Barkley didn't argue further, nodding, "I agree on this point. The strengths are comparable. From these two home games, the Mavericks have more momentum. But back in New York, the Knicks should respond!"
Smith also said, "In terms of playstyle, these two teams have similarities, with many players possessing strong shooting abilities."
Barkley agreed, "Yes, Li Feng's ultra-long three-pointers and high-difficulty threes are unique playing styles, and Nowitzki's three-point attempts are also increasing, which is different from previous games."
In traditional basketball games, the three-point shot was merely a tactical supplement, usually taken by role players.
Reggie Miller was already an anomaly of that era, but his three-point percentage wasn't that high.
It was only in crucial moments that Reggie Miller's three-pointers left a deep impression on the audience.
By Li Feng's era in 2010, being able to shoot threes to such a level truly gave these veterans a paradigm shift.
Open-minded veterans would praise this style, considering it an advancement in basketball's shooting capability.
Some veterans, however, dismissed it, believing that basketball should be about attacking the basket and physical combat, which they considered true basketball.
Everyone had their opinions, with no right or wrong. Regardless, every era had its representative figures.
The overall skill of the players was indeed increasing.
Of course, superstars would always be superstars, regardless of the era!
...
The second half of the game began.
As soon as he came on, Nowitzki used a teammate's screen to block Yao Ming and hit a three-pointer from the top of the arc.
The score was instantly tied!
The home crowd at the Mavericks' arena erupted in cheers. This shot gave the home fans a glimpse of their potential for another win!
The Knicks players were taken aback, and Li Feng immediately responded.
As the Knicks' star player, if he didn't answer this shot, the Mavericks could easily go on a run and establish an advantage in the third quarter.
Li Feng brought the ball past half-court. Facing a double-team, he feigned looking left and right as if to pass. But then, with a sudden sharp change of direction, he left Kidd behind.
Marion tried to chase him down, but Li Feng didn't choose to drive. Instead, he rapidly moved laterally to the 45-degree angle, outside the three-point line, and with a flick of his wrist, launched a three-pointer!
Swish!
"My three-point sword is the fire of hell!"
"That's just tough!"
Li Feng's powerful response put the Knicks ahead by three points again.
Nowitzki grinned; he was truly shocked by Li Feng's three-point ability.
In the following few possessions, Nowitzki took two more shots and made one.
Li Feng took three shots and made two.
Both star players showcased their dominant performances.
However, the difference emerged from their teammates.
The Knicks players seemed to have found their rhythm, especially Lowry, whose pull-up jump shots seemed divinely guided.
Perhaps Lowry's three-pointers in the first half had left a deep impression on the Mavericks players, as any pump fake from Lowry outside the three-point line would fool the defenders.
Lowry would then drive to the paint and score with a pull-up jumper.
This move was surprisingly effective, as he made four consecutive baskets.
Carlisle was infuriated.
Just as the Mavericks began to focus their defense on Lowry, Lowry suddenly started passing again.
He utilized Yao Ming's agile movement to deliver two perfectly timed passes.
Both of these passes resulted in assists.
Meanwhile, the Mavericks seemed to have lost their magic under the Knicks' defense.
With the rise of one and the decline of the other, the Knicks widened the score gap.
By the end of the third quarter, the Knicks led by thirteen points, 82:69.
Carlisle was very displeased with the score and unleashed another barrage of shouts at his players.
In reality, the Mavericks players had been playing exceptionally well throughout this postseason.
Carlisle knew this very well. The fact that they had reached this point was partly due to Nowitzki's unwavering and tough play, and partly due to the all-around performance from the entire team.
Therefore, Carlisle could mentally accept their sudden slump in the third quarter.
But during the game, as the head coach, he had to express his anger.
Carlisle's outburst had a noticeable effect. At the start of the fourth quarter, the bench players exploded again, as if divinely guided.
Billups led the bench unit with intense defense, but Terry was on fire.
Even with Billups guarding him directly, Terry seemed to make every shot.
Even with the defender practically on top of him, Terry still managed to score, drawing a foul and completing a three-point play!
Li Feng watched from the sidelines, amused, and sighed.
Nowitzki, from the sideline, enthusiastically waved his towel, happy for his young teammate.
After making the shot, Terry's celebratory gesture ignited the enthusiasm of the entire crowd.
He made a graceful and highly evocative flying motion with his hands.
The spectators on the court joined him in mimicking the flying gesture.
The atmosphere at the Mavericks' home arena reached a new peak.
After more than four minutes into the second quarter, the score became 87:86, with the Knicks leading by only one point!
The thirteen-point deficit had shrunk to one point.
It seemed that the Knicks' dream of smoothly securing the victory had been dashed.
The Mavericks were too tenacious, showing incredible resilience!
Seeing that his bench defense was struggling, D'Antoni had no choice but to bring back his starters for the final push.
Upon entering the court, Li Feng's expression was serious. He walked directly to Terry and whispered, "You're on fire today. Let me guard you."
Terry, caught up in the moment, didn't care who was guarding him; it was all the same to him.
So he arrogantly replied, "Alright, then you can be my backdrop!"
Li Feng smiled and didn't say anything more.
The game resumed. Li Feng first assisted Yao Ming, who scored two points with a soft layup in the paint.
The Mavericks advanced their offense. Li Feng spread his arms, moving his feet quickly, shadowing Terry tightly.
Terry was excellent at off-ball movement and could run a lot.
Unfortunately, under Li Feng's rapid movements, Terry couldn't shake him off.
Cutting back, stopping abruptly, running again, using screens...
He tried all his moves, but Li Feng stuck to him like a piece of chewing gum, glued to his side.
Terry was starting to get frustrated.
Under Li Feng's suffocating defense, Terry finally went quiet. Seeing the unfavorable situation, Carlisle quickly brought his starters back onto the court.
At this point, the score was 90:86, with the Knicks leading by four points.
With 5 minutes and 38 seconds left in the game, the outcome was still uncertain.
A four-point lead wasn't much for these two teams; a quick run could easily erase it.
Nowitzki's ability was immense, but the cold had taken a toll on him.
On his first shot after returning in the fourth quarter, he missed wildly, and Nowitzki himself shook his head.
Li Feng saw Nowitzki's legs trembling slightly, indicating clear fatigue.
Although as a friend, Li Feng respected Dirk immensely and wished him good health and to play at his best, he was an opponent now. Exploiting an opponent's weakness was the killer blow to victory!
So Li Feng whispered a couple of words to Yao Ming.
Yao Ming understood, and during the offense, he repeatedly exploited mismatches to attack Nowitzki.
Nowitzki's body was already weak, and Yao Ming's persistent pounding left him gasping for breath.
Furthermore, due to his lack of physical strength, Nowitzki's movements became more aggressive.
The referee called two consecutive fouls on Nowitzki.
He now had four fouls in total.
Although the game was nearing its end, four fouls weren't necessarily detrimental, but Nowitzki became a bit more cautious.
He was the spiritual pillar and tactical core of the Mavericks. If he were to foul out, the Mavericks would likely collapse.
Therefore, Nowitzki restrained himself on defense.
On offense, Nowitzki's stamina was even more depleted.
Fortunately, the Mavericks' teammates were giving their all. Kidd and Stevenson created opportunities through offensive plays and capitalized on them.
Kidd was truly getting better with age. When Nowitzki's stamina faltered, he shouldered the offensive burden.
Led by Li Feng, the Knicks slowly extended their lead.
With 1 minute and 31 seconds left in the game, the Knicks were ahead by seven points.
The scales of victory had tilted in favor of the Knicks.
At this moment, Carlisle suddenly changed tactics, substituting Marion for Novak.
At the same time, Carlisle called Marion to the sideline and whispered a few words to him.
The Mavericks advanced their offense.
Li Feng knew Novak was a shooter, so he had Lowry guard him, while he guarded Kidd.
Just as the Knicks players expected Novak to attempt more three-pointers, Marion suddenly cut to the corner.
Kidd, with quick eyes, immediately passed him the ball.
Marion hadn't attempted a three-pointer all game, so Bill Walker, guarding him, wasn't pressing him tightly.
Unexpectedly, the "Hacker" decisively took the three-point shot.
The entire Knicks team was stunned.
Swish!
The three-pointer went in!
106:102!
The Knicks now led by only four points.
And there was still 1 minute and 12 seconds left in the game.
D'Antoni also sensed something was amiss and quickly called a timeout.
After Marion made the three-pointer, the home crowd was so excited they were on the verge of tears.
The Mavericks were having such a great season; if they didn't seize this golden opportunity to win the championship, who knew when the next chance would come.
Although Nowitzki had performed excellently throughout this postseason, keen fans could see that he was aging.
Therefore, the fans desperately wished for Nowitzki to have a fulfilling career.
In his past life as a fan, Li Feng had felt the same. When the Mavericks defeated the Heat's Big Three, Li Feng was also happy for Nowitzki.
But now he was Nowitzki's opponent, so he could only apologize; Li Feng would give his all, as that was the true respect for "Old Dirk"!
The timeout ended, and the game resumed.
The tense and exciting moments were about to unfold!
Li Feng dribbled the ball past half-court. Seeing the double-team, he didn't force it, as the Knicks were still leading.
He passed the ball to Lowry.
As Lowry was about to pass, he noticed Novak wasn't tightly guarding him.
So Lowry immediately shot a three-pointer.
During the timeout, D'Antoni had said that the team was in good form, and with Li Feng heavily guarded, others with opportunities should shoot decisively.
However, they needed to manage the clock, ideally letting it run down to over 20 seconds.
With a lead, slowing down the game was a normal tactical rhythm.
Unfortunately, Lowry was still young. He remembered to shoot decisively but forgot to run down the clock.
As soon as he shot, Li Feng felt something was off.
He hurried to grab the rebound, but Kidd firmly established his position, preventing him from getting through.
Yao Ming was also boxed out by Chandler.
Nowitzki secured the rebound and immediately passed it to Marion.
As a member of the "Run and Gun 1.0" era, Marion's offensive transition was extremely fast. He immediately initiated a drive past half-court.
Even though Li Feng was chasing him from behind, the "Hacker" managed to get ahead and score on a layup.
106:104, the Knicks now led by only two points!
D'Antoni, on the sideline, stomped his feet in frustration, but he didn't scold Lowry. With time running out and still holding a lead, yelling at Lowry would affect his mindset, and Lowry was still young.
With 52 seconds left in the game, the Knicks had possession.
To ease Lowry's guilt, Li Feng passed the ball to him again, saying, "It's okay, shoot if you have to, but don't forget to run down the clock!"
Lowry nodded. He knew he had made a mistake and was very remorseful.
Seeing Li Feng's continued trust in him, Lowry was deeply touched.
This time, Novak closed in tightly, but Lowry knew Novak's defensive ability was average.
So the "Little Cannon" executed a half-turn fake, creating a half-step of space against Novak, and then drove rapidly into the paint from the right.
Nowitzki came to help defend, and Lowry immediately passed the ball to Bill Walker.
Bill Walker had limited offensive ability and didn't shoot, instead holding the ball to burn time.
Suddenly, Li Feng broke free from Kidd and Marion, running from outside the sideline in a circuitous route to the baseline to receive the pass.
Bill Walker immediately passed the ball to him.
Unfortunately, Bill Walker's passing skill was too ordinary, and his intention was too obvious.
Marion, with his incredible speed, spun around and, with his right hand swinging backward, stole the ball.
The ball conveniently landed near Kidd, who grabbed it and initiated a fast break.
Lowry and Bill Walker quickly backpedaled. Seeing no good opportunity, Kidd had to fall back into a half-court set.
The Mavericks were trailing by two points, and there was still enough time, so Carlisle immediately called a timeout from the sideline.
There were now 28 seconds left on the clock, and the Mavericks had 21 seconds of shot clock remaining.
If the Mavericks could score, the Knicks would theoretically have a little time for offense.
The situation was precarious.
D'Antoni, with the help of his assistant coaches, was strategizing and deploying his defensive lineup.
The Knicks put out Yao Ming, Li Feng, Bill Walker, Lowry, and Jordan Hill.
The Mavericks put out their offensive lineup:
Nowitzki, Chandler, Terry, Kidd, and Marion.
The Mavericks inbounded the ball from the sideline.
Marion stood at the sideline and first passed the ball to Chandler near the free-throw line.
Chandler seemed to be looking for Nowitzki.
But the Knicks were prepared. Yao Ming and Jordan Hill had already trapped Nowitzki like a sandwich.
At this moment, Terry ran to the corner, and Lowry stuck to him like glue.
The seconds ticked by...
Then, Marion suddenly cut to the basket.
Everyone assumed the Mavericks would shoot a three-pointer, so the Knicks' defensive focus was on the perimeter.
But Marion's sudden penetration caught the Knicks off guard!