The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 198 - 89: Arc of Death

The most important quality of a top shooter is self-confidence.

Everyone practices shooting, training volume is about the same, talent is about the same, but some can shoot more precisely, can make more stunning clutch shots, it all comes down to mentality.

This morning, Gan Guoyang and Byron Scott bet on shooting, and Guoyang won by confidence, it took just one shot to subdue Scott, making him concede defeat.

Was Gan Guoyang 100% sure about the following two shots? Definitely not, no shooter dares say they can hit 100% from that distance.

But Gan Guoyang dared to claim he could score 15 points, which is the strong self-confidence that sets him apart from ordinary players, and if you really let him shoot, he really could make it.

He still had a good handle on his shooting touch, knowing whether he felt on or off, and during the game, he would adjust his attack accordingly, rather than blindly sticking to a failing plan.

The second half of the game began, Gan Guoyang and his teammates ran onto the court, shedding their warm-up jackets onto the Lakers’ bright yellow floor, standing by the sideline he glanced at the hoop they would be attacking in the second half.

He shook his hands, relaxed the muscles that had tensed from the fierce confrontation in the first half, and mentally calculated the force and accuracy needed for a shot from this distance, telling himself:

"Right now, I’m terrifyingly accurate. Give me a ball, and I can throw it into the hoop from anywhere on this court."

This kind of self-hypnosis is probably something only he and Jordan would do in the league.

During this morning’s shooting practice, Gan Guoyang indeed had a great touch, The Forum was his blessed ground.

Moreover, during the first half’s battles inside, Gan Guoyang got four free throw opportunities and nailed all of them, further boosting his confidence.

Taking a deep breath, he entered the game. The score at halftime was 48:66, with the Lakers leading by a substantial 18 points.

At this time in The Forum, many fans took the halftime break as a chance to go to the bathroom, grab something to eat, or stretch a bit and relax.

After all, with such a big point difference, Trail Blazers were unlikely to make a significant comeback, so missing the beginning of the second half was no big deal.

Therefore, the stands were sparsely populated, with many empty seats, suddenly making the previously heated arena somewhat desolate.

The Lakers started the attack in the second half, and Jabbar received the ball in the low post, casually executing a hook shot over Gan Guoyang.

Two points in, the score went to 48:68, the lead now exceeded 20 points, and fans by the court applauded.

Lakers’ die-hard fan, Hollywood megastar Jack-Nicholson started waving his white handkerchief, shouting at Gan Guoyang, "Where’s your defense, Ah Gan! Defense! Where has the defense gone!"

Gan Guoyang didn’t respond to Nicholson, he indeed hadn’t defended well on that play because he was worried that exerting too much force would affect his shooting touch.

When it was his turn to attack, Gan Guoyang received the ball at the top of the arc, feigned giving directions for a bit, and, seeing Jabbar wasn’t going to step up, took a mid-range jumper.

The ball sailed gracefully, and right after the shot, Gan Guoyang ran back down the court because he knew it would go in.

"Swish!"

Two points in, 50:68, clawing back a little.

That shot made Gan Guoyang even more confident in his touch.

Tonight I’m frighteningly accurate indeed.

At this point, the Lakers and the fans present couldn’t possibly be aware of Gan Guoyang’s psychological state.

A center hitting a mid-range jumper wasn’t much, as most NBA big men at the time had mid-range shooting ability.

For instance, Jim-Jones, Nate-Sermonde’s good friend who witnessed Gan Guoyang’s one-on-one with Sermonde, was a master of mid-range.

Most of his scores came from mid-range shots, and he had a high hit rate at 50% for two-pointers, truly a little prince of mid-shooting.

However, back then it was generally believed that mid-range shooting was just a supporting offensive tool for big men, lacking stability and consistency, and could only supplement an offensive system, unable to sustain half-court scoring as a primary tactic.

This view was obviously correct, and even Gan Guoyang agreed, as the battles of big men inside were too important for the team, not only increasing their own scoring efficiency but helping create space for perimeter teammates while damaging the opposition’s interior forces.

But a basketball game is always full of peculiarities, and Gan Guoyang was never one to stick to rigid dogmas; if the inside didn’t work, he’d find success from the outside.

Jabbar wanted to receive the ball in the same position again, but this time Gan Guoyang was quick and stole the ball with an anticipatory move.

Magic Johnson had clearly relaxed a bit, his pass was too casual, and Gan Guoyang handed the ball to Valentine and casually jogged up the court.

He didn’t go inside, just hovered beyond the three-point line, causing Jabbar some discomfort, forcing him to stand near the free-throw line.

The Trail Blazers ran their plays as usual, Valentine broke to the basket with no chance, Parkson and Vandeweghe crisscrossed along the baseline.

After all that, Gan Guoyang found himself with a huge open spot at the arc, unguarded, why bother marking a center beyond the three-point line?

It was like a homeless person lying under a bridge, left to his own devices, no need to pay him any mind.

The ball made a round and ended up in Gan Guoyang’s hands, as Jabbar feigned a step forward as if to say, "I’m guarding you."

The two players were miles apart. Gan Guoyang adjusted briefly and shot a three-pointer straight away.

The shooting form was beautiful, bending his arm and his knees to power the shot, and the ball traced a high arc.

Byron Scott was all too familiar with that trajectory and thought to himself, "That’s it."

The ball swished through the net, a three-pointer!

After scoring, Gan Guoyang pointed at a surprised Nicholson at courtside and said, "This one’s for you!"

Then he ran back to his own half to continue defending, bringing the score to 53:68, with the margin down to 15 points.

The power of the three-pointer is immense, and suddenly the score seemed a lot closer.

The Trail Blazers’ players began to relax their mindset, putting more effort into their defense.

While offense is certainly important when trailing, defense is the key. Valentine and Parkson started pressuring Magic as soon as he crossed half-court.

They double-teamed him early forcing him to pass ahead of time while leaving Byron Scott open.

With the middle wide open, Scott could easily drive in, but Gan Guoyang, defending under the basket, shouted, "Shoot, Byron, shoot!"

Scott actually took the shot, a mid-range jump shot at a standstill, but he missed, and Gan Guoyang grabbed the rebound.

Riley shouted angrily, "Drive, Byron, you should have driven!"

With such a good chance to break through, Scott hesitated and chose to shoot instead.

If he had driven to the basket, Gan Guoyang would have had to defend, leaving Jabbar open.

The Trail Blazers were playing desperate, high-stakes defense, leaving one man open, betting he wouldn’t handle the ball well or make the shot.

Scott, being only a sophomore, was psychologically disadvantaged against Gan Guoyang.

When Gan Guoyang got the ball again at a high position, Jabbar pressed up against him.

Gan Guoyang sped past Jabbar, drove to the basket, shot a running hook, and easily scored two points.

55:68, the difference now 13 points. Riley sensed trouble and immediately called a time-out, substituting Byron Scott with Michael Cooper.

This was a bad substitution. The third quarter had just begun, and although Scott did not play the last ball well, his offensive and passing abilities were the best tools to crack the Trail Blazers’ gambling defense.

Give him some time and patience, and Scott could adjust. However, Riley seemed in a hurry, immediately bringing on the more experienced veteran Cooper.

Cooper had better defense, and Riley didn’t want Gan Guoyang to score easily, but Cooper’s shooting wasn’t as good as Scott’s, and handling the ball wasn’t his strong suit either.

On the Trail Blazers’ side, they hid Vandeweghe, who was a defensive weak point, allowing Mychal Thompson to guard Worthy, with Vandeweghe matching up against Larry Spriggs, who did not have much of an individual offensive ability.

This was an effective move. When Cooper received the ball and realized there was no one in front of him, he was not prepared to handle it and eventually forced a pass to Jabbar.

Jabbar, unprepared under the basket, turned and attempted a left-handed hook shot, which Gan Guoyang blocked, and after securing the ball, he quickly passed it to Vandeweghe.

It was a chance for a fast break. Magic Johnson retreated quickly, Vandeweghe’s strong play didn’t score, but he got the ball back.

He passed the ball to Thompson who was cutting through the middle. The Lakers’ defense was already back in position, and Thompson didn’t have a chance, so he secured the ball and threw it out to the three-point line.

Gan Guoyang was right at the top of the arc. A normal center would have held the ball and passed it back to the guards to regroup for offense.

Gan Guoyang was anything but normal; he shot the three-pointer as soon as he got the ball!

It was another super high arc shot. Gan Guoyang had too much arm strength, he needed to give the ball a higher arc to disperse the power in his hands.

This made his long shots particularly shocking when they hit, staying in the air for a long time before plunging down like a strategic missile, right through the hoop.

Along with the crisp sound of the net, it gave the spectators an exhilarating sensation of a deadly arc’s beauty.

The shot was good, 58:68, and the gap reduced to just 10 points.

Only three minutes into the third quarter, Gan Guoyang had hit all four of his shots, including two three-pointers, scoring 10 points in a row.

By this time, most of the fans who had gone out for snacks, restrooms breaks, or a pause at The Forum had returned.

And to their surprise, the lead had been cut to just 10 points. What had happened?

Many fans were bewildered, wondering if they had missed something.

Gan Guoyang was telling these fans in his mind, "It’s okay; you’re still in time to start watching now."