The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 907 A fucking match

On May 22, 2000, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, the first game of the Western Conference Finals began.

The two sides are old rivals who are very familiar with each other, and it can even be said that they have few secrets to each other.

Before the game, Phil Jackson tried to stir up some controversy at the press conference and encouraged his players to attack the Trail Blazers, creating a tense and exciting atmosphere.

But to Jackson's surprise, no one did that. Everyone tacitly understood that if they wanted to defeat Forrest Gump, it was best not to provoke him.

The Los Angeles media showed little interest in these topics, with only one thought in mind: "Let's have a competition, let's settle this, and stop with all this nonsense."

Jerry West rarely appears at important games; he usually prefers to stay home and wait for news.

He looked much older than he did in Portland, with gray hair and sagging skin; the past few years back in Los Angeles had not been easy for him.

The situation within the Lakers is much worse than with the Trail Blazers. Without a stabilizing force like Gan Guoyang, and having to cater to a big boy like O'Neal, the players are at odds with each other, scheming against one another and undermining the other.

Fortunately, the team's two core players, O'Neal and Kidd, didn't get along off the court, but they cooperated seamlessly on the court and didn't bring any extra emotions into the game.

Phil Jackson is indeed very resourceful. Like a psychologist, he addresses each player's problems with specific solutions and has meticulously crafted the triangle offense system.

However, Shaquille O'Neal was often not a fan of Jackson's approach, and young players like McGrady and Kidd also had their own ideas. Jackson's control over the Lakers was clearly not as strong as it was over the Bulls.

Therefore, West is very worried about whether this Lakers team can upset the Trail Blazers.

The good news is that the Trail Blazers are in a similarly bad situation, with their veteran players having lost their strong drive.

While the newcomers have great potential, judging from the first two rounds, it will take time before they can shoulder the main responsibilities.

Kobe was a ticking time bomb, as his family was in turmoil because of Vanessa's affair.

These past few days, the sports sections of Los Angeles newspapers have been filled with gossip about Kobe's family.

It's foreseeable that Kobe's performance will be affected, and the atmosphere within the Trail Blazers will certainly not be as united as it was in the previous two seasons.

In short, both teams have their own problems and shortcomings. Who will emerge victorious in the series and complete the final trials before the Finals through fierce competition and confrontation will have to wait and see in the games.

The competition started promptly at 7:30 p.m.

The Trail Blazers' starting lineup consisted of Gan Guoyang, Jermaine O'Neal, Sabonis, Kobe, and Blake.

As the playoffs progressed, Rick Carlisle gradually established the team's starting lineup.

Sabonis returned to the starting center position, while Gan Guoyang moved to the small forward position, and Alan Henderson basically fell out of the rotation.

After a tough regular season, Gan Guoyang successfully dropped to 255 pounds.

It's basically the same as his rookie season, although losing weight in such a season isn't good for his performance.

However, in order to reduce physical stress, make more contributions on offense, and make up for the lack of season planning during the offseason, Gan Guoyang resolutely implemented the weight loss plan.

After losing weight, Gan Guoyang clearly felt that his physical condition was better and he felt lighter.

Correspondingly, strength and tonnage were somewhat affected, but mobility was somewhat restored.

In order to have someone who could hold off O'Neal at the center position, Carlisle naturally sent in Sabonis.

Gan Guoyang will face off against the swingmen that Jerry West has prepared for him, and will compete with them.

The Lakers' starting lineup consisted of Shaquille O'Neal, Otis Thorpe, Robert Horry, Tracy McGrady, and Jason Kidd.

Dennis Rodman played a third of a season with the Lakers before leaving the team due to disagreements with Shaquille O'Neal, Jason Kidd, and others.

Jerry West didn't want to leave a ticking time bomb in the team's locker room, so he cut Rodman mid-season and made way for rookie Devin George.

At 37, Thorpe still has some gas left in the tank and can hold his own in the starting lineup for a while. He can provide good protection for O'Neal and also has some low-post offensive ability.

The two teams are very familiar with each other and have studied each other thoroughly, so there are not many secrets between them.

The Lakers, in particular, have thoroughly studied the Trail Blazers from Phil Jackson to Jerry West.

Therefore, both sides got into the game very quickly after the start. O'Neal knew that the Trail Blazers would not double-team him at the beginning, so he received the ball under the basket and attacked Sabonis one-on-one.

The Trail Blazers certainly knew that Gan Guoyang would be more effective at defending O'Neal, but that would mean the Trail Blazers would lack sufficient resources to invest in their offense, and Gan Guoyang would have to focus more on scoring.

The inside game will be handled by Jermaine O'Neal and Domantas Sabonis.

In Los Angeles, Gan Guoyang has always been in good form.

While O'Neal scored, Gan Guoyang also found his rhythm early on with his back-to-the-basket moves and mid-range shots.

In the first quarter, the score was 24-25, with the home team Lakers leading by one point.

Besides Shaquille O'Neal, Jason Kidd orchestrated the Lakers' offense with remarkable efficiency.

Kidd's role in the team was unassuming; the ball was often not in his hands.

He always passed the ball to his teammates to handle, to McGrady, to O'Neal, to Horry.

Then he ran away, to the bottom corner, to the weak side, and even to the three-second zone to ambush.

Sometimes his teammates score, but it seems like it has nothing to do with him.

But sometimes, when the tactics are launched, Kidd always manages to appear in the right place.

For example, when McGrady missed a shot, Kidd was able to steal an offensive rebound from Sabonis and O'Neal.

A brilliant pass was then made to the basket, where O'Neal received the ball and slammed it home with both hands, scoring the points.

Or he might be lurking in the weak-side corner, disrupting the Lakers' low-post offense and bringing the ball back to Kidd's hands.

When Kidd makes another pass, the Lakers' triangle offense often comes alive, and dead ball situations are rare.

Phil Jackson is right, Kidd is indeed an excellent "off-ball playmaker".

His positional awareness is excellent, which is the most important factor for the triangle offense.

Even for Kidd, the triangle offense was too simple and lacked any fun.

The triangle offense works like this; the principle is very simple, but the variations are numerous and complex.

Once you grasp the principles, the subsequent variations will naturally follow, and there's no need to memorize them.

However, if one cannot grasp the principles of the triangle offense, or if certain basic qualities are not up to par, integration will be extremely difficult.

Kidd has a firm grasp on the triangle offense, easily mastering it and maintaining an invisible dominance in the attack.

Just like in previous matchups between the Trail Blazers and the Lakers, Kidd has always been a key factor in the Lakers' victories.

Having realized this, Rick Carlisle immediately adjusted his defensive strategy in the second quarter, assigning Kobe to guard Kidd and putting more pressure on him.

This approach would indeed weaken Kidd's effectiveness, but the corresponding problem would be a decline in the overall quality of the Trail Blazers' perimeter defense.

This season, Kobe not only provides suffocating one-on-one defense, but also help defense, rebounds, unexpected steals, and more.

In the semifinal game against the Suns, without the offensive pressure from Grant Hill, Kobe was outstanding on the defensive end, with many brilliant help defense, rotations, and crucial rebounding contests.

Carlisle's decision to have Kobe bite Kidd was a bit like treating the symptoms but not the root cause.

As expected, after the matchup adjustments, the Trail Blazers actually showed some defensive lapses in the second quarter, giving the Lakers an opportunity to capitalize.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, the Lakers went on a 7-1 run, taking a 7-point lead and seizing control of the game.

Carlisle immediately called a timeout, and Dick Hart reminded him that Kobe should return to the shooting guard position for defense.

"Kobe is not good at guarding players like Kidd who move off the ball. He is better at guarding the ball handler and going where the ball is."

Indeed, Kobe wasn't the type of player who could win without making a name for himself on the defensive end; he had to actively engage on the strong side and be at the forefront of the battle for possession.

Carlisle immediately made adjustments, replacing Blaylock with Terry Porter, whose height was a significant disadvantage against Kidd. Phil Jackson also made substitutions, experimenting with different players and combinations in Game 1 of the series to see which worked best.

Devin George got two minutes of playing time in the middle of the second quarter, but Gan Guoyang seized the opportunity with a three-pointer and a 2+1 play, narrowing the gap to one point.

Seeing that things were not going well, Jackson immediately substituted Devin George out of the game. George did not get a single second of playing time in the rest of the game.

Jackson was also sweating profusely. Almost 10 years had passed, but Forrest Gump's ability to seize opportunities was still so strong. As long as you made the slightest mistake, he would come over and bite you like a shark that smelled blood.

In fact, Gan Guoyang played similarly to his previous games in the first half. Apart from warming up at the beginning, he played cautiously for most of the rest of the game.

On the defensive end, we maintain a basic level of intensity, and on the offensive end, we focus on fast breaks and easy baskets. Unless there is a particularly good opportunity, we will choose to pass the ball to create opportunities for our teammates.

However, the past two minutes have proven that this guy is on edge. He is a patient hunter lurking beneath the surface, his eyes fixed on you. If you make a mistake, you will pay the price.

Jackson only needed to probe slightly to understand that Forrest Gump had declined, but his hunter instincts were still there, and even more acute.

As tigers age, they rely more on ambushes and sneak attacks to hunt than on direct confrontations.

Thanks to Gan Guoyang's sudden surge, the Trail Blazers tied the score midway through the second quarter, ending the first half with the score at 51-51, showing that the two teams were evenly matched.

Jerry West, standing on the sidelines, was not satisfied with the score. As the Lakers players left the court, he shouted, "How can you play the third quarter against Forrest Gump without a lead of more than 10 points!"

Anyone with eyes could see that Gan Guoyang was holding back his energy in the first half.

He only exerted his strength at certain moments, such as going toe-to-toe with O'Neal for a few rounds at the start of the game, to prevent the team from falling into a trap at the beginning.

Then, in the middle of the second quarter, when the team was behind, they took advantage of Devin George's entry into the game and scored six consecutive points to tie the game.

In the first half, Gan Guoyang scored 13 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists, which can be considered an unremarkable halftime performance for him.

Back in the locker room, Phil Jackson reminded the players to be wary of Forrest Gump's sudden outburst on defense in the third quarter.

"This is a cunning fellow; he's like a hunter lurking in the shadows, shooting arrows at us. Our defenses must remain constantly vigilant. Attention, focus, every single second!"

Jackson was clearly in a hurry; he could even foresee what would happen in the second half, all of which were deeply etched into those terrible memories.

At the start of the third quarter, the Lakers were on high alert, with Kidd, McGrady, and Robert Horry all being asked to help defend Gan Guoyang if necessary.

As expected, Gan Guoyang was much more active in running at the start of the third quarter than in the first half, and he dropped to the low post to call for the ball on the very first possession.

The Lakers double-teamed Gan Guoyang, who received the ball, passed it out, and then went to the other side to box out, receiving the ball again. The Lakers then collapsed the double-team again.

At this moment, Gan Guoyang did not force a shot, but passed the ball to Kobe who cut into the middle. Kobe, number 8, took off and dunked with his left hand!

This shot ignited the Trail Blazers' counterattack against the Lakers in the third quarter.

The Trail Blazers' defensive intensity also increased sharply, with Gan Guoyang actively moving outwards to double-team the ball handler along with Blake and Kobe.

The Lakers passed the ball inside, O'Neal got it, and Sabonis found an opportunity to foul, sending O'Neal to the free-throw line.

O'Neal missed both free throws, and the Trail Blazers launched a counterattack. Gan Guoyang received the ball and made a diagonal pass to Kobe on the weak side. Kobe received the ball on the baseline and made a mid-range jump shot.

The Trail Blazers gradually gained the upper hand, and Jackson, who was known for his meditation, became restless. He suddenly realized that with Forrest Gump as the core of the team, as long as he had a decent outside helper, it would be difficult to shake him.

It's no use, no matter what we do, it's useless. His skills, physical abilities, intelligence, and overall strength far surpass those of others.

Michael Jordan was once the closest to him, but once Michael retires, how can anyone beat him?
For a fleeting moment, Phil Jackson considered surrendering simply because he was temporarily behind in the score.

Of course, in just a moment, Jackson realized that this was a psychological shadow left on him by Forrest Gump, and his goal this season was to lead the Lakers and himself out of this shadow.

Jackson kept blowing his whistle across the court to remind the players to stay focused.

He knew that there were no tactical secrets between the two teams, and the Trail Blazers were no longer the team they were in 1998.

Now, all they have left are three tricks: Forrest Gump's individual ability, Kobe Bryant's individual ability, and the occasional bursts of championship spirit from the veterans. That's all.

There's really not much left. Even the superstar instincts that Larry Bird once had in games are gone. Carlisle is often in a daze during games now, not knowing what to do next.

Finally, with a determined heart, he passed the ball to Forrest Gump, and most of the problems were easily solved.

Faced with such a Trail Blazers, the Lakers' only option is not to adjust their tactics, but to concentrate, concentrate, and concentrate again.

Confrontation, confrontation, and more confrontation—in this respect, Jackson's command was correct.

Because the Lakers have no secrets from the Trail Blazers. Having met the Blazers three times in the Finals during their time with the Bulls, the Blazers know how to deal with the triangle offense.

Both sides had run out of options in terms of tactics and rotations early on, and the only way out was to compete on form and intensity.

O'Neal, who scored 15 points in the first half, also started to dominate in the third quarter, drawing fouls repeatedly in the low post.

Although they consistently missed two or made one of two free throws, the Trail Blazers' interior defense was gradually becoming unable to withstand such exertion.

Sabonis fouled out early with four fouls, and Carlisle made substitutions, bringing in Ben Wallace to fill the gap in the paint.

At this point, the Lakers began to take advantage of their tall forwards, relentlessly harassing and boxing out Agan on offense, making it difficult for him to grab defensive rebounds.

Gan Guoyang is the all-time leader in rebounding, but there's a catch: he can only do so from an inside position. If he plays small forward and frequently goes to the perimeter, he loses the initiative and rebounding becomes much more difficult.

The Lakers deliberately used McGrady and Horry to guard Kagan, and then let Kidd and O'Neal fight for offensive rebounds, resulting in consecutive second-chance points under the basket.

The Lakers regained their lead in the third quarter, prompting Gan Guoyang to call a timeout, as losing a defensive rebound was one of the things he found most intolerable.

The positions were immediately reshuffled. Gan Guoyang wanted to return to the power forward position, but Carlisle said, "No, you have more important offensive tasks. It's only the third quarter."

Carlisle knew that Jackson wanted Gan Guoyang to return to the paint to increase his defensive pressure and reduce Gan Guoyang's offensive workload.

If Jackson succeeds in this endeavor, the Trail Blazers' offense may run into problems in the fourth quarter.

At that moment, Charles Barkley stepped forward and said, "Coach, I can play. I can plug the gaps in rebounding."

Indeed, when it was time for Barkley to come off the bench, Carlisle nodded in agreement, and Barkley convinced Gan Guoyang of his rebounding prowess.

Charles Barkley then came on, replacing Ben Wallace, who had just had a mediocre performance.

That's how the playoffs are; if you underperform even slightly, the coach will immediately substitute you.

Wallace's rebounding was excellent in the regular season, but his height disadvantage was easily magnified in the playoffs.

Facing the tall and strong Shaquille O'Neal, Ben Wallace's hard-earned muscles were not enough.

Although Barkley was also short, this former rebounding superstar possessed a formidable strength, which he used to fight against those who tried to stop him.

After the timeout, Gan Guoyang missed a mid-range jump shot, but Barkley grabbed the offensive rebound, put it back in, and drew a foul from Thorpe, making the free throw.

McGrady's pull-up jumper missed, and Barkley grabbed the rebound before O'Neal and Horry could reach it, keeping the ball firmly in his hands.

Although Blaylock's layup attempt missed on the counterattack, Barkley grabbed the offensive rebound and scored another layup!
Barkley scored 5 consecutive points with rebounds, helping the Trail Blazers overcome the crisis and regain the lead.

Barkley clenched his fist after scoring, showing his strong desire to win the game, and the rebound was the best proof of that.

In the playoffs, the Trail Blazers were the only team that could still maintain a 10-man rotation, and among those 10, Barkley was the only one without a championship.

Therefore, he is also the veteran with the most fervent desire to win and the one who wants to be the champion the most.

In the first two rounds, Barkley quietly played a supporting role, never competing or vying for anything, and simply doing whatever the coach asked him to do.

He had long lost the arrogance of an MVP, leaving only the cherishing of his last season's opportunity and the desire for a championship.

Then, the Lakers' worst fears came true—Gan Guoyang, who had been well-rested, suddenly exploded on offense.

In the next five rounds, Gan Guoyang hit consecutive mid-range shots and drives to the basket, completely dominating McGrady and Horry.

Scoring 10 consecutive points, the Trail Blazers took an 11-point lead, 79-68, forcing the Lakers to call a timeout with 2 minutes remaining in the third quarter.

Phil Jackson let out a long sigh, thinking, "This fucking awful game, am I going to fall back into my old nightmares and never get out of it?"
(End of this chapter)