Champion Creed-Chapter 952 - 311: Not Roger, it should be the Savior of Atlanta (asking for monthly tickets!)_2

Chapter 952: 311: Not Roger, it should be the Savior of Atlanta (asking for monthly tickets!)_2

Of course, there’s no recording evidence of this, so it’s very likely Bruce Levenson was upset at being ousted and decided to throw dirt at Michael Gillen.

But whether it’s true or not doesn’t matter; the key is that the fans believe it.

This caused Michael Gillen’s prestige among the fans to continue to decline.

Michael Gillen got into the car, and his secretary, who often helped wipe his head, expertly dried off his hair and handed him a cigarette.

Michael Gillen waved his hand; he wasn’t in the mood.

He knew everything was irrevocable; he knew the world’s greatest basketball player had already left him.

The next day’s championship parade, Roger participated as usual.

However, attentive fans noticed that during the final speech, Roger didn’t say the familiar phrase, "I’ll continue next year."

But what surprised Roger was that many fans in the audience held up signs with messages like "It’s okay, Roger, you can leave," "Go, you deserve better support," "A real king must expand his territory," "You owe us nothing, go somewhere better and continue creating greatness, let these racists fend for themselves."

Look, that’s the difference between leaving and running away.

If a player runs away, the fans here would burn his jersey and boo him.

But if a player has given his all to this city, they would understand, they would empathize with their beloved.

This difference will be more intuitively manifested in years to come.

The speech ended, and Roger’s eyes were red.

Michael Gillen, that bastard, only got one thing right, and that was Roger’s deep bond with the city of Atlanta.

Leaving Chicago, Roger was very happy; the only person he felt reluctant about was Toni Kukoc.

Leaving Orlando, Roger’s reluctance extended to the entire Magic Team.

But this time, Roger truly felt a deep attachment to the entire city and its fans.

The fans here respect him, understand him, love him.

But Roger couldn’t stall because of these things; he clearly understood the face of capital, no matter how the Hawks’ shareholders might be humble now; once Roger stayed, those damn things would still happen.

The tears of capitalists are the most untrustworthy in this world.

A day later, all major media outlets were reporting the news of Roger deciding to opt out of his contract.

This basically amounted to putting an end to the issue of whether to stay or go.

If Roger were opting out to get a raise, he should have done it in the middle of the season and then renewed with the team in advance.

But now, opting out, Roger’s goal is undoubtedly to enter the free agent market.

But deciding to leave is just the beginning; Roger is still waiting for the final answer; he still doesn’t know where his next stop will be. In the coming time, he’ll meet with the owners of several teams, listening to their empty promises and then judging which one actually has substance.

The atmosphere of departure made the joy of winning the championship not as intense as before; after the championship parade, Roger didn’t go out to have fun but stayed at home, enjoying a brief leisure.

That afternoon, Roger received a phone call from the staff at Emory Healthcare Center.

"A delivery company sent a huge package; it looks like a huge painting or something. The recipient says all the Atlanta Hawks players, Roger, I think you guys should come see it."

With curiosity, Roger called and informed others and went to the training center in the afternoon.

The staff hadn’t opened the package; he thought the Hawks’ players should do it themselves.

Roger and everyone together unwrapped the several-meter-long plank-like package.

And then, the Hawks players all smiled at each other.

This long plank was full of photos of fans and various Hawks players together, as well as countless moments on the court over the past five years.

Photos of every Hawks player were on it, but indisputably, Roger’s various photos occupied the largest space.

Every fan photographed with Roger wore a pleasant smile; these photos not only recorded the beautiful times between Roger and the fans but also captured Roger’s changes and growth over five years.

On it were scenes of him shouting at Stevie Smith and Pippen, of scolding Paul Pierce loudly.

But later, it gradually turned into him patting Jeff Hornacek’s shoulder, comforting the head-bowed Michael Reed.

And the most famous one.

After Game 7 of the 1999 Eastern Conference Finals, the Atlanta Hawks prematurely ended their defending journey. Among the cheering Heat players, amidst the colorful confetti, Roger stood in front of a despondent Paul Pierce, stroking his head.

This was the beginning of all changes.

Paul Pierce also looked at this photo; he still remembered all the scenes of that time. He had missed the crucial shot, going 1 for 9 in that vital game 7, and his gambling-style steal let Sprewell score the goal that killed the game.

When Roger approached with his hand raised, Paul Pierce thought he was about to get beaten again.

Instead, Roger just placed his hand on his head and told him:

"Lift your head, look at those opponents mocking you, and remember the humiliation of this moment. Someday, you’ll become a fearsome killer, shutting their foul mouths. Go back and train more; I’ll have my trainer monitor you. For now, you just need to do one thing: go shake hands with those damn Miami bastards, be arrogant in victory, but maintain grace in defeat."

From that day on, the fatherless Paul Pierce grew into a true man.

From that day on, Roger transformed from a mere angry tyrant into a true leader.

From that day on, the foundation of the Atlanta Hawks dynasty was solidified.

Then, they walked to where they were now.

Roger crossed his arms, smilingly glanced at Pierce, glanced at Scottie Pippen who unknowingly had been with him for a long time, glanced at Michael Reed who had become a qualified championship starter, glanced at Jeff Hornacek and Hakeem Olajuwon who were ending their careers here.

His gaze swept over each member of the Hawks, then he waved.

"See you all later."

"Goodbye, Roger," everyone responded. freēwēbηovel.c૦m

Jeff Hornacek chimed in: "It’s not Roger; it’s Atlanta’s Savior."

The very bottom of the photo-covered long board boldly read this sentence.

"Goodbye, Atlanta’s Savior."