Chapter 769: Chapter 13 Iron Five_3
Parkson catches the ball, takes the open three, and hits it!
The ball struck the Trail Blazers’ heart like a curved blade.
Gan Guoyang was completely out of reach; Michael really trusted his teammates in the clutch.
This made Jordan even harder to defend.
Jordan, after successfully assisting, shook his head at Ah Gan with a rare show of affectation, saying, "I didn’t make the shot, but my teammate did, off my assist."
All Gan Guoyang could do was helplessly say, "You’re becoming more and more of a coward, Michael."
Jordan didn’t care about such non-lethal verbal jabs.
The Trail Blazers didn’t have enough time left, and they missed their final shot.
95:91, the Chicago Bulls took away a precious victory in Portland.
Michael Jordan won the 13th Gan Qiao showdown, marking his third victory.
After the game, he boasted, "There will be more and more victories like this, Sonny."
Gan Guoyang, gracious in defeat, said, "You really have improved, Michael."
Winning Gan Guoyang’s praise made Jordan very happy. After returning to the locker room, the smile on his face during the interviews was almost uncontrollable.
Meanwhile, Gan Guoyang, on his way back to the locker room, wrapped his arm around Petrović, saying, "Pete, next time don’t just focus on Jordan. I can handle him just fine. You have to trust me, got it?"
Petrović hung his head and nodded with his lips pursed.
Tonight, he was the best performer of the Trail Blazers’ perimeter players.
Under the Bulls’ tight defense, Porter, Curry, and Lewis were all off target.
Only Petrović showed no fear facing Michael Jordan, scoring 17 points with 3 out of 2 threes.
However, his defensive shortcomings cost the Trail Blazers dearly in the final stages.
While losing the Gan Qiao battle was disappointing and ended an eight-game winning streak, it also gave the Trail Blazers a chance to adjust and improve.
After the interviews ended, Bobby Beelman had a debrief with the coaching staff, the trainer, and Jerry West.
Everyone spoke freely about the problems exposed during the game, and Beelman expressed his willingness to take criticism constructively.
This was one of Beelman’s strengths. As the head coach, he was receptive to suggestions from his assistants and players, taking advice with grace.
However, on the other hand, he stubbornly refused to cultivate close personal relationships with colleagues and teammates, fashioning himself into a cold basketball machine.
His real confidant was only Ah Gan, with Rick Adelman counting as half a friend.
Shalov and Weitzer actively voiced their opinions, which centered on the perimeter players.
The failed offensive synergy of Porter, Petrović, and Lewis tonight was the main reason for the team’s defeat.
If they were to face the Bulls again, this issue would need to be resolved.
But at that moment, Adelman offered a different viewpoint, asserting that they were fundamentally an inside-oriented team.
"If we lost the game, it definitely was because our inside didn’t play well enough," he said.
Adelman’s analysis was indeed more precise and insightful than before; he suggested two key points for improvement:
First, Sabonis’s role in playmaking and half-court ball handling must be elevated to alleviate the backcourt’s ball-handling pressure.
Sabonis’s screening, blocking, and ball distribution were excellent, and while the Trail Blazers had focused on developing his passing and defensive utilization, they had not fully exploited his other capabilities.
Thus, Adelman boldly proposed that Sabonis should be played at the power forward position, affording him more space, with Ah Gan returning to the familiar center spot.
As for defensive pressure on ball handlers, Adelman believed it was unnecessary in some games since they now had Reggie Lewis.
With Kossie returning to the next game, paired with Reggie Lewis on the wing, the defense was already strong. Adding Ah Gan to the mix would be redundant and wasteful.
It would leave Reggie Lewis perplexed; he isn’t Hornacek. He is an excellent defender and should handle issues on his own.
Moreover, Sabonis’s ability to extend his defense outward had always been underestimated; his movement and defensive awareness were not lacking.
Adelman’s theory gained consensus, and Beelman also agreed that Sabonis’s utilisation needed to be more flexible and diverse.
Regarding the second point, Adelman said, "I think playing Ah Gan for only 38 minutes is too little. Had he played 40 minutes, we would have won the game! 40 minutes is a piece of cake for him. He can play 45 minutes. Bobby, you can’t be too indulgent with Sonny. One of Princeton’s principles is the Iron Five!"
