Gortat's Offense, Shannon a Starter?...

by ninecharacters on Jan 16, 2012 3:00 PM MST

* For a Suns team suffering through early-season offensive woes, could Gortat "carry" the team for stretches at a time? Marcin continues to impress overall. His footwork and hook shot stand out, he's definitely looking for his shot, which is perhaps most encouraging of all. (A few times Tim Duncan seemed surprised at how quickly Gortat was catching and converting.) However, Gortat also had a season-high 4 FTAs against the Spurs! He is now averaging only 1.8 FTAs/game. If he's a good enough shooter to have opposing players respect the mid-range game, he has to drive hard to the rim more, risking contact. Consider Gortat's evolution on the defensive end. He has been taking charges more than I can ever recall, a sign of court awareness and smarts. If the finger is now healthy, he should play far more aggressive. The finger injury was hugely important, not underestimating its impact over the first few weeks. He also averaged 3.2 FTAs in 55 games last year. If Gortat adjusted his game I would enjoy watching more of the offense move through him. At that point perhaps he could carry the offense in stretches.

* In spite of the recent chucking, Shannon Brown deserves consideration for the starting lineup. Dudley has clearly struggled and not exactly locked down the starter spot. It's hard to see how Dudley averages more than 11/game. Thinking about the upside of Shannon Brown is like looking at the MC Escher stairs, up becomes down becomes up. He blows assignments and forces off-balance jumpers, but his athleticism and ability to create/get to the line are sorely needed. I could see Brown with the Suns for a long time, really enjoy him already rooting for teammates. If Dudley looks more and more like a backup, and Brown shows steady improvement as a decision-maker, what could it hurt to start Brown?

* Thoughts on this, especially #3? Moving Kyle Lowry to get Pau Gasol is very, very debatable. Because Nash will never play alongside Kobe in a Lakers jersey, anyone have suggestions for a workable HOU-POR-PHX deal, with Nash landing in Portland? Maybe a cross between deals 2 and 3?

* Do the Phoenix Suns have any official MLK Day-related events? Arizona has a peculiar history with the holiday and was actually punished by the NBA in the 1980s for not embracing it. "On the same day the recall drive was announced, [then-Governor Evan] Mecham, when told the NBA withdrew its annual meeting from Phoenix as a protest of the cancellation of King's birthday, responded, 'I guess they forgot how many white people they got coming to watch them play.'" I've heard of other NBA cities organizing events, just curious.

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He just barely got the thumb out of all that tape, I'm sure he'll get back to dunking soon enough

When has he ever disappointed?

by rzyn on Jan 16, 2012 5:43 PM MST reply actions

weird. alright, well here’s what I think. The offense is basically already created around the Nash/Gortat pick ‘n roll. How could he be more involved? He’s recovering from the thumb injury so his finishing will improve, although it’s already pretty strong. The guy is a threat from 10-18 feet now. He’s developing and the Suns are well aware of it. Not sure how much more you want him to do. He’s not dominant enough to be going 20 and 10, and while it might be a nice goal for him, who knows if he can achieve it. especially this season.

Shannon Brown? talked about this elsewhere, but what’s the difference whether he starts or not. He clearly hasn’t earned starts minutes, and I’mm not playing him more than Dudz and I’m not playing him at the end of games unless he’s totally on fire.
Brown isa sexy choice, but in reality he’s on what his 7th team? There’s a reason for that. A lot of potential, but the potential hasn’t translated into consistent success.

um evan mecham was a used car salesman who somehow became a governor. its a black eye on AZ history, and most natives are gone, so they don’t remember or think about it, and most Phoenicians enjoy a day off, regardless of what it’s for.

Blogging Suns Basketball. Twitter: @willcantrellphx

by Wil Cantrell on Jan 16, 2012 6:39 PM MST up reply actions

Gortat simply deserves a closer look

And it’s not even him reaching a certain stat line, like 7 FTAs/game. The team needs more scoring, it’s fair to ask what more (if any) he could contribute. A fully-healed finger will go a long way towards him playing more aggressively, hopefully we see signs of both on the road trip.

Dudley mentioned Lopez by name in training camp last year—essentially, “he needs to step up for us to be competitive.” Now the attention is on him this year. The Suns have ended many games with horrendous offense. Playing Brown is risky, but one that could vary late-game looks.

by ninecharacters on Jan 16, 2012 8:00 PM MST up reply actions

Gortat's low FTA

is IMO a different issue:

1. He learned to finish at the rim avoiding contact – you can see HERE
how well he can finish PnR’s sidestepping the defender in-flight so to speak. He goes to either side and away from the defender at the rim and thus gets 2 points without contact and going to the line.

2. He still doesn’t get respect from 15-18 feet – all his shots are mostly open and unchallanged – only once in a while he gets his defender up in the air while taking the jumper. He probably should expand his repertoire of mid-range options but it will depend on how many defenders try to block his jumpshots… he needs to hold his jumpshot % for at least 5-10 more games before scouting reports change.

3. He is not athletic enough (jumps pretty low, doesn’t have a wide frame) to dunk over guys so his game is based on smarts and speed – that’s why he prefers to avoid contact rather than going over or through people.

Feed the cutter!!!

by Piotr Szczesniak on Jan 19, 2012 8:11 AM MST up reply actions