Playoffs: Suns @ Nuggets Monday game thread 5-1-2023- Game 2

[AZ Native]

Love the positivity but we are NOT Giannis and the Bucks.

Or the Mavs? Sorry, just not in my nature to give up. Although as a fan of the Suns from day 1, maybe I should.

 

[Phrazbit]

Huh? Stop putting words in my mouth. We had a shot, sure, but come one, did you REALLY think we could do it this year with the small number of games KD has played?

You don’t trade for a guy of Durant’s age and durability with an eye on the future.

This was the definition of a ‘win now’ trade.

 

[GatorAZ]

We have no cap space, and no draft picks. You are expecting miracles.

Neither did the Clippers but they added Westbrook, Bones, Gordon, Plumlee ets who were competitive without their two best players. Imagine this team without Book & KD.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

My point is these guys, even if physically washed, should still know how to run an offense and get others open. They have failed.

A) you have to have an offense that’s more than iso and a high pick and roll.

B) age catches up to you. Paul can no longer whip around people and get his spot like he used to.

 

[Proximo]

LOL… if you can justify a $23 million a year gap between Ayton and Looney, I gotta stop engaging with you.
Looney isn’t a “star.” And he knows it. Ayton’s not a star either, but he doesn’t know it.

Yeah that might be true, but other teams know it, and our best option is to try and develop him, because we aren’t going to get a good trade return.

 

[DJ Tabooh]

Just asking for a friend, so we lost 2 games on the road and the series is over. Didn’t we go up 2-0 the last 2 years and lost both series? Oh ye of little faith.

This team just doesn’t have enough outside of KD and Book. Monty isn’t the coach to lead us to the promised land. Too much iso. I love KD and Book but they can’t do it alone. Let’s see if we can win a game this series. Game 3 should be interesting but Denver is just better.

 

[dscher]

Yeah, it’s Ayton. WTF is wrong with you? It’s fine to be upset with his play, but let’s maintain objectivity

So it's ok to be upset with his play most of the time, but not want to move on from him and prefer a hustling, technically sound player instead? Seems rational. Lol.

 

[Proximo]

Neither did the Clippers but they added Westbrook, Bones, Gordon, Plumlee ets who were competitive without their two best players. Imagine this team without Book & KD.

They traded for all those guys but Westbrook, and no team but the clippers would even touch him, not to mention we aren’t in LA so we could not have got him if we wanted to.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

I didn’t put words into your mouth. I was responding to what you were inferring when you said….

You said this statement as if this was the prevailing thought. It simply wasn’t.

Agree. I thought we would be better this year. But I didn’t think we would have so few games to integrate KD. And I really didn’t think monty would flail at utilizing him better. I also thought that while our bench wasn’t impressive they, along with okogie, wouldn’t completely disappear. All of them. At once. That’s impressive in its futility.

 

[TJ]

Yeah that might be true, but other teams know it, and our best option is to try and develop him, because we aren’t going to get a good trade return.

The only way you can justify keeping Ayton is if you fire Monty and Mark Bryant and hire someone who wants to develop him the way he’s been asking to be developed for years.

 

[Sunburn]

It’s Ayton in that $30 million per is a complete waste of money. I honestly can’t think of a player where the gap between contributions to the team vs compensation, is so huge.

Ben Simmons. But I agree that DA is overpaid.

 

[Mainstreet]

Jones has become the Keim of the NBA....early success has clouded his deficiencies.

Sadly, I think this is true.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Well he was the 3rd best 3 point shooter in the league, and he had like 3 or 4 open ones tonight, how the hell is Monty supposeed to know he would miss them all tonight?

He hasn’t been that guy for over a month.

 

[RON_IN_OC]

A) you have to have an offense that’s more than iso and a high pick and roll.

B) age catches up to you. Paul can no longer whip around people and get his spot like he used to.

Paul really needs to be used like Dennis Johnson was used later in his career.

 

[Hoop Head]

The only way you can justify keeping Ayton is if you fire Monty and Mark Bryant and hire someone who wants to develop him the way he’s been asking to be developed for years.

What, let him chuck 3's? He literally thinks he's dominating now, or rather dominayton. The kid is delusional, you don't feed into it.

 

[Bufalay]

F Greg Anthony.

 

[GatorAZ]

They traded for all those guys but Westbrook, and no team but the clippers would even touch him, not to mention we aren’t in LA so we could not have got him if we wanted to.

I’m just saying you can get quality role players without first rd picks. Happens every year.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Paul has to go and depending on what you can get for Ayton maybe move him because you really have no choice you’ve locked yourself in to KD and Booker

And Ayton is the only thing on your roster worth anything

Agree. On both. I just don’t know what you can pull for Ayton. I believe his value will be at an all-time low due to big salary and awful playoffs.

 

[Covert Rain]

Agree. I thought we would be better this year. But I didn’t think we would have so few games to integrate KD. And I really didn’t think monty would flail at utilizing him better. I also thought that while our bench wasn’t impressive they, along with okogie, wouldn’t completely disappear. All of them. At once. That’s impressive in its futility.

The other thing about this? Monty admitted to simplifying our offensive sets so he could just plug KD in. IMO, the lack of creativity on offense that usually breaks down into either Book or KD doing ISO is showing that in spades I think.

 

[Finito]

The only way you can justify keeping Ayton is if you fire Monty and Mark Bryant and hire someone who wants to develop him the way he’s been asking to be developed for years.

Yeah Monty has made him a screen setter the last 3 years

Developing talent is as important as talent itself

 

[Proximo]

The only way you can justify keeping Ayton is if you fire Monty and Mark Bryant and hire someone who wants to develop him the way he’s been asking to be developed for years.

He’s still 24 and has all the athletic ability in the world. He is not hopeless.

yeah I would be ok replacing the coaching staff, I don’t think they are getting the job done.

 

[dscher]

The only way you can justify keeping Ayton is if you fire Monty and Mark Bryant and hire someone who wants to develop him the way he’s been asking to be developed for years.

Been asking? Really? Lol

 

[Proximo]

Sadly, I think this is true.

Huh? What early success. If you ask me he was far better this year than seasons past.

 

[Mainstreet]

Yep which is why taking on KD’s massive salary and giving all our firsts away was not a good idea. I understand why ishiba did it, but it was short sited. But in fairness I never expected Durant to play this badly.

I'm not going to lay the blame on Durant. The Suns simply gave up too much to get him.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Him spending weeks on a rotation then to change it up in the playoffs is beyond inexcusable. Then he sticks with Shamet for multiple games.

If he had not done that to begin with he wouldn’t still be trying to experiment with the lineup in Round 2. This has had a cascade effect of guys not being used to rotations.

Can someone show me another coach that switched up the rotation before a playoff game and is still doing it now?

Now we are really in for it. With Paul being hurt? That shortens our rotation on the bench even more. Not that it matters how short our bench is they are so bad.

You don’t have tell me monty stinks. I’ve been out on him for a long time now. Unfortunately the longer they keep him, the more it tarnishes the good memories I would have of his having a hand in resurrecting the club. I’ll just have more disasters in recent memory.