It seems somewhat fitting that the old school Blazers were playing in their old school arena wearing the old school uniforms and playing their old school style of ball.
Haven't they heard the news? Rebounding and defense DOES NOT WIN CHAMPIONSHIPS.
The point of the game is to score more points than your opponent and to do that you have to make shots. Like 52.2% of them from three point land for example. 2 of 12 from behind the line is just not going to get it done even if you do out rebound the undersized Suns 49 to 35.
In fact the Blazers killed the Suns in all the power numbers:
- 20 to 7 in second chance points
- 56 to 46 points in the paint
- Greg Oden (17pts,13 reb) to Amare Stoudemire (15pts, 2 reb)
- The Blazers even had more fast break points then the Suns (19 to 14)
But if you turnover the ball 18 times and you get killed 36 to 6 from downtown then all the power numbers in the world aren't going to get you the W.
Suns fans, lets use this game as a teachable moment. The '09/10 season is going to be filled with nights like this where our smaller team gets killed in the paint but still manages to shoot it's way to a win. It is fools gold.
Winning by shooting 52% from three is not sustainable and the Phoenix Suns know that.
They know that they are going to need Robin Lopez (or some facsimile there of) to battle the Oden's and Pryzbilla's of the league and least keep them from going crazy. Robin doesn't have to beat Bynum or Howard but he does have to keep them somewhat in check.
Don't let a game like this excite you too much. It's going to happen from time to time and with the Suns it will happen more times than with other teams but it still not enough to get to the playoffs.
And here's my favorite part. The Suns know it.
In 2005/06 Mike D'Antoni convinced everyone that they could win this way. Now you have Gentry and Kerr who are more than willing to run and gun and try and put up 120 points per game but they also know what the team has to do to really be competitive.
Rebound and get stops.
Just the fact that they are talking about it is a big step forward from those past "glory years". It is obviously one thing to talk about it and another thing to get it done and Robin's broken foot certainly doesn't help matters but as a fan all we can ask for is effort and the Suns are trying to get better in the areas where they need to get better.
Three cheers for that.
Game links
- Suns vs Trail Blazers boxscore
- Suns vs Trail Blazers recap
- Suns vs Trail Blazers coverage
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Media Row Report: Blazers 104 Suns 110 - Blazersedge
A recap of the preseason game between the Portland Trail Blazers and the Phoenix Suns, including full player breakdowns of all 10 Blazers to see action. -
Suns hold off Trail Blazers for first preseason win| Valley of the Suns
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