Chapter 575: Chen Yan's Promise
On September 29, the Suns held media day for the new season.
At 9 a.m., every Suns player stepped in front of the cameras and microphones. After 3 months apart, Chen Yan saw his familiar teammates again and felt a genuine sense of closeness. It was a feeling he had missed.
Of course, there were also some new faces.
Danny Green, as a Rookie newly added to the team, took the initiative to greet the veterans one by one. When he walked up to Chen Yan, he could barely hide his excitement.
"Chen, I'm your fan. The most loyal kind."
Chen Yan smiled. "Danny, congratulations. You're very lucky to join a championship team right after entering the league."
Danny Green nodded seriously. "I know what I need to do. I'll train hard and cherish every minute of playing time."
"I'm rooting for you, Danny. I watched your NCAA tape before. Keep working. You fit the Suns' system very well."
Chen Yan patted him on the shoulder. He now carried himself with the calm confidence of a true leader.
After the brief reunion with teammates came the photo session.
Solo shots, the three stars together, the full starting five. No matter what kind of picture it was, Chen Yan stood at the center.
In the NBA, position in a photo often says everything about a player's status on the team. Nash was already 35 years old. Even though he had just signed a new 3 year deal, he was already thinking more and more about stepping into a secondary role.
In Nash's eyes, this team would eventually belong to Chen Yan, and Chen Yan's performance last season had already proven that he could stand on his own.
Stoudemire felt the same way. Playing next to Chen Yan was comfortable. Chen Yan could score, and he could also create easy opportunities for his teammates. Stoudemire enjoyed that arrangement. More importantly, Chen Yan's individual ability was simply too strong. Competing with him for status was pointless. Supporting him was the smartest choice.
When the interview session began, most of the reporters gathered around Chen Yan.
"Chen, people have called you the busiest NBA player of the offseason. You made a cameo in a movie, wrote a single, met many fans in Asia, and attended the MTV Awards. I think the next question is one many people care about. What exactly happened between you and Kanye West that day?"
Chen Yan smiled. "I think everyone already saw it. He suddenly rushed the stage, and I went up to protect my girlfriend. But honestly, that wasn't my intention, because I felt that stage belonged to Taylor Swift. I shouldn't have stolen her spotlight."
The reporters laughed with him.
"What is your relationship with Kanye West? Have you had any private contact since then?"
"I don't know him, and we haven't communicated privately."
"Is the song Mean, which you recently wrote for Taylor Swift, meant to mock Kanye?"
Chen Yan smiled again. "I don't have that kind of free time. I already had the lyrics for that song before. Also, this is team media day, not my personal life media day. I hope the next questions are about basketball."
That answer instantly pulled the room back on track.
"Chen, what are your expectations for the Suns this season?"
"Some people left, some people joined, but our goal hasn't changed. We want the championship."
"Can the Suns become a dynasty team like the Bulls or the Lakers?"
Chen Yan nodded. "That's what I hope."
"But you hardly practiced basketball all offseason. Do you really have the confidence to defend the title?"
"Of course."
"Where does that confidence come from?"
This time, Chen Yan said nothing. He simply raised his right hand and showed the two championship rings he was wearing.
The reporter who asked the question went silent on the spot.
Even at media day, he brought the rings. The swagger was outrageous.
…
In October, Chen Yan returned to China once again.
This time, however, he did not go back alone. He returned with the Suns.
This had been carefully arranged by David Stern, who scheduled the Suns for preseason games in China under the banner of bringing authentic NBA basketball to Chinese fans.
The Suns' first preseason opponent was the Rockets, another obvious arrangement from Stern. Suns versus Rockets was the most anticipated matchup for Chinese fans, and the league promoted it heavily. The game was broadcast in 10 languages across 180 countries and regions.
The league wanted to package it like a blockbuster showdown, but at the end of the day, it was still preseason. No coach was going to let his players go all out.
Even though Chen Yan and Yao Ming both started, one played only 3 minutes in the first quarter before sitting down, and the other played only 4.
Yao Ming had always been haunted by injuries. Even though losing weight last season had helped extend his career, Adelman still strictly limited his minutes out of caution.
The Suns were no different. Their starters were not going to be overused either.
Across the first 3 quarters, Chen Yan played 10 minutes and finished with 7 points and 4 assists. Yao Ming played 8 minutes, went 2 for 3 from the field, and posted 4 points and 4 rebounds.
In the fourth quarter, the score stayed close. Then, after a brief timeout, screams suddenly exploded through the arena.
It turned out Chen Yan and Yao Ming were on the court at the same time again.
Yao Ming immediately went to his signature hook and scored his 6th point of the game.
Chen Yan answered with a brilliant pass that set up Novak for a 3 pointer.
On the next possession, after a steal, Chen Yan trailed the break and buried a wing 3.
The Suns unleashed a rain of 3 pointers in the middle of the fourth quarter, and the lead quickly reached double digits. Seeing there was no coming back, Adelman waved the white flag and pulled all his starters.
In the end, the Suns won 99 to 87.
The game itself was fairly ordinary, but the fans in the arena were thrilled. For many of them, it was the first time seeing their idols live.
3 days later, the two teams met again, this time in Shanghai.
The Rockets won 95 to 90.
That game had even more of an exhibition feel. Both teams leaned heavily on their bench units, and neither side treated it like a real contest.
6 days later, Chen Yan returned to the United States with the Suns to continue the rest of the preseason.
Their first opponent back home was the Celtics.
Before the game, Durant was unusually fired up. He had trained hard all offseason because he wanted a complete transformation this year. More than that, he wanted to beat Chen Yan and prove himself.
Durant's desire to score was off the charts. He opened with a 3 pointer, then followed it with a 2 plus 1.
Chen Yan, meanwhile, played only 4 minutes in the first quarter before sitting down. He had no interest in competing with Durant in a preseason game. To him, preseason was just a warmup, basically a more public form of team practice.
Durant kept firing, and by the end of the night he had 29 points and 9 rebounds. The Celtics won 109 to 93.
Chen Yan played 13 minutes, scoring 9 points and handing out 4 assists, while giving more opportunities to the younger players.
In the next game, the Suns faced the Knicks.
Before tipoff, Chen Yan greeted Curry. The two had known each other before, and Chen Yan had even made a point of watching Curry play in college.
"I'm an NBA player now too," Curry said proudly.
"Well done. Now it's up to you to prove yourself in this league," Chen Yan said.
Curry nodded. Making it to the NBA had never been the end goal. He wanted to make his name at the highest level of basketball in the world.
Maybe because he was too excited, Curry's 3 point shot was a little off that night. He made only 2 of 7 from deep, and the Knicks lost 108 to 88.
Chen Yan coasted again, playing 15 minutes and finishing with 8 points and 5 assists.
Throughout the preseason, Chen Yan averaged only 14.3 minutes per game, because he intentionally gave Danny Green more chances.
Danny Green became the Suns' biggest preseason surprise. His skill set fit the team beautifully. He could defend and hit 3s. At this stage, though, he still lacked experience and needed more game reps.
His biggest weakness was ball handling, but inside the Suns' system, that barely mattered. Nash, Chen Yan, Hill, and even Diaw could all handle and organize.
Joining the Suns magnified Danny Green's strengths while hiding most of his weaknesses.
Chen Yan was very optimistic about him. As long as Danny Green did not pour too much of his energy into defense, his outside shooting percentage would hold up very well. More importantly, Chen Yan knew something others did not. Danny Green had another rare quality, a big game mentality.
A 3 and D player like that was not easy to find, and sooner or later the Suns would realize they had struck gold.
Chen Yan himself used only about 30 percent of his strength during the preseason. He focused mainly on passing and taking outside shots while the team worked on different tactical sets. The Suns finished preseason 4 and 3.
On November 2, the NBA released its official power rankings.
Despite an unremarkable preseason, the Suns still sat firmly at number 1. Nobody serious used preseason records to judge real team strength.
In mid November, Chen Yan made headlines again.
His single Mean, written for Taylor Swift, sat at number 1 on the Billboard chart for 5 consecutive weeks, showing unstoppable momentum. The combination of a strong song and perfect timing kept its popularity blazing.
At this point, every song Chen Yan wrote became a hit. He looked more dangerous than most veteran musicians. Some netizens joked that he might become the God of Music before becoming the God of Basketball.
Many fans flooded Chen Yan's social media, asking him to release a new song.
Chen Yan replied that he definitely would.
That reply drew likes and comments from Jay Chou himself. Jay said Chen Yan's talent in music was every bit as impressive as his talent in basketball, and that the two absolutely had to collaborate if they got the chance.
.....
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