Champions Creed

Chapter 340 339: Michael, let’s make one last bet (ask for a monthly ticket!)

Bill Simmons, a well-known ESPN writer, was shocked when he saw the strikingly similar scenes when Roger and Michael Jordan were interviewed.

As a true sports fan, Bill Simmons witnessed the era of Michael Jordan and Roger's rivalry from a fan's perspective.

Obviously, Michael Jordan is the loser.

He could have beaten Roger even once in the playoffs without losing so completely.

Under Roger's strong rule, over time, people forgot Michael Jordan's magic before 94 and forgot that he once dominated the league for a short time.

There are definitely winners and losers in competitive sports, and the fact that Michael Jordan is a loser cannot be changed.

But yesterday's game gave Bill Simmons a deep feeling: Michael is still great.

Players like Roger and Michael Jordan, whether they are in their prime or at the age of 40, whether their goal is to win the championship or fight for the playoffs, some of their qualities will not change and can infect fans.

No man can turn down an 18-year-old top talent, and no man can turn down a truly great player, whether he's 28 or 40.

As for why some players are not respected when they are 40 years old, it is definitely because they are not great enough but pretend to be great.

Finally, Bill Simmons wrote something:

"The 03-04 season is special because we can see Michael Jordan, who entered the industry in 1984, Roger, who entered the industry in 1993, and LeBron James, who entered the industry in 2003, all at the same time in this season. This is absolutely a unique spectacle.

And this might be, no, this is definitely the last season that Michael Jordan and Roger, the two men who brought the NBA to the world, will truly play together.

Many people think that Michael and Roger have nothing to do with each other anymore, after all, they are not competitors now.

No, in fact, they still have a strong connection.

They represent what a great player looks like at his peak and at the end of his career. They are two sides of the same coin, and they interpret to fans what it means to be a great player.

Cherish it, it is difficult for us to see two such great players in the same season, devoting their love, blood and warm victory to us! "

The article received a lot of views and resonated with fans.

Because yesterday's interview really made people feel that Roger and Michael Jordan were like each other from different time and space.

Now, whether Roger can win the championship and whether Michael Jordan can enter the playoffs have almost become the two top topics in the basketball world.

The third most popular topic? Will LeBron James make the playoffs?

Michael Redd's first game with LeBron James was perfect, as the Cavaliers defeated the Philadelphia 76ers without a single blow.

LeBron James had 23 points, 8 assists and 7 rebounds. With Michael Redd opening up space, the 76ers could basically only defend James one-on-one on the outside.

Reed himself also scored 17 points. You have to know that Michael Reed during this period was a scorer who could average 35 points per game with a 21.7% three-point shooting percentage.

21.7 points may not sound like a lot, but this was the "Dark Era of Defense", not the small ball era when the stats inflated to the point of being worthless.

Reed's 21.7 points ranks 11th in the league!

In the original timeline, LeBron James did not have such strong teammates around him.

After the game, the Cavaliers are one step closer to the playoffs. The competition for the last two spots in the Eastern Conference playoffs this year will definitely be very fierce.

The January schedule went by quickly, with almost every game between Roger and Michael Jordan attracting much attention.

Although the two people's goals are very different, people are still happy to watch the two legendary comebacks.

People love to watch great players in their prime sweep the field and reclaim the throne.

I also like to see great players who are already 40 years old persevere and play to their final value.

But before Roger and Michael Jordan achieved a turnaround, Roger's good friend Tom Brady had to take the lead in reversing his fate.

On February 2004, 2, the 1th Super Bowl was held at the Houston Rockets Stadium.

The stadium, which was only completed in 2002, can accommodate 72000 spectators and is the first NFL facility to have a retractable roof.

The high-tech luxurious stadium makes this Super Bowl look extremely grand before it even starts.

The NBA league only arranged three not-so-important games on this day, because David Stern knew very well that trying to compete with the Super Bowl for ratings was equivalent to jumping off the top of the Empire State Building - both were courting death.

This year's Super Bowl is extremely popular. Not to mention the NBA, people predict that even the Super Bowls of previous years will have difficulty competing with this year's in terms of ratings.

On one side, the 01 champion New England Patriots, led by the popular Tom Brady, returned to the finals. On the other side, the Carolina Panthers created a comeback myth by becoming the first team to win the NFC championship as the third seed since the expansion of the playoff field in 1990.

People are eager to know whether Tom Brady, the guy who broke the team's 30-year championship curse, will continue his legend, or the Carolina Panthers will remain in the dark forever.

Before the game started, Tom Brady met with Roger.

His face was painted with rugby camouflage and he smiled: "I'm going to open the treasure chest that can change my fate, brother."

"Take it easy, Tom."

"I'm nervous? Are you kidding me Roger?"

"Come on, your body is shaking very obviously in this tights, anyone with a normal eye can see it."

"Okay Roger, okay, damn! I don't know, I...we can't miss this opportunity"

"Basically, he is too fragile and too thin. He lacks tall stature and strong power. He lacks flexibility and the ability to avoid tackles. He has poor arm strength and propulsion ability and cannot throw high-speed spinning balls. He is too dependent on the system, lacks the ability to adapt to changing circumstances, and is easily knocked down." Roger suddenly started talking to himself, with no intention of stopping.

"In the end, the guy I'm talking about was selected at the 254th pick out of 199 draft picks. The team that selected him had the same position as him, the biggest contract holder in the NFL at the time, billion-dollar quarterback Drew Bledsoe. It seemed that a 199th pick on the same team as the biggest contract holder basically meant that he would have to sit on the bench and have no future.

But the fact is that he secured a starting spot in just his sophomore year, led a team that had a 5-11 record last season into the playoffs, and led the team to win its first Super Bowl in franchise history.

Tell me, Tom, would such a person feel nervous? Don't make me laugh. Go ahead, from 199 to 1, you have already opened the treasure box of reversal, what is there to be nervous about. "

Yes, the person Roger is talking about is Tom Brady himself. From 199 to 1, this is why Tom Brady is so legendary.

His start was almost hellish, with a low draft pick, an unfavorable prospect, and a superstar teammate at the same position. Under normal circumstances, he would have probably sat on the bench for several years and then faded out of the league.

But now? He's one of the hottest stars in the NFL!

Tom Brady took a deep breath and nodded: "I'll win a championship first and wait for you."

In the following games, Roger sat in the VIP stands as a spectator. Even though Roger was just a spectator today, he would still be featured from time to time.

Jeff Hornacek was also very interested in today's game, so he went with Roger. Although he didn't understand why his daughter, who never watched football, insisted on coming, he still brought her to the scene.

Roger realized that he was in a close-up several times only after Jeff Hornacek and Abby reminded him. Every time, Roger regretted it and hated himself for not having a good sense of the camera. If he had a good sense of the camera like some people, and could stand up and put on the crown immediately after being in a close-up, he would definitely become the focus of everyone's attention.

Alas, he deserves to be the goat because he can’t win four championships. There is indeed a gap in his ability.

Abby Hornacek clamored to come, but she became drowsy when the game started.

She didn't understand what was so interesting about football.

Throughout the first quarter, the game was dominated by the defense of both teams and neither team could score.

Abby Hornacek saw nothing but the crushing collisions and misplaced passes.

The second quarter didn't score that many points.

However, for football fans, this game was quite exciting, and the ratings are already heading towards the top of history!
During the halftime show, Roger saw Janet Jackson's black nectar and P. Diddy.

By the way, last night P. Diddy enthusiastically invited Roger to his party: "I promise this is the best party you've ever seen. If we become friends, I will support you in the future!"

But Roger declined. Whether he supported it or not is another matter. The main reason was that after so many years in the United States, Roger was still not interested in party culture.

Abby almost fell asleep at the beginning of the second half, and could only secretly look at Roger to relieve her fatigue. Because in the third quarter, both sides were scoreless again.

This was the first time in Super Bowl history that two scoreless quarters occurred.

The tense situation continued into the fourth quarter, and finally with Tom Brady's passes that penetrated the defense, the New England Patriots defeated their opponents with a tense score of 32 to 29, winning the Super Bowl twice in three years since 2001 and bringing the Super Bowl back to Foxburg!

Tom Brady was undoubtedly the focus. He set the record for the most touchdowns by a quarterback in the Super Bowl and won the second Super Bowl MVP in his career without any suspense.

Tom Brady has been surrounded by honors in just his third year in the league. His experience is really reminiscent of Roger.

So the camera was given to Roger again, but Roger missed it perfectly again.

At the award ceremony, Tom Brady also mentioned Roger.

"I also have to thank one person who has always been the one I could confide in, provided me with wise advice and guidance, and helped me tremendously in my football career and even in life. He is a true legend, the one and only GOAT in basketball, Roger!

Thanks for the encouragement buddy, I'm waiting for you to exchange the Finals MVP trophy with me in June.

If 199 can be reversed to 1, then the original 1 can definitely return to its original position.

If anyone still doubts this, I still say: You don’t understand what GOAT is. "

Last season, both Roger and Tom Brady experienced failure. At that time, Tom said: Roger will come back, and so will I. It’s not that I don’t understand basketball, it’s that you don’t understand what GOAT is.

Now, Tom Brady is truly back and on top of the world.

Where is Roger?
When Tom Brady said this, the live camera focused on Roger for the umpteenth time today and stayed on him for a full ten seconds.

Considering that this is the most watched Super Bowl in history, the value of this ten-second shot is obvious. In addition to Janet Jackson's performance and the game itself, Roger is the most watched focus today. Tom Brady's speech and this ten-second close-up also make the whole country look forward to Roger's results this season.

This time, there is really no way but to win the championship.

Although the close-up was given for a long time, Roger just smiled and applauded Tom, and was not in a hurry to wear the crown in front of so many people.

Would a true king be afraid that others don’t know he has a crown?
The camera cut back to the podium, and everyone's eyes were focused on the Patriots again. Only then did Roger's expression relax. He really didn't like to seek a sense of existence during other people's moments of honor.

However, looking at Tom Brady returning to the top, Roger always felt restless.

This atmosphere, this feeling, this moment of cheering, this moment of defeating the strongest opponent
Roger missed all of it!
He can't wait to create his own championship moment.

"Wait, Tom, wait." Roger muttered to himself.

The Super Bowl is over and the NBA war is reignited.

In the February game, the Warriors lost to the Lakers again because Stoudemire was troubled by the experienced Karl Malone and only scored 2 points in the whole game with a shooting percentage of less than 15%.

In addition, in this game, Steve Nash made 6 of 5 shots from beyond the three-point line, and the firepower network formed by him and Kobe completely covered the Warriors' defense.

As a result, the Warriors' record against the Lakers became 1 win and 2 losses.

Kobe Bryant, who was plagued by troubles, expressed his determination after the game: "No matter what happens off the court, I will become the NBA champion this year!"

He can only use the championship to comfort his messy and low life.

However, the most talked-about thing in February was not the game between the Warriors and the Lakers, but LeBron James' All-Star injury crisis.

Before the All-Star Game, LeBron James had been talking about the possibility of participating in the dunk contest.

Fans are also looking forward to this, after all, the physical talent of the Cavaliers No. 23 is indeed quite outstanding.

Previously at the McDonald's All-Star Game, LeBron James also won the Slam Dunk Contest - although some people thought that the championship should belong to Shannon Brown.

In any case, LeBron James has had enough of the dunk contest's popularity.

However, just a few days before the start, he had to withdraw from the dunk contest due to injury: "I really want to bring a wonderful performance to the fans, but I am afraid I can't play with an injury."

This is understandable. The dunk contest is, after all, an entertainment event, not a real honor. If you can play, play. If you are injured, just recover. There is no need to gamble your career for it.

But what is most puzzling is that James missed the dunk contest but did not miss the rookie challenge.

In his own words: "I think I can hold on a little longer and give the fans a good show."

This was the first time Roger heard someone talk about avoiding war in such a refreshing and refined way.

In the 90s, Roger had never faced an opponent like this.

Charles Barkley will admit defeat after losing to you, and Michael Jordan will fight you to the end. Drexler admitted that he was not as good as Jordan and Roger, so he went to find Olajuwon. Karl Malone and John Stockton committed evil deeds on the court year after year, but almost never defended themselves in front of the media.

They are all different, but you get the sense that they are real people.

What about LeBron James? He always feels sickeningly fake.

Even if you say you won't participate in the dunk contest from the beginning, no one will accuse you of being a coward.

Roger never participated in the dunk contest, and he was never the best dunker in the league, but that didn't stop him from being the greatest.

Roger just didn't understand. If he clearly had no intention of participating in the first place, why did they have to publicize it so much, and then find an excuse that couldn't be more fake to cancel it?
Well, maybe LeBron James is really injured and can't perform difficult dunks, so he can only show up in the rookie game.

As a result, in the rookie game, James jumped up and down and dunked wildly. His injury seemed to have healed overnight, and he finally scored 33 points.

If it weren't for the sophomore Stoudemire who scored 36 points and led the team to victory, James, who played with an injury, would have won the Rookie Game MVP.

Roger shook his head. Some people start being fake at the age of 18.

After February, the Warriors did not make any additions or changes to the lineup before the trade deadline. Roger is very satisfied and confident with the current configuration.

As March begins, the league is ushering in another special and heavyweight showdown, the Atlanta Hawks vs. the Golden State Warriors.

Because this competition is held in the Bay Area, there is no scene of Roger returning home.

The reason why today's game attracted so much attention is that this is the last time Michael Jordan and Roger faced off in the NBA.

The Hawks are still hovering around eighth in the Eastern Conference. Sometimes the eighth place is the Cavaliers, sometimes it is the Hawks, and sometimes it is the Philadelphia 76ers.

In short, the competition for playoff spots remains fierce.

Before the game started, Mutombo asked Roger in the locker room: "Who would you rather see LeBron make the playoffs or Michael?"

"I hope neither of these two blowhards comes in," Roger answered without hesitation.

But a few seconds later Roger added: "But if I had to choose one, I would rather it be Michael."

"why?"

"I just feel that a real player deserves the playoffs more than an actor."

"Tonight then."

"You expect me to let go or have a groin problem and sit out and give Michael a chance to pass LeBron in the standings?
Dikembe, many fans save money for a year just to watch a game of mine. I can't just rest if I want to. As long as I can play and there is no risk of injury, I will definitely play. Moreover, if I really give Michael a victory just to let him enter the playoffs, it would be the biggest insult to him.

He wants to make the playoffs on his own merit, leave him alone.

Also, I was tired of humiliating him in the 90s, so there was no need to humiliate him again in this way."

After that, Roger changed his clothes and walked out of the locker room to warm up.

He will take this game seriously, and he will take their last meeting seriously.

There is nothing much to say about the process of this game. Roger can understand why Scott Pippen and Michael Jordan are so popular this season. When they are dragging their old arms and legs but still fighting like they are in their 20s, it is hard not to respect them.

The only ones who may be dissatisfied with them are the stupid shareholders of the Hawks. They originally wanted to put together a lineup of old men to sell tickets and dive into the lottery, but the old men were about to carry the team into the playoffs.

The mindset of a businessman and the mindset of an athlete can never be combined.

Michael Jordan continued to fight, and Scottie Pippen did his best to defend Roger.

But after the third quarter, the Warriors still led the Hawks by 27 points. No matter how hard Michael Jordan and Pippen tried, the huge gap in strength between the two sides was still difficult to make up. The cruelty of competitive sports was fully reflected at this moment.

At the end of the third quarter, Roger made a buzzer-beating three-pointer despite the interference of Pippen and Jordan.

After the three men landed, Pippen shook his head helplessly, and Michael Jordan tore off his elbow pads and threw them to the ground: "Fuck you, fuck you!"

If he had the same 28-year-old body, Michael Jordan guaranteed that he could have blocked Roger just now, absolutely!

"Sorry Michael, sorry Scott, your journey to compete for a playoff spot is bound to be not so smooth, and it will be even more difficult when you meet me. Thank God, this is the last time you meet me, the last time." Roger shrugged.

"Shut up Roger, you did win, but don't worry about my business!" Jordan cursed and prepared to turn around and walk off the court.

But Roger stopped him: "Michael, do you want to make a bet? Let's make one last bet between us."

Roger himself didn't realize that he had used the word "last" several times in these few sentences.

"What? What's the bet?"

"Listen, if you make the playoffs, everything you said before will be written off. To be honest, I don't want to leave my name under such an ugly statue. You can tell the media about this so that no one will think you are not trustworthy."

Roger was referring to what Michael Jordan said before: "If the Cavaliers don't make the playoffs, I will add a sentence under the statue at the United Center: But those who will always submit to Roger!"

Now it is a paradox for Jordan. If the Cavaliers don't make the playoffs, he has to add a sentence under the statue. If the Cavaliers make the playoffs, it means the Hawks can't make it. No matter what the outcome, Jordan will be embarrassed.

And Roger gave him a solution to the problem.

Michael Jordan seemed to understand something, but quickly returned to his angry expression.

"You want to play tricks on me? Fine, I'll make a bet with you! Even if I'm 40 years old, there's no way I can't make it to the playoffs! I'll make another bet with you. If you win the championship, I'll allow you to add a sentence under your future statue: Michael Jordan's most respected, most admired and only great opponent that he can't defeat. I'll personally unveil your statue!"

After saying that, Jordan turned around and prepared to leave, but Roger stopped him again: "Hey old dog, I'm not done yet."

"What else are you going to do!?"

"Just to remind you, you're not 40 years old, you're 41. Well, come on." This time, it was Roger who turned around and left.

Michael Jordan stood there in a daze, looking at his hands.

41 years old?
Yes, my birthday is in February.

Damn time, damn time.

Roger walked back to the bench and sat down. Dikembe Mutombo smiled and said, "Didn't we agree not to let the opponent win? What you just did was not a bet at all. It was clearly a chance for Michael Jordan to avoid embarrassment and give him a way out."

"Shut up Dikembe, I was just playing with him, making a bet."

"I really don't understand you. Think about the bloodshed in the 90s, think about your conflicts, think about Michael trading you away, think about the titanium you left in his eyes, think about the championships stained with his blood. After going through so much, you still sympathize with each other."

"I'm not, I didn't, shut up Dikembe and just wag your finger."

(End of this chapter)