The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 307 Test
After the first game of the Western Conference Finals, the Eastern Conference Finals series also began in Boston.

After a hard-fought victory against the Washington Bullets, the Milwaukee Bucks faced the Celtics once again.

As the perennial third-place finisher, the Bucks, aside from being bullied by the 76ers, are still evenly matched with the Celtics.

The earliest rivalry between the two teams dates back to 1976, when the Bucks were still in the Western Conference and lost the Finals to the Celtics in a seven-game series.

After Alcindor left for Los Angeles, the Bucks began rebuilding under Nelson's leadership. In the 80s, they were moved to the Eastern Conference and began their rivalry with the 76ers and the Celtics.

There's a reason why the Bucks have always been third in the standings. Besides lacking talent, the Bucks, with their backcourt as the core, have almost no way to break through the Celtics, who have a strong frontcourt and equally excellent backcourt defense.

During the regular season, Nelson had the option of using a three-guard lineup to create chaos against the Trail Blazers, but against the Celtics, dragging the game into a chaotic mess was tantamount to suicide—Bird may be the best chaotic player in NBA history.

His versatility and keen insight enabled him to find a smooth path in a chaotic situation and ultimately win amidst the chaos.

Conversely, due to his average running and jumping abilities, Bird's effectiveness would be weakened in a rigorous positional attack where soldiers face soldiers and generals face generals.

In his personal offense, he often relies too much on his shooting touch, which can lead to very poor shooting performance in some crucial games, resulting in low efficiency but forcing him to take shots.

For example, in last year's Finals, Bird had three games with low shooting percentages: 8-for-21, 12-for-29, and 9-for-21. In those three games, he only had 3 assists.

This shows that when he couldn't connect with the team, he had to attack with the ball, but against the Lakers' tight half-court defense, Bird's half-court attacks were not very efficient.

This aligns with Gan Guoyang and West's assessment last season: the Celtics couldn't sustain long half-court sets; they desperately needed fast breaks, and Bird needed to showcase his passing talent in chaotic situations and transition offense. His efficiency would decline if the team got bogged down in half-court sets. The Lakers, on the other hand, had Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as their dominant force in half-court sets, which was their biggest advantage.

The Bucks don't have a dominant star like that; they play a guard-centric style of play, which is exactly what the Celtics want.

In the first game, the Celtics showed the entire nation what it means to have an all-around game, with all 12 players scoring, and at least three points, completely overwhelming the Bucks.

The Bucks, having just gone through a Game 7, were practically helpless at Boston Garden. No one on the team scored over 20 points; the highest scorer was a substitute, Kenny Fields, who only racked up points in garbage time.

The Bucks' starters may have exhausted themselves in the semifinals, scoring a combined 41 points, less than the Celtics' bench.

It's very difficult to beat a team when its starting lineup scores fewer points than the opponent's bench.

The Celtics dominated the first game, winning 96-128.

However, Nelson wasn't entirely convinced after the game. In the press conference, he said, "Boston has too much talent. Look at their starters, look at their bench, five All-Stars. Honestly, if you gave me Forrest Gump, I'd be absolutely confident of winning this series."

Since being outscored by Gan Guoyang for 54 points at the MECCA Center, Nelson has never hidden his admiration and desire for this superstar center.

One day apart, after the Bucks and Celtics' game, the Trail Blazers and Rockets faced off in a rematch at Memorial Arena.

In this game, the Rockets changed their defensive strategy, starting with a triple-team of Sampson, Olajuwon, and the forwards, forcing Gan Guoyang to pass the ball and testing the outside shots of players like Vandeweghe.

This tactic worked quite well. At the start, Vandeweghe and Paxson's outside shooting wasn't very accurate. At the same time, the Rockets abandoned their strategy of having everyone rush for offensive rebounds, allowing only Olajuwon to grab them while the others immediately retreated to defense.

If Olajuwon can get the ball, he should take it himself; if not, so be it. Don't let it affect the defense and don't give the Trail Blazers too many fast break opportunities.

This game was much more intense than the first one. The referees didn't side with the Trail Blazers tonight, and Gan Guoyang committed three fouls in the first half, spending a significant amount of time on the bench.

As soon as Gan Guoyang left the court, Olajuwon and Sampson breathed a sigh of relief and seized the opportunity to score and attack the basket. The Rockets led by 4 points at halftime.

Sampson's shooting touch was much better tonight, hitting several shots from beyond the arc. It felt great not being guarded by Gan Guoyang.

In the third quarter, both sides engaged in a fierce battle. This time, it was Gan Guoyang's turn to aggressively attack the basket. When the team is behind, they need to change their tactics and be more aggressive. He repeatedly grabbed offensive rebounds, drawing fouls from Sampson and Olajuwon, and then made consecutive free throws, helping the team stay close in the score and enter the fourth quarter.

However, at the start of the fourth quarter, Gan Guoyang was called for another charging foul, his fifth foul, forcing Ramsey to bench him.

The Rockets immediately launched an offensive surge, widening the gap to around 10 points.

After Gan Guoyang returned to the court, the Trail Blazers began a tough comeback. Gan Guoyang was plagued by foul trouble in this game, and his playing time was fragmented, resulting in a lack of consistent contributions from him.

With less than two minutes remaining in the game, the Rockets maintained a seven-point lead, putting the Trail Blazers in a very precarious position.

With time slipping away, Vandeweghe stepped up. When the Rockets' offense faltered, Vandeweghe launched a three-pointer during a fast break!

A 23-foot three-pointer narrowed the gap to 4 points, marking the Trail Blazers' first three-pointer of the game. This bold shot gave the fans in the arena hope.

Immediately afterwards, Gan Guoyang drew an offensive foul from Olajuwon on defense, resulting in a turnover for the Rockets. The Trail Blazers regained possession, and the referee's whistle finally shifted slightly in favor of the Trail Blazers.

Then, after Drexler's layup attempt failed, Gan Guoyang deftly flicked the ball out, and Paxson, who was outside the three-point line, caught the ball and shot without hesitation, making another three-pointer!
The memorial stadium erupted instantly, turning a 7-point deficit into a 1-point difference – a miraculous three-pointer!

Ramsey, who had been standing on the sidelines watching the game, had knelt down and placed a towel under his knees.

The game entered its most tense moment, but the Rockets did not call a timeout, and as a result, their offense failed.

Unfortunately, Gan Guoyang's hook shot also missed, and with 30 seconds left in the game, the Rockets grabbed the defensive rebound.

Fitch called a timeout, but their offense failed to find a way through after the timeout, as the Trail Blazers' tight defense prevented them from getting any shots off.

A 24-second violation! With just over 5 seconds left in the game, the Trail Blazers shut down the Rockets' offense, giving them one last chance to attack.

Jack Ramsey called a timeout and laid out a final game-winning strategy on the bench. One point, just one point away, nobody knew how the Trail Blazers were going to play.

"Beep beep beep beep beep!"

The referee blew his whistle urgently, urging the Trail Blazers players to get into the game as soon as possible. Ramsey was still giving the players tactical instructions, as these last five seconds were crucial.

Ramsey's tactics were not complicated, but he had several backup options in case of any unexpected situations. The tactic he designed was a relatively safe combination that he had used before: Drexler inbounded the ball from the outside, Gan Guoyang received it outside the three-point line, and after Drexler inbounded the ball, he directly cut into the paint using Gan Guoyang's screen.

If the Rockets' defenders don't stick close enough, Gan Guoyang will hand off the ball to Drexler for a layup. If they do stick close, Paxson will come around to the middle from the right to receive the ball, and Gan Guoyang can choose to pass it to Paxson.

If Paxson is also unable to receive the ball, then Gan Guoyang can choose to attack himself. Although the three-point line is a bit far from the basket, he can still make drives, floaters, and mid-range shots from that outside position.

This is a huge test of Gan Guoyang's judgment and ball handling abilities, but Ramsey is willing to put this responsibility on Gan Guoyang's shoulders, and Gan Guoyang is someone you can rely on in crucial moments.

Urged on by the referee, the Trail Blazers players returned to the court to face the test of the final five seconds.

"Dlexler inbounds the ball from the outside... Gan receives the ball, but doesn't pass. Paxson... still doesn't pass. Gan Guoyang drives to the basket and takes a mid-range shot!"

The fans' hearts were in their throats with the ball, and Bill Shawnley's voice was also on the line.

Gan Guoyang chose to drive to the basket and shoot. The ball slowly fell and then went into the basket when the light came on.

Gan Guoyang's mid-range game-winning shot gave the Trail Blazers a 2-0 lead over the Rockets.

(End of this chapter)