George O'Brien
ASFN Icon
I said all along that I preferred Brent Barry to Steve Nash on both basketball and financial grounds. That being said, I think Nash will have a huge impact on the Suns.
Ever since the Suns traded away Kidd, they have not been a good running team. Virtually all their fast break points have been on breakaways, but when there is a more traditional fast break they typically slowed it down or else bungled the play. Marbury simply wouldn't push the ball and Barbosa lacked the experience to key the break. Eisley was just as bad as Marbury when it came to running the break.
Running the break well is a great way to beat even great defenses. The Nets won three in a row against the Pistons because they ran the ball, while the Lakers were within a jump shot of being swept because they didn't. Running is not a substitute for have a strong half court offense, but it makes it easier to get good looks.
Pushing the ball has another advantage, it discourages opponents from crashing the offensive boards. Even guard penitration becomes an issue because if the guy misses, he is not in position to get back on defense.
Great open court PG's are hard to find and many the ones that are - they are not good shooters. TJ Ford had a huge impact on the Bucks, but his shooting is not very good. Jason Williams is very exciting, but he averages only 40.% from the field and just 33% for three. Jason Kidd averages only 38.4% from the field.
Nash averaged 47% from the field and over 40% three (14.5 ppg) while getting 8.8 assists per game. There are some shooter PG's like Bibby that score more 18.4 ppg with good percentages, but Bibby had only 5.4 assists per game.
I am very excited about what Nash will bring to the Suns offense. As for his defense...
Ever since the Suns traded away Kidd, they have not been a good running team. Virtually all their fast break points have been on breakaways, but when there is a more traditional fast break they typically slowed it down or else bungled the play. Marbury simply wouldn't push the ball and Barbosa lacked the experience to key the break. Eisley was just as bad as Marbury when it came to running the break.
Running the break well is a great way to beat even great defenses. The Nets won three in a row against the Pistons because they ran the ball, while the Lakers were within a jump shot of being swept because they didn't. Running is not a substitute for have a strong half court offense, but it makes it easier to get good looks.
Pushing the ball has another advantage, it discourages opponents from crashing the offensive boards. Even guard penitration becomes an issue because if the guy misses, he is not in position to get back on defense.
Great open court PG's are hard to find and many the ones that are - they are not good shooters. TJ Ford had a huge impact on the Bucks, but his shooting is not very good. Jason Williams is very exciting, but he averages only 40.% from the field and just 33% for three. Jason Kidd averages only 38.4% from the field.
Nash averaged 47% from the field and over 40% three (14.5 ppg) while getting 8.8 assists per game. There are some shooter PG's like Bibby that score more 18.4 ppg with good percentages, but Bibby had only 5.4 assists per game.
I am very excited about what Nash will bring to the Suns offense. As for his defense...
