The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 132 - 32: Caring About You

Substituting for Gan Guoyang wasn’t a post player, but Drexler.

Ramsay fielded a smaller lineup to further strengthen the team’s offensive firepower.

Ramsay is an offensive-minded coach. When the game gets intense, he kneels on one knee at the sidelines and yells, "run, run, run!"

"Don’t be the last one, get running!"

He likes his players to run; he believes scoring opportunities are always created by running, and it is the continuous effort that can enhance offensive efficiency.

Sitting on the sideline, Gan Guoyang thought to himself, no wonder Walton had so many injuries; all this running is hard on the legs. It is less likely to get injured wrestling in the post, and if you do get hurt, it’s often a physical injury that heals quickly.

After Drexler came on, the smaller Trail Blazers lineup became even more relentless on offense.

Vandeweghe found his shooting touch after a quarter and fully unleashed it in the second, embarking on his scoring spree.

This UCLA-educated forward of German descent had exceptional offensive skills. As a White player, he was very adept at using his body to create shooting space and possessed a superb shooting form.

At a time when many players used a straight-arm shooting style, Vandeweghe was one of the few in the League who consistently shot with a bent arm and maintained a stable shooting form after release, which was quite beautiful.

Straight-arm shots are suitable for mid-to-close range to effectively deal with blocking interference, but they are not as effective from long range.

Bent-arm shots can be more stable and effective from mid-to-long range, but can be easily blocked at close distances.

In the era without a three-point line, the closer to the basket, the easier to score, which is why perimeter players also favored straight-arm shots to counter the tall centers’ blocks and interference.

Vandeweghe was considered a pioneer of bent-arm long-range shooting and one of the few in the League who attempted many three-pointers.

Gan Guoyang was one of the rare players who could shoot both straight-arm and bent-arm shots. He used straight-arm shots inside, and bent-arm shots for long distances; this was a result of his immense shooting practice combined with his natural shooting talent.

With Drexler on the floor, Vandeweghe continued to catch and shoot successfully in set plays, and the Trail Blazers began to rack up points quickly.

In the fast-paced game, Drexler demonstrated an exceptional ability to find opportunities and pass the ball.

Facing Vandeweghe’s hot hand, the Kansas Kings didn’t implement any specific defensive strategies. It was more like "you score, I also score"; if you score a lot, I’ll try to score even more.

The two teams launched into an offensive battle in the second quarter, with both sides’ scores soaring upward.

By the middle of the second quarter, both teams went into their rotation phase, and Gan Guoyang re-entered the game, replacing Mychal Thompson.

At this time, he knew it was his turn to start scoring points.

Then, the Kansas Kings put the rookie Audie Norris on the court to match up against Gan Guoyang.

"Audie, I need to score some points in a bit, do me a favor and don’t defend too tightly," said Gan Guoyang when he saw an acquaintance, always poking some fun.

"Don’t joke, I can’t stop you," replied Norris, fully aware that he couldn’t guard Gan Guoyang.

However, when Gan Guoyang jockeyed for position in the post, Norris didn’t hold back at all with his hands.

The Kansas Kings probably just liked to recruit sturdy inside players like Norris and Lasalle.

But their sturdiness seemed rather wanting in the presence of Gan Guoyang.

Gan Guoyang’s first offensive move was to catch the ball in the low post and quickly turn inside for a jump shot.

With his forward-leaning, pressurized straight-arm shot, Norris couldn’t even jump to interfere, and Gan Guoyang scored two points.

Gan Guoyang and Drexler slapped hands; Drexler’s pass was really comfortable.

Norris sighed and went to the baseline to inbound; the Kings’ offense wasn’t having the desired effect. Head coach Jack McKinney nearly built a dynasty with the Lakers, but a severe bicycle accident ended that, and his coaching was never the same afterward.

Trying to replicate the Lakers’ success with the Kings was unrealistic; they simply didn’t have the same talent. McKinney coached the Kings for 10 games, winning only one before resigning and never taking a head coach position again.

Once Gan Guoyang was on the court, scoring in the three-second zone became difficult for the Kings, as Gan Guoyang directed his teammates on defense.

The entire Trail Blazers’ perimeter defense stepped up a level.

Norris tried a hook shot after cutting to the basket and turning around, but it was disrupted by Gan Guoyang and missed.

After a scuffle under the basket, Eddie Johnson grabbed the ball, but his shot was blocked by Gan Guoyang.

The Kings players could clearly feel that the Trail Blazers’ defense with Gan Guoyang on the floor was a notch above what it had been before.

Ramsay was quite satisfied with Gan Guoyang’s ability to protect the basket under the rim. He was a bit shorter than Walton, but his wingspan didn’t suffer, and he had better explosiveness and reaction speed. Plus, after blocking shots, he always managed to secure ball possession.

Isn’t this just like Bill Russell back in the day?

As Ramsay was praising Guoyang in his mind, the Trail Blazers launched a counterattack.

The Kansas Kings retreated quickly, the Trail Blazers’ fast break turned into a set play, and Drexler slowed things down to control the pace.

He passed the ball back to Guoyang at the top of the arc, figuring the center would simply transition the ball.

Guoyang received the ball and saw Norris heading towards the basket. Are you not guarding me?

With no one within two meters in front of him, Guoyang raised his hand and shot a three-pointer!

The players on the court, the spectators off the court, and the radio commentators at the courtside broadcaster’s table were all shocked.

"Sonny Gan gets the ball at the top of the arc, he... he chooses to shoot a three-pointer... and the ball actually goes in! The ball’s in!"

The local radio commentator in Kansas got excited all of a sudden, probably startling the listeners following the play-by-play on the radio.

Back then, very few players shot three-pointers, usually only as a last resort, and the shooting percentage was very low.

When one went in, the arena would erupt in cheers, as if it were a major celebration—especially since Guoyang was a center.

The image people had of centers who shot three-pointers was perhaps only of that White center from Detroit who would occasionally take one, and even then, maybe one shot every two or three games, with a basket every four or five.

Seeing Guoyang sink a three-pointer, many in the audience felt the ticket price was already worth it.

As Drexler jogged back on defense, he couldn’t stop smiling and shouted at Guoyang, "Gan, nice shot! But you’re gonna get an earful later!"

"Bullshit, I won’t get an earful. You better practice your shooting. If you can make a three-pointer, I’ll give you a pair of Avia sneakers!"

Last season, Drexler took a total of four three-pointers, lucked out on one, and was happy for a year.

At this moment, courtside Jack Ramsey was getting a bit carried away. When Guoyang decided to take that three-pointer, he felt his cerebellum shrivel up a bit, and his recently calmed demeanor almost burst forth again.

But as the ball swished through the net, he managed to hold back his breath again.

Ramsay, who had been standing with his hands on his hips at the sideline, sat back on the bench to catch his breath.

Adelman said beside him, "Let it go, it went in, easy."

Ramsey lifted an eyebrow and finally said nothing.

At halftime, Guoyang had made 4 out of 5 shots, including a three-pointer, and was 2 for 2 on free throws, racking up 11 points already.

The Trail Blazers led with an 11-point advantage, 66:55,

Honestly, this challenge with Jordan wasn’t exactly fair for Jordan. The Kings were notoriously poor on defense in the League. Plus, with the season just starting and the team undergoing a coaching change, the Kings’ fighting spirit was low.

Meanwhile, the Washington Bullets were a fringe playoff team, on the same level as—or even slightly better than—the Bulls.

The Trail Blazers’ roster was also a lot stronger than the Bulls’, with Drexler, Vandeweghe, Parkson, and Thompson all being All-Stars or near All-Stars, so Guoyang faced much less pressure on offense.

The team also had a Hall of Fame coach like Jack Ramsay, giving Guoyang an advantageous development environment over many others.

However, during halftime, Ramsay still lost his temper at Guoyang in the locker room.

"Why are you moving so much on the court? That’s not good for your legs! Sometimes you need to take it easy and learn to protect yourself, do you understand?"

Guoyang was caught off guard and said, "Uh... Dr. Jack, today’s my first professional game, I’m just running a bit, no big deal."

"Injuries accumulate over time! From the moment you step onto the court, ailments start to follow you, remember that, Ah Gan. Don’t go running wild in the second half, rest more. And, pay attention to your shot selection."

It wasn’t until the end that Ramsay mentioned shot selection—it seemed everything before was just a buildup.

Facing Ramsay’s caring criticism, Guoyang had no good rebuttal and could only nod in agreement.

When the second half began, everyone thought Dr. Jack might be unwell. Why has he changed like this?

But when the Kings started the second half with a 7:0 run to close the gap and Ramsay called a timeout, turning red with fury and cursing, everyone knew Dr. Jack wasn’t sick, he just treated Ah Gan differently.

"Ah Gan has a way of making others treat him specially and see him in a different light, including Dr. Jack, who is exceptionally concerned about him. It’s quite surprising. But I think sometimes Jack isn’t truly concerned—he’s just being deliberately sarcastic to tease Ah Gan. Anyway, their way of communicating is unique in the team, and no one else should try to imitate it, thinking Jack will treat you the same way. If you do, you’re done for."]

—Excerpt from "Clyde The Glide," the autobiography of Clyde Drexler published in 2004.