Champion Creed
Chapter 457 - 457 173 Do people plan their own funerals in advance

457: 173: Do people plan their own funerals in advance?

(Seeking monthly passes!)_3 457: 173: Do people plan their own funerals in advance?

(Seeking monthly passes!)_3 He started with a turnaround jumper that succeeded against Wilkins’ defense, then stole Roger’s dribble on defense and scored with a fast-break slam.

Such a start gave Scottie Pippen endless fantasies.

Could he defeat Roger once in the playoffs?

Absolutely!

Yeah right.

In fact, Scottie Pippen was quite serene as he walked away.

Because those first two moves were pretty much the highlight of Pippen’s entire game.

After that, because he spent so much energy defending Roger throughout the game, Pippen’s offensive performance was a complete mess.

In terms of scoring, the standards for evaluating a player boil down to two items—efficiency and output.

Pippen’s offensive power as a second option was no problem, but as the main option, his efficiency was too low.

His shooting touch was average to begin with, and after enduring strenuous defense, it further deteriorated.

But could Pippen afford to step back from the defensive side?

Not at all.

If he didn’t guard Roger, the Bulls would only lose faster.

Today, Toni Kukoc took on the heavy scoring responsibility, but the Euro-Magic’s firepower was ultimately limited.

Just two minutes into the fourth quarter, the Magic had already taken a 17-point lead.

The Bulls were not only far from winning, they were even struggling to prevent the game from turning into garbage time.

Pippen’s personal performance was also completely overshadowed by Roger’s.

He managed to restrict Roger’s scoring, but not entirely.

Up to now, Roger still scored 29 points with a 43% shooting rate.

The real key to restricting Roger wasn’t a one-on-one defensive expert, but a perfect defensive system.

In the NBA, you can’t expect to limit a player who’s been the scoring champion for two consecutive years with just man-to-man defense.

But Pippen didn’t have anyone behind him to provide protection.

He was without Jordan, and without Rodman.

If he failed to stop Roger defensively, whether a shot would go in depended entirely on Roger’s shooting touch.

On the offensive end, an exhausted Pippen couldn’t even handle Wilkins steadily.

Pippen’s ankle injury affected his penetration speed, and often he could only rely on mid-range jump shots to resolve the offense.

For Pippen, whose shooting touch had already been depleted, this was the most inefficient method.

Pippen fought hard all season, and what was the result?

In the playoffs, he was utterly humiliasted!

In the sixth minute of the fourth quarter, after Roger scored another basket over Pippen’s head, he was ready to leave the court.

Because the Magic had expanded their lead to 23 points, and Roger had added 37 points to his personal tally.

Even without Shaq, Pippen’s Chicago Bulls never came close to victory.

In fact, it clearly led people to one conclusion: Pippen’s ability to lead a team was completely blown away by Roger.

Bill Walton even made a controversial statement, “I can now understand why Roger and Scott had a difficult relationship.

If you were in their shoes, would you like being bossed around by someone far inferior to yourself?”

But Pippen hadn’t given up hope; he still wanted to do something.

At least score 20 points in a single game!

In this round, Pippen and Kukoc executed a pick-and-roll.

At this time, Pippen was no longer being guarded by Wilkins; coach Brian Hill had already sent Wilkins to rest early.

Anthony Bowie, who was actively defending him, didn’t have Wilkins’ size or wingspan.

So after Pippen used the screen, he found space to take the shot.

Just as Pippen was about to jump for the shot, the ball was slapped away from his hands.

Roger, who had come over to help timely after Pippen used the screen, swiftly stole the ball.

Pippen turned around immediately, reaching out in an attempt to grab Roger’s jersey.

But he ended up pulling down Roger’s shorts instead, and as Roger made his forward run, his shorts were yanked down by Pippen, causing Roger to fall to the ground.

Roger hurriedly got up and put his shorts back on.

However, the spectacular view on his boxer briefs had already been noticed by some eagle-eyed fans.

The producer deserving of a chicken leg switched the camera back to Larsa, who showed a look of surprise mixed with a hint of envy.

This was the final nail in the coffin for Scottie Pippen.

As to whether or not Roger had ever slept with her, it might remain one of the NBA’s greatest mysteries.

But as for whether Larsa wanted it, there was absolutely no mystery.

“A small incident occurred on the court, but fortunately, Roger wasn’t wearing anything strange underneath.

Coach Brian Hill called a halt to the match, and this announced the Magic’s victory.

As for Scottie Pippen and Roger, all suspense had ended,” summarized Bill Walton.

In the end, the Magic won at home with a 17-point advantage.

After the game, Pippen sat on the bench, feeling desperate.

He realized that he might never be able to prove he was on the same level as players like Jordan and Roger.

Maybe he never was.

It is the same old saying: without Roger, the Chicago Bulls are nothing at all.

Yes, Pippen was full of passion before the playoffs began.

But even the passionate Sakuragi Hanamichi, when faced with Yao Ming, couldn’t keep his fire alive.

In the face of a huge disparity in strength, even the hottest blood cools completely.

In the second game of the series, Shaquille O’Neal finally returned.

At the start, Shaq played terribly, failing to score on 3 consecutive shots against the Bulls’ feeble interior defense.

The reason for O’Neal’s poor performance was his lack of confidence in his knee.

Even with a thick knee pad, it couldn’t give him any sense of security.

This is a common mindset for players recovering from serious injuries.

But as the game went on and he gradually found his rhythm, Shaquille O’Neal once again became the unstoppable behemoth in the paint.