The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 280 - 21 Moving Forward

About the accident during the game against the Clippers in October 1985, rumors abounded that it was Gan Guoyang’s way of taking revenge for Walton, because after Walton’s return to the Trail Blazers, he still faced Sterling’s relentless lawsuits, which were Sterling’s greedy means of squeezing profits.

Moreover, Sterling had moved the Clippers from San Diego to Los Angeles, making San Diego native Walton feel very guilty. In short, this notorious owner had alienated many players, with Walton being just one of them.

However, Ah Gan denied these kinds of rumors, stating in the post-game press conference that he had simply slipped. He said, "I never hit people, I just play an aggressive game," and in the end, it wasn’t Ah Gan who knocked down Sterling, but Melvin Turpin.

Turpin and Ah Gan together weighed over 500 pounds, equivalent to an adult North American grizzly bear. Their weight and force crushed the metal folding chair, causing Sterling to faint on the spot, but after being examined at the hospital, apart from some bruises and soft tissue injuries, he wasn’t seriously harmed.

This may have something to do with Turpin’s big soft butt, whose thick layer of fat acted as a cushion, preventing Sterling from sustaining fatal injuries in this undeserved disaster.

However, the most profound impact of this accident wasn’t the delight it brought to some of the audience and a few of the Clippers players (Sterling was never popular in Los Angeles), nor was it the creation of "Sterling’s Chair Suffering Day" in Los Angeles, mocked every few years, nor was it contributing the classic Sports Illustrated cover of the year featuring the human sandwich of Sterling, Melvin, and Ah Gan.

The deepest impact was that Sterling quickly decided to trade away Turpin, having lost patience with this fat-assed fellow, and couldn’t tolerate someone who could expose his old wounds to stay on the team.

This trade changed Turpin’s fate, allowing him to fight on a bigger stage. That butt made him a true warrior.

————Excerpt from "Melvin’s Dinner" written by Alexander-Wolff for the June issue of Sports Illustrated, 1989.

The collision caused chaos at the scene, with cries of shock all around the seats. Sterling’s wife, Shelly-Sterling, slapped her husband’s face trying to wake him up but to no avail.

Paramedics entered the scene, carrying Sterling on a stretcher. His arm dangled from the stretcher, giving the impression that he was dead, and some fans in the stands were worried.

But many others were secretly thrilled, even enjoying the spectacle, feeling that the game was well worth the price of admission, especially those featuring Ah Gan.

After all, Sterling’s reputation in Los Angeles was really mediocre; he had offended too many, especially the small and medium-sized businesses and suppliers. His lawsuits had caused many people heavy losses.

As an owner, he didn’t care about the fans. After coming to Los Angeles, he hardly conducted any fan feedback activities. The souvenirs he gave out were cheap and baffling, and he was also known to renege on prize money from raffles, which left many feeling deceived.

So when during the halftime break, the DJ informed the audience that Mr. Sterling had regained consciousness and was not seriously injured, everyone breathed a sigh of relief (after all, no one really wanted to see Sterling get squashed to death), but they were disappointed to learn he had only fainted and didn’t suffer any fractures or severe bleeding. Some boos even resonated through the venue.

Turpin felt relieved; throughout the second quarter, he was on edge. When he got up from Sterling’s body, he asked Gan Guoyang, "Ah Gan, is he dead?"

Gan Guoyang told him that such a scourge wouldn’t die that easily, he had probably just fainted, and besides, with your fat ass, you likely wouldn’t have any injury.

Gan Guoyang didn’t tell Turpin that he had control over the situation. The blow was hard, but Gan Guoyang had embraced Turpin to reduce the impact, and indeed, Turpin’s big butt had provided excellent cushioning.

During the halftime break in the locker room, Bill Walton couldn’t contain his joy. He and Gan Guoyang sat in the corner of the locker room, whispering and occasionally bursting into hearty laughter.

Ramsay couldn’t stand it, saying, "You two might as well go back to the hotel now, get a room, and have a good chat. The game isn’t over yet."

The two stopped their whispering. In fact, everyone could tell that Ah Gan had most likely done it on purpose to air Walton’s grievances.

But since Ah Gan’s acting was so good and the incident happened so fortuitously, there were no obvious flaws to be seen, and everyone didn’t point it out. It’s a real shame Ah Gan isn’t in WWE.

However, Sterling being knocked out didn’t weaken the Clippers’ fighting spirit. On the contrary, after sacrificing their unlucky boss, the Clippers put up a beautiful offense in the second quarter.

Derek Smith’s shooting warmed up, Maxwell found some sense of being the core, taking a lot of shots on offense, and sustaining the Clippers’ offense.

So by halftime, the Trail Blazers were leading 56:50, only six points ahead of the Clippers. If they didn’t play well in the third quarter, there was a possibility of an away game upset.

In training camp, the Trail Blazers emphasized defense, adding layers to their defensive strategy, and no longer relying solely on Gan Guoyang as the shield.

However, this system needed time to operate smoothly. The players were prone to distraction in defense, making mistakes and poor choices.

These issues all needed continuous tuning through actual combat and accumulation of experience.

Furthermore, more complex defensive patterns meant that players had to communicate and cooperate more.

If communication faltered, rotations became problematic, or illegal defense was too obvious, it could lead to major defensive gaps.

This is why many coaches are reluctant to invest too much energy into defense; the cost-benefit ratio is indeed low.

However, to advance to becoming a top-tier, championship team, this step was a must.

By the third quarter, Gan Guoyang began to show his majesty as the "King of the Third Quarter."

His attacks became more ferocious with impressive spin jump shots and unexpected hook shots.

Melvin Turpin, Donaldson, and Benjamin were all unable to stop Ah Gan as he scored consecutively, leading the team to widen the gap to 15 points.

Walton sat on the bench and said to Ramsay, "Back in my day, I couldn’t play like Ah Gan."

Ramsay replied, "You can’t do it now, either."

Walton thought to himself, why is this old man’s words getting more and more unpleasant?

Walton’s contributions tonight started with his high-post playmaking, something the Trail Blazers desperately needed to diversify their strategies.

Moreover, he was very familiar with Ramsay’s tactical playbook, having found the three games thus far to be quite comfortable and enjoyable.

Secondly, as an internal rotation player, he provided Gan Guoyang with more rest time.

Last season, there were some games where Gan played almost without rest, averaging 41 minutes on the court; he was being used like a workhorse.

The presence of Walton provided a tall and reliable sixth man for the interior, allowing Gan to reduce his time to under 40 minutes and play more comfortably.

In the end, the Trail Blazers comfortably secured a victory on the road, 109:100, a 9-point lead, with the Clippers never evening the score or taking the lead.

Gan Guoyang finished with 31 points, 16 rebounds, and 4 blocks.

After the game, Gan Guoyang made a special visit to the hospital to see Sterling but was turned away by Sterling and his wife at the door.

Now that the face-off had happened, Gan didn’t have to endure Sterling’s harassment anymore. Gan wasn’t afraid of offending the stingy owner; if Sterling felt aggrieved, in future games he could personally take a hit instead of sending Turpin, and then Sterling wouldn’t have such an easy time of it.

Unexpectedly, a week later, Sterling withdrew the lawsuit against Walton and the Trail Blazers and did not pursue charges against Gan Guoyang.

It seemed Sterling realized that if he provoked Ah Gan, the youngster would indeed find ways to retaliate, and Sterling did not want to be relegated to the back seats at Trail Blazers games in Los Angeles instead of sitting up front.

Apparently, bullies did need a show of strength to keep them in line.

Having completed the game against the Clippers, the Trail Blazers headed to their next stop, Salt Lake City, carrying a three-game winning streak.

Gan Guoyang would get to see his old friend Stockton again and take the chance to visit the apartment given to him "for free."

When Gan Guoyang arrived at Stockton’s apartment and took a tour, finding it not bad, he asked, "John, you’re not planning to move again next year, are you? If you get married, you can’t live with Nada in an apartment; you should buy a house in Salt Lake City."

John nodded and said, "That’s for sure. After getting married, I plan to buy a two-bedroom..."

"Wait, what, a two-bedroom? Are you waiting for the country to help you out of poverty? Don’t you want to hire a nanny or think about the kids?"

"Uh...I think a two-bedroom is enough for now, the property value is always rising. When the time comes, I’ll sell the house and get a bigger one."

That made some sense. Stockton was indeed economical and calculating, no wonder his offensive organization was so orderly.

"So when do you plan to propose? How about tomorrow? Nada will come to watch the game, right?"

"Yes, I also plan to propose tomorrow, but there’s a condition. We have to win the game, otherwise I might not be in the mood."

Gan Guoyang’s expression darkened as he said, "John, even though we’re best friends, don’t think I’ll let you win just to help you propose."

Stockton hurriedly said, "How could that be? I want to help the team win with my own ability, then happily propose to Nada."

Gan Guoyang sighed and said, "Then the day you propose to Nada will definitely have to be pushed back."