another heart attack and passed out, he might be back to the day before the game when he woke up.

Gan Guoyang was indeed in training, because of too much volume and too much training, he collapsed and almost passed out.

But when he regained consciousness and realized that he was just receiving drips in the school's infirmary, he knew that his thoughts were too naive.

During these two months, Gan Guoyang was tormented by this inexplicable pain, surrounded by paranoia caused by failure and doubts, unable to extricate himself.

Gan Guoyang of later generations once heard that only the paranoid can succeed in the NBA, such as Jordan and Kobe.

And now he finally understands a little bit why the paranoid succeeds, because failure is so painful.

The pain was so painful that he felt that he was a little numb, numb to the chest, emotionally numb, and expression numb, as if he was in a state of great freedom without sadness or joy.

This is the realm of Buddha.

The Buddha said that if I don’t go to hell, whoever goes to hell will go to hell, so today, Gan Guoyang came to Inglewood, a hell in Los Angeles. He didn’t want to gain anything, but to see what he could lose.

By this time, he had gone deeper and deeper in Inglewood.

The Chinese electrical appliance store he visited yesterday has long since closed, so naturally the girl won't be able to see her either.

Gan Guoyang originally wanted to come and have a look at her, but he always felt that this weird and pungent girl was a little different from him.

And in the depths of the Inglewood district, the old-fashioned and dilapidated four or five-story concrete buildings, the smelly green tin garbage cans, the dim street lights that are good or bad, and the stray cats passing through the street from time to time, all of them Telling Gan Guoyang that this is not heaven.

On both sides of the street, from time to time, there are groups of black people in twos and threes, with their hands in their pockets, either whistling, or carrying tape recorders, and some holding basketballs, passing by.

When everyone saw Gan Guoyang's face of the yellow race, his eyes would be on him.

Some people still wear sunglasses at night, wear a round puffy afro head, chew gum, and blow whistles at Gan Guoyang.

However, in the end, no one stepped forward to trouble Gan Guoyang.

Although Gan Guoyang is alone, his 6-foot-10 height does not seem like a bully.

Coupled with his numb and cold face, coupled with a Chinese face, it is inevitable that people will think of "Bruce Lee".

Although Bruce Lee passed away, his reputation in the United States is still great. The first thing Americans think of when they see Chinese people is "Bruce Lee" and "Kung Fu".

Gan Guoyang is like this, like a lonely giant wandering in the concrete forest, wandering aimlessly in this dangerous neighborhood.

However, no matter how dangerous a place is, it is also a place where humans live, and Inglewood is also the area where Paul Pierce grew up.

As long as it is a place where people live, entertainment is indispensable.

The blacks in the poor areas of the United States have two biggest entertainments—music and basketball.

For these blacks, music and basketball are not just entertainment, and maybe one day they can rely on these two things to get out of Inglewood and go to the bustling Los Angeles.

Gan Guoyang, who was walking on the quiet street, suddenly heard a noisy sound not far in front, mixed with the sound of music, cheers, shouting, and the sound of basketball.

Gan Guoyang, who had been wandering for a long time, seemed to have found his goal and walked forward following the sound.

In American cities, there are many basketball courts hidden in the concrete forest, just like the Colosseum in the forest, for street players to compete with bulls.

Naturally, Inglewood is no exception, but tonight, on this stadium surrounded by concrete buildings on three sides and barbed wire on one side, there are really too many people.

Except for the court in the middle, other places, including outside the barbed wire fence and on the windowsill of the concrete building, were full of people.

When Gan Guoyang walked to the side of the court, he didn't notice him at all. Everyone was paying attention to the fierce confrontation in the court.

Gan Guoyang stood for a while, and a black man on the outermost side realized that something was wrong behind him. It seemed that someone was standing behind him. He turned his head subconsciously, but he didn't see the face of the person, but only saw a tall figure. .

When he looked up, he realized that this guy turned out to be a yellow-skinned guy with a cold face!

As if the dominoes started from the outermost people, the people around the court turned their heads one after another, and the people sitting on the high windowsill also looked at this side.

When the people in the middle of the arena realized that all the spectators no longer looked at the inside of the arena, but turned their heads to look outside, they also stopped the match in progress.

At this time, Gan Guoyang was facing the eyes of a large group of hundreds of black people on the basketball court in Inglewood at night, without the slightest timidity.

The originally bustling basketball court suddenly became much quieter, only the tape recorder next to the court was still playing Aretha Franklin's songs loudly.

Her high-pitched and bright voice accentuated the silence of the others.

"Who the hell are you? What are you doing here?" Finally someone broke the silence, it was the man holding the basketball in the arena.He is wearing a red vest and blue sports shorts, with tall stockings and a big afro, full of street style.

"I'm just here to play." Gan Guoyang also spoke, with an authentic California accent, calm and thick.

But after hearing his words, the red vest smiled, showing his white teeth. He turned his head away, but he couldn't hide the contempt and disdain in his eyes.

The originally silent crowd suddenly became noisy, and some people had already started to laugh at him.

"Hey, we're not playing ping pong here!" "I recommend tree climbing to you!" "You're not tall enough to play basketball, maybe you're better suited to paint ceilings!"

The black people's ability to talk trash is really talented. In just ten seconds, Gan Guoyang has heard all kinds of weird words, and he can't understand some words.

Gan Guoyang didn't retaliate, and it was useless to retaliate. He just stood quietly for a few seconds, and when the surroundings gradually became quieter, he spoke again, only uttering one word.

"Afraid? (Afraid?)"

This time the people around him exploded even more. A man of yellow race dared to go to the street court in Inglewood and say, "Are you afraid?"

This is fucking funnier than any George Lindsay comedy.

But apart from anger, more people still looked at Gan Guoyang with joking, watching a drama and even anticipation. They hoped that this big man of yellow race could bring some surprises—whether good or bad.

"Hey, Ian, why don't you let him play? Anyway, Carlot just got a little injury, let him replace it." At this time, a black man in a white vest who was also standing on the field walked Stepping forward, he said to the red vest.

"Don't be so fucking crazy, who knows how well this guy plays basketball? You are already behind, and Carlot twisted his wrist again, and it seems that he can't win. I want to try my luck to see if I can find a good helper?" This red vest named Ian is obviously a veteran, and he guessed what the white vest was thinking at once.

"Don't be like Ian, otherwise what are you going to do, drive him away? He pointed out that he came here to play basketball, and driving him away would be a joke." Seeing that the white vest was seen through, he didn't quibble, but It was kicking the ball to Ian again.

This got Ian thinking.

Tonight was supposed to be a contest between the two strongest street teams in the Inglewood neighborhood, the Trashcan and the Blackthorn.

The trash can where Ian is located has already led the opponent by 8:4, and they can win the game with two more goals and the right to use this field for one month.

Moreover, one of the opponent's players was injured in the wrist, so it can be said that the trash can is inevitable.

Unexpectedly, a tall yellow-skinned man suddenly appeared, wanting to play basketball, and Blackthorn's captain Opal was very cunning, and wanted to take this opportunity to muddy the water.

However, for street basketball, reputation is more important than victory. If you don't accept the challenge for victory, you will inevitably be ridiculed by others, especially Opal's Black Spurs.

"I don't know how this big guy is good at playing basketball. He is so tall, but how can a person of yellow race know how to play basketball." Ian hesitated between Gan Guoyang's skin color and height.

"Okay, Yellow Boy, if you want to play, you can, but after our game is over, you can pick anyone to fight with you." Ian is not an idiot, since the Trash Can team is in sight, of course he will not It will make Gan Guoyang mess up good things, so he has to finish the game first, and then give Gan Guoyang a chance.

Opal of the Blackthorns had no choice but to continue the match with the Trash Cans.

The reason why the trash can is named the trash can means that they throw the ball into the hoop as easily as throwing the ball into the big trash can on the side of the street.

Soon, the Trash Can team with a big lead relied on two precise jump shots to end the street challenge and also won the right to use the venue for a month.

"I'm really sorry Opel, the venue in June belongs to us, happy Children's Day!" Ian, who won the ball, was full of pride.

But at this time, the audience on the sidelines no longer cared about who won the right to use the venue in June. They only cared about Gan Guoyang standing on the sidelines.

"Hey you big man! Have you figured out how to fall on the court tonight?" "You can cry when you lose, and Inglewood has no tears!" How did you climb onto the hoop!"

As soon as the game ended, Gan Guoyang was constantly stimulated by people on the sidelines, but Gan Guoyang remained unmoved.

"Big man, the game is over, just pick anyone to play with you. After the fight, we still have something to do." Ian stepped forward and said to Gan Guoyang, his face full of impatience.

Gan Guoyang nodded, without thinking too much, and pointed directly at a tall and thin player in the trashcan team.

"I want to fight him."

"Wow, you actually want to fight Slater one-on-one? Well, there are always some people who don't know what to do. Slater! This guy wants to fight with you, get rid of him quickly, so we can have fun." Ian turned to the guy cried the man named Slater.

"This idiot wants to fight Slater one-on-one. Didn't he see that Slater scored two goals in a row and killed Blackthorn?" someone said.

The guy who made the two game-winning shots just now was this Slater, a 6-foot-6 black guy who was a little skinny but obviously had a solid shot.

Hearing your words from Ian, he walked up to Gan Guoyang with a face full of indifference, looked up at him, and said, "Come on, it's time to call it a day when you're done."

Although this Slater looked contemptuous, the surrounding crowd was full of enthusiasm. Some wanted to see how the yellow-skinned boy died, and some wanted to see if this guy had two brushes.

As the challenger, Gan Guoyang naturally attacked first.

Although Slater didn't seem to care, Gan Guoyang is a 6-foot-10 giant after all, a full 4 feet taller than him, so Slater is also waiting near the top of the arc to test the depth of this guy.

Gan Guoyang, as a center player, is now like a defender, dribbling the ball on the outside without any haste.

"Break his ball, break him!" "Come on, Slater!" "Let him understand that yellow people are not suitable for playing basketball!"

The two people on the court hadn't done anything yet, and there was already a commotion off the court.

And Slater stared at Gan Guoyang cautiously. He believed that at this distance, Gan Guoyang would definitely not be able to shoot. According to his height, the only way to break through was to be intercepted.

Therefore, he can only play back singles, and then just take his ball away from behind.

Slater was making wishful thinking in his heart, thinking about how to grab the ball, but found that the person in front of him was short, and then a huge body rushed towards him.

step!

Gan Guoyang only took one step to pass the electric pole in front of him. Yes, in Gan Guoyang's eyes, Rislater is an electric pole.

Two steps!

In the second step, Gan Guoyang has already thrown off Slater, took a big step into the free throw line, and he jumped directly!

Everyone was looking up, just like looking up at the bright moon tonight, and their necks turned with the trajectory of Gan Guoyang's flight.

"Bah!~~~~" The baskets on the street were not very strong, and they kept making creaking sounds after being hit.

"Oh-my-god... (My God)" In the tape recorder at the scene, aretha-frankle-on is playing! (Continue!)" Gan Guoyang said lightly after landing, and at the same time picked up the ball and returned it to Slater's hands.

"What did I just see?"

"I don't know, it seems like someone is flying."

The court was surprisingly quiet, as if this was not a basketball game, but a debate game.The audience is just whispering.

Slater swallowed, he felt a little confused, his heart was beating hard, and his mouth was a little dry.

Slater dribbled the ball carefully while staring at the giant not far away without blinking.

"Just use my jumper to beat him!" Slater decided to give up the breakthrough and use his good jumper to solve the opponent.

After making a few attempts, he suddenly accelerated to the left, but before taking a few steps, he suddenly retreated, ready to shoot!

"That guy doesn't seem to have reacted yet!" Slater felt that he was moving fast enough, and he should have had enough shooting space.

But when he looked up to aim at the hoop, all he could see was a large hand in the light of the street lamp.

"Boom!" This is the sound of the ball hitting the ground, and the ball was never shot.

It was pressed down alive.

Slater was also pushed down, and the force almost made him fall.

And after he managed to stand still, looking at the giant who was as cold and tall as before, he felt like an ant.

There was no need for this bullfight to continue. One side had completely lost their fighting spirit. In fact, everyone in the entire stadium had lost their fighting spirit.

Gan Guoyang is about to leave, and his knot has been untied.

"Do you know why I challenged you one-on-one?" Gan Guoyang suddenly asked Slater before leaving.

Slater shook his head blankly, his mind was still empty.

"Remember, don't wear size 31 in the future."

Slater's jersey number happened to be 31.

Gan Guoyang suddenly appeared in this way, and then left suddenly, like a Bigfoot in the deep forest, leaving deep big footprints in people's hearts.

"butter-thunder!" (butter bomb)