The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 1429 - 44: Only He Is Flying

Jump ball between both teams.

Gan Guoyang was the first to tap the ball, but Van Exel didn’t catch it securely.

The ball bounced off his leg and was intercepted by Stockton, starting the Jazz’s first offensive play.

This season, the Jazz team changed their team logo and game jerseys from the classic music note logo to Salt Lake City-themed snow mountain jerseys.

The cold, towering snow peaks on the jerseys symbolize the Jazz team’s stern and precise team offense.

On the opening play, the Jazz used continuous ball movement and outside runs, ultimately relying on Malone’s high post pass to a cutting Ostertag, who received the ball and powered over PJ Brown for a layup.

The Trail Blazers persisted with man-to-man defense; Gan Guoyang directly matched up against Karl Malone, with no intention of playing any defensive tricks.

Gan Guoyang immediately inbounded from the baseline, signaling to Van Exel, indicating he planned to target the offense.

No pick and roll, no low post, Gan Guoyang opted for a direct baseline cut, with Van Exel lobbing the ball inside.

Ostertag was caught off guard when Gan Guoyang struck him from behind, but Gan wasn’t satisfied with simply scoring a layup; he chose to pause after receiving the ball.

Ostertag instinctively pursued on defense, with Stockton nearby unable to alert him in time, and the two collided in mid-air.

Gan Guoyang, leaning against the sturdy Ostertag, made the layup, and the referee’s whistle blew, calling Ostertag’s foul, granting an additional free throw.

"Xie Te, you can’t start by fouling Ah Gan; it’s dangerous, very dangerous. Let him score; you can’t entirely stop him from scoring, and he may have targeted you. Be careful."

Stockton warned Ostertag that giving away a 2+1 on the first play was a dangerous signal.

Greg Ostertag was the 28th pick in the 1995 draft, a graduate of the University of Kansas, standing at 7 feet 2, typical of a big white center.

The Jazz selected him in hopes he could fill the three-second zone defensive void left by Mark-Eaton’s retirement.

Although Ostertag naturally couldn’t compare to Mark-Eaton in blocking and defensive talent, his physique was equally tall and strong, with qualifying rim protection skills.

Importantly, Ostertag was younger, with mobility greatly superior to the aging Eaton, not hindering offense much.

In Eaton’s career’s final years, his offensive burden on the team had been severe, with the Jazz playing four-on-five when he was on court.

Ostertag was certainly not a remarkable center; during his rookie season, his playing time was limited, averaging just 3 points and 3 rebounds with nothing notable.

This season, Ostertag progressed quickly, rapidly becoming the team’s starting center, with stats rising to 7 points and 7 rebounds, along with a valuable 2.1 blocks per game — achieved in an average of 23 minutes per game.

This made him one of the league’s most efficient rim protectors and a crucial three-second zone defender alongside Karl Malone.

His defensive significance to the Jazz was vital, hence Gan Guoyang targeted this sophomore right from the start.

Successfully made the free throw, completing the 2+1, back on defense, Gan Guoyang continued tightly marking Karl Malone.

Malone had no shot opportunities, and it was rare for the Jazz not to arrange low post offenses for Malone — risking turnovers?

Stockton used a simple pick-and-roll to break into the basket, shaking off Van Exel, then scoring a left-handed layup.

The Trail Blazers were indifferent to the conceded points, quickly inbounding from the backcourt; Gan Guoyang moved to the low post to block Ostertag.

Received the ball, turned, faked, drew the foul — all seamless, leaving the big white bear #00 with no chance to react.

Second foul; less than a minute into the game, Ostertag was already burdened with two fouls, infuriating Jerry Sloan.

He complained to the referee, with the fans hissing, but both fouls were too obvious for the referee to ignore.

Jerry Sloan reluctantly subbed in backup center Greg Foster early, indicating some lack of preparation during regular games.

As Ostertag left the court, the Jazz’s rim protection level dropped a tier, allowing Reed to quickly score a bank shot off Gan Guoyang’s pass.

The Trail Blazers were determined to engage the Jazz team in a shootout, contesting offensive efficiency and scoring continuity.

Gan Guoyang focused his defensive effort on Malone, giving Stockton and Hornersek ample room to maneuver.

Stockton soon hit a mid-range jump shot from the arc top, and quickly intercepted defensively, initiating a fast break, assisting Russell’s layup.

Jazz’s scoring was rapid; with Stockton and Hornersek, the ball rarely stalled in their hands.

Jazz’s offense was dual: one part being Stockton-Hornersek-centric, with outside screens and movements, inside cuts and positioning, and fast break initiation.

This part played dynamically, fully exploiting the organizational support and personal attack capacities of the two white guards.

The other part was a Karl Malone-centric low-high-low system for rhythm adjustments or strong attacks, giving the ball to Malone for one-on-four scenarios.

This season, Karl Malone achieved near-masterful levels in ball-handling isolation plays, reaching about 65% of Gan’s peak performance.

Claiming only 65% underscores overall efficiency shortcomings, particularly in attack techniques; peak Gan Guoyang was unmatched due to combining inside-outside play unpredictably.