Champions Creed

Chapter 141 Chapter 140: It is indeed simpler than imagined, but the simplest one is supersonic (ask for monthly votes!)

Three days before the finals, O'Neal was interviewed by reporters in the locker room while holding the Eastern Conference championship trophy.

A reporter from the Orlando Sentinel came up to him and asked, "Shaq, what do you think of Coach George Karl's comments yesterday?"

Shark glanced at the reporter in front of him, tightly pursed his lips, and had no intention of answering the question.

O'Neal has not been interviewed by the Sentinel since the "voting incident" at the beginning of the season.

The same thing happened to Roger. He kept his word and also never gave another interview to the Sentinel.

Soon, a reporter from another newspaper asked the same question, and O'Neill finally answered:
"Look, George Karl is a very cunning guy. He knows his team can't compete with us in terms of physical strength, so he wants to use this kind of speech to disrupt us.

It's laughable that he's pinning his hopes on something like this. Hey George, let me tell you what the key to winning a championship is.

All it takes is two things to make it work, me and Roger, that's all.

You can't expect to get any results you desire from us. Nothing you fantasize about will happen.

Roger and I are going to kick your asses, remember that, George, remember that!"

O'Neal did not avoid the question. A few days had allowed him to calm down.

He knew in his heart that there was no conflict between him and Roger.

He knew who defended him when he was injured and absent.

He knew who had refused to be interviewed by The Sentinel in order to support him.

He knew who was there for him when he lost his loved ones.

So he wouldn't be jealous of Roger's achievements.

The real contradiction lies between him and the outside world. The outside world thinks he is a supporting role, so he has to prove that he is not!
Shark is determined to win this year's FMVP. He only needs one FMVP to shut everyone up!

He believed he could do it, even though the Sonics had buried Olajuwon, proving they had the ability to deal with super centers.

But Shark doesn't think he will experience the same fate as Olajuwon because he has Roger by his side to help contain the defense.

You can't confuse Roger's containment with Drexler. No matter how good the Sonics' defense is, it is impossible to contain two top players at the same time.

Roger also fought back in front of the media: "Coach George Karl has never won a championship, so he fantasizes that the championship team is as fragile as his team. Go ahead, this kind of talk can't defeat us. We just beat the Chicago Bulls, and George Karl actually thinks we will collapse because of one sentence? This is really the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard."

Roger and Shaq are very confident that they can easily beat the Supersonics, even if they have a good record of 64 wins this season. But if even the legendary 72-win Bulls can't stop the Magic, other teams will have no chance at all.

George Karl was also very confident. Shark and Roger seemed to be calm, but he did not believe these appearances.

The complexity of human beings lies in the fact that it is impossible to fully know what the other person is thinking.

It is impossible for Roger and O'Neal to coexist, and it is only a matter of time before they fall apart.

Why are there so few teams that have won consecutive championships in NBA history? Because everyone feels that they deserve more after winning the championship, and it is difficult for you to solve everyone's problems.

Why did the Chicago Bulls win three consecutive championships? Because Michael Jordan, the second line, was extremely strong, and Pippen got a contract that he thought was satisfactory during the three consecutive championships, which stabilized Pippen's emotions and solved his problems.

Why did the Detroit Pistons win two consecutive championships? Because they decisively traded away the team's scoring leader Adrian Dantley in the 88-89 season. He repeatedly complained to the media about Rodman's long playing time.

The Pistons directly solved the people who created the problems at the source, and in return created an extremely healthy team environment, which was the basis for their consecutive championships.

The two teams that have won consecutive championships recently both got the chance to win consecutive championships because they found ways to solve their problems.

But what about Roger and Shark? Shark still hasn't even gotten the contract he wanted, nor the personal honor he wanted, and his problems haven't been solved.

So George Karl thought that Shaq and Roger would explode sooner or later. He was just betting on whether Roger and Shaq would explode at the time he needed.

June 1996, 6, Orlando, Florida.

The Magic brought the Finals to their home court for the second consecutive year.

Gary Payton was very excited. He had been waiting for this game for a long time. As the best defensive player, he had long wanted to kill a top defender in the league to prove himself.

Payton actually did this in the Western Conference Finals. He allowed Stockton to only get 9.9 points and 7.6 assists in seven games, with a shooting percentage of 39.7%. This was a cruel game that left future Stockton fans helpless with their tactics.

It's hard to associate this Stockton with the Stockton who scored 97 points alone in the final moments of the 9 Western Conference Finals, made a three-pointer against Barkley, and defeated the Big Three of Dream, Flying Pig, and Glider.

It is also difficult to connect this Stockton with the Stockton who made a crucial three-pointer with 98 seconds left in the 44 Finals and almost destroyed the Bulls dynasty.

In fact, this was a star-killing match that was even more brutal than the "Dream-Admiral" match. Stockton's performance was only one 58-point defeat away from becoming the point guard god.

However, because Stockton himself was not known for scoring, this series did not add much prestige to Payton.

Even Payton himself felt it was not enough.

The opponents he wants to defeat are at the same level as Roger and Jordan!

Since Payton had been clamoring to kill Roger and Jordan a long time ago, Payton was also particularly noticeable today. DPOY versus scoring champion, this was also a gimmick, and all media paid great attention to this matchup.

When Payton entered the court today, a reporter soon interviewed him: "Gary, in the last game, Roger scored 47 points against the Bulls' No. 48 defense in the league. In the opening game of this season, Roger also scored points against you and won. How do you think you can contain the youngest scoring champion in history?"

"I can easily contain him. He scored 48 points against us in the opening game because I was not matched up with him. He scored 47 points against the Bulls because the Bulls did not have the best defensive player."

The always frivolous Rainman was also very confident under Payton's influence: "Will Shaq be a problem? Man, I'm a second-team player, why should I discuss a third-team center? Shaq's greatest achievement this season is probably that he was hailed as the best third-team player by many media. But no matter what, he is only a third-team player after all."

Payton and Kemp thought that their foul mouths could reflect their toughness, but in fact, it has brought them a lot of trouble.

It's just that they don't know it yet.

Before the game started, Roger and O'Neal struck their signature pose, standing with their hands on their hips, chewing gum, and looking at every Sonics player.

O'Neal was puzzled: "Don't these idiots read newspapers? Don't they know that the outside world believes that the only suspense in this round of games is whether it will be 4-0 or 4-1?"

Roger laughed out loud: "Look at them, Shaq, look at them. Damn, these guys really think they can win!"

The two Eastern overlords looked at their opponents and stretched their bodies.

Finally, Roger patted O'Neal on the back and said, "Let's go. It's our duty to scare our opponents."

The Supersonics are too good at adding drama to themselves, it's time for them to return to reality.

The game started quickly, and Payton's layup bounced out of the frame due to the interference of the Shark.

It is said that O'Neal's defense is not good, but only when you really enter the inside and face a giant who can easily fill the entire reasonable collision zone, you will know how difficult it is to score on top of the shark's head.

When the Magic counterattacked, Payton immediately stuck to Roger, grabbed Roger's jersey and fought with him.

Payton's defense was indeed fierce, but Roger also pushed him away roughly and raised his hand to ask for the ball.

After getting the ball, Roger chose to advance with his back to the goal.

He had just taken a step when Hersey Hawkins and Schrempf immediately attacked him from both sides!

The SOS defense system is to George Karl what the triangle offense is to the Phil Jackson, it is something that has been ingrained in his bones.

This system requires the team to put crazy pressure on the ball from the first to the fifth position, and to switch defenses in every pick-and-roll defense in order to maintain pressure on the ball. The entire defense is full of pressure and double-teaming at all costs, and rotations are made at all costs to fill in the gaps until the opponent makes a mistake, passes the ball, or makes a hasty shot.

But Roger did not panic when facing the double team attack, but immediately passed the ball to the shark.

For Roger, the biggest difference between the Sonics' pressure and the Bulls' double-team is that Roger can pass the ball more easily during the Sonics' double-team.

The height of Payton and Hawkins, and the height of Jordan and Pippen, create a different pressure effect when double-teaming.

The Sonics' pressure might force Roger to take difficult shots or pass the ball.

But it's hard to force Roger into a mistake.

Roger quickly passed the ball to O'Neal. It was almost impossible for the Sonics to immediately surround the Shark. Because their defensive attention was on Roger, it would take some time to mobilize the players to surround the Shark.

Before the encirclement came, Shark took a big step and completed a brutal dunk over the head of the short-statured Sam Perkins. Perkins tried very hard to jump up and block, but facing the flying Shark, he was completely helpless!

If no one helps, Perkins will be a piece of fat meat in the shark's mouth!
O'Neal turned his head and looked at the Rain Man who had provoked him before the game: "It's sunny in Florida, and there is no room for rain!" In the first attack of the opening, Roger and the Shark severely destroyed the defense of the Supersonics.

Everyone has a feeling - the Sonics' defense doesn't seem to be that strong in front of these two people?

The Sonics' defense is indeed strong, but it is only the second best in the league. The Bulls, who are ranked first in defense, have already been smashed by Roger and Shaq, so is it difficult to be ranked second?

Immediately after the Supersonics' attack, Payton and Rainman set a pick-and-roll, and Kemp quickly cut in after the pick-and-roll. After receiving the basketball, he took two big steps and prepared to attack the basket directly.

It is true that he is a beast striker, but sharks are not good guys either.

Kemp's powerful attack can turn most defenders' obstruction into the background of the top ten plays.

But sharks are definitely not among them.

O'Neal jumped up to block the ball in the air. He used his huge body to withstand Kemp's impact. The fierce confrontation caused Kemp's layup to bounce off the rim.

For the second consecutive round, the Sharks completed strong rim protection!
This is the second difference between the Supersonics and the Bulls. Their offense is not as good as the Bulls.

Payton has never been a scoring guard. As for Kemp, he is indeed strong in offense, but how does he compare to Michael Jordan?
Come on, no one in this world would compare them.

Only with a historical level body and unique footwork like Dream, can Kemp be compared with Jordan.

Speaking of historical-level body and unique footwork, he is compared with Jordan. It seems that such a person really exists in the future.

The Sonics' offense failed again. Their offense was even more vulnerable than their defense against the Magic.

Watching the Magic play the Bulls to a seventh game in the last round, with no game having a double-digit score difference, the Supersonics had the illusion that "I can do it, too."

But they forget that before meeting the Bulls, the Magic had never lost a game in the playoffs.

The only team in this league that can push Roger and Shaq into a desperate situation is the legendary 72-win Bulls.

On defense, the Sonics' pressure made it difficult to contain their two strong points because their height was not as oppressive to Roger and Shark, and overall they were not as good as the Bulls.

Offensively, the Supersonics and the Bulls are not even on the same level.

Why do they want to beat the Magic?
The Sonics' offense was not going well, and George Karl's roar came on time: "Softball! You can't even make a layup. Did you put all your energy on that chick in yoga pants last night!?"

At this moment, Roger yelled at George Karl: "Sit down, puppet! Don't ruin my fun of slaughtering you!"

The word "puppet" is a great insult to the head coach of a team, and its meaning is similar to "束狗赢" in Chinese. Which coach would be willing to admit that he is the dog in "束狗赢"?
"Massacre us? You're only leading 2-0!" Payton immediately counterattacked.

Roger didn't waste any time. After crossing half court, he continued to pass the ball to the Shark.

This time, the Sonics' double-team immediately converged on the Sharks.

But O'Neal quickly passed the ball to Roger, who shot directly after receiving the basketball. Payton's interference was a little slow, but it was enough for Roger to score successfully.

The Sonics' defense can force the opponent's strongest player to pass the ball. For most teams, this level of defense is enough.

In the original history of the Bulls, Jordan's second-in-command was Pippen, who averaged 34 points with a 15% hit rate. In this case, after Jordan passed the ball, the Bulls' offensive threat was not great, and it was difficult for them to convert Jordan's passes into points.

Therefore, Jordan could only make difficult shots again and again under tight defense, and was thus defended like Kobe.

In the previous match against the Rockets, after Olajuwon was double-teamed, the only player who could score stably for the Rockets was Drexler, who couldn't score 20 points even if he let go. So in the same way, as long as Olajuwon was forced to pass the ball, the Rockets' offensive threat would be directly halved.

But that's not how magic works.

They forced O'Neal to pass the ball, and it was Roger, the top scorer, who received the ball.

After they forced Roger to pass the ball, the one who received the ball was Shark, the strongest third-team player.

No matter how they force Shark and Roger to pass the ball, the Magic's offensive threat will not decrease, and the efficiency of passing the ball into points is very high!
Why did the SuperSonics get dragged into a Game 7 by the Jazz? It was because of the performance of the National Father-in-law Hornacek in the last few games. Even if they forced Malone to pass the ball, the Jazz still had an offensive threat.

But Hornacek's threat is nothing compared to Roger and the shark.

Therefore, the Magic's offense was easily able to handle the Supersonics.

The ball went in, and Roger raised four fingers to Payton after landing: "It's only 2-0? Take back your stupid words Gary, now I'm leading 4-0."

Soon, Payton backed up Harper on offense.

However, the tall Harper did not let Payton get his wish, and the Sonics' starting guard failed to carry the team.

In the original 96 Finals, one of the reasons why the Supersonics were able to win two consecutive games was that Payton's scoring performance gradually improved.

The wins in G4 and G5 were the only two games in which Payton scored more than 20 points.

The reason he was able to do this was that Harper was injured in G4 and G5, and Payton only had to face defensive players of Cole's level, so he put on a good scoring performance.

In other words, if you want to limit Payton's offense, Harper is enough.

Fortunately, Harper is in the Magic Circle now.

"Damn it Gary, if you play like this, it will be 6-0 in no time! Man, I don't care, after all, I come to the finals often. But this may be the last finals you play in your life, you can't embarrass yourself like this!" Seeing Payton missed the shot, Roger continued his art of language.

"Fuck you 6-0, try it if you dare, bastard!"

Just give it a try. Roger has always been an activist, since the first day he entered the league.

At that time, Pippen said to Roger in the locker room, "If you dare, hit me," and then Roger really tried.

In this round, facing Payton's desperate pursuit, O'Neal once again held the ball to attract defense.

After the double-team, the Sharks quickly passed the ball to Harper.

At the same time, Roger ran back and left Payton behind for a distance, ran towards Harper, and the moment he caught the ball, he immediately turned around and jumped to shoot!
Payton didn't expect Roger to turn around and jump shot, so his interference was a bit hasty and he didn't control the distance well.

So when Roger made his move, Payton slapped the back of Roger's hand.

The referee blew the whistle and gave Payton a foul.

But the basketball still went into the net, making a pleasant "swish" sound.

Roger maintained his shooting posture, enjoying the thunderous cheers in the Orlando Arena.

He got a 2+1 opportunity in front of the best defensive player!
"Damn, I was wrong. It's not 6-0 Gary, it's 7-0! You are worthy of being the best defensive player." Roger looked at Payton and shrugged.

This opening made most Sonics fans despair.

It seems that the Magic and the Supersonics are really not on the same level!
Roger high-fived the Shark and stepped to the free throw line.

He had no intention of taking his time with the Supersonics.

Roger will let the world know that the 96 Magic are one of the greatest teams in history.

A team like this will never waste time on opponents other than the Bulls!

This was a season in which Roger demonstrated his dominance and established his authority.

If you keep procrastinating, can that still be called dominance?

The SuperSonics always think they can compete with the Magic. It's time to correct their wrong thinking.

"brush."

Roger made the free throw and the Magic took a 7-0 lead at the start.

Roger blasted Payton: "Come on, Gary, try to leave something behind in your only trip to the finals."

O'Neal pointed at his temple and said to Rainman: "Beat us? You don't use your brain."

In the face of absolute powerful strength, George Karl's cleverness is not worth mentioning at all.

George Karl was right, this round of games was indeed easier than expected.

But it’s not that it’s easy for the Supersonics to defeat the Magic, but it’s easier for the defending champions to defeat the Supersonics than people think!
(End of this chapter)