Champions Creed

Chapter 111: How can one be enough? The young king continues to evolve! (Please give me a monthly ticket!)
Pat Riley is here, and everyone knows it, but the Heat has indeed become more visible.

Rod Thorn, the NBA's executive vice president of basketball operations and in charge of discipline, mentioned the Heat in an interview with reporters. He could not help but show his love for the team: "Fuck, what is this team doing? Do they treat this as professional wrestling?"

In the past, Rod Thorn would never think of the Heat once throughout the entire year.

But now, just tell me whether the Heat have any importance in his heart.

I can’t say that it’s something I’m obsessed with, but it’s definitely a worry.

It is so difficult to enforce discipline in this league!
Rod Thorn was simply convinced that people like Pat Riley should be prohibited from changing teams.

Because he is like a cult missionary, wherever he goes, he will make the playing style there a mess.

Before Riley, the Miami Heat was an offensive team with Steve Smith and Glen Rice as the core. Their playing style was elegant and beautiful, and the three-pointers from Steve Smith and Glen Rice in the chaos could really create a heat wave in the American Airlines Center.

But Riley has only been here for three months, and the Miami Heat has been completely transformed. There is no heat here, only cold steel defense.

I just did Gangs of New York and now I’m here doing Scarface.

Do you really think you are Al Pacino?

Although the Magic and the Heat were both in Florida, they were not that hostile to each other in the past.

But now, Orlando fans undoubtedly hate the Heat, and there is really a bit of tension between the two teams as mortal rivals in the same state.

The Heat feel they have found the right person, and New York fans also feel the Heat have found the right person.

OK, great.

No longer had to worry about Roger going crazy in Madison Square Garden. Riley successfully directed Roger's anger to the South Coast.

New York fans believe that even if Riley hides in Key West, the southernmost tip of Florida, Roger will pull him out of Hemingway's former residence, push his head into the sea, and let him experience the Old Man and the Sea in depth.

This is undoubtedly the scene that New York fans want to see.

But before he could pin Riley's head down, Roger had to deal with his own troubles first.

O'Neal was injured for two months, which was a huge challenge for the Magic's start.

Brian Hill gave Roger unlimited firing rights, which sounds great, but it was indeed a helpless move.

If Roger doesn't fire, who else can?

Harper? Unreliable.

Mackay? Even less reliable.

A guy who averaged 18 points per game in the Eastern Conference Finals last season by relying on his teammates to be double-teamed? Does your score depend on how hard your teammates are double-teamed? Can someone who relies on others to double-team and shoot open shots be called a serious scorer?
Harper and McKay are unreliable, Grant is unreliable too, so who can the Magic rely on?
There was only Roger.

Last year in Oakland, where the Warriors were, Roger played only half a game. "Click", 40 points.

Therefore, the only person Brian Hill could count on was Roger.

As for the Magic's newly traded player, Marciulionis, his performance in the preseason was disappointing.

Even if he got a chance, he hesitated and dared not shoot, which led to his poor shooting rhythm and low hit rate.

He is always a beat slow in passing the ball and is very prone to mistakes.

With his defense already having black hole attributes, Marciulionis is unable to play a role on the offensive end, which makes him unable to do anything on the court except running back and forth.

The worst game came in the fourth preseason game, when Brian Hill gave Marciulionis a full 30 minutes of playing time.

As a result, he made 6 of 0 shots and committed 3 turnovers, which almost made Brian Hill angry.

After the game, he expressed his disappointment very tactfully: "For players who have experienced major injuries, they need time. I thought Saru was ready, but it seems he needs more time."

However, Brian Hill will not give him time anymore. After this game, he has decided to put Marciulionis on the DNP list and has no intention of including him in the regular season rotation.

Strangely enough, however, Marciulionis is always in excellent form on the training ground.

In the training match, he shot accurately, shot decisively, and passed the ball with the spirit of a European player. Roger couldn't understand why there was such a big contrast between a person in the training field and in the official game.

Although the Magic's training games were not as direct as Riley's team, they were also played quite seriously.

Given his condition in the training match, he shouldn't have performed so badly.

Only a genius knows why. In short, with no one to rely on on the offensive end, the offensive pressure on Roger in the first two months of the season will be very great.

Today, Roger just arrived at Advant Health Center and met Matthew Lionis who was also parking his car.

When he saw Roger, he immediately smiled and greeted Roger in a thick Eastern European accent: "Hey."

Marcius Leones is very easy to get along with and has a gentle personality.

Although his English is not very good, he will always give a polite smile to anyone he sees.

O'Neal commented on him in front of the media yesterday: "If you spend a whole day with him, you will feel that he is an overly polite real estate salesman. I don't want to say that, but he looks like one!"

Roger also greeted him: "Can you still teach me your European step today?"

"Of course, but I don't have much to teach you. You are more talented than me. I have said before that the key to the Eurostep is the starting distance. If it is too close, it is easy to hit the defender, and if it is too far, it will not have the effect of faking. And this distance can only be experienced slowly through repeated practice. It is difficult to explain clearly.

However, if you need, I am willing to practice with you, not to mention teaching."

"You are so kind Saru."

"No, I'm not good enough." Marciulionis' mood seemed to drop instantly.

Roger patted him on the shoulder. He didn't know how to counsel a player who couldn't regain his confidence after suffering a serious injury.

Roger wouldn't say anything pretentious like "I know how you feel, you have to cheer up."

Because he really didn't understand this feeling.

Now, the entire league is looking forward to the defending champion's opening game.

Everyone is curious about how Roger will lead the team without Shark.

Last season, most media had already had this argument: If Roger had not had to share shooting rights with Shaq, he would have been the scoring champion.

Whether it was the 50 points against Jordan, the 40 points in the first half against Penny, or the three consecutive 40-point performances in the finals, it seemed to support this statement.

Now, the media are all expecting Roger to really go all out.

However, the opponent in the opening game is not a team that is easy to score points against.

This year, the Magic's opening opponent is the Seattle SuperSonics, Marciulionis' former team.

Since George Karl took over the Sonics, they have had a very good record in the regular season. In the three full seasons he coached the Sonics, he won more than 55 games.

But they kept having accidents in the playoffs.

In Game 93 of the 64 Western Conference Finals, the Suns made free throws without overtime and eventually won the series. George Karl still thinks that was the biggest black call in NBA history.

George Karl was fined by the league for his words after the game: "The league wants to facilitate a matchup between MVP and Jordan. Do I need to say more?"

In 94, the SuperSonics, who won 63 games and ranked first in the Western Conference, became the background board of the first black eight miracle in history in the first round.

In 95, they lost in the first round to the Los Angeles Lakers, a team without any superstars but with explosive three-point shooting in every game.

For three consecutive years, the Seattle SuperSonics failed in the playoffs.

George Karl doesn't know why he is always so unlucky, especially last season, he has never seen a team with a three-point shooting percentage of more than 40% for three consecutive games in the playoffs.

He believes that if the first round is also a best-of-seven format, his team will definitely win, because he doesn't think the Lakers' magical touch can last for four games.

Such a team that always fails in the playoffs appeared in the territory of the defending champion.

You can laugh at them for being eliminated in the first round for two consecutive years, but their defensive ability is unquestionable.

Since George Karl took over, the Sonics' defensive style has never changed.

They have a group of nimble and agile forwards who are nearly 210 cm tall. With this configuration, the Sonics' double-teaming, switching and rotation are all done perfectly.

Playing against the green-clad Sonics, you feel like you're in a primeval forest, surrounded by tall trees that keep you stuck in it. Even a giant like Dream got lost in the jungle of Seattle.

For Roger, leading the team alone to face such an opponent is undoubtedly a huge challenge.

However, the media is still optimistic about Roger.

Sports Illustrated writer Andrew Sharp's opinion: Roger was the Finals MVP last season and one of the best players in the league. But don't forget that he is only 20 years old and this is only his third NBA season. Can you imagine? This young multimillionaire can't even buy a bottle of wine on the street. What I want to say is that we don't know yet how young Roger has grown.

Finally, Andrew Sharp complained: Well, you can’t buy alcohol in the United States at the age of 20, but at the age of 18 you can buy a semi-automatic rifle to steal alcohol.

That's why Roger likes Andrew Sharp, that guy is very humorous and outspoken.

George Karl came to Orlando in anger. He didn't understand why his team was not favored even though the defending champions were missing the Shark.

He didn't want to be looked down upon anymore, and neither did the entire Sonics team.

And nothing can achieve that effect better than directly defeating the defending champion.

With such anger, George Karl was unfriendly during an interview at the airport:
"Who cares what Andrew Sharp said? That clown always likes to puff out his chest and brag, 'Oh, I talked to Roger again today.' Oh, then congratulations, no one else would bother to talk to you anyway."

"But," the reporter from the Orlando Sentinel smiled awkwardly, "it's not just Andrew Sharp who thinks the Magic can win."

"Really? Then I wish all these idiots a miserable life! I won't let you get your wish. I'm not a coach like Rudy who finds the camera and kneels down! You will never see me give in. I want to leave Orlando with a victory!"

On the night of the game, the Magic held a championship ring presentation ceremony at their home court.

Roger likes the NBA championship ring culture very much. It is cooler than a medal and allows everyone to feel the joy of winning. After all, the championship trophy belongs to the team. How can the players leave some memories? Nothing is more suitable than a championship ring.

Roger put on the ring and raised his hand to the light.

That was so sparkling.

The Shark, wearing a suit and with a bandage on his hand, was next to Roger - although he couldn't play today, he couldn't miss the championship ring presentation ceremony.

The shark looked at the ring, smiled and hugged Roger: "Congratulations, the greatest player."

"Congratulations to you too, the most dominant player." Roger replied with a smile.

"It seems a bit monotonous to wear only one."

"I think so, Shaq."

"A few more?"

"Of course, starting tonight!"

Afterwards, the first championship banner in team history was raised in the Orlando Arena.

George Karl stared at the flag, which was what he had been pursuing throughout his coaching career.

This year, he won't let anything go wrong!
The ceremony of presenting championship rings and raising the championship flag will make the championship team feel proud.

It will also inspire the opponents who are silently watching all this in the darkness.

No athlete can stand by and watch their opponent wear a championship ring in front of them and do nothing.

After the ceremony, the opening match officially began.

After losing Shark, the Magic started with Harper, Roger, McKay, Grant and Cage. The biggest problem with this starting lineup is height, as there is no giant over 210 cm in the team.

The Supersonics' starting lineup was Payton, Hersey Hawkins, Schrempf, Rain Man and Owen Johnson.

George Karl was very excited. Before the game even started, he was yelling on the sidelines: "Kill Roger, kill him. Without the Shark, he's nothing!"

Roger glanced at George Karl. This idiot really spoke harshly.

At the beginning of the game, Owen Johnson snatched the ball from old Cage.

In the first round of the Supersonics, Payton controlled the ball.

Seeing that it was Harper who was defending him, Payton immediately turned his back to the basket with the ball and observed the situation on the court.

He kept pushing forward until he saw Rainman cutting inside, and Payton finally raised his hand.

But it wasn't a pass, it was a turnaround jump shot.

Gary Payton was undoubtedly one of the best point guards in post-up play in the 90s.

"brush".

"Roger, I can do what you can do. But I can win without the shark, but you can't. With the shark attracting the defense, my grandma can score 40 points in three consecutive games in the finals!"

As expected, Gary Payton opened fire.

This chatterbox never misses an opportunity to talk trash.

The Magic attacked, and Harper was pressed by Payton as soon as he crossed the midfield line.

NBC commentator Steve Jones was a little surprised: "Wait, Gary doesn't defend Roger?"

The fans were also surprised. They were all looking forward to a big battle between Roger and Payton, but George Karl's arrangement was beyond their expectations.

George Karl arranged it this way on purpose. In the previous few seasons, Payton was almost always the number one player guarding the opponent throughout the entire game.

The trade-off is that Payton's own offense will become shaky.

This season, George Karl decided to let Payton focus more on the offensive end. He believes that the team needs to improve its offensive efficiency to break through the current bottleneck.

So, instead of letting Payton defend Roger directly, he let Payton guard Harper.

As for Roger, without the Sharks to worry about, the Sonics' front line will handle him well.

Before Harper could pass the ball after being pressured, Payton quickly snatched the ball away.

Payton took advantage of the situation and quickly scored a one-handed dunk.

4-0, George Karl and Payton performed a symphony of trash talk.

"Well done Gary, these wimps can't handle high-intensity defense at all. They were even made to cry by the Miami Heat."

"Hey Ron, what else do you do besides dribble the ball across half court and pass it to Roger?"

The Supersonics took the upper hand at the start, and Gary Payton made his presence felt to the fullest.

They were determined to ruin the defending champions' glorious night.

But Orlando's master would not agree.

The game continued, and this time Roger controlled the ball across half court.

The German Schrempf was in charge of defending Roger. He was tall enough, but not fast enough. The best way to deal with him was to break through.

But just as Roger was about to break through, he saw Hersey Hawkins giving up on McKay and coming towards him.

Roger immediately knew that holding the ball would not work, and the supersonics' quick double-team would make it difficult for him to resist.

So Roger quickly passed the ball to Grant in the high position. Seeing this, Hussey hurried back to McKay, and Schrempf was the only one left in front of Roger.

Then, people saw Roger actually run to the left side of the low post, leaning on Schrempf to get into position with his back, and asking Grant for the ball!
George Karl couldn't believe that Roger would make such a choice. After all, Schrempf was a forward, and Roger had no advantage in strength at all.

However, Roger firmly kept Schrempf behind him and did not fall behind at all, and received the ball that Grant threw in.

Roger, who has successfully gained weight to 95 kg, is now fully capable of playing some matchups while sitting.

In the first two seasons, Roger's turnaround and rebounding were also very accurate, but he rarely took the initiative to go to the low post to get the ball. Now, he can catch the opponent in the low post and shoot like Jordan!
The moment Roger caught the ball, Kemp immediately doubled over. But before Roger could double-team, he simply turned over and hit the backboard.

He didn't even think about passing the ball. In the absence of the shark, he had to make good use of his unlimited firing rights.

There was not much fade away, but the shooting point was extremely high. This was a very iconic Roger-style turnaround jump shot. The basketball hit the backboard and went into the net, and FMVP easily harvested 2 points!
Roger responded to Payton's turnaround jumper with a turnaround jumper, and of course, also responded with trash talk:
"You know the difference between my turnaround jump shot and yours? Someone would pay $120 million for my jump shot. I bet you wouldn't get that much in your entire career, Gary."

Payton was about to speak, but Roger interrupted him: "Shut up, don't talk about you buying a Ferrari, my Ferrari was given to me by the manufacturer."

Payton: ???
It was the first time he saw someone who could predict trash talk!
4 to 2, as Sharp said, Roger is still evolving.

To be honest, the illegal defense rule benefits guards who play in the low post.

If this is the 21st century NBA where double teams are allowed, with the Magic's almost nonexistent space, the Sonics could have just had four players move to the edge of the restricted area to form a double team. The moment Roger received the ball in the low post, he would have been immediately trapped.

Even if Roger could pass the ball, his teammates would not be able to respond with long shots.

But under the illegal defense rules, even if McKay and Harper can't shoot three-pointers, they can help open up space before Roger receives the ball.

This is why post-up plays became so popular in the 90s.

Roger also wanted to seize this bonus, so he kept gaining weight. For any physical sport, confrontation is the basis. As the confrontation improves, more and more postures can be unlocked.

After Roger scored the goal, Schrempf was inevitably scolded by George Karl.

What surprised Roger was that George Karl's venomous attack on his own people was even more vicious than his attack on his opponents: "Damn it, Detrev, toughen up! You want to be a European bitch who can be fucked by anyone? I thought all European bitches were in Amsterdam!"

George Karl is such a person. He never hesitates to directly criticize or even insult his players in public.

The Supersonics counterattacked, and this time Payton dribbled past Harper and went straight into the inside, attracting Michael Cage's help defense, then jumped up and made a beautiful back pass to Irving Johnson under the basket.

Michael Cage knew something was wrong. When he turned around, Owen Johnson had already raised the basketball with both hands and was ready to dunk. Cage was powerless to stop him.

But the next second, what George Karl and Payton saw was not a goal, but a bloody shot!
Roger returned to the penalty area and used his powerful jumping ability to fan the ball away before Owen Johnson dunked!
In the third season, Roger's defensive reading ability has improved. In the preseason, Brian Hill found that Roger's help defense has become better. His help defense and backup defense choices are more reasonable and the timing is more accurate.

He now has the potential to become a high-quality sweeper.

Spoelstra deserves credit for this, as the videos he edited made it easier for Roger to read the game.

From Abunassar to Spoelstra to the entire training staff, Roger got every penny he spent.

Now, the only thing left is the money I paid for treating Leticia to dinner.

But considering that Leticia will soon come to the United States to start private French lessons, Roger believes that he will soon receive posture, no, knowledge in return.

Brian Hill couldn't help but take a deep breath. What will Roger's final form be like? Only God knows!
After completing the block, Roger continued to fight back: "If it were me, I would still score the ball in the assist defense. Gary, in the final analysis, you are just a wimp. That kind of juggling pass is completely clown-like behavior in front of the defending champion."

"Is this your excuse for not passing the ball? The whole world knows you are a cancer!" Payton also kept chattering.

"Even if I am, I'm a cancer with a championship ring. By the way, Gary, how does it feel to go home in the first round? I never knew what it felt like to be eliminated in the first round."

Then, Payton spewed out a piece of trash talk that could be muted with a "beep, beep, beep" sound. However, when a person can only respond to you with a bunch of illogical swear words, it proves that he has completely lost this round of verbal confrontation.

The game continued, and Roger did not ask for the ball in the low post for the second consecutive time.

If you use the same trick repeatedly, the opponent will find it easy to target you.

Those who often engage in physical combat know that you have to change up your tactics to make it difficult for your opponent to resist.

This time, Harper barely controlled the ball with his back to the basket under the pressure of Payton, and then passed the ball to Roger who was at the top of the arc outside the three-point line.

Roger broke through the moment he received the ball, caught Schrempf off guard and prevented Hersey Hawkins from double-teaming him.

After passing Schrempf, Roger went deep into the penalty area, immediately received the ball, and stepped to the left to prepare to attack the basket. But soon Kemp crossed to Roger's breakthrough route, and his assisting speed was impeccable.

At this point, Roger is about to run into Kemp who comes to assist in defense in time, and his breakthrough is completely useless under the siege of the Sonics' front line.

As a result, in the second step, Roger suddenly moved to the right, then put the ball very low to avoid being intercepted, and passed Kemp at a ghostly pace.

Everyone can see that this is a beautiful European step!
On the bench, Marciolionis was a little surprised.

He didn't expect Roger to be able to use this trick in a formal game so soon. He had a very good grasp of the timing of his pass and the distance from the defender.

Marciulionis knew that Roger was extremely talented, but his talent was even better than he expected.

After dribbling past Kemp, Roger faced Sonics center Irving Johnson, jumped up to confront him in the air, and then made a layup.

In the past, Roger often lost his balance when making layups during confrontations, and could only rely on his touch. But after strengthening his upper limbs this summer, Roger was able to perform his moves more easily during confrontations.

He withstood the confrontation of Owen Johnson in the air, then threw the ball lightly and scored on the backboard.

Roger's offense was smooth with a layup after a European step!

Steve Jones was excited: "A beautiful Euro-step layup. The Sonics' front line couldn't contain him! What else can Roger do? How many tricks does he still have to use?"

4 to 4, the score is tied.

The defending champion without Shark was not as easy to deal with as the Supersonics thought, and they couldn't even establish an advantage at the start.

"Asshole, asshole, how could you be fooled by that little trick, asshole!" George Karl was furious, and no one knew whether he was scolding Schrempf or Kemp. After all, Roger passed two people in this round.

But Roger's target of scolding was very clear. He pointed at Payton:
"Like I said just now, if it was me, I would still score the ball even though I was assisting in defense. Look, Gary, this is the difference between you and me. I can really fuck you, but you are a tragedy who can only use your mouth."

Then, something happened that surprised the entire Sonics team.

Gary Payton didn't fight back!

Less than five minutes into the game, Payton was the first to be stuck!
Orlando fans cheered. In these few rounds, Roger's progress was visible to the naked eye.

I really don’t know what kind of performance Roger will put on in the next two months.

O'Neal leaned leisurely on the bench: "Brian, I want to take a leave."

"what?"

"The world is so big, I want to go out and see it."

"What the hell are you talking about!?"

"I mean, Roger is so strong that he doesn't need me. Man, he's probably the best teammate I'll ever have in my life!"

"If you want to praise him in the future, can you just say it?"

"No, I really want to take a leave."

"roll!"

O'Neal smiled. He liked to see Brian Hill getting angry because of him.

At the same time, he was also glad that he was also very strong.

Otherwise, around Roger, people would really think of themselves as Scott Pippen.

Fortunately, no one would think so.

(End of this chapter)