Champions Creed

Chapter 206 205: Hi, SPOY (ask for monthly ticket!)
As the Atlanta Falcons lost in the Super Bowl, Roger became a lone star in Georgia sports.

The City of Three Crowns, this concept was so popular in the past that it was known all over America.

And the more popular you are, the more you will be ridiculed after you fail.

Atlanta's image has plummeted. The Centennial Olympics in 96 was not well organized, which led to the city being criticized both at home and abroad.

Although Atlanta Mayor Bill Campbell has repeatedly stressed:
“Hey, although the public security is a bit worse, there are more cases of robbery and theft, and a large number of street prostitutes have also affected the city’s appearance.

But at least we didn’t ask delegations to bring their own air conditioners to the Olympics!”

However, this rebuttal is weak. Americans feel that the Atlanta Olympics is a shame for the United States and that the city has brought shame to the beacon of freedom on earth.

Now, Atlanta's triple crown marketing has broken down again, and the whole country is gloating.

The city lost all respect and the snowball of shame kept growing.

The atmosphere of failure haunts the entire city like a ghost.

In this atmosphere, the eyes of the entire Georgia state are on the Atlanta Hawks.

Because now only the Eagles can help this city break through the clouds and see the light again.

It’s hard to imagine that just a year ago, the Hawks were the least visible professional sports team in Atlanta.

The Georgia Dome has been deserted since the Falcons moved to the more advanced Mercedes-Benz Center.

In fact, when the Falcons were still in the Georgia Dome, the Eagles were so miserable that they didn't even have a fixed home field.

If there is a schedule conflict, the Eagles will even be rushed to Georgia Tech's Alexander Memorial Stadium to play.

As a professional sports team, it is really sad that they don’t even have a fixed home stadium.

Everything about the Eagles seemed as decayed as the city itself.

But now, the Eagles have transformed themselves and become Atlanta's only presence.

This is all because of Roger.

Roger became the savior of the city.

The Reebok team was happy with the situation; they saw a business opportunity.

As Sports Illustrated said, Reebok also believes that Roger actually got the best script.

Think about it, if the Warriors and the Falcons both won the championship, then even if Roger led the Eagles to win the championship, it would only be "keeping up with the giants, not creating greatness."

But now, when both the Warriors and the Falcons are gone, if Roger can win the championship, he will become the most special person in the whole state of Georgia!
This is a very good marketing entry point.

Because Roger is a Chinese player, "sense of identity" has always been a major obstacle for Roger to expand his influence.

You can imagine how high Li Kaier's commercial value in China would be if he was really a pure Chinese player.

The same problem happened to Roger. After all, he is a Chinese player, so he cannot get identity recognition from most people in the United States.

Jordan's skin color can easily make most black kids like him. If Roger wants to do the same thing, he must do more and win more victories.

So, Reebok let Roger actively participate in community activities and mingle with local fans.

But that's not enough. Now, Reebok has found a way to break this limitation.

Todd Klinsky, president of Reebok Basketball, told Roger about this idea:
"We want to deeply bind you to the city of Atlanta, fill the entire city with the mark of your personal heroism, and make you the savior admired by everyone in this city! To this end, we will launch a series of themed T-shirts and a very good advertisement. As long as God can save the people, no one cares whether God is black, white, or Asian."

Roger had no problem with that, except for one request: “Never say in any marketing that I’m going to stay in Atlanta forever.”

Klinsky was a little surprised: "Roger, don't tell me you have plans to transfer."

"Of course not. I just don't want to promise something that I'm not sure of. Men shouldn't make promises lightly, otherwise they'll easily turn into clowns."

Thus, Reebok’s plan to create the “savior” officially began.

Soon, a Roger brand themed T-shirt appeared in Reebok stores.

The base color of this T-shirt is black, and there is an eagle head on the back, which echoes the Eagles team.

And in front of it are three simple phrases: "One team, one city, one goal."

An advertisement produced by Reebok also began to be broadcast on major TV stations.

The content of the advertisement is very simple. During a game, Roger was gathering his teammates in the center circle of the court for a final speech. Every player on the Eagles team stood in a circle with their arms around each other's shoulders.

At this time, a fan couldn't help but walk into the field, put his arm around the Eagles players' shoulders, and joined their ranks.

Then, more and more people joined in. At this time, the camera deliberately gave Andy, who now needs a wheelchair to move, and he also stood with the Eagles players.

Soon, the entire stadium was filled with Atlanta fans. The camera moved to the outside of the stadium, and crowds gathered in all directions toward the Georgia Dome.

Everyone put their hands on each other's shoulders, their hearts connected, and synchronized with the Eagles players on the field.

Finally, Roger, standing in the middle of the court, raised his arms and said, "Come on, let's do it together!"

At that moment, all the people in Atlanta raised their arms together with Roger, and faced him from all directions. This scene was like the savior coming to the world.

The screen faded to black, and three simple words appeared on the screen: "One team, one city, one goal."

Finally, there is the Reebok logo.

This commercial was very successful. The black and white images, inspiring shouts, and magnificent music stirred people's emotions every time they were watched, and caused a huge response in Atlanta.

Reebok also made a huge poster of the final scene of the advertisement, in which Roger was surrounded by people like a savior, and hung it on all the large billboards in Atlanta.

From advertisements to T-shirts to posters, Reebok created an atmosphere of "the whole city is bound to Roger."

They made every Atlantan believe that Roger was the person they could trust the most!

The outstanding sales of commemorative T-shirts proved that the barriers of skin color were completely broken and all these marketing efforts worked. Roger, the Asian, became the chosen one of Atlanta, no, the whole state of Georgia.

Now, Eagle and Roger are right in the middle of the traffic in Georgia.

The current situation of the Eagles is similar to the "Redemption Team" of the 08 Olympics. If the Dream Teams of 04 and 06 had not suffered defeats, the Dream Team of 08 would not have attracted so much attention.

But it is precisely because American basketball suffered great humiliation in 04 and 06 that the Dream Team is so special.

The Warriors and Falcons are equivalent to the American teams in 04 and 06.

And the Eagles became the redemption team!
The concept of savior has been widely spread. While Reebok was doing this, the Hawks had just acquired Roger's former team, the Orlando Magic.

At this point, the Eagles' record is 37 wins and 11 losses.

The Hawks lost just four games in January, but three of those losses were to Western Conference teams.

Lost to the Spurs, Suns and Timberwolves respectively.

Atlanta seems to be under some kind of curse. Whenever the teams from this city play against teams from other divisions, the turnover rate is very high.

Therefore, at a time when the "savior" image is being hyped, the Hawks really need to beat a strong Western Conference team to reassure the fans.

Coincidentally, on February 2, the Hawks faced a strong team in the Western Conference.

On the afternoon of the 4th, Roger and the team flew to Seattle to face one of the teams with the best record this season.

After losing Rainman Kemp last summer, almost everyone in Seattle thought that the team would begin to decline.

As a result, Vin Baker, who had just joined the team, almost perfectly filled the vacancy left by Kemp, and the Sonics' record improved instead of declining compared to last season!

Vin Baker has performed very well this season, with a career-high shooting percentage and the fewest three-point shots in his career.

Moreover, it is rare for the media to capture him drunk.

Maybe it was the iron-blooded atmosphere of the Supersonics that infected him, or maybe it was the extreme pressure put on him by Payton and George Karl.

In short, he showed the best professional attitude of his career so far with the SuperSonics.

Therefore, the strength of the Supersonics is very strong, and the people of Seattle also believe that Jordan's retirement and Roger and Shaq's separation mean that their time has come.

It is not easy for a savior to appear in front of such a team.

In KeyArena, while both teams were warming up, Bill Walton talked about the recent hot topic of "savior":
"After tough losses with both the Warriors and Falcons, Roger emerged as the savior of Atlanta. There is no doubt that what Roger has accomplished over the past three years in Orlando is tremendous.

But Atlanta's situation is completely different from Orlando's. Scott and Steve are both good helpers, but they are not the top three MVP players after all. In other words, Roger's success in Orlando may not be replicated in Atlanta.

The Hawks' big defeat against the Utah Jazz in early January led people to link it to the experiences of the Warriors and Falcons, believing that the Hawks had a hard time dealing with Western Conference teams.

What do you think Steve? "

Steve Jones nodded. "I think this is unnecessary worry. As we know, the Hawks can defeat the Spurs and the Lakers. These two teams are also strong teams in the Western Conference. They just happened to lose to the Jazz twice. This doesn't mean anything. It is illogical to link the Atlanta Hawks with the other two teams. MLB, NFL and NBA are three completely different competitive environments. There is no comparison at all."

What Steve Jones said makes sense, but psychologically, many fans still feel afraid of Western teams.

This fear caused some obstacles to Roger's "savior" marketing.

Roger needs a beautiful victory to consolidate his image as the "savior".

But the Supersonics are definitely not an easy opponent to deal with.

Not only are they strong, they will definitely fight the Eagles to the death.

The 96 Finals was the most unforgettable pain in the hearts of George Karl, Payton and all the Sonics players. They tried their best and fought for a whole season, and finally broke through the first round curse and entered the finals.

The result? Roger and the shark didn't let them win even one game!

So, they were full of hatred towards Roger and the sharks.

Nowadays, the main lineup of the Supersonics has not changed much, and it is basically the same group of people who played in the finals in 96, which means that the hatred has never dissipated.

Before the season started, Gary Payton threatened: "What does Roger and Shaq's breakup mean? It means their good days are over. I will settle accounts with them separately!"

Payton did what he said. Every time the Sonics team met the Lakers this season, they became very excited.

So far this season, the OK combination of the Lakers has not won any game against the Supersonics.

The worst was the last game, when the Lakers lost to the Supersonics by 12 points. A Lakers fan burst into tears after the game: "I always believed in Shaq and thought he was the greatest giant in the league. But he lost to the Hawks, then the Jazz, then the Spurs, then the Spurs, and then the Supersonics. He has no face left!"

When Roger was with the Shark, the Sonics were helpless.

But now they are alone, the Supersonics will return them all!
Today, they finally got Roger. In a sideline interview before the game, George Karl complained unkindly about the Hawks' style of play and mocked Reebok's recent marketing campaign:

"The Hawks throw 50 elbows a night, and Bruce Bowen, that bastard, will shove his foot under your feet at any time. This is the dirtiest and most brutal team in NBA history. What do you expect them to save? Savior? Haha, that's just boring marketing."

Before the jump ball, Gary Payton was also quite domineering: "Yo Roger, where's your big dog? Without him to protect you, you'll be torn to pieces."

The "big dog" Payton mentioned was undoubtedly Shaq.

Facing Payton's trash talk, Roger said calmly: "Does anyone remember who is the worst DPOY in the history of the Finals?"

"Damn it, only weaklings would talk about their past glory!" Payton was touched in the sore spot and responded with a roar.

But when these words came out, Roger laughed out loud: "Yeah, you never mention your glory, because you don't have any."

Payton gritted his teeth but tried to take a deep breath and control his emotions.

Forget it, as long as I can beat him in basketball.

Payton was determined to win because there would be no one this year who could help Roger escape the Sonics' front line double-team.

This is not the same as before. Roger would definitely drown in the tight and fast attack of the supersonic speed!

The game is about to begin and the starting lineups of both teams are moving closer.

The Hawks made some adjustments to the starting lineup today. Lenny Wilkens replaced Alan Henderson, who had been playing well, with Clifford Robinson.

Henderson is ranked second in the Most Improved Players list this season. He played tepidly in the first two seasons, but this season he contributed 12+6, and his data almost doubled. His enthusiasm on both offense and defense is worthy of praise. The media said that he is a Robert Horry without long-range shooting.

He is also a young man with high emotional intelligence. Many times when reporters asked him why he had made such great progress, he would say: "Roger's leadership has transformed me."

Of course, Roger knew full well that this had nothing to do with him.

Alan Henderson's sudden rapid progress is because he was hit by the most unsolvable magic in the NBA - a contract year explosion.

So it was strange that when facing a strong opponent like the Supersonics, Lenny Wilkens suddenly withdrew Alan Henderson, who had been performing well.

"Maybe it's to increase the height on the field. After all, Vin Baker is not easy to deal with." That's what Steve Jones thinks.

At this time, countless Atlanta fans were watching the live broadcast in front of their TVs, looking forward to the team defeating the Western powerhouses.

This is a very important battle for Roger's "savior" marketing.

After all, you have to show your presence to strengthen others' faith in you.

"The savior will die tonight." Payton said this when the jump ball was about to start.

"SHUT UP, SPOY."

"what is that?"

"The softest player of the year."

The referee kicked off, and Jim McIlvaine, the useless center who indirectly caused Rain Man's departure, won the first attack ball for the Supersonics.

Against the Supersonics, the Hawks adopted a one-on-one defensive strategy, implying that this group of people is not worth the effort to double-team.

Payton passed the ball to Vin Baker under Pippen's defense. Vin Baker got the ball and made a beautiful turn around to pass Clifford Robinson. Then, with Kurt Thomas' timely defense, he finished the shot near the basket with a soft touch.

"It seems that your strategy is useless," Payton said proudly, "Without a super center, you can't play basketball at all."

Roger did not respond, but silently participated in the attack.

After Pippen passed the half court, he quickly passed the ball to Roger, and Payton was still responsible for defending Roger. Roger immediately turned his back and pushed the ball in, but soon, Schrempf and Hawkins, two old acquaintances, double-teamed him.

Faced with the oppressive double team, Roger did not hesitate at all and immediately passed the ball to the 45-degree position on the right.

Steve Smith received the ball and shot, the basketball went into the net and made a three-pointer!
After scoring the goal, Steve Smith pointed to the sky. He would point to the sky every time he scored a goal. This was his way of praying for Andy.

3 to 2, the Eagles took the lead at the start.

In the subsequent attack of the Supersonics, Schrempf was intercepted by Roger when he broke through. Roger's defensive performance has further improved this season, and he has almost booked a spot in the best defensive team.

However, the team retreated too quickly and did not allow the Eagles to launch a counterattack.

George Karl asked everyone to give up fighting for frontcourt rebounds. The first goal was to return to defense with all their strength, and to slow down the pace and number of rounds.

As long as the Eagles are not allowed to launch the counterattack they are good at, and then use double-teaming to contain their position, the Eagles will be powerless.

The Supersonics' quick retreat worked, and the Eagles' lightning-fast counterattack failed.

But Roger remained calm, dribbling slowly towards the three-point line like a point guard and gestured.

Before Payton could take a step back, his front foot was attacked by Roger, allowing Roger to break through.

When facing a top scorer at the scoring champion level, any slight negligence can lead to big mistakes.

However, just breaking through Payton is useless.

Vin Baker immediately came out to defend and double-teamed Roger together with the outside players.

Roger was once again caught in the Sonics' signature double-team.

Roger jumped up from the crowd, but he didn't make a difficult layup in the air, but passed the ball!

The basketball quickly flew from the restricted area to the left corner, where Clifford Robinson was aiming, ready to shoot at any time.

brush!
6 to 2, the Hawks made two consecutive three-pointers!
Only then did people know the purpose of Lenny Wilkens replacing Clifford Robinson.

Robinson didn't come up to defend Vin Baker, he came up to shoot three-pointers!

Men know best what other men want.

Similarly, all teams that play double-teaming understand the pain points of such teams.

Over-teaming will lead to a large number of opportunities outside the three-point line. If the opponent can really seize it, it will be a disaster for the defense.

The Hawks have this weakness, and so do the Supersonics.

So Lenny Wilkens arranged an extra shooter next to Roger. Currently, except for Kurt Thomas, all the Hawks players on the field have the ability to shoot three-pointers.

At the beginning of the game, all Roger has to do is attract double-teaming and then pass the ball to three positions - 45° on the strong or weak side or the left corner.

In this way, the Eagles' advantage in long shots can be fully utilized.

In today's NBA games, it is undoubtedly a luxury to have more than two people on the court who can stably output three-pointers.

Pippen, Steve Smith and Clifford Robinson can all provide three-point firepower support.

Of course, the reason why long shots were not favored by coaches in the 90s was because everything depended on the feel.

Any long-range shooting strategy must be based on touch.

If you don't feel good, this strategy will hurt you instead.

The players in the 90s were not that good at shooting, so for the coach, this was tantamount to a gamble.

But for now, Roger is very lucky.

Steve Smith and Clifford Robinson each hit a three-pointer, which means they were in good form.

George Karl has already seen the clues. If the Hawks continue to double-team, they will have many easy long-range shooting opportunities.

But he couldn't change his strategy now.

If they change their strategy and give up double teaming to block the three-point line, it means that Payton will be exposed to Roger alone again!

This tragedy must never happen again.

George Karl also doesn't believe that the Hawks can always be so accurate. In this era, three-pointers will never be used as the main weapon.

Sure enough, the Eagles missed the third attack.

This time, Roger wanted to test Pippen's touch.

Pippen's three-point shooting was the most unstable among the players. When Lenny Wilkens arranged this tactic, he even thought about temporarily replacing Pippen with Bowen as the starting player.

But Pippen patted his chest and blushed: "I am not good at shooting with the ball, but I am good at spot jump shots. You can trust me."

Pippen really wants to show himself, and his performance in every game is related to his contract renewal next summer.

Then Pippen, whose chest was red from a shot before the game, shot a three-pointer but it bounced out of the rim.

I believe you!
However, this little episode did not affect the Eagles' overall shooting percentage.

After the first quarter, Steve Smith and Clifford Robinson scored two more three-pointers. Because the Sonics' defense was focused on Roger, Steve Smith and Cleveland's Robinson were just like doing shooting training and did not encounter any interference.

In an era when only five teams in the league average more than six three-pointers per game, the Hawks made six three-pointers in one quarter!

And, it’s not over yet!
Pippen finally scored one, and Roger scored another one himself.

In the first quarter, the Hawks made eight three-pointers!

35 to 24, the Hawks led by 11 points in the first quarter!
The Supersonics panicked, thinking that without their super inside player, Roger would struggle in the double team attack.

As a result, the Hawks broke through from the outside.

The Hawks' shooting was too good now, and they couldn't let them get easy three-point shots any more. Before the Hawks' shooting cooled, George Karl could only let them guard man-to-man for the time being.

Wait until the Hawks' three-point shooting touch disappears, then resume the double-team.

But this also meant that he had to temporarily take off Gary Payton's solid armor and then push him in front of Roger!

Payton swallowed and suddenly felt like he was being pushed into a fire pit.

"George, if you had told me you were going to use this strategy I would have spoken more quietly before the game!"

George Karl patted Payton on the shoulder and said, "It's okay, Gary. It will be over soon."

In the first attack of the second quarter, Roger found that it was Payton defending him alone. He was so excited that he couldn't help but smile:

"Hey SPOY, how do you want to embarrass yourself this time?"

(End of this chapter)