Chapter 604: The 1st Quarter of Madness
When Chen Yan came off the court, he high fived and chest bumped his teammates 1 by 1.
He was unusually fired up tonight, and that look immediately reminded his teammates of his 89 point game.
"Chen Yan is letting it fly tonight," Barkley said. "No assists so far, just buckets. He's taking almost all of Phoenix's shots and carrying the scoring load by himself."
Kenny Smith laughed. "If most players did that, the locker room would start getting uncomfortable real fast. Chen can get away with it because his teammates trust him, and because he already proved last month that Phoenix can win when he plays this way."
"Keep playing like this, Chen," D'Antoni said, tapping the clipboard. "Take every fast break chance. If you have a shot, take it with confidence. Let's try to open the game up early. If they double team you, move the ball. Same goes for everyone else. If you're open, shoot it. Be decisive. Understood?"
"Understood," the Suns players answered together.
Chen Yan's voice was the loudest, and it was not hard to notice.
After the timeout, D'Antoni brought in 2 shooters, Danny Green and Novak. He expected Memphis to send more double teams at Chen Yan once play resumed.
The Grizzlies also adjusted, sending in their new addition, Beasley. Part of the reason was to increase their offensive firepower, and part of it was to add more size to the perimeter defense.
Beasley was 208 cm, but he moved with the flexibility of a wing. His presence could at least bother Phoenix's 3 point shooting.
Memphis had the ball.
Rudy Gay held it on the perimeter. Chen Yan deliberately gave him 1 step of space to save energy.
Gay did not shoot. He used a change of direction and accelerated toward the elbow.
Chen Yan immediately closed the gap. That was Gay's shooting range, and Chen Yan could not give him clean space there just to conserve stamina.
Gay gathered the ball and saw Chen Yan closing in. Instead of shooting, he passed to Beasley on the wing.
Beasley had a clear height advantage over Danny Green. At this point, Green was still a rookie, and his defensive experience was limited.
Beasley faked once and drove past him. Stoudemire rotated from the paint to help.
Marc Gasol was open, but Beasley did not pass. For 1 thing, he trusted his own ability. For another, he was not very familiar with his teammates yet.
His floater bounced off the rim.
Marc Gasol spread his hands, his expression practically asking, What are you doing, brother?
I was wide open.
The 2 of them had no time to talk. They quickly retreated.
Phoenix attacked fast.
This time, Rudy Gay was smart. He desperately made body contact with Chen Yan to keep him from sprinting freely.
He understood that if he waited until Chen Yan caught the ball before defending, it would already be too late.
Barea saw there was no fast break lane and slowed the tempo, turning the possession into a half court set.
Once Chen Yan reached his spot, he forced his way into the left elbow and demanded the ball with his back to the basket.
If Rudy Gay wanted contact, Chen Yan was going to let him have plenty of it.
Barea bounced the pass in to Chen Yan.
Chen Yan leaned into Gay, then began backing him down.
Thump.
Thump.
The sound of contact echoed as Gay retreated 2 short steps.
In terms of raw strength, Gay was not necessarily weaker than Chen Yan, but he did not dare push back with full force. Chen Yan's style was too unpredictable. The moment Gay overcommitted, he might fall straight into a trap.
After Chen Yan backed him inside the free throw line, the show began.
First, he faked left. Then he shrugged right. Finally, he turned back left.
Gay did not completely bite on the fake, but Chen Yan's sequence still slowed his defensive footwork by half a beat.
By the time Gay raised his hand to contest, Chen Yan had already released the shot.
Swish.
Nothing but net.
"Oh, man," Barkley said. "He is red hot. Everything he throws up looks like it's going in."
Memphis came back on offense, and Rudy Gay again took the ball outside. Chen Yan gave him a generous cushion, but Gay still did not dare shoot.
The more space Chen Yan gave him, the less Gay wanted to take the shot.
Missing a contested jumper was normal. Missing when the defense was daring you to shoot was a different kind of pressure. Chen Yan's energy saving defense had somehow become a psychological weapon against Gay.
Gay used a screen and drove right past Chen Yan.
Chen Yan did not chase. Gay pulled up near the free throw line and hit the jumper.
22 to 28.
Phoenix had the ball again.
Chen Yan reached out at the elbow. Rudy Gay lowered his center of gravity and took a wide stance, ready to absorb contact.
Chen Yan pounded the ball with his left hand, immediately switched it to his right, then accelerated away from the rim and beyond the 3 point line.
Gay's entire body tightened.
Again?
He's driving backward again?
Chen Yan took a small step beyond the arc, half turned, and fired like a sniper.
The shot was absurdly difficult. Most players would not even aim at the basket from that position.
But Chen Yan was not most players.
Swish.
Perfect arc. Clean net.
His 29th point of the game.
"This is ridiculous," Kenny said. "The 1st quarter is not even over, and Chen Yan is already near 30."
Barkley laughed. "Look at the Memphis bench. Their mouths are open. They're wondering if this is basketball or witchcraft."
The fans inside US Airways Center were roaring. They had seen Chen Yan put on shows before, but this was still outrageous.
Chen Yan looked as if he had completely let himself go. He dared to take any shot, and worse for Memphis, he dared to make any shot.
This kind of high difficulty shooting only made him more confident with each attempt. It was like watching Stephen Curry in another timeline, pulling from farther and farther away, yet somehow becoming more accurate.
Memphis came back on offense. Conley crossed half court and passed to Marc Gasol.
Danny Green left Beasley to double team Gasol.
Gasol saw Beasley open, but he did not pass.
He was clearly still annoyed about Beasley ignoring him on the previous possession.
Under the double team, Gasol's hook missed. Love jumped for the offensive rebound, while Beasley also accelerated in and leaped to contest it.
The 2 Memphis players collided with each other and knocked the ball out of bounds.
Possession changed.
Chen Yan caught the ball and shot directly from 2 steps beyond the right 3 point line.
After making so many difficult shots, he was playing like a madman.
The arc was beautiful, but the shot was slightly short, hitting the front rim and bouncing out.
The Grizzlies players all seemed to exhale at once, and the camera caught their reactions perfectly.
Barkley laughed. "Look at Memphis. Stopping 1 Chen Yan shot feels like a team celebration right now."
Love secured the defensive rebound and used his vision and passing to fire a long outlet to Beasley.
Beasley was too confident. After catching the ball, he took a casual layup.
Bang.
Chen Yan pinned Beasley's layup against the backboard with both hands.
In theory, Beasley should have known Chen Yan could chase him down. After taking that deep 3, Chen Yan was not far from the defensive half.
Whether it was carelessness or the confidence he had built over the past few days, Beasley simply did not think enough on that layup.
After blocking the shot, Chen Yan immediately turned and pushed the break.
Same angle.
Same distance.
Chen Yan launched another surprise attack from deep.
This shot was pure confidence.
Memphis had not set its defense in transition.
By the time they reacted, the net was already snapping.
22 to 34.
"His 32nd point," Kenny shouted. "This is unbelievable."
"He is on fire," Barkley said. "Everything is falling. Anyone who missed that 89 point game better not blink tonight."
Chen Yan raised both hands, pushing the crowd's emotions even higher.
Rudy Gay, the man assigned to guard Chen Yan, suddenly felt lightheaded. Chen Yan had already scored 32 points before the 1st quarter was even finished. Anyone in Gay's position would feel short of oxygen.
Two possessions later, Chen Yan drove to the basket and drew free throws.
He made 1 of 2, pushing his total to 33 points.
With 1 minute and 26 seconds left in the 1st quarter, D'Antoni finally took him out. Chen Yan had been too aggressive in the opening period, and D'Antoni worried it could affect his rhythm later.
Chen Yan finished the quarter with 33 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal, and 1 block.
He shot 12 of 18 from the field, including 8 of 11 from 3 point range, and 1 of 2 from the free throw line.
.....
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