Champions Creed

Chapter 77 076: The Complete Collapse of Michael's Mythology (Thanks to the Master of the House for the -dollar reward!)
Every child has a book by his or her pillow. Even though the covers and words are different, the stories in these books are always similar.

The evil stepmother queen wanted to poison the kind princess, the honest woodcutter got the golden axe, the prince and princess held hands and lived happily together forever.

Michael Jordan is like a storybook to the children of Chicago. No matter what happens in the middle, the final ending is "The great hero Michael kills all the demons and makes the land of Chicago shine with sunshine."

But tonight, the story changed.

Michael Jordan did not stand up like a hero in the last moments of the first quarter. He was knocked down by Roger!
With one defense, one attack and one step, Roger made Jordan lose face!
Before tonight, no one had ever embarrassed Michael Jordan so badly.

Jordan had been swept by the Celtics twice and lost to the Detroit Pistons three times. But no matter what the results of these games were, one thing is certain - no individual player could take advantage of Michael Jordan.

In the two rounds of games swept by the Celtics, Jordan averaged 43 points in one round and 35 points in another round. Even Bird said that it was God who wore No. 23.

In the series where the Pistons defeated them three times, Jordan's lowest average score was 27 points.

Neither Larry Bird nor the Smiling Assassin could create any highlight moments on top of Jordan's head.

No one can use Michael Jordan as a background.

Roger became the first person to do so.

He was just like an elegant animal tamer, making the proud bull bow down in submission.

Roger forced that arrogant bastard to bend the knee he had never bent before Bird, Assassin and Magic!
America went crazy, and fans were calling each other, asking, "Damn, man, did you just see Roger step over Jordan?"

At the NBC headquarters in the Comcast Building at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Midtown Manhattan, New York, NBC Entertainment President Warren Littlefield gave the director a rare command: "Damn it, I want every angle! I want the scene of Roger stepping over Michael Jordan to be replayed from every angle! Yes, every angle!"

Roger stepping over Jordan will undoubtedly become one of the most classic scenes in NBA history. Warren Littlefield knows this very well. He cannot miss this opportunity to boost the ratings. At this time, countless fans turned on the TV just to see this scene. What Littlefield has to do is to make all the fans' wishes come true!
It turns out that the NBA really needs Michael Jordan.

Even if you use him as a background, he can still stimulate the heat of the NBA.

Naturally, the big screen in the Orlando Arena was also replaying the scene where Roger stepped over Jordan.

The camera captured the bull's confused expression and sweat, a scene that had never been seen on the field before.

The disposable paper cup in Michael Jordan's hand had been crumpled into a ball. That was definitely the most shameful moment in his career, no doubt about it.

Phil Jackson walked up to Jordan and tried to sound calmer: "Michael, take a break in the second quarter."

Jordan raised his head and told the Zen Master in an unquestionable tone: "Only the dead need to rest all the time, Phil!"

"But you played the entire first quarter, you didn't rest the whole time."

“But we’re still behind!”

Phil Jackson remained silent. Jordan's tough tone left him no room for rebuttal.

Phil Jackson is not the kind of coach who likes to go against the star players, from Jordan to Kobe. Most of the time, they will listen to the Zen Master. But when encountering special games, they will also freely arrange their own playing time.

Even Kobe and Jordan would throw the triangle offense aside when necessary.

In the end, of course, the Zen Master compromised: "We need to attack the inside more. We need to let Shaquille O'Neal stay on the bench."

Jordan clenched his fists. He was determined to avenge his previous defeat and return Roger's heavy punch!
At the start of the second quarter, the Magic made their normal rotation and replaced Roger, who had played the entire first quarter, for a rest.

Brian Hill's confidence in letting Roger rest is that he can liberate the Sharks in the second quarter.

O'Neal hardly played in the first quarter because of two early fouls, but he had plenty of energy in the second quarter.

Sure enough, at the beginning of the second quarter, O'Neal used a signature turnaround hook shot to defeat Webber.

"You are too weak. I don't know how you can become the No. 1 pick. Fortunately, we corrected this mistake in time, otherwise we would become the laughing stock of the whole league." O'Neal humiliated Webber to his heart's content, but Webber was not affected.

He has his own way of responding.

One round later, Webber used a hidden elbow on O'Neal as usual when he was in position. O'Neal was angry about this behavior, but he knew he couldn't do anything to Webber anymore.

Webber's little move distracted O'Neal, and Jordan seized the opportunity to cut in and dunk.

Jordan was extremely angry, but Roger was not on the court, so he could only scold whoever he saw: "Shaq, is there any difference between you guarding the basket and a whore with her legs spread out?"

Jordan originally wanted to say "My grandma could have been number one in the Eastern Conference with Roger," but he felt that was too much praise for Roger, so he changed it to the previous one.

The Shark tried to stay calm, tried not to get angry, and vented his anger in a basketball way.

In this attack, O'Neal gently threw the ball into the basket under the double-team of Webber and Kukoc. The Shark is not only good at dunking in the three-second zone, he can finish in various ways.

After scoring the goal, he did not waste any more time talking to Weber, but immediately returned to defense, not wanting to cause trouble.

In the game after the second quarter, O'Neal remained restrained and supported the team's offense.

The inside line formed by Chris Webber and Kukoc was no match for O'Neal. If the Bulls had a Rodman at that time, the Shark would not have been able to do whatever he wanted.

Jordan continued to score, but O'Neal's threat prevented the Bulls from gaining an advantage.

However, the Bulls' nightmare finally dissipated with a foul.

In the sixth minute of the second quarter, Pippen resolutely chose to attack the basket even though O'Neal was not out of position at all.

The experienced Horace Grant knew what Pippen wanted to do. He wanted to protect the rim for the Shark.

But the young Shark wanted to teach Pippen a lesson without thinking. He failed to get the ball, but accidentally pulled Pippen's arm, causing Pippen to fall heavily to the ground.

The Shark made Pippen pay a heavy price for his reckless attack on the basket, but the referee also made the Shark pay the price.

They blew the whistle and O'Neal got his third foul of the night!

"The Magic are in big trouble. Shaquille's playing time in the third quarter, let alone the second quarter, will be squeezed because of this!" NBC commentator Mike Fratello is very experienced and his judgment is correct.

Brian Hill was already greeting the referee's immediate female relative at this time. This third foul almost wiped out the Shark's playing time.

But there is no way, that's why fouls need to be controlled in the interior.

Because sometimes even if you don't mean to commit a foul, you will be forced to commit a foul.

O'Neal was very restrained. Facing Webber's tricks and Jordan's trash talk, he did not lose his mind, but this still could not allow him to escape the foul.

The Shaq has never been a player who is good at controlling his fouls. He once had a record of five consecutive games with six fouls in his career. If Pat Riley had not let O'Neal play in the sixth game after his five fouls, he would have had a good chance of breaking the record of six consecutive games.

One of the limitations of super centers is that they are prone to fouling. It is rare to hear that forwards and guards are restricted by fouls. On the contrary, they are the main force in creating fouls. Therefore, it is easier for the league to promote forwards and guards.

Pippen made both free throws to extend the lead to 5 points.

The Magic suspended the game, and O'Neal walked off the court cursing. It is foreseeable that he will not play again before the middle of the third quarter.

After finally defeating the Shark, Phil Jackson was ready to replace Jordan so that Jordan, who hadn't rested for even a minute, could have a break.

But after the timeout, Roger, who scored 18 points in the first quarter and stepped over Jordan, dusted off his armor and went out to play again!

Jordan gritted his teeth, and finally turned around and yelled at Phil Jackson: "Cancel the substitution, Phil, I'm not tired yet!"

It would be a lie to say he wasn't tired. Jordan just couldn't let Roger mess around on the court.

The team had finally reversed the score difference to 5 points. If he left the court, the Bulls would have no means to check and balance Roger.

Pete Meyers, who was ready to replace Jordan, glanced at the Zen Master.

This time, Phil Jackson no longer let Jordan manipulate him: "Michael, sit down, it's not your turn yet."

Everyone knows that Michael Jordan's physical fitness is invincible. Throughout his career, Jordan has never averaged less than 40 minutes per game in the playoffs. However, his efficiency in the playoffs is still terrifyingly high.

But no matter how good your physical fitness is, it is too much to not rest for even a minute.

If you want to ensure efficiency, basic rest is still necessary.

Pippen patted Jordan on the shoulder: "It's okay, man, take a break, I'll deal with that bastard!"

If this were the world of a hot-blooded comic like "Slam Dunk", Pippen would definitely be able to create a miracle.

He will definitely be able to use his never-give-up spirit to restrict the opponent's star player and hold on until his own star player returns.

Unfortunately, this is reality.

Jordan only rested for one minute before he had to return to the court, because if he didn't come back, the Magic would completely change the game situation under Roger's leadership.

"Roger made 5 of 3 shots in the second quarter. He and Horace Grant played very well together in the pick-and-roll. He scored 25 points in the first half! Scott Pippen tried his best, but a super scorer cannot be restricted so easily!"

At the end of the first half, the Orlando Magic led by 59 points 51 to 8 and went into the halftime break.

Roger only scored 7 points in the second quarter, but because the Bulls put all their defensive resources on Roger, the Magic's role players got a lot of opportunities.

Among them, Horace Grant was the most outstanding. He hit the Bulls' defense hard with his accurate mid-range shots.

The secret to his frequent mid-range shots today was simple: he treated every shot as a dagger stabbing into Jordan's chest!
The ratings for the game are getting higher and higher because all kinds of fans can find fun in this game.

Fans who supported Roger wanted to see Jordan's downfall.

Fans who supported Jordan expected their god to turn the situation around in the second half.

Even if neutral fans just want to watch the fun, they will choose this game with a high scoring frequency.

At halftime, NBC sideline reporter Hannah interviewed Phil Jackson: "What does the team need to do in the second half to change the game?"

The Zen master adjusted his glasses: "Stop Roger, stop Roger, stop Roger!"

The Zen Master said a lot of nonsense, and everyone certainly knew that this was a way to change the game, but the question is, who can defend Roger tonight?
In the locker room, O'Neal had completely forgotten about the foul trouble he was in.

He was so excited that he lay on the ground: "Step over me, Roger. I really want to know how Jordan felt at that time."

Roger's performance in the first half of the game was perfect, but his opponent was Jordan after all.

Jordan was unable to launch his counterattack in the second quarter, and was instead bruised and battered by several jabs from Roger.

So he had to do something in the second half.

In the second half, Jordan continued his excellent form, even though he only rested for 1 minute in the entire first half.

But Roger also performed well, and the score between the two teams remained tense.

Roger and Jordan's scores are also rising wildly.

At the beginning of the fourth quarter, Roger increased his personal score to 40 points!
Previously, Jordan had two 40+ performances this season, which is also something that Nike's media often mentions. They believe that Roger is not as explosive as Jordan in scoring.

Today, such propaganda was refuted. The tense situation lasted until the eighth minute of the fourth quarter, when O'Neal chose to make up for the defense and block Jordan who turned his back and broke through Harper.

But Jordan used a beautiful pull-up shot to avoid the defense and score the ball, causing O'Neal to foul.

This is O'Neal's sixth foul of the game!
This means that his game today is over.

However, the on-site commentator Fratello did not think that the Magic would lose the game because of this: "Shaq scored 16 points, 8 rebounds and 3 blocks tonight, but he has been playing passively under the Bulls' killing strategy. The bad news is that the Orlando Magic will completely lose Shaq. The good news is that they still have Roger!"

The NBC commentator was right. O'Neal's fouling out was something people expected.

But even if he fouled out, no one thought the Bulls could get away with it easily.

This is the confidence that Roger gives people!
But in any case, this is a very good thing for the Bulls.

Now, they just need to focus on solving one problem.

With four minutes left in the game, the Magic led by 8 points.

These four minutes without O'Neal were the Bulls' only hope.

After Jordan made two free throws, the score difference was narrowed to 6 points.

Jordan's performance today was also terrifying, scoring 40+ as well.

This was his second consecutive game with 40+ points.

Currently, he and Roger both have 44 points.

His heavy punch was about to be thrown, provided that he could withstand Roger's blow first.

The Magic attacked, and Roger continued to play pick-and-roll with Horace Grant.

The screen set by Grant was so solid that even Pippen had a hard time getting around it in the first place.

But Roger's attack would not be so easy to succeed. After getting rid of Pippen, Roger still had to face Chris Webber who came to switch defense.

But to be honest, this just adds an easy step to Roger's goal.

Roger slowed down in front of Webber, pretending to turn around and look for someone to pass the ball, but in fact he suddenly turned around and accelerated and passed the No. 1 pick directly. Yes, this was just a simple change of rhythm, but it was more than enough to confuse Webber, who was not good at defense.

After passing Webber, Roger went straight to the basket and scored a one-handed dunk.

His 46th point helped the Magic regain the lead by 8 points.

Jordan couldn't stand it anymore. Webber's defense today was a disaster.

He allowed O'Neal to score 16 points despite being deeply troubled by fouls and having his playing time reduced sharply. His switching defense on Roger was basically never successful. In Jordan's view, if Webber's defense was not so bad, Roger and Grant's success rate in pick-and-roll would not be so high.

Jordan was already angry because he couldn't overtake the score, and Webber's defense undoubtedly ignited the powder keg:

"Why can't you even do such a simple defense? You are such a complete waste! Damn it, why did I have any expectations of you!"

Jordan yelled at Webber in front of the national live camera, and Nike's lie that "Michael is a better teammate than Shaq" was ruthlessly exposed.

Weber silently endured the scolding, but Roger suddenly interrupted: "You speak as if you are guarding me. At least Chris didn't let me step over him."

Jordan ignored it and continued to stare at Webber fiercely.

Jordan hoped to use this method to make Webber's defense tougher and more serious.

But people are different. Some people become tougher under oppression, while others become more nervous.

One round later, Weber made a mistake.

As he was pivoting, he saw Jordan cutting inside, but Jordan seemed to give him a look, which meant he might run back outside the three-point line.

Webber wasn't sure if that was what Jordan meant. He only knew that if he missed the opportunity to cut inside, he would be scolded.

Under high pressure, Webber still passed the ball, but at the moment he passed the ball, Jordan pushed Harper away and ran to the outside.

This resulted in the ball being directly confiscated by Harper, and the Bulls made a mistake at a critical moment!
O'Neal stood up and yelled like crazy: "Chris, I told you before, you are not as good as Roger!"

Harper counterattacked with the ball, but Pippen, who was responsible for chasing and defending him, gave him a big shot, which prevented the Magic from widening the gap to double digits.

Seeing Pippen complete the defense, Jordan finally let go of his worries.

So he turned around and yelled at Weber: "Useless, you are not as good as Roger!"

Weber: ???
At this moment, Jordan and O'Neal reached an unprecedented understanding.

Well, trading Roger was a complete loss, and now even Jordan himself admits it!
But he couldn't let the outside world think so. Even if Michael Jordan was really wrong, he would not be willing to admit it.

He had to cover up the stupidity of this deal with a win.

In this attack, Horace Grant double-teamed Jordan the moment he received the ball.

Jordan saw Webber was left open, but he didn't pass the ball.

He no longer trusted Weber at the critical moment.

To be honest, Webber's role in the Bulls during this period was not as good as Rodman, who was not very good at scoring.

With Jordan and Pippen occupying a large amount of the ball, Webber's assisting and scoring abilities had no room to play.

Whatever he can do offensively, Pippen can do.

But the defensive value provided by Rodman is something that Webber does not have.

This was indeed a stupid deal, a stupid deal led by Jordan. And now, he has to pay the price for his stupidity.

Under the defense of two people, Jordan, who was unwilling to pass the ball to Webber, forced a backward shot.

The basketball bounced off the rim, the shot was short, and Jordan failed to score.

Fortunately, Pippen grabbed the offensive rebound and scored on the second attack, otherwise the Bulls would face the embarrassment of having the score difference widened to 10 points.

But just as the Bulls narrowed the gap, Roger used a turnaround jump shot after a pick-and-roll to widen the gap to 8 points.

His personal score has reached 48 points, and every point he scores will bring more pain to Chicago fans.

Such a perfect player should have worn the red jersey of Chicago!

Jerry Krause, that idiot!
Klaus had another voice in his mind: "Michael is an idiot!"

The score difference remained at 8 points, and the Bulls were no closer to victory after O'Neal left the court.

Jordan was already thinking about the worst outcome. If he lost this game, he would lose face in every aspect.

He told management that it didn’t matter if Shark and Roger joined forces or not, he couldn’t beat them.

After his comeback, he wanted to tell everyone that his era was not over, but he couldn't hold Roger down.

If he loses this game, his reputation will be greatly damaged.

While feeling frustrated, Jordan was once again trapped in the offense.

The front line group built by Pat Williams worked. Harper and Grant did not let Jordan play comfortably in any round. The quick double-teaming of the Magic's tall forwards made both Olajuwon and Jordan struggle.

Webber raised his hand for the ball, but Jordan still didn't pass it.

To be honest, Webber doesn't know the difference between Jordan's behavior and Roger's. How can he have the nerve to complain about others for not being a team player every other day?
Jordan accelerated to get rid of the two players and then drifted to shoot, but this jump shot was still a little short.

The two consecutive shots were too short, which showed that Jordan was too tired. He had only rested for two minutes so far today.

Yes, for a physical freak like Jordan, he would not be physically exhausted even if he played for such a long time.

But it must be admitted that his consistency began to suffer.

This time, Derek McKay blocked Pippen tightly, and the old rebounding champion Michael Cage held the rebound firmly, giving the Bulls no more chances!

The cheers in the Orlando Arena reached a climax, and Cage grabbed the rebound, which meant the Magic had a chance to widen the point difference to double digits!

Cage passed the ball to Roger, who took charge of the attack himself.

As always, the Magic's offense started with a pick-and-roll between Roger and Grant.

But this time, when Roger passed by Grant, the person who appeared in front of Roger to assist in defense was Michael Jordan!

Jordan couldn't bear to see Webber being defeated again and again, so he decided to defend Roger and Grant's pick-and-roll himself.

This was the first time Jordan exposed himself to Roger since the humiliating matchup in the first quarter.

Will Jordan be able to strike back or take another beating? No one knows.

When Roger saw that it was Jordan, he slowed down his pace and did not choose to attack directly.

Pippen didn't dare to let Grant go directly, so he didn't double-team Roger with Jordan, but followed Grant into the inside.

Finally, the Bulls completed a perfect switch, and now it was Jordan and Roger one-on-one.

Roger was observing the situation, and Jordan, with his arms open, began to chatter: "Do you know the real reason why you were traded? Because you didn't lead the team to win the championship last season. Competitive sports are cruel. You don't have a championship, you don't even have one. If it were me last season, there would have been four championship banners in the United Center! Because you are a bastard who can't win a championship, you were traded, it's that simple! You are a loser, and you will be a loser tonight!"

Roger didn't respond, now completely focused on the attack. He looked directly into Jordan's eyes, as if he could see into his heart.

Roger first moved to the left sideline to prepare for a breakthrough, but Jordan immediately moved sideways to block the breakthrough route.

Jordan didn't predict the future, but because Pippen was behind him on the other side, if Roger rushed to that side, he would be trapped and double-teamed.

Therefore, Jordan was certain that Roger could only break to the left.

His immense experience paid off, as he correctly determined Roger's breakthrough direction.

But just as Roger was about to hit Jordan, he made a second big change of direction, turning towards the side where Pippen was helping to defend. This move directly shook Jordan half a body away. Jordan was too tired, which affected not only his shooting but also his lateral movement. Although the impact was not very obvious, in a high-level duel, a 0.5 second hesitation is enough to decide the outcome of the game.

Seeing Roger actually dribbled past Jordan, Pippen on the other side immediately came up to help defend, but he was still a beat late. Roger shot under the timely but slightly lacking defense of Jordan and Pippen, scoring the 50th point!
The ball went in, and Roger looked at Jordan, who had just been chattering at him, and put his index finger on his lips without a smile. Without saying a word, Roger completed a powerful response!
In the second one-on-one match, Jordan was defeated again and once again became the background board of Roger's famous scene.

Tonight, Michael Jordan's indomitable myth collapsed completely.

(End of this chapter)