The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 591 You are an insect

A tense atmosphere permeated the entire stadium.

Everyone understands the significance of this showdown, and therefore everyone comprehends the intensity of this final.

In the stands of Memorial Stadium, David Stern looked somber, while Tang Jianguo, sitting next to him, appeared relaxed and even had a smile on his face.

Stern knew, of course, that violence was almost certain to break out once the two teams reached the Finals.

Therefore, he specifically arranged for Earl Strom to officiate the first game in the hope of controlling the situation.

The Trail Blazers invited rising star Mariah Carey to sing the national anthem at their home game, hoping to add a peaceful atmosphere to the game.

The performance was excellent, but neither team's players were interested in appreciating it; they only had the game on their minds.

The Pistons have just finished Game 7, and although they are physically fatigued, they are still in the game.

The Trail Blazers had a week off and were prone to complacency, which is why Gan Guoyang had to motivate them before the game.

Forrest Gump made his grand entrance in a spectacular opening ceremony, while the eyes of the Detroit players on the sidelines seemed to be spitting blood.

Isaiah Thomas actually didn't perform well in the Eastern Conference Finals; the Bulls' backcourt defense was really strong.

Fortunately, they won, and Thomas is ready to focus all his energy on the Trail Blazers and Forrest Gump.

After both sides officially entered the arena, no one shook hands; they simply stood in their positions, ready to fight.

The Trail Blazers' starting lineup: Sabonis, Gan Guoyang, Korsey, Hornacek, Porter.

The Pistons' starting lineup: Laimbeer, Tpin, Rodman, Dumars, and Thomas.

Rodman, once a nobody, is now the starting forward for the Pistons.

Daly moved Aguirre to the bench to compensate for the lack of attacking power on the bench.

Compared to three years ago, Rodman has matured a lot. He stood next to Forrest Gump before the jump ball, showing no fear.

As a rookie in 1987, Rodman was fearless and ambitious. Now, having matured and been selected for the All-Star team and the All-Defensive Team, he is even more unconvinced by Forrest Gump.

In this year's Defensive Player of the Year voting, Rodman ranked second only to Forrest Gump, proving that the little bug is evolving into a big bug.

"I heard you can beat me so badly I can't even play?" Gan Guoyang asked.

"Yes, I said, if you dare to touch me or my teammates again."

"It seems we're destined for a battle tonight."

"That's what I think too, and I'm ready."

"No, you're not. You're not prepared. Let me tell you how to prepare. I'm going to knock you out tonight. You need to mentally prepare yourself, and while you're at it, buy yourself some insurance during the break."

Throughout the conversation, Gan Guoyang never looked at Rodman until the very end when he turned his head and glanced at Rodman, their eyes meeting.

Gan Guoyang squeezed out a sentence through gritted teeth: "In my eyes, you are an insect."

Rodman finally didn't respond, partly because of the jump ball, and the game started.

On the other hand, a trace of fear finally began to grow in his heart.

Forrest Gump seemed really serious tonight, extremely serious.

Throughout the entire 90 series, Gan Guoyang was extremely serious and focused, in every single match.

In some matches, he even behaved so viciously and cruelly that he constantly tormented his opponents.

This is a characteristic that Gan Guoyang rarely displayed during his first three-peat.

When a ruler first ascends the throne, he often governs with benevolence, but as time goes on, he often becomes ruthless in order to maintain his rule.

Because more and more people are challenging him, and the number of challengers is growing and increasing.

In the jump ball between Turpin and Sabonis, the tall Sabonis tipped the ball first, and the Trail Blazers' first attack began.

On the first play, Gan Guoyang immediately dropped to the low post, wanting to test the Pistons' low post defense strategy for tonight.

Teping was the one guarding Gan Guoyang one-on-one. As someone who had been "blessed" by Gan Guoyang's tackle, Teping has been playing better and better in the past two years, but his playing style has become more and more peaceful.

With fewer dirty tricks and dirty plays, Tping has really honed his defensive skills and his low post positioning is very solid.

However, he was quickly broken through by Agan's powerful strength, and Dumas on the flank immediately moved closer to Gan Guoyang, grazing the edge of the illegal defense, ready to double-team him.

Hornacek faked a pass, and seeing Dumars collect the ball, he immediately took a three-pointer, but the ball bounced off the front of the rim and missed.

Dennis Rodman rushed out to grab the defensive rebound, while T.P. kept a tight grip on Gan Guoyang, not giving him a chance to grab the offensive rebound.

In this situation, Gan Guoyang had no chance of getting offensive rebounds, while Rodman, as a small forward, had very strong rebounding ability.

With the addition of Bill Laimbeer, who excels in defensive rebounding, the Trail Blazers' dominance in offensive rebounding and second-chance points in the Western Conference is definitely off the charts.

When it was the Pistons' turn to attack, Laimbeer pulled out to the perimeter to screen for his teammates.

Teping pretended to call for the ball in the low post, but actually drew Gan Guoyang's defensive attention.

The Pistons' perimeter ball movement was quick, and after a pick-and-roll, Laimbeer was matched up against Terry Porter.

He received the ball and immediately took a three-pointer from the outside, but missed.

Gan Guoyang turned and grabbed the rebound under the basket, and the Pistons quickly retreated on defense.

As soon as Gan Guoyang turned around, all the Pistons players had already returned to their half of the court.

The Pistons' defense is indeed the best in the league, impeccable in every detail.

They are much more sophisticated than they were in 1987, and naturally much harder to beat.

Kossie drove to the top of the key with a screen from Sabonis, but was knocked down by Laimbeer in the paint. Laimbeer raised his hands and looked at the referee innocently, as the crowd began to boo.

In slow motion, during the defensive play, a solid foul was committed, and the ball hit Kossie in the ribs.

That must have hurt a lot. Kexi must have been knocked unconscious. He bent over and adjusted for a while before stepping onto the free-throw line.

Laimbeer was ruthless and started using tactics against the Trail Blazers players very early on.

Fortunately, everyone is an old friend and won't get angry over such a "small" action.

Kossie made one of two free throws, and the Trail Blazers scored first.

The second free throw went wide, and after Laimbeer grabbed the rebound, Thomas initiated a fast break.

In the middle, Thomas was not under heavy pressure from the Trail Blazers players, and he had the opportunity to shoot directly.

Gan Guoyang came out to block, and Thomas made a clever pass to Tepin who was cutting down the court. Tepin received the ball and slammed it home with both hands!

During the counterattack, Porter circled around to set a screen, received a pass from Gan Guoyang, stopped and took a jump shot, but missed.

Laimbeer grabbed another defensive rebound, and Sabonis tried to grab offensive rebounds twice, but Laimbeer blocked his position both times.

"Give up the offensive rebound and get back on defense against Arvidas!"

Gan Guoyang reminded Sabonis not to be obsessed with offensive rebounds.

The Pistons are neither the Suns nor the Spurs. Laimbeer may seem far inferior to David Robinson, but in actual matches, you'll find that this guy is more troublesome than Robinson.

His ability to protect the defensive rebounds is second to none in the league.

Unlike Robinson, who relied on his physical attributes to block shots and provide defensive assistance everywhere, he didn't do that.

Sometimes, loopholes are exploited, leading to lost rebounds and ultimately, a failed defense.

Laimbeer wouldn't do that; he knew he was slow and couldn't jump high, so he focused more on rebounding in the backcourt.

The Pistons launched another counterattack, but Thomas missed a mid-range shot.

Gan Guoyang grabbed the rebound, but this time Dennis Rodman clung to him like glue, attempting to steal it back immediately.

Rodman was not afraid of Gan Guoyang's elbow. He knew he couldn't get the ball, but he wanted to delay the Trail Blazers' counterattack and create some trouble for their offense.

This time, however, Jerome Kossie received a pass from Porter and made a mid-range shot from the corner.

The first goal from open play.

The Trail Blazers did not focus on targeting Gan Guoyang at the start of the game.

Bobby Bellman said that Forrest Gump will definitely be the one to hit the mark, but it's more important for others to find their rhythm.

Then, Thomas made a very penetrating pass, threading it directly from the top of the key to the basket.

Upon receiving the ball, Dumars, facing Forrest Gump's long arms, chose to forgo the layup and dribble out to reorganize the offense.

Forrest Gump did not follow, but remained in the three-second zone to fight alongside Sabonis.

Chuck Daly ran his fingers through his hair. He could tell that the Trail Blazers were playing with the same finesse and rationality.

Forrest Gump won't easily come out of the paint to expand the defense like he did against the Suns. It's not because the Pistons' frontcourt offense is strong, but because the Pistons have excellent inside-outside coordination, many tactics, and an unselfish playing style.

If you abandon the three-second zone to chase the outside, the inside game is likely to be riddled with holes.

However, Dumas, who came out to reorganize the attack, made a passing error.

Terry Porter's steal sparked a Trail Blazers comeback.

Porter passed the ball to Cahill, who was making a fast break down the middle. Cahill's layup was contested, and his final floater missed.

Gan Guoyang grabbed the offensive rebound and was about to dunk when Dennis Rodman bumped into him from behind, causing him to lose his balance and then viciously hit Gan Guoyang's arm, resulting in a foul.

Gan Guoyang stumbled and almost fell, but his excellent balance allowed him to regain control.

He turned and charged at Rodman, but Rodman laughed and retreated.

The crowd booed, the referee rushed over to stop the conflict, and the Pistons players also gathered around—except for Laimbeer.

"I just wanted to strike first! I'm waiting for you to knock me out!" Rodman shouted at Gan Guoyang.

Despite his fear, Rodman mustered his courage and did what he had to do.

Gan Guoyang calmed himself down, took a deep breath, and stepped up to the free throw line.

With both free throws going smoothly, the Trail Blazers continued their early dominance.

Gan Guoyang thought to himself, "The Pistons players really haven't learned a single lesson."

Chuck Daly continues to push his brutal basketball philosophy.

There's nothing we can do; they won the championship using this method.

In the past, no matter how Gan Guoyang fought, he always maintained a high level of restraint.

Even if you knock your opponent down and leave them dizzy and disoriented, you'll end up unharmed.

First, he was playing to win, not to hit people.

Second, they should be more restrained when playing away from home, and tackles and elbow strikes are indeed very dangerous.

But tonight, Gan Guoyang felt it was time to make them pay a price.

While the series has just begun, and before the game becomes so crucial that a win is absolutely necessary.

(End of this chapter)