Chapter 718 - 78: Saying Goodnight to the World

The rain in Portland grew heavier, and the overcast sky lit up with pale lightning, followed by muffled thunder.

The brightly lit Memorial Coliseum stood in the curtain of rain, the light spilling out from the glass façade piercing the darkness, like a kerosene lantern shining on the banks of the Willamette River.

A succession of sharp siren wails sliced through the rainy night, opening a gash amidst the harmonious sounds of thunder and rain.

The ambulance burst through the veil of rain, departing from the stadium’s parking lot and heading towards the back, to the Legacy Emanuel Medical Center.

On board was Isiah Thomas, who had been knocked unconscious and was bleeding uncontrollably by Gan Guoyang’s elbow strike.

The medical staff temporarily treated his facial wound; other than a slash, it was apparent that his facial bones had collapsed, a definite sign of fracture.

As the ambulance approached the hospital, Thomas woke up from the pain and his first words were, "I want to shoot free throws..."

Apart from Thomas, the other Pistons players who were knocked out cold by a punch were either dragged back to the locker room or groggily opened their eyes at courtside.

Bill Lan Bi’er, strong and muscular, quickly came to on the bench after being punched in the chin, with the whole world spinning and his vision filled with blinding white light.

"Fuck you, Sonny..."

Lan Bi’er muttered to himself; his mind was relatively clear, and he remembered what had just happened.

Mark Aguirre, on the other hand, went straight back to the locker room after receiving a punch to the face, whether he could return to the court was another matter.

As for Dennis Rodman, his physical condition was astonishingly good, and he quickly recovered.

However, he felt a throbbing pain in his mouth, and after spitting out a mouthful of blood, he realized one of his teeth had been knocked out.

Chuck Daley combed his hair back into place; Ah Gan had shown some mercy to him by using a slap instead of a fist.

His left cheek burned with pain, his jowl swelling and even his teeth felt loose.

Daley was shaken to the core; when Gan Guoyang charged at him, Daley felt his heart had stopped beating.

He thought he was going to die; had Ah Gan struck with full force, Daley, at his age, truly could have been killed.

The stadium was thrown into complete chaos.

The officials at the scorer’s table and the referees were deliberating whether to terminate the game prematurely.

David Stern stepped in to stop this idea; the game must go on.

This wasn’t the regular season; it was the last series of the season, the Finals.

All-America was watching, and no matter what, as long as no one died, the game had to continue.

Stern had already snapped out of his confused state, and as the League president himself, he stepped in to coordinate and quell the anger of both teams.

He turned on the microphone and addressed all the fans in the stadium, urging everyone to remain calm and to watch the rest of the game with a peaceful mindset.

However, Stern had barely spoken a few words when booing arose from the fans, followed by a chant starting to fill the stadium, "We need Ah Gan, we need Ah Gan, we need Ah Gan ..."

Some fans near the courtside seats shouted at Stern: "You condoned the violence of the Detroit criminals!"

"You’re the chief culprit!"

"Ah Gan’s retaliation was justified!"

David Stern was extremely embarrassed until the team owner Tang Jianguo came out to ease the situation.

Tang Jianguo was often interviewed and participated in TV programs, and he was very articulate.

He quickly pacified the fans, saying, "I promise to get Ah Gan back on the court as soon as possible. He will not miss the final because Ah Gan stands for justice, representing the American cowboy spirit! He will be punished, but certainly not by leaving the finals stage!"

The crowd erupted in cheers, one wave of applause following another—the game had already been delayed by 20 minutes.

At this moment, the Detroit Pistons players wouldn’t stand for it any longer, Chuck Daley wanted to lead the Pistons back to the locker room to strike.

David Stern stopped Daley, he sternly warned Daley: "If you strike, what you’ll lose is not just this game! You may not have Thomas, but they don’t have Ah Gan either, finish the game, and you still have a chance to win!"

Daley, with a swollen left cheek, said, "We shouldn’t be playing in such a dangerous environment. It’s not fair to my players."

Stern leaned in, speaking in as calm a voice as he could: "You know full well why the environment has become this dangerous! I will discuss this with Davidson to ensure your rights and give you some compensation. But now, you, must, stay and finish the game!"

Stern’s voice was almost a growl, but he kept a smile on his face. He didn’t want to show ferocity on camera in front of a nationwide and global audience.

Pistons owner William Davidson and Stern are good friends privately, both being Jewish and having intricate connections with Israeli interests.

Chuck Daley looked at David Stern’s smile and the cold eyes behind his glasses, realizing that the team had already been hurt by a fierce tiger, they should not and could not challenge an even bigger Evil Dragon.

Daley conceded; he had the players return to the court to continue the game.

Everything seemed to go back to normal, but everyone knew that things were different now.

When Gan Guoyang left the court through the player passageway to the locker room, he walked through the corridor he had crossed countless times before, listening as the noise behind him diminished, as if everything was drowned out by the darkness.

For a moment, he felt as though his connection with the real world was severed, his body completely relaxed, basketball, championships, honors, morals, virtues, loyalty—all these things he cherished seemed like dust in the sunlight, shattered by the pouring rain, with plenty of fresh oxygen born amidst flashes of lightning, cleansing the turmoil within him.

A smile unwittingly crept over his lips.

He felt a tinge of regret, thinking he should have taken out a few more, anyhow, hitting one is the same as hitting five, hitting ten is no different.

Gan Guoyang admired confrontation and loved it. Sometimes he watched NHL games, where players would cast aside their sticks and have an honest fight if they were displeased with each other, venting their anger and then continuing the game as usual.

Former Trail Blazers enforcer Lucas was the same; conflict arises, we fight, then either get ejected or continue with the game.

Detroiters were different; they turned into the "Martial Arts Team," hurting the opponent under an unequal situation, intimidating rivals, destroying the fair atmosphere of the game.

Then they can’t blame me for being ruthless in settling our score.

Physical therapist Calvin and general manager Jerry West were by Gan Guoyang’s side, with Calvin constantly saying something, but Ah Gan couldn’t hear, he didn’t want to listen.

Jerry West, however, had a tight face, as tense as a dry towel forgotten and left out on the balcony for too long, silent, just closely following Ah Gan’s footsteps.

After returning to the locker room, Gan Guoyang took a big gulp of water, sighed, and suddenly felt some pain in his right hand.

Upon inspection, he found a tooth lodged in his right knuckle, not knowing whose mouth it came from.

Gan Guoyang disgustingly pulled out the tooth and threw it into the trash can.

Calvin treated the wound while Jerry West paced back and forth in the locker room, thinking about how to handle the situation.

The last time such a large brawl happened in the NBA finals... didn’t seem too long ago, the 1987 championship, still with Ah Gan beating up the Pistons.

Three years passed, and the Pistons hadn’t learned their lesson, getting beaten up even worse.

The game was still going on, but the reporters had already lost interest in the outcome, all swarming towards the Trail Blazers’ locker room, wanting to interview Ah Gan.

Jerry West wanted to stop them, but Gan Guoyang said it wasn’t necessary; let them ask, as there was nothing much about it.

He was surrounded in front of the locker as before, and the reporters wanted to hear Ah Gan’s view on this "fight of the century."

Gan Guoyang said, "Tell the Detroiters and the world to say goodnight."