Champion Creed
Chapter 69 - 69 051 The Beginning of Fierce Competition

69: 051: The Beginning of Fierce Competition 69: 051: The Beginning of Fierce Competition The office of Pat Williams, general manager of the Magic Team, was adorned with a huge Christmas tree, which bore a greeting card from his young daughter.

Knowing her father couldn’t come home for Christmas dinner, she had written holiday greetings especially for him.

Pat Williams had hoped to rush home for a family reunion after the game, but looking at the huge mess in front of him, he knew his Christmas Eve was thoroughly ruined.

“Shaq…”

“Don’t say anything, Pat—it was Chris, that bastard started talking about my grandma first!”

“Yes, Chris is undoubtedly at fault, but that’s no reason for you to slap a teammate!” Pat Williams also raised his voice, “Moreover, this was a nationally broadcast Christmas Day game, every move you guys make after the game is under national scrutiny, and your childish behavior embarrassed the team in front of national audiences!”

“Embarrassed?

Damn, I thought you guys didn’t care anymore, so you do know we’re being embarrassed!

Do you know what being embarrassed is?

We lost the Christmas battle to the Chicago Bulls without MJ, that’s what’s embarrassing!

If you had listened to me in the first place, none of this crap would have happened!” O’Neal was emotional, wishing the team would immediately trade Webber for Roger, hoping Krause was drunk enough to agree to the trade.

Pat Williams looked at the family photo on his desk.

He took a deep breath to calm his mind and suppress his anger.

He didn’t want to spend his entire Christmas Eve on this nonsense; he had bought presents for his wife and daughter, and he wanted to see their faces when they opened them.

“Here’s the deal, Shaq, do you remember what I told you before?

If it truly turns out that Chris isn’t the right answer, I’ll help you get Roger.”

How to get him?

God knows!

But now Pat Williams could only soothe O’Neal’s emotions like calming a child.

Otherwise, who knows what he might do next.

This wasn’t the first time this season that O’Neal had violently attacked a teammate.

A few months ago, he had erupted in conflict with team captain Scott Skiles, landing a punch on the poor white guard’s chin that almost knocked him out.

The catalyst was O’Neal’s hangover in Los Angeles, which led to a loss to the underdog Clippers the next day.

Coach Brian Hill was furious and had the whole team run laps.

Skiles, who had stayed sober in the hotel, was ticked off and kept complaining on the training ground, which eventually enraged Shaq.

Look, this was the NBA of the ’90s, a time when teammates expressed their camaraderie in such ways.

Pat Williams really didn’t want to go through this again, as only a stable Shaq was a good player.

Hearing the word “trade,” O’Neal’s tone indeed became much calmer, “Alright, then get the trade done quickly, before the trade deadline arrives.”

“But right now, we still don’t know if Chris is the right answer,” Pat Williams spread his hands.

“God, his turnovers for half a season are more than all of mine combined in a year!

His passes always end up mysteriously in the opponents’ hands!

Do you know what’s the funniest part?

Yeah, this ‘all-around genius’ even has a worse free-throw percentage than me!

Isn’t that obviously the wrong answer, Pat?”

“The new season has just started two months ago, and Chris is just a rookie.

I know, Roger almost seamlessly transitioned into the NBA, but that doesn’t mean Chris can’t catch up.

I still need to assess Chris, and we won’t change the roster until the end of the season.

Of course, I’ll have a good talk with Chris; I’ll make him change.

So, play with peace of mind, Shaq, and next summer, we’ll discuss the trade.

By then, I’ll definitely give you a satisfactory response.”

“I love Orlando, I love the Magic Team, and I love you.

So, I’ll trust you one more time.

But if Chris Webber continues to perform like this—which I think is very likely—I hope you’ll keep your promise.

You better not disappoint me again, Pat.

Oh, and Merry Christmas.”

After saying that, Shaq stood up and left Pat Williams’s office.

Pat Williams took a deep breath; anyhow, Shaq’s mood was finally stable.

Next, he had to talk to Chris Webber.

Pat Williams had to admit, Webber’s performance had so far indeed not met the team’s expectations.

If Webber really continued to perform poorly, Pat Williams would have to prepare a Plan B.

Roger?

Given his current performance, Krause would have to be crazy to let him go.

But even if it wasn’t Roger, by next summer, Pat Williams would still have to swap someone else in to minimize the damage.

Penny from the Warriors was pretty good.

From now until next summer, he sure had plenty to keep him busy.

The next day, on the flight back to Chicago, Roger was energetically fiddling with his GB in his hands, playing a game that, to his teammates, seemed extremely childish, involving controlling a plumber around the world collecting coins.

Roger enjoyed the game immensely.

In his previous life, after working for a long time, he had finally saved enough money to buy a high-end computer, hoping for a gaming experience without any lag.

But every time he sat in front of the computer, Roger’s mind started lagging.

The trivial matters of life left him with no joy in playing games.

Now, free from financial worries, he had finally rediscovered the pure joy of immersing himself in gaming like during his school days.

At that moment, someone tapped Roger on the shoulder—it was Carter: “Dude, I hear there were quite a few girls at Shaq’s party yesterday.”

“Yeah, there were quite a few.” Roger’s eyes didn’t move from the game.

“Young people have it good.

Look at Scott, he’s still sleeping.

Last night, I was in the room next to his, and I could hardly sleep, damn it!

Yet you are still so lively,” Cartwright complained.

As soon as the topic came up, everyone instantly became interested, “Scott is strong, but everyone knows Roger’s capabilities.

Those who should be tired and unable to get up are probably the girls who went to the party, hahaha.”

“Stop guessing.

I was there for a while and then went back to the hotel early.

Shaq was in a bad mood, so the party ended early,” Roger calmly replied.

Shaq was indeed in a bad mood yesterday.

He drank a lot and babbled nonsense like ‘If I could be on your team, I’d never have any worries in my life.'”

Soon after, Shaq, having drunk too much liquor, completely passed out, and the party had to end.

Alright, after the party, several girls indeed wanted to go back to the hotel with Roger to ‘discuss the topic of global population growth.’

But not even Roger, foolish as he might be, would take on these sketchy offers.

He didn’t want to be tied down by hefty alimony payments.

Wouldn’t that money be better spent on getting his uncle a wife?

You light a fire once in this kind of situation, and you’ll find that vampires aren’t just in novels.

Carrying an umbrella?

You have no idea how crazy these women can be—they might even put the stuff back into the umbrella.

If you marry someone to protect your public image, then you’re totally screwed.

When Michael Jordan got divorced, his direct financial loss reached nine figures.

His gamble with Juanita was the worst bet of his life.

However…

considering that a reporter once mistook Juanita for Jordan’s mother at a press conference, that money might not have been entirely wasted.

In any case, considering his future, Roger decided to keep control over his lower body first.

You should never carelessly delve into unknown caves, or you might never escape.

The teammates all teased Roger, and everybody had a good laugh on their way back to Chicago.

The victory in the Christmas game had everyone feeling quite relaxed.

But this atmosphere didn’t last long.

On December 29, the Bulls faced the biggest defeat of the season.

86 to 68—New York Knicks beat the Bulls at home for the second time this season.

And they won by a whopping 20 points.

Since his return, Pippen had been intentionally increasing his attempts to shoot, and he had been scoring beautifully during that period.

The last game against the Magic was the first time since coming back that his shot attempts fell below Roger’s, and Roger immediately took the spotlight.

So today, Pippen took back control of shooting.

He wanted to take the initiative again, to show the fans that he could carry the team.

But he couldn’t.

Pippen shot wildly 23 times, but only managed 25 points, barely hitting 40%.

Roger’s opportunities were squeezed and so he only shot 11 times, scoring 15 points.

The Knicks, with their historically strong defense, completely destroyed the Bulls, making Pippen’s solo plays tremendously ugly.

This was a defense rarely seen in NBA history.

Phil Jackson, looking at the data sheet with Pippen’s shot count, adjusted his glasses.

He could not let this continue.

When Roger and Pippen were both on court, the team’s offense could no longer rely on whoever had the hot hand.

It had to establish a primary and secondary role.

That’s why at the press conference, he ominously stated, “I am trying to fully unleash Roger’s offensive power.”

But today’s press conference focus came from Pat Riley.

This coach, who had been knocked out of the playoffs by the Bulls two seasons in a row, boldly announced at the press conference, “For us, the Chicago Bulls are no longer a problem.

Scott tries hard, but he can’t stop us.

Without a doubt, our window of opportunity to win the championship is now open.”

“What about Roger?” a reporter asked, “Phil said he’s trying to fully unleash Roger’s offensive power.”

“Phil?

Unleashing Roger?” Riley leaned into the microphone with a serious face, “Let me put it this way—I only differ from Phil in one aspect, and that is that I never coached Michael Jordan.

Without MJ, the Bulls and Phil can’t take away a victory from New York in the playoffs anymore.

No matter what tricks Phil tries, without MJ, they’re all useless.

I admit Roger is terrific, but he’s just a great rookie, nothing more.”

At that moment, having said these words, Riley hadn’t yet realized that this was the beginning of the most fiercely competitive and rugged season to come that summer.

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Thanks to brother Guang for not using the apostrophe,丶Tiffany丶, and other great supporters for the tips, thank you all!