Chapter 255: Chen is on Fire
"Man, that was a diamond shot right there. Chen Yan just snatched the lead back for the Suns," Kenny Smith shouted the moment the ball dropped through the net.
"More than twenty points in this quarter. Again. This dude is out of his mind," Charles Barkley yelled.
Kenny laughed. "To be exact, it is more than twenty in half a quarter. Once Chen gets rolling, he does not slow down. He is a straight scoring machine."
Because of foul trouble earlier, Chen Yan had only checked into the fourth quarter a little over six minutes from the end.
"This guy is a stone cold killer," Barkley said, nodding with a grin.
The Nuggets called another timeout.
During the break, George Karl held his board tight in both hands and laid out the plan with a serious face.
There were thirty nine seconds left. The Nuggets were down by one.
He did not want to run the full twenty four seconds on this possession. As an old veteran coach, he knew they needed two chances to win this game, not one.
If they burned the whole clock and still missed, they would be forced to foul right away. That would leave them in a very bad spot.
So the call was clear. Push for a quick shot inside those twenty four seconds, and leave some time on the clock.
Timeout over.
Kenyon Martin stood on the sideline and slapped the ball. Iverson cut free and came back to receive the inbounds pass.
Jr Smith curled out to the wing again, ready for a handoff, but Iverson did not look his way this time.
At the biggest moment, Iverson chose himself.
He lowered his center of gravity, changed direction hard, leaned his body into Steve Nash, and drove straight at the paint.
Nash slid with him but did not dare to bump him too hard. The Suns were already in the penalty. One wrong reach and Iverson would march to the free throw line.
Just outside the lane, Iverson took a long step and exploded upward.
The first move shook Nash off, but Amar e Stoudemire was waiting inside. As soon as Iverson rose, Amare jumped to challenge the shot.
Iverson leaned back as far as his body would allow.
He could no longer get as high as he did in his prime, so he had to use his body angle to avoid the block. He twisted in the air, throwing up a crazy high arcing shot just to slide the ball past Amare's fingertips.
The price was all in his balance. As the ball left his hand, Iverson's body twisted out of control, and he fell to the floor.
Clang.
The ball smacked off the back iron. The sound echoed in the arena.
Iverson lay on his back for a second, and for a brief moment he really looked like an old hero still fighting but running out of lift.
Chen Yan had already crashed into the paint. He went up strong and ripped down that huge defensive rebound with both hands.
Nash pointed forward, signaling for Chen to bring it over half court.
There were thirty one seconds left in the game.
Everybody in the building knew this possession belonged to Chen Yan.
"Double him. Do not let him shoot."
"Get the ball out of his hands."
"Come on, one stop. Just one stop."
The fans at Pepsi Center screamed at the top of their lungs.
Whenever Chen touched the ball, the whole arena could feel the danger hanging in the air.
Chen crossed half court and slowed down near the top of the arc, about a step and a half behind the three point line.
The Suns still held a two point lead.
He did not attack right away. First he watched the clock, letting the seconds drip away. His goal was simple. Run this possession down as far as he could and give the Nuggets as little time as possible.
"Do not give up a three. And do not get too close," George Karl shouted from the sideline.
Under that pressure, Jr Smith's feet almost got tangled.
If he backed off too far, Chen would just rise up and fire a three. If he crowded too much, Chen would blow by him like he had done all quarter.
Jr was not exactly known as a lockdown defender. Asking him to split that line perfectly on the biggest possession of the night was a lot to ask.
George Karl knew that. That was why, during the last timeout, he had already made the real choice.
If Chen broke loose, they had to send a second body at him. It was the only way to slow him in this kind of state.
With seven seconds left on the shot clock and fourteen seconds left in the game, Chen finally made his move.
He lowered his shoulder and took a probing step forward.
Jr slid back to the three point line and set his feet. He knew he was standing in Chen's shooting range now. He could not back off another inch.
Chen's three point shot had been on fire in the second half of the quarter, but that was only part of his bag.
He watched Jr's stance, eyes calm. He saw where Jr's weight was leaning.
After a short pause that felt like a beat in slow motion, Chen pushed off and drove past Jr in a single sharp step.
Jr reacted, but Chen was already gone.
From the weak side, Carmelo Anthony stepped over to cut off the lane.
Melo was supposed to be part of a clear double team, but Chen broke past Jr so fast that it looked more like help defense than a clean trap.
Chen dropped his hips, took the ball low, and crossed his body, cutting in the opposite direction.
On most nights, this move would have left Anthony standing still like a traffic cone on the sidewalk.
Tonight, on this play, Anthony forced himself to match Chen's speed.
He slid his feet, put his chest in front, and used every bit of that strong frame to bump Chen off his line.
He proved with that one sequence that it was never about him not being able to defend. Most nights he just did not want to run that hard.
With effort and focus, and with his size and strength, Anthony was still a tough cover. His lateral quickness was not perfect, but everything else in his body still screamed elite.
Chen felt the hit as their bodies collided.
After that contact, he did not have room or time for another move. The clock was almost gone. The twenty four second count was right at the edge.
He did not have space to adjust his steps either.
So he forced himself into a leaning jumper.
His body was tilted forward, one leg kicking out slightly just to keep his balance. The shot looked awkward, almost off rhythm.
Anthony lunged with him.
He was not one of the very top leapers in the league, but for a forward his first step and his takeoff speed were still very strong. That was why, even when he got blocked, he often could still grab his own rebound right after.
On this contest, Anthony did everything right. He was in front of Chen, the challenge was clean, and the shooter was off balance.
But the second the ball left Chen Yan's hand, the whole arena tensed up.
It did not matter what the form looked like. It did not matter how good the defense was.
Some female fans in the lower rows had already covered their faces with both hands, peeking through their fingers, hearts pounding. Others grabbed the arm of the person next to them without even thinking.
Older fans in Nuggets jerseys held their breath. Suns fans watching on television leaned forward until their noses were almost at the screen.
There was only one reason for that reaction.
The player who had taken that shot was named Chen Yan.
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I have a new Naruto fanfic out, guys!The main character is Orochimaru's disciple, and I'll say this upfront: he is also a scientist and just as evil as his teacher.
So for those who don't like evil or morally dark main characters, you might want to skip this one.
The fanfic is titled Naruto: Orochimaru's Disciple.You can search the title directly, or just click on my profile and you'll find it there.
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