Suns Make Sixers Look Good, Drop To .500 At Home

I'm gonna call a mulligan on this one, folks. I got nothing positive to say about this game, hardly even about this team.

Somehow, the Suns make other teams look good on a nightly basis. And the more defensive players the Suns add to the roster, the worse their defense gets.

Dragic, Pietrus, Childress, Dudley, Hill, Lopez and Gortat. Even Carter and Frye, to an extent. The only defensive black holes are Nash (who has proven he can be "hidden" in a good scheme) and Warrick. Two. That's it. Two guys who have never been good, individually, at defense. And yet, they are getting worse?

Oh, and I'm not sure this has EVER happened before: Suns had 11 defensive rebounds. Sixers had 12 offensive rebounds. Sixers pulled down more of their own missed shots than the Suns did, despite the disadvantage inherent in positioning each Suns player closer to the basket when the shot goes up.

Ugh.

Wil Cantrell will be adding locker room quotes and nuggets from the game.

[Note by Wil Cantrell, 12/29/10 10:30 PM MST ]

Not a very nice locker room scene as you would expect. Gentry was over 15 minutes late to the post game, and virtually all the players I spoke to were frustrated and spoke in very low tones. None was as animated as Marcin Gortat. He was pissed.

Obviously defense is the magic word. The guys though are at a loss. They practice well, they show up at the games and everything goes sideways.

Check it out:

Marcin Gortat

Gentry Post Game

Vince Carter

Jared Dudley

Steve Nash

Grant Hill

AND SOME COURTSIDE NOTES:

 

1st

• Vince already a fan favorite. misses first shot a turnaround fadeaway that no one on this planet could make
• Nash very active 
• Carter battles for first hoop. Crowd goes wild.
• Nash behind the back to Lopez-nice touch from Lopez from 15 ft or less.
• ANother Nash to Lopez for the dunk
• Elton Brand afraid to dunk the ball or what? 
• Douchie 76ers fan behind me. Would you be so boisterous if you were a fan of one of the worst NBA teams on the planet?
• Nash talking to Carter during Ft's....Carter nodding a whol elot. Hope the chemistry works. 
• Carter sets nice pick leading to Nash 3
• Amazing how quick Grant gets out on the break.
• Suns not playing too bad on offense, but they still arent defending anything.
• Vince brings the house down with ally oop from Grant Hill
• Marcin Gortat is very big. 
• Ref screaming at Gentry and vice versa. I can hear the ref from halfway up
• Suns cheerleaders video about working on the glutes...This dancer's on the jumbo tron doing these lunges. It's not fair.
• Hill Dudz and Pietrus in the game at the same time. 
• Goran Dragic dribbling exhibition as the 1st ends....His confidence is gone, he's so lost.

2nd

• Carter back in with Dudz, Gortat, Pietrus, Dragon 
• Dragon 3 fouls...10.30 left in 2nd
• Nash returning so early does not bode well.
• How many  and 1's have their been?
• Sixers not afraid to attack suns D. Who is afraid?
• The Suns dancers should be illegal. And as dancers they arent even very good. Guess I'm a heterosexual.
• Suns allowing sixers to shoot over 60%. with 6 and change left in the 2nd. 
• Holliday gets by Nash and Gortat backs up WTF?
• Nash to Gortat on O looks promising
• Some of these offensive possessions are painful to watch
• Suns D has no clue what they are doing. Rotations all screwed Up. They meet like a college team during a a break in the action to figure out the rotations. Yeah it'll take time.
• Tweet machine blowing up that WarMachine and Chill are out of the rotation..>Here's WM with a monster jam. Suns
• Pietrus leaves his man to help on Nocioni for no reason, leaving Turner wide open for the J....Bad and unecessary
• 5 76ers in double figures at the half....blah blah blah.

3rd

• Vince 2 straight hoops
• trying to post up VC, nothings falling for him. Suns D slightly tightening up
• An actual sequence of scrappy suns D, Hill goes to the floor, Suns regain the ball.
• Please tell me this isnt goin going to be a Suns/Sixers nail bighter-at home.
• Steve Nash has played 29 out of a possible 32 minutes
• These officials are really having a hard time...Both teams are pissed.
• Warrick with a fallaway brick that ends up in Philly fast break and one.
• Suns down 6 after sixers offensive rebound and putback. the rebound bounced twice before anyone picked it up.
• Dragic now forcing everything, trying to be more aggressive. Sam result, no points.

4th

• Warrick has earl Clrk disease...Stop shooting jumpers
• Dragic clank
• Offesnsive rebound after offensive rebound
• This team has a lot of talent, but they just aren't good right now. Leads to frustration based on expectations. But man you gotta defend your home court...>Gentry mentioned one of the most disappointing things of this season thus far is how they've played at home. I'd say this is ridiculous, but...The Suns arent that good. Plain and Simple.
• Suns down 9 cant score, cant defend.
• Confusion/Chemistry? effort? What is it? Sarver courtside to witness this atrocity.
• Nash T, desperately trying to get tossed.
• 114-107 2 mts left.  Turner 3 ices this 117-107 1.42 left.

Suns a Defensive SIeve...SB Nation

 

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