From the lineup perspective, Jordan joining the Supersonics is quite a rational choice and one of the rare moments in Jordan's career where "his judgment of people was spot on."
Gary Payton is indeed in great form, and the backcourt combination with Jordan has immense defensive deterrence.
As for Patrick Ewing, he still has a little bit left in the tank, and as a blue-collar worker, he can somewhat support the interior defense.
At the same time, the Supersonics haven't neglected the construction of the youth squad; several young players have a lot of potential.
Therefore, when facing the mighty Trail Blazers, the Supersonics did not fall behind in the first game and secured a victory with tenacious defense at the last moment.
In contrast, although the Glory team played a lively first game, winning brilliantly and surging to the top of the nation's attention,
the keen-eyed can see that a 37-year-old Ah Gan is unlikely to play like this in every game. This was a classic season opener where he exerted himself to win the first game and boost the Glory team's popularity.
The most challenging part of the NBA is its long 82-game regular season, spreading over half a year. The entire season tests the endurance, stamina, and roster depth of the whole team.
And the Glory team is obviously still too young, and precisely because of their brilliance, they will soon face the onslaught of the other 29 teams in the league.
Observant people know this is definitely a good opportunity to defeat Ah Gan on the court.
And Gan Guoyang must endure failures he hasn't experienced before because he's really no longer young.
On November 1st, in the Glory team's second game, they left Las Vegas and headed to Texas for a road trip.
The Dallas Mavericks, San Antonio Spurs, and Houston Rockets Texas Triangle is a road trip every NBA team must experience.
Because the Glory team's schedule was added temporarily, their continuous road trip came a bit earlier.
On the evening of the 1st at the American Airlines Center, the venue was full due to the Glory team's visit, and the Dallas fans cheered for the appearance of Gan Guoyang.
But once the game started, the crowd began to shout "Beat LV!" "Beat LV!" (Louis Vuitton gets unfair treatment).
Dirk Nowitzki, after years of training, is becoming the league's best attack-power forward this season.
In the first game against the Philadelphia 76ers, facing last season's Eastern Champions, Nowitzki shot 17 shots, making 10 and easily scoring 30 points, leading the team to a victory.
Besides Nowitzki, the Mavericks' Mike Finley and Eddie Jones are also in their peak periods.
In the backcourt, the Mavericks traded for Kenny Anderson and signed Avery Johnson from the free market, greatly enhancing the Mavericks' firepower.
Although their defense isn't outstanding, their attack power is genuinely strong.
31-year-old Kenny Anderson was one of the most talented point guards in the nation and a symbolic figure in New York basketball.
After languishing for years with the Nets and Hornets, he was reborn with the Mavericks last season, producing the second-best performance in his career under Don Nelson.
In the first quarter, after weathering the initial adjustment period, the Mavericks set the tone and began a shootout with the Glory team.
The Mavericks players possess strong outside shooting capabilities, prompting the Glory not to dare use zone defense, fearing it would be perforated.
And in one-on-one defense, apart from Gan Guoyang, no other players held an advantage.
Once Gan Guoyang slowed the offensive pace and his solo efficiency dropped, the Glory immediately found themselves at a disadvantage.
The situation was identical to the previous game: falling behind, Gan Guoyang started controlling the ball, attempting to catch up, catching his breath, falling behind again, then trying to catch up once more.
This cat-and-mouse style is unfavorable because it's exhausting, continuously following the opponent's pace without establishing their own rhythm.
But this is the pain of being a new team, many things need to be learned and complemented; Gan Guoyang essentially played while instructing young players.
He also consciously controlled his pace, creating opportunities for teammates as much as possible, only going strong if absolutely necessary.
Thus, by halftime, the Dallas Mavericks led the Glory by 9 points, 62:53.
Gan Guoyang with 22 points, 8 rebounds, and 7 assists at halftime, did his utmost best.
During the halftime break, Gan Guoyang unwittingly cursed, "Nielsen's a madman, chasing his running game for half a court."
In 1984, when Gan Guoyang first entered the league, Nielsen was already a renowned coach in the league, coaching the Bucks.
At that time, he refined the Bucks' defense extremely well, very proficient in leveraging rules, particularly adept at borderline illegal defense.
Gan Guoyang recalls encountering some trouble facing the Bucks during the 1987 season when he won the scoring title, dominating the league with low-post plays.
Only against the Bucks did he face challenges until a certain game where he exploded with 60 points relying solely on inside power, demolishing the Bucks.
Perhaps since then, Don Nelson's basketball creed began shifting, and from that point, he sprinted down an alternate path.
Sprinting till today, Old Nelson's basketball philosophy has transformed dramatically.
Like tonight's game, Nowitzki was frequently pushed to the five-position while Danny Manning occupied the four-position.
This setup largely abandoned rim protection and defensive rebounding, allowing Gan Guoyang to score 22 points at halftime.
But even so, the Mavericks maintained their lead because their offense was superior.
When Nowitzki came to the five-position, the Glory's defense faced difficult choices.
Nowitzki posed a significant shooting threat from the arc and outside, necessitating Gan Guoyang to step out.
If it were Brad Miller, he couldn't individually defend Nowitzki on the perimeter, as the German's face-up penetration capabilities were too strong.
Once Gan Guoyang was drawn outside, the Glory's porous interior faced repeated assaults from Mike Finley and Eddie Jones, and Miller found himself in foul trouble.
Finley also secured 20 points by halftime; this former Trail Blazer player, used in the trade for Kobe, always excelled whenever facing Ah Gan's teams.
No doubt he wanted to prove himself before Gan Guoyang, asserting the accuracy of selecting him but lamenting the error of his subsequent release.
Aside from Gan Guoyang, there's still no one on the Glory team capable of consistently providing effective scoring support.
Arenas is bold but remains inconsistent and immature in performance.
Gerald Wallace is much the same, although Brad Miller steadily scored inside and even dunked twice over Nowitzki.
But the problem persists, the Mavericks aren't afraid of scoring; their scoring efficiency remains superior.
In the third quarter, the situation didn't change; the Mavericks' offensive tempo increased and spaced the court significantly.
Rapid ball movement on the perimeter, interior clearing, breaking, passing, reball movement, anyone capable of taking long-distance shots.
The Mavericks launched an offensive surge at the American Airlines Center, somewhat reminiscent of the former Portland Trail Blazers.
The difference lies in their less accurate threes, opting more for mid-range shots with limited low-post threats.
Yet, the Glory couldn't turn the tide. Gan Guoyang, heavily involved in the first half, required more rest in the fourth quarter.
Sitting on the bench for nearly half a quarter, Tomjanovich finally replaced Gan Guoyang onto the court when the Glory trailed the Mavericks by 13 points.
Before heading in, Gan Guoyang told Coach Tom, "Old Tang, the dishes are getting cold!"
Tomjanovich replied, "I need to consider long-term issues, you need ample rest."
After the first game, Tomjanovich decided to cut Gan Guoyang's playing time per game to 35 minutes.
No matter the team's record, they must adhere strictly to prevent overexertion leading Gaн Guoyang to injury troubles.
On the other hand, Old Tang is also striving for internal potential and hopes management finds a seasoned veteran with independent scoring capacity in the free market to become the team's second scorer.
In today's league, amidst a defensive playstyle, having one inside and one outside scorer can support a team's offense.
This Mavericks lineup undoubtedly has excessive offensive ability while the Glory falls short.
Upon Gan Guoyang's return, the Glory launched a final comeback, with Gan Guoyang's consecutive threes chilling the Dallas fans' spines.
But the Mavericks quickly countered with successive scores and doubled Gan Guoyang, stalling the Glory's offense immediately.
It wasn't due to a lack of opportunities but the inability to seize them, missed open shots, silly mistakes, and clutch instability gradually buried their hopes of bridging the score gap.
Ultimately, the Mavericks triumphed over the Glory with a 107:98 win, securering a 9-point advantage.
Gan Guoyang experienced an earlier season defeat than usual.