Champion Creed
Chapter 74 - 74 055 Tell that child I'm really sorry

74: 055: Tell that child I’m really sorry.

74: 055: Tell that child I’m really sorry.

The All-Star Game ended, and Shaquille O’Neal felt as if he had just had an incredibly vivid dream.

Running wild with Roger at the All-Star Game was the most exhilarating game he had played since entering the NBA.

Shaq couldn’t understand why the media always criticized Roger for not passing the ball.

At the All-Star Game, Roger passed him the ball quite a few times, with bounce passes, alley-oops, and lobs.

Roger’s passing talent was just wasted on those trash centers of the Bulls!

When you’re partnered with centers like Bill Cartwright, who couldn’t even roll smoothly, and Bill Wennington, who couldn’t jump more than 20 centimeters off the ground, would you feel like passing the ball?

Couldn’t those reporters think about it?

If they were faced with a woman who was sallow and reeked, they wouldn’t be able to get it up either.

Some problems, you’ve got to look for the reasons in others.

While Shaq was still basking in the fleeting joy of the All-Star Game, Roger had already returned to reality and continued his training.

His off-ball offensive level had improved a lot during this period, and his rhythm in catching and shooting was getting better and better.

After the All-Star Game, people found that Roger could now lead the team to victories with Pippen.

The first game after the All-Star Game, the Bulls went to Miami to challenge the Heat.

Scottie Pippen’s condition during the warm-up was very off.

He originally wanted to show off a backboard self-alley-oop slam, the trick of which is to precisely control the angle and force of the throw so the ball rebounds just right.

But when he threw the ball, it slipped from his hand and went directly behind the backboard.

People have seen countless failed backboard slam dunks, but such a failure was indeed a first!

It was probably only Jaylen Brown’s blindfolded slam dunk at the dunk contest that could compete with it in terms of awkwardness.

In the official game that followed, Scottie Pippen’s performance was just like that backboard slam dunk, completely off track.

He took 24 shots and made only 7.

There were wide-open chances where he hesitated not to shoot, insisting on driving in and being blocked.

When he was tightly guarded, he would inexplicably take shots.

Despite delivering 10 assists, he also committed 5 turnovers, which severely devalued Pippen’s assists.

Roger’s 35 points saved the day, as Stevie Smith, Glenn Rice, and Brian Shaw from the Heat took turns guarding him and all were overcome.

In the end, the Bulls narrowly won by a 4-point margin thanks to Roger’s performance.

After the game, Roger spoke calmly at the press conference, “Scottie joined the league earlier than I did, so he doesn’t need anyone to teach him what a good opportunity is and what is not.

All he needs to do is to adjust as soon as possible.”

Pippen smiled awkwardly beside him, feeling like a failure.

He now had to rely on a rookie to make excuses for him.

Two days later, at home against the Nuggets, Pippen still hadn’t woken up.

He made only 5 out of 19 shots, shooting below 30% for the second consecutive game.

He alone allowed Mutombo to get 3 blocks.

But what was embarrassing wasn’t Pippen’s poor performance; what was embarrassing was that, as Pippen struggled, the team won again!

Roger scored 36 points and led the team to victory over the Nuggets.

Of course, this couldn’t have happened without Kukoc’s help; the Euro-Magic had his career-first triple-double today with 14 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 assists.

This triple-double was partly due to luck, as Kukoc unexpectedly grabbed his 10th rebound just one second before the end of the game.

In the post-game interview, Kukoc and Roger became the focus.

“Well, that was the most reluctant triple-double I’ve seen.

I was almost about to grab the ball myself under the basket, but luckily I reacted quickly enough to withdraw my hand.

Toni really should treat me to a big meal for this, a triple-double should be worth a feast, right?

Okay, I’m just joking.

Congratulations to Toni, he’s great, and I always knew he could do it.” ——Roger discussing Kukoc’s triple-double.

“I’m so excited, playing with Roger on the same team in my rookie season is my greatest fortune.

With him as my partner, I don’t even know what a rookie wall is.

A big meal?

No problem, but I have to think about what Roger likes to eat.

Oh my god, if you saw the nutrition meals he eats every day, you’d go crazy.” ——Toni Kukoc responded jokingly to the reporters about the triple-double.

Throughout the press conference, the reporters were almost all looking for Roger and Kukoc, leaving Pippen, who was sitting in the middle, feeling neglected.

He reached for the microphone several times as reporters raised their hands, but the questions were never directed at him in the end.

He performed poorly, but the team could win.

At the press conference, no one paid him any mind.

Then, what was his purpose of being there?

At that moment, Pippen wondered to himself: Should I be under the table?

Do I get in the way sitting between Roger and Kukoc?

Heaven knows how much effort Pippen put into practicing his shooting over the All-Star weekend, because it took him three more games to recover.

However, it was precisely this game that temporarily relieved Pippen’s embarrassment.

Because this time, even though he played poorly, the team also lost the game.

And again, it was the Knicks who beat them!

On February 20th, in a nationally televised game, the New York Knicks met the Bulls for the third time this season.

Chicago fans hadn’t forgotten the last encounter when the team shamefully lost by 20 points.

So today, all of Chicago longed for revenge.

Roger felt the same way.

But in the first quarter, when Pippen went 0 for 4, Chicago fans despaired.

Sure enough, the Knicks quickly decided to leave Pippen open and focus all their efforts on stopping Roger.

Roger struggled immensely in the Knicks’ smothering iron array, but he still shot better than Pippen.

And luckily for the Bulls, the Knicks’ offense was also terrible that day.

The game proceeded in a back-and-forth manner until the final moments of the fourth quarter, when Ewing’s bunny hop shot bounced off the rim, and Cartwright fiercely secured the rebound amidst three jabbing elbows, keeping the score on the floor at 74 to 73, the Knicks leading by one point.

The Zen Master immediately called for a timeout, with only 1.1 seconds left in the game.

The Bulls still had a chance to turn things around.

Pippen, who scored only 10 points on 5-for-18 shooting tonight, sat on the bench, sweating profusely.

Roger, with 10-for-24 shooting, didn’t have a good shooting percentage either.

The lack of Pippen’s traction, which put Roger in a tough fight, was the main reason why he had such a hard time today.

Of course, sitting next to Pippen’s dismal 27.8% shooting, Roger’s 41.6% didn’t seem so embarrassing.

The Zen Master calmly took the tactical board, arranging a signature starburst strategy.

This season, it was the Bulls’ first time facing such a do-or-die moment.

Therefore, whether it was Pippen or Roger who would take the final shot became a hot topic of discussion for the NBC commentators on the scene.

Pippen believed that no matter what, he should be the one to take that shot.

The team’s star player should rightfully take control of the team’s destiny, even if his shooting percentage was below 30% and he only scored 10 points.

Moreover, entrusting an 18-year-old kid to take the game-winning shot?

Ridiculous, he would be scared to death.

But the Zen Master didn’t think so.

Phil Jackson might be one of the coaches who dares to use his players most in clutch moments.

John Paxson, Toni Kukoc, Steve Kerr, Derek Fisher, Ron Artest…

many of Phil’s role players have had their moments of game-winning glory.

So today, the daring Phil Jackson actually entrusted the crucial game-winning task to the 18-year-old Roger.

Although Roger’s shooting percentage today was not high, with the Knicks’ defense, they wouldn’t give chances to role players.

The person executing the game-winner had to have a strong shot.

In other words, the choice had to be made between Pippen and Roger.

What an easy fucking decision.

Even Krause, as foolish as he is, would know who to choose if he were directing the game.

Pippen was dissatisfied with the Zen Master’s arrangement, as it meant that the Zen Master had stripped him of something else.

It started with the absolute locker room status, then the shooting rights, and now the ball rights in clutch moments.

Pippen really wanted to punch the Zen Master’s face.

The old hippie was like a cruel capitalist, slowly hollowing him out.

But seeing his own abysmal shooting rate, Pippen didn’t have much to say.

If the basketball court is a place where performance does the talking, then today Pippen was only fit to be mute.

Back on the court, the whole Bulls team followed the strategy and moved into position.

But there was a problem from the start with the tactic; Pippen, who was supposed to cut inside, didn’t draw the Knicks’ defense.

His poor shooting percentage today meant Riley didn’t expect the Zen Master to pass to him.

The Knicks’ defensive focus was still on Roger.

So even though Roger got the ball smoothly, little Anthony Mason stuck to him right away.

With no time for faking or passes, Roger had to shoulder the muscled little Anthony Mason after dribbling a step and forcefully shot from just behind the three-point line.

Roger’s shooting form was completely deformed by the contact, and Lady Luck wasn’t on the Bulls’ side.

The buzzer lit up, and the basketball bounced off the rim.

Jordan, who was watching the game, smiled in satisfaction.

Look, that arrogant and rebellious bastard Roger is still not me!

Jordan also thanked his good brother Pippen.

He really didn’t expect Pippen could still assist him from afar.

Alright, I know we’ve lost to the Knicks three times this season, you don’t need to keep reminding me!

You want to see us hang our heads in defeat?

Let me tell you, that’s not going to happen!

We won’t be tripped up by this shit!

—— Phil Jackson rarely lashed out at the reporters during the press conference.

Roger did great, we were just one bucket away from victory.

Maybe if the rest of us had made one more shot tonight, the outcome would have been different.

—— Kukoc discussed the loss and, after saying that, looked meaningfully at Pippen sitting beside him.

But apparently, Pippen’s shamelessness exceeded Kukoc’s expectations.

He’s just too young, that’s it.

Sometimes, the role of experience is beyond imagination, I have nothing else to say.

—— Scottie Pippen commented on Roger’s missed game-winner with an unsatisfied tone despite having scored only 10 points all game.

Roger sat at the press conference expressionless, now only wishing to shoot a hundred balls from the same spot against Mason.

“I didn’t make that shot tonight, but what I said still stands, and I will prove it’s still valid.”

“Are you referring to the saying, ‘Without Michael, we still have a chance to beat the Knicks in the playoffs?’ Is that what you mean?”

“Exactly, I will prove it to you in the playoffs.”

After speaking, Roger got up and left, having already informed Abunassar that he would be working overtime tonight.

He couldn’t even be bothered to mention Pippen’s consecutive weak performances because it was pointless; he did not want to be a whiner like Pippen.

Now, Roger just wanted to keep improving, keep competing, and then personally defeat the Knicks in the playoffs, making up for tonight’s missed opportunity!

On the other side, dressed in an Armani suit and donning a slicked-back hairdo, Pat Riley smiled like an evil vampire count.

“Tell that kid, I’m really sorry, Agent Zero’s mission failed today.

See, just like I said, I admit he’s good, but he’s just a seriously good rookie.

In a contest of this level, he’s still too green.

He wants to be MJ, but he’s not.”

“Do you think the outcome of the match might be too cruel for an 18-year-old Roger?

After all, he really did give it his all,” a reporter asked.

“No, this isn’t the cruelest moment in professional basketball.

If he really faces us in the playoffs, and his entire year’s effort goes up in smoke, then he will understand what cruel is.”

Riley’s smile was brilliant.

He felt that nothing could stop the Knicks from advancing to the finals.

An 18-year-old rookie?

Nothing but an ant.

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