Or rather, he could not really be called just a role player.
After all, Brother Zhu could practically be considered half an All-Star~~
Jrue Holiday played nine and a half minutes in the first quarter, putting up an impressive 13 points, one rebound, one assist, and two steals. He became the first player to step up and shine in tonight's game.
At least in the first quarter, he was probably the best player on the floor.
He delivered on both offense and defense, doing it all with his shooting, drives, and passing. He fully displayed the caliber of play expected of an elite guard, causing the Knicks enormous trouble for a stretch...
Then the game moved into the second quarter.
Surprisingly, even after the second quarter began, the Knicks still could not find their rhythm. They even allowed the Celtics to unleash another terrifying offensive surge.
In the first four minutes of the second quarter, the Boston Celtics went on an outrageous 14–3 run, stretching their lead to a staggering 20 points.
Jaylen Brown went all out during that stretch, attacking off the dribble and knocking down shots to rack up eight points and two assists. He was the biggest contributor to that run.
Fortunately, the New York side reacted immediately and put Chen Xi back on the floor.
Realizing that the situation had spiraled well out of control, Chen Xi immediately led his team in a counterattack, spending the remaining eight minutes of the second quarter fighting to close the gap.
At halftime, the score stood at 70–56.
The New York Knicks trailed the Celtics by 14 points.
The deficit was still far from small, and they were still being dragged along at their opponent's pace.
This was the first time all season that an opponent had put the