Before the start of this game, Paul. George had said countless good things about Link to Stephenson.

At first, Stephenson thought George just liked his college teammates too much, so he called Link very tough. But if he's really that good, will he still be a draft loser?

But after actually playing against Link today, Stephenson realized that this Chinese player seemed to be more powerful than George's narrative!

In the opening kick, Link blocked Stephenson with a textbook defense. And when the speed is not too fast, the fast break is completed with just passing.

Stephenson has been playing for so many years, and he knows very well which players are good to mess with and which ones are not. Sometimes, it only takes one round for him to get a rough estimate of a player's strength.

Unfortunately, a guy like Link, who can predict where an offensive player will move next, is the scariest of all.

"Lance, cheer up and pass the ball more!"

Seeing Stephenson stunned on the court, Mad Ants coach Steve Brown. Gancy yelled anxiously.

While Stephenson is a thorn, he's also a winning hope for the Mad Ants. If he becomes overwhelmed on the court, the Mad Ants' offense will be at a standstill.

Hearing Gancy's shouting, Stephenson came to his senses. He raised his hand to ask his point guard for the ball, but as soon as he received the basketball, he was pressed by Link.

That Chinese No. 5 is not going to give "Sons of New York" any chance!

"The confrontation between the two sides is very fierce, and I want to say that this set of matchups is an NBA-level competition at all!"

The commentators are attentive and can see NBA-level matchups in the Development League, which is a rare performance.

Stephenson arched Link with his head, and Link just raised his arms in the air without making any superfluous movements.

Although Link's character and Grant's. Hill is completely different, but in terms of playing habits, Link has inherited Hill as well.

As we all know, Hill has always been a humble gentleman, a good gentleman. His affable personality and Iverson's unruliness are two extremes of the spectrum, and a nice gentleman like Hill plays very cleanly.

Without fouls, Stephenson had to find a way to break through with minimal space. He tried twice, but Link blocked him.

The space was too small for Stephenson to notice anything he wanted to do. And with Link sticking so close, Stephenson couldn't play to his speed advantage either.

"Stephenson was in a hard fight, he could barely move an inch! Link's defense today was simply amazing, and Stephenson had to choose to pass! ”

Stephenson passed, but his pass didn't mean much. Because this time the pass was not to organize the attack, but to be forced to pass the ball.

After the pass, Stephenson looked down again. Where he stood when he received the ball, and where he still stood after he passed it.

In other words, when Link defended him, Stephenson didn't even take a step, he was completely locked in place!

This isn't the first time Stephenson has been held back since entering the draft. But unlike today, the last time Stephenson was so embarrassed was in the NBA, because of his opposition to Kobe.

But today...... He was deflated by a failed draft.

After returning from the Development League, Stephenson must complain about George.

He spoke of his former teammates as a little too weak.

※※※

Larry. Bird has always had one goal in mind, and that is to become the godfather of basketball like Auerbach. How important Auerbach was to the Celts is needless to say. And what Bird wants to do is to belong to Auerbach in Indianapolis.

Although he stepped down from the managerial position, Bird has done a good job in the management of the team in recent years. Now that he's the Pacers' basketball operations president, he's selected George and Stephenson with a first-round 10th pick and a second-round 10th pick, believing his choices will make the team better.

About Paul. George, Larry. Bird wasn't too worried. Although the kid is now averaging less than 10 points per game, the talent he shows on the court is visible to the naked eye.

What really worries Bird is Stephenson, who is the tenth pick in the second round. Ross Barkley once said, "Stephenson is one of the most talented players in the league, he just has a weird temper. ”

Bird agrees that Stephenson would never have made it to the second round if it weren't for the off-court trouble.

It was precisely because of Stephenson's childish temper that Bird punished him less.

But lately Bird has discovered that the previous punishments were a little too painless for Stephenson. So he was ruthless and threw Stephenson directly into the Development League again.

Stephenson is an untamable beast, but once tamed, Bird gains a Predator who is not afraid of heaven and earth.

The Pacers didn't have a game today, so when he got home from work, Bird turned on his local TV station in Indiana and watched the Dev League game live.

At this point, the game had reached the third quarter. To Bird's great surprise, the Fort Wayne Mad Ants were already 13 points behind.

"What!?" Bird frowned, with Stephenson, the Mad Ants still trailed by 13 points in the third quarter? What the hell did that guy do?

In Bird's vision, Stephenson should be able to dominate the development league on both ends of the floor. But on the court, a Chinese player wearing the number 5 jersey used a beautiful counterattack to shake off Stephenson, and then took the ball and threw it.

The No. 5's shooting was so steady that Bird almost couldn't help but applaud.

Next, the data comparison between the two sides was played under the TV screen.

That No. 5 Chinese Tom. Lin has scored 18 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists so far, which is very comprehensive.

Stephenson's stats were 6 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists and 4 turnovers......

The Predator in Bird's heart was completely blown up by that little-known Chinese!

At first, Bird thought Stephenson was just playing out of sorts. But after watching the third quarter of the game, Bird dispelled such thoughts.

Because judging from the performance on the court, Stephenson is not an abnormal performance at all, but simply a lack of strength!

Whether it is shooting stability, defensive stability or personality calmness, that Chinese No. 5 is better than Stephenson!

Bird knows very well that Stephenson has a few pounds and taels, and a development league player who can beat Stephenson is definitely not simple!

So, Bird immediately opened his laptop and searched for Link's name.

It doesn't matter if you don't search, as soon as you search, a bunch of news appeared on the computer screen about Link's triple-double in the last game.

One can blow up Stephenson and also in Luke. Babbitt had a triple-double on his head, and Bird didn't think the Development League was where he should be.

Bird is hell-bent on making the Pacers completely transformed, so he won't turn down any quality player.

He doesn't care about the color of a person's skin or his origin, he only cares about what this player can bring to the team.

So, he picked up the phone and called his chief scout.

"I don't care what you do, get in touch with him as soon as possible, I want to offer him a 10-day contract."

Bird's request is clear, he wants to sign Link!

"Uh...... I'm afraid you're a step too late, Bird. As far as my network knows, the Houston Rockets have already taken action on Link. They were also interested in offering Link a short contract of 10 days. ”

Hearing the scout's reply, Bird smiled wryly. In the world of basketball, it's gold that really always shines. And this alliance has never lacked gold diggers.