```
Gan Guoyang talked with Bernard King on the phone for a long time, comforting him that even with a torn ACL, one could still recover fully after surgery.
Bernard King was pessimistic because, looking ahead, no player in NBA history had ever returned to their peak after such an injury.
Players like Billy Cunningham, Doug Collins, and Chris Anderson ended their careers after sustaining such injuries, never returning to the court.
The Knicks' record this year was not good. Having made it to the playoffs last year and fought the Celtics in the semi-finals, this season they ended up at the bottom of the Atlantic Division.
King had been negotiating a contract renewal with the Knicks. Although they were fairly satisfied with his scoring performances over the past few seasons, they were still pushing for a lower price as usual.
During the summer, the Knicks had threatened Bernard King with the prospect of getting Jim Paxson, but in the end, Paxson stayed with the Trail Blazers.
