Champions Creed

Chapter 257 Chapter 256: It’s over, the shit I ate was really in vain! (Please give me a monthly ticket!)

In the last second of regular time, Phil Jackson arranged a sideline star explosion tactic, but Glen Rice, who received the ball, failed to complete the finish. He missed the shot under Pippen's timely defense and the game went into overtime.

Roger's extreme offense and defense with Kobe in the previous round was very exciting, and both of their offense and defense were impeccable.

If you watch it in slow motion, you'll feel that it was one of the most enjoyable high-level one-on-one duels in the NBA.

But no one cared about the equalizer.

People are still discussing the transcendental connection between Pierce and the shark, and are still savoring the scene, atmosphere and smell just now.

Marvin Albert felt that Paul Pierce deserved a one-game suspension: "He disturbed public order! He polluted the public environment!"

Bill Walton on the side was also very happy: "Yes, we must protect the environment. Look at the shark, he is struggling to survive in the polluted environment. Shaq said in the press conference that even if Paul farted, he would block the shot despite the smell, but he never thought that Paul would be even more ruthless. Damn, we must have someone interview him after the game, I really want to know how he felt at that moment!"

There is no more magical moment than this. The previous second, Paul Pierce was still a poor guy who failed to challenge the giants.

But the next second, he completely subdued the shark.

I thought Kobe was bad enough getting beaten by him, but the Shark ended up experiencing something even worse.

Paul Pierce, the man who truly put the OK combination under his feet.

Pierce didn't want tonight to be the second Eastern Conference Finals Game 1999, and he succeeded. From now on, people will completely forget the Eastern Conference Finals Game .

The 2000 Finals Game 2 will still have super high ratings even if it is broadcast on ESPN's classic game channel 100 years later!
On the bench, Lenny Wilkens had a dull look in his eyes.

He has been playing professional basketball for half his life and has never seen anything so outrageous.

But regardless, he will lose his second-leading scorer in overtime.

What should we do next? What do you think the shark's mouth smelled like just now?

"Damn it!" Lenny Wilkens shook his head. I should focus on the game!
There is no way around it. The shocking scene is like a brand imprinted in the mind of every person who has experienced it.

A mark that will last a lifetime.

Pippen has seen big scenes before. He clapped his hands and tried to focus everyone's attention on the game: "Paul has done everything he can. He has tried his best. Let's keep going!"

Everyone felt something was wrong when they heard this. Try your best? Yes, try your best and it all came out.

In the end, only Ben nodded in agreement: "Yes, at least he got Shaq down, although the means were a bit too much. But like Scott said, Paul has done his best!"

At this moment, there was a commotion in the audience.

Everyone looked up at the big screen, wondering what was happening.

What I ended up seeing was Shaquille O'Neal walking out of the player tunnel!

The shark's eyes were red and bloodshot, and its expression was painful. There were only two reasons for this expression: either its throat was stabbed or it vomited.

No one could imagine how badly Shark vomited after returning to the locker room.

He tried to appear resolute, but when he saw the wooden floor with a lump of dirt on it, O'Neal still held onto the wall and retched.

He will always recall the taste just now!

On the side, the Lakers team doctor nervously handed the trash can to the shark.

Shark waved his hand, put his fingertips to his nose and sniffed. After confirming that he had no strange smell, he continued to walk towards the court.

At that moment, he was so great.

Even some Eagles fans couldn’t help but applaud the Shark.

Marvin Albert said with emotion: "This is the greatest comeback in NBA playoff history!"

Yes, most people just return to the court with physical injuries.

And Shaq, you know what he went through?

He was covered in shit just now!
This kind of injury is not comparable to those ordinary injuries!
No black player since the 80s has been as psychologically damaged as Shaq is today.

Bill Russell was just shit on in bed.

The shark was shit on the face.

Therefore, his return represents the perseverance that is difficult for ordinary people to understand, and it interprets what the competitive spirit is!

The Shark walked back to the court and touched Kobe's head: "Did you miss just now? It's okay, brother, let's kill that bastard together next time!"

Kobe tilted his head and stopped the shark from petting him.

This is what he hates most about Shark. That bastard is always pretending to be Big Brother and always thinks he is leading him. What a self-righteous bastard.

Who wants to be the little brother?
But there is another reason why Kobe avoided O'Neal: the shark's hand just touched something dirty!
Kobe vowed that he would shave his cauliflower head after the game.

O'Neal decided to forget what had just happened. Even eating shit couldn't stop him from taking the victory away!
Lenny Wilkens cursed inwardly, who could have thought that O'Neal would be able to come back so soon?
Paul Pierce is really something. He has already pooped, but he doesn't even know to fill the Sharks' tank?
What should we do now? Send someone up to pull it again?
There is no other way, Roger must face the reality: face the OK combination alone in overtime!

The overtime began and the starting lineups of both teams reunited.

The Lakers' starting lineup remained unchanged, while the Hawks replaced Pierce with Eric Snow.

As soon as O'Neal came back, he started to speak: "Lucky for you, Roger. If I were here just now, you could have gone back and hugged your girlfriend and cried."

Roger was tired of these people talking about how lucky they were.

It seems that they can cover up their incompetence by attributing their weakness to bad luck.

But Roger killed the game with a simple sentence.

"Shut up Shaq, your words stink after you eat that stuff."

"Pfft!" Snow on the side tried to hold back his laughter cooperatively.

Shark felt unprecedented humiliation and tried to forget what had just happened, but Roger's trash talk made the dead memories attack him again.

O'Neill shut up. Huh? Why does it really smell a bit stinky?
Oh no!

I have to focus, focus, damn it!

The referee felt that if he didn't jump the ball quickly, the Sharks would be beaten again, so he kicked the ball off immediately.

The angry shark jumped high and caught the ball steadily.

In the first attack of overtime, the ball was first in Kobe's hands. But he was not the end point, but a transfer point.

The Zen Master stared at Kobe, extremely worried.

He was very afraid that Kobe would go berserk in overtime. In fact, the Zen Master was worried about this throughout the game.

There is no doubt that the failed offense and defense in regular time just now were like a girl lying in Kobe's arms, trying to arouse his desire and bring out the wolf side of his heart.

After all, if Kobe had succeeded in either of his attack or defense, the Lakers would have been celebrating their victory. For a competitive person like Kobe, the loss must have made him feel like ants were crawling in his heart, and he must have wanted to win back with consecutive points.

As a result, Kobe was able to control himself again. He immediately passed the ball to the Shark who was already in position.

Kobe didn't actually start to behave himself after Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals. Instead, it was the heart-to-heart talk he had at Shaq's house after being beaten up last season that made Kobe decide to restrain himself.

For Kobe, this was probably the calmest year of his career.

He took the initiative to ask assistant coach Tex Winter for advice, learned the triangle offense, and practiced movement and positioning in strict accordance with the coach's tactical requirements during training.

He worked hard to hone his defensive skills and worked tirelessly on the defensive end.

He suppressed his desire to play one-on-one and became a loyal executor of the triangle offense.

Kobe's highest single-game score this season is only 40 points, and this is only once in the entire season.

Kobe played his role with peace of mind, temporarily suppressing his ardent desire to dominate a team.

The wolf side of him still flashes out from time to time, but only in fleeting moments.

What is holding Kobe back?

It was the 16-game winning streak at the start, three consecutive 10+ wins in a single season, never losing more than three games in a row throughout the season, and the final record of 69 wins.

And the desire for the championship.

Again, Kobe likes to win.

But for him to continue to maintain this restrained state, the Lakers had better keep winning.

The ball was given to the Shark, who bounced off Big Ben like a prehistoric beast and dunked the ball, his movements even faster than Marion's assist defense.

Because O'Neal occupied an advantageous position from the very beginning, and at that moment, the failure of this defense was doomed.

The Shark has 37 points, and even after the shit-eating incident, it cannot conceal his status as the best player of the Lakers today.

This is this year's OK combination. Their cooperation is very tacit and pleasant.

After scoring the goal, O'Neal was about to talk trash when he saw Roger covering his nose.

Seeing Roger didn't respond, the Shark looked at Kobe again: "Fuck! I'm going to kill Paul Pierce after we win the game!"

Little did he know that Kobe would turn his head away in disgust.

Bill Walton didn't want to comment on the Shark's attack, but asked Marvin Albert: "Do you think Shane will be willing to kiss Shaq when she returns to Los Angeles?"

"I have to say, that requires great courage!" Marvin Albert answered seriously.

No matter what Shaq does on the court, all people will remember is the moment he ate shit.

O'Neal gritted his teeth. He had already eaten it. If he still lost, wouldn't it be a waste?

Must win!
The Lakers' offense was still unstoppable. Facts proved that Pierce's three consecutive difficult three-pointers at critical moments in the last game were indeed golden three-pointers, which directly reduced the difficulty of winning against the Lakers.

The game continues, and Phil Jackson is now confident that he can cause trouble for Roger on the defensive end.

When Paul Pierce fouled out and had to clean his ass in the locker room, Kobe, the Lakers' best defensive resource on the perimeter, could finally be used in the most valuable way.

But Roger changed to play without the ball in overtime, which is why the Eagles replaced Snow.

Snow himself has no offensive ability, but because of the existence of illegal defense rules, the person defending him must stay in front of him.

Also because of the existence of the illegal defense rule, when Roger was running without the ball, only Kobe could chase him.

Any two-on-one defense without the ball will be considered illegal defense.

Moreover, Pippen and Marion's constant off-ball cutting would also arouse the nerves of other Lakers players, making them afraid to double-team Roger easily.

So as long as Roger plays without the ball and shoots decisively after receiving the ball, he can achieve the effect of a one-on-one against Kobe.

Without Pierce, the traditional backcourt combination of Roger and Eric Snow can solve most offensive problems. The two have already proved this in the Eastern Conference Finals.

This time Roger shot directly after catching the ball after going through the screen. He could not hesitate, because if he hesitated, he would be double-teamed immediately.

Kobe's interference was timely, but it was still a little slow for Roger.

The basketball went in steadily, and Roger still managed to score despite being guarded by the Lakers' best defensive resource!

So what if they are OK alone? Everyone knows that the Hawks can rely on most not some tactics, not Paul Pierce's shit, but Roger!

Without Pierce, the difficulty of the game really increased dramatically.

But this does not mean that Roger cannot win in such a difficult situation.

The opening between Shark and Roger was a microcosm of the subsequent half overtime.

Once the Shark caught the ball in deep position, he was unstoppable. When he elbowed Ben, he felt like there was a thigh across his chest.

Even relatively far from the basket, the Sharks have a high finishing rate.

With Marion speeding up his defense, Shark would turn around immediately after receiving the ball, and no matter how far away from the basket he would hook or throw the ball, he would score steadily. He showed the results of his hard work last summer, a rare hard work summer in his entire career, which benefited Shark a lot.

Roger showed his snake-like awareness, getting the chance to catch the ball through agile off-ball running, and then making mid-range shots along the fingertips of Kobe and others.

Michael Jordan's dynasty made people believe that mid-range shooting is the weapon to kill the game, and made people believe that they can win the championship without entering the three-second zone. As the most accomplished player in the world, Roger could not fail to master this killer move.

While Roger and O'Neal were fighting like gods, Kobe picked up scraps in the gaps between the two superstars and then tried his best to defend.

The Lakers did their best, and Roger did his best.

However, in the playoffs, blood and iron always determine everything. Halfway through the overtime, both teams increased their defensive intensity.

The magnificent performance came to an abrupt end.

Roger, Pippen, Snow and Marion began to take advantage of their defensive area, moving vigorously and using their slender arms to form a dense wire mesh to block the basketball from penetrating into the inside. If someone rashly passed the ball to the Shark, he might be greeted by a steal and a smooth counterattack.

On the Lakers side, Phil Jackson boldly let go of Marion and Pippen, and asked everyone to stand in a pseudo-zone defense. The moment Eric Snow passed the ball, he moved towards Roger and clamped him.

Roger was always able to actively pass the ball in a double-team, but Marion and Pippen's shots failed the test, and their cuts were also restricted by the huge size of the shark.

Although the Hawks were still able to score, their efficiency was not enough to support the team's victory.

The five-minute overtime passed in a flash, and in the blink of an eye it was 1 minute and 03 seconds, with the Hawks leading by 1 point.

The outcome is still undecided and the suspense remains.

Roger used his outstanding personal ability to face OK without losing, but OK still has a chance to bring the victory back to Los Angeles.

The Lakers have the ball and are facing perhaps the most crucial offense of the season.

Phil Jackson excitedly waved his arms, shouted loudly, and gave on-the-spot instructions on the sidelines. This was a scene that Pippen had never seen before.

When had that old hippie who didn't even bother to call for a timeout ever gotten so excited? He was actually dancing on the sidelines.

Then soon, Pippen realized something was wrong.

While giving the instructions, the Lakers actually pulled away and let Kobe play one-on-one with them!
Pippen immediately understood that this was the tactic commanded by Phil Jackson, and he regarded himself as a weakness!

Pippen gritted his teeth. This was simply an insult. This round represented the complete end of his friendship with Phil Jackson.

He would never speak to that old man again, ever!

"If Phil lets Kobe control the ball and everyone moves away at the crucial moment, what will Kobe do?" Marvin Albert clenched his fists. At this moment, people finally forgot the famous scene of the shark eating shit and only focused on victory.

The fourth-year Kobe looked at the 35-year-old Pippen with no fear in his eyes.

He knew very well that this once best perimeter defender in the league was far behind his craziest years.

Kobe is very confident that he will defeat this guy!
Kobe began to cross dribble continuously, testing Pippen's center of gravity, which was far less flexible than before.

With no one coming up to assist in defense for the time being, the Hawks are confident in their one-on-one defense against Pippen.

Kobe suddenly accelerated, changed direction, and in a flash he passed Pippen, passing the long arms and big hands that had given countless outside players nightmares.

The Flying Man quickly rushed towards the penalty area along the middle, Shawn Marion immediately made up for the defense, and Big Ben also focused all his attention on Kobe.

Then, Kobe threw the ball into the air.

"Damn it." Roger knew immediately that his defense had failed, because he was very familiar with this scene.

Everyone looked up at the basketball, only to see a fat man lurking at the edge of the restricted area breaking through the sky with a speed that was totally inconsistent with his body size, grabbing the basketball, and slamming it into the basket!

"The alley-oop of the century! This is the alley-oop of the century for the OK combination! Oh my God, do you remember the Magic's first championship? Do you remember how the strongest duo in history was born? The alley-oop of the century reappeared in Atlanta, and the miracle reappeared!"

Amid Marvin Albert's passionate roar, Phil Jackson raised his arms with satisfaction. He had just been looking at Kobe and trusted him. If Kobe didn't turn into a wolf even at this moment, he would definitely create greatness. Sure enough, this was undoubtedly the greatest moment in the history of the Lakers. And now, the Zen Master has to say that Kobe is a great Lakers player!

The Lakers were leading by one point with 1 seconds left.

O'Neal really wanted to hug Kobe and give him a kiss.

Kobe was very afraid that O'Neal would hug him and kiss him.

If they were kissed by him, people would laugh at themselves for having their heads pushed into the toilet.

How can I face Vanessa when I go back?
Shark should save this sweet kiss for his girlfriend Shanny.

In the end, Kobe and Shark just nodded and didn't celebrate too much.

This alley-oop gave the Lakers the lead in the final moments. Now, everyone is wondering if this alley-oop will be the beginning of the Lakers' rise to the top.

But before the joy of Los Angeles fans could spread completely, Roger responded strongly with a simple catch-and-shoot shot to put the Eagles ahead again!

The alley-oop of the century for the Los Angeles Lakers?

Go to hell!

The reason why the strongest duo in history can become the strongest duo in history is because they are impossible to replicate!
Do you think you can replicate my legend by just finding a random kid?

wishful thinking!

"A hopeless opponent! The OK combination is very strong, but they met the most hopeless opponent! Look at Roger, he is like an executioner, ruthlessly wiping out the opponent's hope!" Marvin Albert could only sigh at Roger's strength, and only he could break the beauty of the OK combination.

By this point, Roger had scored 10 points in overtime and 47 points in the game.

Shark scored 45 points and Kobe had 18 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists.

Both teams continued their good performance from the previous game, the only difference was that Roger didn't have a 30-point assistant.

Roger's goal caused Phil Jackson to pause the game. With 29 seconds left and the team trailing by 1 point, the scene that the Zen Master least wanted to see happened.

Phil Jackson sat down in front of Shaq and Kobe, then
Put on a mask.

"Damn it, Phil!" Shark felt like he was being humiliated repeatedly today.

"What's wrong? I just don't want to infect you with my cold!" the Zen master argued.

On the other hand, Lenny Wilkens has decided not to use the Hack-A-Shaq tactic.

Because the Shark's free throws were very accurate today, he didn't want to gamble at this time.

Wilkens thought that the ball would be given to Kobe in the next round, so he asked Roger to defend the Lakers No. 8 at the critical moment.

Pippen was very unhappy, not because of Wilkens' decision, but because he was completely defeated by Kobe.

He is really old. This season he was only selected to the All-Defensive Second Team. This is the first time he has fallen out of the first team in eight years.

In 2000, the flavor of the change of eras became even stronger.

Pippen looked at Roger. He was the only one left. Now the team could only rely on him.

The timeout ends and the game resumes.

The Lakers successfully sent out a sideline ball, and it turned out that Kobe was in control of this crucial attack.

At critical moments, Kobe has priority over Shark.

Roger opened his arms, and now he was the mountain Kobe needed to climb.

All the fans in the stadium became nervous, and the Shark was also a little nervous. He didn't know whether the kid was ready to take over the banner of this era.

Kobe looked straight at Roger. Once again, he encountered the scene he had been dreaming about in reality.

In the finals, at the critical moment, the team was on the edge of the cliff, and I and Roger decided the victory
Kobe had imagined such a scene countless times, but Roger shattered his fantasies time and time again.

The beatings in the past years have made Kobe breathless, but as long as he sees an opportunity, he will challenge it without hesitation.

He is a man who lives to win.

Kobe dribbled the ball in the same way as before, and Marvin Albert held his breath, as if gathering strength for the next shout. No matter who won this round, he would have a reason to shout.

Kobe swayed and accelerated. Roger judged the direction correctly, but just as he was about to stick to him, Kobe used a back-handed change of hands to pass by Roger.

He has become much smarter and is no longer so reckless.

But this kind of dribbling was useless, Roger immediately stuck to the front of Kobe, and Kobe had no chance at all.

However, Kobe did not play one-on-one, he passed the ball to the Shark on the tee.

Lenny Wilkens was a little surprised. Are the Lakers going to use the Shark in the final attack?

But the moment the Shark received the ball, he hit the ground and passed it back. Kobe just cut in, swept the basketball and went straight into the basket!
Kobe and Shark put on a wonderful performance!

Roger chased after him immediately. He didn't expect that the Shark and Kobe would have such cooperation at the last moment.

Big Ben has rushed back to the basket, ready to work together with Roger to capture Kobe.

Kobe jumped towards Big Ben, turned 180 degrees in the air, held Big Ben with his back, then avoided Roger's block, looked back at the moon and hooked the ball back, and the basketball went into the net!

"Kobe Bryant! He successfully broke through Roger and Big Ben's defense and helped the Lakers take the lead again! He dealt with Paul and Scott today, and now he's going to deal with Roger! Is his moment about to come!?" Marvin Albert stood up and applauded Kobe. The kid's performance today was simply perfect.

O'Neal hugged Kobe and yelled like crazy: "Kill that lucky bastard, hahahaha, we killed that lucky bastard!"

Today's Kobe is the best Kobe O'Neal has ever seen. When he was surrounded, he saw Kobe's calm passing and singles, and also saw Kobe's serious defense. He knew that if he really had to rely on someone, Kobe would be that person.

His talent, heart, will and competitive spirit far beyond his peers make him infinitely close to Roger at that time!

With only 4 seconds left in the game, the balance of victory had completely tipped towards the Lakers.

The Hawks now have only one chance to tip the scales, but stopping them is too easy for the Lakers.

Because at this time, no one except Roger could catch the ball.

Phil Jackson told everyone: "Stop him from catching the ball! If you can't succeed, everyone should chase him the moment he catches the ball! Stop him, stop him!"

On the other hand, Roger was much calmer than the Zen Master.

He just wiped his sweat with a towel and looked at the tactics Lenny Wilkens was drawing.

Once again, the burden of Atlanta fell on Roger.

Pierce clenched his fists in the locker room, stared at the TV, and prayed for the return of God.

The pause ended quickly and Roger stood up without saying a word.

He glanced at the basket, then stood in the designated position with his hands on his knees.

Kobe held Roger with one hand while directing others to defend.

In this round, Wilkens replaced Marion and Big Ben with Bowen and Clifford Robinson in order to increase the shooting points.

But the whole world knew that it was impossible for them to get the ball.

Pippen took the basketball from the referee, and the countdown to life and death began at this moment.

Roger ran as close to the midfield line as possible, hoping to catch the ball at the far end. 4 seconds was enough time for him to get close to the three-point line and shoot.

But Kobe stayed close to him and Roger couldn't even get a chance to catch the ball.

But after running near the midfield line, Roger pushed Kobe, then quickly ran back, successfully got rid of him, approached Pippen, and caught the basketball!

After Roger got the ball, all the Lakers' outside players rushed towards Roger immediately like zombies seeing a living thing.

Roger dribbled the ball sideways leisurely, and when he reached the free throw line, he jumped without braking, preparing for a drifting shot.

Glen Rice and Harper both passed by Roger due to inertia, and only Kobe blocked them from the side in the first time.

At that moment, Roger made a shooting gesture, and Kobe's hand just covered the basketball. If this moment were frozen, it might be a beautiful picture about competition.

Roger did pause in the air, and only after Kobe passed in front of him did Roger throw the ball while his body fell.

After this, it is eternity.

The ball went in, the lights came on, Kobe's eyes widened, then he covered his head with his hands in loss.

O'Neal looked at the basketball bouncing on the ground, as if he was under a spell. It's over, I really ate shit in vain!

Roger landed and turned to look at Kobe and Shark. He finally vented all his emotions after being silent for a while: "Now, are you still using luck as an excuse?!"

Lenny Wilkens and the Eagles players on the bench rushed into the court and hugged each other. After the shitting incident, the scene fell into madness again.

Pierce and Roger, in one match, staged two brutal kills.

Pippen did not join in the crazy celebration. He walked up to Kobe, who was covering his head with his hands, and patted the No. 8 player on the shoulder.

"You can beat me, you can beat Paul, you can beat a lot of people, you are really good, you are already one of the greatest players in the league, much better than others.

But Roger is always higher than you, higher than anyone else. He is the only one you cannot defeat.

That’s the law of basketball, Kobe, until Roger retires.”

(End of this chapter)