Chapter 764: Some Are Happy, Some Are Sad
Swish!
Less than 2 minutes into the 4th quarter, Chen Yan scored his 61st point of the game with a smooth drifting jumper.
Over the next several minutes, his offense remained unstoppable.
Chen Yan displayed nearly every weapon in his arsenal for the Indiana crowd.
Fast break dunks.
Transition 3 pointers.
Drives after screens.
Isolation crossovers followed by pullup jumpers.
By the middle of the final quarter, the difference between the 2 teams had reached 24 points.
Indiana finally removed its starters.
The game officially entered garbage time.
Chen Yan left the court with a monstrous triple double of 71 points, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds.
George Hill stared at Chen Yan as he walked toward the bench, looking as though he had just seen a monster.
Before the game, Chen Yan had predicted that he would score more than 60 points.
In the end, even that prediction had been conservative.
The Indiana fans felt relieved when he finally sat down.
If the Pacers had continued resisting, who knew what kind of ridiculous numbers Chen Yan might have produced?
Ultimately, the Knicks completed a dominant 129 to 104 road victory.
Rumors later claimed that an argument broke out inside the Pacers locker room after the game.
Darren Collison complained that Paul George's defense had been too poor.
Paul George immediately shifted the blame toward Stephenson, insisting that Stephenson had been the one who angered Chen Yan.
The Indiana locker room descended into chaos.
Their post game press conference was delayed by 30 minutes.
When Chen Yan finally appeared before the media, however, he praised Paul George.
"He is very talented, and he gave me some problems defensively. Even though I scored 71 points, I never felt completely comfortable."
Several reporters immediately struggled to keep straight faces.
Chen Yan continued with a serious expression.
"I also saw his potential on offense. He has the size of a small forward and the mobility of a guard. He can shoot, and he can attack off the dribble. Overall, I think Paul George has a lot of potential. He has a chance to become an All Star in the future."
Chen Yan did not want a single terrible game to destroy a young player's confidence.
More importantly, he was not lying.
Paul George genuinely possessed all those strengths.
Unfortunately, the reporters could barely get past 1 sentence.
Even though I scored 71 points, I never felt completely comfortable.
Several of them lowered their heads to hide their laughter.
Chen Yan felt helpless.
Sometimes, he genuinely was not trying to show off.
The media simply interpreted everything he said that way.
After 1 day of rest, the Knicks traveled to Orlando and destroyed the Magic 106 to 80.
Orlando's roster had not changed much, but the team was no longer producing the same results it had during previous seasons.
Part of the problem was the rise of several Eastern Conference teams.
The bigger issue was the behavior of the franchise centerpiece, Dwight Howard.
Howard's attention was completely focused on leaving Orlando.
He was no longer fully committed to playing for the Magic.
His preferred destination was New York.
However, Chen Yan and Knicks management had firmly indicated that they were not interested.
Howard's attitude toward basketball concerned them.
Bringing a player like that into the locker room could damage team chemistry.
Howard was also interested in joining the Los Angeles Lakers.
If the Lakers were unavailable, the Los Angeles Clippers would also be acceptable.
His preferred destinations all had 1 obvious thing in common.
They were major markets.
It often seemed as though Howard cared as much about enjoying the city as he did about basketball.
Even after Orlando's loss to New York, Howard refused to give up.
He approached Chen Yan after the game and started a conversation.
His real purpose was obvious.
He wanted to know whether the Knicks needed him.
Chen Yan had no interest in bringing Howard to New York, but there was also no reason to offend him openly.
They played in the same league and would inevitably continue seeing each other.
So Chen Yan chose his words carefully.
He praised Howard's optimistic personality and said his cheerful approach to basketball could influence everyone around him. He even said the Knicks could always use more happiness.
Then he added that roster decisions ultimately belonged to management.
Howard grinned broadly.
He thought Chen Yan had complimented him.
After returning home, Chen Yan told Taylor Swift about the conversation.
Taylor burst into laughter before asking in confusion, "Isn't Dwight Howard an All Star starting center? If you had a teammate that good, wouldn't winning the championship become easier? Why do you not want him on the Knicks?"
Chen Yan thought for a moment.
"It is complicated. Basketball is not a sport where adding 1 great player to another automatically creates something greater. Look at the Lakers F4 team from the early 2000s. Their roster looked incredible. They had 4 future Hall of Famers, but they still could not beat the Detroit Pistons, whose roster looked far less glamorous."
Taylor nodded as though she understood.
Her expression suggested otherwise.
Chen Yan continued.
"The Knicks have to win the championship this year. We cannot disappoint the fans again."
Taylor gently patted his back.
"Do not put too much pressure on yourself. You are still young. You will have plenty of opportunities."
Chen Yan shook his head.
"Last year was already wasted. I cannot go 2 straight years without accomplishing anything."
Taylor smiled.
Chen Yan demanded far too much from himself.
"If failing to win the championship means accomplishing nothing, then what about all those great NBA players who retired without a ring? Did their careers mean nothing?"
"Of course," Chen Yan replied. "2nd place is the biggest loser. Fans only remember the winner."
He was quoting Kobe.
Taylor suddenly changed the subject.
"Didn't you say you would write another song for me? It has been 2 years. Where is it?"
Chen Yan awkwardly stuck out his tongue.
"I have not had much inspiration lately."
Then he looked at Taylor.
"Maybe you can give me some inspiration tonight."
Before Taylor could respond, Chen Yan suddenly picked her up.
By the time she realized what was happening, he had already carried her into the bedroom.
Taylor stared at him in disbelief.
Was she really just a source of musical inspiration now?
...
After an exhausting night, Chen Yan slept until 12 PM the following day.
The Knicks next game was still 2 days away, so he could afford to indulge himself for once.
When Chen Yan finally woke up, Taylor was still sleeping soundly.
There was an old saying that only the ox became exhausted, never the field.
That saying clearly did not apply to them.
Against Chen Yan's extraordinary stamina, Taylor was usually the one who expended more energy.
On April 8, the Knicks hosted the Chicago Bulls.
Before the game, Chen Yan gave his teammates a brief speech.
He took the matchup seriously.
Chicago currently ranked 8th in the Eastern Conference and was a likely opponent for New York in the 1st round of the Playoffs.
The Knicks approached the game with Playoffs intensity.
They crushed Chicago by 22 points.
Chen Yan finished with 28 points, 13 rebounds, and 9 assists.
He fell only 1 assist short of another triple double.
However, Chen Yan did not chase the statistic.
Once the outcome was no longer in doubt, he voluntarily asked to leave the game.
Westbrook was Chicago's best performer.
He recorded 24 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists, continuing to chase his numbers until the final second.
2 days later, on April 10, the Knicks faced the Bulls again.
This time, the game was in Chicago.
New York showed no mercy.
Even after the Bulls had lost their will to resist, the Knicks continued attacking relentlessly and eventually won by 28 points.
With a combined net victory of 25 points across the 2 games, Chen Yan believed the Knicks had damaged Chicago's confidence to some extent.
In the final 9 games of the regular season, New York continued its winning streak.
When the regular season ended, the Knicks held the best record in the entire league.
56 wins.
10 losses.
While some celebrated, others suffered.
The Knicks confidently prepared for the 1st round of the Playoffs.
Durant, meanwhile, had fallen into one of the lowest moments of his season.
1 week earlier, Rose had suffered a serious injury.
The diagnosis was devastating.
A torn ACL.
Rose would miss the remainder of the current season.
Worse, his 2012 to 2013 season had effectively ended before it even began.
....
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