With only 2 days left before the playoffs begin, besides the MVP, various individual player awards have also been announced.
First and foremost was the ROY, which was the least suspenseful.
Link, who was hailed as "God King" and the "Chosen One" before the draft, became the rookie of the year for the 2001-2002 NBA regular season.
(TN: I'll just stick with "God King", a bit cringy and pompous but eeehhh)
Naturally, he was also selected for the "All-Rookie Team."
[All-Rookie First Team]: Link, Tony Parker, Andrei Kirilenko, Shane Battier, and Pau Gasol.
The selection for rookie of the year does not consider positions; it only looks at a player's individual performance, and even the team's record is not a major factor.
[All-Rookie Second Team]: Jason Richardson, Jamal Tinsley, Zach Randolph, Gerald Wallace, and Brendan Haywood.
In his past life, Jason Richardson was on this year's All-Rookie First Team, but Link's sudden emergence forcibly pushed him down to the Second Team. As for the Washington Wizards' other three rookies, although they would all gain significant fame in the future, in his past life, they did not make it onto the All-Rookie Teams.
The reason they were able to make the cut this season was inextricably linked to the fact that Link and Michael Jordan's coattails were thick enough to carry them.
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The [all-defensive team] was also divided into the First Team and Second Team:
[All-Defensive First Team]: Jason Kidd, Gary Payton, Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan, and Ben Wallace.
[All-Defensive Second Team]: Doug Christie, Kobe Bryant, Bruce Bowen, Clifford Robinson, and Dikembe Mutombo.
As for Link, although his defensive performance in the second half of the regular season was good, this year's All-Defensive Second Team consisted of formidable figures that struck fear into people's hearts; Link couldn't compete with them just yet.
(TN: I'm thinking of giving Link a last name, any recs?)
Ben Wallace of the All-Defensive First Team was not only the defensive core of the Detroit Pistons but also this season's Block leader and rebounding leader, winning the—DPOY award.
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The MIP Most Improved Player award went to Jermaine ONeal of the Indiana Pacers.
And next was the main event—the [all-nba team].
This is an individual player award second only to the MVP.
Its prestige is at least three or four levels higher than the all-defensive team. In the all-defensive team of the year, you might find some obscure role players; however, any player who can appear on the all-nba team is, without exception, an All-Star or better.
After all, there are 24 All-Stars, but only 15 players on the all-nba teams of the year.
[All-NBA First Team]: Jason Kidd, Kobe Bryant, Tracy McGrady, Tim Duncan, and Shaquille O'Neal.
Among the five, three are top ten in NBA history.
[All-NBA Second Team]: Link, Allen Iverson, Kevin Garnett, Chris Webber, and Dirk Nowitzki.
The prestige of the All-NBA Second Team was equally terrifying...
[All-NBA Third Team]: Gary Payton, Paul Pierce, Jermaine ONeal, Ben Wallace, and Dikembe Mutombo.
In his past life, Steve Nash made the All-NBA Third Team this season, but because of a conversation with Link during the regular season, he awakened, though this led to him losing his spot on the All-NBA Third Team.
Meanwhile, Gary Payton, who would have been on the All-NBA Second Team, was pushed out by Link and fell to the All-NBA Third Team.
Besides the players, the NBA also selected the Coach of the Year, Rick Carlisle of the Detroit Pistons.
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On the other hand.
Link also received his "season rewards."
[Ding! Congratulations to the Host's team for entering the playoffs. Reward: 2000 Goat Points + All-star training partner card x1.]
[Ding! Congratulations to the Host for having a scoring average in the league's top ten. Reward: 1000 Goat Points + star training partner card x1.]
[Ding! Congratulations to the Host for having an assist average in the league's top ten. Reward: 1000 Goat Points + star training partner card x1.]
[Ding! Congratulations to the Host for having a Steal average in the league's top ten. Reward: 1000 Goat Points + star training partner card x1.]
[Ding! Congratulations to the Host for winning ROY (rookie of the year). Reward: 3000 Goat Points + All-star training partner card x1.]
[Ding! Congratulations to the Host for being selected for the All-NBA Second Team. Reward: 5000 Goat Points + All-star training partner card x3.]
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The season rewards were quite generous, but what really made Link happy was...
[Goat Points: 17,115 / 84,050].
His cumulative Goat Points had directly crossed the 70,000 mark and reached 80,000.
He could draw a new player template again.
This was Link's next template after obtaining "Draymond Green," "Harden," and "Durant."
He hoped to draw one with more Speed this time. Link's ideal candidates were definitely peak Westbrook or peak Rose; with his current shooting level and physical build, if he could match their running and jumping abilities, he would truly take off.
[Ding! Does the Host choose to draw a player template?]
The system's mechanical, cold electronic voice rang out in Link's mind.
Link didn't hesitate for a second and immediately agreed.
[Ding! Congratulations to the Host for obtaining an SS-grade player template—Kawhi Leonard (2018-2019 season).]
Raptors Kawhi!
Link was slightly stunned.
After Leonard and DeRozan swapped teams, he left the San Antonio Spurs to join the Toronto Raptors, led the team to a championship, and successfully became the FMVP. This was also one of the few instances in NBA history where a player won FMVP with two different teams.
Raptors Kawhi, although hailed by fans as the "Unmatched Kawhi," had his running and jumping abilities somewhat diminished because Zaza Pachulia stepped under his foot during his time with the San Antonio Spurs. And Leonard's running and jumping abilities weren't that outstanding to begin with.