Deng Liwei is committed to building a more balanced team in New York in terms of offense and defense.
For the Trail Blazers, the biggest problem is still injuries and fatigue.
Lacking in manpower, they have used everyone available on the bench.
With back-to-backs and constant flying, it’s hard for the body to take.
Gan Guoyang, who scored 50 points and 34 points in a quarter in the last game, played a poor match.
As Kenny-Carl once put it, he had his first "ugly girl night" of the season.
Ewing, however, performed well, shooting 11 of 20 and scoring 25 points, 11 rebounds, and 3 blocks.
The Knicks defeated the Trail Blazers 101-97 on the road, handing the Trail Blazers their first loss of the new season.
In the previous game, Gan Guoyang’s super god-level performance covered up the Trail Blazers’ perimeter defense issues.
Covering up is ultimately just covering up, not solving, merely delaying the problem’s explosion.
In this game against the Knicks, the Trail Blazers’ perimeter was brutally exposed.
Doug Rivers, acquired from the Clippers, scored 21 points and had 6 assists.
Except for Gan Guoyang and Petrović, the rest of the Trail Blazers performed mediocrely.
Beelman was most disappointed with Jerome Kossie among them.
Last game, he returned from injury, played 20 minutes, and performed averagely.
But against the Knicks, Kossie was inadequate both offensively and defensively.
Especially on defense, he appeared slow and heavy, failing to assist Ah Gan effectively.
Gan Guoyang often had to cover for him, giving Ewing many opportunities.
Otherwise, if Gan Guoyang had guarded Ewing one-on-one the entire game, Ewing wouldn’t have scored 25 points.
In the past, Kossie was always a key swingman between the three and four positions, a versatile player.
Although he’s a small forward, with his strong build, he can match up to the power forward position without an issue.
With the Trail Blazers’ Twin Towers in the frontcourt, Kossie had always functioned as a shadow power forward.
Sometimes the stats don’t show it, and he’s not flashy on the court, but his role is significant.
But since this season started, the Trail Blazers may have to start accepting Kossie’s decline.
After the game, Gan Guoyang reminded Kossie, "You need to seriously find your form."
Kossie nodded silently; he always listened to Ah Gan.
But whether he really took it to heart this time, only he knows.
Afterward, Porter and Lewis made contributions in games against the Spurs and Kings, respectively.
Their contributions were crucial, revitalizing the Trail Blazers’ wing positions.
However, at this time, Jerome Kossie had already been pushed to the bench by Mario Ely.
Ely’s performance was more stable, and he was more diligent and disciplined on the court.
Kossie seemed a bit like an old hand, not listening much to anyone other than Ah Gan.
Time quickly entered December, and the Trail Blazers achieved an 8-3 record in November.
They maintained their position at the top of the Western Conference.
However, just like in the past, November’s schedule for the Trail Blazers was always the easiest.
Of the 11 games, they only played 3 on the road, with the rest in Portland.
Entering December, they were first greeted by an Eastern Conference four-game away stretch.
And their opponents were the Knicks, Pacers, Bulls, and Knights, respectively.
This included back-to-back road games, which would again test the players’ stamina and bodies.
As the team boarded the plane for their away journey, even the airport staff knew: "The Trail Blazers’ terrible December is about to begin."
Since 1984-1985, at the start of Gan Guoyang’s rookie season, their December record had always been the worst.
Beelman wasn’t overly worried about the record; most of his energy had been taken up by wedding preparations lately.
And after winning three consecutive championships, saying there’s no complacency in the fourth year is impossible.
His only concern was Gan Guoyang’s health.
He was afraid that at some point this year, after 10 years of tension, Ah Gan would suddenly break down.
If that happened, the Trail Blazers’ fourth consecutive championship would be out of the question.
But Ah Gan’s resilience was evidently beyond imagination.
Recently, Gan Guoyang had been constantly arguing with Beelman over playing time.
Beelman wanted to keep Gan Guoyang’s playing time around 37 minutes.
But Gan Guoyang insisted on playing 40 minutes, at a minimum not less than 38 minutes.
"You’re playing more than last season!"
"I want to play more than last season! I’ve lost weight, and I’m in great shape."
"You need to consider your health."
"I’ve considered it. I’m very healthy."
Beelman had no choice but to let Gan Guoyang play more.
A very interesting thing:
When Gan Guoyang was a rookie, he negotiated with the Trail Blazers due to their poor medical reputation.
At the time, Stu-Inman chose to compromise and replaced the chief physician and medical system.
Since then, the Trail Blazers have made player medical protection a top priority in team building.
They were the first in the league to establish a player injury response mechanism.
They conducted injury assessments to determine player condition.
This system ensured the health of Trail Blazers’ players, benefiting many, including Vandeweghe, Drexler, Sabonis, and Porter, key players in winning championships.
This system not only helped Trail Blazers’ players but, with Larry Flesher’s insurance system in place, it even benefited the entire league.
But over the years, the only person who hasn’t benefited or enjoyed any of the response mechanism’s treatment is Gan Guoyang.
This guy, besides being suspended for fighting, has only missed games due to flu, never for an injury.
This Iron Man has been unbelievably consistent, with an enduring passion for the game that is equally terrifying.