Champion Creed-Chapter 900 - 297: Dark Defense Era (Please vote for monthly tickets!)_3

Chapter 900: 297: Dark Defense Era (Please vote for monthly tickets!)_3

The Pistons’ early rise caught Roger off guard. Who could have thought that Joe Dumars would already gather three of the Pistons’ Five Tigers in such a short time?

Plus, there’s Ron Artest.

Artest’s presence is key to the Pistons achieving excellent results even without Billups.

It’s well known that Tayshaun Prince is a defensive powerhouse at the small forward position for the Pistons, having been selected four times for the All-Defensive Second Team, and he’s played the wildest tennis matches.

But Ron Artest is a DPOY-caliber perimeter player whose defensive impact is as good as, if not better than, Prince’s, and he possesses offensive capabilities that Tayshaun Prince lacks.

A wing stronger than the championship-winning Pistons of the original timeline? It certainly poses a challenge.

After November’s schedule, the Hawks are 13 wins and 4 losses.

They lost to the Pistons, Spurs, Magic, and Mavericks.

Among them, the loss to the Pistons is discussed the most. If the Hawks couldn’t defeat the previous Pistons, what about this Pistons, supplemented with Rasheed Wallace?

Will this Detroit Pistons become the Miami Heat of 1999? As everyone knows, the Miami Heat of 1999 is the only team that Roger couldn’t break through the division.

And the Detroit Pistons seem to have such strength.

Everyone wants to know the final answer.

The troubles faced by the Hawks don’t end there. Just as December games begin, Olajuwon experiences knee problems and is expected to miss three weeks.

This seriously impacts the Hawks’ rotation strategy.

Andrae Patterson gets a lot of playing time during this period and gives it his all. However, this player, often marked by DNP, is just a regular blue-collar worker, and you can’t expect him to have Dream’s abilities overnight.

After losing Dream, the Hawks also lost to the Philadelphia 76ers, bringing their record to 15 wins and 5 losses.

At this critical moment, the Hawks face their second matchup against the Pistons this season.

If David Stern had known the Pistons would be this strong, he definitely would’ve scheduled this showdown for Christmas. Unfortunately, the schedule couldn’t be changed.

This highly anticipated showdown can only be staged in early December.

Since Rasheed Wallace joined the Pistons, the team has only lost two games.

The fear emanating from the "Dark Defense Era" continues to spread.

The last game loss for the Hawks was at the Palace of Auburn Hills. This time, can they protect their home court?

The day before the game, Roger accepted an exclusive interview with ESPN.

Since ESPN let go of Jim Gray, who previously manipulated O’Neal to thoroughly disrupt the Magic’s locker room, bluntly stating he wanted to see Roger’s smug look of failure, Roger has had a good rapport with this media outlet.

For today’s exclusive interview, ESPN also communicated with Roger in advance about the scope of the questions.

And Roger told them: "No need to be reserved."

So, right at the start of the program, host Keith Olbermann threw out explosive questions.

"Nowadays, the Detroit Pistons led by Ben Wallace have become the Hawks’ biggest rivals. Have you ever thought, if Big Ben were still beside you, the Hawks wouldn’t face so many troubles on their path to defending the championship. Do you think it’s the management’s fault for all this?"

Roger’s discord with the Hawks’ shareholder group is no secret, and this question is sure to multiply the program’s ratings.

"As an athlete, having a strong opponent is a delightful and exciting affair. Big Ben achieving success in Detroit precisely proves he has the talent for a max contract. I’m glad to have such a strong adversary in the Detroit Pistons; finally, people don’t have to count on that fool Shaq to beat me.

Yet, that’s another matter altogether. I don’t fear competition or having strong opponents emerge. But this doesn’t mean the shareholder group’s decisions are correct; I’ve never seen any champion team weaken itself willingly."

"There’s a rumor you’ll opt out of your contract next season. Is it true?"

"I answered this before, but I don’t mind saying it again: Whether I opt out depends on the shareholder group’s attitude."

"I’ve heard, they’re already discussing a renewal with Paul. Is that the attitude you want?"

"Yes, but it’s been a month, and there’s no progress in the negotiations. So we’ll see, see how it turns out."

The indifference Roger exhibits worries Atlanta fans; the Savior has never been so far from Atlanta.

The harmony of Ted Turner’s era made people forget that during Roger’s time with the Bulls and the Magic, he was never a player who had a good relationship with the team’s management.

He would never yield to the management, nor retreat on matters of principle.

So, this is the norm for Roger.

If Atlanta fans feel panic because of this, they must get used to it.

Of course, the program can’t focus solely on the future.

It also needs to discuss the present.

"Tomorrow’s game against the Detroit Pistons, do you have confidence to win? Will their creation of the ’Dark Defense Era’ envelop Atlanta in darkness?"

"Detroit Pistons are formidable opponents, particularly after acquiring Rasheed Wallace. Their strength is more daunting. But I don’t see this as any dark era; I will disperse the dark clouds over Atlanta."

Before the next day’s game starts, the Detroit Pistons’ bus is surrounded by reporters. ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm

Today’s game has been temporarily upgraded to a nationwide broadcast, marking the Pistons’ third temporarily upgraded nationwide broadcast game this season.

Ron Artest gets off the bus wearing sunglasses, with his hair dyed green, engraved with a line: "Hunt the Hawks."

Artest is probably the most interesting performance artist since Dennis Rodman, though his antics aren’t as extreme as Rodman’s, they are equally characteristic.

Unsurprisingly, Artest’s hairstyle makes him the center of attention right off the bus, becoming the Pistons’ most eye-catching player.

Entering the players’ passage, Artest encounters Roger and Andrae Patterson heading to the locker room.

Roger just helped Andrae Patterson practice his hook shot under the basket, so he can feel more comfortable beneath the hoop.

Although Andrae Patterson is just a blue-collar worker, he should at least have a decent shooting percentage under the basket.

Roger soon spots the distinctively-styled Artest, yet Artest seems uninterested in greeting Roger, so Roger ignores him and continues forward.

However, Artest, as if not seeing Roger, intentionally moves to the center, bumping heavily into Roger during a shoulder brush.

Artest’s gaze is like a menacing dog on the prowl; this guy fears no one. Well, except for Big Ben.

Andrae Patterson attempts to push Artest away, but Artest brusquely knocks Patterson’s arm aside: "Don’t touch me. You’re unqualified, parasite."

"What did you say?"

"Parasite. If you weren’t Roger’s high school friend, you’d have faded out of this league a long time ago. Scram, you aren’t fit to touch me."

"Say it again, you son of a bitch!" Andrae Patterson shoves Artest against the wall, and at this moment, other Pistons players arrive. Seeing a potential clash, Ben Wallace immediately steps in, as he knows his teammate’s temperament well.

"Ron, what are you doing?"

"You should ask what this parasite is trying to do?"

"Let go, Andrae."

"No, unless this colored-head learns to shut up!"

"Hey, don’t bite the hand that feeds you." Like Artest, the Yelling Maestro, difficult to restrain his emotions, rudely pushes Patterson away.

Big Ben quickly exhibits his excellent blocking ability, keeping Artest and Rasheed Wallace behind him: "Let’s go, Roger. I’ll cool down these two bastards."

Roger gives Big Ben his due, signaling Andrae Patterson to follow, and they disengage from the tense locker room conflict.

Ron Artest chuckles to himself: "You can stay out of it, Leader."

Artest always calls Big Ben "Leader," though more with a tone of mockery.

Big Ben waves his hand: "Don’t assume you can win again because you did last time. We’re up against Roger! Don’t cause trouble, focus on the game!"

"Oh, sure, sure, my Leader."

Unfazed by Big Ben’s warning, Artest wonders why they should fear him?

This is the Dark Defense Era.

Now, we call the shots.

A man who in the original timeline dared to break Michael Jordan’s rib would never yield to the prestige of emperors.