T1B

Sonics 152, Suns 149 (2 OT)

It was a "turn back the clock" kind of game, to the era when NBA teams
routinely topped 100 points, instead of the finals in the 60s and 70s
that are too common these days.
Too many self-indulgent, immature kids turing pro early, and the talent dilution
caused by expansion are primarily to blame for low scores, IMO.
Somewhere out there, the old-school Denver Nugs alumni are smiling. :P

Diogenes wrote:And the Suns are still playing without Amare.


Should be scary for the rest of the West when he gets back.

Fixed.

They should be a juggernaught come playoff time. It wouldn't surprise me if it were Suns and Spurs again in the WCFs this year.

RadioFan wrote:

Diogenes wrote:And the Suns are still playing without Amare.


Should be scary for the rest of the West when he gets back.

Fixed.

They should be a juggernaught come playoff time. It wouldn't surprise me if it were Suns and Spurs again in the WCFs this year.

RACK the fix!
Suns or Spurs vs. Detroit in the Finals could be interesting as well,
if it happens.
More so since the Pistons have discovered that they have an offense! :P

RadioFan wrote:

Diogenes wrote:And the Suns are still playing without Amare.


Should be scary for the rest of the West when he gets back.

Fixed.

They should be a juggernaught come playoff time. It wouldn't surprise me if it were Suns and Spurs again in the WCFs this year.

Actually it would surprise me if it was anybody else.

Considering they lost two starters and their leading scorer from last season has been out all season, they're pretty much kicking ass.

Amare is going to be back sometime in Feb., right?

The Spurs play the Suns twice more in the reg. season -- Thursday, March 9 @ Phoenix (TNT national TV game :twisted: ), and Friday, March 17 @ San Antonio. (no national TV)

Those games should be a decent preview of the playoffs.

I don't always read Stein's column (unless he's trying to give me some "insight" on the Spurs). Sometimes he's way off base, and sometimes he's spot on.

He did a nice job with this piece. Thanks.

Dio, we should bump this thread come March 9.

Funkywhiteboy wrote: Too many self-indulgent, immature kids turing pro early, and the talent dilution
caused by expansion are primarily to blame for low scores, IMO.

I think it's more the way the game is played these days, with offense taking precedence over defense, which kills the transition game. This is to my chagrin, since I'm a lifelong Blazers fan, who along with the Suns have been a run-and-gun team since their inception. Nice to see the Suns stick to their roots. I think ther Zers are trying, they just don't have anyone smart enough to execute a fast break, much less 40 of them in a game, like the Walton and Drexler days.

I think the score Sonics/Suns game was an anomaly, due to the fact that neither one of those teams plays any defense whatsoever. I'm sure the old Nugs dug it.

OLE'!

I miss the days when Portland was a powerhouse. The franchise collapsed after letting the fucking Lakers win ~ shudder ~ . FUCK

It used to be that very few teams could go into their old building or even the Rose Garden and come out victorious.

And I still believe that one of the most underrated playoff series in the history of the NBA was in 89-90, Portland vs. SA. David Robinson and Sean Elliott's first years, I believe. Seven-game series with each team winning every game on their home court. Only Portland needed OT and double OT, along with a bunch of bullshit foul calls on DRob in order to beat the Spurs.

Don't get me wrong, Portland had a great team, and I give them credit for helping me discover WOAI on the radio, at night, in Kansas, and refuling the Spurs fan in me.

Btw, Dins, a few years back, ESPN had one of their horseshit "top ten" lists, having to do with NBA playoff shots. Sean Elliott's "Memorial Day Miracle" in '99 wasn't in there, nor was any other shot from that earlier Portland-SA series. Go figure.

Dinsdale wrote:I think the score Sonics/Suns game was an anomaly, due to the fact that neither one of those teams plays any defense whatsoever. I'm sure the old Nugs dug it.

More like due to having two high scoring teams going into double overtime....

What they are now is the most intriguing team on the NBA map as the season's mathematical midpoint approaches. With only three returning members from last season's primary playoff rotation -- and one of them, Jim Jackson, out of D'Antoni's current mix -- Phoenix has still managed to lead the league in scoring (105.2 ppg) while playing far better defense (eighth in the league in opponent field-goal percentage) to reinforce its status as the Team No One Likes To Play.

From Stein article above.

RadioFan wrote:Only Portland needed OT and double OT, along with a bunch of bullshit foul calls on DRob in order to beat the Spurs.

No, what it took for SA to hang for seven games was James Donaldson systematically taking out every big man on the roster in the first round that year. What a thug that guy was. If I remember right, they just wrapped a wad of tape around Kevin Duckworth's shooting hand, and he still tore DRob a new one. Heck, that series started with rookie Cliff Robinson guarding DRob in the post. That was possibly the greatest playoff series ever played.

Thanks for sending us Duck for Walter Barry-btw. We got an All-Star center, you got the biggest malcontent in NBA history, who lasted what...about a month there? Blazers don't get over on too many trades, but they took SA to the cleaners on that one. For a couple of years there, we knew how Denver felt after making a trade with us.

And the franchise collapsed the day Evil Allen bought them. The Glickmans had just built up such a powerhouse and built so much support in the community, it was a slow fall. It was inevitable, and a 22 year consecutive playoff run had to end. I'm thinking that today, Blazerfan would about kill to have Geoff Petrie and Rick Adelman back, who were let go for the sake of Allen's problematic ego, and no other reason. And damn, I miss the good old days of the old building (which is next door to the new one, still standing, still used on an occasion). The Glass Palace got rocking like nothing I've ever seen (although Autzen Stadium is no slouch...was about the worst place in the world to see a concert). The acoustic design of that building was so bad, that the ground would shake outside during a game. The drawback was that with 12,666 seats (later 12,888, easy numbers to remember, since they sold out something like almost 1000 games in a row), tickets were really hard to come by. These days, they'll just about pay you to go to a game and buy concessions. You can buy a $10 nosebleeder and mosey on down to an empty $150 seat, and nothing will be said, most likely. I wasn't there, but a few weeks ago, there was a short freezing rain storm, right before a game. I guess they announced over the PA that everyone could go ahead and sit wherever they'd like. Yup, things have fallen that far. I see it getting a whole lot worse before it gets better if the Marlins come to town (rumor has it the owners are leaning towards Portland, but since that would like create jobs and revenue and stuff, the city counsel won't have anything to do with it).

I sat in a suite and watched the 99(?) Spurs sweep the Zers in the WCF. Wasn't too heartbreaking, since the Spurs were clearly the better team, and it was 0-3 at that point.


Good old days. Hope we see something like that again someday, although this town is so much bigger, that whole "team and community are one and the same" philosophy isn't realistic.

These were the days...

(From NBA.com)

November 2, 1990
The Golden State Warriors registered a 162-158 win over the Denver Nuggets at McNichols Arena, with the 320 points setting an NBA record for the most points scored by two teams in a non-overtime game.

It seems kinda sad when there are teams in today's NBA that don't get half that many points
in a game! :P

thru three quarters... steve nash is proving to not only be more athletic, more leaderish and better at wearing shorts too long than lebron james, he also has less bumps on his face. suns up by 3 and well on their way to win their forty seventh game in a row on the road.

i never wrot e that and amare is still not playing. gfy

Yo Dio, ready for Thursday? Since I'm off Fridays and Saturdays ... I'm looking forward to my "Friday night" this week. :twisted:

I haven't seen much of the Suns since before Christmas. Looking forward to the game.

P.S. bbq ... no mashing potatoes that night or you'll miss it.

Amare still out, Thomas out as well...

Should be interesting.

I'll be watching.

Bring It ONNNNNNNNNNN.







Following game 1. Fuck.

I'm kinda glad it's later. I'm still at work. :x

This will actually be the first game I've seen since Thomas went down, they picked up the other Thomas and cut Jim Jackson.

Should be good. Or ugly.

Make that ugly.

No Nash or Barbosa on top of everything else?

Yeah, pretty atypical game last night, especially with the Spurs shooting 59 percent for the game. I just hope Parker can hang on to that outside jump shot.

Hopefully he'll remember how easy this one was next time they meet up.

Big vote of confidence for Mike D'Antoni-

Suns' D'Antoni gets new titles
March 10, 2006

PHOENIX (AP) -- Suns coach Mike D'Antoni was put in charge of the team's basketball operations following the departure of Bryan Colangelo to the Toronto Raptors.

Owner Robert Sarver said Friday that in addition to coaching D'Antoni will become executive vice president of basketball operations and general manager.

"Mike has been an integral part of our success and has been involved in all decision making," Sarver said. "He will now lead our basketball operations, supported by the extensive talents within his department."

The Suns also promoted David Griffin to vice president of basketball operations and former player Mark West to vice president of player programs.

"I am excited about what we are building here in Phoenix and the nucleus we presently have on and off the court," D'Antoni said. "While leading our basketball operations, my day to day focus will continue to be on coaching our players."

Colangelo last month left his job as president and general manager to become general manager in Toronto. Colangelo's father, Jerry, continues to serve as Suns chairman as part of the agreement by the ownership group he led to sell the franchise to Sarver.

D'Antoni was an assistant with the Suns before taking the head coaching job when Frank Johnson was fired 21 games into the 2003-04 season. His overall record since is 125-78, 104-38 since the start of the 2004-05 season. His team won an NBA-best 62 games last season, earning him league coach of the year honors.

This season, despite the absence of injured Amare Stoudemire and the departure of Joe Johnson and Quentin Richardson, the Suns lead the Pacific Division with a 42-18 record, the fourth-best mark in the NBA. With Steve Nash running the floor, D'Antoni installed a high-scoring, up-tempo, entertaining style. The coach gleaned that style from 20 years in Italy as a player and coach.

Updated on Friday, Mar 10, 2006 4:56 pm EST

Whether or not the Suns win the championship,
they are one of the most entertaining teams to watch, IMO.

How'd last night taste, Sunsfan?

I'll bet you never even noticed that Steve Blake is better than Steve Nash before, eh?

OK, maybe he doesn't quite have the track-record Nash does, but this season, Blake has ruined a whole buncha guys' nights. He played Kobe staright-up one-on-one, and ended his 45 point scoring streak, if you'll remember. Dude's held some prolific scorers to under-their-average, playing one-on-one D. And it doesn't matter whether it's the point gaurd, the 2 gaurd, or the 3 (and sometimes even the 4), whoever the opponents' best player is, Blake gaurds him...and shuts him down.

WAR -- Steve Blake, the best player on the Blazers roster. Sucks to be you, Wizards. Nice call leaving him on the bench for 3 years, while you started...who? Tyron Lue or someone? BWAHAHAHAHA!

RACK another shootout, in Seattle tonight!

Suns 129, Sonics 120.

...and they did it without overtime!

Dinsdale wrote:How'd last night taste, Sunsfan?

I don't remember, but I bet it tasted like we're still going to the Western finals at the least, and you'll be wondering how high a lottery pick you get.

Dinsdale wrote:I'll bet you never even noticed that Steve Blake is better than Steve Nash before, eh?

Nope. And I still haven't.

Dinsdale wrote:WAR -- Steve Blake, the best player on the Blazers roster. Sucks to be you, Wizards.

If he's the best player on your roster, kind of sucks to be you as well.

Good luck with that lottery pick.

And props on the W.


On the lighter side, this guy is looking pretty stupid right about now.

According to Marv Albert on the Suns/Jazz broadcast D'antonio says Amare could return sometime next week.

Stay tuned....

Diogenes wrote:I don't remember, but I bet it tasted like we're still going to the Western finals at the least, and you'll be wondering how high a lottery pick you get.

Dinsdale wrote:I'll bet you never even noticed that Steve Blake is better than Steve Nash before, eh?

If he's the best player on your roster, kind of sucks to be you as well.

Boy. Can't get anything past that astute sense of humor of yours, eh?


I've got a ticket for Friday's game against the Spurs (since Blazerfan no longer goes to the game to see his team, only bases his appearances on which big-name star is coming in that night). Unfortunately, I think I'll be in the urban Mecca known as Spokane, so I'll probably be missing it.

Suns get easy win in Stoudemire's return

Phoenix, AZ (Sports Network) - Playing in his first game since having off- season knee surgery, Amare Stoudemire scored 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds as Phoenix defeated Portland, 125-108 at US Airways Center.

Stoudemire had not played since undergoing surgery October 11, 2005 to repair a joint surface defect in his left knee.

Shawn Marion also scored 20 points for the Suns, who ended a two game losing streak. Leandro Barbosa scored 17 points, pulled down five boards and dished out four assists off the bench. Steve Nash and Tim Thomas each added 15 points.

Viktor Khryapa scored a career-high 22 points and collected 12 boards for the Trail Blazers, who lost their sixth straight game. Jarrett Jack scored a career-high 20 points off the bench and Travis Outlaw score 14 points, while Sebastian Telfair added 12.

Holding on to an eight point lead, 82-74, early in the third quarter, Barbosa knocked down a jumper to spark an 11-0 run that put the game away in the third quarter. Nash drained a trey to cap the scoring for Phoenix.

The Suns led by 22 at the end of the third, 100-78, and Portland did not threaten in the fourth quarter.

The main story in Phoenix was the return of Stoudemire, who scored Phoenix's first basket of the game to spark an early 7-0 run as the Suns led by six at the end of the first quarter, 40-34.

The Trail Blazers briefly tied the contest in the second quarter, but Phoenix outscored Portland 17-4 over a four minute span and led by 13 at the break, 76-63. Marion scored 10 of his team's points during this spurt.

The Suns 76 first-half points were a league-high. Phoenix shot 55.3 percent from the field and 14-of-15 from the free throw line in the half. Marion scored 16 of his 20 points.

For the game, Phoenix shot 47.8 percent from the field and 43.3 percent from beyond the arc (13-of-30).

The Trail Blazers' 47.7 percent shooting from the floor was offset by a whopping 20 turnovers.

Game Notes

Raja Bell and Eddie House each scored 13 points for the Suns...Portland outrebounded Phoenix, 49-42...Stoudemire knocked down two free throws with 1:26 remaining in the game and left to a standing ovation...Phoenix now leads the season series 2-1. Portland will host the Suns on April 19th at the Rose Garden for the final meeting between the two teams.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/scorecard ... eID=162238

Diogenes wrote:Amare Stoudemire scored 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds as Phoenix defeated Portland, 125-108 at US Airways Center.

Combined with Golden State's 122-121 upset win at Dallas,
that's a whole lotta points being scored with no OT involved!

If Phoenix can play any kind of D in the playoffs, they'll be unstoppable.

Detroit had Boston.
Chicago had Detroit.

The Suns have the Spurs. Once we get by them, the rest is history.

I'm not counting any chickens yet, but this could easily be the year. The key guys in the organization have last years playoff experiance playing as a team, a lot of the new faces are veterans, and they have been cruising along without their #1 scorer from last year. As long as Nash is healthy, I don't see anyone stopping them.

But if anyone does (aside from injuries) it would be San Antoinio, they're still king of the hill until we knock them off of the fucker.