Game Day: Suns (19-3) @ Warriors (18-3) , Friday 12/3/21

[djy2j]

I think this is why the Suns are hesitant to max Ayton. Had all the elements of a big night from him. Booker out, GS no real big man, Suns shooting poorly. He played much harder that he normally does but it didn’t really change things for very long. Had a few good stretches but ultimately was easily figured out and had Bejilica looking like an all defensive team out there.

Congrats on scrubs GP2 and Toscano hitting the lottery and shooting like future hall of famers tonight. Sucks it had to be against us.

[Shabazz]

What scares me about the Warriors is what their roster could look like in a few months if they push their chips in. They’ve got a lot of assets not currently in their rotation that could be bundled in a star-fetching package.

[Superbone]

I think this is why the Suns are hesitant to max Ayton. Had all the elements of a big night from him. Booker out, GS no real big man, Suns shooting poorly. He played much harder that he normally does but it didn’t really change things for very long. Had a few good stretches but ultimately was easily figured out and had Bejilica looking like an all defensive team out there.

Congrats on scrubs GP2 and Toscano hitting the lottery and shooting like future hall of famers tonight. Sucks it had to be against us.

Ayton missed out on at least 2 made baskets tonight because he refuses to dunk the ball. Little bunnies that he could have easily dunked. I still find myself yelling at the screen but it’s half-hearted now as it’s just not in his nature and it’s not going to change.

[BlaCkAdDa]

He had a great game getting to the line but he just wasn’t fed the ball enough… he should have had 30pts

[Flagrant Fowl]

He was fed the ball plenty and would've had 30 points if he dunked the ball.

[ShelC]

We made a concerted effort to get DA the ball but he's still limited in his moves away from the basket. It's a weak jab step into a fadeaway or a spin dribble into a fadeaway. Unless he's sealing deep in the paint to where he can catch and flip it in from 2-4ft, he's not reliable. He also plays smaller around the rim for some reason, like he can't rise and dunk with defenders near him.

Payne's another easy target after that shooting night, but we know he's feast or famine. I don't think getting others involved was the answer because that's not really his game. I like that he kept attacking and eventually got some to fall. If he hits just a few more shots during the game, it's much different going into the 4th.

Bottom line is we just didn't have enough shot creators outside of Paul and Payne. We held on as long as we could, but everything kind of came to a head in the 4th. Like I said, that team doesn't scare me if we're healthy.

[ShelC]

[Split T]

Snuck an Evan Mobley highlight in there, haha

[Split T]

I think this is why the Suns are hesitant to max Ayton. Had all the elements of a big night from him. Booker out, GS no real big man, Suns shooting poorly. He played much harder that he normally does but it didn’t really change things for very long. Had a few good stretches but ultimately was easily figured out and had Bejilica looking like an all defensive team out there.

Congrats on scrubs GP2 and Toscano hitting the lottery and shooting like future hall of famers tonight. Sucks it had to be against us.

I would agree. He’s obviously very talented and impactful, but he’s still a secondary guy and doesn’t seem to have the skills to ever be a focal point. We survived the games he missed because McGee/Frank can either do a reasonable impression of him or provide a similar level of production in a pinch. There’s no one on the roster that can do that for CP3 or Book. We’d be in a lot bigger trouble if one of those guys was out in the playoffs.

[ShelC]

Snuck an Evan Mobley highlight in there, haha

Ha, my subconscious at work.

[Nodack]

Hell of a run. Time to start another one.

[JeremyG]

We made a concerted effort to get DA the ball but he's still limited in his moves away from the basket. It's a weak jab step into a fadeaway or a spin dribble into a fadeaway. Unless he's sealing deep in the paint to where he can catch and flip it in from 2-4ft, he's not reliable. He also plays smaller around the rim for some reason, like he can't rise and dunk with defenders near him.

There were two times he should have dunked, although one of them I think would have been difficult to make (but may have gotten him to the line). There were several times he sealed his man deep in the paint and they ignored him. His baseline jumper is money, but he didn't get any last night. Also, I would have liked to see Paul (and even Payne) do some pick-and-rolls with him last night.

For people to say we tried our best to use him to maximum effectiveness last night is just not true.

And after everyone always complains about him not gettng to the line, you would think people would at least be appreciating his 9-11 FT shooting.

[JeremyG]

I think this is why the Suns are hesitant to max Ayton. Had all the elements of a big night from him. Booker out, GS no real big man, Suns shooting poorly. He played much harder that he normally does but it didn’t really change things for very long. Had a few good stretches but ultimately was easily figured out and had Bejilica looking like an all defensive team out there.

Congrats on scrubs GP2 and Toscano hitting the lottery and shooting like future hall of famers tonight. Sucks it had to be against us.

I would agree. He’s obviously very talented and impactful, but he’s still a secondary guy and doesn’t seem to have the skills to ever be a focal point. We survived the games he missed because McGee/Frank can either do a reasonable impression of him or provide a similar level of production in a pinch. There’s no one on the roster that can do that for CP3 or Book. We’d be in a lot bigger trouble if one of those guys was out in the playoffs.

Lol, we literally took a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference Finals when CP3 was out, in large part due to Ayton stepping up. Remember the Valley Oop game?

[Split T]

I think this is why the Suns are hesitant to max Ayton. Had all the elements of a big night from him. Booker out, GS no real big man, Suns shooting poorly. He played much harder that he normally does but it didn’t really change things for very long. Had a few good stretches but ultimately was easily figured out and had Bejilica looking like an all defensive team out there.

Congrats on scrubs GP2 and Toscano hitting the lottery and shooting like future hall of famers tonight. Sucks it had to be against us.

I would agree. He’s obviously very talented and impactful, but he’s still a secondary guy and doesn’t seem to have the skills to ever be a focal point. We survived the games he missed because McGee/Frank can either do a reasonable impression of him or provide a similar level of production in a pinch. There’s no one on the roster that can do that for CP3 or Book. We’d be in a lot bigger trouble if one of those guys was out in the playoffs.

Lol, we literally took a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference Finals when CP3 was out, in large part due to Ayton stepping up. Remember the Valley Oop game?

To a team also missing their best player…and yes, Ayton was great, but we also had a 40 point triple double from Booker and a 29/9, 0 turnover game from Payne.

My point is we need a 2nd creator. Game 1 the Clippers played us(specifically Booker) pretty traditionally and Booker torched them. Game 2 they changed up the coverage, putting Beverley on Booker to pressure him more and make Payne beat them. He did, but it’s hard to rely on that if CP3 missed significant time.

As good as Ayton was, he wasn’t taking on a creation role. He was playing his typical roll man role. Helpful for sure, but I am almost certain we would have lost that series if CP3 doesn’t come back.

Good self creators are the hardest thing to come by in basketball. Having two is a huge plus, especially because neither Booker or Paul is quite at the KD/Lebron level that they are unschemable. You can focus your defense on them and force someone else to beat you. I would love for Ayton to step up and be that 3rd guy, but he’s not there yet. He’s still really just playing a role.

[AmareIsGod]

We made a concerted effort to get DA the ball but he's still limited in his moves away from the basket. It's a weak jab step into a fadeaway or a spin dribble into a fadeaway. Unless he's sealing deep in the paint to where he can catch and flip it in from 2-4ft, he's not reliable. He also plays smaller around the rim for some reason, like he can't rise and dunk with defenders near him.

There were two times he should have dunked, although one of them I think would have been difficult to make (but may have gotten him to the line). There were several times he sealed his man deep in the paint and they ignored him. His baseline jumper is money, but he didn't get any last night. Also, I would have liked to see Paul (and even Payne) do some pick-and-rolls with him last night.

For people to say we tried our best to use him to maximum effectiveness last night is just not true.

And after everyone always complains about him not gettng to the line, you would think people would at least be appreciating his 9-11 FT shooting.

Just rewatched the game today to try to find positives. There are 5 times he should have dunked. He made 3 of those 5 but it could have and should have been 5 out of 5 considering how close he was and how easy those dunks would have been for any athletic PF or C.

He was 3 for 10 at one point. I appreciate that he was getting to the FT line. He still has a ton of growth though. He needs to dunk anytime he's in a dunkable position and location near the hoop. Even if he dunked 50% of those times, it would be a massive improvement.

[Split T]

There was really two plays from Ayton that bugged me:

1. Bridges drove and drew help from Ayton’s man. Bridges passes to Ayton and he does some weird jump catch with a hurried tip attempt. There was no one even defending him. He could have just taken his time, caught the ball and gently layed it in for all I care, but why he hurried and tried to tip/guide the pass in is baffling to me. Did he think there was pressure? This is the Ayton version of Ben Simmons passing up a layup because Trae Young was nearby.

2. He caught the ball like 15 feet from the hoop and took a turn-around fadeaway that missed badly. That’s not his game yet. It was a Jokic/Embiid type shot.

Other than that I liked how he played. I think he was tired, but he stayed way more engaged than normal when he’s tired. He attacked the rim and drew fouls. Sure I’d love to see him play with more force, but baby steps. Just make the easy play on play 1 and don’t attempt play 2 and I would have been very pleased.

[JeremyG]

We made a concerted effort to get DA the ball but he's still limited in his moves away from the basket. It's a weak jab step into a fadeaway or a spin dribble into a fadeaway. Unless he's sealing deep in the paint to where he can catch and flip it in from 2-4ft, he's not reliable. He also plays smaller around the rim for some reason, like he can't rise and dunk with defenders near him.

There were two times he should have dunked, although one of them I think would have been difficult to make (but may have gotten him to the line). There were several times he sealed his man deep in the paint and they ignored him. His baseline jumper is money, but he didn't get any last night. Also, I would have liked to see Paul (and even Payne) do some pick-and-rolls with him last night.

For people to say we tried our best to use him to maximum effectiveness last night is just not true.

And after everyone always complains about him not gettng to the line, you would think people would at least be appreciating his 9-11 FT shooting.

Just rewatched the game today to try to find positives. There are 5 times he should have dunked. He made 3 of those 5 but it could have and should have been 5 out of 5 considering how close he was and how easy those dunks would have been for any athletic PF or C.

He was 3 for 10 at one point. I appreciate that he was getting to the FT line. He still has a ton of growth though. He needs to dunk anytime he's in a dunkable position and location near the hoop. Even if he dunked 50% of those times, it would be a massive improvement.

Yeah, I meant 2 times he could have dunked on shots he missed.

[Nodack]

It is totally frustrating to see him do a finesse a shot right at the rim and miss. In Aytons defense I think he has made a lot of strides in that area this year. He does have games like this where he slips back into Mr. Finesse. He has had a few Dominayton games too in the streak where he dunks the shit out of the ball.

I think sometimes people hurry shots because they think there is a defender coming that they can’t see. Watching on tv isn’t fair. We get the 360 degree coverage and see the whole floor all the time. We see the player wide open. The player sees what’s in front of him.

2. He caught the ball like 15 feet from the hoop and took a turn-around fadeaway that missed badly. That’s not his game yet. It was a Jokic/Embiid type shot

.

Ayton has hit several of those shots this year. It isn’t his game so much yet but, I argue it will never be his game if he doesn’t work on it in practice and try it in the game sometimes. If anything it shows a different look on offense kind of like an NFL team that sucks at running still running on first down because they have to keep the defense honest.

[Split T]

It is totally frustrating to see him do a finesse a shot right at the rim and miss. In Aytons defense I think he has made a lot of strides in that area this year. He does have games like this where he slips back into Mr. Finesse. He has had a few Dominayton games too in the streak where he dunks the shit out of the ball.

I think sometimes people hurry shots because they think there is a defender coming that they can’t see. Watching on tv isn’t fair. We get the 360 degree coverage and see the whole floor all the time. We see the player wide open. The player sees what’s in front of him.

2. He caught the ball like 15 feet from the hoop and took a turn-around fadeaway that missed badly. That’s not his game yet. It was a Jokic/Embiid type shot

.

Ayton has hit several of those shots this year. It isn’t his game so much yet but, I argue it will never be his game if he doesn’t work on it in practice and try it in the game sometimes. If anything it shows a different look on offense kind of like an NFL team that sucks at running still running on first down because they have to keep the defense honest.

I’ve never seen him make the shot he tried. He can hit that 10 foot baseline turnaround. This was at the elbow, it was off the dribble. He was probably 18 feet away after the turn-around and fade. I’ve never even seen him try it.

[Superbone]

It is totally frustrating to see him do a finesse a shot right at the rim and miss. In Aytons defense I think he has made a lot of strides in that area this year. He does have games like this where he slips back into Mr. Finesse. He has had a few Dominayton games too in the streak where he dunks the shit out of the ball.

I think sometimes people hurry shots because they think there is a defender coming that they can’t see. Watching on tv isn’t fair. We get the 360 degree coverage and see the whole floor all the time. We see the player wide open. The player sees what’s in front of him.

2. He caught the ball like 15 feet from the hoop and took a turn-around fadeaway that missed badly. That’s not his game yet. It was a Jokic/Embiid type shot

.

Ayton has hit several of those shots this year. It isn’t his game so much yet but, I argue it will never be his game if he doesn’t work on it in practice and try it in the game sometimes. If anything it shows a different look on offense kind of like an NFL team that sucks at running still running on first down because they have to keep the defense honest.

I agree with most of that but as a player, you need to be paying attention to your surroundings. Most of the time, he should know if somebody is around to affect his shot. Plus, the whole reason for dunking the ball is to be able to score through contact as well as ensuring you get the basket when you're that close.