Link stood by the sideline, embracing his teammates one by one.
His 51 points had been so dazzling that Link was now the only topic anyone wanted to discuss.
Yet Link still believed this had been a team victory.
Without Jokic's aggressive shot-blocking, without Harrell and Richardson battling for every loose ball, without Conley's assists, where would his 51 points have come from?
And that one sequence had merely been the tip of the iceberg when it came to the Grizzlies' teamwork today.
That was, in fact, the biggest difference between this year's Grizzlies and last season's.
This was no longer a team Link had to carry alone. This was a team everyone held up together!
Watching Link embrace his teammates one by one even after scoring 51 points, Marc Jackson could not help thinking of Green and Durant arguing during the game.
The difference in cohesion between these two teams was already clear as day.
Though every individual had an enormous impact on a basketball game, it was ultimately still a team sport.
The better team often had a better chance of winning.
Marc Jackson could not help glancing at the dejected Warriors fans around him. Watching the Warriors lose at Oracle Arena must have hurt badly.
But something that hurt them even more might very well happen afterward...
After the game, reporters had almost all gathered around Link.
As the player with the second-most 50-plus-point playoff games in NBA history, behind only Jordan, Link had naturally become the reporters' hottest target.
Yet Link did not seem particularly excited when faced with question after question about his 50-plus performance.
"Only second in history. Nothing worth bragging about. It's like how none of you report on the runner-up every year in the Finals."
"I'm happy to have scored a lot,