Champion Creed
Chapter 177 - 177 089 Secrets Beyond Basketball Vote for monthly tickets!_4

177: 089: Secrets Beyond Basketball (Vote for monthly tickets!)_4 177: 089: Secrets Beyond Basketball (Vote for monthly tickets!)_4 Under the Knicks’ tight defense, it was difficult for either of them to lead the connecting lineups.

Whenever one of them was off the court, it meant that the Magic Team only had one threatening offensive point on the floor.

So, the Knicks fiercely took on Roger and Shaq in a muscle contest.

Under the scrutiny of the tight defense and the test of physical stamina, Roger and O’Neal started to struggle with a high volume of shooting rights by the fourth quarter.

The muscle contest eroded Roger’s shooting touch, and O’Neal also had a tough time moving under the Knicks’ fierce multi-player defense.

They were forced to distribute the shooting rights to those role players who were left open.

As a result, the entire fourth quarter saw the Magic Team held to just 15 points, and the Knicks took this grueling battle with a score of 94 to 88.

2 to 2, New Yorkers evened the series score at home, as Pat Riley turned decay into magic,

Shares in the team, big contracts, supreme authority…

Riley felt like all these were beckoning to him!

He was about to take down one of his mortal enemies!

Post-game interview, Riley was extremely smug:

“Look, many media outlets didn’t fancy our chances before the game, but now what?” Riley paused deliberately, and he might even have been waiting for applause, “I’ve said it before, this is a seven-game series, and we will not fall easily after losing two games!

What matters is not who gets off to a quick start, but who crosses the finish line first!”

Roger and O’Neal’s situation was now quite awkward, this young duo was essentially being roasted on an open fire.

Before the series began, they were the hot favorites to win the championship in the eyes of all the media.

Now they had lost two consecutive games, and if they lost a third, the entire team’s morale would likely plummet.

In that case, playing a decisive seventh game, they could very possibly be slaughtered by the Knicks.

O’Neal dared not imagine how long he would be ridiculed by the media if they lost this round, as choking as the favorites was one of the most embarrassing things in competitive sports.

Roger also could not imagine, if after leaving the Bulls, he failed to beat the Knicks, just how long Jordan would ridicule him, perhaps for a lifetime.

In the decisive battle, carrying immense pressure, the two young championship contenders were set to defend the Oakland Arena.

But things did not go smoothly.

Roger’s shooting was terrible tonight, and consecutive high-intensity muscle confrontations combined with more than 45 minutes of playtime per game made it difficult for him to maintain his high shooting percentage.

What’s worse, today Roger was somewhat headstrong.

Unwilling to be defended so tightly when his scoring usually seemed as easy as slicing through vegetables, he lost control of his shot attempts.

O’Neal let the giant Patrick Ewing score an easy 25 points in three quarters.

Today, Ewing didn’t tussle with Shaq under the basket, but frenetically played pick and rolls with several guards.

O’Neal, as always, hunkered down under the basket, gambling on the giant’s shooting touch.

He lost that bet.

Ewing’s shooting was excellent tonight, making mid-range shots like David Robinson.

After three quarters, the score on the big screen left Orlando fans in despair.

It also made the team’s general manager, Pat Williams, and the team owner, Rich DeVos, extremely uncomfortable in their suite.

“They are still too young, many people may have forgotten that Roger is only 19 and Shaq is just 23,” Pat Williams spoke up to break the awkward silence in the suite.

As the team owner, DeVos had intentionally brought his family to watch the game, hoping to enjoy a wonderful evening and incidentally see his team, which he spent so much money on to fill the cap space, triumph.

Instead, his team was decimated by the third quarter.

This made him feel like his money was all wasted.

“What happened?” DeVos, who didn’t understand basketball, only knew that being down by 17 points after three quarters certainly meant something was wrong.

“Uh…

Roger’s shooting isn’t very good tonight, and Shaq’s defense also…” Pat Williams himself also really wanted to know, what the hell had happened!

“I think we need to consider their contract renewals carefully, Pat.

You’re right, they are still too young.” After saying this, DeVos smiled again, facing his family, “Hey, who wants to play Ludo?”

The game had lost its appeal to him.

On the Magic Team’s bench, the atmosphere was even more desolate.

Roger and O’Neal were panting on the bench, once favored to cut through the competition like a hot knife through butter and make it to the finals, now they were in serious danger of losing all face.

They were both clear about the consequences of losing this round of the series; they would become the laughingstock of the entire world, just like George Karl last year with his stunning first-round exit.

Brian Hill exploded, “Damn it, is this our destiny?

No!

Lift your heads, gentlemen!”

Obviously, pep talks weren’t going to cut it, his speech was utterly ineffective.

Finally, Roger said what everyone wanted to but didn’t dare to say, “Shaq, what the fuck are you guarding out there?

Are you even serious?

Patrick Ewing has been averaging only 23 points a game this season, and he’s got 25 on you already in just three quarters!”

O’Neal looked at Roger, threw the towel from his hand aside, and also said what everyone wanted to but didn’t dare to say, “How many shots have you missed today?

Shut your mouth!”

Ron Harper had only one feeling at the time: this team was finished.

It was the end of Orlando’s championship dream.

Not just for this game, not just for this season.

The whole team was finished.

And it wasn’t just Harper who thought so at that moment; even Coach Brian Hill was stunned, not knowing how to calm the fury of his two stars.

But then, the plot developed in a direction no one expected.

Roger looked at Shaq seriously, his tone softened, “OK, I did take too many shots today, I’ll use my drives to set you up next, but can you also step out a bit more when you’re defending the pick-and-roll, OK?

We have to win, Shaq.

Don’t you want to make your granny in Odessa proud?

We have to win!”

Hearing the mention of his granny in Odessa, the fire in O’Neal’s eyes vanished instantly, “I got it, man.

I’ll shut that bastard down, Patrick Ewing won’t be trouble anymore.

You’re right, we have to win.”

When he finished, Roger and O’Neal fist-bumped each other.

The secrets of basketball lie beyond the court; a team that can fight their way through to win the championship, aside from having a talent advantage, must be doing something else right.

Because there are just too many teams with talent advantages that implode on the spot.

You might say, the secret to the Heat’s losses in ’11 also lay beyond basketball.

When a team has problems, pointing out the core players’ mistakes is easy.

But getting the other person to acknowledge and change these mistakes is hard.

But Roger did admit to his own mistakes, he was indeed too hasty today, his shots too forced and random.

His admission set a good example and helped calm O’Neal’s mood down.

And Roger understood Shaq better than the original number 8 in history did; he knew when to play the “granny in Odessa” card to soothe Shaq, instead of saying something like “Shaq messed up too” that would have only inflamed the situation.

These things have nothing to do with tactics; they’re all beyond basketball.

But Roger did right.

As the timeout ended, Brian Hill told everyone to start with defense, and both Roger and O’Neal nodded.

Back on the court, staring at a 17-point deficit, O’Neal patted Roger on the shoulder, “Do you know what my granny in Odessa used to tell me?”

Roger shook his head.

“When I was a kid, and I would cry about our tough life, she’d always sneak me a cookie and pat my head, and tell me: It’s alright, baby, everything is going to be okay.”

Following that, Shaq’s eyes tinged with redness, “She’s got cancer, she’s not in good health, she doesn’t have much time left.

Before things get any worse, I want to make her proud of me, Roger.”

“Let’s beat the hell out of those New York guys together, Shaq.”

Hot favorites to fall flat on their faces?

No, never!