Suns have to blame themselves

[CardShark]

They choked inthe 4th qtr in game 2 and choked in the 2nd half in game 3. They were sloppy and flat. They were in position to win both games and blew it.

 

[jbeecham]

Suns got mahandled in the 2nd half and the refs swallowed thier whistles for both teams after the flagrant foul in the 2nd qtr.

 

[Evil Ash]

Suns got mahandled in the 2nd half and the refs swallowed thier whistles for both teams after the flagrant foul in the 2nd qtr.

If you rely on the refs, you've already lost.

If the refs swallow their whistles that means the team has to adjust and play physical

 

[justAndy]

bad loss - suns fault.
up to them to recover.
F that guy that's calling him a girl.

 

[SirStefan32]

Jim, I agree with you that the Suns are getting screwed by the refs, but I don't think that's a valid excuse.

They just don't look like they want to win at this point. Diaw, Timmy, and Steve were the only ones that looked like they were trying.

 

[Nashfan]

Marion switched places with Barbosa in this game. Something like 3 of 11 shooting is unacceptable for him. Too many stupid mistakes at the end when we were within four and no hustle by letting them get second chance points or attempts. Just horrible game all together.

 

[SirStefan32]

If you rely on the refs, you've already lost.

If the refs swallow their whistles that means the team has to adjust and play physical

Andy, we are talking about Phoenix Suns here. Suns without Raja Bell and Kurt Thomas. Shouldn't even use the word "physical" in the same sentence as Phoenix Suns. :-(

 

[cly2tw]

TT and Marion seemed to lack concentration. They had many rebounds almost down but couldn't secure them. Marion on offense got the ball stolen or the lobs interfered with on many occasions.

Boris has 5 TOs, three of them were lobs that were interefered by the mavs. They seemed to be expecting them. We were kind of too clueless on offense in the 2nd. And JJ still has no confidence in his shots though his defense and husle has been great. It's just disappointing.

 

[slinslin]

Suns will never get calls without Amare. Shawn Marion drawing fouls? Please... He couldn't drive to the basket when he had Diop on him at the 3pt line and a clear path to the basket otherwise.

Nobody will give Shawn Marion the benefit of the doubt with his passive play.

 

[jbeecham]

I stated in another thread that the refs swallowed thier whistles against both teams and Dallas recognized it and started playing more physical and that's why they won. The Suns look tired tonight and it's not surprising because Bell plays 35-40 minutes a night and in a lot of ways he brings a lot of hustle and emotion to the team to lift them up. Without Bell, we've had big letdowns in the 3rd & 4th qtrs the last 2 games.

I'm still proud of what this team has done without 2/5ths of it's starting lineup and now without 3/5ths of thier starting lineup. It's pathetic for Dallas that the games are are close as they are with the Suns having double digit leads in every game and chances to win every game despite our injuries.

 

[Chaplin]

The refs weren't too bad tonight, although the worst blown call of the night came with a minute and a half to go in the game (the no call 24-second violation). In that case, the refs blew the game for us. Plain and simple. You can say that we shouldn't have been in that position, but that's a cop-out. We WERE in that position, and the refs made a no-call that could have potentially affected the outcome. This wasn't a ticky-tack foul no-call, but a clear violation that should have been called that late in the game.

 

[Joe Mama]

The referees didn't make a difference in this game. They blew calls on both ends, although overall I would say they called a decent game. The one thing I did notice is that they missed a bunch of obvious travels by both teams.

I watched that supposed 24 second violation a bunch of times, and I still think the ball barely grazed the rim. I thought it was the correct no call when I first saw it in real-time, and I still believe that after watching a bunch of times in slow motion.

Let's give credit where credit is due. Dallas Mavericks played great defense in the second half. I don't remember missing Amare Stoudemire all season as much as I did tonight. He would have eaten Diop and Nowitzki alive or killed them with you shot from the elbow.

We are seeing a tired, depleted Phoenix Suns team. They played two, difficult seven-game series, and the schedule is giving them no rest. On top of that they are doing it without 2 of their starters. I don't count Amare Stoudemire because he really hasn't played for the Suns all year. Then we are facing a good, deep, completely healthy, $97 million team.

Frankly, I'm happy they've played as well as they have given the circumstances.

Joe

 

[Chaplin]

Joe, I know you love disagreeing with me on principle...

Even the referee acknowledged the missed call, so I'm not sure your argument holds much water. Just because Steve Kerr says it hit the rim, doesn't mean you have to believe him.

I'm actually wondering what the statistics show about Boris' shots in the 2nd half vs. the 1st. It seemed like he stopped shooting after halftime, when he was hitting everything in the first half.

 

[JAndrews]

The referees didn't make a difference in this game. They blew calls on both ends, although overall I would say they called a decent game. The one thing I did notice is that they missed a bunch of obvious travels by both teams.

I watched that supposed 24 second violation a bunch of times, and I still think the ball barely grazed the rim. I thought it was the correct no call when I first saw it in real-time, and I still believe that after watching a bunch of times in slow motion.

Let's give credit where credit is due. Dallas Mavericks played great defense in the second half. I don't remember missing Amare Stoudemire all season as much as I did tonight. He would have eaten Diop and Nowitzki alive or killed them with you shot from the elbow.

We are seeing a tired, depleted Phoenix Suns team. They played two, difficult seven-game series, and the schedule is giving them no rest. On top of that they are doing it without 2 of their starters. I don't count Amare Stoudemire because he really hasn't played for the Suns all year. Then we are facing a good, deep, completely healthy, $97 million team.

Frankly, I'm happy they've played as well as they have given the circumstances.

Joe

Wow i didnt know the mavs had that much money into that team. Geez I would expect WAY MORE then that. They lost home court prior to this game. Anyway I agree with you, we all want the suns to be successful and win, however they are down players and rest. However, they are not out, YET. I think the suns are out matched at this point in the game. If Bell comes back I hope he is healthy and not playing on 1 leg that may make his injury worse. A partial tear usually ends in a complete tear which may require surgery to repair the tear.

 

[elindholm]

Even had a 24-second violation been called on that possession, the Suns were in bad shape.

Don't try to make excuses for this game. Only one team showed up for the second half, and that's why that team won.

 

[Nash]

I see so many people on other threads already saying they are looking forward to next year now that we're almost out and stuff like that! Just perplexing!

I don't know how they will regain the bounce in their step. They look pretty tired now. But I'm sure the Suns are going to fight to the end.

TT isn't tired, Marion doesn't get tired. So thats 2 guys who should tighten their play and step up.
Diaw is 23 and should be able to draw from his reserves.
Thats 3 key players who can make a difference.
Barbosa seems extremely random, so I can't say what we can expect from him.

But I'm still hoping we fight our way back and win this series.

 

[Treesquid PhD]

The reasons IMO why the suns lost
- didn't close out the last two minuets of the 2nd strong
- started 3rd quarter with 5 turnovers in the first 8 possesions
- When Nash was sitting Barbosa and house cannot run the offense
- House let terry catch fire
- Poor energy out of timeouts tied 72/72 mavs got away from there.

there will be piss poor calls every game it's the nature of the NBA and the speed of the game, this loss is totally on the team.

 

[pokerface]

Suns are a heavily injured team and thats why they lost.

People that think the refs cost us the game were watching the game blindfolded.

 

[az240zz]

I disagree with all of ya. The Suns lost this in the 1st qtr Their poor shooting and lack of any fast breaks. I don't think they made any 3's in that 1st qtr.

If they are a tired team why didn't Kurt Thomas play, at least when Diop was in, he might have been able to get a few rebounds.

In the 3rd qtr with Barbosa and Diaw in did any one else touch the ball except those 2? they never did try to get House involved.

A poorly coached and played game against a very dertermined Dallas team.


az240z

 

[pokerface]

Didnt they say Kurt Thomas would be ready by now??

 

[JWF]

THe problem was mental mistakes. The Suns failed to get easy defensive rebounds, even when the Mavs were falling back to get into transition. Not to mention the bonehead pass by Tim Thomas in the last 2 minutes of the game.

I just hope our problems the last 2 games are simply from complacency, and not a result of the team finally wearing down.

 

[CardShark]

They had no focus starting the second half. That's why they had the turnovers.

The media is crediting dallas with slowing it down to a half court game and thus taking the Suns out of their element. They were playing a half court game in the first half, yet were aggressive and were winning.

One thing they did a couple of times was isolate Nowitsky on a ball handler that made moves on him and drawing the fouls. That sent Dirk to the bench. I wish they would've continued to do that. Nash did isolate him a couple more times but I don't think he really challenged him enough to draw the fouls.

 

[jbeecham]

Didnt they say Kurt Thomas would be ready by now??

D'Antoni has said that KT will only be used as an emergency player because he hasn't had time to practice with the team or get back into shape yet. I think he's only participated in 2-3 practices total because of only 1 day off between games and the Suns are doing light practices to rest the guys that are playing. D'Antoni basically said that he'd probably be better off trying to use Grant if he had to because Grant is in better condition than KT.

 

[Chaplin]

Why is it that I mention a bad call, acknowledged by the referees as being bad, and I'm labeled as someone who thinks the officials completely cost us the game? Since when do I blame entire losses on the officiating??

You guys need to grow up and perhaps post something worthwhile instead of complaining what others are saying. I mentioned one thing, and you jump all over me.

 

[Joe Mama]

Joe, I know you love disagreeing with me on principle...

Even the referee acknowledged the missed call, so I'm not sure your argument holds much water. Just because Steve Kerr says it hit the rim, doesn't mean you have to believe him.

I'm actually wondering what the statistics show about Boris' shots in the 2nd half vs. the 1st. It seemed like he stopped shooting after halftime, when he was hitting everything in the first half.

I knew someone would bring up the referee agreeing that he blew it. He only saw it one time looking straight up at the replay in the arena, and he had coach Mike giving him an earful. I love to complain about the referees, so if I really thought they screwed us there I would agree with you.

I'm just telling you what I thought after watching that play repeatedly, even several times in slow motion.

I think it was Doug Collins who was saying they made the right call/no call.

Joe Mama