The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 575 Collecting the Coffin
The Trail Blazers' locker room erupted in cheers after the game.

As reporters flooded into the room and tried to surround Agan, Gan Guoyang pointed to Petrovic sitting in the corner and said, "He scored the game-winner tonight, his first game-winner of his career. You should interview him."

Gan Guoyang was happy to let his teammates take the spotlight, even though he was the key to the team's comeback victory tonight, but the decisive goal was ultimately Petrovic's contribution.

Petrovic's form and performance have been getting better and better lately, and more and more consistent.

In this crucial moment of the match, Berman opted not to use Jonathan but instead used Petrovic, which was a testament to Petrovic's effectiveness.

Although he still has many shortcomings in defense and physical strength, and his offense and passing are not consistent enough, he has a big enough heart and an instinct to kill.

In this game, he not only delivered the game-winning layup, but also scored 14 points on 6-of-10 shooting, including two crucial three-pointers.

He was one of the few guards in the league who showed no fear when facing Jordan, charging forward despite knowing he was no match for him, simply defying expectations.

He deserves a headline and an exclusive interview.

When surrounded by reporters, Petrovich remained calm and composed, showing no embarrassment or panic, and answered their questions in an orderly manner.

In Europe, he was a star among stars and was used to such a spectacle; he even felt that this moment had come too late.

When asked by reporters why his performance was improving, Petrovic said, "I am grateful for the coach's trust, and for Forrest's patience and help. He is the most outstanding player and leader I have ever met. He is truly unparalleled. My goal when I entered the league was to surpass him, but now I just want to get closer to him."

Petrovic has weathered a tough time in the NBA and is now finding his place.

As the season progresses, the Trail Blazers' Eastern European trio has become increasingly consistent. They are all talented Slavic players with a unique understanding and talent for basketball.

Petrovic is an important substitute for the team. His overall ability is not as good as Porter and Hornacek, but he has strong scoring ability, is very aggressive, and has a strong leadership quality. He can often catch opponents off guard.

Sabonis may not have become the next Bill Walton that people envisioned, but his tall, strong physique, dexterous hands, and quick basketball IQ made him an excellent offensive and defensive support for Forrest Gump.

He and Forrest Gump are not complementary, but rather interchangeable.

Sabonis can be described as a weaker version of Forrest Gump in every aspect except for height and weight.

On the contrary, Divac is the one who complements Forrest Gump. The two have completely different styles and very different tactical focuses.

But whether he's playing with Divac or Sabonis, Gan Guoyang can pair up very well with them, and they are becoming more and more in sync on the field.

After defeating the Chicago Bulls, the Portland Trail Blazers are on the fast track.

On February 17th, the Trail Blazers traveled to Detroit to face the Eastern Conference-leading Detroit Pistons on the road.

The Pistons moved to a new arena this season, leaving the Silver Top Center, which holds many championship memories, and moving to the brand-new Palace of Auburn Hills.

Pistons owner Bill Davidson has been investing more and more in the team since it achieved success.

The league's first chartered plane, a luxurious lineup, and this modern multi-purpose stadium that can accommodate more than 22000 fans.

Davidson personally sponsored $9000 million for this arena.

It's important to understand that these types of multi-purpose stadiums are generally funded by municipal public funds. The owners often take the lead in borrowing money from banks and other financial institutions, or raising funds from the public, and their own contributions are not significant.

For example, Tang Jianguo was the one who appeared most frequently in the news when the Trail Blazers were building a new arena. He was everywhere in the news, but he was actually on the verge of bankruptcy and couldn't afford to contribute a single penny. The city and banks provided all the funding. He then sold the Trail Blazers' season tickets for the next five years to raise funds from the fans, and finally managed to raise enough money to build the arena.

This shows that Bill Davidson was much more generous. Since buying the Detroit Pistons in 1974, Davidson has devoted a lot of effort to the team.

The Pistons' original home arena, Cobo Arena, could only hold 10000 fans. Davidson was not satisfied and moved the home arena to the huge Silver Dome Center.

Davidson also provided Pistons players with the best training facilities, the most advanced logistics management system, and brought the first player private jet, as well as the state-of-the-art, modern Auburn Hills Palace.

As soon as Gan Guoyang and the Trail Blazers players entered the Palace of Auburn Hills, they could clearly feel that it was completely different from many old NBA arenas.

Not only is it new, but the decor and facilities also have a modern feel. The stadium also offers 180 luxury suites located at the top of the stands.

These luxury suites sold out immediately upon release, with season tickets selling out instantly. Some wealthy fans even paid for long-term contracts, with annual rental fees exceeding $35.

The price is indeed high, but there are many wealthy people who need luxury private rooms to maintain privacy when watching the game.

Starting with the Palace of Auburn Hills, these luxury suites quickly became standard in North American professional sports stadiums. Various multi-purpose stadiums built in the 90s were equipped with luxury suites, and their structure and design were not much different from those of the Palace of Auburn Hills.

From this perspective, Bill Davidson, owner of the Auburn Hills Palace, was a key driving force behind the modernization and luxury consumption of the NBA, making a positive contribution to the expansion and development of the NBA.

Of course, this does not diminish the Pistons' notorious reputation in the league.

The Pistons reached the peak of their popularity after winning the championship in 1989.

The team was officially dubbed the BAD BOY, and every night at the Palace of Auburn Hills, the black skull and crossbones flag would fly over the field, warning visiting teams that they were vicious stadium pirates.

The Detroit Pistons, with their rough defense, single-handedly changed the league's playing style.

It was with the Detroit Pistons that the NBA began its transformation from an offensive league to a defensive league.

Compared to the Lakers and Celtics, the Pistons are not the most talented team.

They haven't shown the same dominance on the court as the Lakers or Celtics so far.

But precisely because the Pistons didn't have the highest talent pool, a large market, or much team history, they showed many average teams a shortcut to success—if you can't beat them on the court, you can fight them.

In the 60s and 70s, it was common for people to fight and play basketball together in the NBA. Even now, despite the decrease in violence and the increasing peace on the courts under Stern's leadership, there are still minor on-court conflicts on almost every game day.

In the past, conflicts on the court were not about winning, but simply because of the poor court environment, low player quality, and a bad overall league environment.

The Detroit Pistons were different; they were the first team to use on-court violence as a means of winning and systematically cultivate a culture of winning through violence.

Therefore, Chuck Daly, like Bill Davidson, was a pioneer who perfectly integrated defense and non-basketball skills into the game to make up for his lack of natural talent.

The Detroit Pistons continued their strong momentum in the regular season this year. However, the loss of Vinnie Johnson in the expansion draft slightly weakened their backcourt offense, resulting in a slight decline in their record compared to last season.

The reason the Pistons kept Rick Mahorn and let Vinnie Johnson be selected in the expansion draft was because they wanted to retain enough frontcourt strength to deal with Forrest Gump.

This battle between the top teams in the East and West naturally attracted a lot of attention, and league commissioner David Stern once again came to the scene to oversee the game.

His reason for coming to Detroit was simple: to prevent violence. There had been far too many "battles" between the Trail Blazers and the Pistons.

On the other hand, fans are really looking forward to the two teams meeting, going to fight, and seeing Forrest Gump go on a rampage.

Most fans just want to watch the excitement. The outcome of the regular season is not important to many people; what they crave is the intense action.

With the Pistons leaving the Silver Top Center, Forrest Gump's nickname "Silver Top Killer" will become history.

The Palace of Auburn Hills will be a new battlefield for him, and also uncharted territory.

However, the game was relatively evenly played by both sides. The Pistons, intimidated by Gan Guoyang's formidable fighting power, played more restrainedly throughout the game. The Pistons employed a rotation strategy, sending Laimbeer, Tpin, Mahorn, Sally, Rodman, and others to harass Gan Guoyang in turn and constantly double-team him.

The current Pistons boast the most impressive frontcourt resources in the entire league, ranging from tall, dirty, and stationary centers to versatile forwards, from strong and well-rounded power forwards to long-legged, long-armed Spider-Man; the Pistons have it all.

All of this was to deal with Forrest Gump, and incidentally, to also appease Jordan.

The Pistons' double-teaming is more aggressive than the Bulls', with bigger hand movements and more intense physical contact, which many players find difficult to handle and disrupts their offensive rhythm.

Gan Guoyang's offense was off tonight; it seems he used up all his outside shooting touch against the Bulls.

With the Pistons guarding him closely, Gan Guoyang changed his strategy, constantly passing the ball to his teammates and running plays.

Sabonis hit hook shots repeatedly in the paint, while Hornacek reversed his slump from the previous game, constantly using Agan's screens to hit mid-range shots.

The score remained close throughout the fourth quarter, when Terry Porter Jr. and Petrovic each hit a crucial three-pointer, establishing a decisive advantage.

With Agan blocking Isaiah Thomas's jump shot and Melvin Tppin's layup in the final stages, the Trail Blazers secured the victory.

95:91，开拓者赢了活塞4分，两队常规赛战成了1:1平手。

When the game ended, the two sides did not shake hands or hug, but went straight from the field to the locker room.

The entire Pistons organization knows that Portland will once again be a top contender for the Western Conference title this year.

Jordan and Forrest Gump have become the biggest obstacles on the Pistons' road to defending their title.

After defeating two formidable Eastern Conference rivals, the Pistons and the Bulls, the Trail Blazers continued their winning streak on the road.

On February 19, they easily defeated the New Jersey Nets on the road.

On February 20th, in a back-to-back away game, they defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers in overtime, achieving their fourth consecutive away win.

Although the Cleveland Trail Blazers showed signs of fatigue, their three-point shooting percentage was poor throughout the game.

But thanks to their tenacious defense and crucial offensive rebounds from Sabonis and Gan Guoyang, the Trail Blazers managed to narrowly escape defeat.

The NBA journey is tiring; even the strongest teams can be worn down by a series of away games, losing some games they shouldn't have lost.

Last season, the Trail Blazers suffered from fatigue and injuries on the road because their bench was severely lacking.

If a player gets injured, has a fitness crisis, or if Agam isn't in particularly good form tonight, they can easily lose the game on the road.

This year is different. Fleischer's efforts and Jerry West's management have instantly boosted the Trail Blazers' bench strength.

Without losing any key players from the 89 season, they became the team with the deepest roster in the entire league.

After more than half a season of adjustment, the Trail Blazers have a stable 10-man rotation.

Talented swingmen like Cliff Robinson, who plays both the three and four positions, don't get much playing time with the Trail Blazers.

The Trail Blazers have plenty of offensive talent, but they need more defense and support at the small forward position, so Sanders gets more playing time.

Such a long bench and such a deep roster rotation give the Trail Blazers a great deal of leeway in the regular season.

After a four-game road trip in the East, the Trail Blazers returned to Portland for a rest and continued their winning streak.

从2月17日一直到3月10日，开拓者连战连捷，一鼓作气取得了15连胜的超强冲击波。

During this winning streak, the Trail Blazers defeated strong teams such as the Bucks, Spurs, Jazz, Mavericks, Lakers, Suns, and Bullets.

It wasn't until March 12th that the Trail Blazers narrowly lost to the Denver Nuggets in overtime on the road, ending their winning streak after the All-Star break.

Before the game against the Nuggets, Gan Guoyang, who came to Denver, went to the funeral home owned by Calvin Knight to attend a funeral.

Knight was signed by the Indiana Pacers this season, but plagued by injuries, he only played 14 games. After realizing that he could no longer participate in high-intensity games, he decided to retire and leave the NBA.

After retiring, Knight officially began his second life, returning to Denver to become a pastor and, with Forrest Gump's support, opening his own funeral home.

The funeral was very sad; a child had died before reaching adulthood due to a congenital heart attack.

Knight used his skillful rituals and profound words of comfort to soothe the heartbroken parents and help the child complete his final journey in this mortal world. He hung the child's favorite toys on a tree next to the grave, and as they swayed in the wind, they seemed to be touched by the soul.

Gan Guoyang, dressed in a black suit, brought a white rose to give to the child and his parents, and then donated money to the local congenital heart disease treatment fund.

The child's parents recognized Agan, which surprised them. Gan Guoyang comforted them, saying, "Your child will definitely go to a better place, free from illness. He will live a good life and have a new, happy life."

After the funeral, Gan Guoyang avoided the media's attention and returned to his hotel in Knight's Lincoln hearse.

"Thank you, Sonny. I didn't expect you to come. You comforted them and eased their pain a little."

"I just did what I was supposed to do; after all, I'm part of the funeral home. Your ceremony was very well done, dignified and solemn. Your talent for funerals is better than your talent for basketball."

“I think you are more talented than me in this area. You are very good at comforting people’s hearts. I look forward to the day when you can also become an excellent mortician. I think you will be the best, just like you are on the football field.”

Gan Guoyang smiled and said, "I'm already doing the funeral work. This season, I will bury all the teams and say goodnight to them early. I will try my best to do it well."

Knight swallowed hard; he knew Gan Guoyang wasn't joking.

So far this season, no team has been able to stop the Trail Blazers.

Their lineup is so good, their strength is so great, they are simply invincible.

Although the Trail Blazers lost to the Nuggets that same night, ending their winning streak.

But then the Trail Blazers went on an eight-game winning streak and finished the regular season with a nine-1 record in April.

They ultimately achieved an impressive record of 69 wins and 13 losses, tying the league's all-time best record set by the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1972 season.

They were almost at the 70-win mark, but ultimately gave up the pursuit of the record in order to ensure the health of their core roster.

The Portland Trail Blazers' only goal is to win the playoffs and the championship; otherwise, all their efforts in the regular season would be in vain.

With home-court advantage from all the series, the Trail Blazers officially began their 1990 season playoff campaign in late April.

Gan Guoyang has been waiting for this moment for a year.

The Trail Blazers' rookies will also face the test of the playoffs.

The Trail Blazers' first-round opponent is the formidable Denver Nuggets.

(End of this chapter)