Suns News: Week of 3/2-3/9

[TOO]

Maybe its a confidence thing? Maybe he never had a defined role? I'm starting Bledsoe over Green when he's healthy, and you can't bench Tucker because he's the defender we have.

[Ring_Wanted]

Pse. The way the rest of the team is defending lately, you may as well just bench PJ and bring all the firepower you can from the start.

[carey]

@CraigAZSports: #Suns Hornacek called Plumlee (sore right knee) a game time decision; been playing through it since hurt it in practice a week ago Sunday.

[Shabazz]

Zach Lowe wrote about his All Enjoyably To Watch Team. on Dragic:

Starters

G Goran Dragic (cocaptain): I’ve written this before, but it bears repeating: Dragic has been the most electrifying player to watch in the NBA this season, full stop. It is crazy to watch Dragic today and remember that his earliest NBA coaches had to urge him out of what seemed an ingrained timidity.

You want to see perhaps the most fearless performances in the NBA this season? Cue up the Suns’ two-game sweep of Indiana and watch, jaw agape, as Dragic sizes up Roy Hibbert near the basket, puts his head down, and zooms right the fuck at the league’s best rim protector. Hibbert scares the bejesus out of everyone. LeBron developed a floater for use exclusively against Hibbert, and he rarely goes to the rim against the big fella until the last two minutes of a close game in which Indiana has smashed the other parts of Miami’s offense to pieces.

Dragic didn’t give a crap. He just went right at Hibbert, and everyone else in his way this season. And the rim attacks highlight what makes Dragic so fun to watch: He’s effective both at full throttle in the open court and at slower speeds in tighter spaces. Watch his pick-and-roll drives in the half court against Hibbert and the league’s other beasts, and you’ll see Dragic use a hesitation dribble to get the big man to stand up straight — allowing Dragic to blow right past him. And if that doesn’t work, Dragic might continue on to the rim with a lefty drive, dip his right shoulder into the big’s chest, clear just enough space, and loft a lefty layup over the backpedaling post player.

He’s a wizard at all those small things — the killer step-back midrange jumper, prodding changes of direction on the pick-and-roll that confuse a defense trying to suss out help assignments on the back line:



Dragic should have made the All-Star team in the end. What a splendid season.

and Frye:

FC Channing Frye: Frye is the feel-good stand-in for all the league’s truly dangerous stretch power forwards — the no-brainer All-Stars too obvious to list here (Kevin Love, Dirk Nowitzki), and the slightly smaller version who has missed most of the season because of injury (Ryan Anderson).

A lot of teams shoehorn facsimiles of the stretch power forward into the role. But some of those guys either don’t shoot 3-pointers well enough to be of much danger, or need so much time to release the long ball as to be irrelevant against dialed-in defenses. Some are really just taller wings an opponent can exploit in the post on the other end.

But guys like Frye? They’re the real deal — big enough to defend power forwards (and centers, too, in Frye’s case), and with hyper-accurate 3-point shots they can release in an instant, and with a hand in their face. You have to scrap your entire game plan to account for these guys. Normally defend the pick-and-roll by having the big man guarding the screener drop down to protect the paint, like this?

FRYE1

Can’t do that against Phoenix, because it leaves Frye wide open and/or forces a third defender to fly at him from one of the corners.

FRYE2

Teams have to adapt by either switching defenders, creating two mismatches, or in some other way — perhaps by having Frye’s defender just stick to him, hoping other defenders can corral Dragic.

None of those adaptations are comfortable. Frye isn’t a post-up beast, but he’s good enough to score over smaller guys. There’s a reason Phoenix has put up nearly 113 points per 100 possessions when Dragic and Frye play together — way better than Miami’s league-best overall mark. They have been the most productive pick-and-roll combination in the league, per John Schuhmann at NBA.com.

Frye becomes dangerous just by setting a pick, and there are Phoenix baskets that happen three or four passes after that pick precisely because of how Frye’s initial screen scrambled the defense. A great comeback story.

http://grantland.com/features/the-marc-gasol-all-stars/

[INFORMER]

I still think you guys are ignoring how unimpressive Green has been as a bench player.

Yeah, he does seem to play better as a starter.

[Superbone]

Zach Lowe wrote about his All Enjoyably To Watch Team. on Dragic:

You want to see perhaps the most fearless performances in the NBA this season? Cue up the Suns’ two-game sweep of Indiana and watch, jaw agape, as Dragic sizes up Roy Hibbert near the basket, puts his head down, and zooms right the fuck at the league’s best rim protector. Hibbert scares the bejesus out of everyone. LeBron developed a floater for use exclusively against Hibbert, and he rarely goes to the rim against the big fella until the last two minutes of a close game in which Indiana has smashed the other parts of Miami’s offense to pieces.

Dragic didn’t give a crap. He just went right at Hibbert, and everyone else in his way this season. And the rim attacks highlight what makes Dragic so fun to watch: He’s effective both at full throttle in the open court and at slower speeds in tighter spaces. Watch his pick-and-roll drives in the half court against Hibbert and the league’s other beasts, and you’ll see Dragic use a hesitation dribble to get the big man to stand up straight — allowing Dragic to blow right past him. And if that doesn’t work, Dragic might continue on to the rim with a lefty drive, dip his right shoulder into the big’s chest, clear just enough space, and loft a lefty layup over the backpedaling post player.

http://grantland.com/features/the-marc-gasol-all-stars/

Honey-Dragic don't care!!!

[INFORMER]

Markieff has taken great strides, but if we start to really bet on him and depend on him, he will break our hearts. I still don't think he is consistent enough.

His rebounding still a little lackluster too. He's really helping to drive the Suns lately, but ultimately I'm still committed to moving him and his brother.

[iLLmatic]

Markieff has taken great strides, but if we start to really bet on him and depend on him, he will break our hearts. I still don't think he is consistent enough.

His rebounding still a little lackluster too. He's really helping to drive the Suns lately, but ultimately I'm still committed to moving him and his brother.

Hopefully the Front Office shares the same opinion regarding moving the twins.

[Culburn369]

Nice game by Gasol last nite up in Portland.

You guys will live to regret walking away from that trade.

[iLLmatic]

They wanted more than the 30th pick Cubby, we've been through this. If you want proof, here it is:

http://touch.latimes.com/#section/-1/ar ... -79169095/

[Culburn369]

Yeah, Okafur, but, you're not going to act like that is news, are you?

[iLLmatic]

Stop saying LA was just asking for the 30th pick and the Okafor contract.

[Mori Chu]

I would have given them Okafor and #30 for Pau if that were the trade. But who knows how far they got in their discussions.

[TOO]

Len, Dragic, Bledsoe tidbits.

http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/ar ... ck_check=1

[Mori Chu]

Kirk Goldsberry of Grantland posted a nice article today about Dragic's improvement and the lethal pick and roll between him and Frye.

http://grantland.com/the-triangle/how-t ... evolution/

[TOO]

Reading that makes drool at the idea of Love/Dragic+Bledsoe PnR.

[carrrnuttt]

Len, Dragic, Bledsoe tidbits.

http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/ar ... ck_check=1

Kirk Goldsberry of Grantland posted a nice article today about Dragic's improvement and the lethal pick and roll between him and Frye.

http://grantland.com/the-triangle/how-t ... evolution/

The BB code needs to be updated to make URLs open in a new page, instead of opening in the same page, blog-style.

[Superbone]

Len, Dragic, Bledsoe tidbits.

http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/ar ... ck_check=1

Kirk Goldsberry of Grantland posted a nice article today about Dragic's improvement and the lethal pick and roll between him and Frye.

http://grantland.com/the-triangle/how-t ... evolution/

The BB code needs to be updated to make URLs open in a new page, instead of opening in the same page, blog-style.

I always ctl-click to get that result.

[carrrnuttt]

Len, Dragic, Bledsoe tidbits.

http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/ar ... ck_check=1

Kirk Goldsberry of Grantland posted a nice article today about Dragic's improvement and the lethal pick and roll between him and Frye.

http://grantland.com/the-triangle/how-t ... evolution/

The BB code needs to be updated to make URLs open in a new page, instead of opening in the same page, blog-style.

I always ctl-click to get that result.

I have Chrome set up where I can just drag the URL and it opens in a new window. However, you shouldn't have to resort to such tricks in a forum.

[Mori Chu]

I will look into that once I get back from my trip. I am in Atlanta till Sunday for a CompSci teacher conference thing. I get to wear my new Stanford gear...!