The Suns are definitely running a better fast breaks since Marbury was traded. I believe it's one of the reasons the Marbury was traded. He just did not push the ball. I like Marbury, but I remember that after the trade that brought him here many of us commented that he almost looked lazy because we were used to Kidd pushing the ball and running around like a madman.
Joe
http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/index.php?sty=16440
Suns working on their running game
By Mike Tulumello, Tribune
WASHINGTON - If only it were as easy as it sounds: "We’re committed to being a running team."
Yes, it’s simple to say, but extraordinary to accomplish.
To become adept at running, you have to be committed to sprinting down the floor on every possession. In every game.
This means not only being in tremendous shape, but having the force of will to carry out the plan.
That’s what the Suns are trying to do these days.
A verdict on their success is a long way away. Yet, if there’s one thing that’s certain about the Suns since the trade of Stephon Marbury — whom they’ll see Saturday night when they visit New York to play Marbury’s Knicks — is that the Suns run a much better fast break.
Marbury didn’t push the ball as quickly as Leandro Barbosa, "The Brazilian Blur."
Marbury tended to throw lob passes near the hoop; the Suns often had to be as concerned with preventing a turnover as much as trying to score.
Since the trade, the Suns have been running a crisp fast break with the small lineup of Jake Voskuhl at center, Shawn Marion posing as a "power" forward, Joe Johnson at the "three" spot, and Barbosa and Casey Jacobsen in the backcourt.
They tend to head right for the hoop. Simple passes are the norm, not the exception.
Without knocking Marbury, Suns coach Mike D’Antoni pointed to a "different style" before the trade.
With the current lineup, "Leandro is more likely to pass the ball ahead," D’Antoni said. "And that gets the big guys running."
Marion, one of the game’s better finishers, is benefitting from the change as much as anybody.
Before, "Shawn was hanging back some," D’Antoni said.
For the past two or three weeks, D’Antoni said Marion and the rest of the club have been getting in the habit of running, "which has gotten us some dunks, and that feeds off itself."
The key, he said, is developing this habit both in practice and in games.
"It has to be instinctual," D’Antoni said. "You can’t think and play."
In practical terms, he has been instructing the Suns to sprint for the first three steps after every opponent’s possession to see if there’s an opening for a fast break.
For this to work, D’Antoni said he can’t get upset with every mistake.
"If you want fast breaks, you have to live with them. You have to bite your lower lip, or they won’t run."
The most important factor, he said, is having "the will to do it."
"If you’re going to run, you have to be committed, or else it becomes a hybrid thing and you get frustrated."
Said Marion, "The coaches have emphasized, ‘Run, run, run!’
"A lot of teams don’t want to get back (on defense). So we try to run it down their throats."
Voskuhl said the philosophy is physically demanding.
"That’s why there aren’t many real fast-breaking teams. It’s difficult over the long haul. A lot of teams have guys who can fly down the court. But to do it over 82 games is tough."
The Suns’ prowess was on display Tuesday in Atlanta, when they had a 22-6 edge in fast-break points (they won the game by just four points).
On the downside, one player who struggles at times with a fast-paced game is center Jahidi White.
For example, in trying to start fast breaks Wednesday in Indiana, he threw two wild outlet passes that contributed to the Suns’ demise.
"I think he’s adjusting," D’Antoni said of White. "Once in a while, a pass goes astray. But I can live with that. He’s playing as hard as he can play. And he’s getting better."
All in all, the Suns are running more often and more efficiently. The shift has made them more entertaining.
Whether it makes them better in the long run remains to be seen.
BONUS SHOTS: After back-to-back games, the Suns had a relatively light practice here Thursday afternoon. Amare Stoudemire, out with ankle and toe problems, didn’t go through the full practice, so D’Antoni figures he’s unlikely to play in either of the final two games on the trip.
The Suns will face Marbury, Penny Hardaway and the Knicks on Saturday in New York to close out the five-game trip.
White returns to his old stomping grounds tonight. He played at Georgetown, where he usually won, and with the Wizards, where he usually lost.
Joked D’Antoni, "They had a parade for him here."
Said White, who grew up in St. Louis, "This is like my second home."
Joe
http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/index.php?sty=16440
Suns working on their running game
By Mike Tulumello, Tribune
WASHINGTON - If only it were as easy as it sounds: "We’re committed to being a running team."
Yes, it’s simple to say, but extraordinary to accomplish.
To become adept at running, you have to be committed to sprinting down the floor on every possession. In every game.
This means not only being in tremendous shape, but having the force of will to carry out the plan.
That’s what the Suns are trying to do these days.
A verdict on their success is a long way away. Yet, if there’s one thing that’s certain about the Suns since the trade of Stephon Marbury — whom they’ll see Saturday night when they visit New York to play Marbury’s Knicks — is that the Suns run a much better fast break.
Marbury didn’t push the ball as quickly as Leandro Barbosa, "The Brazilian Blur."
Marbury tended to throw lob passes near the hoop; the Suns often had to be as concerned with preventing a turnover as much as trying to score.
Since the trade, the Suns have been running a crisp fast break with the small lineup of Jake Voskuhl at center, Shawn Marion posing as a "power" forward, Joe Johnson at the "three" spot, and Barbosa and Casey Jacobsen in the backcourt.
They tend to head right for the hoop. Simple passes are the norm, not the exception.
Without knocking Marbury, Suns coach Mike D’Antoni pointed to a "different style" before the trade.
With the current lineup, "Leandro is more likely to pass the ball ahead," D’Antoni said. "And that gets the big guys running."
Marion, one of the game’s better finishers, is benefitting from the change as much as anybody.
Before, "Shawn was hanging back some," D’Antoni said.
For the past two or three weeks, D’Antoni said Marion and the rest of the club have been getting in the habit of running, "which has gotten us some dunks, and that feeds off itself."
The key, he said, is developing this habit both in practice and in games.
"It has to be instinctual," D’Antoni said. "You can’t think and play."
In practical terms, he has been instructing the Suns to sprint for the first three steps after every opponent’s possession to see if there’s an opening for a fast break.
For this to work, D’Antoni said he can’t get upset with every mistake.
"If you want fast breaks, you have to live with them. You have to bite your lower lip, or they won’t run."
The most important factor, he said, is having "the will to do it."
"If you’re going to run, you have to be committed, or else it becomes a hybrid thing and you get frustrated."
Said Marion, "The coaches have emphasized, ‘Run, run, run!’
"A lot of teams don’t want to get back (on defense). So we try to run it down their throats."
Voskuhl said the philosophy is physically demanding.
"That’s why there aren’t many real fast-breaking teams. It’s difficult over the long haul. A lot of teams have guys who can fly down the court. But to do it over 82 games is tough."
The Suns’ prowess was on display Tuesday in Atlanta, when they had a 22-6 edge in fast-break points (they won the game by just four points).
On the downside, one player who struggles at times with a fast-paced game is center Jahidi White.
For example, in trying to start fast breaks Wednesday in Indiana, he threw two wild outlet passes that contributed to the Suns’ demise.
"I think he’s adjusting," D’Antoni said of White. "Once in a while, a pass goes astray. But I can live with that. He’s playing as hard as he can play. And he’s getting better."
All in all, the Suns are running more often and more efficiently. The shift has made them more entertaining.
Whether it makes them better in the long run remains to be seen.
BONUS SHOTS: After back-to-back games, the Suns had a relatively light practice here Thursday afternoon. Amare Stoudemire, out with ankle and toe problems, didn’t go through the full practice, so D’Antoni figures he’s unlikely to play in either of the final two games on the trip.
The Suns will face Marbury, Penny Hardaway and the Knicks on Saturday in New York to close out the five-game trip.
White returns to his old stomping grounds tonight. He played at Georgetown, where he usually won, and with the Wizards, where he usually lost.
Joked D’Antoni, "They had a parade for him here."
Said White, who grew up in St. Louis, "This is like my second home."
