Champions Creed

Chapter 242: 241: Not the Ending They Wanted (Thanks to the Landlord for the 5000 Reward, Thank You!)
Kobe never wanted to wear No. 8 again.

There are two reasons why he wore No. 8 after entering the NBA.

One reason is that Kobe's number in the Adidas ABCD training camp was 143, but the NBA only allows two numbers on the back, so he added the three numbers together and it became 8.

There is another reason. Kobe's first basketball idol, Mike D'Antoni, who was playing in Milan, Italy at the time, wore the number 8.

So, Kobe chose No. 8 as his jersey number.

But Roger's words, "8 points are for Kobe, for the number 8, this is his value", made him never want to have any entanglement with the number 8 again.

Looking back on Kobe's career, almost every "milestone" of his was related to Roger.

In his rookie season, Roger, who was running a fever, made Kobe miss three consecutive shots, which was a very embarrassing moment.

After the second and third year sharks were airborne, Kobe felt that good days were coming. With the big guy assisting him, he would definitely be able to get revenge.

As a result, after the Shark joined, he was beaten even worse!
Last season, Kobe even suffered a physical beating.

This season, Kobe finally looked like a star, and O'Neal also performed at an MVP level for the first time since leaving the Magic.

But the Lakers still can't beat that guy.

Kobe was very hurt. Tonight he not only lost the game, but also lost the trust of his coach and the respect of his teammates.

Phil Jackson publicly said he was a lamb to be slaughtered.

O'Neal yelled at him in the locker room.

Even Rick Fox stood up and pointed out: "How many times have we experienced this situation?"

How many times? This was the first time the Lakers lost this season. In other words, this was the first time Kobe failed in the fourth quarter.

But this is what is called when the wall falls, everyone pushes it.

This situation almost cured Kobe's paranoia.

Kobe couldn't help but ask himself: Do I have to beat Roger?

After all, all this grief came from his desire to challenge Roger.

Originally, Roger was his good brother and the basis for his early fame.

But since Kobe entered the NBA and began competing with Roger, their relationship changed.

If Kobe had been like Kevin Garnett, never making Roger angry and lighting cigars for Roger off the court, all these tragedies would not have happened.

Do I have to defeat Roger?
Yes! I must defeat him!
In Kobe's opinion, Roger is the greatest player in the world. If you don't deal with him, what's the point of playing basketball?
Kobe stood up again, and the cry in his heart became louder and louder.

No matter what he goes through, he will never give up, he must beat Roger!

The strong Kobe was able to regroup in a short period of time, but most people couldn't do that.

It is rare for someone to be able to get hard again after being soft for less than a minute.

Lakers fans are still immersed in fear and disappointment.

It is not difficult to understand the disappointment, and Lakers fans have reason to be disappointed. They have been looking forward to the rise of the Lakers since the summer of 97, but day after day, year after year, the Lakers have not made any substantial progress.

In 98, they were swept by the Jazz, and in 99, they were swept by the Spurs.

Season after season, season after season, it’s almost the millennium!

The fear is not difficult to understand. The power of God and the apostles is too strong. When Roger needs to invest in defense, the Eagles actually have a second person who can stand up and take advantage of the ball.

Paul Pierce's reputation began to reverse after this game.

Before this, when people mentioned Paul Pierce, the first thing they thought of was his war criminal-level performance in the Eastern Conference Finals last season.

The second is 35 seconds and 13 knives.

But in the match against the Lakers, Pierce proved that he is an excellent attacker.

He and Roger are a very competitive team.

But Shaquille O'Neal said something in a press conference that made some Atlanta fans feel horrified while happy:
"Paul is really strong. If I didn't know Roger, I might give him the nickname of Truth. He is really good. His precocity and cunningness on the offensive end are rarely matched by players throughout history. But you know what? No matter how good he is, he can't get any honors in the Hawks.

Roger will eat him like a vulture, eat him up, and take away all the attention and personal awards. This is the miserable life that Paul Pierce is about to face. No matter how good he is, people will say that this is Roger's team. No matter how good a player is, he will be treated unfairly when he is with Roger. "

Finally, O'Neal shrugged: "Paul Pierce will understand sooner or later. Haven't you noticed? Roger's best helper will always leave him. This is a curse throughout his entire career!"

O'Neal's remarks disgusted Atlanta fans. He was like the snake that tempted Eve in the Garden of Eden, the beginning of all original sin, trying to get Pierce to break the taboo.

Maybe Paul Pierce didn't think so much, maybe he just wanted to play well.

But after the shark said this, who knows if there would be ripples in Pierce's heart?

Fortunately, Pierce was still in excellent form in the next few games.

He didn't seem to be affected by the shark's words.

On December 12th against the Clippers, Pierce scored a season-high 4 points.

But after the game, people were concerned about the showdown between Roger and his old teammate Steve Smith.

On the 8th against the Utah Jazz, Paul Pierce continued to break records and scored 36 points.

His condition is getting better and better. This is the first time this season that Paul Pierce's single-game scoring has surpassed Roger.

But Roger, who only scored 25 points, became the focus again after the game because he dunked over his old rival Karl Malone twice.

On December 12th against the Timberwolves, Kevin Garnett was severely punished.

Garnett's stats today were simply amazing: 22 points, 15 rebounds, 10 assists and 7 steals!
He was just three steals away from a quadruple-double.

But Roger scored 43 points in the game, leaving Kevin Garnett with nothing to show for it.

After the game, Roger deliberately said when hugging Garnett: "Hey, let's do the moon dance step."

Garnett scratched his head embarrassedly.

Roger said this because in the Timberwolves' last game against the Heat, Garnett made his famous fight-and-retreat scene.

Because of the conflict with Sprewell this summer, Garnett played very aggressively in the last game.

Whenever he scored, he would yell at Sprewell.

Once the defense is successful, he will yell at Sprewell.

He looked as if he was going to eat him alive.

In the third quarter of the game, Garnett blocked Sprewell's layup again in the paint and continued his habitual face-to-face attack: "Get out, Latrell, just like you were thrown out of the gym by Roger without dignity before!"

Sprewell had always considered being thrown out of the summer league a disgrace, so when Garnett brought it up again, the madman went completely berserk.

He picked up the basketball on the ground and threw it hard at Garnett. Garnett, who was not willing to be trifled with, immediately turned around and rushed forward to confront the madman.

With the referee's obstruction, the two men started to swear at each other face to face. Unexpectedly, the madman suddenly swung his fist at Garnett.

At that time, Timberwolves fans all thought that the madman would probably die here.

Who dares to fight a ruthless person like Kevin Garnett?

Then, Timberwolves fans saw something they had never seen in their lives.

Kevin Garnett's unique offensive footwork was displayed to everyone for the first time.

Kevin Garnett fought back fiercely with his punches. The referee wanted to stop the fight, but when he turned around, he saw that Garnett had retreated five meters away!

This incident was ridiculed by countless media and also by crazy people.

Tonight, he was also mercilessly mocked by Roger.

Garnett's explanation made Roger laugh: "I admit that I didn't hit him with a single punch. That bastard ran too fast, otherwise I would have beaten him!"

What a rebel against Tiangang.

When Roger and Garnett were chatting, they were surrounded by cameras.

The focus of this game is Roger and Garnett.

But Pierce's performance was actually great, he scored 30 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists.

But as O'Neal said, he was completely ignored.

After this game, Slam Dunk magazine decided to add fuel to the fire.

They published an article titled "Paul Pierce, More Than an Apostle."

The core point is: "If Paul Pierce is in a worse team, such as Dallas or Boston, he will achieve the same results as Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and others. He has enough talent, but he has no chance to show it. Because in Atlanta, everything revolves around Roger. Paul Pierce does not have his own team, but it is not his fault."

After Shark, someone mentioned Pierce's status in the team.

This is a signal, an unstable signal.

Would Paul Pierce want more?
Will this rebellious guy become the next Shaquille O'Neal?
Or, will he become the Kobe next to Roger?

He has an annual salary of seven figures, is pampered, mythical, and made into a celebrity. Will he be dissatisfied with what he has now?
All Atlanta fans hated Slam Dunk magazine and even resisted buying it.

However, Slam magazine only opened a gap, and more and more media began to pour in through this gap to discuss this topic.

NBA locker room secrets have always been the most interesting topic for fans.

Therefore, major media outlets are very happy to hype the Eagles' locker room.

That is the center of all traffic.

A lot of remarks like "Paul will be better off without Roger" and "Roger's curse means Pierce is doomed to leave sooner or later" flooded into the Hawks locker room.

There were rumors outside, but the situation inside the Eagles locker room was very peaceful.

Paul Pierce has not changed at all. He still doesn't go out with his teammates, doesn't dare to go to crowded places, doesn't attend any parties, and just plays hard in every game.

Roger led the team to consecutive wins, and his attitude towards Pierce did not change at all.

The media suddenly felt a little bored, as if they were just shooting in the air.

However, all of this ushered in the explosion point that the media expected to see before the Christmas game.

On December 12, the Hawks played against the Toronto Raptors away.

This game is not a heavyweight matchup. Although the Raptors have a chance to make the playoffs this season, no one thinks they can compete for the championship, and no one thinks they are a threat to the Hawks.

However, one of the highlights of the game is the matchup between Vince Carter and Pierce.

"I can't jump that high, but I can still handle your idol." Paul Pierce told reporters before the game.

As a good guy, Vince Carter naturally has never offended Pierce.

This was one-sided hostility on Pierce's part.

Because he is still unhappy with his draft pick and is full of hatred for all those who were selected before him.

The most hostile among them are undoubtedly Antawn Jamison and Vince Carter.

Because those two guys also play forward and are both good scorers, the media likes to compare the three of them.

Vince Carter responded to Pierce in a joking way: "Hey, I don't want to mess with anyone from the Hawks. Everyone saw what happened to Kobe Bryant. You know, Kobe is my brother, so I sympathize with him very much."

Carter said the softest words, but scored the most powerful goal at the start of the game.

When Carter ran to the low post in the first round, he suddenly raised his hand to ask for the ball, and Doug Christie immediately passed the ball to him.

Pippen, who was responsible for defending Carter, was still wondering why Carter wanted to play in the low post. The moment Carter received the ball, he turned around and wiped out Pippen. Then, with his height and body shape as a forward, he jumped on the spot and dunked over Shawn Marion who was guarding the basket!
This is why Toronto fans love UFO. Everyone is used to seeing the Big Shark jumping from a standing position and dunking to crush his opponents, but what if this person is replaced by Carter?
The visual impact of a forward-sized player dunking from a standing position is unparalleled.

Paul Pierce saw this as a provocation from Carter.

So he went straight to the basket as soon as he got the ball in the next round.

But the Raptors' tough inside player Charles Oakley made Pierce miss the shot.

Although Oakley is past his prime, he is still an excellent defensive player.

He never lets anyone attack the basket easily.

One round later, Doug Christie easily shot from outside the three-point line.

Pierce's performance on the defensive end just now had the beauty of LeBron James of the Lakers. No one knew what he was thinking about his indifference to Doug Christie.

In fact, Pierce was not distracted, he just focused on the wrong place.

In the last ball, Vince Carter broke through with the help of Pippen, and Pierce focused all his attention on assisting Carter in defense.

But when Carter broke through and passed the ball, Pierce was dumbfounded. He had no idea when Doug Christie ran away.

Pippen spread his hands in dissatisfaction: "Man, I'll keep an eye on him! Even if we need to make up for it, we have Sean and Ben!"

"OK Scott." Pierce nodded readily.

But he seems to have become the Paul Pierce of last season. He will verbally promise you anything but may not put it into action.

In the subsequent games, Pierce's excessive concern for Carter caused him to miss Doug Christie again and again.

Doug Christie is one of the few good three-point shooters of this era. Pierce's poor defensive concentration allowed Christie to achieve a very high three-point shooting percentage.

During the halftime break, Roger also reminded Pierce: "If you can't tell the difference between Vince Carter and Doug Christie, you can go get a pair of glasses!"

"Damn it, why can't you just let me play against Vince Carter? You know I can handle that guy! Damn, if this was my team." Pierce yelled excitedly. Although he stopped talking in time after the last sentence, it still made the entire locker room quiet instantly.

The atmosphere is colder than an ice cellar.

During this period, the entire Eagles team lived in various rumors.

And Paul Pierce's roar seemed to make all those rumors come true.

Lenny Wilkens wanted to say something, but Roger raised his hand to stop Wilkens and stared at Pierce: "Go on."

Pierce said nothing more, just lowered his head.

The matter was put to rest, and Pierce's defensive performance finally returned to normal in the second half.

But the Raptors' touch has been fed out.

Doug Christie can still score goals, and his touch seems to have spread to his teammates.

Vince Carter also had a perfect performance from beyond the three-point line, making 7 of 5 shots.

Dell Curry also stepped up and seized many opportunities.

On the other hand, although Pierce's defense was much more normal in the second half, he still did his own thing on offense, either shooting without thinking or rushing to the basket impatiently. The better Carter performed, the more irrational he became.

This resulted in him making only 16 of 4 shots today.

Under such circumstances, with 27 seconds left in the game, the Raptors still led by 1 point.

The Hawks have the ball, Lenny Wilkens pauses the game and arranges the final attack.

At this point, Carter had scored 34 points, while Pierce had only 14 points.

When leaving the court, Charles Oakley deliberately patted Carter on the shoulder and said, "Vince, someone still hasn't figured out why he fell out of the top three."

When Pierce heard this, he clenched his fists and walked off the court and sat on the bench.

Lenny Wilkens gave the buzzer beater opportunity to Roger without any suspense, with Pierce being the second choice.

Then, Paul Pierce yelled for the second time today: "The Raptors will definitely guard Roger tightly. They should give me the ball!"

Scott Pippen tugged on Pierce's jersey. He knew better than anyone what the consequences would be of competing with Roger for the buzzer-beating shot.

Lenny Wilkens couldn't stand it anymore: "Paul, you've been challenging me all night long!"

"I am telling the truth."

"That's enough!" Roger stood up and pointed at Pierce's nose. "Your performance today is not as good as Vince Carter's, so you are not qualified to shoot this ball. Shut up!"

Unsurprisingly, the cameras on the scene captured Roger yelling at Pierce on the bench, pointing at his nose.

Bill Walton and Bob Costa, who were commentating on the game, were more excited than seeing a dunk.

"Oh my God, what happened? Is Roger expressing his dissatisfaction with Paul's performance today?" "Maybe. Paul's shot was very impulsive today, and he missed Doug Christie too many times on the defensive end. Roger would never tolerate his teammates playing like this. Don't forget that his high-pressure strategy is the reason why Steve Smith left."

The commentators began to speculate and the media were extremely excited.

Finally, has the moment they have been waiting for arrived?

Pierce didn't contradict Roger, which meant that things weren't completely out of control.

In the subsequent games, Roger was indeed closely guarded by the Raptors players.

But when he scored the winning goal with a long-range layup after a breakthrough, all the efforts of the Toronto team were in vain.

The moment the light on the backboard came on, all the Hawks players were on the court celebrating this buzzer-beater.

The live camera was focused on Paul Pierce who was walking off the court alone.

This scene even surpassed Roger's buzzer beater and became the biggest focus of today's game.

After the game, Pierce did not attend the press conference and all the pressure was on Roger.

"Roger, what happened during the last timeout?"

"Nothing much, some tactical squabble."

"You and Paul don't have problems?"

"I know you all expected us to have problems, and I've heard enough of that lately. I'm sorry, but your hopes are dashed."

"So what do you think of Paul Pierce's performance today?"

"I'm 100 percent disappointed, not because he had a bad game, obviously he had a bad game, but that's not what I'm disappointed about."

Roger criticized Pierce mercilessly, just as he criticized Steve Smith in the past.

As the undisputed top player of the team, he feels he is qualified to criticize anyone.

What is Paul Pierce?
Scott Pippen dared to criticize, Dominique Wilkins dared to criticize, and Shaquille O'Neal also dared to criticize.

Paul Pierce?
Just a little second grade kid with holes all over his body!

If you don’t do it well, you will be scolded. If you don’t do it well, you will be scolded. This is what Roger thought.

Some Los Angeles reporters laughed: "Shaq is right, Roger will never learn to be nice to his teammates, that's why his helpers always leave him."

The curse seemed to have really haunted Roger again.

Returning to the locker room, Roger discovered that Pierce was not there.

I asked the equipment manager and found out: "Paul changed his clothes as soon as he came back, and then threw himself on the team bus alone."

"That coward, I'm going to teach him what responsibility is!"

Roger got even angrier. What was this? Making a mistake and then crying alone?
Roger angrily rolled up his sleeves and prepared to go find Pierce, and no one dared to stop him.

But the moment Roger walked out of the locker room door, Pippen grabbed Roger's arm.

"Dude."

"Scott!" Roger looked stern.

Pippen glanced at the others, then put his arm around Roger and walked into the physical therapy room.

"Scott, now that things have come to this, what do you want to say?" Roger had the patience to listen to Pippen because Pippen had completely become Roger's man by the middle of the 97-98 season.

Roger is always patient with "his own people".

"I want to say that not everyone has the same abilities as you."

"what?"

"We know your rules. If you make a mistake, you have to stand at attention and get spanked. If you make a mistake, others can also make you stand at attention and get spanked."

"Right Scott, that's fair, isn't it?"

"In theory, this is fair. But we are not you. You may never make a mistake, but what about us? You are the player destined to become the GOAT, and we are just a group of supporting roles. You got 2000 million a long time ago, and I barely made more than 1998 million a year until the summer of . This is the difference between us.

You can't demand the same of us as you demand of yourself. Sometimes, you have to allow us to make mistakes.

Of course, the premise is that it does not touch upon issues of principle.

Missing practice and being late or leaving early? Not taking the game seriously? Such mistakes cannot be made.

But Paul. I am not speaking for him. He did not commit such a crime today. He just wanted to compete with Vince Carter. To be honest, if he defended Carter, it would not be a big problem and it would not hurt the game. His method was wrong, but I think his idea is acceptable.

You can't just take anything and immediately put pressure on other people. You know when I thought you were going to be the GOAT? In the Eastern Conference Finals last season, even after Paul Pierce made so many stupid shots, you just walked over and patted his head.

Why don't you do it again? I thought you got it.

You are an excellent leader Roger, but to become the GOAT, you must be a perfect leader. You can't always eat your teammates alive when something happens.

You can treat it as bullshit, but it's all from my heart."

Roger was stunned for a few seconds, perhaps thinking, then patted Pippen on the shoulder and walked out.
-
Paul Pierce has been sitting on the team bus, wearing headphones, waiting for others to get on.

He was in a bad mood today because he was beaten by Vince Carter.

He just wanted to go directly against Vince Carter, what's wrong with that?
Roger can play against whomever he wants at any time.

Roger can freely control the shooting right at any time when he meets Iverson.

He can go against whoever he wants to beat, and that's all he wants.

Of course Pierce knew that this was Roger's team. He didn't want to be the boss of the team, but he hoped that he could get the rights he deserved.

At this time, the lights in the team bus lit up, indicating that someone was about to get on the bus.

Pierce looked up and saw that there was only one person getting on the bus, Roger.

Pierce didn't dare to face Roger because it was not his intention to disobey Roger.

Whatever the media said was bullshit, Pierce had no complaints about being Roger's deputy.

He was not an ungrateful person. He was aware of the moments when Roger supported him, and he remembered who was the first person to rush to his ward when his life was hanging by a thread.

He recognized Roger as his elder brother, so he didn't dare to face Roger.

Roger said nothing and sat down next to Pierce.

Pierce mustered up his courage and finally said: "I'm sorry for what I did today..."

"Maybe you should play against Vince Carter." Roger took the lead without waiting for Pierce to speak.

"what?"

"Maybe you should play against Vince Carter. I can understand your feelings, just like I tried my best to do better than Penny, who was one place higher than me. In the future, if you encounter a similar matchup, you can go and play. But you'd better not do anything that would drag down the game for personal reasons, and you'd better not make conditions with me at the critical moment.

When the ball is due to be given to you at the critical moment, I will naturally give it to you.

Also, if you do face off against Vince Carter, Antawn Jamison, etc., you better win. Otherwise, you better go to the corner and watch me perform!
That’s it, I’m fine.”

Pierce was a little stunned. He thought he would be scolded and even cause a relationship crisis.

In fact, this was the second time Roger tolerated him.

The first time was in the Eastern Conference Finals last year. After a series of war criminal-level performances, he thought Roger would slap him in the face. But Roger became one of the few people who supported him and became one of the few psychological shelters for Pierce on that embarrassing night.

Pierce realized that he might be the luckiest of all Roger's teammates.

Because Roger is the most patient with himself.

Yes, there is pressure to be Roger's teammate.

Now Paul Pierce understands why Steve Smith would leave without winning the championship.

Not everyone can be Roger's teammate.

But is Roger really a complete tyrant?
Pierce doesn't think he is.

He is like a father, a combination of strictness and love.

Pierce spoke carefully, "I will never yell at you again in front of everyone, I promise. No, not in private either."

“Honestly Paul, I really want to slap you today, remember, you owe me two slaps now.

I know I'm being hard on you, but that's the fate of a professional athlete. I've been to some yacht parties where there were a lot of girls in their 19s and 20s. The owner of the yacht probably had to spend tens of millions to enjoy it, but what about the other men who were invited? Believe me, they were not just any old men.

And those bitches, what do they rely on? Just makeup and a bathing suit.

Same boat, same party, that's the difference.

You've played chess, right? The king can only move one square at a time, and you just have to keep your fucking feet on the ground and work your way through it. The queen? She flies here one day, and there the next.

Unfortunately, you can't be the queen because you don't have a dad named Magic Johnson. So Paul, you have to be strict with yourself, step by step, that's why I'm strict with you. "

Pierce thought seriously for a moment, then laughed: "Hey, can you take me to a party like this next time?"
-
The next day, all the media went wild.

They finally saw the picture they had wanted for so long.

The talented Paul Pierce and Roger compete for the ball at the buzzer-beating moment? This is simply too exciting!
And all this happened before the Christmas Day game against the Miami Heat.

Will the balance of victory be shaken by this?

Will the Hawks lose to the Miami Heat again because of this?
At least that's what Sprewell thought. Before the Christmas game started, Sprewell was very confident when he went to the local radio station as a guest.

"If I was in the East during those years, the best team in Florida would not have been the Orlando Magic. Look at what we have achieved now? I don't understand why some fans are still asking if the Heat can beat the Hawks. Let me remind you that this happened last season.

The Miami Heat are the only team since 1994 that can beat Roger in the playoffs, and that’s a fact.”

"Latrell, as for winning, I think all Miami fans have no doubt, but the fans care more about another thing. Do you want to talk to everyone about the conflict between you and Roger during the offseason this year?"

"Why not? It's simple. I went to the summer league to support the Heat players, and Roger kicked me out. He did it because he didn't want to face someone who had defeated him. It was because of my presence that he lost the feeling of being a king. Because of my presence, everyone realized that he was no longer the king.

My presence embarrassed him, so he kicked me out.

The funniest thing is, that bastard didn't even dare to face me, he called a bunch of bodyguards to help him out.

Because he knows what will happen if he faces me directly. Just look at how funny his little brother Kevin Garnett is, and you can imagine what Roger will be like if he faces me directly.

But he had nowhere to hide at Christmas, he had to face me and face his fear.

Besides me, though, he probably also had to make sure he didn't get into a fight with his little brother, Paul Pierce.

Of course, even then, I will not be lenient. "

The next day, after Roger and the entire Eagles team arrived in Miami, the reporter played him a recording of Sprewell's appearance on the show.

After listening to it, Roger asked, "Wait, is the person participating in this radio show some No. 1 player in history? He speaks so arrogantly, so he must have a lot of championship rings, right?"

After the entire Eagles team got off the bus, reporters discovered that one person was missing.

"Roger, why didn't Paul Pierce come to Miami with the team?"

"He's going to be interviewed by ESPN tonight and will arrive tomorrow morning."

"Interview? Like Shaq's?"

"Well, maybe, almost."

That night, all fans across the United States were watching ESPN.

People have not forgotten how Shaquille O'Neal blew up the entire Magic team live on ESPN a few years ago.

Now, Pierce just had an argument with Roger during the game, and then he was interviewed by ESPN so quickly.

History is always strikingly similar.

The curse haunting Roger seems to be coming true again.

This time, the person responsible for interviewing Pierce was Keith Olbermann, the host of "SportsCenter".

As we all know, he is a Romy.

So, people speculated that he would embarrass Pierce in the interview.

The two started by talking about the 35-knife attack in 13 seconds, but fans across the United States knew that was not the point.

After 15 minutes of the show, the foreplay was almost over.

If the foreplay is too long, it will easily ruin the mood.

"Paul, we all saw that you and Roger had some unpleasantness in the game against the Raptors. You missed the press conference that night, so we can't know the situation from your perspective. Now, can you tell me what happened at that time?"

The show's ratings began to soar, and Paul Pierce touched his nose nervously.

"It was just an argument," Pierce touched his nose again, which is a habitual action for most people when they are nervous. "I wanted to take the last shot because I thought the Raptors would defend Roger. But Roger felt that my performance that night was not qualified to take the last shot. As you all saw, I was right. The entire Raptors team was defending him. I bet even Raptors coach Butch Carter wanted to rush over and hug Roger's legs at that time."

"But you guys won in the end, didn't you?"

"Yes, but that's because Roger has outstanding personal abilities. He is such an incredible player that he can still score even when he is surrounded by people. But the facts prove that I was right. I guessed the Raptors' strategy."

The conversation was heading in a very dangerous direction. Hawks fans were very nervous, while Sprewell and the Sharks were looking forward to Pierce's next performance like the finale of a TV series.

Hurry up and press the button to control the bomb!
"Paul, do you think you have encountered any problems in your relationship with Roger? We all know that there have been a lot of rumors about you recently, and many media believe that you would be better off going to another team." Keith Olbermann handed the remote control of the bomb to Paul Pierce.

"Oh, we had a lot of problems. He was always too strict with me and yelled at me all the time. Sometimes I really wondered, is this the career I want?"

Sprewell and Shark clenched their fists in excitement, silently shouting in their hearts: "Go on, go on!"

"But that's bullshit the media says. There is no better team for me than the Atlanta Hawks. If I were on another team, would I be as successful as Kevin and Ray? As if KG and Ray have any honor!
Yes, Roger and I had our fair share of problems, but they were never fatal.

I won't be like someone who complains about this and that even though he has no ability at all.

No matter what, the Atlanta Hawks will always be Roger's team, and I will never deny that. I have no doubt that I would have a better career than most with Roger leading the team. I just want to win, and it doesn't matter who the No. 1 player is.

If being Roger's apostle means winning, then I will be an apostle.

By the way, Latrell, I don't like the way you talk. Roger doesn't even need to get his hands dirty to deal with a rubbish player like you."

At this moment, Roger's curse became a complete joke.

You can imagine how Sprewell and the Sharks feel right now.

They feel like they are being force-fed shit.

This is not the ending they want to see!

Where's the bomb? Where's the curse?
Paul Pierce, you don't play by the rules!
Once again, ESPN's exclusive interview excited fans.

But the ending of this interview is completely different from the previous one.

After finishing the interview, Pierce immediately rushed to the airport. He was going to Miami overnight.

The staff member who was in charge of picking up Pierce was a little puzzled: "Paul, there's still time to go there tomorrow morning."

Pierce looked out the window at the huge poster of Roger and smiled.

He has always lacked a father figure in his life.

But the absence ends there.

"I want to stay with my good big brother."

Paul Pierce answered calmly.

At this time, Pierce received a text message from Roger: "Does it require me to dirty my hands to deal with Latrell? You have the right to play against him, but you know the requirements."

"Don't worry, I will definitely beat him!"
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You will soon find out that Paul Pierce is just as good as Kevin Garnett, and he only knows how to talk! Those 13 blows didn't teach him a lesson, but it doesn't matter, this blow will make him behave! -- Sprewell responds to Pierce's interview

Is Paul Pierce qualified to judge me? Why should I care what he says? Has he ever beaten me? Wait, the one before that doesn't count! - Shaquille O'Neal responds to the question "Are you the person who complains about this and that without any ability in Pierce's words?"

In my opinion, Miami's good days are over. They temporarily escaped the Kings' hunting last year, but you know, the Kings never give up. Pat, go to the doctor to get some sleeping pills, don't show up on the sidelines on Christmas Day with two big dark circles under your eyes, it's embarrassing. - Keith Olbermann, "Sports Center"

(Today is the first update, because 10,000 words are combined into one)

(End of this chapter)