Mavericks @ Suns 10-17-18 (season opener)

[Superbone]

Denver and GS up next. Good check on how good we are.

Ugh. I wish we didn't have to play the Warriors so soon.

 

[Yuma]

Ugh. I wish we didn't have to play the Warriors so soon.

Better now than when Cousins gets on the court. Pretty much won't matter the way they looked on opening night. We steal one win either GS or Denver, I am VERY happy.

 

[Cheesebeef]

I must have missed this conversation. Any connection to the "diesel boats" cry from Harry Dean Stanton in Down Periscope?

before your time old timer!

It's a DEEEEEEEEEEP cut from when I actually ENJOYED the Suns during the 7 seconds Or Less run.

Tonight was LITERALLY the first time I've clapped my hands in excitement since 2010. Went out of my way to watch the game with Ouchie... for the first time since 2010.

I'm pumped. I know there are going to be peaks and valleys this season and prob more valleys than peaks, but we are officially in the era of the RISING SUNS. I mean... I was fist pumping my entire drive home from Orange County to LA... from Eye Of The Tiger to I Wear My Sunglasses At Night, didn't matter the song.

I missed loving basketball. I've been waiting for this game for almost a decade.

 

[ProdigalSun]

The future is bright!

 

[1tinsoldier]

YES! Everyone projected Mavs as a possible 8th seed.

the Mavs are more likely to have a better season. they pass well, have a balanced line-up, and experienced coach. interesting that they turned to Doncic in crunch time in his first game. like tonight, he's NBA ready, but not ready to lead an NBA team.

 

[slinslin]

could be one of the top 20 satisfying Suns games ever, coming off the worst year, worst record, after their first #1 pick, hoping for a sign of renewal in the first game of the season. Also the significance of Ayton and Doncic appearing in their first NBA game at the same time for comparison of our pick. Ayton validated our choice.

Game Review:

Good
1) more evidence Booker is on his way to superstardom
2) evidence Ayton could be a star in his rookie year and a dominant big man.
3) JJ & Warren having a solid game, hitting 3's. Warren showing real signs of adding skills to his game.
4) assists
5) Ariza

Bad
1) some of JJ's shots were still a little wild and quick.
2) Anderson looks sluggish.
3) Ayton has a lot to learn -- moving without the ball, pick and roll, hustle, jumping for rebounds
4) a game like this from this team can only be followed by disappointment

Doncic is pretty much as advertised. he's the most NBA ready and is a can't miss star with his skill set. a triple double threat. his only limitation may be that his mind and moves would be much more effective if he was faster and more athletic -- and you don't get faster as you get older.

Triple double threat that so far is failing to put up more assists than turnovers, alright.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Igor is the real hero of this game. He has this group passing and playing like a team.

 

[sunsfan88]

Ariza does so much for this team defensively too. I wish we could just take his defensive IQ and give it to Ayton too.

 

[sunsfan88]

Denver and GS up next. Good check on how good we are.

Don't care about the GS game because refs will make sure they win no matter how hard the Suns play or try. It's called star calls which their superstars will get. I may tune in simply to see how Ayton handles Draymond Green but that's it.

 

[sunsfan88]

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[Phrazbit]

Tonight vs the preseason.

Obviously, Booker was as much or more transformative than we'd hoped. I honestly think Booker is quickly on his way to being a top 5 guard in the league, and to go from the rag tag group we had at the guard positions to 30+ minutes of Booker is a massive game changer.

Also, it seems pretty obvious that Ariza was coasting in the preseason and I don't blame him at all, he's almost halfway though his 2nd decade in the league. He looks like he could be for this team was Grant Hill was for the Suns. A cagey vet with a calming presence who can do just about anything required at a serviceable level... basically, exactly what he was hyped as when we signed him.

It's one game, it's just one game... it's only one game. But if this roster can stay healthy, they've got shooters and defenders at multiple positions and 2 dynamic studs in Booker and Ayton. IMO, with no changes, this team can win 35 games and possibly more as Booker and Ayton develop chemistry on the pick and roll and the shooters on the outside figure out where those picks are going to generate them wide open looks.

And I know Chandler gets ripped here a lot and he didn't do anything to wow in his playing time (but he also didn't stand out in a bad way either), but I love watching that guy on the bench, he gets so hyped up for his teammates. If this team can play competitive ball it will be helpful to have an ol soldier like him getting in their faces and pumping them up.

 

[slinslin]

the nice thing is that Booker did that while still looking uncomfortable dribbling with his hand which was apparent in pick and roll situations.

Ayton looked uncomfortable for long stretches and still put up 18/10/6.

I am not sure if it was strategy or Ayton being scared to mess up. In the first 4-5 plays the Suns allowed penetration to the rim which resulted in Ayton rotating to challenge but the Mavs found his man with good passing. From that moment on Ayton did not really leave his man. Maybe his assignment was to stay home instead of allowing the drop off pass.

In that situation where Doncic got a fastbreak layup it was kind of weird that Ayton did not challenge, guess he assumed he had someone behind him.

Ayton will only get better. Booker will still get better. Their chemistry was not really there in the PNR in part due to Bookers hand I guess.

I am most worried about Ariza, Warren and Jackson replicating their play from tonight.

Jackson was not a negative for a chance, Warren made 3s and Ariza had 21/8/7..

On the other hand Chandler and Anderson couldn't play worse.

Loved seeing Jamal Crawford on the bench constantly trying to teach the young guys.

 

[Phrazbit]

I'm not sure if Ayton wears contacts (I think he might because I feel like I remember him having an issue in an Arizona game last year) but during Ayton's most disengaged stretch of the game, a run of 3-4 minutes in the 2nd quarter, he kept messing with one of his eyes. He may have been poked, it might have been a contact. I get not pulling yourself to deal with it in college or HS, because with one eye he is still the best player out there by a mile, but he probably should have motioned for at least a time out so he could deal with whatever was bugging him.

 

[taz02]

WOW! That was really something. I don't even know what to say. Everything was clicking especially team chemistry.

This style of play and chemistry will attract free agents even if the win total isn't impressive.

Ayton was ignored on offense for far too long on several stretches and still ended with 18/10.

If Canaan can play like that all season we are ok at PG.

Teams that lack a defensive big are going to be in big trouble. That was the first game of Booker and Ayton playing together and they are already a devastating combo.

McD sure put together a nice roster, good thing he didn't land us a top point guard or Sarver probably would have had him killed instead of just firing him..haha

 

[Yuma]

t
I am not sure if it was strategy or Ayton being scared to mess up. In the first 4-5 plays the Suns allowed penetration to the rim which resulted in Ayton rotating to challenge but the Mavs found his man with good passing. From that moment on Ayton did not really leave his man. Maybe his assignment was to stay home instead of allowing the drop off pass.

Watching D. Jordan in games, as soon as opposing centers leave him to help on D it's lob city, or a tip in, or at least an offensive rebound. You have to stay home on him. Jordan's whole game is playing off centers who help on D. Jordan doesn't have a jumper like Ayton, or can dribble his way into the paint. A lot of his game comes on lobs and put backs, so staying home on him is the best strategy.

 

[ArizonaSportsFan]

I'm not sure if Ayton wears contacts (I think he might because I feel like I remember him having an issue in an Arizona game last year) but during Ayton's most disengaged stretch of the game, a run of 3-4 minutes in the 2nd quarter, he kept messing with one of his eyes. He may have been poked, it might have been a contact. I get not pulling yourself to deal with it in college or HS, because with one eye he is still the best player out there by a mile, but he probably should have motioned for at least a time out so he could deal with whatever was bugging him.

He got hit/scraped near the eye on a previous play on defense. May have dislodged the contact lens, or perhaps he was checking for blood.

 

[95pro]

LOL. How do you feel now?

Still the same. Great offense but still a tad overrrated, it’s the D that’s disappoints from time to time, something a max player should possess as well imo. But that’s never the case, Harden for example.

 

[Krangodnzr]

My thoughts:

Booker was by far the best player on the court. Everybody keeps talking about whether he is a superstar or not but I think this type of performance proves he is. Few players can singlehandedly take over games like this and what really separates Booker is that he hits so many difficult shots. If the Sun's become a moderately effective team, Booker elevates the team to a playoff team.

Trade Warren? Hell no. If he hits open threes like he did tonight, he is too valuable at such an affordable contract.

Canaan was average. I don't mean that as a slight either, the Suns can win with performances like last night.

Ariza is the ultimate glue guy.

Ayton looked tentative at times, disengaged, but his amazing natural ability STILL translated to near all star stat line. Jordan gave him problems at times and his performance obviously has to be factored with this variable in mind.

Doncic needs to learn what shots are good for him. The kid took like 6 really bad shots for him. Once he figures this out and improves his conditioning he's going to be a star.

JJ started out taking a few bad shots, but once he settled down he looked pretty good.

 

[Krangodnzr]

Watching D. Jordan in games, as soon as opposing centers leave him to help on D it's lob city, or a tip in, or at least an offensive rebound. You have to stay home on him. Jordan's whole game is playing off centers who help on D. Jordan doesn't have a jumper like Ayton, or can dribble his way into the paint. A lot of his game comes on lobs and put backs, so staying home on him is the best strategy.

I think this is why Ayton stopping challenging drives and it actually makes sense. Jordan is one of the best finishers in the game and it would be better to allow the driver to shot than to allow the ball to go to Jordan.

 

[StreetTruckinTitan]

Nice first win. And as Cotton always said; "If you dont win the first one, you cant win them all!" I think this was the first game Ive watched start to finsh in a couple years? This was an exciting game of runs. Just when you think the Suns have it sewed up the Mavs cut it to four. And then the Suns hit another barrage of threes to pull away again. Another quote Cotton always said; "You live and die by the three!" And thats certainly true with the Suns. They were falling last night but when they dont, the Suns will struggle to win games. Still, a nice first win, especially offensively. The D on the other hand, leaves a lot to be desired. Ole'

 

[Suns_fan69]

One more thing to note. I really liked seeing how Jackson got fired up after Dennis Smith Jr stole the ball from him and then the block. He got really into it yet still played under control. Some players just play better with a chip on their shoulder (Raja Bell and Westbrook come to mind), hopefully Jackson can continue to corral that productively.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Nice first win. And as Cotton always said; "If you dont win the first one, you cant win them all!" I think this was the first game Ive watched start to finsh in a couple years? This was an exciting game of runs. Just when you think the Suns have it sewed up the Mavs cut it to four. And then the Suns hit another barrage of threes to pull away again. Another quote Cotton always said; "You live and die by the three!" And thats certainly true with the Suns. They were falling last night but when they dont, the Suns will struggle to win games. Still, a nice first win, especially offensively. The D on the other hand, leaves a lot to be desired. Ole'

Actually. Cottons quote was “If you live by the three, you die by the three.” His point was that teams should not live by the three. It was a different era in the NBA. That part of Cottons philosophy has been proven wrong.

 

[AzStevenCal]

Actually. Cottons quote was “If you live by the three, you die by the three.” His point was that teams should not live by the three. It was a different era in the NBA. That part of Cottons philosophy has been proven wrong.

In Cotton's defense, I doubt he would have said it if he were still coaching today.

 

[StreetTruckinTitan]

Actually. Cottons quote was “If you live by the three, you die by the three.” His point was that teams should not live by the three. It was a different era in the NBA. That part of Cottons philosophy has been proven wrong.

Same thing. And if your game is predicated on hitting the three and if its not falling, you're going to be in trouble. It doesnt matter what the era. Basketball is basketball.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

Actually. Cottons quote was “If you live by the three, you die by the three.” His point was that teams should not live by the three. It was a different era in the NBA. That part of Cottons philosophy has been proven wrong.

I can still clearly remember the Celtics from the early 2000s and how everyone thought they were just some anomoly because they were winning games while taking a ton of threes. Now everyone that was suggesting it looks pretty silly right about now.