Ding! Harvey Grant scores, granting the host a random reward of $1,000!
Ding! Harvey Grant scores, granting the host a random reward of $3,000!
Lin Yu's heart surged with elation. The general had scored two points, yet he received two system notifications—a net gain of four thousand dollars.
Earlier, Lin Yu had calculated that a single game could net him over a hundred thousand dollars—that was based on the minimum $1,000 per point. Now it seemed tonight's earnings would far exceed that figure.
The game resumed. Penny drove to the basket but missed the shot. Sekulic grabbed the rebound.
"Chris, cut inside!"
"You're the power forward—play inside!"
Lin Yu shouted from the sidelines. Webber seemed unaccustomed to his power forward role, positioning himself too far outside.
After grabbing the offensive rebound, Sekulovic showed no intention of passing, preparing to isolate against Big Ben in the paint.
Without his former iron-willed resilience, Big Ben still held the strength advantage over Sekulic, but he could no longer dominate him.
The two tangled in the paint. Sekulic moved with nimble footwork—his nickname "The Dancer" was well-earned. After faking out Big Ben twice, he timed his shot off the backboard as Big Ben fell.
"Thud!"
With a loud clang, Webber charged in, raising his hand to deliver a thunderous block, sending Sekulic's bank shot flying out of bounds.
Lin Yu silently lamented the missed opportunity—since Webber hadn't activated his favorability, this block wouldn't earn Lin Yu any cash.
When fans think of Webber, they always recall his reputation as the most elegant power forward in history. It's precisely this reputation that leads many to mistakenly believe his defense was lacking—after all, if you're known for elegance, the dirty work of defense hardly fits that image.
Yet Webber's defense was anything but weak. From 1996 to 2004, his defensive stats—whether basic metrics like steals and blocks or advanced ones like defensive efficiency and defensive win shares—were every bit as impressive as those of Kevin Garnett or Karl Malone.
The Magic retained possession. Horry inbounded the ball, but Nets Anderson missed the mid-range jumper. Ben Wallace grabbed the rebound.
"Ding! Ben Wallace grabs the rebound. Host receives a random reward of $2,000!"
Seconds ticked away on the clock as the game remained fiercely contested. The Bullets' backcourt couldn't match the Magic's, and Penny couldn't find an effective counter.
Fortunately, they were gradually establishing dominance in the paint.
Ben Wallace hadn't yet reached his prime and lacked experience, so he held no advantage against Sekulovic in isolation. However, when paired with Webber, their synergy became evident.
Seven minutes into the first quarter, both teams made substitutions. Lin Yu pulled Legler and sent Chaney into the game.
Legler had been thoroughly tormented by Penny all night, struggling to get shots off on offense and offering little on defense.
The Magic pulled Sekulovic for a rest, and Lin Yu also substituted out Big Ben for Howard.
Over the next seven minutes, both teams traded baskets to tie the score at 16-16. Lin Yu estimated he'd already made at least fifty thousand dollars.
A few minutes later, Lin Yu noticed Harvey's breathing had grown heavy. He knew the remaining minutes would become the stage for the veterans.
With one minute left in the first quarter, nearly all starters had been rotated out—except Harvey, who remained on the court.
On the Bullets' possession, Harvey faced Penny. Without any fancy moves, he powered through Penny's defense, drove to the rim, and slammed it home.
Turning around, he snatched the rebound right over his brother Horace's head. Landing, he immediately drove the ball down the court for a fast break. At the frontcourt rim, facing a double team from Penny and Nick Anderson, he executed a masterful hook shot, pulling the ball in at an impossibly awkward angle.
Lin Yu was utterly stunned. General Harvey, with his all-around attributes skyrocketing, was becoming terrifyingly powerful.
Unfortunately, he could only activate the "Blood of the Berserker" state when his stamina dropped significantly, and it lasted no longer than a week. By next week, when new random passives appeared, he'd be back to his original form.
If the General could maintain this state permanently, he could go toe-to-toe with Jordan.
At the end of the first quarter, the General came off the court, panting heavily. He had played twelve minutes straight without a single second of rest.
Thirteen points, four rebounds, one assist, two steals—that was the General's first-quarter stat line.
After the brief intermission, Lin Yu sent the General back onto the court. By midway through the second quarter, he erupted again—this time not just offensively, but defensively too, snatching steals and swatting shots like a war god.
"Wes, what the hell is going on?"
Old Polin was stunned. He despised Harvey with a passion—the guy was useless yet raking in over four million of Polin's dollars.
Watching Harvey dominate the court like a god, Old Polin wondered if he was hallucinating.
Onseld inwardly groaned. What the hell? He wanted to know what was happening, too.
By halftime, Harvey had already racked up 28 points, six rebounds, three assists, three steals, and two blocks. His stats from this single game surpassed what he'd typically accumulate over half a month of play.
Onseld carefully recalled the recent string of bizarre events, realizing they all seemed connected to Lin Yu. He planned to have a serious talk with Lin after the game.
In the second half, Harvey remained unstoppable for the first few minutes. But by midway through the third quarter, he simply couldn't hold on any longer and called a timeout from the bench.
"Coach, I know you mean well, but I just can't keep going."
"I've been playing nonstop for thirty minutes straight since tip-off."
Xavi was gasping for breath. While Blood of the Warrior boosted players' combat power when their stamina dropped, it couldn't restore their endurance. Xavi hadn't taken a single second of rest since the game began, and he was now completely spent.
Lin Yu nodded. "Take a break. Come back in during the second half of the fourth quarter."
His expression was relaxed as he spoke, but inside, Lin Yu was bleeding. If Xavi didn't play, he'd lose a significant chunk of his earnings.
After Xavi left the court, the Magic, led by Penny Hardaway, mounted a counterattack. The Magic dominated the court, completely overpowering Xavi.
When Uncle Huo entered the game, whether due to poor shooting touch or just bluffing, he missed all four shots he attempted.
The Magic gradually closed the gap and took a four-point lead midway through the fourth quarter.
Lin Yu remained unflustered, bringing General back onto the court. After resting an entire quarter, General had enough stamina to carry him through to the end.
Harvey received thunderous applause from the crowd upon his return—even the fans hadn't realized they'd mistaken the former slacker for their savior.
"Boom!"
Less than two minutes after entering the game, the General drove to the basket, dunked over Sekali, drew a foul, and converted the and-one play!
As his stamina recovered, the General's combat effectiveness grew increasingly unpredictable.
The Magic had tried to contain the General's offense, but to no avail. Whether guarded one-on-one by Penny or double-teamed, the General always found a way to score.
Half the quarter flew by, and with less than ten seconds left on the clock, the Bullets held a six-point lead thanks to the General's relentless assault.
On the final possession, the General drove to the basket with the ball.
Only Cobra Horace stood in his way.
He leaped, snatched the ball with one hand, and flicked it through the hoop between Horace's legs mid-air—a fluid, seamless sequence.
As Cobra landed, the swish of the ball through the net echoed behind him, leaving him momentarily dazed—a fleeting illusion that he'd just faced Jordan himself.
"Beep! Beep! Beep!"
The referee's whistle blew, signaling the end of the game.
Forty-eight points, nine rebounds, four assists, four steals, two blocks—this was the final tally delivered by General Harvey Grant.
The moment the whistle fell silent, tears rolled down Grant's cheeks.
Drafted by the Bullets in '88, Verizon Center was where his dreams began—and where they shattered.
Tonight, at 32 years old, he played the defining game of his career. No words could capture the General's emotions in that moment.
"General!"
"General!"
"General!"
The Verizon Center echoed with fans' cheers, even Onseld rose to his feet and joined the roar.
Lin Yu couldn't contain his joy. He was thrilled by Harvey's performance, but even more so by his bulging wallet.
270,000!
After the game, the system settled the accounts. Lin Yu had netted a whopping $270,000 from this single match!
One game earned him more than his annual salary, and best of all, it was tax-free.
No horse grows fat without night feed, no man grows rich without windfall—Lin Yu had struck it rich. He decided to find new lodgings tomorrow and bid farewell to the basement for good.
Beyond Harvey's heroic performance, Weber also shone brightly tonight.
He finished with 16 points, 13 rebounds, seven assists, and four blocks. Taking a few shots himself, he repeatedly fed the ball to Harvey, who was on fire.
Ben Wallace didn't shine as brightly as usual, but his 11 rebounds and two blocks weren't bad either. The stats couldn't fully capture his impact tonight.
Beating the Magic proved far more challenging than Lin Yu had anticipated.
The Bullets' earlier blowout victory over the Hornets had inflated Lin Yu's confidence. He reasoned that if they could crush the fifth-seeded Hornets in the East, surely the seventh-seeded Magic would be a piece of cake.
However, once the game actually began, Lin Yu realized that teams also had their own strengths and weaknesses against each other. The Bullets' backcourt countered the Hornets' backcourt, while the Magic's backcourt countered the Bullets' backcourt.
Tonight, Flycar and Legler endured an agonizing game. Flycar fared somewhat better, handling the ball extensively and ultimately scoring 14 points. Legler, however, suffered terribly. Under Penny's relentless defense, he attempted only four shots all game, making just one three-pointer. That lone three-pointer was his only contribution.
Ironically, it was the bench player, Chaney, who delivered a solid performance, scoring 12 points through a mix of jumpers and drives to the basket.