On the night of Jan. 22, the Grizzlies players did not go out or stay in their rooms after practice, but all gathered in Link's room.

After playing against the Kings on the 21st, Hollins rushed to Oakland with his players the next day. On the 23rd, the Grizzlies are going to play against the Golden State Warriors in the Bay Area. On the 24th, he immediately rushed to Portland back-to-back to fight the Trail Blazers.

So, Hollins decided to take the players to the Bay Area a day early to prepare for the game. This also allows the players to rest a little more.

After all, this is another round of disgusting 4 days and 3 matches.

This kind of life of playing one game every other day has become accustomed to the Grizzlies players. That's the way the shrinking season is, every team is treated the same.

So, on the night of the 22nd, all the Grizzlies players gathered in Link's room at the Bay Area hotel.

Don't get me wrong, Link didn't set up a game to invite his teammates to play. All Grizzlies players gathered here, just waiting for the NBA to officially announce the starting lineup for this year's All-Star Game in Orlando!

"How much longer? Why the fuck are you still running ads? ”

"Hey, who's asking for juice, I have leftovers in this bottle."

"Zach, man, get your head off the way, I can't see the TV anymore!"

Link's room was bustling, like everyone in a college dorm waiting to watch a live game together.

Link sat in the middle, his chin folded with his hands folded. He really didn't expect that he would become so nervous. The first All-Star start in Grizzlies history? Named to the All-Star Game for the first time in his career?

These are milestones, and it's no wonder that Link isn't nervous.

Finally, at half past seven in the evening, ESPN officially began the announcement ceremony of the starting lineup of the NBA All-Star Game.

"Hello everyone and welcome to ESPN! I think you've been waiting for this moment for a long time, so let's not talk nonsense! Just now, the NBA officially announced the results of the second round of voting for the All-Star Weekend. Magic center Dwight. With 1161797 votes, Howard became the vote king again! Chicago Bulls' Derrick. Rose followed Howard to become the second player in the league to surpass 1 million votes with 1040210 votes. Next, I'll announce the starting lineup for the Eastern and Western Stars. ”

After speaking, the host took out a small envelope and made a fool of himself. The full list of All-Star starters is available online, but the players haven't even seen it. In life, you still have to have a sense of ritual. Go directly to the list, where is the excitement of watching the live broadcast.

"The Western Conference Ticket King belongs to Kobe Bryant on the guard line. Bryant, his 1110379 vote goes straight to Howard, Chris. Paul got 835026 vote and was second among Western Conference guards. Therefore, the West pair of starting two guards, namely Kobe Bryant. Bryant & Chris. Congratulations, Paul! ”

This result is not too surprising, as Kobe Bryant and Paul are two of the top guards in the league. Thinking about it this way, it's not hard to understand why there was that "basketball reason" this offseason. The two strongest defenders in the league join forces, and the other teams will definitely not do it.

"Western power forward, two-time scoring champion Kevin. Durant is still in first place with 973152 votes, and he has confirmed a spot as an All-Star starter. Speaking of which, the host paused deliberately, and it seemed that he knew very well what the fans were most eager to know.

"As for the other striker in the West, it's ...... Tom from the Memphis Grizzlies. Forest, Link! He followed with 859623 votes, ranking second among Western Conference Forwards, becoming the second starting forward for the Western Conference All-Stars, congratulations! Blake. Griffin received 619913 votes, only in third place, missing out on the All-Star starter! ”

"Haha!" The moment the results were announced, Link was in the room with a frying pan.

Everyone raised their arms and cheered, and then hugged Link one by one! Randolph was even more exaggerated, this guy directly fired a "depth charge", and a back-to-back fell on the bed, almost flattening the bed.

"All-Star starters, starters! Wo Cao, it's amazing! Congratulations Link, congratulations! ”

"From now on, the Grizzlies will have All-Star starters too! Hahahaha! ”

"Good Link, at the All-Star Game, let people see the demeanor of the Grizzlies players!"

Link's ears were full of commotion and shouting from his teammates. But he didn't feel noisy, but felt extremely happy. Another career milestone, win!

Of course, how can you forget the terms of the $1 million award.

Soon, Link's phone was ringing non-stop. George, Rachel, Brockman, Martha, parents, and manager Jeff. Austin, including Kobe Bryant, all called to congratulate.

Link hasn't experienced the draft, but today he has that feeling of waiting for the draft results with his family.

The whole family stayed in front of the TV, just to wait for the person above to call out their names.

Only this time, Link was really chosen!

After the results of the All-Star starters were all announced, Link found that his 850,000 votes were really not low.

In the east, Anthony, one of the starting forwards, "Social Melon", received only 770,000 votes. And on the western side, Paul only had 830,000 votes. Starting center Bynum, on a big stage like Los Angeles, played so explosively this season, and it was only 770,000 votes.

After looking around, Link found that his votes were second only to Kobe and Durant, ranking third in the West!

It seems that even he himself underestimated his popularity. In the last round of voting, he and Griffin were in the same level, but after this little half a month of fighting, he and Griffin have completely opened up the gap.

A month later, in Orlando, Link will be more than just the protagonist of the "Cushion Race." This time, he's a serious All-Star!

There's a game tomorrow, and the hotel room is a big guy for the Grizzlies to play hard, so the celebration ended quickly. After a while, only Link and Randolph were left in the room again.

"How does it feel?" Randolph patted Link on the shoulder with relief.

"It's exciting, Zach, that feels like a dream come true." Link made no secret of his inner excitement, starting as an All-Star, an honor that many players can't have in their lifetime!

"yes, it's a dream come true. But I guess the people of Los Angeles are probably angry. Especially the one named John. Buha's Clippers team reporter, he probably wants to swallow back his previous words, hahahahaha. ”

"Well, the L.E. ...... By the way, Zach, are we about to beat the Clippers? Link suddenly turned his face to look at Randolph, who immediately took out his phone and called up the schedule.

Tomorrow to play the Warriors, No. 24 back-to-back play the Trail Blazers. After a day of rest, on Jan. 26, the Grizzlies will pounce on the Staples Center. Only this time, the Grizzlies' opponent is no longer the Los Angeles Lakers, but the Clippers!

"You say...... Wouldn't the Clippers be very vindictive? Link pouted, playing the Clippers at such a tired time after back-to-back, it was amazing......

"Trust me Link," Randolph tilted his head, "they will retaliate against us with the heaviest firepower." ”

"Ahh Link and Randolph sighed, then both collapsed on the bed exhausted.