Chapter 692: Is There a Mole Within?
Chen Yan high fived Curry hard in celebration.
Hitting his 1st shot was a good omen.
The Nets attacked, and Deron looked for scoring opportunities on the perimeter.
After a series of dribbles, Deron passed the ball to Anthony.
Anthony caught it and immediately shot, releasing decisively.
Missed.
Lopez fought for the rebound inside. Although he did not secure it, he tipped it several times in the air, delaying the Knicks counterattack.
New York was forced into a half court set.
The moment Chen Yan received the ball, Gerald Wallace immediately stuck close to him.
As an experienced defender, Wallace knew his advantage was physical strength. When guarding Chen Yan, he would initiate contact whenever possible, trying to make Chen Yan uncomfortable.
Chen Yan bent low into a triple threat, waiting for Kenyon Martin to move to the high post.
As soon as Martin arrived, Chen Yan used the screen and drove right.
The Nets decisively left Martin, and Lopez and Gerald Wallace double teamed Chen Yan.
Chen Yan quickly passed the ball sideways to Al Harrington.
Having 3 point shooting on the perimeter was a huge advantage. Opponents could not double team carelessly, because 1 wrong rotation could easily tear open the whole defensive formation.
The moment Chen Yan passed the ball, he immediately cut toward the paint.
Kenyon Martin stood in the middle and directly blocked Gerald Wallace.
At this point, if this had been former teammates like Nash or Diaw, the ball likely would have been delivered precisely back to Chen Yan.
But the current Knicks players ability could not compare to the Suns during their 3 peat era, especially in passing.
Because of that, ever since Chen Yan transferred to New York this season, scenes like this had often appeared on the court.
Chen Yan would make an elusive cut, but his teammates would fail to support him. Even when he got open, the pass would often arrive too slowly.
Gerald Wallace was screened, so Lopez could only follow Chen Yan.
For a player of Lopez size, chasing Chen Yan was extremely difficult.
Chen Yan curled to the corner and received the ball with Lopez guarding him.
Chen Yan put the ball on the floor and drove.
Hesitating even for 1 second would have been disrespectful to his speed and explosiveness.
After 2 consecutive crossovers, Chen Yan suddenly burst forward.
That sudden explosion was almost like a glitch, leaving Lopez unable to react.
Chen Yan's offensive style was extremely practical.
Against shorter opponents, he would post up.
Against players of similar size, he would use dribbling and rhythm.
Against big men like Lopez, he relied on speed and explosiveness.
His offensive choices were absolutely rational.
Chen Yan blew past Lopez in 1 step, drove along the baseline, and finished with a graceful reverse layup.
5 to 0.
Chen Yan scored 5 straight points to start the game, making the Nets coaching staff uneasy.
"Chen Yan's drive was very easy," Magic Johnson said. "He has a strong offensive desire to start this game, and both of his attempts have been successful so far."
"Chen did not dunk that ball," Van Gundy said. "He chose the easy reverse layup, which shows he is deliberately conserving energy. It looks like Chen Yan is ready to go all out tonight."
The Nets did not stay silent for long.
Deron scored with a mid range jumper after using a screen, a very traditional but effective offensive method.
5 to 2.
The Knicks quickly inbounded the ball, and Chen Yan brought it across half court, attacking before the Nets defense could fully settle.
The Nets lineup was indeed strong in half court sets, with both inside and outside threats.
But their mobility was a weakness.
The big men inside were obvious targets, while their 2 core scorers, Deron and Anthony, were both slightly heavy.
Chen Yan had a mismatch against Anthony, but he did not stop and wait for his teammates.
This was exactly the effect he wanted.
With 1 burst of acceleration, Chen Yan drove from the left.
Anthony could not keep up, but Deron rotated over to help, and the 2 tried to trap Chen Yan in the middle.
Chen Yan dribbled with agility, took 1 step back, and passed the ball to Curry.
Completely open.
Curry did not hesitate.
"Swish!"
The shot went in.
8 to 2.
Chen Yan delivered his 1st assist of the game.
The Nets attacked, and this time they chose to go inside.
Lopez tried to overpower Kenyon Martin, backing him down repeatedly before turning and throwing up a hook shot.
The motion was well executed, but the little hook had a bit too much power, and the ball bounced off the rim.
"That was a good opportunity," Magic Johnson said. "He got deep position, and the move was there. The touch was just a little off."
"Lopez actually has pretty good touch for a big man," Van Gundy said. "You cannot expect every center to meet Yao Ming's standard."
As the 2 commentators chatted, the Knicks counterattack began.
New York played well to start the night, consistently maintaining its preferred rhythm.
Curry dribbled to the 3 point line and passed to Chen Yan.
Chen Yan caught the ball, faked, took 1 step inside, and hit a mid range jumper.
10 to 2.
Chen Yan hit a mid range shot in transition, playing with extreme confidence.
Van Gundy nodded and said, "This is how Chen should play when he is on the court. Use offensive aggression to ignite the entire team's firepower. This is the Knicks most comfortable offensive rhythm."
Magic Johnson smiled. "I bet the Nets double team him on the next possession. Honestly, I do not understand why they did not double team him from the 1st minute. You cannot give a player like Chen even an inch of opportunity."
The Nets attacked.
Anthony held the ball facing the basket in the elbow area.
This was his sweet spot, his most comfortable offensive zone.
From here, he could shoot, drive toward the baseline, drive toward the middle, or take 1 dribble and post up inside.
This time, Anthony chose a direct jumper after a triple threat.
Battier's closeout was half a beat late, and Anthony shot directly over him.
10 to 4.
Anthony's shot seemed to lack technical flash, merely a jumper from a standstill, but it was actually a testament to his offensive threat.
Precisely because he had so many options from that spot, and each option carried scoring potential, Battier did not dare rush forward recklessly.
Anthony seized that hesitation.
The Knicks attacked, and Chen Yan received the ball at the top of the arc.
To start the game, Chen Yan was New York's undisputed primary scorer.
Every offensive possession had to originate from him.
Chen Yan executed continuous crossovers at the top of the arc.
This move was Chen Yan's signature skill, one everyone had seen countless times, yet no one could claim to defend it effectively.
The reason was simple.
Chen Yan's moves were highly variable.
Even if the defender anticipated 1 move, Chen Yan would immediately transition into the next.
Some analysts had once said that Chen Yan preferred going left with his crossover.
But whenever defenders shifted their weight toward Chen Yan's left, he would always tear through the defense from the right.
Chen Yan created space with consecutive changes of direction and drove past from the right.
Gerald Wallace extended his left foot, a subconscious action meant to impede Chen Yan's progress.
The moment Chen Yan tripped, the referee blew the whistle.
Flagrant foul.
Gerald Wallace had a very difficult time guarding Chen Yan in the 1st quarter.
In this quarter, he not only allowed Chen Yan to score 19 points, 2 assists, and 2 rebounds, but also picked up 2 fouls himself.
At the end of the 1st quarter, the Knicks led the Nets by a full 10 points, 31 to 21.
After Game 1, many people had praised Gerald Wallace defense on Chen Yan.
But after the 1st quarter tonight, those praises not only disappeared, some people even began calling Wallace a mole.
.....
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