Preseason Game Day: Jazz (0-1) @ Suns (1-0), Wed 10/5/16

[Aztec Sunsfan]

Chriss is growing on me, he is more polished than I tought. Bender is clearly out of position, how long they will try to make him a SF?
He looks lost, trying to dominate spots on the court that he is not used to, and his mobility is enough to keep up with opposing SF, but I think would an advantage against most PF.

Knight is forcing stuff, but not like a black hole, but as a sincere attempt to fill the bill as "top 6th man", hopefully he can find a balance. Besides, there ahs been some posesions where Ulis tried to make something happen, and then gave the ball to Knight with the clock expiring, so he has to force the shoot.

Bledsoe is also evolving from last year heroball, and in general there is a more clear flow in the court, maybe is Watson's doing, maybe is the benefit from extracting Morris from the lineup. Still we are going to lose a lot of games, we are not ready.

[AmareIsGod]

That's the third great defensive play tonight by Ulis.

[AmareIsGod]

Bad news everyone. We lost.

[Mori Chu]

Knight 7-16. I have concerns.

I love Ulis. I just love watching him out there. He is the kind of backup PG I want this team to have. Great job by the FO to nab a guy like that at the spot where we drafted him.

Chriss seemed active but he shot the ball worse than I thought (just 4-15). And Warren is great. I hope he stays healthy all year so I can watch the guy do his poor man's Ceballos thing.

[carey]

Yeah... not sure I want to see Chriss taking 15 shots just yet. I did not see the game so I'm not sure if the shots came in the flow of the offense or what. He was only eclipsed by our number one chucker.

[Shabazz]

I really like Utah's roster. I think they can finish #3 in the West.

[Shabazz]

Chriss was gunning. He's got a game that lends itself a little more than Bender's for immediate impact because he's at his most effective when he's not doing anything but catching and shooting/dunking and rebounding. Bender's going to need some time to adjust to the NBA since his game is much more cerebral. Bender's also going to have to get a little nastier on offense and mix it up down low a little. And cut to the basket more often. He had a nice bucket off of a well-timed cut.

[carey]

Anywho, won't win many games letting the other team shoot 50% from the field while you shoot 40.

[AmareIsGod]

Before I sign off, had a chance to watch the highlights again. Can't reiterate how impressed I was with Chriss. That was well above what I expected, having not really seen him in action yet

[SDC]

i still think the suns should start both bledsoe and knight. with booker at SF.

[carey]

i still think the suns should start both bledsoe and knight. with booker at SF.

Why?

[carey]

https://twitter.com/Suns/status/783910132501491712

[carey]

[youtube][/youtube]

[ShelC]

"The ball moved and no one cared who got the most shots. You see tonight what it could dictate in the season."

Yea, in theory if you have a roster like the Warriors. But if the ball is moving and Chriss or PJ Tucker are getting the most shots...probably won't bode too well for the team and you can bet some guys will start chirping. Spreading the offense around and passing the ball are what you want, but you also want the ball in the hands of your best players so they're getting their shots (ie Bledsoe, Booker, Knight).

I have to re-watch the game but early on we weren't crisp passing the ball. Too many long passes that were deflected or stolen. Some were on the passer, some were on the receiver not coming to the ball. Chriss has some nice plays early on but he's still very raw. There's a basketball player there, tho. Bender...I wish we'd get him closer to the rim or moving towards it instead of spotting up. Similar to SL, he looks fine shooting the ball, but just misses. I'd like to see him at the 4, working from the elbow in.

Len, just a big body. No real instincts but takes up a lot of space. Could be a similar trajectory to RoLo where he finds his niche and becomes an effective defensive player but that could be down the road.

Bledsoe looked real good and confident shooting the ball but Knight took his place late in the 1st and I didn't get to see him check back in.

[djy2j]

Chriss' stat line didn't match his game. I feel like some of those misses were on tips or put backs that didn't fall. Watching I didn't feel like he had a bad shooting night. He's going to be really really good.

I like Alan Williams and his hustle but I don't think he's an NBA player. His offensive game is really awkward to watch.

[O_Gardino]

Wow. AIG and djy2j in playoff form already. Impressive for the preseason.

[ShelC]

I really like Alan Williams, a throwback hustle/banger. I'd like to see him stick as an enforcer who can maybe toughen up Chriss and Bender.

Saw this and thought it was pretty creative:
https://twitter.com/Kellen_Grode/status/783852940884742144

[Mori Chu]

"The ball moved and no one cared who got the most shots. You see tonight what it could dictate in the season."

I am trying to give Watson a chance. But this is a pretty dumb quote. WE LOST THE GAME. The other team shot well and didn't exactly struggle to beat us. What exactly did our balanced shooting "dictate"?

[Cap]

"The ball moved and no one cared who got the most shots. You see tonight what it could dictate in the season."

I am trying to give Watson a chance. But this is a pretty dumb quote. WE LOST THE GAME. The other team shot well and didn't exactly struggle to beat us. What exactly did our balanced shooting "dictate"?

We're down three starters, we played a very tough opponent, and kept it close throughout. If your expectations are realistic, it was a good game.

[Mori Chu]

^ That's true. I just meant that it sounded premature to say, "Look at what this could dictate in the season!" when we lost the game.