Some of the inevitable trials of youth as well as the particularities of the Chinese experience are examined in this tale of two generations of athletes spanning the pre- and post-Liberation periods. Eighteen years before the Liberation the romance between Tian Zhenhua and Lin Jie is broken up by the girl's father, also the boy's coach, who resents the outspoken, prideful youth. In the new China, Tian Zhenhua is himself a respected basketball coach. Among the young athletes under his direction is Lin Xiaojie, Lin Jie's daughter, whose considerable talent is hampered by her own "bad attitude" and low moral. In taking the girl under his wing he is reunited with Lin Jie. Sports films are a staple of the Chinese cinema and many during this era focused on youth, with an optimistic emphasis on the need for both individual effort and team work to heal pre-Revolutionary wounds. Xie Jin's important contribution to the genre is, typically, a moving reaffirmation of love in which the protagonist's own near-tragedy is poignantly juxtaposed to his public dedication.