The time came to December 16, 2001. Tonight was the first game of the eighth week of the regular season for the Washington Wizards.
Major media outlets had whipped up a frenzy surrounding this game.
The Cavaliers' backup Swingman, Ricky Davis, was especially provocative in the pre-game build-up.
"I can defend Link with one hand."
"Link is a player who is severely overrated by the outside world."
"If I had entered the draft in the same year as Link, I should have been the team's number one draft pick."
Ricky Davis's performance this season was actually quite good. As the team's 'sixth man,' he averaged 12 points per game with a shooting percentage of 48.1%. Face-up drives after catching the ball and transition play were his primary scoring methods.
Hmm... that's right. In James's first NBA regular season game, after completing a Steal, he chose to pass the ball to the trailing Ricky Davis to help the latter complete an explosive tomahawk dunk; generally speaking, for a play like that, the team's leader would let the rookie have it.
But tonight, Ricky Davis appeared in the starting lineup. Standing at 198cm, he served as the team's shooting guard and would match up against Link on the defensive end.
"That's right, I earned the right to start tonight, and it's all thanks to Link over there..." Before the game, in the locker room, Ricky Davis appeared very smug when asked by the media about starting for the team tonight.
Ricky Davis was naturally not satisfied with being the team's sixth man.
In his view, tonight's game was the 'turning point' of his career. As long as he ground Link—the league's current golden boy—into the floor, he would definitely gain the trust of the team management and become the team's franchise star.
The media reporters told Link about Ricky Davis's remarks, adding their own flair to the story.
"Who?"
"Who is Ricky Davis? Sorry, I don't know him."
As the 'Green Tea Boy' in Jordan's heart, Link rarely belittled opponents in public interviews, always preferring the 'kill with kindness' approach.
This uncharacteristic reaction made the media reporters on the scene incredibly excited.
On the other hand.
A series of mechanical, cold electronic sounds from the system rang out in Link's mind.
"Ding, congratulations to the Host for triggering a random mission—Tremble, Ricky Davis!"
"Mission Description: Break Ricky Davis's mentality; Criterion for breaking: Shedding tears after the game."
"Mission Reward: Random Superstar sparring partner card x1; 500 Goat Points!"
...
...
Both teams' starting lineups saw some adjustments tonight.
Cavaliers: Andre Miller, Ricky Davis, Jumaine Jones, Lamond Murray, and Chris Mihm.
Wizards: Link, Michael Jordan, Hubert Davis, Christian Laettner, and Brendan Haywood.
Hamilton was resting tonight due to back muscle tension. The 196cm shooter, Hubert Davis, stepped into the starting spot and would be defending Andre Miller tonight.
Andre Miller had many nicknames, such as 'Little Fundamentals' and 'genius killer.' Currently, Andre Miller was leading the league with 11.2 assists per game. In his past life, Andre Miller was indeed the assist leader this season.
The team arranged for Link to guard Ricky Davis tonight.
After the game began, TNT commentator Charles Barkley joked: "These two teams know exactly what the fans want to see; Link and Ricky Davis are matching up directly on both ends of the floor."
However...
The roles and impact these two had on their respective teams were worlds apart...
Link was the team's offensive brain and playmaking core, while Ricky Davis played more of an off-ball style. In this starting lineup, he wasn't even considered the team's third scoring option.
The Cavaliers won the opening tip for the first possession. Andre Miller, the 'Little Fundamentals' who disliked dunking, steadily controlled the ball past half-court and then bullied his way inside against Hubert Davis; his footwork was simply unstoppable.
Although Little Fundamentals didn't like to dunk and was a typical traditional point guard, his physical attributes were excellent, both in terms of leaping ability and strength/weight.
After Andre Miller easily slipped past his defender again, facing Link's help-defense harassment, he gathered the ball early, stepped through to the bottom left, and used a pump fake to fly Haywood before hitting a bank shot floater.
4 to 8, the Cavaliers led by 4 points.
"rookie... your defense is about to be destroyed by Andre... I suggest you go double-team him." Ricky Davis talked trash to Link, trying to influence his defensive decisions.
"Shut up, you zero-point nobody," Link replied politely.
Ricky Davis had a height of 198cm, a wingspan of 213cm, and a weight of 100kg. His static physical gifts were perfectly fine for an NBA shooting guard. His dynamic gifts, such as speed, lateral movement, and explosiveness, were also at an elite level among shooting guards.
Otherwise, the Cavaliers wouldn't have chosen to let him stat-pad next year.
As long as this type of player has a positive defensive attitude, their individual defense won't be too bad since the talent is there. Furthermore, this was an era where the paint was king; even if they got blown by, there was still a big Center guarding the rim.
Holding the ball at the top of the key, Link again had Brendan Haywood come up for a high pick-and-roll. *Bang!* Ricky Davis was hung up on the screen. Link drove left, and after taking a large step forward, he saw that Chris Mihm had finally stepped up this time, intending to contest his Mid-range Shooting.
In the Wizards' first three offensive possessions, Link was 2-for-2 from mid-range. Chris Mihm, who wanted to play drop coverage, was forced into this by Link. At this moment, Link didn't rush his attack. Instead, he used a between-the-legs dribble to draw the defense's attention. In the next instant, he followed up with a standing behind-the-back dribble. *Thud.* The basketball switched from his left hand to his right, and with a *Whoosh!*, he fired a powerful direct pass to the rolling Haywood.
The latter caught the ball, bumped off Ricky Davis who was trying to close in, and with a *Bang!*, successfully converted the 'pick-and-roll snack' into a thunderous dunk.