Say goodbye to Hollywood...Elvis has left the building
by Phoenix Stan on Apr 6, 2009 12:01 AM MDT
in Commentary
28 comments
It's all over but the crying...Time to go fishing.
Does Kenny Smith even bother to put on a fishing hat for teams that don't make the playoff's? That might be saddest part in all of this if we don't get to see Nash and Shaq holding up the catch of the day one more time.
No, I take that back. The saddest part is that the Bulls, Pistons and 76ers are playoff teams and the Suns are not. Not in any sense of the word.
Playoff teams don't go 2-12 on the road (Utah Jazz being the exception).
Playoff teams show up to play in big games.
Playoff teams understand that you can't win if you don't compete.
There's a lot that can be said about this game...like the Suns were completely and totally unprepared to deal with Jason Kidd in the post and it killed their entire defensive game plan. And yes, I do assume that there was a game plan but it was pretty evident from Grant Hill's comments that it didn't include Jason Kidd posting up.
"I thought the turning point was when they started to go post-up Kidd and we just had some mental breakdowns." Explained Grant who was 8 -12 for 23 points which is 21 points more then the We Believe crew. Or is that the We Belove crew? We Believed? We Used to Once Believe? Anyway...
The good news is that Leandro put my doubts to bed regarding a let down after his 15 points in 15 minutes performance in his first game back. Other then Hill, LB was the only Suns perimeter player that played well from the perimeter. Unfortunately, his defense suffered during his absence as he was unable to stay in front of his man. No fair calling LB out for that though. It's not like anyone else did either although I do recall one brilliant sequence when Jared Dudley stone cold stopped Jason Terry who thought he could drive on JD.
| Final - 4.5.2009 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Phoenix Suns  |
33 | 26 | 25 | 32 | 116 |
| Dallas Mavericks |
39 | 42 | 33 | 26 | 140 |
Speaking of defense, I take a lot of crap for daring to say anything negative about a certain two-time MVP and all around great guy but did anyone else have the sense that Nash was not all that interested in playing beyond April 15th? Is that just me being overly harsh or did you all see that too?
We are know he's not a great defensive player and that's fine. But how does it look to the rest of the team when the "leader" and "floor general" stops even trying. Take for example the 8:15 mark of the 1st period when the game was in the pre-laughable stage and Steve hit a high screen set by Dirk. Most players at that point follow their man into the lane and at least try and bother the shooter or get into position for a rebound. Great defensive players fight hard through the screen and bother their man so much that they can't get a clean shot off. Very few simple stop and watch their man go uncontested to the rim. And that wasn't the only time but hey, let's not saying anything bad about the guy that brought fun back to the desert.
At least he didn't take it too hard. After the game he was seen all smiles congratulating Jason Kidd for "..put[ting] us out of our misery."
To be fair, Steve wasn't the only Suns player starter that got completely out-worked by the Mavs. Barnes? JRich? I guess they were too beat up to contribute much more then a combined 2 points and 6 rebounds. We believe! We believe that the next time JRich shows up in a big game for the Suns will be the first time.
Maybe Larry Brown and Michael Jordan aren't complete chumps after all. At least we got one baller out of the deal and in the long run Jared might easily prove to be the most valuable piece in that trade (aside from Boris Diaw).
Then there's the big guy in the middle. The Big Tweeter. Shaq was a lousy 6 for 9 from the field with only 14 points and 7 rebounds. I don't understand why if this guy is feeling so good and is the M.D.E. why he doesn't do more with the ball to create his own shot. All he does it run to the post and wait for someone to pass him the ball. Only then, after someone else does all the work to get him the rock does he bother to try and score. Why can't he do more without the ball to be more aggressive in his scoring opportunities? Why?
Defensively, he was disaster as well. Dampier and Hollins torched him for a combined 5 points. Disgraceful, and on top of that he let the Mavericks have 46 points in the paint compared to the Suns 48!
Shaq's biggest failing though was behind the arc where he helped the team to a 28% shooting night from downtown and certainly didn't do anything at all to stop the Mavs from going off for 60%! from behind the arc. If Robin Lopez can shoot a three why can't Shaq?
Ok, obviously I am being tongue in check mostly directed at Matt Moore from Hardwood Paraoxysm. Matt and I have a running thing this year about Shaq and Nash. He thinks I am too hard on Steve and should be more appreciative of what's he's done for the Suns and I think Matt's all too willing to ignore Shaq's accomplishments this year simply because he hates Steve Kerr for bringing him here.
We've hashed this out over Twitter and IM for weeks now getting absolutely no where. I've admitted that I expect more from Nash and am disappointed in his response to Terry Porter and of late with how he's taken every opportunity to express his 'frustration with the changes this season' as opposed to focusing on closing strong. Matt's admitted nothing. No, that's not true. Every now and again he gives Shaq credit for not killing anyone.
You folks have watched the same Suns team that I have. You don't need me to tell you what to believe. I will only say that it surprises me as much as it does Matt that I find myself inclined to defend The Big Cactus who's trade here I hated from the minute I heard the first rumor and instead seek to find fault with Captain Canada. In my own defense I will only say one final time, that I call it like I see it. You don't have to agree.
Where does this beat down leave us?
First, there's no doubt now the season is over. Ever the optimist even Coach Gentry said, "I mean let’s be honest, it would have to be a total collapse by them. They would have to lose every game, and they’re not going to do that. We’re probably not going to make it quite honestly, that’s pretty obvious."
Thank you, Coach for the honesty. He went on to talk about the team being professional and playing hard for the next five games. Other teams are fighting for playoff position and we owe to them and to the fans who paid good money to at least put up a decent enough fight.
We've seen what the bench can do. Perhaps a bit more Lopez would be nice. He's certainly been playing better when he's gotten more minutes lately but you don't shut anyone down and you don't throw in the towel now. That's easy enough to say anyway and I for one am not going to be critical if we see a sub-par performance from the veterans from here on in. Why should the final five games be any different from today's must win?
Many of you have started looking forward to the summer and the talk of who to bring back and how big the blow up should be. I think it's premature to really get into that. On May 19th we will know what the draft order is and then we can get serious about what deals might make sense. I think at this point everything is on the table and you don't go into it with any preconceived notions about who you might or might not want to deal.
You take the best offer out there that moves either Richardson, Amare, Shaq or Nash and you keep Barbosa, Dudley, Dragic and Amundson and Lopez. Swift and Barnes will probably be left to explore a buyers market for free agents and Hill will have to make up his own mind on where he wants to play next year.
The key in my mind is looking at the top three or five teams in the draft order and see what their needs and cap situations are and then explore what deals you can make.
Regardless or how it plays out this summer or even if Steve Kerr is the guy calling the shots, there is no doubt that the Nash era run and gun Suns wheezed it's last dying breadth today in a pathetic performance in Dallas.
An unfortunate way to close out a great era of Phoenix Suns basketball.
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I'm sorry... but I don't feel Nash let this team down..
Quite the opposite in fact. I saw a guy trying his damnedest to keep his team in the ball game, during the 1st quarter, and not getting the slightest sign of help from his team.
And, I’ll tell you what, Jason Kidd will never have another game like that. Ever.
Listen, we all know the 2-time MVP has certain, shall we say, well-known deficiencies to his game related to man-defense, exacerbated by age. But it’s up to the team as a whole, including the coaching staff, to help compensate for those. Same goes for our center, and the other members of our team, btw.
Something this season was fundamentally broken. Whether Terry, Steve Kerr, Nash, Shaq or someone else broke it, it’s hard to say, but something was definitely frakked and we never seemed to really gell, on court.
It occurred to me. that the Suns this season never really had a game this season, like the Mavs had against us, which is to say one of those games where everybody clicks, but against a good team. And we always seemed to fail in must win, critical situations.
That would suggest that the problem was due to the various pieces of the team not synchronizing properly, like an engine on a sports car that was badly put together. The thing would drive fine in a straight line, downhill, but as soon as you hit a curve or an upward slope, the engine would blow up. Whether that was due to the pieces being incompatible, I don’t know.
In the last 20 years, I’ve seen two performances that I thought were truly heroic: Michael Jordan’s Flu game, and Steve Nash vs the Spurs two seasons ago. The image of Steve’s bloodied broken nose will stay with me as a reminder of what a warrior this guy is, and how his team let him down. Despite the loss, I was proud to be a Suns fan that day.
"True glory consists of doing what deserves to be written, and writing what deserves to be read".
by Pliny the Elder on Apr 6, 2009 12:59 AM MDT reply actions 0 recs
The game we beated the Lakers last month?
I will say that’s the game that everyone clicked…But I agree with you 100%
by sonicking on Apr 6, 2009 8:36 AM MDT up reply actions 0 recs
“And, I’ll tell you what, Jason Kidd will never have another game like that. Ever”…
oh yes, like other pg that went on career nights against us…
wtf, 140 damn points in do-or-die game, no more excuses… it’s over, it has been over for few months now… we need to change mentality of this team, that means no more fun-and-gun, which means no more steve thank-you-for-the-memories nash… gentry will obviously stay due to money concernce, give him def. minded assistent… hell we have bunch of solid defenderd, dudley, lou, dragic, even lopez.. LB improved, to trade hima with his 6mio contract would be bonehead move… amare is a mistery, really dont have a clue whether to keep him or not… shaq will most probably stay, let him play 25min per game and develop either lopez or some other big men we can get…
it was nice, It is strange to wait and later watch playoffs without some epic clasehs we had over the years… it had to end some time…
by zeze_999 on Apr 6, 2009 1:35 AM MDT reply actions 0 recs
Im just hoping
to see a young energetic team next year. I think a clear divide (performance-wise) between the younguns and the verts developed this season, and considering everything I see no reason stick with our three biggest contracts. For Nash and Shaq its just a question of diminishing returns; and as for Amare, well, I just don’t think he’s mentally or emotionally capable of being the franchise player on a title-caliber team (I could def be wrong about that though, and any decision regarding him should be made carefully – maybe letting him be the undisputed ’’man’’ for a season will show my intuitions are wrong). Like it or not Shaq and Nash are the kind of players that necessarily define whatever team they play on, and as such I just don’t see any chance for systemic change as long as they’re still around (evidence: the first half of the season). RIP one of the all-time most entertaining sports teams
by IrrationalAgent on Apr 6, 2009 3:17 AM MDT reply actions 0 recs
I wasn't
really expecting them to win, but I didn’t expect them to roll over and take a beating like that either.
"I didn’t even know Elvis was from Memphis, I thought he was from Tennessee."
Drew Gooden.
by Diosnomeama on Apr 6, 2009 7:28 AM MDT reply actions 0 recs
the problem with shaq
is he is not accepting to be a role player and not the main guy. I know he was good this year (or at least much better than most of us expected) but he is no the shaq of 2001 anymore. and nash saw the team of which he was the heart and soul fell apart in front of his own eyes, as kerr ruined the whole suns. if he dosen’t get about 8971238712665 moron points for not making it to the playoffs, I will never understand the moron meter ( I don’t understand it now either, as it has been towards genius most of this season).
I have already said that this was a messed up year: Kerr looked like he wanted to rebuild, but then did nothing to do it, the amaré-fiasco, the trade-no trade soap opera, the injuries and so on… the thing is, you can’t rebuild on a team with shaq and nash on it. and nash didn’t really play well with shaq, true. well, shaq didn’t really play well with nash either. why do we balme nash for it and not shaq? and nash is a horrible defender, true, but big men are supposed to cover for SOME of the penetration if guards get by their man (see: garnett, kevin), and there was none of that by either shaq or amaré when he was stilly playing. the offense was too shaq-oriented, except for the few games of seven-seconds-or-shaq. it’s nice that shaq was this good this year, but he was nothing more than a good role-player, in terms of production, yet the offense was built on him. we have criticized amaré for deamding the ball and then messing it up: shaq did it many times either.
still, as ever: go suns!!!!!!!!!!!
Once upon a time the Suns got out on the break... and along came Steve sucKerr
by Murcy on Apr 6, 2009 7:33 AM MDT reply actions 0 recs
Update to moron meter
I am working on an update…but also considering just waiting until the season ends to do a final close out
Blogging Suns Basketball
by Phoenix Stan on Apr 6, 2009 2:44 PM MDT up reply actions 0 recs
Suns Future
A few points to make. First, Shaq, despite playing well needs to be shipped. He was a mistake to begin with despite as I said playing well. I didnt see the point of trying to be another team (Steve Kerr trying to be the Spurs) when we ought to have beaten them when Boris and Amare were suspended. I think we could have beaten them again. Even if we didnt, letting Marion’s contract ran out now would have given Phoenix cap sapce to try and get one of the free agents, like Lamar Odom or Trevor Ariza as wing players.
As a Suns fan from the UK, I was shocked to see how badly they played against an average Dallas side. J Kidd was great but now letting him dominate Nash like that was ridiculous.
What needs to be done is an overhaul. Take the pick, which will hopefully be someone like Stephen Curry (which will allow J Rich to move on for someone like Shane Battier, hopefully!!) or Earl Clark, who is very good forward from what I have seen. Keep Amare and Nash for one more year because we have no replacement but if they dont want to keep NAsh, I am very impressed with Ramon Sessions, who is a free agent this year I believe.
My Suns team next year:
Sessions
Barbosa
Clark
Amare
R Lopez
Bench:
Grant Hill
Amundson
Dragic
whatever we get for Shaq
whatever we get for J Rich
by RizwanQayyum on Apr 6, 2009 8:16 AM MDT reply actions 0 recs
well..but..
Yes, I agree that we need to ship Shaq, but how??? A buyout? Which team will take on his 20M contract?
by sonicking on Apr 6, 2009 8:39 AM MDT up reply actions 0 recs
I share your frustration, Stan
I felt sick to my stomach when I saw Nash smiling after the game. If you want to be classy you call J-Kidd later. But we can’t deny the fact that the dude has been nothing but brilliant since Gentry took over (except for yesterday’s game). This loss is on everyone, including the coaching staff. They were completely unprepared for Kidd posting up Nash and they couldn’t adjust.
"Basketball doesn't build character. It reveals it"
by PanamaSun on Apr 6, 2009 9:01 AM MDT reply actions 0 recs
The post up...
Should have been addressed as soon as it happened. Nash can play post offense, but post defense…good Lord. He lacks perimeter so interior is impossible. They should have set it up so there would be help for Steve, or even changed the match-up at least, so that there was a bigger cover on Kidd, while Nash contested (attempted to contest) shots on the perimeter. That’s just my two cents though, but I agree Panama that the coaching staff definitely didn’t make an adjustment that should have been made.
by Willman on Apr 6, 2009 9:17 AM MDT up reply actions 0 recs
Nash will not be back next year.
I don’t think he let us down or did anything on purpose that involved not trying. I do however, think that he feels some animosity towards this team based on the behind the scenes dealings. He once said “when it isn’t fun anymore”… Well it doesn’t seem like hes having fun anymore and I think that is his problem.
Nash has to go regardless of how much I like the guy.
This team can certainly score… but what we lack are 2 wing players on the court at all times that can defend. Nobody could help Nash because when they did there was a three point shot. That is where the problem starts with teams like the Mavericks. Nash can smile all he want she has friends on that team and he should be happy with them. It was loss that nobody expected us to even be worried about before the all star break.
TO THE NBA - " Yeah, you have created a rift within me ; Now there have been ; several complications ; that have left me feeling nothing ; I might say, you were ; wrong to take it from me ; Left me feeling nothing " - Disturbed, "Numb"
by antiw0rm on Apr 6, 2009 9:04 AM MDT reply actions 0 recs
uh
didnt mean to say she… it was supposed to be “wants he^”
TO THE NBA - " Yeah, you have created a rift within me ; Now there have been ; several complications ; that have left me feeling nothing ; I might say, you were ; wrong to take it from me ; Left me feeling nothing " - Disturbed, "Numb"
by antiw0rm on Apr 6, 2009 9:05 AM MDT up reply actions 0 recs
Dude that is some incredible unconscious irony there
It perfectly describes how Steve Nash played. Sure, Kidd is “bigger” and stronger, but this was easily Kidd’s best, and easiest game of the season.
I know we all loved Nash for what he did during the 7SOL era, and that he’s supposedly the “good guy”. But he’s not. He’s been fu*king terrible, and everyone is just so blinded by the religious/cult following of Nash that they refuse to admit the truth staring them in the face. This year, Steve Nash has been terrible, attitude wise and playing wise. No amount of lies or distortion can repaint the picture. No amount of hindsight wisdom or romanticism of the past can ever change the fact that this is not about “Steve Kerr making Steve Nash unhappy, therefore Kerr is to blame”. Come game time, it is Nash who suits up and steps onto the court. Steve Kerr isn’t the one blowing defensive assignments and getting his ankles broken every possession.
Here’s an easy analogy. A doctor who has saved hundreds of life commits a murder, because he was unhappy with the system. Do we ignore the fact that he has committed this murder, simply because of the fact that he was so good/noble in the past?
Yes I am calling him out. And this is not the first time. You play like crap, I call you out. That’s how it is. J-Rich and Barnes were downright useless. But hey, no one’s climbing all over their balls to consistently defend their pathetic play. It starts, and ends with the ring leader. And Nash has been nothing short of a master criminal in terms of being a defensive sieve. Out of the 80 or so PGs to have played in the NBA this season, I struggle to name even one guy who has not had an easy time abusing Nash, and I have watched about 60 Suns games this season. And I certainly can’t think of anyone who defends as poorly as Nash.
The referees are kind enough to Nash as it is. Half of his charges are blocking fouls. If it weren’t for the refs protecting him, he’d be abused on dribble penetration EVEN MORE.
There is simply no defense, no excuses, for this thrashing. The only way out is to blow this all up.
by felixthm on Apr 6, 2009 9:45 AM MDT reply actions 0 recs
Unfortunately
I pretty much agree. Nash just doesn’t play “D” PG’s drive at will, dish at will and pass the ball into the post at will. He is partly responsible for Porter being fired.
Blow this team up, love to do it, just how realistic I don’t see it happening. I would entertain offers for all except for LB, I just love the guy. But hey just watch, LB will be the guy who gets traded for cap and dollar reasons, so go figure.
"Have You heard of the Boom on Mizar 5?"
by Grockcubs on Apr 6, 2009 10:20 AM MDT up reply actions 0 recs
why does it have to be this game?
…the only Suns game I saw in person all season. It was embarrassing. After the third quarter, we were down some 20-25 points. At this point I was thinking, ok, we will probably not win this game, but we might be able to make it a less embarrassing loss by putting our starters back in.
But no. We give up. I think it would have been an excellent move by Gentry to put the starters back in. Even if the lead gets bigger, at least they have to reap what they sow. Rather, they seem\ed PERFECTLY CONTENT to just sit it out on the bench. Sometimes it’s hard to really be excited about a team that obviously doesn’t care. This was the one game to play with heart, not for a quarter or a half, but maybe for the WHOLE GAME. It’s like the game basically lasted one half, then after that it was just en exhibition game. One of the worst games I have ever seen, and certainly not enjoyable at all.
by PHXgp on Apr 6, 2009 11:27 AM MDT reply actions 0 recs
The Bench
One of the guys on TV said something like, “Why is Gentry bringing the starters back in? The bench has closed this gap?” I agreed with him at the time and I turned off the game during the third.
Let’s see Dudley in a starting role. Let’s see a little more of the guys who are definitely going to be around next season. Let’s also hope Cleveland loses in the Finals and is willing to take on Shaq for a year.
Don’t call out Nash for his defense — call him out for not seeming to care. He’s been like that a lot this season, seems to me.
Mmmmm ... Guinness
by JSun on Apr 6, 2009 12:23 PM MDT reply actions 0 recs
KIDD WAS CLUTCH
AND NASH PLAYED LIKE A ZOMBIE
nuff said.
by magenta on Apr 6, 2009 6:53 PM MDT reply actions 0 recs
Woe to you men of little faith
All have valid points… but let’s have a little faith in our team guys!… let’s remember the injuries to amare and LB… this team fought with rocks and sticks.. while the other teams had the entire infantry and cavalry with them… i don’t recall any team this season that lost its main gun for a longer time than our Suns… don’t we all have that gut feel that if we had the full compliment of our lineup and if the coaching change happened much earlier, we would’ve currently been discussing about our playoff opponents rather than changing our lineup?
Let’s not giveup easily on the capacity of our players to change and improve for the better… with proper help, nash can still become a decent defender… shaq can be more fluid in offense… and barnes can… well… hmmm… well.. miracles do happen so perhaps barney can be less of a bonehead next season…
Agree or not, it’s my personal view tht it’s a knee jerk reaction to blow up this team based on this season’s performance. we’ve seen how this team clicked in some games… and we all loved what we saw… one thing we lack is consistency… but consistency is developed over time from familiarity in playing together rather than from constantly changing parts… we’ve been toying with our lineup every year… and it’s gotten us nowhere so far..
by menacejinx on Apr 6, 2009 7:15 PM MDT reply actions 0 recs
It's not a knee-jerk reaction, dude, when it's 77 games and counting
1 game, 2 losses, a 3 game losing streak. Those are knee-jerk reactions. Granted, they didn’t play like this all 77 games, but this was a microsm of the Sun’s season. When we needed them, they disappeared on us. It’s strange how most of our players have no competitive desire or passion whatsoever. Hmmm….It must have been Cuban paying them off. Since Sarver is so cheap, and Cuban such a spendthrift, that has to be the case.
by felixthm on Apr 6, 2009 8:33 PM MDT reply actions 0 recs
It started with the front office...
The players on this team are like kids in a divorce. When the grown-ups start fighting, the children start to act out, and do things like sleepwalk and bury the cat.
"True glory consists of doing what deserves to be written, and writing what deserves to be read".
by Pliny the Elder on Apr 6, 2009 8:42 PM MDT up reply actions 0 recs
i hear ya mate!
all respect to you felixthm… i felt that the team’s mojo was down if not outright absent in most games… but since gentry came in.. there’s an added spunk in the Suns’ game… too bad that we were so mired in deep sh*t by that time… and we couldn’t reverse the situation… we started on the wrong foot.. i say we build on what we’ve learned during the gentry era… for there are a lot…
we should give this team another shot… keep shaq nash amare grant and the entire 2nd unit… give up jrich and barney boy.. i think we over-tweaked our lineup before… let’s not do it again…
or perhaps you’re right.. it must be cuban paying our guys off… lol
by menacejinx on Apr 7, 2009 12:14 AM MDT up reply actions 0 recs
Nash will never be an all-defensive team stopper
But he can play decent defense. If he wants to. The religious like attitude adopted towards Nash can get rather obnoxious and overbearing at times. “WTF look what this man did for the Suns how can you ever blame him for anything”. Nash is not the quickest or strongest player, but a lot of that comes from work in the gym. Best cases in point: Dwayne Wade was lean and muscular in college, and a physical specimen to behold these days. Kobe was so lanky back then, now he’s stronger than almost every player his size. Shaq was overweight and obese a year or so ago, now he’s back to a somewhat almost acceptable shape. See the trend? Even rookies like Durant have improved greatly in shape and are noticeably better built this season.
Moreover, Nash is not a flatfooted clutz who’s overweight and can’t move. He is not slow enough to be blown past by every dribbler so easily. His defensive reaction and skills are simply EVIDENCE of his lack of effort in building up this part of his game. The biggest factor would however, be the fact that Nash has in flashes shown that he can play decent defense when he puts enough effort into it. No one ever asked for him to go all “The Glove” on CP3 or D-Will. Look at Barbarosa last season. He was a blur all right, totally blur on defense. Sucked mega ultimate crap in the playoffs. But this season? He’s come back from a very trying, emotionally draining family tragedy. Trying harder to play defense. Scoring the ball more efficiently than ever. And this is the sort of work his teammates put in. I’m proud of Barbarosa, Dudley, Lou, Hill, and somewhat Shaq. Goran and Lopez can get semi-excused for being rooks. The rest. Bah.
by felixthm on Apr 6, 2009 8:42 PM MDT reply actions 0 recs
I think you overestimate Nash's talent wrt man defense.
There’s this myth in the NBA that of you just work hard enough, you can be a good or even great defensive player. Sorry, but you’re fundamentally wrong about that. Scottie Pippen was a great defensive player in part because he has a huge wingspan for his height. And sure, practicing against Jordan didn’t hurt either. Rodman was great because he has a genius level basketball IQ, watched a huge amount of tape, had a big wingspan and because of his mutant fast twitch hops.
But Nash just doesn’t have the physical gifts to do a decent job in that regard. The guy works as hard as anyone on that aspect of the game, but he just can’t do it on a consistent basis. Plus he’s getting older. 35 is like 100 in dog years. Rodman at 35 was a shadow of the player he had been at his best.
If your most important offensive guard is your point guard, then the shooting guard has to take the hard defensive assignment (and vice versa). Jordan was the exception that proved the rule.
When Nash was in Dallas, the Kings always put Christie on him, and left Mike Bibby to guard Finley. Similarly, the Spurs put Bowen on Nash, for the most part, and not Parker.
I’m not defending Steve’s defensive play (or at least his man defense, because his team defense is actually fairly decent), but things started to go south in a hurry when Raja & Boris were traded, because we lost players who could not only compensate for their point guard’s shortcomings, but work as a unit with him.
We don’t have that anymore, and in conjunction with our inopportune injuries, that’s why we’re going fishing early this year.
"True glory consists of doing what deserves to be written, and writing what deserves to be read".
by Pliny the Elder on Apr 6, 2009 9:12 PM MDT up reply actions 0 recs
I think you overestimate Nash's effort level
“The guy works as hard as anyone on that aspect of the game”. I can bet my life that isn’t true. In fact I doubt he’s even in the top 10% of “worked hard on defensive skills” people.
But I concede ground. Between our two opinions lies the middle ground, he’s really untalented defensively, but he also hasn’t worked hard enough.
It is not a myth that if you work hard enough you will stop s*cking. It’s truth. It’s why people even bother working hard in the first place. Because training, and practising, helps you to improve.
Yeah, the team is very much to blame. Slow rotations, insufficient help defense, defensive mix-ups and poor communication exacerbate his weaknesses even more. It also makes it a lot more tempting for opponents to drive when they see Amare defending the interior.
by felixthm on Apr 6, 2009 9:23 PM MDT reply actions 0 recs
Not all work yields reward..
Your opening line is a good point. I should adjust my statement to “The guys works as hard in practice as any non-specialist on that aspect of the game.” I’d agree with the notion that Steve probably doesn’t work as hard on his defense as Shane Battier, to name but one.
The counterexample to your 3rd paragraph I was thinking of was Shaq and Wilt’s free-throw shooting. I know for a fact that both of those guys worked really hard to try & improve, but they were both so bad at shooting those in games. Wilt always claimed he made them in practice, btw….
Still, years of hard work have not served to substantially improve Shaq’s free throw shooting (61% this year notwithstanding.), to the point where there’s a well known tactic called Hack a Shaq, designed to take advantage of that deficiency (and which probably cost Shaq at least one ring).
I hate to say it, but sometimes one’s best possible effort just isn’t good enough simply because of a lack of talent or inherent ability, and no amount of work will overcome it. There’s nothing wrong with that, btw, but it is the difference between sitting on the end of the bench and winning an MVP award.
And I’ve grown to accept that we get what we get from the players on a squad, regardless of who they are, and that any change, if it happens, is likely to take a long time. That’s true of Nash, with his defense. It’s true of Kobe, with his continual tendency to hog the ball, take bad shots and shoot in the 30%.‘s And it’s true of Shaq, Duncan, Chris Paul, Wade, LeBron, Amare, and every other single player in the NBA.
BTW, I’d liken Nash’s good/acceptable man-defensive games over the last five years to, say, those games where Allen Iverson dishes out 10 assists and shoots at better than 60%.. Just one of those statistical flukes that happen every once in a while, but that really mean nothing in the grand scheme of things, and indicate nothing about the player involved.
"True glory consists of doing what deserves to be written, and writing what deserves to be read".
by Pliny the Elder on Apr 7, 2009 1:10 AM MDT up reply actions 0 recs
team chemistry
is often overlooked.. and that’s what we lack right now.. we’ve got the right ingredients.. save for a couple (jrich and barnes)… and we won’t see what we’re really made of we keep shaking the bottle
by menacejinx on Apr 7, 2009 12:58 AM MDT reply actions 0 recs
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