[When I began writing "SLAMDUNK," I had two wishes: to visit America under the guise of research to watch the NBA Finals, and to go to Barcelona to watch the Olympic basketball games.
I'm very grateful that I fulfilled both wishes, and in Portland, I was fortunate enough to get Ah Gan's autograph. Astonishingly, he had read my manga and wrote the comment 'This is a good work, keep updating,' which made me feel like I was dreaming.
Now I have only one wish left: I hope to see Japan's basketball team participate in the Olympics and wonder what will happen to the kids who grew up watching SLAMDUNK and started playing basketball... I'm almost in tears.]
————1992 "Slam Dunk Master" Volume 9 Author's Comments, Inoue Takehiko, Excerpt.
June 8th, the third game between the Trail Blazers and the Bulls at the Rose Garden Arena.
Before the game, Gan Guoyang was preparing in the locker room while others were either listening to music, chatting, or watching videos.
