With one play on offense and one on defense, Gasol showcased his dominance over Oden.
The future might belong to Oden, but right now, the far more experienced Gasol was the one holding the upper hand in their matchup.
This also allowed the Lakers' triangle offense to finally start clicking.
Put simply, the foundation of the triangle offense relied on having a dominant matchup on the floor—someone who could relentlessly punish opponents in isolation.
Of course, that focal point also had to possess elite passing vision, since no opponent was going to let you play one-on-one all night.
That was why, despite Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'Neal, and even Kobe Bryant being score-first players, their ability to pass out of double-teams was exceptional. It was also why Carmelo Anthony could never make the triangle offense work with the Knicks.
While Marc Gasol played a very different style from his brother Pau, what they shared was high basketball IQ and superb playmaking ability.
Once the Trail Blazers began double-teaming Gasol, Von Wafer stepped up on the perimeter.
First, he caught a pass from Gasol and drained a corner three, then pump-faked, pulled up, and buried a midrange jumper, scoring five straight points by himself.
Perimeter players who could average over twenty points in the D-League were always lethal bucket-getters in Summer League.
Working in tandem inside and out, the duo became the key to unlocking the game for the Lakers.
By the final buzzer, Wafer had poured in a game-high thirty-one points, while Gasol posted a double-double with eighteen points and eleven rebounds, adding four assists to his tally.
Carried by their stellar play, the Lakers edged out the Trail Blazers 83–81 to kick off the tournament with a win.
For Portland, LaMarcus Aldridge racked up a monster double-double with twenty-seven points and twelve rebounds. Oden, however, logged only twenty minutes, finishing with six points, two rebounds, and two blocks before fouling out with ten fouls, the limit in Summer League.
Wafer's scoring barrage was dazzling, but against the backdrop of Oden's struggles, Gasol's performance shone even brighter.
Even Marv Albert changed his previously dismissive tune by the game's end, calling Gasol the most underrated rookie in this year's draft.
"Forty-Eighth Pick Dominates First Overall Pick"—that was the exact kind of juicy headline the media lived for.
Once the game ended, Yang Shuai walked over to Gasol, excitement written all over his face.
He had expected Gasol to play well tonight, but he hadn't anticipated him being this good.
In original history, Gasol didn't enter the NBA until 2008. Starting at center for the Grizzlies in his rookie year, he averaged 11.9 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 1.1 blocks in thirty minutes per game while shooting 53 percent from the field.
But this was only 2007!
It could only be said that Gasol's current level of play was already above Summer League caliber—and that his opponent had made him look even better by comparison.
Right now, Oden was clearly still a raw prospect. His physical gifts were unmistakable, but his skill set was unrefined, and he sorely lacked game experience.
Of course, Yang Shuai also knew that due to injuries, Oden would never reach his full potential.
None of that concerned Yang Shuai right now, though; all he wanted was to celebrate Gasol's stellar outing.
Seeing Yang Shuai approach, Gasol shrugged with a wide grin. He was probably feeling much like Luka Dončić would upon first arriving in the league: the NBA really felt easier to play in than Europe.
In the locker room after the game, the players crowded around Brian Shaw in wild celebration.
Winning or losing in Summer League didn't mean much to the organization, but for the players on the court, what could be more thrilling than a win?
Standing by the doorway, Yang Shuai smiled as he watched the team celebrate.
Although a single victory hardly proved the roster was an unqualified success—after all, Summer League lasted ten days and they still had four games left to play—a strong start was always cause for optimism.
Just then, Cole hurried down the hallway, stepped up to Yang Shuai, and whispered something into his ear.
Yang Shuai's brow furrowed, but a surge of delight rushed through him. The moment he had been waiting for had finally arrived.
Kobe had issued his ultimatum!
It all traced back to the trade negotiations between the Nets and the Lakers over Jason Kidd. Originally, after the Lakers rejected New Jersey's proposal, the matter should have blown over.
Yet that was the nature of the NBA trade market: failed negotiations almost always leaked as rumors. And when Kobe caught wind of the rumor, he was furious.
Just as Yang Shuai had pointed out during his interview, Kobe was thoroughly disillusioned with the state of the Lakers, particularly the front office's failure to meaningfully upgrade the roster over the past two years.
Now, an opportunity had finally presented itself, only to fall apart because the team refused to part with Andrew Bynum. Kobe's pent-up frustration erupted.
During an exclusive interview with prominent EPN personality Stephen A. Smith, he publicly aired his trade request: "I would like to be traded. I don't see any other alternative."
Players being unhappy with their team's situation was common enough around the league, but firing shots so openly in the media was rare—especially from the face of the NBA like Kobe Bryant.
It sent immediate shockwaves through the ongoing free agency period.
In fact, as soon as the interview aired, multiple teams launched aggressive pursuit of Kobe. The Cavaliers and Mavericks were the most desperate: Cleveland made everyone available except LeBron James, while Dallas offered anyone on their roster except Dirk Nowitzki.
If a deal actually materialized, whether it was a LeBron-Kobe duo or a Nowitzki-Kobe pairing, in an era before superteams had become the norm, it would plunge the rest of the league into pure despair.
Not long after Cole finished speaking, Yang Shuai received a call from Kupchak.
The message boiled down to four words: Team in crisis. Return immediately.
After delegating his remaining responsibilities to Cole, Yang Shuai flew back to Los Angeles that very night.
Given the urgency of the situation, Kupchak had already rushed from home to his office at Staples Center.
When Yang Shuai arrived, Kupchak was on the phone, fielding calls one right after another.
"Are we going to start making moves to upgrade the roster?" Yang Shuai finally asked once Kupchak set the receiver down.
Even though, in theory, a single game from Marc Gasol wasn't conclusive proof, trading for Pau Gasol had clearly become their best option.
Looking at it optimistically, because the Lakers had merely been a fringe playoff team over the previous two seasons, their draft picks were worth even more than they had been in original history.
In original history, by February 2008, the Lakers were sitting second in the Western Conference. That was the main reason Gregg Popovich had branded the trade as "grand theft": while the Lakers appeared to give up two draft picks in the deal, late first-rounders were practically worthless.
Kupchak didn't give an opinion, instead laying out the reality of the situation to Yang Shuai: "Mr. Buss is furious with what Kobe did. You know he shipped Shaq out of town for him back then."
Yang Shuai nodded. Jerry Buss had practically pampered Kobe. A quote that stuck vividly in Yang's memory was: "If the league allowed it, I'd give Kobe seventy-five million." That stood in stark contrast to how Bulls owner Jerry Krause had treated Michael Jordan.
So one could easily imagine how enraged Jerry Buss was right now; in his eyes, Kobe's stunt was nothing short of blatant betrayal.
Kupchak had probably heard things from Buss along the lines of "trade that guy right now."
"So what's our next move?" Yang Shuai asked, somewhat confused. If Dr. Buss was fuming, any pursuit of roster upgrades would likely have to wait until he cooled off. Why had Kupchak summoned him back in such a rush?
"Get ready. You're going to China," Kupchak said, picking up a flight ticket from his desk and handing it to Yang Shuai.
Yang Shuai was taken aback as he took the ticket, but it quickly clicked. "Kobe's in China?"
He remembered Kobe loved visiting China on promotional tours.
Kupchak nodded. "That interview was taped before Kobe left for China. We can't get in touch with him right now."
*Good grief,* Yang Shuai thought to himself. Drop an ultimatum and then vanish off the grid—classic Kobe.
Was Kobe really not worried that he'd be traded by the time he got back?
Oh, right, he truly didn't care—Kobe had a no-trade clause...
That meant even if the Lakers worked out a deal with another team, Kobe still had to sign off on it.
That tyrannical clause... Yang Shuai recalled how the Suns had been burned terribly by Bradley Beal's no-trade clause in the future.
"Have we held trade talks with the Grizzlies before?" Yang Shuai asked Kupchak before leaving the office.
Seeing Kupchak shake his head, Yang Shuai felt relieved. It was within expectations—if talks had already happened, Kobe might never have issued his ultimatum.
Yet Kupchak's next words caught Yang Shuai off guard: "We've had discussions with Minnesota and Indiana, but as you know, those all involved Andrew."
Any deal involving Andrew Bynum was a nonstarter for Jerry Buss, so naturally those talks went nowhere.
Early the next morning, Yang Shuai boarded a flight bound for China.
Kupchak's purpose in sending him to China was clear: track Kobe down and re-establish contact. The rest could be sorted out over the phone.
After all, neither he nor Kupchak was the decision-maker; the key was getting Kobe and Jerry Buss to talk to each other directly.
Yang Shuai, however, had no intention of stopping at just that. His next career goal was to become an NBA general manager. Merely doing his assigned job wouldn't be enough; this was an opportunity he couldn't pass up.
Before long, the plane touched down at Pudong International Airport.
He hadn't felt much when boarding, but stepping off the plane, walking out of the airport, and seeing the familiar scenes from his memories, he couldn't help a surge of emotion: *It really feels great to be home!*
Chapter 44