Suns Rise, Defeat Spurs 100-95

[Editor's Note: I was going to write my own first-hand account for this game, then I found out it was sunofa's first live attendance at an NBA game ever. Decided there was no way I could top the perspective he would have to offer. Glad I made that decision - this is a fantastic account from a unique point of view. Thanks, sunofa!]

I've been an NBA fan since I was 8. I fell in love with the league. The complexity, the players, the intensity and emotion of the playoffs, the strategy, everything. Later I came to appreciate the ridiculousness of the league, the bizarre transactions that take place, the brilliance of great management and the horrible jokes of poor management, and the true grace of the fast break.

Living in the middle of nowhere, I never got to see a live game. Ever. And when I began traveling, forces combined to thwart my attempts. A blizzard in Denver. A busted radiator in West Texas. And emergency to cut funding set aside for tickets, thrice. I was starting to think I'd never get to see a game.

Yesterday, I attended my first NBA game, to watch my favorite team, the Phoenix Suns, play the San Antonio Spurs.

My wife called me at work at 3:30.
"Hey, what time can you leave work?"
"I don't have anything major, but I wasn't going to leave early, why?"
"Because it's Christmas."
"It's not Christmas."
"Yes, it is."
"You're confusing me. Again. Is this some sort of attempt to bamboozle me into visiting your mother early?"
"...I'm going to choose to ignore that in the spirit of Christmas. Go to the link I sent you."

Craigslist ad for cheap, available tickets to the Suns-Spurs game at the AT&T Center.

"We're going."

My wife kicks ass.

On the way there, I was trying to contain my excitement, to be ready for disappointment.

"The seats probably won't be very good."
"The Suns will probably lose. This is a very hard team to beat on the road."

We got to the center around 7:00, with 30 minutes to spare. Made our way into the center. Gorgeous arena. As we made our way in, the smell of Spurs fan was thick. Mullets. Old Spice. Arrogant self-entitlement. Before we headed up to the balcony, the wife pulled me into the first open area to show me the court up close. I froze. STAT. THE STAT. In front of me. Shooting. Nash was in the corner. I froze. I didn't know what to do. She dragged me out of there so we could get to our seats. We made our way upstairs to where our seats were. I had been warned by a coworker that in the balcony, you were straight up from the court. She seemed to indicate that this was a bad thing. It was terrific. We were able to easily identify players, and had a great corner view of the action.

I was concerned about containing myself as to not get the crap beaten out of me by Spurs fans. Luckily, there was a small contingent of very, very loud, very, very drunk Suns fans behind us, to distract people's attention.

So, you'd probably like to know what actually happened in the game. Never fear. I took notes.

Duncan came out and announced his presence early on. Four straight points to start the game and 6 of their first 8. The Suns answered, though, with Grant Hill being the offensive leader from the get-go.

After an early 8-2 run by the Spurs to make it 12-6, Spurs, the Suns countered with a 20-8 run, and the quarter ended with the Suns up 26-20. Raja Bell started hot, creating free throw opportunities and knocking down a three. This would be his best offensive stint of the night. Diaw seemed to settle himself in from the get go.

The best thing about Diaw tonight was that he didn't force anything. All of his work was done in a supporting role. His boxscore was solid, but his play was infinitely better tonight. Instead of looking confused or lazy, he was focused and settled. He knew where to be, what to do, and how to play.

In the second quarter, the Spurs and Suns traded off spurts. The Suns managed to build a lead thanks to drawing fouls, and Amare working the post against Bonner and Oberto, benefiting from some great penetration and dish by the frontcourt. After the Suns made it 37-28, the Spurs responded with an 18-7 run in the middle of the second to make it 46-44. They took the lead off of a Ginobili and Duncan run, Duncan working the glass and Ginobili, well, flopping like Ginobili. But the Suns were starting to run at this point, sensing a bit of exhaustion from the Black and White. They ended the half up 51-50, on pace for over 100, and very importantly, with no significant foul trouble.

The defensive intensity in this game was the absolute best I've seen all year from the Suns. They were challenging every shot, and most importantly, they were CRASHING the boards. It wasn't that they were getting all of them, it was that they were challenging the Spurs on the glass. Nash had 8 rebounds, and was right in the middle, mixing it up. The Suns did not back down to the Spurs in the paint, and it shows. They were letting Duncan go one on one with Amare though, and we've all seen how that works out. He was killing it. Part of it is the greatness of Tim Duncan, which I'll talk about later, and part of it was the Suns refusing to double Duncan.

The second half started with Vaughn, Bowen, Finley, Horry, and Duncan. The Suns countered with Nash, Bell, Hill, Marion, and STAT. For the Suns, it was their core starter combination. Speed, size, and mobility. For the Spurs, it was four shooters and Duncan. 

We can pretty much call the start of the third quarter the Jacque Vaughn show. The Suns defensive set at this point was a shift. They decided to bring help down on Duncan, concentrate on making sure Finley and Bowen didn't get open looks, and take their chances with Vaughn. Whoops. From the depths of nowhere, Jacque Vaughn decided to have himself a dandy little day. Vaughn opened the half with 6 points to make it 56-54.

One thing that saved us tonight? Pop's strange insistence on keeping Horry in. Now, bear in mind that I used to love Robert Horry with the Rockets. Thought he was terrific when I was a kid. Then he joined the forces of darkness with the Lakers and Spurs, and somehow managed to become a cheap shot jackass. But now? I just feel sorry for him. It's not just that he can't shoot, and isn't fast enough to create his own shot, at all, it's that he's a legitimate liability on the floor. He simply does not have the physical tools to contribute in serious minutes. Pop left him out there for a 5:56 run to start the half! He took out Finley who was shooting pretty well, and then Vaughn, who was playing terrific, and left in Horry. This meant that Matrix was able to shift help on Duncan. Duncan, of course, didn't care, but the effort was there.

The only downside of this quarter until the Suns responded late was the beginning of a bad trend offensively that would continue into the fourth. When the Suns would get tired, the Spurs settled into zone, closed off the interior to stop the drive, and gave Phoenix long range jumpers. The Suns settled. And that hurt.

Then the Suns got going again. This team seemed to really get amped after some questionable calls. Nash went to the bench, Barbosa came in, and played fantastic. The problem with Barbosa this year, and particularly against the Spurs, has been that teams have gotten a book on him. Cover the three, double immediately upon penetration, and make him question the layup because of his size. He hasn't worked to create his own shot. He did that late in the third, scoring 8 points in 6 minutes, with 2 steals. Thanks to him and some nifty defense and footwork from Diaw, the Suns led going into the fourth 74-67.

You knew this thing was far from over.

Now, I'd like to take a second and let everyone know something. I fully expect fans to think that a majority of calls should go for them. I totally understand that there's bias. That's part of being a fan. I try really, really hard to step above this. When Amare got away with a charge late in the game last night, I said so. When Oberto got called with a phantom touch foul, I said it was a bad call.

That said, you know how the Spurs constantly look flabbergasted and whine whenever there's any call against them, regardless of how obvious it is?

Yeah, the Spurs fans are indeed a part of this concerted effort. There is a great deal of empathy in this crowd. And it's really, really, really obnoxious.

The fourth quarter started with the Suns playing Barbosa, Hill, Marion, Diaw, and Skinner. You can imagine how this went. 10-2 run by the Spurs. The significant issue here was actually Grant Hill's defense. Against Vaughn, Barry, Ginobili, Finley and Duncan, Hill was put off onto rotating between Barry and Finley. This let Ginobili into his game. Creating rebounds, creating shots, hitting layups.

The Suns also hit a few streaks of that lazy possession sequence I talked about early. 

Now, everyone knows I'm a huge Marion fan tonight. He was off-sync. It's not necessarily that he didn't play well, he just wasn't in a position to be effective. I'll speak on why later. Once Nash and Bell came in, though, it was on.

What followed next was playoff level basketball. Both teams hitting shots, taking the lead and then losing it right back. The Suns would create turnovers, the Spurs would counter with offensive rebounds, and "drawing" fouls. Meanwhile, Bruce Bowen resumed that thing where he grabs Nash's arm on the drive and holds onto it, yet doesn't get called for it. Finley, Vaughn, Ginobili were all scoring, and Duncan was a beast.

STAT, however, was not impressed. Amare took over the game. He used everything in his repertoire. Turn-around faders, spot up jumpers. Dunks. Drives. Offensive boards. He took the team on his shoulders. Duncan makes two free throws. Amare answers with a monster slam.

With 1:31 remaining, the Spurs ran their offense. Low to Duncan. Work, work, wait for the double, push, push, push to the open man. Finley nails it. My stomach drops. For the record, as bad as Robert Horry was, Michael Finley was just as great. He played good defense, kept up in transition, and was willing to take the open shots. He only went 2-7 from the perimeter, which was helpful, though. 93-92 Spurs.

With 1:07 remaining, Nash draws a foul on Bowen. Then Amare gets called for a horrible, horrible offensive foul on Finley on a flop. I got that feeling again. Like the Spurs were juuuuust good enough to get the assistance from the officials to steal this one. Amare responded.

He got out and stole the ball on the perimeter pass, and pushed it out to Hill.

Now, the thing I've said over and over again about the Spurs and the book they've written on the Suns, is that they always get back in transition. Immediately, this team sprints to get back and shutoff the layup. They know the Suns hate to use clock. Ginobili got back on defense, with help behind him from Finley. Hill went for the drive, and saw it was cut off, and turned around to back out. Barbosa, Nash, or Bell would have pulled back to reset the offense. Not Hill. Hill knew he had space when he saw Ginobili settle back a half step. He turned around. And drained it. 94-93 Suns. The place goes silent. I go berzerk.

"Grant friggin' Hill!"

The word was not "friggin'."

The teams trade 20 second timeouts. Ginobili takes the inbound, pick and roll, nails the running jumper. Oh, hell. 95-94 Spurs. I expected a timeout, something.

Nope.

Nash takes the inbounds and speeds past everyone. The Spurs are trying to get into position to block the fast break. Nash pulls up and misses the three. I can't believe it.

I've talked on here a lot about rebounding, and about how it's not about out-rebounding your opponent, but keeping them from offensive rebounds and creating key ones for yourself. Amare reached up to the heavens and snatched that ball, pump faked, got fouled on the way up, and the ball slides in. Why they didn't give him the continuation I'm still boggled about. Regardless, great freaking play by Stoudemire. He was only 3-6 on the night on free throws. He nails them both. Suns 96, Spurs 95. I'm going to have a heart attack.

Out of the timeout, Spurs run the offense again. Inside, push, push, push. Bowen. In the corner. Mr. Ankle slice. The scourge of my existence. No good!

Hill rebounds!

From there on out, it was free throws and victory whiskey.

Some other notes.

They gave thanks to two distinguished servicemen, one a Navy Seal, and received a standing ovation. At halftime, they showed a box with some of our troops they had brought in, some of them wearing Phoenix gear. They were booed. You stay classy, San Antonio.

Tim Duncan is the best power forward in the history of the NBA. Even though he was noticeably limping and slow to run, the performance he put in was amazing. It wasn't just the moves, or the grace, or the points, it was the confidence and assuredness in his play. There was no doubt he was making the bankers off the glass. He used the glass all night and shot 60% from the field. He was simply amazing.

Grant Hill needs to guard Ginobili in every game against the Spurs from here on out. It's a matchup nightmare for them. Ginobili had 18, but you know Ginobili's going to get his points, especially with Parker out. On several key possessions, Hill forced him to his left, straight into the perimeter help defense. Matrix is a fantastic scorer, defender, and all around player. But I think he would be best served in help defense against Duncan and shutting off the perimeter. Hill's mid range shot was also huge last night. He was the only Sun that could hit spot up shots, create his own shot, and drive to the rack if necessary. It was the all-around nature of his game that was so impressive.

Diaw was +6 on the night, with 5 rebounds and 6 assists to go with 11 points. If Diaw plays like he did last night every night? We're in great shape. He was instrumental in setting up plays on both ends of the court.

The Suns also managed to stay out of foul trouble, which was big, and allowed them to manage their roster effectively. This may have been the biggest area that the Spurs missed Parker.

The Suns won this game with a great overall performance on BOTH sides of the court, and by challenging the Spurs inside on both sides. Duncan had 4 of his shots blocked, including one where Grant Hill came on the weak side help and sent it into the fifth row.

A great win by the Suns, and one of my personal favorite memories.