142: 079: Roger Rule (Requesting Monthly Votes!)_3 142: 079: Roger Rule (Requesting Monthly Votes!)_3 Exciting, so exciting, Roger and Shaq just wanted to buy a bucket of popcorn and watch their performance.
The Trail Blazers were seemingly cursed from the 90s to the early 00s, with the locker room atmosphere never being good.
In ’92 they made it to the finals, but the team was rife with internal conflicts, split into many factions, and there was even an instance where Danny Ainge and Jerome Kersey almost came to blows during the finals.
Then came players like Strickland, who were thorns in the team’s side.
Following that was the infamous Portland Jail Blazers era; despite reaching the Western Conference Finals in ’99 and ’00, the atmosphere within the team was still far from good.
The Yelling Maestro throwing a towel directly in Sabonis’s face in front of the entire crowd was just one signal, much like you finding your wife hiding sexy lingerie from you—she could well be doing even more outrageous things on the side.
Daring to act so recklessly in front of all the fans, you can only imagine how bad the atmosphere must have been in the locker room, where no one could see it.
This was the Portland Trail Blazers, their locker room a mess for over a decade.
After a swearing match that no one could win, Buck Williams took the sideline throw-in.
Being a staunch ally of Clyde the Glide, he passed the ball to him.
Clyde the Glide wanted to pass the ball to Clifford Robinson, the Sixth Man of the Year for the ’92-93 season and currently the most stable point for the Trail Blazers.
But Horace Grant was not about to let Robinson get into position easily.
After being blown out man-to-man by Karl Malone in the previous game, Grant was holding onto his frustration.
Drexler really didn’t want to pass to that reckless jerk.
So, Drexler decided to take over this attack, challenging Roger once again.
Clifford Robinson came up to screen, Drexler took the opportunity to break through.
But Horace Grant switched so fast, he had moved over the moment Drexler started moving.
After blocking Drexler’s drive, Grant immediately moved back to Robinson, and by then Roger had already circled around the screen and was back in front of Drexler.
This is why the Magic needed Horace Grant; he could both cover Shaq, who liked to linger in the paint, and protect Roger, whose defense was not yet fully matured.
Historically, from ’92 to ’96, Horace Grant was named to the All-Defensive Team, proof of his capabilities.
Whether it was with the Bulls in their three consecutive championships or in the Magic’s run to the finals, Grant’s role was undervalued.
Having played alongside him, Roger felt this even more acutely.
The Trail Blazers’ pick and roll tactics failed to kick off, with Drexler being closely guarded by Roger.
He now could only hold the ball with his back to the basket, focusing on protecting it.
But Roger, leveraging his reach advantage, suddenly reached around from behind Drexler and poked the basketball away!
“Roger steals from Clyde, that’s the third consecutive time he’s locked down this eight-time All-Star guard!” Bill Walton sighed.
Drexler shouldn’t have spoken about Roger like that before the game.
He had provoked someone he couldn’t handle.
Initially, he could have lost with some dignity.
But now, Roger wasn’t going to let him have that dignity.
The basketball rolled towards the frontcourt, and Roger immediately chased after it.
Eventually, he picked up the ball in the three-second area of the other half.
After picking up the basketball, Roger didn’t rush to lay it up in haste.
Instead, he turned around, stood his ground, and watched Drexler running back to him.
Only when Drexler got close did Roger take two big strides and slam dunk the ball!
After landing, Roger pointed at Drexler, responding to his pre-game provocation, “I overestimated you, Clyde!
Even if you were teammates with Hakeem Olajuwon, you still wouldn’t necessarily beat me!”
Roger truly didn’t let him keep his dignity.
Once compared to Michael Jordan, Clyde the Glide was now utterly speechless.
Roger, with three consecutive successful defenses, had completely refuted Drexler’s earlier statements.
He might not yet be at the defensive level of Pippen, but for handling a Clyde the Glide whose wings were almost broken, it was more than enough.
Bill Walton shook his head, “Clyde made one mistake, he broke the law.
To beat Roger’s team, there’s one rule you must follow: never make the Truth angry.
I hope all players in the league can learn this lesson.”
In that moment, Roger, who was just retreating, happened to make eye contact with Strickland.
Strickland, who had been extremely cocky from the start, immediately averted his gaze and stood obediently beside Harper.
Seeing Drexler’s pathetic state, he admitted that perhaps he had spoken a bit too loudly earlier.