The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 331 I'm Going to the Stage
Bird scored 8 points twice in NBA Finals history, both times in the 1981 Finals against the Rockets.

That year, Bird was 24 years old and a sophomore. His offensive skills were not yet fully refined. Facing the Rockets' defense, he went 3-for-11 in both games, winning one and losing the other.

Although he played a significant role in rebounding and assists, and contained Moses Malone's offensive rebounds on the defensive end, Maxwell's poor offensive performance led to him being awarded the Finals MVP that year.

Because he relied heavily on his outside shooting touch, Bird had many games with extremely low shooting percentages in the playoffs, such as 3-for-11, 5-for-16, and 7-for-22.

In his peak season of 1984-1985, he averaged 28 points per game in the regular season with a field goal percentage of 53%. However, in the playoffs, his field goal percentage dropped to 46%, and he averaged 26 points per game, losing the championship.

Bird conserved his energy during the regular season, and his performance in the playoffs was more consistent than last season. From the first round to the Finals, his performance in every game was very stable.

But he only scored 8 points in the first half tonight and his offense was not working well. Gan Guoyang started to suppress him on both ends of the court from the first quarter, making it difficult for Bird to get into the game.

KC Jones's strategic decision to target McHale was the right one. McHale scored 15 points efficiently in the first half, making him the team's leading scorer.

Bird's main job was to feed the ball to Kevin McHale so that McHale could receive the ball in the best position and attack the basket, and Bird had no doubt about that.

He doesn't care much about how many points he gets; the key is to win the game. As long as he wins, he can accept not scoring points.

Sitting in the locker room, thinking about how Gan Guoyang scored 31 points in the first half while he only scored 8, and how he was still being mocked by Gan Guoyang, Bird couldn't help but feel a burning hatred.

At this moment, a trace of regret arose in his heart, regretting that he should not have mocked the senior Dr. J Irving with a score of 42:6.

Now look what's happened. The boomerang hit him on the head so quickly. Unless he can have a big offensive explosion in the second half, he's really going to be crushed.

However, Bird, who is usually full of confidence, was not confident that he could break through Gan Guoyang's one-on-one defense in the second half.

Gan Guoyang's physical attributes were practically tailor-made to defend Bird. Bird was known as the "Half-Inch Man," and Gan Guoyang was just half an inch better than Bird in every aspect.

Gan Guoyang's speed is a bit too much for defending James Worthy; Drexler or Korsey would be more suitable, but he's just enough to defend Bird.

Gan Guoyang's strength is enough to defend any center on Earth, let alone Bird, and Gan Guoyang's explosiveness is just enough to catch every feint of Bird.

Other teams need two or three players to form a defensive network to contain Bird, but Gan Guoyang formed a bird-catching net all by himself.

The key is that this guy can keep scoring and still has the energy to help defend.

Thinking of this, Bird crushed the can in his hand.

As the second half was about to begin, KC Jones and Bird said, "If we can't break through Forrest's defense, then we'll stall him. Stalling him is also a big contribution to the victory."

Bird chuckled and said self-deprecatingly, "Have I become so pathetic that I've become a point of sacrifice to restrain the other side?"

Jones said, "It's not sad. Losing the game is the saddest thing. Individual statistics are not worth mentioning."

Bird nodded, agreeing with Coach Jones's assessment. Although he couldn't swallow his pride, he was willing to sacrifice himself for victory.

This requires Bird to neither take too many isolation plays, as they are inefficient, nor to avoid them altogether, otherwise he would lose his threat and fail to draw defenders. He needs to manage this carefully.

If the tactics are successful, then the tactics should be implemented, leaving the responsibility to McHale and the two Johnsons. If the tactics fail, then he will be the one to take the blame and play one-on-one.

Simply put, the best and easiest meats should be shared with teammates, while the tough bones should be kept for oneself.

He sacrificed his own stats and performance to hold off Gan Guoyang and create the best opportunities for his teammates.

The second half of the match returned to the Glass Palace Stadium, where the home fans remained incredibly enthusiastic, making it a heated night.

Gan Guoyang's outstanding performance in the first half drove the fans wild, with a large number of fans singing around televisions and radios outside the Memorial Stadium.

The game continued, with the Celtics launching the first attack. The Trail Blazers' 11-point lead was not secure, as apart from Gan Guoyang, the others performed only moderately.

In particular, Porter and Drexler were unable to provide Gan Guoyang with enough support in terms of outside shooting, as their shooting skills were not up to par.

Porter was completely outmatched by experienced, powerful defenders like Dennis Johnson, and Ramsey considered increasing Jim Paxson's playing time in the second half.

Drexler also struggled against Marquez Johnson. The two are about the same height, but Marquez is clearly stronger. Drexler is more of a shooting guard, while Marquez is a proper small forward.

Drexler was at a disadvantage in direct combat, which limited his effectiveness in positional warfare.

The Trail Blazers need to do two things: first, continue to trust their star player; and second, they must play solid defense and drag the game into a half-court set.

It's okay if you miss your shots, but you can't let the Celtics get their offense going.

The previous four games have proven that the Trail Blazers have the advantage in slow, half-court sets, and they have won two of those games.

Once the game gets into a back-and-forth battle, the Celtics thrive, and the Trail Blazers have no chance against their five-star starters.

With the match reaching its fifth game, it had become a battle of pace, with the rest being minor details.

Gan Guoyang's extremely high shooting percentage in the low post and his ability to handle a large number of ball possessions are the foundation for the Trail Blazers' ability to play at a slow pace.

Otherwise, you won't score. What's the use of being slow? The slower you are, the faster you'll die if your accuracy is low.

The Celtics need to be fast, otherwise they can't unleash their full offensive potential.

At the start of the third quarter, McHale called for the ball in the low post, Bird passed it to him, and McHale immediately launched an attack.

Like Forrest Gump, he never hesitates when he gets the ball and immediately launches an attack.

McHale hit a hook shot after turning around, and his performance improved as the game progressed tonight.

On the defensive end, Bird fronted Gan Guoyang, doing everything he could to prevent Gan Guoyang from receiving the ball.

The Trail Blazers moved the ball out to Walton on the other side. Walton isolated against Parish, turned and drove hard to the basket, squeezed past Parish and scored!

Walton really went all out tonight, playing 15 minutes in the first half and at least another 15 minutes in the second half, which is a huge test for his knees and ankles.

The Celtics continued their tactical movement, with Gan Guoyang entangled with Bird on the perimeter, and the physical contact between the two sides intensified.

Bird had a very difficult time getting away, but by holding off Gan Guoyang, he created opportunities for the inside players.

Parish received the ball, turned and shot but missed, McHale put it back in and scored—this kind of shot would be very difficult for Gan Guoyang to get back in if he were in the paint.

Gan Guoyang pulled out for a mid-range jumper but missed, giving the Celtics a valuable counter-attack opportunity.

Dennis Johnson initiated a fast break, with Marquez leading the charge, receiving the ball and driving to the basket, drawing a foul from Drexler. He made both free throws, and the Celtics began to gain momentum.

Walton immediately moved to the high post to provide support, and Gan Guoyang made a back-run to shake off Bird.

Walton made a precise pass to the basket, Gan Guoyang received the ball, shook off McHale, and dunked it in with a reverse hand!
Gan Guoyang and Walton high-fived, and the only two MVPs in Trail Blazers history teamed up to break through the Celtics' defense.

Then Mitchell Thompson suddenly rushed out on defense and intercepted Bird's pass to McHale.

After a successful steal, the Trail Blazers launched a counterattack. Gan Guoyang quickly dropped to the baseline, received the ball, turned, and attacked, drawing a foul from McHale.

The Celtics' frontcourt is very talented, but in terms of talent, the Trail Blazers have three tall players, two number one draft picks, and one number two draft pick, making them equally talented.

The score gap widened again, and this time it was the Celtics' turn to feel hopeless.

The Celtics dominated fast breaks and had an advantage in the backcourt. The combination of Johnson and Bird left the Trail Blazers rookies completely bewildered.

In a battle of positional play, the Trail Blazers dominated the frontcourt, and their three tall players excelled on both offense and defense, which the Celtics couldn't withstand.

But even if he couldn't hold on, he had to. The Trail Blazers' defense forced Bird to take the ball and go one-on-one, and he tried to shoot a three-pointer from the outside, but he missed.

Walton was battling for rebounds under the basket. When Gan Guoyang was the main defender on Bird, rebounding protection mainly relied on Walton.

Gan Guoyang received the ball in the low post and launched an attack. He made a clean turnaround jump shot and the ball went in, making it 55-68, with the point difference widening to 13 points.

Then both teams started missing shots, which was what the Trail Blazers wanted to see; as the leading team, the faster the clock ran out, the better.

But in the sixth minute of the third quarter, Walton twisted his ankle while landing during a rebound attempt and fell to the ground in pain.

This is the last thing Portland fans wanted to see: Walton, who had stayed healthy all season and played every game diligently, collapsed in what might be the most important game of the season.

"Oh no, Walton has gone down. He twisted his ankle. Culp came over to check on him. He has to leave the field and probably won't be able to continue playing. This is the last thing we want to see."

Seanley's voice trembled slightly, because the Trail Blazers had lost far too much due to Walton's injury.

No one wants to see Walton fall victim to injury again at such a crucial moment.

At this point, the Trail Blazers were leading the Celtics by 12 points, a very solid advantage. However, if even one of their three big men collapsed, the outcome of the remaining quarter and a half of the game would be uncertain.

Gan Guoyang was responsible for guarding Bird, leaving the paint defense wide open. McHale was also in great form, so Walton's rim protection and rebounding were crucial. Jones didn't have Walton's height and build.

Walton tried several times, but he was clearly unable to move normally and could only walk to the players' tunnel with Culp's help to return to the locker room.

Jones replaced Walton, and Memorial Arena was unusually quiet for a few minutes tonight as fans prayed for the injury-plagued giant.

As Culp helped Walton up, he felt as if he had returned to eight years ago, to the 1978 playoffs, when the Trail Blazers faced the SuperSonics in the first round, and Walton had collapsed just like that.

After that fall, Walton never truly got back up until this season when he redeemed himself. But is fate going to play another joke on him?
Walton walked with his head down, limping. His legs were scarred from dozens of surgeries, but the scars were even greater on his spirit and soul.

Culp wanted to say something, but didn't know what to say; there were no words to comfort Walton.

“Calp, give me the injection later,” Walton suddenly said to Calp.

"What? An injection? What kind of injection?"

"I need to go on the court after I get the nerve block injection."

"No, no, no, we've already made a mistake once, we can't make it a second time."

"Yes, you've already made a mistake once, and you can't make it a second time. You shouldn't have given me the injection in 1978; you were wrong. You should have given me the injection this time, so you can't make the same mistake again."

When the two arrived at the locker room, Culp stared blankly at Walton, swallowed hard, and said, "Bill, are you sure you want to do this?"

"I'm sure, this is my last chance. Even if I don't play, do you think I can play 82 games next year? I know my body, I can't take it anymore."

As he spoke, Walton took a brown paper envelope from his sports backpack and handed it to Culp. Culp was surprised to take the envelope, opened it, and saw that it contained a stack of bright green US dollars.

"Bill, what do you mean? Are you paying me to give you a shot? Are you kidding me?"

Walton shook his head and said, "This is something I owe you. I was planning to give it to you after the game. Do you remember the playoff bonus?"

Speaking of playoff prize money, Culp recalled the 1978 season when the two parted ways.

Culp has served the Trail Blazers since 1974, as the team's trainer and therapist.

At that time, Bill Walton had just arrived in Portland as the number one draft pick, and the two quickly became good friends.

Both young men were passionate about basketball and life. At that time, Culp and Jack Ramsey even argued about whether "loyalty" existed in the league.

Ramsey realistically stated that loyalty in the league is limited and conditional, while Culp believes the Trail Blazers are different, where there is genuine loyalty.

Because Walton was in poor health, Culp spent a lot of time providing him with physical therapy and post-injury rehabilitation training, taking meticulous care of him.

But Walton was injured in 1978, the dynasty dream collapsed, and after the series against Seattle, the team gave the players playoff bonuses.

Back then, team trainers' salaries were very low, so every year during the playoffs, the players would give a portion of their playoff bonuses to the trainers as a reward for their hard work throughout the season.

But the players held a vote that day, and the result was that no bonus would be given to Culp, because many players felt that Culp had spent too much time with Walton and that he was only serving Walton, so why should everyone pay for it?

Ultimately, Culp did not receive the bonus. Subsequently, Walton sued the team, as well as the doctors and trainers—including Culp—due to his injury. Their relationship broke down, and Walton left.

At that moment, Culp's belief in "loyalty" crumbled. He found Ramsey and said, "Jack, you're right. There is no true loyalty in the League."

Since then, Culp has continued to serve the Trail Blazers and the players, but he has never been fully committed again, no longer considering himself a part of the team, but just an employee.

He will no longer answer calls in the early hours of the morning to provide medical advice on the health of players and their families. His job ends when he finishes work, and he will no longer be on call from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m.

It wasn't until Walton returned this season that Culp's passion for work was somewhat restored, after they embraced and cried at the airport and came to terms with each other.

But the issue of playoff bonuses was never resolved. Culp hadn't forgotten it, but he didn't want to bring it up again. After all, so many years had passed, and he didn't expect Walton to still remember.

Culp clutched the envelope, tears welling in his eyes. Walton patted Culp on the shoulder and said, "It's all in the past, all in the past. The important thing is now. Give me the injection, Ron, I want to play."

(End of this chapter)