SPURSCHAMPS
05-25-2005, 11:00 AM
The Unshakeable Spurs
Phoenix threw everything they had at San Antonio and it wasn't enough. The Suns even showed moments where they played good defense, but they still lost. You ask yourself when does a team shoot 56% from the field and 50% from the arc and not win at home? And where do they go from here?
The answer to the first question is when they play a San Antonio Spurs team so calm under pressure that they would make Pervis Ellison look like an on the edge of his seat nervous wreck. Something really intriguing about this series is that both teams refuse to deviate from their game plan and style of play. Usually, somebody gets shaken and the wheels start to fall off. That's not the case with two of the best teams in the NBA. The only problem for Phoenix is that San Antonio has the superior plan. San Antonio knows that they won't turn Phoenix into a half court team game after game. So what they have done is changed the Suns just enough to win games.
Phoenix is averaging 115 points a game in the playoffs. They take about 85 shots a game and make half of them. In technical basketball language, we call that some seriously sick sh.., you get the idea. Game 1, the Suns took and made their average, but San Antonio was on fire in the fourth and pulled out the win. If you remember, I said that Pops wasn't going to be thrilled about all the Phoenix scoring and adjustments would be made but nothing so dramatic that San Antonio gets out of rhythm. Although Phoenix hit everything in Game 2, they were held to 79 shots and made 16 turnovers. Possessions limited, shots limited, scoring ... limited, to only 108 (we're talking Phoenix ok, so take that in context). San Antonio shot 86 shots, 10 more than their postseason average. They too were hitting everything, especially down the stretch and grabbed win number two on the road.
Ok, that's the gameplan. Strategies work when great players step up and execute. Stating the obvious, Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire have been utterly amazing. Every great franchise in the past 30 years has had a great duo and these two are as good as it gets. 66 points combined in game 2, Nash added 15 assists. At the buzzer, Nash nearly hit the three to tie but it fell just short. I would venture to say that if everyone and their mother didn't know that refs swallow their whistle at game's end, Nash might have pulled up straight and most definitely drawn the foul rather than fade to one side and thrown up a prayer.
For San Antonio, Tim Duncan was, as Chuck calls him, Groundhogs Day. You wake up and it is the same all over again. 50+% shooting, passing out of the post, solid rebounding. Duncan was in foul trouble most of the game. But he believes in his team and that allowed him to not make the stupid or desperate 6th foul at the end. But it wasn't Tim Duncan who made the biggest difference at the end of the game.
Robert Horry made his usual 4th quarter guest appearance. Time Out: Let's shake hands and agree that after Horry retires, we're not going to qualify his 5 going on 6 or more rings by saying that he played with Hakim, Shaq or Duncan. Yes, he is the luckiest role player on the planet. But you make your own luck and Horry has made his by carrying his own weight. He never jumped on a coattail or accepted a free ride on any bus. In fact, when the bus seems like it is about to break down, Horry jumps off and pushes. Give my man his due.
Horry made two solid defensive plays, both against Amare Stoudemire in the fourth and drained his usual threes. While he was opening up the floor, Manu Ginobili was finding the seems with acrobatics that we've come to expect. The behind the back, spin, almost get the ball knocked away, then reverse layup and in move was unbelievable. Kids, don't try this at home. Manu's next basket proved the importance of that drive. Shawn Marion had to give him some cushion and Ginobili drilled a 20 footer.
Tony Parker had another great game and at key moments defended Nash well. But for the second straight game, the 12 headed monster known as the San Antonio Spurs attacked in the fourth quarter. 70% in the last 12 minutes (72 in game 1), 7 of the 8 Spurs who played had 2 or more assists for the game. Is that telling you that San Antonio is unbeatable down the stretch, or is it telling you that the Suns' weakness on defense gets exposed at the end of close games? You decide for yourself. What it tells me is the answer to my second question, where do the Suns go from here: Vacation.
Phoenix threw everything they had at San Antonio and it wasn't enough. The Suns even showed moments where they played good defense, but they still lost. You ask yourself when does a team shoot 56% from the field and 50% from the arc and not win at home? And where do they go from here?
The answer to the first question is when they play a San Antonio Spurs team so calm under pressure that they would make Pervis Ellison look like an on the edge of his seat nervous wreck. Something really intriguing about this series is that both teams refuse to deviate from their game plan and style of play. Usually, somebody gets shaken and the wheels start to fall off. That's not the case with two of the best teams in the NBA. The only problem for Phoenix is that San Antonio has the superior plan. San Antonio knows that they won't turn Phoenix into a half court team game after game. So what they have done is changed the Suns just enough to win games.
Phoenix is averaging 115 points a game in the playoffs. They take about 85 shots a game and make half of them. In technical basketball language, we call that some seriously sick sh.., you get the idea. Game 1, the Suns took and made their average, but San Antonio was on fire in the fourth and pulled out the win. If you remember, I said that Pops wasn't going to be thrilled about all the Phoenix scoring and adjustments would be made but nothing so dramatic that San Antonio gets out of rhythm. Although Phoenix hit everything in Game 2, they were held to 79 shots and made 16 turnovers. Possessions limited, shots limited, scoring ... limited, to only 108 (we're talking Phoenix ok, so take that in context). San Antonio shot 86 shots, 10 more than their postseason average. They too were hitting everything, especially down the stretch and grabbed win number two on the road.
Ok, that's the gameplan. Strategies work when great players step up and execute. Stating the obvious, Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire have been utterly amazing. Every great franchise in the past 30 years has had a great duo and these two are as good as it gets. 66 points combined in game 2, Nash added 15 assists. At the buzzer, Nash nearly hit the three to tie but it fell just short. I would venture to say that if everyone and their mother didn't know that refs swallow their whistle at game's end, Nash might have pulled up straight and most definitely drawn the foul rather than fade to one side and thrown up a prayer.
For San Antonio, Tim Duncan was, as Chuck calls him, Groundhogs Day. You wake up and it is the same all over again. 50+% shooting, passing out of the post, solid rebounding. Duncan was in foul trouble most of the game. But he believes in his team and that allowed him to not make the stupid or desperate 6th foul at the end. But it wasn't Tim Duncan who made the biggest difference at the end of the game.
Robert Horry made his usual 4th quarter guest appearance. Time Out: Let's shake hands and agree that after Horry retires, we're not going to qualify his 5 going on 6 or more rings by saying that he played with Hakim, Shaq or Duncan. Yes, he is the luckiest role player on the planet. But you make your own luck and Horry has made his by carrying his own weight. He never jumped on a coattail or accepted a free ride on any bus. In fact, when the bus seems like it is about to break down, Horry jumps off and pushes. Give my man his due.
Horry made two solid defensive plays, both against Amare Stoudemire in the fourth and drained his usual threes. While he was opening up the floor, Manu Ginobili was finding the seems with acrobatics that we've come to expect. The behind the back, spin, almost get the ball knocked away, then reverse layup and in move was unbelievable. Kids, don't try this at home. Manu's next basket proved the importance of that drive. Shawn Marion had to give him some cushion and Ginobili drilled a 20 footer.
Tony Parker had another great game and at key moments defended Nash well. But for the second straight game, the 12 headed monster known as the San Antonio Spurs attacked in the fourth quarter. 70% in the last 12 minutes (72 in game 1), 7 of the 8 Spurs who played had 2 or more assists for the game. Is that telling you that San Antonio is unbeatable down the stretch, or is it telling you that the Suns' weakness on defense gets exposed at the end of close games? You decide for yourself. What it tells me is the answer to my second question, where do the Suns go from here: Vacation.