Champion Creed
Chapter 111 - 111 069 The First Pleasant Meeting Request for Monthly Tickets!_2

111: 069: The First Pleasant Meeting (Request for Monthly Tickets!)_2 111: 069: The First Pleasant Meeting (Request for Monthly Tickets!)_2 “I know,” Hill’s response to Roger wasn’t a surprise.

“I won’t ask you to play like a point guard, you can still do the things you like, score, finish.

But there’s no Phil Jackson’s triangle offense here, your task isn’t just to score.”

My team’s guards need to handle the ball, be the starting point of the offense.

You’ll get more time with the ball, not just catching and finishing, that’s too simple.

You can still be your scoring self, but I need to make sure that you’re not the kind of player who hoards the ball for 23 seconds in a single play.”

“If you’re worried about that, then that’s not me.

Maybe I can’t organize the offense, but I’m still willing to pass the ball to teammates who have opportunities,” Roger replied, “You can ask Steve Kerr if you don’t believe me.”

“Good, I’ve heard about your training attitude.

You should really persuade your good friend Shaq.

I’m looking forward to working with you in the new season, Roger, I think we can create something together.”

The golf cart stopped, and the game continued.

The next time they got on the golf cart, head coach Brian Hill and team owner Rich DeVos tacitly sat in the front row, leaving the seat next to Roger for the general manager Pat Williams.

Now it was time for the two of them to have a talk.

Pat Williams first warned Roger with a serious tone, “I don’t want any problems in the locker room, I know all about the stunts you and Scott pulled in Chicago.”

“Pat, do you have a problem with me?” Roger asked in return.

From his arrival at the golf course up to that point, Pat Williams had only offered a forced smile upon their first meeting.

Then he had a stern face all along, nearly having “dissatisfied” written all over it.

“No dissatisfaction.”

“I don’t owe you money, right?”

“No, I have no personal opinion against you.

I’ll be straightforward.

I know about your and Shaq’s backgrounds, you both have ties to Reebok.

I also know that this trade was facilitated by Reebok.

You used your player option as leverage to scare off the teams you didn’t want to join.

Shaq used the ’96 summer renewal as leverage to push me to hurry the trade.

You worked seamlessly together, but what I want to say is this, please stop such behavior!

You just focus on playing the game, and I will be responsible for building a team around you that can compete.

In this respect, you should trust me!”

Unlike the “foolish Magic management” people envision,

Pat Williams wasn’t just some incompetent GM that came out of nowhere.

In fact, he had helped the 76ers create their only era of glory since Chamberlain’s time in the ’80s.

He was also a co-founder of the Orlando Magic, and his successful lobbying led the league’s board of governors to vote for Orlando Magic’s inclusion.

His reputation with the Magic was so high that even owner DeVos had to give him respect, which is why he didn’t want to be a puppet for star players.

Roger didn’t necessarily want to control the management, but he still asked, “When you say ‘competitive,’ what do you mean?

It’s not just getting past the first round, right?

What’s your plan, Pat?

Of course, I’m willing to trust you, but you’ve got to let me know if your plan is worth trusting.”

“Damn it, the competitiveness I’m talking about is obviously the ability to compete for the championship, what do you think I traded for you for?

Last season, you already led your team to the finals, and now we also have Shaq.

I don’t believe you’ll play worse!

I’ll tell you the truth, my goal this summer is to free up some salary space because there are many free agents on the market that we need.

That’s also why I had to include Nick Anderson in the trade.

He can indeed score, but with you here, we have no use for Nick.

His role completely overlaps with yours, but he can’t match your excellence, and he can’t help you with defense, yet he would take up more than 3 million in salary space.

I tried trading him directly, but do you think he can be exchanged for Kemp or Payton?

By getting rid of him, we can free up space to sign players who fit you and Shaq better.

Damn it, and to think some media still call me an utter fool for this!

They can’t seriously believe that the more players with high average scores on a team, the better, can they?

Basketball is not a math problem!”

Hearing this, Roger couldn’t help but sneer inwardly, “Nick Anderson could actually probably be traded for Rodman.”

But without foresight, Rodman was a risky choice.

The Bulls had only chosen the Worm out of desperation in their original history, so it was normal for Pat Williams not to consider Rodman.

Roger didn’t dwell on it and continued to listen to Williams speak.

“Next, I will also trade away our sixth man, Dennis Scott, for the same purpose.

After freeing up cap space, I’ll be able to make big moves.

I’m already in touch with Ron Harper from the Clippers and former Bulls player Horace Grant.

Both have reached a preliminary understanding with me, and their addition will take our team to a higher level.”

We’re also going to try to add more defensive forwards to our lineup, like Derrick McKey, the defensive stalwart from the Pacers, and Michael Cage, the former rebounding champion.

They’re both on the free agent market this year, and this is our chance.

We need to deal with Jordan and Olajuwon, so we need a group of forwards with strong defensive capabilities to protect you and Shaq, allowing you both to focus on scoring.”

I know the outside world doesn’t think much of me, but I’ve been working hard, so all you have to do is take care of your own tasks, and let me handle mine, OK?”

To be honest, Roger’s impression of Pat Williams had changed somewhat; the man didn’t seem so foolish after all.

Now, his team-building strategy was completely different from the original history.

Because the original Penny was a point guard-oriented player, the Magic Team needed shooters like Nick Anderson and Dennis Scott to bring out Penny’s passing talent.

But now, Shaq and Roger could score, and both were capable of handling a large volume of shots to break down positions, so Pat Williams shifted direction, getting rid of surplus scorers and starting to look for those fierce defensive forwards.

This was indeed the right direction.

Well, this still couldn’t cover up the fact that Pat Williams was an idiot.

In Roger’s view, letting Shaq go in ’96 and missing out on Duncan in 2000 were blots the Magic management could never erase.

But today’s conversation at least proved that Williams could make mistakes, but he wasn’t completely brainless.

His plans sounded quite promising.

“I have no problem, Pat, I won’t interfere with your plans.

But a plan is just a plan; you’ve still got to be able to execute it,” Roger extended his hand.

“Of course I’ll do my best to execute.

I’m already on it,” Pat Williams finally smiled genuinely and shook Roger’s hand: “Although the boss has already said it, I still want to say it to you personally, welcome to the magical Magic World.

Let’s create something magical together.”

Roger had completed a rather pleasant meeting with the team’s executives; at least, their goals were aligned.

Roger wanted a championship, and the Magic wanted more than just a first-round breakthrough.

This was a good start.

That afternoon, as Roger and the Magic management played golf, a Chicago reporter caught up with Michael Jordan and asked him about trading Roger.

Jordan smiled broadly: “Forget about Roger, what he couldn’t do leading the Bulls, I can.

In fact, I’d rather talk about my new teammate, Chris Webber.”

The next day, Roger, who was house hunting, was also caught by an Orlando reporter asking for a response to Jordan’s comments.

And his response was:

“I indeed didn’t lead the Bulls to a championship last season, but Michael won’t be able to do what I’ve already done either.”

“Which is?”

“Next season, he won’t even be able to lead the Bulls to the Finals.”