duncan228
04-26-2008, 11:13 AM
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/26/sports/basketball/26suns-web.html?_r=1&ref=sports&oref=slogin
Experiment by Suns Works Out Well for Spurs
By KAREN CROUSE
PHOENIX, Ariz. – Like mad scientists, the Suns tinkered with their chemistry, shipping out their best perimeter defender, Shawn Marion, so they could acquire Shaquille O'Neal's hulking presence in the paint.
In Game 3 of the Suns' first-round playoff series against the Spurs, the experiment went horribly awry. Point guard Tony Parker exploded for a career-high 41 points to lead the San Antonio Spurs to a 115-99 victory that sent waves of shock through US Airways Center.
The Spurs hold a 3-0 advantage in the best-of-seven opening-round series. The Suns, who never led, got 28 points from forward Amare Stoudemire. Their offense struggled, mainly because their point guard could not get in the flow of the game. Steve Nash finished with nine assists and seven points and said afterward that he felt like an outsider.
Feeling a part of the offense was not a problem for Parker, who made 17 of 26 shots, most of them midrange jumpers, and added 12 assists. "Tony Parker was a maniac out there offensively," Stoudemire said. Nash described Parker's play as "unconscious."
Parker said his mind-set was to be aggressive "and see what happened." He had plenty of help. Spurs center Tim Duncan contributed 23 points, and Manu Ginóbili, who played on a sore ankle that had prevented him from practicing the day before, added 20.
"We possibly played our best game of the year," Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich said. Heaven help the Suns if the Spurs are capable of playing any better. "That's the best I've seen anyone play," Suns Coach Mike D'Antoni said. "If they can play better than that, I don't know. Just whatever we tried to do they seemed like they had an answer."
The Suns have lots of questions, starting with this: How is it that they are staring at their first opening-round playoff exit since the 2002-2003 season, when they lost to these same Spurs in six games? They will try to stave off elimination here Sunday in Game 4.
"I definitely think we're one of the marquee teams in the league," Stoudemire said. "For us to be down 0 and 3 is something I wasn't even thinking about."
The Suns approached Friday's game with the same sense of urgency that Senator Hillary Clinton did this week's Pennsylvania primary. Once seen as the presumptive candidate to represent the West in the N.B.A. Finals, the Suns had blown double-digit leads in each of the first two games at San Antonio to fall behind 0-2 in the best-of-seven series.
Phoenix had not lost three consecutive games all season, the only team in the N.B.A. that could make that claim. It was a tough break drawing the defending world champions in the first round. But the Suns could not waste their energy shaking their fists at the fates.
They had to marshal their resources and wrest the momentum from the Spurs if they wanted to prolong their title quest. Nobody had to tell the Suns that no N.B.A. team has rebounded from a 3-0 deficit to win a playoff series. "It's super important," D'Antoni acknowledged before the game.
He was speaking from behind his desk in his air-conditioned office, but some were saying his seat was hotter than a concrete bench outside in the 90-degree heat. When the campaign is foundering, fingers inevitably point to the chief strategist. On Friday, D'Antoni, who is in his fifth year with the Suns, read in a local paper that his job might be in jeopardy.
"It does tick you off," D'Antoni said. "I think I'm a big boy. I can handle it."
There are always clouds eclipsing the Suns, whose fans have become increasingly fatalistic as they've watched their most hated rivals, the Lakers and the Spurs, win 7 of the past 9 N.B.A. championships.
All the Spurs had done in the first two games in San Antonio was hold serve. And yet inside US Airways Center, there was a palpable sense that the series was half over even before San Antonio jumped out to a 14-point lead in the first 12 minutes.
Sparking the Spurs was Parker, who nearly outscored the Suns, collecting 13 first-quarter points to Phoenix's 19. He made six of his first eight shots. When the Suns sealed off the paint, he pulled up and put them away with a flurry of jumpers.
Nash was ice cold, making 3 of 8 shots and finishing with 7 points. "I felt like an outsider," he said, adding, "I just never felt like I had an opportunity to get my rhythm."
As they had in the first two games, the Spurs disrupted the flow of the Suns' offense by intentionally fouling O'Neal, a poor free-throw shooter. He made 9 of 17 foul shots on his way to 19 points.
Grant Hill, the Suns' best defender, played despite having missed practice Thursday because of a groin injury. He came off the bench, played 20 minutes and finished with 6 points. He was replaced in the starting lineup by Leandro Barbosa, who responded with 20 points after not making a shot in Game 2.
The Suns looked self-conscious trying to defend the pick-and-roll, which is not so surprising. It takes five players working as one to be effective against the pick-and-roll, and the Suns, after refashioning their roster this year in an attempt to stay competitive in the hyper-competitive Western Conference, are still working on their chemistry. "I think sometimes we're not real comfortable with what's going on," D'Antoni said.
The fans let it be known that they weren't comfortable with what was going on. In the third minute of the third quarter, when the Spurs extended their lead to 19 points on a three-point play by Parker, Planet Orange erupted in boos.
"We made tons of shots and we didn't have any meltdowns in any part of the game," Ginóbili said. "It was almost a perfect game."
Midway through the fourth quarter, the fans started streaming for the exits. The ones who stayed booed a little louder. Nash was asked how it felt in the locker room afterward. "How do you think it felt?" he said with a wan smile. He added, "To play a below-average game by our standards was tough."
Never more so than on a night when Parker and Co. made the game look so easy.
Experiment by Suns Works Out Well for Spurs
By KAREN CROUSE
PHOENIX, Ariz. – Like mad scientists, the Suns tinkered with their chemistry, shipping out their best perimeter defender, Shawn Marion, so they could acquire Shaquille O'Neal's hulking presence in the paint.
In Game 3 of the Suns' first-round playoff series against the Spurs, the experiment went horribly awry. Point guard Tony Parker exploded for a career-high 41 points to lead the San Antonio Spurs to a 115-99 victory that sent waves of shock through US Airways Center.
The Spurs hold a 3-0 advantage in the best-of-seven opening-round series. The Suns, who never led, got 28 points from forward Amare Stoudemire. Their offense struggled, mainly because their point guard could not get in the flow of the game. Steve Nash finished with nine assists and seven points and said afterward that he felt like an outsider.
Feeling a part of the offense was not a problem for Parker, who made 17 of 26 shots, most of them midrange jumpers, and added 12 assists. "Tony Parker was a maniac out there offensively," Stoudemire said. Nash described Parker's play as "unconscious."
Parker said his mind-set was to be aggressive "and see what happened." He had plenty of help. Spurs center Tim Duncan contributed 23 points, and Manu Ginóbili, who played on a sore ankle that had prevented him from practicing the day before, added 20.
"We possibly played our best game of the year," Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich said. Heaven help the Suns if the Spurs are capable of playing any better. "That's the best I've seen anyone play," Suns Coach Mike D'Antoni said. "If they can play better than that, I don't know. Just whatever we tried to do they seemed like they had an answer."
The Suns have lots of questions, starting with this: How is it that they are staring at their first opening-round playoff exit since the 2002-2003 season, when they lost to these same Spurs in six games? They will try to stave off elimination here Sunday in Game 4.
"I definitely think we're one of the marquee teams in the league," Stoudemire said. "For us to be down 0 and 3 is something I wasn't even thinking about."
The Suns approached Friday's game with the same sense of urgency that Senator Hillary Clinton did this week's Pennsylvania primary. Once seen as the presumptive candidate to represent the West in the N.B.A. Finals, the Suns had blown double-digit leads in each of the first two games at San Antonio to fall behind 0-2 in the best-of-seven series.
Phoenix had not lost three consecutive games all season, the only team in the N.B.A. that could make that claim. It was a tough break drawing the defending world champions in the first round. But the Suns could not waste their energy shaking their fists at the fates.
They had to marshal their resources and wrest the momentum from the Spurs if they wanted to prolong their title quest. Nobody had to tell the Suns that no N.B.A. team has rebounded from a 3-0 deficit to win a playoff series. "It's super important," D'Antoni acknowledged before the game.
He was speaking from behind his desk in his air-conditioned office, but some were saying his seat was hotter than a concrete bench outside in the 90-degree heat. When the campaign is foundering, fingers inevitably point to the chief strategist. On Friday, D'Antoni, who is in his fifth year with the Suns, read in a local paper that his job might be in jeopardy.
"It does tick you off," D'Antoni said. "I think I'm a big boy. I can handle it."
There are always clouds eclipsing the Suns, whose fans have become increasingly fatalistic as they've watched their most hated rivals, the Lakers and the Spurs, win 7 of the past 9 N.B.A. championships.
All the Spurs had done in the first two games in San Antonio was hold serve. And yet inside US Airways Center, there was a palpable sense that the series was half over even before San Antonio jumped out to a 14-point lead in the first 12 minutes.
Sparking the Spurs was Parker, who nearly outscored the Suns, collecting 13 first-quarter points to Phoenix's 19. He made six of his first eight shots. When the Suns sealed off the paint, he pulled up and put them away with a flurry of jumpers.
Nash was ice cold, making 3 of 8 shots and finishing with 7 points. "I felt like an outsider," he said, adding, "I just never felt like I had an opportunity to get my rhythm."
As they had in the first two games, the Spurs disrupted the flow of the Suns' offense by intentionally fouling O'Neal, a poor free-throw shooter. He made 9 of 17 foul shots on his way to 19 points.
Grant Hill, the Suns' best defender, played despite having missed practice Thursday because of a groin injury. He came off the bench, played 20 minutes and finished with 6 points. He was replaced in the starting lineup by Leandro Barbosa, who responded with 20 points after not making a shot in Game 2.
The Suns looked self-conscious trying to defend the pick-and-roll, which is not so surprising. It takes five players working as one to be effective against the pick-and-roll, and the Suns, after refashioning their roster this year in an attempt to stay competitive in the hyper-competitive Western Conference, are still working on their chemistry. "I think sometimes we're not real comfortable with what's going on," D'Antoni said.
The fans let it be known that they weren't comfortable with what was going on. In the third minute of the third quarter, when the Spurs extended their lead to 19 points on a three-point play by Parker, Planet Orange erupted in boos.
"We made tons of shots and we didn't have any meltdowns in any part of the game," Ginóbili said. "It was almost a perfect game."
Midway through the fourth quarter, the fans started streaming for the exits. The ones who stayed booed a little louder. Nash was asked how it felt in the locker room afterward. "How do you think it felt?" he said with a wan smile. He added, "To play a below-average game by our standards was tough."
Never more so than on a night when Parker and Co. made the game look so easy.