Saturday's News: Fluff in a meat grinder

[SwingMan]

3-game trip a good test for Suns (http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/articles/1214sunsnb1215.html)

Doug Haller
The Arizona Republic
Dec. 14, 2007 07:31 PM

Mike D'Antoni didn't want to make too much of the next three road games. It's only December, after all. But the Suns coach understands if fans and the media want to make this trip into a bigger deal.

With tonight's contest against the improved New Orleans Hornets, the Suns begin a test that will measure their performance against title contenders. The defending champion San Antonio Spurs await Monday, and two days later the Suns face the Mavericks in Dallas.

"I don't think you're ever anxious to go to Dallas and San Antonio," D'Antoni said. "We could lose all three of them. We could win all three of them."
http://www.azcentral.com/imgs/clear.gifhttp://www.azcentral.com/imgs/clear.gif

As always, the showdown with the Spurs will generate discussion back home, especially considering the controversial ending to last year's Western Conference semifinals.

Before the one-game suspensions to Amaré Stoudemire and Boris Diaw, D'Antoni thought the Suns were the better team. He feels the same this time with the addition of Grant Hill and Brian Skinner.

"As many weapons as we had last year to choose from, we actually have more to choose from and more guys to break down their defense and help Steve (Nash) out when things get a little sloggy," D'Antoni. "We're not even close to the team we're going to be, (but) neither are they."

Nice dental work

Nash spent nearly two hours at the dentist Thursday getting a chipped tooth repaired. Nash had suffered the injury at the end of the second quarter against Utah.

"Luckily, it wasn't very painful, but you still got people in your mouth," he said.

As for his ESPN halftime interview, when he humorously spoke with a lisp: "A very rare showing. Once in a while I give my fans something to cheer about."

LB, keep shooting

Leandro Barbosa scored five points on a season-low six shots against Utah. Afterward, D'Antoni told the reserve guard to become more aggressive.

"If you go back and look at the tape, he's doing what he's supposed to do," D'Antoni said. "He didn't get that many shots up. I don't know he turned that many down, but he only played (26) minutes. He's playing well; he's just not shooting the ball well."

Barbosa has missed 17 of his past 23 attempts.

Saturday's game

Suns at Hornets

When: 6 p.m.
Where: New Orleans Arena.
TV/radio: My 45/KTAR-AM (620).

New Orleans update: The Hornets were 14-8 going into Friday's game at Dallas. Chris Paul has established himself as one of the game's top point guards, averaging a team-high 21.5 points and 10 assists. He has scored 20 or more in six of seven games before Friday, including a career-best 43 against Memphis. David West averages 18.5 points and 9.2 rebounds. Tyson Chandler contributes 11.1 points and 11 rebounds. Peja Stojakovic (strained groin) and Melvin Ely (bruised eye socket) are questionable. Morris Peterson (strained back) is probable. The Hornets are 6-5 at home.

[SwingMan]

Nash a sure thing at free-throw line (http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/articles/1214suns1215.html)

http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/pics/1214nash.jpg
Suns guard Steve Nash shoots a free throw.

Doug Haller
The Arizona Republic
Dec. 14, 2007 07:41 PM

The best closer in sports might not be found on the baseball field but in a pro-basketball arena, bending his knees at the free-throw line with the game in question and time standing still.

Steve Nash is often lauded for the difficult plays, such as the behind-the-head pass he recently delivered on the run to Grant Hill, a dish he called "an escape from getting it smothered against the backboard."

But what gets lost are the simpler things, such as his performance from the foul line, where Nash provides his team an advantage in close games, situations that are likely to surface during a rugged three-game trip that starts tonight in New Orleans.
http://www.azcentral.com/imgs/clear.gifhttp://www.azcentral.com/imgs/clear.gif

"(He's) pretty automatic," Suns coach Mike D'Antoni said. "We feel pretty good when the shot clock winds down, you're up two or three and we got to ice it up. We feel pretty confident."

After 23 games, Nash is off to his best start from the line. He hit 53 in a row to begin the season, a streak that was in the back of his mind, he said, because "when you make most of them, you know when you missed."

Nash made five free throws in the final 11 seconds of Wednesday's win, robbing the Jazz of an attempt to send the game into overtime. Going into Friday's play, Nash's 95 percent accuracy ranked second in the NBA among qualified shooters, trailing only Chicago's Kirk Hinrich (95.1 percent).

"That's sort of the normal standard for him," Hill said. "You put high expectations on him and anything less is shocking. I shoot free throws with him at the end of practice, and I don't see him miss very often there, either."

Former Suns assistant coach Marc Iavaroni used to shoot free throws after practice, counting how many he made in a row. Nash hasn't tried anything similar in years, but assistant coach Phil Weber said the guard probably could hit 100 in a row.

"As you get to higher and higher levels, what happens is it becomes almost a confidence thing," Weber said. "You study the great ones. They do the exact same thing (at the line) every time. There's no deviation. Encompassed in that is a level of concentration and a level of confidence, where Steve just knows he's going to make it, and that creates one of the best free-throw shooters maybe to ever live."

A career 89.8 percent shooter, Nash trails only Mark Price (90.4) and Rick Barry (90) for best foul-line accuracy in NBA history. His goal each season is simply to hit 90 percent.

"It's just like any other skill," Nash said. "Some guys take it really seriously, and some guys probably neglect it. For me, it's all about when I step to the line I feel comfortable. If you're confident, your technique will take over."

[Nate]

Nash on next generation point guards


http://assets.espn.go.com/photo/2007/1214/nba_g_parkerpaulwilliams_580.jpg

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/dailydime?page=dime-071215-16
By Marc Stein
ESPN.com


It started with Deron Williams on Wednesday night. It continues Saturday night on the road against Chris Paul. Then on Monday night, on the road again, Tony Parker awaits.

Forget the chipped tooth for a moment. That's some holiday treatment Steve Nash is getting from the schedule-makers.

As if he wasn't sufficiently aware of how good the NBA's next generation of elite point guards already is, Nash will have seen them all up close -- back-to-back-to-back -- by the time he gets to Dallas for next Wednesday's maiden reunion of the season with his old pal Dirk Nowitzki.

Not that Nash has any protests planned. He even consented to providing a thumbnail scouting report on each member of the much younger trio poised to supplant Nash and Jason Kidd as the game's pre-eminent points. (The two-time MVP didn't believe it, either, until we told him that Parker, after six seasons and three championships, is still only 25 -- not too much older than Williams at 23 and Paul at 22.)


Here's Nash on:

Williams' strengths:

"He's a great player already. Very, very dangerous offensively. He can score from anywhere on the court at a high percentage, but he's also a true point guard with good vision. And he's a competitor."

D-Will's "Jason Kidd with a jump shot" label:

"I know everyone likes to compare him to Jason because they're of similar size and build, but Jason is almost in a class by himself as a pass-first point guard. I think everyone is just different. We might all have some similarities in our games, but that's a somewhat simplistic way to look at it. There's more to it than that."

Trying to guard the bigger Williams:

"I usually do guard him even though he's obviously bigger and stronger. But let's face it: Deron's a difficult matchup for every team in the league. I do all right against him, but a lot of defending point guards in this league is how the bigs handle the pick-and-roll. It's not so much guys going one-on-one. [The bigs] can make all the difference."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Paul's strengths:

"He's not as accomplished a shooter as Deron, but he's a terrific penetrator and passer and he's able to get to the line from the backcourt. We both penetrate and probe the defense in pretty similar fashion, but I don't get to the line as much as Chris does. And that kind of offsets Deron's shooting advantage. [Paul] also seems to have a knack for getting steals. He gives his team a lot of confidence."

The never-ending debate about who will have the better career, Williams or Paul:

"I'd love to say that it's all the media's fault, but I understand it. Everyone tries to compare players because it's fun. It's the natural thing to do to try to think of something that's similar. Let's say we're talking on the phone and you say something about X and I'll interrupt you and say, 'Oh, you mean sort of like Y?' It's just what we do in life, because we all want to relate to each other. That's kind of how I see it."

Which one has the lead at this point:

"There's nothing in it , really. I don't know how you could pick one. Both are great point guards already."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Parker's strengths:

"He's the best finisher out of all the point guards. Tremendous quickness, as everyone knows. It seems like he can get to the basket in traffic any time he wants and he's effective going right or left, which obviously makes it tougher for the defense. And now he's improved his jump shot. He's definitely improved it."

The impact of the growing Suns/Spurs rivalry on their individual matchup:

"You'll probably be disappointed to hear this, but there really is no impact. We don't guard each other very often."

Why he regularly checks Williams and Paul but not Parker:

"I imagine that both teams think it's more effective to put a bigger, longer guy on both of us. And there's something to be said for not chasing around the other guy all night when each of us is doing a lot of orchestrating."

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[B]
The disclaimer: There is something that could spoil the whole back-to-back-to-back nature of Steve Nash's Tour de Generation Next: Tony Parker's ankle. Parker was held out of Thursday's defeat to the Los Angeles Lakers with an ankle problem that Spurs coach Gregg Popovich says he should have acknowledged sooner. That will almost certainly prompt Pop to hold Parker out of Saturday's game against Denver and possibly Monday's first Suns-Spurs reunion of the season as well.


Yet you can pretty much bank on Nash's participation. He unexpectedly disclosed this week that a variety of back, neck and shoulder spasms have been messing with his shot lately, but Nash was a near-perfect marksman Wednesday in a narrow home victory over Deron Williams' Jazz -- and in spite of the chipped front tooth he suffered thanks to an errant Carlos Boozer elbow -- and is ready to press on against Paul on Saturday after a trip to the dentist.
Nash's closest friend on the Suns responded with a hearty scoff when someone suggested that the 33-year-old might find this Williams-Paul-Parker stretch taxing.


"The conventional wisdom would say he's only got a few years left in the tank," Raja Bell said. "But Steve comes back in better shape every year. I'd never put a number on how many years he's got left."

[JackArse]

so, the warriors have gone 13-4 since starting 0-6.

are they for real? or just peaking WAY too early.

[BigLewy]

I highly doubt they keep this up. Baron is already having pain in his knee and said he doesnt want to play as many minutes. Nelson runs his guys even more than Mike does, they will be cooked by March.

[AlanS]

In his latest game with Albuquerque, Alando Tucker exploded for 40 pts. His stat line: 40 mins, 40 pts, 15/25 FG, 4/4 3PT, 6/7 FTs, 8 rebs (3 off), 2 assist, 1 steal, 1 TO.

The Albuquerque Thunderbirds won 109-102. I'm not sure if Tucker played SF, SG, or both.

[DrSublime]

damn
way to go Alando.

[ShelC]

I havent seen the games....his numbers are impressive no doubt. But is he polishing his game and making the adjustments necessary to play at the NBA level? Or is he simply playing his usual game and getting his numbers doing the things hes done his entire college career (playing inside, overpowering smaller 2s and 3s) . I dont doubt he could dominate at the NBDL level. He was a top college player, yet couldnt transition to the pros right away. The NBDL seems to be the middle ground for college and the pros, so it would make sense that hes successful down there.

[Superbone]

In his latest game with Albuquerque, Alando Tucker exploded for 40 pts. His stat line: 40 mins, 40 pts, 15/25 FG, 4/4 3PT, 6/7 FTs, 8 rebs (3 off), 2 assist, 1 steal, 1 TO.

The Albuquerque Thunderbirds won 109-102. I'm not sure if Tucker played SF, SG, or both.

Wow! Keep it up, Alando.

[y2jjedipimp]

damn 40 points!?!?! are you kiddin gme? That's got to translate into something in this league. 4-4 from downtown even....what are we waiting for? call him up. how does that go unnoticed? He's been killing down there. if we are going to keep our rookies there we should atleast put them both in the same place at teh same time and let them develop together. Someone is missing the effing boat on this one. Management is treating our rookies like they are coming straight out of HS. Thats what really gets me. DJ and Alando have 4 years of college experience and we treat them like a Gerald Green or a Martell Webster.

[Mori_Chu]

I still think Alando Tucker is going to make an impact for us before DJ Strawberry is, because he can score. I'd love to see him in the game with our bench lineup to help take some of the offensive load from Barbosa. Why not have Tucker taking some of those shots rather than Barbs always chucking them up?

[Wormwood]

Regarding Alando in the D-League:

- He's 3rd in PPG
- 28th in FG%
- 15th in RPG
- 14th in MPG
- 4th in Effeciency

Nice numbers, but consider that the guys ahead of him in terms of PPG and effeciency are no-names like Darius Washington, Jeremy Richardson, and Kasib Powell.

As a side note, on the ESPN board there are still guys agitating for more minutes for Banks. Same deal here. Why? Both his PER and +/- per 48 are down significantly this year. If anything, he's playing worse than he did last year.

[SpecialSauce]

Because not all of us look at numbers on paper as the only measuring stick to how someone is playing. WW I really think you spend more time staring at paper than watching the games. If anybody says Banks has played worse than last year, they are coocoo for cocoa puffs.

[Wormwood]

I'd say the coaching staff came to the same conclusion as me, considering he got benched even faster this year than he did last year. He was still doing the same dumb things: he couldn't guard the pick and roll, he fouled way too far away from the basket, he guarded people too close and got badly burned off the dribble for easy points, his FG% was down, his assists per 48 minutes were down....


BTW - Iwatch all the games from beginning to end. Heck, I rewind and watch particular parts of interest using TiVo, to confirm my observations sometimes... (Hmm.... did I really see what I think I saw... yep... Nash tripped him... or yep, Banks looks about as happy as Charleton Heston at a Hillary 2008 rally).

Anyone else notice that Detroit was able to move Brezec and Hermann for Nazr Mohammed? Geez, we could have found a use for Mohammed or Hermann, both of whom would fit in our system (Hermann in particular) better than Banks has. Mohammed and Skinner could be the Duncan smacking tag team, and Hermann is a savvy 6-9 high energy three point gunner who plays either forward spot and is used to a European style offensive system.

[Miamisun]

Yeah I agree WW, we have some nice parts sitting on the bench that we could move for some situational players. The only reason I can think of them hanging on to Banks is for his speed as a practice player. Either way, when D'antoni needs some bigs for a key rebound on a free throw to gain possesion he can look at the bench all he wants, but there is nothing 7'0 sitting there. Nazr would have been nice to have for sure.

[JediSkywalker]

I still think Alando Tucker is going to make an impact for us before DJ Strawberry is, because he can score. I'd love to see him in the game with our bench lineup to help take some of the offensive load from Barbosa. Why not have Tucker taking some of those shots rather than Barbs always chucking them up?


Tucker is playing and scoring in the D league. DJ is not playing at all. How can he score?

Is there a rule against sending two players to the D league at the same time?

[JackArse]

i don't know if it's a rule for the # of players sent down, or the # of players to have on your roster.. at a minimum that is.

[Nate]

Tucker is playing and scoring in the D league. DJ is not playing at all. How can he score?

Is there a rule against sending two players to the D league at the same time?


i don't know if it's a rule for the # of players sent down, or the # of players to have on your roster.. at a minimum that is.

The Suns announced a few weeks ago that they will be alternating between Tucker and DJ on the D-league team and that towards the end of the year Tucker will probably be back with the team and DJ will be send down.

Edit: ..and iirc, you can send down and call up the same player twice.

[SwingMan]

Alright, who has a link to the D-league box scores that they can share?

Perhaps an Albequerque team site link?

[Wormwood]

Here's a wacky thought.....

Why don't we sign one more vet min kind of guy, and send both Alando and DJ to the D-league to get some burn, and to learn to play together as part of a cohesive 2nd unit?

Of course, that would cost 1.4 million dollars, and we can't have that, not after we shot ourselves in the foot by saving 22 million by dumping Jones, KT, and a draft pick...

[Nate]

Swing, if you are still looking for it, here you are:

http://www.nba.com/dleague/albuquerque/

[SwingMan]

Thanks, Nate.

Looks like I need to knuckle up on my city spelling.....

[JediSkywalker]

Here's a wacky thought.....

Why don't we sign one more vet min kind of guy, and send both Alando and DJ to the D-league to get some burn, and to learn to play together as part of a cohesive 2nd unit?

Of course, that would cost 1.4 million dollars, and we can't have that, not after we shot ourselves in the foot by saving 22 million by dumping Jones, KT, and a draft pick...

Actually we lost 3 draft picks. Remember that the Suns traded their earlier draft pick (#24?) to Portland and they gave up 2 future first rounders to Seattle?

[Shabazz]

Yeah I agree WW, we have some nice parts sitting on the bench that we could move for some situational players. The only reason I can think of them hanging on to Banks is for his speed as a practice player. Either way, when D'antoni needs some bigs for a key rebound on a free throw to gain possesion he can look at the bench all he wants, but there is nothing 7'0 sitting there. Nazr would have been nice to have for sure.

Um, I can think of another reason...nobody wants him and his $19 Million price tag.

We missed out on Fabio. Would've been a nice fit here.

[scosuns]

Yeah, that Banks signing was just terrible. It doesn't look like D'Antoni plans on giving him another shot anytime soon. :roll:

[JediSkywalker]

No matter how bad the Banks signing, he is still an NBA player. He can be used to provide rest periods to the starters. After spending 21 million on him, Dantoni needs to use him at least some. He does have his bright spots, though rare.

[CTSuns]

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section=nba&id=3156400

I don't know if this was posted somewhere else already, but I found this amusing, sad and sort of impressive all at the same time.

[JackArse]

i find it sad.. a pint to a pint and a half. be a real alcoholic.. geez.

[scosuns]

Wow, if he was playing those games buzzed, imagine how well he might have played sober. But in all seriousness, it is sad.

[Shabazz]

I'm also up for giving Banks more of a shot. May as well make lemonade out of lemons.

But if D'Antoni is going to play him, he's got to commit to giving him 10 minutes a game for at least 5 games and see what happens without getting antsy and pulling the plug. You're screwing with a players head by tossing him into a game for 3 minutes as a 5th option and expecting him to prove himself. Of course the guy is going to press and make mistakes. It's an impossible situation for Banks to be in.

[ShelC]

But if D'Antoni is going to play him, he's got to commit to giving him 10 minutes a game for at least 5 games and see what happens without getting antsy and pulling the plug. You're screwing with a players head by tossing him into a game for 3 minutes as a 5th option and expecting him to prove himself. Of course the guy is going to press and make mistakes. It's an impossible situation for Banks to be in.

Thank you. If he had gotten a steady 8-12mpg thus far in the season, and i mean every game, then i'd say we gave him a legit shot and we'd know if could contribute or not, and whether hes actually improved enough to play here or not. But its impossible to evaluate a guy and label him a "finished product" when u barely give him a chance. I got into this with WW (i think) before the season about how Banks wasnt given a shot last year. Well, has he been given a shot this year? Last i heard, banks and MikeD shook hands after Banks had one of his best games here. Never heard from him again.

We missed out on Fabio. Would've been a nice fit here.

Not only that, but we missed out of Carlos delfino this summer when the pistons gave him to the raps for a 2nd rounder. Thats the guy we really missed out on. I dont know whether we're making inquiries or are hand-tied by the salary cap, but both guys wouldve improved our team for very little cost. Makes u wonder.

[Superbone]

Wow, if he was playing those games buzzed, imagine how well he might have played sober. But in all seriousness, it is sad.

Yeah, the article was sad and wrong. Clark never played a game for the Suns.

[Mori_Chu]

I miss Brian Colangelo.

[Spanky]

I miss Brian Colangelo.

Understandable, but he never got the job done either. Still ringless as I recall. :???:

[Superbone]

I miss Brian Colangelo.

Is he related to Bryan?

[Mori_Chu]

Oops. I guess I was trying to say to him, "I only have Is for you..."

[wpmiller42]

Understandable, but he never got the job done either. Still ringless as I recall. :???:

Yeah, but our conversations weren't dominated by talk of, "How many draft picks did we trade to stay under the tax?" or, "Well, we have 13 players and, thus, no chance of signing anyone who might be serviceable."

I understand that some here argue that Sarver is or is not cheap; regardless, he has fostered a mentality where the bottom line significantly contributes to discussion on whether or not we can win a championship.

[Superbone]

Oops. I guess I was trying to say to him, "I only have Is for you..."

Oh, geez... :lol: