The NBA's Twilight Star System

Jay Sun answered back with a three-pointer from the corner.

Cavaliers 9, Nets 4—an early 5-point lead for Cleveland.

Nets coach Lionel Hollins wasn't panicking. "Let the game unfold," he thought. After all, Joe Johnson had started strong—why call a timeout now? Let him keep attacking.

Hollins gestured to Deron Williams, signaling for the ball to go to Johnson for another isolation play.

Deron nodded, brought the ball up, and passed to Johnson.

Johnson held the ball beyond the arc, squaring up against Jay.

Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue remained calm. He trusted Jay's defensive abilities. One or two buckets from Johnson were nothing to worry about.

From Lue's perspective, if the Nets wanted to rely on Johnson's isolations for their offense, that was fine. It was a losing strategy in the long run.

Isolation plays are effective as a supplementary tactic, but rarely as a consistent offensive plan. Unless you have a player of prime Kobe Bryant or Kevin Durant's caliber, living by isolation ball isn't sustainable.

Hollins' reliance on Johnson for isolations was a sign of desperation—his options were limited.

Johnson jab-stepped and feigned, trying to shift Jay's defensive stance.

Then, abruptly, he gathered and launched a pull-up three-pointer.

Jay thought to himself, Who do you think you are, Kevin Durant?

The shot clanged off the rim.

Johnson shook his head, clearly frustrated. He believed it was a makeable shot but admitted to himself that Jay's close-out had been intimidating.

Jay, unfazed, ran back on offense. Another overly confident player who thinks they're special.

Johnson chalked it up to bad luck, convinced he'd make the next one.

Meanwhile, Hollins wasn't worried either—missing one of three attempts was no big deal.

On the Cavaliers' next possession, LeBron James initiated the offense.

The Nets' forwards, Bojan Bogdanović and Thaddeus Young, clearly didn't relish the idea of guarding James one-on-one.

This time, Young found himself in front of the freight train.

LeBron bulldozed his way through the defense, forcing Brook Lopez to rotate over for help.

Before the double-team could fully collapse, LeBron zipped a pass to the corner, where Kevin Love was waiting.

Love caught it, ready to shoot, but Johnson scrambled over to contest.

Instead of forcing the shot, Love swung the ball to Jay, who had found an open spot on the wing.

Jay caught the pass and fired immediately.

Swish! Another three-pointer for Jay Sun.

Cavaliers 12, Nets 4.

Hollins frowned. Don't tell me this kid is going to go off like last game.

On the TNT broadcast, Charles Barkley, still wearing his ridiculous pink bikini, turned to Kenny Smith.

"Kenny, how many points do you think Jay will score tonight?"

"Oh, I don't know, Charles, but can you please stop looking at me with those eyes? I won't be able to sleep tonight!"

Kenny tried to deflect, but Barkley's exaggerated, "seductive" gaze had him laughing despite himself.

Jay wasn't expecting to replicate his explosive Game 1 performance tonight. Those moments are rare, even for stars.

Most importantly, the team's veterans wouldn't let him take the spotlight so easily again. A rookie's role is to fit in, not to stand out.

Knowing his place, Jay planned to play within himself and let the game come to him.

Still, with his two consecutive three-pointers, the Cavaliers now had an 8-point lead.

Hollins called a timeout to regroup.

On the bench, Hollins made his first adjustment, subbing out Deron Williams for Jarrett Jack.

Someone had to take the fall for the deficit, and the aging Williams was the easy target.

After the timeout, the game resumed.

Jack orchestrated the offense and found Johnson for another isolation play.

This time, Johnson attempted a rhythm-shifting pull-up jumper.

Clang.

The ball ricocheted off the rim.

LeBron grabbed the rebound and pushed the pace in transition, but the Nets' defense hustled back to slow him down.

Forced into a half-court set, LeBron passed the ball to Kyrie Irving at the top of the key.

Kyrie squared up against Jack, used a quick change of pace to get past him, and finished with a spectacular hanging layup under the rim.

Jay watched from the corner, marveling at Irving's dazzling handles and creativity.

The rest of the first quarter followed a similar script. LeBron, Kyrie, and Love took turns dismantling the Nets' defense.

By the end of the quarter, the Cavaliers led 31-16, a commanding 15-point margin.

Jay finished the first quarter with just six points—all from his two early three-pointers. However, his defensive impact was undeniable.

Matched up with Johnson for most of the quarter, Jay held him to just 2-of-8 shooting.

When the second quarter began, Jay took over as the primary ball-handler.

"Kenny, looks like Jay's cooled off tonight," Barkley commented.

"I wouldn't be so sure, Charles. He might still have a few surprises left," Kenny replied.

Jay started the second quarter guarding Deron Williams, who returned to the game.

On his first possession, Deron called for a pick-and-roll with Thaddeus Young.

Jay easily navigated the screen, using his Pick Dodger badge to stay attached.

Deron reset at the three-point line, signaling for his teammates to spread out.

It was clear he wanted to take Jay one-on-one.

After a few flashy crossovers, Deron drove hard to his left.

But Jay anticipated the move perfectly, staying in front of him.

With a quick swipe, Jay stripped the ball cleanly and sprinted toward the other end of the court.

Deron, already a step slow, had no chance of catching him.

Jay finished the fast break with an uncontested layup.

Cavaliers 33, Nets 16.

Back on defense, Jay glanced at Deron, who was still jogging up the court. The look in his eyes said it all: This is no longer your league.