End of the First Quarter.
Lin Yi: 24 Points.
Unbelievable.
Terrifying.
The guy's on a rampage tonight.
The fans online were hyped.
@I_luv_the_Knicks:
Is Lin-sanity gonna break Jennings' record tonight?!
@Matt:
Crazy work! The dude already dropped 24 in one quarter.
@Ju:
Barkley's prayers are coming true. God help us—The Showtime's on demon time!
@Lord BlackDragon:
Lin's playing like Death in sneakers tonight—ain't nobody stopping him!
Even Yao Ming, sitting courtside, looked stunned, like he just watched a glitch in the Matrix. Lin Yi was out there doing things that defied logic. Yao tightened his grip on his cane. Damn injuries… if only he could still play. If he weren't sidelined, he would've loved to get on the floor with Lin for a few minutes.
If only he were a little younger...
...
The TNT broadcast booth was going just as nuts.
After Lin Yi's first-quarter explosion, Barkley was practically bouncing in his seat. "This kid's gonna go off tonight! Twenty-four. Freaking. Points."
Only 26 more to tie Jennings. No wonder Barkley was sweating like he just ran suicides.
Kenny Smith, meanwhile, had started to relax. The Knicks were up 38–19. At this rate, the game might be over by halftime. Lin Yi didn't even seem like the type to force shots. Still hope. No need to panic.
Meanwhile, fans in the U.S. were glued to the screen just like the fans in China.
Lin's supporters were watching every second, afraid to blink and miss a bucket. His haters were scrambling for answers—how the hell do the Nets stop this guy?
Spoiler: they don't.
....
Knicks Bench.
"How are you feeling? Want a breather to start the second?" D'Antoni asked, amused.
Lin Yi's playing style ate up energy like crazy—he wasn't built to go full speed for 48 minutes yet.
But tonight?
"I'm good. Just give me a four-minute break," Lin said, eyes locked on the scoreboard.
He was going for it tonight. No way was he letting stamina get in the way. He'd switch up his approach in the second, conserve where he could, and go hard again in the third.
The Nets? They were on a timer. If they couldn't last through three quarters, they were finished.
With 8:11 left in the second, Lin Yi checked back in.
Nets coach Lawrence Frank looked like he'd just seen a ghost.
"What'd we ever do to this guy?" he whispered.
Lineups:
Knicks:
Milicic
Lin Yi
Gallinari
Douglas
Duhon
Nets:
Humphries
Ryan Anderson
Bobby Simmons
Terrence Williams
Kenyon Dooling
Ryan Anderson barely lasted a possession.
Lin Yi hit him with a spin, a jab, a cross, and something that looked like witchcraft. Anderson froze, then dropped like his controller disconnected. Just another casualty in Lin Yi's highlight reel.
And the crowd went wild.
Lin Yi wasn't done.
He drove the lane. Humphries—pre-Kardashian era—stepped in to challenge. He was hyped, full of fire. He wanted to send Lin Yi to the floor.
Too bad Lin finished the play and drew the foul.
And-one.
Humphries just threw his hands up, frustrated.
Nets fans looked like they'd aged ten years in ten minutes. This franchise hadn't seen a good season in a minute, and tonight? It was just cruel.
Lin hit the free throw.
Coach Frank didn't even budge. He'd already run out of ideas. Bobby Simmons got the unlucky call to guard Lin next.
Simmons now looked like he was out there for cardio. After cashing in that big contract, his numbers fell off a cliff. Now? Two meters tall, over 120 kg, with a belly and no defense.
Lin saw him and almost smiled.
Perfect.
No need to waste energy. Just pull up and splash. Smooth as Klay Thompson.
The score kept rising. The gap between the teams grew wider.
Frank looked like he wanted divine intervention.
But this wasn't about vengeance.
Lin Yi was out for numbers tonight.
And the Nets? They were just the unfortunate punching bag. No one on their roster could even keep up. If you can't feast on this kind of matchup, when can you?
He wasn't waiting around to challenge LeBron, Wade, or Bosh. No thanks.
This was about stacking stats and building a legacy. No mercy.
By halftime, Lin Yi casually floated in a one-handed jumper.
38 Points.
Halftime.
The Knicks: 69
The Nets: 40
A 29-point lead. This wasn't a game—it was a public execution.
Nets fans were in shambles.
Knicks fans? Loving it. Their boy had a legit shot at breaking Jennings' record. And doing it against the Nets made it even sweeter.
The internet was already buzzing.
On TNT, Barkley was this close to popping champagne, but tempered his excitement. The game wasn't done yet.
He quickly put the bottle down.
"Yeah, Lin's been great… but let's not celebrate too early," he said, trying to act calm. "We'll see how he adjusts in the second half."
Kenny Smith stared at him like he'd lost his mind.
Not excited enough? Bro, who drops 38 at halftime and doesn't get hyped?
"Adjust?" Kenny muttered. "If he adjusts anymore, I'm kissing a donkey on live TV."
Smith was sweating too. Sure, the Knicks were killing it—but Lin still needed 12 more points. And they knew D'Antoni wouldn't sit him.
He was getting that record.
..
Over on CCTV, Zhang Liyi couldn't hold back.
"Lin Yi's talent… It's once in a decade. Honestly, I've rarely seen a player like him."
Yu Jia was just as emotional.
Yao Ming's injury had hit Chinese basketball hard. Losing him meant losing dominance in Asia.
But now?
Lin Yi had arrived.
And though no one dared say it out loud...
They were all thinking the same thing:
If Lin stays healthy… he'll surpass even Yao.
...
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