Chapter 830: Chapter 34 Really Want to Win
Gan Guoyang and Jordan both attached great importance to this game.
In their first encounter of the season, the Bulls conquered Portland’s home court.
Jordan was eager to win this game and complete a season sweep against the Trail Blazers.
If he did, it would be the first time in his career that he swept Ah Gan in the regular season.
Previously, it was mostly Guoyang who swept Jordan, and some games were won with ease.
Times have changed, and now it was Guoyang’s turn not to want to be swept by the Bulls, as it could psychologically impact the impending Finals between the two.
Both players were very serious before the game, not chatting and laughing as they usually would, but warming up with their own teammates.
As the game approached, Guoyang took a piece of gum from Calvin’s hand, unwrapped it, and stuffed it into his mouth.
Petrović sat on the bench with a freshly opened bottle of Gatorade in hand, feeling a bit thirsty and ready to take a sip.
Gan Guoyang rolled the gum wrapper into a ball and tossed it into the bottle just as Petrović was about to lift it.
The little paper ball dropped precisely into the Gatorade bottle, causing Petrović to pause, sensing that something had fallen into his drink.
Guoyang reminded Petrović, saying: "Change the bottle, Pete! This one’s been contaminated!"
Petrović glanced into the bottle and saw a tinfoil ball floating in it, thrown in by Ah Gan.
Coming onto the court, Gan Guoyang stood at the center circle for the jump ball against Cartwright.
Since returning to the center position, Guoyang has taken on the jump ball duties himself.
"Bill, I’ve heard that recently your elbows have been quite intimidating, mind showing me how formidable they are?"
Before the jump ball, Guoyang said to Cartwright, as the whole League was aware of Cartwright’s notorious elbows recently.
Guoyang was puzzled, as Cartwright seemed to play pretty clean during the matches between the Trail Blazers and Bulls, which led him to question why everyone complained about him?
Could it be that they were all misjudging him?
Later, he learned that Cartwright indeed treated different teams differently.
Guoyang didn’t like being treated differently; equal treatment for all was better.
Cartwright shook his head slightly, whispering, "The League would fine me."
"No worries, I can pay the fine for you. I’ve got money. Plus, if you’re accurate with your elbow, I’ll even give you a bonus, how about it?"
As he spoke, Guoyang pointed to his temple, signaling for him to aim there.
Cartwright didn’t dare respond, knowing full well the kind of tactics Ah Gan had.
His elbowing of Isiah Thomas had resulted in a mere broken brow and some bleeding, but Ah Gan nearly disfigured Isiah, landing him in the hospital.
This year, Cartwright was already 33 years old, and his aging bones couldn’t withstand Guoyang’s rough play; he still wanted to compete for a few more seasons.
Sports are like a jungle society; sometimes, it’s simply about who’s tougher.
If you’re tough, no one dares to provoke you. If you’re not, everyone will step on you.
Now many people understood why the rookie Ah Gan was so fierce, using wrestling techniques to fight back against those who provoked him.
As time went on, people understood more clearly that the bloodshed and suffering from the early days were meaningful and extraordinarily so.
Seeing Cartwright not daring to respond, Guoyang sneered: "Keep your arms to yourself, or I’ll hold you accountable for any misfortune that befalls my teammates."
At this moment, the referee interrupted their conversation, checked his watch, and the game was about to start, with both sides ready for the jump ball.
Cartwright, who was mentally less strong than Ah Gan, could not compete in the jump ball, giving the Trail Blazers possession to start the game.
The Trail Blazers’ opening offense focused on Ah Gan, which was requested by Guoyang before the game started.
He had to get going early to fight for the initial advantage, only then could they withstand the Bulls’ endurance.
The Bulls were a team very capable of grinding their opponents down. In their last encounter, the Trail Blazers were worn down by their defense.
By the time the Trail Blazers tried to gain momentum later, it was too late, and there was too little room for error.
Gan Guoyang seldom used psychological warfare at the beginning of a game, but tonight he threatened Bill Cartwright to break the Bulls’ hard man in the Three Second Zone.
The Bulls’ starting frontcourt of Cartwright and Buck-Williams were both experienced and tough traditional post players with strong defense.
The weaknesses were that Cartwright was getting on in years, and Buck-Williams was a bit short, so Guoyang targeted these two points at the start.
He used screens to position himself at the baseline, receiving the ball at a zero-degree angle to the basket, taking on Williams one-on-one with a mid-range shot that went in.
Then, on defense, the Bulls missed, and the Trail Blazers didn’t rush for a fast break but stuck to their positional play, with Guoyang attacking Williams in the same spot again.
This time Williams closed in tight, and after a fake move, Guoyang broke along the baseline, shouldering Cartwright for a layup, drawing Cartwright’s foul.
The Bulls’ core center picked up his first foul within the first minute of play, leaving Phil Jackson quite dissatisfied with the referee’s call.
He knew it was a dangerous sign, as Cartwright was vital to the Bulls on both ends of the floor, and if he faced foul trouble early on, the Bulls would definitely be in trouble.
However, considering Cartwright’s typically low contributions against the Trail Blazers and Ah Gan, if he didn’t play well or left the game early, it seemed there was no issue.
Realizing this, Jackson let it go, exchanged a few words with the referee, and returned to the bench to meditate.
