The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 544 The Temperamental Sabonis

Although Sabonis is very low-key off the field, he also looks quite honest and kind next to Gan Guoyang.

But in basketball, there are no truly honest people; it's all relative.

Compared to ordinary people, NBA basketball players are a group of irritable and even more irritable people, as well as some superhuman individuals.

People like Gan Guoyang are measured in their actions, but they are also really hot-headed. Otherwise, why would they start fighting at the slightest disagreement, and it was a real fight, not just bluffing?

Sabonis also had his moments of rage. In the 1986 EuroLeague Finals, before his serious injury, during a game between Zalgiris (Lithuania) and Hibna (Croatia), a Hibna player got into a physical altercation with a Zalgiris player during a fast break, and the Hibna player elbowed the Zalgiris player.

Just then, Sabonis charged at the Hibna player like a truck and punched him away (number 4).

Coincidentally, Petrovich was right next to the two sides in the conflict at the time, and he originally wanted to mediate and stop them from fighting.

To everyone's surprise, Sabonis rushed over and knocked the man down with a single punch. Petrovich was stunned and didn't dare to go up and fight Sabonis.

With Sabonis's bear-like physique, who would dare to approach him? His own teammate had been punched and was lying on the ground, unable to get up.

So the final ruling was that Sabonis was the only one sent off, while the others were fine because no fight broke out and no one dared to step in.

In 1986, Sabonis was young and impetuous, and he paid the price for that punch.

He had already scored 27 points, and Zaraguili was in the lead; if they won the game, they would be the European champions.

After he was sent off, Zaraguili's team was without its key player and was no match for Hibna's team, which had Petrovic.

Ultimately, Zaraquilis lost the match, handing the European championship to Petrovic and Hibna, thus securing Hibna's two consecutive European titles.

Therefore, Sabonis was definitely not a model player on the court. He was not someone who would just coast along in the highly competitive paint.

A few perimeter players like Price have genuinely good personalities; they just play basketball and don't resort to violence.

In the situation of 1986, if Petrovic had been replaced by someone like Isaiah Thomas, let alone a bear, even if you were an elephant, he would have rushed up and punched you to vent his anger—unless you were Forrest Gump.

In the first half, Sabonis was somewhat mentally unstable due to Ewing's attacks, and Gan Guoyang's constant advice made Sabonis even more irritable.

Sabonis knew that Forrest meant well and that his advice was very correct; he said that cutting down the middle lane was useful, and it really was.

Sabonis is not a true rookie; he has long been a star in Europe, having played for many years and is considered the top European player.

Like Petrovic, he was ambitious, but Petrovic was more outwardly expressive, while Sabonis was more reserved.

His fighting spirit and wildness weren't as strong as Petrovich's or Forrest Gump's, but they were also ignited tonight.

After being completely outplayed by the opposing center and lectured like a primary school student by the team's leader, Sabonis realized he had to do something.

Gan Guoyang didn't notice Sabonis's emotional change much. In the locker room, he simply patted Sabonis on the shoulder and didn't say anything more.

The NBA is a long journey, and even star players will face setbacks when they first enter the league.

Take Ewing, who played exceptionally well today, for example. He entered the NBA with such a huge halo and was the focus of everyone's attention.

As a result, the team suffered major injuries in both the first and second years, finishing at the bottom of the Atlantic Division with a disastrous record, and Ewing's performance was also unsatisfactory.

After more than three years of hard work, Ewing finally began to shine, honing his skills and helping the team improve.

Players like Gan Guoyang, Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Michael Jordan, who dominated the league as soon as they entered, are ultimately a very small minority.

Sabonis still has a long way to go, but he's not prepared to suffer a complete defeat tonight.

The third quarter began with Sabonis starting again.

Ewing is still in very good form, which is rare for him to play against the Trail Blazers.

Jerome Kossie's first offensive play of the second half, a low-post turnaround layup, was blocked out of bounds by Ewing who came over to help defend.

The ball was inbounded from the baseline, and Hornacek received it, but his mid-range jump shot, aided by Gan Guoyang's screen, missed.

Gan Guoyang cut to the basket, grabbed the offensive rebound, and drew a foul from Oakley on his layup, going to the free-throw line.

Ewing's shot-blocking ability is indeed good, but his rebounding has always been a problem.

As a top-tier center, his average rebounds per game have never exceeded 10 since entering the league.

This is really unacceptable.

In college, he could grab rebounds with ease thanks to his height and wingspan.

Therefore, he did not develop good positioning habits under the basket, making him vulnerable to being outmaneuvered.

The Knicks had no choice but to trade for Oakley to assist Ewing and make up for Ewing's weakness in rebounding.

Oakley really had no choice on this play; he couldn't outmaneuver Forrest in the paint and had to send him to the free-throw line.

With both free throws made, the Trail Blazers continued to extend their lead.

Ewing's block just now was a waste.

On offense, the Knicks started with Ewing.

Mark Jackson passed the ball to Ewing, who received it and made a quick inside turn to go down the middle.

With a low shoulder, Sabonis pushed past him and drove into the paint for a left-handed layup. Sabonis, not wanting to let Ewing score easily, charged at Ewing with all his might.

As a result, the referee blew his whistle and called a blocking foul on Sabonis, and Ewing was also awarded free throws.

The two players were huddled in the three-second zone and there was some physical contact. Ewing swung his arm, trying to push Sabonis away.

Sabonis remained unmoved and retorted. Ewing, seeing this, raised his chin and looked at Sabonis with disdain.

The referee immediately blew his whistle to separate the two players and signaled for Ewing to take the free throw.

Gan Guoyang clapped his hands and said, "Give Patrick a boost! You should have done this a long time ago."

After that, Terry Porter missed a three-pointer, and Oakley made a mid-range jump shot.

Sabonis actively called for the ball in the low position, and Gan Guoyang made a through pass to Sabonis from the high position.

Sabonis posted up Ewing in the low post, using his strength to push Ewing aside before unleashing a hook shot from his right hand that found the net!
This was Sabonis' first successful singles shot against Ewing tonight.

Ewing quickly responded with a basket of his own. He caught the ball a step inside the free-throw line in the middle, turned, and unleashed a skillful shot, making it again! Ewing's offensive form tonight was exceptionally good. His consecutive baskets in the first half had already put him in top form.

Even if Forrest Gump were to defend himself at this point, he might not be able to subdue Ewing immediately.

Gan Guoyang didn't think much of it; he saw it as a good opportunity to train Sabonis.

Sabonis was already on fire, and he once again positioned himself in the low post to call for the ball.

Gan Guoyang was happy to feed the ball to Sabonis from the high post. Sabonis received the ball and went to the middle, pushed past Ewing and then shot with a hook shot from his right hand, which went in!
The two centers began their duel in the paint, and the crowd's emotions were stirred up.

Ewing received the ball again, and this time he passed it to Mark Jackson, who was cutting down the middle. Jackson caught the ball and made a floater for two points.

Turning around, Gan Guoyang received the ball in the low post, drawing the defense, and then passed it to Sabonis in the high post.

Sabonis faked a shot but then suddenly made a through pass to Porter who was cutting inside.

Porter receives the ball and makes a layup!

"Beautiful attack! Beautiful pass! Rip city!"

Bill Shawnley once again proclaimed Rip City, and Sabonis showcased his brilliant passing skills during a moment of brilliance.

During this period, Gan Guoyang became the center of the game, creating good offensive opportunities for his teammates.

Sabonis is playing more and more freely on offense, adapting to the Trail Blazers' offensive and defensive system.

However, what he cares about most right now is the matchup against Ewing, and whether he can defend against Ewing.

At the very least, we need to curb this guy's behavior.

Sabonis began repeatedly shoving Ewing in the paint, pushing him away from the middle.

Agam is right. Most of Ewing's attacks come from the mid lane, and he excels at making plays in the mid lane.

This is very different from Barkley, who likes two bottom edges, and Gan Guoyang also likes two bottom edges.

For shorter interior players, the baseline is easier to control because it's less likely to face dense defense.

If Gan Guoyang plays in the mid lane, he always charges in aggressively, relying on his impact rather than his skills.

For a center like Ewing, the middle is his favorite area, but he is prone to making mistakes when he is pushed to the sidelines.

Sure enough, after Ewing was pushed to the left baseline, he received the ball, turned, dribbled to his feet, and then went out of bounds. It was the Trail Blazers' ball.

Sabonis clapped his hands enthusiastically; he had made a great defensive play.

Ewing's anger level is also rising.

He definitely harbors a grudge against Sabonis.

At the 1988 Olympics, Sabonis led the Soviet Union to victory over the United States, whose coach was John Thompson, Ewing's mentor.

The defeat at the 88 Olympics dealt a major blow to John Thompson's reputation, plunging him into a storm of public opinion from which he could not extricate himself.

The 80s was the era of the most intense sports rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union. Due to political reasons, the United States and the Soviet Union each missed one Olympic Games in 80 and 84, which made the basketball championships in those two Olympic Games undeserved.

The 1988 Olympics were held in Asia, so there was no reason for anyone to boycott them anymore, and everyone participated.

At that time, the entire US Olympic team came to South Korea wearing T-shirts that read "One Seoul, One Goal," and their goal was to win more gold medals than the Soviet Union.

The Olympic men's basketball gold medal is undoubtedly a very, very significant honor.

During the Olympic selection process, Thompson, like Bob Knight, faced controversy over the choice of players.

The controversy surrounding Bob Knight lies in the fact that he rejected Malone, Barkley, and Stockton, keeping his own protégés instead, and that the team had five white players.

In contrast, Thompson kicked out white players like Steve Kerr, resulting in a team that was mostly black.

Bob Knight won in the end, and won decisively and exhilaratingly, so the controversy became gossip before and after meals, something to talk about for fun and nobody cared anymore.

Thompson was different; he lost, and that loss stemmed from a lack of shooters. The 1988 Olympics had three-pointers, but they failed to utilize them effectively.

Thompson's failure led to a barrage of criticism after the Olympics, and it's foreseeable that he will be repeatedly criticized and ridiculed for decades to come.

Sabonis is the "culprit" who pushed Thompson into this situation, and both morally and logically, the blame should fall on Sabonis.

So when Sabonis received a pass from Gan Guoyang in the paint and had a chance to cut to the basket for a dunk, Ewing slapped the ball away from behind with a very fierce slap.

The ball hit Sabonis on the head, causing him to stumble and nearly fall.

Once he had a firm footing, Sabonis rushed up to settle scores with Ewing.

Gan Guoyang quickly stepped in to stop Sabonis, saying, "Calm down, calm down. Hitting someone is wrong."

Sabonis glared at Ewing, but Ewing still held his chin up, looking down on everyone.

Perhaps affected by the foul and still a bit dazed, Sabonis made one of two free throws.

The score difference between the two sides remained around 5 points. Bellman made a substitution, replacing the underperforming Kessie with Mike Sanders.

Kossie is tall and has a hard time keeping up with the Knicks' perimeter players; Sanders would be a better option.

When it was the Knicks' offensive possession, Ewing once again boxed out for the ball, yelling at Mark Jackson, "Give me the ball!"

Ewing is going to take on Sabonis. He's going to be close to the middle, but the Trail Blazers aren't double-teaming or blocking him, just letting the two of them go one-on-one.

Ewing received the ball smoothly, faked a shot, dribbled through the middle, and dunked with his left hand!

Ewing's breakthrough was quite beautiful; Sabonis couldn't keep up. After his Achilles tendon and knee injuries, his movement is not what it was in '86.

After scoring, Ewing and Sabonis collided under the basket, neither willing to give way, and Ewing shoved Sabonis hard.

At this moment, Sabonis was filled with rage. He looked down at Ewing's dark head and arrogant chin, and headbutted him!
With a loud thud, Sabonis's blow landed squarely on Ewing's chin.

Caught off guard, Ewing felt a heavy punch land on him. His mind went blank, he stumbled back two steps, and landed hard on his backside.

(End of this chapter)