The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 860 See you in Los Angeles
Scottie Pippen smiled and spoke calmly, but his words were full of malice.

“I will not apologize to Charles Barkley, not even if a gun is pointed at my head.”

"He's the one who really should apologize. He owes me an apology. His ass is so fat it doesn't look like a basketball player's at all."

“He is a very selfish person. He doesn’t show any desire to win. I don’t want to play with him anymore.”

"Michael once said that Charles would never win a championship because he lacked dedication and self-discipline. I should have listened to Michael. If I had, I wouldn't have come to New Jersey; I would have gone to a more competitive place."

In August 1999, during the summer, Scottie Pippen's response on ESPN's talk show caught the entire league off guard.

His bold wording and sharp, uncompromising remarks surprised many people.

Many people underestimated the severity of the conflict between Pippen and Barkley.

Jordan was one of them; he never expected Pippen to say something like that.

Within minutes of the show airing, Jordan called Barkley—twice.

He told Barkley that he had not mocked Barkley behind his back, nor had he ever said anything like Barkley would never win a championship.

Barkley later told Sports Illustrated writer Jackie McMullen, "I don't know if Michael was angrier because Scottie said those things, or because he dragged his own name into it. I know Scottie, the whole league knows he's unreliable, a fence-sitter. You can fool the media and the fans, but you can't fool the players. Scottie is a fool who exposed his own ass."

The conflict between Pippen and Barkley intensified, making it impossible for them to continue working together in New Jersey.

Charles Barkley faced a decision after losing Game 7 of the semifinals to the Pacers and never returned to New Jersey.

He faced two paths: 1. Leave the NBA; 2. Go to Portland.

—Excerpt from "Barkley," a biography of Charles Barkley by Motiejunas, published in 2022.

When Charles Barkley was eliminated from the 1999 playoffs, Shaquille O'Neal was the only big man left in the league.

As the Lakers' plane landed at Portland Airport, O'Neal gazed at the familiar scenery outside the window with melancholy eyes, a wave of negative emotions washing over him.

Portland, Portland again. Shaquille O'Neal's painful lessons of defeat here could fill a book.

This is Shaquille O'Neal's seventh year in the league. At 26, he still hasn't grown into the dominant center that people expected.

Forrest Gump, who was almost 10 years older than him, was always pressing down on him like a huge, persistent shadow, a nightmare from which he could not wake up.

Jerry West repeatedly comforted O'Neal, saying, "Wait a little longer, your time will come."

West was right. Forrest Gump would grow old and weak one day. He was only 26 years old, and there were still 4 years until he turned 30.

If O'Neal had studied Chinese history, he would know that many remarkable figures achieved success simply through patience.

Relying on his youth, he endured until his greatest rival grew old and died, and thus the world became his.

Jerry West endured this for a long time, until Bill Russell retired, and the Lakers finally had their day and won a championship.

But for O'Neal, such days were really hard to bear. How could a man live a life of subservience for long?
He already had a premonition of what kind of attacks and ridicule he would face if he lost this series.
The attacks they suffered during last year's playoff elimination were repeated exactly as they were, or even intensified.
In the semifinals, O'Neal delivered a dominant performance, finally leading his team to avenge their loss to the Utah Jazz.

But facing the Trail Blazers and Forrest Gump, O'Neal still had no confidence at all.

The plane landed smoothly at Portland Airport, and the Lakers were about to begin their Western Conference Finals campaign.

The Trail Blazers are waiting in vain, but their form isn't as good as people imagined.

Injuries are slowly eroding this aging team, whose average age is among the highest in the league.

The starting five, including Mullin, Sabonis, Gan Guoyang, and Brelock, are all 30 years old or even over 35.

Mullin and Sabonis have been plagued by injuries throughout the season, resulting in frequent stoppages in their playing time.

Blake has maintained a good level of performance, but for a point guard of his height (183cm), a decline can happen in an instant.

Isaiah Thomas suffered an injury at the age of 31, which brought him to the brink of retirement, and he subsequently left the league.

Terry Porter and A.C. Green have both reached the point where they are the ninth or tenth man on their teams, and their careers are entering their final countdown.

What sets the Trail Blazers apart is that while building a championship roster, they haven't neglected developing new talent.

This season, Kobe, Jermaine O'Neal, and Ben Wallace are gradually taking over the starting lineup.

Kobe has secured his starting shooting guard position, and Jermaine O'Neal has become the team's most important interior rotation player.

Ben Wallace was also an important defensive force in the paint, and Bird greatly admired these two young big men.

In his plan, after Forrest and Sabonis retire, the two of them will be the Trail Blazers' interior pillars for the next decade.

In some games, Bird would move Forrest to the small forward position, allowing Ben and Jermaine O'Neal to work together in the paint to create a fast-paced, counter-attacking lineup.

This is exactly what the Los Angeles Lakers fear most.

Because of O'Neal's presence, the Lakers are somewhat afraid of speed-oriented teams on both offense and defense.

In particular, if O'Neal is unable to exert his full offensive power, the Lakers could easily fall into an unbalanced state.

One reason the Lakers were able to defeat the Jazz in the semifinals was O'Neal's unstoppable offense. Furthermore, O'Neal changed his previous style of purely relying on low-post power play, incorporating pick-and-roll and cuts into his offense.

He tried his best to integrate into the flexible offensive system centered around Kidd, reducing his brute force and making his offense more varied.

This change worked, and the Lakers successfully advanced. It remains to be seen how they will fare against the Trail Blazers.

On May 16, the first game of the Western Conference Finals was played at the Rose Garden Arena.

The Lakers are aiming for their first NBA Finals appearance since 1988.

For 10 years, they haven't tasted the thrill of the finals.

The Lakers' starting lineup still boasts impressive height, featuring O'Neal, Thorpe, Horry, McGrady, and Kidd.

Short teams are always bullied by them, but fortunately the Trail Blazers are also tall – except for the point guard position.

The Lakers capitalized on the mismatch between Kidd and Blake in the early game, repeatedly setting up plays in the low post that allowed Kidd to back down Blake.

In a clever move, Kidd demonstrated his ability to score one-on-one, but what made him even more formidable was his passing ability. After scoring on Blaylock in a series of attacks, Bird called the first timeout of the game.

The Lakers took an early lead in the first quarter with a score of 11-6, thanks to a brilliant move by Del Harris.

Silver Fox learned a lot from his constant battles with the Trail Blazers—perhaps this is the fate of every Lakers coach.

From Riley to Behrman to Harris, and perhaps others, they were all racking their brains trying to figure out how to deal with Forrest Gump.

The ideas that eventually came up were all pretty much the same, and they were all guided by one important principle: avoid Forrest Gump as much as possible.

Don't try to stack resources on Agam in offense and defense; it's useless and a complete waste, as evidenced by the Twin Towers.

Instead, increasing investment in other areas, whether in terms of talent or quantity, the more the better, can actually open up a breakthrough.

For example, how did the Jazz and Lakers beat the Trail Blazers? It was all thanks to the explosive performances of their point guards.

The point guard is the position furthest from Forrest Gump, making him the most difficult for Forrest to interfere with or influence.

Harris has clearly figured out this trick. Against the Trail Blazers, he abandoned O'Neal as the core player and instead built Kidd around him, with O'Neal playing a supporting role.

Facing the shorter Blake, Kidd played with ease, scoring and passing with equal skill.

The Lakers also learned from the Rockets' experience, stacking tall and good-shooting forwards, catching and shooting immediately, and not easily challenging Agan's rim protection in the three-second zone.

Thus, relying on the point guard's dominance and the forwards' relentless attacks, the Lakers managed to gain a 7-point lead in the first half.

The Trail Blazers' offense appeared somewhat chaotic, and their fast breaks and fluid offense failed to capitalize on their strengths.

First, the Trail Blazers' three-point shooting was generally poor, and second, their defense was repeatedly breached, resulting in few fast break opportunities.

Mullin, the outside engine of the 98 season, has declined sharply this season, and alcohol has resurfaced in his life.

After achieving the dream of winning the championship, there wasn't much motivation left to continue being self-disciplined and moving forward.

In the second half, the Trail Blazers made adjustments, with Bird giving more playing time to Jermaine O'Neal and Ben Wallace.

Gan Guoyang was switched to the small forward position, at which point the Lakers had Horry, McGrady and Kidd double-team Gan Guoyang.

Blaylock and Kobe missed several mid-range and long-range shots, while O'Neal effectively protected the defensive rebounds under the basket.

This big guy is still very powerful under the basket, as long as Forrest doesn't target him.

Ultimately, the Lakers surprisingly defeated the Trail Blazers 101-95 in their first game, securing a winning start to the Western Conference Finals!

O'Neal scored 19 points and grabbed 18 rebounds, including 15 defensive rebounds, a performance that gave the Los Angeles media a huge surprise.

At the post-game press conference, O'Neal was all smiles. He had thought victory was hopeless, but he never expected to steal a win in Portland.

Victory brings confidence, and that's exactly what the Lakers lack. They see hope in upsetting the Trail Blazers in a series.

Because their key players have matured, while the Trail Blazers and Forrest Gump are getting older.

A day later, still in the Rose Garden, the Trail Blazers, having regained their composure, turned the tide and won the game.

Their three-point shooting returned to normal in this game, making 10 of 18 attempts from beyond the arc.

They tied the series with a resounding victory.

However, this was expected by the Lakers, who did not anticipate winning two games in Portland.

They've already achieved their goal of stealing a game and gaining home-field advantage.

In a post-game interview, O'Neal confidently said, "See you in Los Angeles, Trail Blazers."

See you in Los Angeles. O'Neal seems to have forgotten that Los Angeles has always been Gan Guoyang's basketball territory.

He was crowned the King of Los Angeles in the early 80s, a true Californian sunshine boy.

(End of this chapter)