By the sideline, Shorter quickly inbounded the ball.
Harden shoved Rose away from his side, stepped up to receive the pass, then turned around and waited for his teammates to get into position. At last, he began another face-up isolation against Rose.
He strung together Between-the-Legs Crossovers, adjusting his dribbling rhythm while inching forward half a step at a time, gradually reaching his favorite attacking range.
Then, after another Between-the-Legs Crossover, Harden suddenly took a small retreating step with the ball and raised his hands for a Bait Buddha.
The fake successfully drew Rose's defensive stance upward. Harden followed with a Powerful Smash, exploding into a drive and accelerating into the paint. With Hartenstein a beat late on the hedge, he released a floater one step inside the free-throw line.
The ball sailed over Hartenstein's head toward the rim.
It bounced twice on the front rim before dropping through the net.
James Harden had scored off his isolation.
The deficit was back to six points. Again.
Next came the Knicks' possession.
New York inbounded in the backcourt.
Facing the Nets' intense full-court press, Horford stood beyond the baseline with the ball and remained very patient.
He calmly waited for his teammates to finish screening for one another, then delivered a steady pass into Chen Xi's hands.
"An old hand in the family is a treasure."
His wealth of game experience and solid passing fundamentals greatly reduced the veteran Horford's chances of turning the ball over at a critical moment like this.
Meanwhile, after receiving the ball, Chen Xi did not rush to dribble. He first bumped Thomas, who was pressing him, using his body to force some space while carefully surveying the defense. Before Harden could arrive with the double-team, he passed to George near half court.
Paul George immediately