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Wouldn't it be ironic if the Phoenix Suns, who we all thought were going to revolutionize the game with their patented "7 seconds or chuck" offensive strategy, instead do so on the opposite end of the court, with the first successful use of zone defense in the NBA Playoffs known to man. It has worked for two games so far. If it's effective for two more games in supplanting legends Kobe Bryant, Phil Jackson, and the Triangle Offense, then it will surely spawn followers and possibly even usher in a new era into the NBA.
In order for this to happen, the zone must find a way to lead the Suns to a victory on the road at The Staples Center. Is this possible? I think so. People overreacted to the blowout from Game 1, while the Suns were in Game 2 until the very end. It is possible that the Lakers let all the talk of the series being over (and it was overwhelming) get their heads big. The time could be right for a home letdown. At this point in the Lakers-Thunder series (2-2), all the talk was that the series was up for grabs, while few people think that the Suns even have that chance in this series. This plays to the Suns favor. In order for a big upset to occur, you want a special blend between keeping your confidence high while having as few people as possible on your bandwagon.
So what has made the Suns use of the zone so effective? Well, in essence, the rare usage of it has confused the seasoned Lakers team. They just plain aren't used to seeing it. Suddenly, isolation plays called for Kobe are double covered, and Kung Pau's chicken isn't so spicy. This has led to the wrong people shooting the ball. The Lakers shot 27 more three pointers in the two road losses than in their two home wins, making precisely one more out of those 27. You must work the ball out of Kobe and Kung Pau's hands to find success against the Lakers, they are too good. Every shot Ron Artest or Lamar Odom takes is a win for the Suns defense. The problem with this strategy, is that role players always play better at home than on the road (aside from The Road Warrior, Derek Fisher). The other way a zone defense can backfire is offensive rebounding on the weak side. Penetration will draw a big man over, leaving a smaller player (or even worse, Amare Q'wang-Zilla) to block out a big guy. In fact, I'll go ahead and make that the key stat for Game 5 tonight, with my guess being that will be the Lakers adjustment.
The NBA should be ready to fully embrace this revolution. Don't they know it's gonna be....alright? These playoffs, even with The LeBron Game, have been a humongous disappointment. People don't care anymore. I am friends with an eclectic group of sports fans, and mostly I hear about how they wish they were more into it, but just aren't interested. Look, we all want to change the world, but shouldn't we be hanging on every last dribble with such a wide variety of superstars playing such a popular game? I'm not saying the Suns winning changes anything in actuality, but the NBA does need new blood injected into its veins. The last 26 years have seen only seven different teams win championships. People are bored with it. Look at the NFL, where 15 different teams have won the Super Bowl in the last 26 years. People like parity.
And if you are still unsure, just watch this...
You say you want a revolution? Well, you know...Go Suns!
Dirkness
Showing posts with label steve nash. Show all posts
Showing posts with label steve nash. Show all posts
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Saturday, May 8, 2010
The NBA Playoffs are heating up!
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Holy Goran Dragic, Batman! The Phoenix Suns posted the most impressive playoff effort of the season in last night's victory over their arch nemesis, the San Antonio Spurs. The game was on the road. The four-time champion Spurs were desperate for a victory, trailing 2-0 in the series. On top of that, the Spurs played well, the Suns just played better. And on top of that topping, due to their newfound toughness, I never thought they were out of the game, despite trailing by as many as 18 points. This is why I have stopped running alongside the Suns' bandwagon, and I made the leap on board successfully. After all, it's what Dirk would've wanted.
So where has this newfound toughness come from? I would say it's the right mix of veterans following the right leader, all of whom have encountered adversity, and feed off each other's desire to win. The best argument for this may have been addressed during last night's game, when the commentator claimed that none of the Suns' individual players were known as good defenders, yet they've been playing great defense as a whole. This tells me two things. The coach, Alvin Gentry, has done a great job of getting his players to buy into the idea that they will never achieve their ultimate goal without playing defense. Second, good defense usually comes down to effort and a will to win, which I believe starts with Steve Nash and runs through their entire roster. Plain and simple, they want it more than the other teams.
Steve Nash has experienced many playoff heartbreaks throughout his career. He's seen his best teammate, Amar'e Stoudemire (Matt P-Chang), get injured and derail their chances in 2006. In 2007, an altercation, started by the Spurs nonetheless, saw Amar'e-Shang and Boris Diaw get suspended for taking three steps off the bench after seeing their leader, Steve Nash, get bodychecked into the press table. Those suspensions came for the pivotal Game 5 at home with the series all square, which they lost, followed by a road loss in Game 6 to lose the series. Not to mention that Tim Donaghy refereed a controversial Game 3 in that series. Yea, the guy that bet on games, remember him? The NBA doesn't. The heartbreak from 2008 came fairly, and from a usual suspect, but in an unusual way. Seconds away from a Game 1 victory on the road, Tim Duncan hit a 3-pointer to send the game into overtime, a game the Spurs eventually won, and the Suns never recovered from. This is the type of adversity that builds character, toughness, and a do-whatever-it-takes-to-win type of attitude.
You'll notice a good majority of that heartbreak took place against the Spurs, the opponent they find themselves up 3-0 on now. Finally getting over the hump that is the Spurs will give them loads of confidence and a "this is our year" feeling in the locker room. It's reminiscent of the Dallas Mavericks in 2006, who were propelled to a Championship (wait, they lost?) after getting over their own hump of beating the Spurs in the conference semifinals. I see a similar path for these Suns. I like the way they matchup against the Lakers. The Lakers' biggest weakness is their second unit, which happens to be the Suns' strength. They will kill them in that aspect. Also, Derek Fisher is a great matchup with Nash. Nash won't have to kill himself on the defensive end, and should be able to penetrate on him with ease. You could argue that the two biggest weaknesses for the Lakers are the two biggest strengths for the Suns. Add in that they can throw the wily Grant Hill and the scrappy Jared Dudley at Kobe, and I believe that could lead to some frustrations.
So lets all get board with the Suns now. All the other teams are boring and you know it. LeBron is the most exciting boring superstar of all time. Nobody with half a brain could cheer for the Lakers. The Magic? They had their chance. The Suns have led the league in scoring five years in a row. They got Grant "Squeaky" Hill, out of the first round for the first time in his career. They got the least talked about superstar in the league, Amar'e-Qwang Stoudemire. I guarantee you'll like Jared Dudley. Jason Richardson's swish-3's are the prettiest shot in the league. They got something called a Goran Dragic carving up the Spurs in their biggest quarter of the season. And they got Steve Nash, how could anyone not root for him? Dirk does. I do. And yes, you will. And if I haven't convinced you yet, maybe this picture will...
His Nashness
Holy Goran Dragic, Batman! The Phoenix Suns posted the most impressive playoff effort of the season in last night's victory over their arch nemesis, the San Antonio Spurs. The game was on the road. The four-time champion Spurs were desperate for a victory, trailing 2-0 in the series. On top of that, the Spurs played well, the Suns just played better. And on top of that topping, due to their newfound toughness, I never thought they were out of the game, despite trailing by as many as 18 points. This is why I have stopped running alongside the Suns' bandwagon, and I made the leap on board successfully. After all, it's what Dirk would've wanted.
So where has this newfound toughness come from? I would say it's the right mix of veterans following the right leader, all of whom have encountered adversity, and feed off each other's desire to win. The best argument for this may have been addressed during last night's game, when the commentator claimed that none of the Suns' individual players were known as good defenders, yet they've been playing great defense as a whole. This tells me two things. The coach, Alvin Gentry, has done a great job of getting his players to buy into the idea that they will never achieve their ultimate goal without playing defense. Second, good defense usually comes down to effort and a will to win, which I believe starts with Steve Nash and runs through their entire roster. Plain and simple, they want it more than the other teams.
Steve Nash has experienced many playoff heartbreaks throughout his career. He's seen his best teammate, Amar'e Stoudemire (Matt P-Chang), get injured and derail their chances in 2006. In 2007, an altercation, started by the Spurs nonetheless, saw Amar'e-Shang and Boris Diaw get suspended for taking three steps off the bench after seeing their leader, Steve Nash, get bodychecked into the press table. Those suspensions came for the pivotal Game 5 at home with the series all square, which they lost, followed by a road loss in Game 6 to lose the series. Not to mention that Tim Donaghy refereed a controversial Game 3 in that series. Yea, the guy that bet on games, remember him? The NBA doesn't. The heartbreak from 2008 came fairly, and from a usual suspect, but in an unusual way. Seconds away from a Game 1 victory on the road, Tim Duncan hit a 3-pointer to send the game into overtime, a game the Spurs eventually won, and the Suns never recovered from. This is the type of adversity that builds character, toughness, and a do-whatever-it-takes-to-win type of attitude.
You'll notice a good majority of that heartbreak took place against the Spurs, the opponent they find themselves up 3-0 on now. Finally getting over the hump that is the Spurs will give them loads of confidence and a "this is our year" feeling in the locker room. It's reminiscent of the Dallas Mavericks in 2006, who were propelled to a Championship (wait, they lost?) after getting over their own hump of beating the Spurs in the conference semifinals. I see a similar path for these Suns. I like the way they matchup against the Lakers. The Lakers' biggest weakness is their second unit, which happens to be the Suns' strength. They will kill them in that aspect. Also, Derek Fisher is a great matchup with Nash. Nash won't have to kill himself on the defensive end, and should be able to penetrate on him with ease. You could argue that the two biggest weaknesses for the Lakers are the two biggest strengths for the Suns. Add in that they can throw the wily Grant Hill and the scrappy Jared Dudley at Kobe, and I believe that could lead to some frustrations.
So lets all get board with the Suns now. All the other teams are boring and you know it. LeBron is the most exciting boring superstar of all time. Nobody with half a brain could cheer for the Lakers. The Magic? They had their chance. The Suns have led the league in scoring five years in a row. They got Grant "Squeaky" Hill, out of the first round for the first time in his career. They got the least talked about superstar in the league, Amar'e-Qwang Stoudemire. I guarantee you'll like Jared Dudley. Jason Richardson's swish-3's are the prettiest shot in the league. They got something called a Goran Dragic carving up the Spurs in their biggest quarter of the season. And they got Steve Nash, how could anyone not root for him? Dirk does. I do. And yes, you will. And if I haven't convinced you yet, maybe this picture will...
His Nashness
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