Chapter 968 - 18: Riot

The Trail Blazers were playing better and better towards the end of the season, achieving a perfect record on their Eastern road trip, winning each game with ease.

On one hand, Gan Guoyang was in unexpectedly good form, on the verge of a breakthrough, his understanding of basketball was experiencing explosive growth, and he could enter a "flow" state almost every game.

This greatly increased his efficiency, scoring high points with extreme efficiency in consecutive games, grabbing many rebounds, and dishing out many assists, making it seem like he was toying with both teammates and opponents.

Of course, the overall weak level of the opponents was also one reason for his super-strong performance.

In short, on the road to challenging for a second three-peat, Gan Guoyang grew increasingly confident.

On the other hand, the Trail Blazers’ young players stepped up, with Davis, Cliff Robinson, and others becoming the backbone of the second unit.

Petrović and Reggie Lewis began reaching the peak of their careers, their individual abilities combined with Gan Guoyang’s drawing power was forming a powerful offensive triangle.

Due to injuries, Sabonis’ stats and tactical status had dropped compared to 1990 and 1991.

Bobby Berman made adjustments to this situation, and the Trail Blazers gradually transformed from a "Twin Towers core team" into a "center + attacking forward-guard team."

Adelman’s idea of "making Ah Gan go through some hardship" played a role, finally developing Gan Guoyang into an all-around, no-weakness beast at the five position.

In this regard, Adelman’s contribution to Gan Guoyang’s ultimate evolution was indispensable.

Overall, the 1992 Portland Trail Blazers were more united and stable than in 1988; they were not satisfied with a three-peat and intended to push for a four-peat.

Of course, the opponents they faced were also stronger.

The Chicago Bulls maintained strong dominance throughout the entire season.

Except for losing to the Portland Trail Blazers, they almost steamrolled through a series of subsequent games.

After the off-court gambling issue was temporarily resolved, Michael Jordan focused all his energy on the basketball games.

In March and April, during the closing stages of the regular season, the Bulls unleashed a 19-2 winning spree.

They locked in a stunning 69-13 record—just like the 1990 Portland Trail Blazers.

Phil Jackson commented on his team after the regular season ended: "We really had a terrifying year, winning 69 games. I even feel, if we hadn’t pulled back the reins and relaxed a bit in some games, we could have won 70, maybe even 75 games..."

Jackson’s words were somewhat exaggerated. Seventy-five wins sounded grandiose, but seventy wins weren’t out of the question.

Initially, the Bulls were gunning for the historical top 70 wins to surpass the Lakers and the Portland Trail Blazers.

However, Jordan said, "If we can’t beat the Trail Blazers in the playoffs, even winning 82 games would be meaningless."

Thus, in the game where they could have clinched 70 wins, the Bulls chose to let their main players rest early, preparing for the playoffs, and ultimately lost the game.

Due to the requirements of the Triangle Offense, Jordan’s average points per game this season were "only" 30.1, trailing behind Gan Guoyang’s 32.5 ppg, losing the scoring title.

This was the second time he lost the scoring duel to Gan Guoyang, but Jordan no longer cared; he only had the Finals and the championship in mind.

The Eastern Conference standings from second to eighth were the Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics, Detroit Pistons, Miami Heat, New York Knicks, Indiana Pacers, and New Jersey Nets, respectively.

Looking ahead, no team in the East was a match for the Bulls. Although the second-seeded Cavaliers had a balanced lineup and performed exceptionally well this season, there was still a significant gap with the Bulls.

Without Bird, the Celtics, now centered around Hornacek and Divac, with Kevin McHale and Parish still having gas left in the tank, played a beautiful season. However, the lineup as a whole lacked talent, and the Celtics did not have the strength to challenge the Bulls.

The Pistons had thoroughly declined, while the Miami Heat were on the rise. However, nearing the end of the season, rumors about Olajuwon affected the Heat’s internal unity, and fans’ expectations turned to the off-season and the next season.

Under John MacLeod’s guidance, the New York Knicks remained lukewarm, persistently unable to find a suitable style.

Ewing was reaching his peak, but his performance didn’t meet people’s expectations, and the team’s development was stuck.

Just like Olajuwon, Ewing was also caught in trade rumors about being swapped to another team.

In recent seasons, Ewing hadn’t been having a great time in New York; his personality clashed with The Big Apple.

As the world’s greatest city, New York needed a flamboyant superstar like Magic Johnson or Michael Jordan.

Ewing was too introverted and even a bit peculiar, with an eccentricity from Georgetown ingrained deep within.

Following a very brief honeymoon period with the New York media, Ewing had been living under ridicule and criticism.

Some New York fans also believed Ewing was unworthy of New York, unworthy of being in the Knicks’ "Center of the Universe."

Actually, everyone knew the real reason: Ah Gan’s presence placed tremendous pressure on every superstar center.

He was like a mountain weighing on these people’s heads—Olajuwon, Ewing, Robinson.

They entered the League one after another, and in many people’s eyes, they originally started at the same starting line; even if there were sequences, there were no differences in tiers.