Trail Blazers @ Suns Wednesday game thread 3-2-2022

[zett]

Cam Johnson

winner winner chicken Dinner, except I had steak!

 

[1tinsoldier]

yes, this should be the end of "point-Book." dead and buried. he's one of the best shooting guards in the league and that's exactly what we need him to be.

Payne only played 20 minutes, but he started us off right with his distribution.
we had 32 assists and shot 50% with no player taking more than 12 shots
and it was the biggest blowout of the season.
and the alley-oops were back too.

sure, Portland's bad now but all night we had the ball moving and were taking good shots. When Book is on the floor, his teammates defer to him. Especially considering his tendency to get off a lot of shots in the 1st quarter these days. Without him, they take on more responsibility --staying involved, moving and getting open.

when Booker was out earlier this season and came back, i noticed the difference -- the "deferring." we kept winning either way, but the flow changed. Booker makes us better in big games. for example, we need his star power for the Bucks game coming up. but generally, balance is our best asset. and it's why we're the best team in the NBA.

it's no coincidence that we have the top assist guy/floor manager on our team. tonight, they collectively did what Paul does, without him, and they collectively did what Booker does -- with good looks and a higher shooting percentage.

 

[Dback Jon]

Why would it? I'm not advocating for us playing Booker at the point but getting a weak Portland after a day off is much better than having to play a solid Utah as the 3rd game in 4 nights.

Encause he’s not a point guard. Team runs better with a decent PG running the offense and Booker as a shooting guard. Now that Payne is back, no reason to start him there

 

[AzStevenCal]

Encause he’s not a point guard. Team runs better with a decent PG running the offense and Booker as a shooting guard. Now that Payne is back, no reason to start him there

I wouldn't start him there either except as a last resort but he's never stopped playing point guard for us even when Paul is available and he's been reasonably effective at it. But he can't do it without a real shooting guard or at least a combo guard playing next to him.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

Ja Morant is Isiah Cannan.

Still by far the worst take he has had. One of many bad takes of course.

 

[AzStevenCal]

Still by far the worst take he has had. One of many bad takes of course.

I don't know if it's his "worst take" but it's definitely in his top 9 million worst takes.

 

[Mainstreet]

Suns got 55 points from their bench last night.

Needless to say, the lack of production from the bench has been a huge factor in recent Suns losses.

 

[AsUpRoDiGy]

Yay or nay?

You must be registered for see images attach

It's between Herro/Love/Oubre right now, but man that payout looks pretty dang nice! Cam would have to play out of his mind to win 6th man.

 

[Cheesebeef]

It's between Herro/Love/Oubre right now, but man that payout looks pretty dang nice! Cam would have to play out of his mind to win 6th man.

He wasn’t even recognized to be in the 3 point contest... with the second best shooting percentage in the league.

He ain’t coming close to 6th man. Even though he should def be in the running.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Some thoughts on this game. Cam Johnson is a potential star. What find. He plays with precision, confidence, and incredible maturity.

I am liking what I am seeing from Holiday. He plays an efficient game. He plays excellent defense and seems to be willing to distribute. But mostly I just like the way he carries himself on the court. He moves with deliberateness and strength.

It is so nice to have Cam Payne back. I think Holiday outplayed him, but it is his first game back.

We lose two and still maintain a seven-game loss column lead. All is good.

 

[Ronin]

xc_hide_links_from_guests_guests_error_hide_media

 

[Ronin]

xc_hide_links_from_guests_guests_error_hide_media