The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 215 - 102 Lakers of Fox Hill

After the dismal loss in the 1984 Finals, Jerry West, the general manager of the Lakers, refused to panic. He believed that the Celtics exposed their weaknesses in the Finals; they didn’t seem as tough, at least, in West’s view, they weren’t as formidable as the Celtics during Bill Russell’s era. Furthermore, to a certain extent, the Celtics were unable to play a slow game for an extended period; they were more reliant on speed than people imagined.

These two points were partly confirmed in a 1985 game between the Trail Blazers and the Celtics at the Garden, giving West and Riley some confidence. However, they had to pay more attention to the rising Portland Trail Blazers and the center Sunny Gan, who seemed to be the second coming of Bill Russell. Watching him play against the Lakers, West had a sense of a recurring nightmare, which unsettled him.

——Excerpt from "Showtime: Magic, Kareem, Riley, and the Los Angeles Lakers of the 1980s," written by Jeff Pearlman, published in 2013.

While the Trail Blazers and the Celtics clashed, far away in Los Angeles, California, inside a beige three-story condo building in the Fox Hill of Green Valley Circle, the Lakers players gathered in a room, watching the televised broadcast from WBZ-TV Channel 4, Massachusetts, through satellite TV.

Due to the time difference, the sun had just set on the Pacific coast of Los Angeles, casting a red hue on the exquisitely decorated exterior walls of the condo building.

The condo was the private property of Lakers owner Jerry Buss. In order to provide the players with convenient training and comfortable living, he rented it to them for a special rate of $550 per month, housing them together and offering services such as private chefs, luxurious bathrooms, city views, and privacy.

Back then, player salaries weren’t particularly high, and investing in real estate was a considerable expense. Moreover, the players never knew when they might leave the city, so most of them rented their homes.

Even those who signed big contracts and bought houses usually did so in their hometowns, planning to return there after their careers ended.

With the high cost of real estate in Los Angeles, most of the younger Lakers players didn’t own property, and Jerry Buss’s generosity brought these young men together, reminiscent of a college fraternity.

This not only made training and living more convenient for the players but also helped foster camaraderie by living and dining together. Instead of just being colleagues, they became friends, which made the team more united.

Each season, when new players joined the Lakers, they were invited to live in the Fox Hill condo with its full set of amenities. They could spend their free time listening to music, drinking, and indulging in delicious Fatburgers.

Additionally, the Green Valley Circle community is a high-end area in Los Angeles, complete with nightclubs, various clubs, and strip bars. While walking through the community, it was common to encounter long-legged beauties in swimsuits.

Buss was an owner who understood and treated his players well. He liked to enjoy life and brought his players along for the experience, making them willing to play hard for him on the court.

However, Pat Riley had no interest in such luxuries. After losing the ’84 Finals, Riley brought a satellite TV to the condo and installed a satellite dish on the roof to receive live game signals from the Massachusetts TV stations.

On days without their own games, after practice, Riley would lead the players to watch Celtics games together, especially if there was a live broadcast that night.

Although they could watch replays after the games, Riley believed that only live broadcasts could make the players more focused on understanding how their adversaries played, and how they could defeat them.

Riley used this method to instill goals and enemies in the players, like his mentor Rupp, pushing them both physically and mentally to bring out the best in the Los Angeles Lakers over the course of the season.

Tonight’s Blazers vs. Celtics game was of particular importance because the Blazers were becoming an increasing stumbling block on the Lakers’ path forward.

After being blown out by Gan Guoyang’s six threes on January 1st, Riley seriously doubted whether they could get past the Trail Blazers in the playoffs. He didn’t want a repeat of the crushing defeat at the hands of the Rockets in 1981.

At halftime, the Trail Blazers were leading the Celtics at Boston Garden, with Larry Bird forced to score 21 points in the first half to keep the game pace flying high, yet still unable to completely reverse the downward trend.

Kevin McHale had only scored 4 points by halftime, hardly playing impressively under Mychal Thompson’s tight one-on-one defense.

Riley said to Jerry West, who was watching TV alongside him, "If we have the chance to get Thompson, everything would be easier."

West replied, "Then I might as well bring over Ah Gan!"

"That would certainly be the best... Parish is going to get crushed by him."

West gave Riley a look, lacking the mood to joke with him.

Gan Guoyang’s performance in the first half was impressive, and West could sense that Ah Gan was striving to drag the game down to a sluggish pace.

If this wasn’t a pre-game strategy by Jack Ramsay but rather Ah Gan’s own take on the game, then his understanding of basketball was surprising.

During halftime, West shared this insight with Riley, "Dragging the Celtics into a slow pace of half-court offense is a good way to beat them."

Riley had some doubts because the Celtics’ half-court offense was always formidable. They had two strong points for one-on-one plays and all five starters had the ability to handle the ball and solve problems individually.

Moreover, the Celtics were one of the highest tactical squads in the League. Their passes were swift, their movements precise, and all their shots were the right ones.

Contrarily, the Lakers were the true speed team. This season they were averaging 118 points a game, second only to Doug Moe’s fast-paced Nuggets squad, and up by 3 points from last season.

If they were to slow down the pace of the game, it meant that they too would have to slow down. Could they defeat the Celtics in this way?

"Last year in the finals, we scored more points than the Celtics, had a higher shooting percentage, but we still lost the series. In the decisive moments of the game, we relied too much on speed, which also made the Celtics too confident and comfortable. We made too many mistakes, giving the Celtics chances. You said in Palm Springs that we can’t let the Celtics score easily; that wasn’t just for show, right? Slowing them down means not letting them score easily."

"I agree with you; in high-intensity, slow-paced confrontations, we’re more confident in our half-court offense."

Riley agreed with West; they were set to challenge the Celtics in Boston on January 16, and Riley was hoping to put on a good performance.

Back in the room where the game was being projected, the third quarter began, and Larry Bird continued his attack on the Trail Blazers, hitting jump shots from outside in succession.

Riley stepped forward, turned up the volume on the TV, and through the television speakers came Johnny-Most’s gravelly voice: "Larry Bird! A left-handed hook shot hits! Beautiful... Celtics get the defensive rebound, fast break, but Valentine picks it off, Trail Blazers try to counter, pass to Gan... Robert Parish with the steal! Back to Bird, Bird slips it under to Maxwell, the layup is good! The basket counts, and the teams are tied!"

Johnson, who had been lounging there, stood up and said, "Can we mute the volume? Most’s voice is like he’s got a busted shoe in his mouth; it’s really irritating, especially when he chants Larry Bird’s tune."

However, Riley was unmoved. "You all need to get familiar with the enemy’s voice, and best shut him up during the game, silence him, make him passionless."

The Celtics tied the score, and Bird’s consecutive scoring, assists, and fast breaks were impressive, provoking Johnson even further.

He couldn’t play like Bird, with precise shooting and excellent individual offensive skills to drive the entire team.

The Trail Blazers called for a timeout and came back with an unusual lineup: Paxson, Drexler, Gan Guoyang, Thompson, and Kenny-Carl.

Three strong frontcourt players along with a tall backcourt; the Trail Blazers were looking to compete with the Celtics in height and strength.

"Can Kenny-Carl guard Larry?" Johnson muttered.

Having Vandeweghe on the court was indeed a bit like giving points to Larry Bird.

But Kenny-Carl might not be much better than Vandeweghe, and they would miss Vandeweghe’s firepower.

However, when the timeout ended and the game truly began again, the Lakers players realized that the Trail Blazers had put Gan Guoyang to match up against Bird.

Kenny-Carl moved to center, doggedly pushing Robert Parish out, not allowing him deep into the paint.

Gan Guoyang clung to Bird like glue; whether in terms of strength, speed, or height, Bird couldn’t take advantage of Gan Guoyang.

The game changed dramatically on the court; after several rounds, the Celtics’ offense stalled.

Although Parish hit two mid-range shots, the stabilized Trail Blazers depended on Thompson and Gan Guoyang to score continuously in the low post.

The score went from a 72:72 tie to 86:82, Trail Blazers regaining the lead in the third quarter.

Bird struggled; his normally accurate shots were like having a plaster over his eyes, off the mark, unable to receive the ball.

When the Celtics tried to pass to Bird, he had to run repeatedly to shake off Gan Guoyang’s persistent defense. At 6-foot-10 with the strength of a wild buffalo and the speed to stick to you, his defense was so precise that you had to be extremely careful.

By the time Bird got the ball, the Celtics’ smooth flow had been disrupted, especially at his end.

"My god, Larry’s just been tied up by Ah Gan." James Worthy exclaimed.

"Ah Gan has locked down Mark Aguirre for an entire quarter before," Johnson said. Aguirre was one of Johnson’s best friends.

He complained to Johnson that Ah Gan was fast, strong, and tall, suspecting he was created with special technology from China since he didn’t follow biological principles.

"I’ve been killed by Ah Gan before," Kurt Rambis said somberly from a corner.

The Lakers players were gradually mesmerized by the game; live broadcasts were indeed much more thrilling than recorded videos.

Just then, the TV signal suddenly cut out, turning into static.

The room erupted in wails and howls, as Johnson went over to the TV and gave it a few whacks, but the picture still didn’t come back.

"Coach, the TV you bought!"

"Why is there no picture now, right at the crucial moment!"

"Let me do it! Let me give it a whack!"

"Don’t hit it, don’t hit it! You’ll break it! It’s a satellite issue! I’ll go check!"