"Steve, you don’t seriously think I’m using this injury to get a new contract, do you? I’ll earn a contract with my performance on the court, not through injuries. You know my worth, you should pay enough. My leg is severely strained, but do you think I’m lying?"
Steve’s face turned grim, and he said in a threatening tone:
"This will make the papers, you know, we’ll go public with this and let public opinion decide."
For others, if they’re injured, they’d wear casual clothes and sit on the bench to watch their teammates play.
The Rockets wouldn’t allow to do that; they demanded I play in the gas.
I won’t risk ruining my career for these people. If I suffer a serious injury on the court, they’d discard quickly.
I recalled a line Ah Gan once said to , don’t let loyalty hurt you.
You’re loyal to the team, but the team won’t be loyal to you when you’re in trouble.
I straightforwardly told Steve: "I can’t play with an injury."
I didn’t want to argue with managent or the owner anymore; they could think whatever they wanted.
As he threatened, Steve Patterson called the dia, accusing of faking an injury.
He told Houston’s reporters: "We brought in an entire team of doctors to examine him, and they found no issues. He threatened to sit on the bench and not play because he wants a new contract. Putting these two things together, it’s not hard to understand what’s going on."
I was furious when I heard the news. First, I never threatened to sit on the bench.
Secondly, my injury is real, not faked.
"He’s a liar," I told reporters. "He’s questioning my integrity, and that’s an act of poor character. They want to play tricks on , but it won’t work. No one wants to play more than I do, but when I’m injured, I won’t risk playing. Now the Rockets are trying to force to play injured for the playoffs. I might have done it when I was younger, but not anymore. I have to consider my career.
My teammates agreed with ; Kenny Smith and Audie Norris knew I wasn’t the type to fake an injury, and that would be against basic professional ethics.
But the Rockets’ doctors didn’t think so; after they examined , they declared I could play.
But I got a second opinion from a sports physician in Houston who said I had a hamstring injury and advised not to play.
In the final stage of the season, I refused to play, and the Rockets suspended .
My work ethic is second to none. I give it my all in every ga, yet they suspended for not playing according to contract terms and deducted my salary.
They tried to turn the dia and fans against , making them believe I was a rcenary, using a fake injury to threaten the team for a new contract.
We lodged an appeal, and the League committee launched an investigation. They will determine if the Rockets’ salary deduction is against the rules, with a hearing scheduled after the season ends.
I’m not afraid to confront them at the hearing; I didn’t fake an injury, and they won’t take a di from .
Patterson and Thomas didn’t reveal this to the dia; they wanted to appear tough to suppress my contract.
After my suspension, the Rockets lost five gas in a row, getting further from the playoffs.
When I recovered from my injury and returned, I told managent and the dia I wanted to be traded.
"I don’t want to play for the Rockets next season," I said. "It’s obvious. After managent talks bad about you, would you want to work for them? I love the city of Houston, but this ti it’s not about my teammates or fans, it’s about managent. The damage has been done. I’d rather start over sowhere else."
I’ve had enough of Charlie Thomas and Steve Patterson; under their instigation, so people think I’m a liar.
A year ago, I recovered from an eye injury. This year, I’ve been treated for irregular heartbeat, and my body has issues.
If I wanted to take a two-year break and get paid in full, I could easily do it.
If I wanted to use these injuries in contract negotiations, no problem, but that’s not my code of conduct.
They questioned my character and professionalism, which is a huge insult to .
They tried their best to slander in front of fans, the people of Houston, and all of Arica.
I no longer want to have anything to do with them, and the trade rumors spread quickly.
At that ti, I had several options, the Heat, Los Angeles Clippers, Knicks, and Orlando Magic were all considering .
The Rockets lost several critical gas towards the end of the regular season, dropped to ninth place, and didn’t make it into the playoffs.
This was deeply disappointing for . I felt I could no longer waste ti in Houston. With the Rockets, I saw no chance of beating the Portland Trail Blazers.
After the season ended, I planned to travel all sumr.
As I left, I told managent: "Give a call and tell where I’ll be playing next year. Trade out!"
I was very sure I wouldn’t be playing in Houston again.
Then I left Arica and went on a pilgrimage to cca with a few friends and brothers.
After a grueling four-day pilgrimage, we went to dina, one of the most sacred places on earth, where everyone who knows about it wants to pray.
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