The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 568 - 67 The Great Time Era_2
Along with Gan Guoyang, they all experienced the most complex, most intense emotions contained within.
"Remember, we are a great team, and we have only one true enemy, ourselves. Tonight, it’s a battle for us to transcend ourselves and defeat ourselves. A new world is waiting for you guys, so go get that damn championship, guys!"
Holding back his tears, Jack Ramsey gave the final game mobilization.
At seven o’clock in the evening, the deafening roar of the cheers at Memorial Coliseum was like a tsunami.
More than 13,000 spectators on-site, a few thousand people at the Paramount Theatre, tens of thousands of fans outside, and the tens of thousands of viewers from all over the world watching on TV, all their attention was focused on this one piece of the ground.
The Memorial Coliseum added not only seats but also a dozen temporary camera positions; a large number of overseas journalists, and media at the scene to broadcast the game, filled Portland’s hotels to full capacity.
At courtside, Gan Guoyang could see many familiar figures.
The old soldiers from the Trail Blazers’ 77 championship, such as Bill Walton, Hollins, Lucas and others, were all there.
Some NBA stars, like Magic Johnson, and even Michael Jordan, who had asked Gan Guoyang for tickets, came to witness the glory of the threepeat.
In the VIP seats, there were David Stern, Larry Fleisher, Oregon’s political dignitaries, Chinese-American tycoons from San Francisco, Taiwanese moguls from Los Angeles, and the chairman of the governors’ joint council, Bill Clinton.
However, the most eye-catching was a young businessman sitting next to Larry Weinberg, dressed in a red shirt under a pale blue suit, frowning, and at this moment, people finally knew who the new owner of the team was.
At this moment, the Washington Bullets players standing on the court didn’t even know what they were here for.
Charles Barkley later recalled, "Before the game started, the locker room was silent. When we went out onto the court, we were all thinking, how we are going to get back later, if the game could end early. I felt we were superfluous in Portland, and everyone just wanted to leave early."
Gan Guoyang exchanged friendly handshakes and hugs with Moses Malone, Bernard King, Barkley and others, as if performing a farewell to a body.
It was evident that the Bullets players lacked fighting spirit; they knew they couldn’t win this game; they were not prepared to be enemies with the world.
When the game started, the Trail Blazers quickly got into their groove, and Guoyang’s first move was to catch the ball in the low post, turn, and hit a jump shot, setting off cheers throughout the venue.
His score settled the whole team down; the Trail Blazers were at their best this season tonight.
All prior contradictions, dissatisfaction, and problems disappeared at this moment; everyone’s hearts were united.
The Trail Blazers’ offense was like flowing clouds and smooth water; Guoyang played like a ’pastry warrior’ for the first time this season, continuously receiving passes inside and then easily putting the ball into the basket.
The Bullets’ defense crumbled quickly, and Guoyang was perfect from the field in the first quarter, 6 of 6 for 12 points, and the Trail Blazers led by 14 points at 21:35.
The game then turned into an offensive show by the entire Trail Blazers team; their chemistry and fluidity were brought to the extreme.
This was Jack Ramsey-style basketball; it was as if everyone had entered the zone, playing so comfortably.
Gan Guoyang dominated inside, and unusually for him, he was on the receiving end of assists all night long. The team was passing and assisting as a way of giving thanks and paying tribute to Ah Gan.
Thanking him for dragging the team forward all season, for keeping the team together when it was about to fall apart, for his strong will and generous nature that turned the Trail Blazers from strong to great.
By halftime, Guoyang had made all 11 of his shots for 24 points, with only two free throws.
That showed that the Bullets were nearly giving up on defense.
At 45:60, the Trail Blazers were leading by 15 points, and there wasn’t much suspense in the game anymore.
During the halftime break, even Dick Motta had lost the courage to keep fighting.
On the road to the finals, he had already said all there was to say.
Just like in 1979, the semis and the conference finals exhausted them all, and by the time they got to the finals, all that was left was a shell.
The fat lady had already taken the stage.
After the third quarter started, the Bullets players tried to mount a counterattack; they scored a 7:0 run on the Trail Blazers and closed the gap to 8 points.
But Porter hit a three-pointer, Drexler hit a three-pointer, and both three-point shots widened the gap again.
When Drexler started hitting threes, it showed that the entire Trail Blazers team was utterly relaxed.
Even if their opponents tirelessly pursued them, they were still full of confidence.
Gan Guoyang continued to receive passes inside and score; his hook shots and close-range jump shots were completely unstoppable.
The Bullets defense was a step behind everywhere; they were out of steam.
Tonight, the Trail Blazers also had Gan Guoyang playing one-on-one defense against Charles Barkley, who completely lost his rhythm.
When Gan Guoyang went 20 for 20 shots, racking up 42 points, the entire Memorial Coliseum erupted.
Bill Walton stood up, raising his arms in a wild cheer, reminding people of the 1973 NCAA championship, where Walton scored 44 points on 21 of 22 shooting.
By now the lead had reached 20 points, 78:98, and the Bullets began to pull their starters.
Gan Guoyang stopped shooting; he passed the opportunities to the reserve players who came on.
When he was subbed out, the applause and cheers became incredible; the Portland people were paying homage to their King, with celebration beginning both inside and outside the Glass Palace.
Some staff member, learning from last season’s incident where the champagne was stolen by Lan Bi’er, brought the champagne to the side of the court.
When the final buzzer sounded to end the game, the Trail Blazers players opened the champagne and sprayed the alcohol and foam over Gan Guoyang and Ramsay.
Thousands of white and red ribbons fell from the sky; Memorial Coliseum, Portland, Oregon, and even China across the ocean, all became seas of joy.
The joys and sorrows of humanity were interconnected at this moment.
David Stern at the award ceremony unquestionably handed the championship and FMVP trophies to Gan Guoyang, saying he had achieved something great, becoming the most outstanding basketball player in the world.
The revelry began at that moment; the Bullets’ players had vanished without a trace, while the Trail Blazers rushed to the locker room to start their celebration. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦
Amidst chaos and frenzy, Larry Weinberg, accompanied by the new owner, came to the locker room to introduce the new boss of the Trail Blazers to the players and staff.
He walked up to Gan Guoyang, reaching out his hand to Guoyang, who was shirtless, cradling the trophy, and drenched in champagne.
"Ah Gan, I believe we can create the greatest era in the NBA together!"
Gan Guoyang looked skeptically at the well-known but not-so-reputable New York businessman.
He didn’t understand why Larry Weinberg would sell the team to him; this guy had already ruined a minor football league in 1984, and he often made money by taking over bankrupt businesses.
This man had long tried to break into the sports industry but was resisted by the NFL owners; unexpectedly, this time he had reached into the NBA.
Facing the new owner’s overture, Gan Guoyang did not immediately reach out, showing his distrust, as well as his protest against Larry Weinberg.
"Oh, perhaps you find me unfamiliar; no worries. By the way, Ah Gan, I’ve been thinking of a Chinese name for myself, but I’m not very good with Chinese. Could you give me some suggestions? A name suitable for my age."
The man actually asked for a name, which was an extreme act of friendliness.
Seeing he was serious, Guoyang thought for a moment and said, "For your age, how about Tang Jianguo."
"TANG-JIAN-GUO?"
"Yes, Comrade Tang Jianguo."
Tang Jianguo extended his hand toward Gan Guoyang once again.
Gan Guoyang could not refuse any longer and reached out his hand, firmly gripping his.
"Let’s usher in a great era together, Ah Gan!"
At this moment, Gan Guoyang felt both exhilarated and a bit absurd.
Was the real grand era about to arrive? With this nearly broken Trail Blazers?
No one knew, but never mind the grandeur of the era, it was time to savor this moment.
Gan Guoyang held the O’Brien Trophy tightly, feeling its cold temperature.
(End of Volume Six, "Dangerous".)
