Game 3 of the NBA Finals took place on the 12th at the AT&T Center in San Antonio.
The moment Lin Yi stepped onto the court during pre-game introductions, the home crowd made their feelings perfectly clear.
"Boo————!!"
The arena erupted in a thunderous wave of boos that seemed to shake the stands. On TNT, Charles Barkley couldn't help but laugh. "Man, I don't think I've ever seen the Spurs' home crowd this fired up."
Plenty of fans had come prepared with signs aimed squarely at Lin Yi.
Duncan's House – No Trespassing
Enjoy the Boo-quet!
One in particular made him chuckle: Fatherhood Awaits – Lose and Go Home!
[Image]
Lin Yi caught sight of it while scanning the crowd and let out a short, amused breath. The personal jab landed cleanly. He shook his head slightly, a small smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth.
Alright, that one's actually pretty good, he thought. These fans aren't holding back tonight.
After warm-ups, the big screen showed the starting lineups for both sides.
Knicks:
Tyson Chandler
Markieff Morris
Lin Yi
Danny Green
Chris Paul
Spurs:
Tim Duncan
Andrei Kirilenko
Jimmy Butler
Gary Neal
Tony Parker.
San Antonio had shaken things up again. Gary Neal earned the starting nod, and Kirilenko slid over to power forward. The message was clear: they wanted to push the pace and match the Knicks' speed.
Lin Yi and Duncan met once more for the opening tip. This time, the Big Fundamental didn't even bother jumping high. He simply dropped back into position. Lin Yi won the toss cleanly, giving the Knicks the first possession.
The game was underway.
Despite the roaring boos and defence chants raining down, the Knicks moved with purpose on their opening play. Lin Yi found Tyson Chandler for an easy score.
As they high-fived, Lin Yi sensed something different. The Spurs' defense had evolved from Game 2. On the surface, it still looked like Duncan was guarding him one-on-one, but the other four players had collapsed into a tight zone with Kirilenko anchoring it.
They could switch at any moment, effectively creating help situations that turned Lin Yi's matchups into localized 2-on-1s.
These guys have been building championship defenses for decades, Lin Yi thought. They always have something clever up their sleeve.
On the other end, Parker drove and kicked out to Gary Neal on the perimeter. Neal didn't hesitate—swish.
The three-pointer found the bottom of the net, and the crowd exploded to their feet.
Popovich nodded approvingly from the sideline. In the Finals, every player was a piece on his chessboard—even the reserves could become game-changers when the moment called for it.
The Knicks' next possession didn't go as planned. Lin Yi's hook shot in the post was a little strong and bounced off the rim.
Here came another Spurs adjustment: Duncan boxed out, Parker grabbed the defensive rebound, and immediately pushed the ball himself in transition.
Parker hit the gas, flew down the court, and finished with a smooth layup.
2-5.
The home fans roared again as the arena DJ led them in chants of Parker's name.
Lin Yi glanced over at Coach D'Antoni. The Spurs weren't just playing hard—they were clearly studying the Knicks' transition game.
In future NBA trends, having perimeter players grab defensive rebounds to spark fast breaks would become common practice. Popovich's staff had evidently identified the weakness after Game 2 and pushed to exploit it.
The Knicks came down again. Lin Yi drove into the paint, only to be met by an immediate double-team from Duncan and Kirilenko. Without breaking stride, he delivered a perfect no-look pass to a wide-open Danny Green in the corner.
Even Popovich looked momentarily stunned. "How the hell did he see that?"
Green caught it cleanly and let it fly.
Clang!
The shot rimmed out. Many Knicks fans groaned—it would have been a highlight-reel play if it had dropped.
The Spurs wasted no time. They secured the rebound and pushed again. Parker was bottled up this time by Chris Paul, but Jimmy Butler had already sprinted into space.
Parker hit him with a crisp pass. Butler, riding a wave of confidence after last year's Finals MVP run, rose and knocked down the open three.
2-8.
On the TNT broadcast, Kenny Smith quipped, "If you just turned on the TV, you'd swear the Spurs were the ones playing like the Knicks tonight."
Barkley chuckled. "They're playing with real urgency. That's the first time we've seen Butler let one fly like that in transition during these Finals."
For San Antonio, this game was do-or-die. During their team meeting after Game 2, Manu Ginobili had stood up and delivered a passionate message: "We can't keep leaning on Tim alone. We're a team!"
The words hit home. Duncan had simply smiled and patted Ginobili on the head. Most people didn't realize it, but aside from Popovich, the person Duncan trusted most was Manu.
He still remembered the day Popovich first brought the long-haired Argentine into the gym, hyping him up as the next big thing. That first practice had been rough. Duncan had even teased Pop later: "This is the guy you were raving about?"
Ginobili had been just so-so, as Duncan joked at the time. But the man went on to save the Spurs' season more times than anyone could count.
. . .
. .
.
After the first quarter, the Knicks found themselves trailing 24-28.
Lin Yi wasn't going to drop 40 points every single night as he had in Games 1 and 2. Still, even on a mediocre shooting night, he had managed 12 points in the opening period.
The rest of the team, however, looked tense. Leading 2-0 in the Finals had clearly added pressure. Chris Paul and Markieff Morris each had two turnovers, while Danny Green continued to brick open looks. The clanking from his shots was getting hard to ignore.
Even so, the Spurs had played near-perfect basketball on both ends and only led by four. Popovich, watching from the sideline, probably wanted to wring D'Antoni's neck. Running a superteam like this was a luxury he had never been afforded.
In the second quarter, both teams turned to their benches. Yao Ming checked in alongside Lin Yi and immediately made his presence felt, scoring four straight points and forcing a quick Spurs timeout.
Yao had been outstanding throughout these Finals. Jeff Van Gundy, on the broadcast, admitted he regretted pushing Yao to bulk up so much back in Houston.
"Looking back, who was he really trying to match? Outside of Shaq, the other big centers all stepped back as they aged," Van Gundy noted. "If Yao hadn't forced that extra muscle, his body might have held up longer."
Yao's performance this season with the Knicks had proven the point. On a per-36-minute basis, he was putting up 25+10 with strong efficiency.
His naturally large frame couldn't handle the added weight over the long term, and the Rockets' management had failed to protect him properly.
The Spurs' bench couldn't keep up, so Popovich turned to Manu Ginóbili with that familiar look of hope and resignation. Obi-Wan Ginobili delivered as usual, draining two quick threes from the wing to settle San Antonio's nerves.
Yao played the entire second quarter. Meanwhile, Klay Thompson still couldn't find his rhythm.
The Knicks stayed in the game thanks largely to the Yao-Lin Yi duo.
Back home, countless Chinese fans watched with mixed emotions. Many were moved to tears, imagining what a healthy, long-term career for Yao, paired with Lin Yi, could have achieved.
Unfortunately, reality was harsher. If Yao weren't nearing retirement, signing him would have created major backlash around the league. David Stern was happy to promote Chinese stars, but he wasn't about to let the Knicks turn into the Chinese national team.
Pride was still pride.
At halftime, the Knicks were down 52-61. The Spurs' Big Three had caught fire, with Ginóbili leading the way at 14 points.
In the third quarter, Danny Green finally heated up, hitting back-to-back threes to cut the deficit to just two. But Tony Parker responded like a true veteran. He attacked the rim, knocked down jumpers, and drew fouls, scoring nine straight points.
He also got Tyson Chandler into foul trouble, forcing him to the bench with four fouls.
Still, the supporting cast was having an off night. Basketball isn't played with ratings on a screen. Even with two elite big men, the Knicks couldn't overcome the Spurs when the rest of the roster struggled.
The final score read 106-115.
The Spurs refused to go down 0-3, ending the Knicks' 14-game playoff winning streak and making the series 2-1.
Lin Yi led all scorers with 37 points and 12 rebounds on 14-of-22 shooting.
Yao added 20 points and 8 rebounds.
But the supporting cast was quiet:
Klay went 0-for-6 from three.
Chris Paul had a modest 12 points and 5 assists in 35 minutes, and several others simply didn't show up.
After the game, Lin Yi faced the media with his usual composure.
"I didn't play well enough to carry the team tonight," he said. "It's disappointing, but losing one game in the Finals isn't the end of the world. The Spurs are a great, well-coached team. We'll make the necessary adjustments and come back stronger next game."
His fans appreciated the accountability. In the locker room, however, the tone was different. Lin Yi held a direct conversation with Chris Paul and gave Klay a pointed reminder about his recent performances and future contract expectations.
Criticism was necessary, but Lin Yi also understood the Spurs had simply played an excellent game. Ginóbili dropped 26, Parker 22, Duncan had 18 and 10, and the supporting pieces contributed exactly when needed.
The good news was that Wilson Chandler's suspension was over. With him available, the Knicks could finally deploy their full small-ball and Death Lineup packages in Game 4.
Tracy McGrady, meanwhile, had played less than four minutes across the entire Finals, with zero points.
He sat on the bench, waving towels, frustrated. He didn't want to win a ring as a spectator. Watching Yao dominate only made him want to contribute even more.
Then, during practice on the 13th, an unexpected development occurred.
Shaun Livingston picked up an injury.
. . .
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