Chapter 824: The Happiest Thing
"Defense!"
"Defense!"
As San Antonio began the first possession of the 2nd half, Madison Square Garden shook beneath a unified roar.
The fans could feel the pressure the Spurs were creating tonight.
This was the most direct way they could support their team.
Parker crossed half court and passed to Ginóbili.
Ginóbili looked up.
Chen Yan was guarding him now.
He immediately understood what had happened.
Chen had specifically asked for this matchup.
Ginóbili was far too smart to simply accept the challenge and attack Chen directly.
If Chen wanted to guard him, Manu would make him work for the opportunity.
Ginóbili called for a screen.
He used it and drove toward the free throw line.
New York switched immediately.
DeAndre Jordan was now in front of him.
Ginóbili gave a quick fake.
DeAndre reacted.
For an instant, Manu considered trying to draw contact, but the distance was too great.
He abandoned the idea and passed to Duncan.
Duncan immediately returned the ball.
The quick exchange allowed Ginóbili to regain his dribble and retreat toward the top of the arc.
Reset.
Chen stayed attached.
Ginóbili called for another screen.
He turned the corner and entered the paint.
Left handed floater.
Clang!
Miss.
Popovich stood on the sideline with his arms crossed.
His expression was not pleasant.
Still, he said nothing.
Ginóbili occupied a unique place in Popovich's system.
Among San Antonio's players, Manu was given an unusual amount of offensive freedom.
Popovich trusted him to improvise.
Diaw grabbed the offensive rebound.
David West reached in.
Whistle.
Foul.
That was West's 3rd personal foul.
San Antonio retained possession.
Parker inbounded the ball to Duncan.
Duncan established position just outside the paint.
Back down.
DeAndre braced himself and absorbed the contact.
Duncan did not rush.
His experience showed in moments like this.
He spent the first few seconds simply feeling DeAndre's balance and center of gravity.
Nothing opened.
Duncan turned to face the basket.
From the 45 degree angle, he gave a series of patient fakes.
DeAndre stayed with him.
Then Duncan suddenly rose.
Bank shot.
The ball kissed the glass.
Good.
60 to 58.
San Antonio had taken the lead.
The broadcast immediately highlighted the familiar finish.
"Classic Tim Duncan. That bank shot has been there his entire career."
"And he is still as steady as ever."
New York came back down.
Chen received the ball and immediately attacked.
No hesitation.
Straight toward the rim.
San Antonio collapsed.
1 defender.
Then 3.
It still was not enough to stop him cleanly.
Whistle.
Foul.
Chen had forced his way to the line.
The broadcast booth approved of the decision.
"That is smart basketball from Chen. When the game gets tight, attack the basket."
"You get the most reliable scoring opportunity, and you put pressure on the defense with fouls. San Antonio can build whatever wall it wants. Chen's ability to get downhill is still a major problem."
Chen stepped to the free throw line.
The entire arena rose.
"MVP!"
"MVP!"
"MVP!"
First free throw.
Swish.
Second.
Swish.
60 to 60.
San Antonio returned to offense.
Parker crossed half court and pointed toward Duncan.
Screen.
Duncan moved up.
The moment he arrived, Parker immediately attacked the opposite direction.
Curry followed.
Parker changed direction again.
Then again.
He weaved through the defense until he finally found space in the mid range.
Pullup.
Good.
62 to 60.
The possession had been extremely simple.
The ball never touched another Spur.
Parker created the entire basket himself.
Curry immediately pushed the other way.
He wanted an answer.
After using a screen, however, he did not have a clean shooting opportunity.
Curry was not the type to force a bad attempt simply because he wanted to respond.
He did not possess Westbrook's overwhelming physical tools, and his game was built around judgment as much as skill.
Curry scanned the floor.
Chen was waiting in the corner.
Pass.
The instant Chen caught the ball, his left foot moved toward the baseline.
Leonard reacted.
Chen's body followed the fake.
Then everything changed.
He lowered his shoulder and exploded along the baseline.
Leonard had been fooled.
Half a step.
That was all Chen needed.
He reached the edge of the paint before Leonard recovered.
Duncan rotated over.
Leonard chased from behind.
Chen rose between them.
Floater.
Good.
62 to 62.
Calling it a floater almost felt misleading.
Chen elevated so high that his release point was above the rim.
It looked less like a traditional floater and more like he was simply dropping the ball into the basket from above.
San Antonio answered with its team offense.
Parker drove.
Kick out to Ginóbili.
Ginóbili took 1 step.
Extra pass.
Leonard caught the ball beyond the arc.
Nobody was close enough to seriously contest.
Open 3 pointer.
Clang!
Miss.
A figure exploded upward.
Chen Yan.
Rebound.
He twisted in the air before landing.
The moment his feet touched the floor, he was gone.
Full speed.
The crowd reacted immediately.
The movement itself looked effortless.
Some players looked impressive when they shot.
Others when they handled the ball.
Others simply had the appearance and charisma of a star.
Chen seemed to carry that presence through everything he did.
Rebound.
Turn.
Accelerate.
Even ordinary basketball movements looked different when he performed them.
Leonard was still thinking about his missed 3 when Chen had already crossed half court.
Ginóbili rushed over from the side.
He tried to get in front.
There was no chance to set his feet and draw contact.
Chen was moving too quickly.
Behind the back.
Pullback.
Immediate crossover.
Ginóbili was beaten.
He had failed to stop the drive, but he had accomplished something.
He slowed Chen down just enough for San Antonio's big men to retreat.
Diaw reached the restricted area first.
Duncan followed behind.
But Duncan's legs could no longer handle repeated full court sprints at the same speed.
By the time he reached the free throw line, Chen was already flying past him.
Duncan barely had time to turn.
Chen flashed by.
Diaw saw him coming.
His heart jumped.
He knew exactly what Chen could do.
They had once been teammates.
Diaw had seen that explosiveness from close range.
The acceleration.
The elevation.
The ridiculous hang time.
Chen entered the restricted area at full speed.
1 handed gather.
Takeoff.
Diaw jumped vertically with both arms raised.
From the sideline, Popovich immediately started shouting.
"Foul him!"
"Foul him!"
He wanted Diaw to stop the play before Chen could leave the floor.
Anything was better than allowing a spectacular finish to ignite Madison Square Garden.
Diaw never heard him.
His entire attention was fixed on the player flying toward him.
For a moment, only 2 outcomes seemed possible.
A violent poster dunk.
Or an enormous defensive block.
Then Chen changed everything in midair.
His raised arm suddenly came down.
His body curled inward.
Diaw flew past the expected release point.
Chen slipped underneath him.
Then extended again on the opposite side.
Boom!
Reverse dunk.
The rim shook.
Chen hung on for a moment and gave it a hard pull before releasing.
No technical foul came.
At the speed and angle of the attack, holding the rim was clearly necessary to protect himself on the landing.
Madison Square Garden exploded.
The sound became deafening.
Kenny Smith stared at the replay.
"That is pure individual ability. He created the entire play himself. Against something like that, sometimes the defense can only watch."
Barkley was grinning.
"This is why people buy tickets."
The replay showed Chen folding around Diaw before extending toward the opposite side of the rim.
Barkley shook his head.
"For a fan, this might be the happiest thing in basketball."
He pointed toward the court.
"You come into this building, and you get to watch the best dunks in the NBA happen right in front of you."
....
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