The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 281 - 22: Trouble Brewing

On the day of the game against the Jazz, in the morning, Gan Guoyang heard the news during breakfast that Michael Jordan might be out for the season due to an injury sustained in a game against the Warriors.

After returning to his room, Gan Guoyang immediately called Jordan’s number, couldn’t get through, and was sure that many friends and relatives were constantly calling him.

Gan Guoyang thought for a moment, then sent a message to George Keller’s pager, and about ten minutes later, Jordan’s call came through to his room at the Salt Lake City hotel.

Kohler was almost always with Jordan, so if you wanted to find Jordan, it was better to contact Kohler first; he would definitely help find Michael.

Kohler knew the importance of Ah Gan to Jordan, and he would inform Jordan ASAP whenever he received a message from Ah Gan.

"Sonny, I feel terrible, at least six weeks, at least six weeks I can’t play!" Jordan complained to Gan Guoyang in an angry voice as soon as the call connected.

He didn’t say he was finished, nor did he cry out of sadness, he was just angry that he couldn’t play basketball anymore.

"How are things, has the doctor made a diagnosis yet?"

"I’ve had an X-ray, the initial diagnosis is a six-week rest. However, I still need to do a CAT scan tomorrow for a further confirmation. Things aren’t looking good, I can feel it, it hurts a lot, this time might be worse."

At this moment, there was a trace of worry in Jordan’s tone, having performed brilliantly in the previous two games, averaging 31 points and closely chasing Gan Guoyang on the scoring leaderboard.

Jordan had previously reminded Gan Guoyang over the phone to stay healthy, only to fall himself now.

Gan Guoyang had vague memories about basketball in the ’80s and didn’t know what injury Jordan suffered in 1985 or how severe it was.

He told Jordan, "Michael, if you go down like this, you’ll never be able to catch up with me."

"Fuck you, my life isn’t about chasing after you. But you really do run fast; it’s horrible not being able to play the game."

"If you can’t play, this season won’t feel complete for me... but I’m sure you’ll recover and get back on the court soon."

"Fingers crossed, I’ll let you know once the results are out tomorrow... ah, never mind, the media will report it soon, no need for me to tell you."

The two chatted casually for a bit more, but Gan Guoyang wasn’t in the mood for jokes, and Jordan needed his rest, so they ended the conversation.

Gan Guoyang had been looking forward to meeting Jordan in the regular season, but now Jordan was injured so quickly. If he really was out for the season, the season would indeed lack some important excitement.

Competitors like Gan Guoyang and Jordan, with their strong desire to win and enjoyment of the competition, would feel regret where others might be happy about having one less competitor to worry about.

Jordan’s injury darkened Gan Guoyang’s mood, so when he appeared at the Salt Palace Arena that evening, his face was drooping, looking somewhat menacing.

Stockton knew what was troubling Gan Guoyang, and he had his own worries: could the Jazz win against the Trail Blazers tonight? If not, should he postpone the proposal? When would be the next opportunity?

The young players each had their own troubles. The Jazz’s rookie Karl Malone was also troubled as he stood at the free-throw line during warm-ups, practicing shots after recent criticism for his poor free-throw shooting in games.

In the first three games, his free throws were 0 for 2, 2 for 5, and 1 for 3, a shooting percentage of 30%, even worse than Chamberlain’s, angering Coach Layden and resulting in the order for extra practice.

So Malone took every opportunity to practice his free throws, but he was not happy inside because Salt Lake City was not the place he wanted to come to in the first place. After starting to play here, he was convinced that this was not his ideal basketball city.

More than four months ago at the draft, Malone dressed up in a blue tailcoat suit with a light blue shirt, accentuating his already impressive physique.

Malone had hoped that the Dallas Mavericks would select him at the eighth pick; he had met with the team several times before and was looking forward to playing alongside Mark Aguirre and Sam Bowie.

To his surprise, the Mavericks went back on their word and chose the German player Schlammfeste instead, causing Malone to fall from the eighth pick all the way to the thirteenth, where he was picked by the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City.

At that moment, he was confused; walking up to the stage with tears in his eyes, he felt betrayed, humiliated, and a sentiment most players selected by the Jazz shared: "I’m fucking going to play in Utah! Where the hell is Utah?"

So when meeting with the Jazz’s coach and general manager Frank Layden, he was somewhat incoherent, telling the coach, "I will bring a great team to Utah City."

Layden felt the need to teach Malone a geography lesson, correcting him, "Son, Utah is a state."

And so Karl Malone, who was unclear whether Utah was a state or a city, ended up confusedly going from the South in Louisiana to the land of the Mormons in Salt Lake City.

He wasn’t accustomed to anything here, the weather, the food, the temperature, everything was just too different from his hometown in Louisiana, and all he wanted was to go back home.

After reporting to training camp in Salt Lake City in October, he called his mom every day to share his struggles and how much he missed his hometown.

His mom had no choice but to tell Malone, "You’re at work now, and that’s just how work is."

Yes, this was work, and sinking the ball from the free-throw line was the number one job issue he needed to deal with.

The second job issue he had to face was securing stable playing time through steady performance. Layden trusted him quite a bit, giving him over 20 minutes of playing time in each of the first three games.

Malone’s performance was also not bad, scoring about 10 points, snatching 6 rebounds, and making steals and assists in every game.

When he played at Louisiana Tech, his consistent play earned him the nickname "The Mailman" by the game commentators, a fitting description that would accompany him throughout his basketball career.

The third job issue he had to face was that tonight, damn it, he was up against Ah Gan.

The two had clashed during the Olympic training camp, and Malone’s impression of Ah Gan was "completely unbeatable."

Especially in the area of strength he was proud of, Malone had always considered himself a top powerhouse in college interior lines, until he met Gan Guoyang at the Olympic selection camp.

Since then, Malone was determined to surpass Gan Guoyang in strength one day, but that day was definitely not today; today was too early, he still hadn’t trained enough.

Malone was known for his ferocity in games, never holding back his big elbows. In college, he once broke Dave Lamel’s jaw and caused his nasal cavity to collapse, necessitating cosmetic surgery.

Even at the Olympic selection training camp, he didn’t hold back, often swinging his big elbows in confrontations.

But it was only against Ah Gan that he learned what a real iron elbow was like, as an accidental scrape could leave you dizzy; the guy’s bones were too hard, his strength too great.

Moreover, Ah Gan was the type who wouldn’t bother you if you didn’t provoke him, but if you did, he would definitely make you pay. Thus, Malone was always quite wary of Ah Gan.

Last season, he watched Rambis, Gilmore, and others fall under Ah Gan’s wrestling and iron elbows, and in the game the day before yesterday, Ah Gan nearly crushed Sterling.

Before the game, Layden reminded Malone, "Play well and don’t go provoking that guy; I want you to play here in Salt Lake City for many more years."

Back home, Malone always listened to his mother; his father passed away when he was very young. Despite not liking it here in Salt Lake City, he still listened to what Layden said.

He didn’t want to provoke Ah Gan either, so before the game, he went over to greet Gan Guoyang and try to get on good terms.

"Sonny! How do you like Salt Lake City? I’m looking forward to tonight’s game," Malone tried to keep his tone gentle, but it seemed off as soon as the words came out, as if it was a bit provocative. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

Should he explain himself?

Gan Guoyang was expressionless. He stared at Malone for a while, making Malone feel uneasy.

He asked, "Do you still call your mom every day?"

"Call? I... oh, yes, I do..."

"Does she still send you watermelons?"

"Watermelons... yes, sending watermelons, they’re quite sweet."

"I heard your college team wasn’t as good as the women’s basketball team, is that true?"

"Of course it’s not true! How could we be worse than the women’s team!"

"Is that so? Tonight, I want to see for myself. Tell Coach Layden you want to guard me, have him put you in early."

"..."

Suddenly, Malone felt he shouldn’t have come to get cozy. It seemed like he had invited trouble.