(Thanks to Mobile 4G, I was able to post the text on the road.) ）

The Utah Jazz are perhaps the least noticed team in the entire NBA, and the players are the least willing to go to.

The team joined the NBA in 1974 in New Orleans, South Louisiana, a scattered black city that was buzzing with the sounds of glamour, and the team was named "Jazz."

At that time, the team's top man was also born in Louisiana, studied at the University of Louisiana, NCAA scoring champion, Pete Maravich, and his gorgeous and uninhibited style of play was like an afternoon jazz song, which stood out in the NBA arena full of fierce confrontations.

But in 1979, the Southern team changed its doors because of its poor record and moved to another city, a city that had nothing to do with jazz - icy Salt Lake City, Utah.

It's perhaps one of the NBA's most incompatible teams with a team name and a cityscape, and the Jazz are always on the fringes of the spotlight and may not get a chance to broadcast live from the United States all season.

But the enthusiasm of the Salt Lake City fans has allowed the team to take root in the Utah Plateau, and when Gan Guoyang played in Salt Lake City's NCAA games, he also felt the crazy noise of the local fans, which is comparable to the people of Portland.

Fortunately, the game against the Jazz was held in Portland, and whenever Gan Guoyang thought of Salt Lake City, he would recall the 30-point battle with the Shakhtars.

Another problem that Gan Guoyang has to face now is how to play his best in front of his old friends and teammates.

There are two people on the Jazz team who have a lot of ties to Gan Guoyang, and Stockton is not to mention, the two won the NCAA championship together and are the closest teammates.

Last night, Gan Guoyang invited Stockton to his house for dinner, and Gan Youwei didn't see that Stockton was playing basketball at all, thinking that he was a staff member of the team.

After the meal, Gan Guoyang also chatted with Stockton for a long time about how it was like to play in the NBA professional league.

Unlike Gan, Stockton, despite his good performance in the NCAA, still didn't get many opportunities in the NBA, and the team's coach Frank Rearden only used him as a backup for Green, playing more than ten minutes per game.

Sometimes you just don't get a chance to play.

It's Jerry Sloan, the team's assistant coach, who has a good relationship with Stockton, and the two have a good conversation in many ways.

Gan Guoyang naturally knows that Stockton is not a thing in the pool, and the key to his success is Jerry Sloan, so Gan Guoyang knows that everything is still moving forward according to the established historical trajectory.

At the same time, Gan Guoyang also confided in Stockton, he already knows that the contradictions in the team are highlighted, and as long as there is a problem with the Trail Blazers' record, the contradictions will inevitably erupt.

In his career of more than half a month, Stockton has gradually come to understand that many things within the team are much more complicated than they seem.

And as a small substitute for the team, a temporary marginal figure, he sees the problem more clearly and objectively than Gan Guoyang, and some of his opinions also give Gan Guoyang a lot of inspiration.

In addition to Stockton, Gan's other old friend at the Jazz is the center who will be opposite him, Mark Eaton.

The two could have become alumni, but Gan Guoyang eventually left UCLA, but Mark Eaton didn't like UCLA either.

Although they only saw each other briefly twice, once because of a car breakdown and once after the race, the two big men hit it off at first sight.

Before the start of this game, Gan Guoyang and Eaton shook hands on the sidelines and chatted about their recent game life.

It's just that Gan Guoyang knows that once the game starts, he will have to compete with this 7-foot-4 super giant on the court.

One of the issues Ramsey was more worried about before the game was the absolute advantage of the Jazz team in height, which Gan Guoyang was a little unimpressed.

But when he arrived at the training court, Gan Guoyang found that there were six players over 6-foot-10 in the Jazz team, their starting center was Mark Eaton, who was 7'4, and the starting power forward was Thor-Bailey, who was 6'11, was tall.

Both men are taller than the Trail Blazers' starting interior linemen Gan Guoyang and Mitchell Sampson.

And Gan Guoyang will also face a mammoth that is 6 inches taller than him and weighs 275 pounds, and the pressure on his heart has also risen suddenly.

"Hey Clyde, why do you look sad again, be happy, we're at home, not damn Salt Lake City." Gan Guoyang looked at Drexler, who was doing shooting training, and felt that he was a little worried.

"I feel like I'm in Salt Lake City, frozen." Drexler said with a blank face.

"Haha, don't be like Clyde, winter is coming, will spring be far away?" Gan Guoyang knew that Drexler was distressed by the recent lack of playing opportunities, so he comforted.

"But it's always cold in Portland, the northernmost part of the United States."

Drexler's words mean something, Gan Guoyang knows that Drexler has been in conflict with Ramsey recently over playing time, and even has the intention of asking for a trade.

Gan Guoyang certainly doesn't like Drexler being traded, he and Drexler have become good friends who talk about everything, and he knows that Drexler is going to be a superstar.

But at the same time, it is impossible for him to completely stand on Drexler's side against Ramsey, not to mention that doing so is greatly detrimental to the stability of the team, Gan Guoyang is not this kind of ignorant person, out of respect for Ramsey, Gan Guoyang will not do this.

Gan Guoyang has now learned more and more things from Ramsay, and although he also has some complaints about Ramsay's restrictions on him, the former Bellman also used this way to train him.

"I believe you're the best player, as long as you keep performing well, gold will always shine." Gan Guoyang could only say this to him.

The cold night didn't stop Portland fans from coming to the Memorial Coliseum in the snow and wind to watch the game, although the opponent was the Utah Jazz, but Gan Guoyang's outstanding performance and the good record of the Trail Blazers started the season to make the team's games often full.

The entire arena was filled with spectators early, waiting for the game to begin.

Gan Guoyang has begun to get used to the lively and noisy atmosphere of the game every night, and all he needs to do now is learn to enjoy it.

"Pay attention to the speed, the speed, we are at a disadvantage in height, but athleticism is our strength, try to play with them as little as possible, we have to bring the rhythm up!" After the opening ceremony, Ramsey put the finishing touches on the sidelines.

Because the Jazz have an absolute advantage in height, especially on the inside, Ramsey focused on practicing quick counterattacks in his pre-game preparations.

Gan Guoyang tightened his pants and walked to the center of the court to start jumping, and the fans began to cheer for him early, by which time Gan Guoyang had become Portland's most talked-about star.

"Don't show mercy, Gan." Eton looked at Gan Guoyang and said.

Gan Guoyang smiled and nodded, of course he would not show mercy to his subordinates, as long as he stood on the field, he would defeat all enemies!

It's just that in the jump ball, Gan Guoyang failed to win Mark Eaton.

Eaton was too tall, his arms were long, the referee threw the ball into the air, Eaton didn't even need to jump, he was the first to touch the basketball with a slight tiptoe, the Jazz got the ball, and the game officially began.

The Jazz are a typical team that attacks from the outside and defends on the inside.

They have leading scorer Adrian Dantley up front, and Gan Guoyang has seen his ability to cut points at the Salt Palace Arena.

In the backcourt, there is Darryl Griffiths, who was a very versatile shooting guard in the '80 Jazz draft, with well-rounded offensive skills and consistent scoring ability, contributing about 20 points per game.

Inside, Eaton and Bailey's pairing looks to complement each other, one is huge and strong, it is a heavy fortress, and the other is a long and dexterous umbrella that fills the gaps.

The Utah Jazz give the impression that there is a clear division of labor and each has its own role, but Utah's problem is also here, there is too little contact between players and players, especially in the offense, Eaton lacks the ability to attack independently, while Dantley has strong firepower and lacks the ability to connect the team.

Pele and Griffiths are good, but not the kind of players who can change the situation on the pitch

The Trail Blazers' defensive strategy in the opening game was very targeted, that is, to put the inside line and cover the outside line.

"Bag Bag Bag Clip! Let me! Protect the three-second zone! Gan Guoyang began to yell in the first defense, and he began to participate directly in the outside of the Jazz, giving up the marking of Eaton.

At that time, the NBA was still a relatively rare defensive strategy, because there was no joint defense, and this kind of defense could easily cause the interior to be empty.

Gan Guoyang often did this in high school and college, and it was Bellman's favorite defensive strategy.

Ramsey also realized that Gan's strong mobility was a big advantage that could be exploited, so he tried to get Gan Guoyang to participate in the outside wrapping in the opening game.

Unexpectedly, it had a good effect, Gan Guoyang forced Griffiths who tried to break through to the bottom line, Griffith wanted to pass the ball, but there was a mistake, Paxson cut the ball, and the Trail Blazers launched a quick counterattack.

When Drexler was not there, the speed and level of the Trail Blazers' counterattack were obviously down a notch, and neither Valentin nor Paxson had any way to hit the opponent quickly and effectively.

The Trail Blazers' quick offense relied mainly on teamwork, relying on accurate jumpers from Paxson and Vanderwig to beat opponents to a shaky foothold.

Sure enough, Valentin passed the ball to Van Dewig, who quickly cut in from the right side, and Van Devic made a shooting feint to fool Dantley, who was catching up with the defense, and cut inside with a stride and hit a throw, opening the scoring for the Trail Blazers.

At this time, Mark Eaton has not returned to the basket, and when he arrives at the basket, the main task is to serve.

In the first two minutes, the Trail Blazers' tactical execution was in place, and the pertinence was also very strong, and three quick counterattacks in a row were successful, and the Jazz were a little dizzy.

The Jazz only relied on Dantley to hit a three-pointer to score three points, and the Trail Blazers took an 8-3 lead.

But Gan Guoyang paid a foul, when he caught Dantley, Dantley did not give the ball to Eaton, but forced the basket to make a successful layup, and Gan Guoyang fouled.

Gan Guoyang didn't expect that this No. 4 small forward, who is only 6-foot-4 tall and plays point guards, would have such a strong low-post ability.

I watched Dantley play before, and I thought that this guy was very good at mid-range shooting, and his low-post skills were great, and he often ate opponents taller than him.

When I got to the real competition on the field, I felt the strength of this honest scoring champion.

Gan Guoyang has begun to worry about how the Trail Blazers, who are already weak in front defense, will be ravaged by Dantley in this game.

However, the Trail Blazers' offense is still sharp, Valentin and Gan Guoyang made a block, Gan Guoyang cut straight inside, Valentin made a pass to the ground, Gan Guoyang received the ball and made a layup directly, adding two more points to the Trail Blazers.

One of the major flaws in Eaton's defense is that the defense is not good at blocking and dismantling, which is also a common problem of all heavy centers.

Before the game, Ramsey asked Gan Guoyang to do more blocking and dismantling in the high post to find opportunities, less low-post singles, and promote his strengths and avoid weaknesses, and Gan Guoyang also listened to the coach's opinion.

After the goal was scored, the Jazz had to call a timeout, and they had problems on both ends of the floor.

The offensive front was trapped, and the circulation was not smooth, and Eaton was good at defending the position, but the Trail Blazers did not play the position, but played a quick counterattack and blocking, which made Eaton a little tired.

"We're doing a good job, keep the rhythm and the intensity, Gan, don't go and pinch Dantley again, it's not worth the foul for that. We shrink the line, protect the backcourt rebounds, seize the opportunity to play a quick counterattack, and that's it. "Ramsey decided to go back to his usual mode after the opening defensive work was good.

Shrink the defense and put the jump shot, enter it, and grab the backcourt rebound to counterattack if you don't score, which is the same as the Trail Blazers and the Lakers, and it is also a common offensive and defensive strategy used by many NBA teams at that time, because the three-point shot was very few at that time, and the cost of putting it outside was much smaller than later.

Gan Guoyang has also begun to get used to this conventional defensive method, he just needs to keep an eye on his own people, get in a good position and grab rebounds.

He knew that the time had not yet come when he really needed to exert his strength.

After the timeout ended, the game resumed, and the Jazz players clearly felt that the Trail Blazers' defense had become loose.

The Jazz coach set up a sideline strategy, Dantley used the cover to run to the basket, Eaton received the ball and went straight through, Dantley made a layup.

"Keep your attention! I told you to change your strategy, but I didn't make you lose your focus! Focus! Ramsey was furious on the sidelines, and just after a timeout, he was immediately beaten.

Ramsey is also very conflicted, he also wants to develop and use Gan Guoyang's defensive ability, but the Trail Blazers' outside defense has a congenital flaw, and the result of always letting Gan Guoyang wipe his ass is that he often gets into foul trouble.

And Gan Guoyang's contribution to the offense is very large, and Ramsey hopes to cultivate Gan Guoyang as the main axis of the offensive end.

Ramsey watched from the sidelines as Gan Guoyang held the ball in the high post, and after some observation, he cleverly passed the ball to Paxson, who was running back to cut the basket.

Eaton made up the defense, Paxson did not challenge the mammoth's blocking ability, but passed the ball back to Gan Guoyang, who cut in from the middle, Gan Guoyang jumped and filled the basket with one arm!

"Beautiful-Play" (Pretty show. Ramsey couldn't help but admire that Gan Guoyang's sense of smell on the court was getting better and better.

But back on the defensive end, Dantley held the ball in the high post, one step away from Vanderwicki, and directly pulled out a jumper, and the ball went in, which was also two points.

Gan Guoyang just ran back to the basket to participate in the defense, but he was about to serve again.

"What the is this defense!"