Quote:
Originally Posted by OILFAN #81
I don't think Phoenix will ever win it all with this run and gun style. The Lakers, Spurs, Pistons and Celtics have been able to score but have been able to play defense in recent years and have won the championship. It reminds me of when Nash was on Dallas. They would try and beat people like 122-120 or something. You need to be able to play defense too.
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Phoenix actually has a league average defence. They were 16th in defensive efficiency this year, and while that isn't as good as the Magic, Lakers or Celtics, in theory it should be passable when they have by and away the best offensive efficiency. This is a massive improvement from the actual run and gun Suns, who ranked anywhere from 25th to 28th in defensive efficiency. This is actually one of the reasons they've made it this far compared to previous years.
However, I feel the main issue with the Suns is that they haven't adjusted to the brilliance of Kobe. They're not only letting him get his points, but they're allowing everyone else to get points too. The best way to play against the Lakers is really stay home on everyone and play Kobe 1 on 1. He might get 40, 50 or even 81, but it's better than him dishing to gasol/artest/fisher for open layups and 3's. When Kobe has 13 assists, you're going to lose.
They're also getting crushed on the glass, and while it's mostly due to the size of the Lakers, they still need to do a better job. A lot of times the offensive rebounds purely came from a lack of boxing out.
Oh well, the Suns can regroup at home. They just need to hold the Lakers under 50% shooting and they should be able to win with their ridiculous offence.
