The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 564 You Don't Understand Him

Phil Jackson never understood why Forrest Gump was an exception when it came to Jordan.

Jordan is a man who is very good at using emotions. Sometimes he will even create difficulties where there are none, just to motivate himself.

For example, the "freezing incident" involving Isaiah Thomas during the All-Star Game back then. Looking back, it seems that Thomas had no need to unite with others to isolate Jordan.

Moreover, judging from the video replay, Jordan took quite a few shots. The Eastern Conference stars did not deliberately avoid passing the ball to Jordan; he was simply having a bad shooting night.

But Jordan still harbored hatred for Thomas, and after that year's All-Star Game, he went on a killing spree against the Pistons and Thomas, frequently scoring high points.

When Jackson became the Bulls' assistant coach, he discovered that Jordan was an extremely competitive person who needed a goal to pursue and an object to vent his emotions.

From basketball games to everyday life, Jordan was adept at finding things to do and giving himself a reason to work hard.

For example, by trash-talking opponents or even teammates and provoking them to do something extreme to provoke him, he has a reason to crush them in the next game or training session.

For example, in everyday life, Jordan would make a bet with someone, since the two sides in the bet would always be on opposite sides. He would then use this opposition to motivate himself to defeat his opponent and win.

But all of that was ineffective in front of Forrest Gump. Everyone knew that Forrest Gump was Jordan's biggest rival, and that Forrest Gump had already far surpassed Jordan.

But Jackson never sensed in Jordan the same hatred he felt for Forrest Gump, the kind of ruthless ruthlessness that would stop at nothing to defeat an opponent.

Jordan was extremely ruthless towards Thomas.

This summer, Magic Johnson suggested that star players hold a one-on-one match.

To attract viewers, they could have Forrest Gump and Jordan, or Johnson himself and Jordan, play one-on-one.

Jordan and Gan Guoyang were not very interested in this, and Johnson's main reason for making the suggestion was to earn enough paid revenue—the players would definitely have to share the profits from the one-on-one match.

Johnson once signed a super contract of 25 years and $2500 million, which was an astronomical contract in the era in which he signed it.

But even now, his annual salary is less than that of a newcomer like Petrovich, so of course he has to find a way to make money.

However, just when both of them expressed no interest, Isaiah Thomas insisted on getting involved.

In his capacity as president of the players' union, he issued a statement saying, "I believe that such star-studded games are not in the best interests of ordinary players. It is exploiting the reputation built by the entire league's players to make money for a small group of people."

At this moment, Jordan suddenly got excited and contacted Forrest Gump, asking if he wanted to have a one-on-one match.

He also said that the players' union should serve the players, and that star players are also players. Thomas said this not out of public interest, but out of jealousy.

Thomas was jealous that he wasn't invited; if a one-on-one match were held, no fans or viewers would want to watch his rounds.

Jordan said these things in public, and the one-on-one match ultimately fell through, but Jordan's resentment towards Thomas was evident.

In the first game of the new season on November 7th against the defending champion Pistons, Jordan scored 40 points.

In that game, he didn't care about the triangle offense; he just wanted to take down the Pistons and Thomas.

Jackson said to Jordan more than once, "Can you transfer the feelings you have for Thomas onto Forrest Gump? Or treat them the same way!"

Jordan would just shrug and not say anything, and then continue as usual. They trained together during the offseason and often called each other.

Even though Jackson often used Forrest Gump as an example during training, Jordan remained unmoved.

In fact, while other Bulls players were said to have some hatred for Forrest Gump, Jordan remained indifferent.

Of course, Jordan's performance in the game was impeccable, and the battle between the two sides reached a fever pitch in the third quarter—no battle between Jordan and Jordan has ever been anything but like this.

The conflict between Petrovic and Jordan did not affect the course of the game.

After Jordan made the free throw, he widened the gap again, and then he intercepted the ball from Petrovic on defense.

The Trail Blazers players couldn't stop Jordan; they could only watch as he launched a fast break and easily dunked.

When Jordan started to exert himself, Petrovic had difficulty even controlling his dribble normally in front of Jordan, let alone initiating an attack.

Petrovic didn't try to force his way through, and passed the ball to Terry Porter to handle. Gan Guoyang then returned to his familiar corner position.

After passing the ball continuously to Gan Guoyang, Gan Guoyang faced Cartwright, faked a shot, broke through the baseline, and dunked with one hand!

Grant and Pippen had the opportunity to come over and help defend, but neither of them moved because they knew they would most likely commit a 2+1 foul and get half-dead from the impact.

Gan Guoyang knew that backing down his opponent made him vulnerable to double-teaming, so in the second half, his isolation plays were all baseline drives to the basket, precisely to prevent the Bulls from double-teaming him.

For the Bulls, Jordan drew a lot of defensive attention.

Grant positioned himself in the low post against Thompson, received a pass from Jordan, and then passed the ball to Pippen. Pippen caught the ball and made a mid-range jump shot.

Grant did not lose his fighting spirit despite being outmaneuvered by Gan Guoyang.

He remained on the court, contributing high-quality performances on both offense and defense.

It was because of Grant's presence that the Bulls traded Oakley for Cartwright.

A strong will and a stable mindset are fundamental to a professional player's ability to keep fighting.

The two teams were locked in a fierce battle in the third quarter, with the Bulls unable to contain Gan Guoyang and the Trail Blazers unable to control Jordan.

The score went back and forth between the two teams, and the coaches of both teams tacitly agreed not to call a timeout, letting the players decide the outcome themselves.

Therefore, the third quarter was extremely intense and exciting, and fans in front of their TVs were reluctant to leave, afraid of missing any exciting moments.

The task of defending Jordan was assigned to Terry Porter, and the perimeter players were spread out to allow Jordan one-on-one isolation plays.

Porter took two steps back and slightly turned his body to let Jordan walk down the left flank.

But Jordan doesn't go to the left. You think Porter can stop me on the outside?

Accelerate, a simple change of direction and he's right past her, like a hot knife through butter, he's plunging straight in from the middle!

No one on the Trail Blazers' perimeter could stop Jordan, but there was one in the paint, where Gan Guoyang clashed with Jordan in mid-air.

Jordan tried to use his speed and explosiveness to get ahead of Forrest Gump. He quickly sprang up and slammed the ball down with one hand!

However, the ball was still interfered with by Gan Guoyang's physical contact and failed to go in; the ball flew out.

John Paxson on the perimeter got the ball and passed it to Pippen. Pippen dribbled and took a step inside, but his floater was blocked by Gan Guoyang—this was Gan Guoyang's fifth block tonight.

Grant got the ball and made a series of feints at Gan Guoyang, but Gan Guoyang wouldn't fall for them, so he had to pass it out in the end.

With brilliant defense, Gan Guoyang single-handedly controlled the entire "iron triangle" (referring to the three key players in the game).

However, Gan Guoyang was very dissatisfied with the defense because the Bulls still had possession of the ball.

In the past, he could always control the ball after blocking an opponent's shot. But the Bulls were different. Pippen and Grant were both very strong at contesting for the ball and could always control it.

On the basketball court, possession of the ball is everything. Having possession gives you the initiative, while losing possession means you're on the defensive.

At this moment, Gan Guoyang might miss Drexler a bit. If he had rushed out to get the ball just now, he might have been able to steal it.

With little time left on the clock, Jordan forced a shot and made it despite being double-teamed!
Gan Guoyang's previous defense was essentially wasted.

"Shet!"

Gan Guoyang got carried away and slammed the ball hard.

Porter knew Forrest Gump's temperament and executed a pick-and-roll with Gan Guoyang from the high post.

The ball was lobbed to the inside, Gan Guoyang received it, and with a beautiful spin move, he got past Cartwright.

He slammed home a powerful dunk with his left hand, keeping the score close.

In the final moments of the third quarter, Jordan missed a three-pointer, and time was up.

The score was tied at 85-84, with the Bulls maintaining a one-point lead.

Jordan scored 16 points in the third quarter, while Gan Guoyang scored 15 points, and the two remained evenly matched.

"Forrest Gump had already scored 38 points in three quarters, while Jordan had 35. When they wanted to score, no one could stop them."

During the break, Jordan suddenly said to Phil Jackson, "Phil, do you know why Forrest Gump and I refused the one-on-one match this summer?"

Jackson was taken aback and asked, "Why?"

Jordan said, "Because we are basketball players, not circus clowns. We will put on one-on-one shows for the fans, we will play one-on-one privately, but we will not use it to make money by selling tickets."

“Phil, you don’t understand him. I won’t hate him, but I will beat him.”

Jackson paused for a moment, then said, "The clowns are just trying to make a living; they deserve respect."

Jordan said, "Anyone who works hard deserves respect, except for Thomas."

(End of this chapter)