Chapter 618: The Regular Season Ends
After the All Star Game came the trade deadline, and every team in the league rushed to upgrade and strengthen its roster in the final hours.
Among the most watched moves was the 9 player trade involving the Houston Rockets, Sacramento Kings, and New York Knicks. Tracy McGrady landed in New York, while Kevin Martin moved to Houston.
Everything happened just as it had in Chen Yan's previous life. Although McGrady's decline had not been as rapid as it was during the same period in that timeline, his fate still seemed largely unchanged.
The New York Knicks had made plenty of additions this season. They drafted the talented guard Curry, then acquired Barea, Big Baby Davis, and now the soon to arrive McGrady through trades.
Yet the team's management remained chaotic.
All those reinforcements did not appear to have improved the team's record in any meaningful way. At the moment, the Knicks were ranked 11th in the Eastern Conference.
For Knicks fans, it was shaping up to be another empty season.
Suns fans had also been waiting for Phoenix to make a move before the transfer window closed. The team's weaknesses were obvious. Since Stoudemire's departure, the Suns had not replenished their interior offense.
For a championship contender, that problem was almost fatal.
In the end, the Suns' front office did nothing.
They were prepared to finish the season with the current roster.
Besides the lack of interior offense, this Suns team had another clear weakness, bench scoring.
Last season, Phoenix's bench had Azubuike and Barea. Now both attacking pieces were gone, and the team could only place a heavier burden on veteran Grant Hill.
White Chocolate and Rondo were not scoring guards by nature. Danny Green could not be relied on yet either. He had not fully developed, his form was unstable, and the head coach had even sent him down to the G League for a period of time.
If Chen Yan had a hotter temper, he might have forced a trade already.
But he did not say much.
Although he was disgusted with the front office, he never said anything in public that would damage team unity. He only wanted to fight hard with his teammates this season.
As for whether they could win the championship, that would be left to fate.
Recently, the only good news Chen Yan received was that Taylor Swift had reconciled with him.
Many newspapers had clarified the misunderstanding between Chen Yan and Kim Kardashian. Taylor chose to believe Chen Yan not only because of the reports, but also because she trusted his character.
Kim Kardashian was pushed into the spotlight. Many fans flooded her social media and called her a manipulative woman.
But she seemed to enjoy it.
After all, she could use the controversy to create another wave of publicity.
…
In the 1st game after All Star Weekend, the Suns defeated the Grizzlies 107 to 100.
Rudy Gay missed the game due to injury, and many media outlets speculated that he was deliberately avoiding Chen Yan.
This season, perimeter players who missed a matchup against Chen Yan faced enormous psychological pressure. The outside world would automatically assume they were afraid of him and did not dare to play.
That night, Chen Yan handled Sam Young with ease.
He played 30 minutes, shot 15 for 20 from the field, 5 for 7 from 3 point range, and 7 for 7 from the free throw line. He finished with 42 points, 5 assists, and 4 rebounds.
Sam Young tried everything he could to defend him, but he fouled out in 3 quarters.
On February 17, the Suns faced the Mavericks.
This was a tough battle. Dallas had a stronger roster on paper, and its current 2nd place ranking in the Western Conference gave the Mavericks a psychological edge over Phoenix.
But Nash erupted in this game, scoring 30 points and dishing out 12 assists.
Chen Yan also buried 8 3 pointers and poured in 46 points with 9 rebounds.
Nash and Chen Yan carried the Suns' shooters, leading Phoenix to a commanding 136 to 117 victory.
On February 19, the Suns defeated the Hawks 91 to 80 and extended their winning streak.
Chen Yan did not play particularly well in this game. He only recorded 21 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists.
But Atlanta was even worse.
Joe Johnson went cold, shooting just 4 for 15 and scoring 10 points. Mike Bibby had 6 points, while Crawford finished with 7.
The Suns' bench was not much better. Both teams shot poorly, making the game feel like a contest to see who could play worse.
The only thing Phoenix could feel relieved about was the final result.
Greg Oden had 12 points and 9 rebounds in this game, but fans' expectations for him were gradually fading. Everyone began to realize that Greg Oden was not as great as the hype had promised.
This seemed to be his true level.
His performance was, to some extent, affected by injuries. Even so, fans no longer believed that a fully healthy Oden would become a dominant player. His basketball IQ and fundamentals were simply not on the same level as dominant big men like Duncan.
On February 21, the Suns easily defeated the shorthanded Kings.
Sacramento had already declared its intention to tank this season. Its only real goal was developing rookie Evans. For that purpose, the Kings had even sent their leading scorer, Kevin Martin, to Houston.
On February 23, the surging Suns unexpectedly stumbled and lost to the weaker Thunder.
Harden exploded that night with 39 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists.
At this point, there were 2 types of shooting guards in the league.
The 1st type feared Chen Yan. They became nervous and timid when they saw him, and some even found reasons to sit out.
The 2nd type became fired up when they saw Chen Yan. They wanted to beat him and prove themselves.
Harden belonged to the 2nd type.
The Thunder did not have any complicated strategy in this game. They simply fired away without hesitation, and somehow, that wild approach helped them win.
It was a little like a fool stumbling into the correct answer and making the master look bad.
The Suns did not care too much about the loss. A regular season was long, and 1 or 2 upset defeats were normal.
…
After entering March, the Suns lost to the San Antonio Spurs, Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers, and Jazz, but they remained 3rd in the Western Conference.
It was worth mentioning that Phoenix broke its single game scoring record for the season against the Minnesota Timberwolves, crushing Minnesota 155 to 114.
In that game, 8 Suns players scored in double figures.
Chen Yan recorded a game high 31 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists, personally orchestrating Phoenix's 155 point explosion.
The NBA's historical single game high, excluding overtime, was also set by the Suns. 20 years ago, Phoenix defeated the Denver Nuggets 173 to 143.
The most shocking part was that the Suns scored 107 points in the 1st half, a record considered 1 of the 10 greatest in NBA history.
Fans believed that under Chen Yan's leadership, this Suns team could challenge that record.
More accurately, they believed the current Suns were qualified to challenge every scoring record.
…
After entering April, the regular season reached its final stage.
On April 2, the Suns easily defeated the Detroit Pistons 111 to 91.
Detroit's management still did not seem particularly clear headed. The front office remained focused on developing Stuckey.
That night, Stuckey was completely beaten down. He shot a miserable 3 for 14, only 21.4 percent from the field.
The problem was not just that he played badly. It was that he played badly and still kept shooting.
He missed again and again, but continued acting like Kobe. Eventually, his frustration boiled over, and he got into a physical altercation with Raja Bell.
Chen Yan then directly called him out on 2 consecutive possessions and gave him a lesson.
After scoring, Chen Yan even leaned close and whispered in his ear.
"Basketball is not for you."
Those words nearly made Stuckey explode with rage.
1 day later, the Suns lost again. This time, they suffered an upset loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.
However, that was also Phoenix's final loss of the season.
In the end, after 82 regular season games, the Suns finished 3rd in the Western Conference with a 54 and 28 record.
The regular season was over.
Now, the Suns were ready to make their push for a 3 peat.
.....
[If you don't want to wait for the next update, read 50 chapters ahead on P@treon.]
[[email protected]/FanficLord03]