The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 254 - 137 Only One Piece of Good News

On the evening of May 12, 1985, at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel on the 18th floor, the hopes of seven teams lay in unopened envelopes inside a transparent plastic drum.

The Waldorf Astoria had renovated its Starlight Roof, restoring the Art Deco style from when it opened in 1931, competing with industry rivals just like the NBA, which also needed something new.

The owners and general managers of the seven teams bathed in the luxurious atmosphere of the storied New York hotel, waiting for their teams’ futures to be determined, marking the first time in NBA history.

This draft lottery event would be broadcast live on CBS, hosted by Pat O’Brien, with David Stern himself shaking the plastic drum, drawing the envelopes to decide the 1985 draft order.

CBS had revamped its television programming that year, with Pat O’Brien’s "At the Half" replacing the previous fifteen-minute intermission with various flashy muddled segments—like allowing NBA retired stars to play HORSE on the court, tediously uninteresting.

For the NBA, CBS, and the Waldorf Astoria, this lottery event was an adventurous new venture.

In the wake of Coca-Cola’s reform fiasco in April, such innovation was approached with trepidation.

Many were confident the lottery drawing would bring more excitement to the NBA, but whether it would meet expectations was all uncertain.

The live broadcast only added to this uncertainty, as there would be no opportunity for correction should anything go awry during the process.

Stern’s decision was a bold one, as coin tosses in earlier years were secretly done in the office and the results then shared with reporters.

This time the NBA was to showcase the process of determining the draft order directly to fans across America on television, and seasoned host Pat O’Brien was incredibly nervous, later saying it was far more nerve-racking than hosting "At the Half" or testifying in court.

And David Stern must have been even more nervous, as he was the man actually conducting the lottery ceremony.

He personally shook the transparent drum, then drew and opened the envelopes. Starting with the seventh spot, one after the other, he had but to draw six envelopes to decide the future of the seven teams.

The normally smiling Stern had a notably serious expression, never having felt such tension before the camera.

The Golden State Warriors were drawn first; they received the seventh pick, and Artur looked shocked, hardly believing they only secured the number seven pick.

The Kings got the sixth pick, the Hawks the fifth, the Supersonics the fourth, and the Clippers the third.

It came down to the decisive moment, with the Knicks and the Pacers remaining—whichever team wasn’t drawn would claim the top pick of the 1985 draft.

The team that was drawn would have to settle for the second-best—though, looking at the results from 1984, second-best might have seemed better.

Finally, Stern took an envelope from the drum, tore it open slowly and paused for quite a while before reading, "The second pick in the 1985 NBA Draft goes to..."

Another lengthy pause, "the Indiana Pacers!"

The Knicks’ general manager Dave DeBuscher immediately stood up, vigorously pumping his fist, heaving a long sigh of relief.

They had secured Ewing!

The Pacers’ general manager Simon was momentarily dazed, obviously disheartened, but upon reflection, the second-best pick didn’t seem so terrible after all.

Although Ewing was impressive, by 1985 he was no longer the most favored super rookie. The league, after the shock of a second pick from the previous year, lowered their expectations for this player who had lingered in college for too long, with an injured knee, as nobody believed Ewing could match that person’s performance in the next season.

Dave DeBuscher took the stage with Ewing’s number 33 jersey to pose for a photo with David Stern, and Stern, having been tense throughout the event, finally revealed a radiant smile.

This was the result the league most wanted to see, absolutely perfect.

Patrick Ewing in New York, America’s cradle of professional basketball, its biggest basketball market.

Twelve years had passed since 1973, a full cycle, and they needed a new basketball hero.

Meanwhile, in Georgetown, Washington D.C., Ewing wasn’t watching the draft lottery live; instead, he was training in the gym.

He wasn’t very concerned about which team he would go to. What mattered to him was that he could finally step onto that playing field to challenge that man.

After the results came out, Coach John-Thompson called him into the room, where his new agent, David Falk, embraced Ewing and said, "You’re going to New York!"

Ewing’s dark complexion showed little emotion, as Thompson had shaped him to be as silent and reserved as stone during his four years at Georgetown.

Falk added, "You’re in the Eastern Conference, not the Western Conference, that’s good."

Ewing’s eyes shifted as he displayed a look of annoyance and said, "David, what do you mean by that?"

Falk realized he had misspoken and quickly said, "Oh, the East... the East is closer to Georgetown, so you can come back more often. And the style of play on the East Coast suits you better, doesn’t it..."

Thompson came over and patted Ewing, saying, "David didn’t mean it like that, even in the East, you’ll have your chances against Ah Gan. And it’s the finals that are the real stage."

At that, Ewing seemed somewhat deflated. After winning the NCAA championship, his college basketball career had reached fulfillment.

He was looking forward to the NBA, but after seeing Gan Guoyang’s playoff performance, Ewing had to admit he could never achieve that level.

points and 21 rebounds in one game, 60 points in a single game, and leading the Trail Blazers to a 16-point halftime comeback to defeat the Los Angeles Lakers and take the first victory in the Western Conference finals.

Ewing thought to himself that if he could accomplish any of these playoff feats, they would be worthy of remembering for a lifetime, yet Ah Gan had already accomplished them in his rookie season.

They truly were not on the same track; as Ewing was just beginning his basketball career, Gan Guoyang was already racing towards the finish line, the gap between people...

For a moment, Ewing once again regretted why he hadn’t entered the NBA earlier, instead of wasting so many years in college.

Coach Thompson noticed Ewing’s mood and tried to soothe him, letting David Falk and the academic advisors, including Mary Fenlon, talk with Ewing about his future plans.

However, at that moment, Ewing really wanted to make a phone call to Ah Gan to ask why he had run so far and so fast, and how he could possibly catch up.

A day earlier, the Trail Blazers had administered a dose of calm to everyone in the raucous Great Western Forum, and afterward, The Los Angeles Times published an article suggesting that the Lakers might have to cede the throne to the Portland Trail Blazers.

There was a loud buzz about the Trail Blazers’ imminent victory and entry into the finals, and Oregonians were ecstatic—the Trail Blazers really played like champions in the first game.

Gan Guoyang’s photo was featured in The Times and The Oregonian, noting his 25 points, 20 rebounds, 4 blocks, 2 steals, and 5 assists for the game, but the stats couldn’t fully capture his impact on the court.

He played all 48 minutes, never resting for a minute, and disrupted Byron Scott’s shot at the last moment—Gan Guoyang was playing with five personal fouls, yet his defense was flawless.

After the victory, Gan Guoyang quickly cooled down from the thrill; he knew winning the first game was important but also somewhat lucky.

During an interview with reporters, he said, "The Lakers just played too impulsively, they didn’t put out their full strength."

Jabbar scored 17 points in the first half but was held to just 2 points in the second half; after the game, he tortured himself by pushing to the limits of his endurance as if running a marathon.

Pat Riley had the team watch the second half of the game where they were outplayed, over and over, letting the players see their own poor performance and how Gan Guoyang turned the tide bit by bit.

On May 13, for the second game, the Lakers quelled the noise and calmly measured up to the Trail Blazers.

Riley adhered strictly to the "Ah Gan Rule" again, isolating Gan Guoyang from his teammates with precise defense and cutting off his area of movement, having Rambis bait him as much as possible—whether it worked or not, the intention mattered.

The Lakers didn’t disappoint the Los Angeles fans that game, winning it 107:113. The margin wasn’t big, but it was very solid.

Jabbar scored 28 points in total, successfully occupying Gan Guoyang’s defensive attention. Gan Guoyang played normally, scoring 17 points and taking 15 rebounds, but faced with the Lakers’ error-free play and Jabbar continuously attacking him, he lacked the mutual support with his teammates.

The series was tied at 1:1. For the Trail Blazers, the good news was that they were heading back to Portland.

The bad news was that this was their only piece of good news.