Chapter 522: The Hotter the Crowd, the Colder My Heart
Chen Yan's selfless off ball movement brought the entire Suns offense to life.
Phoenix scored from everywhere in the opening quarter, from the paint, from the perimeter, and in transition, building a 36 to 28 lead by the end of the first.
Chen Yan was nearly flawless. He took 8 shots, made 6 of them, hit 2 of 3 from 3 point range, and went 3 for 3 at the line. In just 1 quarter, he piled up 17 points, 3 assists, and 3 rebounds.
So far, his performance had been perfect.
Nowitzki also played well under heavy pressure, finishing the quarter with 8 points and 3 rebounds, but compared with Chen Yan, he looked dimmer.
Once again, Chen Yan had stolen the spotlight from everyone on the floor.
At the start of the second quarter, D Antoni left Chen Yan on the court with 4 reserves, Barea, Raja Bell, Azubuike, and Jordan.
That lineup guaranteed both speed and rebounding.
Dallas answered with Terry, Ray Allen, Gerald Green, Antoine Wright, and Dampier.
D Antoni's intention was obvious. He wanted Chen Yan to carry his first quarter touch directly into the second.
On the Mavericks' first possession, Terry used a screen to get into the lane, then kicked the ball out to Gerald Green.
Green gave a shot fake, drove right, and went straight at the basket. Chen Yan was matched up with him and stayed glued to his hip the whole way.
Gerald Green was a Slam Dunk Contest champion, and his vertical explosion was on the same level as Chen Yan's, but his drives were too simple. He was still just a role player offensively. Chen Yan did not need to overcomplicate the defense. As long as he stayed attached, Gerald Green could not simply rise up and finish.
Green was shut down immediately and swung the ball to Antoine Wright.
Dallas moved it around the perimeter, but with the shot clock about to expire, Ray Allen was forced to shoot over Raja Bell.
Bell had seen enough of Ray Allen over the years to know exactly what was coming. With the clock dying, Allen had no real alternative. Bell lunged hard and got right into his vision.
The shot was disrupted and bounced off the rim.
Jordan grabbed the rebound and instantly looked for Chen Yan.
Jordan's basketball IQ was never his biggest strength, and he did not fully understand the deeper mechanics of Phoenix's pace attack. But he remembered one thing clearly, once he got the rebound, find Chen Yan.
Chen Yan pushed the ball up the floor. His teammates spread the court. Before Dallas could completely set its defense, he rose right into a trailing 3.
Kenny Smith would have called it fearless. Charles Barkley would have called it crazy. Either way, it went in.
Rick would have been stunned, but under the TNT lights, Kenny might have said, "That is not a shot most guys even think about taking in a playoff game."
And Charles would have answered, "That is because most guys are not Chen."
The ball splashed through.
28 to 39.
That shot pushed Chen Yan to 20 points, less than a minute into the second quarter.
For an ordinary star, 20 points in a playoff game would be a good night.
For Chen Yan, it came before the quarter had even settled.
Terry tried to answer immediately. After a screen, he pulled up from the left elbow, but the shot bounced away.
Dallas sent Gerald Green and Antoine Wright hard at the glass. Rebounding mattered even more when the offense was cold.
Jordan lost his balance when the two Mavericks crashed into him, and the ball slipped loose for a moment. But his athleticism was outrageous. He sprang up again and tipped it out.
Not randomly, either.
Before tipping the ball, Jordan had already found Chen Yan in his peripheral vision.
Jordan's passing instincts were not special in general, but when it came to locating Chen Yan, he was almost supernatural.
Chen Yan caught it and flew up the sideline.
Ray Allen stepped up to bother him. Driving tight along the sideline can be a trap. A defender can force you to slow down, change direction, or even lose the ball out of bounds.
That was Allen's thought process.
The problem was, Chen Yan never played like an ordinary player.
He pushed the ball ahead, twisted past Allen's body, then accelerated back onto it.
He split man and ball in the open court, almost like a soccer player.
That move belongs on a football pitch more than a basketball floor, but Chen Yan believed all sports shared certain truths. It was all about using the right move at the right moment.
Once he left Allen behind, Kidd was the only defender left in front of him.
Kidd locked onto the ball, waiting for the instant Chen Yan gathered, because that was the only possible way he could stop him.
If Chen Yan got both hands on the ball while carrying that much speed, Kidd had no chance.
Chen Yan gave him nothing fancy. He lowered his body, exploded left, and at the same time subtly hooked Kidd with his arm.
Kidd was already too slow to stay in front, and that small extra contact knocked him completely out of position.
Streetball purists might hate that move, but in the NBA, it goes uncalled all the time, especially for stars who know how to use angles.
Kidd could only watch Chen Yan finish the layup.
30 to 41.
Dallas finally answered on the next trip, with Terry using a screen to force Jordan into space, baiting the foul, and converting both free throws.
30 to 41.
But the Mavericks still had not made a field goal in the quarter.
Phoenix came back down, and Barea tried to hit Chen Yan immediately, only to find Dallas fully committed to denying him the ball. Wright and Gerald Green trapped him off the catch zone and prevented any clean entry.
Barea wisely reversed the ball.
Azubuike caught it in space. He had an open look, but he did not fire right away. Instead, he protected the ball and watched Chen Yan move. He was not clueless. The man was on fire. Of course he wanted to feed him.
Chen Yan spun free toward the top of the arc. Dallas could not commit to an off ball trap forever. That would open too many cracks elsewhere.
Azubuike delivered the pass.
Then he cleared hard to the weak side. Raja Bell drifted to the corner. The Suns spread the floor as wide as they could.
Chen Yan took 2 between the legs dribbles and attacked. Gerald Green was aggressive, almost reckless. He did not care about foul trouble. He only wanted to break Chen Yan's rhythm.
His elbow kept pressing into Chen Yan's waist, trying to make every dribble uncomfortable.
When Chen Yan reached the right elbow, he stopped abruptly, snapped the ball behind his back into his left hand, and stepped back at the same time.
Green lost his balance and stumbled.
By the time he looked up, Chen Yan had already risen into a jumper.
Swish.
30 to 43.
That was Chen Yan's 24th point.
The noise inside the building grew hotter and hotter.
The Mavericks' hearts, meanwhile, only got colder.
TL: Check out my newly released fanfic
Crossover Anime World: Reborn as Abe no Seimei
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