Chapter 480: Real Intensity, A Playmaker Ignites the Whole Team
The All Star Game, the main event, finally arrived on the last night of the weekend.
After the Three Point Contest crown and the dunk contest explosion, Chen Yan's buzz was at a season high. Add in the fact that Phoenix was hosting, and the chants for him to win All Star MVP were louder than ever.
The pregame show wrapped, and the Eastern and Western starters were introduced one by one.
The starters all hit their practiced poses, but nobody owned the entrance more than Shaquille O'Neal. Again.
When it was time for the reserves, the last name called was, predictably, the biggest troublemaker in the building.
The announcer boomed O'Neal's name, the music hit, and a group of masked street dancers flooded the floor. At the same time, a masked giant stepped into the center of the stage.
The mask looked comically small on his face, like someone had accidentally handed him a child sized prop.
Seven dancers formed a circle. O'Neal stood in the middle like a final boss in a dance battle.
Chen Yan and Yao Ming were laughing so hard they could barely breathe. They already knew the big man was about to do something outrageous.
The entrance was goofy, but the dancing was real. O'Neal had loved it since he was a kid, and it showed. His robot rhythm was surprisingly clean, and he kept playing off the other dancers, working the crowd like he was headlining the whole show.
When he got excited, he even peeled off his warmup pants and tossed them into the stands.
Then he ripped off the mask.
The building screamed.
O'Neal was everyone's joy, but Chen Yan could not stay to watch the full routine. He had to change for the next segment.
Just like last year, he was not only playing basketball tonight, he was also part of the opening performance.
It was a late addition pushed by David Stern. The league finally had a player with Grammy nominations, and the NBA was not going to waste that headline.
Chen Yan performed his single, "I Gotta Feeling."
This time, Taylor Swift did not join him. People immediately speculated about the status of their relationship. Even if there had not been a cold stretch, Chen Yan did not want the same duet every time, he knew repeated joint performances could wear thin.
Some fans even expected Taylor to walk out halfway through the song.
She did not.
Instead, O'Neal sprinted onto the stage wearing another mask, nearly making Chen Yan's voice crack.
O'Neal danced behind him, fully committed, as if his robot routine earlier had not been enough.
O'Neal had once suggested actually singing the track with Chen Yan, and Chen Yan had politely declined. He did not want his rare live performance turning into a comedy clip.
He still did not escape the comedy clip.
O'Neal was in his 15th All Star appearance, and deep down he could feel the end of the runway. If this really was his final All Star, he was going to be unforgettable.
He succeeded.
Years later, it would still be replayed as a classic All Star moment.
…
After the opening, both conferences returned to their locker rooms.
The vibes could not have been more different.
The East was laughing like it was a party. Everyone was clustered around Allen Iverson, because he had shaved off the cornrows he had worn for a decade and replaced them with a plain buzz cut.
LeBron James laughed loud enough to echo. "Who let a middle school kid in here?"
Dwight Howard doubled over, pointing. "That's not Iverson, that's Iverson's son."
The room exploded.
On the West side, Phil Jackson walked in with a serious face.
"Chen," Phil said, voice flat, "how does Iverson like to attack? Which side does Wade prefer in the pick and roll?"
Chen Yan assumed Phil was playing a bit. He smiled. "I don't know what those two are going to do. I only know what Kobe is going to do when he catches it."
Chen Yan leaned back and mimed a fadeaway jumper.
The locker room cracked up, including Kobe.
Phil did not.
"Chen, I'm not joking," Phil said. "I coach to win every game, including this one."
Chen Yan went quiet.
If he had to treat the All Star Game like a playoff game, then he was basically playing 83 real games in a season.
What made it even funnier was the Eastern Conference mentality. The first 3 quarters were usually for show, and the fourth only turned serious if the score was tight.
The East arrived in entertainment mode.
The West greeted them like it was May.
The Western All Stars opened on a 7 to 0 run and turned up the defense immediately. Less than 2 minutes in, LeBron attacked from the right wing with Kobe guarding.
LeBron drove.
Kevin Garnett slid over from the elbow like it was a real rotation, and the two of them met LeBron at the rim and smothered the finish.
LeBron threw his hands up. "You guys running a real defense in an All Star Game?"
He got his payback fast.
On the next possession, Dwyane Wade hit him in transition and LeBron went strong, finishing off the glass while drawing contact from Kobe.
Even though Kobe could not stop the bucket, everyone could see it. He was playing for real, and the entire West followed his tone.
After the first quarter, the West led 35 to 27.
Kobe was the brightest flame with 11 points.
Chen Yan looked like he was saving his legs. In 5 minutes, he only took 2 shots, made 1, and had 2 points.
At the table, Kenny Smith noticed it. "Chen's not hunting his own shot early. You can tell the weekend has been heavy."
Charles Barkley nodded. "Rookie game, then the three point contest, then the dunk contest, then a million appearances. His legs have been through overtime all week."
Yao Ming was also quiet in the first quarter, 0 points and 1 rebound. The All Star stage had never felt natural for him. Every year, it was a little awkward.
On the East side, Yi Jianlian only had 2 points as well. The 3 players were all oddly muted.
…
The second quarter started and both sides went to the bench units.
Eastern Conference: Jameer Nelson, Dwyane Wade, Danny Granger, Rashard Lewis, Shaquille O'Neal.
Western Conference: Chen Yan, Brandon Roy, Amar'e Stoudemire, Kevin Garnett, Dirk Nowitzki.
Chen Yan checked back in after sitting much of the first, and Phil Jackson put him at point guard.
Immediately, Brandon Roy got a taste of how easy life could be.
First possession, Chen Yan used a Shadow Step burst to collapse the defense, then whipped a behind the back pass to Roy in space. Roy caught and drilled the quick jumper.
Next trip, Chen Yan fired a between the legs bounce pass on the break, dropping it right into Roy's lane for a powerful dunk.
Roy grinned and slapped Chen Yan's hand. If Portland's front office had not traded Chen Yan back then, this kind of connection would not be limited to an All Star weekend cameo.
Kenny leaned into the mic. "Chen's in rhythm now. The passes are getting sharper."
Barkley added, "He can take over without scoring. That's what makes him dangerous."
The East still did not adjust to the West's intensity, especially O'Neal. On 2 straight possessions, Shaq tried a between the legs dribble at the top, which turned into a missed pull up jumper, then a turnover.
Both mistakes became West fast breaks.
When Chen Yan was in playmaker mode, the biggest beneficiary was still Stoudemire. They had almost 2 years of timing together, and it showed.
By halftime, the Western All Stars had blown the game wide open, leading 79 to 58.
Stoudemire's scoring climbed from 5 in the first quarter to 16 by the break.
Chen Yan piled up 6 assists in the second quarter alone, plus a pile of passes that led to hockey assists. He did not just change the pace, he changed the energy.
The West dropped a terrifying 44 points in the second quarter.
.....
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