Champion Creed
Chapter 420 - 420 163 Zen Master's Warning and the Wonderful Destiny Request for Monthly Tickets!

420: 163: Zen Master’s Warning and the Wonderful Destiny (Request for Monthly Tickets!) 420: 163: Zen Master’s Warning and the Wonderful Destiny (Request for Monthly Tickets!) Roger’s loud shout from the technical desk at Madison Square Garden echoed through the night sky on Christmas Eve in 1996.

That shout was like thunder in a furious storm, making all of New York tremble.

In the end, Michael Jordan and Patrick Ewing still lost that major showdown, which the league had been promoting two months in advance.

Madison Square Garden seemed cursed, never allowing the Knicks to lift their heads in front of Roger.

From the Pat Riley era through the Jordan-Ewing era, the Knicks had no good outcomes whenever they faced Roger.

This bloody rivalry, which started in 1994, always saw the Knicks getting hurt!

Although Michael Jordan scored 36 points with 6 assists and 7 rebounds, not inferior to Roger, and Patrick Ewing also had 29 points, 13 rebounds, and 3 blocks, and although the New York Knicks only lost by one point—

in such an important game, the result was ultimately what the fans cared about most.

On such a night, losing by a single point was indeed the most painful way to lose, and fans did not want to hear any nonsense about “doing one’s best!”

Jordan and Ewing had each lost to the Magic in the past; they were actually quite experienced at it.

But losing to the Magic together made the pain feel even more intense, causing both of their chests to feel tight.

The duo of college superstars—a guard and a center—who swept the NBA All-Star team in ’84, now seemed not so terrifying anymore.

In their place, was another guard-center duo that met in Baton Rouge.

The change of eras always happens unnoticeably.

This battle’s result was a devastating blow to the hearts of New York fans; they had waited two whole months and many had saved up money for a long time to buy tickets to see this year’s Christmas showdown.

In the end, what they saw was Roger’s face overwhelming time after time.

The most valuable part of tonight’s game turned out to be the Christmas special edition cheerleader performance!

The disappointment of the New York fans stemmed from too high of expectations, you know.

Just 24 hours before, people were even discussing whether the Knicks could win by double digits against the Magic, talking about paying back all the past afflictions.

But now, they couldn’t even manage a basic win!

Of course, not all Knicks fans were disappointed.

Carmelo Anthony, who had since moved his entire family to Baltimore, had a perfect Christmas Eve, cheering for Roger’s victory.

Having witnessed in person Roger repeatedly dominating in the final 18 seconds of the game back then, Anthony had planted the seed in his heart to “become a player like Roger.”

He was still a Knicks fan, but he hoped even more to see Roger win.

This Christmas night, his wish was fulfilled.

However, people like Anthony were in the minority.

One can only imagine, after such a painful loss, how the New York fans and media would treat Jordan.

It is well known that New York fans might be the fans in the league who least appreciate their own stars.

Even if that star was once the illustrious Michael Jordan.

New York is heaven, New York is also hell.

The next day, an NBC reporter interviewed some New York fans on the street about their views on last night’s game.

As expected, there were more voices condemning Jordan than Roger!

“I don’t know why the team signed Michael, this old bone.

Shouldn’t we have cleared cap space to directly sign Shaq?

Yesterday, Michael looked like an outdated Weapon of World War II in front of Roger!”

“I don’t understand, people say Roger’s defense is weak, yet he blocked Michael at crucial moments.

People say Michael is the strongest defensive guard in NBA history, but he and Childs couldn’t handle Roger together.

Is there a chance we just thought Michael was still strong?”

“Every professional player tries to look tough, like that kid in Minneapolis who always likes to shout.

Michael Jordan is no exception, using ferocious expressions and crude trash talk to make himself seem stronger.

But I have to tell the truth, no matter how tough Michael tries to act, the whole world now knows he’s done!”

“Michael let the Bulls send the most terrifying scorer to Orlando, resulting in him being thrashed and fleeing Chicago.

Now, he’s about to be thrashed again in New York.

For someone who was once the absolute ruler, his recent experiences are truly disgraceful.

Why doesn’t Michael just retire?

Anyway, he can’t beat Roger.”

“What if we immediately cut Michael and Patrick, those two old wastes, and still have a chance to swoop for Tim Duncan?

Who in the world could refuse Tim Duncan?

Why should we cheapen those racists in Boston?

The Bulls were very wise to choose to rebuild!”

These scenes on TV were incredibly embarrassing for Jordan.

This was the first time he was disdained by his home fans.

It was the first time, unbelievably, that someone thought some damn Tim Duncan could be more useful than him!

Initially, after transferring to New York and delivering dominant performances and results, Jordan’s reputation had somewhat improved.

But losing to Roger, everything went back to square one.

Even worse.