Chapter 580: A Topic That Went Astray
Boston's momentum was rising, and the noise inside the arena was deafening.
Phoenix did not call timeout. Instead, the Suns inbounded quickly and tried to speed the game up.
Nash brought the ball into the frontcourt and found Chen Yan. Before the pass even arrived, Chen Yan had already taken in the positioning of every teammate around him, then immediately swung the ball to Stoudemire.
Stoudemire took 1 step and rose for a mid range jumper.
Boston's defenders had not fully sorted themselves out in transition, and that gave him plenty of room.
Swish.
5 to 6.
As the ball dropped, Celtics head coach Doc Rivers barked from the sideline, "Slow it down. Don't let them drag us into their pace."
He could already see what Phoenix wanted. If Boston started playing at the Suns' speed, the game would tilt in a hurry.
Rose had been ready to explode up the floor, but after hearing Rivers, he obediently throttled down and walked the ball across half court.
At the top of the arc, Rose pounded out a series of between the legs dribbles while Tony Allen used an off ball screen to free himself.
Boston's half court offense was simple, too simple in fact. Tony Allen caught it and pulled up from mid range.
Clank.
Chen Yan secured the rebound and immediately pushed. Boston got back fast. By now, every team in the league understood the first rule of defending Phoenix: sacrifice offensive rebounds if you have to, but get your defense set before the Suns can run.
Chen Yan slowed, waited for help, and let the offense breathe.
Stoudemire stopped near the top of the arc. Chen Yan used his body as a moving shield, shifting left and right while Tony Allen slid with him. The whole sequence looked almost like an eagle stalking a chick.
Chen Yan searched for daylight beyond the 3 point line. Boston responded by sending an aggressive trap, squeezing away his shooting space before he could even think about rising up.
He saw the double coming and immediately kicked the ball ahead to Stoudemire, who caught it and squared up for a drive.
Boston's help rotated instantly. Big Baby Davis was already in front of him.
Diaw was open, but Stoudemire did not see him.
The possession bogged down, so Stoudemire chose the simplest solution. He put his head down and went one on one.
After backing his man down, he took 2 lateral steps and floated up a short runner.
The ball struck the rim and bounced away.
Boston was off and running.
Durant pushed the break himself, cool and unhurried.
When he reached the right wing outside the 3 point line, KD suddenly changed direction.
The move was violent and wide, his stride covering a shocking amount of ground in a single beat.
That was something he had not shown much in his first 2 seasons. Before, Durant had mainly lived off pull up jumpers and length. He rarely handled the ball like a smaller guard.
But that same height and those same long legs made his crossover terrifying. One clean move and he could create a full body's worth of separation.
He blew by Raja Bell, gathered, and attacked the rim hard.
Diaw tried to step up, but Durant was already airborne, coming downhill with momentum.
Boom.
A 1 handed hammer.
5 to 8.
That was Durant's 6th point already.
After landing, he could not keep his emotions in check any longer and roared toward the rafters.
Then, just for a moment, he looked over at Chen Yan.
A tiny detail.
But Chen Yan understood it for exactly what it was.
A challenge.
Chen Yan had not come into the night looking to dominate the scoring. He had not even gotten hot yet.
On the next trip, he moved to the elbow, planted himself with his back to the basket, and demanded the ball.
Nash bounced it in and immediately cut to Chen Yan's right side, pausing briefly instead of popping away.
Chen Yan understood the cue at once and put the ball on the floor.
Tony Allen ran straight into Nash's screen, and Rose switched onto Chen Yan.
Chen Yan ignored the mismatch and rose right over him.
Rose was an elite athlete himself, but there was nothing he could do about a guard taller than him, longer than him, and even more explosive rising cleanly into a pull up.
Swish.
Chen Yan answered with a face up jumper right over Rose's head.
7 to 8.
Boston came back looking for Durant again.
The moment Rose crossed half court, Durant started posting and calling for it.
Two straight scores had his blood up. At that moment, all the heat in his body seemed to have rushed directly to his head. He wanted to attack, every time, every touch, no matter the situation.
But Raja Bell was no easy mark. Durant had grown, but that did not mean he could treat Bell like a traffic cone. Bell had been on All Defensive teams for a reason.
Durant worked a series of hard crossovers in front, trying to shake Bell free for either a shot or a drive.
That was where the gift and the curse of his frame both showed. His size made the move deadly, but his high center of gravity also left the ball a little exposed. That is a common issue for tall creators. Even Magic Johnson, in his prime, often preferred to shield the ball with his body instead of pounding it in front of defenders.
Slap.
Bell darted in and poked the ball loose.
Durant spun, chased it down, and recovered possession, but the offensive rhythm was gone.
Still, he insisted on staying in isolation mode. He reset outside the arc and forced up a jumper.
Clank.
The shot bounced hard off the rim.
All 5 Celtics sprinted back, and Nash advanced calmly before giving the ball to Chen Yan.
Chen Yan palmed it in one hand, looked around, and saw nobody on the Suns cutting.
So he waved everyone away.
Isolation.
At the top of the arc, Chen Yan dribbled between his legs again and again, settling into rhythm. Tony Allen's eyes stayed locked on Chen Yan's hips and legs. He did not dare reach. One fake and he would be dead.
As he dribbled, Chen Yan scanned both sides. Every Celtic was several steps away. No second defender was coming.
After another between the legs bounce, he moved left. Tony Allen slid with him.
They were chest to chest, close enough that there was no clean driving lane and no easy shooting pocket.
That was ordinary life for Chen Yan. Opponents never gave him clean space. He always had to manufacture his own shot.
He leaned into Allen and took 1 more hard dribble inside.
Then suddenly he slammed the ball and stepped back.
He had been using the step back more and more lately.
There was a simple reason for that. It worked.
In one beat, it created the separation he needed.
Tony Allen's concentration never wavered. He instantly stepped up to contest.
Chen Yan was in no rush. He floated the ball lightly in his left hand, eyes fixed on the rim.
Since last season, he had often used his Fake Pose move to freeze defenders.
Tony Allen hesitated for just a fraction of a second.
That was enough.
Chen Yan rose and fired.
Basketball is often a game of reading minds. The first player to understand the other player's fear usually wins the exchange.
Chen Yan got absurd elevation on the pull up. Tony Allen did not even bother to challenge late. Realistically, there was no point. Chen Yan's shooting leg was nearly at Allen's waist by the time he reached full rise. What was Allen supposed to do, swat at air?
The shot flew on a perfect line and dropped straight through.
10 to 8.
Barkley laughed on the broadcast. "That's what I'm talking about. Phoenix doesn't need 10 actions sometimes. Just give Chen the ball and let him go one on one. That's a real offense. Boston can't handle him that way."
Kenny nodded. "Not with 1 defender, at least. And once they send a second guy, his vision is good enough to punish it immediately. That's when the open shots start appearing."
Fans online were just as animated, though their focus drifted in a very different direction.
Many of them started by praising the shot itself.
"Chen Yan's pull up is ridiculous."
"It looks smooth, but that move has to be brutal on the legs and lower back."
"When he rises, his whole body tightens like a bow. That takes elite physical strength."
Then, as always happens on the internet, the discussion slowly wandered off the court and into increasingly absurd territory, until the topic had almost nothing to do with basketball anymore.
…..
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