Problem Child

Link had been in a foul mood all day. The amusement park event was much more boring than he had expected.

Aside from meeting a fan who recognized him at the entrance, Link found that ninety percent of the people in the park had no idea who he was.

The reason they were so eager to challenge him wasn't because he was a professional player. It was because the prize for beating him was so tempting: a five-foot-tall stuffed toy and a month-long pass to the park.

But he'd taken their money, so Link could only grit his teeth and stick it out. That was how he spent a boring afternoon. The only thing he did all afternoon was play the basketball arcade game against middle-aged men and kids.

It felt awful. Link felt like a clown, except that instead of performing acrobatics and comedy for the crowd, he was shooting baskets.

Two hours later, he had finally made it to the last challenger and the moment he could collect his money and leave. But when the final challenger stepped forward, Link suddenly became interested in the event.

It wasn't because he'd gotten into the swing of things. It was because the girl walking toward him looked very familiar.

But when he searched through his mind, with its memories of two lifetimes, he found that the Link of the past hadn't known her either.

"Miss, may I have your name?"

While Link was staring blankly, the host asked her a question.

"Rachel Demita."

The girl eagerly took the basketball and gave her name.

"Rachel Demita..." Link scratched his head, then suddenly realized who she was!

The young woman standing before him was none other than Rachel Demita, the future host of NBA 2KTV and one of the most beloved basketball goddesses among the younger generation of fans!

The moment he recognized Rachel, Link nearly rushed over to ask for her autograph. Luckily, reason overcame impulse.

Rachel hadn't entered the basketball world yet. She wasn't famous, just an ordinary college student. It would hardly make sense for a professional player to ask a college student for an autograph.

"Are you really a professional player? I've never seen you on the Thunder roster." Before the shooting contest even began, Rachel bluntly asked Link.

"I don't play for the Thunder. To be precise, I don't play in the NBA. I'm with the Oklahoma City Blue in the G League." Link nodded, feeling a little nervous.

Any guy would be a little nervous with a goddess who was usually doted on standing right in front of him.

"I see. I thought you were a fake. But don't get cocky. You might not beat me."

Rachel smiled, and the host announced that the contest was beginning.

The first few shots went smoothly for both of them. The arcade machine's hoop was at a completely different height from a regulation basketball hoop, but both of them had good touch, so adjusting to the height was no trouble.

Link was amazed by Rachel's performance. He'd known she hosted a basketball show, but he hadn't known she could really play this well.

In fact, Rachel had been a star on her high school girls' basketball team. She'd been ranked among Ohio's top sixty-five players four times, been part of the 2005 AAU Junior National Championship team, and won Medina County's three-point contest in 2007...

If not for her injuries, Rachel would have been playing in the NCAA right now. Sadly, she had already given up basketball for a long time.

That brief moment of distraction led Link to miss two shots in a row, something that had never happened before.

Those two misses ultimately cost Link the contest, and he went down 13–14.

Rachel Demita, the future NBA 2K goddess, became the first visitor to beat a challenger that day!

"Oh my gosh, she did it! This young lady is the first person to win a challenge today! Congratulations—she's won our event prizes: a giant stuffed toy and a one-month pass to the amusement park!"

The host raised Rachel's hand, while Link stood to the side and clapped helplessly.

Judging by the host's waggling eyebrows, he still thought Link had thrown the match. After all, it would have been a little awkward to hold a challenge where nobody won.

That only made Link feel even more helpless. He hadn't been trying to go easy on her at all...

"All right, young lady. Take your prize and go take a photo with Link! Don't worry, the photo is free."

The two stood together, and Link got his first close-up look at Rachel's face.

Rachel wasn't wearing much makeup that day, giving her a fresh, natural beauty. She looked like an ordinary girl next door—the kind you couldn't help missing after she left.

"You said you play in the G League. Is that true?"

Rachel suddenly turned to speak to Link, startling him into quickly looking away from her face.

"Yeah... the Oklahoma City Blue. Have you watched the Blue play?" Link hurriedly changed the subject.

"To be honest, today was the first time I'd heard Oklahoma had a G League team. But if you really are a professional player, that means you still have a chance to make it to the NBA, right?"

"Right. The G League is the closest path to the NBA."

"Mm." Rachel nodded thoughtfully. "I hope everything goes well with your basketball career, Link."

As someone who had been forced to give up the thing she loved, she sincerely hoped every basketball player could make their dreams come true.

After the photo, the girl walked away with a giant stuffed toy, her steps lively.

"Not a bad haul today, Link. Look, in just over an hour, you've already made five thousand dollars!"

His agent, Carl Jones, came over from beside the amusement park manager. He had a thick wad of green bills in his hand.

After pulling out four thousand dollars and handing it to Link, he stuffed the remaining thousand into his own pocket. Even with a twenty percent cut, the money Link took home was more than enough for him.

"Yeah, we did pretty well today..." Link smiled faintly. The haul he was talking about wasn't just money...

The Fort Wayne Mad Ants were one of the more "veteran" teams in the G League. Since their founding in 2007, they had remained in Indiana and never relocated.

For a small G League team unaffiliated with any NBA franchise to survive for so many years was no small feat.

Though the Mad Ants were "veterans," they had very few honors to show for it. In three years in the G League, their best result had been merely making the playoffs.

This gave Mad Ants head coach Steve Gansy a serious headache. He needed better players, like the ones sent down from the NBA.

This year, the Mad Ants had reached a preliminary cooperation agreement with the Pacers. The Mad Ants still wouldn't be affiliated with the Pacers, but whenever the Pacers wanted to send a player down, the Mad Ants would be their first choice.

This should have been good news for the Mad Ants, but Steve Gansy wasn't happy at all.

The player about to join his team was simply too difficult to manage.

In the few short months since joining the Pacers, he had gotten into trouble time and again. He'd been caught speeding, shown up late to practice, talked back to coaches, and more.

That was why people called him a "problem child." Steve Gansy thought so too. He didn't believe he could tame a wild horse.

This time, the guy had been sent down for throwing a fit in the locker room. Steve Gansy didn't know if he could put up with the "torture" of a rookie who dared to lose his temper in an NBA locker room.

"Knock, knock, knock!"

Just as Gansy was fretting, someone knocked on his office door.

"C-come in," Gansy stammered. He knew his "gift" had arrived.

Sure enough, a tall Black man pushed open the office door. He wore a plain white T-shirt and a headband, and looked just like one of those gangsters you saw on the street.

"Coach Gansy, I didn't expect to see you again so soon! Don't worry, with me there the day after tomorrow, we won't lose! Forget about that guy who got a triple-double last game. I'll take care of him! I don't want to lose again after being sent down this time."

This player, known as a "problem child" and named Lance Stephenson, seemed to have taken quite an interest in Link...