Champions Creed

Chapter 9 009: When Jordan heard the name for the first time

In the early morning, the sky was so dark that there was not even a star.

In contrast, the streets of Las Vegas are still brightly lit.

Michael Jordan walked out of the casino with bloodshot eyes.

But he didn't feel sleepy at all. In the casino, his adrenaline was at a very high level all night. In this situation, people would not feel sleepy.

The energetic Jordan had no intention of returning to the hotel. He just wanted to get some fresh air and then go back to play cards until dawn.

Danzi took a deep puff of his cigar and blew out smoke rings. He couldn't help but smile as he recalled the summer that was about to pass.

Jordan was very proud of himself this summer. The Bulls became the second team to win two consecutive championships after the Bad Boys, and then he became the Olympic champion in Barcelona. Moreover, in this most legendary basketball team in the world, there was no assassin as he wished.

With everything going well for Jordan, he felt like he was in control of the world.

As Jordan was reminiscing about his glory days that past summer, a reporter came up to him:
"Michael! Can you accept our interview?"

Jordan glanced at the reporter and wanted to tell him to "get out of here".

He doesn't like being disturbed on his vacation.

He also didn't expect that he would be caught by annoying reporters in Las Vegas in the early morning.

These guys are literally everywhere, like cockroaches.

In short, Jordan's beautiful mood was interrupted and he is very unhappy now.

But Jordan is mature after all, and he doesn't want to be caught by reporters: "Of course I can accept the interview, but it's better to be quick."

"Michael Dunk, can the Bulls create a three-peat next season?"

Jordan answered the simple question with ease: "That has always been our goal, and we will definitely work towards this goal."

"What do you think of Scott's new contract with the Bulls?"

Well, the difficulty of the questions is starting to increase.

Jordan shook his head. He knew very well that the contract Pippen signed was undoubtedly a bad one.

You can question Jordan's judgment of people, but you can't question his judgment of contracts.

Jordan advised Pippen not to sign a cheap long-term contract with the Bulls, and advised Barkley not to take Nike's $300 million endorsement fee but to ask for $100 million endorsement fee + stock.

Barkley listened, so he made about 10 times more money. Pippen didn't listen, so he became a unit of account.

But Jordan certainly couldn't say in front of reporters that Pippen signed a bad contract. He could only smooth things over: "I'm glad Scott can stay on the team."

"But after Scott signed the contract, Horace Grant seemed a little dissatisfied."

"There is no such thing."

After saying that, Jordan, who was already getting impatient, turned around and prepared to leave, but the reporter called Jordan without tact: "Michael, one last question."

Jordan suppressed his anger and turned slowly: "Promise this is the last question. You've already taken up too much of my time."

"I promise this is the last one, what do you think of Roger?"

"who!?"

"Roger, the MVP of this year's Sunshine Classic. He single-handedly eliminated Oak Hill High School and defeated Shaquille O'Neal! He has all-around offensive skills and outstanding athletic ability. People say he will be the next Michael!"

After hearing this, Jordan became even angrier.

You wasted all this time of mine just to get me to judge a damn high school student?
You must be crazy!

Jordan, unable to vent his anger immediately, could only suppress his anger: "I haven't heard of him."

After saying that, Jordan left without looking back.

He felt that these reporters must be crazy, as they would just pull any random person onto themselves.

Before, they said Grant Hill looked like them, but at least he was a serious college player.

Now even high school players are starting to touch me?
Jordan was not happy when he heard the name Roger for the first time.

But it doesn't matter. Jordan feels that this might be the last time he hears that name in his life.

Every year, thousands of high school talents emerge like mushrooms after a rain, but how many of them can finally stand on the NBA stage?
There's no need to ruin your mood for playing cards because of this kind of thing~
At this time, Roger didn't know that his name had already reached the ears of the famous Michael Jordan.

Roger opened his eyes just as the sky was getting light.

He picked up the alarm clock on the bedside table and found that he got up five minutes earlier than the alarm was set at 5:30.

Since he decided to enter the NBA, Roger has personally experienced what it means that "it's not Uncle Chen who wakes you up every morning, but your dream."

Almost every day he would automatically wake up a few minutes earlier than the alarm clock and Uncle Chen.

Walking out of the room, Roger saw his uncle busy in the kitchen: "The egg sandwich will be ready soon, and the hot milk is on the table. Go wash your face and brush your teeth quickly, don't just stand there."

Ever since Roger announced that he would have to get up at 5:30 every day and arrive at the training hall at 6:00 to start training, Lu An adjusted his schedule without complaint.

Even though he was already seriously sleep deprived.

But in order to allow his nephew to go to college through basketball, it doesn’t matter if his already precarious hairline recedes a little. In the words of his uncle, “As an athlete, every meal can be taken seriously! Breakfast must include two eggs, a sausage, and more white milk!”

Roger had no choice but to get up so early to train. After all, he was a high school player, not a professional player, so he had a lot of things to do every day.

I have classes in the morning and at noon, train with the team in the afternoon, and cannot train too late at night for safety reasons.

Even though he had quit the tennis team, he still didn't have enough time, so he had to deduct one or two hours from his morning sleep time to practice.

In order to ensure the effectiveness of the training, Roger had already discussed with Abunassar and expressed his desire to skip college and go directly to the NBA.

Let him train himself according to the standards of the NBA.

Abunasa didn't expect that he would get such a big job right away. But if he could train a high school rookie, he would become famous in the circle.

Therefore, Abunassar also tried his best to arrange a detailed and hard training plan for Roger.

There's no other way. Entering the NBA as a high school student is not something that can be done easily.

At six o'clock sharp, Roger arrived at the training hall and started strength training after warming up.

Strength training is what Roger values ​​most, and he urgently needs to build muscle scientifically, because in confrontational sports, without a suitable body, no matter how good the skills are, it will be in vain.

Why do you think those CBA superstars perform so badly in international competitions? Because the competition is not at the same level, so their skills cannot be fully utilized.

Well, this statement does not apply to Grandma Wang, because she cannot enter without confrontation.

Roger has the physical talent of Gervin, and he feels that he is suitable for gaining weight. After all, Gervin is in good health and has hardly suffered any serious injuries in his career.

The reason why Gervin doesn't put on weight is not because he can't, but because he doesn't want to.

It's hard to expect someone who is too lazy to even participate in the team's basic training to spend sweat to hone his body.

But Roger is different. He is definitely more diligent in training than the Iceman himself. So, it should be very smooth to put on weight!
At half past six, Andre also arrived and started training.

At seven o'clock, Roger began training with the ball and continued to hone his skills.

At eight o'clock, strength training begins again.

After finishing his normal practice with the team in the afternoon, Roger stayed to watch the game videos and learn tactical knowledge.

The gap between high school and professional basketball is not only in ability and physical ability, but also in awareness.

O'Neal said in his autobiography that when he first entered college, he couldn't understand what the coach meant by the tactics he shouted on the sidelines.

But he was too embarrassed to ask, so all he did on the basketball court was take the ball, bump into people, and dunk.

And then he succeeded!
Shark doesn't quite understand the principles of college basketball, but he understands the physics of college basketball.

In short, there will be situations where you don’t understand the tactics from high school to college, not to mention going directly from high school to professional basketball.

In high school games, the tactics are generally very simple, with 70% of the rounds consisting of counterattacks after grabbing the rebound.

If Roger wants to adapt to professional competitions with more rigorous and complex tactics, he must not neglect training in this area.

After a simple dinner, Roger was waiting for open shooting training at various positions and shooting training during interference.

After one last set of strength training, Roger could drag his tired body back home.

Then the next day the same life continued.

Watching Roger leaving the training hall after finishing training, Abunassar glanced at Hawke beside him and shrugged:

"To be honest, this kid's adolescence is so boring. Apart from training, classes, and meals, he goes home to sleep. When I was his age, I would play with girls at parties until late every day before going home."

But Roger himself did not think such a life was boring. After all, he was extremely poor and had nothing to enjoy.

In this boring life day after day, Roger spent the year 1992, the fall semester, the winter break, and the start of his spring semester.

During this time, he witnessed rookie O'Neal's dominance in the NBA and even dunked a basketball hoop.

He witnessed Jordan's 64 points in a single regular season game, and also witnessed the Bulls' decline in record.

The reason why the Bulls' record has deteriorated is simple: their chief inside player, Grant, is tired of the days when Jordan and Pippen are in the spotlight while he can only be a spectator.

He publicly expressed his dissatisfaction with the negotiations for a new contract, and problems had begun to arise within this championship team.

But Roger knew very well that even with such internal and external troubles, there was no way to stop the Bulls from becoming the first team to win three consecutive championships after Mikan's Lakers and Russell's Celtics.

As for Roger himself, he picked up newspapers during breaks in training, and the articles on them explained the results of his hard work during this period.

"Averaging 38.8 points per game! Roger has truly become the best scorer in the United States, achieving the small goal he set for himself!" - The Jonesville Observer.

"Duke? North Carolina? Georgetown? Kentucky? Or Louisiana State? Where will Roger go next?" - The Louisiana Times.

"The latest ranking of high school students in the United States is released. The top five are Randy Livingston, Rasheed Wallace, Jerry Stackhouse, Rashard Griffith, and Roger." - ESPN.

"The Louisiana D1 regional 3A level college finals will begin in three days. Isidore Newman High School, led by the nation's top high school student Randy Livingston, will face Brock High School, led by the nation's fifth-best student Roger, in Baton Rouge. There is no doubt that this will be the most anticipated state championship battle in high school basketball this year!" - The Baton Rouge Post.

Reading the news in the newspaper, Roger was motivated to continue training.

His efforts were not in vain.

(End of this chapter)