Champion Creed
Chapter 986: 321: This won't be the craziest time (asking for monthly tickets!)_3

Chapter 986: 321: This won’t be the craziest time (asking for monthly tickets!)_3

Even Roger didn’t know what brought about Stoudemire’s change, because he really hadn’t given Amar’e any pep talks or said anything motivational. Even when he saw Stoudemire hanging his head dispiritedly on the court, Roger didn’t speak to him; he focused on winning the game first.

Ever since he became teammates with Stoudemire, Amar’e has never been lazy, so Roger didn’t need to give him any motivational speeches.

After the press conference ended, Amar’e Stoudemire returned to the locker room and carefully preserved his Magic number 14 jersey.

He didn’t care about the reporters’ mockery, because he played terribly today and deserved to be laughed at.

But that doesn’t mean he’ll be dreadful for a lifetime.

He has no source of strength, only memories.

Or rather, any memory can potentially become a source of strength. Even if it’s just a night where a superstar patiently signed an autograph for a helpless boy and told him that a terrible life can still go on.

As long as he wears that Magic Team’s number 14 jersey, Amar’e Stoudemire refuses to give up.

“One last question, Amar’e, is it more comfortable under Shaq’s crotch or your girlfriend’s?”

Roger and Amar’e both responded with disdainful looks at that reporter.

As expected, the next day, what Stoudemire said became a laughingstock again.

Kenny Smith mercilessly ridiculed Amar’e on the show.

“Last night, I watched the entire game from home. It was a game that left me speechless, with two truly unbelievable events.

Roger’s 51 points? Shaq’s 43 points? No, no, no, those weren’t the unbelievable things. We all know Roger and Shaq have that kind of ability.

The second unbelievable thing yesterday was that Dirk Nowitzki surprisingly wasn’t DNP’d by Old Nelson. I still say a 213 cm player who can’t average 20+10 is not a good big man. A tall guy obsessed with jump shots is nonsense.”

Charles Barkley refuted this statement: “Shut up, Kenny. You could never match Dirk’s performance in your lifetime. Didn’t you ever have days when your shots were off?”

Trivia: “Flying Pig” Jazz and Nowitzki have a good personal relationship because when Nowitzki attended the Nike Training Camp back in the day, Barkley was present and appreciated the tall guy with guard skills.

Back then, after seeing Nowitzki drive past Pippen on court, “Flying Pig” told Dirk, “If you ever get the chance to play in the NBA and need help, contact me.”

So he was unwilling to bash Nowitzki on the show, even though his performance yesterday was indeed poor.

Kenny Smith raised his hand: “Hey, I’m just a role player. I never claimed to be a big star. But Dirk? He’s a crucial part of the team’s offense. You can’t compare him to me.”

“Alright, get to the first unbelievable thing then.” Barkley didn’t want to continue the topic of criticizing Nowitzki.

“The first unbelievable thing is, Amar’e Stoudemire still thinks he can become one of the best defenders in the league. If I were Roger, I would drag his Russian boss out of bed and urge him to trade Amar’e immediately.

That kid’s delusional, just like how Michael always thought he was handsome. Amar’e’s thinking is already incurable!”

Regarding this, “Flying Pig” Jazz nodded: “I completely agree!”

And the TNT show was just the tip of the iceberg in the series of criticisms about Stoudemire. Playing alongside big stars as a rookie makes it easy to get too much attention.

If you play well, that attention turns into praise. But if you play poorly, it all becomes pressure.

But none of this stopped Amar’e Stoudemire from enthusiastically continuing his basic defense training the next day. Coincidentally, it was also the day Marcus Camby came for a physical recheck at the Oracle Training Center.

Camby came early because he didn’t want to miss his afternoon leisure time.

Indeed, even during the playoffs, Marcus Camby doesn’t stay with the team. The number of times he’s physically been at games this season can be counted on one hand.

In this regard, he’s not even as dedicated as Ben Simmons. Emperor Xi might not be playing, but he never slacks off when it comes to towel-waving.

After completing his recheck, Warriors’ chief medical officer Chelsea Lane was delighted: “Recovery looks great. In July, you can play again, of course by then the season will be over. But this means you can go through a complete preseason training camp next season to regain your form, without any issues.”

“Hmm.” Marcus Camby wasn’t particularly pleased about it because he’s already seen through everything.

Playing basketball? Why go all out when there’s money to be made.

Whether or not he can make the preseason training camp isn’t his concern. He just wants to earn a few million US dollars each year, and it doesn’t matter how he gets it.

Leaving Chelsea Lane’s office, Marcus Camby passed by the training facility and heard that someone was already training inside.

He peeked in through a small gap in the door and saw the high school rookie practicing basic defense skills with the trainer accompanying him.

This was a full hour before training officially started.

After completing another set of exercises, an exhausted Stoudemire shouted to himself, “Why can’t I? Why can’t I!?”