Champion Creed
Chapter 55 - 55 039 With this kind of team MJ actually needs to average 40 points per game to win

55: 039: With this kind of team, MJ actually needs to average 40 points per game to win?

55: 039: With this kind of team, MJ actually needs to average 40 points per game to win?

Just like that, Toni Kukoc, standing at a height of 211 cm in his shoes, appeared at the small forward position.

Ceballos couldn’t wait any longer, he knew that European idiot couldn’t possibly guard him.

Shredding his defense wouldn’t be much harder than tearing through a pair of stockings.

Ceballos wasn’t blindly confident, Kukoc might still be considered agile at power forward, but at small forward, he was just too slow.

Teammate Steve Kerr had given a fair assessment of Kukoc in an interview with “Sports Illustrated”: “Some say he can play four positions, that’s an exaggeration.

In the NBA, he can’t play point guard, he can’t play shooting guard, he’s at most a small forward who can dribble, but his best fit is at power forward.”

The Zen Master had him play the small forward position for a while during the preseason, and the end result was that whoever got the ball wanted to take him on.

That’s precisely why Old Winter was so worried.

If Phil’s objective wasn’t achieved, and they ended up being incredibly passive on the defensive end, then this substitution could backfire on the team.

After the substitution, the Bulls’ lineup on the court became Myers, Roger, Kukoc, A.

C.

Green, and Wennington.

The Suns were rubbing their hands in eagerness, Myers and Roger were both very active, but their defensive skills and physical confrontation abilities were just average.

As for Kukoc, he was simply a marionette.

The coach was right, this was the beginning of a change!

The game continued, Roger advanced with the ball, as Bill Walton reminded the Chicago fans: “The last game was also at this time when the Bulls’ offense fell into a strange pattern, Roger could only attack one-on-one with the ball repeatedly.

Will it be the same today?”

With Kukoc, now playing small forward, at the top of the arc, the Bulls formed a strong side triangle with Roger, who had the ball on the right, and A.

C.

Green posting up on the low block.

Kevin Johnson thought Roger was going to initiate a one-on-one challenge, so he spread his arms and lowered his center of gravity.

How hard can it be to guard this little punk?

Thunder Dan is really getting old.

“Rookie, the show’s over.

Don’t think I’m like old slow Dan; I don’t even need to break a sweat to guard you,”

“Get lost, I want to match up with those who’ve gone through the defense.

Defeating Majerle will make people say I beat a top defender.

But what do I get from beating you?

People would say I only pick on shorties.”

“You little…” Kevin Johnson was initially trying to mess with Roger’s mindset.

Scare the kid a bit, and he’d panic.

But he didn’t expect the youth of today to be so articulate!

Initially, people couldn’t understand why Pippen would bother fighting with a rookie.

But anyone who faced off against Roger, not to mention understanding Pippen, even wanted to become Pippen!

Roger talked trash but didn’t go one-on-one; instead, he passed the ball to Kukoc at the top of the arc, then immediately took a step as if he was going to cut to the basket.

Kevin Johnson quickly turned and retreated, his advantage was speed, able to keep pace with most offensive players.

Confidently, Kevin Johnson thought maybe Roger could catch Majerle off guard with such sudden cuts in the first quarter, but that simplicity ends under my defense!

However, it wasn’t until Johnson turned to chase that he realized Roger hadn’t cut at all.

He had taken one step to create the illusion of a cut, only to immediately pull back and retreat beyond the three-point line.

It was a fake cut!

Roger’s move was very deceptive, but it didn’t fool Kukoc.

The Euro-Magic magician Kukoc intuitively passed the ball to Roger the moment he retreated behind the three-point line, seizing that fleeting opportunity.

Kevin Johnson was fooled by the fake cut, leaving a gap, and Roger comfortably took the shot from beyond the three-point line.

Despite his best efforts to block, he was too far away and not tall enough, making it impossible to effectively disrupt the shot.

“Swish!”

“If it’s you guarding me, then the show is just getting started, KJ,” Roger taunted Kevin Johnson with a shrug, then high-fived Kukoc.

Bill Walton lavished praise on Kukoc: “Toni’s pass was timed perfectly, although it’s Roger who made the shot, this efficiency is much higher than going one-on-one directly!

It looks like Phil has found a solution for the offensive glitches!”

The Bulls’ lead grew to 7 points, but then Ceballos powerfully drove past Kukoc for a slam dunk, narrowing the gap.

Ceballos had formidable athletic ability and had an easy time against Kukoc.

But the Bulls seemed unfazed by the score, the Zen Master too lazy to even stand up.

After being scored on, Kukoc wasn’t upset, he quickly inbounded the ball and continued on the attack.

The Zen Master’s task for him wasn’t to defend but to find ways to help Roger score!

This time, it was Kukoc controlling the ball at the 45-degree position on the right side.

He formed a strong side triangle with Myers and A.

C.

Green.

What about Roger?

Everyone was very puzzled because Roger, the biggest offensive threat, had actually run to the low post on the weak side, the hardest place to receive the ball.

Was he not intending to receive the ball, or did he run the wrong play?

Just as everyone was wondering, Kukoc casually threw the ball into the paint with one hand.

Kevin Johnson watched the basketball fly into the paint, instantly startled.

Was this a direct alley-oop to Roger?

Indeed, near the weak-side free-throw line, Roger suddenly turned and ran towards the basket.

Kevin Johnson immediately followed; his speed was indeed fast, and even though Roger’s start was very sudden, he still couldn’t shake him off.

However, once Roger leaped into the air, Kevin Johnson’s height was simply insufficient to intercept the ball before Roger could.

Kevin Johnson was a springy player, but Roger’s jumping ability wasn’t inferior.

With everyone able to jump high, Roger, who had the advantage in both height and wingspan, easily plucked the perfectly passed ball from Kukoc out of the air over Johnson and slammed it home with one hand, hanging over Johnson!

The United Center was completely electrified by this alley-oop slam dunk; until now, the Bulls fans had never seen the triangle offense executed so spectacularly!

In actual history, Kukoc often coordinated like this with Pippen and Jordan, his talent in passing allowing him to directly connect with teammates on the weak side.

Roger scored 5 points in a row, and for two consecutive possessions, it was Kukoc who successfully set up Roger.

In the previous game, the reason the Bulls fell into isolation in the middle of the second and third quarters was that neither Kukoc nor Pippen was present, leaving their offense devoid of a lubricant.

The Zen Master went back and considered it, concluding that among Pippen, Kukoc, and Roger, two must be on the court at the same time to ensure the team’s offensive efficiency.

Therefore, in the first quarter when Pippen and Roger were on the court, Kukoc would not play for a minute.

And when Pippen rested, Kukoc would immediately take over the small forward position.

The reason for having Kukoc play small forward was mainly for defensive considerations.

If Kukoc played power forward and replaced A.

C.

Green, then a lineup featuring Kerr, Roger, Myers, Kukoc, and Wennington would be like a cash dispenser.

But by having Kukoc play small forward, they could retain A.

C.

Green’s effective help defense.

And there it was; when Ceballos once again broke through Kukoc and was ready to ravage the basket, the former defensive forward A.

C.

Green immediately moved to provide help defense at the basket.

Although he didn’t block the shot, he still caused Ceballos’s attack to miss.

Of course, A.

C.

Green was past his prime and he couldn’t wipe Kukoc’s ass every time.

But the Zen Master’s thought was: even if Green didn’t succeed in help defense every time, Roger’s offensive success rate was definitely better than that of Ceballos!

And indeed, it was true.

Wennington secured the rebound, giving the Bulls a chance to further extend their lead.

This time Kukoc held the ball in the low post on the strong side, having changed his position.

Yet this Euro-Magic could make himself useful in the triangle offense no matter where he stood.

Playing with his back to the basket, after his teammates created space with their movement, he distributed the ball to Roger at the top of the arc.

At this moment, Roger had plenty of space for an isolation play.

He made a strong move forward, gave Kevin Johnson a bump, then pulled up for a quick stop-and-shoot!

Even though Kevin Johnson clung tightly to Roger’s steps, his 185-centimeter height was no match for Roger’s high release point on the jump shot.

In that instant, Paul Westphal felt as if he had returned to the summer half a year earlier.

Majerle was too slow, Kevin Johnson was too short, and they simply couldn’t contain that number 23.

Now number 23 was gone, but instead, there was an unconstrainable number 14!

The jump shot went as expected, with Kevin Johnson desperately watching the ball fly over his palm and straight into the net.

Observing, thinking, commanding, deploying, and accurately passing the ball to teammates with scoring chances, Kukoc did all these perfectly.

The complex and tedious task of organizing plays was left to Pippen or Kukoc.

As for Roger?

Assigning him to organize plays or be the pivot was like asking a poet to turn screws — a misuse of his talents.

Give him space, a point to play off, and let him become a sword that charges through enemy lines single-handedly — that was the proper path!

With Kukoc’s presence, Roger’s effectiveness was maximized!

Even if their defensive rotations were slightly weak, it didn’t matter — Roger would score it back!

Kukoc playing the small forward in rotations made the Bulls’ backup lineup’s offensive efficiency nearly as high as the starters’!

The Bulls quickly expanded their lead to 9 points, forcing the Phoenix Suns to call for a timeout.

Following Majerle, Kevin Johnson also failed to defend Roger.

Roger wrapped an arm around Kukoc’s shoulder, deliberately looked at him, and exclaimed loudly, “Toni, against a team like this, did MJ really need to score 40 points per game to win?”

Barkley was shaking with anger, but couldn’t retort a word.

The Zen Master, seeing Roger who had angered Flying Pig to death, took the tactical board from Old Winter and curved the corners of his mouth, “I’ve said it before, my adjustments can’t possibly fail!”

He trusted Roger, and his trust was rewarded.

Now that the Bulls’ biggest problem was resolved, the Suns would have to come down from the mountain sooner or later.

※※※

Special thanks to the support from Pag’s father, the generous benefactor.

Bowing in gratitude!

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