Ellis, Maggette Shred Suns Defense, Warriors Down Suns 132-127
by Wil Cantrell on Dec 26, 2009 11:39 PM MST
in Phoenix Suns: Game Coverage
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PrintFor those of you who participated in the game thread, I hope your ulcers, heartburn, headaches, and upset stomachs will soon heal.
The Phoenix Suns had their chances all night to win this game, but the combination of atrocious defense, foul trouble, and 19 turnovers sank the ship tonight, as the Suns couldn't stop the Warriors, 132-127.
Was anyone expecting a defensive struggle tonight? The Warriors entered the game allowing the most points in the league, while the Suns weren't much better.
The injury depleted Warriors faced a Suns squad playing back to back games. In the first quarter the team's managed to make 8 of their first 9 shots in the game and held true to their numbers. The Suns shot 59% from the field and 5-9 from 3 point range while the Warriors shot 58%. Steve Nash and Jason Richardson led the Suns offensively while Amare Stoudemire picked up two quick fouls and exited with 1 point (1-4 Ft's). The Warriors countered with Cory Maggette and Monta Ellis who scored 11 and 10 points respectively. That was a sign of things to come.
At the half the Suns bench had outscored the Warriors 25-11, but the difference was made up at the foul line with the Warriors going 17-21 while the Suns went 9-15.
In the third quarter, the Suns gained a little separation with an 8-0 run. But the Warriors countered with their own 6-0 run. A well rested Steve Nash took over with an array of 3's and drives to the hoop, easily blowing by bigger defenders for 19 points in the quarter. Still the suns couldn't force enough stops and ended the quarter leading by a slim four point margin, 108-104.
In the fourth, the Suns fell behind significantly enough in rebounds and couldn't stop the Warriors from scoring, as they went on a 7-0 run to take 111-108 lead.
With the Warriors up 115-111, Jared Dudley was fouled in the act of a three pointer and sunk 3 free throws to narrow the deficit to one with 7 minutes left. On the following play the Warriors turned the ball over.
After two misses by the teams, Steve Nash threw an errant pass which resulted in a Suns foul on Monta Ellis who sunk two free throws. The Suns missed a golden chance to even things up or better. Still, after two Jason Richardson free throws, the Suns were only down one, 117-116 with 6.5 minutes left. the Suns still had a chance to steal this one.
After a Jared Dudley 3, the Suns were again only down two, 123-121. They managed a stop and a Stoudemire jam brought the game to a deadlock at 123. But the Suns, true to form, tonight couldn't stop the opposition. Baskets were traded, turnovers were made, and suddenly the Warriors stood atop this trash heap of a game.
After a fall away Nash basket the Warriors got 3 shots at the hoop and Cory Maggette ended up at the lane, sinking two free throws. GAME OVER.
MORE:
- The Suns had no answer all night for Cory Maggette, who finished 13-17 from the field, a perfect 7-7 from the line and 33 points. Monta Ellis wasn't bad either, 33/10/6.
- Jason Richardson entered the game averaging 23.7 points per game against his former team and continued his outstanding play against the Warriors with 22 points. However it wasn't enough on this night.
- Did you see Frosty's move in the third quarter with an awesome ball fake under the hoop which faked out his defender and allowed an easy layup?
- Did you see Steve Nash dribble between his legs and blow by Anthony Randolph for an easy layup?
- I'm drinking the Goran Frosty Dragic kool-aid. Confidence is everything with this kid, and he's playing like an old pro, without any fear, outrunning everyone on the court, making shots with pressure on him, driving to the hoop, drawing fouls, and more than holding his own on defense.
- Amare Stoudemire was in foul trouble all night. His rhythm was ruined and was largely a non factor all game. 9 points, 7 rebounds, 6 fouls.
- Where was Channing Frye all night?
- The Suns shot 19-27 from the free throw line, the Warriors 32-37.
Suns lose to Warriors, fall short on road again
"It was ridiculous," Suns coach Alvin Gentry said. "Our defense sucked. That's the only way you can put it. There's no sugar-coating it. We were absolutely horrendous defensively. We gave up drives to the basket. We just didn't guard them at all. We were content to trade baskets with them early in the game. I said at the half that we're putting ourselves in a situation where if the game is close at the end, they've got great players who can make plays at the end. We never tried guarding them."
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Corey*
From the GSoM blog, just correcting a spelling error :)
Jared Dudley twitter
Tough loss tonight..It’s easy when ur wining we gotta find out what team we have after losing.we have to learn from our mistakes ASAP..
Steve Nash plays D!!
1-6
on the back end of back to backs.
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Disappointing loss. The strategy of making Steve Nash a scorer seems to have worked several times this season for opposing defenses. Totally took Stoudemire out of the game. Although bench gave a respectable 40 points, they gave up the lead in the fourth quarter.
Yet another Suns blog: http://phxsunsnews.com
Lame Effort
Too many mental mistakes by everyone. If Nash is the leader of this team, he needs to whip (figuratively and literally) the team into shape. So far, he has not done it. He gives 100% every night, but the signs of a leader are that others follow his lead and the other players don’t. He is a leader but he has no followers. Not exactly a recipe for winning tight games.
As much as I respect the guy and love watching him play, Nash is the worst leader possible on the defensive end. Even in the clippers game, where they had no energy either, they just let the clippers take wide open shots. It only worked because the clippers blow, so the suns could just outscore them. At least make an effort to stay with your man and contest, but most of the suns just stand there, and go derp dee derp oh there goes the ball. So in a way, they are following nash.
Nash does not whip
anyone into shape. It’s not his style. We’ve seen him get in someone’s grill from time to time, but overall he’s not an intense vocal leader.
Further, (as you’ll see from AG’s quotes in an upcoming post), the team is mellow (emotionally) in general. The locker room, coaching style, attitude in general is, as AG puts it, “even keel.” As much as I’d like to hear about closed door meetings and screaming and what not from time to time, it just won’t happen unless the effort is lacking. And the result will be quick, to the point and the squad will move on. Some players (Lopez) may be quietly in Gentry’s doghouse, but we’ll never know it unless we infer it from what we perceive to be true. For all we know he’s still paying penance for the door incident. But most likely, it’s the way he plays and the way the team is playing.
I learned a lot the other night from listening to Gentry. As much as we’d like to see more consistent efforts, better defense, and more of this and that, things aren’t going to change under his tenure, with the players on this team.
We have a largely veteran squad of professionals. Does that mean that every night the effort will be there? No. Is it excusable? Not always. But for the most part, the Suns we have seen this season (an up and down team whether short or long term is what we’re going to get this season).
Blogging Suns Basketball. Twitter: @willcantrellphx
by Wil Cantrell on Dec 27, 2009 10:39 AM MST up reply actions
good point. tell alvin gentry that.
Blogging Suns Basketball. Twitter: @willcantrellphx
by Wil Cantrell on Dec 27, 2009 4:50 PM MST up reply actions
This is a team effort on the “D” end. Calling out Nash for the defensive woes is not correct. The whole team lacks effort.
The Suns put the effort in the begining of the year, now that effort is lacking.
This team cannot take nights off, and last night they did. A Warrior team that sucks like the Clippers, inexecusable.
Agreed....
The state of our defense (including rebounding) is the state of our team effort. If you are watching these games, you must realize that we are rarely going man to man the whole game….Further, take any pick n roll situation and a switch will occur which may result in a mismatch. If rotations or slow, or guys don’t know what they are supposed to be doing, we are going to have lapses.
Steve Nash takes as many charges as anyone, and he IS NOT afraid to take one. That is individual defense-desire, hustle, smarts-a result of being at the right place at the right time. To blame him for a loss or the state of the team’s defensive effort is ridiculous.
Blogging Suns Basketball. Twitter: @willcantrellphx
by Wil Cantrell on Dec 27, 2009 10:30 AM MST up reply actions
One other thing
Our franchise player 9 points, 7 boards, 3 turnovers and fouls out against the Warriors This cannot happen.
Suns really need to look into trading Stat, they need to move on, get the best deal available.
Amare
Has averaged 20.1 ppg and 8.6 rpg in December. He may not get that every game, even Dwight Howard has miserable games. I think it’s kind of knee-jerk to look at this game and decide he needs to go (if that’s what you’re doing).
Last night foul trouble kept him from finding is rhythm. Of course it’s his fault he gets into foul trouble, but to blame him after every last and suggest dumping him isn’t rational.
Amare is not the perfect player and he’s going to have these lapses. His last two games he went 26 and 9 and 35 and 14. The former mostly against the beastly Chris Kaman. So he has an off game against GSW on the second of back to back nights-it’s not a reason to be thinking about dumping him.
So I think we should be entertaining offers? Any good Gm would be listening about any of his players (or these players on the Suns). If something works to make the team better, go ahead, pull the trigger. I don’t see anyone as untouchable long-term at this point.
Blogging Suns Basketball. Twitter: @willcantrellphx
by Wil Cantrell on Dec 27, 2009 10:25 AM MST up reply actions
I agree Amare has been putting up gaudy numbers of late
But I don’t think the Clippers game is a good barometer. LAC played no defense whatsoever, and a lot of Stoudemire’s points were seemingly wide open. Kaman was destroying him on the other end in the first before LAC stupidly went away from him.
Steve Nash, the league's MVP, is a longhaired Canadian who spoke out against the war in Iraq and reads The Communist Manifesto. Quentin Richardson declared after a game-winning shot that it "was like Hamlet. It was a suspense thriller, and I killed them at the end." Amare Stoudemire, when asked to comment on a 22-point third quarter against the Kings, said, "I've got a tendency to jump over some guys' heads and throw it down."
im not saying its a barometer, but it could be. if he went 9 and 4 and fouled out against them we
Blogging Suns Basketball. Twitter: @willcantrellphx
by Wil Cantrell on Dec 27, 2009 4:52 PM MST up reply actions
could much more easily say, “OK, get rid of him.”
Amare did attack Kaman on at least a few occasions-went straight at him, which is a positive note since Kaman is such a mammoth body…and yeah the clips were tired, whatever, whatever, but still, my point is that Amare is an easy target on this team to criticize. He’s never been a monster every single game, so why criticize him now for having an off game here and there.
This game was lost because the Suns couldn’t play defense
Blogging Suns Basketball. Twitter: @willcantrellphx
by Wil Cantrell on Dec 27, 2009 4:55 PM MST up reply actions
Nash regrets not taking over the game earlier in the 4th
He was shooting out of his mind and he should have kept on shotting in the 4th. He said he maybe tried too hard to get the ball to Amar’e. Big mistake… Amar’e was completely off his game.
A very bad defensive effort all night long. Very frustrating.
"Basketball doesn't build character. It reveals it"
This is a very interesting development:
Nash’s quote in AZ Central:
“I got caught probably trying to get the ball to Amar’e too much,” Nash said of the fourth quarter, seemingly pointing to two consecutive possessions on which Stoudemire missed in the lane before fouling out with nine points. "I should have just been more aggressive for the stretch.
“My point guard nature takes over where I should just be single-minded until they stop it.”
and he made a similar comment on the 24th after the Suns went to Amare in the post against the Thunder on a key late possession:
“I think we got to in some ways just simplify the game at the end. Space the floor and if they switch take the ball hard to the basket. I think sometimes we get locked into trying to throw it inside on the mismatches and we have a hard time getting it there and we have a hard time reading and reacting down there when they converge so I think we’ve just got to be aggressive and not be so thoughtful at the end of games to be honest.”
With the team struggling are we starting to see some cracks in the cohesion between Nash, Amare and Gentry?
Interesting
Blogging Suns Basketball . twitter: @phoenixstan
by Seth Pollack on Dec 27, 2009 11:20 AM MST up reply actions
We know that Amare's decision making in the clutch isn't ideal
Go back to the 07 playoffs against the Spurs….missed shots in the 4th, and then a charge. I think Nash does sometimes defer too much, but if it’s by Gentry’s design then you may be right.
Steve Nash, the league's MVP, is a longhaired Canadian who spoke out against the war in Iraq and reads The Communist Manifesto. Quentin Richardson declared after a game-winning shot that it "was like Hamlet. It was a suspense thriller, and I killed them at the end." Amare Stoudemire, when asked to comment on a 22-point third quarter against the Kings, said, "I've got a tendency to jump over some guys' heads and throw it down."
I got to agree with your assessment stan,stevie and amare have never been the closet of buddies and no matter how hard stevie tries to integrate amare into the game he still cannot close out a game like stevie can and i think that stevie is beginning to realize this. I remember that 2ot game in new jersey in 07 and how pissed off amare looked when stevie hit that 3 to send the game into ot all the players were happy but him, i have the game on my laptop..I do not believe that this team is as close in the locker room as the media would have us believe and i think that the two main culprits are amare and jrich,.I .really believe that stevie is going to have to shoot us to victories more and more as he has become our only reliable closer
No cracks
I think this was more of Nash acknowledging the fact that Amare wasn’t having a good game while accepting accountability for not doing what he could individually to help win.
Nash is crunch time. He’s the man you want taking the big shots. When he sent it in to Amare, it was a form of a mental mistake since Nash can always find a way to get an open look and Stat wasn’t getting anything done all game, so why go to him when we needed points?
The past few weeks there has been plenty of discussion about whether Nash needs to look for his own shot more and at what point in the game should he “take over” so to speak. I’m thinking this conversation continues, although Barbosa is usually on the court in the closing minutes of a close game, and is a viable option take the last shot and or important shots to get us in the position to win
Blogging Suns Basketball. Twitter: @willcantrellphx
by Wil Cantrell on Dec 27, 2009 5:01 PM MST up reply actions
I don't think we have to worry about the Suns just yet...
Looking at the way they’re playing, the Suns have certainly turned heads and that wasn’t what they were hoping for. Coming into this season, the Suns dropped from title contenders to a team that was “supposed” to be struggling to make the playoffs. However, that underdog title dropped fast after the Suns’ hot start. The Suns became an even bigger threat after beating Boston on their home floor by double digits.
Although the Suns are struggling a bit right now, that’s to be expected. Not all teams are unbeatable. The Suns may be playing well but they are still trying to establish their identity. They’re still playing beyond our expectations coming into this season so we should be thankful for that. I know the Suns have a lot to work on and that will eventually come. It just takes time. Don’t think about dumping players or blaming people just yet. Even superstars are human. They’re NOT PERFECT.
I’ve been stressing this all over the Facebook page for the Phoenix Suns: If we have the cap room, we need to sign David Lee. One of the biggest problems for the Suns is that our team isn’t a strong rebounding team. We only have one strong big man (Amar’e) rebounding for us. If we sign Lee, we’ll get a player who fits perfectly into our style and add much more rebounding for us. Lee has been under D’antoni so we know for sure that Lee will run and hustle. He can also stretch the floor and shoot the midrange jumper. In the paint, he’ll grab boards. As much as I like Frye, I think Lee would be a better addition to the front court for us. Besides, Frye could come off the bench with Leandro, Jared, and Goran to give the Suns instant offense. Our team would be even deeper than it is now.
Lemm know what you guys think! Go Suns! Can’t wait till Monday’s matchup against the Lakers.
correction
I meant to say Amar’e’s the main force in the front court rebounding for us. We need to rely a lot on the guards and forwards (I.E. Grant Hill) helping to rebound. So David Lee could take some of the pressure off Amar’e and the Suns wouldn’t need Hill to bang in there with the Gasols or the Garnetts to try to grab the boards.
Unless we somehow salary-dump JRich, we won't have the space to sign Lee
Steve Nash, the league's MVP, is a longhaired Canadian who spoke out against the war in Iraq and reads The Communist Manifesto. Quentin Richardson declared after a game-winning shot that it "was like Hamlet. It was a suspense thriller, and I killed them at the end." Amare Stoudemire, when asked to comment on a 22-point third quarter against the Kings, said, "I've got a tendency to jump over some guys' heads and throw it down."
exactly
or trading stoudemire for scrap and or a draft pick.
Blogging Suns Basketball. Twitter: @willcantrellphx
by Wil Cantrell on Dec 27, 2009 5:03 PM MST up reply actions
I like the idea of david lee too he would be a great asset to this team,his chemistry with nash would be phoenominal.
barbie for lee??
does it match salary wise? dantoni would take LB in a second… and he likes to play without true 5, so he wouldnt mind losing lee :-)
I don't know...
whether I’m happy or sad that I had to go to the airport during the 4th quarter of the game last night. Horrendous loss. Big ups to GSW for taking what the Suns gave them, i.e., everything.
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