The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 551 Bragging
On December 5th, at the Miami Arena, the Portland Trail Blazers will face the Miami Heat on the road.

To welcome the Miami Heat, the city of Miami built this multi-purpose arena on the beach, which was officially completed in 1988 and became the Heat's home arena.

The stadium can only accommodate 15000 fans, which is not a large number of people.

Like the Beckley Center, this arena showed signs of decay from the day it was built.

As a new stadium, it is too small, its design and construction are too conservative and lack foresight, and it is related to the need to rush the construction to put it into use as soon as possible.

When Tang Jianguo traveled with the team to Miami for an away game last season, he said that if the Trail Blazers were to build a new arena, it absolutely could not be like the Miami Arena, which was too small, too outdated, and no different from the Memorial Arena.

During the warm-up before the match, Gan Guoyang saw many familiar faces.

Stu Inman, Spoelstra, and Jack Ramsey, who will be commentating on the game from the sidelines tonight.

Ramsey looked to be in good spirits; he had less hair but a rosy complexion.

His originally somewhat gloomy face became all smiles as the work pressure eased.

His face has become rounder than before, clearly indicating that he is much more comfortable after stepping down from the head coach position.

"Sonny!"

Ramsey saw that Gan Guoyang was still very excited and went up to hug him.

Gan Guoyang picked Ramsey up and lifted him up; the two hadn't seen each other for another six months.

Seeing Dr. Jack's healthy and cheerful appearance, Gan Guoyang said, "Jack, you should find a team to continue coaching or join the team's management. It's such a waste for you to be a commentator."

A top coach like Ramsey, with four championships and a three-peat, should never just be a commentator.

He could easily continue as a coach or take on an important role with the Trail Blazers or another team if he wanted to.

In the past two years, many teams have sought to bring Ramsey back into the game, such as the Indiana Pacers and the Sacramento Kings.

But Ramsey was unwilling. Firstly, he was too old and his energy was not up to par. Secondly, the Trail Blazers' three-peat had exhausted him, and he could no longer coach.

Most importantly, Ramsey knew he would never encounter a player like Forrest Gump again, and he couldn't mentor any other mediocre players.

As for the management, Ramsey couldn't adapt to the increasingly commercialized NBA. He longed for pure basketball, but knowing that the trend was irreversible, he simply retired while he was still at the peak of his career.

In response to Gan Guoyang's teasing, Ramsey said, "Florida is warm and suitable for retirement. I don't want to be yelling on the sidelines anymore. Please spare me."

Miami is definitely more suitable for seniors; Portland is too wet and too cold.

After exchanging a few words, Ramsey suddenly asked, "Hey, how's Eric doing in Portland these days?"

"Eric? He's doing well in school, he's doing well on the basketball team, he's smart, and he's a good point guard."

“Jon was very worried about him and wanted him to come to Florida.”

Eric is Erik Spoelstra Jr., and the relationship between father and son has been quite tense ever since Jon Spoelstra "betrayed" the Trail Blazers and joined the Heat.

After Jon arrived in Miami, he hoped that Spoelstra Jr. would come to Florida to study, but Spoelstra Jr. insisted on applying to the University of Portland. He was unwilling to betray his father and go to Miami like his father.

“Kids like him take relationships very seriously. Besides, he’s always been a Porter fan and doesn’t think much of Clyde. After Clyde went to Miami, he disliked Miami even more. When he graduates from college and needs to find a job, Jon will definitely be able to help. If he still refuses to come to Miami, then let him stay in Portland. I’ll take care of him.”

Jack Ramsey nodded; he would relay Gan Guoyang's message to Jon.

When he was with the Trail Blazers, Ramsey and Jon didn't get along very well; he disapproved of Jon's excessive marketing tactics.

Of course, after stepping down from his coaching position, Ramsey's relationships with those around him improved, and he no longer looked down on anyone.

He now has nothing but admiration for Gan Guoyang, and whenever he commentates on a Trail Blazers game, he praises Gan Guoyang to the skies.

"How was tonight's game? Were you well-prepared?"

"How about it? We're definitely going to beat Clyde to a pulp. He lost to Jordan last game, didn't he?"

"Yes, Clyde hasn't been in good shape lately. In Miami, if you don't have strong self-control, it's easy to lose yourself. It's too comfortable here."

"Then I'll give him a good wake-up call. Being the boss isn't that simple. I see his shooting has improved a bit; he's using fewer shooting motions." "Not bad, I can count them on two hands."

They both burst into laughter.

At this point, the Heat players arrived late and warmed up on the court.

Drexler saw that the veteran coach Dr. Jack and Gan Guoyang were chatting happily on the sidelines, so he naturally went over to say hello.

Drexler asked them what they were talking about, and Gan Guoyang replied bluntly, "Dr. Jack is praising your varied shooting form."

Ramsey was embarrassed and punched Gan Guoyang.

Drexler was even more embarrassed, and his face darkened.

You two old acquaintances meet and instead of talking about anything else, you gossip about me behind my back, don't you?

Back when we were on the same team, you were the boss and I was the second-in-command, so it was one thing for you to badmouth me.

We're both the leaders of our respective teams now, and we have the same number of rings, so why are you still criticizing me!
Not only are they bad, but the Trail Blazers always go all out against the Heat.

In the four games between the two teams last season, the Trail Blazers won by a minimum of 13 points and a maximum of 41 points, which can be described as a dominant performance in every game.

In the new season, the Heat returned to the Eastern Conference and only had two games against the Trail Blazers.

It will be extremely difficult to beat the Trail Blazers in Portland; they only have a fighting chance in Miami thanks to their home-court advantage.

Therefore, tonight's game is the Heat's best chance this season to break the humiliation they suffered at the hands of the Trail Blazers.

Thinking of this, and remembering how these two guys had suppressed him before, Drexler became bolder and said to Gan Guoyang, "Sonny, let me tell you, we're going to win tonight. You guys are going to be the background."

Gan Guoyang and Jack Ramsey were both stunned, not expecting Drexler to say such a thing.

Gan Guoyang looked at Drexler with bright eyes and said, "Well said, Clyde, you have ambition. How many points do you want to score tonight?"

Upon hearing Gan Guoyang's question, Drexler wanted to say "50 points," but he swallowed the words back.

Scoring 50 points is really difficult, especially with Forrest Gump guarding the paint. If shooting isn't working, relying solely on drives is too hard.

As for fast breaks? Drexler knows that it's extremely difficult for the Trail Blazers to counter their fast breaks.

Swallowing hard, Drexler said, "40 points!"

"OK, 40 points. Judging from your performance, Clyde, you really are acting like a leader now."

With that, Gan Guoyang patted Drexler on the shoulder and went to the field to warm up.

After saying all this, Drexler felt very relieved, and even felt a little lightheaded as he walked.

Yesterday I got 50 points, today I got 40 points. I changed my tune, but nobody else knows.

Judging from Riley and Forrest Gump's estranged relationship, they definitely wouldn't keep in touch.

He thought to himself, "No wonder Forrest Gump likes to brag. He really enjoys bragging."

Whether it will actually happen later is another matter entirely.

But a little while later, Gan Guoyang ran to the Heat's bench and yelled at Riley, "Pat! Clyde said he's going to score 40 points and win this game, what do you think?"

Riley was pondering his plans for tonight when he heard this, and it seemed something was amiss.

Turning to look at Drexler warming up on the field.

Drexler broke out in a cold sweat.

Riley didn't mince words, telling Gan Guoyang, "No! He's going to get 50 points tonight!"

Drexler threw up a three-pointer, but it didn't even touch the rim.

(End of this chapter)