Champions Creed

Chapter 192 Chapter 191: The First Triple Crown City? (Monthly Ticket Request!)

The 97-98 season is destined to become a dividing line in history.

In the past three years, people actually regarded Michael Jordan as the king of the league, and Roger was fighting as a challenger.

And now, the crown is on Roger's head.

Who will be the next to snatch the crown?
The media cannot predict who will be the next to snatch the crown, but most media believe that next season should be the first year in the Western Conference.

With Jordan's retirement and the disbandment of the Magic, the Eastern Conference's dominance of the league began to waver.

Seattle SuperSonics, Utah Jazz, Los Angeles Lakers, San Antonio Spurs
Western Conference teams seem more likely to win the championship.

They either maintain their original luxurious lineup or new players emerge.

What John Anderson of SportsCenter said before was correct. The summer of 97 brought greater changes to the league's landscape than 96.

On the other hand, in the Eastern Conference, at least on paper, the strength of the lineup is indeed not as brilliant as that of the Western Conference.

The Miami Heat's lineup is quite balanced, but the problem is the same as last season, their team is full of second-in-commands and no leader.

As for the Eagles, Roger thinks the team's lineup is pretty good because he knows that his teammates can all develop well.

But in the media's view, the Eagles' lineup looks like this:

Alan Henderson, a skinny striker who couldn't find his position and died of injury last season.

Kurt Thomas, a short inside player who lost his height advantage and became as awkward as a toothpick in a jar in the NBA.

Clifford Robinson, a veteran who is still useful.

Eric Snow, a substitute who is good at nothing except defense.

Bruce Bowen, never heard of it.

Ben Wallace, never heard of it.

Pippen and Steve Smith? They were good helpers, but how could you guarantee that Roger wouldn't come to blows with them on the court?

Even more, how do you guarantee that Pippen and Roger won't fight on Larsa's bed?
Of course, the media believed in Roger's personal abilities.

In the first two seasons when the Sharks were injured, Roger's record as the team leader was solid.

Therefore, the Eagles' results are definitely not bad, and it won't be a problem for them to be in the top three of the division. You can still say that the Eagles are a championship-contending team.

But for Roger, is being in the top three in the division a good result?

Do they really have a good chance of winning the championship?
The general public still believes that Western teams have a better chance.

And failing to win the championship next season is not the worst scenario Roger will face.

After all, the Eagles' lineup is not luxurious, and no one will blame Roger if they don't win the championship. As long as the results are not too bad, Roger will have retained his status.

The worst-case scenario for Roger is that the Sharks take the lead.

This will definitely have a huge impact on Roger's reputation and status.

What does it mean that the Sharks won the championship first? It is equivalent to Wade and Bosh winning another championship after the Heat's Big Three disbanded.

If this happens, even shameless Nike would be embarrassed to let James touch the GOAT.

Look at how the Warriors won the championship without Durant, closing the Green formula. Isn't Durant's position particularly embarrassing?

The nickname "Death" is almost no longer used.

This is what Roger needs to face now.

The competition between Shark and Roger is also the part that fans are most looking forward to.

Since none of you are willing to give in to the other, let's see who is a better leader.

After O'Neal's insults against Roger in the song were reported, the conflict between the two of them almost fed all the sports media.

David Stern also seized the business opportunity and arranged a match between the Hawks and the Lakers for the opening game.

With Michael Jordan retiring, the league needs a blockbuster opening game to attract the attention of all fans.

The moment he got the schedule, Pete Babcock couldn't believe his eyes.

When was the last time the Eagles played a season opener? There wasn't a last time!
And next season, the Hawks will be the team with the most live games in the entire league, which is also unprecedented.

All of this suggests that next season will be the most profitable in Eagles history.

But when Babcock told Ted Turner the good news, the captain did not react much.

"Really? Pretty good."

Ted Turner certainly knew that Roger could bring a lot of money to the Eagles, and he would not say something hypocritical like "I'm not interested in money."

But making money is not his ultimate goal.

Atlanta sports fans are blessed next season.

Because the local baseball team, football team and basketball team are all strong teams that can compete for the championship.

The Baseball World Series is in November, the Super Bowl is in January, and the NBA Finals are in June. If all goes well, Atlanta will gradually win three championships!
No city in North American sports history has ever won three championships in the same year.

If achieved, it would be the greatest feat of all.

So, like countless Atlanta sports fans, Ted Turner only cares about winning.

To promote this potential great season, "Triple Crown" banners were hung throughout the city of Atlanta.

Last year was the Olympics, this year is the miracle of the Triple Crown, and Atlanta's sports market is unprecedentedly large.

But this also puts pressure on the players of the three teams.

After all, no one wants the city to miss out on the opportunity to create greatness because of their team's poor performance.

Fans are relatively reassured about the Atlanta Braves and Atlanta Falcons.

And since the Hawks are almost a new team, there are too many unknowns.

Fans can't wait to see how strong this new Eagles team is.

Under the attention of the public, the first day of media day of the Eagles training camp opened.

Countless sports reporters flocked to the Erimer Health Center to attend the press conference where the new players were unveiled.

Because the Eagles have many new players this year, there were quite a few people sitting at the press conference.

But when everyone stood up and showed their Eagles jerseys, most reporters' cameras were still focused on Roger.

If the Eagles were a bus, Roger would be the guy at the wheel.

Whether everyone can reach their destination safely depends on Roger.

At the press conference, reporters asked Roger many questions.

Most of them were about his relationship with Pippen and Steve Smith.

Those reporters who were hoping Roger would curse like a madman were disappointed, as Roger answered all the questions flawlessly.

The same goes for Pippen and Steve Smith. The Hawks' locker room, at least on the surface, is calm.

Of course, Pippen didn't tell reporters that he was planning to leave next season.

Steve Smith also did not tell reporters that he had requested a trade.

Apart from this unhappy pair, the new players who joined the team were quite happy.

Several people were excited about playing with Roger.

Clifford Robinson said frankly: "I feel like I finally have the hope of wearing a championship ring in this lifetime."

Kurt Thomas is very happy: "Roger will lead me to victory, and victory will help me get out of the haze of my career."

Even Ben had the confidence to speak harshly in front of the media: "Do you know me? It doesn't matter, you will know me in a few days. You will soon know that I am the best guardian around Roger."

A reporter stood up and said, "Ben, as a shooting guard, how will you help Roger share the pressure on the defensive end next season?"

Ben rolled his eyes at the time, "Shooting guard? Are you blind? Any normal person with my physique would know that I am really an inside player!"

Roger was very happy to see so many people trust him and feel that their careers can be taken to the next level by playing with him.

But Pippen and Steve Smith thought that group of people were too naive.

You don't know Roger at all.

You won't need the new season to start, you will know how good he is during the pre-season training camp.

After the press conference, the Eagles players went to take the final photos for this season.

Each player was asked by the photographer to do a variety of different moves.

When it was Ben's turn, the photographer asked him to perform a finger-twisting action.

Daben stood there in a daze, sweating profusely.

Contrary to what most fans imagine, although the level of NBA players is very high, not all NBA players can spin the ball with their fingers.

For example, the 2024 Dream Team will have a tough center and a powerful dunker who can't twirl the ball with his fingers.

As a character who plays basketball as if it were football, Big Ben naturally doesn't have the skill of spinning the ball with his fingers.

For Big Ben, you can completely think of him as an athlete with strong running and jumping abilities, who knows how to read the game, but has no basketball skills.

Just when Ben was feeling embarrassed, Roger stepped forward and patted him on the shoulder: "You know a lot of other basketball moves. How about grabbing the ball with one hand? I think that's more handsome and more suitable for you."

Big Ben was directly impressed by Roger's actions. He thought Roger would not care about the life or death of a small fry like him.

But he actually took the initiative to help me out.

Besides, it’s a great excuse!
Low EQ: My teammate can’t twirl the ball with his fingers, so don’t make things difficult for him.

High EQ: My teammates know a lot of other basketball moves.

Wonderful!

After the final makeup photo was taken, Ben found Roger and said, "Thank you for what happened just now, Truth."

"I don't like that nickname anymore, Big Ben."

Ben Wallace's affection for Roger has further increased. Did you hear that? He calls me Big Ben!

Generally speaking, players whose titles are preceded by "big" are mostly tall players.

Roger was the first person to call Ben Wallace that in his career!
"Sorry, what should I call you? Agent? That's weird." "It doesn't matter, just don't call me Truth."

"I've got that in mind. Hey, if you're free tonight, I'd like to treat you to a meal to express my gratitude."

"If you have that much time, you might as well catch up on your game videos. You said you wanted to be my protector, but with all due respect, your defensive judgment is too amateurish. If you want to win the championship, your defensive level is far from enough.

Don't always use height as an excuse. Dennis Rodman is not tall either, but he always makes trouble for me on the court. That's why I think you might want to give it a try. You have the potential to be an excellent defender. The key is how you redeem your potential.

From now on, you have to spend all your time training and watching game tapes. You have no time to waste."

Roger coldly rejected Ben's invitation to have dinner together, but Ben didn't mind.

Because this was the first time anyone besides Charles Oakley had ever said to him, "You can give it a try."

"I will not let you down."

"I hope so, Big Ben."

After just one contact, Ben could feel that Roger was a serious leader.

He can help you when you need him, but he's actually pretty serious.

The Eagles' new season training camp began in this serious atmosphere.

Scott Pippen soon discovered a problem: he felt like he was back in Chicago.

Because every day in training, you will hear these words:
"Is this your fucking defensive position? You can't rotate like this!"

"Another open shot missed, good job Steve, you opened my fucking eyes, I can't believe a guy like you was the team's top player in the past few years, no wonder the team can't make the playoffs."

"Eric, how can you be such a bad defender when you're such a bad shooter? I didn't feel any pressure when I scored over your head. Is this what you learned from Gary Payton after all these years in Seattle?"

Sometimes Pippen couldn't tell whether the person standing in front of him was Roger or Michael Jordan.

Everyone is tense in such an atmosphere, but because of this, the team is able to integrate very quickly and adapt to the new style of play very quickly.

If a head coach wants to convert his tactical theories into tactics that can be actually implemented, it is not as easy as just moving your fingers in a 2K game.

During the first F4 period of the Lakers, Gary Payton played outside of the triangle offense for an entire season.

During the second Lakers F4 period, the four superstars were all confused by Princeton and the run-and-gun style and couldn't play basketball anymore.

Do those coaches not understand tactical theory? Of course not, they just can't get their stars to execute their own tactics.

Similarly, if the Hawks want to play the same fast double-team rotation defense as the Supersonics, it won't be accomplished with just one sentence.

How to rotate and fill in positions, how to double-team in different situations, all these require improvement in details.

In the Hawks, under Roger's repeated "intimidation", everyone wants to familiarize themselves with this defensive system as quickly as possible.

As for whether other people would have any objection to Roger yelling like that?
Of course no opinion.

Because Roger always does his best.

And Roger doesn't curse people.

Pippen was never scolded by Roger.

The whole world knew that they had a bad relationship, but Roger never scolded Pippen because Pippen always did his best on the defensive end and rarely made mistakes.

Therefore, the players still respect Roger. If you are scolded, it only means that you have not done your job well.

Besides, what right do the Eagles players have to be angry?
Before coming to the Eagles, they were almost all bottom players.

The gap in status between the two sides was too great, and they had no qualifications to compete with Roger at all.

No one disliked Roger because of this, because outside the training ground, Roger treated everyone nicely.

He often treats the entire team to dinner and takes the entire team to concerts.

Outside of games and practice, he would joke around with you.

But on the training ground, he is always meticulous.

Bruce Bowen once joked about Roger in an interview: "To be honest, I often think Roger has a split personality. Is he like this in Orlando?"

Yes, he always does.

He can play "disappearing wheel" with the shark on the street.

You can also tell the shark seriously: "You can't miss training."

He almost got into a fight with Wilkins over training.

A home farewell ceremony can also be prepared for Wilkins off the court.

He has always been a person who clearly distinguishes between public and private affairs, which is probably the biggest difference between him and Jordan.

Jordan can forbid you from eating on the plane because of the game.

Can isolate you with the whole team just because they don't like you. (Cartwright)

But Roger would do none of those things.

His targeting of you is always limited to the field.

If you think about it, even though Roger's relationship with the Sharks broke down last season, he didn't do anything too extreme off the court.

To be honest, Pippen didn't like this training atmosphere. Although he had never been scolded by Roger, he didn't like the feeling of everyone being nervous during training.

Whether it was Jordan's Bulls or Roger's Hawks, the atmosphere in the training camp was too serious.

But as someone who won three championships with Jordan, Pippen knew it very well.

This is what a winning team's summer training camp should look like!
Therefore, Pippen also silently accepted Roger's model of leading the team.

Among the entire team, Steve Smith is probably the only one who can't stand Roger the most.

He felt targeted.

Roger would scold everyone, but he scolded him the most harshly.

And in every training game, Roger would take the initiative to play against Steve Smith.

That was often the beginning of Steve Smith's nightmare day.

"Softie, I didn't bother you at all, why couldn't you make the shot?"

"Playing with you is undoubtedly the biggest difficulty and challenge in my career."

"4 from 0 three-point range? Seriously, Steve, you deserve to be called a shooter?"

"This is why you can't play in the playoffs, you can't f**king handle a high-intensity defense!"

Doesn't Steve Smith know what Roger's purpose is? Is he using it to establish his authority?

Of course he knew that Roger didn't like him either. After all, he had publicly made disrespectful remarks about Roger many times before.

So, he was not surprised by what Roger did.

He believed that this was a personal grudge and that Roger was deliberately suppressing his position in the team and torturing him.

This is Roger, a bad guy!
On the other hand, unlike the seriousness of the Hawks, the Los Angeles Lakers' preseason training camp is filled with a joyful atmosphere.

Did Shaq push you on the practice field?
Will he yell at you on the training ground?
Of course not, because he himself is the target of criticism.

Jerry West had to have a man-to-man conversation with O'Neal in his second week in Los Angeles:

"In Los Angeles, there are too many temptations. You have to keep a low profile and stay away from the spotlight. There are parties every night, countless women every day, and you have to control yourself. Also, does your damn album have to be recorded at this time? To be honest, Shaq, your 'extracurricular activities' are a bit too rich. So rich that you start to be late and leave early!"

Jerry West knew that O'Neal was playful, but he didn't expect that this situation would get worse after coming to Los Angeles.

In the past, O'Neal could only have fun by going to other cities.

But now in Los Angeles, he is surrounded by temptations wherever he goes.

O'Neal said "Yes sir, yes sir" and then continued to do his own thing.

In this regard, Shaq did not think he was wrong. He told reporters: "My energy is twice that of ordinary people. It is not a problem for me to play multiple roles. I can be the basketball star Shaq or the rapper Shaq. This is me."

Lakers coach Del Harris urged Shark to practice free throws more than once, but after each team training session, Kobe was the only one who stayed to practice.

O'Neal didn't care about Harris at all. He had just signed a billion-dollar contract. Before that, he would beat Harris' team every time he came to Los Angeles. You, command me?

O'Neal brought joy to Los Angeles, and every teammate loved him because he did not bring any pressure to his teammates.

He also quickly bonded with Eddie Jones and Van Exel.

They called the Shark "the best leader ever."

All of this difference was reflected in the preseason.

The Eagles have won all five preseason games.

Although Lenny Wilkens was adjusting the lineup, he did not use all the main players to play in the preseason.

But no matter who plays, the Eagles will be diligent and clear-minded on the defensive end.

This means that the Eagles' system is already working properly.

Steve Smith, the player who was scolded the most by Roger, had an incredible 47% three-point shooting percentage in the preseason.

He felt that other people's defense seemed to be very loose, and trash talk no longer disturbed his mind.

What about the Lakers?
When the "best leader" Shark is happy and plays longer, the team will win. When Shark doesn't want to play, the team will lose.

The Lakers also lacked strong discipline on both offense and defense.

After the preseason, O'Neal was not impressed by the Hawks' 5-0 record.

"What can the preseason tell us? As long as Shaq gets serious, there's nothing that can stop the Lakers. Hawks? How can they stop me? Let Roger stand on stilts to defend me?

I would be like Superman on the field, and the only Kryptonian element that could contain Superman simply does not exist on Earth.

Atalanta might win the double, but the treble? You guys are overestimating Roger.

He is a disgrace to Atlanta."

Just like before on the ESPN show, Roger still did not respond.

He left everything he wanted to say for tomorrow night's game.

(End of this chapter)