The Wizards on the court set up a 3-2 zone defense. At this time, Link was responsible for the top of the key. The principle of a zone defense is "defend the ball, not the man."
With his size, forward-level athleticism, and good defensive awareness, Link could effectively disrupt the opponent's Passing. Uh... to put it simply, the average height of the three players at the top for other teams is only 193cm; but for the Wizards, those three players are all over 200cm tall, which further increases the difficulty of the opponent's Passing.
Furthermore, the Wizards' zone defense wasn't a "sudden whim." They had practiced it privately for a long time, and the coordination between the players was quite familiar.
Once the zone defense was deployed, the entire Charlotte Hornets team was visibly uncomfortable.
The Charlotte Hornets' lead guard, Baron Davis, could force his way past defenders with his explosiveness, but before he could take two steps into his drive, he would be met by Link's help defense and double-team. Despite having a broad vision, the 191cm Baron Davis was limited by his height. Moreover, Link's physical dimensions were far superior to those of an ordinary guard...
The "Bearded" Baron Davis felt like he was being squeezed by two full-sized forwards, which affected his Passing rhythm. Additionally... all of the Charlotte Hornets' starters were afraid to shoot.
Their average three-point attempts per game ranked second to last in the league, and their shooting percentage was dead last. Even Baron Davis shot three-pointers terribly. Their only player with reliable three-point accuracy and volume, Jamal Mashburn, was currently sidelined with an injury and wasn't expected to return until the second half of the regular season.
"What?"
"Shoot the damn ball!"
The "Bearded" Davis shouted at Stacey Augmon. After receiving the pass, the latter spent too much time adjusting, allowing Link to rotate in front of him. With his arms wide, Link's terrifying defensive range intimidated Stacey Augmon into not shooting. As a result, the Charlotte Hornets committed a 24-second shot clock violation.
In response...
Link repaid hostility with kindness. Although Stacey Augmon had talked trash to him earlier, Link, influenced by Confucian culture, held no grudge. He patted Stacey Augmon on the shoulder and said, "Buddy, don't be sad... if you had shot just now, I would have definitely blocked it."
Link's tone made him sound like a "saint," but the actual meaning of his words was meant to hit where it hurts.
"Get lost, you damn rookie," Stacey Augmon said.
With a fire of anger in his heart, Stacey Augmon mentally prepared himself for the next encounter with the zone defense. Even if Link lunged at him, he would definitely shoot. At worst, it just wouldn't go in...
However, thinking and doing are two different things.
When Link lunged at him again, Stacey Augmon felt as if he had awakened "Observation Haki." He seemed to sense that he would definitely be blocked, so... when the referee's whistle blew again, "Beep"... he was still too scared to shoot.
"Haha, buddy, you've made the right choice again." Link once again applauded him, seemingly without a grudge.
The Charlotte Hornets naturally couldn't be scared into 24-second violations every time, but their three-pointers were truly poor. As for the method to break a zone defense—placing someone at the free-throw line—P.J. Brown, who had some shooting ability, could indeed stand there...
However, his playmaking ability wasn't very good, and Link liked to poke the ball from behind. When the Charlotte Hornets' Lee Nailon cut in from the wing and P.J. Brown was about to pass, Link suddenly popped out from behind. With a "Snap!", he completed the Steal.
And in the next second, Link was leading the break.
Link's fast-break ability had improved visibly compared to both the start of the season and even last month. While his Speed with the ball couldn't "completely" outrun guards, it was on par with ordinary forwards. Furthermore... Link's strength and physicality were elite even among small forwards.
This created a phenomenon...
Those faster than him weren't as strong.
Those stronger than him weren't as fast.
This time, Link was randomly matched against the 206cm Lee Nailon. With a stop-and-go move, he blew past him cleanly, drove into the paint, and went for a layup. With a "Bang!", P.J. Brown, following from behind, leaped for a chase-down block, but the referee's whistle blew...
"Beep!"
"Offensive goaltending!"
This play was really close. Although Link had a "mismatch advantage," it wasn't significant. Especially in terms of Speed, he wasn't like those players with explosive athleticism who could dunk immediately after beating their man. Instead, he was often disrupted by help defense.
54 to 46. With 4:11 left in the third quarter, the Washington Wizards were leading by 8 points through their zone defense.
Logically, with the Washington Wizards' zone defense being so effective, they should have led by more than 8 points. However, they couldn't withstand the bench players' poor performance...
Overall, though, the Washington Wizards were still suppressing the Charlotte Hornets.
...
...
"This rookie... when did he start running fast breaks so fast?" Charlotte Hornets head coach Paul Silas asked with a frown after seeing Link complete another assist on the break.
"Coach, don't worry. After the game, I'll have the league investigate if this rookie is on performance-enhancing drugs," the assistant coach said.
"Run... run... all you know is... run..."
"Link... Run-Run..."
On a fast break, Link used a leaning pass fake to trick Stacey Augmon into lunging for the Passing lane, then Link used a "sword-drawing" layup to score 2 more points.
Stacey Augmon, who had been fooled by fakes time and time again, cursed directly at Link.
"Buddy... I've recorded a triple-double under your defense." Link now had 28 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 assists.
The score reached 101 to 90. With 1:50 left in the game and an 11-point gap, the Charlotte Hornets threw in the towel.
On the other hand.
In front of the TV, Michael Jordan, who was watching the live broadcast, deleted the drafted text: "rookie, you can't do it without me, right?" Instead, he sent a very official message: "Link, congratulations on winning the game for our team. You're one step closer to becoming an All-Star."
Link saw it but ignored it.
Until that night...
After the NBA All-Star vote counts were updated, Link sent a text to Michael Jordan.
[First-year rookie Link currently ranks first in the Eastern Conference backcourt in All-Star voting; Michael Jordan currently ranks fourth in the Eastern Conference backcourt.]
This was part of the text, and also a headline from American news.
In addition...
There was another part of the message that Link wrote himself.
[Michael, what's wrong with the media these days? As a rookie, how could I have the nerve to step over your head and become an NBA All-Star starter?]