Updated: May 26, 2006, 2:31 PM ET
Scouting report: Suns vs. Mavs Game 2
By John Carroll
Scouts Inc.
1) Slow down the pace. They cannot get into a track meet with the Suns. They will lose that battle. They need to push the ball but they cannot take quick shots or long 3-point shots without first driving the ball to the rim or pounding it inside.
2) With their size and length they need to continue to punish the Suns inside. They had 18 offensive rebounds in Game 1 with Dirk Nowitzki dominating the offensive boards. They killed the Suns with second-chance points and they need to get the ball into the paint and get all over the glass.
3) Attack Steve Nash offensively and wear him down. He might be a prolific offensive player but he cannot defend. Devin Harris torched him in Game 1.
4) Keep getting the ball to Nowitzki and Jerry Stackhouse at the foul line/elbow area in isolations. When they have the ball in these areas, these two players are impossible for the Suns to guard, given proper spacing and vision of double teams.
5) Keep utilizing the bench and wear down the Suns. The Mavs' bench is much deeper, and the longer the series goes the more the bench will be a factor. The Mavs played 10 players and outscored the Suns' bench 36-11.
Mavs Defense: Transition defense is the first order of business for the Mavericks. They must run back on every make or miss, stop the drives to the rim, locate the Suns' shooters and limit the Suns' effectiveness on the break. They cannot allow the Suns to score 32 points again on the break in this series.
Mavericks coach Avery Johnson and his staff have decided that to beat the Suns, they needed to take away the 3-point shot. The Mavs' philosophy in Game 1 was to guard one-on-one, with no help whatsoever. They were willing to take their chances that they could defend the Suns' drives. The Mavs allowed the Suns 72 points in the paint. This might be the correct philosophy to beat the Suns. However, the Mavs must drastically improve their one-on-one defense. They must be able to stay in front of their men much better and not allow such easy dribble penetration to the rim.
In addition, they are playing without a center in this series (Erick Dampier played only 17 minutes in Game 1), thus they do not have any inside presence to block or alter shots when the Suns attack the rim.
If the Mavs cannot contain the dribbler better than they did in Game 1, they might have to rethink their "No Help" philosophy.
This series might come down to which team elects to defend the pick-and-roll. The Mavs made numerous mistakes defending Nash in pick-and-roll situations and they must decide exactly how they are going to defend the Suns. There is no question that the Suns' perimeter attack taxes your pick-and-roll schemes. But with the small lineup the Mavs are utilizing, they must decide if they are going to hard hedge or switch. They cannot allow the dribbler the ability to turn the corner and attack the way they did. If they are going to switch only late in the shot clock, then they need to do that. They looked confused about what they wanted to do and there was no consistency to their approach.
If the Mavs are going to continue to defend the Suns the way they did in Game 1 by hugging their men, then the Suns will spread the court and drive the ball as hard as they can to the rim. Nash, Leandro Barbosa, Shawn Marion and Tim Thomas can all put the ball on the floor and get to the rim. Their ability to score 72 points in the paint was no fluke.
Get the ball to Boris Diaw. He is so happy he is not facing either Elton Brand or Chris Kaman in this series. He looks around and sees a mismatch every time he touches the ball. If they go big on him he will drive it, and if they go small, he will live in the paint. On the Suns' last possession of the game, Diaw had Stackhouse on him in the paint. When the Mavs sniffed out the play, which was supposed to be a backcut by Nash, Diaw just gathered himself and shot right over the smaller player.
Suns Defense: Pick and roll defense! The Suns must improve this area of their defense to win this series. They cannot allow the Mavs to torch them the way they did in Game 1. Harris and Jason Terry were able to run pick-and-rolls with Stackhouse or Nowitzki and get anywhere they want. Switching men on pick-and-rolls might stop the initial thrust by the dribbler, but it leads to other problems. The switch leads to dribble penetration vs. bigs and post-up possibilities vs. smalls. In addition the switch always leaves you vulnerable on the glass, and the Suns really struggled there.
Marion did a credible job on Nowitzki. He is athletic, long and has good active hands, and you need all of those qualities to play Dirk. Even though Nowitzki had 25 points, he did not score the bulk of his points on Marion in one-on-one situations.
Winning in the playoffs requires stops! Especially in the fourth quarter and the last five minutes. The Suns are not a very good defensive team, and the injury to Raja Bell late in the game makes them even more vulnerable. But give them credit for getting stops when the game was on the line. Even though the Suns allowed 118 points, they stopped the Mavs in the crucial last 3:41 of the game. That made all the difference.
Pick: Mavs in seven.
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Scouting report: Suns vs. Mavs Game 2
By John Carroll
Scouts Inc.
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Mavs Offense: The Mavs scored 118 points in Game 1 and this phase of their game is not the reason they lost. However they need to realize why they were in position to win, and continue to do those things in Game 2. The following are the things they need to do: 1) Slow down the pace. They cannot get into a track meet with the Suns. They will lose that battle. They need to push the ball but they cannot take quick shots or long 3-point shots without first driving the ball to the rim or pounding it inside.
2) With their size and length they need to continue to punish the Suns inside. They had 18 offensive rebounds in Game 1 with Dirk Nowitzki dominating the offensive boards. They killed the Suns with second-chance points and they need to get the ball into the paint and get all over the glass.
3) Attack Steve Nash offensively and wear him down. He might be a prolific offensive player but he cannot defend. Devin Harris torched him in Game 1.
4) Keep getting the ball to Nowitzki and Jerry Stackhouse at the foul line/elbow area in isolations. When they have the ball in these areas, these two players are impossible for the Suns to guard, given proper spacing and vision of double teams.
5) Keep utilizing the bench and wear down the Suns. The Mavs' bench is much deeper, and the longer the series goes the more the bench will be a factor. The Mavs played 10 players and outscored the Suns' bench 36-11.
Mavs Defense: Transition defense is the first order of business for the Mavericks. They must run back on every make or miss, stop the drives to the rim, locate the Suns' shooters and limit the Suns' effectiveness on the break. They cannot allow the Suns to score 32 points again on the break in this series.
Mavericks coach Avery Johnson and his staff have decided that to beat the Suns, they needed to take away the 3-point shot. The Mavs' philosophy in Game 1 was to guard one-on-one, with no help whatsoever. They were willing to take their chances that they could defend the Suns' drives. The Mavs allowed the Suns 72 points in the paint. This might be the correct philosophy to beat the Suns. However, the Mavs must drastically improve their one-on-one defense. They must be able to stay in front of their men much better and not allow such easy dribble penetration to the rim.
In addition, they are playing without a center in this series (Erick Dampier played only 17 minutes in Game 1), thus they do not have any inside presence to block or alter shots when the Suns attack the rim.
If the Mavs cannot contain the dribbler better than they did in Game 1, they might have to rethink their "No Help" philosophy.
This series might come down to which team elects to defend the pick-and-roll. The Mavs made numerous mistakes defending Nash in pick-and-roll situations and they must decide exactly how they are going to defend the Suns. There is no question that the Suns' perimeter attack taxes your pick-and-roll schemes. But with the small lineup the Mavs are utilizing, they must decide if they are going to hard hedge or switch. They cannot allow the dribbler the ability to turn the corner and attack the way they did. If they are going to switch only late in the shot clock, then they need to do that. They looked confused about what they wanted to do and there was no consistency to their approach.
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Suns Offense: The Suns are the best running team in the NBA, and their ability to run for 48 minutes in Game 1 was one of the reasons they won. They are so good at getting the ball out of the net and looking up the floor for drives and shooters that they really tax the opponent's transition defense. There is no one better with the ball in his hands on the break than Nash. Because he is such an unselfish passer, he forces his perimeters to run their lanes extremely hard because they know he will reward them. Their running game sucked the Mavs into a track meet and no one is going to beat the Suns in that kind of game.If the Mavs are going to continue to defend the Suns the way they did in Game 1 by hugging their men, then the Suns will spread the court and drive the ball as hard as they can to the rim. Nash, Leandro Barbosa, Shawn Marion and Tim Thomas can all put the ball on the floor and get to the rim. Their ability to score 72 points in the paint was no fluke.
Get the ball to Boris Diaw. He is so happy he is not facing either Elton Brand or Chris Kaman in this series. He looks around and sees a mismatch every time he touches the ball. If they go big on him he will drive it, and if they go small, he will live in the paint. On the Suns' last possession of the game, Diaw had Stackhouse on him in the paint. When the Mavs sniffed out the play, which was supposed to be a backcut by Nash, Diaw just gathered himself and shot right over the smaller player.
Suns Defense: Pick and roll defense! The Suns must improve this area of their defense to win this series. They cannot allow the Mavs to torch them the way they did in Game 1. Harris and Jason Terry were able to run pick-and-rolls with Stackhouse or Nowitzki and get anywhere they want. Switching men on pick-and-rolls might stop the initial thrust by the dribbler, but it leads to other problems. The switch leads to dribble penetration vs. bigs and post-up possibilities vs. smalls. In addition the switch always leaves you vulnerable on the glass, and the Suns really struggled there.
Marion did a credible job on Nowitzki. He is athletic, long and has good active hands, and you need all of those qualities to play Dirk. Even though Nowitzki had 25 points, he did not score the bulk of his points on Marion in one-on-one situations.
Winning in the playoffs requires stops! Especially in the fourth quarter and the last five minutes. The Suns are not a very good defensive team, and the injury to Raja Bell late in the game makes them even more vulnerable. But give them credit for getting stops when the game was on the line. Even though the Suns allowed 118 points, they stopped the Mavs in the crucial last 3:41 of the game. That made all the difference.
Pick: Mavs in seven.
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Sheridan --
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Stein
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(In 6)--
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--(In 6) -
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--(In 5)
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--(In 7)
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--(In 6)
