The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 777 Beat Him
O'Neal only thought for 0.1 seconds under the basket before realizing where he was.

Gan Guoyang poked the ball out of his hands from behind, then circled around and snatched it back, successfully defending against the shark's first attack.

The Trail Blazers launched a counterattack. Gan Guoyang dribbled the ball across half-court and made a through pass from the middle to the three-point line, where Van Exel received the ball and made a layup.

But the shot missed; he was successfully defended by Jason Kidd, and his layup attempt failed. Kidd then grabbed the ball and reorganized the offense.

O'Neal was still under the basket when Kidd's long pass flew towards him as if it had eyes. O'Neal caught the ball, turned around, and was about to dunk.

However, PJ Brown, who came over to help defend, pinned him down, and the referee called a foul on PJ Brown, sending O'Neal to the free-throw line.

Stepping onto the free-throw line, O'Neal, who had just played two possessions, was already covered in sweat. He realized he had been distracted.

"Focus, Shaq. You're guarding me, and you're thinking about other things?" Gan Guoyang kindly reminded O'Neal as he took a free throw.

"I didn't, I..."

"Bah!"

He missed the first free throw, and as soon as the ball left his hand, O'Neal knew it was gone; the shot went a little off target.

"Focus on Shaq!" Gan Guoyang reminded him again, but such reminders only made O'Neal more easily distracted.

"Bah!"

The second shot also missed, this time even more wildly off target, hitting the very front of the rim with a straight arc like a bullet.

O'Neal's free throw percentage has been getting worse and worse in the last two years; when he first entered the league, he had a decent 59%.

Then it got worse year by year, dropping below 50% in the 1995-1996 season, and this season it's even lower at a career low of 48.4%.

Therefore, PJ Brown's defensive foul was worthwhile. Berman shook his head on the sidelines, saying that O'Neal would have definitely dunked that ball in a normal situation.

Even if the one-point play is unlikely to be successful, it's still better than missing both free throws, which is equivalent to missing an entire offensive possession.

"This kid is under a lot of psychological pressure facing Forrest Gump. He's afraid of Forrest Gump, so his reaction speed has slowed down and he's not confident enough when he does things."

Bellman could see O'Neal's unnaturalness; the recent turnover and the missed 2+1 play were all signs of a lack of confidence.

The trauma of being brutally beaten by Gan Guoyang during his first regular season encounter in the 1992-1993 season is still too great for O'Neal to shake off to this day.

"Forrest Gump really went too far back then, but it was effective." Behrman witnessed the process and knew that Forrest Gump did it on purpose.

Every step that seems casual and easily shatters you is actually a meticulously designed one, which is what makes Forrest Gump so terrifying.

Bellman's decision to have O'Neal guard Forrest Gump tonight wasn't to sabotage him, but rather to encourage O'Neal to overcome his fear through confrontation.

During his time coaching O'Neal, Bellman inevitably compared O'Neal to Forrest Gump, and there were too many things about O'Neal that made Bellman sigh and shake his head.

Especially in terms of personality, this kid is too playful and doesn't have the self-discipline and leadership qualities of Forrest Gump at all.

The first thing he did upon arriving in Los Angeles that summer was to buy a Ferrari. Since he couldn't fit everyone in it, he spent over ten thousand dollars modifying the car.

The engine was moved and the fuel tank was modified so that his large rear end could fit into the low-slung cabin of the Ferrari. The price paid for this was that the car's fuel tank was so small that it could only hold 9 dollars' worth of fuel.

Nine yuan! Just step on the gas and drive around in front of my house for a bit and the gas's gone.

He even went to a Rolls-Royce dealership to buy a car, where he ran into Mike Tyson. Tyson wanted to buy two cars, so he wanted to buy three.

He spent a lot of money to commission a diamond-encrusted watch from a watch dealer, but after wearing it for two days, he gave it to his cousin, leaving his agent helpless.

He also trained hard, spending two or three hours every day in the gym and stadium, practicing free throws until his wrists swelled up, but he was definitely not Forrest Gump.

Compared to any center in history, O'Neal was exceptionally talented, but against Forrest Gump, his greatest strength and size advantages seemed unremarkable.

In other aspects, such as mobility, defense, shooting range, and playmaking, the overall decline caused a gem like O'Neal to be seen by Bellman as a Forrest Gump with significant shortcomings in all areas.

Berman tried to like O'Neal, tailored a tactical system for him, and coaxed him every day to make him happy while playing.

Coaching O'Neal for a month felt more difficult to Bellman than coaching Forrest Gump for his entire career.

Of course, once Bellman stops comparing Forrest Gump to Shaquille O'Neal, he'll realize that this lively and fun-loving young man is indeed a basketball prodigy.

He can simplify the game and give the team a so-easier offensive option, just like Forrest Gump did back in the day.

Although he doesn't delve deeply into the technical aspects and doesn't refine certain details to the extreme like Forrest Gump, Jordan, or Olajuwon, he still possesses a certain level of technical expertise.

However, given his physical attributes, explosive power, and agility, his ability to utilize moves such as back turn, hook shot, and basic footwork under the basket is enough to create a significant low-post threat.

He is the first player in recent years, besides Forrest Gump, to have a two-point field goal percentage close to 60%—only Forrest Gump could reach or exceed 60% (given a certain number of shots).

Few in the league can withstand the move of turning around quickly and then turning back to receive a back turn.

With his physique, turning technique, and explosive power, he is truly a genius of unparalleled talent.

He was completely different from Forrest Gump in terms of personality; he was a sensitive and somewhat petty big boy.

Shaquille O'Neal's most distinctive personality trait is the underlying inferiority complex and arrogance hidden beneath his playful and humorous smile.

Deep down, this big guy harbors resentment towards everything in the world, especially those serious, seemingly superior things.

He was always defiant, but he wasn't the type to confront you head-on with a "I'm not convinced, I'll kill you" attitude. Instead, he was the type to say, "I'm not convinced, but I won't show it. I just look down on you in my heart, so I won't do things your way and I'll do things my own way."

From an athlete's perspective, this is not necessarily a bad thing; only a player with a defiant attitude can reach the top.

But O'Neal's problem is that if he encounters someone who makes him completely obedient, he really won't have a temper at all.

Forrest Gump is the one who makes him completely obedient, so O'Neal's biggest problem now is how to face Forrest Gump and how to overcome the obstacles in his mind.

Even if you're not as good as Forrest Gump, you should at least give 100% of your ability every time you face the Trail Blazers, right?
You can't let Forrest Gump's health drop to 60% or 70% after just one fight, or even drop to zero like Cartwright did.

Bellman didn't want O'Neal to play in the shadows forever, just as he himself didn't want to coach in the shadows forever.
-

O'Neal missed both free throws, and Gan Guoyang firmly controlled the rebound, dribbling the ball across half-court for a fast break—a tactic that greatly troubled O'Neal.

In the entire league, apart from Forrest Gump, no other center plays like that. On offense, he can be as ferocious as a wild beast in the low post, and he can also dribble, organize, and penetrate on the perimeter like a cunning fox.

O'Neal felt it was unfair that he had to sacrifice mobility and size in order to gain unparalleled power.

In his fifth year in the league, he weighed over 330 pounds, a truly terrifying weight.
No player in the league comes close to that weight, let alone someone as agile and fast as O'Neal.

This gave O'Neal unparalleled destructive power in the low post, making him virtually unstoppable for most centers.

But there are two people who can stop him: Forrest Gump and Karl Malone.

Karl Malone relied on his honed muscles, while Forrest Gump relied on muscles honed just like Malone's, as well as physical gifts that rivaled Shaquille O'Neal's.

At the same time, Forrest Gump did not sacrifice his mobility at all; he remained fast and agile, and could play on the court like an outside player.

Most importantly, his shooting accuracy is incredible, and his free throw percentage is historically accurate, even better than Jordan's.

Shaquille O'Neal was already the pinnacle of agility among humans of similar build, yet he possessed the freakish qualities of Forrest Gump.

When Gan Guoyang dribbled and drove straight in, he caused O'Neal a lot of trouble on the defensive end. How should he defend against him?
Should I follow the defender? How should I follow? If I don't, and I leave my assigned player alone, what will happen to my teammates' defense?
Audis Thorpe took the initiative to guard Gan Guoyang. Gan Guoyang turned around and backed Thorpe, driving all the way to the basket, and then made a light hook shot.

Thorpe was strong enough for a power forward, but he was never a match for Forrest Gump. He couldn't keep up at all, and defending him one-on-one was just giving away points.

"Shaq, why didn't you come to defend me? Why did you send Audis over? Audis is too old."

“I’m not old yet, Sonny,” Thorpe retorted.

O'Neal didn't respond at all, he just kept charging towards the frontcourt.

Kidd passed the ball to O'Neal again, and O'Neal overpowered Gan Guoyang in the low post.

This time, he didn't hesitate or think too much. He lowered his shoulder and thrust in with great force.

He knew that Gan Guoyang was as hard as a rock, so he used all his strength in this move. Unexpectedly, Gan Guoyang fell to the ground.

The referee blew his whistle and called an offensive foul on O'Neal, which made O'Neal very frustrated.

Then, Gan Guoyang signaled to slow down, as he wanted to take down O'Neal again in the low post.

They quickly positioned themselves in the low post, received the ball, and without any hesitation, swiftly turned inside and moved towards the center.

A long stride, a beautiful moonhook, a perfect arc, and the ball hits accurately.

On the defensive end, Gan Guoyang switched to fronting O'Neal to prevent him from receiving the ball.

O'Neal quickly turned inside, and Kidd delivered a beautiful high lob, creating an alley-oop opportunity.

However, Gan Guoyang anticipated O'Neal's jump timing, and the two jumped simultaneously. Gan Guoyang intercepted the ball in mid-air. O'Neal still managed to control the ball, dribbled inside, and then turned to prepare for a powerful dunk.

Gan Guoyang delivered a precise chop, knocking the ball out of O'Neal's hands and retrieving it back to his teammate before it went out of bounds.

O'Neal stood frozen under the basket, watching the lost ball without any reaction. The Trail Blazers didn't launch a counterattack either, but waited for Gan Guoyang to return to his position.

The ball was passed to Gan Guoyang in the low post again. This time it was a shallow position. Gan Guoyang received the ball, and the Lakers came over from the top post to double-team him.

Gan Guoyang turned to face the basket and drove hard from the baseline with his left hand to the basket – his speed wasn't fast, but his rhythm was excellent.

Gan Guoyang could have easily outmaneuvered O'Neal with a step-back jumper followed by a mid-range shot.

But in order to show his son, who was watching TV, how to play as a center, he chose to attack the basket and eventually scored with a layup despite Thorpe's help defense.

"You still won't admit you're old, Audis!" Gan Guoyang wasn't going to let his old friend Thorpe off the hook either.

Thorpe could only shake his head. He knew that Forrest Gump was definitely going to go on a killing spree tonight, using O'Neal to establish his authority, so it was better for him to stay away.

In the first quarter, O'Neal was suppressed by Gan Guoyang in almost every possession, causing him to become increasingly restricted and play more and more timidly.

Halfway through the game, Jason Kidd stopped feeding the ball to O'Neal and instead sped up the pace, using speed to push for fast breaks as much as possible.

Jerry Buss is determined to build a new Show-time offense. He believes that if Magic Johnson could coexist with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Jason Kidd could naturally team up with Shaquille O'Neal as well.

In fact, Kidd and O'Neal did create some unique sparks in certain games.

Despite his massive size, Shaquille O'Neal was truly the fastest and most agile player of his size.

In some games, when things get exciting, O'Neal can get involved in fast breaks, and no one can stop this tank from driving into the paint to catch the ball and dunk.

Once a defender sees O'Neal charging towards them, their first reaction is to dodge; no one would be foolish enough to try and stop him.

Even Gan Guoyang, if he saw a 330-pound mountain of flesh charging towards him, would have to think twice before letting the ball go.

But there's a prerequisite for this kind of scene: the players are having fun, the game is going smoothly, they're opening up in the low post, and O'Neal is playing with excitement.

At this point in the game, there can be several such breathtaking moments that elevate the team's morale to its peak.

But once the team falls into a disadvantageous position, and O'Neal can't score in the low post and is repeatedly frustrated under the basket, he won't be interested in running back and forth with Kidd anymore.

O'Neal couldn't run back and forth between the two sides like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar did throughout the entire game; he had to slow down and play a lot of positional battles to find his rhythm.

In the first quarter, with O'Neal unable to score, the Lakers tied the Trail Blazers 24-23, trailing by only one point.

Because Kidd made timely adjustments, utilizing Steve Smith and Byron Scott to continuously attack the Trail Blazers' perimeter.

Kidd was completely unaffected by Van Exel's defense, even when there was no one in front of him. He organized attacks, counterattacked, and backed down to attack inside.

Kidd is very similar to Magic Johnson in many ways: tall stature and a well-balanced physique with speed, strength, and explosiveness, though not particularly explosive.

He possesses exceptional fast break ability, excellent ball-handling and penetration skills to attack the basket in half-court situations, and a long-range shooting ability that was criticized in his early career.

Kidd's free throw percentage this season is only 67%, and his and O'Neal's combined free throw percentage is just over 100%.

It's no wonder that Berman was frustrated and West was depressed when his two top players couldn't even take free throws.

However, Kidd's court judgment and vision are truly exceptional. With O'Neal contained, he orchestrated the Lakers' offense very well.

By increasing the pace, he helped the Lakers break free from the Trail Blazers' double frontcourt defense of Forrest Gump and PJ Brown. With those two on the court, it was very difficult for them to penetrate the paint in half-court sets.

Once the pace picks up, it becomes easier to launch attacks from the perimeter, and the Trail Blazers' weak perimeter defense is more likely to be exposed.

Anyway, Van Exel got thoroughly beaten by Kidd in the first quarter, which can be considered Kidd's revenge for his older brother Payton - Van Exel always plays arrogantly and domineeringly when facing Payton.

Kidd was born in San Francisco and grew up in Oakland. Payton was his predecessor, just as Forrest Gump was Payton's predecessor.

Years later, Payton recalled, "In 1982, Sonny left Oakland for Gonzaga, and I went to high school and began to dominate the San Francisco area. By 1986, I had left Oakland for Oregon, and Jason had emerged, becoming the new star of the Oakland area. By then, Forrest Gump was already an NBA champion, and I would come back every summer to teach Kidd a lot of useful things on the court. Just like Forrest Gump educated me in Oregon."

From this perspective, Kidd should call Gan Guoyang his advisor.

Larry Bird decided to assign the task of guarding Kidd to Kobe and Riddell, and couldn't let Van Exel keep feeding kills.

Gan Guoyang reminded Kobe and Riddell, "Defend against his drives and passes, let him shoot. His shooting threat is not as great as his drives and passes."

On the other side, on the Lakers' bench, Kidd and Bellman complained, "We need to open up the paint, otherwise we won't be able to keep up later."

The blame was placed on O'Neal, who failed to score a single point in the first quarter. He missed all five of his field goal attempts, had the ball stolen, and also failed to make any free throws.

For a center like O'Neal who often gets the game going at the start, his performance in the first quarter was simply disastrous.

In defense, he was completely outmaneuvered by Gan Guoyang's diverse techniques and experienced methods, and was led by the nose.

Bellman squatted down in front of O'Neal, looking at O'Neal's somewhat bewildered eyes, and made O'Neal look at him.

"Look at me, I'm giving you a task. Listen carefully, you must complete it tonight."

"Shaq, look at me!"

O'Neal then looked at Bellman, wondering what kind of trouble the coach was up to.

Are you trying to give me a pep talk now? Screw that, I don't believe in that stuff.

"Shaq, I'm giving you a task: you have to beat up Forrest Gump on the court."

"what?"

O'Neal snapped to attention, and the confusion in his eyes vanished instantly.

"I want you to fight Forrest Gump, do you understand?"

"I don't know, Coach. I didn't hear you."

"I want you to hit him! You have to do it tonight!"

"But…"

"There are no buts. You can do whatever you want—boxing, wrestling, sumo—you have to fight Forrest Gump. I have no other requirements for you."

There are no other requirements yet, but this one requirement alone is enough to drive me crazy, okay?

The break between the two teams is very short, and it's time for both teams to take the field.

O'Neal shook his head slightly; he couldn't believe that Behrman had given him such a task.

I was just bad at playing basketball before, are you trying to kill me now?

The second quarter is about to begin. O'Neal is resting on the bench, and Gan Guoyang is also resting.

“Sonny has been consciously putting you down, starting from your first year in the NBA, from your very first game against him. It’s his habit to plant a psychological shadow on every rookie, preventing them from performing at their true potential. And the best way to break free from this shadow is to fight him. Believe me, it’s much simpler than using basketball.”

O'Neal sat on the bench, a towel wrapped around his head like an Indian, his mind racing.

"What if the psychological trauma is even greater after the fight? Do you know how good Forrest Gump was at fighting? You want to ruin my Bobby?"

"Trust me, Shaq. This is the most effective way. Trust me. Throw your punches boldly and take him down hard. That's all you need to do. I'll put you in after the timeout. You need to get this done as quickly as possible. Don't overthink it, understand?!"

Bellman was more stern than ever before, and O'Neal could only nod, his heart pounding.

Beat up Forrest Gump? O'Neal never imagined he would have to do something like that.

Images of Forrest Gump's victims flashed through his mind... Laimbeer, Rodman, Gilmore, Thomas, Melvin Tppin, Charles Oakley...

They were all notorious villains, yet they all fell at Forrest Gump's feet. Was he going to become one of them?
“Shaq, you’re not scared, are you?” Bellman suddenly asked.

"Who said I wouldn't dare? Who said that? I...I dare, just you wait and see, Coach, I'm not afraid of him at all!"

Four minutes into the second quarter, Bellman called a timeout to substitute O'Neal back into the game.

O'Neal took a deep breath, looking even more nervous in the locker room before the game, his eyes revealing a resolute determination as if he were facing certain death.

"Coach, I..."

"Stop talking, I've been praying for you. Play well, kid."

O'Neal swallowed hard, not taking in a single word of Bellman's subsequent tactical instructions.

He followed his teammates onto the court, went to the three-second zone to face off against Forrest Gump, and made a tough decision to go all out.

(End of this chapter)