After the end of the Cold War, a major shift occurred in the international landscape. America, which had been searching for a new Cold War opponent, now had a new target and opponent: terrorism. This provided the other side of the Pacific Ocean with a precious respite.
Similarly, the new team that Gan Guoyang founded was racing against time, striving to ensure that everything was ready before the regular season began in November.
This was nothing short of an impossible mission.
Even though Gan Guoyang had been laying the groundwork and preparing for a year, starting an NBA team in just over a month seemed incredible.
From the moment Gan Guoyang announced his comeback, the Gump Asset Management Company's various departments began operating at high speed, the first task being a rebranding, followed by re-planning work according to the team's requirements, arranging new schedules and content, and liaising with NBA officials to prepare for the new season.
There was no alternative but to work overtime. All departments began operating around the clock, continuously handling various affairs, with everyone from the boss to the manager to the supervisor and employees working at full capacity.
On September 16th, Wang Fuxi held the team's founding conference and the first board meeting, gathering all investors and executives to first establish the team's name, logo, jersey colors, and other identifiers, to launch and promote the team's brand.
Of course, they had prepared early, spending three days collecting over three hundred team names and logo mascots from all over Nevada, then choosing from among them.
Among the collected names, the most matched to Las Vegas style included about a dozen names, such as Gambler, Sin, Avenger, Raider, Desert Knight, Venom, Viper, Golden Dice, Golden Snake, Golden Lion, Storm, Thunder, Ace, Spade A, Vulture.
These names largely revolved around Las Vegas and Nevada's iconic elements, such as gambling-related ones, others involving deserts and snakes, and suggestions like Hoover, due to the nearby Hoover Dam.
The board didn't have time to slowly gather more fan opinions and decided to convene internally to settle on the new team's name.
In the meeting, names related to gambling were first dismissed, even though they were fitting, as the new team did not want too deep an association with gambling.
Next, some relatively negative team names were also excluded. Some were indeed good, such as Venom - starting with V, matching with Vegas, and also possessing a sense of revenge.
However, after thrice discussing, the board felt this name was still too dark, including other good names like Avengers which was also eliminated.
Additionally, some names that received support were vetoed by Gan Guoyang due to personal preferences.
For instance, Golden Snake, which many board members supported, but Gan Guoyang rejected since he was concerned about being nicknamed "Golden Snake Gentleman."
Golden Lion was also dismissed since he did not wish the team to be called Nova.
After several rounds of selection, what remained were pleasing and fitting names like Thunder, Ace, Storm.
At the final decision moment, Gan Guoyang gave the decision-making authority to the "big boss," Wang Fuxi.
Wang Fuxi, who hadn't voiced much opinion, was actually thinking deeply and already had the final answer, making the ultimate choice.
"I've decided, the name of the new team will be Las Vegas Radiance (Light). Light here has two meanings: one, our most famous neon lights in Vegas, when tourists see the neon, they know they've arrived in Vegas. The other meaning is light. God said, Let there be light, and there was light. At this time America needs light the most, needs guidance. We are their guide, their beacon of Radiance."
