In this All-Star game, besides Gan Guoyang and Kobe, Sabonis also successfully made it into the roster.
This season they have achieved such strong results, but actually only three people made it into the All-Star, one of whom is quite controversial and is considered a commercial newly-emerged star.
This has always been the style of the Trail Blazers. They have a super strong superstar, and other players are strong but with evenly distributed roles.
Brellock and Chris Mullin both saw a revival in their careers, with their performances and statistics on the field being quite good, yet they still didn’t gain the favor of the fans.
"The sun’s brilliance is so dazzling that you can’t see the stars around. Actually, in other galaxies, these stars are also radiant stars."
Gan Guoyang won the "Star of Stars" at the All-Star game, gaining his third All-Star Game MVP trophy of his career. "Sports Illustrated" commented on Ah Gan’s performance like this.
Whether in the Trail Blazers or the League, for this season so far, Gan Guoyang is undoubtedly the sun.
After the All-Star game concluded, the trading deadline arrived, and all teams are calculating their small strategies.
Either strengthen to prepare for the playoffs, or exchange for some draft pick resources to plan for the future.
Due to the Trail Blazers’ unparalleled prominence, coupled with the labor-negotiation expectations in the summer of 1998, all teams lacked interest in making big trades.
All were minor adjustments, with no transactions involving core lineup or superstar trades occurring.
The Chicago Bulls have been attempting to sell Scottie Pippen, but under Jordan’s strong opposition and fan pressure, Krause ultimately failed to get his wish.
Ultimately, the Bulls only sent away Jason Caffey and acquired David Vaughn from the Magic, both of whom are fringe bench players that have no real impact on team’s strength.
Krause did this mainly to secure the Magic’s two second-round picks in 1998 and 2000.
Trading players for draft picks, Krause was obviously preparing for Jordan’s departure.
Regarding Krause’s little actions, Jordan would naturally be very displeased.
It’s time for a third consecutive championship, and you’re not thinking about strengthening the team, but doing little moves to prepare for the future?
The future? Krause really thinks he can build another dynasty without Jordan, Pippen, and Jackson, doesn’t he?
Jordan expressed doubt, but Jerry Krause was quite confident in himself. He believed that after building one three-title dynasty, he could build another.
Moreover, the good news is that by then Ah Gan would be aging, making it easier for the Bulls to win the championship if they formed a championship-caliber roster.
Krause was aware that if it weren’t for Ah Gan, the Bulls would have already won the championship and would have won more.
Not only Jerry Krause thought this way, but many managers of other teams thought the same.
Ah Gan is at the peak of spring and autumn now, but his age is a fact, and inevitably, year after year from 34 onwards, he will decline.
It’s inevitable for the Trail Blazers to gradually decline, it’s a natural law. If I can’t beat you now, then I’ll wait until you decline, until you retire.
Moreover, it’s not only Ah Gan who will decline and leave, but his golden generation will also gradually fade, by then the League will enter a new landscape, a new era.
Visionary general managers are already starting to prepare for the end of the Sun God’s era.
Of course, this season is precisely when the big day reigns under the sky, where God’s light shines, all is scorched earth.
Having received a rest period during the All-Star game, the Trail Blazers set out again, continuing their regular season campaign.
At this point, most of the team’s mind has already been set on the playoffs, with both the coaching staff and players starting to prepare for the playoffs.
However, the Trail Blazers didn’t relax the intensity of regular season because of this, and Gan Guoyang said to his teammates in training: "The best preparation for the playoffs is to maintain a good state, respond to the current games with increasing intensity, so when the playoffs come, you won’t be unaccustomed. Don’t take staying relaxed and over-resting as preparation, that’s not preparation, that’s suicide."
The Trail Blazers have never had the tradition of large-scale rests or allowing players to rest a lot for the playoffs.
Over-resting is not necessarily a good thing for players. While storing physical energy, it also wears down passion and state.
Plus, Gan Guoyang has always insisted on being responsible for the fans, so towards the latter part of the season, the Trail Blazers has always followed the attitude of "Normal days like exams, Exams like normal days" for regular season preparations.
In late February, the Trail Blazers went on a winning spree with six consecutive victories, finishing the games in February.
In March, the Trail Blazers remained unstoppable, extending their winning streak to 11 games.
The Trail Blazers still only lost 2 games, and both games were at home. Their dominance on the road was even stronger than at home.
"On the road we are more focused, we enjoy the feeling of being enemies with everyone, and when we get home, we tend to relax quite a bit," Larry Bird explained why the Trail Blazers’ away game record was so outstanding.
Of course, compared to victories in November and December, some games after the All-Star game were more challenging.
All teams have entered combat mode, with increased rivalry intensity, shorter rotations, all starting to prepare for the playoffs.
Moreover, the entire League started looking into and countering the Trail Blazers’ offensive system, everyone thinking of ways to curb the Trail Blazers’ formidable offense.
By the end of March, the Trail Blazers faced a strong interception by the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas.