Champions Creed

Chapter 101: 100: The moment to test the star's gold content (ask for monthly tickets!)

In Game 1 of the Finals, everything went very smoothly for the Orlando Magic until one minute before the end of the game.

They were leading the Rockets by 3 points, and O'Neal was at the free throw line.

Unfortunately, at this most critical moment, the Shark missed both free throws.

Olajuwon grabbed the rebound steadily. The Rockets' rebounding is not as vulnerable as the Bulls'.

The Rockets quickly counterattacked, and Mario Elie, who had given the kiss of death in the Western Conference Finals, seized the opportunity and made a steady three-pointer to tie the score.

Role players are once again changing the Rockets' fate.

Coincidentally, Mario Elie's long shot that tied the score was also his first three-pointer of the day!

The Magic were on offense, Roger used a pick-and-roll to attract Horry to defend him, and then passed the ball to Shark, giving him a one-on-one opportunity against Dream.

After receiving the ball, O'Neal pushed Dream Team, then turned around and released the ball.

But the moment O'Neal raised the basketball, Dream slapped the ball away. Olajuwon seemed to have set up a huge net in the air that even the Great Shark could not break through.

Without any help defense, Dream defeated the Shark!
In the last series, Olajuwon averaged 4.2 blocks per game, and his sense of blocking is unparalleled. Facing this shark who has not gained weight completely, Olajuwon can still complete single defense in the restricted area.

Horry immediately grabbed the blocked ball, and the Houston Rockets had the last chance to attack.

O'Neal used all his strength to fight against Dream, and Roger bit Drexler to death, just like he did in the regular season.

But in the end, the ball didn't even pass through the hands of Dream and Glider. It was Kenny Smith who came out and made the final shot from outside the three-point line.

This was his seventh three-pointer of the day - a single-game three-point record in the NBA Finals!
Many young fans' impression of Kenny Smith is probably that he is a funny commentator on TNT TV, who does outrageous things with Barkley and O'Neal in the studio all day long.

But when he was a player, Kenny Smith set the record for three-pointers in a single game in the Finals, and this record was not broken until Ray Allen in 2010.

107 to 104, the Houston Rockets won the first game.

In the final crucial moments of the game, Kenny Smith, Mario Elie and Olajuwon all played decisive roles.

As Roger said, everyone on the Rockets can contribute to victory.

This is the secret of their counterattack.

In an interview after the game, Kenny Smith himself said: "We have too many people who can help Hakeem and Clyde, and there are highlights in every game. But Orlando? They only have Shark and Truth."

The Houston Rockets were in a dark state until the end. When the whole world thought they were going to be killed, they came out on top in the finals and won the first away game.

In fact, the Rockets were able to win today not only because Kenny Smith was accurate.

After watching Olajuwon score 40 points in the Western Conference Finals, Brian Hill gave his team the instruction "Dream should be double-teamed as soon as the ball gets on his fingertips!"

It's not that he doesn't trust O'Neal, but even a player like the Admiral who has won the DPOY was treated like a hostess who was toyed with by Dream in a one-on-one match in the last round.

Hill also knew that the reason why the Admiral was beaten so badly was because Rodman, who was at odds with the team, refused to help him defend, leaving the Admiral alone and exposed to Olajuwon's firepower.

Therefore, Hill would never allow Olajuwon to play one-on-one. The result of letting Olajuwon play one-on-one would be too terrible.

As a result, under the double-team of the Magic, the Rockets shot 43% from three-point range today.

Robert Horry took 10 three-pointers, made 4 of them, and scored 19 points. Horace Grant paid a heavy price for his double teaming of the Dream.

After the team traded Otis Thorpe and pushed Horry to the four position, the Rockets completely switched to a one-star and four-shooter style of play. This was the first time in history that the one-star and four-shooter tactic showed its terrifying power.

It turns out that attacking the Dream from both sides cannot solve the problem.

Magic must find another source.

At the post-match press conference, Roger's prediction came true again.

Although O'Neal scored explosive data of 26 points and 16 rebounds today.

Although Roger scored a team-high 33 points and limited Drexler's shooting percentage to only 36.8%.

But almost everyone blamed the failure on them.

"Roger, why did you choose to pass the ball at the last moment? Don't you have the courage to end the game? Are you afraid to face your own fate? Do you still have a psychological trauma about the Houston Rockets?"

"Shaq, why didn't you hold Olajuwon to 25 points today?"

Roger was prepared for this, so he wasn't very angry.

You get all the praise and you have to bear all the blame. That's what it's like to be a star.

But O'Neal was so angry, he tried his best, he tried to grab every rebound, tried to limit Olajuwon. He even missed only three free throws today, and his free throw rate was 66%, which was much higher than his average.

But all the blame was directed at him, as if he alone was the cause of the team's defeat.

After the press conference, O'Neal returned to the locker room and angrily punched the locker door.

Brian Hill had enough: "Are you crazy!? What if he's injured? Damn, team doctor, team doctor! Check his hand! Losing a game is not pleasant, remember this painful feeling, now you know how stupid it was for you to miss training before?"

O'Neal walked towards Hill angrily. He couldn't believe that this idiot would bring up the past again because he had already listened to Roger and apologized to the coach.

Things that happened in the past should not be brought up again after an apology has been made. Old issues should not be brought up again. This is a tacit understanding between players and coaches.

Brian Hill broke this tacit understanding.

"Remember the pain? Your strategy is totally wrong, wrong! We shouldn't double-team, the Rockets' three-pointers killed us! Robert Horry, Kenny Smith, God Drexler, their whole team can shoot three-pointers! We should play one-on-one! But even if you are wrong, all the blame will be directed at me in the end, damn it!"

Brian Hill would never allow anyone to contradict him, not even O'Neal.

He was about to lose his temper when Roger immediately stood between them. "Shaq, you're too impulsive." Roger pulled O'Neal back to his own position.

Brian Hill thought Roger was on his side, but Roger's next words were: "Brian, we really should try one-on-one defense."

"What!?"

"We have to try it, of course, the decision is yours."

The words "The decision is yours" made Brian Hill stop talking. He was trying to control his emotions.

He knew that Roger was right. In fact, Brian Hill had made two preparations before the series began.

If he can't control the Rockets' perimeter, he will implement man-to-man defense, allowing Olajuwon to score alone, but preventing the Rockets from playing as a whole-man army.

Of course he knew what to do. He was not so angry just now because O'Neal questioned his tactics. If O'Neal could raise the question calmly, Brian Hill would accept it.

He was angry because the Shark actually challenged his authority as the head coach in person.

Fortunately, Roger's timely intervention made both sides calm down.

A few dozen seconds later, Brian Hill tapped the tactical whiteboard: "In the next game, we will use man-to-man defense to block the Rockets' perimeter. We must not lose two home games in a row!"

In Game 2 of the series, the Magic's strategy worked immediately.

In this game, O'Neal stayed in the interior to deal with Dream alone.

Olajuwon used his exquisite dance moves in the Magic's paint to score 35 points.

His various footwork, jump shots, hook shots and layups make it difficult for the Sharks to defend against him.

After retiring, O'Neal admitted: "Hakeem was the first person to humiliate me on the court, and his footwork can withstand research. Even watching the video, it is rare to find that he travels."

This is the unique offensive power of Dream. Even if he opened training camps to teach many people in the future, there is only one Lakers outside shooting legend who can really use this footwork as a trick like him.

Olajuwon scored a lot of points, but in today's game, because there was no double-teaming, the Magic limited the Rockets to only 5 three-pointers, only one-third of the previous game.

The Magic's strategy was successful. Without more three-pointers, the Rockets' offense was no longer so unstoppable.

In the third quarter, Sam Cassell had an outburst, scoring 13 points in a single quarter and 27 points for the whole game.

This is the Rockets' style, someone can stand out in every game.

But Roger responded with 15 points in a single quarter, curbing Cassell's momentum.

最终罗杰拿下36分，奥尼尔32分但6次失误，魔术以109比101拿下第二战。

With the total score at 1-1, the Magic found a way to balance the Rockets.

By the end of the game, NBC Finals commentator Marvin Albert had broken it all down:
"Brian Hill adjusted his strategy in time. He was the first coach in this year's playoffs who dared not to double-team Hakeem. Where did his confidence come from?

The confidence comes from the fact that Coach Brian believes that even if Hakeem scores easily, Roger and Shaq will definitely be able to fight back in the next round and will never suffer any loss!

That is to say, ladies and gentlemen. After only two games, the finals between the two teams has already reached the bloody moment of competing for the stars! "

What the show said is correct, from now on both sides will basically play their cards openly.

Now, the Magic are playing one-on-one on the defensive end, not giving the Rockets a chance to shoot three-pointers, but allowing Olajuwon to challenge O'Neal.

Dream scored alone, and Roger and the Sharks were able to respond, and that was enough.

In fact, it was Roger who primarily responded to Olajuwon.

Because the Rockets' strategy is to firmly double-team O'Neal and prevent him from playing too efficiently.

As for Roger, Tomjanovich certainly did not dare to underestimate him, but he believed that as a guard, even if he was let go one-on-one, his scoring efficiency was not as good as that of Dream Team, and he had no way to compete with Dream Team.

The Rockets’ victory last season is proof of this!

Now, it is time for both sides to compete with each other in terms of star power.

Da Meng and Roger are the sharpest spears of both sides.

They are responsible for piercing each other's chest.

In the post-game interview, Olajuwon was sweating profusely: "Shaq is a tough guy. I just want to go home and sleep now."

Olajuwon felt that a serious defensive O'Neal was more difficult to deal with than the Admiral.

Even though that guy's defensive habits were a bit poor, it was precisely because he was not that sensitive that he was not that easy to dodge.

And after all, the strength and tonnage are there, so it is not easy to fight with it in hand-to-hand combat.

"So what do you think of Roger?" the reporter asked again.

Olajuwon thought for a while and said, "Maybe I'm wrong."

"what?"

"Maybe I'm wrong. During the finals last season, I said that he was only 18 years old. Maybe when he is 22 years old, there will be no rivals for him in the entire league. Now I think that time may be earlier, but..." The man who created the miracle of overthrowing the powerful paused.

"But his scoring can only leave some scars on us. We have enough scars this season. We have come here with scars all over our bodies. He can't kill us, and he can't kill us in Houston." Olajuwon had a firm expression. He had experienced too much this season, and now he was full of confidence no matter what opponent he faced.

He doesn't think Roger can compete with the Rockets with his own firepower. In the next game, as long as the Sharks can be better restricted, no matter how many points Roger scores, it will be in vain.

Compared to the gold content of the stars? Roger can't win.

(End of this chapter)