[{"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-890":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},1444257,1896,"Chapter 890 - 53: Welcome to the Finals_5","the-golden-age-of-basketball-chapter-890",890,"\u003Cp>In just over a second, both of their gazes shifted away. At this moment, no words were needed. Everything was clear without being said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This game’s referees were Jack Madden, Hugh Evans, and Hugh Hollins – all familiar faces.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gan Guoyang’s old friend, Detroit’s \"Soprano Player\" and \"Silver Dome Leg-Clutcher,\" Earl Strom, had officially retired and become a television commentator.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before the tip-off, Hugh Evans said to Gan Guoyang: \"Sonny, Earl’s retired now, so don’t go hitting people.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gan Guoyang smiled faintly and replied: \"Detroit’s been eliminated. I shouldn’t need to hit anyone.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he spoke, Gan Guoyang swept a sharp glance over Bill Cartwright, Buck Williams, and a few others.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cartwright felt a chill in his heart. He knew his reputation for elbow strikes was infamous, but did he dare throw an elbow at Ah Gan?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the worst part was, the one standing at the center circle ready to jump against Cartwright wasn’t Sabonis – it was Ah Gan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clearly, tonight Gan Guoyang was playing the center position. It was likely he’d be defending Cartwright, which made the Bulls’ opening offensive strategy problematic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The tip-off. The highly anticipated Finals had finally begun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gan Guoyang’s explosive speed and jumping power were incomparable to Cartwright’s. He easily tipped the ball to Porter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the ball was touched, the entire Memorial Coliseum erupted into a frenzy, and the Trail Blazers initiated their first attack.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gan Guoyang darted to the Three Second Zone as fast as he could, where Buck Williams was defending him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Low post positioning on the right side, fierce and relentless. Buck, already a master of low-post battles, was pinned down firmly and unable to move.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Porter passed the ball. The Bulls surprisingly opted for single coverage. Gan Guoyang took one dribble and immediately spun inside, shooting the ball forward with lightning speed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Buck Williams couldn’t do anything to interfere; he could only hope the shot wouldn’t go in – but Gan Guoyang rarely missed such solo opportunities. The ball swished through the net!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The first score of this year’s Finals was in hand, and the cheers at Memorial Coliseum roared like waves.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jordan ran to the baseline to inbound the ball, harboring a slight frustration because, for now, he wasn’t the primary offensive option.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In truth, Jordan agreed with most of Phil Jackson’s coaching philosophy and strategies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, when it came to dealing with Ah Gan, Jordan thought Jackson underestimated him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though Jackson naturally placed a high value on Gan Guoyang, he still hadn’t completely figured out how to counter him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Jordan had once said, \"You don’t truly understand him.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jackson continued to approach the game against the Trail Blazers with a holistic perspective, viewing it like a chess player.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Jordan knew that Gan Guoyang’s control over the game was all-encompassing, embedded in every detail.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For instance, even during a simple jump ball, he would exert pressure on the opponent, fighting for ball possession.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the very beginning, he would apply tactical and psychological blows, attacking quickly and intensely, maintaining relentless mental and physical pressure from start to finish – until the game ended, or even the whole series.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, Jackson’s traditional idea of probing and adjusting later wasn’t just risky – it was perilous.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unfortunately, these subtleties were something Jordan could only sense vaguely. He felt something wasn’t right, but he couldn’t definitively tell Jackson: \"This won’t work. You should do it this way.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, Jordan had zero aptitude for coaching and management. He was a hypersensitive hunter but lacked a broader strategic vision.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Bulls followed their planned attack, feeding the ball to the low post for Cartwright, intending for him to go one-on-one against Gan Guoyang.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Cartwright couldn’t even budge Gan Guoyang. After failing to spin inside, he had to pass the ball back to Parkson.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Parkson passed it to Jordan in the middle, who quickly rotated the ball to Pippen. Pippen drove from the right side while carrying the ball.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Pippen’s drive was met with fouling action from Kossie. The referee blew the whistle for a foul, and Pippen made one of his two free throws.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Meanwhile, the Trail Blazers returned to the low post, once again feeding Ah Gan – focusing on him relentlessly, entirely contrary to their usual Princeton System techniques.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because this was the Finals, systems aside, scoring was the ultimate priority.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This time, the Bulls double-teamed him, but Gan Guoyang executed a beautiful baseline spin, outmaneuvering Buck Williams.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cartwright arrived too late to provide help defense. Gan Guoyang slammed it home with one arm, adding another 2 points!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jordan muttered to himself – Ah Gan was going full throttle from the opening tip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Theoretically, this could be detrimental later on due to fatigue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Gan Guoyang’s stamina seemed bottomless. If he got into a rhythm early, how would they contain him later?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Despite his inner turmoil, when the Bulls regained possession, Jordan still hesitated and opted to pass the ball to Cartwright after probing the defense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cartwright’s turnaround fadeaway attempt was lightly blocked by Gan Guoyang – tipped out cleanly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After securing possession, Gan Guoyang instantly launched a long pass to the frontcourt, where Reggie Lewis charged toward the basket.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jordan scrambled back on defense, swatting Lewis’s layup off the backboard and out of bounds. Trail Blazers retained possession.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gan Guoyang received the ball in the low post once more. This time, three Bulls converged on him, and he immediately passed the ball to the perimeter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sabonis took the pass and orchestrated, sending a precise straight pass to the opposite side for Kossie, who cut toward the basket for an easy finish!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Trail Blazers surged ahead 6:1 in the opening minutes, rapidly building a lead. At this point, the Bulls badly needed a score.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, Cartwright still couldn’t breach Ah Gan’s ironclad defense. After getting blocked once, Cartwright started playing timidly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jordan barked at him: \"Be decisive, Bill! Decisive!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cartwright took a determined shot but missed. Buck Williams grabbed the offensive rebound.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Bulls reset, moving the ball around repeatedly, but the Trail Blazers’ man-to-man defense was airtight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>John Parkson tried driving but passed to Pippen. Pippen pulled up from mid-range – missed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gan Guoyang grabbed the defensive rebound but chose not to push the fast break, knowing the Bulls were quick and disciplined on transitions. Fast breaks would waste opportunities.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Slowing it down, back to half-court offense. The low-post option again went to Ah Gan, who used a masterful spin move to blow by Buck Williams, crashing into Cartwright at the rim for a ferocious slam and earning a foul!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Rip City!\" Schonely’s voice echoed alongside the roaring cheers of the crowd.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gan Guoyang exchanged high-fives with teammates, then stepped to the free-throw line and converted the and-one. The Trail Blazers started 9:1, leading by 8 points.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jackson refrained from calling timeout. Shortly afterward, Jordan received the ball at the high post and scored a simple mid-range jumper, temporarily relieving the Bulls’ urgency.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Gan Guoyang wasn’t finished with the Bulls’ interior. Receiving the ball at a 45-degree angle, he faced the basket and swiftly drove. Despite the crowd of defenders, he cut directly to the rim, finishing with a sublime left-handed hook shot to halt the Bulls.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>11:3. Gan Guoyang had already scored 9 points, with the other 2 indirectly linked to him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the Bulls players prepared for a substitution, Gan Guoyang brushed past Jordan and said: \"Michael, it seems you’re not ready yet. Did you think this was an exhibition game?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Phil Jackson doesn’t really think letting Cartwright score a few over my head, then having the Triangle Offense rotate, you score one, I score one, and finally stringing together a few of your buckets is enough to beat me, right?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Think it over, Michael. Welcome to the Finals.\"\u003C\u002Fp>",1298,"2026-06-06T01:41:38.819Z",1,"novelbin.me","4918d37436c3790be873856da6fb0118b1889b5e1201d5342d9ac361fc02ad78","the-golden-age-of-basketball-chapter-891","the-golden-age-of-basketball-chapter-889",2033,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-golden-age-of-basketball-cover.jpg"]