azdad1978
Championship!!!!
Tim Tyers
The Arizona Republic
Jan. 10, 2005 12:00 AM
It's a rare occurrence when an NBA coach can find nothing, absolutely nothing, to nitpick after a game.
But that's exactly the position Suns coach Mike D'Antoni found himself in on Sunday night after the Suns dismantled Indiana with their highest output of the season in a 124-89 victory over.
The onslaught was such that the Suns had seven players in double figures, topped by Shawn Marion's 21 and Amaré Stoudemire's 20, and every player who suited up scored.
"We played well," D'Antoni said, shaking his head. "Everybody played exactly how they should have played. They (Indiana) may have had tired legs from last night (a 121-101 loss at Dallas). I can't think of one player to single out because you have to single out everybody, from Steven Hunter to Casey Jacobsen and everybody who played a minute."
Asked what his favorite part of the game was, D'Antoni smiled and said: "The quick start, the continuation of it and the quick finish. We started well, played the middle well and we finished well. There wasn't a time - maybe one possession - where we didn't play well."
The Suns never trailed and barreled to a 19-point, first-quarter lead Saturday night at Los Angeles in a 108-91 win against the Clippers, and nearly duplicated it on Sunday, never trailing and racing to an 18-point lead against the Pacers.
"That's the best strategy," guard Joe Johnson said. "If we can jump out on teams it's hard for them to come back, because we're so high-powered on offense. Our defense is playing well now, and that will make it tough to beat us."
The Suns, whose 30-4 start has tied Boston and Milwaukee for the sixth best start in NBA history, jumped on the Pacers with a 29-7 run with 3:08 left in the first quarter, as Indiana shot 2 of 18 from the field.
"You have to be really solid at both ends against them," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. "Your offense has to be running to put you in position to get great shots and then get back defensively. We had some pretty good looks, missed and they were able to convert them so quick that it's tough on you."
The Suns limited Pacers star Jermaine O'Neal, who entered the game averaging 26.1 points, to five first-half points on one field goal and 16 for the game, most of which came after the Suns had opened a 35-point lead that climbed as high as 42.
The Suns mixed up defensive assignments on him, doubling and keeping a tight check on him. When Marion picked up quick fouls, Hunter, who finished with 10 points and five rebounds, came off the bench and got three first-quarter blocks and four for the game.
"We made him actually pass the ball," Marion said. "We kept throwing a double team at him and it worked. We hit them aggressively and got them off their game and ran away with it.
"I think we caught them by surprise."
View from Press Row
Sunday night's lopsided win by the Suns came against an Indiana team that early in the season was decimated by suspensions in the wake of the Detroit melee, but the Suns defense was active and smart. If they can bottle that up to go along with their offense, they will make life very interesting when the playoffs roll around. -Tim Tyers
http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/articles/0110suns0110.html
The Arizona Republic
Jan. 10, 2005 12:00 AM
It's a rare occurrence when an NBA coach can find nothing, absolutely nothing, to nitpick after a game.
But that's exactly the position Suns coach Mike D'Antoni found himself in on Sunday night after the Suns dismantled Indiana with their highest output of the season in a 124-89 victory over.
The onslaught was such that the Suns had seven players in double figures, topped by Shawn Marion's 21 and Amaré Stoudemire's 20, and every player who suited up scored.
"We played well," D'Antoni said, shaking his head. "Everybody played exactly how they should have played. They (Indiana) may have had tired legs from last night (a 121-101 loss at Dallas). I can't think of one player to single out because you have to single out everybody, from Steven Hunter to Casey Jacobsen and everybody who played a minute."
Asked what his favorite part of the game was, D'Antoni smiled and said: "The quick start, the continuation of it and the quick finish. We started well, played the middle well and we finished well. There wasn't a time - maybe one possession - where we didn't play well."
The Suns never trailed and barreled to a 19-point, first-quarter lead Saturday night at Los Angeles in a 108-91 win against the Clippers, and nearly duplicated it on Sunday, never trailing and racing to an 18-point lead against the Pacers.
"That's the best strategy," guard Joe Johnson said. "If we can jump out on teams it's hard for them to come back, because we're so high-powered on offense. Our defense is playing well now, and that will make it tough to beat us."
The Suns, whose 30-4 start has tied Boston and Milwaukee for the sixth best start in NBA history, jumped on the Pacers with a 29-7 run with 3:08 left in the first quarter, as Indiana shot 2 of 18 from the field.
"You have to be really solid at both ends against them," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. "Your offense has to be running to put you in position to get great shots and then get back defensively. We had some pretty good looks, missed and they were able to convert them so quick that it's tough on you."
The Suns limited Pacers star Jermaine O'Neal, who entered the game averaging 26.1 points, to five first-half points on one field goal and 16 for the game, most of which came after the Suns had opened a 35-point lead that climbed as high as 42.
The Suns mixed up defensive assignments on him, doubling and keeping a tight check on him. When Marion picked up quick fouls, Hunter, who finished with 10 points and five rebounds, came off the bench and got three first-quarter blocks and four for the game.
"We made him actually pass the ball," Marion said. "We kept throwing a double team at him and it worked. We hit them aggressively and got them off their game and ran away with it.
"I think we caught them by surprise."
View from Press Row
Sunday night's lopsided win by the Suns came against an Indiana team that early in the season was decimated by suspensions in the wake of the Detroit melee, but the Suns defense was active and smart. If they can bottle that up to go along with their offense, they will make life very interesting when the playoffs roll around. -Tim Tyers
http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/articles/0110suns0110.html
