Kobe very much wanted Vanessa to transfer to Portland, with all expenses paid by him. He was even willing to clear the debts for Vanessa’s not-so-well-off family.
However, such actions undoubtedly went against Kobe’s parents, especially his mother Pamela, who had a strong desire to control her son and opposed the relationship from the start.
Ironically, when Pamela fell in love with Joe Bryant, she faced the same opposition from her family. Pamela’s father was shocked and vehemently opposed his daughter falling for a basketball player. He always hoped that his daughter, who received higher education, would marry a lawyer or a doctor, not mingle with a black professional player from southern Philadelphia. Back in those days, professional basketball players did not have a good reputation.
But Pamela, strong-willed and independent, disregarded her father’s objections and stayed with Joe Bryant, eventually giving birth to Kobe.
Now, it was Kobe’s turn to torment Pamela. Despite his parents’, especially his mother’s, vehement opposition, Kobe insisted on being with Vanessa at all costs.
To this end, when the team didn’t have training or games, Kobe would fly to Los Angeles to date Vanessa. He was willing to fly there and back on the same day just to see her.
Meanwhile, Vanessa would take a flight to Portland during the weekends to watch the Trail Blazers’ games at the Rose Garden.
Kobe began staying out all night, living elsewhere with Vanessa, which made his mother completely lose control over him.
The young couple ignited intense sparks together and started planning for their future.
For Kobe, dating Vanessa was not just love at first sight but also an escape from his past life.
He no longer wanted to be under his parents’ control or act like a child who went home every day to do homework.
Vanessa’s arrival provided him with a path to escape; they quickly synced and enjoyed the happiness of youth and the hope of a bright future, which no one could stop.
On the court, Kobe became more isolated, and his coordination with his teammates was poor. Carl more than once criticized Kobe for needing to play more as part of a team.
However, his personal offensive skills became increasingly proficient. Far from diminishing his dedication to training, his love life made him more determined to hone his individual offensive techniques.
On November 25, the Trail Blazers played an away game back-to-back against the Charlotte Hornets. The exhausted Trail Blazers went into overtime against the Hornets, revealing their offensive blackout issue.
Kobe stepped up during overtime, scoring seven consecutive points with his personal plays, helping the Trail Blazers narrowly win 104-100 on the road, continuing their winning streak.
Kobe scored a game-high 31 points, along with three assists and two steals, performing exceptionally well when the veteran players were all fatigued on the away court.
On November 27, in the fourth game of the Trail Blazers’ Eastern road trip, facing the Cleveland Cavaliers, Kobe had an offensive explosion, scoring 40 points, marking his first 40-point game of the season.
However, the Trail Blazers lost the game 98-101 on the road, ending their winning streak with a 3-point deficit.
Fatigue had evidently accumulated to a certain level, and the whole team appeared slack. Worse still, the Trail Blazers had to play back-to-back on the road in Minnesota on the 28th.
At the start of the season, having two away back-to-backs during their first road trip, the schedule was indeed unfriendly to the veteran team.
In Minnesota, the Trail Blazers remained overall sluggish, but Kobe and Gan Guoyang propped up the team’s offense with their individual abilities.
Kobe scored 34 points and Gan Guoyang scored 38 points with 22 rebounds, holding off the Timberwolves’ assault in Minnesota, winning 97-83, ending the long road trip with a 5-1 record.
The combination of Kevin Garnett and Stephon Marbury looked formidable, but the two seemed to struggle with generating adequate chemistry.
During the game, Marbury arrogantly tried to challenge Kobe and further challenged Gan Guoyang’s defense under the basket, suffering a harsh rejection.
Kevin Garnett, in Gan Guoyang’s one-on-one defense, delivered a disastrous stat line of 4 out of 24 shots. It looked like the new generation of big men crossing the bridge to outshine the older stars was still a distant dream.
In contrast, the connection and chemistry between Gan Guoyang and Kobe had become increasingly evident in recent games.
Gan Guoyang started to enjoy cooperating more with Kobe, sharing control over the team’s play on both offense and defense.
This was a core privilege that Drexler, Petrović, Sabonis, and Reggie Lewis had never enjoyed before.
Drexler and others were known as the "second figures" in the Trail Blazers, but under Gan Guoyang’s shining presence, they were mostly the standout among "the rest."
Experts and media always said when commenting on Gan Guoyang’s career that the Trail Blazers were effectively Ah Gan’s one-man team. It wasn’t that other players weren’t outstanding, but Ah Gan’s influence was just too immense.
Until this season, as Gan Guoyang gradually declined and Kobe rose, it finally felt a bit like the moon orbiting the Earth.
Through this road trip, the Trail Blazers’ new operational mode was becoming increasingly clear and bright.
The whole team took a bus from the Target Center to the Minnesota airport, preparing to board Pioneer One back to Portland.
Everyone was in a relaxed mood, no matter what, a 5-1 record was acceptable; the first month of the new season just passed like this.
Just as everyone was pushing their luggage to board, Kobe informed the team that he would not return to Portland.
He had bought a ticket to Los Angeles, taking the opportunity of the team’s two-day break to go directly to Los Angeles to meet his girlfriend Vanessa.
Carl hesitated; the team’s records prohibited leaving early, but Kobe had already bought his ticket. This guy was acting first and reporting later.
If it were an old-school coach, there would definitely be a huge tirade, and Kobe would be forbidden to leave. Carl, being a new coach, also did not want his authority challenged.
In a dilemma, Gan Guoyang stepped in to mediate, saying, "Even if you make Kobe go back to Portland with us, he’ll just buy another ticket to Los Angeles. Don’t make it hard for him. This year’s situation is quite special. It’s not showing favoritism to Rick, but a form of humane management."
With Gan Guoyang saying so, Carl couldn’t help but agree.
Shortly after, Gan Guoyang also pulled out a ticket, saying, "Sorry Rick, I can’t go back to Portland with the team either. I have to go to New York."
Gan Guoyang had a hearing on December 1, and he needed to prepare ahead of time. Instead of going back to Portland and flying back and forth, it was better to go directly to New York.
Carl wiped his face, sighed deeply, truly feeling helpless. Why, as a rookie head coach, was he given such a challenging situation at the start?