Champion Creed
Chapter 992 - 323: In front of me, the King, he is only fit to be a Knight (Vote for the monthly ticket!)_2

Chapter 992: 323: In front of me, the King, he is only fit to be a Knight (Vote for the monthly ticket!)_2

It’s no wonder the fans aren’t giving face, the game lacks superstars, and the key is the viewing experience of the Pistons and Spurs matches, comparable to Shawn Marion’s shooting, Sam Cassell’s makeup, and LeBron James’s dribbling.

Both teams focus too much on defense, the match filled with turnovers and misses, and Tim Duncan’s smile that keeps kids sleepless for three days and nights.

Moreover, Duncan and Big Ben’s free throws are terrible (free throw is Big Ben’s frequently overlooked weak spot), so the most exciting critical moments of the game turn out to be the dullest. The last few minutes often get fragmented due to fouls, with the fans only watching two ugly freethrow shooters compete in missing shots.

The most crucial point is, this is the first year of the league executing the new broadcasting agreement.

ESPN, TNT, and ABC spent a huge 5.2 billion in real money to snatch the NBA broadcasting rights from NBC, yet NBA pulled off a big mess in the first year of the 5.2 billion contract.

So, will others dare to offer such large broadcasting contracts in the future? Will sponsors still favor basketball? Can David Stern still have friends?

Therefore, Stern is extremely annoyed by this season.

What blue-collar legend, what inspirational civilian champion, they are all bullshit.

Ratings truly reflect one thing — fans are not interested in the Spurs and Pistons.

Watching the Pistons lift the trophy, David Stern prays to God on the side, praying that the finals next season will never, never be like this again!

But soon David Stern realizes, it’s better to pray to Roger than to God.

As long as Roger is there, all is not lost.

After all, every profession has its specialization, a network writer cannot get rich by buying stocks, only the god of basketball can solve basketball problems.

The 02-03 season thus ends, this is Roger’s third season among his ten career seasons where he didn’t laugh till the end.

But truth be told, this season won’t diminish Roger’s influence.

No one would deny all of Roger’s previous achievements due to this season’s failure, even Roger’s criticasters only dare to say "Roger’s era is passing", and not "Roger’s era has passed."

However, if several more seasons like this come, Roger’s status may not remain as stable.

Luckily, Roger is already prepared to reclaim everything back, just need to wait for the bullets to fly a while longer, fly over this summer.

After the finals, at the highly anticipated 2003 draft conference, Michael Jordan and Cleveland Cavaliers were the biggest winners.

They took the Chosen One, LeBron James, as the first pick in the first round, James wears the number 23 for Cavaliers, Michael Jordan also was number 23, then Michael Jordan personally selected him. To Cleveland fans, this is a kind of legacy.

Whereas to Michael Jordan, this is the beginning of a new era, also the tombstone of Roger’s era.

The second pick belongs to the reigning champion Detroit Pistons, this is an unintended willow shade story, as this trade originated in 1997 six years ago, Grizzlies gave Pistons a protected pick for 2003 for Otis Thorpe. If in 2003 Grizzlies get the No. 1 pick, then this pick is protected, still belonging to Grizzlies. If not the No. 1 pick, then it belongs to Pistons.

At that time no one knew what the 2003 draft would be like, nor did they know Pistons would become champions.

Thus, the champions with already strong enough lineup obtained the coveted second pick of many roster tanking teams.

Getting to both win the championship and obtain a high pick seems extremely fortunate to everyone.

But Detroit Pistons faced difficulty.

As the needs of reigning champions and high-potential rookies are actually opposed.

The champions’ lineup is already very stable, choosing a high-potential rookie will likely not have playing time for nurturing.

Whereas high-potential rookies precisely need time, ball rights, and tactical status to grow.

So, it’s not easy for Pistons to make a decision.

Pistons tried many people, ultimately, Joe Dumars decided to select Darko Milicic from Serbia.

Though Pistons have Double Wallace guarding the interior, the rotating inside level is not great.

Selecting Darko is partly to strengthen inside depth, partly because of Milicic’s young age, allowing years to cultivate, perfectly bridging Double Wallace — Big Ben and Rasheed both are 29 already, no one knows how long they can maintain their peak.

Once a player’s age passes 30, their state becomes as unpredictable as a women’s mood during menopause.

Joe Dumars must prepare for the sustainability of Pistons’ dominance.

Roger watches the TV, deep in thought.

Although this selection is identical to the original timeline, because Pistons’s head coach now is Rick Carlisle, Darko Milicic’s destiny might differ.

You know, Larry Brown is the kind of odd coach who lets the second pick play only 4 minutes on average, absolutely definitely cannot find a second.

Training without matches, just think and you know there’s no possibility for progress.

In this timeline, Roger maybe can see what the "if" regarding Darko Milicic would look like.

The third pick, Denver Nuggets routinely took Carmelo Anthony.

He was excited in the interview: "I’m a fan of Roger, as a kid I witnessed him create greatness in Madison Square Garden live. Now, it’s finally my turn!"