The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 980 Familiar Recipe and Taste
Led by Gan Guoyang, the Guanghui team maintained their lead until the end of the first half.

With the score at 56:50, the Glory led the Lakers by 6 points. Gan Guoyang had 17 points in the first half, and Van Exel had 18 points in the first half. The Glory made 7 three-pointers in the first half, and the veterans were the ones who carried the Glory's offense.

For the Lakers, O'Neal was the undisputed leader, scoring 21 points in the first half and dominating the paint.

However, apart from O'Neal, the other players performed only moderately, and McGrady failed to energize the Lakers' outside firepower.

Whether it was assists or one-on-one plays, McGrady's performance was only average, failing to demonstrate the star level expected of him.

Pippen's shooting percentage was even worse; he missed all three of his three-point attempts, showing signs of aging on both offense and defense.

The Lakers are a veteran team that relies on experience and defense, while their offense depends heavily on the individual abilities of O'Neal and McGrady.

No matter how much Phil Jackson touted the triangle offense, numerous team tactical examples and the future development of the NBA have proven that the triangle offense is a very good idea, with a profound impact on offensive formations and player positioning.

However, it does rely heavily on individual player ability. As Phil Jackson gradually fades from the league, the triangle offense will disappear and become a ball distribution principle, integrated into various tactics.

Princeton's future will be the same, becoming an offensive philosophy and principle, integrated with other tactics, rather than just a few routines or tactical lines.

McGrady's problem is that his inaccurate mid-range shooting significantly reduces his offensive efficiency when the intensity of the game increases.

During the regular season, O'Neal drew the defense in the paint, giving McGrady more space and opportunities.

With Pippen as an assistant, the two of them working together made the work less tiring.

But in this game against the Glorious, the Glorious basically let O'Neal run free. He scored 20 points in the first half, so be it.

Whether it's zone defense or man-to-man defense, we must not let them go on the perimeter and put enough pressure on McGrady and Pippen.

Pippen is getting old and can't keep up with the demands of young players like Gerald Wallace; his condition is worrying.

McGrady was repeatedly guarded and worn down by Raja Bell, Porter, and even Gan Guoyang, forcing him to increase his pull-up jumpers from the outside.

Several ball-handling shooting guards in the early 21st century generally gave the impression of being very inflexible.

Kobe Bryant earned the nickname "Iron King" after two years, while Allen Iverson suffered a string of missed shots.

But in reality, Kobe had a 46% field goal percentage in the regular season, and even higher in the playoffs, reaching 47%.

Iverson had the lowest field goal percentage, only 40% in the regular season and dropping to 38% in the playoffs, but the pressure he faced on offense was something that most players couldn't match.

With Shaquille O'Neal as a dominant force in the paint, McGrady's field goal percentage was still around 45%, but it dropped to 42% in the playoffs, which is indeed a bit low.

In this era, many players in the league still don't pay enough attention to shooting, and haven't refined their shooting techniques; they mainly rely on grueling practice.

The most captivating aspect of a guard is always their drives: crossover layups, reverse layups, and dunks.

Drives and layups are considered the core weapons, while shooting is a secondary means that revolves around drives and layups.

However, Gan Guoyang had already begun designing and planning his shooting technique early on, aiming to capture those few percentage points.

Teams like the Trail Blazers and Celtics, which were heavily influenced by Gan Guoyang, also place great emphasis on the use of shooting techniques.

The Trail Blazers, Celtics, and Glorious are among the few teams in the league that have dedicated shooting coaches. Oh, and the Heat too. Riley always likes to follow in Forrest Gump's footsteps.

The percentage may seem like just a few points, but when averaged over each game, it could mean just one more goal scored.

In the heat of NBA games, a single basket, two points, or three points can often have a decisive impact on the outcome.

Otherwise, so many fans wouldn't be looking at the final score with regret, thinking: "If we had scored one more goal, we might have won; if we had defended against one goal, we would have gone into overtime."

Jackson fought against the Trail Blazers for so many years, losing to them three times, but he didn't learn much from the experience.

He adheres to his own basketball philosophy and ideas. In his published books, he talks about Zen, defense, the triangle offense, and teamwork versus individual play, but he has never discussed shooting, the most basic basketball skill.

Jackson may have viewed this as a matter of "technique," while he sought to pursue the "principle."

But Jackson could not have imagined that mastering shooting, the most important scoring method in basketball, is the most direct path to victory.

Tom Hardy wasn't as flashy as Phil Jackson; he was more down-to-earth and more inclusive.

During halftime, he took the statistics and reviewed the first half video to briefly analyze the players' offensive choices.

"It's time to shoot."

"What kind of shot was that?"

"You dare to vote for this?"

"You don't even dare to vote for this?"

"Forrest Gump made a good shot."

What appears to be a rather uninformative analysis actually scores and judges each of the players' choices.

Over time, players will learn which balls they should attack decisively and which they should hold back a bit.

The Glorious are also a team that makes extensive use of data analysis and video recording; Bobby Bellman's success sparked a data analysis trend.

However, some teams soon realized that data analysis has its flaws, and that some authoritative coaches did not want to be swayed by numbers in their decisions, preferring to rely more on experience.

Therefore, Bobby Bellman's approach is only used by a small number of teams, especially young and promising teams.

The Glory team is young enough, and Tomjanovich is not an old fogey; he accepts anything useful.

After briefly analyzing some shot selections, Tomjanovich addressed the defensive issue, reminding his players: "The second half will only be more intense than the first. The Lakers will definitely fight back with a more aggressive defense. We need to focus on our own defense, and what else can we do..."

"Just give me the ball. If there are any problems in the third quarter, just give me the ball." Gan Guoyang's calm voice came through, as if giving everyone a reassurance.

In the third quarter, Gan Guoyang will still dominate, as he is in excellent form.

The second half began, and both sides returned to the field, making the atmosphere even more tense.

Neither team's players showed any sign of relaxation, with the Lakers players under particular pressure.

In the first game, at home, we were down by 6 points at halftime, so we had to catch up in the third quarter.

But Forrest Gump's fierceness in the third quarter is well-known. Jackson made many arrangements in the first half, but he had no idea whether they would be useful.

What worries Jackson the most is that Forrest Gump looks to be in great shape tonight.

Despite having a significant amount of rest in the first half, they still managed to score a high number of points and lead their team to the top.

The Lakers' inability to extend their lead when Agan was off the court was fatal. Their lack of preparedness for Van Exel was a mistake in the Lakers coaching staff's pre-game preparation.

They hadn't expected this unpredictable scalpel to be so accurate tonight.

Jackson has instructed Fisher, Brian Shaw, and Lindsey Hunter to step up their defense against Van Exel in the second half.

At the start of the third quarter, Derek Fisher missed a three-pointer from the right corner, and Gan Guoyang grabbed the rebound.

To be honest, in the third quarter, every time Gan Guoyang got the ball, the Staples Center fans' hearts trembled. Especially the long-time Los Angeles fans—how many times have they played the Lakers since 1985? How many times have they crushed the Lakers?

Gan Guoyang dribbled the ball across half-court and repeatedly screened and coordinated with his teammates at the top of the arc.

A significant difference between the Brilliant Princeton and the Trail Blazers Princeton is that Gan Guoyang now spends most of his time in the high post, a position that Sabonis used to occupy.

Arenas passed the ball back to Gan Guoyang, who made a mid-range jump shot!
58:50, an 8-point difference, everyone on the Lakers team is on edge.

During the defense, Gan Guoyang almost stole the ball from McGrady, but McGrady held on.

Then he dribbled past his opponent, pulled up for a mid-range jumper from the top of the key, and made it!

Guards of this era really love mid-range pull-up jump shots; they were all influenced by Jordan.

However, the true master of mid-range shooting is still Gan Guoyang.

Gan Guoyang, originally a center, rarely uses pull-up jump shots; his most lethal move is a sudden shot from a stationary position.

With Arenas' pick-and-roll, Gan Guoyang moved to the left side, 45 degrees, received the ball and took a long two-pointer, which went in again!

Phil Jackson and the fans in the arena were slightly flustered, but it shouldn't be a big problem; there were only two, so they could bear with it.

O'Neal missed two one-on-one attempts under the basket, so Gan Guoyang began to increase his help defense and interference against O'Neal.

Brilliant's three-pointer from beyond the arc also missed, giving McGrady a chance to help the team catch up, but his jump shot also missed.

The Glory team launched a counterattack, with Gan Guoyang holding the ball at the free-throw line to facilitate the play, and Arenas and Bell making fake runs.

After drawing the defense's attention, he took another mid-range shot and made it on his third attempt!
A small number of Lakers fans who experienced the 1987 and 1988 Western Conference Finals began to feel a sense of familiarity.

The shadow of being killed by Forrest Gump's mid-range shot has resurfaced, and even after so many years, it is still hard to let go of.

The Lakers in 1987 and 1988 were incredibly strong, truly championship-caliber, yet they were ultimately defeated by the young Forrest Gump, a wound that will forever remain in the hearts of veteran Lakers players like Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

By 1989, when the Lakers made it to the Finals after the Trail Blazers disbanded, the Lakers were already aging, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was past his prime. They ultimately lost to the Pistons.

In particular, in 87, they were ambushed by Forrest Gump and lost two games at home, which led to a complete defeat.

Lakers fans with past experience are suffering from PTSD; yesterday's events are happening again, and some are nervously starting to pray.

Actually, it's only the third quarter, and they've only scored three in a row. It's still early days.

But there's usually a reason why someone has PTSD; it doesn't happen out of nowhere or without any cause.

For the Lakers, Fisher drew a foul, went to the free-throw line, and made both free throws, narrowing the gap in points.

Gan Guoyang immediately received the ball on the left sideline, where he was positioned with only Robert Horry guarding him.

"Just you alone? That's really disrespectful to me."

Gan Guoyang muttered something, then faked a shot, fooling Holly, before taking the shot.

The ball sank in, another mid-range shot, the fourth in a row. The Lakers players and coaches were getting a little numb from all the shooting.

The Lakers were able to respond on offense. O'Neal received the ball and drove hard, but was double-teamed and passed the ball to Pippen on the other side, who made a layup.

However, when Gan Guoyang received the ball at the top of the arc for the fifth time, the Lakers players were terrified.

Three people gathered around, and the rest of us were left alone.

But Gan Guoyang didn't pass the message, and only three people surrounded him. This was an opportunity!
Dribble to the left where no one is around, take a step to the side, and then shoot a mid-range shot!
They scored 10 consecutive points, maintaining Glory's lead at 8 points.

Jackson is in a dilemma now; in terms of the score, he hasn't fallen too far behind.

The team's offense is fine, but O'Neal remains unstoppable.

On the defensive end, Forrest Gump was even more unstoppable. Everyone knew what the consequences would be if Forrest Gump continued to shoot like that.

Even if he's 38, if you let him shoot like that, he can definitely score 50 points against you in a game.

Agan did this in the very first game of the regular season, and now he wants to do it again in the playoffs?
McGrady and O'Neal finally connected for a play. McGrady drove around the baseline and passed the ball back to O'Neal, who drew a foul from Brad Miller on his layup and went to the free-throw line.

With one of two free throws made, O'Neal's free throw performance tonight was good enough.

Pippen and Horry both tried to grab the offensive rebound, but Gan Guoyang still managed to get it.

The greatest rebounder of all time, his rim protection was impeccable, and on the offensive end, apart from Shaquille O'Neal, no one else could even dream of getting a shot at it.

Subsequently, both teams' shooting percentages began to decline. Arenas missed his shot, and McGrady's contested shot also went in. His efficiency was too low tonight, and the Lightning did not pay special attention to his defense.

The two sides battled for four rounds, with the score remaining at 68-62 for quite some time.

O'Neal grabbed an offensive rebound and slammed home a dunk for two more points, bringing the score to 68-64, just four points behind.

Gan Guoyang and Arenas combined at the top of the arc: a return pass, receiving the ball, a mid-range shot, a fake move, and he shook off Horry.

Gan Guoyang dribbled the ball down the middle and took a step inside, but instead of forcing his way to the basket, he paused, took a step back, and still took a mid-range shot.

He was extremely confident in his shooting touch, making his sixth consecutive mid-range shot!

Yes, it was him, the very person who could sink double-digit mid-range shots in a single quarter of a game, completely dismantling the opponent's defense.

Those longtime Lakers fans who watched the game live or on TV recognized it – the familiar formula, the familiar flavor.

The first to react was Lakers veteran fan Jack Nicholson, who clutched his head and yelled at Phil Jackson, "You better think of something, you fucking think of something, Phil! We're going to die, we're all going to die!"

Nicholson had been tormented by Forrest Gump for years, but he finally got his revenge last season, and now he's back again this season!

How could a die-hard Lakers fan like him not be devastated?
At this moment, he was like the male protagonist in his own movie "The Shining," somewhat losing his mind.

If he had an axe, he would have chopped at Jackson without hesitation to make him think of a solution.

As for why he didn't just chop Forrest Gump up? It's the same reason why Shaquille O'Neal, even with a gun, wouldn't dare shoot Forrest Gump.

McGrady missed another turnaround shot, Gan Guoyang grabbed the rebound, and the Glory team launched a counterattack.

After the start of the third quarter, apart from passing the ball to Agam, the Glorious's other tactics were not very effective.

But this tactic worked so well for Forrest Gump.

It's the dessert spot on the bottom left corner again, and surprisingly, there's no wrapping yet.

Holly's shot was on fire again, and this time Gan Guoyang broke through the baseline and drove to the basket.

O'Neal couldn't get a chance to help, and Gan Guoyang slammed home a one-handed dunk!
The Lakers called a timeout. Nicholson was stunned. He thought, "Go ahead and play, or you'll break up the Lakers again."

(End of this chapter)