Reply With Quote
They need to let him be a scorer and not a distributor
I don't know if we can. He ran around anywhere he wanted and he really looked unstoppable. Was game 2 a bad defensive effort by the Spurs or is Nash going to be running circles aroudn this team the whole series. What tactic can the Spurs to slow him at least?
They need to let him be a scorer and not a distributor
Bowen might injure him. That's the only chance the Spurs have in this series.
Probably not stop him, hopefully they can just slow him down enough
Sounds good to me.
I also realize Tony didn't have a good game. I think if Tony can almost match Nash point for point we will win. I love tony, but sometimes I wonder about him.
I always thought Bowen guarded Marion and Tony plays Nash well? It has always seemed to work great. Now why is Bowen guarding Nash? Who guards Marion?
Just like last year with the small ball BS, Pop sometimes outthinks himself!
Or am I missing something?
I googled "stop Nash" and this popped up.
http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fu...oID=2016431088
Good luck. You'll need it.
Also found this...
Stop Nash? Got some banana peels?
Stopping Nash, which means stopping the Suns, has become one of the great mysteries, like Adam Morrison's hair or Gilbert Arenas' thinking. There's no figuring it out.
You can scratch your head, but then Nash has blown by, though how he does that is curious. It's easy to disparage Nash and suggest he's an aberration, like a shooting star soon to flame out. To paraphrase John Wooden, Nash is quick without looking like he's hurrying. He never mistakes activity for achievement.
Nash has a great first step and can control and hold his dribble, so the conventional wisdom of pressuring him and trying to trap him in a crowd is difficult because he doesn't give up his dribble easily. He has those always-talked-about intangibles.
Nash was good when he first came to the Suns as the 15th pick in the 1996 draft. I remember talking to staff members then with Nash third-string behind Kevin Johnson and Kidd, two of the best point guards of their era. They raved about Nash and said how he could be better than the other two. You figured it was one of those things teams do to make a bad draft pick sound better. And they did trade him after two seasons.
You can measure jumping ability and Nash could always shoot. But he has the court vision and decision-making ability to make the right pass and find the right guy that few players in the history of the game have had. And Nash is in amazing shape. He plays on soccer teams in the summer, and while you'd think that would make the Suns nervous, his conditioning is remarkable.
You can talk about pressing and trapping him, but few players have the endurance to do it. Yes, against that little guy.
Look, the Suns are Nash. Take him out and they are an ordinary team, which is no insult.
--
How to stop Nash
I'd first try to trap Nash in the backcourt, pressure him to try to give up the ball.
It does require effort and energy not enough players have, and the Suns are terrific in stepping out after a basket and throwing the ball in so quickly to Nash that it's difficult to get to him.
Also, because Nash pushes the ball so well and throws ahead, teams are concentrating on getting back to prevent layups.
The plan against Nash usually is to stay with the 3-point shooters, make him drive and turn it, and not let the Suns rain threes. But that discipline is difficult when he's breaking down the defense, and Nash has that uncanny ability to understand what defenses are doing and take advantage.
He'll get 30 points if he has to, and isn't that the most amazing statement about a player? Playing Nash requires discipline, not always a trait of great athletes.
You can try to go slow. The Suns will sink in on defense trying to get you to shoot jumpers, which most teams do, so they can rebound and break out. You need the discipline to slow the game, work the ball and keep going to your size. It's one reason the Clippers had some success against them in the playoffs last season, though Amare Stoudemire was out at the time.
Now that Stoudemire is back and playing well, the pick and roll again is a major weapon. Teams will switch up, perhaps going under early to allow Nash to shoot and then getting over late to give him a different look and perhaps force it out with stunts. But the Suns move the ball so well and have other playmakers that they don't stop.
On paper, a slow team with size like the Houston Rockets should have success against Nash, and perhaps this season they will after Yao returns.
Zones generally don't work because the Suns shoot so well and want to lure you into a running game which a zone can lead to with long shots and long rebounds.
Stop Nash? Anyone seen those banana peels?
Nash sucks.
Thats funny, I did the same thing and this came up
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9o4f6y8DbZE
brought to you by Johnson & Johnson.
It wasn't a bad defensive effort in the fourth quarter. It was awful. There was also a major lapse in the second quarter.
Every great team is en led to an off night, and Phoenix was in a virtual must win situation in their house. Besides, Phoenix is a great offensive team and they need to be praised for their defensive effort and all around intensity and focus last game.
But I'm quite sure the Spurs will be ready every game for the rest of the series to lay down a tough defense on Nash.
So to answer your question, I really need to know what your definition of "stop" Nash is. I think the Spurs have historically and can continue to "disrupt" his game. But when I think "stop", I think really lockdown. I don't think you ever do that to a smart, skilled player like Nash.
Bowen stole Nash's bike...
I understand this line of thinking since Nash has not shot particularly well during this series, so perhaps it might work, but it's not as cut-and-dried as you might think. I talked to a Suns fan who said he likes to watch Nash during warm-ups. He said that on three different occassions he has seen Nash hit every single shot during warm-up.
Many consider him not only the best passer in the NBA but top five (or even top three) SHOOTER.
Kobe will start chucking and score more points, but Nash will only take the shot when he considers it most advantageous -- and he very often hits.
"#1 fg% among guards, #1 adj fg% in the NBA, top ten points per shot in the NBA, top twelve ft% in the NBA (he's having an off year), #2 ALL TIME career ft% (if you count ABA as part of somebody's career), top 5 career three point % all time."
Dallas' strategy was to turn Nash into a shooter, and it proved dangerous.
He had "a 17-point laugher in Dallas with 27 points and 17 assists. Two nights later, he exploded for 48 points."
The main danger with this strategy, imo, is that it could make Nash even MORE effective. The last thing you want is 27 points and 17 assists.
Nash is perfectly capable of putting up Kobe numbers on a nightly basis, but he's a team player. Passing is his deadliest skill. He's a much greater threat on offense than Kobe ever was.
all that said, it may be your best bet at taking him out, outside of Bowen. But somehow I think he'll find a way to outsmart your defense. His b-ball IQ is like ing Einstein. And the level his game is at now, I can't see anyone taking away his distribution capabiilities for any length of time. He'll adjust as you adjust.
Can anybody tell me why Bowen has switched to Nash??!
Speaking of basketball IQ.You're adorable.
This might be the difference maker in the series. Nash is playing at a completely different level this season, especially right now. He knows it's his last chance to win a le. Spurs have no one who can stop/contain him. You turn him into a scorer for only so long...he'll still find ways to get his assists up. Who knows if he didn't get injured in game 1, he still could have ended up with 10+ assists on those last couple of plays.
Not only that, but he's proving to be clutch this season, unlike seasons past which was missing. Not passing clutch neccesarily, but taking and making the big shot at the end of games for hte Suns. He did in Game 1 wiht the 3 pointer and layup, he did it countless times against the Mavs in the regular season, etc.
The best the Spurs can hope for is that Parker's productivity counters Nash's, as in Game 1. Otherwise, this series will go to him.
If Parker and Ginobili can play at a higher level than game 2, than that will be an improvement by itself. I think Ginobili will break out sooner or later, especially since next two game are in SA. The fans will cheer him on.
I disagree. I think he knows it's his best chance to win a le. He also knows that if he doesn't win it, his chances of doing so in the future will diminish, while if he does win it, they will rise.
Nash is a very unusual physical specimen -- he's peaking several years later than he's supposed to. Much of this has to do with maturity and knowledge gained -- his greatest asset, as stated, is b-ball IQ -- but he also one of the hardest workers in the NBA. During the Lakers series he was training twice a day while his teammates played video games. I think he has at least two more years of outstanding play; even after that, he will still be considered one of the pest pg's in the league for several years.
Just my opinion. If his spine moves an inch or two he could be finished tomorrow.
This coming from someone who appears to have a man crush on Chris Childs. yeah that guy was MVP material. Nice contribution.
I don't think the Spurs can stop Nash just as the Suns can't stop Duncan.
I agree that both players will step it up in S.A. I think it's unfair of Spurs fans to attribute their lacklustre performances in game 2 solely to lack of energy -- great defense by Raja and Marion were also key -- but they were undoubtedly not playing to their potential.
I've been told that Manu had a poor series against the Nuggets as well, but keep in mind that Raja is his most feared defender. It will be a big test of Manu's mettle to see whether he can get over that psychological (and very physical) block know as Raja Bell.
I would be shocked if both Manu and Parker didn't step it up and take at least one game in S.A. I expect it to be game 3.
I agree, Duncan's just too good to be stopped. He's my co-MVP and imo should always be in the top three for consideration of that award (but as Spurs fans will say, it's the finals MVP that counts).
There is a difference, however. You can't let Nash "have his" when it comes to passing otherwise you're dead in the water; you CAN let Duncan have his when it comes to both scoring and passing.
If you can figure out a way to shut down Nash you're laughing. the question is : can ANYONE shut down Nash for more than ten minutes?
I think Bell is great defender and does a good job, but I don't think that is Manu's only problem..something else is up with him.
I agree. I, obviously, don't see as many Spurs games as you all but Manu was on my fantasy team. Seems like something happened around 1 month left in the regular season and he still hasn't gotten back on track.
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)
Posting Permissions
