The Knicks had a sideline inbound.
Meanwhile, Horford took the opportunity to check in at the scorer's table. Thibodeau once again chose to replace Toppin with Horford.
Facing an elite power forward, the Knicks had opted to bring out their twin-tower lineup again after a brief feeling-out period to start the game.
Near the corner, George took the ball from the referee and inbounded it up top.
Rose caught it at the top of the key and tried to organize the offense again.
He called for another pick-and-roll with Chen Xi, using his teammate's threat to draw the defense away before accelerating into the lane to force the Thunder to collapse, then kicking it to the opposite corner, where Horford had just checked in.
Horford caught the ball and shot without any adjustment.
He had a shot opportunity the moment he entered the game!
Unfortunately, he missed...
The ball bounced off the rim and fell into Davis's hands as he dropped back toward the basket.
The Thunder immediately pushed in transition again.
Westbrook took the ball from AD, accelerated across half court, then passed to Barrett, who was trailing on the other side.
Barrett caught it and kept striding forward, charging into New York's paint.
With Chen Xi defending him on the move, he tried to force up a layup through contact.
The ball ultimately slipped out of his hands.
The contact between them was harder than Barrett had expected, leaving him unable to hold on to the ball as he tried to finish.
After slipping from his hands, the ball flew straight out of bounds.
A backcourt inbound, Knicks possession.
After landing, Chen Xi rubbed his slightly aching chest, then took the inbound pass from George and turned to bring the ball upcourt.
Barrett was, after all, a full-sized,