The Golden Age of Basketball

()(Historically, the Trail Blazers started their trip to the Eastern Conference after playing two Eastern Conference teams at home; the schedule has been modified here for the convenience of the plot.)

There are 50 states in the United States, with a land area of ​​916 million square kilometers. Excluding the two distant territories of Hawaii and Alaska, the mainland of the United States is still a large country with a span of more than 4600 kilometers from east to west and more than 4500 kilometers from north to south.

After Gan Guoyang came to the United States in 1981, he used California as his base and visited all the major cities on the west coast of the United States. He also went to Utah, Arizona, Denver and other western states because of hiccups.

Even so, Gan Guoyang's footprints still stayed in the western region. The farthest place he has been to is central Nebraska, and played an invitational tournament.

Because of this, Gan Guoyang's body was deeply imprinted with the style of western basketball, open and close, passionate, burning like a raging fire in the western wilderness.

In the ten games against the western teams, Gan Guoyang was full of vitality in the offense. He adapted to the rhythm of the western team's whirlwind, actively participated in the quick counterattack, and often contributed wonderful goals.

Because of his performance, Portland's ball market is extremely hot, and many consecutive home games are full. Even when he plays away games, the away arenas are also full of fans because of his arrival.

More importantly, Gan Guoyang's performance shattered the negative opinion of many media on Gan Guoyang. They believed that a Chinese like Gan Guoyang would not be able to adapt to the NBA game.

This also allowed Gan Guoyang to get the support of the Chinese in the United States, and his existence has become the pride of the Chinese in the American sports world-although his career has just started.

Gan Guoyang had a deep understanding of this when he arrived in New York.

The biggest city Gan Guoyang has been to is the glamorous Los Angeles. The pleasant climate and colorful life there have left an indelible mark on Gan Guoyang's basketball career.

And New York, the largest city in the United States, the world's financial center, and the place that represents the image of the entire country, is the first time in Gan Guoyang's life.

"I saw the World Trade Center!" Sitting on the plane, Gan Guoyang looked at the gradually descending plane, and saw the World Trade Center on Manhattan Island through the window, but the statue of the Goddess of Freedom at the mouth of the Hudson River was blocked by the building ,did not see.

"Hey, don't be so excited, Gan, it's just New York. We will come here twice a year, it's no big deal." Vandeweghe said, looking at Gan Guoyang's fuss.

"You don't understand, just look at it and miss it." Gan Guoyang said something that no one could understand, but he was thinking in his heart, wondering if he could change the fate of the World Trade Center being attacked by terrorism after coming to this time and space.

Gan Guoyang once thought that his arrival might change a lot of things, and he even wanted to try to recall the catastrophes that might happen in the future and prevent them from happening.

But then he gave up, not to mention how many disasters are staged in the world every year, even if he is a superman flying around, he may not be able to save those poor people in time.

Besides, no one would believe what he said. Even if some people believed it, many things changed because of his arrival, which might change the disaster itself.

So Gan Guoyang also gave up the idea of ​​changing the world and could only let nature take its course.

The Blazers arrived in New York at noon on the 19th, but their opponent was not the New York Knicks, but the Nets in New Jersey.

Originally, the Blazers were supposed to go directly to Newark, but there were no direct flights from Portland to Newark at the time, so they had to divert to New York and Jersey City to reach their destination.

Arriving at the Kennedy International Airport near Jamaica Bay, Gan Guoyang was surrounded by a large number of reporters when he was leaving the airport. They took photos of Gan Guoyang with their cameras.

Afterwards, some Chinese fans waited for Gan Guoyang's arrival at the airport. They held crudely made banners and chanted cheering for Gan Guoyang.

At that time, the star effect of the NBA was not as obvious as that of later generations. Except for a few superstars, the NBA rarely received such treatment.

Gan Guoyang also knew that he was blessed by his skin color, so he kindly signed autographs for a few Chinese fans, which led to more and more people surrounding him.

Finally, under the protection of airport security and team staff, Gan Guoyang broke through the crowd and boarded the special car to Newark.

On the way, Gan Guoyang saw the majestic Brooklyn Bridge, passed through Manhattan, crossed the Hudson River twice, and sat for more than three hours before arriving at the hotel arranged by the team.

When we arrived at the hotel, it was almost dark, and Ramsey also decided not to arrange training at night, so that the players could relax. After all, they came to the most prosperous state in the United States.

However, Gan Guoyang gave up the chance to go out and have fun. He decided to stay in the hotel and watch TV, and called Gan's Restaurant in San Francisco. He was relieved to know that Gan Youwei had arrived safely.

Except for Gan Guoyang, there was one other person who did not go out, that is Vandeweghe, who also stayed in the hotel, so Gan Guoyang went to his room to find him.

"Kiki, is your back okay?" Gan Guoyang asked about Vandeweghe's injury again. He always felt that Vandeweghe's back didn't look like a major problem, but it didn't seem like a small trouble.

"I'm feeling unwell. It's an old injury. I've approached Cook, and he said there's a little trouble, but there doesn't seem to be any good solution." Vandeweghe said.

Cook is the attending doctor of the Trail Blazers team doctor. Wharton once filed a lawsuit with him because of his own injuries; Gan Guoyang also distrusted this future doctor with "bad records" at the beginning, and almost made him lose his job.

But after staying in the Blazers for a while, he found that Cook didn't seem to be that bad, but he was limited to the medical level, and it seemed that he was often powerless to some injuries.

"I can ask Brumi to help you. I used to be troubled by back injuries. It was the first time I suffered a serious injury. Later, Brumi's treatment made me completely healed." Rumi is Shui Miao. She is Gan Guoyang's personal doctor and works in a private clinic in Portland.

"I hope so. I can hardly participate in defense on the court. My back is really uncomfortable. The offense has distracted me too much. So, I am really sorry Gan. I know you have taken a lot of pressure on the defensive end. .”

Vandeweghe's words made Gan Guoyang blush a little, and his heart warmed up. He only now knows that the main reason for Vandeweghe's lax defense is injuries.

Gan Guoyang also knows that Vandeweghe, as the team's top scorer, has to bear a lot of responsibility in the offense, and naturally has no time to take care of it in the defense.

"No problem, it's what I, a center, should do to make up for the loopholes of my teammates!" Gan Guoyang smiled. He had already decided not to complain about Vandeweghe's performance, and he wanted to do more in defense.

"You're great, you're great; but you know, the East is not the same as the West. You'd better be mentally prepared. It's okay in New Jersey. After the game here, we're going to play in the Midlands. Go to Chicago. , go to Cleveland, go to Detroit, and go to Philadelphia. Believe me, your task will be very difficult, even in New Jersey, there are tough guys." Vandeweghe, as a player who played in the NBA for 5 years , using his experience to teach Gan Guoyang.

"Detroit? I still remember the super-scoring match between you and Detroit when you were in Denver. At that time, I was still thinking, is this the NBA? The two sides just come and go for a shooting contest." Gan Guoyang thought of that The scoring record battle.

"That was already in 1983. Now everything may be a little different. When I first entered the NBA, there was no three-point line. Now everything has become very fast." Vandeweghe said with emotion.

Indeed, after Stern officially took office in 1984, the nba changed more and more quickly; there were more and more advertisements on the sidelines, the opening ceremony became longer and longer, and the nba rules became more and more It's getting thinner and thinner, and there are more and more gimmicks on the field.

The style of play in the nba seems to be changing silently. Of course, this change is not obvious and it will take several seasons to appear, but in any case, the nba is indeed developing at a high speed.

Gan Guoyang also nodded, he knew what Vandeweghe meant, don't stop learning, as a rookie, he still has a lot to learn and improve.

It's just that Gan Guoyang didn't expect that the opportunity to learn would come soon, and in a way he didn't like, it poured cold water on him.

On November 11, the Blazers came to the Brandon Byrne Stadium to challenge the New Jersey Nets away.

The New Jersey Nets entered the NBA in 1976 with the withdrawal of the ABA and became a member of the league.

But they lost to the Philadelphia 76ers in the Julius Erving battle, which made the former aba overlord become the nba's belly.

After entering 80 years, through several years of trading and draft reconstruction, the Nets finally improved their record in the 1983-1984 season and possessed a complete and capable lineup.

In the first round of the playoffs in 1984, they defeated the defending champion, the Philadelphia 76ers where Irving was, and had a big upset, which can be regarded as the completion of revenge for Irving.

They are full of ambitions in the new season and are ready to go further this year, but shortly after the start of the season, they lost the general on the bench-the former 76ers veteran, "Chocolate Bomb" Daryl Dawkins.

When Gan Guoyang looked at Daryl Dawkins in casual clothes, he couldn't help feeling a little regretful.

He still remembers watching the Finals in Los Angeles in 1981. At that time, Dawkins was the main center of the 76ers. His violent dunks left a deep impression on Gan Guoyang. For this reason, Gan Guoyang also nicknamed himself "Butter Bomb". .

However, Dawkins' inability to play does not mean that Gan Guoyang can easily face the Nets. On the contrary, Gan Guoyang was in a lot of trouble in this game because he found that he could not guard against the opposite center, the No. 42, Mike Gomings base.

After entering the NBA, Gan Guoyang encountered a lot of white centers. Jack Sikma, Bill Wharton, Mark Eaton, and Gan Guoyang felt that none of them had any problems.

His bug's strength and outstanding awareness allowed him to not lose the slightest bit when facing the white center who also relied on strength and awareness to play.

Moreover, both Sikma and Walton were suffering from injuries at the time, and their performance was mediocre. When they met a super athletic team like the Trail Blazers, they were often exhausted. Gan Guoyang naturally had no problem dealing with them.

But against the Nets today, Gan Guoyang felt that he was too weak to play against this 6-foot-11 white center who looked ordinary and the only thing that attracted attention was the bearded white center.

This Gominsky is extremely smart in playing, rarely plays low singles, but is very good at picking up leaks, cutting off the ball and mid-range catch and shoot.

And although he is a right-handed player, his left hand is quite good, which has repeatedly prevented Gan Guoyang from blocking shots.

"Beep!" "Judge the position in advance! Don't make unnecessary fouls!"

The referee's whistle sounded, accompanied by Ramsey's roar, and Gan Guoyang fouled when blocking Gominski.

"Come here, Gan!" Ramsey called Gan Guoyang to the sidelines, "You have to judge his position in advance. They are now inside the power forward to the low post, and the center is raised to the top of the arc. You have to pay attention to the position of the opponent's power forward. Cut off the connection between the two, don't chase people, and don't chase the ball! You must stand in a suitable position in advance, do you understand!"

A tactic commonly used by the Nets inside is that the power forward falls to the low position, and then Gominsky moves to the high position, relying on the cover of the outside line, waiting for an opportunity to cut into the inside line to catch the ball and layup.

Gominsky's left and right hands are very good, and he feels good on the layup. Gan Guoyang must not only defend Gominsky alone, but also pay attention to inside protection, so he is easily deceived by his elegant movement and loses his defensive position several times.

"I understand." Gan Guoyang could only nod his head.

"You go off and rest for a while, let Sampson defend Gominski." Ramsey replaced Gan Guoyang, let Kenny Karl play, and replaced Sampson to defend Gominski.

Gan Guoyang sat off the court, watching how the team's old ball, Pi Sampson, defended Gominsky, who was also slippery.

Sampson is also 6 feet 10 tall, his strength and wingspan are not as good as Gan Guoyang, and his running and jumping has also declined due to age, but Gan Guoyang found that he is very effective when defending Gominsky alone.

He neither defends close to the ground like a jellybean, nor double-teams with his teammates. Sampson is always able to stand in the right position, just blocking Gominsky's receiving path, or interfering with his receiving. ball course.

Gominsky couldn't catch the ball comfortably, so he immediately degenerated into an ordinary center. He couldn't handle Sampson with a back hit, and got a big hat.

Although the relationship between Sampson and Gan Guoyang is the worst among the Trail Blazers, Gan Guoyang also has to admit that the old No. [-] pick has two talents, and at least his defensive experience is far better than his own.

Moreover, Sampson's offensive skills are also very comprehensive. In the direct dialogue with Gominsky, Sampson had the overall upper hand.

In this game, he scored 26 points, plus the explosion of the Blazers' bench center Norris - he scored 17 points and 14 rebounds. In the end, the Blazers beat the Nets 123:106 in the away game and continued to advance.

Although Gan Guoyang performed poorly in defense, he scored 24 points and got 6 rebounds unstoppably in offense.

Gan Guoyang felt that he was not very satisfied at the beginning of his trip to the East.

And their next stop will be Chicago.