Because he’s afraid of pain, it’s a secret he never wanted to share with anyone.
His most painful experiences on the NBA court were caused by Ah Gan.
Once he was beaten violently, another time he was thrown onto the technical stand, both times he grimaced in pain.
Reflecting back, Rodman doesn’t know where he found the courage back then.
Now he would never compete with Ah Gan, while most other so-called tough guys are just pretending.
Including Charles Barkley, whom Rodman sees as someone who bullies the weak and fears the strong.
Only Ah Gan is real, and once he gets going, he doesn’t hold back.
In the first quarter, the Bulls and the Trail Blazers engaged in a fast-paced offensive and defensive battle amid a rather chaotic atmosphere.
The Trail Blazers had an advantage on the inside, they grabbed 4 more rebounds than the Bulls, all offensive rebounds.
But the Trail Blazers couldn’t turn the rebounding advantage into a scoring advantage, as each offensive rebound couldn’t immediately result in a score.
It’s not that the Bulls were protecting the basket well, but the Bulls’ outside players were incredibly quick.
PJ Brown, Ah Gan, AC Green, as long as they grabbed the ball under the basket, the Bulls players would immediately defend and intercept.
Gan Guoyang wanted to use rebounds to take advantage in the first quarter, but the Bulls stopped him with steals and out-of-bounds disruptions.
And the Trail Blazers on defense faced the Bulls without any good solutions, they could only stick to one-on-one individual defense.
Compared to before 1993, Jordan in 1997 initiated more attacks from the 45-degree position.
His back-to-the-basket offense was in its prime, comparable to Ah Gan.
Tremendous strength, skilled and quick footwork, spirited turnaround jump shots, combined with diverse offensive tactics, left defenders helpless.
In comparison, Gan Guoyang could play like Jordan, but he couldn’t because he had more tasks.
He had to set screens for teammates, act as the pivot, battle for offensive rebounds, and catch and organize from the outside.
At the end of the first quarter, the Trail Blazers were behind the Bulls 27:28 by one point.
Starting with a lead, as the game progressed, the Trail Blazers clearly couldn’t keep up with the Bulls’ pace.
The Bulls were impeccable in details, every offense and defense with no major errors.
They perfectly controlled the tempo, easing back after the initial clash with the Trail Blazers, applying pressure with a more relaxed half-court offense and solid perimeter defense, while seizing the game’s initiative.
Although the Bulls were leading by just one point, Phil Jackson took a big breath of relief after the first quarter.
During the break, he told Jordan, "Ah Gan might still be the same Ah Gan, but the Trail Blazers aren’t the same Trail Blazers anymore."
In a match between strong teams, usually, one quarter is enough to assess the opponent’s abilities, knowing their level and cards.
Especially for top teams like the Bulls, who had the highest-level battles with the Trail Blazers.
The epic battles in the 1991 and 1992 Finals are still vivid in Jackson’s mind, that suffocating feeling and uncertainty kept everyone tense.
But now the Trail Blazers? Ah Gan still presses aggressively, yet the other Trail Blazers don’t have the past intensity, they’re excellent, a strong team, but not top challengers.
Van Exel, Riddle are just challengers in chaotic battles, showing brilliant performances in steady-paced rounds.
When it comes to crucial moments or critical junctions in the game, they struggle to provide Ah Gan with sufficient support.
Jordan is too familiar with situations like this, he experienced it from 1985-1990, constantly struggling.
"Now it’s finally Ah Gan’s turn to feel that," Jordan smiled, chewing gum, touching the wound at the corner of his eye.
Sitting on the bench to calm down, as adrenaline fades, pain washes over, Jordan spat out the gum, cursing, and put another piece in his mouth.
Jackson said, "Ah Gan acting early might not be bad, it shows he has no other options, most of the time he’s calm, making him lose his cool is beneficial."
Jordan glared at Jackson, "Oh really? Then stand on the sideline and curse his father, see if he loses his cool."
"Oh, forget it, Michael, let’s just play good basketball, solve problems with the game."
Phil Jackson tried to talk to Dennis Rodman, hoping he would target Ah Gan in the upcoming game.
Though the Trail Blazers are far inferior to the Bulls, Jackson knew that in a regular-season game, Ah Gan could turn the tide.
Dealing with Ah Gan requires continuous targeting from start to finish, at least suppress his shooting percentage below 60%.
But Rodman didn’t want to deal with Jackson, somehow he got a newspaper and sat on the bench with his legs crossed, reading.
"Put away that damn newspaper! Where the hell did you get it?"
"I had leftovers from when I used it in the bathroom. Coach, I’ll fully commit to defending Ah Gan, but don’t expect me to trash talk or get physical with him."
"You’re as scared of him as that?"
"If you’re not afraid, you can go greet his dad."
"..."
Jackson thought his head might explode, what kind of people was he coaching?
Originally hoping this game would dispel fears and anxiety about Ah Gan, it seemed that even winning wouldn’t help.
However, Phil Jackson soon let it go, perhaps Rodman and Jordan’s attitude is already the best mindset.