The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 634 Performance Deserves Salary

Gan Guoyang certainly didn't want to be defeated twice by Jordan. To him now, no one in the entire league except Jordan was worthy of his attention.

The previous generation of players from the 70s are getting old, retiring, or injured. Apart from Magic Johnson, who is still a threat, the others are gradually withdrawing from the competitive stage of the 90s.

Johnson's Lakers have faced the Trail Blazers three times so far this season, and the Trail Blazers have won all three games. Clearly, the two teams have been rivals for many years and know each other inside and out.

Without Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the Lakers and Johnson have struggled to compete with the Trail Blazers' Forrest Gump; last year, they couldn't even beat David Robinson and the Spurs.

The 80s generation of players, especially the 1984 class, was a veritable constellation of talent. Now, they are all entering their prime, with players like Barkley, Olajuwon, and Stockton leading their teams toward the top of the league.

Meanwhile, Forrest Gump was already sitting at the summit waiting for them. So far, only Jordan had gotten close. Gan Guoyang could already see Jordan's bald head struggling to climb upwards.

Every match in the regular season is an accumulation of experience and lessons, a coaching of tactics and will, and a clash of psychology and public opinion.

Therefore, he will absolutely not let the team lose tonight.

At the start of the second quarter, Jordan and Gan Guoyang sat on the bench to rest.

Jordan drank water while scolding his teammates, telling them to cheer up.

"I don't want the point difference to have already widened to double digits by the time I get on the court! If that happens, I'll kick your asses to pieces."

Jordan was tired of squandering the advantage that the starters had created by coming off the bench, and tired of constantly going on the court to clean up his teammates' messes.

The Bulls' bench is decent this season; after Buck Williams arrived, Horace Grant became the team's sixth man.

Grant is one of the fastest interior players in the league. His 6-foot-9 height ensures he won't be at a disadvantage in the paint, while also maintaining his extremely high agility and reaction speed.

He is well-rounded in both offense and defense, with proficiency in shooting, post-up play, passing, blocking, and stealing. Furthermore, his one-on-one defense and help defense abilities are often underestimated.

Grant has been training extremely hard this season. After converting to Christianity with his wife, his lifestyle has become more regular and healthy, allowing him to dedicate more time and energy to basketball instead of just messing around.

He was determined to prove to management and Michael Jordan that he was an excellent player, no worse than Charles Oakley and Buck Williams.

At the beginning of the season, Grant was not used to his sixth-man role and was dissatisfied. However, as the season progressed, he discovered that there were many benefits to being the sixth man.

For example, he no longer has to compete against Jordan on the same court, and their playing time is largely staggered, so he doesn't have to listen to Jordan's bossy attitude during the game.

There's no need to constantly aim your glasses at Jordan when attacking, because he's the core of the second unit, and everyone will build their tactics around him, which makes Grant very happy.

After the All-Star Game, Grant's performance improved steadily, with outstanding all-around performances in many games, silencing Jordan on several occasions with his excellent play.

Tonight, Grant led the Bulls' second unit against the Trail Blazers' second unit. Of all the Trail Blazers players, Grant only fears one person – Forrest Gump.

Grant can also create advantages with other players, including Sabonis and Mitchell Thompson.

Sabonis is tall but not fast enough, Grant has a speed advantage, and Mitchell Thompson is too old.

The remaining players, such as Mark Bryant, Antonio Davis, and Pinckney, are not in the same league as Grant.

As for Jerome Kossie, he is at a height disadvantage, so Grant has become a difficult point for the Trail Blazers to solve.

As long as Forrest Gump isn't around, Grant feels quite free to do whatever he wants, like a bird soaring freely in the sky.

He frequently uses his mobility to steal offensive rebounds and score on second-chance opportunities under the basket. He is also a versatile player on the defensive end, able to defend every position, making him quite useful.

According to the Bulls' management, Krause, once they brought Toni Kukoc to the Bulls, the two all-around players would lead the bench, and the Bulls' second unit would be unmatched in the entire league. Of course, Jordan looked down on both of them, especially Kukoc. Jordan didn't believe that this Croatian could make it, and even complained to the management about wasting draft picks and energy, saying that it would have been better to sign Walter Davis.

However, Jordan clearly misjudged Grant. Grant was not an old-school, traditional center like Buck Williams, who was physically imposing and tough.

His playing style is more flexible and versatile. He is very smart on both offense and defense and knows how to use tricks. His ability to cut inside and finish at the basket after a screen is quite strong.

It could even be said that, apart from Forrest Gump, Grant could put up a fight against any other center in the league, including top centers like Hakeem Olajuwon and David Robinson. Grant still had the advantage in speed and shooting range.

Furthermore, he had a very strong personality and was one of the few players on the Bulls who dared to defy Jordan, even going against him in training and games.

Phil Jackson's approach to Grant's personality was not to suppress him, but rather to nurture him and make him the leader of the second unit, which can be considered a brilliant move.

Of course, the Trail Blazers also had a similar approach, namely Bobby Bellman's development of Petrovic.

Petrovic is a key figure in the Trail Blazers' second unit. When he comes off the bench, he will primarily play point guard, partnering with Dell Curry.

Even with Sabonis in the paint, he would still play a supporting role when playing alongside Petrovic.

Petrovic, a talented defender who grew up in Europe, must be given enough space to develop and perform.

It would be a waste to have him run around, cut into the air, and be a spot-up shooter.

However, Petrovic didn't play decisively enough tonight when facing the Bulls' strong perimeter defense.

Armstrong, Grant, and others would start pressing the defense from near the midline, disrupting the opponent's ball possession and further interfering with their first pass.

If the first pass is poor, the offensive framework cannot be established, the success rate of tactics will drop significantly, and in the end, we will have to rely on the individual abilities of the players.

The Bulls quickly launched a counterattack in the second quarter, taking advantage of the Trail Blazers' repeated missed shots.

Grant repeatedly attacked the Trail Blazers' paint with his sharp cuts inside.

At the start of the second quarter, Grant scored 7 consecutive points, helping the Bulls take the lead.

However, Petrovic immediately responded with a tough three-pointer, helping the Trail Blazers regain the lead.

The two sides engaged in a brief back-and-forth battle, with the Bulls gaining a slight advantage thanks to their home-court advantage.

The Trail Blazers' offense fell into isolation plays, but fortunately Petrovic had a good shooting night.

He found it difficult to organize the offense, so he simply took the ball himself, making consecutive drives and jump shots to keep the score close.

A substitute sixth man needs to have the ability and determination to take action as soon as he gets the ball.

When it came time for lineup rotation, Gan Guoyang came on to replace Sabonis, allowing the Lithuanian giant to rest for a while.

Grant remained on the court, but when Gan Guoyang entered the game, Grant clearly felt a sense of inferiority and retreat.

There's no way around it. Forrest Gump completely surrounded Grant. He was taller, much stronger, just as fast, or even faster, had greater explosiveness, and longer arms.

This all-around advantage left Grant, a versatile player, with no room to maneuver, and Grant was already thinking about taking a break later.

In tonight's game, Bobby Bellman did not field the inexperienced Antonio Davis to play alongside Gan Guoyang in the second quarter, but instead opted for the more experienced Pinckney.

He graduated from Pink Nile Villanova University and led his team all the way to the NCAA Finals. He can be called a prince among ordinary people. He has many characteristics similar to Grant, but his talent is not as great as Grant's.

He partnered with Gan Guoyang in the frontcourt, playing a more offensive, blue-collar supporting role. He could coordinate with Gan Guoyang in high and low posts, grabbing offensive rebounds and scoring second chances after Gan Guoyang drew the defense.

To put it bluntly, he was stealing chickens under Forrest Gump's protection, which he did better than Bryant and Davis. He had a very keen sense of smell under the basket.

Jordan also returned to the court for the Bulls, leading the bench unit. Both players focused on setting up and assisting their teammates, rather than engaging in a high-scoring shootout like they did in their younger days.

Gan Guoyang, in his high position, used his observational skills to direct and operate the Princeton system.

As Adelman said, developing Forrest Gump's playmaking and passing abilities is a good way to maintain the Trail Blazers' overall level.

After the departure of key members from the Divac and Hornacek organizations, the remaining organizational tasks fell squarely on Gan Guoyang's shoulders.

This season, Gan Guoyang's average assists per game have reached 6.1, which is the highest among interior players, even slightly more than Jordan.

Unlike Gan Guoyang, Jordan's assists mainly came from tearing apart the opponent's defense, seizing the opponent's defensive loopholes, and directly passing the ball to his teammates to create scoring opportunities.

Even though the Trail Blazers strictly adhered to their one-on-one defensive strategy, when Jordan drove to the basket, the team still had to help defend and leave players open.

Although Jordan and Grant didn't get along off the court, they had no problems playing together on the court. In fact, many of Jordan's assists were for Grant.

Whenever Jordan drove to the basket, Grant would skillfully cut to the basket from the weak side, either to receive the ball and attack the rim directly or to fight for the offensive rebound.

This move is very effective. As a counter-attack, it often allows you to capitalize on weaknesses and render the opponent's carefully laid defense ineffective.

However, Gan Guoyang was defending two players tonight. Whenever Jordan passed the ball to the inside, Gan Guoyang always had a way to quickly turn around and defend another one.

This infuriated Jordan, so he simply stopped passing the ball and decided it was better to attack the basket himself, as having the ball in his hands felt the most secure.

So in the second quarter, Jordan and Grant didn't manage to connect even once, let alone get any offensive rebounds.

Gan Guoyang is in the three-second zone, and the backcourt rebounding is impenetrable. When he fights for the rebound, he is imposing and aggressive, swinging his elbows and making fierce moves. He will occasionally kick in the air to tell his opponents not to try to take the rebound from him.

His rebounding style is a typical "arrogant" approach. He relies on his strength advantage and assumes he can definitely get the rebound from his position, leaving his opponents helpless.

So the opponent can only get the offensive rebound by luck; it has to bounce too far and be beyond Forrest Gump's control. If they don't have that kind of luck, there's nothing they can do.

Forrest Gump topped the rebounding list for seven consecutive years, starting from the 1984-1985 season. His rebounding ability was truly remarkable, a point that is easily overlooked by fans and experts.

Only those who are his opponents on the court can understand how painful it is to never be able to steal offensive rebounds or second-chance points.

Overall, the Bulls capitalized on a window of opportunity in the second quarter, utilizing Grant's strengths to close the gap.

The two sides then traded baskets. Jordan came out firing in the second quarter. With Grant shut down by Forrest and unable to get a second chance, Jordan maintained the score with his high one-on-one success rate. At halftime, the Bulls led the Trail Blazers by one point.

Jordan scored 15 points in the second quarter, bringing his halftime total to 22 points, the same as Forrest Gump, ending the first half. Clearly, the real battle was about to begin in the second half.

In the first half, one Bulls player had a poor performance: Pippen.

Aside from hitting a mid-range shot to score the team's first point at the start of the game, Pippen's performance was less than satisfactory afterward.

His outside shooting touch was mediocre, and he repeatedly failed to penetrate the paint—especially his layup attempt after receiving a pass from Jordan, which was blocked by Forrest Gump, a blow to him.

Jerome Cahill employed a self-defeating defensive strategy against Pippen throughout the first half, similar to Reggie Lewis's approach, which was also part of Bobby Bellman's strategy.

Tonight, Bellman decided to put the offensive burden on the center and guards, while the forwards, including Lewis, Korsey, and Mike Sanders, would engage in relentless defensive scrimmages to limit Jordan and Pippen.

It seems that Jordan will be difficult to contain. Lewis has already done his best, but Jordan will definitely perform beyond his usual level when facing Forrest Gump. Lewis will have no chance in a one-on-one fight.

However, they did a good job defending Pippen, which crippled the Bulls' offense. Pippen couldn't get going, and the Bulls had to rely more on Jordan.

In terms of offensive resources, the Trail Blazers have a few more cards to play than the Bulls, and Bellman took advantage of this to focus on wearing down Pippen.

As expected, Pippen's performance remained lackluster in the third quarter. Whenever he faced a double-team from Kossie and Agam, Pippen's ball handling was unsatisfactory.

Mistakes, ineffective defensive passes, and forced shots caused the Bulls' offense to become chaotic in the third quarter, allowing the Trail Blazers to quickly widen the gap.

Phil Jackson immediately called a timeout to make adjustments, knowing that Bellman had identified the key to the Bulls' problem—the Bulls relied heavily on Pippen's playmaking and organization on offense.

Instead of investing too much resources in Jordan and allowing others to flourish, it's better to focus on their second core player, leaving Jordan to fight alone.

Jackson understood that this was the biggest difference between Jordan and Forrest Gump: Forrest Gump did not fight alone; he had already proven that he could defeat his opponents alone.

Fortunately, Agan is an inside player, and he needs the support and passing from the outside players, so he still has certain weaknesses that can limit his teammates' support.

Jackson couldn't imagine how terrifying Forrest Gump would be if he were a pure perimeter player who could handle the ball extensively and launch attacks directly from the backcourt.

At this point, Jackson had no way to adjust the lineup anymore. The Bulls' roster depth was not as good as the Trail Blazers'. At the small forward position, besides Pippen, they only had Dennis Hopson, a 6-foot-5 guy who only averaged 4 points per game. He could not replace Pippen.

Therefore, Pippen must face the challenge head-on, find his own solutions, regain his form, and deliver a good performance.

But Pippen, with a long face, ignored Jackson's encouragement and returned to the court, handing over the offensive initiative to Jordan and Cartwright.

Jordan once again took up the mantle of the team's offense, repeatedly driving to the basket, either attacking the rim or passing the ball to the perimeter, allowing Paxson, Armstrong, and Hodges to make outside shots.

The good news for the Bulls is that their shooters were in excellent form tonight, with Paxson and Armstrong hitting consecutive long-range shots, including three-pointers, helping the Bulls turn the tide.

The Trail Blazers' Princeton offense struggled against the Bulls' high-pressure perimeter defense. After committing two turnovers and allowing the Bulls to launch fast breaks, Bobby Bellman called a timeout to adjust the tactics and let Agan take the lead.

"Give the ball to the best player on the team"—this is the choice that both Phil Jackson and Bobby Bellman, two excellent coaches, made when faced with this problem.

Gan Guoyang remains highly efficient in the low post. As long as the Bulls give him space for one-on-one isolation plays, Gan Guoyang's offensive success rate is around 80%.

Even when double-teamed, he can still achieve a 50% success rate. It takes three people to stop him, and they have to be very fast.

As expected, the game gradually turned into a passionate clash between Jordan and Forrest Gump. As the game progressed, sweat poured down their faces, and the two became increasingly engrossed in the match.

Gan Guoyang scored 14 points in the third quarter, while Jordan added 12 points and 4 assists. The two were sure to score over 40 points.

The two players didn't rest for a minute in the third quarter. When the fourth quarter started, Phil Jackson asked Jordan to sit on the bench, but Jordan refused.

He pointed to the opposite side, where Gan Guoyang had already entered the game. It looked like he was going to play the entire second half. Jordan said, "If you want to lose, put me on the bench. I want to win."

Jackson had no choice; he had controlled Jordan's playing time all season, but it looked like that wouldn't work in this game.

Gan Guoyang directly told Behrman, "If you replace me, I'll hang myself on your doorstep." — This was what Behrman had said to Forrest Gump back then; now it was Gan Guoyang's turn to threaten Behrman.

Berman shook his head and could only keep Gan Guoyang on the field.

At this point, no one could stop the two stars from launching a fierce attack in the fourth quarter.

The teammates all knew that the outcome of the game was in the leader's hands, so they kept supplying the two with ammunition.

The NBC commentators were so busy they couldn't keep up with the demands of the broadcast.

"Michael! Michael dashed into the paint, dodged, and scored a layup!"

"The Trail Blazers launched a fast break, and Agan charged ahead, received the ball, and drove to the basket for a dunk! He knocked Buck Williams away, drawing a foul and getting a free throw!"

Michael receives the ball and immediately makes a mid-range jump shot!

"Forrest Gump responded with a jump shot, wow! A beautiful mid-range jumper."

"Michael Jordan, crossover dribble, challenges Forrest Gump, layup and score!"

"The pick-and-roll between Forrest Gump and Porter, Forrest cuts to the outside, fakes a three-pointer, drives to the basket and makes a gliding layup! Nobody dares to stop him!"

If you only listen to it, the audience might think it's a boxing match, otherwise why are there only two names?
That's precisely what makes the Gan & Joe battle so captivating; no one else can get them to go all out and deliver such a spectacular clash.

The fans at the United Center in Chicago were on tenterhooks as the two players engaged in a fierce battle, almost exchanging goals and changing the lead.

At the most crucial moment of the game, Gan Guoyang passed the ball to Petrovic, who then hit a three-pointer!

This crucial three-pointer helped the Trail Blazers take a 110-108 lead over the Bulls by 2 points!
Phil Jackson called a timeout. He didn't expect that Gan Guoyang, who had already scored 52 points, would pass the ball to Petrovic for a three-pointer.

Jordan made a mistake on this play; he missed Petrovic and was focused on helping on defense. The two teams traded baskets throughout the fourth quarter with almost no passing, and then Forrest betrayed them in the final moments.

Jordan chewed gum, shook his head, and left the court, muttering, "That coward, that son of a bitch..."

But that's basketball—full of deception and trickery. Jordan made a mistake; he was always outmaneuvered by Forrest Gump.

However, the Bulls still have a chance. There are 7 seconds left in the game, enough for them to launch a successful offensive attack.

Phil Jackson devised a play, and Bellman set up the defense.

The timeout ended, and everyone's hearts were pounding—it was the crucial shot that would decide the outcome of the game.

For the Trail Blazers, Reggie Lewis gave Michael Jordan an easy pass on the perimeter.

As soon as Jordan received the ball, Lewis immediately rushed to steal it, while Jerome Kossie rushed up to double-team Jordan.

Two tall forwards surrounded Jordan, but Jordan didn't force his way through. Instead, he passed the ball to Pippen at the top of the key.

There was no one in front of Pippen. He could have taken a three-pointer, but he hesitated. He was in poor form tonight.

The Trail Blazers were deliberately letting him take a gamble.

Gan Guoyang had already rushed up, and Pippen, fearing his ability to block shots, chose to fake a move and then dribbled the ball inside.

Pippen pulls up for a jump shot! He chooses to drive and pull up for a jump shot, while Gan Guoyang jumps up to block it.

The shot was blocked! Pippen made a terrible choice. Instead of shooting a three-pointer or driving to the basket, why did he drive in and pull up for a jump shot?
Isn't this just looking for a hat?
Just when Bulls fans were feeling hopeless, the referee blew his whistle.

The referee pointed at Forrest Gump, indicating that he had committed a foul by hitting the opponent's hand.

Tonight's referee is the famously cold-faced robot, Darrell Garrison.

He has always been at odds with the Bulls, but in this play he sided with the home team, seemingly trying to prove that he wasn't targeting the Bulls.

Gan Guoyang and Berman both protested to Garretson, but the referee's decision could not be changed, and Pippen was given two free throws.

If the Bulls make both free throws, they can tie the game and force overtime.

The immense pressure fell on Pippen. After taking a deep breath, Pippen scored the first penalty.

The fans cheered briefly, but then fell silent as it was time for the second penalty kick.

At this moment, Gan Guoyang ran up to Pippen and said, "Scottie, your salary isn't even as much as our Pete's. You missed that shot. Your performance should be worthy of your salary."

Pippen visibly froze for a moment, then his release was clearly awkward, as if he thought, "Oh no, this shot..."

Sure enough, the ball hit the rim and missed. Jordan tried to drive to the basket for a putback, but Forrest spread his arms to block everyone and took the best position.

Jordan tried to force his way up and dunk over Gan Guoyang, but Gan jumped and blocked Jordan in mid-air, knocking him away and grabbing the crucial rebound with one hand.

After securing the rebound, the clock ticked, and the game ended. The Trail Blazers narrowly defeated the Bulls 110-109 on the road, winning their twelfth Gan-Jordan showdown.

Gan Guoyang scored 52 points and grabbed 20 rebounds, while Jordan scored 54 points. Jordan won in scoring but lost the game.

This marks the first time this season that the two have scored 50 points.

The United Center in Chicago seemed to have lost its string, and suddenly became incredibly disappointed. Jordan stormed back to the locker room.

Pippen left the court with his head down. He only scored 7 points and had 3 assists tonight, a performance that was far from satisfactory.

He knew that he would be met with Jordan's wrath and the contract issues that had been plaguing him.

(End of this chapter)