The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 805 Three Memories
When I try to recall the 1997 Western Conference Finals, everything is very, very clear.

From the moment the opening whistle blew, adrenaline levels soared, and the game became more intense than ever before.

Every time I touched the ball, it felt like the last few seconds before the end of a regular season game; my focus was extremely intense.

So everything was so clear and distinct, as if carved into the sea of ​​my memory.

My head is constantly buzzing, whether it's in the Rose Garden or the center of the triangle, it's deafeningly noisy.

All the players are surviving and breathing at a level they could never have imagined.

The reason for all this is that our opponent is the Portland Trail Blazers.

It's Forrest Gump.

—Excerpt from John Stockton's 2012 autobiography, Assisted.

Many memories of the 1997 season are already blurry, even though it was my first season as a coach.

Maybe it's because it's far away, or maybe it's because it's not perfect, but of course the most important reason is that my memory has deteriorated.

In the Western Conference semifinals, we eliminated the young Houston Rockets in six games. They played very well and had a chance to eliminate us at one point.

But we made timely adjustments. I changed the starting lineup, and Van Exel expressed his dissatisfaction, but of course I wouldn't compromise.

From then on, he never wore a Portland Trail Blazers jersey again. I respect the players, but they must understand that the coach's decision comes first.

Even Forrest Gump never openly opposed my decisions to my face. If he had any opinions, he would discuss them privately. He always handled this very well.

After defeating the Rockets, the Trail Blazers once again appeared on the Western Conference Finals stage, facing the Utah Jazz.

This is the eleventh time that Forrest has led the Trail Blazers to the Western Conference Finals. For him, reaching the conference finals every season is a guaranteed minimum.

I'm hoping to make a breakthrough and get back to the finals, otherwise what's the difference between me and PJ Carlesimo?
Despite the absence of Van Exel, the semifinals proved that young players like Kobe and Jermaine O'Neal are trustworthy.

Kobe, in particular, delivered crucial performances in the following games. After winning against the Rockets, he was so emotional that he shouted, "Bring the Utah City guys on!"

I had to remind him, "Kid, Utah is a state, not a city." (Karl Malone reportedly made the same mistake; a common problem among those with low cultural literacy.)
The first game was held in Salt Lake City, where the fans were incredibly enthusiastic and the noise was so loud it was almost maddening. Even if you did nothing, you would feel tense and irritable just being there.

Because Van Exel was suspended indefinitely, I continued to start Terry Porter, who had an outstanding performance against the Jazz.

But times have changed, and Stockton and Hornacek have put on a dominant performance from the perimeter, just like they did during the regular season.

Stockton, in particular, scored 25 points in the first game, which is unusual for him – in contrast, he only dished out 8 assists.

He was attacking with all his might, and his three-pointers from the outside were incredibly accurate. Our perimeter defense had many weaknesses, which he exploited one by one.

We can't expect Forrest Gump to cover the three-point line; he has more important work to do inside.

The problems from the regular season are still unresolved; we need a sharp outside player to counter Stockton and Hornacek.

These two white players are incredibly slick and intelligent, which is exactly our problem – the young players lack defensive experience.

The matchup between Porter and Stockton has been reversed; he can no longer score 40 points over Stockton, and his defense is struggling to cope with the Jazz's fast and well-coordinated passing on the perimeter.

We unfortunately lost the first game, but we still had a chance until the very end. Agan hit three-pointers in a row to catch up.

But as I said before, no one is truly infallible; he will always miss, and then the Jazz will regain control of the game, and we will lose hope.

I'm pinning my hopes on Kobe, hoping things will improve in the second game. I've assigned him to guard Stockton.

But as it turns out, putting pressure on a young rookie is unreliable, even for rookie Forrest Gump, who still lost the game.

In the second game, the Jazz were firing on all cylinders, while we were ice cold and lost in the noise of Salt Lake City.

Kobe was outmaneuvered by Stockton's passing. He was too young and inexperienced, full of enthusiasm but led by the nose by the seasoned Stockton.

Stockton scored 17 points and had 18 assists in this game, and John unleashed tremendous power when facing Forrest Gump.

Everyone knows that they are close friends and teammates in college, and they won the NCAA championship together.

Compared to Forrest Gump's dazzling brilliance, John is always the one who gets overlooked, but in reality, he has a lot of energy.

In the 1992 Olympics, John's appearance in the final against Forrest Gump and China was the key to changing the game.

He knew Forrest Gump too well. He knew Forrest's strengths, his playing style, how to avoid him, how to move him around, and how to pass the right ball to his teammates.

I can see through him, but I can't stop him, and I can't get on the field.

When we left Salt Lake City, everyone thought we were out of the game, that we had been defeated.

Forrest Gump's 1996 comeback was destined to end in disappointment, as his performance had already been truly remarkable.

He won the regular season MVP award, was crowned with four major statistical categories, and his personal achievements are unprecedented and unimaginable.

It was beautiful enough. When I returned to Portland, I comforted myself, "There's nothing wrong with being as beautiful as PJ Carlesimo."

Yes, isn't PJ also a member of the Dream Team coaching staff?
A reporter asked me to share my thoughts on referees, as refereeing issues are a focal point every year during the playoffs.

The Jazz's defense in Salt Lake City was rough; they kept pushing, blocking, and kicking, and Jerry Sloan was constantly swearing.

And they were very cunning in saying nice things to Forrest Gump. Yes, they took turns praising him and then hurling insults at his teammates—including me.

I suspect that Forrest Gump didn't even know how much malice the Jazz harbored towards us during the game; he was completely blind and deaf to it.

The arena was too noisy; if Hornacek trash-talked Kobe, Forrest Gump, positioned under the basket, wouldn't be able to hear it.

In the end, I only said a few words and didn't want to talk too much about the rulings; that's my style.

Complaining about the referee might have some effect, but sometimes it can backfire.

Without a doubt, the referees have changed since I started playing.

I've always felt that refereeing is a very demanding and thankless job.

If you are unhappy about something, you can often escape some punishment by simply talking to them.

It's useless to hurl insults at them or to complain after the game.

And now the referees are more concerned about their image than before. They behave very differently; they want to be part of the performance.

Earl Strom is one of my favorite referees, and he's part of the show, but he never loses control of the game.

Ultimately, he will make a fair call because it was a real foul, not because Forrest Gump is a superstar that no one can touch.

Earl is fair in this respect; if you are the twelfth person and you are attacked, you will receive the same respect as a star.

Of course, Earl is biased towards Forrest Gump, and the two have a good relationship, but this mainly occurs during fights.

However, when we returned to Portland for the third and fourth games, the referees did give us some more favorable treatment.

We got more free throws, we played more aggressively, and our defense was more aggressive without being called for fouls. Back at home, Agan delivered a dominant performance, scoring 41 points in one game and 44 in another, giving the team control from the start.

We tied the series, and then the narrative started to shift again, with people thinking the Jazz were finished and going to lose to Forrest Gump again.

The media is always opportunistic, and people are particularly prone to being misled by the current situation, leading them to make irrational judgments about the future.

Even in the same game, if one side plays very smoothly and takes the lead at a certain stage, some people will celebrate at halftime, thinking how amazing they are.

However, basketball is actually a dynamic competition. The state and performance of both sides fluctuate and go back and forth repeatedly. Many factors can affect the course and outcome of the game.

A particular stage, a particular section, or a particular event cannot often be used as the basis for determining the final outcome; we ourselves will have a deeper understanding of the situation.

In fact, there were some bad situations within the team at the time. Porter twisted his ankle in Game 4 and had to miss Game 5, which was fatal.

Because we no longer had a point guard, I had to move Kobe to the point guard position, while also having Agan increase his outside ball-handling and playmaking.

This was very taxing for Forrest Gump. He was very versatile, but he had a lot of work to do on the defensive end, and on the offensive end, the low post was a more comfortable place.

Now he has to dribble, organize, and screen for his teammates. This might be fine in the regular season, but it's too difficult in the playoffs.

Game 5 in Salt Lake City was an exceptionally tough game for us. We scored 91 points, and our offense was sluggish, monotonous, and lacked any creativity.

Stockton scored 35 points in this game, a career high, which is simply incredible.

The Jazz scored 100 points, with Stockton contributing more than a third of the team's total, demonstrating his incredibly strong desire to win.

But we didn't want to give up. Forrest Gump didn't want to, neither did I, and nobody wanted to. At that moment, I realized that something about the Trail Blazers had been passed down and had finally come to the fore.

Back at the hotel, the first thing we did was review the video of Game 5 together, point out the problems, and remind everyone that the series was not over and we had to fight to the very last moment.

In Game 6, I used a very bold starting lineup. I put Forrest Gump at point guard, then put Ben Wallace on the court to play power forward to defend Karl Malone, and PJ Brown at center.

Ben's role is to relieve Forrest Gump's defensive pressure, allowing him to focus most of his energy on offense.

This tactic worked very well. Ben and Jermaine took turns playing, and I was afraid they would make mistakes if they stayed too long.

But they didn't. They did a great job and weren't overwhelmed by Karl Malone.

Meanwhile, Agan orchestrated the team's offense, and we scored 110 points to defeat the Jazz, tying the series 3-3.

After the game, everyone was interviewing Ben, who contributed two blocks. His strength and defensive instincts were impressive, and he wasn't dominated by Karl.

He calmly replied, "I was just doing my job."

It went to a Game 7, with each team winning their home game. If we want to make it to the Finals, we have to win in Salt Lake City.

The difficulty of a tiebreaker lies in the fact that many things we take for granted will fail in such a game, and in the end, you never know what will decide the outcome.

Before the game, I was extremely nervous, much more so than when I was a player. I hid in the locker room, away from everyone, away from the cameras and microphones.

NBC reporter Jim Gray is even more awful than I imagined.

Before the seventh game, I had to turn the whiteboard to the wall so that no one could see what was on it.

Sure enough, Jim Gray appeared in our locker room, trying to turn the game board back so he could see our tactics.

He's not a Jazz spy; he just wants to use these clips to boost ratings, but we don't want him to do that.

During a timeout in the game, Gray came over and tried to eavesdrop on our discussion.

Forrest Gump went over to warn him, "If you come over and ask questions again, I'll punch your head into your ass."

As expected, the situation on the field was chaotic, with frequent mishaps and numerous mistakes, but also one unreasonable goal after another.

The Jazz remained methodical, but we played somewhat unbelievably. Even more unbelievably, the score went back and forth until the very last moment.

The Jazz began to relentlessly surround Agan, which created an open shot on the perimeter in the final three minutes.

Then came the nerve-wracking moment. In the final three minutes, out of our five offensive possessions, no one dared to take a shot except for Forrest Gump and Kobe Bryant.

Forrest Gump passes the ball out, and it drifts on the perimeter, either returning to Forrest Gump's hands or being passed to Kobe Bryant for a shot.

Kobe took three shots, but none of them went in. Under intense defense and suffocating pressure, his shots didn't even touch the rim.

Two of them were caught by Forrest Gump and scored under the basket, but the last one, which was also the most crucial, was ridiculously short.

Forrest Gump's arms were too short to reach the ball, and he also gave the Jazz a fast break. Malone received a long pass from Stockton and made a layup.

That shot ended the game, ended the series, ended the Portland Trail Blazers' season, and ended my first year as a coach.

—Excerpt from *Bird Watching*, published in 1999, co-authored by Larry Bird and Jackie Macmullan.

In the summer of 1997, I can't remember many things, but I remember some things very clearly.

Of course, I know that human memory can be deceiving. Some people say they remember things clearly, but in reality, those may be images that your brain imagines and fills in later. The actual situation may be quite different.

Some people say everything is blurred, yet they can't forget those blurred things.

I felt a great sense of relief after resigning from the Lakers, as if the heavy burden that had been weighing on my shoulders for years had finally been lifted.

I clearly remember that day when I came out of the Lakers' headquarters. The weather was fine and sunny, and the sunlight felt very comfortable on my face.

Years later, when I talked to Jerry about that day, he said it was drizzling in Los Angeles. I said that was impossible, that he must be mistaken. He said no, he had a very good memory.

After resigning, I didn't talk to anyone. I went to New Jersey and locked myself away for a while, spending my days freely sleeping, watching TV, and dating.

John actually beat Forrest Gump in the Western Conference Finals. He was wearing sexy shorts and jumping around, but he later denied it, saying it was a composite.

The Jazz made it to the Finals, but unfortunately, 1997 still belonged to the Chicago Bulls. Apart from Forrest Gump, no one could beat Michael Jordan in the Finals.

However, none of this mattered to me at the time. I was worried about my next job, whether I should go back to university or go for an interview with an NBA team.

During the Finals, I received a call from ML Karl, the Celtics' operations manager, who asked if I was interested in coaching the Celtics.

My heart was racing because I knew the Celtics were lucky enough to get the number one pick in 1997, and they would get Tim Duncan. Everyone thought he would be the next Forrest Gump.

I calmed myself down and said I was willing, but I didn't know what the Celtics' requirements were.

ML-Karl said, "Turn Duncan into Forrest Gump."

Oh, well, nobody in the world understands Forrest Gump better than me.

By the way, ML-Carl probably didn't say that at the time.

After all, there are some memories I can no longer recall.

—Excerpt from Bobby Bellman's autobiography, Moonlight, published in 2005.

(End of Volume One, "The Clock That Goes Against the Tide.")
(End of this chapter)