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4/30/08

The D'Antoni Era Ends In Phoenix, And Likely Fun Basketball As Well

NBA, Phoenix Suns

100%InjuryRate

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I've been a huge Phoenix Suns fan for a long time, and there's a simple reason for that. When I was growing up in the Bay Area, there was a guy playing nearby at Santa Clara University named Steve Nash who was one of the best players I had ever seen. We all wondered how so many people had overlooked him.

I followed Nash's career closely, but when he went to the Suns and was teamed up with Mike D'Antoni, it reached a new level of awesomeness. D'Antoni and Nash transformed the Suns into a ridiculously explosive offense that made NBA basketball what it hadn't been for a while: fun.

I would literally drop whatever it was I was doing to watch Suns games for a three year stretch. I looked forward to games, and planned my schedule around them.

But the run has come to an end, as D'Antoni got the boot right after the Suns lost to the Spurs yet again in the playoffs yesterday.

There's certainly justification for this. The Suns have had a four-year run where they just couldn't get over the hump. Two Western Conference Finals, plus second and first round playoff appearances - but no championships. The team also seemed exceptionally frustrated this year, and didn't play with the same carefree attitude that it had with in the past.

But the worst thing is that it didn't have to be this way. I'm convinced that had the Suns not had Amare and Diaw suspended last year in last playoffs, and not had crooked ref Tom Donaghy call that insanely critical Game 3, they would have won the NBA Championship. Then there'd be no Shaq, no firing, no "what the hell do we do now" questions to be answered.

Regardless of what people thought of D'Antoni - that he didn't value defense, that he was obnoxious, that his scheme was all wrong - the fact is that he made watching basketball incredibly fun. The NBA needs more that. That's also the reason why I hate the Spurs so much. They're boring, and worse, they make me hate basketball.

D'Antoni's firing, along with the Warriors' inability to get to the playoffs this year, may officially mark the death of the up-tempo basketball experience. Whoever replaces D'Antoni won't be using a run-and-gun attack with Shaq there, and the Warriors have their own issues to deal with.

It's a sad end to what was really a gloriously fun little era of basketball. And worse yet, it reinforces the belief that you can't win NBA Championships that way. I will always contend that's not true - as the Suns should have won the Championship last year - but I will be in the minority.

I have no idea what will happen with the Suns this next season, and it will be fun to see Shaq and Nash make one last run, but it won't be quite the same.

I'll miss you Mike.

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4/30/08

CriticalFanatic

As a Bulls fan I'm unashamed to say that I've probably cheered harder for the Suns over the last three years for many of the same reasons you've noted.

Steve Nash is/was breathtaking to watch. Few players had his court vision and ability to put his teammates in the best possibly position to score. He can't play D, and unfortunately that's a downfall of the Suns.

It's only fitting that the Hornets will be the next up for the Spurs. Chris Paul is the new Steve Nash and will now become the team I'm left to root for since the Bulls are busy golfing.

I'd be more than pleased if John Paxson had the foresight to bring an offensive coach into the Eastern conference. I don't think it's necessarily D'Antoni who's a bad defensive coach. He was just forced to deal with some guys who had no interest in it.

4/30/08

kantwistaye

2	D'Antoni is going to Toronto, so don't feel too bad for him. That said, Sarver and Kerr were the death of this team, not D'Antoni.

4/30/08

Chachi_Azzhola

D'Antoni brought a European style to the Suns that was entertaining to watch as a change of pace from the rest of the league. I'll be sorry to see it go. I kinda saw this coming when they brought in Kerr because his background was with championship defenses - Not that Kerr played "D", but he did get an exceptional amount of time to study it while sitting on the bench waiting to shoot three pointers on MJ's Bulls and Duncan's Spurs.

4/30/08

Jon

1	The only way he is going is if he leaves on his own. If Sarver is willing to throw away money by firing a coach, and isn't willing to spend that same money on players, then he's an even bigger moron than I thought.

4/30/08

danny_n94

(Edited by danny_n94)

I feel the Suns let him down. Trading for a beat down Shaq was plain dumb. Shawn Marion is a better defender and would cause problems for the Spurs. Remember if it wasnt for the crap suspensions last year I think the Suns would have beaten the Spurs. Steve Kerr thought he was getting the 2000 Shaq and everybody knows that Shaq is gone. I hope D'Antoni gets another gig. When he led a crap Nuggets team in the lock out season I was impressed and became a fan.

4/30/08

Chris

So the Suns, would have been the 2007 Champions story again. Jeez. Blame the team for blowing a huge lead in game 5 last year. Blame all the mistakes and turnovers, because it killed them again this year. Competition isn't all about who's the flashiest team or player... it's about winning. Sorry no one likes defensive, true-style basketball (except flops, ok, i'll admit it).

I feel bad for the Suns though, because i want Steve Nash to win a title. He's such a great player, and a wonderful person. He deserves one so bad. I don't want Shaq to win another one though, so i'd only accept a Suns title if they do not have Shaq.

But back to the top, don't start bringing the "Oh the suspensions" crap again. That was freaking 1 year ago nearly to the week, and also the Suns had that entire year, to get back "what they should have won"... and you know what? It was a risky trade when the team was already a great one, making too many mistakes, and not doing the little things when it mattered most. Result? Another playoff exit. Let's move on, folks.

4/30/08

danny_n94

Chris wrote:

it is what it is. Its my thought and your idignation over it will not make me change my mind. But my point is that Kerr set the Suns up to fail by getting Shaq. I dont recall taking anything away from the Spurs. It seems to me the people that attack the suspension know deep down how close the Suns were to winning that series. Its over and frankly I did not care who won the series as seeing I dont really like either friggin team. I will love to see CP and the Hornets smoke the Spurs this year. Will it happen. . . who knows

4/30/08

norcalsurfer777

I am a west coast guy and I was pulling for the Suns to be the irritating and cry-baby Spurs. The Suns have been close so many times. Getting rid of their coach is something I think they will regret once the smoke clears. I am a Sonics fan and I wish we, like the Suns, were always in the mix. The players have to play defense and while the coach might ignore that fact, I still think a lot of it falls on the players.

4/30/08

100%InjuryRate

Chris wrote:

Look, I'm going to continue to bring up the suspensions and crooked ref for as long as I like. Why? Because Stern didn't suspend a couple of Hawks players this year for doing the same damn thing Amare and Diaw did. And there was a crooked ref doing Game 3 of the Suns/Spurs series last year.

Who knows, the Spurs may still have won. But it would have been nice to actually see both teams play it out, rather than have a jackass commissioner and a crooked ref make things extra tough for the Suns.

4/30/08

derms33

0	you can watch that basketball on any playground

4/30/08

blipper21

I think the Suns' failure to achieve as much some (including me) have hoped and/or expected is due to a combination of things.

One thing that I don't think has received a lot of attention recently is chemistry issues. There may have been chemistry issues involving Marion and Amare, but that wasn't all. The Nash-led Suns were arguably at their best in Nash's first year back in PHX, when Joe Johnson, Q Richardson, and Jim Jackson were part of the mix. However, if I remember right, Johnson wasn't happy being the 4th biggest name behind Nash, Amare, and Marion, so he ended up in ATL. (Also of note: I believe Johnson wasn't a part of the Suns' playoff run that year, due to an injury. Diaw came over in the Johnson trade; he's been good at times, but he's not Joe Johnson. The trade also would've allowed PHX to have a pretty high draft pick from ATL last summer, but the Hawks' hit on a lottery ball and ended up with a protected top-3 pick.) Pointing to chemistry isn't to say that the guys didn't come to play, but it may have overly affected the team in terms of trades and over the long-term, it may have affected things on the court more than we know.
I personally think the talk about defense can be too simplistic at times. For example, I'm not sure that Nash is as much of a defensive liability as some people may think (though I probably see a lot fewer games than some people who disagree with me). I'm NOT saying Nash is a good on-ball defender, but I think he may be active enough to work adequately in a TEAM-DEFENSE scheme. (I don't necessarily think a unit has to have five solid, in-your-grill, on-ball defenders to be effective at team defense.) Even when Parker went off for 41 the other night, from what I saw he was mostly draining jumpers off of pick and rolls. I'm not a basketball expert, but if jumpers are what you're giving up to a player (as fast as TP) off of pick and rolls, that's not the worst-case scenario; it just happened that Parker's shot was falling very well.
What I will say about Nash, Amare, and the PHX roster in general is that they seem to be soft (Bell and sometimes Shaq being exceptions). That doesn't mean they don't work hard on the floor, but even physically, this team seems to have a lot of lean guys with not much muscle. I don't think running teams have to be that way; Golden State is an example of a more imposing roster physically. Just physically, compare Baron, S. Jackson, and Harrington to Nash, Hill, and Diaw. Are the first three guys slow or unathletic? No, but they are guys who have body mass and physical toughness to impose on defense if they are willing. (That's not to say skinny guys can't run a solid team defense, but it doesn't hurt to have some muscle behind it). Even though GS didn't make the playoffs this year, you could still argue that they improved over last year; their reg. season record was actually 6 games better this year. The west just got more competitive and the Warriors will have to improve even more to keep pace.
Anyway, I could go on. The Suns let Kurt Thomas go, and yet they were more competitive against the Spurs last year when KT was a Sun.