by HoopsFan on Sun Nov 23, 2008 10:49 am
The Basics.
Rudy and Outlaw when stationary from deep do better. When they are moving laterally, not as good. (Had a baseline view. Pretty obvious.)
The team that is the aggressor won.
Shaq gets up for games like this one.
Don't trade Prz or Batum. They and the big 3 + 1 are the core.
Blake outshot Nash. Nash ran his team and hit shots when he decided his team needed them.
Nash kept the Suns together.
Nobody did that well against Roy.
Rudy has court vision and skills to make plays. He's the PG.
Aldridge has to be that 2nd guy with Roy. Too much talent not to be.
The Phoenix crowd is orchestrated. Not that much of an enthused bunch.
The Gorilla is the best mascot in the NBA, maybe all of pro sports.
Oden in 20 games, Portland wins.
A couple other observations.
1. Pre-game, I watched Dan Majerle (a Suns assistant who works with players as his specialty) shooting 3 after 3 (after Suns players had left the court). His stroke--easy, efficient, no flash, little jump ... oh, that's right, pretty much like Steve Nash.
Athleticism on a jump shot is not the best thing ... moving parts that have to be coordinated on the fly. Even when Nash does his fadeaway in the key (and often falling down when going backward, he looks under control. Roy, too.
Rudy is a serious shooter who had a bad night, but didn't keep hoisting and instead played team ball, trying to contribute in other ways.
2. Not a fan of Blake's release on his jumper--it's effective, but his hand looks a bit scrunched on the follow through. Outlaw's balance on his jumper while stationary can get off a bit. He doesn't look comfortable at all when he is leaning forward prior to the release.
3. Maybe that's it. The contributors on the Suns look comfortable on their shots.
