[Monologue] Eric Gordon: Four surgeries can’t ruin me. I’m still competing for the championship at the age of 37.

When I was 6 years old and stood on the set of "Space Jam" and watched the basketball god Jordan perform, I seemed to see myself in the future. From then on, Jordan became my goal. In order to get closer to him, I kept working hard and fighting. But just when I was about to reach the top, a series of injuries made me Into the bottomless abyss...

My name is Eric Gordon. I was born on Christmas Day in 1988 in a small town in Indiana. Basketball is my whole life, and it has been like this since I can remember. My father is a three-point shooter at the local university, and he is my guide in the world of basketball. In order for me to practice, he specially installed a basket on the garage door. During my childhood, I spent a long time training every day. My grandfather taught me breakthroughs and my father taught me shooting. Even on snowy days, I would practice shooting in the snow with my gloves on. This kind of persistence is not only a kind of training, but also a proof of my love for basketball.

After entering North Central High School in Indianapolis, I quickly became a starter on the team due to my strength. In my senior year, I averaged 29 points, 6.2 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game, leading the team all the way to the Indiana Class 4A finals, although we ultimately failed to win the championship. , but I was nominated as Indiana's "Mr. Basketball", selected into the McDonald's All-American High School All-Star Team, and won the 2007 Gatorade Player of the Year Award. At that time, many famous basketball schools extended an olive branch to me, and I finally chose Indiana University, partly because the team's assistant coach had a good personal relationship with my father.

College basketball is another world. In my freshman season, I averaged 20.9 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game, leading the Indiana University Mountaineers to an astonishing start of 17 wins and 1 loss. However, fate showed me its cruelty for the first time. At the most critical moment of the season, I suffered a wrist injury. The management team hoped that I could rest for a while, but I immediately became "crazy". I really couldn't bear to end the season like this.

I endured the pain and insisted on playing. There is no doubt that the injury seriously affected my shooting performance, and my scoring efficiency continued to decline. I only hit 13 goals in 70 shots. Especially in the first round of the championship, I only made 3 of 15 shots and missed all 6 three-pointers. In the end, we lost to the University of Arkansas. Despite this, I was selected as the Big Ten Conference Rookie of the Year and was selected to the All-American third team.

There are definitely regrets, and I also considered whether to play for another year, but in the end, my team and I decided to go to the NBA to meet a bigger stage.

With the seventh pick in the first round, I was brought to Los Angeles by the Clippers. This was the moment I had dreamed of.

After 2 years of adapting, I finally hit my peak in my third season, averaging 22.3 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game. In an era before the data blowout, the value of this data was not low. I thought this was the starting point of my glorious NBA career, but I didn't expect that this was just another trap set by fate for me.

In 2009, Griffin joined the Clippers as the No. 1 pick. The following year, he averaged a double-double of 22 points and 12 rebounds per game. Yes, among all Clippers fans, the "White Monster" is their future, and they have to fight for it. This rising star inside was looking for an All-Star backcourt mentor. At that moment, the deal for Paul between the Hornets (Pelicans) and the Lakers was suspended. So, the Clippers followed suit and used another method to keep the young "Queen Bee" in Los Angeles, and I was the victim.

On the plane flying to New Orleans, I felt a lot of emotions, including sadness and reluctance, as well as unwillingness. I secretly vowed to carve out a world here and let those who despise me take a look. In my first game, I hit a buzzer beater with 4.2 seconds left in the final seconds. In the dressing room, my teammates surrounded me and cheered for me, but I was not happy at all, because during a confrontation with Grant Hill, my right knee hurt. I thought it was just an ordinary collision, but the pain was still there until the end of the game.

I wanted to persevere and continue this state, but after the second game, I really couldn't stand it anymore. I only played 9 games in total that season. Although I could still maintain 20+ data, my efficiency was greatly reduced, and my speed and explosive power were weakened to varying degrees.

In the following time, the disease seemed to have found a host, always staying in my body and refusing to leave. Pain spread throughout every corner of my body, including knee surgery, ankle surgery, left shoulder labral tear surgery, finger fracture surgery, etc. In 5 years, I missed nearly half of the games, and the remaining half was also cut to pieces by injuries. I often lay on the cold operating table before I could recover. The fans also went from disappointment to despair. They labeled me a "glass man".

I don’t blame them. For a while, even I wanted to give up on myself. Looking at my body covered with protective gear in the mirror, I repeatedly asked myself, should it be over? Even though I'm only 28, my body looks like I'm 48.

Ryan Anderson, he is my teammate and my good brother. Every time I get injured, he will be by my side. He sees my decadence.

"If you give up on yourself, who can save you?"

"I can't score like I used to, I can't do it anymore."

"No one wants you to go back to the past, we only need your present, do what you can do now."

An Dessen's words awakened me. Since then, I have begun to transform into a scorer without the ball. Running, catching the ball and shooting directly. Hundreds of shooting training every day have become my required courses. In addition, I will also study the videos of Reggie Miller and Ray Allen to see how they can still be efficient without relying on explosive power..

In the summer of 2016, Anderson and I both became free agents. The difference was that he was very popular in the market and received a high salary from the Rockets, while I was unable to find a job because of my "glass man" attributes. When signing, Anderson strongly recommended me to the Rockets and showed me my training videos. Then, I got a chance to try out. I still remember that scene.

"It's up to you, brother, show off all you have in training."

The flawless three-pointer made D'Antoni's eyes light up. Then, they gave me a 4-year, 53-year contract. A million contract, the moment I walked out of the office, I hugged Anderson tightly, tears kept rolling in my eyes. Looking at the two O'Brien Cups placed in the corridor, I strengthened my belief that this time, I must win.

Three-point contest champion, the best sixth man, I lived up to the Rockets' trust and became the team's most reliable third scoring point. In the 17-18 season, we set a new team record, won 65 wins, ranking first in the league, but in the playoffs, we never got past the Warriors. With the departure of Paul and Harden, my Rockets career has also entered a countdown.

Now, I am 37 years old. Looking back on my basketball career, it is full of ups and downs. I have gone from a superstar to a glass man, from a cannon to a marksman, from a starter to a gangster on the bench. The basketball court is my battleground. The court was also my salvation. I learned how to live with injuries, how to transform in adversity, and how to sacrifice personal data for team victory. I may not have lived up to people's expectations of me when I was 22, but I never gave up my love for basketball and my pursuit of a championship.

My life is like a game, with ups and downs, but as long as the final whistle has not sounded, I will continue to fight.