The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 342 - 77 Basic Tone

Just half an hour after the Washington Bullets and the Milwaukee Bucks ended their game seven showdown, at the Portland Memorial Coliseum, the Western Conference finals opener between the Trail Blazers and the Rockets was about to tip off.

And it wasn’t just the Memorial Coliseum that was packed to the rafters, but also the Paramount Theatre next door, located on the other side of the Willamette River, near the Portland Art Museum, where many people had lined up at the theater entrance early on.

Tonight there was a performance by the Oregon Symphony, featuring the famous conductor Norman Leyden taking the stage. He had established a collaboration with the symphony starting in 1970, making it sixteen years now.

Previously as a composer and arranger, he had written themes for many of Disney’s animated films and musicals, and also arranged music for many famous pop and Jazz artists in the 50s and 60s.

The concert began at 7 p.m. Pacific Time, and before going on stage, Norman had an understudy musician stand by backstage with headphones on, listening to a radio.

The radio wasn’t playing any music programs, nor was it broadcasting the weather forecast, but instead, the live broadcast of the Trail Blazers and Rockets game from a Portland radio station—the game was scheduled to start in half an hour, at 7:30.

Before the performance started, Norman sought the audience’s opinion, and he said, "Actually, I have tickets for the game at the Coliseum tonight, but I can’t go because of the performance. It’s a pity."

The audience first laughed because getting a playoff ticket at the Memorial Coliseum was extremely difficult; the arena was too small, with only over ten thousand seats, completely unable to meet the Portland fans’ demand to watch the game at the venue.

For Norman to give up the opportunity to watch the game for a concert seemed such a pity to everyone.

Norman continued, "I have assigned a special assistant to keep an eye on the game between the Rockets and the Trail Blazers, and during the intermission of the concert, we’ll broadcast the real-time scores of the Trail Blazers and Rockets game."

The audience erupted into enthusiastic applause at these words.

An audience member shouted, "Do you think we came to the concert tonight for no reason?"

Everyone laughed again. They didn’t find the audience member rude at all because most of the concertgoers that night were probably there due to not being able to get a ticket for the Memorial Coliseum.

Norman likewise burst out laughing. The concert officially began, and the venue quieted down, but everyone’s minds were occupied with more than just the music; their thoughts were also on the game at the Memorial Coliseum.

This was just the Western Conference finals, yet it was clear to see how crazy the Portland people were about the Trail Blazers; the entire city was stirred by the fate of their team.

Last year they had also made it to the Western Conference finals, but last year was different, as everyone knew it would be tough for the Trail Blazers to match the Lakers.

The Trail Blazers hadn’t won a single game in the last season’s Western Conference finals at the Memorial Coliseum, losing all three home games to the Lakers.

Many fans believed it was because the Portland people were not crazy enough, and the support for the team was insufficient.

This year the Portland people were crazy enough, and the noise at the Memorial Coliseum was already threatening to burst through the heavens and soar into the sky even before the game started.

Bill Schonely wasn’t introducing the lineup for both teams on the broadcast but announcing the Trail Blazers’ upcoming game plans and schedule.

For game three, they were heading to Houston. He informed about the flight number and take-off time, hoping fans would go to see them off, and the time and date of their return to Portland, hoping the fans would come to welcome them back.

Schonely was the leader of the fans, exerting tremendous influence among the fan community. Trail Blazers players might come and go, but Schonely was constant.

With his voice, he stirred the passion of the entire city of Portland’s fans. As the national anthem ceremony ended and the players from both teams took to the court one after another, the Memorial Coliseum felt as though it were 500 meters under the sea, filled with suffocating air and immense pressure.

Everyone felt the weight of pressure on their shoulders, especially in the first game. Away players felt isolated and alone, while the home team felt like they had no room for defeat or retreat.

Olajuwon stood near the center circle, hands on hips, his expression as silent and calm as the rocks of Africa.

On the contrary, Gan Guoyang stood on the sideline, grinning from ear to ear, chatting with tonight’s head referee, cracking a joke every now and then.

When the referee signaled for Gan Guoyang to get ready for the tip-off, the smile disappeared from his face as he walked past Olajuwon.

Ah Gan’s eyes were sharp as knives, and Olajuwon just watched him; this guy wasn’t laughing at all just now. He was just grinning, but his eyes had no trace of mirth in them.

The two maintained the pre-game tradition of only exchanging glances without a word. They had each gotten used to the other’s silence over time.

Unlike Michael Jordan, on the court, Olajuwon hated Gan Guoyang—a hatred that fueled his relentless drive forward.

Tonight’s head referee was Darell Garretson, a "robot referee" known for disliking interaction with players and coaches.

He believed that too much interaction with players and coaches could lead to personal emotions affecting his calls, so the less interaction, the better.

Even so, before the game started he still chatted with Ah Gan for a bit, after all, this is Portland.

"I hope everything goes smoothly tonight. Remember, this is a basketball game, not a boxing stage, got it?"

Before the tip-off, Garretson reminded Gan Guoyang and Olajuwon, two of the league’s most talented young big men, who also happened to be notorious for fighting.

However, so far they’d never really fought one out, and with the way they were on a knife-edge now, one wrong move could easily lead to fisticuffs.

The noise in the arena diminished slightly as the referee tossed the ball into the air.

Gan Guoyang jumped with unexpected speed, touching the ball before Olajuwon anticipated, and the Trail Blazers got the first possession of the game. Jim Paxson took the ball and began to orchestrate the offense.

But surprisingly, both teams started off with continuous errors.

Paxson’s pass to Vandeweghe went out of bounds.

Olajuwon received the ball in the low post and passed to the weak side, but that also went out of bounds—a turnover.

Drexler tried to pass the ball to Gan Guoyang, but Reid deflected it, and Gan Guoyang accidentally touched it last.

The possession shifted back to the Rockets, and it was evident that both teams were under immense pressure, making their movements somewhat sluggish.

At this moment, someone needed to step up and sink a basket, to ease everyone’s nerves and allow the game to proceed smoothly.

Olajuwon received the ball in the low post, attempting to overpower Gan Guoyang, but his turnaround fadeaway shot missed.

Thompson grabbed the defensive rebound, but Vandeweghe’s three-point attempt also missed.

The Rockets committed another turnover in their offense, with Reed and Sampson colliding together, unsure who should catch the ball.

As a result, the ball rolled out of bounds, Trail Blazers’ ball.

"Both sides keep making mistakes at the start, you can tell they’re quite nervous."

"We need a score, the game needs a score. Who will be the first to break the deadlock for both teams!"

Drexler finally delivered the ball to Gan Guoyang, who firmly secured his position in the right low post against Olajuwon.

Olajuwon crouched down, bracing against Gan Guoyang with his forearm, legs spread and planted firmly on the floor. He knew Ah Gan’s offensive impact was massive, and without this stance, he wouldn’t be able to hold his ground.

When teammates tried to come over and help defend, Olajuwon bellowed, "Go away!"

Gan Guoyang started fast, spinning outwards and walking the baseline, using his shoulder strength to forcefully push against Olajuwon!

This was a pure clash of strength. During the regular season, Olajuwon could defend against Gan Guoyang one-on-one because Guoyang was a bit lighter than during his rookie season.

But the playoffs were not the regular season. Gan Guoyang’s explosive power erupted like a volcano. In fact, Olajuwon should have realized it during the tip-off, tonight, Ah Gan was different.

Olajuwon couldn’t stop Gan Guoyang from over-powering him along the baseline, then scoring with a one-handed slam!

"Shit!"

Olajuwon slapped the basketball hard and went to the baseline to inbound the ball.

He didn’t understand why, with similar builds, Ah Gan’s strength was so formidable.

He had already experienced this powerful man’s strength during the NCAA finals.

Since entering the league, Olajuwon had been rigorously training to increase his strength, to become incredibly muscular.

Last summer, while training at the University of Houston, he was able to withstand the power of Moses Malone during confrontations.

Yet, Ah Gan was still too much to handle, solid as iron.

The first basket set the tone for the game, Olajuwon still couldn’t guard Ah Gan one-on-one, especially playoff Ah Gan.

Like Olajuwon would later say in his autobiography, "The first confrontation often lays the groundwork for everything to come."

Gan Guoyang, after scoring, didn’t taunt Olajuwon or say "Why didn’t you let your teammate double team?" He remained silent.

Guoyang’s silence was more fearsome than when he spoke, because it meant his focus would not be diverted to anything but basketball.

Robert Reid’s floater was blocked by Gan Guoyang, Drexler responded with a fast-break layup, drawing a foul from Ralph Sampson.

Drexler made both free throws, and Olajuwon scored the Rockets’ first point with a baby hook, two steps inside the free-throw line, following a turn and a pump fake.

But it was not Gan Guoyang defending Olajuwon; it was Thompson, while Guoyang was responsible for guarding Ralph Sampson.

The Rockets still allowed Olajuwon to defend Guoyang one-on-one. This time, Gan Guoyang received the ball on the left low post.

After the double team came, he passed the ball to the weak side. Paxson caught it, drove, and passed to the corner where Vandeweghe sunk the jump shot.

The teams’ offense and defense gradually became more stable.

Olajuwon started the game with a strong desire to attack.

Sampson tried a backdoor alley-oop, but Gan Guoyang reached in time, and the Rockets didn’t dare to pass.

The ball went to Olajuwon on the other side. After catching it and turning around for a fadeaway jumper, it did not hit the mark.

Drexler came over to help on defense, disturbing Olajuwon’s shot.

Gan Guoyang secured the defensive rebound under the basket without passing to Drexler.

Instead, he dribbled across the half-court himself, creating disarray in the Rockets’ defense.

Gan Guoyang, ball in hand, drove straight to the basket, finishing with a gliding dunk!

Bill Fitch called for a timeout, pacing with his arms crossed at the sideline.

Despite all the pre-game preparations and strategies, once the game began, you still can’t be sure what cards the opponent will play.

In fact, not only did Fitch not know, but Jack Ramsay himself didn’t anticipate that Guoyang would play this way at the start.

The game changes in an instant, and as players adjust to the situation, no one can predict the outcome, not even the players themselves.