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But win we did.....
"given that the Spurs defense is so diligent."
yes, but...
the Spurs were down -17 to start the 4th qtr @PHX in the 2OT win.
After 3 qtrs, I wasn't feeling real confident in the Spurs' ability to stop the Suns' offense.
But win we did.....
Barbosa and Outlaw were the scrub minutes last night. McCarty and Hunter both played in the first half.
The Suns didn't have a 20pt lead untill the second half. The lead was not that big in the first half. At least not for the Suns because they shoot so quickly there are more possessions.
The Suns typically play 7-8 guys. But you're right that only 6-7 get significant minutes.
D'Antoni made the change to JJ at backing up Nash game 3 against Memphis. He wanted to get Jackson more minutes. Barbosa didn't look very good against Watson who was really pressuring the ball. I think it was less about getting Barbosa out than it was about getting Jackson more minutes.
The Suns starters are going to play 35-40 minutes. It has been that way all season, no reason for it to change now. There are no back-to-backs in the playoffs.
"But win we did....."
And a magnificent, legendary win it was.
But what do you think our win %age is when starting the 4th qtr's -15 or more?
eg, the Spurs, fully healthy, couldn't catch the Sonics @SBC when starting the 3rd qtr -19, after getting blown out in the 2nd qtr.
Don't get me wrong, it wasn't the best way to win. But a win is a win.
The Spurs should have all the confidence in the world that they can beat the Suns. The Suns will have a little doubt in their minds...
People have been saying all season that the Suns couldn't hold up with no bench. , I said it early in the season. We've been wrong up to this point, and I see no reason that the Suns would suddenly become worn down now.
Last edited by Spurminator; 05-10-2005 at 03:09 PM.
The only game I can think of where the Suns wore down was the 2OT game against the Spurs. Of course the Suns were short 4 players that night.
Not that they would have done much but take up some minutes but they went from thin bench to nearly no bench. Jackson arrived the next day and McCarty the next month.
If the Jan 21 game is any indication a Suns-Spurs series would be an exciting one to watch.
Let's see how they cope with night after night of guarding Manu, Tony, Tim, Nasr and Big Dog.
"night after night of guarding"
but they don't really guard anyone, so they don't get that tired on defense.
They let you score at will, and then outscore you. When you falter in your scoring compared to Suns, you lose.
The spurs will limit the suns transition game. They will have to force the suns to play half court offense. If you try and run with the suns ou will lose 95% of the time. The spurs will make them grind it out like they did to the nuggets. It gets teams frustrated and makes them tired. that is what the spurs do. They grind it out on you and the push the ball every chance they get, that will wear on a team over a series. No easy shots is the spurs Mantra, the suns are used to getting easy shots.
Yes.....a great team of its era...and it did play pretty good "D".....many times that showtime offense was because of there "D"......but they did play "D"....there OPP FG% was 47.6%....not too shabby back then.
Granted PPG was higher.......but the leagu as a whole was more offensive minded.....in 1987-1988 season the worse offensive team was the Clippers(big surprise) at 98.8 ppg.....having those kind of numbers today would be an offensive juggernaut.
No team that I know of has won a le soley on offense.......defense MUST play a part.
Actually Seattle was the best defensive team that year allowing 103.9 ppg1979 Supersonics?
(I honestly don't know, that was before my time).
The information is in the NBA guide put out by the Sporting News.
Tell that Manu in the first round against Denver.....we played better when our bench was deeper.
did someone really say that the bench does not matter in the playoffs? why is that? this is not a video game, you can not play your starters the whole game. wow whoever said that is an idiot. The team with the best Bench usually wins. Talk to the rockets, their bench sucked and they lost. They one the games when their bench outscored the Mavs bench. wow what an idiot.
Well, well. Another Defensive NBA Champion.
How were the 80's Celtics on defense?
Sounds like you've got a Haiku starting there...
WE AGREEand bench play isn't a big factor in the playoffs anyway
the 2003 San Antonio Spurs.
HA HA HA
You're comparing one era's great team where maybe there were'nt as many teams playing hard defense.I am also not going to stretch my memory before the 80's because all I will remember is diaper rash but present day DEFENSE started with the Pistons.The Bad Boys. Before that it was all offense.(basically)Any defense played was like saying the Green Bay Packers had great defenses (sure)...but the measurement in football today in defense are the 85 Bears.
That is pretty sad.
Everyone knows Haiku's go
three lines, 5-7-5
(I know, he's pretty close - just couldn't quite finish the last one)
Awww, crap. Mine is wrong too!
No wonder the guy only has 2 posts.
They were 5th in 1983-84 season 105.6 ppg allowed 47.0% Opp FG%
How were the 80's Celtics on defense?
Spurs defeat the Suns on the road to the le easily. The stature and dignity of not having another heartbreak seasons end will make them the champs at the last buzzer of the finals. Showing off all their work and bad luck glaring white teeth and hats all over again.
Phoenix slams the door on the ever-trying Spurs. The new guys overwhelmed with so much respect now, gets slammed themselves against the Heat in the finals. Meanwhile in Alamo city, fans hang their heads low and drink their beer slowly while mumbling on about another problem area on the team. The Spurs heart takes another blow.
_ _ _
Pick one.
Bench play is definitely important, eg. Manu, Speedy, and Kerr in 2003 Finals, Manu in Denver series, and possibly a healthy Devin Brown as a secret weapon vs the Suns in the WC Finals (he's proven his greatness in the regular season vs the Phx numerous times, eg. key role in the small lineup that came back from a 17-pt deficit and won in OT.)
I didn't read all the posts, but Phoenix is susceptible to foul trouble. The lack of bench will hurt them in that regard.
No ring for Nash.. that's what I am rooting for..
HOW it get's done I don't care ... just Sun's need to not win..
It's bad but yea I would even like to see Shaq win b4 Nash.
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