"Shit!" Ricky Davis gritted his teeth, glaring at Link.
"Hehe, young man, don't be so fiery. No wonder you haven't scored a single point yet," Link said with a cheeky smile, patting his shoulder.
Ricky Davis felt a violent churning in his chest, as if he was about to spit blood at any moment.
However, what Link said was an objective fact.
Tonight, Ricky Davis had played 28 minutes, shot 0-for-5, and indeed hadn't scored a single point.
His only statistic was one rebound, which had practically flown into his hands.
And this rebound was even described by Link as "God's mercy."
On offense, Link had completely dominated Ricky Davis tonight.
Whether it was pick-and-roll with the ball, off-ball offense, or isolation plays.
Ricky Davis had been thoroughly beaten by Link, turning into an "ATM machine."
Link continued to isolate Ricky Davis, performing a crossover dribble to his right.
As his Stamina decreased, his first step slowed down, but Ricky Davis, completely in his head, was determined to Steal the ball, making an extremely wide lunge. Link smoothly transitioned into a behind-the-back dribble, tapping the ball behind him, switching it back to his left hand, and cleanly blowing past Ricky Davis. Andre Miller came over to double-team. Link, as if he had eyes in the back of his head, passed to Hubert Davis behind him. The latter caught the ball, and with a "swish!" a Three-Point Shot went in.
"Nice pass!"
"Wow... this is Link's 19th assist tonight!"
As the live commentator's voice rang out, it was 94 to 70!
With less than 5 minutes left in the game, the Cavaliers were trailing by a full 24 points.
"It seems this season's Washington Wizards are going to be the league's spoiler. Link, this rookie... truly exceeded my expectations. At the beginning of the season, he was just an excellent rookie, but now he has grown into a troublesome guy," said Charles Barkley, a commentator in the TNT Broadcast Booth.
Although Barkley had kissed a donkey's ass because of Link, he had become a loyal fan of Link ever since.
"That's true. On offense, Link already has All-Star-level skills. A team of Cleveland's caliber simply cannot stop him. However, he still has many shortcomings on defense. In high-level games, against strong opponents, he might very well become the opponent's offensive breakthrough point," Kenny Smith said.
"Is that so? I actually think Link's defense is pretty good... After all, Ricky Davis didn't score a single point tonight," Barkley said, blindly supporting Link at this moment.
At the same time, on the court, Link suddenly helped Michael Jordan double-team Lamond Murray. The latter passed the ball to Ricky Davis. Although Link reacted, his declining Stamina made him overestimate his speed, and he didn't catch up immediately.
Ugh...
"Slap! Slap! Slap!" Charles Barkley felt a slap across his face and couldn't help but grumble to himself: "What the hell is wrong with this little rascal Link? Why does he always go against me? Last time I didn't think highly of him, I got slapped and had to kiss a donkey's ass. This time, I'm clearly rooting for him, and I'm still getting slapped."
On the court, with a "clang!" Ricky Davis missed an open Three-Point Shot, which made him extremely frustrated. The kind-hearted and benevolent Link, seeing this, quickly added some comfort: "Buddy, you can't blame me for this. I intentionally didn't guard you, and you still missed..."
"You..."
"You..."
"Fuck!"
Ricky Davis was completely infuriated. He didn't believe Link could be so kind.
"Don't be angry, I'll let you score another one later," Link added, not forgetting to relieve pressure on the opponent: "Buddy, you finally made it to the team's starting lineup, but if you don't score tonight, you'll be back on the cold bench. Also... what about your next player contract? Alas... so, you must make the next shot!"
Link's earnest "pressure relief" was met with Ricky Davis's "angry stare." But from those angry little eyes, Link could tell that the other party had genuinely taken it to heart.
For this reason, on the next Three-Point Shot, Link continued to help Michael Jordan double-team, but... something unexpected happened. Damn, this double-team directly stole the basketball from Lamond Murray's hands, leaving Ricky Davis, who was waiting to receive the ball, completely empty-handed.
Link and Michael Jordan, both of them were quick-handed.
Link also had the Double Team Master (Silver), which meant he was not only fast at unbuttoning on the basketball court but also in daily life off the court.
Especially Link, with so many special sparring partner cards, unbuttoning was as fast as lightning.
About a minute later, Lamond Murray passed the ball under a double-team. The timing of this pass was a bit late. Link could have actually recovered to guard Ricky Davis. However, to further break his mentality, Link directly stood in front of him with his hands behind his back and wide eyes.
"Wow..."
Cavaliers fans first gasped at Link's "bold move," and then, as Ricky Davis missed another shot.
"Boo!"
"Boo!"
"Boo!"
A deafening wave of boos echoed throughout the Cavaliers' home court, the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
"Uh... no one here is bringing their talents to Miami either..." Link thought to himself.
This shot was not only because Cavaliers fans were protesting Link's "Staring Defense" with his hands behind his back, but also because Ricky Davis was truly disappointing.
Although his Three-Point Shot usually wasn't great, it wasn't bad either, with a career 36.1% three-point percentage, which should never be left open.
But under Link's "Staring Defense," he bricked it...
And it was two open three-point bricks.
What made Cavaliers fans even angrier was that Link, with his hands behind his back and Staring Defense, casually picked up the rebound from the missed shot.
At this moment...
Andre Miller suddenly ran over and fouled Link.
Hmm...
That's right.
The Cavaliers planned to surrender early.
No choice.
Currently, the Cavaliers were trailing the Washington Wizards by a full 30 points.
103 to 73!
"Boo!"
"Boo!"
"Boo!"
When the camera showed Link, who was colluding with Michael Jordan, on the screen above the court, boos erupted from the Cavaliers' home fans.
"Michael, you're so annoying!" Link said.
"Get out of here, rookie, you're the one everyone hates," Jordan said grumpily.
...
...
Link seemed to be becoming the "Cavaliers' Public Enemy" and "Mayor of Cleveland."
But upon returning to the Washington Wizards' bench, his teammates all greeted him warmly.
"Wow... Link... you're too terrifying, you actually completed a double-double!" said the Masked Man Hamilton, who had a good relationship with Link.
"Hmm, it's alright," Link said with a smile that Michael Jordan found extremely hypocritical.
21 points, 20 assists, 8 rebounds, 3 Steals.
This stat line was enough to make Link dominate the major sports headlines in the US tonight once again.
However...
At this moment, Link was observing Ricky Davis, who had returned to the bench and was being scolded like a dog by Cavaliers head coach John Lucas.
"Damn it..."
"Cry already!"
"It's not a sin for a man to cry..."
"Don't hold it in."
Link kept muttering to himself to complete the system's random mission.
But just then...
The system's voice rang out again.
"Ding, congratulations to the Host for completing 'Staring Defense' for the first time in an official game, unlocking a new badge — 'Relief Passer (Bronze)."