Chapter 651: Chapter 41 Kill You
"In 1989, for Jordan, the biggest change in his mentality was: he felt that he could finally get close to Ah Gan."
——Published in 2016, "Michael Jordan: The Life" by Roland Lazenby, excerpt.
One hour before the game between the Trail Blazers and the Clippers ended, in Dallas, the Chicago Bulls had just defeated the Mavericks.
Michael Jordan had scored 41 points in the game. They had easily crushed their opponents and then hurriedly left the arena, heading to the airport to wait for their flight to Portland.
Besides the Detroit Pistons and the Portland Trail Blazers, no other team in the league had its own aircraft.
Waiting at the airport was a hassle and consumed one’s patience. After a game, players needed rest and relaxation, and waiting made it difficult to relax.
Jordan chose to play cards with his teammates, enjoying his favorite game of Badugi, and betting with cash.
Jordan had started playing Badugi in college, at the Olympic Training Camp he had been able to win Gan Guoyang’s money, but for the past two years, he hadn’t been able to beat Gan Guoyang.
Gan Guoyang had strong betting skills, and later Jordan learned that the Trail Blazers’ coach, Bobby Berman, had once been a seasoned gambler, best at playing Texas hold’em. Gan Guoyang’s card playing skills improved day by day under his guidance. How could he ever beat him?
Thinking of Ah Gan, he couldn’t beat him in cards, in Pong, in bowling, and even his beloved golf, he wasn’t sure he could win.
Ah Gan was all about strong and surprising plays. Every time he hit a golf ball, it was like a home run.
His luck was also unexpectedly good. Despite his mediocre skills, he could guess with astonishing accuracy.
As for basketball, their old profession, Jordan was unwilling to admit defeat; he believed he was not inferior to Ah Gan.
However, with championship rings at 0:3, he really couldn’t compare, Ah Gan had won three consecutive championships.
But Jordan had a good mindset; most of the time, he focused on himself and didn’t lose his composure when he was at a disadvantage.
He firmly believed in his own basketball destiny and also believed there would come a day when he would defeat Ah Gan in the finals...
"Hey, Michael, you’re out of money!"
Pippen, sitting across from Jordan, interrupted his thoughts.
He reminded Jordan that he had lost all his betting money; Jordan’s card luck that night was clearly not as good as his shooting.
In the game against the Mavericks, Jordan had a shooting percentage of 62%, with two successful three-point shots out of two attempts.
Jordan glanced at the table and said, "Put it on a tab, I’ll have money in Portland."
"Where in Portland are you getting money from, borrowing from Ah Gan?"
"Never mind...let’s continue, put it on a tab."
While they were talking, head coach Phil Jackson interrupted their card game.
He suggested, "Guys, playing cards is not conducive to your mental relaxation. Why don’t we meditate for a while?"
"Oh~ Phil, although I’d really like to sleep, it’s not the time yet. We’d miss our flight."
"I’m talking about meditation, not sleep. We’ve tried it before and it’s good for your focus. The next game is against Portland. Ah Gan just took their game away. They beat the Clippers."
Jackson’s words made Jordan put down his cards, and Pippen sighed, having no choice but to follow suit.
Everyone sat cross-legged on the ground, led by Jackson, and began to meditate in the waiting room.
Meditation had become a frequent activity Jackson conducted with his players for mental relaxation since he became the coach of the Bulls this season.
Besides that, he would also burn sage in the locker room, a ritual from the Lakota Sioux tribe to cleanse negative energy.
Phil Jackson was very interested in these indigenous and Eastern cultural practices, incorporating them into his coaching process.
Jordan was skeptical about many of Jackson’s methods, whether it was meditation, sage, or the so-called "Triangle Offense" implemented from this season.
Nevertheless, as the undisputed core of the team, even with doubts, Jordan still followed Jackson’s instructions.
This was one of Jordan’s strengths; he never let his dissatisfaction completely influence the team’s operations and decisions. When necessary, he would compromise, knowing the limits of his power and not abusing it irresponsibly.
Thus, in these two seasons, the Chicago Bulls had greatly improved and were in the process of becoming a powerhouse in the Eastern Conference.
However, Pippen was indifferent to Jackson’s many special techniques. With his eyes closed, he wasn’t emptying his mind following Jackson’s instructions, but was busy thinking about how much money he had won from Michael and how much he could still win.
And, how to deal with Ah Gan in the game the day after tomorrow.
The plane was delayed, taking off near midnight, and when they reached Portland, it was already early morning.
At the luggage claim area of Portland Airport, all the players were yawning continuously, and waiting for their luggage was equally frustrating.
Jordan suddenly approached Pippen and said, "Hey Scott, how about we make a bet, betting on whose suitcase comes out first?"
After two seasons together, Pippen had come to understand Jordan’s nature; the guy just loved to gamble on anything that could be wagered.
If you didn’t agree, he would keep bothering you, so Pippen just had to say, "Okay, how much?"
Jordan said, "If I win, the debt I owe you from the card game earlier will be wiped clean. If I lose, the money I lost will be doubled."
Pippen thought the amount was alright and nodded in agreement as they stood at the baggage carousel waiting.
Now, waiting was no longer tedious but rather tense and thrilling.
When Pippen saw Jordan’s suitcase appear first on the carousel, he sighed sadly as his body seemed to collapse.
Jordan laughed, patted Pippen on the shoulder, took his luggage from the carousel, and said, "We’re even now!"
Pippen thought he just had bad luck but didn’t know that after getting off the plane, Jordan had bribed the staff with his autograph to put his luggage first on the carousel.
It was a no-lose bet.
Jordan was pleased with his little trick, finding it a good way to relieve stress.
Ever since Gan Guoyang won three consecutive championships in the 1987-1988 season, Jordan had sunk deep into gambling.
That season, Jordan won the regular season MVP, but was eliminated in the semifinals of the playoffs.
At that time, Gan Guoyang had called Jordan to mock him while suggesting they train together during the off-season to teach him how to win championships.
That summer, they trained together in New York for nearly a month, and Jordan felt his skills had greatly improved.
Then, in ’89, they both fell in the division finals and failed to meet in the championship...
That summer they trained together again, with Jordan focusing on combat practice and gaining a lot of muscle.
In the Eastern Conference, the only one standing in the way of him and the Bulls was the Detroit Pistons.
Gan Guoyang had already proven that the best way to deal with the Pistons was to fight fire with fire.
The next morning, Jordan called home first. Just like Gan Guoyang, he was now married with children and a father.
Of course, his sequence was different from Gan’s; he had a child before getting married. His son, Jeffrey Jordan, was born in November 1988, earlier than Gan’s son.
At that time, he wasn’t yet married to Juanita. Unbeknownst to the outside world, they had secretly had a child.
In the summer of 1989, when his son was already six months old, he and Juanita went to Las Vegas and got married at the famous Little White Chapel.
The Little White Chapel is known for its beautiful drive-through wedding tunnel and fast wedding preparations, much like McDonald’s drive-thrus and drive-in cinemas, epitomizing the essence of American fast-food culture.
Thus, Jordan’s wedding was very simple. Don’t even mention teammates or friends; even his parents weren’t there because they didn’t agree with him marrying Juanita, thinking the couple should just date.
They were afraid of their son being controlled by another woman.
Fortunately, so far everything was stable, and Juanita was a very decent woman capable of handling complex family conflicts and relationships.
Of course, Juanita had her grievances about having a child before marriage, the simplicity of the wedding, and not receiving the blessing of his parents.
Especially comparing it with Gan, she and Jordan had attended Gan Guoyang’s wedding in Chinatown, which was as grand as a championship parade.
Moreover, having one event in San Francisco and another in Los Angeles, both ceremonies had been sensational across America. The loud and lively aspects of the Eastern culture were intoxicating, making any woman dream of experiencing such weddings, let alone two.
Now, with Jordan traveling everywhere to play basketball, Juanita was left home alone with their child — they were planning their second child.
Over the phone, Jordan could sense his wife’s irritation and tried his best to appease her, making her feel a bit better.
"I promise, I’ll crush Gan in tomorrow’s game."
"Crushing Gan just makes you happy, what does it have to do with me?"
"You’re jealous of his wedding."
"Then you should have given me a proper wedding, not crush him on the court!"
"Alright, alright... let’s not talk about this... How’s Jeffrey?"
Seeing that a few words could stir up his wife’s anger again, Jordan quickly changed the subject.
After hanging up, Jordan breathed a sigh of relief. He had wanted to call Gan but, checking the time, Gan was surely training, so he decided to leave a message on his pager instead.
Soon after, Jordan’s room phone rang, definitely a call from Gan.
"Hello, Sonny?"
"Michael! Someone wants to kill you!"
"What?"
"I said someone wants to kill you in tomorrow’s game!"
"Fuck, it’s not you, is it?"
"No, no, I’ve killed you several times before. I’m not interested anymore. It’s a rookie on our team."
