The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 848 Making a Settlement
This season, or rather, the two most popular teams of the entire 90s, met again in the 1998 NBA Finals.

This is a win-win situation, and it's the result that both fans and the NBA officials were hoping for at the start of this season.

Two of the greatest players in NBA history reunited on the highest stage after a long absence, with the epic clashes of 1991 and 1992 still fresh in everyone's mind.

That period of memory is intertwined with the collapse of the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, the end of the Cold War, the Gulf War, Clinton's election as president, the implementation of neoliberal economics, the development of electronic technology, and the rise of Silicon Valley, witnessing the remarkable journey of the United States' rapid political and economic development into a unipolar world power.

The meeting of the two teams also meant that the NBA championship was won by the 1984 draft class for nine seasons from 1990 to 1998.

Forrest Gump, Michael Jordan, and Hakeem Olajuwon, the top three picks in the 84 NBA draft, became the dominant force in the 90s NBA championships, a generation that rightfully reigned supreme.

The popularity of the Trail Blazers and the Bulls across the United States has reached an unbelievable level.

Throughout the regular season, no matter which away city they played in, fans would drive or ride motorcycles to support them as the team bus came out of the airport.

Even in the highly competitive playoffs, away fans, while cursing and slandering both teams on the court, would try their best to get close to them off the court, take a photo, ask for an autograph, and exchange a few words, adding a glorious memory to their fan career.

On June 1, 1998, the Chicago Bulls flew from Chicago to Portland, returning to this rainy West Coast city as summer approached, just after June 1992.

Many fans gathered at the airport to wait for the Bulls and Jordan to arrive. Although the city has the most loyal Trail Blazers fans, it did not stop them from wanting to catch a glimpse of the basketball legend in advance.

This is the Sun King's greatest rival, and also his number one defeated opponent.

Police cordoned off the street an hour in advance in front of the Hilton Hotel where the Bulls were staying, prohibiting other people and vehicles from entering or leaving.

The Bulls' schedule couldn't be kept secret at all, and the Trail Blazers would be treated the same way when they headed to Chicago a few days later.

This was a scene unlike anything seen in last year's finals; there was no such bond between the Mormons of Salt Lake City and the Chicagoans.

Jordan was already used to such a grand spectacle. As he stepped off the bus, he remarked, "The air in Portland is so fresh."

The world is eagerly anticipating the Finals showdown between Jordan and Forrest Gump, but many are also skeptical that Jordan and the Bulls can pull off a miracle.

Even the Bulls themselves didn't quite believe that they could win another championship and achieve a three-peat against the Trail Blazers, who had won 77 games in 1998.

77 wins is truly terrifying. This Trail Blazers team has surpassed the times in terms of overall strength. They play in a way that no other team can understand or match.

It's as if the 1996 Chicago Bulls had reverted to a time when their defensive system was incomplete, teams were still running fast breaks and counter-attacks and didn't know what a three-pointer was. It's hard to imagine any team back then having any way to beat the Bulls.

Of course, the situation might not be that bad, after all, Jordan was the Bulls' leader.

Jordan maintained his confidence in winning; he knew how powerful his inner motivation was.

Scottie Pippen, however, kept looking grim, wondering why the Trail Blazers didn't make it to the Finals last year.

In that case, their chances of successfully taking revenge would be much higher.

Dennis Rodman was wearing sunglasses, and his hair had been dyed a vibrant, multicolored red.

Actually, Rodman wasn't in good form during this playoff run; Toni Kukoc was the more important player.

But the Chicago media are all hoping that Rodman can cause Forrest Gump a lot of trouble.

For example, deliberately taking a beating so that Forrest Gump could rest.

Passing through the noise of fans outside the cordon, I entered the hotel lobby, where a huge oil painting hung on the wall.

It's a picture of Forrest Gump dunking; the hotel bought it specially for the finals and hung it up.

Perhaps it was a provocation and warning to the bull, but during the few days they stayed there, they were constantly in Forrest Gump's shadow.

"What a load of crap," Jordan spat, then registered his information at the front desk.

Jordan never uses his real name when staying at hotels; he usually uses pseudonyms such as Leonard Smith or Lawrence Welker.

Even so, it often couldn't stop the harassment from hotel staff or tabloid reporters who got wind of it, so after checking in under a false name, Jordan would go to the room of Tom Smithberg, the team's media services manager, and let Smithberg stay in his room.

As a result, Smithberg often couldn't sleep well all night because people would keep knocking on his door, hoping to get Jordan's autograph or a photo.

Tonight was no exception. Jordan booked a room under Leonard Smith's name, then exchanged room keys with Smithberg for a quiet night.

The next morning, when the team was getting up for group practice, Jordan asked Smithberg how he slept the night before.

Smithberg said, "Oh, I slept very well, and no one knocked on the door."

"No one knocked? Wow, looks like I'm in luck."

Smithberg smiled but didn't say anything. Actually, he wanted to say, "You're very popular, Michael, but this is Portland."

He ultimately dared not say it aloud; he knew Jordan's temper.

As the Bulls players left the hotel and got into their car, they passed under the oil painting of Gan Guoyang dunking.

It was disgusting, Jordan recalled; this was footage of Gan Guoyang dunking during the 1992 NBA Finals.

As the visiting team, the Bulls' training venue was arranged at the Portland University Gymnasium.

The training session was completely closed to the public, as the Bulls needed to prepare for tomorrow's game.

Phil Jackson looked worried, and to be honest, he had no idea how to deal with the Trail Blazers' strong roster.

Against the Pacers, we can use the backcourt defensive triangle to create mismatches: Pippen guards Jackson, Jordan guards Rose, and Harper goes after Miller.

But what about the Trail Blazers? Forrest Gump remains the most difficult problem to solve, the most undefendable and unstoppable player in NBA history.

He's like a Transformer, constantly changing forms; you can never predict how he'll break through your defenses.

At the same time, if you think he's a chameleon who adapts to every move and constantly changes form to evade targeted attacks, you're wrong.

At times, he will rise to the challenge and use his personal abilities and unparalleled strength to forcefully overcome all your attacks.

He is strong, wise, and resourceful.

In the first two Finals, Jackson realized that he was battling Forrest Gump, not Bobby Bellman.

Six years have passed, and many things have changed, but some things remain the same.

As a championship coach with three rings, Jackson is more confident and has a sharper feel for the game.

That's why he couldn't find a way to break through the Trail Blazers.

During training, Jackson constantly adjusted the lineup, hoping to find the optimal solution.

Jackson first realized that he couldn't let Dennis Rodman start at power forward to match up against Forrest Gump.

Although the media had been speculating that Rodman could make a difference in his matchup against Forrest Gump—which would be Rodman's third time facing Gump in the Finals—Jackson knew that Rodman couldn't. If he could, the Detroit Pistons wouldn't have lost to the Trail Blazers in 1987 and 1990.

During Rodman's few seasons with the Bulls, Jackson was quite lenient with him, often letting him do whatever he wanted.

If he doesn't want to train and doesn't want to come, let him be. He can just stay home and sleep.

He wants to go to Las Vegas to gamble, find an assistant to accompany him, have a good time all night, and then come back to train and compete.

This free-style management approach worked very well, allowing Rodman to fully unleash his talent with the Bulls and providing tremendous help in their journey to three championships in four years.

But in 1998, Rodman was already 37 years old. He entered the league late, was exceptionally talented, and at 37 he still had no major injuries. He could run and jump, but he was not at his peak.

Moreover, Forrest Gump can be considered Rodman's biggest nemesis in the league. All of Rodman's moves were useless against Forrest Gump, including his best skill, rebounding.

Furthermore, all of Jackson's encouragement and motivational speeches had no effect on Rodman. He knew his own limitations and would never risk his life against Forrest Gump.

Besides, it's not that he didn't give it his all. During his time with the Pistons, he fought hard for Chuck's dad, but aside from contributing a memorable moment of being thrown onto the scorer's table, he didn't do much else.

Therefore, Rodman should not be started; he should be brought on as a substitute, playing in the second unit as a surprise weapon.

The starting power forward position will be given to Toni Kukoc, who has been the firefighter who has saved the Bulls from disaster multiple times in this playoff series.

Throughout the Eastern Conference Finals, Kukoc played at a very high level, especially in Game 7, where he was key to the Bulls' advancement to the NBA Finals.

Jackson had already devised a plan: Kukoc would fully draw Forrest's defensive attention on offense, providing Jordan and Pippen with ample offensive space.

As for defense? It doesn't matter. Rodman wouldn't be able to stop it anyway. It still requires Pippen and Jordan to double-team.

One thing that Jackson could be thankful for was that, based on video footage and regular season matchups, Forrest Gump's ability to drive to the basket had declined compared to 1992.

Because his explosiveness is not as good as it used to be, and his starting speed is not as fast, he should not suffer the same disastrous situation as in 1992.

In 1992, the Bulls were caught off guard by Gan Guoyang's sudden change in playing style and ultimately lost the Finals. The shadow of that loss still lingers to this day.

A center, holding the ball on the perimeter, breaking through the defense of the two best perimeter defenders in the league, driving to the basket and scoring, unstoppable, it's a nightmare.

However, there is a problem: Michael Jordan can no longer easily penetrate the paint and score as effortlessly as he did in 1992.

After much thought and discussion with the coaching staff, Jackson couldn't come up with any particularly effective strategies to counter the Trail Blazers' unusually fierce performance this year, except for starting Kukoc.

The Trail Blazers' preparations will be much easier. Larry Bird won't make any specific plans. They are the dominant side, so they can just play normally and react to whatever comes their way.

Another day has passed; it's June 3rd, match day.

The Rose Garden Arena once again hosted the NBA Finals, and tickets were once again in high demand and short supply.

Gan Guoyang has a rather amazing record: since he entered the league in 1984, there has never been an empty seat in a game at Portland's home arena whenever he plays.

Not only were there no empty seats, but extra seats were often added. Back then, in the Glass Palace Memorial Stadium, where there were not enough seats, the Trail Blazers ticket office was practically selling hanging tickets.

Even after moving to the Rose Garden, which can accommodate more than 20,000 people, the stadium remains packed to capacity, with season tickets selling out quickly.

The Rose Garden has 31000 people on the season ticket waiting list, waiting for others to return their tickets to fill the vacancy—compared to 23000 on the United Center's list.

A massive number of reporters—from all over the world, including China, Germany, France, and Spain—gather and are scattered throughout every corner of the stadium, not just in the media-only seating and broadcast booths on the sidelines, but also in the parking lot, player tunnel, locker room entrances, and so on.

They wanted to capture every glimpse and sound of the players, and... there was simply nowhere to stay, it was too crowded.

Helicopters began circling above the Rose Garden Arena from around 2 p.m., providing aerial footage for television stations and showcasing the spectacular scenes of Portland during the Finals.

In 1986, the whole of Portland went crazy. Twelve years later, nothing had changed, and they made it to the Finals again.

Large numbers of fans took to the streets, and citizens who couldn't buy tickets gathered near the Rose Garden Arena. Tens of thousands of fans were able to buy tickets to enter the Memorial Arena and watch the game on a big screen. As always, the Paramount Theatre also provided thousands of seats for watching the live broadcast on a super-large screen.

The Portland Police Department has increased its manpower to maintain order, and security at the Rose Garden Arena has added temporary staff and strengthened security procedures.

Two hours before the game started, the locker rooms of both the Trail Blazers and the Bulls were packed with reporters.

Gan Guoyang and Jordan were each being interviewed by reporters. The two had not been in contact since the Eastern Conference Finals ended on May 31.

Their true communication exists only on the court; any off-court conversations would only disrupt their mental state, especially for Jordan.

An hour before the match began, the locker rooms of both teams were closed to outsiders, and the players began their final preparations and pep talks.

Of course, not everyone is prohibited from entering. Some people are given special permission to enter the locker room during this special time to chat with the players and meet them.

For example, Mike Tyson, Muhammad Ali, and Michael Jackson all went into the locker room during the Finals and met with Gan Guoyang or Jordan.

A state legislator once tried to enter the locker room to see Forrest Gump, but was denied permission. Security personnel told him that he could only do so if he were the President of the United States.

At 7 p.m. Pacific Time, the opening ceremony began, and both teams officially took to the field to warm up; the main event was about to begin.

After a series of opening ceremonies, the Trail Blazers players in white jerseys and the Bulls players in red jerseys stood in the center of the court.

Jordan and Gan Guoyang lightly bumped fists, and without any further words, the 1998 NBA Finals began.

Jordan looked up at the eight championship banners hanging from the dome of the Rose Garden Arena, two of which were won by defeating the Bulls.

Of course he remembered the text message Gan Guoyang sent him before the match; that guy was as arrogant and annoying as ever.

But thinking about it carefully, Forrest Gump was right. If we want to win, we really have to rely on ourselves this time.

The Bulls' teammates are still reliable, but everyone is just too tired, isn't they?

Jordan really wanted to ask Forrest Gump, "How did you manage to carry the team to three consecutive championships?"

Actually, there's no need to ask; just look at Gan Guoyang's performance in 1992 to know.

We must do what Forrest Gump did back then: kill our opponents with our individual performance.

Jordan had made up his mind, and he didn't communicate with Jackson at all during yesterday's practice.

He knew Jackson would repeat the same old team-oriented rhetoric, which worked for other teams but wouldn't work for the Trail Blazers.

Jordan was determined to score 50 points in a single game, but he didn't know that the person on the other side was thinking the same thing.

Let's settle things once and for all.

As Gan Guoyang thought this, his body began to tremble uncontrollably.

(End of this chapter)