[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-golden-age-of-basketball":3,"chapter-the-golden-age-of-basketball-the-golden-age-of-basketball-chapter-830":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","The Golden Age of Basketball",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1444397,1896,"Chapter 830 - 34 Really Want to Win","the-golden-age-of-basketball-chapter-830",830,"\u003Cp>Gan Guoyang and Jordan both attached great importance to this game.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In their first encounter of the season, the Bulls conquered Portland’s home court.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jordan was eager to win this game and complete a season sweep against the Trail Blazers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he did, it would be the first time in his career that he swept Ah Gan in the regular season.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Previously, it was mostly Guoyang who swept Jordan, and some games were won with ease.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Times have changed, and now it was Guoyang’s turn not to want to be swept by the Bulls, as it could psychologically impact the impending Finals between the two.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Both players were very serious before the game, not chatting and laughing as they usually would, but warming up with their own teammates.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the game approached, Guoyang took a piece of gum from Calvin’s hand, unwrapped it, and stuffed it into his mouth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Petrović sat on the bench with a freshly opened bottle of Gatorade in hand, feeling a bit thirsty and ready to take a sip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gan Guoyang rolled the gum wrapper into a ball and tossed it into the bottle just as Petrović was about to lift it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The little paper ball dropped precisely into the Gatorade bottle, causing Petrović to pause, sensing that something had fallen into his drink.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Guoyang reminded Petrović, saying: \"Change the bottle, Pete! This one’s been contaminated!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Petrović glanced into the bottle and saw a tinfoil ball floating in it, thrown in by Ah Gan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Coming onto the court, Gan Guoyang stood at the center circle for the jump ball against Cartwright.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since returning to the center position, Guoyang has taken on the jump ball duties himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Bill, I’ve heard that recently your elbows have been quite intimidating, mind showing me how formidable they are?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before the jump ball, Guoyang said to Cartwright, as the whole League was aware of Cartwright’s notorious elbows recently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Guoyang was puzzled, as Cartwright seemed to play pretty clean during the matches between the Trail Blazers and Bulls, which led him to question why everyone complained about him?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Could it be that they were all misjudging him?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Later, he learned that Cartwright indeed treated different teams differently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Guoyang didn’t like being treated differently; equal treatment for all was better.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cartwright shook his head slightly, whispering, \"The League would fine me.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No worries, I can pay the fine for you. I’ve got money. Plus, if you’re accurate with your elbow, I’ll even give you a bonus, how about it?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he spoke, Guoyang pointed to his temple, signaling for him to aim there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cartwright didn’t dare respond, knowing full well the kind of tactics Ah Gan had.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His elbowing of Isiah Thomas had resulted in a mere broken brow and some bleeding, but Ah Gan nearly disfigured Isiah, landing him in the hospital.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This year, Cartwright was already 33 years old, and his aging bones couldn’t withstand Guoyang’s rough play; he still wanted to compete for a few more seasons.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sports are like a jungle society; sometimes, it’s simply about who’s tougher.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If you’re tough, no one dares to provoke you. If you’re not, everyone will step on you.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now many people understood why the rookie Ah Gan was so fierce, using wrestling techniques to fight back against those who provoked him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As time went on, people understood more clearly that the bloodshed and suffering from the early days were meaningful and extraordinarily so.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Cartwright not daring to respond, Guoyang sneered: \"Keep your arms to yourself, or I’ll hold you accountable for any misfortune that befalls my teammates.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this moment, the referee interrupted their conversation, checked his watch, and the game was about to start, with both sides ready for the jump ball.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cartwright, who was mentally less strong than Ah Gan, could not compete in the jump ball, giving the Trail Blazers possession to start the game.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Trail Blazers’ opening offense focused on Ah Gan, which was requested by Guoyang before the game started.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had to get going early to fight for the initial advantage, only then could they withstand the Bulls’ endurance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Bulls were a team very capable of grinding their opponents down. In their last encounter, the Trail Blazers were worn down by their defense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By the time the Trail Blazers tried to gain momentum later, it was too late, and there was too little room for error.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gan Guoyang seldom used psychological warfare at the beginning of a game, but tonight he threatened Bill Cartwright to break the Bulls’ hard man in the Three Second Zone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Bulls’ starting frontcourt of Cartwright and Buck-Williams were both experienced and tough traditional post players with strong defense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The weaknesses were that Cartwright was getting on in years, and Buck-Williams was a bit short, so Guoyang targeted these two points at the start.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He used screens to position himself at the baseline, receiving the ball at a zero-degree angle to the basket, taking on Williams one-on-one with a mid-range shot that went in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, on defense, the Bulls missed, and the Trail Blazers didn’t rush for a fast break but stuck to their positional play, with Guoyang attacking Williams in the same spot again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This time Williams closed in tight, and after a fake move, Guoyang broke along the baseline, shouldering Cartwright for a layup, drawing Cartwright’s foul.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Bulls’ core center picked up his first foul within the first minute of play, leaving Phil Jackson quite dissatisfied with the referee’s call.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He knew it was a dangerous sign, as Cartwright was vital to the Bulls on both ends of the floor, and if he faced foul trouble early on, the Bulls would definitely be in trouble.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, considering Cartwright’s typically low contributions against the Trail Blazers and Ah Gan, if he didn’t play well or left the game early, it seemed there was no issue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Realizing this, Jackson let it go, exchanged a few words with the referee, and returned to the bench to meditate.\u003C\u002Fp>",999,"2026-06-06T01:41:38.369Z",1,"novelbin.me","e266984d715d7412e55fb4de9668f023db91959b13bde5bd166c135465934ec9","the-golden-age-of-basketball-chapter-831","the-golden-age-of-basketball-chapter-829",2033,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-golden-age-of-basketball-cover.jpg"]