The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 145 Refund
Just as Fleischer was negotiating with Stern about Gan Guoyang's suspension, Gan Guoyang and the Trail Blazers were stranded on their way to Cleveland due to a snowstorm in Michigan.

Away trips are usually arranged according to the principle of proximity. For example, in the New York area, the Trail Blazers played the Nets and Knicks, and in the Great Lakes area, they played three very close cities: Detroit, Cleveland and Chicago.

Because of the short distance, bad weather, and to save money, the team changed their mode of transportation from airplanes to cars.

The team rented a bus and departed on the afternoon of the 27th, heading to Cleveland. After playing the game tomorrow, they will take another bus to Chicago.

To our surprise, it suddenly started snowing on the road, and the snow fell heavier and heavier, a sign that winter had arrived in the Great Lakes region of Michigan.

The first snowfall is often heavy, and with the radio on in the car, the driver listens to the weather report; the situation is not optimistic.

The wind was howling outside, and snowflakes filled the world, so the car had to find a motel to stop at.

Adelman braved the wind and snow to get out of the car and rushed to the hotel, only to be told that there were no rooms available.

The players had to stay in the car as the snow was falling heavier and heavier, completely blocking the roads.

They most likely won't be able to reach Cleveland tonight, even though it's only 270 kilometers from Detroit to Cleveland.

They are now in Toledo, Ohio, just an hour's drive from Cleveland.

After some discussion, Ramsey decided that they should not risk traveling and that everyone should stay in the car until the snow stopped and the roads were cleared the next day before setting off again.

Then Ramsey and Adelman went to the hotel to rent bedding and hoped to get some heating equipment.

When the shop owner learned that they were Portland Trail Blazers players, he generously lent them all his extra bedding and said he wouldn't charge them.

The only request is that we take a photo together in the hotel lobby when we leave tomorrow.

Ramsey and Adelman agreed, and then the hotel owner brought over a wood-burning heater to heat the car.

The owner also provided the players with hot food, all free of charge, because "Forrest Gump really blew Lambiel off."

Fortunately, the Trail Blazers drove into Ohio; it would have been terrible if they had been stuck in Michigan.

At night, after a hearty meal, the players wrapped themselves in blankets and lay in the bus. A wood-fired heater burned outside, and the swirling snow made the world seem chaotic. They were like the last human beacon on a deserted island in the apocalypse.

No one could sleep well. Firstly, everyone was too tall, so they could only sleep half-lying or half-sitting, which was really uncomfortable.

Secondly, although they lost yesterday's match, everyone still vividly remembers the scene of Gan Guoyang's takedown of Lambiel, and the more they talk about it, the more excited they become.

Before 1983, Bill Laimbeer was a pretty normal player. Back then, he played for the Cavaliers, just casually playing each game, grabbing a few rebounds, and making a few long-range shots. He didn't seem to have much of a future.

But in 1982 he was traded to Detroit, and in the 1982-1983 season he made the All-Star team. Then, in the following season, 1983-1984, Chuck Daly took over the Pistons, and Laimbeer's playing style became increasingly unpopular.

On November 7th of this year, just over a week ago, the Detroit Pistons were playing against the Chicago Bulls at home. Michael Jordan attempted a dunk during a drive but was tackled by Bill Laimbeer and fell heavily to the ground, taking a long time to recover.

He's been doing this almost every game for the past two years. As an inside rim protector, he takes down all the players who try to drive to the basket, scaring them, making them afraid to accelerate, and making them afraid to fly. That's what Beal has been doing all along.

This led to Laimbeer's reputation among fans deteriorating, and his standing among players also declining.

In the early days, everyone fought. In the world of football, if you can't fight or dare to confront conflict, you're a coward and won't receive real respect.

In the past two years, the league has been cracking down harder and harder. After the Tomjanovich incident, everyone knows that you have to be careful when fighting.

Lambiel was the one who lacked any sense of propriety. When everyone stopped fighting, he started to emerge and hurt people with petty tricks.

Moreover, while everyone else had been fighting real battles, Laimbeer used dirty tricks and underhanded tactics. Coupled with his physique and the Pistons' increasingly aggressive and fierce demeanor, many people dared not speak out against him.

The players all hoped someone would step up and teach this sly white giant a lesson, but if they were to step in themselves, they would have to think twice about whether they could leave the Silver Top Center unscathed.

Gan Guoyang succeeded.

“Fuck, I’m so excited about Forrest Gump’s slam that I can’t sleep. I’m going to watch TV and go back and watch the replay of that game a few more times.” The speaker was Kenny Carr, who had been teammates with Bill Laimbeer on the Cavaliers before they were traded together to the Detroit Pistons.

Bill Laimbeer stayed with the Pistons and became the team's starter and an All-Star center, while Kenny Carr left and wandered around to different teams.

In Karl's words, Laimbeer was a complete bastard, a spoiled brat who looked down on the NBA, and even his teammates wanted to punch him.

Carl's words reignited everyone's enthusiasm for the discussion, and they began to describe their feelings when they saw Gan Guoyang tackle and throw Lambiel.

"I thought to myself, 'That's it, Lambiel is going to die, and Forrest is going to jail.'"

"That's what I think too. I think Forrest Gump was too impulsive, but I also think he did the right thing. I didn't even dare to drive past that guy under the basket."

"My chest still hurts from being hit by Laimbeer. He used so many dirty tricks, and the referee was like he was blind."

"It's good enough that the referee didn't call an offensive foul on you. His acting skills in drawing offensive fouls are Oscar-worthy."

"Forrest Gump said he was going to run over all those people when he was in New Jersey, and I never thought he would actually do it."

"Half of it was accomplished, and Bill is still alive and well... By the way, Gan, Gan! Why aren't you saying anything? Tell me again how you felt back then."

Everyone discussed it enthusiastically for a while, but then noticed that Gan Guoyang wasn't there.

Drexler, who was closest to Gan Guoyang, got up and took a look, only to find that the guy had fallen asleep and was even snoring softly.

"Shit, this guy can actually sleep?"

"Alright, everyone, let's stop discussing this and go to sleep. We're a basketball team, not a boxing team. Go to sleep."

Jack Ramsey spoke, and the car fell silent again, with only the whooshing wind and the crackling of burning firewood audible outside.

The snow stopped early the next morning, and the road maintenance snowplows started working early. The Trail Blazers had breakfast at the hotel, took a group photo with the owner, and then drove to Cleveland.

They arrived at the designated hotel at noon, and then Ramsey received a call from the league informing him that Gan Guoyang would be suspended for one game and would be unable to participate in tonight's game against the Cavaliers.

Upon receiving the notification, Ramsey was actually relieved. A one-game suspension was not bad; it would allow Ramsey to rest and regroup, as he had been playing too aggressively in the recent games.

Ramsey was worried that if the game continued like this, it would provoke the players' anger, and they would be targeted later, which would definitely lead to injuries during the game.

Now that he's played a few games, fans and viewers think he's tough, and opponents are praising him, especially his victory over Lambiel, which they see as a victory for the people.

Taking a break and slowing down is a form of protection for Gan Guoyang.

But Cleveland fans disagreed with Gan Guoyang's suspension, as many of them had bought tickets specifically for him.

The Cavaliers' record this year has been abysmal, with a nine-game losing streak at the start of the season and a current record of 2 wins and 12 losses, placing them at the bottom of the Eastern Conference.

The attendance rate was less than 20%, but because there was a game against the Trail Blazers tonight, 80% of the tickets were sold.

And now, with the competition so close, you're telling me Forrest Gump isn't playing? Refund!
The Cavaliers finally calmed the fans' anger by promising that those who bought tickets for this game could also watch the next game against the Celtics at home.

Despite missing Gan Guoyang, the Trail Blazers still managed to defeat the Cavaliers 115-107 on the road, ending their two-game losing streak.

In 1984, I was the youngest coach in the league, 33 years old, perhaps one of the youngest head coaches in history. I became the head coach of the Cavaliers, a terrible team, terrible marketing, terrible team building, and a terrible arena. Our home court was like a giant concrete barn, located 30 miles south of downtown in a cornfield at the intersection of two interstate highways. They called it Reefer Field, but we called it "The Submarine" because the monstrosity had no windows!
The Riefeld submarine can hold 20000 people, and our average attendance is 3900, but the actual turnout is probably even lower. One of our coaches said, "Tonight, a lot of people are just pretending to be seats." Three minutes before the game starts, coming out of the home team's locker room, I have an unbelievable feeling; I feel like my soul has left my body. It's so big, so empty, and so quiet—I feel like I'm in a church. But during the game, I can clearly hear people shouting "You guys are terrible," and I see blue smoke drifting from the top of the seats—someone's smoking there, and I know this isn't the place.

At the start of the 1984 season, things were terrible. We were losing game after game, and almost no one came to our home games. But on November 28th, against the Trail Blazers, everything changed. Forrest Gump, who had sent Bill Laimbeer to his grave two days earlier, and his Trail Blazers were there to defend us. Eighty percent of the tickets sold that day. I felt like I was back in North Carolina, in San Antonio. At that moment, I truly felt like I was in a church, because the yellow Jesus had arrived.

Of course, he didn't play; he was suspended by Stern, and the entire arena chanted "Refund." This was the most united moment for Cleveland fans this season.

—Excerpt from George Carr's autobiography, *Furious George*, published in 2017.

(End of this chapter)