The Golden Age of Basketball.

Chapter 794 The Ball Arrives
Kobe had no idea where Gan Guoyang's incredible imagination came from.

If he knew, he would be very surprised, very, very shocked.

Now, the Jazz fans in the center of the triangle are surprised by Gan Guoyang's unstoppable performance in the first half.

He scored 27 points, along with 9 rebounds and 6 assists, single-handedly carrying the Trail Blazers on both ends of the court.

He was virtually unstoppable on offense, scoring consecutive mid-range points in the second quarter, silencing the triangle center.

Some longtime Salt Lake City fans may remember that Forrest Gump's conquest of American basketball began in Salt Lake City.

All these years have passed, and he is still like a god of war, and his skills have become even more unrestrained.

Compared to him, Karl Malone was like a rusty robot, rigidly following a set procedure to complete tasks.

At halftime, the score was 62-63, with the Jazz maintaining a one-point lead and not losing their composure.

Despite Gan Guoyang's rapid comeback, the Jazz remained calm and steady, and their tactical coordination remained intact.

Their core system has been honed for almost 10 years, and they are well-prepared mentally; they will not be defeated by Forrest Gump.

For most of the 1996-1997 season, Karl Malone had become the de facto core of the Jazz.

Although people often use "Utah Twins" or "Stockton to Malone" to firmly link the two together.

However, judging from the data, on-court role, and tactical performance, Malone has become close to a single core player, while Stockton's contribution seems somewhat weak.

But tonight's game was different. Malone played like a blue-collar worker in his matchup against Forrest Gump, scoring only 4 points in the first half.

His shooting percentage was good, 2 out of 4, but he didn't dare to shoot. Gan Guoyang kept a close eye on Ma Long the whole game, basically giving up on helping and covering for other players.

Malone transformed into a point forward, dishing out 4 assists in the first half, but this paled in comparison to Stockton's 11 points and 6 assists in the same half.

Against Forrest Gump, Stockton became the Jazz's primary playmaker, directing the team from the point guard position to battle against Gump.

During halftime in the locker room, Stockton explained to his teammates how to deal with the Trail Blazers in the second half.

"Attack! We must keep attacking. Forrest Gump is a man who has a set strategy and will stick to it to the end."

"Tonight, the Trail Blazers are going to go on the offensive against us and overwhelm us with points. Agan is going to lock down Karl. Karl, don't go head-to-head with him."

"The Trail Blazers' weakness is on the perimeter. Forrest won't be concerned with the perimeter tonight; he'll definitely go all out on offense. We need to lower his shooting percentage, but more importantly, we need to improve our own."

"We're like two boxers going all out, attacking each other like madmen. Whoever can't take it anymore will fall and lose the fight. Get ready, guys, the third quarter is going to be crazy, really crazy."

Stockton is usually a man of few words, and his emotions are always very stable, much like his signature pair of shorts that he's worn for over a decade.

By 1997, most players' shorts were getting longer and longer, with newer players like Allen Iverson wearing shorts that went past their knees and reached their calves.

Stockton still wears the same shorts length he wore when he first entered the league in 1984, and his playing style remains unchanged, just like Karl Malone.

Like a machine programmed to complete its tasks according to a set route, even his appearance was so ordinary, just like a white-collar worker.

During his time in Barcelona, ​​he was the only player in the Dream Team who wouldn't be recognized by ordinary citizens when walking down the street.

The Jazz have two players like that – Hornacek and Stockton are the NBA's "office worker" duo.

However, Stockton shone brightly when facing the best player in the league's history, his best friend.

When he said these words in the locker room, Jerry Sloan was listening attentively; everyone knew how well Stockton knew Forrest Gump.

"Don't provoke him, don't use any underhanded tactics to give him a chance to retaliate, hold onto the basketball in our hands, and try to defeat him using basketball tactics."

Before the game, Stockton once again reminded his teammates, especially the young players in the paint, such as Ostertag and Greg Foster.

Every time they play against the Trail Blazers, Stockton reminds his teammates of this.

Malone pinched his nose; he simply didn't want to get into a conflict with Forrest Gump.

That fall in 1992 was so embarrassing for him that it still makes his back hurt to think about it today.

The third quarter began, and the Trail Blazers had possession of the ball. On the first offensive possession, Gan Guoyang received the ball at the top of the arc and took another mid-range shot.

He missed this time, and the 15-minute halftime break cooled his shooting touch, so he had to start adjusting again.

Ostertag grabbed the rebound, and Stockton immediately launched a counterattack. This time, Malone seized the opportunity to cut into the middle.

He received a precise pass from Stockton and scored with a left-handed layup. The play had been practiced countless times, and there would be no mistakes.

Gan Guoyang immediately received the ball on the wing, faked out Ostertag, took a step, and then scored two points with a hook shot.

A smooth and elegant goal kept the two sides within one point.

Hornacek received a pass from Stockton and made a three-pointer.

The point difference widened to four points.

Van Exel tried to answer with a three-pointer, but missed.

Stockton's defense neutralized Van Exel's shooting rhythm tonight.

The rebound went far, Hornacek grabbed the ball and launched a fast break, but it still ended up going to Stockton.

Stockton made another accurate pass to Malone under the basket, who went for a layup, but Gan Guoyang blocked it.

Malone himself didn't understand why he was caught up and blocked on that play, even though he had clearly created space and position.

Ostertag grabbed the offensive rebound and went up again, but Gan Guoyang turned and blocked it again, making two consecutive blocks, but the ball was still in the Jazz's hands.

"Steal the ball, control the ball!" Gan Guoyang shouted, standing in the paint to protect the ball.

The ball was passed to Stockton, who made a mid-range jumper.

The Jazz had an amazing shooting percentage tonight, and they were particularly good at adjusting their perimeter shooting rhythm against the Trail Blazers' collapsing defense.

This is undoubtedly thanks to Stockton's passing and rhythm control, which makes his teammates' shots very comfortable, and his own shooting form is also excellent.

The point difference suddenly widened from 1 point to 6 points. Gan Guoyang received the ball in the low post, and the Jazz double-teamed him. Gan Guoyang turned and shot despite being double-teamed by three people, but missed.

But he immediately drove to the basket, and before Malone could grab the rebound, he gently tapped the ball back into the hoop, scoring two points and grabbing a rebound.

Malone angrily slammed his fist on the ball. Sometimes he really didn't understand why Forrest Gump was always so elusive, impossible to pick on either offense or defense.

His positioning is really confusing; even watching the replay makes it hard to figure out how he makes his positioning predictions in advance.

In this respect, Trail Blazers coach Larry Bird could better understand Gan Guoyang, because he himself was the kind of player who appeared and disappeared unpredictably when he played.

Everything stems from anticipation. The brain, through its perception of the game scene, accumulated experience, and a touch of inspiration, generates an electrical signal in a very short time, commanding the body to run to a certain location and wait for a certain event to occur on the field.

This feeling is wonderful. Many people can accumulate experience, but that spark of inspiration is extremely rare, only one in ten thousand. Some people have it, and if you don't, you just don't. You would never even think of it.

This happens in many sports, such as playing chess.

While calculation ability is certainly important in chess, the so-called "chess sense" is often the dividing line between a master and a top master.

Because computing power is ultimately limited, in the chaotic parts that computing power cannot reach, chess sense will be like a guiding light.

For example, at the beginning of a game, a seemingly unintentional and insignificant move might turn out to be crucial in the endgame.

Is it because the player anticipated this move would have such an effect from the beginning? Not necessarily. A game is long and full of variations, so it's very possible that the player wouldn't have thought of such a detail.

But his experience and chess sense would analyze and guide him, making him believe that making a move here would have a positive effect on the overall situation, and the final outcome confirmed his judgment.

Basketball games are the same; some players always manage to appear in unexpected positions at certain moments, make unexpected choices, and thus change the course of the game.

Bird, Forrest Gump, and Jordan—these are the people who stand at the pinnacle of basketball competition. They all have this ability, but Malone is just missing that little bit of inspiration.

Returning to the offensive end, Malone, just like in the first half, performed his playmaking duties in a conventional manner, handing over control of the game to Stockton.

Stockton does have some inspiration, but he is limited by his physical fitness and personal abilities. Once he faces Forrest Gump, his inspiration will burst forth.

He dribbled between the three-second zone and the three-point line, then suddenly made a bizarre cut to the basket, drawing the Trail Blazers' defense before delivering a rare behind-the-back pass to Ostertag.

Ostertag received the ball and was about to dunk when he was fouled by PJ Brown, sending him to the free-throw line.

The pass was very subtle and unpredictable, leaving Brown with no choice but to foul.

Ostertag made one of two free throws, and Gan Guoyang grabbed the rebound. Stockton came over to steal the ball and interfere, not giving Gan Guoyang a chance to launch a counterattack immediately.

Gan Guoyang collected the ball to protect it and returned to the half-court offense. He set a high screen and Van Exel drove to the basket, but Stockton chipped the ball away from behind!
A beautiful steal, the Jazz counterattack, Stockton made a long pass to the frontcourt, and Brian Russell caught the ball and dunked it!
Van Exel was almost blown up by Stockton on both ends of the court tonight, and he became increasingly agitated, trying to get back at Stockton.

But Gan Guoyang reminded him to stay calm by positioning himself in the low post. Gan Guoyang received the ball in the low post and made a cut-and-handoff pass with Van Exel.

Van Exel finally drove to the basket and scored a layup, bringing his score to 2 points and calming his volatile emotions slightly.

The level of competition between the two teams in the third quarter was a step up from the first half. There was not much trash talk or underhanded tactics; both sides were immersed in the battle of basketball.

At the first official timeout, the score was 74-79, with the Jazz leading by 5 points.

Both teams climbed the ranks very quickly, and it's certain that they'll both break 100 points by the end of the game.

During the timeout, Stockton didn't stop giving instructions. He told his teammates, "Forrest is definitely going to keep eating like crazy. Hang in there, you have to hang in there."

Stockton knew his old friend too well; he had a feeling Forrest Gump was about to go into scoring mode.

Stockton also knew that even if you knew, it wouldn't matter; there was no way to stop Forrest Gump from scoring.

You can only stick close to him; if he scores, you score too. Everyone should persevere until the final crucial moment and fight for the key ball.

As expected, after the timeout, Gan Guoyang went on a rampage, constantly attacking the Jazz from the outside with the ball.

Ma Long can hold his own against Gan Guoyang in the low post, but once he's pulled to the outside, he becomes like a wooden stake.

Gan Guoyang scored repeatedly, converting several 2+1 plays, racking up 14 points in just 5 minutes.

But when they looked up at the scoreboard, it was 90-93, and the Jazz were still stubbornly maintaining a 3-point lead.

Because the Jazz's offensive efficiency was also extremely high, Hornacek and Stockton hit consecutive three-pointers.

The two players on the court helped the home team maintain their lead throughout the third quarter, with the score tied at 94-96.

Gan Guoyang scored 47 points in three quarters, leaving Ma Long sweating profusely and sitting on the bench looking dazed, but the Trail Blazers still couldn't turn the tide.

"Damn, 47 points is too few. I should have scored 60 points in three quarters, then we could have a lead of more than ten points." Gan Guoyang sat on the bench, wiping his sweat and complaining. He hadn't taken enough shots, and some of his shots were creating opportunities for his teammates.

But the rest of the Trail Blazers' offense was a mess tonight, especially their three-point shooting, which made Gan Guoyang very dissatisfied.

Kobe, who was standing nearby, silently noted down Gan Guoyang's words in his mind. He had always been a diligent and thoughtful student.

On the court, Kobe constantly observed Gan Guoyang's offensive choices, how he dealt with double teams, how he handled the ball, and how he attempted difficult shots.

At the start of the fourth quarter, Gan Guoyang sat on the bench to rest, while Kobe and Jermaine O'Neal entered the game, and the Trail Blazers were immediately pulled away by the Jazz again.

Shandon Anderson and Brian Russell hit consecutive three-pointers, and the Jazz's outside shooting exploded tonight; they've been fed a lot of threes.

When the score difference widened to 8 points, Kobe stepped up. He first hit a mid-range jump shot, and then successfully stole the ball on defense.

He dribbled past his opponent to score a layup and drew a foul, making the free throw and scoring 5 consecutive points, helping the Trail Blazers close the gap to 3 points.

Gan Guoyang didn't rest for long on the sidelines; he returned to the court when Kobe took the free throws.

He patted Kobe on the shoulder and said, "Well done, very decisive."

Kobe said, "To me, they were all 100% chances."

"If you mimic me again, I'll knock your teeth out."

"I'd rather learn to play like you."

"Then let's keep an eye on it."

Gan Guoyang continued his good form from the third quarter after returning to the court.

The Jazz simply couldn't stop his drives—that's a problem on the Jazz's defense.

Although the Bulls were countered by Forrest Gump, they were the best at preventing him from driving to the basket.

The Jazz lack tall and strong forwards and guards, and leaving Malone and Ostertag as the last line of defense is a recipe for disaster as they are overwhelmed by Agan.

Three consecutive drives to the basket, either resulting in a layup or drawing a foul, left the Jazz struggling to keep up.

Jerry Sloan made a substitution, bringing in veteran Anthony Carr to stop Forrest Gump's advance.

Anthony Karl was once a very talented young man. In 1984, he and Gan Guoyang participated in the Olympic selection training camp together.

He was physically strong and was a powerful power forward with outside skills during his prime, but later became a blue-collar player, diligently playing the four and five positions.

After he came on the court, he not only guarded Agan on the defensive end, but also had a mid-range shot on the offensive end.

The two sides were locked in a stalemate, and the score quickly surpassed 100, with Gan Guoyang's score soon reaching 57 points.

Then, the two teams remained deadlocked at 105-107 for nearly three minutes.

The Jazz began to double-team Gan Guoyang early.

Stockton teetered on the edge of defensive violations, constantly testing the referee's limits.

This is the center of the triangle, where the referees turn a blind eye to early double-teaming and defensive violations.

They'll occasionally blow a whistle as a warning, but then they won't pay much attention and won't keep an eye on things.

Gan Guoyang had difficulty receiving the ball, so he had to start receiving it from the backcourt, which prompted the Jazz to double-team him from the backcourt.

If two people aren't enough, then three will. Gan Guoyang passes the ball to his teammate, PJ Brown catches it, and nobody pays attention to him.

Brown hesitated for a few moments before finally passing the ball to Riddell, who drove to the basket but missed the layup.

Similar offensive plays continued for several possessions, and the Trail Blazers were unable to overcome a two-point deficit.

The Jazz also couldn't score, their defense took a lot of energy and disrupted their rhythm.

Hornacek and Malone both missed their shots, but Stockton managed to grab an offensive rebound.

Stockton dribbled out for the crucial rebound, made a slight adjustment, and hit a mid-range jumper!
A fatal shot! Stockton has now scored 24 points with less than two minutes left in the game.

Gan Guoyang didn't have time to complain to his teammates about why they weren't keeping a close eye on him. Instead of taking a timeout, he quickly served the ball from the backcourt.

Van Exel finally made the right decision, quickly dribbling the ball across half-court and weaving through the Jazz's defense.

Then the ball was passed to Gan Guoyang, who ran to the left 45 degrees. Gan Guoyang received the ball, made a simple adjustment, and took a three-pointer, which went in!
108-109, the Trail Blazers quickly closed the gap to just one point!
Gan Guoyang also scored his 60th point in the game, as shown on the TV station's score display.

But for Gan Guoyang, if he scores 60 points but still can't win the game, it's better not to score those 60 points at all.

In addition to his 60 points, he also grabbed 17 rebounds and dished out 10 assists, achieving a triple-double with 60 points.

This season, Gan Guoyang, who has returned to the court, has been setting new data records, achieving one amazing data combination after another.

Behind this lies a sense of helplessness; he had no choice but to fight this way.

Especially when facing top teams, the rest of the Trail Blazers players are slightly inferior in skill.

The Jazz called a timeout with one minute left in the game, and the two teams were about to engage in a final battle.

On the bench, Gan Guoyang took a big gulp of water. He glanced at the scoreboard and saw that the rest of the team had only scored 48 points in total.

Of those, more than 20 points were related to Gan Guoyang's passes, while only about 20 points were scored entirely without Gan Guoyang's involvement.

Are their teammates bad? Not necessarily, the Trail Blazers are at least a top-three team in the Western Conference.

But compared to Gan Guoyang, they are indeed too weak and can't keep up.

He's fine against most teams, but against a top team like the Jazz, Gan Guoyang can unleash his full potential and leave everyone else in the dust.

Bird couldn't even make any arrangements; tonight was entirely a one-man show by Forrest Gump.

He simply tossed the tactical board aside and said, "Don't make mistakes, remember to pass the ball to the right person."

After more than half a season of adjustment, Bird is increasingly showing signs of being influenced by Bellman.

The timeout ended, and both teams returned to the court for a one-minute game to decide the winner.

The Jazz executed a great play, finding an opportunity on the right side through continuous screens and cuts.

Hornacek received the ball, faked out Kobe, drove to the basket, pulled up for a jump shot, and made it!

At a crucial moment, Bird put Kobe on the court to entangle Hornacek, but the experienced Hornacek fooled Kobe.

The Jazz lead by 3 points, 108-111.

Then, the Jazz began to tightly guard Gan Guoyang, preventing him from receiving the ball.

At this moment, Riddell seized the opportunity to cut to the basket, dodging the defender's crossover and floater in mid-air.

The ball bounced twice on the rim but didn't go in. PJ Brown grabbed the offensive rebound, but Malone knocked the ball away!

Ma Long controlled the ball and was about to make a long pass to Stockton, but Gan Guoyang appeared in an unexpected position!

He intercepted Malone's pass in mid-air, then dribbled the ball again to organize an attack, at which point the defense was mismatched.

Stockton was defending Gan Guoyang, and Gan could only try to grab the ball, which resulted in a foul being called by the referee, even though it wasn't yet time for a foul.

The Trail Blazers called a timeout to strategize. They had to score this basket, then go back to defend one player before they could have a chance to win.

Bird devised an inside play: Riddell ran a pick-and-roll with Gan Guoyang, but Van Exel was in terrible form tonight.

The tactic worked! After the timeout, Riddell drove to the basket, and Gan Guoyang followed up with an alley-oop dunk!

The Jazz intentionally abandoned their pressure on the paint, focusing primarily on the Trail Blazers' three-point shooting while being careful not to foul.

With the score tied at 110-111, the Jazz have a chance to seal the victory, as Gan Guoyang has already scored 62 points.

Tonight, whether he'll be the leader of the empty-handed group or a lone hero will depend on the final two rounds of attack and defense; the center of the triangle is already suffocating.

Stockton controlled the ball, and Sloan set up a pick-and-roll between Malone and Stockton in the final moments. Gan Guoyang executed a no-switch defense strategy against the pick-and-roll throughout the game.

But on this play, Gan Guoyang suddenly lunged at Stockton, using his long arms and pressing defense to tightly guard his friend, Stockton passed the ball!
Malone cut inside, received the ball and scored, and the game would be over. However, the ball was stolen by Kobe who rushed in from the wing!

Just like Gan Guoyang's steal, he appeared in an unexpected place, cut the ball horizontally, and the Trail Blazers launched a counterattack!
With ten seconds left, Kobe threw the ball to Gan Guoyang. Instead of trying to dribble across half-court himself, Gan Guoyang charged towards the frontcourt like a tank.

The Jazz's entire defensive force rushed towards Gan Guoyang. Gan Guoyang advanced all the way from the middle, and more and more people surrounded him. Four Jazz players surrounded him.

Gan Guoyang rushed into the three-second zone, and Ostattger was ready to meet the attack.

But at the last moment, surrounded by the arms of eight Jazz players, Gan Guoyang passed the ball to the baseline.

Kobe stood at the zero-degree angle, waiting with no one in front of him. He placed his hand on his chest, in preparation for catching and shooting the ball.

He didn't raise his hands and shout like before; he just prepared himself to shoot if the ball came, and to go inside and grab it if it didn't.

The ball came and was accurately passed to Kobe. He jumped, calm and collected, and just like he had practiced countless times, he shot the ball toward the basket.

Time seemed to freeze for a second, and the next second, the ball landed steadily in the basket—score!

112-111, the Trail Blazers took the lead in the final moments!

Gan Guoyang almost rushed to Kobe and hugged him, but the game was not over yet.

With four seconds left, the Jazz had no timeouts and inbounded the ball from the backcourt.

Stockton received the ball and launched a long-range three-pointer.

The miracle that Gan Guoyang did didn't happen; the ball went astray as soon as he released it.

As the red light flashed to signal the end of the game, Kobe made a steal and a mid-range jumper in the final moments, sealing the victory for the Jazz!

Gan Guoyang was finally able to rush over and lift him high in the air, just like Kobe lifted him when Gan Guoyang made the game-winning shot against the Bulls.

Kobe didn't shout with ecstasy. Instead, he pouted, raised his head, and scanned the audience with the cool demeanor of Forrest Gump.

"Stop fucking pretentious and smile!" Gan Guoyang slapped Kobe.

Kobe then burst into laughter and hugged his teammates to celebrate this hard-won victory.

(End of this chapter)