Unfortunately, if the comparison extended to their overall impact on offense, Irving still fell a little short of Chen.
Chen Xi's impact on offense was simply too frightening.
He was far too efficient, and his shooting percentage was downright absurd.
The higher his efficiency, the greater his pull on the defense naturally became, making it that much easier for him to draw defenders toward him.
Combined with Chen's equally elite passing skills and a series of badges such as [Playmaking Core] and [Ten Dimes], that made it incredibly easy for Chen Xi to create quality scoring opportunities for his teammates. He also had the ability to deliver the ball reliably under intense defensive pressure.
That was why, despite taking so many shots himself, Chen Xi still maintained such a high assist count—even slightly higher than Doncic, whose entire style revolved around being a ball-dominant offensive centerpiece.
Chen... was a cheater~~
After a relatively brief halftime break, the second half soon got underway.
To the relief of Mavericks fans, both teams finally brought back their full starting lineups.
At least that ensured the Mavericks had reasonably sufficient perimeter defensive resources when switching onto Chen Xi and George, rather than getting pulled apart like they had at the end of the second quarter...
Soon, play resumed in the second half.
The Knicks still had possession for the first trip after returning to the court.
Rose dribbled across half court, reached the top of the key, and called Horford over for a pick-and-roll.
He drove off the screen into mid-range, then executed a swift front crossover against Gobert and accelerated again into the paint.
Once he had drawn enough attention, he kicked the ball out to Strus in the corner.
Strus caught it, gave a shot fake, then immediately swung the ball again.