The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 886 The Sun Rises in the West

Kobe's absence had a greater impact on the Trail Blazers than expected.

The Trail Blazers can compensate on the offensive end, as they don't lack offensive resources.

Gan Guoyang relies more on outside shooting, Carlisle is also trying his best to develop Henderson, and Charles Barkley also has plenty of offensive fuel left in the tank.

With veterans like Dell Curry, Chris Mullin, and Blake, they can squeeze out even more contributions in each game.

So even without Kobe, the Trail Blazers' offense can still be effective. As long as they can get things going around Gan Guoyang, they will still be among the top teams in the league.

However, the defensive issues are much bigger. Without Kobe, the Trail Blazers' perimeter defense has collapsed significantly.

The Trail Blazers' loss to the Suns was a classic example of their defense collapsing, allowing Hill, Walker, and Hardaway to take turns attacking with their individual abilities.

Gan Guoyang defended the paint and the defensive rebounds, but the problem was that the Suns were hitting a lot of accurate pull-up mid-range and three-point shots, and Gan Guoyang couldn't get out of the paint to deal with them.

Even with Sabonis' return or O'Neal's best efforts on defense, the Trail Blazers still couldn't withstand the Suns' talented forwards and guards.

The lineup experiment definitely needs to be done by controlling variables. Kobe's absence caused the Trail Blazers' defense to become unbalanced inside and out, and this loophole is difficult to fix.

The Trail Blazers experienced a slump in December.

After losing to the Suns, the Trail Blazers went on to lose to the Pacers and the SuperSonics, and suffered a crushing defeat in their away game against the Los Angeles Lakers on December 7.

The good news is that the Trail Blazers haven't gone on a losing streak; they always manage to win after each loss. The bad news is that the new system they built after their last win against the Lakers has started to falter again.

After losing Kobe, not only did the defense become a major problem, but the second unit's offensive slump also became increasingly apparent, often going three or four minutes without scoring at certain stages.

This is disastrous for a strong team's tempo control. No matter how good your defense is, once you can't score on offense, the situation will become passive.

Players become anxious, face the risk of counter-attacks on the defensive end, and experience greater physical exertion, ultimately leading to a higher chance of losing the game and a significant decline in control of the match.

Although the team can make adjustments immediately after a loss, Carlisle is indeed good at tactical deployment, and he can always find ways to improve the situation and win the next game.

But in the next game, they will face a new opponent and new problems will arise. The Blazers' old routine and strategies that allowed them to dominate their opponents in the regular season are no longer effective.

Carlisle's emotions, which had finally stabilized somewhat, turned sour again, and the hair that had finally grown back fell out one after another.

This is the most grueling part of the long NBA regular season. Teams' performance fluctuates, and at some point you think the problems are solved, the team is in good form, and you can keep winning.

As a result, an unexpected event, a minor injury, or the absence of a key player can render all previous efforts futile, requiring a renewed effort, readjustment, and a return to winning form.

Such fluctuations occur at least three or four times a season. If the team's strength is unstable and there are trades or internal struggles, then experiencing five, six, or even seven rollercoaster rides is quite normal.

Moreover, your opponents are constantly changing. A team you faced at the beginning of the season may be in a completely different situation the next time you meet them.

On December 14th, the Trail Blazers faced the Nuggets on the road. The Trail Blazers had previously won easily against the Nuggets, but this time they were met with a strong counterattack from the Nuggets.

The Nuggets played exceptionally well, defeating the Trail Blazers 107-103 at home and avenging their previous crushing defeat.

After this game, the Trail Blazers had a record of 3 wins and 4 losses in December, and their situation had once again deteriorated.

While it's true that you should save your strength for the playoffs, if your regular season record is too poor, you won't be able to save much strength when you have to fight hard for the rankings later on.

Home-court advantage is very important; sometimes having an extra home game in a series can be decisive.

Carlisle has caught up with this opportunity; the previous Trail Blazers never had such an experience.

Even in seasons like 1989 and 1997 when they didn't win a championship, the Trail Blazers were still very consistent in the regular season.

Because at that time, Gan Guoyang had very strong control. He completely controlled the team, and had a way to play when the team was rich and a way to cover when the team was poor.

Your coach, stop causing trouble and focus on your support role; I'll guarantee you a spot in the Western Conference Finals.

Now, Gan Guoyang's control of the field has declined, and more importantly, he doesn't have as much energy to cover for you outside of the game.

If they can give you a lesson with the coaching staff and set an example, that's a huge bonus. They're too busy dealing with hearings, various business matters, and family issues to give you lessons and coach the team every day, and the coaching staff won't pay you a penny more.

Moreover, Gan Guoyang himself no longer values ​​the regular season record. He has a longer-term vision and has already planned to conserve his energy during the regular season to prepare for the playoffs.

Since returning from New York, he has been adjusting his training, increasing the intensity, regulating his weight, and building up his physical strength in preparation for April next year.

This led to Gan Guoyang significantly reducing his effort during the regular season. He only did his job, playing exactly as the coach told him to, completing 100% of his tasks, and not worrying about anything else.

His stats remain at 25+15, but his influence on the game is shrinking, and Kobe's absence makes this even more pronounced.

Gan Guoyang will not be criticized for his performance; the management, his teammates, and the fans all understand him.

But Carlisle is different; he's the head coach, so he has to bear the most criticism and pressure. If they lose, he has to find a way to fix it.

The immense pressure led Carlisle to consider resigning. The job of head coach was truly inhuman; he wasn't even married yet, but he already felt like he was going to collapse.

Larry Bird approached Carlisle multiple times to talk to him, offer psychological support, and give Carlisle an opportunity to vent and express his frustrations.

Bird could be considered half of Carlisle's mentor, but Carlisle's current predicament is also thanks to Bird.

On one occasion, Carlisle became increasingly agitated and even said, "Larry, why don't you just take the head coach position? I'll be your assistant coach."

Bird quickly shook his head and said, "No, no, no, I... I'm no longer suitable to be a head coach. Three years is enough for me."

Yes, in three years, you've encountered two championships, and the most well-rounded, strongest, and most competitive Forrest Gump after his retirement and comeback.

You have everything you need, and then you fulfill your promise of a three-year agreement, leaving in style. Who can be as pretentious as you?
Carlisle didn't want to give up so easily either. After calming down, he talked more with Bird about tactics and configuration.

Carlisle keenly noticed a problem, saying, "Larry, I've noticed that no matter which team we play against, they're very good at studying and targeting the Trail Blazers. We're finding it increasingly difficult to play in the regular season, and every game requires a lot of effort and preparation, which is what's most painful for me."

Bird nodded and said, "Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown, and the strongest teams are always the ones most studied. Besides..."

"Besides what?" "Besides, everyone has already found the best way to deal with Forrest Gump. Although the best way may not guarantee victory, it is the closest to winning. Everyone is doing it, so of course the game will be tough."

Bird pointed out another major predicament facing the Trail Blazers this season: the team no longer has an absolute advantage in terms of tactics and strategy.

The Trail Blazers have won so many championships, and coaches and management from other teams have studied their tactics and systems for so many years that they have found the optimal tactical solution.

It's about assembling a team of talented forwards and guards, simplifying the interior lineup, and ensuring the defense is adequate. Don't allocate too many offensive resources to the low post; it's a waste and useless.

In this situation, you have a better chance of winning against the Trail Blazers; otherwise, if your resource allocation overlaps with Forrest Gump's strength, you'll end up getting crushed.

Gan Guoyang's dominance over players in the same position is the strongest in history. If you invest 500 million in resources, it would be considered kind of you to reduce your score to 0. At his peak, he could reduce your score to negative.

In the mid-to-late 80s and early 90s, there was a surge in the value of tall interior players in the NBA, as Forrest Gump's rise led to other players in his position receiving lucrative contracts.

However, in the mid-to-late 90s, especially after Gan Guoyang's retirement and comeback, the value of center players began to decline. Some mediocre players saw their contract amounts drop by at least 30%, such as Horace Grant.

Because these kinds of players are complete wastes against Forrest Gump, they can shut you down to not score a single point in a game, and have a completely negative impact on both offense and defense.

Giving these players high-priced contracts is a complete waste. Paying 200 million and 500 million for the same result as playing for Forrest Gump is not worth it. It would be better to add more players on the perimeter.

On the contrary, players like Robert Horry and Cliff Robinson, who can play both the three and four positions and have outside shooting ability, have become more popular. Even if you can't defend them, they can spread out on offense and contribute without having to go to the basket to get blocked.

Gan Guoyang's dominance over the league and the countermeasures from other teams accelerated the iteration of NBA tactics and the evolution of player requirements.

Just like the antagonism between the US and the Soviet Union during the Cold War, which led to the rapid development of military technology and the continuous upgrading of new weapons generation after generation.

In the 80s, led by Gan Guoyang and Ramsey, the Trail Blazers revolutionized the court system by utilizing three-pointers, transforming it from a point-line system to a combination of point-line-plane.

Although the purpose of three-pointers is more to create space in the paint than to generate scoring output, they still have groundbreaking significance, making teams pay attention to three-pointers several years earlier.

In the 90s, Bobby Bellman, relying on Gan Guoyang's strong individual ability, introduced the Princeton system, enriched the playing style on the court, and took the lead in using advanced statistical models to guide team training and tactical arrangements, introducing the efficiency formula.

Nowadays, every team is equipped with at least one data analyst to build mathematical models of the team's offense and defense, a process that has been accelerated by several years.

Take the Phoenix Suns as an example. Skiles is theoretically a more traditional defensive coach, but the data and player characteristics told the coaching staff that the Suns were better suited to an offensive approach, leveraging the individual strengths of their forwards and guards. So Skiles didn't hesitate to push the team toward an offensive path.

It wasn't just Skiles who was like this. Although the NBA as a whole was moving towards a path of increasingly stronger defense, slower pace, and more stagnant offense in the 90s, the presence of role models like the Trail Blazers and Gan Guoyang ensured that offensive power continued to shine, constantly challenging the defensive approach.

Teams have reached a basic consensus when building their rosters: if a team has exceptional talent and strong individual players, then they should focus on offense; if a team has few offensive spearheads and many role players, then they should build a defensive lineup.

The former can raise the ceiling, with the Trail Blazers being the best example; the latter can maintain the floor. In today's league, if you want to make the playoffs, you have to fight for defense.

The offensive and defensive forces were roughly evenly matched, with a 40/60 split and no serious imbalance or 20/80 disparity between offense and defense.

Carlisle actually had the opportunity to lead the Third Revolution; his fluid offensive demonstrated tremendous power.

Unfortunately, this system has too high requirements for the overall configuration, and Agan has already entered a downward trend and can no longer support a new system.

The old things he left behind are enough for each team to study repeatedly. The more they study them, the more results they find, and the more they discover things about him that are ahead of their time.

There are technical aspects, tactical aspects, and strategic aspects.

In 1998, the season the Trail Blazers won the championship with 77 wins, NBC produced a three-part documentary detailing Gan Guoyang's evolution of his playing style over more than a decade and the enormous impact it had on the league.

Of course, documentaries are mostly narratives and don't really delve into the details, so people just watch for entertainment.

What truly had a huge impact was a book about basketball thinking published in October 1999.

Larry Bird handed the book to Carlisle and said, "Rick, take a look at this book. It contains all sorts of secrets about Forrest Gump. Of course, it's no longer a secret; everyone knows it and is studying it. This book's influence is comparable to 'The Forrest Gump Law.' You should read it carefully."

Carlisle had never heard of such a book before, and he hadn't paid much attention to it. However, the book's influence grew as the NBA season progressed and the spy case continued to unfold.

The book is titled "The Sun Rises in the West," with the subtitle "The Greatness and Secrets of Forrest Gump." The author is none other than Bobby Bellman, who was Gan Guoyang's high school, college, and NBA coach, and is now the head coach of the Celtics.

"Bellman actually published a book? This guy is actually using Forrest Gump as a gimmick to make money."

"You can do it too. You coached Forrest Gump for at least a year. I've even thought of a title for you: 'Forrest Gump's Last Years in the NBA,' or 'Forrest Gump's Confession as the Last Coach in the NBA.' I guarantee it will be a bestseller."

"Shit, does Forrest Gump himself know about this?"

"He not only knows, but he also gets a large share of the copyright fees, although he certainly doesn't care."

"...What's written inside? The story of Forrest Gump, or something else?"

“Take a good look. Bobby’s analysis of Forrest Gump is very accurate. From technique to tactics to strategy, he understands Forrest Gump very well. His understanding means that many other teams understand him. Look at this sentence. Bobby’s thinking is the thinking of many teams right now.”

Bird turned to a page in the book, pointed to a sentence, and wrote: "Nobody can beat Forrest Gump, but you can try to beat Forrest Gump's team. If you don't understand this, you can't really understand Forrest Gump, and you can't recognize his strength."

Carlisle said, "I don't want to beat Forrest Gump; he's one of us."

"That's right, but you need to understand what those who want to beat the Trail Blazers are thinking. Also, I think you need to read this book more carefully to understand this greatest player in history more deeply; he's your most powerful weapon. I think you're not even ten percent as developed and utilized as Bobby Bellman. Forrest Gump has declined and is facing trouble, but he's still the best player in the world, and you can't waste that, can you?"

"you mean…"

"I didn't mean anything by it, you can do whatever you want with it."

After Bird left, Carlisle sat alone in the coach's office, with this book, "The Sun Rises in the West," in his hand.

The book cover features a photo of Gan Guoyang and Bellman winning the CIF California championship together at Beiqiao High School in 1981.

In the photo, Gan Guoyang looked so young, but holding the championship trophy, his eyes still held the same courage and determination as they do now.

Carlyle stroked the textured cover, and like opening a Bible, randomly flipped to a page and began to read.

The beginning of this page reads: "As a head coach, when I encounter problems that are difficult to solve, like a tangled mess with no clue how to get to the bottom of them, there is always a tried-and-true method: give Forrest Gump a hard time, and the problem will always be solved."

(End of this chapter)