The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 559 Conspiracy
The match started on time.

Bill Shawnley, as always, sat on the sidelines introducing the starting lineups for both sides.

Jonathan missed the game due to a cold and fever, so Berman boldly started Petrovic, who has been performing well recently.

This was Petrovic's first time starting in his NBA career, and his opponent was none other than Michael Jordan.

Apart from Petrovic, the Trail Blazers' roster remains the same: Forrest Gump, Thompson, Porter Jr., and Cahill.

The Trail Blazers have maintained good overall health over the past few seasons, and their players are durable and resilient.

This is inseparable from the team's good injury management, new training plan, and use of the away game charter plane.

The Bulls' starting lineup consisted of Michael Jordan, John Paxson, Scottie Pippen, Bill Cartwright, and Horace Grant.

Compared to the poorly-run roster of a few years ago that was constantly being changed, the Bulls' starting lineup has gradually stabilized since last season, and they have built a strong, stable, and very talented structure.

In their matchup last season, Gan Guoyang experienced the power of the Bulls' lineup firsthand – they were extremely flexible and aggressive.

The core of the team consisted of Pippen, Grant, and Jordan. They possessed extremely tough and skillful defense, versatile offensive skills, and very strong athletic talent.

In this respect, the Bulls are very similar to the Portland Trail Blazers who won three consecutive championships. At that time, the Blazers had Forrest Gump, Drexler, and Korsey.

All three of them are equally flexible and aggressive, able to cover many positions on the field, and can raise the intensity and level of the game to a point that is difficult for opponents to adapt to.

Back then, the Trail Blazers played some games that NBA teams in the 80s simply couldn't keep up with.

However, after Drexler left, the Trail Blazers' flexibility and aggressiveness were greatly diminished.

Whether they have taken a step backward or gotten a head start over other teams remains to be seen.

Before the jump ball, Gan Guoyang patted Petrovic on the shoulder; the guy looked a little nervous.

His eyes never left Jordan, and he was probably plotting how to compete against Jordan tonight.

"I'll get possession of the ball, pass it to you, and then set a screen for you. Just attack the basket directly, don't overthink it," Gan Guoyang told Petrovic.

Petrovich nodded; he believed in Forrest Gump.

Tonight's match is highly anticipated, and it presents an opportunity for Petrovic to further expand his reputation.

After saying this, Gan Guoyang walked to the center circle and exchanged a glance with Jordan, who was not far away.

Both of them looked serious. The jokes were over, the conversation was over, and it was time for a proper fight.

Bill Cartwright and Gan Guoyang jumped for the ball; how could the 32-year-old veteran center possibly beat Gan Guoyang?

Sure enough, the ball was passed to Petrovic, who then started charging forward.

Jordan quickly caught up, but Gan Guoyang came over and set a screen for Petrovic.

Gan Guoyang's screens are always very solid, and Petrovic used the screen to find an opportunity and took a shot directly from the top of the arc!
A very bold and unexpected choice. Before the Bulls players could react, the ball was already flying through the basket and then hitting the target accurately!
Petrovic hit a three-pointer to start the game, giving the Trail Blazers an early lead.

This kind of rapid start, immediately hitting a three-pointer, is something only the Trail Blazers in the league currently do.

Besides Petrovic, Hornacek and Terry Porter would also seize the opportunity to shoot directly.

After scoring, Petrovic and Gan Guoyang high-fived, and Petrovic glanced at Jordan at the same time.

Jordan chewed his gum expressionlessly. He knew that the "rookie" Forrest Gump had said on the phone about killing him was this Croatian number 44, known as the "Mozart of European Basketball."

Of course, Jordan was different from Petrovic. He knew Forrest Gump too well and knew that Forrest Gump was probably digging a hole and setting a trap again.

This guy is lying to both sides, saying "he's going to kill you" on one side and "you're going to kill him" on the other, stirring up conflict between them.

Anyway, Jordan and Petrovic weren't familiar with each other and were opponents on the court, so they wouldn't ask each other, "Are you trying to kill me?"

If Petrovic had asked that question, what would Jordan have said? He would have definitely said, "I'm going to fuck you to death."

Petrovich is similar; there won't be any other answer.

Therefore, Gan Guoyang's scheme is an unsolvable open plot, comparable to Wang Meng's Golden Knife Plan.

If there has to be a solution, it's simple for Jordan: win the game.

Instead of attacking relentlessly himself, Jordan dribbled the ball across half-court and initiated the Bulls' first offensive play.

This season, under the promotion and advocacy of Phil Jackson and assistant coach Winter, the Bulls began to fully implement the triangle offense strategy.

Unlike the various tactical routines on the basketball court in the past, the triangle offense has no fixed routines, nor fixed positioning or passing lines.

The triangle offense is a vague offensive strategy. Its core idea is to allow players to make full use of the space on the field and maintain an appropriate distance between players.

The distance is just right; it's too far for the opponent to double-team you, but not so far that it prevents you and your teammates from forming a passing combination.

On the strong side with the ball, the Bulls players would form a relatively stable triangle, and the offense would then start from the low post, with the other players running around the ball handler to look for opportunities through movement.

The ball handler must decide how to distribute the ball, and the players making runs must not only keep in mind the principles of distance and triangle, but also find opportunities through experience and reading the defense.

Overall, this is an offensive approach that emphasizes equal opportunities and encourages players to take initiative. Phil Jackson is quite fond of this seemingly unconventional and unorthodox tactical strategy.

Jerry Krause agreed with Jackson's strategy, so he traded Oakley for Bill Cartwright, who had a strong low-post offense.

The purpose is to provide the inside players with a low-post offensive pivot, enabling them to initiate the triangle offense.

Jackson and Winter have been implementing this strategy since the start of the season.

To be honest, Jordan didn't adapt well at first because the triangle offense emphasizes evenly distributed opportunities.

In regular season tactics, Jordan was just one part of the whole, not the absolute core.

For the past few seasons, Jordan has had unparalleled shot attempts; he can play however he wants.

Now, at the beginning of the game, the first thing Jordan does after dribbling the ball across half-court is to observe his teammates' positions before passing the ball.

He first pointed to the corner because John Paxson was positioned incorrectly; he was too close to the flanks and would draw the defender over.

Even after more than a month of practice, everyone was still a little awkward when running positions, and Jordan would point that out to them.

When Paxson went to the bottom corner, Cartwright held off Gan Guoyang in the flank, ready to receive the ball and score a one-on-one in the low post.

If this had happened in the past, and the defender in front of him was Petrovic, not even Hornacek, Jordan would definitely have driven straight for it.

But Jordan didn't do that. After directing the movement on the strong side, he suddenly passed the ball to Pippen, who came out to receive it on the weak side.

He knew that Cartwright hitting Forrest Gump would be a mistake.

Instead, Pippen passed the ball to the weak side, and then passed it to Grant, who had come out to head it out.

Grant and Pippen executed a handoff screen, and Pippen caught the ball, pulled up for a mid-range jump shot, and made it.

Both teams scored in attacks that were very characteristic of their own teams at the start of the game.

This shows that both teams were well-prepared before the match and would not play recklessly.

Jackson expressed satisfaction with the opening tactics.

At the start of the season, the situation was quite difficult.

The team's record is not good, with a winning percentage hovering around 50%.

In several games, it all came down to the same old formula in the end—Jordan had to do all the work himself to win.

At that time, some voices in the team expressed their hope that they would stop using this strange triangle offense and return to the normal, familiar routine, which would be quite good.

But Jackson was very stubborn, stuck to his own opinions, and had Jordan's support.

Because Jackson told Jordan that only the triangle offense could help him catch up with Forrest Gump.

In terms of strategy, the triangle offense and the Trail Blazers' previous strategy of shifting power between the strong and weak sides and creating space are actually quite similar.

Both belong to the tactical thinking of the new era, much like the "Sunflower Manual" and the "Evil-Repelling Sword Manual"—different in form but similar in spirit.

It wasn't so easy for Petrovic to attack with the ball again. Jordan and Paxson didn't hesitate to double-team Petrovic in the corner—Jordan intentionally lured Petrovic towards the corner.

Petrovic passed the ball to Kossi at the top of the arc, Kossi then switched the ball to the weak side, where Gan Guoyang moved to the low post to establish position.

Porter passed the ball to Gan Guoyang.

After the ball was passed to Gan Guoyang, Jordan came over from the baseline to try to steal it, but Gan Guoyang dodged it with quick reflexes and then made a behind-the-back pass to the basket.

Petrovic received the ball, made a layup after a cut, and scored another point!
Petrovic scored 5 points in a row at the start of the game, and the Memorial Stadium erupted in cheers for him.

Bill Shawnley yelled "Rip City" for the pass.

Gan Guoyang reminded Jordan: "Hey Michael, you're not really going to get fucked by Pete tonight, are you?"

Jordan scoffed, "The game has only just begun. Don't try to provoke me; it won't work."

After saying that, Jordan suddenly accelerated during the offense to get rid of Petrovic's entanglement and cut to the right 45 degrees.

He received a pass from John Paxson, caught and shot, and made the basket.

The entire movement was executed flawlessly and smoothly; by the time the ball went in, Petrovic hadn't even touched Jordan.

Jordan's shooting became smoother and more accurate than before, and he no longer hesitated.

Gan Guoyang immediately retaliated with a precise mid-range shot from a high position.

Both players have become more mature and composed in their playing style, unlike the noisy and intense style of the past few years.

But their competition has actually become more intense, incredibly intense.

(End of this chapter)