The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 458 Go take a shower

The long and hot off-season came to a complete end in November, and the battle is about to begin again.

On November 6, 1987, the Trail Blazers played their first game of the new season at home against the Phoenix Suns.

The Phoenix Suns remained in Phoenix after the shocking drug scandal in April that claimed two lives.

The team has changed hands and has a new owner, but the core roster remains the same.

Walter Davis, the traitor, stayed with the team, along with Edwards, Larry Nance, Sanders, and others.

The new owner didn't make any big trades or cuts during the offseason; he wanted to see if this roster could still make a name for itself in the new season.

If all else fails, it's not too late to make a change midway through the season.

After such turmoil, the cohesion inside the sun has completely disappeared.

In particular, Walter Davis's act as a witness for the prosecution jeopardized his status as the team's leader, and no one respected him anymore.

In their first game against the Trail Blazers, it was practically a free kill for them.

The Trail Blazers crushed the Suns in just the first half.

During halftime, the team held a ring presentation ceremony.

Gan Guoyang personally raised the third championship banner to the ceiling of the stadium.

Amid the frenzied cheers of over 12000 fans, the Trail Blazers utterly crushed the Suns.

The regular season and the preseason are different; players are more focused during the regular season.

However, the playing style is still similar to last season.

Gan Guoyang's one-on-one plays have decreased. According to the new rules, the offensive team cannot place more than three players away from the ball and above the three-point line.

This means that there must be at least two players on the strong side with the ball.

There will always be a teammate nearby and an opposing defender nearby, who can then come over to help defend or double-team.

In this situation, Gan Guoyang can still play, but he won't be as efficient and effortless as he was last season.

Moreover, the referees had a specific task tonight: to officiate the Trail Blazers' illegal offense.

The team was called for a foul once in the first half and once in the second half, which disrupted their rhythm.

Fortunately, the Suns are relatively weak, the team is chaotic, and the players are not united.

With just a little effort, the Trail Blazers brought their opponents down.

They easily defeated the Suns 101-127 at home, a 26-point advantage, and got off to a winning start.

They then easily defeated the Clippers on the road, winning by 31 points.

In these two games, the statistics of players like Drexler and Kossi have been inflated significantly.

Drexler, in particular, had 27 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists in the first game.

In the second game against the Clippers, he scored 31 points, grabbed 8 rebounds, dished out 12 assists, and made 5 steals.

Clyde is clearly in excellent form this season.

Vandeweghe had a poor preseason, but performed well in the regular season.

He scored 21 points in the first two games and 30 points in the second, with a very high shooting percentage.

On the contrary, Gan Guoyang, when his teammates performed well, took the initiative to give up some ball possession, scoring 23 points in one game and 21 points in another, with more than 5 assists in both games.

If the opponents are all such terrible teams, and the team can continue to win by such a large margin, Gan Guoyang wouldn't mind having slightly worse stats so that Drexler, Kessie, and others can pad their stats and get bigger contracts.

But the situation is different when facing slightly stronger teams.

They will face the Houston Rockets on November 10th.

With the Rockets already in decline, the Trail Blazers suffered a narrow 109-108 defeat at home, losing by just one point.

The Trail Blazers completely failed to play with the intensity and rhythm they should have in this game.

Ramsey's requirement of "two reductions and one increase" was not well implemented. Instead, the team hesitated in attack, and the backcourt players such as Porter and Paxson clearly did not internalize the essence of these three requirements.

As a result, the team's offensive efficiency decreased and turnovers increased.

Porter hesitated on a pass at a crucial moment, which was intercepted, causing the Trail Blazers to lose their chance to win the game.

Gan Guoyang didn't care much about the loss. The regular season is just for training and trying out mistakes, so the results aren't that important.

However, Drexler complained to Porter after the game, asking why he didn't launch a fast break when he should have, and instead dragged the game into position.

Porter said the coaching staff's requirement was to reduce fast breaks and slow down the pace.

Drexler said, "The coach is saying reduce fast breaks, not eliminate them! You have to make accurate judgments!"

The two had a heated argument in the locker room, while Gan Guoyang and Ramsey were attending the post-match press conference.

When Gan Guoyang returned to the locker room, he found the atmosphere there somewhat subtle after the game.

The Trail Blazers' locker room used to be a very cheerful place.

Gan Guoyang would play songs in the locker room, and everyone would dance around happily.

Kenny Karl would bet with Thompson that they would play each other almost every game.

Vandeweghe and Paxson would have some tea together, and they generally enjoyed themselves.

Now, Gan Guoyang is always surrounded by reporters after every game, so he doesn't have time to play music. If people want to listen to music, they all wear big headphones and listen to their own music on their personal Walkmans.

Kenny Carr has retired to pursue his big project, and Thompson got married, always going home early to be with his wife after the game.

After each game, Vandeweghe would lie down for back therapy, while Paxson would soak in an ice tub to relieve leg muscle pain.

Reporters began relentlessly infiltrating the championship team, leaving them with less and less private space. The players' fan base was growing; Drexler, Vandeweghe, and others signed endorsement deals, participated in interviews, and appeared on radio programs—in short, everyone was very busy.

Aside from competitions and training, the time we spend together privately is decreasing.

Gan Guoyang couldn't remember the last time he had eaten at Drexler's house; he simply didn't have the time.

Gan Guoyang didn't ask what had happened; he remained patient.

After playing against the Rockets, the Trail Blazers embarked on a road trip in the Western Conference.

On the 12th, they narrowly defeated the Nuggets in Denver, falling behind at one point in the fourth quarter.

In the end, they relied on strong defense and three-pointers from Gan Guoyang and Vandeweghe to reverse the game.

On the 14th, they suffered a defeat in Dallas.

After a disastrous season last year, the Mavericks spent the offseason learning and rebuilding.

They fired veteran coach Dick Motta and hired former Suns head coach John McLeod to reorganize the team's offense and defense.

They played exceptionally well against the defending champions, suppressing the Trail Blazers with their powerful offense.

The Trail Blazers still haven't found their rhythm or touch on offense.

They lost by a margin of 7 points, 120 to 127.

Then on November 17th, the Trail Blazers lost to the SuperSonics by 4 points.

Vandeweghe scored 27 points in this game, showing excellent offensive form.

However, plagued by injuries, his defense deteriorated again, allowing McDaniel to score 32 points.

It didn't matter that Vandeweghe's defense was a bit poor in 1985; the Trail Blazers had a lot of fast breaks, and the back-and-forth offense could make up for it.

By the 1987-1988 season, the team's positional defense was poor and their fast breaks were reduced, which made things difficult.

After losing the game, Jack Ramsey made a change, moving Vandeweghe to the bench and promoting Jerome Kossie to the starting lineup.

Vandeweghe obeyed the coach's instructions, but he was clearly dissatisfied.

His relationship with Kossie became more delicate, and the atmosphere in the locker room worsened.

It just so happens that Van der Weevil and Drexler were good friends, while Porter and Cauchy were the best friends (Porter attended and hosted the press conference and funeral of Cauchy years later when he died unexpectedly).

As a result, there was a growing trend of the Trail Blazers' locker room splitting into two factions.

When Vandeweghe went to the bench, the Trail Blazers did indeed embark on a winning streak.

They went on a four-game winning streak, defeating the Kings, Clippers, Nets, and Spurs in succession.

But these teams are weak teams anyway. In Vandeweghe’s view, these teams can win regardless of whether Kosi starts or not.

The conflict erupted after the home game against the Washington Bullets on November 29.

Gan Guoyang and Bernard King met for the first time in their NBA careers.

Facing Kim, Moses Malone, and Barkley, Gan Guoyang exploded, racking up 61 points, 25 rebounds, and 9 blocks, single-handedly breaking through the Bullets' strong momentum at the beginning of the season.

As it turns out, his mediocre performance in the previous matches was just a period of preparation.

Just as Gan Guoyang was happily heading to the press conference after the game, Drexler and Porter got into another argument in the locker room.

Drexler believed that Porter was deliberately not passing the ball to him.

Porter said, "Tonight is Forrest Gump's night. It's normal for me to pass the ball to him. You don't have a better opportunity or better efficiency. You can't even make three-pointers."

Porter's last words struck a nerve with Drexler.

Drexler was considered to have a good temper among Black players.

However, there is a qualifier: among Black players, he is a very proud person.

Gan Guoyang can joke about my shooting, but Porter, what makes you think you can? Just because your shooting is a little more accurate than mine?
The two almost came to blows, but Kossi and the others quickly intervened. As a result, Vandeweghe and Kossi pushed and shoved each other, both of them angry with each other.

Van de Wesley felt that Kossy had taken his starting position, while Kossy believed that Van de Wesley's defense was poor and he shouldn't have been allowed to start.

What started as an argument between two people escalated into a fight between four, and the argument quickly became very heated.

In the locker room, Behrman was completely unstoppable. As a master of profanity, he even felt that the noise wasn't exciting enough and there weren't enough profanities.

Gilmore tried to mediate, but Mitchell Thompson stopped him, saying softly, "Let them argue, argue until Forrest Gump comes back."

The argument stopped immediately when Gan Guoyang pushed open the door and entered the locker room.

The locker room fell eerily quiet instantly, with only the hissing of the fluorescent lights audible.

Gan Guoyang beckoned to Drexler with his finger and then pointed to the shower room.

Like a student who had made a mistake, Drexler followed Gan Guoyang into the shower room.

"Take off."

"what?"

"Take off your clothes and take a shower."

"I...I've already washed."

"Wash it again, turn the water up."

Drexler could only take off his clothes and take another shower.

Gan Guoyang was showering in the next cubicle. There was some privacy, but he could still hear the other person talking.

Ten minutes later, Drexler came out of the shower, dried himself off, and said to Porter, "Terry, go take a shower."

(End of this chapter)