In the 21st century, sports flourished with the progress of human civilization. One of the major trends in modern sports is depoliticization. Anything linked to politics always gives people the feeling of blood coming from their pores.

But in the second half of the last century, during the Cold War, sports, especially the Olympics, inevitably tied themselves to politics, and the competition on the sports field became a continuation of the Cold War struggle between the United States and the Soviet Union.

Therefore, when capitalist countries represented by the United States collectively boycotted the 1980 Soviet Olympics, four years later, at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, the Soviet Union also led a group of socialist countries to refuse to participate in this Olympics.

However, at the Olympic Games held in the United States in 1984, there was a team that attracted everyone's attention, that is, the Olympic delegation of the Chinese name Republic, which is also in the socialist camp and is the second largest socialist country in the world.

The historical reasons and backgrounds of this are profound and complex, but in this historic process, two sports played a crucial role.

One is China's national football, table tennis.

In 1971, before China and the United States established diplomatic relations, the American table tennis delegation and a small group of American journalists arrived in Beijing, becoming the first Americans to be allowed to enter China since 1949.

Afterwards, the two sides held a friendly table tennis match, and the Chinese national leaders attended the match as spectators.

This friendly exchange between the table tennis teams of the two countries has also become an important symbolic event in the process of normalizing relations between China and the United States.

Immediately in 1972, Nixon, then-US President, visited China across the Pacific, realizing the normalization of Sino-US relations.

This diplomatic activity, which uses table tennis as the "vanguard", has also been named "Table Tennis Diplomacy" in history, and "small balls promote playing."

However, after 1972, China-US relations were only normalized and diplomatic relations had not been formally established. Until the late 1970s, with the changes in the world situation, the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States was put on the agenda for diplomatic affairs between the two countries.

And at this moment, another sport played the role of table tennis in 1971, which was a big ball sport - basketball.

In 1978, the Chinese national men's basketball team and the women's basketball team visited the United States, the most powerful basketball country.

At that time, the national men's basketball team represented by Zhang Weiping went to New York, Los Angeles, Greensboro, Washington, New York and other cities, and played several friendly matches with American university basketball teams, such as the famous UCLA, Wake Forest Deacon and other teams.

Immediately on January 1, 1979, China and the United States officially established diplomatic relations and had legal diplomatic relations.

Although it cannot be said that the table tennis friendly match in 1971 and the basketball match in 1978 promoted the progress of Sino-US relations, it has to be admitted that the two events did indeed serve as a test field for normal exchanges between the two countries, and also shows that there is similarity between competitive sports, such as "competitive and cooperative" activities and national diplomacy.

Subsequently, after the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States in 1979, the NBA champion team from the US capital, Washington Bullet was invited to visit China, and sports once again became the lubricant for exchanges between the two countries.

Of course, in the friendly match between China and the United States, the Bullets made the Chinese team have no temper, and it also allowed Chinese basketball players to see the highest level of the world's strongest basketball country for the first time.

The pointer of time has been shifted to 1985. More than seven years have passed since the last visit to the United States by the Chinese men's basketball team. The men's basketball players of that year have retired one after another. A new wave of men's basketball players have begun to fight for the cause of Chinese basketball, but their coach is still the famous Qian Chenghai Qian Guidance.

This time, they received an invitation from the NBA to travel to the United States during the NBA offseason to launch a week-long basketball visit.

This visit is different from the politically meaningful visit in 1978. Under Stern's calculations, this will be the first step for the NBA's business empire to extend its tentacles to mainland China, full of a strong sense of business.

However, for the Chinese men's basketball team, they did not know what the shrewd Jewish lawyer on the other side thought. Qian Chenghai's coach mainly hoped that the men's basketball boys could go to the United States to see the highest level of the strongest basketball country, and hoped that they could have a qualitative improvement in their horizons and spirit.

When the Chinese men's basketball team arrived in New York by plane, it was already mid-June 1985. At this time, the NBA Finals had just come to an end, and the draft had not yet begun.

The visiting group of the men's basketball team this time is an expanded group. In addition to the members, staff and coaches of the national team, there are also some elite players from various local teams. They all have the opportunity to be selected into the new national team and participate in the 1986 Men's Basketball World Championships.

"Xiao Lu, do you see this? This is the taxi of the United States, which is much better than your Beijing Xiali... It's just that the color is a bit ugly, with yellow colors." Sitting on the bus to the destination hotel, a tall man wearing glasses said to a small man with needle-like hair next to him, like a hedgehog.

"The most awesome thing in Beijing is Citroen rental, the decoration, the feeling... However, it is indeed worse than the yellow skin of the United States. You said that our yellow skin is full of small bread, but they are big cars here... There are so many cars in the United States. I really don't know when Beijing will become like this." The small hedgehog-headed man named "Little Deer" is a player from Beijing Shougang, Min Lulei.

Of course he didn't know that in a few decades, Beijing would be filled with cars, which would be even more terrifying than New York.

Sitting next to him was the main inside of the men's basketball team, Song Tao, a big man from Shandong.

Since Min Lulei is an "expanded" person, he was not included in the official list of men's basketball team, and he did not represent the national team in the 1984 Olympics before, so everything is new after he arrived in the United States.

Although Song Tao also did not participate in the official competition of the 1984 Olympic Games, he was the flag bearer of the Chinese Olympic delegation at the entrance ceremony that year.

The reason is that before Song Tao officially participated in the game, the list was confirmed, but an old player found the head coach Qian Chenghai to guide him, hoping to participate in the Olympics before retirement, so he wanted to give in to the new players.

Song Tao became the youngest player in the men's basketball team at that time, so he was naturally temporarily retreated by doing "ideological work". As compensation, he was a good show of success at the opening ceremony as the flag bearer of the team.

Because of this, he is not surprised by many new things in New York.

When a group of 15 people arrived at the InterContinental Hotel on 48th Street, New York, arranged by the NBA for the men's basketball team, it was exactly the time for New Yorkers to have dinner.

"Oh my god, this hotel is high-end... How much does it cost to stay for one night?" Min Lulei looked up at the magnificent InterContinental Hotel after getting off the car and couldn't help asking.

"Why do you care about that much? Anyway, we don't pay for it... But this hotel is much better than the Olympic Village in Los Angeles. It is said to be a four-star hotel." Song Tao couldn't help but remember his experience of living in the Olympic Village.

"This thing is only four-star? Why do I feel that it is much more upscale than the five-star in Beijing? This capitalist country is really corrupt..." Min Lulei couldn't help but sigh.

After the two of them finished chatting, they hurriedly followed everyone into the lobby of the InterContinental Hotel.

There is a reason why the NBA arranges its accommodation here. Since the name of the Intercontinental hotel contains the word "Intercontinental", it means that the hotel often undertakes business from foreign customers, and of course also includes guests from China.

So, when the Chinese men's basketball team entered the hall and heard what the waiters said, they found that they could actually speak some simple Chinese.

"The hotel staff here all have to undergo special foreign language training. Now there are more and more customers in China, so Chinese is already their necessary communication language." The accompanying translator said after listening to the explanation of the NBA pick-up staff.

When the national team players were arranged to their respective rooms and relaxed their bodies for a long trip and were exhausted, the time for gathering was again because in a small auditorium in the hotel at night, the NBA official will hold a grand reception ceremony for the Chinese men's basketball team.

"Hey Song Tao, I heard that there is a Chinese who plays in the United States now. It is said that he plays quite well. Which local team he is from? Why have I never heard of it before?" Min Lulei always maintains a strong curiosity about everything. As a newcomer in the team, he has always had a good relationship with Song Tao, who is also young.

"I heard from the translator that there is indeed a Chinese player who plays in the NBA and is quite famous. It is said that he has made it to the All-Star! I wonder if he will come tonight... Oh, translator, what is the situation with the Chinese who plays in the NBA in the United States?" Song Tao stepped forward and asked someone.

Men Translator is Men Lei, the translator of the men's basketball team this time. He is a guy wearing thick glasses and a scholarly face.

"This, I just heard from friends in the United States that he immigrated from China, studied all the way from high school in the United States, and later won a college championship and then entered the NBA. I heard that he is very good."

In China, which has not yet been fully opened, the Chinese men's basketball players have all the news about Gan Guoyang, a player from mainland China, from "it is said to be heard" and there is no exact information.

"It is said again, I don't know how much he can get?" Lu Jinqing, who has the title of "Desperate Sanlang" in the men's basketball team, said after hearing this. He has never been afraid of heaven or earth.

"Okay, it's definitely amazing to be able to play in the United States. Chinese people should not look down on Chinese people. You will know when they go on the court. Let's go quickly, they are waiting for us." said head coach Qian Chenghai.
Chapter completed!