Suns beat spread, lose on the Rocket Road in the final 0.14, 116-112

by ZonaFlash on Mar 6, 2009 11:57 PM MST in Phoenix Suns: Game Coverage

773f868d7f246bada711427c0d0eadad-getty-82992607bb020_suns_rockets_medium

(Photo by Bill Baptist/NBAE via Getty Images)

Que sera, sera.

ESPN's Accuscore had the to Rockets winning this one easily, but the Suns came back to tie the game with 14 seconds to go. In rare cinematic parallelism, each team had 6 or 7 seconds to execute a play with the score tied at 112 all. Both went with a high PnR with their midget PGs and their GINORMOUS Centers.

The Rockets played first with Yao Ming's moving screen taking out Nash and Shaq trying to stop PG Brooks' curling drive and failing. Suns down 2 with 7.3 seconds to play. The Suns ran the same high PnR, but with Nash pulling up for a high-arching 3 over the Great Wall of China. Nash was due to miss and he did. Nash is used to shooting over 7 footers like Dirk Nowitzki, so credit to Yao for sticking with Nash and altering the shot.

The Rox are a good team playing at home, the kind of team the Suns aspire to be, with size, great defenders and role players, and a few young zippy guards. The Suns, instead, appear to rely on wild circus shots, hail mary's and an assorted array of other prayers to compete. The Suns seemed to have particular problems adjusting their shots to the size of the Rockets.

It's a career season for Suns opponents and this game was no different. Rockets PG Aaron Brooks joined a long line of young wing players who have had career games against the Suns. He had a career game with 30 points. Although Nash had a season high with 32 points, he took a AI or Kobe-esque 27 shots to get there. He was a big reason why we were able to get back in the game in the second half, but he was also 1-of-10 at the half and so a big reason why we were down 10 to begin with.

Up til the end, one could have argued that both the critical PG and Center matchups were about even, but the final play was the difference.

Overall, it's hard not to sense the Suns are sluggish and possibly crickety old. Poor Grant Hill was shut out, despite 3 blocks and 6 (defensive) rebounds. The Suns didn't lose on the boards tonight, nor from behind the arc (12-of-28 vs 6-of-19), but they did at the foul line, shooting 10-of-15 (67%) compared to 28-of-37 (76%).

davegrudnge complained about the Rox foul shooting. I guess Von wafer's 7-of-7 was lousy. Or it was Aaron Brooks' 4-of-4. Lowry's 2-of-2? No wait. I know, Artest was 5-of-6. No? Yao Ming, you know, was 3-of-4. That is just lousy. I guess you could complain about that frontline of Landry and Scola. Those guys shot only 4-of-8 and 3-of-6, respectively. Disastrous!!

It's hard not to get deflated after losses, and sure I would like to see more good stuff from our Suns instead of 15 TO stinkers. I wish Barbosa started. He and Lou Amundson (+6 in 15 minutes!) really give me joy to watch.

NBA Box Score * The Dream Shake * Game Quotes

Here's the recap including the final two possessions. Start at 1:45 to see if you think Yao pulls a moving screen. Of course, I'm not sure it even matters.

Tweet Comment 25 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

I haven't had time to read the whole post yet..

but I saw the sentence that mentions moving screens… and I just have to say, that moving screens are getting almost as bad as traveling in this league. I guarantee that in 90% of offensive possessions have either a moving screen or a traveling that isn’t called.

by brian13 on Mar 6, 2009 11:13 PM MST reply actions

When we're onto +/-

Fropez. 3 minutes, -8 in a 4 pt loss. And THREE fouls. We need to stop pretending that he can play.

by gadogry on Mar 6, 2009 11:22 PM MST reply actions

If you actually watch the game

Lopez gave a solid 3 minutes for what it’s worth. You need to realize that you can’t judge a dude when you’ve barely seen him play.

by hcblankscreen on Mar 6, 2009 11:38 PM MST up reply actions

I don’t get to watch the games but I do agree with you regarding Lopez’s minutes. The troubling thing about this is that last night the 4 young players got a total of 3 minutes…..the suns are going into the draft where last year they chose a 1 and a 5 and still do not know if they can play.
When you look at the box score the starting 3 and 4 shot about 30% not good enough ….Hill is old and is Barnes anything other a backup. My concern is that they will be 5 games back with 6 games to go and the young guys will still be getting 10 minutes or less total.
With Stats eye they should probably consider a 3/4 and play the guys they drafted so they can ready next year.

by overthere on Mar 7, 2009 5:45 AM MST up reply actions

I love Lopez and he’s awesome and great and all that. But he has to stop fouling. I can go and blame some of them on the refs hating the Suns and hating rookies, but sometimes the guy just needs to go out there and keep his hands off the other players. It’s like my mom always told me when we went into a store with knicknacks: “Don’t TOUCH anything!” If he can stop fouling, everyone who says now that he can’t play will wake up and wonder when we drafted Tim Duncan Jr.

Take care of the little things, and the big things will take care of themselves.

by SunDolphin on Mar 7, 2009 8:11 AM MST up reply actions

Rockets fan here

Yao Ming’s moving screen taking out Nash

I went back and looked at that possession. Yao is definitely moving after contact is made, though I’m not sure that the contact was enough to warrant a foul being called. It’s one of those things where a ref would be justified in calling it a foul, but awarding one would not be, in my opinion, mandatory.

by Only_A_Lad on Mar 6, 2009 11:35 PM MST reply actions

On the last plays of the game I don't expect something like that to be called.

I was more describing the play really. Point is the Rox got it done and the Suns didn’t.

In Nash we trust - for better and for worse...

by ZonaFlash on Mar 6, 2009 11:58 PM MST up reply actions

Point is

Brooks loses Nash on the side line long before they get the Yao screen. If Nash had been in a good defensive position before the screen he could have gone under and forced Brooks to pull up but he was scrambling by the time he got to Yao and wasn’t able keep up at all.

Good defensive PG’s manage to trail that play and pressure Brooks from behind forcing a tougher shot.

Blogging Suns Basketball

by Seth Pollack on Mar 7, 2009 8:31 AM MST up reply actions

So. Because brooks was a little fast.

The questionable flagrant foul on Swift. How about the no call on the extremely close out of bounds play in the 4th. In which the Houston offensive rebound nearly goes out of bounds being saved by one of the Rockets point gaurds. Several calls that shaq didn’t get. I have to say in my opinion in a game like this, late in the season you have to make a stand and either let them play or don’t. But you can’t have 6 different sets of rules based on team, player, ref. I’ve read the grueling official rule book and no where does it even hint that these calls can be interpereted differently based on if a player gets beat, plays for a certain team, has a higher “fame” status than that of another? A

…

So what you are saying is that if a player has beaten you. You are void and null and a non factor and thus no rules apply to you.

But what the NBA rule book states is:

To screen a moving opponent, the player must stop soon enough to permit his opponent to stop or change direction. The distance between the player screening and his opponent will depend upon the speed at which the players are moving.

If two opponents are moving in the same direction and path, the player who is behind is responsible for contact. The player in front may stop or slow his pace, but he may not move backward or sidewards into his opponent. The player in front may or may not have the ball. This situation assumes the two players have been moving in identically the same direction and path before contact.

So why is it so hard to enforce these rules. I can see them away from the ball in real time the first time around. Why is it so hard for 3 refs to make some of these calls? And sometimes they can make them from half court while looking through the player…

You cannot pick and choose. Rules are Rules. We as Suns fans should know that by now as we are the “example” of the NBA arn’t we?

" I'm going to root for the Suns when they are winning or losing, but when losing I will point and blame the failing economy on the Referees."- Me.

by antiw0rm on Mar 7, 2009 6:28 PM MST up reply actions

Also

Notice I said “THE” rule book. I havn’t been able to find more than one rule book that is officially designated the book of rules by the NBA front office. It’s all crap and whatever makes more money happens. Unless your organization pisses off the top dog in the gold chair wearing the crown marked NBA. Then you get a different book that isn’t published.

" I'm going to root for the Suns when they are winning or losing, but when losing I will point and blame the failing economy on the Referees."- Me.

by antiw0rm on Mar 7, 2009 6:34 PM MST up reply actions

I agree that

it is frustrating that moving screens aren’t called but they aren’t. You can’t single out this play which was called consistently with how they are calling things all season long.

Blogging Suns Basketball

by Seth Pollack on Mar 7, 2009 7:24 PM MST up reply actions

If Nash had been in a good defensive position

you lost me there, i started laughing

by ryansunsfan on Mar 8, 2009 6:21 AM MST up reply actions

Bleh

Another loss to the Spurs will just about seal the deal for the Suns. Damn this season has been an absolute disaster!!!!

Well here’s to hopin the future is bright

"Yeah I could have been king, but maybe I already am king. Hail to the king baby." Ash from Army of Darkness

by Turambar on Mar 6, 2009 11:40 PM MST reply actions

they dont call this

the bright side of the sun for no reason ;)

by ryansunsfan on Mar 8, 2009 6:22 AM MST up reply actions

I would have felt better

If they had won in Orlando and Miami. They woke up in the second half but it was too late.

"Basketball doesn't build character. It reveals it"

by PanamaSun on Mar 7, 2009 7:17 AM MST reply actions

Yup

This is exactly the story of this game:

They woke up in the second half but it was too late.

I am not sure at all about this Nash dominated offense either. As ZF said that high FGA number for Nash isn’t a good thing. The 7S0S is gone and now its 7SON which is a much lower percentage play.

Those two guys just don’t co-exist well on the floor. Nash can’t throw a decent entry pass and Shaq ends up standing around watching Steve. There is no cohesion between them.

Worse yet, the body language and chemistry is back to pre-Gentry days. Did you see the camera pan to the bench for a reaction after JRich’s wicked put back slam in the 1st half? Nothing.

This team went right back to their funk as soon as the losing started.

They showed some better fight in the second half of this game but the Rockets are too good to beat with only one half of basketball.

Sad really. How do you not show up to this game from the start?

Blogging Suns Basketball

by Seth Pollack on Mar 7, 2009 8:36 AM MST reply actions

Nice recap btw

thanks for picking up my slack…

Blogging Suns Basketball

by Seth Pollack on Mar 7, 2009 8:37 AM MST up reply actions

But why?

Why do they go back to the funk, why can’t they handle losing? Is it because the veteran leadership on this team is not used to losing and takes losing, not as a reason to get better, but as some proof that they can’t succeed?

Take care of the little things, and the big things will take care of themselves.

by SunDolphin on Mar 7, 2009 10:23 AM MST up reply actions

FTs

A couple of our guys (Artest and Landry) missed like 5 or 6 FTs in a row at one point when the Suns were making a comeback…

overall the Rockets shot better from the line, but they were missing at precisely the wronng moments.

(“davegrudnge” huh? nice.)

by grungedave on Mar 7, 2009 10:22 AM MST reply actions

Forgive us Dave

Bitter times here in Phx

Blogging Suns Basketball

by Seth Pollack on Mar 7, 2009 11:28 AM MST up reply actions

All things considered

I’m just not feeling the negativity. Sure, it was a tough loss, but it was a game we supposedly had no business winning. Yes, it hurts our playoff chances significantly, but the mishaps of the previous 60 games have as much to do with that as any particular loss. Yes, Nash took 27 shots, but when the dude is hitting more than 50% on them, who cares? Haven’t people been jonesing for Nash to shoot more around here all season? (Yes, I recognize that the idea was him playing off the ball and not controlling the offense on every possession. Spare me that rebuttal.)

There are certainly failures in a variety of areas that this team struggles to overcome. But regardless of the style of play or players involved, I’m content to enjoy watching this team for the rest of the season, knowing that the razor-thin line between first-round loss and mid-round draft pick doesn’t make a ton of difference in the end. This isn’t a team that will compete for a championship, and living and breathing every moment of every game like it is will only end up being an exercise in futility.

by Azreous on Mar 7, 2009 12:46 PM MST reply actions

I feel you

and if they had played as hard in the first half as the second, I would have no complaints.

Blogging Suns Basketball

by Seth Pollack on Mar 7, 2009 2:56 PM MST up reply actions

azreous:

i feel what your saying, but i still want to find a dark corner somewhere and cry

by M-A-Nthefkup on Mar 7, 2009 1:14 PM MST reply actions

for the first time in many years - as a suns fan

when I look at our next 5-10 games (last week, next week, etc) I don’t feel confident we can win many of them. If that doesn’t say it all, as nice as that laker win was, there’s too many loses inbetween.

All sorts of issues

1. Our team is old and not really a serious playoff contender but hasn’t done much to plan for the future with so many old players, and a dwindling young player – court playing time.
2. Shaq has had a great year, it’s been one of the very few bright spots, but, quite simply, Nash and Nah do not mesh well.
3. Dragic and Lopez have not been developed, but I can’t blame that 100% on the suns management, some of the blame is probably lopez and dragic’s
4. The other bright spots – barbosa in the last few weeks and lou.