Chapter 244: The Reason Van Gundy Got Fired Has Been Found!
The America West Arena was packed to the brim again tonight. Just like Game 1, the energy was electric.
Every seat glowed orange as fans proudly wore the Suns' playoff shirts, chanting in unison as the lights dimmed for tipoff.
Taylor Swift wasn't in attendance this time — her busy tour schedule kept her away, and several media outlets noted her absence with mild disappointment. They joked the night might lose some of its "star power," but the real show was already waiting on the court.
Inside the Suns' locker room, the players were locked in, their game faces on.
Coach Mike D'Antoni didn't even bother opening the playbook. Instead, he stood before the team, calm but firm.
"Same plan as before," he said. "Push the tempo, keep moving the ball, and play our game. Everything else will take care of itself."
The players nodded. Everyone knew the system.
While waiting for the call to head out, Chen Yan opened the system in his mind. He had twenty-four honor points from the previous game and used twenty of them, putting them all into his rebounding stat.
[Rebounds: 80 → 84]
Chen never upgraded randomly. Every improvement had a purpose.
In Game 1, the Suns had dominated the score but were crushed on the glass — outrebounded by fourteen. Rebounding wasn't just about grabbing boards; it was the heartbeat of transition basketball.
If the Suns wanted to run, they needed to rebound.
Fast-break chances started with defensive boards, and second-chance points came from offensive ones. Rebounding wasn't just a stat — it was survival.
Meanwhile, across the hall, George Karl was huddled with his Nuggets. His tone was serious. Losing both games in Phoenix would be disastrous before heading back to Denver.
He stressed passing and patience, slowing the tempo to drag the Suns into a half-court game.
But when the ball tipped, that plan quickly unraveled.
The Suns ran hard from the start, while Denver crawled.
Every time Phoenix pushed the ball, the crowd exploded, and Denver's half-court sets looked sluggish. Karl wanted more ball movement, but it only made things worse — too many meaningless passes, not enough execution.
Midway through the first quarter, chaos struck.
With 6:02 left, after four consecutive swing passes, Carmelo Anthony caught the ball at the top of the key — and accidentally threw it straight to the referee.
The arena burst into laughter.
"That's one way to share the ball," Kenny Smith joked from the TNT booth. "Hey, maybe the ref was open!"
Barkley cracked up beside him. "That might be the best pass Melo's made all series!"
Even Mike Breen, calling play-by-play, chuckled.
Van Gundy, standing courtside as a guest analyst, kept a straight face. "The Nuggets' strategy to slow the game and limit possessions looks decent on paper, but it's backfiring. They're holding Phoenix to 14 points in the first six minutes — but they've only scored eight themselves. One field goal. That's not going to cut it."
"Exactly," Kenny replied. "You can't out-slow a team that runs like the Suns. They'll drag you into their rhythm one way or another."
Karl saw it too. He slammed his clipboard and called timeout.
The Nuggets regrouped, finally finding some rhythm later in the quarter. Iverson began pushing pace, and Melo hit a pair of mid-range jumpers. Still, the Suns ended the quarter up 27–18.
During the break, Van Gundy faced the camera and said, "The Nuggets are trying hard to control the pace, but it's clear the Suns are dictating tempo. If this keeps up, the gap's only going to grow."
Barkley leaned forward. "What if both Iverson and Melo get hot at the same time?"
Van Gundy shook his head. "That's rare. When one of them starts shooting too much, the other cools off. They both need rhythm to score, and there's only one ball. Even if they both get rolling, it's tough to match Phoenix's pace-and-space attack."
Kenny nodded. "That's the truth. The Suns are built for speed, not isolation."
Barkley grinned. "And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why Van Gundy got fired. Too much half-court, not enough fast-break."
The studio crew burst into laughter, even Van Gundy couldn't help smirking.
The second quarter began, and both benches checked in.
For Denver, J.R. Smith wasted no time lighting it up. He drilled a turnaround fadeaway three, then hit a flashy pull-up jumper the next trip down. His confidence was sky-high.
"That's J.R. for you," Kenny said. "Either he's on fire or ice-cold. No in-between."
Barkley laughed. "Yeah, but right now, he thinks he's Jordan!"
Still, his streak didn't swing momentum. The Suns' bench had come alive too.
Barea and Azubuike finally found their rhythm, hitting jumpers, cutting hard, and moving the ball beautifully.
Chen, resting on the sideline, stood and clapped as they scored. "That's it! Be aggressive! Keep attacking!" he shouted.
His encouragement gave them confidence.
At 7:34 in the second quarter, Phoenix led 36–28, and Karl had no choice but to call another timeout.
The crowd roared louder with each possession.
After the timeout, both teams brought their starters back to the floor.
The Suns lined up with Nash, Chen Yan, Raja Bell, Diaw, and Stoudemire.
The Nuggets countered with Anthony Carter, Iverson, Carmelo Anthony, Kenyon Martin, and Marcus Camby.
Denver had possession.
Anthony Carter took advantage of the defensive attention on Iverson and Melo, slicing toward the rim. As he drew the defense in, he lobbed the ball perfectly to Kenyon Martin, who caught it midair and hammered it home with both hands.
36–30.
That was Martin's sweet spot — right above the restricted area, where he lived for those explosive dunks.
The Suns quickly responded. Nash dribbled across half court, scanning the floor for options.
With the Nuggets closing passing lanes, he faked a look toward Raja Bell on the perimeter — and at the last second, fired a no-look bounce pass straight inside.
Bell's cut had been a decoy. Chen Yan suddenly reversed direction, sprinting through the lane at full speed.
In the first quarter, Chen had spent most of his time facilitating, focusing on spacing and creating for teammates. With only five points so far, the Nuggets' defense had relaxed slightly — a mistake they were about to regret.
As the pass floated through traffic, Chen exploded off the floor.
"Boom!"
He soared up, head level with the rim, snatching the ball one-handed and slamming it through with vicious power!
The entire arena shook as Suns fans leapt to their feet, roaring in disbelief.
That kind of raw, violent dunk didn't need finesse — just pure energy. And the crowd ate it up.
On the bench, every Suns player jumped out of their seats, yelling and waving towels.
"Good lord!" Kenny Smith shouted on TNT. "That wasn't a dunk, that was a missile strike!"
Barkley couldn't stop laughing. "Chen Yan's got hands like suction cups! That kid just ripped the rim down like he owns it!"
"Kenyon Martin's dunk was nice," Kenny said between laughs, "but this… this was personal!"
Barkley grinned. "Yeah, that one came with a receipt!"
Even the fans watching at home went wild on social media. "UFO dunk!" trended instantly as highlight clips flooded every feed.
The Nuggets tried to regroup.
Anthony Carter brought the ball up and handed it off to Iverson at the top.
The Answer didn't flinch. He wasn't here to be outdone — he was here to get the Nuggets back in it.
Iverson caught, hesitated, then jab-stepped. Chen stayed glued to him, refusing to bite.
Suddenly, Iverson drove hard toward the free-throw line, then stopped on a dime and lofted a high floater over Chen's outstretched arms.
"Swish!"
Nothing but net.
38–32.
A vintage Iverson shot — lightning quick, perfectly balanced, impossible to block.
Chen nodded in respect as he jogged back.
The Suns ran their next possession methodically. Nash brought it up, shifting to the left wing, then whipped a pass back to Chen on the right.
Chen caught the ball near the arc, facing Iverson one-on-one.
He faked left, then jabbed right. Iverson didn't move.
Chen dribbled again, crossed between his legs twice — left to right, right to left — fast enough to make the ball blur.
"Bang, bang!" echoed through the court as the dribble rhythm quickened.
He leaned left one more time, and Iverson bit just slightly.
In an instant, Chen switched to his right, stepped back, then exploded forward — a classic crossover that left Iverson leaning the wrong way.
Iverson tried to recover, but Chen had already blown by him.
Melo and Kenyon Martin both collapsed toward the paint to help, but Chen's acceleration was unreal. He cut through both defenders, gliding to the rim and twisting his body in midair.
He laid it in softly, kissing the ball off the glass before either big man could react.
The arena erupted again.
"That's pure art!" Kenny yelled. "He just turned three defenders into background extras!"
Barkley laughed. "That's why he's box office, Kenny. You pay to see that kind of move!"
On the broadcast, Mike Breen couldn't help but join in the excitement. "Wow! What a sequence from Chen Yan — he has a thousand ways to make the fans scream!"
Then he turned to Van Gundy beside him. "Jeff, what do you think about that play?"
Van Gundy hesitated, thinking like a coach again. "Well… as a fan, it's incredible. But if I were coaching, I'd tell him to simplify his offense. Too many moves risk turnovers. I'd prefer a cleaner drive or pull-up."
Breen smirked. "Jeff, I think that right there explains why you're up here with us and not down there on the bench."
The TNT crew burst out laughing.
Kenny nearly spit out his drink. "He said it! He actually said it!"
Barkley slapped the desk, howling with laughter. "That's it, that's the reason Van Gundy got fired! Overcoaching talent!"
Even Van Gundy cracked a reluctant smile, shaking his head as the broadcast crew continued teasing him.
"Come on, man," Barkley said between laughs. "If you'd coached like D'Antoni, you'd still have a job!"
Kenny chimed in. "Yeah, Jeff, you don't tell a guy like Chen to slow down — you just get out of the way and enjoy the show!"
The fans watching from home were rolling with laughter.
"Mike Breen really said it to his face!"
"Van Gundy's too old-school, man."
"Now we finally know why the bald guy got fired!"
Meanwhile, on the court, Chen jogged back on defense with a smirk, the crowd still chanting his name.
The Suns were on fire.
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