Chapter 33

"Truly unbelievable defense, has this kid ever really defended since the one-on-one started between these two?"

"One might say that both of their defenses are a mess, but Marshburn has been trying his best, while the Chinese kid hasn't even tried."

"However, it has to be said that the duel between these two is quite interesting, especially Marshburn. This guy is really persistent. He could have used other methods to more easily break through the opponent, but he insists on playing the back-to-the-basket jump shot with Lin Han."

"Hahaha, indeed very interesting. Both of their back-to-the-basket jump shots carry the shadow of Jordan, but Marshburn's doesn't look as smooth, while Lin Han's jump shot is flawless. Maybe he lacks a bit in physical talent, but there's almost nothing to criticize. If I didn't really dislike him, I would definitely become his fan."

If the two players currently in a one-on-one on the court heard these comments from the reporters who enjoy stirring up trouble, Marshburn would probably rush over and beat them up. Being ignored because of his physique and appearance is a lifelong pain for Marshburn. Anyone who dares to rub salt in this wound will be beaten by him.

As for Lin Han, he wouldn't have any objections. In fact, the Jazz fans at the scene are no longer ignoring his presence. Due to Sloan and Malone, the Jazz fans went from booing Lin Han to ignoring him, and now, seeing their team's controversial rookie go head-to-head with one of the best rookies in the league, Marshburn, they are somewhat incredulous. Clearly, Lin Han seems to be gradually taking the upper hand, which makes them even more excited. Perhaps, as Sloan said, the Jazz have really found a gem.

"How is this possible? How can this guy have such enduring stamina, and why are his movements still so standard, with no deformation at all?"

In the game between the Mavericks and the Jazz, the first two minutes were normal, but the rest of the game was incredibly surprising. The two rookies of the teams this year became the main characters. Marshburn is understandable, as he is a key player for the Mavericks, second only to Jim Jackson. Jim Jackson, last year's super rookie, has a good relationship with him and doesn't mind letting Marshburn teach the Chinese player a lesson in this game, so Marshburn has the Mavericks' unlimited shooting rights.

As for Lin Han, he naturally doesn't have much freedom to shoot in the Jazz, but due to Marshburn's provocation, the veterans on the Jazz don't mind giving Lin Han a chance. Moreover, they really want to see Lin Han's true game strength, so this game has turned into a one-on-one between the two rookies.

However, this one-on-one is slowly showing a winner, and Marshburn seems to be running out of steam.

The back-to-the-basket jump shot is often called a back-to-the-basket move. In the NBA, there is a widely accepted common sense that for perimeter players, ball-handling attacks consume more energy than back-to-the-basket attacks. However, back-to-the-basket attacks also have different levels. Jordan's back-to-the-basket or other players' back-to-the-basket moves actually consume as much energy as ball-handling attacks. The back-to-the-basket jump shot has a large range of motion and is not a simple back-to-the-basket move, unlike the most standard back-to-the-basket move—the hook shot. In the entire league, there are very few players who can continuously and crazily perform back-to-the-basket jump shots in a game, and the few who do will have very low shooting percentages by the end. Only Jordan, the freak, can maintain good performance from the start to the end of the game.

Although Marshburn's moves are learned from Jordan, he doesn't have Jordan's purple skill that ignores personal stamina, so even though Lin Han's defensive intensity isn't very high, this guy is struggling. His movements are becoming more deformed, and his shooting percentage is starting to decline. On the other hand, Lin Han seems to have not consumed any energy at all, with an extremely high shooting percentage. Even two shots that were touched by his fingertips still flew into the basket. Lin Han's performance in this game is simply incredible.

"Hmph, one-on-one with me? Comparing the endurance of this move with me? Aren't you asking for it?"

After Marshburn missed a shot, Lin Han responded with a successful one, which has already made Marshburn despair. This time, the Mavericks' small forward didn't jump to defend anymore because he realized he couldn't afford to waste energy on ineffective defense. In his view, Lin Han's strong offensive performance is due to his defensive stance, where he doesn't use full effort.

In fact, this seems to be the case. Although Lin Han used the training facility function of the legendary system during the summer, spending over 8,000 points to train with the best coach for four years, exhausting his basketball potential, his current attributes and abilities are much better than when he first started playing basketball.

For example, his personal offensive rating has improved from E+ to C-, his ball-handling ability is 9, passing ability is 8, shooting ability is 15, three-point shooting is 9, free-throw ability is 11, and his penetration ability is 7. This offensive ability might not be as good as many NBA bench players, but it has improved a lot. Previously, Lin Han's personal offensive abilities, except for his shooting ability which was boosted to 15, were all below 5.

As for Lin Han's previously worst personal defensive rating, it has also improved significantly. His steal ability is now 6, block ability is 7, one-on-one defense is 5, offensive rebound and defensive rebound are both 7, and his defensive rating has improved from the worst E to D-. Although this rating is still lower than an average NCAA player, it is several times better than Lin Han's previous default minimum of 1.

As for his overall physical talent, there hasn't been much change. His strength has increased from 9 to 11, speed and explosiveness are still 11, agility is still 12, and his jump and balance, which he boosted with attribute points, are both 15. The most significant change is probably his stamina, which was 6 before formal training but is now 10. Although it is still low, if he doesn't engage in intense physical contact in the NBA and just walks through the game, he can play the full 48 minutes.

Therefore, in this game, Lin Han is indeed conserving his energy, but it's not to maintain his offensive firepower as Marshburn imagines. It's because he wants to play for a longer time. Although his Kobe-style back-to-the-basket jump shot doesn't consume energy, defense, ball-handling, penetration, passing, and positioning all do.

Thus, in the following game, Marshburn also became like Lin Han, not putting effort into defense and focusing all his energy on offense. This was slightly better, but after a while, Marshburn realized he was at his limit, while Lin Han still seemed to have a lot of energy left. It looked like as long as he had the ball, he could shoot with extremely standard form, which not only shocked Marshburn but also stunned the other players on the court.

"John, have you counted how many high-difficulty shots that kid has taken in the past eight minutes?"

In the minds of many NBA players, the back-to-the-basket jump shot is a high-difficulty move. Although almost everyone can learn it, not everyone dares to use it because the shooting percentage is low and it consumes a lot of energy. In the NBA, except for Jordan, few players use this low-efficiency offensive skill for long periods. If they do, they might end up like Marshburn. Although Marshburn is somewhat self-praising, it's true that many scouts rated his back-to-the-basket jump shot as one of the best in the NBA before he entered the league.

"I don't know, but if we calculate, about two to three times per minute, it's probably over twenty. Throwing so many in a quarter and still being so relaxed is unbelievable. If we keep passing him the ball, could he throw sixty times in a game? That's terrifying."

"I think sixty times in a game is conservative. Look at Marshburn, his arms are almost too tired to lift. Although I don't know Lin's limit, I don't think it's just sixty times in a game."

"He's a one-on-one killing machine. I'm really impressed, heartily impressed. I shouldn't have challenged him in the previous scrimmage. If he grows a bit more, I can't imagine any forward or guard, except Jordan, who could beat him in a one-on-one."

"Only a one-on-one invincible player can truly make the opponent fear. Like the Pistons' Jordan Rule, it's because Jordan was invincible in one-on-one. However, Lin's physical talent is hard to match Jordan's. He might end up making his teammates fear him rather than the opponents. If he can't be invincible in one-on-one but still shoots infinitely, he'll be a cancer."

At this moment, the other Jazz players watching from the sidelines felt a chill down their spines. Having such a teammate made them feel complex, but Lin Han wouldn't change anything because of his teammates' thoughts. He still received the pass from his teammate, took two dribbles, and then turned to shoot, hitting the shot again.

When Marshburn, who was defending Lin Han, saw the ball go through the hoop again, his arms and legs trembled.

"What the hell is this freakish shooting percentage? Even Jordan didn't have such an abnormal shooting percentage, right?"

At this moment, the fans in the stands were almost boiling, and the reporters were the same, with their hearts racing. Even if Marshburn's defense was like paper, Lin Han shouldn't have such a bizarre shooting percentage. After throwing over twenty shots, he still hit them so steadily. Is this necessary?

"Jerry, look at this game's technical statistics."

As Jerry Sloan watched Lin Han's dominant performance on the court, almost trembling with excitement, his assistant coach Phil Johnson handed him a technical statistics sheet.

20 shots, 16 made, 1 free throw, 1 made, 33 points!

"33 points, 33 points. If I remember correctly, the NBA record for points in a quarter is 33, right? Bad, we need to make a substitution quickly."

Sloan looked at the technical statistics in shock and almost shouted to his assistant. With Lin Han's current shooting touch and one minute left, he definitely has a chance to break the record set by the Ice Man, George Gervin, 15 years ago.

Lin Han can break the record, but not now. If he really did, he would immediately become the 'public enemy' of all players in the league. In every game, opponents would target him because he did something that doesn't match his status. Others wouldn't admire him for breaking the Ice Man's record; they would want to step on him to rise. If a superstar like Jordan, Mullin, or Drexler did this, it wouldn't be the same.

Sloan doesn't know why Lin Han has such an extraordinary shooting touch in this game, but he knows it's not Lin Han's normal state. He won't perform like this in the next game. In this situation, if he really did this, it would be like destroying him. Sloan wouldn't let such a 'genius' be ruined on his watch.

In fact, just as Sloan was shouting to make a substitution, the Mavericks' coach, Buckner, had already taken Marshburn off the court. Marshburn was trembling, his hands shaking, and his eyes lifeless. Losing the game is small; if Marshburn developed a psychological shadow, it would be a disaster.

After Marshburn, who looked like a zombie, was taken off the court, Lin Han was also substituted, which made Lin Han very frustrated.

For this game, he burned 75% of his luck points. The 100% luck points he had accumulated over several months were now down to 25%. Lin Han had planned to use this game to establish his position in the Jazz, but he didn't expect Sloan to be so uncooperative.

Of course, Lin Han only wanted to shine in this game, completely ignoring the consequences. Sloan couldn't be so reckless.

What slightly relieved Lin Han's frustration was that when he was substituted, the DJ at the scene announced that Lin Han's 33 points in a quarter broke the Jazz's record for the most points in a quarter and tied the league record.

In this situation, combined with Lin Han's dominance in the one-on-one against Marshburn, the Jazz fans were almost overwhelmed with excitement. Naturally, when they saw Lin Han being substituted, the nearly 20,000 Jazz fans in the arena all shouted his name and applauded the rookie who was highly doubted before the game.

Being sent off the court by the cheers of the Jazz fans was something Lin Han hadn't expected, so at this moment, his complex emotions overshadowed his frustration at being substituted by Sloan.

At this moment, the reporters from the national media, who had come to see Lin Han's embarrassment, were silent as they saw the Jazz fans shouting Lin Han's name.