The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 135 Being Handsome Lasts a Lifetime
A winning streak can become a burden, and losing to the Lakers was a timely relief for the players when everyone was expecting the Trail Blazers to make the best start in history.

The better news is that the frequent travel at the beginning of the season can finally come to a temporary end, and the Trail Blazers will have a week to play in their own city.

They can sleep comfortably at home, spend a peaceful and relaxing day, and then drive to Memorial Stadium in the evening to play a two-hour game, take a shower, and go home.

No need to stay in a hotel, no need to rush to catch a plane, and no need to get up early; everything can be done at a leisurely pace.

Ramsey gave the players a half-day off, and then organized a two-hour training session on the afternoon of the 10th.

Since the start of the season, the Trail Blazers have been busy and haven't had a proper training session in a while.

Ramsey desperately needs a period of stability in Portland to properly digest the results of his recent observations of the team's games.

When the veteran coach arrived at the training facility, he could already hear the sounds of the floor and shoes rubbing together, as well as the sound of shots going in.

He stood at the door and listened for a while. It was mostly "swish" sounds. He could tell that it definitely wasn't Drexler.

Upon entering the training hall, I saw Gan Guoyang, who, as always, was the first to arrive and was already covered in sweat from training.

Ramsey suspected that Gan Guoyang had moved out and was living in the training hall, as he was always the first to arrive and the last to leave.

Judging from how wet his jersey was, he had been practicing for at least two hours. It seems he didn't rest at all during his half-day off in the morning.

Ramsey joked, "Luckily, the team pays you based on attendance. If it were based on time, no team could afford to support you."

Gan Guoyang wiped his sweat and said, "Timed? I'll practice until the boss goes bankrupt."

"It's a shame you're not in the Navy with your physical abilities. Come on, let's go to the video room and watch yesterday's game."

"What? You want to watch yesterday's game? If you want to torture me, just say so, Dr. Jack. I don't want to watch it."

"We definitely need to watch it. It's a good opportunity for us to discuss tactics and techniques."

"Discussing tactics and techniques? That's the coach's job. Pay more."

"I'll split my salary with you in half, stop arguing and let's go."

Helpless, Gan Guoyang went to the locker room to wipe his sweat and change his clothes before following Ramsey to the video room.

A short while later, the team's assistant coaches Adelman and Buckwalt also arrived at the training facility and went to the video room together.

Before 83, the team only had one assistant coach, Buckwalt, who also worked as a scout. Back then, NBA teams were really rudimentary and stingy.

Of course, Buckwalt's part-time work is still not comparable to that of Gonzaga's Delon coach.

Later, Adelman joined the team as the second assistant coach, and one of his important tasks was to help the team record and edit the games.

The team installed seven cameras at the Memorial Stadium, which can record the entire game from multiple angles. If the editing speed is fast, the footage can be sent to the locker room during halftime of the first half, providing the coach with a basis for formulating tactics.

However, veteran coaches like Ramsey tend to be somewhat resistant to new technologies. He relies more on videotapes for post-match analysis and on his experience and intuition for in-match coaching.

Several people were gathered around a VCR, with Ramsey holding the remote control, analyzing last night's Lakers-Trail Blazers game from the first quarter.

The Lakers suffered a three-game losing streak after losing to the Trail Blazers, Nuggets, and Warriors.

Riley, who was heavily criticized by the Los Angeles media, made adjustments to the starting lineup. He no longer clung to the all-out offensive lineup and instead promoted defensive stalwarts Cooper and Larry Spriggs to the starting eleven.

The Trail Blazers played very well in the first quarter. Playing at home, they were in high spirits and took a 9-point lead in the first quarter. Portland fans once thought that the Lakers' dominance had collapsed.

But starting from the second quarter when the lineup rotated, Byron Scott's outburst and the Lakers' good connection between the first and second lineups allowed them to stay close and gradually catch up in the score.

"Yesterday's Lakers were just like us on the 4th. Basketball is like a long-distance race. It's not necessarily a good thing to be in the lead at the beginning. Those who stick close to the runners often have the strength to push hard in the later stages. I made too simple a lineup arrangement."

Ramsey didn't criticize the players for their poor performance, but rather felt that his lineup adjustments weren't as targeted as Riley's.

In the third quarter, the Lakers began to exert their strength, with Cooper, Spriggs, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar combining to surround Gan Guoyang.

Gan Guoyang was plagued by fouls and double-teams in this game, although Thompson got more scoring opportunities as a result and scored 25 points in total.

However, Thompson's scoring prowess cannot be compared to Gan Guoyang's, and when it comes to the crucial moments, Thompson simply can't keep up the pace.

The Lakers rallied to take the lead in this quarter, turning the tide of the game. In the fourth quarter, Gan Guoyang, carrying four fouls, sat on the bench for five minutes before returning to the court. The Lakers were in top form, their fast breaks unstoppable, with Magic Johnson dishing out 18 assists in the game.

Even so, after Gan Guoyang came on, he led the Trail Blazers on an 11-2 run in the last three minutes, narrowing the gap to just 3 points.

In the end, with no time or opportunity to shoot, Gan Guoyang caught the ball and haphazardly threw a three-pointer that hit the rim, resulting in the team losing the game.

These moves gave Riley and the Lakers a real scare, and served as a wake-up call for Riley, as a formidable rival was about to emerge in the West.

Ramsey played the key clips, most of which were related to Gan Guoyang, including successful attacks and failed plays.

"Forrest Gump, what are your thoughts after reading this?" Ramsey asked.

"I'm pretty cool at playing basketball."

"This is a basketball game, not gymnastics!"

"Being handsome is a lifelong thing. In the future, many young fans will know me through videos rather than in matches. If I played as ugly as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and was bald, even if I won seven or eight championships, no one would like me. What do championships have to do with them?"

Adelman and Buckwater could barely contain their laughter, while Ramsey's shiny forehead seemed to be silently protesting.

Gan Guoyang also sensed something was off and said, "Uh... actually, baldness can be quite attractive, supposedly it's caused by high levels of male hormones."

Ramsey didn't want to get entangled with Gan Guoyang on this issue, so he directly gave Gan Guoyang his opinion on the content shown in the video.

"First, when you have plenty of energy in the first half, don't try to block too many shots, or focus on disrupting the shot when you do try to block. This will help control your fouls. I know you were a shot-blocking pro in high school and college, getting five, six, or even seven or eight blocks a game. But the NBA is different. Everyone is very good, blocking becomes more difficult, and the game goes on very quickly and there are many possessions. You won't have as many opportunities to block shots. Reckless attempts will get you into foul trouble."

Ramsey's suggestion was very insightful, and Gan Guoyang nodded in agreement. Sometimes, controlling fouls is indeed more important than blocking an opponent's shot, especially in the first half.

After waiting a while, Ramsey didn't continue, remaining in a puzzling silence. Gan Guoyang thought Ramsey was having a bout of dementia and asked, "Dr. Jack, you've finished the first part, what about the second?"

"Second? There is no second, you must be first."

Hearing these compliments, Gan Guoyang felt a little embarrassed. He secretly vowed to himself that he would stop joking about Dr. Jack's bald head in the future.

When Gan Guoyang left the video room to train, leaving only Ramsey, Adelman, and Buckwater, the other two were quite surprised.

Was that Dr. Jack, who's always so critical? He dragged Gan Guoyang into the video room and made him watch a ten-minute edit just to flatter him like that?
Or did he have some other deeper meaning, or did he change his mind at the last minute?
Unexpectedly, Ramsey said, "Yes, I just wanted to cheer him up. Losing is a painful thing. But you have to go through it and then move on."

Adelman felt like he was no longer recognizing Dr. Jack. He said, "Jack, you said you wanted to develop a system centered around Gan..."

"This is a systematic project that cannot be completed in a day or two. I need to continue to observe and experiment."

Ramsey is right; it takes at least half a season to build a new tactical system for a team.

It requires both theoretical training and practical experience in matches, and necessitates repeated adjustments by both coaches and players.

In 1977, Ramsey's first year as head coach of the Trail Blazers, the team won the championship, but they only had 49 wins in the regular season.

Teamwork, a systematic approach, and mature strategies are all built upon lessons learned from repeated failures.

Of course, this period of time will not be too long; most successful coaches can achieve remarkable results within one or two seasons.

Many championship coaches lead their teams to victory in their first or second season.

If a team fails to reach the Finals and win a championship for three consecutive seasons, it will be very difficult to make a breakthrough later on, because players, owners, and fans all have limited patience.

Ramsey then said to Adelman, "Get Clyde into the recording room and get his video clips ready. I want to have a good talk with him."

Ramsey acted like a homeroom teacher, taking each player to the video room for individual coaching sessions.

He knows that NBA players have strong self-esteem, and if the whole team watches the video and you criticize him, they will hold a grudge.

Therefore, taking the time to communicate and criticize privately will be much more effective.

Judging from Ramsey's tone, Adelman thought that Drexler was probably in trouble.

(End of this chapter)