453: 172: Get ready, winter is coming (Request for monthly tickets!)_2 453: 172: Get ready, winter is coming (Request for monthly tickets!)_2 He was fighting for the MVP, how could he possibly waste his energy on himself?
Maybe he just wanted to watch an NCAA March Madness game live.
Well, who doesn’t like watching the NCAA?
Don’t be nervous, Paul, don’t be nervous!
Besides, if anyone really dares to cause trouble, Coach Roy Williams will definitely stop him!
Pierce had given himself a great deal of psychological pep talks, and by the time the University of Kansas went for their on-site adaptation training at noon, his nervousness had eased quite a bit.
Moreover, if Roger had stayed in Charlotte, he would have come early.
At that moment, Kansas’s head coach, Roy Williams, who had learned from North Carolina’s legendary Dean Smith, entered the training facility.
He seemed to be in a good mood, cheerfully calling out to Pierce, “Paul, let me introduce you to a big shot.”
“Who?” Pierce wiped off his sweat and asked, puzzled.
“You can call him that, too,” Williams chuckled.
“I didn’t mean to call him that!”
At this time, Roger, wearing jeans with his hands in his pockets, walked into the venue.
For a moment, all the players on the court stopped what they were doing, mouths agape staring at Roger, then turned to glance at Pierce.
Roger’s gaze quickly locked onto Pierce and he whistled, “Pleased to meet you, the best college player outside of Tim Duncan.”
Roy Williams, seeing that the two were at ease, prepared to leave, “Take your time to chat, I have work to do with the coaching staff.
Don’t be nervous, Paul, Roger is here to motivate you.”
“Coach, why let outsiders in?
We’ve got a game tonight!” Pierce quickly grabbed Roy Williams as a last lifeline.
“Trust me, Paul, talking to a great player can give you strength!” Williams said.
He indeed believed that young players could bring out stronger fighting spirit after being motivated by great players.
Of course, the fact that Roger had given him a case of “Dynasty Feast” was another truth.
“Roy, don’t go, wait!” Pierce stretched his hand out in desperation towards the coach, but the coach had already left the gym.
Immediately after, Roger put his strong hand on Pierce’s shoulder, “Kid, listen to Roy, talking to great players is a good thing.
The first lesson I’m going to teach you is to watch your words and actions.
Come on, pick up that damned basketball and let me see if you’re ready for tonight’s game!”
Pierce swallowed hard.
Would a superstar like Roger really trouble a college player?
“The Orlando Daily News” had already given the answer: Yes, he’s that kind of person.
What happened next became legendary.
Before the evening’s game against Arizona, all the University of Kansas players were speaking to the camera about one thing: Roger, in his jeans, had completely dominated Paul Pierce in a three-round game of 21.
In the most one-sided game, Pierce scored 3 points.
In the least, Pierce scored nothing.
As the media bemoaned Roger’s ruthlessness, something miraculous happened.
Perhaps accustomed to defending against someone at the higher level of Roger, Pierce performed miraculously in that evening’s game.
Mike Bibby’s performance of 21 points with 5 out of 7 three-pointers paled in comparison to Paul Pierce’s 32 points on 11 out of 15 shots.
Pierce, shooting beyond the three-point line, scored with all 4 attempts, making Arizona’s star forward Michael Dickerson’s defense seem utterly futile against him.
Eventually, Kansas won against Arizona with a score of 88 to 82, advancing to the Elite Eight.
After the game, reporters asked Paul Pierce about Roger again:
“What exactly happened this afternoon?
Did Roger really play one-on-one with you?”
Just thinking about the afternoon’s events made Pierce sweat.
In his teammates’ stories, it seemed that Roger had only played one-on-one with him while wearing jeans.
But in reality, that process was filled with Roger’s trash talk and intense frustration.
Pierce considered himself a trash talk master, but compared to Roger, he learned what crushing truly was.
Roger would break your physical resistance with one goal after another and then defile your soul with his nasty trash talk.
Playing against him was the most terrifying nightmare in the world!
On his next birthday, Pierce was definitely going to make this wish, “For God’s sake, don’t end up on the same NBA team as Roger, just don’t!”
He simply couldn’t imagine what it would be like to face such a tyrant for an entire season.
The reporters were expecting Pierce, the big mouth, to continue speaking unguardedly, but now, facing questions about Roger, Pierce was no longer blathering.
“Yes, right before the game started, the great MVP taught me a lot, helping me win tonight’s matchup.
Without a doubt, he’s my target and idol.
Anyone who says Roger can’t win the MVP and three-peat is a fool!”
The reporters were surprised; Pierce’s rhetoric was quite different than usual.
What are you talking about?
Borrowing a phrase from the American presidential candidate television debates, Trump’s saying would be apt here: I’ve never heard so much nonsense in my life.
On the sidelines, Roger smiled contentedly.
You know, it’s quite a stress relief to occasionally bully these little darlings during the long season.
Of course, the Paul Pierce episode was just a side story of the season.
After this little entertainment, Roger threw himself back into his MVP season.
In the following games, Roger still led his team strongly, maintaining the “no losing streak” and “no home defeat” records.