The Knicks played even better than they had expected at the start of the second quarter.
Paul's arrival hadn't made the team's offense grind to a halt. In fact, while trying to get the role players going, he had also seamlessly brought Paul George into the mix, giving the entire team excellent chemistry.
That allowed New York to build a lead smoothly over the first five minutes of the second quarter.
Then, when Thibodeau called his first timeout of the quarter...
The New York Knicks' Great Demon King, Chen Xi, was ready to take the floor again!
Tremble, Phoenix!!
Coming out of the timeout, the Knicks had possession.
Paul received the inbound pass in the backcourt, turned, and brought it across half court before initiating a Pick-and-Roll at the top of the key.
Using Hartenstein's screen, he drove down the middle into the free-throw-line area, then passed to Toppin cutting along the baseline.
Toppin caught the ball and attacked the paint. He gathered and jumped, only to face Ayton's rim protection, so he passed again, finding Chen Xi in the opposite corner.
Chen Xi caught it and gave a quick fake, then put the ball on the floor and drove into the paint, gathering for a short floater.
An effortless two points dropped cleanly through.
At the other end, it was the Suns' turn to attack.
Haliburton caught the ball, turned, and pushed upcourt.
On the move, he threw a long pass ahead to Huang Zhong, who was sprinting into the frontcourt.
But Huang Zhong barely took two steps after catching it before George blocked his path. He had no choice but to stop, turn, and look for Booker.
Booker received the ball on the move and used a Push Dribble Change of Direction, trying to force his way