Only Divac could play matches and adapt to the NBA’s confrontational environnt with the rookies.
It was a strange sight; in Europe, Yugoslavia and the Soviet n’s basketball teams were arch-rivals.
At the Seoul Olympics in 1988, the Soviets and Yugoslavia were the strongest competitors.
Petrović was the scoring king of Yugoslavia, and Sabonis was the Rebound King of the entire Olympics.
The two teams first t in the group stage, where the Soviet Team suffered a big loss, 76:92, losing by 16 points.
This margin was quite exaggerated in a 40-minute FIBA ga, especially when the two sides were so evenly matched.
In that ga, Sabonis only got 11 points. He hadn’t recovered from an Achilles tendon injury, and the Trail Blazers’ doctors advised him not to play.
But for the gold dal and victory, he played anyway and had a struggling performance in the first match, losing to the arch-rival Yugoslavia. Sabonis was very disappointed.
However, Sabonis and the Soviet Team got better as the tournant went on. In the crucial semifinals, they took down Team USA; Sabonis had 13 points and 13 rebounds. His defense in the Three Second Zone played a crucial role; Arican shooters found it difficult to penetrate and score inside. Superstar Danny Manning didn’t score a single point the entire ga.
Then, the Soviet Team faced Yugoslavia again in the finals. This ti Sabonis showed no rcy; he devastated Divac, destroyed Yugoslavia’s inside ga, scoring 20 points and pulling down 15 rebounds, avenging his earlier humiliation and leading his team to the championship.
Petrović scored the most points in the ga with 24, but it was in vain. His drives were repeatedly thwarted by Sabonis.
Divac was even more awkward in front of Sabonis, getting dunked on and blocked by him on offense.
The defeat was a huge disappointnt for both n, and they sharply rembered Sabonis, the Soviet giant.
Unexpectedly, now the three n had beco teammates; one was playing on the court, and the other two were zoning out on the sideline.
Sabonis and Petrović were a bit awkward together; they didn’t speak the sa language, and both were reserved by nature.
When they occasionally wanted to say sothing, often one would start a conversation and the other wouldn’t know what to say, leading to more silence.
Neither of them had much in common with the surrounding Arican players; most of the rookies on short contracts wouldn’t stay with the team for long.
Although they didn’t talk much, their relationship wasn’t bad. During the ’88 Olympics, they had bumped into each other off the court as opponents.
After the Olympics final, the organizing committee arranged for drug testing, and the two were placed in the sa room. Buckwalter and Gan Guoyang watched the ga together.
Buckwalter was very worried that they might clash inside, affecting their future cooperation with the Trail Blazers.
But when the drug testing was over, they ca out side by side, looking normal and relaxed. Sabonis even invited Petrović for a pint of beer.
Divac, the youngest among the trio, turned out to be the best glue between the quiet duo; cheerful and lively, he was the worst at English but talked the most and enjoyed making jokes.
Facing his old rival Sabonis, Divac wasn’t resistant; on the contrary, the two giants got along very well.
Sabonis was able to participate in so basic physical training, and Rick Adelman allowed him to join tactical sessions.
The two Slavic giants would play one-on-one in the gym, exchanging experiences.
Because of Divac’s involvent, Petrović beca more talkative too; they had a common topic: basketball.
Eventually, as long as Divac was around, the three would chat and laugh quite nicely.
Without Divac, the other two would beco silent, but Divac felt good with either of them.
The sumr league the Trail Blazers participated in was held in Salt Lake City. The Jazz team’s operator, Frank Layden’s son, Scott Layden, invited the Trail Blazers, Kings, and Suns to compete for the Rocky Mountain Championship along with the Jazz team.
The Trail Blazers ultimately won this sumr league, and Divac’s performance was not too bad.
However, he showed a lack of toughness in the gas; his tall fra was consistently knocked about by Arican players.
Clearly, the Arican basketball environnt involved more intense physical contact and competition; the first challenge for a European player in Arica was the physicality.
When the team left Salt Lake City, Rick Adelman reminded the three players in the training camp summary, "There will be a rookie camp starting in early October, at that ti... you’ll face so tests. You’ll need to work on your physical toughness, especially Divac, you can’t get knocked around anymore. Petrović, you too need to bulk up a bit; you’re too skinny, you could get crushed. As for Arvydas... take care of your injury."
Adelman clearly trusted Sabonis’s strength and toughness, but Sabonis himself wasn’t quite as confident.
Privately, he told Divac and Petrović, "I heard that the Trail Blazers have a tradition where Ah Gan participates in the rookie training camp every year to personally train the newcors."
Petrović said, "West the manager ntioned it; I’m really looking forward to it."
Divac patted Petrović and said, "This guy is crazy; he always wants to challenge Ah Gan."
Sabonis shook his head and said, "I’ve faced Ah Gan one on one."
Both were wide-eyed with curiosity, urging Sabonis to continue the story.
Sabonis coughed and said, "It was during the Seoul Olympics. You know, Ah Gan ca to watch the ga. After the ga, he found , we found a court and had a little showdown, and then..."
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