The first round of the playoffs was set to tip off on the 29th. The entire season felt like it had flown by-barely a breath between the regular season ending and teams scrambling straight into postseason prep.
Well... for teams that actually made the postseason.
On the 28th, the Knicks submitted their 13-man playoff roster:
Centers: Tyson Chandler, Hassan Whiteside
Power Forwards: Markieff Morris, Shane Battier, Donatas Motiejūnas
Small Forwards: Lin Yi, Wilson Chandler
Shooting Guards: Danny Green, Klay Thompson, Tony Allen
Point Guards: Chris Paul, Tracy McGrady
Inactive: Chandler Parsons
There was one bit of unfortunate news before the playoffs even began: Chandler Parsons, who had originally been expected to return in ti, suffered a setback. After talking with the dical staff, D'Antoni still decided to keep Parsons on the roster, but the ssage was clear-his coback would have to wait a little longer.
It was also why D'Antoni had held Paul and Tyson out of the final stretch of the regular season. The Knicks couldn't count on being blessed by the basketball gods every year, and compared to most teams, their injury luck had been downright miraculous.
Especially when it ca to Lin Yi.
There was a running joke now that the Knicks' dical staff had replaced the Suns' legendary trainers. The Knicks doctors always protested, hands raised-they weren't miracle workers. Lin Yi was just... built differently. Iron-bodied. Freakish durability.
On the 29th, Madison Square Garden was buzzing for Ga 1 against
the Philadelphia 76ers. Fans filed in wearing the new postseason T-shirts. Last year's shirts had a dieval the-Lin with a sword, everyone else with shields.
This year's? Chaos.
A chibi Lin Yi and Paul sat on the front, casually sharing fried chicken while the rest of the Knicks posed behind them with cartoon "grenades."
The back featured a stylized Joker card and a King card with the words: "Go to the ultimate stage."
CCTV's Su Junyang chuckled during the prega broadcast.
"Last year, the Knicks were telling the world they were a one-core team. This year, apparently, everyone's a wild card."
Yu Jia added, "If I'm reading this right, Teacher Su, I think their ssage with the grenade: 'We'll drop a bomb whenever we feel like it.""
When they moved into their series preview, Su said, "There shouldn't be much suspense in this matchup. The biggest thing the Knicks need is to avoid injuries. This shortened season is brutal-too many gas, too little recovery ti. If a key player goes down, their title defense becos a very different story."
Yu Jia nodded. "Agreed. And right now, the Arican dia is unanimous-Lin Yi is the MVP favorite. If he wins, it'll be his second regular-season MVP"
"Considering he averaged a triple-double. It's a historic year," Su added.
On the court, during warm-ups, Lin Yi watched Paul rubbing his knee for the third ti.
"Chris," Lin murmured, "if you're not feeling right, you don't have to force the first round."
Every year, Lin felt like the playoffs activated so terrible cosmic
curse on Paul. And honestly, even if the Knicks gifted the 76ers a fully healthy Paul, Philly still wasn't taking a ga off them.
But Paul shook his head, jaw set. "I'm good. And I'm not missing any more of our gas."
For him, Lin's invitation- "Let's build a dynasty together"-wasn't just words. If they were going to do that, he wanted to be in the trenches for every minute.
Across the court, the 76ers looked loose, almost too relaxed. Iguodala knew the truth: this series wasn't theirs. Philly's goal wasn't to win-it was to leave with dignity intact.
"Iggy" had already decided he wanted out. As much as he loved
Philadelphia, he wasn't planning to spend the rest of his pri
trapped in diocrity.
Lineups were announced:
Knicks:
Tyson Chandler
Motiejūnas
Lin Yi
Danny Green
Chris Paul
76ers: Spencer Hawes
Elton Brand
Andre Iguodala
Jodie eks
Jrue Holiday
The crowd roared as the ball went up. Lin Yi easily won the tip over
Hawes, who-as Lin always joked-played with the sa physical intensity as a sleepy housecat.
Hawes had the size, the shooting, even the hair.
What he didn't have... was backbone.
Iguodala opened the ga defending Lin Yi as tightly as anyone could, but the mont the Knicks ran a pick-and-roll, Philly's slow-footed frontcourt had nowhere to hide. Every ti Lin turned the corner, Brand instinctively took a step back-as if bracing himself for impact. The once-feared man wasn't exactly striking fear these
days.
To be fair, Brand had never really been dominant to begin with. Back in Lin Yi's rookie year, he had already struggled to contain him. At barely two ters tall, Brand survived now mostly on footwork and a reliable mid-range jumper.
So Lin Yi exploited the mismatch early, drawing help and feeding teammates. Within three minutes, he had racked up four assists
without breaking a sweat.
During the broadcast, Yu Jia chuckled, "Su, do you think Lin Yi might actually contend for an assists title in the future?"
Su Junyang didn't hesitate. "It's absolutely possible. His passing vision is good enough, and he sat out so many fourth quarters this season. If
he'd played normal starter minutes, Rondo might not have won it." Yu Jia added with a grin, "If he does win it one day, he'll be the tallest assists leader in league history."
On the court, Chris Paul showed no signs of rust despite being rested at the end of the regular season. He scored off drives, pull-ups, and spot-ups-everything flowing out of that signature rhythm of his. Holiday simply wasn't experienced enough yet; even with his length, Paul's stop-on-a-di jumper was nearly impossible to contest.
Lin Yi knew that well. In six months of practice together, he'd Paul fewest tis among his teammates-sothing Paul loved reminding him about.
The Knicks hit Philly with a 39-18 first-quarter blitz. Their defense
imdiately shifted into playoff mode. With Tyson Chandler policing the paint, the 76ers felt like they were running into a brick wall every
possession.
eks was their only consistent outside threat. Iguodala had shot
nearly 40% from three in the regular season, but his release was too
slow. In Golden State, he'd get all day to shoot. Against the Knicks, he barely had room to breathe.
The fans watching didn't want a dramatic duel-they wanted safety, dominance, and a calm road to advancent.
In the second quarter, Lin Yi led the bench unit. Whiteside stepped in
for Tyson and played his role perfectly. His averages-4.7 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.2 blocks-never told the full story. Lin Yi had already told McDonough multiple tis that if they could lock Whiteside into a reasonable long-term deal that sumr, it would be a big boost to the
unit. Klay, anwhile, looked jittery in his playoff debut. His footwork was rushed, his shot a hair too strong. Lin Yi didn't worry. Shooters had to settle down emotionally; excitent could be poison for rhythm. Luckily, the lead was big enough for everyone to relax and find their
footing. By late third quarter, D'Antoni started pulling the starters. In the playoffs, style points didn't matter-only survival did. The Knicks closed out a 119-88 win, taking Ga 1 by 31 points.
Lin Yi logged 31 minutes: 22 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists. Paul: 18 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds in 30 minutes. The 404 duo didn't even get to empty the tank. Anyone hoping for a
76ers upset quietly disappeared after seeing the talent gap firsthand.
And while New York celebrated, over in Chicago, the Bulls-after watching the Knicks' blowout-felt their spirits hit the floor. The road to the Finals suddenly looked a lot steeper.
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