Open 09 Superstars
The Bearded One Who Doesn't Want to Be Third Brother (James Harden): "My eldest brother's been in a funk lately. What should I do?"
Harden fired off the message to the group chat.
A few moments later, a reply popped up—from Lian Dao.
New York's No. 1 Handsome (Lian Dao): "Easy. Just hand him a glass of Scarlett's bathwater."
The Bearded One Who Doesn't Want to Be Third Brother (James Harden): "???"
I'm Not a Schoolboy (Steph Curry): "Scarlett, I get—but bathwater? What's that supposed to mean?"
Lian Dao's phone buzzed in his hand. Then it hit him—Durant hadn't yet posted his infamous "Scarlett, I want to drink your bath water" message on social media. That wouldn't happen until 2011, and it was only 2009 now. Oops.
New York's No. 1 Handsome (Lian Dao): "Hey, I'm just messing around. Don't take it seriously. Oh, elementary schooler, I heard you played 10 minutes last game—zero points, two rebounds, one assist, one turnover, and three fouls. [Squinting Emoji]"
To shift the focus, Lian Dao decided to roast Golden State's resident "schoolboy."
I'm Not a Schoolboy (Steph Curry): "I've said it before—don't call me that. Don't. Call. Me. That!"
The Bearded One Who Doesn't Want to Be Third Brother (James Harden): "Got it, schoolboy."
New York's No. 1 Handsome (Lian Dao): "Sure thing, elementary schooler."
Timberwolves "Coach" (DeMar DeRozan): "Alright, little schoolkid."
Washington State's No. 1 Lover (Klay Thompson): "Okay, grade-schooler."
…
I'm Not a Schoolboy (Steph Curry): "[Vomits Blood Emoji]"
Your friend "I'm Not a Schoolboy" (Steph Curry) is offline.
…
The players stumbled off the plane, bleary-eyed and exhausted. The whole crew had landed in New Jersey—back-to-back games were brutal.
New Jersey might be the fourth smallest state in the U.S., but it's the most densely populated. It sits right next to New York, its economy boosted by the Big Apple's glow. With a GDP ranking seventh nationwide, it's no slouch.
Still, that doesn't mean New Jersey's a hotbed for basketball. The Nets' home, the Continental Airlines Arena, sits in East Rutherford—a small town. Operating costs are low, sure, but the commercial payoff? Not so much. Since Vince Carter left, attendance has hovered below 60%.
This season, it's even worse. The Nets are limping along at 2 wins and 29 losses, dead last in the league. The team's dismal record has fans avoiding the arena like the plague.
In May 2010, Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov will buy the Nets for $200 million. Fed up with New Jersey's weak market, he'll move the team to Brooklyn after the 2011-12 season. Brooklyn's close to New Jersey, true, but its economic potential blows New Jersey out of the water.
For now, though, the Knicks crew rolled into the Continental Airlines Arena. They had a game that evening and needed a quick practice to shake off the rust.
…
Evening, 7:30 PM
At the Continental Airlines Arena, both teams wrapped up their warm-ups and prepped for the entrance ceremony.
Lian Dao scanned the stands. Huh. Something felt off.
The Nets' attendance tonight was surprisingly high. Normally below 60%, it looked closer to 70% now. Then he spotted it—30% of the crowd was decked out in his No. 1 Knicks jersey. They weren't here for the Nets; they'd come for the Knicks.
Knicks home tickets were nearly impossible to snag, so some fans with time and cash chased their away games instead. Usually, that was a rare few. But this time? New Jersey's proximity to New York made it an easy drive, drawing a swarm of Knicks fans to the Nets' turf.
The opening ceremony kicked off, and the starting lineups were announced.
For the Knicks: Jrue Holiday, Wilson Chandler, Lian Dao, Paul Millsap, David Lee.
Chris Duhon had twisted his ankle moderately in the Spurs game and was out for two weeks, per the doctor. That bumped Jrue Holiday into the starting spot. He'd shone in the last game against the Pistons, so with Duhon sidelined, Coach D'Antoni locked him in as the starting point guard.
The crowd erupted as the Knicks took the floor—loud enough that Lian Dao almost forgot this was an away game. Playing on the road with home-game vibes? Too good.
For the Nets: Devin Harris, Courtney Lee, Trenton Hassell, Yi Jianlian, Brook Lopez.
Their usual small forward, Chris Douglas-Roberts, was injured, so Coach Kiki Vandeweghe slid Trenton Hassell into the starting role. Since Carter's exit, the Nets had embraced a full rebuild. Vandeweghe, the GM, had already axed two coaches this season before stepping onto the sideline himself.
Their strategy? Rotten. Throw the starters out there, let them wing it—good play earns minutes, bad play gets you benched. Tactics? What tactics? With a 2-29 record, why bother?
The game tipped off fast. The Knicks lost the jump ball—again.
The Nets took possession. Brook Lopez posted up low, caught a pass, and sank a mid-range jumper. Big Lopez had a reliable mid-range game, but his slow feet and weak rebounding sense held him back. At 7 feet, he should've dominated the glass, but David Lee outworked him there.
Lian Dao blew past Trenton Hassell's defense, then dished to Holiday cutting inside for an easy layup.
The Nets answered back. Yi Jianlian caught a pass from Hassell, used Lopez's screen, and confidently drained a mid-range shot. Swish.
His form was crisp—since his return, Yi Jianlian's game had been heating up.
After seven minutes in the first quarter, the score sat at 18-15, Knicks ahead. Yi Jianlian was the Nets' lifeline, going 4-for-4 from mid-range for 8 points—over half their total. The Knicks' scoring was more balanced: Lian Dao hit two threes and fed assists to his teammates.
Then D'Antoni called a timeout. He subbed in Danilo Gallinari for Millsap, sliding Lian Dao to the four spot. Millsap had been shaky with the ball and too slow at the three, so Gallinari took the small forward role while Lian Dao targeted the red-hot Yi Jianlian.
Post-timeout, Lian Dao set up Gallinari for a clean three from the wing.
The Nets countered—Harris, seeing Yi Jianlian covered, took a mid-range shot and bricked it. David Lee beat Lopez to the rebound, zipped it to Lian Dao, who streaked past Yi Jianlian and splashed a three-point jumper.
24-15. The Knicks stretched the lead to nine.
Lopez responded with a mid-range bucket, stopping the bleeding for the Nets.
Then Lian Dao took over. He dribbled past Yi Jianlian—who couldn't match his lightning-fast first step—blew by the defense, and threw down a thunderous dunk over Lopez, sending the big man crashing to the floor.
The Nets came back swinging. Yi Jianlian slipped a screen, caught the ball, adjusted, and fired. Lian Dao, a step late, could only watch it drop. Swish. Five-for-five.
Yi Jianlian was in the zone.
For the Knicks, Holiday clanked a mid-range shot, but Lian Dao outjumped Lopez for the offensive board and tipped it in.
Now, Lian Dao locked in on defense. He fronted Yi Jianlian, darted around screens, and stuck to him like glue, disrupting his rhythm. Yi Jianlian couldn't shake him—it was suffocating.
Yi Jianlian (in his head): "Really, man? We're compatriots—teammates from the Asian Championships!"
Lian Dao (in his head): "[Static noise] Can't hear you!"
No mercy. On the court, Lian Dao gave none—not to Wade, not to James, not to Kobe, and not to Yi Jianlian. Full effort was his respect, plain and simple.