So before the game started, I specifically reminded Gan Guoyang to be careful tonight; our coach will be targeting you guys.
Actually, whether reminded or not, Gan Guoyang knew very well in his heart that every encounter with the Supersonics wouldn’t be easy.
When Gan Guoyang retired, Ewing had just been traded to Seattle, and Gan Guoyang had only played one game against Ewing’s Supersonics.
Therefore, this team, with Payton-Youwin as its core, was not very familiar, and KeyArena had no intention of welcoming Ah Gan back tonight.
When Gan Guoyang first touched the ball on the court, boos erupted from the audience. These two cities had long been rivals, and Gan Guoyang had taken away too many victories from here.
The defensive intensity of the Supersonics was indeed not comparable to the Vancouver Grizzlies, and with Ewing’s arrival, the SOS defense was pushed to the extreme.
In the first quarter, the Trail Blazers trailed the Supersonics by 4 points at 21:25, scoring 21 points, which was 10 points less than the last game against the Grizzlies.
Under the effective partitioning of the Supersonics’ defense, the Trail Blazers quickly fell into isolation play, and players had to rely on individual skills to resolve issues.
Moreover, the Supersonics cleverly avoided letting Ewing defend Gan Guoyang one-on-one. Instead, Sam Perkins, Gary Payton, and Schlammfeste took turns in a group defense.
George Karl knew that if Ewing defended Ah Gan, it would only make Ewing be drawn out and blown up, disrupting the entire Supersonics’ defensive system.
If one person couldn’t hold him, Sam Perkins would follow, and others would actively help, with at least three people attending at any given time.
The first quarter was tough for Gan Guoyang to manage, yet he still scored 8 points and made 3 assists, covering more than half of the team’s scoring.
But the real disaster struck in the second quarter. When Bird replaced them with the second lineup, the Trail Blazers fell into a scoring drought, a genuine drought.
Van Exel, who scored 22 points with high offensive efficiency last game, confidently declared before the game that he would once again explode against the Supersonics’ guards.
But tonight, this streaky player was utterly off; he missed several outside shots and couldn’t make any difficult floaters when breaking through to the basket.
This is the double-edged sword; while enjoying his outbursts, one has to endure the harm caused by his stubbornness and poor shot selection on bad nights.
No matter how Bird adjusted, nor how Gan Guoyang tried to stabilize the situation after playing, in the second quarter, the Trail Blazers’ offensive momentum was lost.
In the second quarter, they scored only 12 points and ended the first half with just 34 points. Bird couldn’t hold back any longer and unleashed his anger during the halftime break.
After an outburst, Bird held his head and thought, there are still 80 games to play, and life as a head coach is really tough.
Why am I not enjoying my nice retirement life in Naples, coming to the West Coast to suffer, and even taking heat from Ah Gan, what kind of sin did I commit?
Compared to Bird’s anger, Gan Guoyang was much calmer, having mentally prepared for this.
In the second game of the season, after playing weak Grizzlies, now facing the Western Conference champions, challenges were sure to arise.
A player’s mentality is very different from a coach’s; players also have a competitive spirit, but the sense of responsibility isn’t as heavy as it is for a head coach.
When Bird was a player, he wouldn’t rage over a poor performance or a tragic defeat, yet once his role changed, so did his mindset.
Later Bird summarized, "In a game won by a narrow margin of 1 point, players will feel relieved and happily celebrate in the locker room. Meanwhile, a coach will dwell on our mistakes, knowing luck won’t always save us, and thinking about what needs to be corrected for next time... unless it’s the final game of the season."
And then there’s Kobe, whose frustration and anxiety grew as he couldn’t play to help the team.
Before the second half started, Kobe told Gan Guoyang, "I’ll never play casually in pickup games again and injure myself. Not being able to play and help the team feels awful."
Gan Guoyang didn’t indulge Kobe at all, saying, "Forget it, in this situation, you playing would only make things worse."
Kobe: "..."
In the third quarter, the situation improved, and Gan Guoyang began controlling the game’s tempo.
He didn’t rush to fast-break and chase the score; instead, he focused on defense, stabilizing the team’s defensive line before gradually addressing offensive issues.
It was like he was back in his rookie season when the Trail Blazers’ defense was average, and they would panic and push for breaks when trailing.
Gan Guoyang would always direct his teammates to defend together, secure the defensive rebounds, then attack more efficiently on the fast break.
Trailing by 14 at the half, the Trail Blazers began to close the gap after solidifying their defense, narrowing it down to 6 points at one point.
George Karl called a timeout to make adjustments. Tonight’s TV commentary featured Jack Ramsey.
Since 1996, Jack Ramsey had been commentating on regular season games and the finals for ESPN.
When talking about his proud disciple, Jack Ramsey was quite pleased, saying, "Sonny is the best team player in the world, the best, not one of the best, just the best."
"In the past, people’s understanding of a team player was somewhat narrow, thinking those who kept passing the ball around the court without taking a shot themselves were team players. I think such players are at best selfless, perhaps even inept, but not necessarily team-oriented. A team player always does what benefits the team most. If at some moment, the team needs you to shoot, attack, and take control of the game, doing so makes you a team player too."