SEASON OPENER- Suns @ Lakers Offical Game Thread

[ArizonaSportsFan]

when Amare got onto the court in the 2nd half he committed 2 straight turnovers so that's probably why he didn't see much more time.

He was trying to make something happen with the ball in his hands, but it looked like his mind was going faster than this body. He will have some more embarassing moments like that in his way back, no doubt.

 

[Ronin]

After the first quarter the Lakers were more aggresive than the suns, and imo that's the reason we lost. I like what i saw from Barbosa and Banks in this game, and other seemed like the rest of the team was on cruise control.

 

[Suns_fan69]

I'm not quite in the doom and gloom camp quite yet but one of our biggest strengths as a team last year was our chemistry and judging from some of the responses today (I wasn't able to watch the game), this team is a long ways off from what made us so successful last year.

Am I off?

 

[Nash]

I'm not quite in the doom and gloom camp quite yet but one of our biggest strengths as a team last year was our chemistry and judging from some of the responses today (I wasn't able to watch the game), this team is a long ways off from what made us so successful last year.

Am I off?

No. Thats pretty accurate. The Suns didn't show much of the team play that makes them good. They sucked at rebounding on both ends - what hurt was they weren't even trying after the 1st q. They really need to work on team chemistry, PT, substitutions, and some killer instinct won't hurt.

 

[hawaiiansun]

How ya guys like this picture?

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[green machine]

How ya guys like this picture?

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Probably not as much as Smush Parker.

 

[mesacardsfan]

We will be fine saw what we are capable of in the first qtr, then we went to sleep. Probally looking forward to clippers game and let this one get away no biggie.

 

[SO91]

I'm not too worried about this team. The first 8-10 games don't mean that much in the big picture so an early loss on the road shouldn't be a shocker. I am dissapointed of course with some of the effort I saw out there, particularly with Diaw, who just did not seem right at all. The shooting touch should come up as the season progresses, and hopefully so will the defensive and rebounding effort. The bright spots, IMHO, were Leandro, Marion, Nash, and the early Amare. Prior to this season I had not seen Banks play at all, but from the things I've read he's supposed to be a defensive minded guy right? Why the hell give so much space to the other teams guards, like Smush and Farmar. I was expecting some full court pressure out of him. As far as the swagger on this team, I just don't see it as a big factor, not something required to be an elite team. As crazy as this might sound, I'm hoping they don't get off to an sizzling start like the Pistons did last year. I'd prefer to see improvement on a weekly basis and have the team peak at the right time.

 

[JWF]

We lost to the Mavs last year because we didn't have the legs. And Raja Bell. And a healthy Kurt Thomas.

Tonight, I think D'Antoni strangely relied on 3-guard lineups way too much. What was Marcus Banks doing in there with Barbosa and Nash? That didn't make a whole lot of sense.

Amare was playing well, but hardly sniffed the floor in the 2nd half. I wonder if his knees were bothering him.

I think Bell would have helped, but it wouldnt have been enough IMO. I saw the same problems in the Mavs series, we had against the Spurs in 2004, and in pretty much every loss for that matter. Our offensive strategy lead to cold spurts, and inconsistent defense allowed teams to quickly get back in the game, and capture momentum.

It pains me to admit, but after watching sports over the years, you cant win a championship without defense. Trust me, I certainly wish it wasnt the reality of sports, but it is.

Our offense isnt the problem IMO, even with it being high risk high reward. 100+ points is 100+ points. That should be enough to win in the NBA 90% of the time.

Again, we will win alot of games, as most teams dont have the proper personel to slow us down on a consistent basis. But those teams like SA, Dallas, etc..will continue to beat us unless the team makes a serious effort, whether by lineup change, or dedication, or both...to improving the defense. I do think they are trying as it looked somewhat better in the preseason, but there is still alot of work to do IMO.

 

[hawaiiansun]

I'm not too worried about this team. The first 8-10 games don't mean that much in the big picture so an early loss on the road shouldn't be a shocker. I am dissapointed of course with some of the effort I saw out there, particularly with Diaw, who just did not seem right at all. The shooting touch should come up as the season progresses, and hopefully so will the defensive and rebounding effort. The bright spots, IMHO, were Leandro, Marion, Nash, and the early Amare. Prior to this season I had not seen Banks play at all, but from the things I've read he's supposed to be a defensive minded guy right? Why the hell give so much space to the other teams guards, like Smush and Farmar. I was expecting some full court pressure out of him. As far as the swagger on this team, I just don't see it as a big factor, not something required to be an elite team. As crazy as this might sound, I'm hoping they don't get off to an sizzling start like the Pistons did last year. I'd prefer to see improvement on a weekly basis and have the team peak at the right time.

Thats a good point there, when you are sky high, there is no other way to go but down. Lets work to improve boys!

 

[D-Dogg]

It's one game. Like I said before this game, 10 game winning streak equals one game win in the NFL. I'm happy the Lakers won and Mo Evans was a very good energy pickup for us, Rad will be good when his hand heals and Bynum is going to be a good player in this league. Lamar brought it tonight, but he seems to turtle when Kobe is playing...if he can bring the same aggressive game with Kobe on the floor, watch out. Farmar played well, and Phil gave him crunch time minutes...that says a ton.

I liked the Lights Out lighting...did anyone feel it focused on the floor action and not the crowd? I thought that was great.

I wouldn't hang my head if I were a Suns fan, and I'm not super excited being a Laker fan....just one game with a ton more to play. From my perspective, I love the Lakers youth and raw talent. The question for me is, how do they play consistently? That fun of youth and raw talent like Bynum also means a lot of games where they blow it because of their youth.

Good game guys....I'm not gloating. And I still wish we had Barbosa and not you...I wanted the Lakers to draft this guy.

 

[SO91]

Bynum was a surprise to me, I had no idea he had that kind of game and that poise dishing the ball. It was a good game for the kid and I'm sure a good sign for Laker fans.

 

[JWF]

Bynum was a surprise to me, I had no idea he had that kind of game and that poise dishing the ball. It was a good game for the kid and I'm sure a good sign for Laker fans.

Yeah bynum really played well. Even early on when we were clicking on both ends of the court, he was making alot of plays scoring and rebounding wise.

 

[BuddyFranklin]

Oh for sure, no swagger at all. The team that won 62 games two years ago had plenty of swagger in the form of House and Tim Thomas...oh wait.

Guys, it's one game. The Suns played poorly, the Lakers came up big, and we lost on the road. It happens.

Green machine you're wrong there. We had plenty of swagger in the 62 win season. Amare and Q had the swagger in 04 05.

Amare is down on confidence and swagger factor. I see him as the only one with the ability to swagger. Jalen Rose can swagger and despite what most people think he's far better than the Jones boys, who don't swagger... though its obvious his swaggering days will be swaggered in Miami.

Oh and we'll get beat by the Clips. They play a complete game unlike us.

People can say all they want about, "We'll what about last season, and what about when Amare schooled the spurs." Fact is the nba has/is catching up with the Suns style. you can only do something for so long before you are worked out. And in that, you need to develop a PLAN B to counter opposing teams. Keep them guessing. That has never happened.

 

[green machine]

Green machine you're wrong there. We had plenty of swagger in the 62 win season. Amare and Q had the swagger in 04 05.

Amare is down on confidence and swagger factor. I see him as the only one with the ability to swagger. Jalen Rose can swagger and despite what most people think he's far better than the Jones boys, who don't swagger... though its obvious his swaggering days will be swaggered in Miami.

How does someone swagger?

I would venture to say that the league MVP "swaggers", as well as one Raja Bell. And I don't think Amare has stopped "swaggering".

Once the team starts winning they'll have that "swagger" that you say they are missing, and really the only thing that will have changed is the Suns' level of play.

 

[BuddyFranklin]

Swagger = none.

Just deal with it dude and don't ask questions.

Confidence + wins + attitude = Swagger.

But I agree once the wins come rolling in players will get some swagger, but right now neither element of my complex equation applies to the Suns right now.

Once we hit rock bottom of 0 and 2 i'm sure we'll run off 10 in row.

Oh and i just hope Coach D's obsession with jacking up 3's and outside j's no matter what, won't kill any confidence which remains with Amare. We gotta pound the ball and run the P&R for Amare more often. If he's rusty he'll only get better if he's actually involved! If he is overlooked he'll just go even more into his shell.

 

[green machine]

Swagger = none.

Just deal with it dude and don't ask questions.

Confidence + wins + attitude = Swagger.

But I agree once the wins come rolling in players will get some swagger, but right now neither element of my complex equation applies to the Suns right now.

Once we hit rock bottom of 0 and 2 i'm sure we'll run off 10 in row.

"Just deal with it dude and don't ask questions". That's a convincing argument. I don't sense the problem that you do, but you're entitled to your opinion. Welcome to the board.

 

[BuddyFranklin]

Appreciate it.

And i'm too tired to argue and sound convincing.

But thanks none the less.

 

[hawaiiansun]

Ok I brought up swagger so let me defend it. Well swagger is just something a player has that is kind of like "cockiness" in a good way. Its the way you get out and play, the emotion you show, etc. House had that with his dances, his cheering from the bench, his pump it up motion to the crowd, and so on. What I liked about Tim Thomas is he didn't back down. I loved how he walked through the wall of the Mavericks in the playoffs to show he wasn't scared, and the game vs the Lakers when Walton gave him a tough foul, Tim got up and stared him down to show he aint gonna take that stuff. Thats the kind of swagger I like, to a certain extent of course. Those are the things I loved about Q too =( Miss that guy haha. Q and his headpounds, the way he would stick up for his teammates, his personality, ahh man. Kinda tough time explaining it but I tried.

 

[SirStefan32]

Terrible game, but I don't think it's time to panic.
Diaw, Banks and Bell were terrible. Banks is new and I understand why he is truggling, but I am really surprised to see Bell and Diaw playing as poorly as they did. Both of them looked out of shape, sluggish, just flat out not ready to play. Jones was awful as well.

Barbosa was great, I just hope he keeps it up.
Kurt Thomas is looking pretty good- much better than he looked a year ogo. I haven't seen him in such a good shape in a few years.

Nash sat on the bench too long. I know Mike is trying to limit his minutes, but it seemed to me he was out too long. He never really got back into it.

Amare had a very nice first half. He had two back-to-back turnovers and lazy fouls in 2nd half and he was taken out. I know they are trying to limit his minutes, but 12 minutes or so just seems a bit low to me. I just hope his knees are ok and that he keeps improving physically as well as mentally.
It was so nice to see Amare back on the floor. I forgot how good that kid is.

I am curious to see how Mike deals with Nash's, Stoudamire's, and Thomas' minutes tonight against the Clippers.

And last, but not least, that was one hell of a game by the Lakers. They looked like a good team out there. That Bynum kid is something else. Odom was terrific as always. If Odom can keep playing like this when Kobe returns, and if Bynum continues playing as well as he played last night, these guys will be a very good team.

 

[SO91]

Ok I brought up swagger so let me defend it. Well swagger is just something a player has that is kind of like "cockiness" in a good way. Its the way you get out and play, the emotion you show, etc. House had that with his dances, his cheering from the bench, his pump it up motion to the crowd, and so on. What I liked about Tim Thomas is he didn't back down. I loved how he walked through the wall of the Mavericks in the playoffs to show he wasn't scared, and the game vs the Lakers when Walton gave him a tough foul, Tim got up and stared him down to show he aint gonna take that stuff. Thats the kind of swagger I like, to a certain extent of course. Those are the things I loved about Q too =( Miss that guy haha. Q and his headpounds, the way he would stick up for his teammates, his personality, ahh man. Kinda tough time explaining it but I tried.

so I guess all this team needs is a cheerleader on the bench and an "enforcer" on the court right?

 

[sly fly]

Terrible game, but I don't think it's time to panic.
Diaw, Banks and Bell were terrible. Banks is new and I understand why he is truggling, but I am really surprised to see Bell and Diaw playing as poorly as they did. Both of them looked out of shape, sluggish, just flat out not ready to play. Jones was awful as well.

Barbosa was great, I just hope he keeps it up.
Kurt Thomas is looking pretty good- much better than he looked a year ogo. I haven't seen him in such a good shape in a few years.

Nash sat on the bench too long. I know Mike is trying to limit his minutes, but it seemed to me he was out too long. He never really got back into it.

Amare had a very nice first half. He had two back-to-back turnovers and lazy fouls in 2nd half and he was taken out. I know they are trying to limit his minutes, but 12 minutes or so just seems a bit low to me. I just hope his knees are ok and that he keeps improving physically as well as mentally.
It was so nice to see Amare back on the floor. I forgot how good that kid is.

I am curious to see how Mike deals with Nash's, Stoudamire's, and Thomas' minutes tonight against the Clippers.

And last, but not least, that was one hell of a game by the Lakers. They looked like a good team out there. That Bynum kid is something else. Odom was terrific as always. If Odom can keep playing like this when Kobe returns, and if Bynum continues playing as well as he played last night, these guys will be a very good team.

Agree on all points.

- I think Mike D's mistake was removing Amare in the 2nd quarter. He seemd to be in a nice groove. His ego needs to be stroked when he's playing well.

- Bynum looked like a top-5 center out there. Not sure what Jabbar did to him, but his fundamentals were off-the-charts. His passing from the high-post was better than any other 19 year-old big man I've seen.

- How do you sign a $45million contract and come to work out of shape?

- Minutes shouldn't be a problem for ANYBODY tonight. Everyone seemed to get their rest last night.

 

[MaoTosiFanClub]

Bynum looked like a top-5 center out there. Not sure what Jabbar did to him, but his fundamentals were off-the-charts. His passing from the high-post was better than any other 19 year-old big man I've seen.

The passes were great, but his hands and footwork were spectacular also. Shaq was simply overpowering people at that age, Bynum was simply outplaying KT a supposed defensive-oriented, wily veteran. Once Bynum grows into his body he could be something special. Why is it that the Lakers always find a way to get the great ones?

 

[D-Dogg]

Why is it that the Lakers always find a way to get the great ones?

Because they are the Lakers.


I wish the Cardinals were more like them.

 

[sly fly]

Because they are the Lakers.


I wish the Cardinals were more like them.

Let's not forget Chuck Nevitt, Slava Medvenko, Chris Mihm, Jack Haley, and Benoit Benjamin. They've had their fair share of stiffs over the years.