The Bullets' final game of this road trip is against the Nuggets, starting next Monday. After that, Lin Yu will be able to lead the team back to Washington.
At ten o'clock on Sunday morning, Lin Yu had just woken up and was about to gather the players for the airport to fly to Denver Highlands, the Nuggets' home court.
Unseld's call arrived as expected.
"You're such a ruthless guy! If I were Pat Riley, I'd definitely rush to Vancouver and kill you overnight. You wouldn't have survived last night!"
"Your tactics were both ruthless and clever. You didn't take the field yourself, but instead sent that Ray Jackson to do it. Wasn't that what he said your way?"
"The only imperfection is that you dragged Magic Johnson into this. He's not someone to be trifled with." "But it doesn't matter. As long as I'm in this league, no one can bully you. That's my promise."
Lin Yu's heart warmed, and he secretly sighed at how lucky he was to have won Unseld's friendship at the beginning of his journey. If it were someone like Riley, even if Lin Yu had a perfect relationship with him, if they really encountered any difficulties, I'm afraid Riley would sell Lin Yu out immediately.
"I'm not as powerful as you say. Those words last night were all Ray Jackson's own conclusions. They have nothing to do with me."
Unseld was even happier when he heard this. "What a talent! We must keep such talents around."
"When I get back, I'll personally treat that guy to dinner. The next time I get into trouble, he'll definitely be a big help."
Lin Yu was still wondering where he had offended Riley. "Mr. Unseld, how do you think I offended Riley?"
"I've thought about it carefully, and it seems like he and I have absolutely no connection at all. Why would he suddenly pick on me?"
Unseld's face flushed red at this question. He was well aware of his own sins, but now, facing Lin Yu's questioning, he began to stammer.
"Who knows? He's just a psychopath." "You don't have to be afraid of him anyway. I've got you covered. He can't do anything to you."
With that, Unseld quickly hung up the phone, fearing that continuing would tip Lin Yu off. Lin Yu had no doubts, but he had no idea he was being tricked by Unseld.
Upon arrival in Denver, Colorado, Lin gave the players a day off; they needed a good rest after their back-to-back.
Lin Yu wasn't idle either, wandering around the Denver Zoo, one of the largest in the United States, even housing several giant pandas from China.
In his previous life, Lin Yu had never seen a panda in China. His first encounter with a panda in person was on American soil.
After strolling into the evening, Lin Yu hurried back to the hotel, quietly awaiting the new week's random auras.
At eight o'clock in the evening, the auras refreshed.
"The weekly random aura is being drawn. Please wait for thirty seconds!"
"Passive Aura 1: 'Continuous Flow' increases the Speed attribute of allied players by 3 points.
This effect draws 20% of all attributes from a designated player on the field, distributing them to the remaining four teammates. Passive Aura 2: 'Sacrifice Aura' permanently disappears after the match.
" Passive Aura 3: 'Seal of Gan Jue'. This effect grants the host a designated player with a favorability of 50 or higher. Every time a player in the same position on the court scores three goals, they gain a random stat point permanently.
Lin Yu didn't know whether to laugh or cry. This random passive aura was truly unique.
The first aura, 'Continuous Flow,' seemed almost useless to Lin Yu. While speed was useful, it wasn't always that useful. For example, if Ben Wallace was constantly guarding the basket, what was the point of his speed?
Especially since this passive only grants three points, the effect is even more limited considering the player's favorability percentage bonus.
The second aura, 'Sacrifice Aura,' isn't just useless; it's completely toxic.
According to the skill description, the designated player sacrifices 20% of their total stats and distributes them to their teammates. After the game, the sacrificed player permanently loses 20% of their total stats. It's truly deceptive.
This isn't just sacrificing stats; it's sacrificing their entire career!
What does it mean for a player to permanently lose 20% of all their attributes? Without that 20%, Jordan would have gone from being the basketball god to being the Cangzhou magician Sun Yue!
Lin Yu is no saint, and he prides himself on being decisive and ruthless, but he absolutely cannot afford to sacrifice a player's career for a single victory.
Of course, this aura can be a magical skill in certain situations, such as in the deciding game of a playoff or even a Game 7 of the Finals, when a team has a veteran who is confirmed to retire next season. This aura can be extremely useful.
Many veterans' attributes are actually quite good, but their physical fitness is lacking. For example, if a player has 80 attribute points, they can sacrifice 16 points, giving each of their four teammates on the court an additional 4 points, a significant improvement in their strength.
Unfortunately, the next week isn't the playoffs, let alone a Game 7 of the Finals. This aura arrives at a very inopportune time.
"Continuous Flow" at least has some effect, but "Sacrifice Aura" is completely useless.
The third aura is interesting. Ever since Lin Yu acquired the super passive system, he'd envisioned a passive skill that permanently boosts a player's strength.
Almost every MOBA game has this type of skill, permanently boosting stats after meeting certain conditions.
"Mark of Kindred" has the condition of marking an opposing player. Every three hits grant a random permanent stat boost!
This is a permanent stat, not a temporary one that expires.
Lin Yu felt a surge of anxiety when he saw this aura. Why wasn't he a player? If he were, he could use this aura to boost his stats by dozens, and with a bit of luck, even randomly land a mid-range shot or a three-pointer. Wouldn't he be soaring?
Unfortunately, since he wasn't a player, Lin Yu could only choose one player as his target.
His first thought was Ben Wallace.
If Lin Yu were asked to name someone who would never betray him, the name he would definitely name would be Ben Wallace.
If the world were to end and only a piece of bread remained, Ben Wallace would definitely hand it to Lin Yu.
This was the Ben Wallace in Lin Yu's mind. Whenever something good happened, he would definitely prioritize Ben Wallace, even though this passive wasn't particularly suitable for Ben Wallace, given his limited offensive abilities.
"Knock, knock, knock."
There was a knock on Lin Yu's door.
"Come in."
As soon as the words left his mouth, Webber, Jalen Rose, and Ben Wallace walked in.
"Coach, something's happened! Big Ben is injured," Webber said hurriedly.
Lin Yu was startled and quickly looked towards Big Ben. Big Ben's right index finger was wrapped in a bandage, like a carrot.
"What's going on? Didn't you guys go shopping?"
Lin Yu's face was filled with worry. A finger injury could be minor or serious, and he didn't want Ben to end up with nine fingers.
"I'm fine, Coach, don't worry. I got caught in a door while I was shopping.
I've already seen the doctor. No bone damage, just a superficial injury. I should be back in a week."
Not wanting Lin Yu to worry about him, Ben quickly spoke up.
"I'm sorry, Coach. I was careless and didn't notice Ben's finger."
Jalen Rose scratched his head in shame.
Lin Yu could only smile wryly. Ben was truly unlucky. He'd just been suspended for a short time, and now he'd gotten his finger caught in a door. He'd be out for at least another week.
Speaking of bad luck, Lin Yu couldn't help but glance at Jalen Rose. Could it be that his bad luck factor had triggered again?
"Forget it. Get some rest. We only have two games this week anyway, so it's not a big deal." "You guys go back first. Chris, you stay here. I have something to tell you."
Lin Yu asked Ben Wallace and Jalen Rose to leave, leaving Webber behind.
Originally, Lin Yu had planned to designate Ben as the target for the "Mark of Kindred," but Ben was unfortunately injured and unable to play in the upcoming games, so Webber was the only one left.
When Lin Yu first took over as head coach of the Bullets, he didn't have a particularly favorable impression of Webber. After all, he was the first to question Lin Yu.
However, after two weeks of getting to know him, Lin Yu discovered that Webber was a straightforward person without any ill intentions, and he was extremely loyal to his friends.
Furthermore, Webber's favorability rating had reached 60 points, meeting the requirements for the "Mark of Kindred."
"Chris, All-Star Weekend is just a few days away. Congratulations on making the All-Star team."
Webber waved his hand. "There's nothing to congratulate. I only received 390,000 votes, not even a fraction of Shawn Kemp's."
"Have you seen the vote count? That Timberwolves kid actually got more votes than me."
Webber's tone was filled with indignation. Kemp, who played in the same position and had even lower stats than him, received over 1.7 million votes. Garnett, a sophomore high school power forward, received nearly 500,000 votes.
There must be a reason for the low vote count. Logically, Webber, with his tragic NCAA career, strong NBA stats, handsome looks, and flashy play, how could he have received so few votes?
But the reality is, they received so few. Second Uncle Howard received even fewer, only around 200,000 votes. He wasn't even selected for the All-Star Game.
Lin Yu knew full well that the main reason was that Webber had disappointed the Bullets' fans. When Webber was first brought in, everyone thought the Bullets were on the verge of a takeoff. With Webber and Howard, they were destined for, if not the top two in the Eastern Conference, at least a top-four record, right?
But after several years, the Bullets were still languishing. Only recently, with Lin Yu taking over as coach, did they see a turnaround.
If the home team's fans were so disappointed they didn't vote, could they really expect fans from other teams to vote for Webber?
"The voting situation is indeed a bit outrageous. I think the main reason is that you're too low-key."
How about this? There are two games left before the All-Star break, against the Nuggets and the SuperSonics. In these two games, you'll play the four against McDyess and Kemp. This is your chance to prove yourself.
"I'll give you unlimited shooting. Fire away and score as much as you can. I believe you're capable of crushing them." Since it has been decided to designate Weber, Lin Yu will naturally find ways to let Weber take more shots and hit as many targets as possible, so as to make full use of the halo effect of "Seal of Gan Jue".