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Everybody clap with me - "over-rated" clap, clap, clap clap clap, "over-rated"...
Suns guard sore but ready to play in Game 5
By BOB BAUM, AP Sports Writer
TNT's John Thompson: Video Suns have more to overcome
Kerr & Wetzel: Video Steve Nash drives the Suns
PHOENIX (AP) -- Though understandably sore on Wednesday, Raja Bell was confident he would be ready to play when the Phoenix Suns meet the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday night in Game 5 of the Western Conference finals.
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Bell made a surprise start Tuesday night after missing two games with a slight tear in his left calf muscle. His presence injected the Suns with an emotional intensity that led to a 106-86 romp that evened the series at two games apiece.
"It's pretty sore and it's a little stiff," Bell said after practice Wednesday. "But it still feels better than it did the first couple of days when it was injured, so that's a positive sign for me that it should feel a lot better tomorrow."
He said he just took a few stationery shots in practice and planned to work out in the pool before the team left for Dallas.
As intent as he was on playing, Bell thought he would only spell Leandro Barbosa for a few minutes. Instead, Mike D'Antoni put Bell in the starting lineup, and he played 31 minutes.
"It was at Mike's discretion to use me as he felt fit," Bell said. "He felt I could handle those minutes, and I respect his judgment and the training staff's. I didn't think I'd play 31 minutes, but I feel pretty good having done it."
D'Antoni said the way Bell played surprised him.
"I'm not surprised of his heart and his desire to do it," D'Antoni said, "I'm a little surprised that he could play as well, a little surprised that he could even start yesterday and say he was ready to go. It was a pleasant surprise, obviously."
While his teammates talked of how Bell's mere presence is crucial, he downplayed the notion that he brings the Suns their swagger.
"I don't know," Bell said. "I've heard a lot of people make a lot about that but this team, with or without me, is a really good team. We have a swagger about us, we just didn't play with it in Game 3. But I was glad to be back, and I was glad to be a part of us regaining our swagger."
Bell's impact went beyond inspiration. With him in the lineup alongside Steve Nash and Barbosa, the Suns were able to spread the court. That helped Barbosa to a team-high 24 points on 10-for-13 shooting. Nash added 21 points and eight assists.
"If we can spread the floor enough to where you're out there naked a little bit with `LB' (Barbosa), it's going to be tough for anybody," D'Antoni said.
Bell said that there was no excruciating pain while he played, except when he drove for a layup off his injured leg late in the game.
"That was the one move last night I wasn't ready to make," he said, "that explosion off of one leg. In the heat of the game, you kind of forget that you're injured, so I forgot and when I went to get up, it let me know it wasn't ready for that."
Signed by the Suns as a defensive specialist, Bell has emerged as the fiery spiritual leader of the squad, especially in the playoffs, where he was suspended for a game for bulldogging Kobe Bryant and throwing him to the floor.
Although he acknowledged it was an overreaction, Bell did not hide his disdain for the Lakers superstar, calling him "pompous and arrogant."
Then there was the dramatic 3-pointer that kept the Suns barely alive en route to a double-overtime win in the second round against the Los Angeles Clippers.
He is the backbone of the undersized, scrappy team.
"He has been put into a situation where his character has been revealed to everybody, and more so," D'Antoni said. "If you're never in those situations, it's hard to say he has it in him. We kind of thought he did, but he's proven that he's got a lot more than anybody ever imagined."
Everybody clap with me - "over-rated" clap, clap, clap clap clap, "over-rated"...
Flopper
It not so much that he flops, a lot of guys do that. It's that he exudes this fake-ass defensive toughness. He's no Bowen, Big Ben or Marion. I guess it makes you tough if you clothesline guys and talk about them to the media. I liked him while he was here in Dallas, but I just don't understand the hype. Now he's being made out to be some huge hero. His game lives and dies on the perimeter.
he has good d
no he is not bowen but he tries to play d which suns do not
so people may overrate him a bit
i think he's a tad overrated but at least he gives 100% all the time on both ends of the court.
Hmm lets see, in this series the suns are 2-0 when he plays, and 0-2 when he doesnt play, yea overrated sounds right
I guess hustle, tenacity, hitting a 3-pointer over the Clips, and the fact that you aren't Jerry "I felt I had a clean look at the basket" Stackhouse gets the "overrated" tag these days... people used to say you were overrated when your fans chanted "MVP" and then the real MVP scores 10 straight points to steal game one, then you go out 3 games later and shoot 3-13 and get 11 pts...
Yes he's a bit over-rated...
Yes TNT completely overblew the whole thing (ie, "Willis Reed" comparisons)
Most teams would have him though
Won't matter in game 5...Mavs will roll...
4 games...such a huge sampling to draw a definite conclusion fromHmm lets see, in this series the suns are 2-0 when he plays, and 0-2 when he doesnt play, yea overrated sounds right
they sure gave a better effort with him in there last game, that part can't be overrated.Yes he's a bit over-rated...
Yes TNT completely overblew the whole thing (ie, "Willis Reed" comparisons)
Most teams would have him though
Won't matter in game 5...Mavs will roll...
4 games...such a huge sampling to draw a definite conclusion from
LOL...
Yes, Dirk is over-rated
Nash's 10 pts wouldn't have meant $hit if the Mavs hadn't shot themselves in the foot down the stretch...Nash's effort wouldn't have been enough...
Dirk's had ONE clunker in 15 playoff games...what an over-rated choker....
It's fun to read between the lines on this one. Tell us how Dirk is overrated.
Raja Bell is overrated. If he's so great, why is he already an NBA journeyman at a young age?
That's easy...
Number of MVP Trophies: 0
Number of Dallas Finals Appearences: 0
Number of FTs it takes to win by 1 point: 24
Number of times tongue hangs out during game: 359
Number of flops to the ground on average: 65
Number of times yelling at Jason Terry for poor defense: 2 per minute
Number of times coach needs to complain about "bear-hug" defense to get a 2nd round victory: 1
Asking why Raja Bell is a journeyman is like asking why Keith Van Horn was the 2nd pick in the draft... who knows? But what makes him so valuable to a team (especially one like the Suns) is the intangibles he brings that don't show up in his stat line of 9 pts and 4 assists in Game 4. Avery Johnson was a bit of a journeyman, but he still was a vital part of a championship team in 1999 and now he's the 2005-2006 Coach of the Year. Just like I enjoy it when Raja draws a charge with a little bit of acting, I'm sure you like it when Devin Harris, Josh Howard, or Adrian Griffin do the same thing... They're all role players but Devin was big in the series against the Spurs, so everyone has his day...
Ron Mexico believes that Raja Bell is better than Dirk Nowitzki.
My mind has just been blown.
I never said that. Nash is better than Dirk. But now that you mention it, Raja probably is a better leader than Dirk will ever be, because he does it through his play on the court and not by calling out his own players. (I'm sure you remember Dirk's post-game interview after Stackhouse banged that free throw off the board: "When a guy's been in the league that long, you'd think he'd know that you have to get rim on a free throw.") But everyone hates Stack, so that's not really a big deal.
man, mavs fans are dumb. No one is overrating him. He is what he is, the emotional leader of this suns team, brings intensity and toughness to the defensive end that rubs off on his teamates when he plays, and a deadly 3pt shooter. I havent heard anyone say anything differernt, no ones saying hes a shutdown defender, nor saying hes a huge offensive player, the reason he's getting all of this attention is 1) he's coming back from a torn calf muscle when he wasnt expected to play, and 2) the importance he has on THIS suns team. Facts are the team is 1-5 when bell doesnt play. Mavs fans calling him overated is just bitterness that he didnt perform this well and have this kind of impact on their team when raja played for mavs.
Damn, Mavfans are scared of this guy.
I wish he was on the mavs right now. Bell on Mavs equals mavs championship. I would trade Terry for him.
I thought Raja Bell led the league in taken charges? He's the 2nd biggest flopper in the league behind Manu.
Dirk is anything but overrated so that's a pretty lame argument.
Raja however isn't overrated either. If you were to read the article you would see that he is being called the team's catalyst, the backbone of the team, the emotional guy, etc. The article doesn't call him the greatest SG in the league.
And no he isn't as good as a defender as Bowen, that's a whole 'nother level of defender. But Raja is a good defender nonetheless. He plays physical and is up to any challenge presented to him.
His contribution to the Suns this season can't be overlooked.
I wasn't saying that Dirk took charges... he flops on offense...
And my whole post was a sarcastic comment referring to some dumb mavs fans responses earlier...
Sorry. Can't hear you.
LMAO!!!
The over-rated Dirk single handedly outscored the mighty Suns in the 4th quarter...
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