Champion Creed

When Rudy Tomjanovich saw the Warriors use Matt Barnes to replace Jason Richardson, he waved a big hand: "Double team!"

Seeing Matt Barnes on the court, the on-site commentator Al Michaels exclaimed in surprise: "Matt? According to the information, he only played 38 official games with the Los Angeles Clippers last season and was cut for getting into a fight with coach Mike Dunleavy. After the Warriors traded away Allan Houston, I thought I might see either Derek Anderson or Nick Van Exel on the court."

Matt Barnes looked up at the stands and found that most Warrior fans were staring at him in confusion.

They couldn't understand why the team would put such a guy on the court. Matt Barnes was familiar with that look; he used to experience it when attending a predominantly white high school, playing basketball while people around him watched him with that same gaze.

So he's used to it, fuck it, you can watch however you want, I just want to grab the bone to eat!

After Matt Barnes took the court, Roger slowly approached him: "Matt, I don't want to pressure you. Kobe or Brian Cook, pick one to defend."

"Is there even a choice? I'll defend Kobe!"

"Did you forget how I beat you yesterday? This is a national broadcast."

"Doesn't matter, I'm sticking with him."

"Very good," Roger nodded with satisfaction, "Go on, wild dog, before the game ends, no matter how he struggles, don't you dare let go!"

"Of course, of course!"

A wild dog wandering the streets can also have the blood of a lion flowing inside.

The game began, and the Warriors attacked first.

Because Matt Barnes couldn't shoot, Kobe left him to double team Roger this round.

Roger found Stoudemire who slid into mid-range, and because Brian Cook, who was primarily defending Roger, was not particularly aggressive on defense, Roger was still able to pass the ball in time, and the latter made a jump shot.

Even though the Warriors were still scoring, this round indeed saw Roger being restricted. Previously, Jason Richardson and Allan Houston could create space for Roger, but now, Roger was destined not to have it easy during the connection phase.

Rudy Tomjanovich firmly believed that as Roger faced more challenges on offense, their team could potentially widen the lead during the connection phase.

But instead, the first to encounter problems on offense was the Lakers.

As soon as Kobe crossed half-court, Matt Barnes started talking: "A trash player who's never beaten Roger in the playoffs and dares to wear number 15? Right, you're too embarrassed, so what do you make of this gospel then."

"Shut up, I don't know you."

"I know you, the number one loser in the NBA after Michael. Okay, there's a debate whether you or Shaq are the top loser, but you're definitely one of them."

Kobe gritted his teeth, not knowing where this trash-talking guy came from.

He raised his hand to hold the ball, then continued to call for a V-shaped pick and roll.

But the confrontation from Matt Barnes was intense, Kobe used the screen to break through, but under Barnes's tight defense, he couldn't speed up. Meanwhile, Roger came to double team, forcing Kobe to hand the ball to Brian Cook immediately.

Brian Cook caught the ball, just about to shoot, but Roger had already returned to position.

The helpless substitute small forward passed the ball back to Nash, who looked up and found Kobe struggling to get rid of the defense.

However, Matt Barnes's pulling and pushing made it temporarily difficult for Kobe to find an opportunity to receive the ball.

And throughout this encounter, Barnes's mouth never stopped: "Italian mama's boy, is this all you got? All you can flaunt is your mighty presence in Colorado."

The word "Colorado" seemed to trigger a killer switch in Kobe, even though the matter had passed, even though he was completely innocent, he still didn't want to recall the experiences of that year.

Angry, Kobe hit Barnes hard with his elbow, and Barnes fell accordingly, and the referee blew his whistle.

"Offensive foul on the Los Angeles Lakers!"

"What!? Are you blind? He's been tugging at my jersey the whole time! Fuck it, this shameless bastard, get up!" Kobe angrily walked up to Barnes, only to be pushed back by Stephen Jackson, who had replaced Marcus Camby.

"Stay away from my teammate, punk."

Roger immediately came over to applaud: Stoudemire and Tayshaun Prince stood to Roger's left and right, with a "dare to come closer" posture.

Faced with this group of fierce scoundrels, the Los Angeles Lakers appeared much more civilized, with Nash and Brian Cook urging Kobe to leave.

Kobe reluctantly turned and ran back to his side of the court; he finally understood what the Golden State Gangsters meant.

The departure of Allan Houston had stripped this team of its last laziness and rationality.

Leaving only a group of bandits filled with hunger and desire.

Roger stared at Kobe as he walked away, pointing to his number.

"Looks like number 15 today only has suffering, no gospel."