The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 581 We Are All Dead

During the Suns' timeout, Rambis barely listened to a word Fitzsimmons said.

All he could think about was Forrest Gump's words, "You should live," and the phrase he'd said long ago, "You're already dead."

The curse-like phrase "You are already dead" haunted Lambis for a long time.

He saw a psychologist, a hypnotist, and an Indian shaman, hoping to calm his mind.

It's hard to believe, but he often genuinely felt like he was dead, especially when playing against the Trail Blazers, where his performance was always terrible, like a dead man.

He initially thought he was afraid, but upon closer reflection, it didn't make sense. He wasn't afraid of Forrest Gump, and Forrest Gump was a good person off the field.

On the contrary, he quite admired Forrest Gump. When the two met off the court, they were both very normal. It was only when they got to the court that Rambis clearly felt that he was not normal.

He became irritable, panicked, neurotic, unable to concentrate, and had difficulty thinking. He exhibited these symptoms during the Mavericks' game against the Trail Blazers in 1988.

The situation has become even more serious this year.

The Native American shaman told him that he needed to find the person who cast the curse on him and have them break it.

Lambis found it ridiculous at the time. What kind of curse was this? Was Forrest Gump some kind of Eastern wizard?

Does he really mean he's dead when he says he's dead?
But when Lambis heard Forrest say, "You should live," he suddenly felt like he was surfacing from underwater and could start breathing again.

He was submerged in water for five years, and no one knows how he spent those five years.

Now that he was on the surface and could breathe deeply, Lambis suddenly felt an urge to cry.

Fitzsimmons laid out his tactics and noticed that Rambis looked unwell, so he took off his glasses and started wiping them.

"Kurt, what's wrong?"

"It's okay, I...I feel great, I...I can compete..."

“I know you can compete, and you are competing right now. The competition has only just begun.”

Fitzsimmons' anxiety increased as he watched Lambis become distracted and incoherent.

Everyone knows the Trail Blazers are very strong, and the Suns are likely to face a tough challenge in Portland.

But it's only been a few minutes into the first quarter, and it's already 8-0. Is the gap really that big?
Moreover, Fitzsimmons really didn't know how to defend Agan. They didn't even have a proper center, while their opponents had two big centers, plus another one on the bench.

Fitzsimmons' strategy is speed; he must use speed to wear down the Trail Blazers. His forwards and two guards need to be firing on all cylinders on offense.

Another notable feature is the frontcourt, where the Suns have two strong offensive players off the bench: Mallley and Eddie Johnson.

The Trail Blazers' frontcourt is a weakness, with only one small forward of sufficient height and strong fighting ability, Korsey.

Of course, this is all on the premise that Forrest Gump doesn't play the small forward position...

Fitzsimmons couldn't care less about anything else. During the timeout, he kept emphasizing speed and counterattacks, and prayed in his heart that Forrest Gump's offense wouldn't be so accurate.

After the timeout ended and they returned to the court, Kevin Johnson's layup attempt still missed, and Agan clung to the Suns' backcourt like a ghost.

However, Mark West knocked the ball out inside, and Danny Ainge caught it on the outside, faked a move, and then drove to the basket for a pull-up jumper that went in.

Danny Ainge, that old fox, still has a very steady hand. With Kevin Johnson and Ainge on the Suns, one is young and energetic, and the other is mature and experienced, which is quite a good combination.

If there's any drawback, it's that both players are short, making it difficult for them to put much pressure on their opponents defensively.

They would struggle against strong guards like Jordan and Drexler.

Fortunately, the Trail Blazers' backcourt is about the same as theirs.

Subsequently, the Suns changed their strategy on defense, actively fronting and double-teaming the defenders.

Rambis stopped guarding Gan Guoyang and instead had Mark West front Gan Guoyang to prevent him from receiving the ball.

Meanwhile, Rambis was assigned to the small forward position to guard Jerome Cahill, while Tom Chambers guarded Sabonis.

The Trail Blazers tried to lob the ball inside, but the Suns' defense was too strong, and the Trail Blazers' lob attempt failed, causing them to lose the initiative.

Finally, Hornacek's tough three-pointer missed, Chambers grabbed the rebound, and the Suns launched a counterattack—they avoided set plays whenever possible.

Ainge delivered a bounce pass to the lightning-fast Kevin Johnson, who shook off Terry Porter and made a right-handed layup.

But Forrest Gump appeared from behind like a raptor, delivering a powerful left-handed block to Kevin Johnson!
Jerome Kossie got the ball, the Trail Blazers launched a counterattack, and Gan Guoyang once again rushed to the front, passing the ball to Hornacek with a bounce pass when he reached the basket.

Hornacek made a solid two-handed layup, putting the Trail Blazers on a 10-2 run against the Suns and maintaining firm control of the game.

This was a sure basket for the Suns, but Kevin Johnson never expected Agan to come back so quickly and blocked it with a huge block.

This is only the first section, why bother, brother?

But this is the playoffs, and Gan Guoyang always gives his all in the playoffs.

His stamina allowed him to play with the same energy in both the first and fourth quarters. The Suns simply didn't have a good solution for half-court offense, and the ball was just being passed around on the perimeter.

Tom Chambers got the ball, and he was being guarded by Korsey. Chambers immediately took a three-pointer.

The ball flew in a very high arc and actually went in.

This goal had an element of luck, but it also showcased Chambers' individual ability.

When a team is at a disadvantage in terms of tactics and configuration, star players need to use their individual abilities to solve the problem.

Chambers' role with the Suns was that of a scorer.

The point difference quickly widened to 5 points.

The Suns continued to maintain their fronting defense to prevent Forrest Gump from attacking in the low post.

However, this time the Trail Blazers chose to go around Forrest Gump. Sabonis pulled out to set a screen, and Porter circled around before receiving a pass from Hornacek and hitting a mid-range jump shot.

The Trail Blazers' two guards are equally formidable. As long as they don't encounter someone like Jordan Richmond, their all-around abilities are a nightmare for many teams' backcourts.

Both teams entered a steady scoring period, when Kevin Johnson hit his first mid-range jump shot of the game using a step-back jumper.

He finally scored.

Immediately after, Hornacek also made a jump shot.

The Suns launched a fast break, and Kevin Johnson desperately tried to increase the speed of the offense.

But Forrest Gump acted like a roadblock, hindering Johnson's dribbling breakthroughs on the wing sideline.

Once they cross the center line, they immediately retreat to the vicinity of the top of the arc, where one person can disrupt a large area.

As for the three-second zone, Sabonis is now a long-term fixture, forcing the Suns to look for opportunities from the perimeter.

For example, try shooting three-pointers.

Kevin Johnson passed the ball to Chambers, who then passed it to Ainge on the wing, who received the ball and took a three-pointer.

hit!

The Suns' outside shooting was excellent tonight.

The NBA playoffs in the 90s were very different from those in the 80s.

The ball movement range is wider, the low post is no longer the primary offensive solution, and the three-point shot is being used more and more frequently.

The Suns kept the score close in the first quarter thanks to their three-pointers, preventing the deficit from becoming too large.

However, Kevin Johnson, the backcourt engine, only scored 2 points and had no assists in the first quarter, with Agan hovering around him like a ghost.

Whether it's attacking with the ball or organizing the offense by passing, sometimes Forrest would rather give up guarding Chambers than not intercept Johnson.

Moreover, Gan Guoyang knows Kevin Johnson very well. He did a lot of research before the game and is very familiar with his playing style and habits, so his defense was very targeted.

Fitzsimmons found Agan's defense very troublesome, and he seemed to have figured out that the key to the Suns' offense was Kevin Johnson's drives.

Kevin Johnson not only delivered the most important game-winning shot in the series against the Jazz, but also averaged 9.2 assists per game, the highest on the team.

Although he wasn't the top scorer or had the highest shooting percentage, he took the most shots because he had to handle a large number of the team's shot attempts.

In the first game against the Jazz, Kevin Johnson only played for 9 minutes before leaving the game early due to injury, resulting in the Suns losing to the Jazz by 17 points.

Despite playing one less game, Kevin still took more shots than anyone else on the team in the series, indicating that no one else could handle the ball possession that Johnson was taking.

Now, in the first quarter, Johnson was so badly defended by Gan Guoyang that he couldn't even shoot, let alone make a shot or assist his teammates.

Fitzsimmons had no choice but to substitute Kevin Johnson, replacing him with Eddie Johnson, while also giving Kevin a good rest and time to think about how to deal with Forrest Gump's annoying defense.

Rambis was sitting next to Kevin Johnson on the bench, resting with him. The Suns trailed the Trail Blazers 19-29, down by 10 points.

Rambis suddenly asked Kevin Johnson, "Kevin, do you know why Forrest Gump guarded you so hard?"

Kevin Johnson replied, "The coach said I'm the key to the offense, and Forrest Gump will definitely target me."

Rambis shook his head and said, "It has nothing to do with whether it's crucial or not. He just wants to target you and break you down. That's his fun, that's his game, you understand?"

Kevin Johnson glanced at Rambis, who was still wearing black-rimmed glasses, his eyes fixed on the court, looking somewhat dazed.

The Memorial Arena was noisy when Kevin Johnson shouted, "What did you just say, Kurt?"

I said...we might all be dead...

(End of this chapter)