Gan Guoyang’s control over the game has indeed declined.
He has gradually transitioned from "full offense" to a "focused offense".
It is estimated that in a few more years, he will transition to "full defense", and in the later stages, perhaps just "focused defense".
Of course, before such a decline happens, it’s hard to say whether Gan Guoyang will continue playing in the NBA.
In this focused offensive stage, Gan Guoyang needs to appropriately loosen his control over the game and unleash his sharpest force at key moments.
Those with keen eyes can see that in the third quarter, the Knicks are reversing their decline, with the Trail Blazers leading by only three points. The game has reached a moment where the balance scale of victory determines the direction.
Bird’s timeout was called at the right time, and Carl’s tactical layout was also flawless—using penetrating passes to score easily and reclaim the advantage.
But Gan Guoyang sees further. He doesn’t just want to easily score two points; he wants to truly harm the opponent in offense and score through direct confrontation.
The Knicks are a tough team, and in Gan Guoyang’s philosophy of basketball, trickery is never the right way—fighting to the end is the key to victory.
Once the lion hesitates, the hyenas will attack in packs. The wolves of New York have been waiting for this day; Gan Guoyang must not retreat or divert.
Bird instantly understood Gan Guoyang’s intention: this is not about tactics, but about momentum, determination, and the courage to defeat the opponent.
Bird can best understand such feelings; after the timeout ended, he squatted at the sidelines, keeping a close watch on the situation.
Sideline ball, Sabonis serves, the Knicks’ defense is very tight; they also know that the opportunity to reverse the situation has arrived.
Kobe comes out to receive the ball but doesn’t pass it as Sprewell is marking him too tightly. Brellock comes over to assist and barely receives the ball.
Gan Guoyang immediately comes out to screen, the two perform a pick-and-roll, Brellock breaks through and passes the ball back to Gan Guoyang.
This pick-and-roll wasn’t successful because the Knicks predicted that Brellock would pass back, keeping tight defense on Gan Guoyang.
An ineffective combination, Gan Guoyang receives the ball and must rely on himself to force a play, dribbling horizontally as the Knicks’ defensive focus converges on him.
But Gan Guoyang doesn’t pass, instead using his body to force speed, breaking through with his right hand, pressing against Shawn Kemp as he moves inside.
The speed isn’t fast, but the power is immense, forcing Kemp to retreat step by step. Mourning comes to aid the defense but it’s no use.
Gan Guoyang lifts the ball among four arms like a tyrant lifting a cauldron and shoots toward the hoop. The ball doesn’t touch the backboard; it goes through the net smoothly!
Simultaneously, before the ball went in, the referee blew the whistle, calling a defensive foul on Kemp.
The Rose Garden Arena, silent for quite a while, erupted instantly; Bird stood up, raising his arms high, cheering for the goal.
Kemp licked his lips, his face full of helplessness, thinking, "How the hell do you defend against this?"
Is this still a basketball game? Looks more like playing football, pushing hard under the basket.
Standing at the free-throw line, Gan Guoyang made the additional free throw, helping the Trail Blazers re-establish a six-point lead.
A morale-boosting shot, widening the score gap again while causing damage.
The Knicks didn’t have a chance for a quick counterattack, having to grind out their formation again.
The highly motivated Trail Blazers started full-court pressure defense, disrupting the Knicks’ perimeter ball movement.
In the end, the tactic fails, forcing the ball to Sprewell for isolation play.
Kobe tightly marks Sprewell, not giving him the chance to shoot a three-pointer—this quarter, the Knicks’ three-pointers are quite terrifying.
Sprewell chooses to break through and attack the basket, his shooting in motion, obstructed by the defensive Gan Guoyang, didn’t go in.
Sabonis grabs the defensive rebound, Trail Blazers counterattack, Kobe dribbles to break through, splits the ball to the wing for Brellock.
The Knicks retreated very quickly; there was no chance on the inside. As both sides settled in positions, the low post ball goes to Gan Guoyang.
Backs down Kemp, rotates hard, pressing against Kemp towards the basket, a high-difficulty lay-up, scores!
The referee’s whistle blows again, Kemp fouls, Kemp fouls again!
Two consecutive 2+1s left the Knicks speechless.
Van Gundy, furious, protested to tonight’s chief referee Bavetta, believing this play wasn’t a foul.
Bavetta didn’t explain much, pointed to the overhead big screen and said, "There will be a slow-motion replay later, watch it carefully."
In the 1999 season, NBA broadcast setups with slow-motion replays were already quite advanced and developed; key scenes like this would definitely be reviewed.
Indeed, when Gan Guoyang pushed away Kemp lifting the ball for the lay-in, Kemp clearly hit Gan Guoyang’s hand, a very evident foul.
Kemp was at a disadvantage with the height and wing span; if a taller player defended this ball, Gan Guoyang surely wouldn’t use the lay-in, he’d likely go for a hook or use more skillful footwork.
This maneuver of lifting the ball and forcing a score over your head is simply taking advantage of your inferior physical condition, leaving no method to counter.
Van Gundy had to begrudgingly accept the result, substituting the overly fouled Kemp during Gan Guoyang’s free throw, putting in Kurt Thomas.
With Kemp fouled out, Trail Blazers’ morale soared even higher, and the Knicks suffered a significant blow.
Though Kemp has gained a lot of weight, his impact on both offense and defense is very powerful.
He is more versatile than Mourning, capable on defense of holding and running, can defend from the five to one position.
Offensively, he places considerable pressure on the Trail Blazers’ inside players, his aggressive offensive rebounds making Gan Guoyang have to respond with all his might.
Tonight Gan Guoyang hasn’t gotten a single fast-break opportunity, aside from the Knicks’ quick defensive transition, his duty to guard the defensive rebounds is a crucial reason.