Chapter 53

"Such a stylish dunk, this ball is both dominant and graceful. This is Hardaway, our Perry. No player in the world has such agility, not even Jordan."

"He is a gift from heaven to the NBA, invincible. A mere Lin Han is absolutely no match for him."

"Exactly, I really hope that Perry can be as dominant in every game as he is tonight. He has the ability, but why doesn't he use it?"

"Ha ha ha, in this game, we will finally see how that Chinese kid will embarrass himself. His skills are nothing compared to top players."

When Hardaway's first ball of the game exploded through Lin Han and the Jazz's defense with a spectacular one-handed slam, the Magic fans in the arena roared, and the reporters in the press box also transformed into Hardaway fans, their enthusiasm matching that of the Magic fans.

For a moment, Lin Han became the most delicious meal for Hardaway, who had turned into a crocodile.

Bursting the last 20% of his character value was Lin Han's biggest and most powerful move. Although the 20% burst was far less effective than the previous 75%, it was enough for a regular season game. After all, he could still showcase his skills under Payton's defense. Lin Han knew Hardaway was strong, but was Hardaway as strong as Payton in defense? Of course not. Hardaway wouldn't be as aggressive in defense as Payton.

Momentum is something hard to describe but very real. Lin Han's sudden change in momentum was clear to Hardaway. Previously, Lin Han would always be a bit hesitant in front of him, but this time it seemed different.

Lin Han's current ball-handling attribute is 15. After Kobe's fadeaway jump shot skill reached level 2, it came with an in-place ball-handling skill, which is used for feints and in-place ball protection. Although Lin Han doesn't have the movement ball-handling skill, he can't increase his speed to the maximum during fast breaks to avoid mistakes, which makes the Jazz team anxious every time he handles the ball. However, even so, Lin Han's in-place ball-handling is already at a certain level, making it hard to make mistakes in one-on-one situations.

"This guy is really determined."

Stockton watched Lin Han, who was continuously back dribbling while leaning on Hardaway, who was constantly defending from behind. After Stockton passed the ball to Lin Han, these two young rookies really got entangled.

Stockton never expected Lin Han to pass the ball back. He didn't like such a ball-hogging style, and in fact, no NBA star likes having a teammate with such attributes. But since Lin Han is so strong, Stockton had to tolerate him to some extent. For this game, since Hardaway wanted to show Lin Han his colors, Stockton and Malone could only support.

Lin Han's strength isn't great, while Hardaway's is good but not overwhelmingly so. Overall, Hardaway is more agile and graceful. So, even though Hardaway is much taller than Payton, Lin Han can still rely on him.

Moreover, in Lin Han's view, pushing Hardaway in a one-on-one back dribble isn't the best way to take revenge. This style doesn't use any feints or speed advantages; it's just a direct one-on-one contest of strength. Of course, whether Lin Han can push Hardaway is another matter. Lin Han's buttocks aren't as big as Barkley's or as strong as Mark Jackson's, so he couldn't push Hardaway away. Thus, Lin Han's current style is just to show his determination and attitude.

He isn't a lamb to be slaughtered or a soft persimmon to be easily squished. When he gets angry, he can be very scary.

Hardaway's defense on this ball was very aggressive. At least in terms of strength, Lin Han's final all-out collision was directly countered by Hardaway, who sent him flying. However, what Hardaway didn't expect was that Lin Han used this momentum to complete a turn and, almost lying down, threw the ball with a fadeaway jump shot.

"Such an arm span? How is that possible!"

Hardaway isn't a fool. When he decided to collide with Lin Han, he had already planned his next move. He was confident he could block Lin Han's off-balance shot, but he miscalculated this time.

"That's it."

Seeing the ball he threw spin twice on the rim before falling into the net and Hardaway's shocked expression, Lin Han felt very satisfied. The 20% character burst was indeed powerful. Normally, such an off-balance shot would be a 1 in 10 success rate, but he hit it on his first try in this game.

"Kid, impressive. Your high-difficulty offense is starting to resemble Jordan's."

"Ha ha ha, I said it. Although the world thinks Hardaway will dominate you, I still believe you won't fail so easily."

This ball boosted Lin Han's morale. When his teammates pulled him up from the ground, his hair was a mess.

A tie! This was the result of Lin Han's first confrontation with Hardaway. Neither of them could defend the other, and this result made Lin Han and the Jazz very satisfied. After all, Hardaway's influence and strength are significant, and he isn't an ordinary rookie. However, the Magic fans and reporters in the press box were quite surprised.

"Such a difficult fadeaway jump shot can be made. Is this kid really the second coming of Jordan?"

"Stop talking nonsense. This shot must have been luck, pure luck. Perry won't lose to a lucky idiot."

At this moment, the reporters in the press box were unsure, but Hardaway on the court was very determined.

"Beautiful, a very beautiful crossover and fadeaway jump shot."

After Lin Han's high-difficulty move against Hardaway, Hardaway faced Lin Han's defense and responded with a high-difficulty move. After a super crossover and a quick pull-back, Lin Han, the unreliable defender, was off-balance and almost fell. Hardaway's open crossover step-back jump shot also hit, making the score 4-2, with the Magic leading again.

"Damn, this kid is doing it on purpose. This kid is definitely doing it on purpose."

Lin Han, who had just stood up, was very angry when he saw Hardaway's disdainful look after the ball hit. This guy was definitely making him lose balance with feints, first by forcing him off-balance and then by making him lose balance with skill.

"Beautiful, really beautiful, Jerry, Jerry, another high-difficulty turn and fadeaway jump shot. Lin's offense is really beautiful."

Of course, Hardaway tried to mock Lin Han with every move, but Lin Han wasn't going to lower his presence and score as he usually did. Instead, he faced Hardaway directly every time, regardless of whether his strength could push Hardaway or his skills could fool him. Lin Han just went at Hardaway.

According to Lin Han's thinking, if you always want to make me fall, then I'll make you see and touch but never reach. Every time, I'll finish right on Hardaway. If he can't defend, we'll see who humiliates whom.

"Damn, we are the supporting cast in this game again."

Seeing the back-and-forth between Lin Han and Hardaway, Malone was really frustrated. The Jazz's star player suddenly realized that since the start of the season, he had always been the supporting cast to Lin Han. This kid's crazy offensive desire, if given the ball, could make anyone a supporting cast.

"Ha ha ha, Karl, I think this is quite interesting. But if you keep missing like you have in the last few games, he will eventually replace you."

"Ha, how can I be replaced? Just wait and see how I dominate that little fatty."

At this moment, Malone was shocked by the initial confrontation between Lin Han and Hardaway. The Magic fans, both coaches, both bench players, and even the reporters were all similarly shocked. These two were really going at it, neither able to defend the other.

"Heaven, is today April Fool's Day? The league actually has a rookie who can match Perry? How is that possible?"

At this moment, the most shocked was the Magic's head coach, Brian Hill. After Hardaway joined the team, he truly saw him as a god-like player, just like Shaq last season, a protagonist with full skills. So, he didn't hesitate to bench a 15+10 point guard for Hardaway.

Although Hardaway's strongest attribute isn't personal offense but his graceful and omnipresent passing, this doesn't mean his offense is weak. While he can't match Jordan or the Human Highlight Film, he is definitely a top-tier scorer.

But a top-tier scorer was actually going head-to-head with another rookie, and they were evenly matched. Although Lin Han's recent fame is great, being one of the