He chose to stick tightly to Chen Xi, giving him no chance to get off an easy shot.
Against that defense, Chen Xi chose to finish by stopping abruptly on the right side of the free-throw line, then rising straight up for a fadeaway jumper.
He deliberately put more arc on the shot, and the ball sailed easily over Craig's head before dropping cleanly through the white net.
The Knicks' offense wasn't really the problem.
The main reason the lead kept growing was that the role players sometimes failed to answer open threes on certain possessions.
Still, Chen Xi's individual offense, along with his teammates' execution and discipline in their tactical movement, had remained fairly steady.
On the next possession, the Bucks got the ball back.
Lillard stuck with the same strategy, lobbing the ball into the paint in hopes that Portis could use his size to score a couple more times over Toppin.
But this time, their plan didn't work.
Chen Xi was on the weak side. Noticing what the Bucks were trying to do, he adjusted his position and gave Ethan a gentle push on the back.
"Go help! Double him and force him to pass!"
At the sound of Chen Xi's voice, Ethan immediately took a big step toward Portis and spread his long arms, trying to steal the ball.
Portis quickly gathered the ball and jumped, then sent it back out to the top of the key.
Smack!!
The moment the ball landed in Lillard's hands, Chen Xi darted in from the middle and knocked it away.
"Chris!! He got the steal!"
Seizing the chance to take the ball away, Chen Xi immediately pushed the fast break, racing down the court alone before finishing with another simple layup.
This wasn't the time to show off