Suns @ Spurs - Game Thread - Sat. May 12, 2007 - 5:00 pm

[az1965]

not sure why I keep trying to post and failing.

Lack of IQ???

 

[az1965]

Amare's basketball IQ is about 50 points lower than Duncan's. We inserted Kurt Thomas to guard Duncan in order to try to keep Amare out of foul trouble. Amare rewarded us by hacking the likes of Horry and Oberto. Terrific. When we finally did take him out, he responded by committing a new foul within thirty seconds of being reinserted into the lineup... TWICE. Amare is a double-edged sword for us. He's the only way we CAN win a championship, and yet he's also the reason we're not GOING TO. At least not this year. If we could switch Amare's brain with Duncan's, we'd take the series in five.

...

Finally, we can't seem to tap into what the Mavs tapped into last year. I keep asking myself, how the heck did the soft Mavs beat the Spurs last year? I can't answer it. But we need to look at tapes of that series, both for strategy and for inspiration. If that stay-puff Nowitzki can do it, we should be able to.

It all comes back to Amare, particularly on defense. Amare. Amare. Amare. As long as Duncan outclasses him the way he did last night, we're cooked.

M

Great points, Muggum!

 

[WuRaider]

The Spurs are a dirty cheating team, if they don't lose this series, it will be a complete injustice. The best example of their antics is when Horry tried to draw a foul on Amare. I loved Amare's reaction, he just looked at him and said "WTF are you trying to do, weak bitch"

 

[buttsR4rebounding]

Precisely. I know some people think the officiating was not a factor, but the ABC announcers felt it was a big enough factor to mention it repeatedly.

Was it the main reason we lost? I would say it was a piece of a puzzle. No team can really afford it's top 2 players and it's top bench guy to be limited in effectiveness and expect to win.

That is because ABC is pulling for a Suns-Cleveland finals. There are plenty of fouls that are not called each way. DA's strategic move of playing Thomas on Duncan is a joke. Thomas literally undresses Duncan every time down the floor grabbing his shirt or shorts. You don't hear Spurs' fans (or Duncan in the media) complaining, but it is the only way KT can even "hold" Duncan to 33 points.

 

[Ballamania]

yeah Muggum, you hit on a few things pretty good. amare has got to grow up quickly and understand whats going on. dont just be wild and crazy but think about the actual game and whats needed. i love his intensity but he does have to be a lil more cerebral about the situation

 

[Nasser22]

This game reminded me of the Kevin Johnson Suns before Barkley came. Basically the plan was to go soft to the basket and hope that touch fouls would be called. Well, they won't be, unless the officials think you're trying to score, not just draw a foul. That's the difference. Most of the time, the Suns were going to the basket without a real plan for how to get the ball through the hoop, and that's why the fouls weren't called.

I guess I've learned my lesson about predicting Suns victories.

Generally, I thought the Suns didn't play smart on either end of the floor. There's really no excuse for allowing all three of Duncan/Parker/Ginobili to go off. On offense, they kept dribbling into traffic, rushing makeable shots, and throwing the ball away with mindless passes. Barbosa, in particular, is looking completely out of his league. I think it has to be considered encouraging that they were competitive most of the way while playing so badly.

I didn't think that Stoudemire's complaining about the Spurs' dirty play could have a downside, but it did: He was so hyper trying to prove himself this game that he was out of control, particularly on defense. Blame the officials all you want, but every foul he was called for was legitimate, and they are calls that will be made every time against someone who is wild and overplaying.

Bowen did a good job on Nash, but even so, Nash missed a bunch of layups he usually makes. Marion and Bell were the only Suns to step up offensively, and that's not going to get it done. When your best crunch-time option is Marion for three in the corner, you know your offense isn't functioning properly.

I would have no problem at all for Amare's fouls if Duncan was called for his.

 

[quick dog]

The best thing about the San Antonio Spurs, Greg Popovich, Bruce Bowen, Ginobili, and BS Bob Horry is that, with the fall of the Lakers, we now have a new team to hate.

Go Suns!

 

[arthurracoon]

I am a troll please ban me!

not sure why I keep trying to post and failing.

 

[Errntknght]

Very good posts Elindholm and Muggum, especially amongst all the whining about the refs. Hopefully, Amare calms down for game 4 - he's matured a good bit, but last night he lost it. He put the spotlight on himself with his comments so he's got realize that the refs aren't going to give him many breaks.

The whole team was afflicted with mental lapses - FT shooting, passes to no-one, blown lay-ups. The coaching wasn't first rate either - typical of D'Antoni, he was very late with Time Outs and he didn't get the team to look for Raja.

 

[nadders]

thief in the mist

Before I say anything, understand that I'm a Suns fan... However, it still cracks me up to see other Suns fans whine and cry about the refs after each loss... The reality is, as it has been for the last 4 years - is that the Suns are simply not built for post-season success. They can't sustain a high level of team defense in a game or in a clutch series, and they can't execute in the half-court during the post season...
Oh sure, at points in a game they'll run a half court play and trick us into thinking they can actually do it whenever they want. And at times, Marion or Bell will make a defensive play and suddenly, we believe that when it matters, the Suns are actually capable of getting "the" stop...
But no...
We don't have any answer whatsoever for Duncan. He OWNS the Suns...
Our only hope is that we Nash & Amare can score and run the offense well enough to off-set Duncan's dominance on the other end...
I honestly would be shocked if the Suns were to win Monday night...

Misers get up early in the morning; and burglars.........well they get up the night before!YOU DEAR SIR ARE A THIEF AMONG MISERS!awesome posts.refreshing to read an intelligent basketball post every now and then.

 

[nadders]

thief in the mist

Before I say anything, understand that I'm a Suns fan... However, it still cracks me up to see other Suns fans whine and cry about the refs after each loss... The reality is, as it has been for the last 4 years - is that the Suns are simply not built for post-season success. They can't sustain a high level of team defense in a game or in a clutch series, and they can't execute in the half-court during the post season...
Oh sure, at points in a game they'll run a half court play and trick us into thinking they can actually do it whenever they want. And at times, Marion or Bell will make a defensive play and suddenly, we believe that when it matters, the Suns are actually capable of getting "the" stop...
But no...
We don't have any answer whatsoever for Duncan. He OWNS the Suns...
Our only hope is that we Nash & Amare can score and run the offense well enough to off-set Duncan's dominance on the other end...
I honestly would be shocked if the Suns were to win Monday night...

Misers get up early in the morning; and burglars.........well they get up the night before!YOU DEAR SIR ARE A THIEF AMONG MISERS!awesome posts.refreshing to read an intelligent basketball post every now and then.

 

[Treesquid PhD]

Misers get up early in the morning; and burglars.........well they get up the night before!YOU DEAR SIR ARE A THIEF AMONG MISERS!awesome posts.refreshing to read an intelligent basketball post every now and then.

Can you post this again? because I think it really adds a lot.