Lin Yi had done it.
He broke his own NBA record for most points in a single quarter.
Those 38 points also became the highest-scoring first quarter by any player in league history.
Watching from home, Stephen Curry spent a few minutes celebrating for his friend before quietly turning off the television.
He suddenly realized that tomorrow's headlines about his latest game, including another night with double-digit three-pointers, had completely disappeared.
In Miami, LeBron James also switched off the broadcast.
Seeing Kobe embrace a more team-oriented style was encouraging enough. Just as importantly, Lin Yi's historic night had conveniently pushed LeBron's own triple-double performance out of the spotlight.
Kevin Durant stared at his phone in silence, chucking it against a wall.
Then, without saying a word, he opened a drawer and pulled out another brand-new one.
Maybe it was time to stop throwing phones.
Even for someone with his salary, that habit was getting expensive.
Meanwhile, in Houston, James Harden finished his workout, glanced at the box score from the Knicks versus Lakers game, then calmly headed back onto the court.
. . .
Inside Staples Center, even the home crowd had been won over.
Thirty-eight points.
In one quarter.
It was one of those performances people would still be talking about years later.
After carrying the Knicks through the opening period, Lin Yi finally got a chance to breathe. Mike D'Antoni left him on the bench for nearly eight minutes before sending him back into the game.
Performances like that came with a price.
As he caught his breath, Lin Yi suddenly remembered Klay Thompson's legendary 37-point quarter. He finally understood just how absurd that achievement really was.
Tonight, most of Lin Yi's points had come through relentless drives, post-ups, and physical finishes, mixed with several deep three-pointers.
Lin Yi could only shake his head.
He stretched his shoulders and smiled.
I'm getting old.
The thought made him laugh.
He was still a few days away from his twenty-fourth birthday.
Back on the court, the Knicks entered the second quarter with a commanding 43 to 28 lead.
Steve Nash led the second unit against his former team.
Watching Lin Yi from the bench during that unbelievable first quarter, Nash had struggled to find the right words. One game earlier, Lin Yi had broken the NBA's single-game assist record. Tonight, he looked like someone who had deleted the pass button entirely.
The league really had changed.
Nash smiled to himself.
He was no longer the player who could outrun everyone in transition, but watching the next generation perform at this level was a privilege in its own right.
To the Lakers' credit, they refused to fold.
They chipped away at the deficit throughout the second quarter.
It wasn't because the Knicks' reserves were struggling.
This Lakers team was simply stronger than many people remembered.
Kobe was healthy.
Pau Gasol was still an effective interior presence.
Most importantly, Kobe had begun adapting his game, balancing his scoring with playmaking whenever the situation demanded it.
They were no championship contender, but they were far from an easy opponent.
In the Eastern Conference, a healthy Kobe might even have dragged this roster into the playoffs.
For the Lakers organization, the plan remained straightforward. Let Kobe enjoy the freedom to compete while preserving salary cap flexibility for the following summer.
Lin Yi never rediscovered the blazing rhythm from the opening quarter.
That kind of performance simply wasn't something any player could summon on command.
Even for him, it was one of those rare nights when everything aligned.
Fortunately for New York, the damage had already been done.
Behind Lin Yi's historic first quarter, the Knicks controlled the game the rest of the way and secured a 117- 104 road victory.
The win kept New York unbeaten and firmly atop the Eastern Conference standings.
Lin Yi finished with another staggering stat line.
In just 35 minutes, he shot 23 for 28 from the field, 6 for 8 from three-point range, and a perfect 6 for 6 from the free-throw line to score a game-high 58 points.
It was the fourth 58-point game of his career.
For whatever reason, 58 seemed to follow him.
Kobe Bryant deserved just as much respect despite the loss.
He finished with 35 points, 5 rebounds, and 7 assists while shooting 14 for 28 from the field, 1 for 6 from beyond the arc, and 6 for 8 from the free-throw line.
The Lakers fell short.
Their captain never stopped fighting.
. . .
After the game, Lin Yi and Kobe shared a long embrace at center court.
Like an older brother passing the torch, Kobe patted Lin Yi on the back and offered a few words of advice.
Lin Yi nodded the entire time earnestly.
On the TNT broadcast, Charles Barkley didn't hold back.
"In his last two games, Lin has broken two major NBA records. If that isn't a statement for another MVP, I don't know what is."
He paused before grinning.
"From a purely aesthetic standpoint, four straight MVPs might start to feel repetitive. But if Lin keeps playing like this, I'll vote for him with both hands."
Kenny Smith agreed.
"Right now, it's hard to argue against him. But this season is different. Offense is exploding around the league."
He pointed to the latest scoring averages.
"Lin Yi, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry, LeBron James, and James Harden are all averaging over thirty points per game."
"If Lin wants a fourth straight MVP, he'll probably need another historic season. But based on what we've seen so far, he's absolutely leading the race."
Shaquille O'Neal leaned back in his chair and sighed.
"The NBA has gotten boring."
Barkley looked at him.
"Boring?"
"I can't roast anybody anymore," Shaq replied. "Everybody's playing too well."
He had already started thinking about taking a short break from the broadcast booth.
Bear Grylls had recently invited him to film an episode of Man vs. Wild.
Maybe surviving in the wilderness would be less stressful than trying to find something to criticize after nights like this.
. . .
Outside the visiting locker room, reporters quickly surrounded Lin Yi.
He looked around and suddenly realized he had another problem.
There were simply too many microphones... and far too many reporters trying to get his attention at once.
A reporter finally managed to ask the first question.
"Lin, you just set a new NBA record for points in a single quarter. What does tonight mean to you?"
Lin Yi thought for a moment before answering.
"My teammates deserve most of the credit."
"They trusted me with the ball all night. Without them, I wouldn't have had the chance to make history."
Fans loved the answer.
Just one game earlier, Lin Yi had spent the night feeding his teammates with passes.
In this game, his teammates had spent four quarters returning the favor.
To everyone watching, it was another example of the Knicks' remarkable chemistry.
Back inside the locker room, Lin Yi thanked everyone for their effort.
"You guys earned this."
Then he announced his reward.
"Everyone gets a Ferrari."
The room instantly exploded.
Until Lin Yi handed each player... a Ferrari model car.
The celebration stopped.
Danny Green looked at the tiny model in disbelief.
"Boss... you're getting cheaper every year."
Only Wilson Chandler's eyes lit up.
Instead of complaining, he hugged the model like it was a treasure.
Steve Nash watched Wilson suspiciously before smiling.
"There has to be something else."
Curious, he carefully examined the model and opened its base.
A Ferrari key fell into his hand.
The locker room froze.
Outside Madison Square Garden, fourteen brand-new Ferraris sat neatly parked, waiting for their owners.
The model cars had simply been hiding the keys.
The locker room erupted for a second time.
This time, nobody complained.
Lin Yi laughed.
His investments had been extraordinarily successful over the past year, and Alexander Wang had multiplied his fortune far beyond anything he had expected.
Buying a few Ferraris for the teammates who had helped him make history hardly felt extravagant. After all, if you wanted the team to keep running, you had to reward the people doing the work.
The fake-out with the model cars had been planned from the beginning.
He simply wanted to see everyone's reactions.
. . .
A few days later, after the team returned to New York, the injured Chris Paul finally received his own Ferrari model.
He looked at it, frowned, and tossed it onto his desk.
"A toy? Seriously?"
Months later, after returning from injury, Wilson Chandler casually asked him which Ferrari color he had gotten.
"What Ferrari?"
Only then did Paul discover the hidden key inside the model.
By the time he found his car in the Madison Square Garden parking garage, it had been sitting there for months, covered in a thin layer of dust.
The rest of the team laughed about it for years.
. . .
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