The Mysterious Mastermind

At Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, Link had barely stepped off the plane before being warmly mobbed by fans.

During All-Star Game weekend, countless reporters and fans waited in the airport lobby for the stars to arrive.

Link was not the first superstar to reach New Orleans. Before him, All-Star starters such as James, Irving, and Harden had already appeared one after another.

Even so, when Link emerged, the fans showed no sign of fatigue and still unleashed their most passionate cheers.

Link's popularity now did not lose out to that of any active player. Otherwise, he would not have become the All-Star voting leader.

Link greeted the enthusiastic fans and did his best to satisfy their requests for autographs.

Unlike James and the others, Link had not been a highly touted basketball star since high school. He had only truly become famous after making a name for himself with the Grizzlies.

Before that, in college, the NBDL, and even during his days with the Rockets, Link had been nothing more than an unnoticed nobody.

That was why Link had none of a superstar's arrogance. He had not been born a star; he had started out as an ordinary person.

Even now that he was a superstar-level player, he did not think too highly of himself. Link knew that he would never have made it this far without the support of the fans.

Plenty of people disliked Link, of course, but just as many liked him.

It ultimately took Link forty minutes to get out of the airport. The fans were simply too enthusiastic. Even with police protection, they had nearly blocked off the entire path out of the airport lobby.

More importantly, Link did not cooperate with the police at all. Rather than taking the opportunity to hurry