Chapter 181: Chen Yan Ignites Again — Scoring Explosion!
After the timeout, Durant came out firing.
Two straight three-pointers — nothing but net.
The TD Garden erupted. Durant's shooting had been streaky all season, but tonight, he was dialed in. Every shot looked effortless. Every release felt pure. The fans could see it — the birth of a future scoring machine.
By the end of the third quarter, the score stood at 85–81.
The Suns led by only four — not what D'Antoni had expected.
Against a rebuilding Celtics team, the plan had been to blow the game open in the third. Instead, Boston refused to fold.
"The Celtics are playing with heart tonight," one of the commentators said during the break. "They've survived multiple Phoenix surges."
"Chen Yan's already at 39 points, and Durant's got 33," another replied. "This has turned into a rookie showdown."
From a fan's perspective, this was perfect — two young stars trading buckets, keeping the game alive and unpredictable.
---
Fourth Quarter.
The Suns started without Chen Yan or Nash, giving their stars a breather.
D'Antoni sent out Barea, Raja Bell, Grant Hill, Diaw, and Stoudemire.
Hill opened the quarter with a smooth pull-up jumper off a screen — vintage, controlled, and pure.
Boston responded instantly.
Rondo, not known for his range, brought the ball up, stopped just past the arc, and let one fly.
Swish!
The crowd went wild.
Chen Yan, watching from the bench, couldn't help but chuckle.
"Man's shooting 26% from deep and now he's hitting pull-ups?" he muttered.
It didn't stop there. The Celtics fed off the crowd's energy, playing suffocating defense and keeping the Suns scoreless for more than three minutes.
When D'Antoni finally called a timeout, Phoenix trailed by ten.
He didn't hesitate — Nash and Chen Yan were both back in.
---
The impact was immediate.
On the first play, Nash used a Stoudemire screen to penetrate, then slipped a perfect bounce pass through traffic.
Chen Yan caught it mid-stride, slicing between Tony Allen and Al Jefferson for an elegant layup.
91–97.
"That's just poetry in motion," someone on the broadcast said. "The control, the timing, the touch—everything about that play was flawless."
But Durant answered right back, hitting a pull-up jumper from the elbow.
91–99.
He nodded fiercely as he backpedaled, adrenaline surging. The crowd roared with him — Boston smelled an upset.
---
The Suns went right back to work.
Nash pulled up from the top of the key — his form perfect, the rhythm smooth — but it rimmed out.
Diaw, always alert, soared in for the rebound.
Instead of forcing a putback, he kicked it out to Chen Yan in the corner.
Chen didn't hesitate.
Swish!
A picture-perfect jumper — pure, clean, effortless.
94–99.
The arena, moments ago electric, suddenly went quiet.
---
Boston rushed their next possession.
Durant, trying to answer, fired a contested three from 45 degrees — and missed.
The rebound bounced long, straight into Nash's hands.
He didn't even think about passing.
He sprinted up the floor, with Chen Yan on his left and Stoudemire on his right.
"Here comes the Suns' fast break!" one of the commentators shouted. "Let's see what they do with this!"
Only Rondo and Tony Allen were back on defense.
A 3-on-2 break — the Suns' bread and butter.
Nash faked the pull-up, then whipped a no-look pass behind his head.
Right into Chen Yan's hands.
Chen took one step beyond the arc, rose in rhythm — catch-and-fire.
His favorite shot.
Tony Allen lunged desperately, but the release was already gone.
Swish!
Nothing but net.
97–99.
Seven straight points from Chen Yan.
The crowd fell silent. Even the Celtics bench stood frozen.
And on the Suns' sideline, D'Antoni grinned.
Because when Chen Yan got into that zone, there was only one way to describe it—
explosive, unstoppable, and inevitable.
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