Suddenly, Lowry stood near the free-throw line. James, unable to evade, knocked Lowry over.
Beep, beep, beep…
A rapid series of whistles blew. The Knicks players tensed, thinking Lowry would be called for an illegal screen.
Instead, the referee pointed at James, calling him for an offensive foul!
Beautiful!
Lowry’s pre-positioning was so fast that James didn't even notice, charging straight into him.
James, furious, marched towards the referee, hands spread in a gesture of utter disbelief.
Wade and Bosh quickly moved to pull him away.
Possession changed, and the Knicks went on the offensive. Li Feng dribbled past half-court, met once again by a double-team.
Despite the double-team, Li Feng observed that Battier and Wade’s attention seemed less focused.
Their eyes darted sideways, constantly peeking, ready to rotate and help.
This was the effect of Novak and Shumpert!
Li Feng, seeing this, immediately signaled his teammates.
Lowry received the ball and called for a screen. Novak came to set it, blocking James.
Then, Novak deliberately ran towards Li Feng’s vicinity.
Wade, thinking he was going to shoot a three-pointer, cautiously shifted his feet towards Novak.
Li Feng seized the opportunity, suddenly cutting around Novak towards the 45-degree angle. Battier rushed to chase him but ran into Novak.
Wade couldn't recover in time.
Lowry immediately passed the ball to Li Feng.
This open look was incredibly rare, though fleeting, as James was already lunging over.
Li Feng fired with lightning speed. Swish!
“Thousands of mountains and rivers, can love make a three-pointer go in?”
He made it!
The moment Li Feng released the shot, James, unable to brake in time, crashed into Li Feng.
Thump!
Li Feng went down to the floor.
The referee’s whistle blew: a three-point play!
This was a spectacular play!
The substitutions after the timeout were immediately effective!
The New York home crowd erupted, fans standing en masse to applaud Li Feng’s three-point play.
Teammates rushed to help Li Feng up, shouting loudly.
“Brother Feng, you’re amazing!”
“Well done, Li Feng!”
…
Yao Ming leaped from the sideline, pumping his fist and cheering loudly.
Li Feng sank the free throw, bringing the score to 83-78, with the Heat leading by only 5 points.
Spoelstra couldn’t take it anymore and hastily called a timeout.
James lowered his head, looking dejected.
He knew he had lost this battle to Li Feng.
The Knicks’ substitutions after the timeout were clearly a superior strategy.
…
Li Feng high-fived his teammates, encouraging them loudly.
His teammates and coaches were now thoroughly impressed with Li Feng; every suggestion he made yielded excellent results.
On such an important playoff stage, having an on-court commander was invaluable!
Spoelstra, with few options, could only instruct his perimeter players to defend more tightly.
In reality, this lineup was already the Heat’s strongest defensive unit.
But there was no help for it; if you chose to double-team Li Feng, you had to accept the consequences.
This was a gamble.
You win some, you lose some!
After the timeout, play resumed with both teams’ lineups unchanged.
The Heat offense saw James attract the defense and pass to Wade. The Flash drove to the basket, scoring two points.
Wade’s two points eased some of the Heat’s pressure.
However, on the return, Li Feng passed to Shumpert in the corner again. Just as Shumpert was about to shoot, James lunged at him.
Shumpert then passed to Lowry at the top of the arc. Lowry took the three-pointer. Swish!
Once the Knicks’ three-point shooting opened up, the Heat found themselves in a difficult position.
In the following few possessions, both teams’ offenses executed successfully.
The Knicks truly couldn’t defend the Heat, as Novak’s defense was poor, and while Shumpert was a strong perimeter defender, his height was insufficient to block James and Bosh.
At the end of the third quarter, the score was 91-89, with the Heat leading by 2 points.
This was the Eastern Conference Finals!
It was that close and fiercely contested, thrilling the fans!
Li Feng, at the end of three quarters, had 21 points. His performance seemed ordinary, but his impact on the court couldn’t be reflected by statistics alone.
Before the fourth quarter began, Li Feng instructed the reserve unit: “Billups, you need to slow down the pace, don’t try to outrun them!”
“Marion, you’ll have to work hard on defense.”
“Yi Jianlian, increase your mid-range jumpers from the bench.”
…
The fourth quarter commenced with a battle between the reserves.
These few minutes were critical. With the score so close, if either team’s reserves faltered and the score gap widened, the pressure on the main players would be immense.
Billups, having played in several NBA Finals, possessed strong mental fortitude and understood the importance of these minutes.
Therefore, he was especially focused, following Li Feng’s instructions to drag the tempo and play slowly.
This unsettled the Heat’s reserves.
Coupled with the contributions of Yi Jianlian and Bill Walker in the reserve lineup, the Knicks’ bench held a slight advantage.
With over four minutes played in the fourth quarter, the score stood at 103-102, with the Knicks actually taking a one-point lead.
Li Feng, on the sidelines, was overjoyed, waving his towel and jumping with excitement.
Spoelstra shook his head in frustration. He had hoped his reserves could gain some advantage, but instead, the Knicks had come back.
He had no choice but to call a timeout to prepare to bring his starters back onto the court.
Li Feng high-fived the reserve players on the sidelines, cheering them loudly!
“Guys, well done, you did a great job today!”
…
Then, Li Feng turned to Coach D’Antoni and said, “Coach, let Yi Jianlian and Bill Walker play a few more minutes.”
D’Antoni understood. Li Feng’s substitutions were truly brilliant and insightful.
After the timeout, both teams’ starters returned to the floor.
James looked surprised to see that the Knicks’ starters had changed again, with Yi Jianlian and Bill Walker back in the starting lineup.
On the Heat’s offense, James brought the ball past half-court. Wade came up to set a screen on Bill Walker.
James drove towards the paint.
This time, he was smarter. Seeing Yi Jianlian’s early positioning, he didn’t drive straight but changed direction, attacking the baseline.
Chandler had no choice but to contest. Bosh seized the opportunity and drove to the basket. James passed him the ball.
The Dragon King received it and slammed it down with a powerful dunk!
The Heat’s Big Three offense was incredibly sophisticated. This play perfectly showcased James’s exceptionally high basketball IQ.
Bosh’s interior cut was also brilliant.
104-103, the Heat retook the lead by one point.
Knicks offense.
Li Feng dribbled past half-court and signaled to Yi Jianlian and Bill Walker.
The two players suddenly moved up high together, screening off Battier and Wade.
This was a variation of the “elevator door” play.
The moment they were screened, Li Feng launched a deep three-pointer!
The logo three-pointer made its return!
This was the first logo three-pointer attempt of the day, stunning everyone.
The New York crowd went wild, everyone eagerly awaiting Li Feng’s long-range shot.
James sighed softly, realizing that Li Feng’s playing style was too advanced and impossible to contain.
While they worked hard to score two points, he just crossed half-court and casually threw up a three-pointer.
It was incredibly demoralizing…
With 2 minutes and 53 seconds left in the fourth quarter, the Knicks now led the Heat by five points.
James was truly desperate. He knew the importance of the first game.
The two teams had gone to a Game 7 last year, and this year was expected to be even more intense. Winning the first game would increase their chances of winning a potential Game 7.
Thus, on the next possession, James intensified his defensive pressure.
Li Feng used a teammate’s screen to drive from the left, aiming for the baseline.
Unexpectedly, James suddenly charged from behind, knocking Li Feng to the ground.
The force was immense. Although Li Feng tried to protect himself, he was disoriented and rolled more than two meters past the baseline.
A photographer collided with Li Feng, nearly dropping his camera.
The referee hesitated, only calling a common foul on James.
Anyone else would have stayed down.
James feigned innocence, explaining himself to the referee while glancing at Li Feng from the corner of his eye.
He hoped Li Feng would be carried off the court and unable to continue the game.
With a 5-point difference, James was confident he could overcome a Knicks team without Li Feng!
The Knicks teammates also grew anxious, crowding around Li Feng.
NBA players are not supposed to be helped up immediately after a fall, as their large physiques could result in injury to a particular body part.
Helping them up rashly could cause secondary damage.
Li Feng was actually fine, just his arm felt a bit sore from the fall.
He deliberately stayed down for a while longer before slowly getting back to his feet.
The team doctor conducted a brief examination, found no issues, and declared Li Feng fit to continue playing.
Of course, others didn't know that Li Feng was protected by the system’s [Damage Immunity Skill] and wouldn't be injured.
James watched from a distance. Seeing Li Feng stand up again and ready to continue, he let out a relaxed sigh, disappointed.
The Knicks continued their offense, with 14 seconds remaining on the shot clock.
Li Feng didn't complain and didn’t look at James. For him, these were normal occurrences in a game.
Throughout NBA history, countless games have featured injurious actions, and this was also part of the game.
Fans, however, only remember the ultimate champions.
Therefore, complaining was useless; as long as the championship could be won, everything was worth it.
Yi Jianlian inbounded the ball and passed it to Li Feng again.
This time, Li Feng didn’t drive but made a quick lateral move, executing a pull-up jump shot.
Unexpectedly, James wasn’t finished. His previous move hadn’t worked, and he attempted a trip!
Although James’s action was subtle, as he extended his foot, his eyes were fixed on the basket.
But Li Feng knew very well that he was trying to trip him.
However, Li Feng had trained countless times to counter tripping.
He had learned this from Curry.
As a historically great shooter, Curry naturally became a primary target in games, and opponents sometimes resorted to dirty tactics.
Therefore, Curry had many ways to deal with landings.
For example, he would suddenly spread his legs apart or roll with the momentum to absorb the impact.
These techniques could avoid the harm caused by tripping.
Seeing James lunge at him, Li Feng was prepared to counter. After taking the shot, he naturally spread his legs, moving away from his original position.
After the trip, James found nothing under his foot and was momentarily stunned.
Li Feng casually dropped a sentence: “That’s enough…”
Then, Li Feng turned and went back on defense.
With these two points, the Knicks now led by seven points.
Time remaining was 2 minutes and 31 seconds.
James was completely dejected. Neither overt nor covert tactics worked; it seemed this game was lost.
Despite James launching frequent attacks afterward, the Knicks were well-prepared, boxing out early to prevent James from getting momentum.
Simultaneously, they defended James one-on-one, blocking his passing lanes.
Finally, the Knicks secured their first home victory, leading the Heat 1-0 in the series!
Li Feng played 39 minutes today, scoring 34 points, 12 rebounds, and 13 assists, a very comprehensive stat line.
James also recorded 31 points and 10 assists, being the Heat’s leading scorer.
The first victory was hard-won. His teammates surrounded Li Feng, cheering loudly for the win.
The New York home crowd also cheered for their heroes from the sidelines.
A female reporter approached with a microphone and congratulated Li Feng: “Congratulations, Li Feng, on securing the first win in the Eastern Conference Finals!”
Li Feng nodded: “Thank you. Today’s game was close, but we came out on top in the end.”
“You played seven games last year. Do you think there will be another Game 7 battle this year?”
Li Feng chuckled: “It’s hard to say, but I hope we don’t have to play that many games.”
The female reporter paused: “Do you mean… the Knicks can win ahead of schedule?”
Li Feng shook his head: “I didn’t say that. I just hope it can end sooner.”
The female reporter smiled knowingly and asked again: “The Knicks were trailing in the third quarter. What was the secret to their comeback?”
Li Feng scratched his head: “There’s no secret, just playing to our strengths. The Heat’s Big Three are very strong, so naturally, we have to give it our all.”
…
After this game, the media and fans’ opinions shifted.
This is how it works; the outcome of one game can instantly change public discourse.
Before the first game, the media predicted a 60-40 advantage for the Heat.
The primary reasons were that the Heat’s Big Three were in their second year of playing together and had defeated the Knicks before the playoffs.
Additionally, Yao Ming’s injury and absence from the first game increased the Heat’s chances of winning.
However, led by Li Feng, the Knicks managed to secure the first game with a close call.
The media began extensive coverage—
“Li Feng Records Another Monster Triple-Double, Leads Team to Victory Against Heat’s Big Three!”
“Heat’s Big Three Suffer a Blow, First Loss Makes Eastern Conference Finals Journey Thorny.”
“Li Feng Returns Like a King, Wins Eastern Conference Finals Opener, Chances for Three-Peat Greatly Increased!”
…
Not only did the media highly praise him, but the fans also overwhelmingly lauded Li Feng.
Jena also initiated a video call with Li Feng that evening to congratulate him.
Li Feng’s mother had recovered significantly in the past few days, and Jena was preparing to return to the United States.
Next up was the second game.
The second game was equally important. Li Feng remained focused. He and his teammates meticulously analyzed the film from the first game and then conducted targeted training.
One day later, the second game of the Eastern Conference Finals tipped off again.
In the first quarter, the Knicks withstood the Heat’s onslaught, keeping the score tight.
Then, in the second quarter, both the reserves and starters played well, establishing a lead.
In the third quarter, Li Feng once again led the team in a spectacular display, the “Knicks’ Madness,” rapidly extending their lead.