Chapter 783: Conceding the Game
Losing Game 1 had dealt a blow to New York's morale.
But Chen Yan's explosive start tonight quickly erased the frustration of 2 days earlier.
That was the value of having a true leader.
When a team began sinking, a real leader could pull everyone back to the surface instead of disappearing into the struggle with them.
The game unfolded almost exactly as Chen Yan had envisioned.
Once his individual scoring forced Brooklyn to focus its defense on him, Chen Yan began creating opportunities for everyone else.
David West found his rhythm.
Curry found his rhythm.
Avery Johnson watched from the Nets bench with a growing sense of dread.
If all 3 of them got hot at the same time, Brooklyn was in serious trouble.
By the end of the 1st quarter, New York led 29 to 22.
A 7 point advantage.
At the start of the 2nd quarter, Johnson replaced Gerald Wallace with Anthony Morrow in an attempt to strengthen Brooklyn's offense.
The adjustment produced limited results.
Morrow could provide shooting, but he was not the type of player who could take control of a game.
Carmelo Anthony remained in excellent form.
Anthony was the kind of competitor who often rose to match the level of the opponent in front of him.
Against an ordinary star, he might simply look like another All Star.
Against an elite superstar, Anthony's pride seemed to drag even more out of him.
Chen Yan had pushed him into that mode.
Anthony scored 23 points in the 1st half.
This time, however, Brooklyn did not enter halftime with the lead.
New York's 3 primary scorers combined for 41 points.
Chen Yan led the way with 25 points, 7 assists, and 4 rebounds.
Behind him, the Knicks carried a 59 to 46 advantage into halftime.
"They look like a completely different team tonight," Kenny Smith said. "New York is much more aggressive offensively than it was in Game 1."
Barkley nodded.
"That is what championship teams are supposed to do. You lose 1 at home, you make your adjustments, and you come back ready to punch somebody in the mouth."
Earlier in the game, when Chen Yan and Curry rested, New York's bench had also responded well.
Jeremy Lin found his touch and opened the reserve unit's scoring with 2 consecutive mid range jumpers after using screens.
Yi Jianlian benefited immediately from the improved spacing.
He repeatedly found openings around the basket.
Yi's offensive production depended heavily on the rhythm created by his teammates.
When the offense flowed and the floor opened up, he could become extremely effective.
If the entire offense stalled and New York needed Yi to create something from nothing, the situation became far more difficult.
That simply was not his game.
With 6 minutes and 51 seconds remaining in the 3rd quarter, Nelson brought Chen Yan, Curry, and DeAndre Jordan onto the floor.
Jeremy Lin and Yi Jianlian, who were both playing well, remained in the game.
Nelson had done it again.
3 guards.
Chen Yan moved to small forward.
The lineup prioritized speed above almost everything else and sacrificed a considerable amount of size and defense.
In a Playoffs game, very few coaches would even consider using such a group.
Nelson was not most coaches.
He was a basketball mad scientist, and strange ideas rarely remained theoretical for long.
Brooklyn responded by bringing Deron Williams, Anthony, and Yao Ming back onto the floor.
For the 1st time on an NBA Playoffs stage, Chen Yan, Yi Jianlian, and Yao Ming were all on the court together.
It was a memorable moment for Chinese basketball fans.
The scoreboard, however, remained far more important to the players.
New York led 75 to 57.
An 18 point advantage.
Curry brought the ball across half court and passed to Chen Yan.
Chen Yan received it on the left side, only 1 step outside the paint.
He had established extremely deep position.
Brooklyn still hesitated to double team.
That was the difference between Game 1 and Game 2.
Curry and David West were both making shots tonight.
If the Nets sent extra defenders toward Chen Yan as recklessly as they had in the opener, New York now had players ready to punish them.
The situation had changed.
Chen Yan caught the ball and went directly into his Mamba Step.
Shoulder fake.
Turnaround.
Chen Yan spun toward the baseline.
Anthony Morrow rushed over.
The moment Morrow committed, Chen Yan dropped his body, stepped forward with his left foot, and slipped beneath Morrow's arm.
At that instant, his [Mamba Step] reached LV5.
After 5 seasons, the skill had finally reached its maximum level.
Morrow was already behind him.
Chen Yan finished easily at the rim.
77 to 57.
The lead had quietly reached 20.
Brooklyn came back the other way.
Anthony had seen enough.
He attacked Chen Yan directly.
Chen Yan was now guarding him, and Anthony still possessed an advantage in pure size and strength.
The Knicks defense collapsed toward the paint.
Anthony powered inside and attempted the finish.
Miss.
He immediately jumped again for the offensive rebound.
That quick 2nd jump was 1 of Anthony's strengths.
This time, however, he was competing against someone even quicker.
Chen Yan left the floor first and secured the rebound.
New York immediately ran.
Yi Jianlian sprinted toward the basket.
Chen Yan saw him and lofted the ball toward the rim.
Yi exploded upward.
Boom!
Alley oop!
Madison Square Garden erupted.
"That pass was perfect," Kenny Smith said. "Chen put it exactly where Yi needed it."
Barkley nodded.
"And Yi did the rest. That man can get up."
Brooklyn answered with another Chinese star.
New York's 3 guard lineup lacked size inside.
Deron recognized it and immediately fed Yao Ming in the paint.
Yao turned and converted a hook shot.
79 to 59.
Over the next several minutes, Brooklyn repeatedly attacked New York's interior size disadvantage.
Nelson showed no interest in changing the lineup.
His small group was playing well offensively.
And Nelson had never been particularly afraid of giving up points.
As long as his team scored more.
By the end of the 3rd quarter, New York's advantage had grown to 23.
Brooklyn entered the 4th quarter without resting its starters.
The Nets had no choice.
They needed to make a run immediately.
Deron became impatient.
He missed 2 consecutive 3 pointers while trying to force Brooklyn back into the game.
The harder the Nets chased the comeback, the more mistakes they made.
Yao Ming, after adjusting his body and style in recent years, was no longer ideally suited to serving as the center of an entire scoring attack for extended stretches.
Once again, the burden shifted toward Anthony.
Anthony responded.
He scored 7 points in only 2 minutes and forced Nelson to call timeout.
New York brought its starters back earlier than planned.
Chen Yan and Anthony immediately traded baskets over the next 2 possessions.
The crowd loved it.
Anthony did not.
No matter what he did, the double digit deficit remained.
The scoreboard had become a wall Brooklyn could not climb over.
During the latter half of the 4th quarter, the Nets once again began double teaming Chen Yan.
Chen Yan could have forced the issue.
There was no reason to.
Curry was hot.
David West was hot.
Chen Yan simply moved the ball.
Assist after assist followed.
Brooklyn's defense became increasingly confused.
If they stayed home, Chen Yan scored.
If they sent help, his teammates scored.
Meanwhile, Brooklyn could not generate enough offense of its own.
There was no comfortable answer.
With 3 minutes and 9 seconds remaining, New York led 108 to 94.
Curry brought the ball into the frontcourt and passed to Battier.
Battier neither shot nor dribbled.
He simply held the ball and waited for Chen Yan to complete his movement.
Anthony had spent so much energy carrying Brooklyn's offense that he could not apply serious pressure against Battier.
Battier calmly waited.
Chen Yan curled out toward the 3 point line.
Pass.
Anthony Morrow fought around the screen and rushed toward him.
Chen Yan raised the ball.
Morrow jumped.
Fake.
Chen Yan calmly took 1 step forward and rose for the mid range jumper.
Swish.
110 to 94.
Completely composed.
Anthony answered almost immediately.
He caught the ball, jabbed once, then pulled up.
2 points.
110 to 96.
Brooklyn now had 2 opponents.
The Knicks.
And the clock.
New York pushed again.
Chen Yan received the ball and attacked with 2 hard dribbles.
Sudden stop.
Then another burst of acceleration.
The rhythm change left Anthony Morrow behind.
Chen Yan entered the paint, used a hop step to split the space between Yao Ming and Sheldon Williams, and finished the layup.
112 to 96.
Brooklyn's shooting percentage over the closing minutes was not even particularly poor.
The problem was simple.
New York kept scoring too.
Avery Johnson looked at the scoreboard.
Then he looked at the clock.
There was nothing left to chase.
Timeout.
When the Nets returned to the floor, their starters remained on the bench.
Brooklyn had conceded Game 2.
....
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