This is sentiment.
Additionally, no one knows better than Mason how ruthless Gan’s measures are to counter brutal basketball.
The massacre of the 1990 Finals is still vivid in memory, and Mason doesn’t want to be the next Isiah Thomas.
This is rationality.
Mason toned down his actions, but the confrontation between the two sides remained intense.
It became so intense that both sides forgot whether they were playing basketball or wrestling at one point.
At the first timeout, Lewis said on the bench, "Is this a basketball game? They’re hugging my waist all the time and trying to trip me up."
Beelman said, "You can hug their waist too and trip them up."
"I’m doing that, but I almost forgot how to shoot."
Excessive physical confrontation can make the offense feel sluggish, exactly the result the Heat want.
On the Heat’s bench, Riley squatted on one leg, drawing tactics on the board nonstop.
His face was red and neck thick, eager to personally get on the court and battle with the Trail Blazers players.
"Choke them, choke them! We need to establish the tone of the entire game right from the start!"
Riley made a choking gesture, indicating to choke the Trail Blazers’ offense and their players.
In the Eastern Conference Finals, that’s how the Heat dealt with Jordan, wearing down Jordan and the Bulls.
He intends to use the same tactics against the Trail Blazers, or rather, to torment the Trail Blazers, which is just beginning.
Riley has his own basketball theory; he believes that in intense games, the most crucial thing is not tactics but stamina.
When a team is exhausted at crucial moments in a game, their teamwork and spiritual power disappear.
He believes that basketball, especially under the NBA format, is a competition of endurance and fatigue resistance.
When the game reaches the 40-minute mark, fatigue affects everyone, and tactics, game modes, and synergy will collapse.
When everything collapses, players must have enough judgment to react on the spot; without stamina, they can’t make correct judgments.
Therefore, Riley particularly likes fatigue training, forcing players to continue high-intensity simulated confrontational exercises when exhausted.
"Fatigue makes cowards of us all!"
This is Riley’s most frequent saying to players, and the Heat’s training has always been the toughest in the league.
It is now, and will be for a long, long time in the future, all because of Pat Riley.
So Riley seemed to play Showtime offense basketball with the Lakers, and extreme defense with the Heat, but the core principle of both is the same.
Use crazy offense or defense to drain the opponent’s stamina, make them fatigued, make mistakes, and eventually lose the game.
This strategy was very successful in the Western Conference until Riley encountered Gan Guoyang, the unprecedented stamina monster.
In Riley’s impression, Gan showed signs of fatigue only once, in the 1985 Western Conference Finals.
He took on too much and ultimately the Trail Blazers lost to the Lakers, who won the championship that year.
Afterward, the guy was like a nuclear-powered mule, never showing fatigue, always energetic, playing the fourth quarter as easily as the first.
Because of this, Riley both hates Gan and highly appreciates and wants him. Is there any player more fitting to his basketball philosophy than Gan?
After the timeout, the Heat’s momentum became even more aggressive.
Riley made a substitution, bringing in Steve Smith for Drexler.
This is his regular playoff substitution strategy, pulling Drexler out early and letting him lead the second unit at the end of the first quarter.
Smith is also a guard adept at low-post play, and the Heat played very straightforward, even somewhat rigid, offensively.
Three-pronged approach, low post, inside to outside pass, outside to inside pass, over and over, aiming to score efficiently and then scramble back to solid defense.
In such intense physical confrontation, the match became quite ugly, scoring only reached double digits halfway through the first quarter.
At this time, Miami Arena finally filled up, and Heat fans began waving towels in frenzy, cheering and shouting loudly to boost the home team.
"This is our style of play, well done, well done!"
The Heat gradually gained the upper hand in the first quarter, but only led the Trail Blazers by 3 points.
17:20, both sides scored very low, Olajuwon and Gan showed a tit-for-tat situation in the first quarter.
The Trail Blazers were generally in a passive position, often quickly falling into passivity in this playoff.
So far, they’ve only been playing decently, lacking highlights, unable to find clear weaknesses in their opponents.
Gan Guoyang wasn’t eager to attack repeatedly from the low post, now wasn’t the time, he had to be patient.
Olajuwon was no longer the Olajuwon from 9 years ago; he was clever, tough, skillful, with firm will and determination.
But Gan Guoyang was also no longer the Gan Guoyang from 9 years ago; he became extremely powerful and cunning, experienced, with ample patience, countless prey fell at his feet.
Olajuwon knew well in his heart, Gan is much more cunning and fearsome than Jordan, and he was fully prepared.
During the rest between quarters, Beelman’s mind gradually cleared up, he sensed the Heat’s tactical intent.
Therefore, at the start of the second quarter, he replaced Gan Guoyang, bringing in PJ Brown and Davis, young players to grapple with the Heat.
The offensive focus shifted to Petrović on the outside—he, like Drexler, rested in the middle of the first quarter and started the second leading the second unit.