The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 430 Less is More
Losing Game 3 was a significant blow to the Trail Blazers players.

The intensity of this game showed that the Trail Blazers didn't want to give the Lakers a chance to turn things around; they wanted to win.

They wanted to take a 3-0 lead in the series and make the outcome a foregone conclusion, but the Lakers were extremely tenacious and held on tightly without giving up.

In crucial moments, whenever the Trail Blazers thought they could seal the victory, someone from the Lakers always stepped up to respond.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's offensive rebound, Magic Johnson's long-range shot, and Byron Scott's drive to draw a foul.

The game was evenly matched between the two sides. Gan Guoyang's ejection was the turning point, which was both accidental and inevitable.

As the pillar of the inside game and the core of offense and defense, his physical strength is almost limitless, but his number of fouls is not unlimited.

The Lakers reduced their outside shooting in this game, with Worthy, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Johnson, Cooper, and others taking turns attacking the Trail Blazers' interior.

While Gan Guoyang was consistently delivering blocks, he inevitably committed fouls, and tonight the referees' calls were somewhat biased towards the Lakers.

In some plays, you could tell the Lakers were aiming to draw fouls and get Gan Guoyang out of the game early.

Gan Guoyang's ability to hold on until the second overtime period already demonstrates his exceptional foul control, yet he still still committed five fouls.

Every small detail accumulated earlier was magnified into the final result: Gan Guoyang was called for a foul for a collision during an offensive play, resulting in his sixth foul and ejection from the game.

Without Gan Guoyang, the Trail Blazers were like headless flies, getting repeatedly attacked by Wes Matthews and conceding points.

The Lakers eventually won a game, bringing the series score to 1-2, giving them a glimmer of hope.

After losing the game, media outlets such as The Oregonian, which have always supported the Trail Blazers, questioned: "Why is it so difficult for the Trail Blazers to beat the Lakers at Memorial Stadium?"

Throughout the playoffs and regular season, the Trail Blazers have consistently struggled at home against the Lakers, leading to concerns that the Lakers might crush them in Game 4.

After all, Game 3 felt like a turning point in the series. The Lakers didn't even celebrate after winning; instead, they left the arena with serious expressions, showing their determination to win Game 4.

The Lakers' long-standing dominance and dominant regular season performance put considerable pressure on Portland. Although they lost to the Rockets last year, they didn't lose by enough margins; at least the Trail Blazers haven't truly defeated them yet.

Gan Guoyang was speechless at such public opinion, feeling that these media outlets were just making trouble out of nothing.

The morning after the game, while reading the newspaper at home, he said to Wang Fuxi, "Without a sufficient sample size, there is no pattern to winning or losing. Home games and away games are just different places to play."

Wang Fuxi was preparing food for Gan Guoyang when she said, "But it's an undeniable fact that you played better on the Great Western Forum."

"Really? I think I play well in every game, no matter which arena I'm in."

"Don't give me that. You like beating up your opponents in Los Angeles, but you've lost interest since you came to Portland."

Wang Fuxi got some beans for Gan Guoyang to supplement his protein intake in the morning, as Gan Guoyang had just returned from a run.

He didn't schedule any training for himself today, and the coaching staff also gave the whole team a day off. After losing the triple-overtime game, the players need some rest, both physically and mentally.

"Okay, you have a point. I like seeing the fans completely silent at away games, and I like seeing the home team players looking like they've lost their parents."

"Simply put, you get more excited about making your own fans happy than making the opposing fans suffer. You're a sadist."

Wang Fuxi and Gan Guoyang have been together for so many years, so he knows Gan Guoyang very well. Gan Guoyang likes challenges and enjoys making his opponents suffer.

"I remember every time you won a championship, you always looked calm. For you, the joy of winning was secondary; the important thing was to make the other teams in the league feel bad for not winning the championship. Just like every time you had a good performance, you would call Michael, otherwise it wouldn't be meaningful to win."

These words left Gan Guoyang speechless, and at the same time, he was also thinking about whether he could change his approach in the fourth round.

Most players perform better at home, as they are more relaxed and familiar with the environment, especially younger players. Some young players simply can't play away from home, but can hold their own against opponents at home.

Young players like Kossi and Hornacek could have performed better at home.

However, because the whole team revolved around him as the absolute core, their imagination and performance on the field were stifled.

Hornacek and Curry barely got any playing time, and when Korsey came on, he was mainly a defensive workhorse, with very few opportunities on offense except for easy baskets.

From daily training and regular season games, Gan Guoyang could sense that their talent was not limited to this.

Take Hornacek, for example. He might have been able to get a starting position on a weaker team, but his improvement from the beginning to the end of the season was remarkable.

Gan Guoyang doesn't want these talented teammates to end up like Dale Ellis, shining on other teams.

The following day, Gan Guoyang participated in the team's pre-game training and discussed the strategy for the fourth game with Bobby Bellman.

“We should make some changes for the fourth game. I can act as bait, provide more support and pass the ball, play less myself, and create more opportunities for others. We need a team victory to boost morale. If we lose at home in the fourth game, the situation will be very unfavorable for us.”

Gan Guoyang offered to play less, firstly to give more opportunities to others, secondly to confuse the Lakers and catch them off guard, and thirdly to allow himself to rest and catch his breath.

Bellman thought Gan Guoyang's idea made sense, so he communicated with Jack Ramsey.

The coaching staff discussed the matter repeatedly in the pre-match preparation meeting, and Ramsey believed that doing so was very risky.

As the series progresses, most coaches become increasingly conservative in their player selection, basically not giving players who didn't perform well earlier a chance later on.

By the sixth or seventh game, both sides will have exhausted their substitutions, and there is a possibility of extreme situations where six or seven players will be rotated.

However, Ramsey was a coach who was bold and unconventional in his personnel decisions, and the 1977 Trail Blazers became the youngest NBA champions in history.

That Trail Blazers team had an average age of 24, with 3 rookies, 3 second-year players, and 2 third-year players—including their core player, Bill Walton.

All 12 players in the playoffs played more than 10 games, and the core rotation consisted of these third-year and second-year rookies. Ramsey fully tapped into their potential.

Therefore, he is willing to use newcomers and is definitely not a conservative coach in his personnel choices.

After careful consideration, Ramsey concluded that the Trail Blazers had indeed relied too heavily on Gan Guoyang in these few games.

If Gan Guoyang performs poorly (Gan Guoyang's so-called "poor performance" is 30 points and 15 rebounds), or is unable to play due to some factors, the Trail Blazers' remaining roster will be at a loss.

In a seven-game series, you can't win every game by relying on Gan Guoyang's 40+ points. Other players need to step up and put pressure on the Lakers.

Otherwise, the Lakers' constraints will only tighten, making it increasingly difficult for the Trail Blazers as the game progresses. The Lakers' roster potential is indeed greater than that of the Trail Blazers.

After a long discussion and deliberation, Ramsey gave his opinion: he agreed with Bellman and Gan Guoyang's strategy, which was to catch the Lakers off guard in Game 4.

However, Ramsey made a condition: "To ensure everything goes smoothly, Forrest Gump's playing time needs to be increased. Anyway, he passes and facilitates, and reduces his offensive output, so he shouldn't get tired."

When Gan Guoyang heard Ramsey's terms from Bellman, he could hardly believe his ears.

"What? Because I'm going to play less, I'm going to play more?"

Bellman nodded and said, "That's right, less is more, I think it's fine."

Gan Guoyang couldn't help but give the coaching team a thumbs up in his heart. Your theory is really brilliant and impeccable!
(End of this chapter)