The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 1785 - 56: Enduring in Silence (Part 2)

The Lakers now seem disjointed, yet West remains optimistic as he tells his players in the locker room that the series has just begun.

"Don’t expect to beat the Trail Blazers in four or five games to reach the finals, but the Trail Blazers shouldn’t think they can easily beat us either."

"Prepare for a very tough series, six games, or even seven. Then, the initiative will be in our hands."

Jerry West urges everyone on the Lakers to brace for a marathon fight; from past performances, it’s clear that a swift victory is impossible.

Jackson pulls West into the office to vent his frustrations; years of being dominated by the Trail Blazers and Ah Gan have left him incoherent.

West quietly watches Jackson "go crazy," recalling the last coach driven mad by Gan Guoyang: Pat Riley.

Perhaps madness is the fate of Lakers coaches over these fifteen years, in the darkness without prospects and pathways, madness is the alternative to extinction.

When Jackson finally calms down, Jerry West responds coolly: "The series has only gone one game, are you falling apart already? Are you that unsustainable?"

Jackson shakes his head and replies, "It’s just one game, but I’ve already seen the end, can’t you see it?"

"I can’t see it; the outcome is still up in the air, and our chances are significant."

"Jerry, where are our chances? Tell me, where are our chances?"

"Our chance lies in the fact that we are younger, more promising, and, the NBA needs us more."

Jerry West’s words spark a realization in Jackson. He lifts his head and asks, "What do you mean?"

West says, "The league won’t just watch us get eliminated and let the Trail Blazers advance to the finals again. There’s likely no suspense in the Eastern Conference, as the Celtics are unstoppable. The Lakers and Celtics reaching the finals would be the best scenario after Gan Guoyang and Jordan left the league. NBA should return to its main storyline."

Jackson rises, understanding what West means. "Jerry, you mean... the league will intervene to help us?"

West smiles and says, "I never said that, Phil. I just said, the league hopes, it hopes."

Phil Jackson understood West’s meaning.

In the NBA, the league influencing a series through referees has long been no secret.

However, over the years, the league has taken care of Gan Guoyang and the Trail Blazers. After all, Gan is tightly bound to David Stern.

But this season is different; due to the espionage case, Gan is likely retiring to become a legend or a stepping stone for a new era.

With 9 championships in hand, it’s more than enough. One more or less doesn’t matter, but other teams in the league need a championship to prove themselves.

The Trail Blazers have benefited from favorable officiating in playoffs and finals for years, and Gan Guoyang’s relationship with many referees is very good, profiting from it is hard to deny.

Phil Jackson finds inner peace, although he believes he shouldn’t rely on external forces to win the series. At this point, pretending that outside influence doesn’t exist is self-deception.

Jerry West must have received some indication from the league; the Lakers are favored in this series, so the team must seize its advantage and turn it into victory.

On May 24th, the second match between both teams resumed at Staples Center.

Before the game started, David Stern personally attended the event to present the 2000 season regular season MVP trophy to Shaquille O’Neal.

This season, O’Neal led the Lakers to a league-best record of 65 wins and 17 losses, averaging 29.7 points, 13.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 3 blocks per game, playing in 80 games—almost perfect attendance.

Undoubtedly, purely from the regular season perspective, he played a nearly perfect season, showcasing his unmatched dominance in the paint, excelling in both offense and defense, as the most powerful center in the Three Second Zone since Gan Guoyang.

Taking the MVP trophy from David Stern, Stern patted O’Neal and said, "You performed wonderfully, Shaq. We hope the future era belongs to you."

Stern’s words gave O’Neal confidence, and he began to assert himself in the first quarter, continuously pounding the Trail Blazers’ interior.

After only two minutes of play, Sabonis committed two fouls during defense, forcing him to sit out early.

Among the two fouls, only the first was beyond dispute, while the second was marginal. The referee made a firm call.

This disrupted the Trail Blazers’ initial rhythm, and Rick Carlisle had to bring in Ben Wallace early.

While Wallace is strong defensively, his height is his natural shortcoming, and he struggles offensively.

Without Sabonis supporting him, Gan Guoyang’s offense will be affected, requiring him to focus more energy on defense.

Gan Guoyang soon realized that the refs were favoring the Lakers; many calls that could go either way were made for the Lakers and not for the Trail Blazers.

Seeing David Stern smiling in the stands, Gan Guoyang knew exactly what was going on; the league definitely did not want the Lakers to lose two home games in a row.

Much like the 1988 season, when the Trail Blazers met the Lakers in the West Finals, the Lakers were overall stronger but lost their first two home games due to Gan Guoyang’s explosive performance, resulting in a 0-2.