Reply With Quote
Channing ing Frye.
Gentry leads Suns’ evolution
By Johnny Ludden
It was getting late into the evening, and Steve Kerr leaned against a counter in the locker room and took one last gulp from the longneck in his hand. He smiled and nodded, admitting the obvious. Yes, this was the grittiest, the toughest, he had ever seen his Phoenix Suns play. They had won with defense and rebounding, out-Spurring the San Antonio Spurs, and now they controlled their Western Conference semifinal series.
Throwing themselves into the political fray with their “Los Suns” jerseys, the Suns had taken a stand off the court and then made one on it, grinding out a 110-102 victory on a night when their shots weren’t falling. Kerr won’t say it himself, but never has a single victory so validated his rule as the Suns’ general manager. He won two championships playing for the Spurs, and to beat them he knew he’d have to construct a team that could scrap and defend. He’d finally found a coach who shared his vision, and the results of their work were on display Wednesday night: The Suns shot less than 40 percent for the first three quarters, yet won because they penned in Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker and took 18 offensive rebounds.
“I think the old Suns team,” Jared Dudley said, “may have folded.”
The old Suns team did fold. Two years ago, Tim Duncan threw in a 3-pointer at the buzzer, and the Suns never recovered, eventually losing the game and their first-round series. Mike D’Antoni, whose seven-seconds-or-less offense made Phoenix one of the NBA’s most exciting teams, left the franchise nearly as quickly after the season, bolting for the New York Knicks because he felt he didn’t have enough support from Kerr and the front office.
In truth, all Kerr ever wanted from D’Antoni was a compromise. He asked D’Antoni to hire a defensive-minded assistant or, at the least, set aside time at each practice to work on defense. He wanted D’Antoni to hold his players more accountable. He wanted him to develop a longer bench. D’Antoni didn’t want to hear any of it. He stubbornly clung to the belief that his go-go-go system didn’t need tweaking. Rather than change, he left. From Phoenix to New York, the criticism remains the same: D’Antoni’s teams can’t defend.
Kerr, too, has made his share of mistakes. He admits the Suns “panicked” when they traded for Shaquille O’Neal, a move initially championed by the team’s owner, Robert Sarver, and D’Antoni, but one he also supported. Kerr’s replacement for D’Antoni, Terry Porter, barely lasted half a season. Porter prioritized defense, but with O’Neal weighing down the roster, he also slowed the Suns’ pace, distancing them too much from their success.
“I had a vision for how this should work,” Kerr said. “I just executed it the wrong way.”
All along, Kerr had the right man for the job already on staff. Alvin Gentry had head-coaching jobs in Detroit, Miami and Los Angeles with the Clippers before he joined D’Antoni in Phoenix. He had also worked for Larry Brown and with Gregg Popovich, and he combined the best of both his worlds when he took over for Porter. He returned the Suns to D’Antoni’s up-tempo style, but he also demanded they defend.
“He knows this team better than I do,” Kerr said of Gentry. “He knew what we needed, too. He shared that vision.”
Gentry pushed the Suns in training camp and before long Amar’e Stoudemire was stepping up to take charges. Asked why he had waited eight seasons into his career to become a more dedicated defender, Stoudemire gave a simple answer: No one had ever taught him.
D’Antoni had a warm, engaging personality, but he never liked confrontation, and this weakened the Suns both in the locker room and on the court. After Phoenix lost to the Spurs in the 2008 playoffs, nearly every player – and this included Steve Nash – privately expressed the same concern: The Suns needed more discipline. Gentry has provided the tough love, holding even his stars accountable.
“Before Alvin we didn’t really work on [defense],” Grant Hill said. “This summer Alvin said, ‘I don’t accept the fact that we can’t be a good defensive team.’
“Alvin has that kind of personality when he can be in the meetings watching film and he can call out Steve, he can call out Amar’e. A lot of coaches are scared to do that with their star players. He can do that. He can call out anybody.”
D’Antoni didn’t have the same level of personnel the Suns now have, but he also never worked to develop his bench the way Gentry has. Phoenix’s two most important contributors in Game 2 were both reserves: Dudley and Channing Frye. When the Suns couldn’t hit a shot, Dudley outfought the Spurs for rebounds to extend possessions. Frye made five 3-pointers, all of them timely, while drawing Duncan out to the perimeter and away from the basket.
“I can’t remember really being a part of a team that’s had so many guys step up and play well,” Nash said.
Frye has proved to be one of last summer’s best bargain signings while last season’s trade for Dudley continues to pay off. Kerr shipped Boris Diaw and Raja Bell to the Charlotte Bobcats for Jason Richardson and Dudley, a deal that had many of the Suns’ rivals smirking at the time. How did the Suns expect to improve defensively by exchanging the rugged Bell for Richardson, a chucker who did his best work under Golden State’s Don Nelson? Dudley, however, has helped Phoenix do just that, developing into a defender versatile enough to guard Parker down the stretch.
Hill also has reinvented himself, albeit at age 37. He has become the Suns’ most dependable perimeter defender, routinely assigned the task of taking on the opponent’s most dangerous scorer. In Game 2, he helped limit Manu Ginobili to just two baskets. Like Dudley with Parker, Hill teamed with the Suns’ mobile big men to disrupt the Spurs’ pick-and-rolls, cutting off Ginobili’s angles to the basket. The defensive adjustments have left even the Spurs’ staff impressed.
“I think we’ve evolved into a team with more depth and more ways to win games,” Hill said. “Before, we sort of had to win pretty.”
Not now. The Suns scrapped and pushed and stood tall under the pressure. Had they lost, they also knew they would have felt heat from the firestorm they started a day earlier. In a Cinco de Mayo tribute to the city’s Latino community and a symbolic protest of Arizona’s controversial immigration-enforcement bill, the players wore their “Los Suns” jerseys. Sarver, Kerr and Nash all denounced the bill, and while the Suns have received national praise for the move, they’ve also been, in the words of one staffer, “absolutely crushed” at home. Polls suggest nearly 70 percent of residents support the bill, spurring angry callers to jam the Suns’ switchboard all day. Kerr admitted the team will lose some level of season-ticket holders.
The Suns hope a little winning can heal some of the wounds. Not since 2000 has Phoenix won consecutive playoff games against the Spurs – and Duncan didn’t play in that series. Two more wins and the Suns are back in the conference finals for the first time since 2006. The season’s success figures to earn both Kerr and Gentry contract extensions.
Kerr isn’t ready to celebrate. Not with the next two games in San Antonio. The Spurs have been through enough of these battles to believe they can still win. Two years ago they won a second-round series against the New Orleans Hornets after trailing 2-0.
“We have a long way to go,” Kerr said.
He smiled. His team had gutted out a win like few in recent history, and deep down Kerr knew the other truth: This night showed just how far these Suns have already come.
Channing ing Frye.
I'm sure no one expected Frye to shoot a ridiculous clip from distance... considering he rarely shot threes in Portland.
He's done it all year. If the Spurs didn't expect it then they are pretty ing stupid.
They expected it.
Seriously?
Do you know Channing Frye? He shot well over 40% for the season. He has had 8 3's in a game a couple of times and was near the league leaders in 3 pointers made. 172 3's on the season, as much as Bonner and Mason combined. It's obvious you don't know what you are talking about.
I've been really impressed with what Kerr's managed to do and the coach Gentry's become. I have a hard time having any real animosity for these Suns and I'm finding more respect for them than I've ever really been able have for my team's opposition in the heat of the battle.
I didn't think Gentry had this in him. He really does get it and, more importantly, he's proving capable of relaying what "it" is to the Suns; Gentry could be seen taking Amar'e aside once the Suns had all but sealed the victory when Stoudemire was celebrating like he'd won something, waving his arms and playing to the crowd. Gentry looked to say, "Act like you've been here before. We haven't done anything yet.," as he gave him a slap on the cheek and sent him to the bench.
That's coaching and accountability; it's exactly what the Suns have needed.
+1
I noticed this as well.
These are definitely different Suns. I don't think that highly of Kerr, tbh, but I think he stumbled into Gentry and has at least let him lead the way. Gentry on the other hand has been fairly amazing this year and really has the makings of one of the better coaches in this league for years to come.
Gentry is better than DAntoni (duh)
I'm talking about the article making Kerr out to be some kind of genius when at the start of the season... no one, not even Kerr expected this out of Frye... their surprise was do ented ad infinitum...
It's revisionist history to now proclaim Kerr, the GM, the greatest thing since sliced bread...
if the Suns get by the spurs, I guess I would be rooting for them to go all the way. There is no one on the suns that is really hatable anymore... Nash seems like an ok guy, as does grant hill.
I really want to root for PHX if they beat us, but their fans pissed me off during the 1st 2 games
Fair enough. Channing Frye, Robin Lopez, Jared Dudley, and Goran Dragic all have exceeded expectations. It's not just one player that have greatly improved this year.
You could honestly argue all 4 of them as the most improved player of the year candidate.
Whatever got face.I really want to root for PHX if they beat us, but their fans pissed me off during the 1st 2 games
Look at the moves Kerr's made, though. He admittedly reached on the Shaq deal but he's made trades that got them Dudley, Richardson, Dragic and where he selected Lopez was thought to be a bit of a reach by some at the time.
I think Kerr's championship experience and the role he played gave him the knowledge to know how important role players are. How important it is to forsake a certain amount of talent for intelligence and the willingness to buy into the team concept.
I don't think this Suns team is a juggernaut or someone that beats the Spurs' teams of yesteryear, but they're very well constructed for the style of play they've chosen. They have the means to be the "Suns;" you can't say the same for the Spurs.
I don't even have a problem with the Shaq trade even though it didn't work. They were able to get rid of a player Marcus Banks' contract. Marion although fan favorite, was becoming a locker room cancer about lack of respect around the league. Kerr took a gamble and crapped out. I applaud him this day for the courage to do so. Most GM's play it safe.
What I don't like this the Suns' front office not knowing the worth of expiring contracts. They traded Kurt Thomas away and threw in 2 first rounders to get rid of his contract, when other teams trade him and receive first rounders. That's the one move I shake my head at in disgust.
The Spurs have 4 championships and Matt Bonner instead of Scola. They passed on Josh Howard for the possibility of Kidd (when they had Parker) and replaced Jack with Hedo and Mercer. There's been more but my team's down 2-0 ... so I don't feel like piling on at the moment.
Point is, every organization makes some bad moves or decisions. But if you're given the opportunity to win a championship and the ability to put a winner on the court, you live with it. You have to take the bad with the good; no one bats one-hundred.
The Spurs could've had a couple of more championships with another move or two or if Holt would've decided to open up the wallet sooner, but it is what it is. We've still got 4 more than we had before Tim got here.
I can only imagine what 4 must be like. I would be eternally satisfied with just one championship.The Spurs have 4 championships and Matt Bonner instead of Scola. They passed on Josh Howard for the possibility of Kidd (when they had Parker) and replaced Jack with Hedo and Mercer. There's been more but my team's down 2-0 ... so I don't feel like piling on at the moment.
Point is, every organization makes some bad moves or decisions. But if you're given the opportunity to win a championship and the ability to put a winner on the court, you live with it. You have to take the bad with the good; no one bats one-hundred.
The Spurs could've had a couple of more championships with another move or two or if Holt would've decided to open up the wallet sooner, but it is what it is. We've still got 4 more than we had before Tim got here.
When it finally does happen for us, it'll be the greatest day in the history of life.
I wish I could say I didn't know how you feel, but I've been around long enough to know better. My Spurs used to be the "soft, can't-win-the-big-one chokers."
There are 30 teams in the league and there have only been 5 teams to win a championship since the Spurs first won in 98-99. It takes more than skill, hard work or great ownership to win a championship, it takes a good amount of fortune, and even flat out luck. I'm definitely appreciative my team's been blessed with it.
If the Spurs don't manage to pull this thing out, I think this might be the first time I'll actually root for another team to go ahead and win it. But I'll hold off on temporarily joining your bandwagon for now.
When it finally does happen for us, it'll be the greatest day in the history of life.
is your life that bad?
is your life that bad?
The defense and accountability criticisms of D'Antoni are spot on, the "develop a bench" is absolutely stupid.
Another cliche that got started as a quote taken out of context.
Cheap ass Sarver made his coach the GM to save money. D'Antoni really wanted to keep Tim Thomas after his great 2006 playoffs but couldnt sign TT and sign a pick and keep the team under the luxury tax. Thus, he decided to trade away the picks and make an offer to TT.
He was trying to win a championship "now" and not build for the future. The quote was "were not trying to develop players".
For the rest of his tenure, the Suns "Bench" consisted of guys who didnt even belong in the league but the Suns signed because they were minimum salary players and kept payroll low. D'Antoni got criticism for not playing them. None of these guys proved D'Antoni wrong. None of them went on to prove they deserved minutes for someone else. Like I said, most couldnt even stay in the league and shouldnt have been on the team to begin with.
Last edited by da_suns_fan; 05-06-2010 at 03:48 PM.
God damn my impression of what the team's mindset was in the preseason was dead wrong. I thought they were just going to return to D'antoni ball, but they've transitioned nicely, I guess this teaches that I need to have more patience with the team
Whatever got face.
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)
Posting Permissions
