[SIZE=+2]Run 'n' gun Suns proving no fluke[/SIZE]
They're going strong, and when Stoudemire comes back, look out
December 31, 2005
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica] Sam Smith On Pro Basketball [/FONT]
It's New Year's Eve, and everyone knows what that means, a night of wide-open thrills, shots for everyone and a good time.
That's right, the Phoenix Suns are here to play the Bulls.
"All we do is play to our players' strengths," Suns coach Mike D'Antoni said.
And those are better than many believed. Even without Amare Stoudemire, who now is traveling with the team after preseason cartilage surgery on his left knee, the Suns continue to lead the league in scoring, lead their division and, significantly, are second in point differential.
Only Detroit, which some predicted will win 70 games after it knocked off rival Miami on Thursday, has a larger positive differential between points scored and points allowed.
Yes, the same run-and-shoot Suns who supposedly do not play defense. Their points allowed and opponents' field-goal percentage are in the top half of the NBA and better in both categories than those of the Bulls. You would expect them to lead the league in assists, which they do, but they also lead in blocked shots.
"We've had a couple of bumps in the road," D'Antoni said in a telephone interview before the Suns defeated the Bobcats on Friday night. "We're happy to be 17-10, but I'm ticked off we're not 20-7 or 19-8.
"We don't have the speed factor we did without Amare and Leandro (Barbosa, also injured). We're not setting the rapid pace the whole game. But we're going to play this way until we prove we can't."
If they do, it might lead right back to the conference finals again, and perhaps further.
Despite their 62 victories last season, the Suns were dismissed as a fluke when Stoudemire went out. The belief was he would miss the entire season and perhaps never be the explosive player he was. The Suns are not saying when Stoudemire will play, but it originally was believed it would be around the All-Star break. But the fact Stoudemire chose to join the team for a trip through Chicago and Minnesota in December suggests he's thinking seriously of playing soon.
"I have to be 100 percent, no doubt," Stoudemire told Phoenix reporters last week. "But I'm itching to get out there. I can't wait to play with this team and see how much better we can be with myself in the equation. If everything keeps moving at this pace and there are no setbacks, I should be out there before long."
He would make the Suns a legitimate championship threat, especially with the additions this season of defensive-minded players such as Raja Bell and Kurt Thomas to go with the underrated Shawn Marion.
His return also would be great for the NBA, if not its coaches.
There's perhaps no team coaches around the NBA revile more than the Suns. Rookie Cavs coach Mike Brown let it slip out recently when he said a team cannot win with their style and, ultimately, only teams that preach defense can be successful. Forget that the Cavs trail the Suns in virtually every defensive category.
You can succeed being defense-oriented, though it helps to have a big defensive presence in the middle such as Tim Duncan, Ben Wallace or Shaquille O'Neal. The Pistons played hard defense under Larry Brown and won a title. They are now 17th in defensive field-goal percentage and sixth in scoring, and they still look pretty good.
Yes, yes, but what about in the playoffs? Yeah, yeah, yeah.
The Suns got to the final four last season.
They may get back, and last season's league MVP, Steve Nash, may have to be considered for the award again.
Who the heck was Boris Diaw until he came to Phoenix and the court opened for everyone? Eddie House, who is with his sixth team in six seasons, is averaging a career-high 10.7 points per game.
It has been fashionable to mention Chauncey Billups, Elton Brand, Dirk Nowitzki, LeBron James and Duncan as MVP candidates. But perhaps no one makes a team go like the rambling Nash. He's leading the league in assists again, averaging 10.5 along with 18.4 points per game. He's shooting 95 percent on free throws as the least likely must-see player in the NBA. Watching Nash run an offense of moving parts is like witnessing basketball artistry.
The Suns will try to run at every opportunity, devoid of overcoaching and lack of enthusiasm. The new players are learning and being dragged along by Nash and Marion, though they're not there yet. The Suns mostly play as if they are excited to be in the arena. They certainly are missing some weapons from last season with Stoudemire injured and Joe Johnson in Atlanta.
"You don't know what to expect," D'Antoni said. "I knew we'd be pretty good. I felt we could win the Pacific without Amare. Maybe not 62 games. But it's not giving Steve and Shawn enough credit. It's no fluke."
They put players in position to succeed. Marion is brilliant in a fast, open game, and it has freed up Nash. It's basketball's version of a wild party when the Suns hit town, so what better night than Saturday?
They're going strong, and when Stoudemire comes back, look out
December 31, 2005
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica] Sam Smith On Pro Basketball [/FONT]
It's New Year's Eve, and everyone knows what that means, a night of wide-open thrills, shots for everyone and a good time.
That's right, the Phoenix Suns are here to play the Bulls.
"All we do is play to our players' strengths," Suns coach Mike D'Antoni said.
And those are better than many believed. Even without Amare Stoudemire, who now is traveling with the team after preseason cartilage surgery on his left knee, the Suns continue to lead the league in scoring, lead their division and, significantly, are second in point differential.
Only Detroit, which some predicted will win 70 games after it knocked off rival Miami on Thursday, has a larger positive differential between points scored and points allowed.
Yes, the same run-and-shoot Suns who supposedly do not play defense. Their points allowed and opponents' field-goal percentage are in the top half of the NBA and better in both categories than those of the Bulls. You would expect them to lead the league in assists, which they do, but they also lead in blocked shots.
"We've had a couple of bumps in the road," D'Antoni said in a telephone interview before the Suns defeated the Bobcats on Friday night. "We're happy to be 17-10, but I'm ticked off we're not 20-7 or 19-8.
"We don't have the speed factor we did without Amare and Leandro (Barbosa, also injured). We're not setting the rapid pace the whole game. But we're going to play this way until we prove we can't."
If they do, it might lead right back to the conference finals again, and perhaps further.
Despite their 62 victories last season, the Suns were dismissed as a fluke when Stoudemire went out. The belief was he would miss the entire season and perhaps never be the explosive player he was. The Suns are not saying when Stoudemire will play, but it originally was believed it would be around the All-Star break. But the fact Stoudemire chose to join the team for a trip through Chicago and Minnesota in December suggests he's thinking seriously of playing soon.
"I have to be 100 percent, no doubt," Stoudemire told Phoenix reporters last week. "But I'm itching to get out there. I can't wait to play with this team and see how much better we can be with myself in the equation. If everything keeps moving at this pace and there are no setbacks, I should be out there before long."
He would make the Suns a legitimate championship threat, especially with the additions this season of defensive-minded players such as Raja Bell and Kurt Thomas to go with the underrated Shawn Marion.
His return also would be great for the NBA, if not its coaches.
There's perhaps no team coaches around the NBA revile more than the Suns. Rookie Cavs coach Mike Brown let it slip out recently when he said a team cannot win with their style and, ultimately, only teams that preach defense can be successful. Forget that the Cavs trail the Suns in virtually every defensive category.
You can succeed being defense-oriented, though it helps to have a big defensive presence in the middle such as Tim Duncan, Ben Wallace or Shaquille O'Neal. The Pistons played hard defense under Larry Brown and won a title. They are now 17th in defensive field-goal percentage and sixth in scoring, and they still look pretty good.
Yes, yes, but what about in the playoffs? Yeah, yeah, yeah.
The Suns got to the final four last season.
They may get back, and last season's league MVP, Steve Nash, may have to be considered for the award again.
Who the heck was Boris Diaw until he came to Phoenix and the court opened for everyone? Eddie House, who is with his sixth team in six seasons, is averaging a career-high 10.7 points per game.
It has been fashionable to mention Chauncey Billups, Elton Brand, Dirk Nowitzki, LeBron James and Duncan as MVP candidates. But perhaps no one makes a team go like the rambling Nash. He's leading the league in assists again, averaging 10.5 along with 18.4 points per game. He's shooting 95 percent on free throws as the least likely must-see player in the NBA. Watching Nash run an offense of moving parts is like witnessing basketball artistry.
The Suns will try to run at every opportunity, devoid of overcoaching and lack of enthusiasm. The new players are learning and being dragged along by Nash and Marion, though they're not there yet. The Suns mostly play as if they are excited to be in the arena. They certainly are missing some weapons from last season with Stoudemire injured and Joe Johnson in Atlanta.
"You don't know what to expect," D'Antoni said. "I knew we'd be pretty good. I felt we could win the Pacific without Amare. Maybe not 62 games. But it's not giving Steve and Shawn enough credit. It's no fluke."
They put players in position to succeed. Marion is brilliant in a fast, open game, and it has freed up Nash. It's basketball's version of a wild party when the Suns hit town, so what better night than Saturday?
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