Chapter 1255: Chapter 397: Tell Me Exactly How Much Stands Between You and Me
People don’t want to see a star take the easiest path when they should be fighting hard.
If F1 races were only about simple straight lines, would the sport still be as appealing?
Back then, Grant Hill was considered cowardly, thought of as a softie, a deserter, a bastard who betrayed the spirit of competitive sports.
Even though he was a nice guy, his popularity was no longer what it used to be.
Look now, Grant Hill has faded out of the public eye, and Fila, which bet on him, has completely disappeared from the basketball market.
LeBron felt a chill down his spine, and ultimately he could only find an excuse: I’m different from him.
The root of Grant Hill’s failure was that he couldn’t win a championship with the Lakers.
As long as you can win a championship, no one will care about anything else.
I am different from Grant Hill, completely different from him...
On the court, after taking a few puffs of his cigar, Roger’s wandering thoughts seemed to finally return to his body.
"Boki."
"What’s up?"
"We’re about to reach our goal."
"One more championship, and we’ll become eternal."
"One? Hmm, maybe. Anyway, thank you for your support, thank you for the privilege you’ve given me."
"And thank you for your efforts, those are rights you deserve."
Having said that, Roger opened his arms, and a teammate and the Russian owner helped Roger down from the technical platform.
At that moment, three star players from the Knicks walked up to Roger one after another. Though during the season, Kevin Garnett got tired of Roger’s younger brother status, though Yao Ming unprecedentedly trashed-talked with Roger, and though Wade turned into the New Yorkers’ sharp blade today and almost killed the game, Roger became their common nightmare.
But when the game ended, their personal friendship wasn’t greatly affected.
Roger could distinguish between opponents and enemies; that’s different.
The three hugged Roger one after another, Wade being the last. He didn’t know what expression to wear to face his former idol, because tonight, he was the most frustrated one.
The chance to kill the game was originally in his hands, the chance to stop the Roger Killer game was also once in his hands.
He originally had the chance to raise the torch like the Statue of Liberty, illuminating all of New York.
In fact, right before those two terrible rounds, he had just been a hero once.
In a confrontation, he powered through Roger, making a tough layup that let the Knicks take the lead at a crucial moment.
If this momentum had continued and the Knicks won G7, then Wade would have become a New York legend because he successfully replicated the path Roger walked—winning the championship and earning FMVP in his sophomore year.
But he squandered this great opportunity with his own hands.
In Wade’s mind, he kept replaying the moment he bypassed Matt Barnes and faced Tayshaun Prince’s defense.
He chose to pass the ball, and that pass ultimately turned into a mistake.
If at that moment he had chosen to take a jump shot, at least there would have been a chance for the ball to go in.
Now recalling, Wade thought he was cowardly at the crucial moment.
He thought too much; he worried he might miss and cause failure, so he chose to pass the ball out.
He missed the chance to become a hero.
Roger, like a magician, predicted Wade’s thoughts during the hug, and gave him a pat on the back: "Take this pain as motivation, as nourishment to feed yourself; anyway, that’s how I did it back then."
"Thank you, Roger, and congratulations."
"You did really well, Dwyane, you know I never compliment anyone lightly."
After sending off the three juniors, Shawn Battier also amiably stepped forward to congratulate Roger on winning the championship, while only Gary Payton from the Knicks starters did not greet Roger.
But Roger was especially eager to see the expression on that bastard’s face now, that arrogant jerk thought he could win a championship in his era, yet he failed again.
It can be predicted that the Knicks next season will probably not renew Payton’s contract, even though he made two very crucial three-pointers in G4.
He is already too old, and as a starter for a championship-contending team, that’s really pushing the limits.
Roger was really curious what choice Gary Payton would make.
Will he still tirelessly think about winning a championship in his era, or has he figured it out and plans to retire completely?
He looked forward to that bastard’s next stop.
Jeff Hornacek handed over the championship cap and a thick rib protector at this time.
Though called a protector, it’s actually just a cushion, wrapped to the injured ribs with a bandage for some level of protection.
"Put it on, or you can come to the hospital with me now."
"I thought in this world, all you cared about was your daughter." Roger laughed.
"You’re wrong, Roger. In the future, I’ll also care about my daughter’s boyfriend. Don’t say anything now, put it on, because the award ceremony will be very crowded later. I don’t want a superstar rolling on the ground in pain during the award ceremony."
Roger took the cap but had no intention of grabbing the protector: "Put that ugly thing away."
"Then just come directly to the hospital with me."
"Ridiculous, have you ever seen a coronation ceremony without the King? I’m not going to the hospital, nor do I need the protector. Let’s go, guys, let’s head to the podium!"
The excited Matt Barnes hugged Roger, intending to charge onto the podium. In the heat of excitement, his arm happened to wrap around Roger’s injured left rib.
"Wait, Matt," Roger suddenly shouted, "I just remembered something really important!"
After speaking, Roger turned his head to Jeff Hornacek: "Give me the damn protector."