From November to December, the Glory Team quickly experienced the benefits of moving to the Eastern Conference.
Overall, Eastern Conference teams are not as strong as those in the Western Conference, which made many of Glory’s games quite easy.
At the turn of the century, many teams in the Eastern Conference faced a gap in talent and chaotic tactical situations.
Old experiences were no longer useful, the exploration of international players was inadequate, and mid-tier teams relied on star players to carry them while the level of role players declined - a series of issues that plagued Eastern Conference teams.
An important reason was the rigidity of the management in Eastern Conference teams, like the Washington Wizards, whose management core was still the same group that won the championship in 1978.
From 1978 to 2002, over 20 years had passed, and basketball games from the 70s and 80s were completely different from those at the start of the 21st century.
It’s not that these management folks wouldn’t keep up with the times, but as people reach a certain age, especially those who’ve tasted success, change becomes very difficult.
So the Washington Wizards hadn’t truly risen since 1988, and their owner wasn’t even willing to fire any former colleagues.
Though this shows some humanity, the NBA is very cruel; if you don’t keep up with the times, you’ll face defeat and fail to achieve success.
This also reflects the broader historical backdrop of the decline of the old industrial areas in the Eastern Conference as old money gradually gives way to the new money and nouveau riche in the West.
The Las Vegas Radiance is a representative of new money, and although Gan Guoyang started out in the funeral and construction business, he has now ventured into many emerging industries, including the internet, electronic technology, sports products, and financial investments.
He has gradually woven a massive political and commercial interest network around Vegas, becoming one of the most influential people in the Western region.
People like him, their greatest hobby remains playing basketball.
Gan Guoyang, in his last Western Conference game against Denver, unexpectedly achieved a 40+20 large double-double, which helped him find his form.
Two days later, back in Las Vegas, hosting the visiting Detroit Pistons at home, barely winning in Detroit last time was quite tough, and this time Gan Guoyang didn’t want the Detroiters to gain any confidence.
Another performance with 42+23 rebounds led Glory to a 111:94 victory against the Pistons at home, and at 39, he seemed to have returned to his younger days.
Especially grabbing rebounds requires a lot of confrontation and movement; in recent years, due to aging, the once-dominant rebound god’s stats have been steadily around 10.
Now with two consecutive games with 20+ rebounds, Gan Guoyang seems rejuvenated, playing with exceptional energy on the court.
In a post-game interview, asked why his rebounding was so strong in these two games, Gan Guoyang said, "I just happen to be in good form. Grabbing rebounds makes one feel young, like back to being 20 years old. I love grabbing rebounds."
However, Jordan quickly exposed Gan Guoyang’s "lie"; he ran over from the back and said to the camera, "Stop bullshitting, Sonny. You talk about feeling young? You’re just preparing for the Christmas matchup to find your form. You don’t want to be embarrassed in Portland. You want to get more points and rebounds to match my 50 points because you know you can’t score 50 points in Portland, so you want to use rebounds to gloss over, right? Right?"
Gan Guoyang told Jordan to shut up, and after Jordan stopped talking, he dashed away. Finally, facing the reporters’ cameras, Gan Guoyang could only shrug, saying, "It’s still early before Christmas; who prepares for the Christmas matchup now? Besides, I never said I need to score 50 points against Portland."
Just as Gan Guoyang finished speaking, the MGM Arena burst into Mariah Carey’s ’All I Want for Christmas Is You’, making the reporters laugh silently, and even Gan couldn’t hold back his smile; indeed, Christmas was approaching soon.
Jordan was right; those Eastern Conference small lousy teams were not worth Gan Guoyang’s attention.
Now before each game, he doesn’t even look at the schedule, nor does he care who the opponents are; there are always unfamiliar ones.
"You all just need to know Michael and me; my task is to just fight to the end and win the game."
The only thing Gan Guoyang really pays attention to is the December 25th Christmas matchup in Portland.
Going back to Portland again, and on such an important Christmas, with Jordan scoring 50 points in Chicago, how could I lose face in Portland?
Given my current form and Portland Trail Blazers’ defensive stats, scoring 50 points casually seems extremely difficult.
Because this season, the Trail Blazers have the best defense in the league, balanced inside and outside, with no holes in the starting lineup, extremely strong defensive pressure.
Currently, the Trail Blazers are the team that concedes the least in the league, leading the Western Conference above the Kings, Mavericks, and other strong teams with very high morale.
So starting from the game against the Nuggets, Gan Guoyang intentionally increased his rebounding to find the feel for grabbing rebounds.
Also, to give a heads-up to his teammates, the boss is going to start grabbing rebounds, if you can, give way.
Middle-aged people need their pride; statistics can’t look too bad, especially when you have Jordan around.
"That’s fucking unfair; what kind of lousy team are the Bulls, and who are the Trail Blazers? They have the best defense. Michael, your 50 points have lots of water in them." Back in the locker room, feeling exposed by Jordan, Gan Guoyang was a bit exasperated, telling Jordan it was unfair.
Jordan sternly said, "What’s unfair? Bulls players are NBA players; Blazers players are NBA players too, aren’t they the same?"
"Don’t you look at the stats and strength? Then what’s the difference between you and Tyronn Lue."