The Golden Age of Basketball

The Miami Heat, having lost the finals, continue their strengthening efforts. Pat Riley's flames of revenge were doused by a series of cold rains, leaving smokes rising everywhere. He finally calmed down, viewing team building and the championship pursuit with a more peaceful mindset.

The Heat signed John Salley, who did not renew with the Suns, to bolster their clumsy power forward position, providing greater support for Olajuwon.

Of course, more importantly, it's about Drexler's condition. Together with Olajuwon, they remain strong contenders for the championship in the next three years.

The reason the Phoenix Suns let go of John Salley is that they still wanted to acquire a true big center, rather than a player who swings between the power forward and center positions.

They got someone to satisfy their wish—Robert Parish.

After the 1992-1993 season, Kevin McHale officially retired, leaving only one of Boston's former frontcourt tridents.

After acquiring Divac, Parish's status within the Celtics declined day by day.

During the 1992-1993 season, Divac grew into an outstanding center averaging 12+10+3 per game.

While Parish was already 39 years old, he couldn't represent the Celtics' future, and his last year's contract was an impressive 4 million US Dollars.

Thus, the Celtics did not execute his final year of the contract, letting Parish become a free agent.

Though 39, Parish's condition remained good, statistically matching Divac.

Moreover, as he aged, his height wouldn't shrink, so the Phoenix Suns, plagued by "shortness," signed the soon-to-be 40-year-old Chieftain with a contract, hoping he could bring height, defense, and championship experience to the Suns.

The Celtics' former frontcourt trident has completely disintegrated and vanished, with Boston Celtics' glory from the '80s dissipating into the ruthless flow of time.

The recruitment of various strong teams made the Trail Blazers appear more embarrassed, prompting citizens to petition continuously, hoping Ah Gan would stay.

Time flashed to September, and soon, rookie training camps and pre-season training camps would kick off, yet Gan Guoyang's staying or leaving remained unanswered.

At this point, the Trail Blazers finally decided on a head coach. PJ Carlesimo, who was an assistant for Bobby Berman on the 1992 Dream Team coaching staff, became the one to take on the mess.

Before this, he had no experience coaching an NBA team, and only such a newcomer would fearlessly take the blame.

Of course, PJ Carlesimo must have ambitions. The Portland Trail Blazers at this moment are under the spotlight, and every move of the new coach will attract attention.

If some achievements are made in the new season, Carlesimo could rise swiftly, becoming a renowned coach within the league.

By the end of September, the Trail Blazers made another important signing—they picked up the former Oregon student AC Green.

This was again an assist from the Los Angeles Lakers, where Jerry West, after returning to the Lakers, did not renew Green's contract, making him a free agent.

Once Green became a free agent, his first choice was naturally the Portland Trail Blazers. He is an Oregon Portlander, born, raised, and college-educated there.

After becoming an NBA player, the Lakers were adversaries with the Trail Blazers for a long time, and both sides had their wins and losses. Green always hoped to have the opportunity to play in Portland again someday.

And the Trail Blazers were similarly interested in him for two reasons: Green is the power forward they need, and he has a good relationship with Ah Gan, who would be more likely to stay if Green were signed.

On September 28, 1994, the Trail Blazers formally signed AC Green. The team's seemingly ragged roster appeared slightly more complete with Green's addition.

However, the signing of Carlesimo and Green led the American media to feel pessimistic about Ah Gan staying.

Because neither of them are star coaches or star players—one is a pure rookie, and the other's most famous trait is his attitude towards premarital sex.

From a championship perspective, neither of them can help the Trail Blazers maintain their championship competitiveness.

Especially Carlesimo, who has no NBA achievements, is ambitious, and reportedly has a bad temper.

AC Green is an excellent championship puzzle piece, but the current Trail Blazers don't need a puzzle piece. Their skeleton, flesh, and blood have been reduced to just a backbone.

The Oregonian newspaper published an article expressing pessimism after this signing:

"The Trail Blazers did something amid chaos. We empathize with their difficulties; they suffered devastating blows. But we have to say that this series of operations can only be rated a C grade. If eventually, Ah Gan chooses not to stay, to retire, or simply to go to another team, this rating will drop to a D grade. They couldn't even bring in an All-Star level deputy. But, on reflection, who would be willing to come?"

The whole summer in Portland was steeped in a sense of sadness and helplessness. They didn't even hold a championship parade for their four-peat.

Sports Illustrated speculated that if the Portland Trail Blazers couldn't build a contending roster, Ah Gan had no reason to continue. Because for him, not winning a championship would be a failure.

If he chose to retire this summer, no one would blame him. It was as if heaven had deprived them of the chance to pursue the championship further, not something within human control.

In short, all kinds of speculations were rampant, and rumors were increasing, with some even claiming Petrović and Lewis's deaths were warnings from a powerful force.