Who do your game honors go to?

[Linderbee]

Unbelievable. Watch the game if you TIVO'd it. Marion was denying Parker the lanes and getting around screens. That was a huge difference from that to the first game. You must not have watched the same game as the rest of us. Then again, if Marion had 20-20 you would find a way to bash him I am sure.

Hell, if Marion had a triple double he'd want to know why he didn't get more steals.

 

[Linderbee]

how dumb do writer's feel who voted for Dirk for MVP? Just ********.

Has that even been awarded yet? Anyone know when that is going to happen?

 

[SO91]

Parker was never agressively attacking Marion like he did in game 1. Marion played no different on defense..

Did you watch the same freaking game? As someone else mentioned, he harassed Tony, he didn't go under the screen and he kept him out of the lane. His defense was the reason Tony "seemed" less agressive tonight.

 

[Mainstreet]

The Marion bashers just can't resist. Marion was a man tonight on D. Not to mention that the 3 that he hit was huge in terms of momentum.

Kurt gets my game ball.

I agree. Marion sacrificed himself for the team, played solid defense and made some key rebounds to ignite the offense. In fact the whole Suns team played well not to mention Nash who had something like 20 points. and 16 assists.

However, I too have to give the game ball to KT. His one one on one defense on Duncan is what enabled the Suns to play solid defense in the second half. I think Kenny Smith said KT's primary contribution was on offense. I couldn't disagree more. Although KT was solid on offense, if he does not defend Duncan, the game could have very well gone the other way.

Kudos to KT. :notworthy

 

[TheHopToad]

Has that even been awarded yet? Anyone know when that is going to happen?

Dirk's crouched up in the fetal position crying in the corner of his house and won't answer the door. The NBA will have to go back another time.

Dirk isn't having a good week. First he gets owned by the Warriors, then that Hasslehoff tape gets leaked...

 

[Steel Sun]

KT was freakin incredible
But nash was the man!
20-16 MVP!!!

 

[Mainstreet]

Kt's defense on Duncan made all the difference late in the game. Props to the coach for having the guts to make the switch. It was the right move.

 

[FArting]

Kurt Thomas

 

[SirStefan32]

Kurt Thomas!

 

[Mulli]

Game honors to DB!

 

[mathbzh]

KT for proving DA he deserves his playing time.

Of course Nash was great but he is Nash... he is supposed to be great.
And props to Raja to prove game after game he is Ginobili worse nightmare.

 

[MigratingOsprey]

I think your coach should get some due as well - he was actually making smart adjustments prior to and during the game

having KT on the floor didn't hurt the scoring ability in the least - if anything it led to better defense which can create more breaks - he was also very effective in his screens on the offensive side of the ball

however he was at his best on defense - it was night and day between him and amare on duncan - duncan was flat out abusing amare - kurt was forcing him into tough shots and often without help - watch the difference in the two, kurt is strong with his legs and positioning - amare tries to be active with his upper body trying to disrupt the ball - kurt definitely understands the angles of the post 100x better - this helps out against duncan who is a pure technician down there

marion played a very good game - he didn't force his offense and on defense he was coming over screens, denying the ball in spots and shading parker into the help defenders and not giving him a clear path to the rim

bell had a very good game against manu and seems to be developing into the suns bruce bowen type player

offensively the suns had some good ball movement and did enough to get it done against a spurs defense that was playing some outstanding basketball - it seems like nash is the only one on the suns who really gets what the spurs are doing - one play he drove the lane hard, found 3 defenders, picked all 3 of them on coverage and slowly backed out of the lane taking all 3 with him - this created space for amare to come in and catch a pass for a dunk - also all the times where he was able to work his way into a 1-1 on duncan in space - amazing

the spurs are a good team and will make adjustments though - the suns have to stay committed to defense and flexible - what worked last game may not work next game - I expect popovich to work on getting the ball to parker while he's in motion and also work on duncan from not forcing as many shots

suns fans should be happy everytime that oberti guy is on the floor - he's not really good and he doesn't grab rebounds - he is active in that he swats the ball in the air - this creates a scamble situation for the teams and if the suns can't out scramble the spurs and create a break opportunity when he does this, i'm not sure what they are doing

finally barbosa needs to realize this isn't the lakers, but a team that plays team defense - he's making some really bad decisions out there

 

[dodie53]

kurt gets my game honors..

 

[nashman]

KT, MARION, BELL for their great efforts on D, to all ragging on marion...screw it some of you just like to do it. We don't win a game by 20 against one of the best teams in the league without MARION period.

NASH the MVP for turning it up a notch in the second and third qtrs made all the difference!

 

[Errntknght]

I think KT was the biggest difference maker but you can't single out any of the starting five as not making a significant contribution. Heck, I'll even give some props to D'Antoni - putting Shawn on Parker again took some 'huevos'... thank goodness he didn't have him laying back 10 feet like in game 1.

I don't think you can give all the credit to Marion for slowing Tony way down - the whole defense was on alert behind him. Heck, Nash was often clear in the middle of the lane with his defensive assignee off in the left corner. KT was staying at home on Tim as he should but Amare was clogging the lane in good time, whereas he's usually tardy.

 

[Mainstreet]

Just my observation, but in regard to Marion guarding Parker, it appeared Marion sagged back on Parker trying to deny his drive. However, Marion still had the height and athletic skills to bother his shot somewhat. Actually I'm not sure if the Suns slowed down Parker or Parker just became frustrated.

I'm still reminded my Parker's comment to the media I think prior to game 1. He said something to the effect, that he is so effective against Phoenix because no one guards him and even average shooters can make shots when they are left open. Perhaps Parker just needs someone to guard him relentlessly? And this is even more effective when KT can guard Duncan one on one and stop the double teaming.

I would still like to see if Banks could help guarding Parker. Maybe before the series is over it will be tried.

 

[HooverDam]

Amare did his thing again, but it still seems like there should be another gear there.

I don't know, Amare went tit for tat with one of the best players of All Time, thats pretty damned impressive.

Duncan
35 minutes, 29 points on 12-20 shooting (60%), 5-7 free throws, 11 rebounds (9 defensive, 2 offensive),1 assist, 0 steals, 2 blocks, 2 turnovers, 4 personal fouls.

Stoudemire
35 minutes, 27 points on 10-16 shooting (62.5%), 7-8 free throws, 9 rebounds (8 defensive, 1 offensive), 0 assist, 2 steals, 0 blocks, 3 turnovers, 3 personal fouls.

Thats insanely even. If Amare keeps matching Duncans production through out the series, I think San Antonio is screwed. They need Duncan to be far and away the best player on the court to win the series I think. The rest of San Antonio's pieces aren't as good as Phoenix's.

 

[Xylus]

There's just not enough appreciation in this thread for Raja Bell. I watched him closely throughout the entire game. A couple of things I noticed:

1. He simply frustrated the hell out of whoever he was guarding. Finley and Ginobili were both pretty useless because of Raja's pesty defense. Manu isn't an otherworldly athlete like Kobe Bryant...if Raja hassles Manu enough, he'll lose his rhythm and continue slumping. He was the cause of several turnovers. He played FANTASTIC off-the-ball defense. He never left his opponent's side, even when that guy was on the other side of the court from the ball.

2. He was freakishly aggressive on offense, driving to the rack on several occasions, drawing a number of fouls, and hitting quite a few free throws in the first half. His aggressiveness set the tone for the rest of the team. When your 5th option on offense is more aggressive than anyone else on the floor, it inspires the rest of the team. Once Raja started driving inside, the Suns started building their lead. Raja led, the rest followed.

Clearly, my game ball goes to Raja ****in' Bell.

 

[azirish]

I'm not sure Bell was the most important, but I agree he had a very good game.

Manu is not super quick, but he's strong and can just bull over most defenders. Raja is not super quick, but he's very hard to bull over. This is a great matchup and right now Bell is doing the job.

I'm not sure Bell is used to teams going and guarding him that tight, but his reaction of taking the ball to the rack is the right decision. If they keep guarding him that tight, I'd look for more.