NBA: Journey To Become Unplayable. Chapter 174: The League on Edge Again, The Knicks on Fire

On January 1st, the Knicks kicked off 2010 with a gritty 112-108 win on the road against the Atlanta Hawks.

It was a hard-fought ga. Joe Johnson, Atlanta's go-to guy, was on fire, dropping 35 points on 11-of-23 shooting, with 4 assists and 5 boards to round things out.

But the Hawks' biggest weapon? Their frontcourt. Josh Smith and Al Horford were all over the place—fast, springy, and relentless. They seriously cramped Lin Yi's ga.

So, how did the Knicks pull it off? One word: David Lee.

Lee went absolutely nuts. It felt like soone had fed him ten cans of Red Bull because the guy was flying. He played like a man possessed, racking up 38 points and 21 rebounds. Knicks fans in the arena went nuts with the chanting like he was so kind of folk hero.

Lin didn't try to force the issue. The Hawks had a ga plan to lock him down inside, so he adjusted. Played the facilitator instead. He took just 8 shots the entire ga, mostly dishing and keeping the offense humming.

When it counted, though, Lin nailed 3 huge buckets late in the fourth. But his real damage ca through passing—18 assists, a new career high.

After the ga, Hawks coach Mike Woodson scratched his head. "They made him a playmaker 'cause our defense keyed in on him," he said.

The truth is, Lin saw the setup early. Horford isn't your typical big man—he's fast, long, and smart. In the future, he'd even add a solid three-point shot to his ga. And next to him? Josh Smith, who was at the peak of his powers. A defensive nace with hops, quickness, and all kinds of highlight blocks.

So Lin made the smart call: don't force it. Let David Lee cook.

And cook he did. Lee isn't flashy—no jump-out-of-the-gym monts—but he knows how to find space, how to finish, and Lin just kept feeding him.

While Lee grabbed the spotlight, Lin quietly turned into the Knicks' lighthouse—steady, guiding, and lighting the path to victory.

Funny thing? Lin didn't even realize he had a career-high in assists until soone told him after the ga. The NBA is generous with assists sotis, and when a guy like David Lee finishes every clean look you give him, the numbers just add up.

Lin's style in this one felt a lot like Rondo's—controlling tempo, feeding guys in rhythm. But make no mistake—Lin is still a scorer too. That's the main difference. You couldn't cheat off him the way teams did Rondo. The Hawks were so worried about Lin that even while Lee was cooking, they hesitated to rotate off Lin.

New year, new energy. And beating a solid Eastern Conference rival like Atlanta on the road? That set a great tone.

Knicks: 25-8.

...

January's schedule looked kind to the Knicks. Only one back-to-back. D'Antoni, sensing the opportunity, eased up the load a little, giving players ti to rest and recharge.

Historically, January tends to be injury season in the NBA. With the team trending upward, D'Antoni wanted to keep everyone healthy and locked in.

It was during this ti that a special episode was aired on the Locker Room Gun Scandal.

It ignited talks again, even in the Knicks locker room before the Pacers ga.

Harrington didn't hold back. "Man, this is embarrassing. They're making all of us look bad. You don't ever pull a gun on a teammate. Ever."

The younger guys—Chandler, Lou Williams, and the rest—just nodded. Nobody argued.

Harrington kept going. "Like, how dumb can you be? It's stuff like this that makes people think black athletes are just walking stereotypes. It's not just stupid—it's damaging."

Lin Yi didn't chi in. Arican racial dynamics were complicated enough, and he wasn't about to step into that fire. He figured the whole thing boiled down to this weird cultural double standard—Black players could toss around the n-word with each other like a badge of brotherhood, but if a white or Asian player said it? It'd be called out as racist.

Race was always a touchy topic in sports, but the gun incident rubbed a lot of NBA players the wrong way. It felt like sothing out of a bad movie.

LeBron was the first big na to speak out. "This is a basketball court, not a Wild West saloon. There's no place for guns here," he said.

Kobe, Wade, Chris Paul—they all echoed the sa thing. The league had to step in, and they did.

Crittenton? Done. The Wizards cut him loose. Not even a D-League team wanted anything to do with him. He tried a quick detour through overseas ball, but it didn't last. Teams didn't want the headache. The guy wasn't just a hothead—he was unstable. He was just a straight-up thug.

Arenas didn't get off much easier. He ca back from a major injury that season looking like he was about to reclaim his old form. Then the suspension hit. When he finally ca back, it was clear: Agent Zero wasn't that guy anymore. By 29, he was out of the league.

His ego did him in. That sa obsessive drive that made him a superstar ended up torpedoing his career.

The whole fiasco blew up the Wizards too. They hit the reset button fast. Lin Yi already knew how this story went—Jamison was about to get shipped to Cleveland for nothing, and Butler would land in Dallas.

The Wizards' lineup was butchered.

And just like that, the rebuild began.

John Wall would be next.

As for the draft being totally fair? Lin Yi wasn't buying it. Right after the Wizards tank, they conveniently get the number one pick? Co on.

And don't get him started on the Cavs pulling off a three-peat in future drafts. That wasn't luck—that was the league playing favorites.

The draft was just another tool to keep the balance. That's all.

...

January 3, 2010.

Madison Square Garden, New York.

Roy Hibbert looked like he'd seen a ghost when he saw Lin Yi warming up. The guy was sweating before tip-off.

He knew he was slow. He wasn't so Bynum-type enforcer either. His biggest fear? Becoming another na on Lin Yi's highlight reel.

And you know what? It almost happened. But the Pacers had other plans—they laid down early.

Lin didn't even get to show off any signature moves. The Pacers folded so fast it felt like the Knicks were out there just ssing around.

Granger had ga, no doubt. Before his injuries, he was a legit scorer. But Indiana's bigs? Murphy and Hibbert? Way too slow to keep up with the Knicks' up-tempo style.

It wasn't a ga—it was a beatdown.

The Pacers ca in flat and left flatter.

It wasn't a ga. It was a 45-point demolition.

Knicks 134, Pacers 89.

The Garden was on fire. Knicks fans were loving it.

After that blowout, the Knicks earned a new nickna: "The Pros of Punishnt."

Lin only played 27 minutes: 16 points, 6 boards, 5 dis, 2 blocks. And then? He sat.

"The fourth quarter is Lin's biggest enemy," Barkley joked.

"Seriously, we barely ever see him in the fourth anymore," Kenny Smith added. "These blowouts are wild."

With the Knicks winning most gas by the third quarter, Lin spent a lot of fourth quarters watching from the bench.

But during this ga, Barkley and Kenny were bored stiff and started ranting about the gun scandal again.

Stern had tuned in, hoping to enjoy so Knicks basketball and maybe clear his head—but nope. The ss was still everywhere.

The dia was ripping into the NBA again, blaming players for glorifying violence. Talk shows were fanning the flas, and Stern? He looked like he was about to explode.

He had big plans this season. Lin Yi's breakout. The Chinese market blowing up. New York becoming relevant again. The hype building for Dallas and the All-Star Weekend.

Kobe vs. Lin.

Celtics vs. Lakers.

This season could've been iconic.

Instead, all anyone wanted to talk about was guns.

Stern was livid. If he could've thrown Arenas and Crittenton into the Hudson River himself, he might've.

He dropped punishnts fast. And the union? They weirdly wanted to add a zero-tolerance for guns clause to the next labor deal, as if that sohow ant the league had been too soft before.

And there was Fisher—union rep, veteran guard, and supposed voice of reason—missing the point entirely. It wasn't about gun licenses. It was about the idea of guns in a locker room. Period.

What if a fight breaks out, and a guy runs to grab his gun? That's not basketball. That's madness.

Owners put up the money, sure, but they didn't sign up for shootouts.

Stern knew the league had to act fast. Arenas was once a league darling. But now? He was a liability.

And the league doesn't protect liabilities.

Just when it looked like everything was spiraling...

January 7th.

NBC aired The Ellen DeGeneres Show: Lin Yi and Taylor Swift Special, and it blew up the internet.

That sa night, the Knicks hosted the Bobcats, and Lin Yi dropped a stat line the league hadn't seen in years.

Just like that, Stern saw a flicker of hope break through the storm.

...

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