The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 255 Relaxation
The game between the Trail Blazers and the New York Knicks that evening attracted a lot of attention.

This is the second official encounter between Patrick Ewing and Gan Guoyang on the basketball court.

In the 1984 NCAA Final Eight, Gan Guoyang led Gonzaga to defeat Ewing and ultimately win the championship.

Because he had to lie low for another year in order to win the championship, he finally got his wish in 1985, arriving in New York with the championship honor and the expectations of the masses.

After being ejected from the preseason, Ewing's performance in the regular season did not disappoint New York fans.

Aside from being thrashed by Moses Malone in his career debut, Ewing displayed a high level of performance in subsequent away games.

比如对阵金州勇士拿下27分16个篮板2次盖帽2次抢断，对阵老鹰拿下27分11个篮板2次助攻。

Although Ewing didn't start his explosive statistical journey early like Gan Guoyang and Jordan, his on-court performance still lived up to his number one draft pick status, and he was indeed a potential superstar.

However, the Trail Blazers' second overall pick was acquired from the Pacers in a trade. Before Gan Guoyang joined the Trail Blazers, they were the second seed in the Western Conference.

The New York team got the number one draft pick because they were really bad, riddled with injuries, their key player was out for the season, and Bernard King missed the entire season.

Besides Ewing, New York's second-leading player is forward Pat Cummins, a third-round draft pick.

The third player is Roy Sparrow, a fourth-round pick guard. The current state of New York is so dire that they need third-round and fourth-round picks to fill the void.

At that time, most of the usable players were basically selected in the first two rounds. There would be some overlooked players in the third and fourth rounds, but not too many.

As for the next five, six, and even ten rounds, some teams start to pick randomly. Anyway, the NBA draft rules are quite domineering, just like the long-arm jurisdiction of the Americans. Regardless of whether you participate in the draft or not, as long as a team likes you, they can draft you. Whether you come to sign them or not is another matter.

In 1984, in addition to selecting Michael Jordan, the Chicago Bulls also selected track and field star Carl Lewis in the 208th overall pick in the 10th round, although Lewis never came to report for duty.

Choosing Carl Lewis is a relatively sensible decision, after all, he is a famous athlete with excellent running and jumping skills. If he could come to the Bulls and become a fast break player, many fans would probably love to see him dunk.

Some teams started making random selections. For example, one team selected House Minority Leader Gilard Ford, the Hawks selected their general manager Pat Williams, the 76ers selected a pharmacist and a 47-year-old fried chicken shop owner, and the Jazz simply selected a female player, Lucia Harris, in 77.

In the early days of the NBA draft, it was even more terrifying; you could draft indefinitely until there were no more players left to choose from.

In 1960, it was changed to 21 rounds, and in 74 it was changed to 10 rounds. Now the NBA is considering changing to a two-round draft.

Therefore, players like Cummins and Sparo, if they can't get playing time in the second round of the draft, will become undrafted.

Even with Ewing, such a team would still be at the bottom of the league, and the Knicks don't care about the record, they just want everyone to help Ewing level up.

So far this season, the Knicks have not won a single game, suffering a seven-game losing streak. Their biggest loss was by 15 points, and their smallest loss was by 4 points, all games in which they saw no hope of victory.

Their only hope is Ewing, but Ewing just stepped onto the court tonight and looks a little weak, unlike Gan Guoyang who is always full of energy and vitality.

Needless to say, Ewing must have been quite a handful last night. Gan Guoyang stepped forward and asked, "So, is it to your liking?"

Ewing grinned and said, "Not bad."

"Tch, you have high standards. I spent a lot of money hiring someone."

"Your money wasn't wasted."

The camera captured the two chatting and laughing, which later made it into a New York newspaper.

John Thompson also called to criticize Ewing, saying he shouldn't have been laughing and joking with his opponent before the game.

In fact, Ewing usually has a stern face, giving off an unapproachable vibe, and he is very irritable on the court.

But this is not his nature. He is a simple and honest person, and his brain is not particularly sharp, but he is a very good friend.

In Gan Guoyang's view, the NBA is like a big orphanage, filled with teenagers with family problems and personality flaws, and very few people are truly mature and complete.

Gan Guoyang felt right at home in such a place; having come from an orphanage himself, he had an immersive understanding of its rules. Ewing, despite having a complete family, suffered greatly from the physical and aesthetic defects of a giant, making him sensitive and irritable—a common ailment among giants.

He came from Jamaica but immigrated to Boston. He grew up during a time of severe segregation and discrimination. Russell was his idol, and he carried a similar anger to Russell—anger at his origins, skin color, and unfair treatment.

However, unlike Russell, when Russell entered the NBA, racial discrimination was still very serious. Russell and Mohammed Ali became pioneers of the anti-discrimination movement in that era.

When Ewing entered the NBA, the world had changed. At Georgetown University, he was raised by John Thompson to be an angry fighter. Thompson constantly kept him in a tense and fighting state. As a result, when he arrived in the dazzling New York, Ewing was not greeted by spittle and attacks, but by an overwhelming array of colorful things.

Fans' curiosity, interview programs, big contracts, luxury cars and beautiful women, all sorts of activities—the people of the Big Apple love him, but not that much, because he has to perform well, and he has to learn to live in this flashy world.

John Thompson didn't teach him any of these things; Thompson always kept him away from the media, while Dean Smith taught Jordan how to deal with the outside world early on.

Ewing was stunned. He was like a beast in the preseason, trying to act like a tough guy, but everyone thought he was an idiot. Who keeps getting themselves ejected, especially when a white guy tackled and pinned down?

Gan Guoyang then stepped forward and told him to relax, that it was nothing, not to be nervous, to take deep breaths, and that he would feel better soon. He said he might feel a little dizzy at first, but it was okay...

That night, the Trail Blazers thrashed the New York Knicks 96-121 at Memorial Arena, giving Ewing a taste of what relaxed basketball is all about.

From start to finish, the Knicks had no chance to fight back. They fell behind from the very first basket of the first quarter and remained behind until the end of the game, showing absolutely no sign of catching up or taking the lead.

It was like playing a warm-up game; the Knicks couldn't find any way to turn the tide or catch up. Gan Guoyang could even chat with Ewing while playing.

At first, Ewing kept a straight face and pretended to be serious, but he eventually stopped pretending. Anyway, there were no performance requirements for the first season. Dave DeBuscher made it clear that it was just for training, getting used to NBA games, and preparing for the future.

Ewing asked Gan Guoyang a question that had troubled him for a long time: what exactly Gan Guoyang was saying to him during the 1984 NCAA Final Eight.

Gan Guoyang told him, "I didn't read anything. I just moved my lips to scare you."

Ewing was shocked. The honest guy said, "I don't believe it. If you didn't read anything, why would I have a bad feeling?"

Gan Guoyang thought to himself, "That's because you're so stubborn, brother. It's just a psychological tactic."

“Okay, I did chant some spells, but I hereby declare that these spells are off you. Relax a bit, Patrick.”

As Gan Guoyang spoke, he patted Ewing on the shoulder. The two were standing on the sideline of the three-second zone, waiting for Drexler to take the free throw.

As soon as Gan Guoyang finished speaking, Drexler missed his second free throw. Gan Guoyang immediately rushed over and gently tapped the ball.

The ball fell into the basket, and the putback was successful, further widening the gap between the two sides.

Gan Guoyang then reminded Ewing, "You need to box out, Patrick! Didn't John Thompson even teach you that?"

Ewing asked, "Sonny, is it really off?"

"Really, really! Please play well!"

The Knicks suffered a crushing defeat in this game, greatly disappointing the media who were hoping to see a showdown between rising stars.

Gan Guoyang easily scored 31 points and grabbed 15 rebounds, currently ranking first on the scoring list.

It has been many years since Wilt Chamberlain that a center has topped the scoring charts.

Ewing only managed 10 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 blocks, and was effectively contained.

But Ewing himself felt it was very rewarding, and the trip to Portland was a wonderful journey.

Back in New York, they defeated a Bulls team without Jordan at Madison Square Garden. Ewing scored 27 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, including a game-winning putback in the final moments, securing their first win of the season and their career.

(End of this chapter)