Champion Creed

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is unfortunate, he is someone whose career is full of dark humor.

Few people know what was the greatest moment of Jabbar's career, which game and which day it was. It was the 1980 NBA Finals decisive battle, when Jabbar sprained his ankle at the end of the third quarter. After he went off the court, the Lakers were leaderless and played chaotically. The well-known rookie FMVP Magic was actually at a loss in Game 5, going 3 for 14 for the whole game.

The 76ers, under the leadership of Dr. J, quickly established an advantage, on the verge of getting the match point.

In the locker room, Pat Riley, the old farm owner, and Jabbar himself were very eager to get a pain-killing injection and play with an injury, but the team doctor insisted otherwise because he knew it would completely ruin Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's career. He even told Jabbar the truth that only a GOAT can comprehend: "Kareem, this is just basketball!"

But after all, Jabbar didn't have such high awareness, and he ended up taking a pain-killing shot and went on to play injured. In the last 6 minutes, he led the Lakers to reverse the game despite trailing by as much as 11 points. He ultimately scored 40 points, with 15 rebounds and 4 blocks in this critical decisive battle, which was undoubtedly the greatest game of Jabbar's career.

But in that era when the NBA was not yet fully televised, Jabbar's monumental and spectacular game was not broadcast on TV. Besides the fans watching live, most people had no idea what happened that night.

And the most darkly humorous part is, just two days later, Magic's legendary game where he stepped into the center position and scored 42+15+7 was televised. All the fans across the U.S. witnessed Magic's marvelous performance, that game led Magic to become the rookie FMVP, turning him into a true superstar, and it completely overshadowed Jabbar's Game 5.

Jabbar was not just outstanding in Game 5; throughout the Finals, he averaged 33.4 points, 13.6 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 4.6 blocks.

But because Game 5 wasn't televised while Game 6 was seen, when people talk about the 1980 Finals now, they only remember Magic's rookie FMVP, they only remember Magic's miracle guarding the center in Game 6, completely ignoring Jabbar's role.

That's probably why smart players will never sacrifice themselves to let others take the FMVP.

After that, live TV broadcasting became more popular, but Jabbar's form deteriorated. This led to his prime being less known, but his decline being clearly observed.

Nowadays, the NBA has another person whose career is full of dark humor like Jabbar.

Reggie Miller is not a true superstar, and the Indiana Pacers are not a spotlight-seeking team.

So, most of the time, he and his team are outside of the fans' attention.

Until suddenly one day, the TV networks and fans noticed that the Pacers now had an impressive record, so their next game against a strong team would garner great attention.

Then, finally getting a national broadcast, Reggie Miller often ends up being defeated by those star players in this much-anticipated game, leaving only a loser's silhouette.

He is just like Jabbar; when he conquers the opponent, people don't know. But when he is conquered by the opponent, it will certainly be seen by everyone.

Now, Reggie Miller has done it again.

Although the Pacers had a perfect start of 6 wins and 0 losses, besides the local fans in Indianapolis, barely anyone watched those six games.

Then, when people noticed the Pacers' outstanding record, with all fans focusing on the Pacers and Reggie Miller, their unbeaten streak happened to be broken in the nationally viewed game by Roger.

Roger breaks many people's firsts every year, both on the court and off. But only Reggie Miller is repeatedly broken by Roger's firsts.

Reggie Miller is like a diligent villain from a tokusatsu show, no matter what new tricks he pulls, he will always be vanquished by Roger in the end, then leaves a "I'll be back."

But in the real world, being a villain isn't easy because being defeated time after time and coming back time after time requires extremely strong determination and perseverance.

And this process, Reggie Miller has persisted for ten years.

Reggie Miller deserves respect; he has always been one of Roger's most respected opponents.

But anyway, once again, he has become a loser.

After defeating the Pacers, Roger has led the Golden State Warriors to a 6-1 record to start the season.

Now, more and more people are beginning to believe the Warriors have a chance to win the championship this season.

Only one biggest thorn remains—the San Antonio Spurs.

The Spurs and the Stone Buddha seem to always be obstacles in Roger's career.

In the past ten seasons, only two teams have defeated Roger in the playoffs: the Heat and the Spurs.

In the past ten seasons, only two teams have won the championship over Roger's head: the Pistons and the Spurs.

The Spurs are simply the biggest disruptor in Roger's era, and this year they still play such a role.

But the Warriors fans are happy because, being in the West, the Warriors and the Spurs will meet four times in the regular season, and they will soon see the team take revenge on the Spurs.

In fact, after playing the Pacers, the Warriors' next opponent is the Spurs!

Bay Area fans are all looking forward to the team dealing with the thorn that is the Spurs, and Roger thinks so too, especially after Gary Payton said those words in an ESPN interview.