Their offense is sharp and powerful, ranking second only to the Trail Blazers in the average points per game chart, showing just how strong their firepower is.
After selecting Tracy McGrady, he quickly became a key player on the Lakers’ perimeter, with fast breaks and defense being his forte.
His impressive physical condition represents the direction of a new generation of players: faster, taller, more versatile.
Shaq is more mature and also larger; his physique on the court is even bigger than other giants.
And Jason Kidd has become one of the best point guards in the league. Whether it’s fast breaks or set offense, Kidd handles it with ease and is an excellent executor of Del Harris’s tactics.
The Lakers attach great importance to this game against the Trail Blazers; they do not want the new NBA winning streak record to be completed against them.
Jerry West even came personally to the game in Portland, where he stayed for four years and won four championships.
The 1972 Los Angeles Lakers were one of the few happy memories of West’s career, that magical and disruptive 1972, where they painfully lost Elgin Baylor but dramatically achieved an incredible 69 wins and 33 consecutive victories.
The impermanence of life and the absurdity of fate were vividly demonstrated that year. Jerry West still remembers the moment of winning the championship, feeling like crying and laughing.
That year’s Lakers’ 33-win streak ended with the defending champions, the 1971 Milwaukee Bucks, who had Jabbar and Oscar Robertson.
West, along with the rest of the Lakers, hope this time they can end the Trail Blazers’ 33-game winning streak, sharing the 33-game winning record with the Trail Blazers is also good, much better than being overshadowed by them.
Before the game, in the Lakers’ locker room, West said to the players with a cold face: "Become a footnote to the record, or the ender of the record, it’s tonight. Portland people aren’t that scary; they are under more pressure than us. Go all out, guys."
The Lakers’ current lineup is indeed quite outstanding. In terms of talent, it’s not much inferior to the Trail Blazers, and they have the advantage of youth.
Del Harris is a meticulous coach, and he has devised a fairly detailed game plan for this match, hoping Shaq can be the breakthrough point at the start of the game.
"Shaq, you need to make a big impact right from the start, scoring, drawing fouls, you must get into the rhythm early and suppress the Trail Blazers’ momentum."
O’Neal listened to Harris’s instructions and nodded solemnly, his face without any extra expression.
But no one knows what this guy is thinking. This big boy often messes around in the locker room, and no one can handle him.
Jerry West sometimes can suppress him a bit, but recently he has had no luck either. He laughs every day and likes to play various pranks on his teammates.
Some ordinary locker room pranks can no longer satisfy this big guy’s bad taste. He sometimes poops in his teammates’ shoes and even had the extreme and vulgar idea of stirring a teammate’s toothbrush in his own spit before putting it back.
So it’s no wonder that Jerry West has strict demands on O’Neal, because this guy is simply a large child who never grows up. How can he be the team leader? How can he challenge Ah Gan?
However, what comforts West is that tonight while facing the Trail Blazers, O’Neal is serious throughout, without the silly smile from the past.
After arriving in the locker room, he is preparing earnestly, listening quietly to the coach’s tactical arrangements, with a face that seems to have shed some childishness and gained wisdom.
If O’Neal can really be focused, serious, and devoted to the game, West believes that O’Neal can certainly pose a huge threat to Gan and the Trail Blazers.
Until right before the game started, as the players were warming up with shots at the Rose Garden Arena, O’Neal’s face remained serious without a smile.
At this time, Gan Guoyang came over and greeted O’Neal, saying, "Hey Shaq, I’ll be matching up with you tonight the whole time, give it your best."
O’Neal furrowed his brows and replied lightly, "I’m waiting for you, Sonny, show your stuff."
Gan Guoyang nodded, thinking that O’Neal has indeed matured, and tonight can have a real battle in the paint with O’Neal.
Originally, it should have been Sabonis matching up against O’Neal. Bird also hoped to assign Sabonis to guard the Shark, which would relieve Gan Guoyang’s pressure on both offense and defense, allowing him to play more freely, which is beneficial for the team’s victory.
The Trail Blazers also took this game very seriously at all levels.
The owner, Tang Jianguo, personally went to the locker room to cheer them on.
The Rose Garden Arena is filled with celebrities tonight, and tickets are hard to come by.
Gan Guoyang’s friends from various circles, former Trail Blazers stars like Walton, Thompson, and Portland’s celebrities all gathered, waiting for the moment to make history.
The on-site Trail Blazer fans are all holding signs saying 34-0, and their enthusiasm this season is unparalleled.
Back in the days of three-peats and four-peats, the Trail Blazer fans’ appetite was spoiled.
Apathetic towards victories and championships.
Now, five years have passed since they last won a championship in 1993.
Do you know how the Trail Blazer fans got through these five years?
They finally waited for Gan’s return, faltered for a season, amassed energy, and now they’re about to soar high and reclaim what’s theirs.
Amidst such tremendous enthusiasm, the pressure naturally seeps into every pore.
So, Bird had to be more cautious in pre-game matchups and tactical arrangements.