The Portland Trail Blazers had reaped a bountiful harvest this season, successfully bringing in a group of young standouts with immense talent and exceptional athleticism.
They included Rasheed Wallace, Damon Stoudamire, Bonzi Wells, and others—players who seemed like tireless track stars, brimming with endless energy and passion.
On the other side, although the Houston Rockets had two superstar-level interior players in Charles Barkley and "The Dream" Olajuwon, time spared no one.
They had now entered the twilight of their careers, their physical condition far from what it had once been.
Against the Trail Blazers' wave-like, ferocious transition defense and full-court press, the Rockets' formidable interior strength—which should have been able to display tremendous power in half-court offense—was left with no room to operate.
The young Steve Francis gave it everything he had, slashing his way to 26 points, 6 rebounds, and 8 assists as he tried to use his explosive style to battle the Trail Blazers' wing corps.
But basketball was, after all, a five-man game.
Charles Barkley—the legendary "Flying Pig" who had once fought alongside Li Fei and led the Phoenix Suns to an NBA championship—had changed with the times, and the years had caught up with him. No longer in his prime, his steps had visibly become unsteady in this fiercely contested game.
By the end of the game, he had scored 16 points and pulled down 10 valuable rebounds.
Sadly, heroes grew old. Though he was decent on offense, his defense—especially his transition speed—was truly hard to praise. He was practically the perfect target and an ideal ATM for the Portland Trail Blazers' nimble, versatile guards.
The Dream Olajuwon had been stripped by time of his once-dreamlike footwork.
Olajuwon finished with only 14 points and 8 rebounds. Faced with Rasheed Wallace's unreasonable high-arcing threes and frequent cuts