Chapter 825: From Young Star to Seasoned Veteran
62 to 64.
New York led by only 2 points, but Popovich still had to call timeout.
Chen Yan's dunk had completely ignited Madison Square Garden.
Every Knicks fan in the building was chanting his name.
"Chen Yan!"
"Chen Yan!"
"Chen Yan!"
The noise had become overwhelming.
San Antonio could barely continue playing through the momentum, so Popovich used a short timeout to cool the arena down.
The moment Diaw reached the bench, Popovich exploded.
"Why did you not foul him?"
Popovich glared at him.
"What were you thinking?"
Then came another furious curse.
Diaw remained silent.
He knew better than to argue.
Popovich was the unquestioned authority inside the Spurs organization.
More importantly, he hated excuses.
Trying to explain himself would only make the lecture worse.
The timeout ended.
San Antonio returned to offense.
Parker crossed half court.
This time, he did not even wait for a screen.
Sudden acceleration.
He had used this approach more frequently over the past 2 seasons.
Bring the ball up.
Keep possession.
Attack immediately.
Popovich had gradually granted Parker more offensive freedom.
Duncan and Ginóbili were aging.
Parker had become the most logical player to carry a larger share of San Antonio's offense.
He exploded past the perimeter defense.
Curry barely stayed with him.
Then Parker reached the paint.
Spin move.
Curry was immediately left behind.
Chen abandoned Ginóbili and rotated from the baseline.
Parker rose.
Chen jumped with him.
For a brief moment, Parker hung in the air.
Then he decided to pass.
Exactly what Chen wanted.
Parker gathered the ball in midair and prepared to send it toward Ginóbili.
Chen reached with both hands.
Grab.
Rip.
The ball was simply taken away.
Mine.
The crowd froze for half a second.
Then exploded.
"Did he just steal the ball out of Parker's hands in midair?"
"That was brutal!"
"Parker did not even know what happened!"
"He just crashed!"
"Ginóbili was still standing there waiting for the pass!"
Parker fell to the floor and immediately threw both hands toward the referee.
He wanted a foul.
The official ignored him and sprinted toward the opposite end.
New York was already running.
Chen pushed the ball by himself.
Ginóbili and Leonard converged.
Chen accelerated again.
He pushed the ball out in front.
Then launched himself through the gap between the 2 defenders.
The change of speed looked absurd.
Everyone else seemed to be moving normally.
Chen looked as though someone had increased the playback speed.
Open floor.
Only Diaw remained between him and the rim.
Diaw looked around.
Nobody else was coming.
His expression almost showed despair.
Why me again?
Chen reached the free throw line.
Phantom Steps.
Diaw remembered Popovich's screaming from the timeout.
This time, he already knew what to do.
Whatever move Chen tried, Diaw had only 1 response.
Foul him.
Hard.
Diaw wrapped both arms around Chen.
He believed he had stopped the play completely.
Chen still found a way to release the ball.
A small opening.
A flick of the wrist.
The ball flew toward the rim.
Diaw's eyes widened.
No way.
Whistle.
The ball hit the rim.
Once.
Twice.
3 times.
Then dropped.
Good.
Madison Square Garden erupted again.
And 1.
The broadcast booth lost its composure.
"What a finish! Diaw had both of Chen's arms wrapped up, and Chen still somehow got enough wrist underneath the ball to put it on the rim."
"That is ridiculous. Diaw committed the foul exactly the way Popovich wanted, and Chen still finished through it."
Diaw glanced toward the Spurs bench.
His eyes met Popovich's.
Diaw immediately looked away.
He really did not want another lecture.
Even Popovich could not say much this time.
Diaw had fouled Chen exactly as instructed.
He simply had not completely eliminated the shot.
For another moment, Popovich found himself missing Bruce Bowen.
Bowen had never believed in doing anything halfway.
If he committed to stopping a play, he made sure the play stopped.
Chen stepped to the free throw line.
Swish.
3 point play completed.
62 to 67.
Popovich immediately shouted toward his players.
"If the shot misses, get back!"
He pointed downcourt.
"Do not give that man another fast break!"
Parker calmly brought the ball up.
Whatever happened, San Antonio rarely allowed emotion to disrupt its structure.
Parker stopped about 1 step beyond the 3 point line.
Entry pass.
Duncan caught it.
He turned his head and checked the defense.
No double team.
Fine.
Post up.
1 bump.
Then another.
Sudden turn.
Bank shot.
Perfect form.
The ball hit the glass and dropped through.
64 to 67.
New York came back down.
Curry brought the ball across half court.
Chen had to work hard just to receive the pass.
Leonard was doing everything possible to make the catch uncomfortable.
Body contact.
Denial.
Constant pressure.
Chen did not mind defenders like Leonard.
Leonard was physical and disciplined, but ultimately he was still playing basketball.
Chen worried far more about defenders whose goal was not merely to stop a possession, but to hurt someone.
Those players were unpredictable.
Leonard was not that kind of player.
Chen finally received the ball.
15 seconds remained on the shot clock.
He held it near the top.
Ginóbili immediately came over.
Double team.
Chen had already scored 5 straight points.
Everyone understood how dangerous that could become.
Once Chen started scoring, the points often arrived in bunches.
Chen immediately passed to Battier.
The instant the ball left his hands, Ginóbili retreated toward his own assignment.
Battier did not shoot.
He held the ball high and watched the movement develop.
Curry cut toward the paint.
Then circled toward the corner.
Chen moved in the opposite pattern.
Corner first.
Then back outside.
New York had 2 relentless off ball threats.
That alone was exhausting for a defense.
Worse, both were elite shooters.
Defenders had no choice but to follow every movement.
Give either Curry or Chen a moment of space, and the possession could end with a 3 pointer.
New York's players repeatedly screened for Chen.
San Antonio switched through everything.
The Spurs defended the possession extremely well.
Curry never found a clean look.
Neither did Chen.
8 seconds remained.
For a moment, San Antonio's defense appeared to have won.
Then Chen suddenly sprinted toward Battier.
Hand off.
Chen took the ball without stopping.
His momentum carried him sideways.
Immediate shot.
Leonard had anticipated the action.
He had already worked around Battier and lunged toward the release.
Against a normal jumper, Leonard might have disrupted it.
Chen did not take a normal jumper.
Fadeaway.
His body drifted away from the contest.
Leonard could only reach.
Chen was completely in rhythm now.
The basket looked enormous.
Release.
Swish.
64 to 70.
Nothing but net.
The crowd grew louder again.
They could feel what was happening.
This game was beginning to look like it might turn into another Chen Yan performance.
As Chen returned on defense, he glanced toward Leonard.
"Rookie."
Leonard looked at him.
"You are defending me pretty well."
The words sounded like encouragement.
They were not.
It was trash talk.
Chen had now spent 6 seasons in the NBA.
The inexperienced young player who first entered the league was gone.
He had become a veteran who understood more than basketball itself.
He understood opponents.
Personalities.
Pressure.
What kind of words irritated different players.
Direct insults were useless against someone like Leonard.
The same was true of Duncan.
Players that calm rarely reacted to obvious provocation.
So Chen used something subtler.
Praise.
Just enough to sound sincere.
Just enough to make the defender think about the fact that even his best defense was still not enough.
6 years had changed Chen Yan.
He had entered the league as a talented young star.
Now he knew exactly how to play every part of the game.
…..
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Frieren: The Demon Who Learned to Love