The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 541 - 43 Death Ray_2

The Lakers regained the lead, but this advantage lasted only 15 seconds.

Gan Guoyang received Drexler’s pass at the top of the arc and his mid-range jump shot was on target.

As the double teams on the low post became increasingly frequent, Gan Guoyang started solving problems with mid-range shots.

The Lakers were happy to see such outcomes, even though Gan Guoyang’s mid-shot was accurate, his killing power was less than it would be in the low post.

The two teams’ stars scored offensively, announcing that a tug-of-war had begun in the fourth quarter.

Nielsen had an ace up his sleeve, not switching to his signature move in the fourth quarter, after all, it was just the regular season; he just wanted Johnson to give it his all and try to take the win.

On the other side, Jack Ramsey shuffled his troops, with Mychal Thompson underperforming that night and Gilmore limited by stamina, the rookie Anderson took the floor in the fourth quarter.

Anderson needed such game experience to enrich his own.

When he was on the court, Gan Guoyang would constantly instruct him, teaching him how to defend, how to position himself, and how to find opportunities on offense.

Anderson performed well, with no major flaws in defense and scored twice under the basket after receiving passes from Drexler and Gan Guoyang.

As the fourth quarter moved into its climax, the atmosphere of the game became tenser, and the pressure on the players grew heavier.

Every shot was a test of the player’s skills and psychological mettle.

Such games are particularly toughening for young players—don’t look now, but the defending champion Trail Blazers have plenty of young players.

This was exactly what Jerry West worried about: What’s the difference between this and the young Boston Celtics of old? A bunch of twenty-somethings dominating until they retire in their thirties.

Contemporaneous stars outlasted Bill Russell into retirement before they had a chance to win a championship.

The New York Knicks’ two championships in ’70 and ’73 were loudly celebrated, but had Russell not retired in ’69, the Knicks wouldn’t have stood a chance against the Celtics.

It was only after Russell retired that the Lakers were able to claim their crown in 1972.

Now, a massive shadow loomed again, and West was very keen on nipping it in the bud.

West sat on the sidelines with a stern face, his expression rarely, if ever, lighting up with a smile, always somber, his gaze deep, pondering all matters seriously related to basketball.

Few knew that West was deeply troubled by depression. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

He came from West Virginia, one of America’s poorest, and his father was a coal miner who often beat West.

His brother David was killed in the Korean War in the ’50s; West was twelve that year.

The death of his brother worsened West’s depression, and poverty and domestic violence rendered him reticent; he kept a shotgun on his bed, ready to use against his father who hit him, or against himself.

Basketball saved him, and through this sport, he accomplished a redemption of self, using basketball to try to fill the enormous void left by a tragic childhood.

But it would have been better if he could have won more championships with the Lakers back then; the void wouldn’t have become deeper.

In the ’80s, several excellent moves and a first-round draft pick made life a bit easier for him, but the sudden rise of the Trail Blazers and Ah Gan once again made him anxious.

Their red and black colors angered West, always reminding him of a distant East, and of his brother who died on the Korean Plateau.

Gan Guoyang didn’t rest during the fourth quarter, refusing to sit back on the bench even during timeouts.

He knew that even a two-minute rest might lead the Trail Blazers into a trailing situation.

He stayed in the game to keep pressure on the Lakers, causing Johnson not to dare leave the court either.

Both sides battled every round, with turnover rates soaring and shooting percentages declining.

This was not what West wanted to see; this was a game pace familiar to the Trail Blazers.

"Damn, why does this guy have so much energy," West thought anxiously, sitting on the sidelines as Gan Guoyang remained in the game, blocking the Lakers’ fast breaks twice in key moments.

With Gilmore back in the final stage, when he went back at full speed, Gan Guoyang could rush out, leaving the painted area to the "Train," covering players like Scott and Johnson from behind.

Scott’s quick stop jump shot was blocked by a sprinting Gan Guoyang.

Johnson’s drive and dish was intercepted.

With these two key defensive plays, the Trail Blazers launched a counterattack and took the lead.

The Lakers were initially up by two points, but suddenly found themselves down by two.

Nielsen called a timeout, leaving the Lakers with not much time.

With only the last 30 seconds of the game left, both sides had one offensive opportunity each.

Nielsen set up a sideline ball strategy, Johnson inbounded, AC Green received the pass, and with Worthy and Scott alternately cutting inside, the real play was actually on Johnson.

AC Green set a hand-off screen and then passed the ball to Johnson, who caught the ball just inside the arc, in a position to shoot right away.

But Gan Guoyang saw through the play and jumped out to defend, sticking close to Johnson in the middle and not giving him any chance to shoot.

Johnson had no choice but to pass the ball inside, and Jabbar received the ball and turned around to take a shot, but it didn’t go in!

However, AC Green rushed to the basket, grabbed the offensive rebound, and went for a layup, but it was blocked from behind by Gan Guoyang.

It was a mess under the basket, and somehow Scott got hold of the ball, immediately tossed it out, and Johnson caught it at the top of the arc, unguarded, and shot a three-pointer!

Johnson’s mid-range shooting had greatly improved since last season, and this season he started practicing threes and achieved decent accuracy.

The ball flew towards the hoop and hit the mark accurately!

The ball went in, and the Great Western Forum erupted in joy.

106:107. The Lakers took the lead again, by one point.

The successful shot left the Trail Blazers with just 3 seconds.

Jack Ramsay called a timeout.

That’s how the game goes; the Trail Blazers’ defense was already very good.

But sometimes the situation on the court is beyond your control; luck is very important.

They’d held them off twice, but the ball stayed in the Lakers’ hands, and in the end, Johnson seized the opportunity.

The Trail Blazers players were extremely frustrated.

As they left the court, Johnson passed by Gan Guoyang.

Johnson specifically observed Gan Guoyang’s eyes—it was like an ancient well, without any ripples.

Tension rose in Johnson’s heart; as he returned to the bench, he immediately said, "We must guard Ah Gan; we must stop him from shooting!"

Gan Guoyang’s game-winners were not a rare occurrence; in critical moments, his heart was extraordinarily huge.

Three seconds were enough for him; the Lakers players didn’t want to be the victims of an Ah Gan game-winner.

Nielsen made substitutions, benching Jabbar for Edwards, benching AC Green for Duckworth, all to guard against Gan Guoyang.

Nobody knew what tactics the Trail Blazers would use, but everyone was sure it would be Ah Gan taking the shot.

Three seconds was a brief time; they had to attack right after receiving the ball.

Drexler was set to inbound the ball, and it seemed the Trail Blazers wouldn’t use the old tactic of Drexler driving to the hoop with Gan Guoyang ready for the put-back.

There was no time for that in three seconds.

Gan Guoyang stood at a 45-degree angle with Duckworth sticking closely to him.

The referee handed the ball to Drexler and blew the whistle.

At that moment, Hornacek came from the baseline and performed a cross-screen with Gan Guoyang.

Gan Guoyang turned and headed inside while signaling to Drexler.

Duckworth and Scott both chased after Gan Guoyang; if he received a lob pass in the three-second area, he could hook it in and it would be over.

Drexler made the pass, but the ball didn’t fly towards Gan Guoyang; instead, it went to the circling Hornacek.

Hornacek caught the ball and from the left 45-degree angle took a mid-range jumper right away!

Because he was unguarded, he even paused slightly to aim.

The ball traced a perfect arc and then dropped accurately into the net.

It went in! The buzzer lit up! The game was over!

The Great Western Forum fell silent.

Meanwhile, Gan Guoyang rushed over to Hornacek and lifted the guy up, as the Trail Blazers’ players started to celebrate.

108:107. The Trail Blazers won with a game-winner over the Lakers!

This unassuming White guard, Hornacek, contributed the first game-winner of his professional career.

In a post-game interview with the media, Gan Guoyang told reporters, "This was a tactic we had designed and practiced many times in training. Hornacek’s ’death ray’ delivered a fatal blow to the people of Los Angeles."

From then on, the nickname "death ray" began to follow Hornacek as he competed in the NBA.