Champions Creed

Chapter 372 Chapter 371: When the Beast Loses Its Shackles (asking for monthly tickets!)
At the tactical meeting the day before the opening game, Eric Spoelstra announced the starting lineup for tomorrow's game, and Jason Richardson was on the list, which made Alan Houston's defending season full of failures from the very beginning.

Most people in the locker room hugged and high-fived Jason Richardson to express their congratulations. Of course, some people also comforted Alan Houston.

However, it can be seen that most of the people who comforted him were just being polite. Alan Houston has always had a sense of distance from everyone. Like Ray Allen and other players, he is a "black pearl" with a black exterior and a white interior.

His father, Wade Houston, was a professional player and later became the head coach of the University of Tennessee. Therefore, Alan Houston lived a comfortable life since he was a child. He even played under his father in college, which gave him many advantages.

Born into a basketball family, he naturally entered the NBA, became a starter, got a big contract, became an All-Star, and won the championship with Roger last season, bringing his reputation to its peak.

It can be said that Alan Houston did not encounter too many setbacks in his entire life. He was completely different from those black guys who struggled on the dirty streets and spent their childhood with guns and drugs.

It is often difficult for such players to integrate into the locker room.

Yes, Alan Houston is at least more emotionally intelligent than the guy who changed to No. 15 in Los Angeles, and is easier to get along with than the obsessive-compulsive person in Seattle. So in the Warriors locker room, no one really hates him.

But a person will always get closer to those who have similar experiences as himself, so in comparison, Jason Richardson is more popular in the locker room, while Alan Houston has almost no teammates with whom he has a particularly good relationship in the locker room.

Seeing that his name was not on the starting list, the king of mid-range shots lowered his head, looking very disappointed.

In the nine years since 1995, he has never served as a substitute in any team, and it is really difficult for him to accept such a huge gap.

Although Roger had told him in the parking lot that he would be deprived of his starting position, it was equivalent to letting him prepare mentally in advance.

But psychological preparation is like taking Chinese medicine. You think you are prepared, but when you actually drink it, you still feel like vomiting.

Looking at Alan Houston who remained silent, everyone in the locker room understood one thing - it's better not to fucking slack off just because they had won the championship last season, and it's better not to think that everything is accomplished just because they had won the championship last season.

If you lose the desire to win, if you lose your ambition, if you think you can relax after winning a championship, then this is the result.

You'll be left out of this championship team.

In Roger's team you can get honor, money and respect.

But as a price, you have to pay more sweat. If you can't bear the cost of trying your best to win the championship year after year, it's best to learn from Charlie Ward and retire directly and decently.

For everyone, only five players can play at the same time in a game, with a total of 240 minutes of playing time. If you slack off, you won't get a share of the 240 minutes of pie. If you want to get a share of the pie, even if you are 40 years old, you'd better rush to the front when you make a fast break.

As a man who created two dynasties, Roger knew very well that winning consecutive championships was often more difficult than the previous one, and that internal difficulties were far greater than external ones.

Some people may become dissatisfied with their roles, and some may lose motivation after victory is no longer a novelty. Roger has experienced all of these things.

Nowadays, most mainstream media people generally believe that Roger and Shaq only won three championships, which is far from enough. With the two best players in the league at the same time, people think that Roger and Shaq should have won eight championships together.

Roger strongly agreed with this statement. Even he could not overcome the difficulties within the team and eventually parted ways with the Sharks whose ambitions were expanding and becoming increasingly lax, resulting in their number of championships remaining at only 3.

If Roger wants to create the ultimate glory in San Francisco, he cannot allow any problems to occur in the team, cannot be knocked down by any difficulties, and cannot tolerate any "champion killing the champion itself" happening again.

Alan Houston's exit reminded everyone that last season's championship was not the end of everything.

After the tactical meeting, Alan Houston was still not very active in training.

He did not burst out with the determination of "I must take back everything that belongs to me". Instead, he became even more depressed after being deprived of his starting position.

With a ring and a big contract in hand, he has lost the motivation to fight and even has no courage to face any challenges.

Roger shook his head. He had no opinion on Alan Houston, but he was very glad that at least the player starting at the second position for the Warriors was someone who was still full of desire for victory, which would allow the team to truly burst out with the fighting power of the defending champion level.

One person alone cannot achieve success, but the reverse is true: just one person can hinder success.

Fortunately, the Warriors nipped the source of the slackness before it spread.

And so, on November 11, the regrouped Golden State Warriors faced their first opponent of the defending season, the Dallas Mavericks, for the first time at their new home court, Oracle Arena.

The average ticket price for today's game was four times that of last season, but even so, the Oracle Arena, which can accommodate 20,000 people, was packed.

This is the benefit of the team winning the championship and moving to San Francisco. People expect the Warriors' basketball revenue this season to be able to compete with the Knicks and Lakers.

Bay Area fans are happy. Two years ago at this time, Roger took off the No. 14 jersey that belonged to Tom Mechery at the Oakland Arena. At the lively welcome ceremony, Roger promised to bring a championship to the Bay Area.

Now, two years later, Roger fulfilled his promise and raised the huge championship banner under the spotlight. After 1975, Bay Area fans finally felt the joy of standing on top of the world.

In the dark shadows, Shaquille O'Neal put his arm around Dirk Nowitzki's shoulder and said, "It's not just the hardware facilities of the stadium that have been improved here, the quality of the cheerleading team has also been improved. Damn Russian, I heard that he interviews these cheerleaders in person, what a shameless bastard, is there a secret door in his office that allows him to go to a small, enclosed room at any time to conduct in-depth interviews with the cheerleaders?"

Dirk sighed, disappointed with Shark's mentality: "Shaq, shouldn't we focus on winning? When was the last time you attended a championship ring presentation ceremony?"

This question silenced Shark, and he began to seriously recall the last time he participated in such a ceremony.

His recollection told him a horrible answer: 8 years ago.

The last time Shaquille O'Neal attended a similar ceremony was eight years ago, and that was almost the last glorious moment of his playing career. Although the Magic won the championship in the 8-96 season, Shaquille left the Magic in 97 and did not attend the ceremony. Therefore, 97 was his last time to attend the championship ring presentation ceremony, and the last time he wore the ring of honor in the admiration of everyone.

"Damn it." Shark cursed inwardly, unknowingly, he had failed for so many years.

Yes, his opponents before were Dream, Ewing, and the Admirals.

What now?
It's Yao Ming, it's Duncan, it's Ben Wallace.

He has been playing in the league for 12 years, and these 12 years of his life have passed in the blink of an eye.

All his glory was concentrated in the first four years of his career. His career was like a roller coaster with highs and lows.

He couldn't keep failing.

The Shark is deeply aware that he is declining from the superstar he was when he first entered the league to an old guy who is becoming out of date.

As of now, Yao Ming's popularity is even about to surpass him.

Roger had already thrown him away by a huge distance.

The title of "the greatest duo in history" has been mentioned less and less, because the outside world no longer compares Roger and Shark.

He couldn't allow this to continue.

Seeing Roger raising another championship banner, Shark was reminded of the statue of Roger outside the stadium.

For basketball players, it is a great honor to have a statue erected outside the arena.

This means that this player has a very important status in that city.

He not only has to win a championship in that city, but also become a unique legend and be loved by everyone.

This is extremely difficult and only a very small number of players have this honor.

The Shark knows deep down that when he retires, probably no team will erect a statue for him.

He was really unwilling to do so. He didn't want to disappear in obscurity in Roger's era.

Throughout Shaquille O'Neal's career, there were probably only a few seasons when he was willing to do everything for victory.

This will be another season where he's willing to do whatever it takes to win.

The implementation of new rules will often give rise to some winners who take the right path.

The Sharks believe the Dallas Mavericks are the team that is on the right track.

Shark removed his hands from the German's shoulders and stopped staring at the cheerleader's half-exposed butt.

"I can't remember the last time I attended a championship ring ceremony, but I know the next time will be next year."

After the championship rings are awarded, the competition will begin.

The starting five of the Dallas Mavericks are Devin Harris, Jason Terry, Josh Howard, Dirk Nowitzki and Shaquille O'Neal. The Warriors' starting lineup after adjustments is Roger, Jason Richardson, Tayshaun Prince, Amar'e Stoudemire and Marcus Camby.

Alan Houston sat on the bench, thinking.

It had been a long time since he had sat on the bench and watched the team fight for the ball, and he hated his current position.

But he still has a chance. Once Jason Richardson's performance as a starter is not good enough, Alan Houston may return to his position.

The shark approached the center circle and glanced at Roger.

The hatred he once had has now turned into a twisted mentality of jealousy, envy and unwillingness, which makes the shark still eager to defeat Roger.

"Roger, the low-level basketball that only knows how to win by bad defense is over. Tonight you will see true art."

But what made the shark feel ashamed was that Roger didn't respond to him this time. He just nodded and said "hmm" perfunctorily.

It was as if the proud emperor did not regard the team in front of him as a threat at all.

The shark's rage was completely burning, he hated the feeling of being ignored.

What made him even more angry was that Jason Richardson was actually trying to hold back his laughter.

"What's your business here?!" Shark roared. He couldn't believe that even a guy like Jason Richardson dared to laugh at him.

Jason Richardson was almost suffocating and couldn't help but reply, "The HandCheck rule is your last talisman, and now you don't have it. Tonight you will only see a true art, the true art of killing."

The Shark didn't know when it started, but he turned from a deterrent super center into a joke. Even Jason Richardson dared to challenge him.

He swore that he would ruin the first game at Oracle Arena!
The game started, Marcus Camby won the ball for the Warriors. Roger crossed the half court with the ball, and the second-year rookie Josh Howard was in charge of defending Roger.

He only started 29 games for the Mavericks last season, but he started in the first game of this season and was directly responsible for defending Roger.

Because the Mavericks' new head coach Avery Johnson firmly believes that Josh Howard can become the next superstar-level player.

Although the information shows that Josh Howard was born in North Carolina, Roger has always believed that this guy might have been born in Guizhou, otherwise it would be difficult to explain where he learned to cast a curse on Avery Johnson.

Josh Howard also cherished this opportunity. He stood in front of Roger seriously and was not at all nervous.

Roger accelerated his breakthrough after changing hands under his crotch, but Josh Howard's long arms and extremely fast lateral speed allowed him to block Roger's breakthrough route in the first time. It can be seen that he is indeed a very talented guy.

But just as he stopped Roger, the referee blew his whistle and Josh Howard committed a defensive foul.

In the first game of the new season, the referee was responsible for getting the players and fans accustomed to the new rules, so the penalties were quite strict.

Josh Howard was a little confused. How could I stop Roger if I couldn't use my hands?

If they can only use their bodies to block him, there are few people in the entire league, no, there is no one who can stop Roger's attack!

Josh Howard's judgment was correct, which is why Bill Simmons said that HandCheck and zone defense are actually used to limit Roger.

Roger was already undefended in the HandCheck era, and no one knows to what extent his firepower will be enhanced in the No HandCheck era.

The Warriors sent a sideline ball, and Roger tried to break through again. Josh Howard didn't dare to foul again, so he let Roger pass by him easily.

Jason Terry came over to defend, but he was too short and Roger's quick stop jump shot hit the target easily.

But the Mavericks responded quickly, with Shark receiving the ball in the paint and then passing it to Dirk in the mid-range. The German tank faked a shot when Stoudemire rushed over, then accelerated and broke through.

Stoudemire wanted to put out his hand to block the shot, but when he thought of the new rule changes, he quickly put his hand down, which also allowed Nowitzki to easily break through and score a layup.

In just two rounds, people realized that the NBA had entered a new era.

For many years to come, offensive players, especially those who mainly rely on outside skills, will occupy an important position in the league.

For a very long time in the future, center players will have no chance of winning awards like MVP.

However, when it comes to offense, Roger is no worse than anyone.

After one round, Roger shot directly from outside the three-point line. Because Josh Howard didn't dare to put his hands on Roger, Roger had a lot of space to shoot.

The basketball went through the net, and Roger opened his hands to the Shark: "Thanks to your boss Mark for creating such an easy scoring environment for me! His actions have successfully put you further away from the championship!"

One round later, the Sharks wanted to get an advantage in the paint. However, the No Hand Check rule is almost a rule that only benefits the outside attackers and does not improve the offensive environment in the paint at all.

When the Shark caught the ball, Marcus Camby could still use his hands to resist the Shark.

He turned around and pushed Camby away, trying to dunk, but Camby jumped up and grabbed him by the throat in the air, knocking him to the ground, and all this cost Marcus Camby only a normal foul.

The NBA has not completely softened, especially in the paint, where the competition is still fierce. The difficulty of Shaq's offense is not at the same level as Dirk Nowitzki's.

If the late 90s was the twilight of the center era, then now is the complete end of the center era.

Stoudemire rushed into the inside and grabbed the rebound. After receiving the basketball, Roger pushed the ball to half court. He first passed Josh Howard with a change of direction, and then immediately turned around and passed Devin Harris.

During this time, they didn't dare to reach out to stop Roger or grab Roger's jersey.

As a defender from the 90s, Roger has never felt that breaking through is so easy.

He broke into the inside, facing Dirk who was chasing him from the side and back to block him, and completed a two-handed dunk directly across the German!
Dirk Nowitzki was knocked to the ground, while Roger had already scored 7 points in a row.

Mike Breen felt that the new rule was nonsense. It would not allow other people's offense to approach Roger's level. Instead, it would allow Roger's offense to reach unprecedented heights.

"Maybe Roger can easily get 50 points!" predicted Mike Breen.

In the next few rounds, the Mavericks could only use double-teaming to deal with Roger, but the Warriors responded to these double-teaming from outside the three-point line.

Jason Richardson and Tayshaun Prince both had excellent three-point shooting today, especially Jason Richardson. It seemed that he was very excited about starting, and he shot as soon as he received the ball outside the three-point line today.

That's why Eric Spoelstra needs him to start, because a relaxed Alan Houston definitely won't have that kind of touch.

Jason Richardson's accurate jump shot made the Mavericks dare not double-team so decisively, so Roger once again controlled the rhythm of the offense.

He dismembered the calf skillfully like an experienced butcher.

The new defensive rules made Roger play as easily as in a training game, and his mid-range and long-range jump shots seemed to never miss.

Once, twice, three times.
O'Neal watched Roger shoot the ball easily again and again, and then picked up the basketball from the baseline helplessly again and again.

In front of the TV, Mark Cuban was also completely stunned. Roger was like a wild beast that had been unchained, and the idiot who unchained him was himself!

In the ninth minute of the first quarter, Dirk Nowitzki missed a shot under the defense of Stoudemire. O'Neal and Camby jumped at the same time, but Camby grabbed the rebound first.

He is no longer the monster whose athletic ability does not match his size. The Shark can feel that his athletic ability is declining, and he can't even compete with the likes of Marcus Camby in the air.

The sweaty Shark immediately turned around and ran back to the other half of the court, but he only saw Roger accelerate after a hesitation step to shake off Josh Howard, then fly into the air and elegantly throw the ball at the highest point.

The number 14 was high up in the sky. Shaquille O'Neal subconsciously reached out his hand, but found that the distance between himself and Roger was so far that it seemed that he would never be able to reach him.

The ball went in and the whole audience cheered.

In just nine minutes, Roger had scored 21 points!
Dirk Nowitzki has scored 12 points in each quarter so far, but he pales in comparison to Roger.

The game was suspended and the Mavericks players had no choice but to leave the court.

Mavericks owner Mark Cuban was stunned in front of the TV, and general manager Donnie Nelson could only hear him mumbling softly.

"They're right, they're right, I've fucking untied the chains that bound the beast!"

(End of this chapter)