The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 583 Are you kidding me?

Lambis was right; he was indeed no longer afraid of Forrest Gump.

After figuring out Gan Guoyang's "badness," he realized that this was a game of survival of the fittest.

Instead of getting caught up in the struggle, why not just enjoy it? As Forrest Gump said, "You won't die if you lose."

Therefore, Rambis's inability to defend against Agan is purely due to his lack of ability and Gan Guoyang's explosive shooting performance tonight.

Fitzsimmons saw Lambis get completely destroyed by Forrest Gump, but he had no better options; he simply didn't have any other men to rely on.

Moreover, he cannot abandon Rambis, as Rambis still has a role on the defensive end, and his rebounding protection is the best on the Suns.

He did cause Forrest Gump "a little" trouble in some possessions, such as drawing fouls on him while rebounding and grabbing 7 defensive rebounds in the first half.

Unfortunately, most of Rambis's defensive rebounds failed to become ammunition for the Suns' counterattacks.

The Suns, unable to play a positional game, could only rely on their speed. In the second quarter, they encountered the Trail Blazers' frontcourt duo of Forrest Gump and Klay Thompson.

Once the Trail Blazers are no longer held back by Sabonis' speed, their defensive transition is extremely fast, and Agam quickly takes control of the paint, leaving the Suns with no choice but to finish their offense with outside shots.

Eddie Johnson went scoreless after hitting two three-pointers—not just in this game, but throughout the entire series.

In the second quarter, Gan Guoyang used his swift and decisive one-on-one attacks to break down the Suns' defense.

He was incredibly quick to get into position, catch the ball, and shoot, with each offensive possession lasting no more than three seconds. His turnaround jump shot and catch-and-shoot were both decisive and efficient, leaving the Suns with no answer.

During halftime in the locker room, Fitzsimmons was unsure how to set up the defense.

This season's Forrest Gump is completely different from last season's.

Gan Guoyang's form in 89 was far from this hot, and he made quite a few mistakes.

All seven games were intense, and Forrest Gump is like a completely different person this season, with a much higher level of focus.

Moreover, the Trail Blazers' roster is much better than last season, and the Suns have absolutely no way to deal with Sabonis.

It wasn't until the series started that I realized this guy wasn't the declining Mark Eaton who could only defend and had no ability to create his own offense.

Sabonis is a huge offensive threat in the paint; once he gets the ball under the basket, no one on the Suns can stop him from putting it in the hoop.

This situation further weakened the Suns' already thin interior defense, leaving them even less manpower to deal with Agan.

As a result, for most of the second quarter, the Suns had to send Rambis to guard Forrest Gump one-on-one—which was practically suicide.

It was only then that Kevin Johnson began to understand why Rambis had said on the bench, "We're all dead."

Kevin Johnson was certainly not willing to accept defeat. He played very poorly in the first half, scoring only 5 points under the harassment and defense of Agan.

His shooting touch was completely ruined; he only made 2 of 8 shots, a very low shooting percentage, and his fast break offense was heavily guarded.

Correspondingly, Tom Chambers scored 17 points in the first half, making him the Suns' top scorer.

But Chambers is a pure scorer, a finisher; he can't orchestrate the team's offense like Kevin Johnson.

In this situation, 17 points is a drop in the bucket for the Suns. If the Suns want to turn the game around in the second half, they will have to rely on Kevin Johnson's performance.

At the start of the third quarter, the noise level in the Memorial Arena reached its peak, with fans waving red and white handkerchiefs, creating a terrifying home atmosphere.

For Kevin Johnson, none of these are problems; the real problem is the "killer" wearing number 11 on the other side.

Gan Guoyang's defense against Kevin Johnson in the first half was textbook-perfect, demonstrating both strength and strategy in understanding and dissecting Johnson's playing style.

Unlike in high school, Kevin Johnson is no longer the small guy who only relied on speed to break through and had no shooting ability.

Kevin's mid-range shooting is very accurate. He has a quick release and prefers to shoot from the right side of the face, where his shooting percentage is above the league average. However, his shooting percentage is much lower from the left side of the face, especially the left baseline, as that is not his preferred shooting spot.

Therefore, Gan Guoyang constantly cooperated with Terry Porter on defense, forcing Johnson to the left and then double-teaming him on the right when he tried to shoot.

This defensive approach gave Kevin Johnson space to pass and assist, especially in the middle, giving Tom Chambers a lot of opportunities to move around.

But Chambers had no other way to help the team besides scoring with his shot. Sabonis stayed in the paint and didn't come out, not giving the Suns a chance to attack the basket.

Chambers couldn't break down the Trail Blazers' defense with just his shooting.

Fitzsimmons asked Johnson to find a way to keep his playing area fixed on his familiar right side.

"Don't fall into Forrest Gump's trap. When playing basketball, we should take the lead, not be led by the nose."

Fitzsimmons is right, but putting it into practice is really not easy.

Forrest Gump is a master of deception, particularly adept at taking the initiative in confrontations and disrupting the mindset of the attacker.

Kevin Johnson constantly reminded himself not to be affected by Forrest Gump's defense and to "play to my own game."

I should attack according to how my opponent defends, instead of the other way around, where my opponent defends and I attack accordingly.

So at the start of the third quarter, Kevin Johnson continued to increase the pace, resolutely taking his familiar right-hand route.

When Gan Guoyang double-teamed him, he passed the ball directly to the inside, where Tom Chambers received the ball and scored a layup over Sabonis' defense.

Kevin Johnson gradually found his offensive rhythm in the third quarter, sticking to the right wing and connecting with Chambers and West.

By passing the ball to Chambers and West to attack the paint and challenge Sabonis, the team changed the situation of relying solely on outside shooting in the first half.

However, after more than five minutes of play in the third quarter, the point difference remained at 18 points. In fact, after a fast break, Porter hit a fast break shot, widening the gap to 20 points.

Kevin Johnson could make consecutive shots, but the Trail Blazers were still scoring.

An 18-point deficit in the first half cannot be erased simply by scoring goals.

When Porter hit the shot over Kevin Johnson that widened the gap to 20 points, Gan Guoyang came over to Kevin Johnson and said, "Kevin, did you feel much more relaxed in the third quarter? Do you know why?"

Kevin Johnson didn't answer; he was certain Forrest Gump wouldn't say anything nice.

"Since we've already scored 20 points, there's no need to defend so aggressively anymore. Now it's time to maintain a steady pace."

Kevin Johnson, who is known for his honesty and straightforward playing style, felt an urge to throw the ball at Gan Guoyang at that moment.

Rambis is right, this guy is a born killer. He enjoys crushing his opponents, not winning the game.

With a burst of energy, Kevin Johnson drove hard into the paint after a pick-and-roll in the next offensive possession, cutting past Gan Guoyang like lightning to the basket.

I'm free!
Instinct told Kevin Johnson that the speed and distance were enough for him to complete a layup.

Agan even stumbled a bit. Sabonis was far away under the basket, a rare opportunity to attack the rim directly!
Kevin Johnson accelerated and went for a right-handed layup, but a huge shadow rushed up from behind, its long arm gently knocking the ball out of Johnson's hand.

The ball fell into Sabonis's hands, and Sabonis turned around and made a super long pass to the frontcourt. Jerome Cahill received the ball and attacked the basket directly, dunking it in!
The score difference came to 22 points.

Kevin Johnson fell to the ground.

But there was no foul; the player lost their balance and fell.

Forrest Gump still blocked it. He looked at the fallen Kevin Johnson with a mocking gaze, as if he were a cat looking at a mouse.

It's as if it's saying, "You really thought you ran away? I was just kidding you."

(End of this chapter)