The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 216 - 103: You’d Better Shoot a Three-Pointer

The third quarter ended, and the Trail Blazers were still leading the Celtics by three points, 89:86.

After the initial fluctuation at the start of the quarter brought on a tie, Ramsay decisively had Gan Guoyang mark Larry Bird, which turned the tide on the court.

Gan Guoyang was right; indeed, no one understood how to defend a small forward better than him.

However, the cost was that Gan Guoyang incurred two fouls and his own offensive and defensive rhythm was completely disrupted.

Guarding Bird one on one is no easy task, "Bird" is clever and crafty, excellent at both shooting and passing, and highly imaginative.

Gan Guoyang had to fully concentrate on defense and engage in trash talk with Bird, and as the game went deeper, their tones became less polite, their words simpler and more brutal, almost reaching the point of personally insulting each other’s families.

Bird also had a rough time; in the third quarter, he almost took over the game but didn’t expect the Trail Blazers would have Gan Guoyang guard him instead of Kenny-Carl.

With Gan Guoyang holding advantages in height, speed, and strength, Bird had to use his experience and skill to cope with Ah Gan, which increased his fatigue and chances of making mistakes.

He tried to escalate the pace of the game, making his teammates more comfortable and able to score easier points.

He almost saw the moment of reversal coming, ready to help the Celtics completely overtake the lead with a three-pointer after a timeout.

But Gan Guoyang stuck to him like a giant piece of gum, disrupting his game plan.

"Fuck, this guy is just like a wild boar, strong and fast, and goddamn thick-skinned!"

On the bench, Bird threw down his towel and loudly complained for a rare time, describing Gan Guoyang as a wild boar.

You couldn’t outrun him, couldn’t push through him, and when you trash-talked, you’d say one thing and he’d come back with ten, with no emotion or logic to follow.

Jones told Bird to calm down and rearranged the fourth quarter’s tactics, pointing out that the team must exploit the gap left by Ah Gan not being in the paint, and other players had to aggressively attack the three-second zone.

In the third quarter, Robert Parish scored eight points, the most reliable scoring option for the Celtics in the second half.

But Ramsay wasn’t a fool; at the start of the fourth quarter, he moved Gan Guoyang back to the center position. He guarded Bird to snatch the rhythm but wouldn’t keep it that way.

After three quarters, the Celtics’ offense was intermittent and mostly underperforming; the Trail Blazers performed slightly better, but their overall strength was less, and tonight they made quite a few mistakes, with the Boston Garden atmosphere suffocating.

The game reached the stage of a bayonet fight, and in the Trail Blazers’ first offense of the fourth quarter, Vandeweghe, who had rested for most of the quarter, took on Bird one on one with a baseline jump shot – it went in!

91:86, the Trail Blazers lead by five points, a very important shot at the beginning of the fourth quarter.

Vandeweghe’s role was to score, and score, and score. Tonight, in 21 minutes of playtime, he efficiently netted 23 points, the most reliable scoring point for the Trail Blazers.

Ramsay was finding the correct way to use Vandeweghe and hide his defensive weaknesses reasonably well.

With a five-point difference, the Celtics had to start chasing the score again, a process that can wear down the players and make the fans anxious.

It was as if they were struggling under water, desperately waiting for the moment to surface and breathe.

Without the defensive pressure from Gan Guoyang, Bird began to receive the ball and unleash his offensive creativity. In the set offense, he faked a pass and then took a real shot, deceiving the defender before taking a mid-range shot – it was Drexler guarding him now, while Vandeweghe was assigned to Danny Ainge.

Receiving the ball high, facing Drexler with his back, Bird turned and cut into the basket with his left hand, then finished with a delicate scoop shot – the ball passed over Gan Guoyang’s block attempt, spun twice around the rim, and fell into the net.

Bird’s ambidextrous ability was terrifying, with no technical weaknesses to exploit, which Gan Guoyang greatly admired; he had yet to master using his left hand so skilfully, as if he were a left-hander.

At this point, Drexler also started using his offensive creativity, spinning past his defender in a drive and, facing Parish, made a no-look, low pass; Gan Guoyang received the ball and dunked it with one hand!

Then, as Gan Guoyang was double-teamed and couldn’t receive the ball—there was a suspicion of illegal defense, but the referee didn’t call it—Drexler drove past dense defense to the three-second zone, suddenly pulling a turnaround fadeaway jumper.

The ball’s trajectory was very flat, circled once around the rim, and finally dropped into the net, scoring.

The excited Drexler, after scoring, leaped and did a spin in the air; his shooting had visibly improved over the past two months.

The Celtics called a timeout, and the Trail Blazers’ teammates all went over to high-five Drexler, with Gan Guoyang slapping Drexler’s back hard, saying, "Even if we lose tonight, it was worth it! Clyde hit a fadeaway jumper!"

Drexler gave Gan Guoyang a look and said, "I’ve hit one in a game before."

"Tonight is different; this is the clutch moment."

Drexler was growing rapidly; tonight his playing time increased significantly, from the previous 20 some minutes to 30 minutes.

With the final minutes of the game approaching, the Trail Blazers continued to maintain a three-point lead, 103:100.

After the timeout, Bird tried to tie the score with a three-pointer but rushed the shot and missed.