244: 111: Roger goes all out (asking for monthly votes!) 244: 111: Roger goes all out (asking for monthly votes!) After the first quarter was over, Roger easily scored 12 points.
Steve Jones was now convinced, “Roger indeed has the caliber of a scoring champion, at least that’s what I believe.”
At the same time, he was puzzled, “When is Coach George Karl planning to have Payton guard Roger?
Clearly, the other SuperSonics players are struggling to contain him.”
Roger’s performance was great, and he almost won everyone’s praise.
However, Magic only led by three points at the end of the first quarter after all his efforts.
The SuperSonics had successfully narrowed the score during the transition play, although Roger had only rested for two minutes, it was enough for the SuperSonics to turn the situation around.
Unlike the Magic, the SuperSonics had better depth in their lineup.
In addition to the starters, they had Nate McMillan on their bench, who had made the All-Defensive Team as a substitute for two consecutive years.
There was Sam Perkins, a senior of Jordan’s, who was excellent in offense and defense and always accurate from three-point range, especially during critical moments.
There was Vincent Askew, a dependable shooting guard with reliable jump shots and solid defense.
There was the tough white center Frank Brickowski, who had fought with Schrempf on the first day of training camp.
In the lineup transition segments mixing starters and reserves, the SuperSonics had more plug-and-play options.
Meanwhile, the biggest issue for Magic was that after Roger went off the court, the team simply couldn’t find a reliable scoring point.
Last season, during the regular season, Shaq and Roger mostly staggered their playing time, rested at different times, each carrying a segment.
Then they would reunite at the right moment and take over the game.
But now, without Shaq, once Roger sat out, Magic simply had no capability in positional offense.
Because of this, Brian Hill gave Marciulionis another chance, but he disappointed Brian Hill over and over again.
In those two minutes of the transition segment, Marciulionis had 0 made shots in 2 attempts and 1 turnover.
George Karl took the opportunity to heckle his former player from the sidelines, which only shattered Marciulionis’s confidence further.
“Look, I knew you were a waste now!
Don’t screw any NBA teams anymore, go back to Europe where those low-level games suit you better!”
“Nice shot, I always feel especially safe every time I see you shoot, because when you shoot, I know our defense has succeeded!”
“Passing the ball to the cheerleaders?
That’s why we dumped your contract, even garbage like you can earn 2 million US dollars a year, and still got until ’97, what a tragedy, you’re not worth a penny, I’m glad we got rid of you!”
At the end of the first quarter, Marciulionis walked off the court, dejected.
Roger met him at the bench, gave him a high five, and patted his back, “Buddy, what happened?
This isn’t your level, we all know that.”
The European didn’t answer, just waved his hand, then sat on the bench, covering his head with a towel, looking more dejected than usual.
Meanwhile, even NBC commentator Steve Jones joked, “When John brought Saru to Orlando, everyone thought Magic had made a steal.
But it seems now, Saru’s only contribution might be teaching Roger the Euro step.”
Brian Hill faced a dilemma; currently, the only way to securely keep the lead was to increase Roger’s playing time.
But Magic had already lost Shaq, and they couldn’t risk Roger getting injured.
His plan was for Roger to play 40 minutes per game, which was already a lot.
If it were the playoffs, then Roger could play more.
But for the lengthy regular season, playing over 40 minutes was far too risky.
So, Brian Hill could only let Roger, within his limited time on the court, try to carry as much as possible and gain more advantages.
In the second quarter, Roger launched a fierce attack as soon as he came on.
He started by stripping Schrempf of the ball and then nailed a three-pointer.
Then he cut along the baseline, executing a lay-up with a finger roll.
After a few quiet plays, Roger again showcased his excellent reading ability by catching Payton’s pass meant for Reign Man at just the right moment, intercepting it and scoring on the counterattack.
Roger was still flawless on the court, but the old problem still existed.
In the two minutes Roger sat out in the second quarter, Magic scored only 4 points.
Ultimately, the SuperSonics tied the score heading into the second half.
George Karl was dissatisfied with this outcome, angrily roaring in the locker room, “You guys can’t even take down a crippled defending champion!
If Shaq was here, wouldn’t we be even more passive?”
Unexpectedly, Brian Hill discovered a very incredible issue—without Shaq, the team’s defense was better!
Last year’s postseason change in Shaq stemmed from his argument with Roger during the decisive battle against the Knicks, which led to that classic century-long alley-oop after the quarrel.
Brian Hill had initially thought O’Neal would transform from then on, becoming a regular in the defensive lineup, and even compete for DPOY.
But unexpectedly, the defensive Shaq was just a brief experience.
After an offseason, O’Neal’s defense regressed.
In the preseason, Shaq reverted to being indifferent on the defensive end.
At least from the preseason point of view, O’Neal’s defense was far from outstanding.
Would he take the regular season defense seriously?
According to Brian Hill’s understanding of him, that was like a fool’s dream.
Today, without Shaq, Michael Cage took his starting spot, and though the team’s rim protection had slightly weakened, their rotations and collaborative defense were just as excellent as the SuperSonics, which was precisely the reason they couldn’t outscore them!