The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 562 - 62: Return to Home Court

[The Eastern Conference champion hat had been on Barkley’s head for several days. It was time for Charles to consider how to face Ah Gan when he first appeared on the Finals stage.]

In 1988, having Ah Gan face Charles Barkley in the NBA Finals was like Michael Jackson squaring off against Prince Nelson.]

These two good friends attracted people’s attention to the NBA court, as they each defeated the early-80s dominators, the Lakers and Celtics, in their respective conference finals, symbolizing the handover of eras in the league.]

The more anticipated duel would be Ah Gan vs. Jordan, but Charles, a mutual friend of both, took the lead by bringing the patchwork Bullets team to the Finals through stumbling blocks.]

In an ESPN interview show in the early 2000s, Charles Barkley said, "I can’t express how deep the bond between Ah Gan and I is; we met during the Olympic trials. He’s special, that kind of person you can recognize in a crowd and immediately want to befriend (Ah Gan: ’Nonsense, I’m of Asian descent’), and sometimes we were like brothers. He cooked for me, you know, and in the past, only my mom and grandmother would do that. He taught me a lot; without him, I wouldn’t have achieved what I did later on."]

In the ’90s, they were often photographed eating together, bowling, and occasionally golfing with Michael Jordan—Ah Gan wasn’t too interested in golf, but he was the best among the three of them, excelling in making power shots.]

Some speculated that Ah Gan’s great relationships with Barkley and Jordan were to soften them, to put them at a disadvantage in confrontations.]

Charles Barkley retorted, "Guys, Ah Gan made me tougher, not the other way around."]

For the Trail Blazers in 1988, they encountered countless troubles during the season.]

Even during the Finals, everyone knew that they were about to be sold and would have a change of ownership.]

In the midst of this unexpected turmoil, they still made it to the end, aiming for a consecutive third championship trophy.]

If they achieved this goal, Ah Gan, Clyde Drexler, Jack Ramsay, and the Trail Blazers would join the ranks of the greats.]

Ah Gan would officially surpass Bird, Johnson, and Jabbar to become the true king of the ’80s.] 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Meanwhile, this turmoil provided the Washington Bullets with the best chance to defeat the Trail Blazers in the ’80s Finals, accomplishing what neither the Lakers nor Celtics could manage.]

Moreover, the Bullets won a significant amount of sympathy and support before the Finals, being the true underdogs of the league.]

An aging Moses Malone, Moncrief, an injured Bernard King, and a failed Dick Motta—you could hardly find another team that seemed like a Hollywood basketball movie, filled with defeat, decay, dilapidation, needing to prove themselves to the world.]

But they suffered a total defeat in the first game, a complete rout.]

They had played at the Memorial Coliseum before, but it was their first time playing in the Finals there.]

The same venue, the same packed stands, but the atmosphere was radically different from the regular season.]

Bernard King later said, "The Bullets were unprepared for the Finals; before the first game started, our minds were still echoing with the tension and anxiety from the Game 7 against the Celtics. Usually, we’re used to a dozen cameras on you, but in the Finals, the number of cameras increased to over a hundred. I advise any team that thinks they can win the championship to watch the Finals tapes before they start."]

"By contrast, the Trail Blazers were in their third straight Finals."]

After a poor performance, Charles Barkley turned to Moses Malone for help.]

Malone just patted Barkley on the back and told him to go grab a burger.]

Moses was the only player on the Bullets to have won a championship, and his calmness affected the whole team.]

Yes, it was just the Finals, nothing to fuss about, just play as usual.]

Bernard King even visited Ah Gan’s home, bringing gifts in an attempt to corrupt him.]

Dick Motta said before the game that they were not here to create miracles, but because they never gave up.]

In the second game, the Bullets performed normally, regaining their form and causing a lot of trouble for the Trail Blazers on defense.]

The two teams fought through three overtimes, and Dick Motta’s war of attrition played out perfectly in this game.]

At times during the match, he seemed more like the head coach than Wes Unseld, even getting into an argument with Jack Ramsay.]

Jack Ramsay had a previous altercation with Chuck Daly in last year’s finals, where the referees had to intervene before things escalated to a direct confrontation.

In the first overtime, Ah Gan’s elbow unintentionally struck Barkley’s cheek—though it wasn’t on purpose, a sizable swelling appeared on Barkley’s face, making him look even chubbier.

After applying ice on the bench, Barkley refused to sit out to rest; he was determined to duke it out with Ah Gan until the very end.

Ah Gan’s superior stamina and their home-court advantage—this year the Trail Blazers preferred fighting on their own turf—played a role once again in the third overtime.

Ah Gan scored 7 consecutive points in the third overtime, while Barkley’s last shot did not find its mark.

113:115, the Trail Blazers narrowly won at home with a 2-point lead over the Bullets, taking a 2:0 lead in the series.

Ah Gan achieved 42 points, 19 rebounds, and 4 blocks, while Barkley notched 41 points and 17 rebounds.

Their performances were equally stellar, becoming the second duo since Jerry West and John Havlicek in the 1969 finals to both score 40 points in a finals game.

"I gave it my all in the second game," recalled Barkley, "but Ah Gan was better, way too strong."

Barkley spoke too soon; he would soon discover that Ah Gan was even stronger than he had imagined.]—Excerpt from the 2022 published biography of Charles Barkley, "Barkley" by Morty Leaf.

The Trail Blazers smoothly took a 2:0 lead in the first two games, with the championship seemingly in their grasp.

The Portland media had begun discussing something: If the Trail Blazers could win two of the three consecutive away games, clinching the championship, it would mean that all three of their championships were won on the road.

"We’re about to win three straight championships, but we’ve never experienced winning one at home."

Indeed, in ’86 and ’87, the Trail Blazers clinched the championship away, which always felt slightly unsatisfying.

Some suggested that if the Trail Blazers had the upper hand, they should intentionally drag the series to a sixth game to win the championship at home.

Before leaving Portland, Jack Ramsay dismissed such talk, saying, "Any relaxation could lead to collapse; the Trail Blazers are not in a position to toy with the outcome of the series, and we will fight hard for victory."

The Trail Blazers indeed fought hard for victory, as did the Bullets, especially once back in Washington.

It had been exactly ten years since Washingtonians last tasted championship glory, and the people in the Capital were just as passionate about it.

In Game 3 of the finals, with a significant political presence at the Capital Gymnasium, the Bullets’ morale peaked.

The Bullets, who heavily relied on morale in their play, maximized their grinder defense with the help of the home crowd.

Coupled with some assistance from the home referees, the Bullets kept the Trail Blazers’ score down to 15 points in the first quarter.

Ah Gan remained unstoppable, but the Bullets’ slow pace and tight, even brutal, defense caused the Trail Blazers’ shooters to lose their touch.

This year, the Trail Blazers were often shaky with their shooting, having more nights of clanking iron than in the past two seasons.

79:86, the Bullets defeated the Trail Blazers at home, pulling one game back with a series score of 1:2.

The fourth game became extraordinarily crucial—if the Bullets took the fourth game, tying the series 2:2, it would mean that the decisive Game 5 would take place in Washington.

Taking a leaf from the 1986 Boston Celtics, the Trail Blazers had seized control of the series by winning the key Game 5 in Portland.

At the end of Game 3, Charles Barkley shouted at Ah Gan, "Sorry Sonny, you guys won’t have the chance to sweep us!"

Ah Gan shot back, "We just want to win the championship back home!"