Chapter 490: The Smile Does Not Disappear, It Just Moves
By the time Novak snapped back to reality, he was already swallowed by bodies in purple and orange.
Hands patted his shoulders. Someone shoved him from behind. Another teammate yanked him into a hug. It was the Suns' version of celebration, loud, clumsy, and completely sincere.
Chen Yan was right in the middle of it, rubbing Novak's head like he was rewarding a kid who finally nailed a hard exam.
"I knew you could do it. I knew you'd hit it. I told you!" Chen Yan kept repeating, as if saying it enough times could lock the moment into history.
Chen Yan was never the type to sulk when the last shot was not his. If anything, he looked happier watching a teammate win the game than he ever did after one of his own daggers.
Novak looked dazed, half drowned in the chaos, but the grin on his face never moved. He was being bullied by happiness, and he loved it.
Mike Breen laughed on the broadcast.
"Phoenix's new hero doesn't look like he knows what to do with all this attention."
Van Gundy chuckled.
"He's just overwhelmed. Not everyone gets a game winner at Staples Center. That's a story you tell until you're old."
…
The locker room gave Novak a second round.
Two huge buckets were waiting like props in a prank show.
As Novak stepped through the doorway, Chen Yan walked up holding the game ball like he was presenting a trophy.
"Here. Keep it. You earned it."
Novak reached out, still smiling, still floating.
That was when Jordan, hiding behind the door, dumped the first bucket over Novak's head.
Novak yelped and tried to bolt, but Diop was already charging in from the side with the second bucket.
Splash.
Ice cold down the spine, fire hot in the heart.
Novak stood there soaked, blinking water out of his eyes, and smiling even wider.
For him, this was more than a win. It felt like belonging.
It felt like warmth, the kind he never found in Houston.
And for Chen Yan, the win mattered in a different way. Beating the Lakers at Staples was huge, but the bigger prize was the team's pulse. You could feel the cohesion tighten, the trust lock in.
A win like that did not just add 1 to the standings. It stitched people together.
…
Postgame numbers told the story.
For the Lakers, Kobe led them with 36 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists. Garnett stuffed the sheet with 31 points, 13 rebounds, 6 assists, and 2 blocks. Camby posted 10 points, 15 rebounds, and 3 blocks. Fisher added 10 points.
For the Suns, Chen Yan dropped a game high 48 points with 8 assists and 6 rebounds. Nash finished with 30 points, 7 assists, and 5 rebounds. Together they scored almost 2 thirds of Phoenix's total.
Novak had 9 points and 2 rebounds.
Not a huge line.
But in the only column that truly mattered, it was massive.
Winner.
As the key man of the night, Novak sat at the press conference table next to D'Antoni and Chen Yan.
Reporters had been waiting like predators. The second Novak sat down, microphones rose like spears.
"Steve, you're the hero of Phoenix tonight. Tell us about that shot."
Novak looked like he was still drunk on the moment.
"It's crazy. I'm going to watch the replay 50 times when I get back. Maybe 100."
Another reporter leaned in.
"Not everyone can hit a game winner in that building. How did you do it?"
Novak glanced at Chen Yan. Chen made a small gesture, basically telling him to speak freely and not worry about saying the wrong thing.
Novak adjusted the mic.
"I did my job. My most important duty on the court is to score by shooting. Whether it's a game winner or a normal 3, if I get a clean look, I believe I'm making it."
Chen Yan stared at him for half a second, expression frozen, like he had just realized he accidentally created a monster.
Then Novak immediately softened the tone.
"I also want to thank coach for trusting me enough to put me in. I want to thank Chen for the pass and the open look. And I want to thank my teammates. That shot was built on their work for the whole game."
A reporter turned to Chen Yan.
"Was the pass on the final possession designed, or was it a read?"
Chen Yan pointed at Novak.
"I told him all quarter to stay ready. If he got an open look, I was giving it to him. I knew he'd hit it. I work with him every day. His shooting is in his bones. He's one of the best shooters in this league."
Another question came fast.
"Last season you were called the king of game winners. Any advice for him?"
Chen Yan thought, then grinned.
"Yeah. Next time he should plan a celebration. Standing there like his soul left his body after a shot like that, it was kind of funny."
The whole room laughed, Novak included.
Novak waved it off and said he did not need a special celebration, he could just steal one of Chen Yan's.
…
That one shot did not just win a game.
It flipped Novak's confidence like a switch.
The next day against Miami, he drilled 5 3s and scored 15.
The Suns and Heat played a full on track meet, offense flying everywhere. Wade poured in 35, slicing and pulling up, but Chen Yan still edged him with 44. Neither could guard the other. It became a contest of who could strike harder.
Miami's bench was the other headline. Beasley dropped 28, Cook hit 27 with 6 3s, both of them burning hot. Beasley looked like he had the frame and talent to be a star, if he ever got disciplined. Cook was simply nuclear, but it also exposed Miami's roster reality. They needed anyone who could create points.
Still, it was not enough.
Miami could not solve Chen Yan and Nash together. With Stoudemire out, Nash had been forced to shoot more, and he was still producing, finishing this one with 29 points and 10 assists.
Phoenix had help everywhere. Azubuike scored 21. Grant Hill added 16. Barnes had 15. Novak had 15.
Final score, 145 to 135.
…
Then came the back to back in Orlando.
No rivalry, but reporters manufactured one anyway. They caught Howard before tipoff.
"Dwight, Chen Yan took the dunk contest from you and he's rolling. It's your building tonight. Are you letting him run wild?"
Howard bit right away, smiling like a kid who thought the whole world was a playground.
"No chance. No chance. I'm going to beat him up. He can visit Orlando, but the win stays here."
Howard jogged onto the floor still smiling.
That smile did not survive the first half.
Orlando's shooters went ice cold, and without spacing, Howard could not fully use his size. After the first quarter he had 3 points and 4 rebounds.
The Magic were built as 1 star and 4 shooters, but the truth was cruel. The shooters powered the offense. The star anchored the defense. Howard did not create his own points like a perimeter killer. He needed the ball delivered.
Chen Yan did not.
Chen Yan exploded for 15 in the first quarter. In the second, Howard tried to push back offensively and could not. By halftime, the Magic trailed 44 to 62.
Coming out of the break, Chen Yan and Nash hit them with a 10 to 3 burst and stretched it past 20.
On one possession, Chen Yan even played with Howard. He drove into the paint, stopped hard, pulled it back, faked Howard into the air, then floated the ball in like it was a layup drill.
Van Gundy had to burn a timeout.
The camera found Chen Yan smiling, loose and bright, like the game was supposed to be easy.
Then it cut to Howard, no grin left, shoulders heavy.
And the crowd finally understood the truth.
Smiles do not disappear.
They just transfer.
.....
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