130: 075: Surpassing Michael Jordan (Vote for Monthly Ticket!)_3 130: 075: Surpassing Michael Jordan (Vote for Monthly Ticket!)_3 Roger had indeed become much better at stealing the ball this season, although steals have never been the standard to measure whether a player’s defense is outstanding, that did not mean that steals were completely useless.
After successfully stealing the ball from Jordan, Roger immediately initiated a fast break, dribbling the ball himself.
Jordan, like an enraged lion, launched a fierce attack, trying to rip Roger apart.
Nobody had ever dared to be so presumptuous in front of him, to say they could guard him and then do it.
Jordan, desperate to save face, was determined to personally bite off Agent Zero’s head!
The cheering in the arena was almost enough to lift the roof off the Orlando Arena.
For two consecutive plays, Roger and Jordan were matched up directly, which for the fans was simply blissful.
Jordan stuck close to Roger, trying to stop him with intense physical pressure.
Roger was eventually stopped beyond the three-point line, and facing Jordan’s pressure, he dared not make any casual changes of direction in the confrontation.
You can despise Michael Jordan in terms of attitude, but you can’t be foolish enough to underestimate his ability.
Many people remember Jordan for winning a bunch of scoring titles, yet they overlook that he also won the steals title three times—second only to Chris Paul’s six.
Jordan stopped Roger in his tracks.
After a pause to adjust his rhythm, Roger sprinted again, attempting to power through.
But as Jordan stepped back, Roger took a step back beyond the three-point line, creating a sliver of shooting space.
Jordan reacted quickly, immediately going up to contest the shot.
Roger released his shot almost from the tips of Jordan’s fingers.
Jordan, having contested and landed, turned to look at the basket, but his body continued to retreat from momentum.
In this process, Jordan was accidentally tripped by Roger and fell to the ground.
As he fell, Roger’s three-pointer, shot under Jordan’s defense, swished through the net just as the backboard lit up with the red light!
In the final moments of the first quarter, Roger scored!
O’Neal and all the Magic bench players jumped up as if they were going crazy.
In the last 15 seconds, Roger won a point over Jordan on both offense and defense!
And with that basket, Roger broke the tie he had with Jordan in the first quarter.
Up until then, the two had been evenly matched.
But with that shot, Roger and the Magic finished the journey of the first quarter with a 3-point lead!
However, at that moment people didn’t realize that that basket was not the final performance.
In fact, it was more like just a warm-up show.
The real performance was after the basket when Roger, seeing Jordan laid out in front of him, did not hesitate to step right over him!
As he stepped over Jordan, Roger did not forget to maintain communication, “Michael, even if we’re not on the same team, it doesn’t change the fact that you can’t compete with me!”
The entire Orlando Arena erupted, and O’Neal charged onto the court, pushing Roger excitedly before embracing him.
Just now, Roger did something nobody had ever done to Jordan.
That is, score over Jordan’s head and humiliate him with the most arrogant attitude!
You can imagine how shocking this basket was.
Allen Iverson stepping over Tyronn Lue in 2001 became one of the most unforgettable images of AI’s career.
What if you replace Tyronn Lue with Michael Jordan?
The impact of this scene would undoubtedly be much greater.
That’s exactly what Roger had just done!
“Damn it, I’m going to kill that bastard!” Michael Jordan was emotionally charged as he was restrained by his teammates.
He couldn’t believe that he had just lost in this head-to-head battle.
And even worse, he had lost in the most humiliating way!
In the first quarter of the game, with O’Neal barely playing, Roger had steadied the situation and, incidentally, messed with the mental state of both Pippen and Jordan.
He was not intimidated by Jordan, not intimidated by the Bulls.
His desire to win was intense; he was the most bloodthirsty warrior of the day!
NBC commentator Mike Fratello shook his head in wonderment after watching Roger’s performance at the end of the first quarter:
“Admit it, admit it, admit it.
The Chicago Bulls, in perhaps the most foolish trade in history!
They’ve created a formidable opponent for themselves!”
Now, it was his turn to take this cutting and hurtful blow.
Just one blow may not be enough to completely bring down the formidable MJ.
But what if there were several more?
The Zen Master picked up the tactical board, resignedly stating a fact: “Next we continue to find ways to get Shaq into foul trouble; it’s very hard to cope with Roger and Shaq firing at the same time!”
Just Roger alone is already more than the Chicago Bulls can handle.