Chapter 1117: Chapter 356: Even Facing the ’15 LeBron Would Be Fine
"Hey Dikembe, you should know I have high standards for these things. And if I’m in the fight, I guarantee you all will only get back to the hotel in the second half of the night."
"Yes, yes, you have high standards for everything. What did Gary say to you?"
"Nothing much," Roger looked out the window and saw the Spurs staff taking down Gary Payton’s poster, "that old guy said some romantic but impractical crap for men."
"Romance is inherently impractical," Mutombo muttered.
"Do you think a 41-year-old Michael Jordan leading a 39-year-old Scottie Pippen stepping over LeBron James into the playoffs is realistic? Do you think Tom Brady reaching his peak in his sophomore year, falling into a slump in his junior year, and then dramatically making a kingly comeback in his fourth year is realistic?
Do you think leading two sophomore players, a troubled youth (Camby), a rookie coach temporarily taking over the game, and an old, outdated center to leave a trophy for a city that hasn’t seen a championship in 30 years is realistic? Yet you’re still leading us in doing it. And our whole team believes you can make it happen.
Come on, Roger, take us to the next stop, give the whole world a romantic ending.
Some people have to turn men’s romance into reality."
Mutombo finished speaking and began to close his eyes and meditate.
Roger looked out the window again; Payton’s poster outside the arena had been completely removed, as if he had never been here.
He couldn’t turn his man’s romance into reality, but Roger must do it.
The bus left the SBC Center, and the Warriors left the Lone Star State, heading to the next destination.
-----------------
The next day, news of the Warriors sweeping the Spurs 4-0 became a nationwide sensation.
It was a sweeping revenge, executed without a hitch.
If Tim Duncan and his Spurs had dragged the Warriors into a Game Seven like the Lakers did, perhaps Duncan would still be able to retain the title of "Roger’s Nemesis."
But 4-0 means Roger used actual action to tell the world: don’t compare Tim Duncan with me.
This sweep energizes the entire Warriors team, with everyone eager to showcase themselves in the Finals. However, since the Eastern Conference Finals are still ongoing, the Warriors cannot plunge into the Finals just yet.
But the Finals should be soon, as the Pistons already lead the Indiana Pacers 3-1, which is why at yesterday’s press conference, Roger and all the reporters took the Pistons as their presumed opponents by default.
They meant no disrespect to the Pacers, but to be honest, the Pistons have a much greater chance of winning.
While waiting for the Finals matchup to be confirmed, the excitement for Olympic basketball begins to rise gradually.
The TNT Network aired a special interview program tonight during this break from NBA games.
The interviewee was current Dream Team head coach Larry Brown.
They talked about the Dream Team’s preparation and about the three young players from the ’03 generation he selected.
Of course, they also talked about that unavoidable topic, this summer’s most watched team, the China National Team with Roger joining.
"Coach, do you know how fans are reacting to Roger finally deciding to play in the Olympics?"
"What are they saying?"
"They’re saying the best basketball player in the world is on the move! People believe Roger participating in the Olympics is as sensational as Michael participating in the 1992 Olympics. By then, all opponents will seek Roger’s autograph before the game and photos with him after the game."
"Hmph." Larry Brown gave a cold snort.
Larry Brown doesn’t like mentioning Team China, as it disrupts his perfect script.
It’s widely known that the U.S., proud of its basketball prowess, faced humiliation at the 2002 World Championship. If you think the Chinese team embarrassed themselves at the 2023 World Cup, the Dream Team’s flop in 2002 was about ten times worse.
For Chinese fans, you can’t expect a group of unskilled and unmotivated players to perform well. But for Americans, their self-proclaimed invincible NBA players only secured sixth place, and that result is just too humiliating.
You need to understand this is a nation that used to win loads of championships even with college students in international competitions.
It was Larry Brown who saved this U.S. team from the abyss, leading them to win the 2003 Americas Championship with a 10-0 sweep.
And in the finals, they crushed the team hated by all American fans, Argentina, 106-73—Argentina was the first team in history to defeat the Dream Team in the 2002 World Championship.
For Americans, this was undeniably a sweeping revenge battle, a chance for Larry Brown to restore pride to the United States.
Larry Brown thus gained newfound fame—though he found little success in Philadelphia, saving the Dream Team from the doldrums on the international stage earned him great prestige.
The upcoming Athens was meant to be the climax of his script. After all, the Americas Championship was just a small affair, but if he could lead the Dream Team back to the world pinnacle, he believed he’d gain more favor in the NBA, with bigger contracts and more respect.
Yet just as this climax was about to unfold, Roger appeared.
He instantly drew everyone’s attention and made Team China a real threat.
During the interview show, host Ernie Johnson also mentioned this point.