The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 545 - 47 Rumors

In the era of the best-of-five series for the first round, the opening round games always ended quickly.

In the Eastern Conference, the Celtics defeated the New York Knicks 3:1 in the first round.

Patrick Ewing had made it into the playoffs for the first time in his career.

He averaged 18 points, 14 rebounds, and 3.3 blocks per game, with a shooting percentage of 49%.

His performance could only be described as par for the course, as continuous injuries hindered Ewing’s development.

Moreover, Bob Knight’s assessment during the Olympic Training Camp was not wrong—Ewing lacked imagination and creativity in the offensive end.

In the NCAA, his pure defensive skills could win the championship, but in the NBA, the approach of Bill Russell from the past no longer sufficed.

Furthermore, Ewing did not possess the outstanding passing ability of Russell—who in his best season, could contribute an average of 5.3 assists per game, and his blocks and defensive rebounds were always the catalyst for the team’s fast breaks.

The Celtics’ opponent in the semi-finals was the Chicago Bulls, who had once again defeated the Hawks.

During the first two games of the series, Jordan scored 50 and 55 points, averaging 45 points for the series with a terrifying playoff performance, displaying his powerful scoring ability to the entire league.

As well as the fact that he was just playing around during the regular season, and playoffs were his true stage.

His desire to surpass Ah Gan grew stronger.

In another Eastern Conference matchup, the Washington Bullets faced the Detroit Pistons.

The Bullets defeated the Knights 3:1, and the Pistons easily took down the Bucks. Two slow, brutal teams were about to start a round of ruthless semi-final battles.

In the Western Conference, the Lakers eliminated the Spurs with a 3:0 sweep and their semi-final opponent was the Utah Jazz Team, which had defeated the Nuggets.

The Nuggets had performed well in the regular season, achieving 54 wins.

But regular season victories proved ineffective in the playoffs; the Jazz Team was the superior one.

The duo of Karl Malone and Stockton had become even more formidable.

In particular, Karl Malone, whose average score per game reached 27.7 points that season, was one of the league’s top interior scorers.

And Stockton, with an average of 13.8 assists per game, secured his position as the team’s starting point guard and won the league’s assists title.

The 1984 rookies, with Stockton’s assists and steals, Jordan’s scoring, Ah Gan’s rebounds, Olajuwon’s blocks, and Barkley’s weight, would dominate the league’s stat charts for a long time to come.

The Dallas Mavericks completed their revenge, defeating the Seattle SuperSonics 3:1 in the first round, advancing to the semi-finals, and avenging last year’s Game 7 loss.

The NBA is just like that, you beat me today, I’ll beat you tomorrow.

Players are often driven by emotions, performing beyond their normal capabilities.

Last year, Dale Ellis, fueled by hatred, shattered the Mavericks with his shooting.

Not only did he defeat the Mavericks, he ruined the whole season for the second best in the Western Conference.

He also indirectly caused Dick Motta’s dismissal; one could say there was no better revenge than that.

If there was anything less than perfect, it was that the NBA would come around again the following year.

Basketball isn’t war, it isn’t murder, and avengers can’t truly kill their adversaries.

The game rules give everyone the chance to rise again and start over.

For Dale Ellis, his surging feelings of revenge had disappeared when facing the Mavericks once again.

On the contrary, he had to contend with the Mavericks’ rising fury and the thundering jeers from the Dallas Sports Arena.

His performance slides significantly compared to the previous season.

Under the Mavericks’ tight defense, he could only average 19.7 points per game.

In four games, not once did he score 30 points, as he was locked down by the Mavericks’ defense.

While the Mavericks, riding high on emotion, took four games to win the series, smoothly advancing to the semi-finals.

After 1985, they would meet the Trail Blazers in the playoffs once again.

After savoring the sweetness of revenge, the Dallas people were eager to engage in another battle of revenge in Portland.

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On May 10th, the day of the Western Conference semi-final between the Trail Blazers and the Mavericks,

Gan Guoyang, as usual, got up early, but he didn’t go for a run. Instead, he warmed up in his home gym biking, and then prepared to practice shooting on his backyard basketball court.

After an hour of warm-up, Gan Guoyang made breakfast for himself to fill his stomach and also prepared one for Wang Fuxi.

When Wang Fuxi came downstairs from his bedroom, he was surprised to find Gan Guoyang still at home instead of at practice.

"The sun must’ve risen from the west today, you’re actually not at practice?"

"Jack cancelled today’s shooting practice, telling everyone to rest at home. I’m going to practice on my own at home later."

"Because of those rumors?"

"Yes, because of the rumors."

According to NBA regulations, playoff practices are open to reporters.

During the two hours in the morning, reporters would crowd around the court, constantly snapping pictures, and players had to answer interviews.

Ramsay cancelled today’s practice due to recent rumors in the media, knowing the players would inevitably be harassed.

The first piece of news was that Donald Sterling, the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, wanted to poach Drexler and Gan Guoyang with a big contract during the off-season.

If that didn’t work, he at least wanted to snag one of them and was willing to use all player assets or draft picks to make the trade.

After a horrendously bad season, Sterling desperately needed a superstar to help the team rebound and draw crowds to boost ticket sales.

Sterling might not have an eye for basketball talent, but his knack for making money was quite unique.

He had his eye on Gan Guoyang from the moment he entered the league, surreptitiously slipping Ah Gan his business card, hoping to lure Gan Guoyang to Los Angeles, knowing he had a powerful ability to sell tickets.

But Gan Guoyang, informed by Bill Walton of Sterling’s shady dealings, had not the slightest interest in going to the Clippers.

Over the years, how many well-known stars had the Clippers wasted? Sterling could arguably be called the worst owner in the league.

After the news broke, when reporters questioned Gan Guoyang, he declared decidedly, "I will never play for Donald Sterling, and I won’t be going to the Los Angeles Clippers."

Gan Guoyang’s statement reassured the Portland fans.

However, Drexler’s comments were somewhat ambiguous.

He said, "Right now, I’m only thinking about the championship. Our goal is victory and the championship. As for the contract in the summer, that’s summer’s work and unrelated to now. I don’t want to be distracted."

This evasive response left room for speculation, as Drexler seemed to be considering his options for the summer.

Sterling, making moves like this during the playoffs, forced the Trail Blazers’ two stars to clarify the situation, which affected the team’s morale.

Seeing no hope with Portland, Sterling then went on to hassle the Bulls and Jordan.

He made an offer to Krause, saying the team could pick any player or draft pick, as long as they could get Jordan.

Although this trade request seemed ludicrous, Krause actually considered it for a moment.

Krause thought that as long as Jordan was there, it seemed as though all the glory of victory belonged to him, with no one caring about the management.

In reality, Krause had done a lot of work over the past two seasons, building a rather impressive roster that was both young and promising.

However, Krause’s idea was fleeting, as the owner Reinsdorf soon shut down Sterling’s proposal, not wanting to be cursed by all of Chicago.

Sterling, the troublemaker stirring things up during the playoffs from behind the scenes, but that was just a small ripple.

For the people of Portland, the real news was that someone had leaked that owner Larry Weinberg was in talks to sell the team.

This rumor hadn’t hit the newspapers, but quite a few people were discussing it privately, uncertain of the source.

Overnight, the rumor spread throughout the ranks of Portland, and everybody knew about it.

The team became nervous all at once, which was why Ramsay cancelled practice and didn’t allow media interviews to disturb the players’ mindset, as they had a game that evening.

And because Larry Weinberg did not immediately come out to dispel the rumors, they became even more credible.

"Ah Gan, is Weinberg really going to sell the team? It’s a championship team, why sell it?"

Wang Fuxi had heard the rumors and asked Gan Guoyang.

Gan Guoyang sighed, "The best time to sell is now, when the team is most valuable. Championships aren’t won every year; it’s a high point right now."

"Mr. Weinberg is a good man, he comes to every game."

"He might be good, but... business is business, and if he really wants to sell the team, there’s nothing we can do."

"Will this affect the playoffs?"

"It will, the team is already on edge. Actually, throughout the season, the team has been unstable; you can feel it, right?"

Wang Fuxi nodded, "I can feel it; you haven’t been as happy as in the past two years, always a bit irritable."

"Playing basketball is still fun, but the team has been dealing with more and more annoying issues, and many people have left. It’s like the ship is about to sink. And now, even the captain is ready to abandon the ship."

Wang Fuxi rarely saw Gan Guoyang so negative and sighing, but this season he truly seemed tired.

Wang Fuxi held Guoyang’s hand and said, "Husband, I know you’re not one to get discouraged easily, and your goal is still the championship. I think, since the rumor is affecting the team, we should try to dispel its impact rather than passively watch it get worse."

"Cancelling practice might reduce the noise interference, but it also deepens the suspicions. Your response to the rumor about the Clippers wanting to sign you was very good, very decisive, and it reassured everyone."

"It’s the same now; we need to find a way to get in touch with Mr. Weinberg, whether he’s selling or not, and get a clear statement to give everyone an answer. With an answer, everyone will be at ease. Regardless of whether or not he sells, the games must go on, and if we win the championship, wouldn’t that mean selling at an even higher price?"

Wang Fuxi’s words awakened Gan Guoyang, and she indeed had a point.

The best way to deal with rumors was to face them head-on and respond.

Instead of waiting for rumors to ferment, it was better to proactively seek the truth. Regardless of whether the team was being sold, the championship must be pursued.

So, Gan Guoyang got up, ready to call Larry Weinberg to ask for the clear situation and get him to give a definite statement to the press and media.

"Thank you, wife. You’re right; we need to face problems head-on."

"We made a promise from the beginning. No matter what complex situation we faced, I would stand by your side and help you solve it."

"Hey, wait a minute, don’t go! I have something to tell you, it’s also a rumor~"

"What? You’ve got a rumor too? Where do you think you’re being traded to?"

"It’s not about me being traded anywhere, it’s... it’s that we have a free agent about to sign with our family."

"Am I going to have a little mistress?"

"I’m fucking pregnant, can you not understand human language!"