The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 285 - 25 First This Then That

Gan Guoyang led the Trail Blazers in flipping the Jazz over in the first quarter.

Frank Layden having the rookie Malone one-on-one defend against Gan Guoyang really seemed a bit too disrespectful.

By the middle and later stages of last season, double-teaming Gan Guoyang had become routine.

In the playoffs, the Mavericks, Nuggets, and Lakers occasionally triple or quadruple-teamed him, hunting him down.

Even so, the opponents still couldn’t stop Gan Guoyang, his offensive arsenal was simply too vast.

Especially as an inside player with a beautiful mid to long-range shot, defending him became exceptionally difficult.

The best defensive Lakers relied not only on tight defense and early double teams but also on controlling the overall game rhythm, applying insane pressure on offense, forcing Gan Guoyang to not invest too much energy in attacks, which was effective in containing him.

Karl Malone had not yet gotten the hang of the NBA and was placed to match up with Gan Guoyang in offense and defense, the coaching really whipped him hard.

In the second quarter, Gan Guoyang sat out to rest while the Trail Blazer’s inside was dominated by old number one picks Bill Walton and Mychal Thompson.

Walton seemed to return to his glorious years of the ’70s; he could receive the ball anywhere within the three-point line and then direct and orchestrate the offense.

He was slower, heavier than at his peak; he wasn’t as quick or agile as before, but his understanding of the game hadn’t deteriorated one bit.

He was the NBA’s best passing center during set plays, the team’s secondary point guard, and could provide cover for his teammates in multiple areas.

Walton also had a bank shot at the 45-degree angle; with him on the court, the Trail Blazers’ second unit was well-organized, even more systematic than the starting lineup.

Ramsay watched the beautiful offense of the second unit and exclaimed, "This is real basketball~"

His voice was loud, seemingly on purpose for the resting Gan Guoyang to hear.

Gan Guoyang heard this and was discontented, "Jack, are you implying that the basketball I play is fake?"

Ramsay did not answer but his expression contained a bit of disdain, "You get some more rest, don’t start saying you’re tired again."

Gan Guoyang smiled. The old man still remembered he had mentioned being tired, and he had said it only once the entire season.

In the sixth game of the Western Conference Finals, he indeed reached his limit, which was a buildup of fatigue from the entire season.

With Walton’s arrival, he could give Gan Guoyang more rest, and also greatly lessen the defensive pressure on Gan Guoyang on the court.

The heavier Walton’s impact resistance in the paint grew stronger, during his Clippers days, when he was able to play, he averaged over three blocks per game, being one of the best in the league.

When he and Gan Guoyang were on the court at the same time, the Trail Blazers’ inside was practically a no-fly zone; opponents, if not careful with their approach and blindly rushing in, would get blocked.

Even without Gan Guoyang, and with Walton and Thompson on the floor, the Trail Blazers’ inside was still like an iron wall, as both former number one picks had gone through the trials of college and were outstanding defenders.

The Jazz’s deficit widened even more, and at one point in the second quarter, they fell behind by 20 points.

Karl Malone was substituted out, sitting on the bench lost and dejected, feeling helpless.

At Louisiana Tech he didn’t play this way; there he was like a warrior riding a wild boar, charging around the court unstoppable by anyone.

But in the NBA, even compared to his teammate, the giant Mark Eaton, he was just a little bean, and Thurl Bailey was taller and had longer arms than him.

Even the small forward Adrian Dantley was stronger than him, able to firmly hold his position in the low post against opposing centers and power forwards.

As for the opponents, each of Trail Blazers’ three inside players was taller, stronger, and aside from Walton, even faster.

Malone often fell in the recent games because he underestimated the physicality on the floor, thinking he could charge through just like in college.

Layden was right; he needed to keep trying. He sat on the bench watching as John Stockton continued to stay on the court.

With the team down by 20 points, there wasn’t a trace of impatience on Stockton’s face as he composedly dribbled the ball looking for opportunities.

He suddenly burst forward, using Eaton’s screen to drive to the basket, drawing a defensive foul from Walton.

Stockton stood at the free-throw line. He usually shot free throws quickly but now took his time, delaying a bit.

He made both free throws.

The Jazz then defended the Trail Blazers’ offense, with Stockton leading the counterattack.

He sped across the halfway line, then slowed down as if giving up the fast break for the set play.

However, the moment Walton had just gotten back on defense and positioned in the paint, Stockton accelerated again, utilizing a screen to drive to the basket!

This move was aimed directly at Walton as Stockton leaned against him and went up for a left-handed layup, drawing another defensive foul from Walton!

"Shit!"

Walton cursed, visibly angry at being drawn into fouls by Stockton in two consecutive plays.

Gan Guoyang knew it was his turn to get in the game. He removed his jacket and stood by the court; as Stockton made his first free throw, he entered the game for Walton.

Walton and Gan Guoyang slapped hands lightly, Walton told him, "That number 12 guy is pretty crafty, he’s one of your classmates, right?"

Gan Guoyang replied with a smile, "He is indeed crafty but just looks very honest. I’ll handle him."

Stockton’s appearance and behavior were quite deceiving; he looked around 40 in his early 20s.

Later in his 40s, he would probably still look the same, the image of a straightforward White man from Western conservative regions.

But beneath the look of an honest person often lies cunningness, and Stockton’s craftiness was all spent on saving money and playing basketball.

Stockton made the second free throw as well, not only recovering four points through the free throws but also slowing down the Trail Blazers’ pace in offense.

Stockton’s mind was clear, what he needed to do now was to stabilize the situation, hoping to reduce the deficit to around 10 points by the end of the first half.

That way, the Jazz would still have a chance in the second half; otherwise, Gan Guoyang would be clocking out after three quarters, and the game would lose all suspense.

Gan Guoyang received the ball at a 45-degree angle, and Stockton came over to double-team. The guy was full of tricks, seemingly reaching with his hands, but actually locking Guoyang’s legs to prevent him from moving.

Gan Guoyang first passed the ball to Terry Porter for an outlet, then suddenly squeezed into a deeper position, firmly securing his spot on the baseline, where he stoutly held off Mark-Eaton.

Porter passed the ball, and Gan Guoyang leaped to catch it, directly scoring with an alley-oop layup in mid-air!

Mark-Eaton thought Gan Guoyang would land before jumping again, and he only had to stretch his hand to block the shot.

Instead, Gan Guoyang didn’t give Mark-Eaton any chance to stretch his hand and block, executing the positioning, passing, catching, and alley-oop seamlessly.

"This kid got stronger again,"

Mark-Eaton realized after seeing Gan Guoyang’s move that it had become even harder to defend against him.

Last season, when Gan Guoyang played against Mark-Eaton, a giant inside player, he mainly relied on mid- to long-range shooting.

And Mark-Eaton would choose to sit in the paint, adamantly not coming out, leaving his teammates to defend.

If Guoyang had a good shooting touch from the outside, then let him shoot; if it went in, so be it.

If his touch was off, Gan Guoyang would give up trying to shoot on his own; he certainly wasn’t a hothead.

Tonight, Mark-Eaton discovered that Gan Guoyang no longer needed to resort to outside shooting; he was able to power-play him in the low post.

Stockton made another attempt to penetrate the inside, but before he could start, Gan Guoyang had already covered him.

He wasn’t like Walton, who, due to slow movements, would have to wait in the three-second zone, providing Stockton with space to pick up speed.

Gan Guoyang immediately choked off Stockton’s takeoff, forcing Stockton to pass the ball to Bailey at the top of the arc.

Bailey made a direct pass to Dantley in the paint, who tried to back down Thompson, but his turn-around jumper after the push-off still missed!

Dantley spread his hands out to the referee and shouted, "That was a foul!"

But the referee ignored him, believing Thompson played solid defense.

Layden shook his head on the sidelines; Dantley was indeed having an off-night, and this way of playing was not going to work.

Dantley was the team’s most reliable scorer, with incredibly high shooting percentages from beneath the basket, consistently above 55%, peaking at 58%.

He was also the best at drawing fouls, with high shooting percentages close to the basket and a lot of free throws, making him one of the League’s most efficient scorers.

With Dantley not performing, the Jazz lost half their effectiveness; if he couldn’t score, Dantley struggled to contribute elsewhere on both offense and defense.

Dantley wasn’t like Bird, who could help the team win with assists, rebounds, steals, and his intelligence when he wasn’t scoring.

Layden glanced at Malone, who was sitting on the sidelines and daydreaming, and said, "Kid, can you make up for Dantley’s scoring deficit on the offensive end?"

Malone jumped in surprise, shaking his head and saying, "No, I can’t do it, it’s too hard, Dantley’s scoring is too impressive..."

In team practices, Malone couldn’t defend Dantley at all; his teammates described Dantley as a scoring maniac.

As a power forward, he had to play center in high school because his teammates were too short, and thus he honed all kinds of post-up moves and footwork.

Malone couldn’t imagine how he could score as efficiently as Dantley, especially since his free-throw shooting just wasn’t enough...

At this moment, the Trail Blazers had already counterattacked to the frontcourt, with Gan Guoyang once again posting up low, holding off the mammoth Mark-Eaton.

Terry Porter lobbed the ball to Gan Guoyang, who caught it, turned, and executed the Sigma Step facing the basket, feigning a shot.

Mark-Eaton immediately lunged forward, but Gan Guoyang didn’t shoot; it was a fake. He pulled the ball back and shouldered the lunging Mark-Eaton a bit.

Gan Guoyang didn’t break through; instead, after shaking off Mark-Eaton, he took another close-range jump shot!

The ball flew toward the basket and scored accurately, the referee blew the whistle and called a defensive foul on Mark-Eaton—he had invaded Gan Guoyang’s cylinder.

"Fuck... this kid..."

Mark-Eaton cursed, muttering to himself that this was Dantley’s signature move!

The shot fake and jump shot.

That’s how Dantley would deceive opponents into lunging forward, then regain control of the ball, use his shoulder to push the defender away, and take a second shot.

At that moment, because the defender couldn’t dodge in time, they infringed upon the shooter’s cylinder and fouled.

If Dantley made the shot, he would earn a chance for a 2+1.

If he missed, two free throws—a surefire way to give him points.

Eventually, opponents came to dread his fakes, avoiding lunging towards him, which allowed Dantley to opt for a direct drive past the defender.

Not many could withstand this series of moves, allowing him to score with ease every game.

When Gan Guoyang made the free throw, the score difference returned to over 20 points.

Finally, Stockton couldn’t help himself and went over to ask Gan Guoyang, "How did you learn to draw fouls like that? That’s Dantley’s move."

This was the first time they spoke in the game.

Gan Guoyang said, "By watching videos, just do this, then that, and that’s it."

"..." Stockton knew he shouldn’t have asked.

At the end of the first half, Stockton’s efforts were in vain.

68:48, the score difference was still 20 points. Without Dantley performing, the Jazz couldn’t catch up.

Stockton knew that his proposal night was likely ruined.