On the day of the match, Stephen Jackson still arrived early at the Emory Healthcare Center.
His presence made Michael Reed no longer lonely, finally having someone to accompany Reed, the gym mouse, for early morning practice.
Even though Stephen Jackson hadn't gotten a single minute of playing time in seven consecutive games, he still persisted in training and was never late again.
That afternoon, Stephen Jackson went to ask Lenny Wilkens: "Boss, when will I finally get to play?"
And Lenny Wilkens' answer was the same as before: "When you are ready."
"I'm ready!"
"Really? But you still can't stop Roger in practice games, not even once."
Stephen Jackson was speechless; this was a fact.
Since joining the Hawks, Stephen Jackson had never been able to stop Roger.
But how many players in this league can stop Roger?
Isn't it a bit too harsh to use this as the standard for being "ready"?
However, Stephen Jackson didn't argue, he didn't have the right to complain.
