NBA: Miracle Workers

Chapter 442: The Champion Coach Also Has a Problem? (9700 Words Chapter)
On Saturday, May 2006, 5, at the Gund Center, 13 Cleveland fans were excited. In the crucial game, their chosen one lived up to everyone's expectations!
Three days before Game 3, the Cavaliers officially began to mobilize fans, and owner Gilbert even distributed cheering props for free in order to create a home atmosphere.

This series of actions finally paid off. With the Cleveland fans cheering hard, the Cavaliers slowed down their offensive tempo and achieved an exaggerated shooting percentage.

With 1 minute and 11 seconds left in the first quarter, with little time left on offense, LeBron James received the ball at the top of the arc again.

Gooden and Marshall, who came on as substitutes, went to the line again for double screen. Looking at James who was moving laterally with the ball in his left hand and accelerating, Prince, who had lost his defensive position, could only remind his teammates loudly.

Entering the rotation stage, the Knicks' inside line became Dio and Gazuric.

Facing Dio who came on defense, James did not force a breakthrough to the basket. Instead, he took advantage of his good touch and accelerated to the left wing. When he was close to the left sideline, he suddenly stepped back and made a drifting jump shot!
When the basketball flew into the air, James retreated confidently, and with the fans cheering, the basketball finally went into the net.

"Crazy offense! LeBron is trying to win the game the Knicks way! He performed so well in the first quarter!"

On the ESPN commentary booth, Mike Breen praised loudly. Hubie Brown, who was looking at the technical statistics, also commented with interest when the Knicks served the ball from the baseline:

"The Cavaliers' insistence on 24 seconds worked, and the most important thing is that their core players are too efficient!"

"If LeBron can keep this up, they're going to win tonight."

The arena was filled with excited shouts. Van Gundy on the sidelines knew that his players couldn't hear him, so he waved his hands, signaling them to continue double-teaming.

Damon Jones, who came on as a substitute, began to defend Li You at the center line. As the two approached the top of the arc, James on the left wing decisively stepped forward to double-team them.

Li You, who held the ball in his left hand, was not in a hurry to pass the ball. He first stopped suddenly and blocked the ball, then turned around and switched to his right hand. Damon Jones slid desperately, and James also quickly adjusted his center of gravity to block it again.

Due to the interference of the two people, Li You was unable to pass the ball to Prince near the left sideline in the first place.

As Dio received the ball at the free throw line, the basketball was transferred in time and the Cavaliers' defense also rotated quickly.

Gooden directly rushed to defend Prince who received the ball. At the same time, Ronald Murray, who was guarding the right corner, retreated to the basket in time and entangled with Gazuric.

Although there was an open space in the right corner, Prince, who was dribbling the ball, failed to pass the ball in time, and James at the top of the arc had already rotated past at a very fast speed.

Although he failed to seize the fleeting opportunity, Prince still helped the Knicks get 2 points with his quick stop and step-back jump shot in the left blocking area facing Gooden's block.

25:28, the score gap narrowed again.

"Shh!"

Listening to the boos resounding throughout the arena, Prince did not show much emotion. He just walked up to Li You and high-fived to celebrate, and then applauded himself to cheer himself up.

D'Antoni, who was sitting on the bench, didn't jump around like the championship coach next door, and continued to stay idle.

Apart from rotating in advance, he did not make any adjustments, after all, the Cavaliers' defense was also in the plan.

"Let's go Cavs!"

The first quarter was about to end, and the cheers were getting louder and louder as the home team saw a chance to take the lead.

James, who received the ball at the baseline, was not in a hurry to advance. He dribbled across half court in almost 8 seconds. When he came to the right wing, he immediately called on Marshall to go to the blocking area to receive the ball.

Throwing the ball to his teammate, Marshall immediately released the ball with his left hand and leaned sideways to hit Dio.

The situation of crushing into the paint area did not occur. Dio, who withstood the defensive pressure, even tried to disrupt the opponent's dribbling rhythm.

Without forcing the attack, Marshall passed the ball back to James at the top of the arc. The latter received the ball again, and Gooden immediately came to the top of the arc to perform a pick-and-roll.

Prince was pushed away directly, and as James accelerated with the ball in his left hand, Ronald Murray and Damon Jones on the two wings began to move to the left and right corners.

Seeing that Gazuric, who was sliding into the paint area, was about to be squeezed past, Raja Bell and Li You both began to retreat to the basket.

While moving, James jumped early, paused slightly in the air, and then threw the ball to the right corner. Damon Jones, who received the ball, did not hesitate, and faced Li You's block and made a forced jump shot!

At 25:31, the Gund Center was in an uproar. Damon Jones, who made a shot, ran back to half court and bumped chests with James to celebrate.

At the call of Van Gundy, the Cavaliers launched a double-team early on. Just after crossing the center line, Li You was surrounded by Damon Jones and Ronald Murray.

As Raja Bell received the ball in an open position on the right wing, Marshall, who failed to rotate in time, could only watch the shot.

"Swish!" The three-pointer went into the net and the Knicks responded quickly.

Facing Prince who suddenly took the lead in defense, James did not force the ball, but his teammate passed the ball to Damon Jones, who received the ball and continued to accelerate along the right sideline.

Seeing that his teammates were struggling, Gooden hurried to the right wing to try to provide cover.

As his teammates just stood still, Damon Jones hurriedly dribbled the ball behind his back. The moment he switched to his left hand, before he could make any other moves, Li You slid in time and squeezed in between the two of them.

James, who had just run across half court, could only watch Li You cut the ball from his teammate with his right hand and quickly rushed across half court.

Damon Jones didn't even have time to commit a foul, stumbling and falling to the midline, and James gave up halfway through the chase.
Amid the boos from the fans at the scene, Li You raised the ball in his right hand and slammed it down!
30:31, the Cavaliers made a mistake and the score difference was narrowed again.

Fortunately, in the last two rounds, Ronald Murray broke into the basket from the right wing and caused Raja Bell to foul, and he made both free throws.

In the Knicks' last attack, Dio was left open and missed a jump shot from the left wing, and the Cavaliers finally led by 3 points!
"Oh!"

Shouts of joy resounded throughout the arena once again. The Cavaliers took the lead for the first time in the series and got off to a perfect start.

James, who played the entire first quarter, kept high-fiving his teammates as he walked to the bench. The atmosphere group was also very excited, and assistant coach Thibodeau kept high-fiving to express his encouragement.

“8中6，三分线外2中1，罚球2中2，15分3助攻1抢断1失误，勒布朗在首节表现得无可挑剔！”

"The only regret is that they were unable to widen the gap. They put a lot of effort into the defense, which may have an impact on the subsequent games."

Mike Breen exclaimed as he looked at the technical statistics. James, who had just received the "Media Praise Award", broke out completely with his inside and outside shots.

"The Cavaliers made 15 of 11 shots, and they executed their game strategy perfectly. They deserve to be the second-best defense in the league!"

Hubie Brown continued to praise Van Gundy's adjustments, relying on 24 seconds to suppress the opponent, which showed his absolute confidence in the team. It seemed that he had thought of something, and the old coach sighed:
"The defending champion also showed his dominance. Although Li's points were concentrated in the first half, he still controlled the rhythm of the game well."

"He made five assists in a single quarter. It can be seen that coach D'Antoni is also very confident. He started rotating at 5 minutes and 4 seconds."

After the second quarter started, Li You sat on the bench, and LeBron James was still on the court. According to his understanding of Van Gundy and Thibodeau, James will definitely play 2 minutes tonight.
Fisher, who came off the bench, did not show any mercy. In his first attack, he set up a pick-and-roll on the left wing to assist Gasol with an easy jump shot from mid-range in the blocking area.

Howard returned to the court and saw the coach's instructions, then nodded reluctantly. He still had to continue sweeping the defensive end, and he was not allowed to squat in the pit to protect the rim.

The Cavaliers' backcourt became Snow and Damon Jones, while Gooden and Howard continued to partner up in the interior.

In the first offensive round, Gooden received the ball near the left elbow after a pick-and-roll, and facing Dio's defense, he made a mid-range jump shot!
The Knicks relied on Gasol to support their offense and succeeded in facing the basket in several consecutive rounds. The Cavaliers' Gooden suddenly became accurate, and James and several other players took turns to set picks and rolls, and the latter continued to score points with jump shots from the free throw line.

The two sides exchanged blows and the score kept rising!
Seizing the opportunity of transition offense, Fisher missed consecutive jump shots and then shot a three-pointer from the left wing;
In the positional offense, after resting on the court for several rounds, James used Howard's screen to force his way to the basket from the right wing and successfully got a free throw.

Halfway through the second quarter, the Knicks had not replaced their main lineup, and the score difference remained around 2 points.

When D'Antoni requested a timeout, there were 6 minutes and 31 seconds left in the first half. Li You, Hill and Artest returned to the court, and Dio and Gasol were still in the interior.

43:47, thanks to Gooden's efficient performance, the Cavaliers are still leading.

The boiling atmosphere in the stadium made Van Gundy on the sidelines make a series of downward gestures. They had to control the tempo of the game.

"Defense!."

There were waves of defensive cheers, and most fans expected the home team to take the lead at halftime. Many people had already stood up to watch the game and shouted loudly.

The Knicks team improved their receiving position, and without waiting for the opponent to double-team them, Li You passed the ball to Hill on the left wing as soon as he passed the center line.

The latter received the ball and, facing the defense of Ronald Murray, also quickly passed the ball to Gasol who was blocking the area with his back to the basket.

As Li You accelerated towards the left corner, Hill first set an off-ball screen and then accelerated laterally towards the top of the arc.

After making a fake move to throw the ball to the bottom corner, Gasol suddenly twisted up the line, released the ball with his right hand and instantly cut into the paint area.

Howard quickly slid to the right rear, but Gasol, who was rushing forward, suddenly stopped, raised the ball under the basket and faked it, then turned around again, deceived the defense and made a layup with his left hand.

"Shh!"

Boos resounded throughout the arena again. This quarter almost became a duel between Gooden and Gasol. Both of them had made 4 of 4 shots so far, which made Hubie Brown in the commentary booth sigh again:

"Although the Cavaliers lost the first two games by a large margin, their role players stood out after returning to their home court!"

"The same is true for the Knicks. They have a big advantage in one-on-one matchups and have a clear advantage in terms of game experience."

The two were still sighing in the commentary booth. The Cavaliers began to pass the ball continuously at this time. Gooden encountered Dio's tight defense in the left blocking area, and finally the ball returned to James at the top of the arc.

Howard actively set the screen and broke up the defense too early, which allowed Artest to force his way to James' side.

Holding the ball in his left hand and trying to break through, James faced Gasol who came to assist in defense, and he decisively threw the ball in front of the basket while moving.

Without waiting for the basketball to reach the highest point, Gasol, who was well prepared, intercepted the ball with his fingers, cutting off the aerial connection. After controlling the ball, he decisively passed the ball to Li You who was waiting for the ball.

Without time to regret the mistake, James called out to his teammates loudly, and all the Cavaliers players followed suit and retreated desperately.

Pushing the ball to his left hand and accelerating along the sideline, Li You rushed very fast. When he approached the left wing, Snow and James who was retreating in the middle surrounded him.

Without waiting for the two to get close, Li You suddenly threw the ball in front of the basket. The ball was not fast, but it drew a huge arc and passed over the defense.

Artest, who was unguarded in the middle, followed up easily, jumped up, grabbed the ball with both hands, and slammed the ball into the basket!

47:47, both sides are back on the same starting line again.

After completing the aerial relay, Artest jumped and shouted continuously. No matter how many points behind, it would not affect his confidence. He firmly believed that the Knicks could fight back.

Instead of launching an attack from the low post, James received the ball on the left wing early, used Gooden's screen, held the ball with his left hand, and accelerated the breakthrough.

Facing Dio's delayed defense, James forced a drive to the basket, and realized that Artest was also chasing him from behind. He turned around in the blocking area and immediately threw the ball to the left wing.

Li You first tightened his defense, but when he saw the basketball flying into Snow's hands, he didn't rush back to defend. Instead, he watched his opponent release the ball with his right hand and break through.

The decisive offensive choice did not bring very good results. After breaking through to the right blocking area, Snow's horseback shooting eventually missed the basket.

"Oh!"

With a sigh of regret, Li You turned around and caught the long basketball that hit the front of the basket, then accelerated again.

Quickly retreating back to the half court, watching Li You pass the ball from behind to the middle, Ronald Murray and James both retreated to the paint area.

After crossing the three-point line, Li You, holding the ball in his right hand, slowed down slightly, looked at Artest who was running towards the right corner, and suddenly threw the ball behind him while moving.

Although Ronald Murray slid in time, Hill, who cut in from the left wing, increased his stride and started directly after receiving the ball.

In the blink of an eye, he broke through the defense and came to the lower left side of the basket. Hill grabbed the ball with his left hand and easily completed a one-handed slam dunk!
At 49:47, when the Knicks took the lead, the Gund Center suddenly became quiet, followed by another round of boos.

After completing transition offense for two consecutive rounds and realizing that the Cavaliers' shooting rate had dropped, Li You clapped his hands and reminded them to double-team in this round.

After setting a double screen, James, holding the ball in his right hand, accelerated laterally again. Gasol retreated immediately after the delay, and Artest continued to chase and defend.

Although Howard had an opportunity when he came down the court, James, who had just crossed the three-point line, did not choose to pass the ball, and was quickly assisted by Li You.

Seeing Gasol raising his arms, Li You retreated to the basket, and noticed that Artest behind him also jumped up. James quickly passed the ball to Snow in the right corner.

The latter received the ball, hesitated for a moment, and when he was about to shoot, Li You jumped up to block him.

The basketball flew directly into Gasol's hands under the basket, and then Dio caught the ball at the bottom left of the basket, and the Knicks launched a counterattack again.

Without waiting to cross the center line, Dio threw the ball directly to the front court. James and Snow, who retreated in time, looked at Li You who got the ball on the left wing.

Without waiting for the two to come forward, Li You shook his left wrist and made a ground pass that instantly penetrated the defense, and the basketball spun and flew towards the paint area.

Hill caught the ball before Ronald Murray. There was no one guarding the basket. He started directly, grabbed the ball with his left hand, and made another one-handed slam dunk!
At 51:47, Van Gundy immediately requested a timeout, and the Cavaliers bench suddenly became quiet.

The atmosphere of the Knicks team was full of jubilation. Fisher even threw a towel over his head and punched the air in celebration, shouting:

"That's it! Make them pay the price. No one can underestimate us!"

There will always be open spaces in the crazy double-team, Li You passed the ball in time, and the role players who came on the court all performed well, which was considered a head-on blow to the opponent.

Li You still has plenty of energy. Most of the time, he was at the top of the arc to attract double-teaming. The opponent's hit rate in the first quarter was too high, and it was not until now that they played a transition offense:
"They shouldn't be able to make the shot, let's run! We're going to lead by double digits at halftime!"

The director caught Li You gesturing on the tactical board and constantly reminding his teammates loudly, which made Mike Breen in the commentary booth couldn't help but make a joke:
"No wonder coach D'Antoni emphasized more than once that Lee was responsible for making adjustments during the game."

Van Gundy was a little panicked at this time. In the first quarter, James' efficient offense covered up the problem and his shooting percentage dropped. He didn't know how to adjust for a while.

After talking for a long time while holding the tactical board, LeBron James had a puzzled look on his face. Should he continue the defensive strategy? Fortunately, Thibodeau knew that the champion coach was not able to perform well on the spot, so he replaced Snow in time.

With Damon Jones on the court again, the Cavaliers must maintain spacing on offense.

The timeout ended quickly, and Van Gundy continued to talk to the players, and the Gund Center began to become noisy. The Cavaliers first passed the ball continuously from the outside, trying to pull the Knicks' defense around the paint area, but every time James passed the ball, Li You and Hill always returned to defense in time.

Seeing that the attack time was halfway through, the fans at the scene also became anxious, the DJ raised the volume, and everyone began to shout heartbreakingly:

"Let's go Cavs!"

Amid cheers, James received the ball at the top of the arc again, and while calling on Howard to come out for a pick-and-roll, he took a few steps back with the ball in his left hand, moving away from the three-point line to extend his acceleration distance.

As his teammates stood at the top of the arc, James first moved in and out slightly, then pulled the ball outward while exerting all his strength to accelerate.

In the blink of an eye, he rushed to the three-point line and chased Gasol, who was retreating to defend, straight to the basket.

Amid the exclamations of the fans, James, who was trying to make a layup at the lower left side of the basket, noticed that Artest behind him was trying to block the shot. He hovered in the air, pulled sideways with his left hand, and used the time difference to throw the ball towards the backboard.

Both Howard and Gooden tried hard to squeeze to the basket, but James' layup was too powerful and he didn't find the right position, so the basketball bounced directly to the opposite side.

The two people huddled together under the basket could only watch Li You leap high behind them with a tomahawk rebound!
Damon Jones hurried forward from the right corner to interfere. Before the opponent could make a move, Li You suddenly turned around and dodged the defense in an instant.

Amid the exclamations of the fans at the scene, Li You scooped up the ball with his left hand and rushed faster and faster, and the Cavaliers team also tried their best to chase and defend him.

James did not rush forward recklessly. Instead, he loudly called out to his teammates to match up and followed Artest to run to the right corner.

Gooden ignored Dio who was running to the left corner. He watched Li You cut in from the left wing and cooperated with Howard who returned to the paint area to defend.

Ronald Murray, who was standing on the right wing, noticed something was wrong and turned around to loudly alert his teammates. However, the three people in the paint area only saw Li You, who cut into the basket and suddenly dribbled the ball from behind.

The sudden change of direction caused Damon Jones, who was defending, to lose his position. Right in front of the basket, Li You switched to his right hand and passed the ball behind his back secretly in the crowd.

When Gooden and Howard, who were piled up under the basket, reacted, Gasol, who followed behind, received the ball and made a layup, and the basketball went into the net without any interference!
"OH! What a pass!"

The wonderful assist made the arena quiet again. Only Mike Breen in the commentary booth was not affected and continued to praise loudly. Hubie Brown watched the Knicks team high-five in celebration and sighed:
"This is the game experience of the defending champions. They can always find opportunities patiently!"

The Cavaliers' offense suddenly went silent. After the double screen, James missed a drifting three-pointer from the right wing, and the long rebound was picked up by Li You in the left blocking area.

Seeing Damon Jones retreating with his head down, Van Gundy on the sidelines was so anxious that he could only watch Li You rush across the center line.

After the Cavaliers returned to the half court, they completed the defensive positioning in time. On the right wing, Damon Jones watched Li You push the ball and change direction near the three-point line, and hurriedly slid to the left.

The moment the two bodies collided, Li You leaned against the defense, quickly pulled the ball with his right hand, turned nimbly, and the moment his left hand touched the ball, he easily broke through to the elbow area.

Seeing that Li You was about to break into the paint area, Ronald Murray at the top of the arc quickly retreated and tried to interfere but watched the basketball pass through his crotch.

While moving, he dribbled the ball under his crotch with one hand to avoid the defense. Noticing that James had caught up to him, Li You, who was scooping the ball with his right hand, suddenly turned around and used the force of the rotation to secretly fly the basketball to the left corner.

"Oh!"

The juggling moves made the Cavaliers fans at the scene exclaim in surprise, and Artest was also stunned for a moment when he received the ball.

Fortunately, James, who jumped up to block the shot, had just landed in the paint area at this time. Howard, who rushed out to defend, was half a beat slow and watched the open jump shot.

"Whoa!" The three-pointer hit the net.

Artest let out a long sigh, then pounded his chest and shouted excitedly. He did not waste the wonderful pass.

56:47, the score difference was about to reach double digits, and the booing could not be stopped for a while.

James was also confused at this time. They had clearly restricted Li You's offense, but the game returned to the familiar rhythm.
Watching Van Gundy making a hand-down gesture, James, who received the ball at the baseline, frowned and began to doubt the game strategy of continuing to waste 24 seconds.

Facing Artest's defense, James began to move backwards when he reached the top of the arc, extending his run-up distance.

With the help of Gooden's screen, James passed the ball from behind to his right hand, lowered his shoulders and accelerated, broke through to the three-point line, and was immediately assisted by Dio's sliding defense.

After forcing a breakthrough into the paint area, James noticed that Gasol under the basket began to move, and he suddenly threw the ball behind his head after taking a step forward.

Gooden was unguarded at the free throw line. He received the ball and made a jump shot but missed. Howard, who was under the basket, got over Gasol's head and pushed the ball out.

On the left wing outside the three-point line, Damon Jones helplessly watched Li You leap high in front of him. He wanted to wait until he landed to delay the ball, but suddenly he heard the exclamations of fans.

With his back to the basket, Li You jumped up and raised his left arm high. Instead of grabbing the ball, he hit the ball to the front court.

By the time Damon Jones reacted, Li You had already turned around agilely after landing, easily got rid of the defense, rushed across the center line, and successfully caught up with the basketball.

With 1 against 0 in the frontcourt, Li You rushed into the paint area with the ball in his left hand amid the boos that resounded throughout the stadium. He jumped with both feet right in front of the basket, changed hands between his legs in the air, grabbed the ball with his right hand, and swung his arm to slam the ball into the basket!

At 58:47, the Cavaliers requested another timeout. The Gund Center became increasingly noisy, and the Cavaliers fans could no longer hold back.
After completing the dunk, Li You walked towards the bench while making a hand-down gesture. Van Gundy on the sidelines looked at the familiar smiling face and was so angry that he was speechless for a moment:
"How dare he humiliate me like this!"

His face flushed red, Van Gundy was so angry that his mind was confused. He had to rely on the assistant coach to arrange the timeouts, and before going on the court, he fed the players a bellyful of thick chicken soup.
Howard, who was substituted off the court, was also very depressed. The coaching staff never arranged any tactics for him. He only had to set screens and grab rebounds. Thinking that he didn't even have a chance to eat a cake, he cursed in his heart:
"Shit! When will you respect me!"

As Marshall came on as a substitute and received a pass from James on the right wing, he missed another open three-pointer. The long rebound was picked up by Li You again. The man with a mustache who had been AFK also stood up and applauded.

Continuously accelerating along the right sideline, Li You first dribbled the ball from behind to avoid Damon Jones's defense, then accelerated laterally and quickly went in and out facing Marshall who was covering him.

Seeing Li You crossing half court from right to left, the defensive formation of the retreating Cavaliers was in chaos.

Some fans in the front row had already started yelling. Gasol stopped near the top of the arc. Li You first changed direction behind his back, then made a big circle around the ball, switched to his left hand and accelerated sideways again.

Several people behind him were still chasing and defending. Ronald Murray, the left wing, wanted to step forward to delay him, but when he moved his feet, he found that the basketball in Li You's hand had disappeared.
"Oh!"

Amid the fans' exclamations, Li You's ground pass found Hill who cut into the basket from the left wing. The latter received the ball and faced Gooden under the basket. He took three steps forward and made a layup!

60:47, the rising score made the Knicks bench jubilant.

Hill, who scored again, also pumped his fist to celebrate. James, who ran to the right corner, couldn't hold it in any longer and cursed angrily. This was not the first time that the Cavaliers had been silenced.

When Damon Jones received the ball at the baseline, he was suddenly defended by Li Youling, and he rushed across half court with 8 seconds left on his butt sticking out.

James started in the left blocking area, and with the help of two big men's cover, he ran down the line to the right near the baseline.

Although his teammate was half a beat slow in passing the ball, after receiving the ball, James faced Artest's defense, took a tentative step with his right foot, and made a difficult dry jump shot to help the team get 2 points.

Finally returning to the familiar offensive position, the somewhat impatient James double-teamed Li You in advance. When Dio received the ball at the top of the arc, he hurriedly retreated to defend.

Marshall thought Dio would continue to pass the ball, but he didn't expect the opponent to turn around, release the ball with his right hand, and suddenly break through.

The fans at the scene exclaimed again, the defense was broken, Gooden under the basket only had time to stretch out his hand, Dio took three steps forward, grabbed the ball with his right hand, and swung his arm to dunk against the defense!

"Oh my god! The Cavaliers' defense is collapsing! Dio has a chance to make a three-pointer!"

The basket exploded and the arena became quiet again. Mike Breen shouted happily, while Hubie Brown, who was watching the Knicks players bump their chests in celebration, whispered:
"The Cavaliers have no way out. They must narrow the gap as soon as possible. If the series becomes 3:0, we all know what it means."

Dio, who succeeded in the sneak attack, stood on the free throw line with a smug expression on his face. The jumping man on the opposite side came off the court, and he seized the opportunity!

63:49, after the free throw, the score difference continued to widen.

With little time left at halftime, James had already forgotten what his coach said. He sped up on his own initiative, rushed to the basket after the pick-and-roll, and passed the ball in time when he was double-teamed.

Seemingly having lost his confidence in shooting, Marshall from the right corner finally rushed to the basket and caused Gasol to foul, barely getting a free throw.

Hill, who was left open, missed a jump shot in the right corner. Before James could launch a counterattack, the long rebound was picked up by Li You in the left elbow area.

Seeing Damon Jones's innocent look with eyes wide open, James, who was retreating back, was so angry that he almost jumped up
In the last 34.2 seconds of the first half, the Knicks got another 24 seconds of offensive time, and the defensive cheers in the stadium were no longer uniform.

On the left wing, away from the three-point line, Li You casually tapped the ball with his right hand to control time. He waved to Gasol, and Damon Jones in front of him suddenly became a little nervous.

The Cavaliers were also standing around the paint area at this time. When Gasol moved up the line, James began to shrink towards the basket and the defensive formation began to move to the left half court.

Without waiting for his teammates to stand still, Li You suddenly passed the ball from behind and took advantage of Damon Jones sliding to the right, and immediately changed direction with his hips the moment his left hand touched the ball.

Gasol stood still, and Li You touched the ball with his right hand and tried to break through on the right side. Damon Jones failed to squeeze through in time, and Gooden hurriedly slid to delay him.

While the big man lowered his center of gravity, Li You, who was moving sideways, suddenly pushed the ball and changed direction. The basketball flew out from between the people, and Gooden could only watch Li You squeeze past him.

Boos arose again in the stadium as people watched Li You go straight to the basket from the left elbow area, James who assisted in defense in the paint area, and Marshall who was near the free throw line immediately moved to meet him.

Without waiting for the opponent to make a defensive move, Li You casually threw the ball to the upper right side of the basket.

James stopped and turned his head quickly, then saw Artest cutting into the basket from the right corner, jumping high, grabbing the ball in the air without any defense, and dunking with both hands!

"what!"

After completing the dunk, Artest pounded his chest and roared again. The wonderful cooperation made the boos in the stadium lessen by a lot.

In the final moments, Gooden caused Dio to foul and was about to shoot free throws, and the halftime score was fixed at 65:51.

The noise in the Gund Center became louder and louder, and the Cavaliers fans were awakened from their sweet dreams in the first quarter. They limited Li You's scoring but could not limit his passing and other Knicks players.

Varejao cheered as he followed the crowd to the player tunnel. If the score difference reached 20 points, it would be his turn to play:

"This is a real crushing victory! We are going to enter the regional finals again!"

David Lee, who failed to make the active list, was envious. He didn't want to lie down with Wright.
Barnes felt that he also had a chance to play, and he kept high-fiving everyone and muttering:

"Li is not like those stat-gappers in the league. They have no other choice but to let those rookies know how powerful we are!"

The Cavaliers fans on both sides of the player tunnel looked at Li You, who looked relaxed, and their mentality exploded for a moment. He only played for 18 minutes in the first half, which meant that he had plenty of energy in the third quarter.
"Shh!"

Amidst the boos and shouts, Li You simply tilted his head, held his ears, shook his head, and slowly walked into the player tunnel.

On the ESPN commentary booth, Mike Breen looked at the technical statistics with a surprised expression on his face, and introduced with a smile:
"Maybe we can see Lee's triple-double tonight. Lee and LeBron performed very well in the first half. With a 14-point difference, the Cavaliers still have a chance in the second half!"

半场7中5，三分线外2中1，罚球2中2，13分6篮板11助攻2抢断，尼克斯队多点开花，让出场18分钟的李佑提前摸鱼；
打满上半场，13中8，三分线外3中1，罚球4中4，21分2篮板6助攻1抢断2失误，勒布朗-詹姆斯已经拼尽全力。

Looking at the data of these two players, Hubie Brown did not make too many comments, but instead talked about the Cavaliers' game strategy again:
"They have to speed up their offensive tempo in the second half. The double-digit point difference is very dangerous. You know, the Knicks usually explode in the third quarter."

"I believe that Coach Van Gundy will make timely adjustments!"

During the halftime break, in the Cavaliers' locker room, championship coach Van Gundy stood in front of the whiteboard and kept loudly admonishing his players:

"We must stick to the game strategy we have formulated and remain patient. We still have enough time and should not give the opponent an easy chance to counterattack."

"Be patient, shoot free throws, switch offense, finish near the basket, we need to get back to our defensive form in the first quarter!"

Van Gundy's face turned red with emotion. After he gave a loud reminder, everyone nodded. James, who was sitting in his seat, wanted to raise an objection, but Thibodeau shook his head and winked at him.

Watching Van Gundy constantly emphasizing defensive positions on the whiteboard, James frowned and replenished water. This was the first time he doubted the coaching level of the championship coach.
In the visiting team's locker room, D'Antoni handed Li You water with a smile. The coaching staff did not mention any tactical adjustments at all, and the team perfectly executed the game plan formulated before the game.

"We all knew what to do in the second half. Keep getting the ball into Lee's hands. They'll double-team us, and all we have to do is hit open shots."

"Don't worry about missing the shot. The opponent can't maintain that kind of exaggerated efficiency. Pay attention to where the long rebound lands."

The mustache man spoke briefly, and Li You, who was drinking water, pointed to his eyes and said with a smile:

"I can see it! Keep running! We're going to overwhelm them with more rounds!"

The double-digit lead made everyone feel inflated again. Fisher, who had a good performance in the first half, suggested confidently:
"We can continue to switch defense and make the opposing rookie look bad! I am confident that we can limit LeBron!"

Prince curled his lips quietly, just listen to this, in fact, the Knicks, like the other team, also have a triple defense line, just to limit James' impact.
After the second half of the game started, the Cavaliers fans in the Gund Center, who had adjusted their mentality, began to cheer hard again:
"Defense!."

Amid the defensive cheers that resounded throughout the arena, Ronald Murray double-teamed Li You in advance, but Hill, who was left open on the right wing, suddenly shot a cold arrow and successfully hit an open three-pointer.

James dribbled the ball across half court and involuntarily sped up the offensive tempo. After a pick-and-roll with Howard at the top of the arc, he forced his way to the basket.

With the front and back blocks, and the contraction of the wing, James, who was dodging in the air, finally hit the rim and shot out.
Gazuric blocked Howard who was rushing for the frontcourt rebound. At the bottom right side of the basket, Li You jumped high and grabbed the ball behind his head, successfully grabbing the backcourt rebound.

"Shh!"

The defensive cheers turned into boos. As the Knicks quickly set a double screen in the semi-transition offense, Li You once again encountered help defense while moving sideways with the ball in his left hand.

With a ground pass to Hill who cut into the basket, the latter collided with James who was helping defend near the paint area, and the basketball he threw casually hit the backboard and went into the basket.
"What the hell!"

James cursed in anger and could only watch Hill make the free throw.

71:51, the third quarter had just begun, and the Cavaliers fans at the scene suddenly lost their temper
Continuing the defensive strategy from the first half, under the loud command of Van Gundy, the Cavaliers launched a crazy double-team, the Knicks scored from multiple points, and the score continued to rise.

After Finley replaced Hill, the two sides played only three rounds, and the veteran's two three-pointers turned the Gund Center into a library.

The Cavaliers requested another timeout. The game was over. James returned to the bench and was extremely frustrated. He stared at Van Gundy who kept emphasizing defense.

“Maybe our gap lies in the coach?!”

(End of this chapter)