Chapter 257: Death God Chen Yan
As the final buzzer sounded, Phoenix exploded. In bars, living rooms, and dorms all over the city, fans jumped up and screamed, celebrating a road win that felt almost unreal.
Then came the numbers.
For Denver, the golden duo actually put up strong stat lines. Carmelo Anthony finished with a team high 33 points. Allen Iverson added 30 points and 7 assists, attacking all night. JR Smith came off the bench and poured in 19 points, the third highest on the team. If not for what happened in the last seconds, nobody would have even thought about blaming JR for the loss.
On the Suns side, Amar e Stoudemire dropped 24 points, 11 rebounds, and 2 blocks, owning the paint on both ends. Boris Diaw filled the box score with 16 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists, doing all the little things. Steve Nash had 13 points, 12 assists, and 2 steals, quietly running the whole offense. Grant Hill chipped in 10 steady points.
And then there was Chen Yan.
After a quiet stretch earlier, he exploded in the final quarter and finished with a game high 35 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals, 5 fouls, and 2 turnovers.
Outside of JR's meltdown at the very end, the second half of that final quarter was Chen Yan's personal stage. Every big moment seemed to belong to him.
On TNT after the game, even Charles Barkley could not hold back.
"He closed that game like the Grim Reaper, man," Barkley said, shaking his head.
The line took off. By the next morning, countless media outlets were replaying the highlights with the same quote. Overnight, Chen Yan picked up a new nickname in league circles.
Death God.
Kenny Smith looked at it from the Denver side of things.
"The Nuggets led almost the entire night," Kenny said. "To lose it right at the end like that, on your home floor, it feels like somebody just reached into your pocket and took your wallet. That is tough to swallow."
It was only Game 3 of a first round series on paper, but everyone watching knew this one was going to be replayed for years.
The night was packed with scenes that would stick in fans' minds. Chen Yan's insane three point streak in the fourth quarter. The pull up jumper in Kenyon Martin's face, followed by the cold step over. JR Smith's final seconds where he seemed to forget the score and the situation. Play after play felt like it was pulled straight out of a highlight reel.
After the game, the press conferences started.
At the Nuggets podium, George Karl could not hold back his frustration.
"I do not even know who to trust with the ball right now," he said at one point, half talking to the room, half talking to himself.
Asked to sum up his team's performance, he finally sighed and said, "We played well for about 42 minutes. The problem is the game is 48 minutes long."
JR Smith, the other central figure of the night, also had to face the media. Cameras zoomed in on him the moment he sat down. Everyone in the room had the same question in mind.
"JR, can you tell us what was going through your mind in those final moments?" a reporter asked. "Why did you not take that open shot under the rim?"
JR tilted his head and forced a smile. He had been expecting this question since the walk from the locker room.
"At first, I thought we were ahead," he said honestly. "It was not until I heard the fans behind me yelling that I realized something was wrong."
"Then why did you not just go up with the shot?" the reporter pressed.
"The angle did not feel good," JR replied. "I wanted to call a timeout and settle us down."
As he spoke, Anthony sat beside him and fell silent.
To be more accurate, he was beyond words.
Melo's personality was not as calm as LeBron's. After such a collapse, he could not cool down and phrase things gently. When a reporter turned to him, Anthony did not bother to wrap anything in soft language.
"This should have been a win," Melo said flatly. "We gave it away with some plays that made no sense. It feels terrible."
The 3 0 series hole was pressing on his chest like a weight. At that moment, he was no longer worried about team chemistry or keeping the peace. He just needed to vent.
Talking about Chen Yan's late game run, Anthony gave a bitter smile.
"He took all the pressure off our side in the fourth," Melo admitted. "Once he got going, nobody could stop him."
The Nuggets' press conference ended on that note.
Then it was the Suns' turn.
With Phoenix now up 3 0 in the series, Mike D Antoni could not hide his good mood. He opened his time at the podium with a confident grin.
"We are going to try to finish this thing in Denver," he said. "I do not want to keep them waiting too long."
His line had the whole room laughing.
Right now, the Suns were the only team in the playoffs sitting on a 3 0 lead. If nothing crazy happened, they were on track to be the first team to advance. They were the ones waiting on the rest of the bracket, not the other way around.
When someone brought up Chen Yan's explosion in the fourth, D Antoni spread his hands.
"Look, with Chen, nothing surprises me," he said. "But tonight he even surprised me."
Another question came fast.
"Coach, what did you think of Chen's reaction after the technical foul? He looked really fired up."
D Antoni nodded.
"I have coached him all season," he said. "I have never seen him that angry. That whistle clearly set him off. He felt like he was in the right, and when his competitive side kicks in like that, he is going to let it out. We all saw what happened after that."
Amar e Stoudemire, sitting beside him, was asked the same thing when it was his turn.
His answer was a lot more direct.
"Chen did not get the call he should have gotten," Stoudemire said. "That was not fair. So he went out and used his game to make it fair. That is what he does."
He knew his words might mean a fine from the league office, but he did not back off for a second.
This was how he showed that he had Chen Yan's back.
Another reporter leaned toward the mic.
"What do you think about Chen dropping 20 plus in basically half a quarter?"
Stoudemire laughed.
"Playing against Chen when he is like that is like stepping into the ring with Tyson," he said. "He is just knocking people out."
The image fit. Chen Yan had knocked the entire Nuggets team flat over those last minutes.
When it was finally Chen's turn, the questions came even faster. Reporters knew this was the man of the night.
"Chen, how do you feel about the Suns coming back from 15 down in the fourth quarter?" one asked.
"This is what happens when the whole team pulls in the same direction," Chen said. "When everybody is locked in on the same goal, the game gets a lot simpler."
"How did you manage to hit five straight threes during that stretch?" another reporter asked.
Chen shrugged.
"I just slowed myself down," he said. "Took the shots, and they went in."
"Were you shocked by JR Smith's decision in the last seconds?" the next question came.
"It was a great chance for them," Chen answered. "But once you let a chance slip, it is gone. That is basketball. Opportunities do not wait. You need skill, but you also need a calm, clear head. When the moment shows up, you have to grab it."
They brought up the technical foul as well.
"I thought I got fouled, and I let my emotions out," Chen said. "That got me fired up. It got the whole team fired up. After that, you have to put that energy into trying to score and get stops."
When a reporter asked whether his imitation of the referee's technical foul gesture was meant as a protest, Chen only smiled.
"You can see it however you want," he said. "If you like, you can call it a new celebration."
He knew better than to keep talking. Push that line too far, and the league could come down on him. Push it too far, and referees might start watching him differently in future games.
At the end, someone asked him to sum up what this comeback meant to him.
Chen thought for a second, then spoke the simplest sentence of the night.
"Winning feels really good."
He did not try to brag. He did not need to.
His coach and teammates had already done enough talking for him.
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