Over these few possessions, Gan Guoyang didn’t even get to touch the ball, he wanted to set a pick for Jordan, but Jordan wasn’t having it, telling him to stay out of his way!
Gan Guoyang just stayed near the three-second zone to guard the hoop; it’s cooler here.
He focused on grabbing rebounds and did a good job as a blue-collar center.
To be honest, being a blue-collar center is relaxing, you only need to do one job, and defending the Bulls’ inside is quite simple.
Gan Guoyang mainly watched Chandler, this young guy has no offensive capabilities whatsoever; he’s lost on the offensive end, not knowing what to do.
No wonder you can’t even compete with Yao Ming. As an inside player, he indeed lacks offensive talent, but on the defensive end, his height, wingspan, and jumping are definitely a threat.
After scoring 10 points, Jordan needed to catch a breath and let his teammates handle the ball, Gan Guoyang received the ball in the low post, backing down Chandler.
The Bulls’ outside didn’t come to double-team, because Jordan was there on the perimeter, Gan Guoyang thought, this is the first time you’ve disrespected me like this.
At 260 pounds again, Gan Guoyang leaned on Chandler, suddenly exploded, pushed with one shoulder, spun quickly, cut into the basket, and slammed the ball with one hand!
Speed and explosiveness weren’t particularly strong, but the technique was very smooth and caught them off guard, Chandler was prepared to hold his ground and push back a few more times.
Little did he know that he couldn’t withstand even one push, his footing was quickly invaded by Gan Guoyang’s foot, losing his base and position. Combined with his lack of strength, it ended with him getting dunked on.
Getting relentlessly battered by two old-timers, Cartwright knew things couldn’t go on like this.
Though the live audience loved it, and the excitement made it seem like Glory was the home team.
As a head coach, he can’t watch the young players’ confidence and feel for the game be crushed like this.
First and second-year rookies really need confidence, and this confidence is primarily gained from confronting veteran players.
They might lose the game, but in specific offensive and defensive possessions, a rookie can use their edge and even battles to tell themselves, "I can do it too, he’s not that great, one day I can surpass him."
Every player in the NBA has gone through such a journey, one generation after another.
Like Cartwright himself, he entered the league in 1979, facing dominant inside players like Jabbar, Walton, and Moses Malone.
He still remembers his rookie season, the first game against the Lakers, confronting Jabbar. Although they lost the game and Jabbar shot 73% against him.
He also managed to score 21 points, grab 7 rebounds, and make 5 assists, delivering a satisfying performance that got him into the All-Star game his rookie year.
From that moment, Cartwright knew he wasn’t much worse than other inside stars in the league.
He knew he wasn’t as good as Jabbar or Malone, but it wasn’t easy for them to defeat him easily in games either.
Of course, later on facing Ah Gan was a different story; he wasn’t on the same level as others.
This guy is a confidence destroyer, especially for rookies, dealing brutal blows to their self-esteem.
Even the likes of Tim Duncan and Shaquille O’Neal were beaten by Ah Gan until they questioned their existence, taking years to regain their strength.
Cartwright later realized that Ah Gan did it on purpose; he just liked it that way, liked planting seeds of doubt in people.
Look at these "young talents" under him, high draft picks, but lacking in maturity, too immature.
Playing a few minutes in the first quarter with no content; if this continues, they might end up traumatized.
So Cartwright made a substitution, taking out the young insiders and putting in the veterans.
Donyell Lamar Marshall and Marcus Fizer entered, reducing height but adding experience and outside shooting ability.
This was a correct substitution, as Chandler and Curry were indeed too naive, not knowing what to do on the court.
There was also Jay Williams, who played only one NBA game starting against Glory, what’s the point?
Marshall’s a veteran player in the league, and Fizer already in his third year has more game experience.
After their entry, the Bulls’ situation immediately improved, resuming play, Marshall hit a three-pointer from the outside, and the Bulls scored their second basket.
Then, Jordan directly scored from Gan Guoyang’s pass with a mid-range jump shot from the right corner, putting up 12 points with astonishing efficiency.
Both sides gradually got into form, on Glory’s side, Ewing got tired after a few minutes and went to rest, Yao Ming took over.
Yao Ming’s presence brought another wave of excitement to the United Center, but right away Yao Ming committed a foul, hitting Fizer during defense.
Fizer stepped to the free-throw line and made both, coming back, Gan Guoyang let Yao Ming go one-on-one against Fizer.
At this time, NBA games, especially in regular seasons, had a strong element of personal duels.
Everyone loved a one-on-one; if you got beaten badly, the best thing on offense is to hit them back just as hard.
Whether it’s the coach, teammates, or fans, everyone supported and liked such behavior.
It’s not about tactics, big picture, or smart plays; don’t overthink it; if you have to charge ahead, just do it.
Yao Ming decisively went to the low post and aggressively posted up Fizer.
Fizer stood 6’9", much shorter than Yao Ming, but he was very powerful.
His shoulders were incredibly broad, like a big double-door refrigerator, it wasn’t easy to just overpower him.
Yao Ming’s technique still wasn’t refined enough, and he didn’t fully know how to use his height advantage effectively, resulting in him opting for a turn-around jumper, which he missed.