Thursday's News: Hare, meet tortise.....

[SwingMan]

Suns held off by Rockets (http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/articles/1128suns1129.html)

http://www.azcentral.com/sports/pics/1128sunsgame.jpg
Amaré Stoudemire drives into Rockets center Yao Ming during the second quarter Wednesday in Phoenix.

Paul Coro
The Arizona Republic
Nov. 29, 2007 12:00 AM

One game, the Suns fumbled away the ball and a victory at Golden State because they were playing at a fast-forward pace.

The next game, on Wednesday night, somebody should have checked to see if their batteries were low, because a lack of energy resulted in the Suns' first losing streak this season.

The Suns lost 100-94 to the Houston Rockets at US Airways Center.

The Rockets, with 7-foot-6 center Yao Ming, were thrilled that the Suns were moving in slow motion.

"We didn't get to our speed or our tempo, and it heavily favored them," said Suns guard Steve Nash, who was baited into scoring a lot (29 points) and had a season-low six assists. "We just didn't have a spark and a lot of the regular speed that opens things up for us."

The Suns NBA-leading offense recorded its lowest point total of the season and suffered through its worst shooting night (41.5 percent) in three weeks.

Yao countered with 31 points and 13 rebounds. In 40 minutes, he did not look like the player who tires against the Suns' race-car pace.

He looked "comfortable," as Nash put it, just as he did the only other time Houston beat Phoenix in the team's past nine meetings - April 16, when which Yao made 14 of 20 shots.

He was 5 of 26 in the Suns' past two victories, when they are better off handling Tracy McGrady's one-on-one scoring than scrambling to help defend Yao.

"We didn't get up and down and didn't get the layups in transition," said Suns forward Grant Hill, who scored his lowest point total (seven) with the Suns after tweaking his lower back in the first half. "We played right into their hands. That's the way they want to play."

Phoenix is 0-3 when failing to reach 100 points, and the Suns mainly have the third quarter to blame. The Suns did not make a field goal in seven minutes.

"It helps when he (Nash) takes a lot of shots, because that way he can't distribute the ball to those shooters on the perimeter, getting those guys going," said McGrady, who scored 12 points in the first quarter and went 2 for 11 the rest of the game. "They're a dangerous team that way. We just did a good job of switching, and our point guards did a great job of getting open screens, and the big guys didn't really have to help as much as Amaré rolled down into the paint."

The Suns' 10 fast-break points were one-third of what they had in the first meeting, when they scored 115 points.

Two of those fast-break points came Wednesday on a play in which Hill was fouled in transition, but even then there were five Rockets ahead of four Suns up-court.

It did not help that Hill hurt his back and guard Raja Bell was playing with a sore back. Bell sat the final 17 minutes (the Suns trailed the whole time), but his backup, Leandro Barbosa, went 2 for 11. Barbosa missed shots to tie and take the lead in the final two minutes.

"It never really gets loose," Bell said of his back. "It just limits what I can do. As long as they feel what I can give helps, I'll continue to give them what I can. If you ask any player, they wouldn't rather play a certain percentage unhealthy."
Swing's note: Get a clue, Mike - you're starting a broken player and trying to break another (Hill) with huge minutes. Sit Raja to get his back squared away, start Babs again and fix your fucking rotation.

Report

Cheers

Phoenix's Shawn Marion made his fantasy-team owners happy with 18 points, nine rebounds, five steals, four blocks and four assists.

Jeers

The Suns hardly looked like the NBA's top offense, hitting only 41.5 percent of their shots from the field.

Player of the game

Houston center Yao Ming scored 31 points on 12-of-19 shooting and grabbed 13 rebounds.

View from press row

Steve Nash. Fifteen feet away. Three dribbles standing in place. Unguarded. It's about as money as you can get in the NBA. Nash has made 44 consecutive free throws to begin the season, although he nearly missed his first Wednesday when he took a technical foul shot in the first quarter and the ball rolled over every bit of the rim before going down. His career free-throw percentage is at 89.9 and inching closer to Mark Price's career record of 90.4.

- Paul Coro

[SwingMan]

The latest from Paul Coro's blog:


0 for this week (http://www.azcentral.com/members/Blog/PaulCoro/11520)

The softball schedule is over. The Suns were warned. It was going to get harder starting with the always-troublesome trip to Golden State. Now Wednesday's loss to Houston puts Phoenix on a two-game losing streak with 14-3 Orlando (9-1 on the road) coming to town Friday.

Then, it's a weeklong trip to the East, where the grind and weather are worse than the opponents. Then, there's a torturous December stretch of Utah, New Orleans, San Antonio, Dallas, Toronto and the Los Angles Lakers successively. Point being, the Suns better play better.

"There is no need to panic," Amare Stoudemire said. "I'm pretty sure the Spurs were world champions last year and I'm pretty sure they lost back-to-back games last season. So there's no need to panic. We just need to improve."

Stoudemire had 25 points and nine rebounds but the beast in him has yet to emerge. You have to consider November to be his October because of the stop-and-go injuries but he just doesn't look loose enough for games yet and there are times where he seems to be fine with the finesse jumper or fingerroll, rather than the tomahawk. There was some more aggression Wednesday with a couple jams on Yao Ming so maybe there's more of that coming.

Raja Bell's health is more in question. Mike D'Antoni talked about him being at 60 percent at one point this week. Unless something improves, it seems Bell could sit again to heal up. His postgame quote in the game story was about how the staff thinks he can help but he said any player doesn't like playing when not totally healthy. His back definitely has not been his favorite topic of late.

Other orange slices...

* Stoudemire on Yao Ming: “He really gets the ball deep. He’s just so, so tall and he has a soft touch where it just drops.”

* Nash on the game: “We didn’t get into our pace at all. We weren’t good enough ... I felt like I had to be aggressive. I didn’t feel like there were a lot of opening for guys.”

* Shawn Marion had at least five steals for the second time in the past three games. It was Marion after the game that noted how the Suns leave other people open when helping on Yao Ming as a threat but they stay home on other Rockets when Tracy McGrady gets going.

* The Suns' five-game home win streak ended.

* D'Antoni on the game: "We just weren't real sharp offensively and missed some shots, had a chance to win and didn't do it. Give them credit. They played well, Yao and Tracy both. Yao was really good. But defensively, we did what we did. And we just ahve to get more of a hgih-octane game and get it up and down and we just didn't do it."

* More D'Antoni: "They get 23 points in the fourth quarter and 21 points in the third. If we can't score that many, then there are going to be a lot of nights when we are not going to win. That's kind of our game and we can't have 42 points in the second half, when we are down four going into it and think we are going to hold a team to 38 points. It's just not going to happen. So we did miss some open shots and we've got to get some guys completely healthy."
Swing's note: THEN FOLLOW THROUGH WITH IT, YA STUBBORN-ASSED DUMMY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[SwingMan]

Paola Boivin chimes in on her blog:


D'Antoni wants more enthusiasm from Suns (http://www.azcentral.com/members/Blog/PaolaBoivin/11522)

Mike D'Antoni wants his Suns to embrace the meaning of carpe diem, not carpe per diem. Seize the day, not the money or the statistics or, most notably, not the possibilities that await them in June.

Most coaches welcome a businesslike approach to the game. Keep the emotions in check, and avoid the inconsistency that accompanies concern, the shortsightedness that follows bravado. D'Antoni worries that stoic can translate to passive, that the team's past success has numbed his players to the joy of daily accomplishments.

The Suns' 100-94 loss to Houston on Wednesday night at US Airways Center was a convincing argument in the coach's favor. No fist pumps, no crowd inciting. There was more funk than spunk. With 12 seconds left in a four-point game, D'Antoni had to stomp his foot and yell at his players to get back on defense.
Swing's note: Sounds like a championship team with all it's shit together, right? :roll:

D'Antoni first raised the topic a year ago, when the Suns won 15 games in a row and welcomed the feat with a shrug.

"You do that two times in your lifetime," he said Wednesday. "We should be going, 'Hey, we knocked someone else off' and high-fiving and hugging everybody. But we'd go sit down and take our stuff off, and a couple of guys would grumble because they didn't get to play much and some guys would grumble because they didn't get the ball too many times."

It's a tricky balance. Point guard Steve Nash didn't rush to agree with D'Antoni.

"We have high standards," he said. "And it's not always fun, to be honest, with those standards. If we're living up to those standards and accountable to those, then we should be having fun. But if we're not, it shouldn't be that much fun."
Swing's note: Even Nash confrims it - the team's playing well below par & he's trying to call the rest of 'em on it.

The Suns' 129-114 loss at Golden State on Monday was a wake-up call for D'Antoni. The Warriors' effort reminded him of the Suns three seasons ago, when they made one of the bigger turnarounds in NBA history, played with a perpetual spring in their step and, "Every night was, 'Wow, look at this,' " he said.

That's how the Warriors played. Baron Davis and Stephen Jackson each played 42 minutes and looked as if they could go 42 more. Matt Barnes, who had missed time to be with his ailing mother, played for a high-energy 36. Golden State scored 37 points off 20 Suns turnovers.

If this sounds like overreaction for a team that's 11-4 and two games removed from an eight-game winning streak, consider it a coach's attempt to find the best route to an NBA championship.

Don't read too much into this. D'Antoni loves this team, loves its balance and the new dynamics of an altered roster. He blames himself as much as anyone.

"I'm worried about the thing I see today that's going to hurt us in the playoffs," he said. "Well, I didn't even care about that three years ago, because we just wanted to get in the playoffs."

Some of this simply is a reflection of who the Suns are. Nash is all poise and control. The feistiest he became Wednesday was when an official failed to call an obvious foul in the third quarter. Boris Diaw shows little emotion, and that can translate to tentative play. Those who saw him pass up a dunk for a pass to the three-point line witnessed it first-hand.
Swing's note: At which time D'Antoni promptly (rightly) benched his ass in said 3rd Q and sat for the rest of the game

If there's a trio that can return the energy, it's Amaré Stoudemire, Shawn Marion and Leandro Barbosa. They can bring back the swagger, as long as that equates to enthusiasm, not selfishness.

It's easy to see how the Suns could fall under the spell of complacency. They're so darn good, it's hard to feel giddy about setting a nice little screen, even though D'Antoni wishes they would.

"If you watch Mick Jagger, he doesn't go out and say, 'You know I've done this for 10 years. Today I'm giving a bad concert.' " he said. "He has the same enthusiasm probably he had 20 years ago. That's what makes him great.

"This should be happening now. Live in the moment. It's a great team."

[SwingMan]

A few more particulars on Tucker getting sent to the D-league - pretty decent little read:


Tucker assigned to D-League (http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/articles/1128tucker.html)

http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/pics/1128tucker.jpg
Alando Tucker takes a shot vs. Utah in a preseason game Oct. 15, 2007.

Paul Coro
The Arizona Republic
Nov. 29, 2007 12:00 AM

Suns first-round draft pick Alando Tucker is about to get a lot more of the shots and minutes he needs for his game to transcend to the pro level.

The only catch is that it will be in the NBA Development League. The Suns assigned Tucker, the 29th overall pick in the June draft, to their D-League affiliate in Albuquerque on Wednesday. He joined the Thunderbirds for practice and will play his first game Saturday at Idaho, assumingly slipping into a starting role for a team coached by Jeff Ruland.

Tucker played in two Suns games this season, including one in the past three weeks and needs more time to make the transition to playing as a wing for the Suns.

"He's proven what he can do when he gets minutes," Suns Vice President of Basketball Operations David Griffin said. "On the collegiate level, his game evolved quite a bit. We feel he can make similar strides there and get similar results.

"What we've asked them to do with Alando is focus on his two (shooting guard) and three (small forward) game, his outside shooting and try to discourage him from going down to the block. He has a tendency to focus on what he does well. He tries to go to the post too much. We need him to be more comfortable facing the basket."
Swing's note: Good Lord - they've got the right idea, but I can only hope that they won't try to make him entirely abandon his paint game.....

Tucker remains on his guaranteed two-year, $1.6 million contract and gets an NBA per diem ($106 per day vs. the D-League's $25) on road trips.

The move comes at a time when the Suns have more games and less practice time, particularly on next week's Eastern trip.

"He's a gamer and not a practice guy, and that's one thing that'll help him," Suns coach Mike D'Antoni said.

It is not a seasonlong assignment. Tucker would be recalled if a Suns player is injured and misses a week or more.

The Suns have 12 players with the team and can have 12 on each game's active roster. The Suns can send Tucker and D.J. Strawberry, the Suns' second-round pick, to Albuquerque up to three times each this season.

Tucker will room with former NBA player Darvin Ham while with Albuquerque, which also has former Arizona State forward Serge Angounou on its roster. Griffin and Assistant General Manager Vinny Del Negro will travel to Albuquerque to evaluate Tucker.

Free throws

D'Antoni, on Boris Diaw of late: "He's being more aggressive. We've got to keep that. We've got to make sure his matchups are favorable to where we can get the most out of it. A lot of times, that's with him at the five (center) and Shawn (Marion) at the four (power forward)."
Swing's note: This little snippet was obviously snagged before last night.....

• D'Antoni said Brian Skinner's second-half play Monday at Golden State (nine points, seven rebounds, two blocks) showed what he can do against smaller lineups.

"He's shown he can play in any style," D'Antoni said. "He doesn't slow us down in what we want to do, and that's really encouraging."
Swing's note: How cool has Skinner been? I doubt anyone - myself included - could've predicted what a positive impact this guy has made here.

[Ring_Wanted]

We need to give Raja a rest and minutes to DJ. Start Barbs at SG and make him the backup PG. Let Banks play backup SG, and play DJ at least 10 minutes. It's not that hard, Mike D.

Also, I don't understand why they took Tucker if they don't like his game or think it doesn't fit well in the NBA. In my opinion, selecting an euro guy and letting him play overseas would have been the way to go. Tucker is almost 24, and they are trying to make him learn a position he didn't really play in college. I hope he's smart and works his butt off to get there, because otherwise, the pick is a waste and he won't be here more than the two guaranteed years he has..

[LazarusLong]

Re: Enthusiasm ... grown men don't just become cheerleaders overnight. It's usually part of their existing personality.

Suns have let "holler guys" go without finding replacement. In 04-05 it was Q. In 05-06 it was House and Tim Thomas. Last year, it was missing somewhat, but the team compensated. Amare gets emotional, but he's dialing it back because he's afraid of technical's and his perceived (rightly or wrongly) bad attitude.

[SwingMan]

Re: Enthusiasm ... grown men don't just become cheerleaders overnight. It's usually part of their existing personality.

Suns have let "holler guys" go without finding replacement. In 04-05 it was Q. In 05-06 it was House and Tim Thomas. Last year, it was missing somewhat, but the team compensated. Amare gets emotional, but he's dialing it back because he's afraid of technical's and his perceived (rightly or wrongly) bad attitude.

I think it's time for D'Antoni to take a harder line with his players - and he may have started last night.

To me, it looks like the team - as a whole - is getting just a tad too comfy and, as such, complacency and outright laziness has set in. The last two were epitomized by Diaw's last play in the 3rd Q:

He found himself with a direct line, right side baseline, to the hoop - 5 feet away, if that - and kicked it out beyond the arc. Dead ball followed the pass and D'Antoni yanked Diaw that very moment and nailed his ass to the bench for the remainder of the game.

Fucking play or sit in favor of someone who actually gives a shit - this goes for Diaw and Amare especially.

[Xcon]

Could the minutes be catching up to these guys? The rotation has been tight and our guys are getting older, maybe they can't play full speed in this system, that's why we see shitty games followed by some games with really well executed offense, followed by more shitty games. I mean we're trying to play the same speed and most of the people playing are all 3 years older now. I think we need to expand the rotation more now than ever just do to the fact that are main guys can't play the bulk of the minutes and still give full effort every game or almost every game. They're not machines.

[LazarusLong]

Bell still is aching and needs more rest.
Hill had a stiff back last night.
Maybe play Banks and/or DJ more?
Maybe switch to a 9 or even 10 man rotation now, and shorten it later in the season.

[wpmiller42]

The minutes thing for Bell and Hill is starting to wear a little thin, especially since Banks really hasn't hurt the team this year and, in my opinion, has not played poorly overall this season when given the opportunity.

Hopefully Boris will get more aggresive now. I understand he was playing for a contract when he won most improved player, but I really didn't think he was going to become so passive.

And I know Sarver won't do it, but how cool would it be to sign Bo Outlaw, who was just waived by the Magic a few weeks ago. He wouldn't have to play a single minute, but he would get hyped and get the guys into the game -- like Eddie House with no chance of playing. He's a great role model for the young players, and I think his hustle on defense in practice might rub off on some guys. I'm sure he'd love to play for a contender, and we could use some of that positive, fun attitude he brings.

[tbrkingofthesouth]

This stinks..Did anyone see Nash kick Yao? I only saw highlights, but Francis blocked Marion and the went to work on Nash to close out the game..I hate when we lose

[zara_drummer]

All the talk yesterday about moving Amare...and then seeing the game last nite...ehh coupled with the game on monday....

Part of me thinks this team is missing something...maybe its just cuz they are not all healthy...I dont know. Maybe they arent used to playing with each other yet??

There are days when they look unbeatable..then there were timbes last nite when their spacing and flow was terrible...I remember a sequence where Hill almost ran into 2 teammates on the same possesion...They looked discombobulated...

Oh ya, and just cuz he's 7'6" doesnt mean he should be excluded from "over the back" calls...ridiculous!!

[v9]

Honestly, this looks like a typical San Antonio Spurs season.

Look bad through February, turn on the jets - and roar into the playoffs.

Time to rest Raja and Hill, though.

[misteradiant]

Bell still is aching and needs more rest.
Hill had a stiff back last night.
Maybe play Banks and/or DJ more?
Maybe switch to a 9 or even 10 man rotation now, and shorten it later in the season.

i've been pushing for that for over two weeks already. i'll take 51 wins and be deeper and better rested come playoff time than 63 wins and be physically wiped out with no experience on the bench.

i think it's time to go at least 9 deep and give marcus banks some burn, like 10 minutes a game. skinner is impressive and he'll get his but we should have sat leandro after his five trillionth bad shot and brought out banks just like coach did with diaw when he brought in skinner.

[JediSkywalker]

Dantoni is overusing his players. The starters don't get any rest even when they are injured. It's the same old Dantoni and the same old results, except that the Suns will not win 60 games this season.

[sunsdotcom]

Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo on Jamario Moon
By John Hareas
Posted Nov 28 2007 3:59PM

Nov. 28,2007 -- Amazing NBA journey? You’re hard pressed to find a better one currently playing in the NBA than Jamario Moon. This undrafted 27-year-old rookie came out of nowhere via the CBA, USBL, D-League (Huntsville Flight, Mobile Revelers, cut by the Arkansas RimRockers), American Basketball Association, World Basketball Association and we haven’t even mentioned his time spent with the Harlem Globetrotters.

Moon earned his first start on November 10 against the Bulls and hasn’t looked back (see Sunday’s six block performance against Luol Deng and the Bulls).

Bryan Colangelo, Raptors President & GM and reigning Executive of the Year via The Sporting News, talked about Jamario’s road to the NBA, who Jamario reminds him of (a little Pippen, a little Matrix) and Sam Mitchell’s growth as a coach in believing in this unlikely success story.

Jamario Moon turned out to be a real steal for the Raptors. How did you find this guy?
Colangelo: Last year due to the success of our team we didn’t have a draft pick. From years earlier, and I want to say it was a Yogi Stewart for Lamond Murray deal, our pick went away. It was protected to No.15 last year, but by virtue again of our success, we ended up with the 22nd pick in the draft. Thus the pick was conveyed to Cleveland and ultimately conveyed to Charlotte. So that kind of put us in a funny situation last year. We didn’t have a first, we didn’t have a second – that pick ended up going to Portland because I think it was protected to No. 50 overall. Minus the picks, we decided let’s not take a lot of time or effort to work out draft prospects pointlessly, let’s have a free agent camp where we hopefully were going to find something to add to our roster and fill a spot.

Our scouting staff, mostly led by Jim Kelly, who is Director of Player Personnel, ended up compiling a list of 35 to 40 players that competed in a mini camp over a three day period, and Jamario, who had a very good season last year in Albany, basically stood out. He along with Pooh Jeter was here and Pooh did really well in the point category. We were definitely looking for a point, potentially as a third guard. Both of those players really stood out, but statistically, talent-wise and athletically, Jamario stood out more than anyone. We made a decision to contact his agent and consider him as a possibility for filling a roster spot and things worked out very fortuitously for us and for him.

Here’s a young guy who at the age of 27-years-old has had his share of hope in terms of trying to get to the NBA but it hasn’t worked out for him. He’s been CBA, D-League, I think he’s even been with the Harlem Globetrotters briefly, and couldn’t seem to stick anywhere, didn’t seem to have focus. The knock was that he had great talent, but he just didn’t have a great feel for the game. Early on, he got some bad advice and that advice was to enter the NBA Draft as an underage candidate. He basically listened to that advice, and I think he’ll tell you this story if you talk to him, that it was a mistake. He was overlooked. He was not selected in the draft (2001).

I do recall seeing him work out for the Phoenix Suns that particular year because I was there in Phoenix at the time. I made a comment to Dave Griffin, my assistant GM at the time. I said, ‘It’s great that he’s here and he has great talent, but he’s nowhere near ready for the NBA.’ He is one of those guys who is out of sight, out of mind if you’re not paying attention to him and you’re not following him on a consistent basis. He is off doing something basketball-wise, but it’s hard to keep track of all these prospects. Credit our scouts for keeping tabs on him. He clearly has gotten to a stage in his life where the maturity has kicked in. It’s off the floor, it’s on the floor. He seems to have a very, very even keel about him on the court. He is remarkably poised for the situation that he has been put into. Part of that is the age. He has now been through a lot of experiences, but never at this stage. So it is a little bit surprising to everyone including ourselves.

Another critical component is the fact that our coaching staff, led by Sam Mitchell, believes in him. You have to find someone in your plight to get to the NBA, or your road to ultimately finding a home here, you’ve got to get some breaks along the way, and in this case I think Jamario got the break that there was a connection immediately with Sam. I think Sam has definitely given him his share of opportunity and to his credit he’s taken advantage of it.

When Sam inserted Jamario into the starting lineup, some thought maybe he was sticking his neck out for an unproven 27-year-old rookie. Some media members wondered if Sam hadn’t gone off the deep end in starting him.
Colangelo: It just depends on how you view that. I am not sure he put his neck out there too far because he knew I was right there with him in terms of the discussion. That is the sign of a good solid working relationship between myself and Sam. Sam is the coach of this basketball team and he’s free to make those decisions and move accordingly, but it’s always nice to know you have a little support there. At the same time, I will say that not a lot of coaches would have the courage to take a flyer like that because it was somewhat of a flyer. Again, it speaks to the job that Sam is doing and his growth as a coach and his comfort level knowing his evaluation of talent is going to pay off eventually.

It is interesting because when we talked about signing him the question arose, Why hasn’t he made it? Why hasn’t anyone else signed him? The response back from me was, Why do we worry about what everyone else has done? Let’s worry about what we’ve done and what we can do with him if we think we can make him a player. Granted, we’re not talking about a major contract either. It’s a minimum contract and there is low risk to it. But again, you factor all the components in and everything has aligned correctly at this stage for Jamario. The biggest piece of all is Jamario is following through on it.
What are Jamario’s greatest attributes: athleticism? energy?
Colangelo: Right now, you look at everything he does and he’s got a real multifaceted game. His talent and his athleticism allow him to do some of the things that are his strengths. His strengths are defense – when he is really, truly focused on it he’s not afraid of anybody. So you’re talking about an athletic, fearless guy who has an idea now after several years of how to play defense against very good players. He’s capable of doing that and he’s doing it. There’re too many guys in our league that you look at and you say, ok, you’ve got the skills, the talent, but why don’t you do it, why don’t you get out there and perform? Jamario, in this case, has taken advantage of those attributes and really become a very solid, if not our best, perimeter defender right now. He’s also capable of rebounding. He seems to have a real nose for the ball and that is a talent, though sometimes hidden. You need to be able to have some instincts as to where rebounds are going to carom off and he seems to have a very good knack for knowing where the ball is going to be. But again, athleticism allows you to get to some balls that others can’t. So immediately athleticism has been that common trait that I think is really helping him.

The other thing is he’s a really proficient shooter. He seems to take shots that come to him in the flow of the game, but he has a knack to make shots with range. I think that his ability to find ways to score, a lot of times it’s elevating, and once again athleticism allows that, but elevating above his defender and coming up with a nice looking shot, a good clean look at the basket. That’s another thing that I think is one of his big attributes here. So athleticism is that one trait, but he’s utilizing that athleticism to perform these other things.
Has his emergence lessened the blow of not having Jorge Garbajosa?
Colangelo: It certainly doesn’t hurt. We miss Garbo right now for a multitude of reasons. Number one, he really became a fixture in our locker room and on the court last year for us. He started at the three probably more out of necessity than anything, but his true position is probably the four. As you know we have a pretty good four here in Chris Bosh, who is going to anchor himself in that position for some time. Arguably Bargnani is somewhat of a four, but we’re getting away with playing him some minutes at the five as well. But I think that we were constantly talking about the need to go out and find an athletic, slashing, defending, rebounding three, hopefully one that could score because scoring is a big part of our game. Interestingly he has answered a lot of those things.

The Garbo piece is still missing. He was a glue player for us. He provided a lot of the grit and intangibles that you just don’t measure in a box score, but I think the fact that we do have Jamario now anchored in at the three spot, at least for now, he is answering a lot of the needs that we talked about as we sought that position.
Does Jamario’s game remind you of anyone in particular?
Colangelo: I’m always careful not to draw comparisons because sometimes it might even be more physically than anything else, but when you start comparing games and skills it’s difficult.

The names I constantly come up with in terms of what I think he is capable of or certain aspects of their game that I see from time to time, I see parts of Shawn Marion, I see parts of Scottie Pippen, I see parts of Richard Dumas. He’s got a little bit of all three of those players.

Now granted Shawn Marion is at an entirely different level right now and Scottie Pippen is one of the 50 all-time greats in the NBA. It’s important that you don’t mistake that as he will be the next Scottie Pippen. It’s just that I see certain parts of their game in Jamario that reminds me of those players.

As you assess this season’s rookie class which features three 27-year-old rookies in Moon, Luis Scola and Juan Carlos Navarro and headlined by Kevin Durant, are you pleasantly surprised by the amount of players who have emerged to be significant contributors?
Colangelo: I think it speaks to the fact that when you’re a young player and coming into this very competitive and talented league and you’re not physically or emotionally ready to take on this kind of competition night in and night out, it’s very difficult to aspire to the expectations of your team, of the fan base, of the media, and it’s more difficult than it looks. So when young players emerge and have an impact right away in the league like Durant is, it’s great to see and it obviously speaks to his talent and what he’s capable of doing. But not everyone is ready to do that. It’s interesting to see that sometimes it takes other experiences.

Despite that fact that Bargnani last year was 21 years old, 20 when he first got here and had yet to play an NBA game, he seemed to be a little more mature and ready for the challenge given the fact that he had been playing professionally over in Europe in some very high level Euroleague games. You have the same thing now with Jamario and Navarro. Navarro obviously has done it at an even higher level than Jamario. Navarro has been playing games in Europe for many years. I remember talking to Washington about the chance to possibly acquire his rights. He has shown that he can play at a very high level and I think that the maturity and just general basketball savvy that comes with that basketball experience is something that really benefits these guys down the road.

Jamario is certainly the embodiment of an amazing NBA journey. Can you think of a more amazing one, a player who went from unknown to starter and key contributor?
Colangelo: Jamario’s story is short in its lifespan right now. Let’s not jump too quickly to a conclusion that he’s ready to be anointed an All-NBA player, but he is obviously making an impact and doing something that is helping us win basketball games.

To see him come out of virtually nowhere and to look back at some of the scouting reports that had him listed in June of ’06 as the 11th best small forward, July of ’07 as the 14th best small forward in the minor leagues, I think it is. This one is a stunner for a lot of people. Again, all credit goes to Jamario for taking advantage of this opportunity, but there’s been others, players that have emerged later in the process. Look at Anthony Parker. He didn’t make it in the NBA basically and had to go back to Europe to establish himself and came back at the age of 31.

Here’s a guy that supposedly wasn’t good enough to be in the NBA and he went from Euroleague player to NBA starter. He took advantage of his opportunity and hit was the right fit for this team. Raja Bell had to go to Europe and bounce around the minor leagues and eventually ended up in a situation where he is a starter on one of the league’s best basketball teams. But there wasn’t a huge market for him when Phoenix signed him as a free agent. He had emerged as a player obviously, but he took the long road. It doesn’t happen overnight for everybody, but players that are persistent, players that take care of themselves, players that handle themselves right, and players that find themselves in the right situation with the right team and the right group of people believing in them, it makes it a great story. That is certainly the case here with Jamario.

[jkalldaway]

Golden State really is like the old us...beating the hell out of Houston. I miss 04-05.

[sunsdotcom]

news re marion's agent dan fegan:

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/truehoop/0-28-333/Thursday-Mini-Bullets.html


Former Dan Fegan client Ricky Davis has some advice for Anderson Varejao: fire Fegan if you want to get a deal done with the Cavaliers. Branson Wright's article in the Cleveland Plain Dealer points out that Fegan has been one of the most innovative and toughest negotiators in the league. "'Fegan's whole reputation is based on what happens with Varejao,' said the rival agent. 'Fegan's trying to show how tough of an agent he is. Every agent, every GM and every player is watching to see how this works out. If the Cavs budge, Fegan will sign a hundred clients.' That's the flip side. Fegan is respected for his tough negotiation tactics, and many agents admire him. Those same agents also want to see if this holdout by Varejao transpires into dividends. 'If this works, we'll all have our players hold out,' said the agent. 'It'll change the face of negotiations in the NBA. So what's going on between the Cavs and Fegan is very important because if it works out for Fegan, this will change the whole game. But if he fails, he'll look like an idiot.'"

[ShelC]

Kind of like Boras. Varajeo should negotiate his own contract.

[sunsdotcom]

Running Suns must improve on set plays
Charley Rosen
FOXSports.com, Updated 7 hours ago STORY TOOLS:

Game time: Rockets 100, Suns 94

One game is not necessarily a microcosm of an entire season. But even if it isn't, the Suns' home loss to Houston raised the same questions that have been asked about their game plan ever since Mike D'Antoni arrived in the desert.
To run?

Let's break down some of the Suns' numbers: The majority of their fast breaks were keyed by turnovers and steals. Since most of the Suns' fast-break shots were jumpers, it wasn't surprising that they only shot 6-for-14 while on the run. Add four free throws and zero turnovers, and their running game was effective but not overwhelming.

However, when a fast-break shot was unavailable, the Suns kept probing the Rockets' defense. The shots available before the ball was pulled out were produced by the Suns' early offense. Here, Phoenix shot 14-for-23, added one free throw and committed three turnovers.

Point being, the Suns' usual hurry-up-and-shoot program has been slightly altered. Each uptempo possession lasts a little longer than before, which means fewer shots are forced. Amare Stoudemire had three of these, Steve Nash two and Leandro Barbosa one. Overall, the Suns' quick-hitting offense produced a field goal percentage of 54.1.

As expected, Nash was the prime mover and groover, dribbling here and there, faking, crossing over and under, penetrating and kicking, and thereby creating highly makeable shots for his teammates. The fact that Nash tallied only six assists was mostly due to the poor shooting of Shawn Marion (6-for-13), Grant Hill (2-for-8), Raja Bell (3-for-8), and Boris Diaw (1-for-3).









Must-read:

Whitlock: Who killed Sean Taylor?

Weiss: West Virginia better watch out

Hill: LeBron looking like a legend

Fantasy football info headquarters
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Must-see:
Jay Mohr mocks Bob Knight, Ricky

Reaction to Sean Taylor death
For more videos, click here.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Must-know:
Kidd hoping to play with LeBron?
For all of today's rumors, click here.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Top headlines:
Cowboys beat Pack; Favre hurt

Lakers give Jackson $24M extension

Mets GM: Reyes won't be traded
For all of today's top stories, click here.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Worth a thousand words:
College football action

Sexiest sportscasters
For more photos, click here.


In order to play winning basketball, the Suns have to run the ball into the attack zone. But since opponents know this, they send only one or (rarely) two bigs to the offensive glass and concentrate on hustling back on defense even after made baskets.

Consequently, Phoenix failed to generate nearly as many quick scores as it needed to win.

Or not to run?

Now let's examine what the Suns' offense produced when it had to pull the ball out and set up half-court plays.

With Nash on the court, the Suns resorted to the usual drives-and-dishes by their two-time MVP, as well as various screen-and-rolls, weaves, handoffs and an occasional isolation.

When Barbosa replaced Nash at the point, the Suns ran many more isolation plays, and their off-the-ball movement was not there.

Their half-court sets produced 12 successful free throws, 10 turnovers and a dismal 29.2 percent from the field (14-for-48). In fact, most of these buckets were either made by Nash (11-for-20 overall for 29 points) or Stoudemire (8-for-18 for 25 points).

For sure, the Rockets' aggressive defense had a lot to do with this inadequate performance, but the Suns' patterns (such as they were) were mostly poorly designed, poorly executed and gained precious few advantages.

So then, not running is not only not an option, but it's a sure-fire strategy for an early exit in the playoffs.

That is the question

In addition to its erratic production when forced to play station-to-station offense, the Suns' defense has always been questionable. Here's what can be gleaned from the ball game at hand:


As a team, the Suns have incredibly quick hands on defense. Passing lanes are always subject to ambush, as are both high and careless dribbles. Virtually every catch is also contested.

On three second-half sequences, the Suns sandwiched Yao Ming with Stoudemire playing behind him and Marion in front — an alignment that prevented Yao from receiving any incoming passes and totally confused the Rockets. At the same time, the Suns were quick enough to cover any swing passes that the Rockets eventually attempted. But why wasn't this strategy employed more often? Especially since Yao torched them for 31 points on 12-for-19 shooting.

Both Bell and Marion did an admirable job of containing Tracy McGrady (7-for-19, 18 points), but no one else played acceptable man-to-man defense.

Stoudemire pushed and shoved Yao with all of his might, but when he was asked to plug the middle on ball penetrations by the Rockets' guards, Stoudemire was often caught with his hands in his pockets.

The Suns had several methods of dealing with high screen-and-rolls, none of which was especially effective. Switching created costly mismatches. Going under and shooting the gap made for minimal pressure on the Rockets' perimeter shooters (Houston was 8-for-16 from 3-point territory). And a loose double-teaming probably did the most good.

Ironically, the Suns' defense was at its peskiest when the Rockets played a relatively stodgy half-court offense. This allowed the Suns to maximize their quickness and speed. But when Houston was into a more upbeat mode, the Suns were caught out of position.

Whatever the pace of the Rockets' offense, Phoenix was unable to hinder its guards from penetrating the lane.
So what are the lessons to be learned from this contest?

The Suns must run to win. While their offense is more patient than ever, their defense is still too impetuous. Most importantly, for the Suns to extend their season into May and June, they must find a way to hone their half-court offense.

The real question is whether or not they'll be able to manage this over the course of the next 19 months.

[jkalldaway]

Over the next 19 months huh?