Jordan kept saying to Kobe while matching up against him, "Is this the second me? This is me? I wasn’t like this in my rookie season."
While talking, he scored four consecutive points over Kobe’s head and assisted once, helping the Bulls rebuild their advantage.
Kobe, annoyed by the comments, retorted, "I don’t want to be the second you at all, don’t flatter yourself."
After Kobe said this, Jordan had nothing to reply to, and then Kobe continued, "My goal is to surpass Ah Gan, not you. What’s the point of being second?"
This made Jordan incredibly furious; who says I’m second place? Am I just a vice-GOAT?
What really broke Jordan’s defense was Kobe’s third remark.
Kobe caught the ball and hit a mid-range shot under Jordan’s defense.
After scoring, Kobe said, "You’re just a phase goal that I need to surpass Ah Gan. Ah Gan told me to first become Jordan, then think about surpassing him."
Jordan was utterly infuriated. In the next offensive play, he asked everyone to clear out and purely relied on his strength and speed to drive into the basket, dunking over Little O’Neal with a foul, needing a free throw.
After scoring, the anger in Jordan’s eyes was evident. Kobe’s words were like knives stabbing into Jordan’s self-esteem.
At this moment, Gan Guoyang finally stood up from the bench, replacing Little O’Neal, returning to the court to finish the last phase of the second quarter.
With Jordan’s successful free throw, the score moved to 40:47, and the Bulls still maintained a seven-point lead, with both teams’ main forces back on court.
At this point, Kobe remained on the court. Apparently, Bird was satisfied with his performance.
After Gan Guoyang came on court and touched the ball at the low post for the first time, Jordan rushed over like a mad dog to double-team.
Gan Guoyang immediately passed the ball to Kobe, who dribbled to break through to the basket, but Pippen knocked the ball away.
Gan Guoyang retrieved the ball, and Jordan rushed up again, with impressive defensive intensity and using his hands non-stop.
Gan Guoyang thought, it’s only the second quarter, Michael, why are you acting crazy?
This isn’t the finals. Did you get bit by a dog?
However, this time Gan Guoyang didn’t pass the ball again, he protected the ball and pushed inside.
He knocked Jordan away, then skillfully used his footwork to flash open some space, and hit a little kiss off the board for two points.
Kobe watched from outside. This ball protection from Ah Gan was enough for him to learn for a while.
Jordan, Pippen, Lang Li—all six hands were non-stop interfering, yet the ball was protected steadily.
Moreover, such a strong body depended on strength and finally opened some space with footwork.
In Kobe’s eyes, Ah Gan is a treasure trove that he can never fully learn from, and there are too many areas needing improvement in the future.
As for Jordan? Kobe still remembers watching both of them play when he was 8 or 9 years old in Italy.
The vivid memories of Ah Gan are still alive whereas Jordan’s have been completely forgotten.
"Good shot, Ah Gan." Kobe couldn’t help but praise.
"F**k You, Kobe, who the hell told you to lose the ball? You can’t even protect the ball, what basketball are you playing?"
"I will protect it."
"Talk less, compete more."
Next, Jordan charged to the basket again, challenging Gan Guoyang’s defense in the Three Second Zone.
This time Jordan’s speed was very fast and the impact was great, Gan Guoyang knew it wasn’t good to defend and chose to give up.
With a single-handed split dunk, Jordan scored continuously after returning to the court, helping the Bulls maintain their advantage.
Watching Jordan work so hard, Gan Guoyang wondered, "You’re crazy Michael, it’s only the second quarter, why are you playing so desperately?"
Jordan replied, "Every time we face off, we always give it our all, right?"
"You’re right."
Gan Guoyang thought Jordan was raising the intensity early, which was fine since he had rested enough on the bench.
So, Gan Guoyang also started the strong attack mode, the next ball he assaulted directly like a tank.
With Harper hanging on him, he broke into the basket and tossed in successfully, scoring two points and requiring a free throw.
Successful free throw; then, on defense, Gan Guoyang also pressed ahead for a clamp down, pressuring Pippen.
Pippen tried to dribble away, but Gan Guoyang intercepted, leading the ball counterattack.
The Bulls surrounded and chased him, but Gan Guoyang was fearless, breaking through with two people hanging on him for a successful lay-up at the basket.
Gan Guoyang’s breakthrough speed and explosive power were not as good as before, but his weight and strength had further increased, making his assault unstoppable.
It was pure power driving into, several people couldn’t stop him, and if they blocked it would be a foul, or just watch the ball go in and then give another foul.
Two consecutive three-point play successes helped the Trail Blazers draw closer to the score near the end of the second quarter.
Gan Guoyang’s strong playstyle inspired Portland fans at the Rose Garden to cheer loudly.
Phil Jackson felt headaches standing at the sidelines, Rodman’s entanglement perhaps could interfere him.
But Rodman didn’t care at all, and Michael seemed heated, just now that foul was counted against Jordan.
Jordan committed two fouls in the first half, which isn’t good news; Ah Gan, as the Trail Blazers’ defensive core, has only one foul.
As a head coach, during the first half of the game, you can’t just focus on the score, whether leading or trailing.
Fooling around when ahead and rushing when behind is absolutely not feasible; if you play like this, you’ll probably lose in the end.
You must comprehensively consider the conditions of your team’s and opponent’s main players, the feel of substitute players, and if there’s an emerging surprise hero.
Also remember the number of fouls, observe player injuries and stamina, the opponent’s stamina, and rotation status.
Adjustments and preparations should be made as early as possible for the final sprint phase.