SUNS VS. JAZZ playoffs?

[ndjmc]

I dont know what to make of this potential matchup. The Jazz look like a juggernaught against the Suns only to get punched in the mouth by some scrub later on. The Suns have issues with this squad. Is it matchups? What is going on here?

 

[TheHopToad]

Doubt we're gonna see it. The only way it could happen this year is in the WCF, which would require the Jazz to beat Houston in the first round and Dallas in the second round, AND the Suns to beat whoever in the first round and San Antonio in the second.

Otherwise, it would take Utah overtaking the Spurs for the #3 seed, which isn't going to happen.

I think there's a good chance the Rockets get home court for the first round and defeat the Jazz.

 

[jbeecham]

Right now the chances of a Suns - Jazz matchup look very slim. Utah would have to beat Houston & then Dallas to meet the Suns in the WCF. Utah can cause a lot of matchup problems for us because they have a lot of hustle guys that just crash the boards all the time.

 

[jbeecham]

I think there's a good chance the Rockets get home court for the first round and defeat the Jazz.

I would love to see the Rockets in the WCF against the Suns. The Rockets have given Dallas some problems this year too so it could happen.

 

[ndjmc]

good stuff. Its possible, but looking at that no chance in hell they are beating any of the Texas teams. I stilll cant get my head around the play of the Suns against the Jazz. Why so poor?

 

[TheHopToad]

I stilll cant get my head around the play of the Suns against the Jazz. Why so poor?

I think you're really just looking at the end result. If you really look at it closer, it's not lilke Utah has dominated the Suns. All three games have gone right down to the end of the game.

In the first game, Barbosa missed an easy layup that would have tied the game with about 10 seconds left in regulation. Steve Nash did not play in the second game and the Suns took the Jazz to OT at Utah before losing by 3. The third game was tied with 5 seconds left when Okur hit the game winning jump shot. The Suns were right there all three times.

 

[azirish]

In any case, the Suns sometimes have trouble with physical teams when the refs allow them to beat up the much smaller Suns team. Grabbing and holding is a great way to slow the game down, which is what Sloan preaches. At the same time, the Utah bigs can shoot, which creates problems for the Suns defense.

The flip side is that the Jazz are not really geared to stop good outside shooting.

 

[ndjmc]

I think you're really just looking at the end result. If you really look at it closer, it's not lilke Utah has dominated the Suns. All three games have gone right down to the end of the game.

In the first game, Barbosa missed an easy layup that would have tied the game with about 10 seconds left in regulation. Steve Nash did not play in the second game and the Suns took the Jazz to OT at Utah before losing by 3. The third game was tied with 5 seconds left when Okur hit the game winning jump shot. The Suns were right there all three times.

Good point. The end result is the only thing that matters though. Scoreboard.
At the end of the day the Suns lost. I hate to say that because I DISPISE the Jazz. Sloan is a guy who is creative enough to find a counter to the Suns offensive power.

 

[jbeecham]

The key for Utah is a good inside outside game. They have Boozer who can be a dominate player in the paint and Okur can nail 3's and pulls one of our bigger guys out to the 3pt line. It really leaves the middle open for guys like Kirlenko & Harpring to crash the offensive boards and create havoc. Deron Williams has also done a great job of initiating their offense, nailing outside shots and playing decent defense. Then when you add in the extra physicality they are allowed to play with on defense, it makes it tough for the Suns to win if our outside shots aren't falling, especially if we can't get to the ft line when we take it to the basket. The Jazz also do a great job of imposing their tempo onto the game.

 

[ndjmc]

awesome

that is the kind of insight I was hoping for. Over the course of a 7 game series
I wonder what kind of result we would see.

 

[devilalum]

Doubt we're gonna see it. The only way it could happen this year is in the WCF, which would require the Jazz to beat Houston in the first round and Dallas in the second round, AND the Suns to beat whoever in the first round and San Antonio in the second.

Otherwise, it would take Utah overtaking the Spurs for the #3 seed, which isn't going to happen.

I think there's a good chance the Rockets get home court for the first round and defeat the Jazz.

Basically the good news is that we only have to beat 3 Western Confrence teams to get to the finals.

Of course the bad news is that we only have to beat 3 Western Confrence teams to get to the finals.