The Way of Basketball: Never Talk Shit to Him!

He complained, "In this era, the players entering the league are all good kids, unlike in our time when there were ones with personality!"

Noah returned to the locker room and proactively admitted his mistakes, indicating "I will definitely play better in the second half."

Thibodeau really wanted to say, "If you can stay on the court for 10 minutes, consider it a success!"

But fearing it would affect the kid's enthusiasm, he ultimately kept it to himself, though he muttered the thought in his heart, a self-fulfilling prophecy. When the second half resumed on the court, Su Wan still hadn't forgiven Noah, continuing to relentlessly target him.

Noah tried his best to survive on the court for 6 minutes, but in the next round, he suffered from Su Wan's sudden "ride dunk."

That dunk directly knocked Noah down.

It also reignited the excitement at Madison Square Garden.

Because Noah didn't jump, he was also called for a "blocking foul",

When Su Wan stepped to the free throw line, the whole stadium chanted "MVP," and after he calmly made the free throw, the score difference widened to over 20 points.

Finally, 106 to 93, in the first home game back, Su Wan impressively collected 46 points, 8 rebounds, and 6 assists, leading the team to a 23-point triumph over the Bulls, taking the series to 2-1.

Bill Walton commented, "The Bulls have likely lost their best chance to defeat the New York Knicks!"

The previous game saw the Bulls defeating the New York Knicks at home, proving Thibodeau's defensive strategy could indeed constrain the Knicks' playstyle, tonight was supposed to be a further step forward for the Bulls.

Yet due to Noah's provocation, the team suffered a devastating defeat.

This 23-point loss would undoubtedly impact the Bulls' morale, potentially affecting their status for the fourth game of the series two days later.

The next morning, the media perceived this as the gap between Derek Rose and Su Wan.

Rose actually performed well last night, scoring 31 points with 5 rebounds and 7 assists, which was better than usual. But in front of Su Wan, he still seemed inadequate.

ESPN believed, "This season's Derek Rose definitely reached regular season MVP level, but there are MVPs and then there are MVPs!"

"Karl Malone was a regular season MVP, Michael Jordan was too!"

"Nowitzki was a regular season MVP, so was Su Wan!"

"But their dominance in the game is completely different!"

"Derek Rose, he just isn't on Su Wan's level!"

The New York media was overwhelmingly spreading this phrase:

"Don't come challenge New York!"

"Su Wan, don't come to challenge!"

The first phrase was what Su Wan said the night he scored 83, and by the end of the regular season, the New York Knicks still maintained an unbeaten record at home.

The latter phrase was added by the New York media after this game, as anyone who dared to provoke Su Wan in the match had suffered greatly.

Joakim Noah's final stats were only 4 points and 3 rebounds.

Although he wasn't exactly a "stats genius", he hadn't played such a poor game for a long time...

Even if Thibodeau hadn't seen any suspense left in the last 2 minutes and substituted all the main players, Noah might have "fouled out."

The clouds loomed over the entirety of Chicago.

However, the fourth game of the series saw the Bulls unaffected by the previous game's crushing defeat; rather, those reports seemed to have motivated the team, especially Derek Rose, who displayed a ferociously aggressive form.

Noah was also very engaged in the game.

But obviously, he spoke much less on the court than before.

A one-time "outburst" exchanged for a lifetime of being "introverted."

His usually unkempt "sky-high hair" seemed quite subdued at the moment.

This helped him remain highly focused.

With both of them leading, the Bulls managed to stay ahead for most of the game.

By the end of the third quarter, the score was 78 to 75.

The Bulls were still leading by 3 points.

The momentum from the previous game that Curry and Gallinari had did not continue into this game.

But that was normal; after all, they were rookies, "inconsistent" during the regular season, and even more so in the playoffs.

Su Wan didn't put much pressure on them, but pulled Vince Carter aside, "If the young ones aren't up for it, you, as the veteran, must step up, right?"

"Uncle Carter's got to show what Uncle Carter's got!"

"The points that Stephen missed this game, you'll make up for them!"

Vince Carter gave Su Wan a cold glance, but from his demeanor, Su Wan knew, the old comrade took it seriously.

The fourth quarter then officially began.

From the get-go, Carter caught the ball at a 45-degree angle on the right, and without hesitation fired a three-point shot, hitting the target, tying the score, and setting a positive tone for the Knicks in the fourth quarter.

D'Antoni yelled from the sidelines, "Nice!"

Tyronn Lue and Mike Ma glanced at each other.

One thing had become very clear in this series: the New York Knicks could only win through offense.

Especially since Derek Rose was that uncommon type of breakthrough artist that even Su Wan couldn't constrain.

And being the entire Bulls' "engine," not containing him meant not stopping the Bulls' offense.

And just like this...

Right after Carter scored, the Bulls immediately coordinated and launched a counterattack.

Boozer, facing the rookie Gallinari, was completely having a field day.