Chapter 651: Next Stop?
On September 30, Chen Yan directly missed the Suns Media Day.
The signal he was sending was clear.
He was determined to leave.
Phoenix publicly stated that Chen Yan had missed Media Day because he was feeling unwell.
The Suns tried to save face, but Chen Yan disproved that explanation on the very same day. That afternoon, media outlets captured images of him and Taylor Swift traveling together in Los Angeles.
However, Chen Yan's falling out with Phoenix was no longer major news.
At this point, the media only wanted to know 2 things.
When would Chen Yan leave?
And which team would he go to?
As the new season approached, teams offered their utmost sincerity, all hoping to acquire Chen Yan before opening night.
Suns owner Sarver's attitude was also very clear.
He would not sell.
The 2 sides remained locked in a stalemate until the preseason.
Chen Yan still did not appear on the court during the preseason.
Many fans speculated that the conflict between Chen Yan and Sarver had escalated.
In reality, that speculation had no real basis.
The preseason was essentially a warmup, a low profile stage. Even if Chen Yan had not fallen out with the Suns front office, he likely would not have played much this year anyway.
This farce continued until mid October, when Chen Yan finally returned to the team.
Phoenix's 1st regular season game was on October 26 against the Portland Trail Blazers.
Chen Yan had professional integrity.
He would not endlessly sit out just because the team refused to trade him. That would not only hurt the fans, but also affect his own form.
He would not punish himself for someone else's mistake.
The Suns lost the opener, 110 to 98.
It was the 1st time in 4 seasons that Phoenix had lost its opening game.
Chen Yan finished with 29 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists.
It was impossible for his conflict with management not to affect his form.
Nash had 22 points and 6 assists.
Although the 2 backcourt stars had decent scoring numbers, they failed to effectively connect the team.
Aside from them, only Gallinari scored in double figures for the Suns.
By contrast, Portland erupted collectively, with 6 players scoring in double digits.
Roy had 24 points and 6 assists.
Batum recorded 19 points and 11 rebounds.
Marion had 13 points and 11 rebounds.
Leandro Barbosa scored 12 points.
Andre Miller added 10 points and 9 assists.
Aldridge finished with 10 points and 9 rebounds.
In the 2nd game of the season, the Suns defeated the Jazz, who had lost Boozer, 116 to 90.
Those 2 games became a miniature version of Phoenix's performance during the first half of the season.
Great inconsistency.
Entering February, the Suns held a 30 win, 17 loss record, ranking 5th in the Western Conference.
Although Chen Yan played every game, the relationship between him and Suns management had reached an irreconcilable point.
NBA commissioner David Stern had noticed this long ago.
For Chen Yan's development, and also for the NBA's attention and viewership, Stern decided to intervene.
"I hear David Stern wants to put an end to this," Sports Illustrated quoted an unnamed Eastern Conference team executive as saying. "I do not know his exact moves, but I clearly know the direction he wants things to go."
With Stern's intervention, Sarver finally wavered.
No owner wanted to offend David Stern, and the half year stalemate had placed considerable pressure on Sarver.
His social media was bombarded by fans almost every day, and many sponsors were beginning to waver.
The reason was simple.
Those sponsors had all come because of Chen Yan, and they had no idea when Chen Yan would be traded.
However, Sarver still stated that he had a bottom line.
Chen Yan could not be sent to the Western Conference, nor could he be sent to a direct competitor.
Essentially, that meant if Chen Yan wanted to leave, he had to go to a lower ranked team.
Sarver wanted to disgust Chen Yan.
But he did not expect Chen Yan to agree so readily.
Through his agent, Chen Yan delivered his message.
Anywhere but the Suns was acceptable.
During this period, he had been completely disgusted by the Suns front office and Sarver.
They had wasted half his season for nothing, and without David Stern's intervention, they might have wasted even more.
Finally, on February 22, the day after the All Star break, the Phoenix Suns and New York Knicks reached a league shaking trade.
The Knicks sent out David Lee, Wilson Chandler, and several future draft picks.
Those picks were a 2011 first round pick, a 2011 second round pick, a 2012 first round pick, a 2013 first round pick, a 2014 second round pick, and a 2015 second round pick.
Phoenix's goal in the trade was simple.
Focus on the future.
Nash was old. Stoudemire was gone. Now, by trading Chen Yan, the Suns were essentially announcing the start of a rebuilding era.
At that point, young players and first round draft picks became crucial.
The 2 young players New York sent over both had immense potential.
David Lee had produced All Star level numbers of more than 20 points and 10 rebounds last season.
Wilson Chandler had averaged more than 15 points and 5 rebounds last season.
Although the Knicks were currently only ranked 11th in the Eastern Conference, Chen Yan was full of confidence.
Here, he had the biggest market, the most passionate fans, and a promising future teammate in Stephen Curry.
Stephen Curry was still in his developmental stage, but Chen Yan knew how much potential he had.
He was very glad the Suns had not demanded Curry in the trade.
For Phoenix, the position where they had no shortage of talent was point guard.
They currently had Nash, White Chocolate, and Rondo.
They had no reason to ask for another point guard in Stephen Curry.
Moreover, they had seen Curry's scouting report, which indicated injury concerns. The Suns front office did not want to take that risk.
In previous years, Phoenix's front office had been praised by fans from all sides because they often acquired the most suitable players at low prices or through draft picks.
In reality, most of that had been Chen Yan's credit.
As a transmigrator, Chen Yan had foresight.
Without Chen Yan, the Suns front office finally revealed its true colors.
After the trade was announced, all of New York went wild.
Many fans danced and sang in the streets while wearing all kinds of strange costumes.
Anyone unaware of what was happening might have thought it was Halloween.
ESPN reporters randomly stopped people on the street for interviews.
"Chen! I love you! Chen!" a middle aged male fan screamed frantically.
"I cannot remember how long it has been since New York had a superstar. Now Chen's arrival fills that void. He will lead us to success."
"Chen! You are my father! You are the savior!"
"Championship! Championship!"
It was obvious that New York fans were extremely excited about Chen Yan's arrival.
On the other side, Phoenix was plunged into pain.
On this day, they lost their MVP, scoring champion, and most beloved star.
Curses from fans were everywhere, but most of the blame was aimed at Sarver.
Fans believed the Suns owner was an idiot who had forced Chen Yan away.
Only a small number of irrational fans took their anger out on Chen Yan and burned his jersey.
When the news broke that Chen Yan had been traded to the Knicks, the most distressed person was Carmelo Anthony.
He had been flirting with New York for half a season and had already decided to transfer to the Knicks before the winter transfer window closed.
Then this happened.
Now the question became, should he still go or not?
If he did not go, he would lose the chance to join the city he had always longed for.
If he did go, would he not become the number 2 option?
Anthony was caught in a dilemma.
After the trade news broke, many outsiders believed Chen Yan had been liberated.
Others felt that he had fallen into a swamp.
After all, the Knicks were a mess, and no one had ever truly succeeded there.
They believed that even Chen Yan would find it difficult to achieve success.
But Chen Yan himself was full of confidence.
During his 1st public interview after the trade was announced, he said, "I like New York. I like the fans here. I like the atmosphere here. The Knicks have not won a championship since the ABA and NBA merger, and many people think I will not succeed here.
"But I will say this clearly to everyone.
"I am here to make history.
"I like doing things like that, and I am good at it."
.....
[If you don't want to wait for the next update, read 50 chapters ahead on P@treon.]
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