Chapter 422: We Are the Champions
"Let's congratulate the Pacers on their first NBA championship in franchise history after a long 34-season wait." When the on-site referee and technical officials watched the footage repeatedly and finally determined that Meng Xu's goal was valid, Magic Johnson stood up from the commentary box and applauded while sending his own blessings to the Pacers. Although the Lakers' failure to defend the title made Magic Johnson somewhat regretful, at this moment, Magic Johnson was happy from the bottom of his heart, happy for his old buddy Larry Bird, happy for Meng Xu, and happy for the Pacers who won the O'Brien Cup for the first time.
"This is a very exciting round of the Finals, 6 games, each of which is a classic, although before the Finals begin, few people are optimistic about the Pacers, but they still through their own efforts, and perseverance to fight, to win the final championship, this is a team that continues to create miracles, let us congratulate the Pacers, become the NBA champion of the 0102 season!" Looking at Meng Xu, who was surrounded by his teammates in the center of the court and celebrating wildly, Michaels was also very excited on the sidelines, it can be said that Michaels witnessed Meng Xu grow from a role player to a superstar step by step.
When Magic Johnson and Michaels each gave a speech, this season's Finals officially came to an end, and after six games, the Pacers defeated the defending champion Lakers with a score of 4-2 and successfully reached the top of the NBA.
"Is this the end of it?" Looking at the Pacers who were celebrating frantically in the distance, Kobe Bryant and O'Neal, who had quietly retreated to the sidelines, were at a loss at the moment. It's over, it's over, such a result is a little difficult for them to accept, O'Neal's third time, Kobe's second trip to the Finals, it's over, the ambition before the game, the intrigue in the game, now, all of this has no meaning.
Although their team lost, the Lakers fans, who have always regarded themselves as aristocrats, still maintained their proper demeanor, not only did not leave the court early and booed the Pacers, but also gave them applause after the officials on the scene announced that the Pacers won the championship. And the head coach of the Lakers, Phil Jackson, no matter how annoyed and painful he is now, as a 7-championship head coach, Phil Jackson still walked in front of Larry Bird in person and sent him his blessings.
"Larry, congratulations, you've finally got your wish to bring a championship to Indiana, congratulations. But we'll be back next season. ”
"Phil, I'm looking forward to meeting you again in the finals." At the last moment of the game, Larry Bird, who was already nervous and a little out of breath, became very calm at the moment when the team won, and it has always been Larry Bird's long-cherished wish to bring a championship trophy to Indiana, but when this wish was achieved, Larry Bird's heart felt empty, the feeling of losing motivation and losing the goal of moving forward, which made Larry Bird a little trance for a while. After leading the Pacers to a championship, Larry Bird has become the first person to win all the honors in both the player and the coaching era, and if you add the best general manager of the season, no one in the entire history of the NBA can beat Larry Bird.
Nearly half an hour later, in the interval between the on-site staff preparing for the championship trophy ceremony, the whole Pacers returned to the locker room and changed into their own championship suits, and when they walked out of the players' tunnel again, the audience once again gave them warm applause.
"Meng's performance this season has been nothing short of astounding, not only as he won the regular season scoring title, but also became the third player after Willis Reed and Michael Jordan to win the regular season MVP, All-Star MVP, and Finals MVP in a single season." When Meng Xu walked out of the player tunnel, the atmosphere of the scene instantly reached its peak, although the results of the FMVP selection have not yet been announced, but anyone with a discerning eye can see that with Meng Xu's performance in the finals, winning the FMVP is undoubtedly a sure thing.
"Congratulations, Herbert, congratulations, Malvin, your dedication, your dedication, your long wait and waiting, finally paid off today, this is the first NBA championship trophy in the history of the Pacers, of course this will not be the last, but today, today's moment, is undoubtedly the most glorious day in the entire history of Indiana basketball, you and your team, will forever be remembered in the annals of history, Indiana, and the entire North American sports community!" Surrounded by the whole Pacers team, the Simon brothers, the owners of the Pacers, were pushed to the podium by the players behind them, and after David Stern's impassioned award speech, the Simon brothers jointly lifted the first O'Brien Cup in Pacers history.
Since 1983 from Sam. After Nashy took over the Pacers, the Simon brothers have been at the helm of the Pacers for 19 years, in these 19 years, the Pacers have had ups and downs, basically losing money every year, Indiana's basketball atmosphere is good, but Indiana fans are very picky, and Indiana has a number of NCAA teams, the Pacers have barely achieved breakeven until recent seasons, after Larry Bird coached, but the Simon brothers have never planned to change the team, and in the team's investment, The Simon brothers are not stingy, and the Pacers' total salary this season has reached $57.4 million, which is $15 million more than the salary cap, although it is still far from the 20 million luxury tax they promised Meng Xu, but the Pacers' total salary is also the sixth highest in the league.
"Larry, I really can't believe that the Pacers are so good under your leadership, it's amazing, whether it's as a player or as a coach, you're always the best one." After handing the championship trophy to the Simon brothers, David Stern applauded and slowly moved to Larry Bird's side.
"We are champions! We are the champions! When the Simon brothers put down the trophy held high, the Pacers, including Larry Bird, all formed a circle, put their hands on the O'Brien Cup, and shouted frantically at the reporters who were taking pictures in front of them, while gesturing various gestures, while shouting frantically, while Meng Xu and James Posey huddled together, holding the base of the trophy with their left hand, and stretched out two fingers with their right hand.
Just when all the players were scrambling to take a photo with the O'Brien Cup, David Stern once again held a black trapezoidal base, with a golden basketball on top, similar to the O'Brien Cup trophy, and walked onto the podium. After seeing this scene, not only the Pacers players who were competing for the O'Brien Cup, but also the fans of the entire Staples Center fell silent, and everyone's eyes were focused on the small trophy.