In the Texas High School League finals, Link, who racked up 57 points, 17 assists, 6 rebounds, 4 Steals, and 2 Blocks, not only received 141 points in post-game rewards but also happened to receive an invitation to the McDonalds All-American Game.
He finally completed the main quest—I Am a Star High Schooler.
He received a reward of 500 GOAT points, plus 1 random superstar sparring partner card.
[GOAT Value: 1,461/8,161]
"Whoa..."
"The superstar sparring partner card this time is actually 'The Worm' Rodman!"
Even though Rodman was a 7-time NBA rebounding champion, ranked fifth in total rebounds in NBA history, and first among power forwards, Rodman's barefoot height was actually a bit shorter than Link's.
Besides rebounding, Rodman's defense was also at a top-tier level in NBA history.
In the superstar sparring partner card's challenge—the Hundred-Point Battle—the sparring partner does not consume Stamina.
Furthermore, Dennis Rodman's name did not contain the words "Paul" or "George." Given Link's current abilities, defeating him would be very difficult. Even if Rodman wasn't known for his offense, his strength and weight tonnage far exceeded Link's. He could back Link down indefinitely, and once he reached the basket, even if he missed, he could quickly grab the rebound for a second-chance points.
But Link still wanted to give it a try.
The two played a total of 8 rounds of the Hundred-Point Battle.
In 4 rounds, he scored fewer than 20 points; in 3 rounds, he scored fewer than 40 points.
In one other round, Link activated [Dominance Moment—Sharpshooter], and his personal score exceeded 70 points.
The final score was 100 to 72!
Link only completed the three-star reward, obtaining a new badge—[Box-Out Master (Bronze)]. Having this badge would better help Link secure rebounding positions and also slightly improve his defensive rebounding awareness.
...
...
Time passed quickly, and the McDonalds All-American Game drew closer.
In the latest edition of ESPN's mock draft rankings,
Link, who had just been awarded the honorary title of "Texas Mr. Basketball," was only ranked 21st in the first round, still failing to enter the lottery pick range.
However, Sports Illustrated, which had recently featured Link as a cover figure, placed him at 5th overall in their latest mock draft. As a side note, the top four were: Kwame Brown, Tyson Chandler, Eddy Curry, and the King of Basketball from Europe—Pau Gasol.
Additionally, two other authoritative media outlets, USA Today and the NBA Official Website, ranked Link at 24th and 25th in the first round, respectively.
This sparked heated discussions among fans online once again.
There were roughly two schools of thought:
"Sports Illustrated is only supporting Link to grab fans' attention. With his mediocre athletic talent, he absolutely cannot play Point Guard in the NBA. As the first high schooler to be a Sports Illustrated cover figure, he is clearly overrated. Even if he displayed unprecedented dominance in the Texas High School League, the level of basketball in Texas has been quite average in recent years. In the long history of the NBA, there's no shortage of players who relied on their bodies to crush opponents and put up flashy stats in high school. But after entering college leagues, where the overall environment is higher, faster, and stronger, they become mediocre and don't even qualify to be drafted by the NBA."
Link's athletic ability was a point of criticism from the outside world.
This was also a major reason why many believed it would be difficult for him to gain a foothold in the NBA.
Uh...
In games broadcast by media like FOX Sports and ESPN2 Channel, Link hadn't even completed a single "in-game dunk." Well, not even the simplest fast-break rim-grazer had ever appeared.
With such mediocre running and jumping ability, how could he survive in the high-flying NBA?
While there was significant opposition in America, there were also voices of support.
"Although Link plays Point Guard, he is over 2 meters tall with an excellent wingspan, giving him an NBA-level forward's physique. Furthermore, he has precise jump-shooting ability and good game-reading skills. Defensively, while it's hard for him to guard small guards on pick-and-rolls, he has some ability to switch onto big men."
"Most importantly, Link is only just over 17 years old. According to reliable sources, his body is still in its golden development phase, and his running and jumping talent seems to be getting better and better. I believe he will become the next NBA superstar."
...
...
Regarding the debate over Link, besides the media and fans, even players came out to voice their opinions.
Among them were high school seniors who had also received invitations to the McDonalds All-American Game.
For instance:
Dajuan Wagner said quite dismissively: "With his Speed as slow as an old clunker, blowing past him is like driving on a wide-open road at 4 AM. Many stupid guys out there say he's the best guard in the Class of '01, but in three days, I'll use facts to prove to everyone who the real number one high school guard in America is."
Julius Hodge, the most outstanding wing in the Class of '01, was also a future NBA player—well, more accurately, a brief visitor to the NBA, playing for the Portland Trail Blazers in the 05-06 season. During college, he was selected for the All-Defensive Team multiple times.
"To be honest, I don't think Link's offense is strong at all. I'll let him see what real defense looks like."
The strongest high schooler in the Class of '01 and a favorite for the number one draft pick, "Baby Shaq" Eddy Curry, said when interviewed about Link: "I used to be a loyal fan of Sports Illustrated, but ever since a certain player became a cover figure, I haven't followed it since."
Besides these three publicly expressing their dissatisfaction, other players also more or less took shots at Link, who was being hyped by the media.
In reality, only a few of these people had been dominated by Link at the ABCD Training Camp. The reason they hated Link so much, besides the American media setting the narrative by hyping it up as a PK between two nations,
was also that Link's media exposure even slightly exceeded that of the Class of '01's "high school big three," naturally drawing the jealousy of homegrown American players.
...
...
The date arrived: April 12, 2001.
Link sat on a flight bound for Durham, North Carolina.
Regarding the contempt and criticism from homegrown American high schoolers, he had even become the public enemy of American high schoolers!
This had successfully influenced Link's mindset during this period.
Mm...
That's right.
As a result, Link trained even harder than before.
Link liked to use negative comments as motivation to become stronger.
Chris Bosh, who was close to Link and trained with him, regularly had weak legs, which nearly aroused the suspicion of Head Coach Leonard.
And this period of hard training, along with almost emptying all his GOAT points—
[GOAT Value: 11/8,161].
All of it was used to purchase Green's sparring partner cards and special training cards, leading Link to undergo another visible transformation.
[Shooting & Playmaking Category]:
[Three-Point Shot] base attribute +8, increased to 76 (89); [Mid-range Shooting] base attribute +4, increased to 88 (96); [Close-Range Shot] base attribute +1, increased to 86 (93).
[Defense & Playmaking Category]:
[Ball Handling] base attribute +2, increased to 82 (88); [Passing] base attribute +2, increased to 82 (88); [Passing Vision] base attribute +2, increased to 82 (90); [Offensive Rebound] base attribute +15, increased to 55 (70); [Defensive Rebound] base attribute +10, increased to 68 (88).
Half the credit for the rapid increase in rebounding went to training with Rodman.
[Physique & Athleticism Category]:
[Speed] base attribute +4, increased to 64 (76); [Explosive Acceleration] base attribute +5, increased to 45 (70); [Strength] base attribute +5, increased to 65 (80).
The Physique & Athleticism category was much harder to train than basketball skills and IQ, even with the 5x buff from the [physique and sports special training card (monthly)].
However...
Now Link's linear Speed had reached 64, which was close to the limit for a high school guard.
The only issue was still Link's poor explosiveness...
Simply put, once Link reached full Speed, he was similar to those Speed-type high school Point Guards, but he required a longer acceleration time.