| Will All The Pieces Finally Be Healthy? Authored by J.T. Magee - February 10, 2007 - 7:17 pm
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The answer is the same.
But before I get to that, I have a funny little story from when I was able to interview the Suns back in November.
I was originally going to write an article on Leandro Barbosa and his emergence on the team, but he wasn’t at the game. After watching Amare Stoudemire tear up the Blazers, I had to write an article on him.
I was asking a few of the Suns about Stoudemire. I asked what was one thing people didn’t know about Amare. After listening to my dull questions about him and the team, Kurt Thomas gave me gold.
“He can’t dress,” replied Thomas, looking over in Stoudemire’s direction.
“I’m the best dresser on this team, Kurtis,” said Stoudemire. “Don’t get it misconstrued.”
Jumaine Jones then chimes in about Stoudemire’s tie, joining Thomas in the ribbing.
“What’s wrong with this tie?” asks Stoudemire.
“That is awful,” said Thomas, as he and Jones keep laughing about Amare’s baby blue, green and red polka-dot tie. “That is hideous.”
“Look at the color coordination over here, man,” said Stoudemire “Man, what’s wrong with this tie?” As he’s saying this, he’s looking at me.
“Get a pair of scissors and cut that thing,” cracks Thomas.
“I mean, the blues go together, but….” As I stumble for the words, more laughter comes out of my mouth.
“Don’t entertain that (explicative),” said Stoudemire. “And you can put that in your little notepad.”
But I digress, so back to the article…
With Phoenix missing their two-time MVP Steve Nash, they realized that, until they have a healthy line-up, like they had in the first 25 games, they won’t get to where they want to be. Injuries can crush a team and Phoenix has been the unfortunate NBA team to lose key players to injuries but have not let it affect them. Until now.
Although they finally found their “closer” in Leandro Barbosa (who said he had no PG skills?), Phoenix showed the overall movement of a college team trying to find their way through a Syracuse zone. It’s harsh, especially against a Portland team still a couple of years away, but Nash means that much to them. He affects everyone in the game and it showed even more in his absence. These Suns pulled out a win against a team they of course should beat, but it took an overtime and Barbosa to score more than half of his points in the 4th quarter and OT to do so.
If this stretch heading into the All-Star Break says anything about Phoenix, aside from their wanting to deal Marcus Banks (just D up the opposing PG down the court), it’s how they deal with the way Nash free-flowed through opposing defenses and within the offense.
This stretch will also show what players have the ability to create on their own shots within the offense.
Shawn Marion showed some glimpses of being able to, but he will have to prove his outside shot and handle are good enough to be feared. Right now, the league fears his play off the ball. He’s capable of dominating with the ball, but he’ll have to step up more than he did against the Blazers.
Every championship team has gone through its own set of growing pains. Phoenix has to prove they have gone through theirs and it starts with their play without Nash. Everyone has to step up and play a little out of their element. Amare Stoudemire has the easy ability to dominate, but he must be given the ball and space in the necessary spots to do so. Can he create enough if given the ball outside of ten feet of the hoop? Nash’s injury will put him to the test. Same goes for Marion.
Nash may be out for just a couple of games, but what if this happened in the first round against a team like the Timberwolves or Clippers? These teams, as inconsistent as they have been, have more than enough firepower to beat the Suns, sans Nash.
Banks will have to prove that he’s worth 10 minutes of run with his defense. All he has to do is pressure the opposing point guard up the court and force turnovers. He’s quick enough on his feet to do so. He doesn’t have to gamble for steals. All he has to do is stay in front of the opposing player and make his life hell for those ten minutes. This stretch will be a telling time for Banks.
Aside from the injuries to both Nash and Kurt Thomas, these Suns were playing some of the best basketball they have played together. Offensively, they had some great games and some ugly games, including their 98-90 win over the Milwaukee Bucks, where they shot just 43% and still eked out a win.
Their team defense has improved drastically. They can still get out on the run. But the biggest reason may be the re-emergence of Stoudemire.
It’s not just Stoudemire, but he’s helped make a difference. We’ve seen the Suns still contend without him before. We’re seeing them struggle thogh against bottom of the barrel teams without Nash.
Who knows how they would fare (I wager bad) without Marion. I’m glad we haven’t found out. But in order to get over that hump against the likes of San Antonio and Dallas, they need a go-to big man. On both ends of the floor, Stoudemire has made some dramatic improvements.
On the offensive end of the floor, he’s still dominating, but he’s maintaining a better job of finishing. He is getting most of his shots attempts in the paint. Before the injury, they were mostly off of Nash passes. His post-up game has reached the point where he is hard to stop with either hand. He’s predominately right-handed, but teams haven’t forced him to make tough spins to his left. When they try, he’s already where he wants to be: going up for a dunk or at the free-throw line.
As great as his offense has been, his overall defense is far and above what it was before the injury. After the Suns’ first trip to Portland, I asked D’Antoni if any of Thomas’ interior D has rubbed off on Stoudemire. Both he and Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic had a good laugh at my expense.
“I wouldn’t go quite that far. It would be nice. I wish it was contagious,” said D’Antoni, referring to Thomas’ defense.
But Stoudemire has played better in the post. He’s had his problems going up for blocks, tending to bite on pump fakes and reaching a bit too much, but he’s getting his hands on the ball. When opposing guards drive, he’s keeping his hands at bay in case he needs to make a clean strip, which he did on Jarrett Jack back in November. But during their 17-game win streak, Stoudemire kept himself in check and always had his eyes on the ball and knew where his man was.
Stoudemire probably isn’t 100% healthy yet, and with Nash and Thomas out, it’s still going to be a few weeks until we find out just what type of team these Suns can be. Will they be that fun-loving team, even in Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals? Or will they run themselves into another big injury?
With a healthy Nash in the lineup, they can run-and-gun.
With Bell, they can play more lenient team defense because he can guard the opposing star perimeter player on one end and wear him out on the other.
With Marion, they can rely on everything not in the playbook, even though they run, or try to run, a minimum of 3-5 plays for him a game.
With Thomas, they can rely on strong interior defense, where menacing big guys like Jamaal Magloire (only in the Rose Garden can you hear both EPMD and the insult “butthead” from a bald man in the air), Andris Biedrins and Tim Duncan roam around.
With Barbosa, they finally have a closer they can go to.
With Boris Diaw, they have another versatile forward they can depend on if they need him to score, rebound or pass.
With Stoudemire, they have that big man every Championship needs. They also have somebody the NBA may not be ready for.
So, Mr. Stoudemire, is the NBA ready for what’s next?
“No, I don’t think so,” he answers. As he sits there for a
second before looking anywhere else, he looks like he’s about to go into something he can never turn back from, like a man on a mission.
All I can say is this: if the NBA is as ready as I was for that tie, then it is in for a rude, but hopefully not funny, awakening. But the only way we’ll find out is if these Suns can stay healthy. If they stay together like those pea green, red and baby blue polka dots, then we may have to accept them as the Champs.
But the tie can be left elsewhere. |
