Section 2 The game reached 5 minutes and 23 seconds, with the score at 37:36. The reserve players from both teams were locked in a fierce battle.
The Heat's head coach called a timeout, preparing to bring in the starters.
Li Feng was also preparing to enter the game.
As both teams' starters returned to the court, the fans' focus once again shifted to Wade and Li Feng.
Unfortunately, they had too few one-on-one matchups, as Wade tried to avoid direct confrontation with Li Feng.
However, when Li Feng faced Wade, he had to attack, and he never missed!
The difference was clear!
At least in the first half, Li Feng's performance had suppressed Wade.
If Wade did not respond, then in the future, whether in the media or on fan forums, Wade would be overshadowed by Li Feng.
However, Wade's experience began to show.
Facing the Knicks' fast-paced offensive whirlwind, the Heat employed an "all-switch" defensive strategy.
With the all-switch defense and the advantage of home-court calls, the Heat gradually regained the lead.
In the second quarter, Li Feng committed his second foul within 3 minutes, adding to the one he received in the first quarter. He now had three fouls.
D'Antoni, with a helpless look, had to substitute Li Feng out early.
As soon as Li Feng left the court, Wade, like a tiger released from its cage, exploded.
When Li Feng left the court, the Knicks were still leading by 7 points, but Wade led the team and, after a few possessions, had closed the gap.
Li Feng was pacing anxiously on the sidelines, but there was nothing he could do; he couldn't afford to commit another foul.
D'Antoni's expression was grim. His coaching experience told him that playing on the road was difficult.
But the home-court calls for the Heat today were excessive.
Although the other Knicks players were playing valiantly, they couldn't match up against Wade.
Furthermore, the Knicks' "run-and-gun" offense was centered around Li Feng.
Without Li Feng, its effectiveness was greatly reduced.
Li Feng could only hope his teammates would step up and not let the deficit widen too much.
Unfortunately, Li Feng was disappointed.
Wade was determined. He knew very well that Li Feng would try to catch up in the second half.
Since that was the case, he had to take advantage of Li Feng's absence to widen the gap as much as possible, creating a cushion for the second half.
With this mindset, Wade was unstoppable, driving to the basket and scoring consecutively, unleashing a scoring run.
By the end of the first half, the Heat had taken a 20-point lead.
Li Feng's brow was furrowed on the sidelines, feeling uncertain.
This was an NBA regular-season game, not the Olympics.
The skill gap between the two teams wasn't that large, and a 20-point deficit was difficult to overcome.
This was because in 2009, the game pace wasn't as fast.
Moreover, the Heat had made defensive adjustments, making Li Feng's drives more challenging.
During halftime, Li Feng tried to comfort his teammates in the locker room, but their morale was low.
The Knicks teammates felt a strong sense of guilt.
Li Feng's plus-minus was +9, while all others had negative plus-minus values.
"Brothers, we are a team. To win this game, we need everyone!"
"You guys played well just now. It's only a 20-point difference. We'll catch up in the third quarter!"
Under Li Feng's encouragement, his teammates regained most of their confidence and felt more optimistic about the second half.
...
In the TNT broadcast booth, Barkley found another angle to mock Li Feng.
"See, this is a rookie, only knows how to stat-pad. The team is losing, he's just a big stat-padder."
Smith calmly retorted, "Not necessarily. Li Feng's scoring is still very important, he was just plagued by foul trouble."
"Fouls are part of the game, it just means Li Feng's defensive moves are too big."
Barkley chuckled, believing the Heat had this game in the bag.
Smith jokingly said, "Don't forget, Li Feng loves comebacks."
"Comebacks? That was in the Olympics, the opponents were too weak. Today it's against Wade's Heat, how is he going to make a comeback!"
...
Not only were the media belittling Li Feng, but on fan forums, many of Wade's fans were also aggressively attacking Li Feng.
Perhaps because Li Feng had suppressed Wade in the Olympics, Wade's fans were still harboring resentment.
Therefore, in today's matchup, Wade's fans began their counterattack.
There was no way around it; Li Feng had a massive fan base, being a Chinese star. In Chinese basketball forums, Li Feng's fan base was second only to Yao Ming, Kobe, and LeBron James.
Keep in mind that this was Li Feng's first NBA game.
As long as he achieved some success in the NBA, his fan base would undoubtedly grow exponentially.
There was nothing to be done. After the first half, Wade had scored 3 more points than Li Feng, and the Heat led by 20 points. Looking purely at the statistics, Wade had indeed suppressed Li Feng.
Only those who watched the game knew that Li Feng had a half-step advantage over Wade in their direct matchups.
Wade's expression in the locker room remained solemn.
The 20-point lead did not make Wade feel at ease.
Therefore, Wade was also reminding his Heat teammates that in the second half, they must defend with all their might, and absolutely must not let the Knicks gain momentum.
Halftime was a delicate period; the core players had to calm their teammates and boost morale within those short 10 minutes.
Li Feng not only calmed his teammates but also discussed strategy with D'Antoni.
During practice, Li Feng had suggested implementing the "elevator door" play.
This play, before Li Feng's transmigration, had been used by the Golden State Warriors.
In reality, this so-called "elevator door" play was not too complicated.
The essence of this play was that the shooter's three-point percentage had to be high!
In other words, even if other teams used the "elevator door" play, if they couldn't make shots, what was the point?
Making a fuss for nothing, and then not being able to score, rendered it meaningless.
In his previous life, the elevator door play had been mastered by Curry and Thompson.
As long as they could screen off the defenders, the "Splash Brothers'" shooting percentages were incredibly high.
This was why the elevator door play appeared so formidable.
D'Antoni did not favor this play much during practice, as the elevator door play did not align with the principles of the run-and-gun strategy.
However, trailing by 20 points at halftime, they desperately needed a few three-pointers to close the gap and boost morale.
So, at the beginning of the second half, at Li Feng's instruction, his teammates began executing the elevator door play.
Li Feng, using his teammates' screens, hit shot after shot!
He hit three consecutive three-pointers!
Wade cried out in agony.
He had already instructed his Heat teammates to defend with all their might, but unfortunately, Li Feng's "elevator door" play completely screened off the defenders!
As soon as Li Feng made his second three-pointer, Wade saw the trick and immediately directed his teammates to try and break Li Feng's elevator door play.
However, the elevator door was merely a supplementary tactic for Li Feng; it didn't mean Li Feng relied on it entirely.
Li Feng could still take three-point shots with his individual skill.
As the Heat players closed in, Li Feng faked a crossover, "a cross-up," and shook off the two Heat players who came to double-team him.
Then, Li Feng easily took the three-point shot!
Li Feng scored 9 consecutive points, narrowing the deficit to 11 points!
At this point, only 1 minute and 14 seconds into the third quarter, the Heat coach started to panic.