Although Link's physique was among the strongest for a point guard, it wasn't in a class of its own. Besides, Link was just a point guard; his physical strength couldn't naturally compare to that of a legitimate interior player.
Because of this...
Link's celebration with his interior teammates usually involved a "high-five." As for the "chest bump," he definitely saved those for perimeter players like Michael Jordan...
Michael Jordan utilized Off-Ball Movement, pursued by Larry Hughes. A moment earlier, because Hughes wanted to help defend against Link's pick-and-roll drive, he failed to keep up immediately. Once Jordan reached the weak-side elbow, Link instantly distributed the ball. With a "swish," Jordan caught the ball and calmly sank the jump shot.
2 to 12, 9 minutes and 39 seconds left in the first quarter.
"Beep!", the Warriors called a timeout to perform a standard rotation.
For the remainder of the first quarter, the core starters of both sides, such as Link and Michael Jordan, rested on the bench.
On the opposite side, Bob Sura did not return to the court either, but for a different reason than Link and the others; he was being ruthlessly criticized by coach Dave Cowens.
Even though the Warriors were a bottom-tier team completely aiming for the number one draft pick in two years... well... a team's tanking isn't without purpose. Tanking teams develop new talent, but Bob Sura was no rookie. He was already 28 years old with extremely mediocre athletic ability. Aside from having a size advantage among point guards, he truly had no other highlights, essentially making him a beggar's version of Link.
Were the Warriors interested in his age? Or his slow speed? Or perhaps his many wrinkles?
Even if the Warriors were rebuilding, they wouldn't give him excessive ball possession.
...
...
As the game entered the second quarter, the Wizards' offense underwent some subtle changes.
And this was tailor-made for Link.
After all, the current Link was like a "skinny dog" in terms of physical endurance, and attacking with the ball in hand was particularly draining on his Stamina.
To address this, the Washington Wizards' standard arrangement for Link's Stamina was: play on-ball in the first quarter to open things up for the team; play off-ball in the second and third quarters, using Laettner's high-post playmaking to tear through the opposing defense; and then take back ball control in the fourth quarter.
Switching to off-ball play, Link was a total disaster for teams with poor defense. He was like a sharp dagger, stabbing not only at the opponent's heart but also at several sensitive areas.
"Wow, man, that's great. I didn't expect you to still be the one defending me?" Link saw that Bob Sura was still the one guarding him, and a bright, sincere smile immediately appeared on his face.
However, this heartfelt joy only made Bob Sura hate Link even more, wishing he could skin him alive.
Link's Off-Ball Movement skills were very "soulful." First, he feigned a run toward the Three-Point Shot line, then suddenly pulled a U-turn and cut to the basket. Bob Sura, the beggar's version of Link, was instantly left a full body length behind. Link's large palms caught the ball securely; after receiving it under the basket and seeing that Dampier hadn't lunged over, he scored directly off the glass.
31 to 22!
The reason Link's Off-Ball Movement was more impressive than a typical shooter's was that... after receiving the ball inside, he relied on his height advantage, good vision, and solid Passing fundamentals—collectively known as "ball-handling" ability.
Hmm...
Link's ball-handling ability was very... nice... Receiving a pass from Laettner under the basket, he saw that although Bob Sura had followed him, he had already reached a very deep position first. There was no need to pass; he slightly bent his knees to gather power, initiated contact first to create space, and then banked the ball in.
33 to 22.
Receiving another pass under the basket, Link was blocked by Dampier. Link palmed the ball, his arm almost brushing against Dampier's waist as he fed it to Haywood behind him. The latter caught the ball with his back to Dampier and rose up for a powerful dunk.
After the dunk, he even yanked hard on the rim and let out a roar at Dampier in front of him.
At this moment, when Dampier looked up at Haywood, he found that this rookie was no longer as timid as he had been at the start of the game. To avoid a conflict, the referee intervened promptly.
Besides looking for Link, the two-man game between Laettner and Link would also find other teammates... The defensive pressure on Hamilton and Michael Jordan was greatly reduced, especially for Michael Jordan...
Simple 1v1s without even any help defense—Michael Jordan, who had campaigned in the NBA for half his life, couldn't help but marvel: Holy crap, I've never fought such an easy war!!!
Throughout the second quarter, the Wizards exploded for 40 points.
In the small-ball era, this score for a single quarter would be considered high, but not rare.
However, in this current era...
It completely lived up to the word "explosive."
In the second quarter, Link played 11 minutes. Through Off-Ball Movement, he recorded 10 points, 2 assists, and 2 rebounds in the single quarter, plus 1 Steal. Michael Jordan got 12 points, Hamilton also got 8 points, and Laettner's single-quarter assist count reached a staggering 8.
As for Bob Sura, who was matched up against Link, he was nearly crushed into pieces.
Moving into the third quarter, the Washington Wizards' head coach originally intended to let Link and the others rest more, but the bench players were truly underwhelming...
The 24-point lead they held at the end of the first half was squandered down to just 13 points after their stint.
Jason Richardson even completed a 360-degree spinning dunk on a fast break. This prompted Michael Jordan on the bench to joke: "Link, this kid seems to be a rookie from the same class as you. He can really fly... In terms of dunking, he has 80% of the flair I had in my youth."
Looking at the boasting Michael Jordan, Link said nothing.
But in the subsequent play after checking back in, while Michael Jordan was defending Richardson's cutting dunk, he was "half-posterized" by the opponent.
What is a half-posterization?
Michael Jordan tried to turn and block the shot, but Richardson was a step faster in slamming the ball into the hoop.
Richardson was very excited after the successful dunk, while Michael Jordan was extremely angry.
Especially since Link didn't forget to add fuel to the fire: "Michael, you're right, his dunks are indeed explosive."
The furious Michael Jordan had no mind to pay attention to Link, but on the next defensive possession, he directly delivered a chasedown pin-down block on Richardson.
The domineering block caused an uproar throughout the Warriors' home arena.
This little interlude also accelerated the Warriors' defeat tonight.
In the third quarter, the Warriors had already DNP'd Bob Sura. Bob Sura's eyes were filled with rage as he looked at Link; he hated Link to death, and even started to resent Chinese people with the same skin color and eyes. Damn it...
Uh... I wonder if he'll become even more of a ball-hog after becoming Yao Ming's teammate in the future.
The person defending him was fellow rookie Jason Richardson. Standing at 198cm and weighing 102kg, Richardson had explosive physical tools and top-tier leaping ability, but he lacked defensive experience.
Link didn't just blindly cut to the basket; he began to pop out to the perimeter.
After receiving the ball, he used a pump fake to send the defender flying. Even if the defender didn't bite, Link would face up and drive, using his rhythm to consistently blow past the defense.
With 4 minutes and 13 seconds left in the fourth quarter, Link caught the ball in the corner. He looked like he was moving toward the top of the key, but instead, he put the ball down and drove along the baseline. After getting half a step past his man, he surged to the rim, took flight from low altitude, and with a "boom!", relying on his 221cm wingspan, completed a one-handed tomahawk jam.
This was Link's first powerful dunk of the game.
After the successful dunk, Link smiled and said to Richardson: "Man, I can fly too!!!"