James Naismith, such a familiar yet distant name.
He invented basketball in 1891, over 90 years ago, nearly a century from 1986.
When he died, Germany had just blitzkrieged Poland, and China was engaged in an arduous resistance against invasion, with still seven years to go before the NBA would be established.
From 1891 to 1986, the sport of basketball had undergone earth-shaking changes. To most people, Naismith seemed like a quirky Doctor who had a stroke of genius in inventing basketball.
After all, as a basketball coach, he really didn't have any notable records, let alone won any championships. At the University of Kansas, a renowned basketball school, his coaching win rate was the lowest. To later enthusiasts, he was like a basketball mascot, commemorated in passing.
However, when Gan Guoyang said, "This quote is by Dr. Naismith", not a single one of the renowned coaches in the UCLA auditorium laughed or raised doubts.
