On May 27, 1989, when a torrential downpour hit Los Angeles and the whole city was enveloped in torrential rain, the Portland Trail Blazers stayed in their hotel, and no one had the heart to go out and have fun.

Several core players gathered in Gan Guoyang's room to discuss countermeasures for tomorrow's game.

In the last game, everything that happened at the end of the third quarter made the Trail Blazers players feel unreal, and looking back, this is undoubtedly a conspiracy between Riley and the Lakers, using a nobody at the end of the bench to exchange the main players of the Trail Blazers, not only won the third game, but also made the Trail Blazers have a disorganized lineup in the fourth game.

Among the main 7 players involved in the rotation, three of them were unable to play, which made the Trail Blazers suffer heavy losses, and the lost Drexler is still the team's second leader, the outside core, and now the diagnosis is out, his tail vertebrae have been contused, fortunately there is no bone crack, but there is some swelling, tomorrow's game will definitely not be able to participate, the fifth game is also very hanging, the sixth game is likely to come back, as far as the current situation is concerned, it is really possible to play the sixth game.

The Trail Blazers also protested to the league, arguing that the Lakers' behavior was a premeditated attack, and that Cauchy and Williams were a legitimate reaction and should not be punished with a suspension.

However, the league eventually made a ban decision, and Williams, Cauchy and Campbell were punished together, which has also happened in past seasons, such as the 1987 Eastern Conference Finals, when the Detroit Pistons were at home, Bill Lambier maliciously knocked down Larry Bird in defense, and Bird punched Ranbir in anger, resulting in Bird being sent off and the Celtics losing the game; But then back on the Celtics' home court, Robert Parish avenged Bird by punching Ranbier twice in a scramble for rebounds, and the referees didn't blow Parrish off the court.

Throughout the series, it is not uncommon for both sides to punch and kick, but the situation of being banned has never occurred, so the Trail Blazers are also extremely dissatisfied with such a penalty, like Gan Guoyang once punched Ranbier (this guy is always beaten) was also banned in the past, and in the same year, Owen and Bird fought, both of them were exempt from punishment, but that was already in 1984.

With the continuous promotion of the NBA and the gradual expansion of its influence, David Stern has begun to establish stricter punishment rules, especially now that the confrontation between players in the league is becoming more and more intense, various court violence incidents are emerging in an endless stream, and the savage basketball represented by the Detroit Pistons is gradually gaining the upper hand, and Stern also feels that it is time to break this trend.

And the Trail Blazers hit the muzzle of the gun like this, and were overshadowed by Riley in the crucial Western Conference Finals, of course, the Trail Blazers were relatively lucky, because the guy on their team who likes to hit people the most ran to see the injured in the first place, so they escaped the group beating and escaped punishment.

Gan Guoyang hadn't gone to see Drexler first, Campbell might have been sent to the hospital, Gan Guoyang has been in the league for five years, but it's not just that he can spew trash talk, he has definitely done no less than Olajuwon and Ranbier in the game, in fact, on the basketball court, people are originally easy to be irritable, even a gentle person like Dr. J on the court can't help but fight Bird, not to mention Gan Guoyang, who is extremely competitive and dares to punch Lambir when he was a rookie?

Therefore, Riley's conspiracy only succeeded half, his biggest target is actually Gan Guoyang, if Gan Guoyang becomes the protagonist of the conflict, waving his fist in the game and being banned, then the loss of the Trailblazers will be great, without the support of Gan Guoyang on the inside, the Trailblazers, who were originally more disadvantaged on the outside, have no advantage on the inside, and in the away game, the fourth game will inevitably be more auspicious.

If the Lakers win Game 4 to tie the score at 2-2, it will be a big blow for the Trail Blazers, who will not only return to the same starting line, but the Lakers will also turn the series around and tip the balance of victory on their side.

Therefore, Campbell's foul is likely to change the entire series or even the entire season, and Gan Guoyang also really understands what it means to "a plan can endanger the state, and a piece of words can disrupt the country", Riley's plan is too poisonous, and the key is that they have no evidence to prove that Campbell was instructed by Riley to break this rule.

All the players were in the room, thinking about tomorrow's game and the series, and there was a little frown, Drexler had flown back to Portland by this time, and he needed the best treatment from the doctor to make sure he was back on the court as soon as possible.

And the first problem that Adelman is facing now is how to arrange tomorrow's starting lineup, with three fewer rotation players, two starters and one substitute, and whoever is replaced will have a headache.

The problem of the interior is relatively easy to solve, the Trail Blazers have a little overflow in the power forward position, the problem is mainly on the outside and the sixth man, after the Cauchy ban, the team's backup small forward has only one person, that is Andre Brans, but Brans's performance this season is quite average, in Jim Paxson's absence, he as the main small forward substitute, the performance is not satisfactory.

Now that Drexler is also injured, Jim Paxson will definitely replace Drexler as the starting point guard, so the hole in the small forward can only be filled by Andre Brans.

Adelman and Bellman repeatedly discussed after the game, whether to let Brans play the starter and play against the Lakers, the small forward is very important, not only because the Lakers have James Worthy, but more importantly, Magic Johnson often has to rely on small forward players to defend, if the short lineup of the top three guards, the outside line is definitely exposed.

The two discussed together for a long time and did not come up with a reasonable solution, none of the big forwards on the bench were used, and several players sat in the room looking at each other, not knowing how to help the head coach.

At this time, Gan Guoyang, who had not spoken much, suddenly spoke: "Why don't you let me play small forward, anyway, on the defensive end, I have to deal with Worthy, and it is not a problem for me to deal with the magic." ”

Everyone turned their heads and looked at Gan Guoyang in a daze, Gan Guoyang saw the meaning of "Are you stupid" in everyone's eyes, Gan Guoyang immediately added: "I act as a small forward on the defensive end, and I am still an inside line on the offensive end, of course, if Lai uses Worthy to defend me, I don't mind beating him into meat stuffing." ”

Gan Guoyang said this, Adelman and Bellman discussed it quietly, and felt that this idea was indeed feasible, in the first two games, when Gan Guoyang was defending Woxi, Woxi's back single efficiency decreased significantly, and the Lakers without reliable scoring points on the inside would fall into disadvantage.

"Gan makes sense, and then we can have Duckworth play center and Sabonis back on the bench as a substitute, so the problem of the sixth man is solved, and Sabonis is more suitable to be the sixth man than Duckworth." Bellman added from the sidelines.

That's right, after the absence of Sabonis in the semifinals, Duckworth and Gan Guoyang's starting effect is still good, tomorrow's game, because of the lack of three main players, the Trail Blazers will definitely have to defend with the Lakers, and the defensive quality of the Duckworth team will be higher, and Sabonis's diverse and flexible playing style also allows him to play well in the sixth man position.

Adelman thought about it and agreed for the time being, but they still needed to think about it.

In this way, the only problem left is to start the big forward, if Gan Guoyang plays a small forward in defense, he needs a big forward to assist Duckworth on the inside, although Branz can also start, play small forward defense in the offense and play big forward, but for his ability to fill the inside line in defense, Adelman can't be trusted.

However, if you don't go to Brans and go to a big forward, then there will be a strange formation of three inside lines and two outside lines on the offensive end, and the counterattack ability of such a lineup is too poor, and the defense is not good, and it is very likely to be dragged to death by the Lakers' Show-time.

Adelman opened the roster of players in his hand, looked at the names on it and thought for a long time, and did not have an accurate answer in his heart, for the current situation, he was indeed unprepared, who knew that the cunning Riley would use such a shady trick to make the Trail Blazers so passive.

"Richard Anderson might be a good choice as well, he's a veteran, he's experienced, he's more adaptable, so maybe it's a good idea to have him played." Jerome Cauchy and Adelman said that he is now very depressed after being suspended, and he can only make moves for the team.

Richard Anderson is a 6-foot-10 power forward, a 1982 rookie who played in the Italian league for two years, and is a veteran who can play on the court, and Adelman has some inclination towards the veteran.

But yes, Buck Williams, who is also suspended, has a different opinion, he said: "Anderson is really good, but he is better suited to play off the bench, I think we have to be aggressive in tomorrow's game, put pressure on the Lakers from the start, we need a young man, I think Mark Bryant is a good little guy." ”

Everyone was a little surprised to hear Williams' recommendation, because Mark Bryant is just a rookie, he is 6-foot-9, he was selected by the Trail Blazers with the 21st pick in the first round, and he has mediocre talent, but he has good physical fitness and is a very energetic guy.

"I agree with Buck, maybe Mark is a good choice, this guy has a lot of ideas when he plays." At this time, Gan Guoyang on the side also spoke, Gan Guoyang still has a deep impression of Mark Bryant, because with his hairstyle, he is simply Akagi Gangxian in "Slam Dunk".

Adelman's head was also a little big in the face of the players' opinions, and in the end he asked the players to rest and leave the squad matters to him to solve.

In fact, Adelman knows in his heart that no matter what kind of lineup is sent tomorrow, the Trail Blazers will definitely be at a disadvantage, and whether they can win the game depends on Gan Guoyang, who has escaped the conspiracy.