Chapter 33 :What?! You Want Me to Endorse a Litter Box?!

Ryan logged 19 minutes and 23 seconds off the bench tonight.

His stat line:

Points: 14 Assists: 3 Rebounds: 4 Steals: 4

Field Goals: 6/12

Three-Point: 1/4

Free Throws: 1/2

Plus/Minus: +12

For a rookie playing just his second game off the bench? More than solid.

Especially in the fourth quarter—he went 5-for-6, scoring 11 points, a very impressive showing.

But compared to the absurd fireworks of his debut—35 points in a single quarter—tonight felt… quieter. Not bad, just not headline-grabbing.

And then, of course, there was the quote.

At the postgame press conference, after last game, Ryan looked straight into the cameras and said,

"Forty-plus? I can do it. No problem."

That made tonight's 14 feel underwhelming by comparison.

Some fans even wondered: did the media mishear him? Maybe he said fourteen, not forty?

So they went back and pulled the clip.

Watched it again. And again.