Doing my own thing, fulfilling my duties, not getting disturbed by Ah Gan—isn’t that enough?
Thinking about this point, Jackson calmed himself down and continued to focus on the game.
Tonight’s battle with Larry Bird is just beginning.
At this moment, Larry Bird is letting Gan Guoyang sit on the bench and rest.
In the early stages of the second quarter, Gan Guoyang sat on the bench for four to five minutes.
This gap period will be very difficult for the Trail Blazers; if they’re not careful, the Bulls will widen the gap.
Later it will turn into endless chasing, with the Trail Blazers losing control.
But Bird is facing a problem; he can’t find a reliable player to lead the team and withstand the Bulls.
So far, the Trail Blazers don’t have a true secondary leader.
This has been an issue throughout Gan Guoyang’s career: the team he leads is destined not to have a clear second star.
When the leader is too strong, the secondary leader’s position becomes significantly reduced, even to the point of being dispensable, similar to other players.
In this regard, no one can compare with Ah Gan. Jordan is indeed powerful, but Pippen is a practical team second—even though his salary doesn’t match.
The first three-peat, Drexler was theoretically the team’s second, but in reality, his status and role didn’t necessarily match Vandeweghe, Thompson, and Terry Porter.
Especially since his contract and salary were always low, not fitting the identity of a team second, leading to his eventual departure.
The four-peat situation was more complicated; Petrović, Sabonis, Hornersek, and Lewis all had the strength of a second, but upon closer thought, none truly were.
If Petrović and Lewis hadn’t died, they’d have played with Ah Gan for two more years, and by now one might have solidly become the second leader.
But now, the Trail Blazers once again have the lone star situation where other players are too far apart in various aspects, and no one can bear the duties of the second leader.
Bird thought it over and decided to let the veteran Porter lead, guiding the second lineup.
Porter anchoring the team, while the main scorer is Riddle—Riddle went off in the later stages of the first quarter and has rested for a while.
Inside, Bird more conservatively chose Dudley to pair with AC Green.
And he didn’t use the impressive rookie combo of Wallace + Little O’Neal that shone in previous games.
Because Ben Wallace’s height was insufficient, during the second quarter transition phase the Bulls replaced him with veteran Robert Parish.
After leaving the Suns, Parish signed with the Bulls last season, becoming the team’s inside substitute.
At 43 years of age this season, Parish can still contribute on court with his height and experience.
It must be admitted that height is truly the most difficult talent to change; standing in the paint, Parish is a barrier.
While Ben Wallace doesn’t even seem taller than Pippen, how could he stop Bulls players from assaulting the basket?
Although Bird is unconventional in his use of players, in such an important game, he was a bit conservative.
The conservative approach didn’t yield stability; after the start of the second quarter, the Bulls surged with an offensive wave.
First Parish secured an offensive rebound under the basket, scoring two points with a signature high-arc shot.
Then Riddle’s reverse inside layup didn’t score, Parish protected the defensive rebound.
The Bulls counterattacked, Kukoc received the ball outside and made a three-point shot, scoring!
This tall Croatian star feels at home with the Bulls.
Despite being disciplined by Pippen and Jordan after joining the Bulls, he quickly proved with his ability that he could establish himself in the NBA and contribute significantly.
Porter tried to respond with a stopping jump shot in the counterattack, but he hadn’t found rhythm or form, his shot missing.
Dudley and AC Green lack the ability to dive for offensive rebounds, resulting in the Bulls steadily guarding defensive rebounds and then launching a counterattack.
Again, Parish’s rebound was passed to Pippen, Pippen moved quickly past half court with no one able to stop him, with Ah Gan absent, who was he afraid of?
The Trail Blazers had to shrink their defense in the middle, leaving Stephen Curry open on the wing, Pippen passed the ball to the corner, Curry took the ball for a three-point shot, scoring!
An 8-0 offensive wave instantly expanded the score to a nine-point lead.
Bird immediately called for a timeout, continuing like this, they’d collapse by halftime.
With Ah Gan not present, the Trail Blazers’ second lineup facing the Bulls with Pippen was two levels inferior.
Just like the previous Bulls without Jordan clashing with the Trail Blazers.
Jordan at this moment must surely be thinking, you must understand the past me now, Sonny.
During the timeout, Gan Guoyang had already taken off his jacket, preparing to go on early.
Playing like this, they wouldn’t win; by halftime they’d be trailing by 15 points.
But Bird stopped him, saying, "No, it’s not the time yet, sit down."
"My stamina isn’t a problem, trust me, I can play the whole game."
"I know you can, but also trust me, we can adjust. And you need to save your stamina and touch for when it’s most crucial."
Gan Guoyang actually didn’t quite believe Bird, not that he didn’t believe Bird, but he knew the current Trail Blazers players’ level.
The Bulls are a bunch of seasoned veterans, with Pippen and Jordan taking turns playing, seamless in rotation.
Bird is like a skilled woman with no rice to cook; he has only Ah Gan as a trump, and can only play this trump to gain victory.
Still, Bird has his own ideas, Gan Guoyang may want to win, but at this moment he chooses to respect the coach’s opinion.
After all, it’s not the finals; in the finals, he’d punch Bird unconscious, send him to the locker room, then take over command and lead the game.
And Bird didn’t sense any killing intent emanating from Ah Gan; he handed the tactical board to Rick Carlisle.
Making significant personnel changes, with the conservative lineup not working, he immediately made substitutions, using PJ Brown to replace Dudley, as his height and rebounding were important.
Using Little O’Neal to substitute AC Green, Bird needed vitality inside to crash offensive boards.
Van Exel was re-equipped for battle outside, as the veteran Porter was less effective in such a catch-up situation compared to a streaky shooter.
Finally, Bird cast his gaze on a young man sitting on the bench for a while, eager to get on the court.
"Kobe, you’re replacing Winfield. Your task is to mark Pippen, tightly mark him."
Kobe took off his jacket, not nodding but saying, "I thought I’d be going up against Jordan."
"First mark Pippen, kid, don’t aim too high!" Bird’s tone was serious, Kobe closed his mouth and nodded.
Seeing this, Bird added, "Play well and you’ll stay on longer, until Jordan’s back on."
Kobe didn’t say anything further, just nodded, popped a piece of gum into his mouth, and stood on the court with teammates.