Champion Creed-Chapter 1465 - 459: Champion Creed

The Big Apple, by the Hudson River. Amid the dense concrete jungle of Manhattan, the glow of Madison Square Garden remains undimmed.

Today’s streets of New York were bustling early, like a grand festival had arrived.

This was not just because the fourth game of this year’s NBA Finals was about to start, but also because it could very well be the swan song of the greatest player in NBA history.

Shaquille O’Neal walked into Madison Square Garden, where the place was dazzling, filled with celebrities. No sooner had he sat down, than Shaq spotted New York’s legendary center Patrick Ewing.

In the ’90s, the wars between these two giants left the Eastern Conference’s paint smeared with blood. The naturally talented Shaq looked down on Ewing, and Ewing did not like Shaq’s youthful arrogance.

But now, the two men, neatly dressed in suits, simply exchanged smiles and shook hands with hugs.

"Patrick, I never thought the day would come when you’d be fatter than me," O’Neal joked.

Ewing was not offended: "Come on, do you think you’re slim?"

Just then, another voice entered the conversation: "Hey, am I really listening to two fat guys discuss their body shape?"

The still-slender Hakeem Olajuwon walked to his seat, looking no different from his younger days except for the absence of hair. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

As the only one present who led a team to a championship as a leader, Olajuwon’s face was full of pride.

"I didn’t expect you to come," Shaq raised his head, refusing to lower his stance in front of anyone outside of Roger, "I thought you were busy with your basketball scams."

"What scam?"

"That training camp, I heard the weekly tuition is fifty thousand US dollars. Hey Patrick, do you really think anyone would improve by learning that stuff?"

The Big Ape shrugged: "David Robinson is no longer in this league, what’s the use of learning that stuff?"

Olajuwon was not angered by the teasing from the old rivals: "Come on, you guys are just jealous that I can still make quite a bit of money after retiring. As for whether my lessons are useful or not, just watch LBJ’s performance next season. He’s going to become a post-move master."

O’Neal thought his ears were playing tricks on him: "LeBron James? He’ll be the student you least want to mention, Hakeem. Honestly, besides David, who else would be tricked by your moves? When I was with Roger, you never won a championship."

"Oh, don’t forget Shaq, even me about to retire with Roger can win a championship. Besides, the championship trophy is a tool for ordinary players to taste victory, but the FMVP is never open to those ordinary players," Olajuwon responded mercilessly.

O’Neal laughed: "You can charge a hundred thousand a week to teach LeBron how to trash talk."

As the three centers chatted, Tom Brady walked past, looking tall and robust among the common crowd but appearing like a tourist at the base of the Statue of Liberty in front of the three giants.

"Excuse me, excuse me. Oh, it’s an honor to sit with you all."

All three greeted this hotshot from the football world, and Shaq shifted his conversation target from Olajuwon to Tom Brady.

"Hey Magic Tom, what did Roger tell you before facing the New York Giants?"

"He told me that an MVP without a championship and 72 wins are meaningless."

"Oh, I thought he told you that at the start of the Finals, it’s best to stay away from those who look like they have a stomach ache."

Everyone burst into laughter, as Pierce and O’Neal’s words are an eternal topic in the basketball world.

Next, familiar faces kept coming in and taking their seats.

Scottie Pippen, Paul Pierce, Dominique Wilkins, Ben Wallace, Michael Reed, Toni Kukoc, Sarunas Marciulionis... A sweep of the camera across the stands would reveal dozens of familiar faces to fans.

No NBA game has ever gathered so many celebrities in one place.

And this is just the tip of the iceberg, as countless fans around the world watched this special moment outside the TV.

Due to the uniqueness of this game, the fans who bought tickets were basically all seated early, unwilling to waste a second watching Roger play.

Yet, there was a seat between O’Neal, Ewing, the Dream, and Tom Brady that remained empty, with no one sitting in it for a long time.

The restless Shaq started betting: "This must be a seat for some big New York boss, whose car is probably stuck on the Queensboro Bridge and can’t move. It could even be Donald Trump, you know? Haha, even rich people aren’t omnipotent. Just like a wealthy bachelor can’t turn money directly into women, Donald can’t fly over the congested Queensboro Bridge."

Just then, a man in a blue knit hat and a Warriors #14 jersey over a hoodie walked to the empty seat and sat down.

Everyone stared at him curiously, unable to believe their eyes.

Soon, this man’s close-up appeared on the Madison Square Garden’s big screen.

Spike Lee, the most unlikely person to appear in the arena, had returned to the Garden after a year, wearing Roger’s jersey.

A few days ago, when the New York Knicks experienced a life-or-death battle, he did not show up.

He once said that Roger made all the suspense vanish, so he wouldn’t enter Madison Square Garden to watch a game until Roger retired.