O’Neal nodded, recalling every offensive and defensive play from the first half in his mind.
Reason told him that such confrontation really elevated his game.
Every play, every detail was worth pondering.
Every low-post offensive and defensive possession was a contest of skill, strength, and intelligence.
Playing against Ah Gan in this half-court game for dozens of possessions, he learned more than he might in half a season.
The talentless bust centers in the league could only watch helplessly as O’Neal dunked over their heads.
O’Neal’s repeated dunks pleased him, excited the fans, and boosted the ratings.
But it did nothing for his skill improvement, just dunking and nothing more.
Yet emotionally, O’Neal felt an indescribable emotion.
Especially knowing he still had an entire second half to face off against Ah Gan.
He hadn’t expected it to be like this before the match.
This emotion was a mix of anger, fear, excitement, and frustration.
Like a tangled mess.
He recalled his childhood when he had just moved to Hainesville, Georgia.
He lived with his stepfather, who was in the army, in the military barracks.
To adapt to the new environment, he always acted ferociously, becoming the school bully.
In class, he threw paper balls at the teacher and was reported by a boy.
He arranged to meet the boy in front of the school after class.
The boy dawdled until five o’clock before showing up.
O’Neal, who had been waiting in ambush, rushed forward and knocked him down, giving him a heavy kick.
As a result, the boy fell to the ground convulsing, eyes rolled back, foaming at the mouth.
O’Neal was terrified, thinking he had killed him.
Later, he found out the boy had a seizure and was taken to the hospital.
Afterward, his stepfather gave O’Neal a severe beating.
From then on, O’Neal never played pranks or bullied anyone at school again.
Of course, stepping onto the court and growing up, sometimes he still couldn’t restrain himself.
He was so powerful, and whenever he saw weaker guys, he couldn’t resist stomping on them.
Survival of the fittest, that’s the rule in basketball, a place to unleash wildness.
But what if he becomes the weaker one?
What if he gets trampled by the stronger ones?
Maybe it was only during this halftime break that O’Neal finally understood why his stepfather had beaten him so hard back then.
Because you can’t always be the strongest; there’s always someone stronger than you.
Even if you are the strongest, an individual can’t overrule a team, can’t overpower an organization.
O’Neal now encountered someone stronger in every aspect.
As the third quarter was about to begin, he returned to the court.
This time, unlike the start of the first half, O’Neal saw Ah Gan chewing gum and felt a bit apprehensive.
Gan Guoyang smiled at him, what did that smile mean?
Mocking me for playing lousy in the first half?
Or was it the moment for the hunt in the second half?
O’Neal took a deep breath and decided to face it with courage.
They were already losing by so much, he might as well go all out.
He made up his mind that if Ah Gan kept going one-on-one with him and he couldn’t stop him, he’d just foul.
At worst, he’d foul out rather than stay on the court and get beaten.
Though he thought this way, when it actually came to the game, he had to be more cautious.
Being Gan Guoyang’s fan, O’Neal was aware of Ah Gan’s wrestling and boxing.
Back when he watched the Trail Blazers’ game against the Pistons, seeing Ah Gan beat up the whole Pistons team, the Silver Dome massacre, O’Neal was incredibly excited.
Unexpectedly, the tables turned, and now it was his turn to go up against Ah.
Better not provoke him; if it goes too far, the two might end up fighting.
O’Neal wasn’t confident about fighting Ah Gan.
The third quarter started, and the Trail Blazers launched their attack first.
The score was 64:48, with the Trail Blazers leading the Magic by 16 points.
A considerable advantage, so Porter dribbled unhurriedly.
Gan Guoyang returned to the low post to engage in a positioning battle with O’Neal.
"Here we go again!" O’Neal cursed under his breath.
Idol, you really can push the intensity, targeting me on the first play of the second half!
Porter passed the ball to Gan Guoyang, and Scott immediately came over to double-team.
Porter feigned an inside cut, but in reality, he moved outward, taking the defense with him.
Gan Guoyang suddenly passed the ball behind his head to the truly cutting Sabonis.
Sabonis was even taller than O’Neal, but his matchup was 6’7" Terbert.
Sabonis lifted his arm and easily took the shot, scoring with a soft underhand shot.
Terbert tried to interfere, but even jumping couldn’t reach Sabonis’s hand.
Seeing Gan Guoyang pass the ball, O’Neal sighed with relief.
But he was stubborn, saying, "Can’t take the shot when double-teamed, Ah Gan?"
After saying it, he regretted it, wondering what his stubborn mouth was saying.
Gan Guoyang smiled and said, "There’s still a long way to go, Shaq."
On offense, O’Neal stopped forcing shots.
He moved outside, creating space for his teammates to attack.
He waited for opportunities, looking for a chance to charge inside.
This was one of O’Neal’s usual tactics.
Lay in wait, rush for the offensive rebound, and deliver a powerful dunk.
Sometimes, it was better to be flexible and look for opportunities rather than forcing plays.
However, after several possessions of laying in wait, O’Neal realized it wasn’t working at all.
Ah Gan’s protection of the defensive rebound was flawless, leaving no chance.
Moreover, with Sabonis as a partner, the Trail Blazers’ rim protection was extremely tight.
The Twin Towers complemented each other, covering inside and outside, left and right, top and bottom, securing the three-second zone thoroughly.
The Magic players could barely find an opportunity, relying on individual ability to score.
And without O’Neal’s low-post offensive threat, the Magic’s offense became handicapped.
Then in defense, Gan Guoyang consecutively assisted Sabonis, cutting inside and scoring thrice under pressure from double-teams.