Champion Creed
Chapter 45 - 45 032 Even with a stick he can't beat Roger!

45: 032: Even with a stick, he can’t beat Roger!

Truth or Clown?

45: 032: Even with a stick, he can’t beat Roger!

Truth or Clown?

Roger’s beating up of Pippen in the Berto Center locker room, although widely reported by the media, didn’t really lead to any severe negative impact.

It’s not like Green knocking out Poole, which directly resulted in Green getting suspended.

After all, fights among teammates like this were practically a daily occurrence in the friendly and civilized 90s.

The only particular thing about this incident was that the one getting beat wasn’t a rookie, but a veteran.

Despite the lack of severe impact, Roger’s public image did undergo a change.

Before this, people only knew Roger for his strong competitive spirit and high morale, but nobody expected he would be the same when it came to fighting.

It was surprising that this Asian kid turned out to be a tough character.

Compared to Penny, who brought gifts for every teammate on his first day and was always sharing his charming smile, Roger was simply a villain.

Commissioner Stern naturally preferred someone like Penny, but “SportsCenter” host John Anderson had this to say on the show,

“Because Roger is a villain, that’s why I think he’s more like MJ than Anfernee is.

A tyrant in a Chicago red jersey?

Hmm, I’m looking forward to his performance in the games even more!”

Anderson was right, even the Bulls themselves felt that Roger bore a resemblance to MJ.

It’s not just the way he tamed Pippen that was reminiscent of MJ; even his zeal in training was incredibly similar.

At the end of every practice, Roger would stay behind to work on his mid-range shots amidst disruption and finish against contact, without fail.

Pippen, as the team leader, naturally didn’t want to give in.

Even though he had been roughed up last time, he felt there was still room for redemption.

When Jordan was with the team, he was also one of the most diligent in training.

His hands-on approach was what enabled him to command respect.

Jordan had believed since his North Carolina days that full commitment to practice equaled playing time and the respect of his teammates.

Pippen planned to do the same.

So, he practiced overtime with Roger every day, wanting the whole team to see his determination.

But just a week later, Pippen couldn’t take it any longer, “Rookie, you don’t need to practice like this every day!”

Roger scratched his head, “Scott, if I remember correctly, it was you who said in front of the media that we needed to be strict with rookies like us because the Bulls are a championship team.

So, I’m just being a bit strict with myself.”

Pippen almost called Roger “big brother,” “Being this strict is inhumane, I won’t allow you to practice like this anymore!

I’m kindly reminding you as someone who’s been there, you need to balance work with rest when playing basketball!”

In reality, what he was thinking was, “You don’t want to go home, but I do!”

Following the Showdown Authority Method and the Slap Face Authority Method.

Pippen’s Training Authority Method also failed!

At this point, Pippen had only one move left.

It was his ace in the hole; back then, it even made Jordan uncomfortable and earned Pippen respect.

The next day, during the training break, many players headed to the restroom to lighten their load.

Seeing Pippen walk in, everyone suddenly tensed up, avoiding eye contact for fear that he would choose to urinate next to them.

Pippen held his head high and walked over to Roger’s side, confidently dropping his pants.

There’s a legend in the Chicago Bulls about how Michael Jordan never backed down to anyone, until the afternoon he and Pippen stood side by side to pee.

Pippen was confident; this time, he was about to deliver a huge shock to the rookie, right?

Just you wait and see who’s the boss!

However, after glancing at Roger next to him, Pippen used his unbeatable lateral movement to instantly put a three-urinal distance between them!

From that afternoon on, the Chicago Bulls legend could be updated: Scottie Pippen hadn’t backed down to anyone but Jordan, until the afternoon he caught a glimpse of Roger.

Pippen’s ultimate Standing Tall Authority Method still failed!

He really hadn’t expected to be so thoroughly defeated in what he considered his traditional area of superiority!

Roger’s high school buddy Andy Li really wasn’t lying; as the Block High School’s number one swordsman, if Roger hadn’t been endowed with such exceptional talent to make it into the NBA at 18, he would’ve gone to the fierce battles of the San Fernando Valley to make a living.

How could Pippen compete with that?

Finally, after even the Standing Tall Authority Method proved useless, Pippen gave up.

He admitted that he couldn’t conquer Roger at all.

What else could he do?

Follow Jordan’s example by using his honors to suppress the rookie?

Yes, those old photographs hanging in the corridors of the Berto Center, those championship banners inside the training hall, they were all part of Pippen’s glory.

But if Pippen were to use Jordan’s “look around” talk, it would seem very untenable.

If he couldn’t conquer Roger, then he wouldn’t conquer him.

After that, Pippen no longer looked for trouble with Roger and turned to find great satisfaction in Kukoc instead.

Unfortunately, the whole team now knew—Scott couldn’t handle Roger.

It was unquestionably a devastating blow to his prestige in the locker room.

Meanwhile, Roger’s prestige in the locker room skyrocketed as if he were on a rocket.

The hierarchy within an NBA team is very subtle; after seeing Roger win over Pippen in one-on-one, boxing, and stick standing, even Cartwright stopped asking Roger to help buy water.

People knew that this rookie wasn’t easy for just anyone to control; it was best not to provoke him.

Pippen’s tragedy lay in the fact that he was neither content being a supporting role nor capable of being the main character.

Later, when he went to the Trail Blazers, not many of the young players there respected him either.

Pity Kukoc, tasks like fetching water, carrying shoes, and lugging bags had become the exclusive domain of this Euro-Magic.

Once Roger’s status stabilized, the days at the training camp went by, and the preseason quickly approached.

In the preseason, the Zen Master tried to integrate Roger and Kukoc into the triangle offense.

The results were encouraging.

When Toni Kukoc and Roger played together, they were like fish in water.

Kukoc could act as a pivot from the high post, where his passing truly showcased his overflowing talent, grasping the triangle offense very quickly.

Roger’s off-ball movement was also very smart.

Phil discovered that Roger was not just a one-on-one specialist but an expert in all things scoring-related.

Because of their outstanding performance, both Roger and Kukoc received plenty of playing time during the preseason, and both put up rather impressive numbers.

Through five preseason games, Kukoc averaged 13.4 points, 5.7 assists, and 3.8 rebounds; the Euro-Magic’s versatility drove Chicagoans wild.

But the most dazzling was still Roger, with an average of 21.6 points and a shooting percentage of 48%.

His numbers weren’t as exaggerated as in high school, but reality proved that across to the NBA, he was still an outstanding scorer.

While Webber still hadn’t grasped that his carefree dribbling at his height was a disaster on the NBA’s courts.

While Hardaway hadn’t realized why his mid-long shots suddenly turned to iron under the NBA’s defense.

While Bradley still hadn’t understood why the NBA’s inside players were like beasts.

Roger, as a high school player, adapted even faster than those college players!

Consequently, before the regular season started, the very thing Pippen liked least still happened.

As a rookie, Roger became the focus of the entire Chicago, after MJ!

In every respect, Roger was the true successor to Jordan.

Anfernee?

He should first learn how to make stable shots in intense confrontations.

— Chicago Sun-Times.

Believe it or not, currently, the fastest person to adapt to the NBA’s rhythm is Roger, who skipped college.

He’s a super talent!

— Chicago Tribune.

The kid who put Pippen in his place in his first week on the team is going to set the record straight with other teams next.

— The New York Times.

“I’m not yet sure if Roger will start in the first game; he’s too young, he still needs to adapt.

But what I can assure of is that Roger will be a key player,” Phil Jackson told reporters at a press conference.

“I believe Roger will be the Rookie of the Year because by the time everybody else starts to adjust to the NBA, they will find themselves far behind him,” NBC commentator Steve Jones remarked on the show.

It wasn’t just Pippen who was overshadowed by Roger, but all the rookies of the ’93 class.

Because of the exceptional performance in the preseason, combined with the halo of “Jordan’s Successor,” Roger was simply the center of attention.

However, such massive attention is also a double-edged sword with considerable risks.

You can become the center of the world, but the cost is the world will thereafter be extremely demanding of you.

Under such scrutiny, if Roger performed well during the regular season, fans would become even more crazily enthusiastic about him.

But if his performance in officially scored games was even slightly less impressive than his fellow rookies, he would be mercilessly mocked.

Hero or clown?

The entire NBA couldn’t wait to find out.

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