After years of honing his skills, Nash finally found himself in a system he was completely familiar with and adapted to, playing as if he were in his element.
The Suns’ strategy centered on offense, fast offense, with the principle of a 7-second rule. If there’s an opportunity on the outside, just take the shot yourself rather than passing endlessly or aiming for the low post.
With the wings spread out in a V shape, Nash would swiftly get the ball to the player in the best position for a shot. Once they had it, they could launch an attack toward the basket.
Missing isn’t a big deal, since the next wave comes quickly.
So during the 04-05 season, when Nash first joined the Suns and paired up with D Antoni for offensive plays like these, it was a massive shock to the league.
Especially for young fans who started watching basketball in the 2000s, underdeveloped video broadcasting meant they hadn’t seen the Trail Blazers’ 77-win record in 1998 nor were aware of the fast-paced NBA style of the 1980s.
The league had been suppressed for several years by extreme defensive strategies, with lots of low post offenses resulting in inefficient plays and defense taking precedence, making games dull to watch.
Nash and the Suns were like a powerful stimulant injected into the veins of young fans, showing them how exciting offensive basketball could be. This was when the NBA began to shift its style.
Of course, for Gan Guoyang, what the Suns were playing was something he had experienced long ago, from the fast pace of the ’80s to the physical confrontations of the ’90s, and then to the extreme defenses of the 2000s.
The Suns introduced some new elements, such as the absolute dominance of the Point Guard. Previously, even the ’80s Lakers and Jazz didn’t have their Point Guards dominating to this extent; the offensive strategy was almost entirely centered around the point guard position.
The use of three-pointers became even bolder. In terms of accuracy, the Suns’ three-pointers weren’t as good as the former Trail Blazers, but they were faster and more decisive, using strong scoring pressure to disrupt the opponent’s offensive and defensive rhythm.
In recent seasons, when facing the Suns, Glory often lost more than won. The Suns’ tactic against Glory was straightforward: attack aggressively.
They didn’t apply targeted defense against Ah Gan either; both sides would engage in open offensive exchanges, abandoning flashy elements in favor of simply outscoring each other.
Under such offensive and defensive dynamics, Yao Ming struggled painfully with the back-and-forth. When Yao wasn’t on the court, the burden of scoring fell heavily on Ah Gan’s shoulders.
In these games against the Suns, Gan Guoyang consistently scored high: 41 points, 39 points, 38 points, 44 points, yet winning the game became increasingly difficult.
The Suns scored high as well, diluting his high scores, and as time went on, his shooting percentage dropped. Where he might have scored 50 with his shots before, now he could only reach 40.
Doug Moe’s "dilution method" from 20 years ago finally proved effective because Ah Gan couldn’t score 60 points anymore.
This game saw the Suns employing the same method against Ah Gan and Glory. D Antoni was a coach who didn’t like to think much; if a method worked, he’d use it, and he’d stick to it even if it wasn’t working.
But it wasn’t D Antoni’s methods and tactics that truly restricted Gan Guoyang; it was time, an enemy he couldn’t fight.
In the first three quarters, both sides played evenly matched. The Suns maintained a lead and controlled the rhythm, while Glory was in a defensive stance.
The timing to start offense or when the game was stagnant was always dictated by the Suns, which kept Glory in a chasing state.
Gan Guoyang scored 30 points in the first three quarters, with a high shooting efficiency: 12 out of 18 shots. This scoring efficiency helped the team stay tightly knit in terms of points.
However, entering the fourth quarter, his efficiency began to plummet. Gan Guoyang knew he needed to adjust and rest a bit.
But with any slight adjustment or rest, the Suns would launch a barrage of attacks, and if he didn’t reignite his firepower, the Suns would ride a wave and pull away.
At the Gump Center, the fans’ chants were deafening. Every night they came to watch games here, if not 100%, at least 80% of them were there to watch Gan Guoyang play.
Glory maintained high ticket prices—they had no choice but to sell them—and Gan Guoyang always bore enormous expectations and anticipation, fighting fiercely on the court.
The pain in his back wasn’t just due to excessive movement but was also because he carried so much as he forged ahead.
"Sonny, a three-point shot from the right 45 degrees! It’s in! Beautiful! Sonny hit this three-point shot!" The DJ commentator on-site raised the atmosphere to its climax.
The fans went wild for Gan Guoyang’s performance, continuously shouting and clapping.
But the reality was, Gan Guoyang had previously missed two consecutive shots and squandered a free throw.
After hitting this three-pointer, Glory was still trailing the Suns by 5 points. If the offense missed, the Suns’ counterattack would flood in like a tide.
When the game reached the final two minutes, Glory was still trailing the Suns by 4 points. Gan Guoyang missed a mid-range jump shot from his sweet spot on the right baseline.
Yao Ming failed to grab the offensive rebound. Nash seized the ball and launched a counterattack as Grant Hill charged toward the basket, passing to the corner to Leandro Barbosa, whose three-point shot hit!
Fast, too fast, even if Gan Guoyang returned to defend at the basket, he couldn’t stop a fast break three-pointer.
This was a major difference from the 1980s, when teams played fast but focused on plays under the basket.
Quick-footed players swiftly returned to defend and could guard the basket, delivering a great block. Nowadays, with frequent fast-break three-pointers, chasing them down became much harder.
This shot widened the gap to 7 points. Glory then made efforts to catch up, and Gan Guoyang scored two consecutive mid-range shots, but Starkmire equally broke into the basket with pick-and-rolls for dunks and layups.
Ultimately, the score settled at 116:110, with the Suns clinching the victory on the road against Glory, delivering their first loss of the season to Glory swiftly.
Gan Guoyang managed 39 points and 12 rebounds for the entire game, still impeccable in terms of personal stats, yet he failed to deliver victory.
If it was just a single match, it was of little matter; no general wins all the time. However, in November, Glory lost consecutive similar games.
Gan Guoyang’s form was excellent. In the first two weeks, his averages were 31 points, 12 rebounds, 1 blocked shot, and 9 assists, he was aiming for MVP-level stats.
However, reviewing the games and the team’s record showed 8 games with only 4 wins and 4 losses, which was not ideal.
The season had just begun, and there were definitely areas where they needed to adapt; many strong teams tend to falter early in the season.
For instance, the Suns who had recently beaten Glory on the road came back home and immediately faced a four-game losing streak.
Also, the Dallas Mavericks, last season’s Western Conference champions aiming for redemption, started their season with four consecutive losses.
Furthermore, the Boston Celtics, mired in internal disputes, had a starting record of 3 wins and 5 losses, even worse than Glory.
The issue was that these teams in their prime, once they overcame these early-season adaptation hurdles, quickly resolved problems and regained their form.
The Dallas Mavericks subsequently proved they were still prime contenders for the Western Conference championship with a 12-game winning streak.
The Phoenix Suns similarly went on a terrifying 15-game win streak across November and December, with both teams standing out in the Western Conference, shining brightly.
On the other hand, Glory did not manage to overcome their instability since the start of the season, largely due to the league blocking drafts and trades with Glory, unwilling to provide young or mid-tier talented players.
Back when Gan Guoyang first returned, the league had already intentionally suppressed the Trail Blazers and Ah Gan.
Forget about top draft picks, not to mention talented players. Even second-rate stars didn’t want to trade with Ah Gan’s team.
Since then, Gan Guoyang has always played alongside washed-up veterans and young players with potential. Winning four championships was already an extreme display of his capabilities.
After completing the "dual god unity," the bosses of other teams did not skimp on the money given to Glory, but they steadfastly refused to send good prospects or developed players to Glory.
After Gan Guoyang’s close friends couldn’t keep up and retired, Glory constantly sought an outside All-Star player with strength and appeal to come to Las Vegas, to continue cooperating with Ah Gan and chase championships, not wanting to waste Ah Gan’s twilight years.
Unfortunately, no one was willing to do this. The remaining 29 teams had reached a tacit agreement, refusing to let Ah Gan dominate the league with championships anymore.
Previously, there was no choice; they truly couldn’t compete. Now that Ah Gan had aged, they couldn’t send him any help. This unwritten agreement persisted for three seasons.
To the summer of 2006, there was finally a slight loosening when Philadelphia 76ers’ general manager Billy King called Danny Ainge in June.
Negotiations regarding the trade of Allen Iverson had been ongoing in secret but fell through quickly for various reasons.
Until the new season began, by mid-November, after 15 games, the phone in Ainge’s Las Vegas office rang again.
The call came from Philadelphia, and Billy King’s first words were: "Danny, let’s trade this time."