Champions Creed

Chapter 321 Chapter 320: The answer I dare not face (please vote for the monthly ticket!)
"Damn that damn German!"

When Shaquille O'Neal found himself still sweating after coming on the court, he cursed under his breath in dissatisfaction.

It’s all because of Dirk Nowitzki’s useless talk before the game, which has caused everyone on the Mavericks to be a little nervous.

The Mavericks players didn't know whether they would become a background piece in Roger's playoff miracle, and whether they would be hung on the pillar of shame in history.

Although the two teams were tied during the regular season, the Mavericks players still felt uneasy. This was the deterrent power of Roger.

In order to avoid unnecessary trouble, Shaquille O'Neal told his teammates before the game: "Everyone, keep your mouth shut and don't trash talk Roger in the playoffs. You can't trash talk him, and you can't beat him!"

Nick Van Exel looked at the shark speechlessly. Weren't you the first one to shout in the media? Now you are reminding others.

All I can say is that the environment will change a person's mentality.

Before today, the Sharks had always been confident that they could defeat Roger, and felt that Roger was vulnerable this season.

But the overly serious locker room atmosphere just now made the Shark begin to doubt his own confidence.

Regardless, Nick Van Exel agrees with the Sharks' decision.

Don't piss off Roger in the playoffs, that's the first step to beating him.

Old Nelson found it incredible as he listened to the players' conversation.

There was actually a team that reached a consensus not to trash talk someone on the other side. In this league where trash talk masters are everywhere, everyone beats their chests and yells, and the relationship between NBA players is not that "brotherly", this is definitely a strange phenomenon that has never been heard of before and will never happen again.

What would old Nelson say about this? He would say: You did the right thing!
Unlike the Mavericks players who were nervous, Amar'e Stoudemire was excited. This time last year, he was still competing against Carmelo Anthony in the McDonald's All-Star Game, trying to prove himself. Now he has stepped onto the stage of the NBA playoffs, about to assist the greatest player to defeat the most dominant center.

He has stayed up late for two consecutive nights to watch Spoelstra's analysis of the Shark video. He believes that he has mastered all the skills to defend the Shark and will definitely be able to limit that guy and protect Roger.

Stoudemire knew very well that he would have to face the Sharks alone most of the time in the game.

If the team wants to attack, the best way is to lock down Dirk and let Roger and Shark compete with each other.

But if Nowitzki also gets into shooting form, the balance of offense and defense will be disrupted.

If Dirk Nowitzki and Shaq play at the same time, there are few teams in the league that can stop them.

After all, the Mavericks are the only team in the league that has two players in the top ten of the league's scoring list.

So Stephen Jackson won't have that much energy to help Stoudemire, Stoudemire has to rely on himself.

Speaking of which, Shaq has had a top-10 partner in the league for most of his career.

During the Magic dynasty it was Roger, during the Lakers era it was Kobe, and now it is Dirk.

But the success he has achieved does not seem to match the level of his teammates.

O'Neal stopped thinking about it and calmed down to warm up.

Kobe is to blame for the Lakers' failure!
With Dirk, I can't be idle anymore!
Before the game started, Dirk Nowitzki greeted his idol Roger and exchanged a few words.

But Roger wasn't particularly enthusiastic, so forgive him for wanting to just take down the entire Mavericks team.

When a man wants to fuck you, he can't hide his desire and he doesn't want to listen to any more nonsense from you.

Roger couldn't accept losing in the first round, especially losing to the Sharks in the first round.

Although six years have passed, the resentment in my heart is not as great anymore.

But whenever Roger saw the shark's fat face, he had a strong desire to conquer it.

He hopes that his entire career can prove one thing - the Sharks cannot do without him!

Even if he changes teams, even if he is not the favorite to win the championship this year, Roger has to beat the Shark first!

Roger has a strange obsession with this matter. In fact, he doesn't hate Shaq that much anymore, but Roger's mentality on "defeating the shark" has never changed.

Roger himself has analyzed this mentality, and he feels that it comes from his own demand for the word "dominance".

After all, it is impossible to win the championship every year in competitive sports. It would be unfair to say that a player has no dominance just because he did not win the championship in a certain season.

But can he suppress some players? Can he make some players unable to defeat him throughout their careers? This is a measure of dominance.

Michael Jordan also lost, but why do people recognize his dominance?
Because throughout his career, he never let Patrick Ewing, Karl Malone, Charles Barkley, Reggie Miller and others beat him.

He didn't fight back and forth with these people, but completely crushed them. None of these people beat Jordan once.

If a star player is still eliminated by many people after reaching his peak, or even eliminated repeatedly by many people, then there is no question of dominance.

When is the peak period? It’s not too much to start from when you win the MVP, right?

After winning the MVP, Michael Jordan was still eliminated by the Pistons three times and didn't win until the fourth meeting. This was one of the few minor flaws in his career.

Why is this just a minor flaw? Because Jordan at least persevered and eventually killed his enemy, and then only lost to the Sharks. Most people may not even persevere for the fourth time and run away. The most ridiculous thing is that they still lose after running away.

Roger didn't want to leave any flaws, he wanted to completely dominate the Sharks, and he believed that this was part of his dominance.

He never wanted to be defeated by a shark, even once, throughout his career.

If one day Roger feels that it doesn't matter whether he wins or loses against the Sharks, it probably means that he is old and it is time to retire.

Roger needs to show his dominance, so the shark must die!

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

The shark in the blue jersey stared at Roger with a complicated look. It was as if they were bound together by fate, and they would still meet each other even if they changed teams.

O'Neal didn't say anything. From now on, he would not talk trash to Roger, but Roger spoke first: "Shaq, what are you thinking about? You look worried. Don't worry, everything is normal, and your ending will not be any different from the previous years."

"I don't want to waste my time on you today, you bastard who calls himself the GOAT."

"All the titles of GOAT come from others. This is the recognition given to me by the outside world."

"Okay, just focus on the game."

O'Neal's strategy was successful. The moment he refused to spray Roger, Roger suddenly felt that this wonderful lovemaking was no longer so wonderful without the other's moans.

Roger curled his lips. What the hell is this fat guy doing?

The referee kicked off and Shark won the ball for the Mavericks.

This is Shaquille O'Neal in 2003. In the original timeline, he is still playing for the Lakers and is at the end of his prime.

So, although he is fat, Shark's athletic ability has not completely deteriorated, and even Stoudemire finds it difficult to get the ball over his head.

Because of the presence of the shark, the Mavericks naturally cannot play fast this season. But the Mavericks' offense is still very aggressive. They are the team with the most three-point shots this season. Nelson uses the shark's containment power in the interior to attract double-teaming, and then lets others use the shark's containment power to shoot wildly outside the three-point line.

So if the Mavericks play well as a team, their opponents will be pierced by thousands of arrows.

So after the opening, the Mavericks were the first to find the shark.

He has to create a containment force in the paint first before there will be an opening outside the three-point line.

Amar'e Stoudemire, who stayed up late to watch the video for two nights, wanted to go around to defend the Sharks. He saw Ben Wallace do this in almost every round in the video.

But just as he was about to go around, he deeply experienced what it meant to "the eyes have learned but the body has not."

O'Neal simply stretched out his arm, which was as thick as an elephant's leg, and blocked Stoudemire who was about to move forward.

Although Big Ben is short, Stoudemire's strength is not at the same level as his.

This is a man who can cure mania in the blink of an eye.

Just because he can easily bypass the Shark, doesn't mean Stoudemire can do it too.

With Stoudemire trapped behind the Shark, Van Exel did not waste the opportunity and easily passed the ball to the Shark.

The moment the Shark received the ball, Stoudemire's defense had actually failed.

O'Neal, who was full of energy, sat back, and when the two sides made physical contact, Stoudemire was instantly knocked out of position, and then he watched helplessly as the Shark jumped up on the spot and pulled the basket with both hands!

At the beginning of the game, the Shark performed a devastating dunk!
This goal boosted the morale of the over-nervous Mavericks and also excited the Sharks.

He needed a spot to vent his emotions, but he didn't dare yell at Roger, so the shark pointed at Stoudemire's nose and said, "Get away, bug!"

If I can't afford to offend Roger, why can't I afford to offend you?
TNT commentator Charles Barkley gloated: "Look, this is another stupid defensive moment from Amar'e Stoudemire. He actually tried to go behind Shaq and didn't even know how to go around him."

That’s right, this is the difference between the outside perspective and the inside perspective.

Of course, Stoudemire knew he had to go around, but he just couldn't do it.

The game continued, and Roger saw an annoying guy just after crossing half court. He was definitely the most annoying person in the Mavericks besides the Shark - Raja Bell, who was from the Virgin Islands like Duncan.

In the original timeline, because the Mavericks had Steve Nash and Michael Finley, Raja Bell was just an unappreciated minor character until he joined the Utah Jazz in the 03-04 season and began to emerge.

But now because of the Mavericks' lineup changes, Raja Bell has gotten more opportunities to perform and became famous earlier.

Today, he is a recognized defensive stalwart, and at the same time he can shoot 40% from three-point range, which perfectly fits the Mavericks' system.

His defense is indeed tough, with a low center of gravity, fast movement, and a love of confrontation. He is also a very aggressive defender, and the aggressiveness here does not only refer to confrontation, but also attitude.

During the regular season, he would chatter with Roger all day long.

As soon as Roger reached outside the three-point line, Raja Bell approached with great concentration.

But Roger always felt that something was missing. Was the court too quiet?
Why didn't Raja Bell say a word today?
Roger didn't think too much and waved his hand to call for Stoudemire to set a screen. After using the pick-and-roll to beat the Sharks in the playoffs last season to good effect, this became Roger's most common method to deal with the Sharks.

But the Sharks didn't rush too hard because Raja Bell was very good at going around screens.

Sure enough, Roger was entangled by Raja Bell again just after he took a step forward after the pick-and-roll.

But Roger did not back down, relying on this aggressive villain to continue to break through. The Sharks defended the basket and tried to join forces with Raja Bell to defend Roger.

But after entering the penalty area, Roger had a clear mind and passed the ball to Stoudemire who was in the pick-and-roll.

Amar'e Stoudemire took a mid-range shot, but unfortunately, the basketball bounced out of the rim.

As a freshman, Stoudemire is still unable to produce a lot in the mid-range. He can take a shot when he feels good, but his stability is not high.

In this round, Roger wanted to test Stoudemire's touch today, but the result was not what he wanted.

It seems that I really have to go all out to win tonight, there is no room for maneuver.

The Shark grabbed the rebound and passed it to Van Exel, then ran forward to participate in the offense.

What Roger found strange was that the shark didn't mock his missed shot.

But when he ran to Stoudemire, Shark immediately blurted out: "Honestly, Amare, the fact that you were picked third is like someone thinking that Tim Duncan is better than me. It's the most ridiculous joke in the history of the NBA draft."

Stoudemire did not respond, or rather, he is not very good at responding to his opponents' trash talk.

Many people think that not making trouble is a good habit, but it is a completely bad habit on the basketball court. When you don't respond to the other party, the other party will despise you in his heart, and then become more and more bold.

Stoudemire's silence made the Shark bolder. This time he received the ball at a very high position, ready to face Stoudemire.

O'Neal started before Prince doubled up, and broke through to the left of Stoudemire. Stoudemire immediately moved sideways to catch up, but the Shark turned in the opposite direction, completely passed Stoudemire with a guard move, and easily scored a dunk!
O'Neal's shot was intended to humiliate Stoudemire: "I don't even need to use my body to deal with a piece of trash like you! The Warriors should have agreed to the deal involving you and Mutombo. They really should have traded you away. You are no match for that 50-year-old man."

"God, please help this kid. Why did he have to meet Shaquille O'Neal at the age of 19?" Charles Barkley shook his head. To be honest, he didn't like Stoudemire or Yao Ming.

One is a fake No. 1 pick who leads his team to the lottery in New York, and the other is a fake No. 3 pick who is hyped by everyone. Why do they always occupy the headlines of major media?

Just because Yao Ming is Chinese and in New York?

Just because Amar'e Stoudemire plays next to Roger, the best player in history?
Just looking at the attention from the media and fans, you would think Yao Ming and Stoudemire are superstars. But when you look closely, you can see that both of them only average 13+8 per game.

This makes Feizhu feel too unfair.

He has never received as much attention as Yao Ming and Stoudemire throughout his career.

Why do these two rookies have the upper hand?
But even though Feizhu hated Stoudemire so much, he also felt a little sympathy for No. 32 at this time.

The attention will also magnify his rookie season failures. It is really tragic that at the age of 19, he was destroyed by the best center in the playoffs in front of everyone.

Fortunately, Roger immediately stopped the Warriors' decline.

In this round, Roger directly faced Raja Bell with his back to the basket, and after taking a step forward, he turned around and made a jump shot, which hit the backboard. Raja Bell's situation was not much better than Stoudemire's. He could only pray that the fierce confrontation would eat up Roger's touch, otherwise he would be helpless.

Help defense? Double team? You overestimate the Mavericks' defense.

Among the entire Mavericks starting lineup, only Raja Bell's defense can be considered outstanding.

Others simply don't have such a strong sense of helping defense, and Nelson himself doesn't emphasize that. He believes that the Mavericks' offensive system is enough to solve all problems.

Neither side could defend against each other's superstars, so it turned into a earth-shattering battle between Shark and Roger.

O'Neal was unmatched in the interior. Except for the occasional steal of the pass by Prince and the Warriors' helpless early fouls in the interior, the Shark was basically unstoppable.

But Roger is more terrifying because he can attack directly with the ball, and there is no such thing as being intercepted. Moreover, Roger is not the kind of player who can be stopped by fouls.

In the third quarter, Hubie Brown made a decisive on-the-spot command, letting Troy Murphy, Amar'e Stoudemire and Stephen Jackson be on the court at the same time.

Stephen Jackson continued to guard Dirk Nowitzki at the power forward position, and Troy Murphy had only one task, which was to hold off the Shark in the penalty area with Stoudemire.

In this way, the Mavericks' third position will be completely left empty.

But this is the point of the game between Hubie Brown and old Nelson.

Because Michael Finley was used as a bargaining chip to trade for Shaq, the Mavericks have had no one available at the three position.

Whether it is Mexican Eduardo Najera, veteran Walter Williams or the strong Adrian Griffin, they do not have outstanding scoring ability and cannot be considered qualified starters.

Unless Nelson can find a way to score at the three position, Hubie Brown's defensive strategy of breaking up the three and filling in the five will not be punished.

Old Nelson really had no way to deal with this. No matter how good a coach was, he couldn't make the best use of a bunch of overly mediocre players.

Old Nelson asked the three small forwards to try, but they only made 7 of 1 shots, which almost burst his blood vessels.

When they attack, all it takes is for someone to interfere a little and their accuracy will be completely lost.

Troy Murphy was able to safely retreat to the basket and defend against O'Neal together with Stoudemire.

Although both of them are poor at defense, at least they have the advantage of being outnumbered, which makes the Sharks' offense less arbitrary.

The offense of other Mavericks players was also restricted. The Little Prince made it difficult for Van Exel to score. Nowitzki, who can't play with his back to the basket, is most afraid of a mediocre defender like Stephen Jackson. He did not perform well under Stephen Jackson's defense today and could not find his touch.

The Mavericks' offense basically relied on the Sharks, and the game became a star-to-star showdown that both Hubie Brown and Roger had hoped for. Under Roger's efficient offense, the Warriors gradually took control of the situation.

However, the Warriors' strategy came to an end in the last 2 minutes and 13 seconds of the game. In the Mavericks' turn, O'Neal received the ball and back-attacked Stoudemire, and forced an attack despite the interference of two people.

O'Neal is now sweating profusely. He has taken too many shots today, which is a severe physical test for the huge shark.

But even so, he was still fierce in the last quarter, scoring goals repeatedly despite the obstruction of Stoudemire and Troy Murphy. For the Sharks at this stage, carrying two or three goals under the basket is completely normal.

Seeing that he could no longer stop the Shark, Troy Murphy had to commit a foul in advance.

The referee whistle sounded and O'Neal was pushed down. He lay on the ground, wanting to get up and beat Troy Murphy up immediately. The guy had a bullying face. Sharks liked to bully people the most.

But considering that Roger and Stephen Jackson were not easy to deal with, the Sharks decided to use a different way to humiliate them.

He lay on the ground and waved to Troy Murphy: "Goodbye, long-legged girl, go back to the locker room and pick out a beautiful dress for the press conference."

At this moment, Roger just walked up and appeared in the shark's field of vision.

Shark kept talking to everyone today, but when he saw Roger, he would become quiet instantly.

Roger walked up and patted Troy Murphy on the shoulder: "You did your best, go down and rest."

That's right, this shot caused Troy Murphy to receive 6 fouls and leave the game.

Next, the obstruction of the double inside line will no longer exist.

At this time, the Warriors were leading by 5 points, but Shaquille O'Neal only had to face Stoudemire.

If all goes well, the Mavericks will have a chance to win Game 1 of the series.

Shark made one of two free throws, narrowing the gap to 4 points and scoring his 41st point in the game. This is Shark's 13th 40+ game in the playoffs.

O'Neal tried hard to adjust his breathing. He was only 4 points away from breaking the curse of his career!

Hubie Brown didn't take a timeout because he didn't have any better options.

When Troy Murphy fouled out, the matchup really became a personal one between Roger and the Shark.

At this time, Roger, who had already scored 46 points, once again held the ball and approached the Mavericks' half court. Raja Bell had been beaten without dignity, and his best defense in front of Roger was like a clown trying to make people laugh.

He felt very aggrieved, but he didn't dare to talk trash, which made him feel even more aggrieved.

The closer it got to the final moment, the more determined the Mavericks were to not talk trash to Roger, because no one wanted to irritate Roger at the final moment, which was absolutely the most brainless thing in the world.

Roger didn't say much. He changed direction to the left, stepped past Raja Bell and made a mid-range drift shot, scoring 48 points!
Raja Bell was so angry that he could only vent his anger on the basketball. He picked up the basketball that fell into the net and slammed it to the ground with both hands. But the basketball unfortunately bounced back and hit Raja Bell's own head, which made him look more like a clown.

"Damn it, damn it, damn it!" Raja Bell almost exploded, but Shark came up and covered his mouth.

"It's almost over, Laga, hold on a little longer!"

Roger shook his head. "Really? You guys really like playing clowns so much?"

Raja Bell's expression looked like he could bite Roger's head off in one bite, but he still didn't say anything.

He could only hold it in.

The next round is extremely crucial. If the Warriors' defense is successful, the game will be decided.

Stoudemire, who was about to fall apart, stared at the Shark, and he was extremely eager to complete a successful defense in this crucial round. He didn't want to be an obstacle to the team's victory, and he hoped that he would look at least a little bit useful.

In this round, O'Neal asked for the ball in the low post, and Prince was no longer waiting for an opportunity to steal the ball. He just stood in front of the Shark.

O'Neal was double-teamed even when he didn't have the ball!

Completely unattended, Eduardo Najera cut in, Van Exel passed the ball to him, and the Mexican drove towards the basket with the ball.

Seeing the Mexican rushing in, Stoudemire immediately turned around to protect the rim, but Najera passed the ball to the Shark the moment Stoudemire turned around.

The Shark took advantage of the gap when Stoudemire left him to catch the ball and rushed forward. Stoudemire raised his arms to stop him, but it was too late.

Shaquille O'Neal, the most dominant center of the 21st century, completed a dunk over Amar'e Stoudemire, narrowing the score to just 4 points!
After landing, the Shark deliberately pushed Stoudemire and yelled, "The worst defensive wimp in history!"

Roger walked between the two of them, pushed Shark away with one hand, and held Stoudemire behind him: "What's the point of punching a rookie? Come at me if you dare."

O'Neal still did not respond to Roger. He just pointed at Stoudemire and repeatedly mouthed the word "soft".

Amar'e Stoudemire, the high school rookie who had been active all season, was defeated by the Sharks at this moment.

He made no contribution to the victory throughout the entire game.

He couldn't defend Shaq because he was hiding under the basket and his drives to the basket were useless.

What about mid-range shots? His touch was as bad as shit. Today, Stoudemire's free throw shooting percentage was only 60%.

On both offense and defense, his presence was as thin as the air on the plateau.

Stoudemire lowered his head and looked like the high school student who had no confidence in front of Roger last year.

Roger knew that it would take time to digest, but he didn't have time to do that. The game wasn't over yet, so Roger had to pick up the basketball and continue attacking!
At this time, there was little time left in the game, only 43 seconds left.

Roger's offense determines whether the Dallas Mavericks still have a chance to change their fate. Raja Bell has started to act roughly this time. He has been testing the referee's bottom line step by step. After confirming that the referee's standards are very loose, Raja Bell offered the most brutal defense so far.

Roger tried hard to use his body and arms to separate Raja Bell, but if you are not careful, this guy will snatch the ball from your hands.

However, for Roger, who was used to Artest's defense, this intensity was not enough to make him panic.

Roger controlled the time and made sure to use up all 24 seconds even if he didn't score a goal.

The Shark was on high alert, and if Roger dared to enter the penalty area, he would stop him immediately.

In the last 10 seconds of the offensive time, Roger kept changing hands between his legs outside the 45-degree three-point line on the right. Raja Bell didn't dare to steal the ball. If he made a wrong judgment, Roger would easily pass him.

As Roger was moving, he suddenly started to move and accelerated towards the left side of Raja Bell.

But Raja Bell judged the direction of Roger's breakthrough correctly. At the same time, the shark also moved to the side where Roger broke through, protecting the basket at any time.

But just when Raja Bell was sticking to Roger, Roger turned around with him as the axis and broke through from the right side!

Shark's brows were furrowed. This was the same move he made when he dribbled past Stoudemire in the first quarter.

What does this bastard Roger want to prove? Can you do what I can do?
No you can't!

O'Neal immediately tried to rush to the other side to protect the rim, but Amar'e Stoudemire grabbed his jersey, preventing him from moving quickly.

The Shark pushed Stoudemire away with one hand and took a big step to the other side of the basket.

But when he arrived, Roger had already jumped to the highest point, and the hand holding the basketball was like a sledgehammer swinging towards the shark's head.

O'Neal is a very face-conscious person, so he won't allow anyone to dunk on him.

Most players would choose to give up resistance when the dunk could no longer be stopped, but O'Neal reached out and tried to push Roger away in the air.

Time slowed down at this moment, and Roger, who was holding up the basketball, and the shark, who was pushing people, seemed to be approaching at an extremely slow speed.

Everyone held their breath. When the two men collided, no matter what the result, the aftermath would be enough to blow up the entire stadium.

Barkley stood up early and opened his mouth.

Old Nelson took his hands out of his pockets and covered his head.

Dunk over a shark?

No, this is not possible.

"boom!"

A loud bang restored the flow of time on the court.

But Roger's huge inertia allowed him to break through the shark's outstretched arms, and finally he scored with a one-handed slam dunk through O'Neal!
And at the same time Roger smashed the ball into the goal, the referee blew the whistle. He thought that O'Neal's action of pushing Roger was an absolute foul.

Roger scored 2+1 with an explosive dunk over Shark's head, defeating the super center from the front!

Charles Barkley squeezed his fat buttocks together in excitement.

"Dunk of the century! This is absolutely the dunk of the century! Oh my God, Roger killed Shaq himself! He scored his 50th point of the game and he was unstoppable! There were only 22 seconds left in the game and Roger would never miss the free throw. I know this is only the first game of the series, but look at tonight, Shaquille O'Neal will never beat Roger in a best-of-seven series!"

Roger straddled the shark with his legs and looked down at him: "Come and teach me a lesson if you have the guts, you're just a wimp who only knows how to make a presence felt in front of the rookie."

The shark pushed Roger away in dissatisfaction, but did not take any more violent follow-up actions. He just stood up and cursed to himself.

Roger stood at the free throw line and scored the extra free throw amid the cheers of MVP from the fans, bringing his personal score to 51 points and helping the Warriors lead by 22 points in the last 7 seconds.

The game is over!

Shaquille O'Neal was careful the whole game, but he still couldn't get Roger.

The Mavericks scored a quick 2 points on the next possession and then quickly fouled Stoudemire.

Stoudemire made one of two free throws, but time was no longer on the Mavericks' side.

109 to 103, Roger scored 51 points compared to Shark's 43 points.

In this offensive battle, Roger had the last laugh.

After the game, the Sharks were in a state of disarray, completely lacking the arrogance they had when facing Stoudemire.

He even asked himself a soul-searching question at this moment: "Can I really beat him once in my life?"

He has no answer.

Or rather, he was afraid to face the answer.

(Today's update is 8200 words. I have something to do in the afternoon, so I will reduce the update by 1800 words and take a half-day off. I will resume the update tomorrow with words)
(End of this chapter)