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Lowest scoring team in the NBA almost beats Phoenix

November 10, 2007 by Mike Olbinski

It wasn’t until Steve Nash went on a mini scoring rampage that the Phoenix Suns actually took the lead for good against the Miami Heat.

Nash scored 11 straight points, including two threes and a barrage of drives and jumpers to go up 98-93 with only five minutes left in the game. Up until then, they hadn’t led since early in the first quarter where they gave up 37 points to Miami.

Miami, a team that came into the game 0-4 and scoring the least of anyone in the league, put up a 37-spot on Phoenix in the first quarter.

If nothing else, we certainly make other squads look better sometimes.

Suns win 106-101.

Amare Stoudemire was ejected for the first time this season early in the third quarter when he picked up his second technical. It apparently came because he said “What?” to a ref who called a foul on him after Shaquille O’Neal busted his elbow across Stat’s face.

Honestly, how do you call a technical foul on a guy saying “What”? The referee’s name was Wunderlich though, and for some reason, that kind of explains it all to me.

Yeah, Amare fouled him to begin with, but then Shaq turns and does his impersonation of Karl Malone by pretending he doesn’t realize his elbows are smashing someone’s grill.

Either way, Stoudemire was lost for the game and then Raja Bell landed on Shaq’s gigantic foot late in the fourth quarter, thus putting Phoenix down two starters.

But Shawn Marion pulled down like 24 bazillion rebounds (or just 24) and helped the Suns rally late in the game. Rebounding against the land of the giants is pretty impressive.

(You can see Marion being crushed between Alonzo Mourning and Penny Hardaway in the left picture. Am I the only one who is dumb-founded that Penny is still playing AND starting? )

Boris Diaw was guarding O’Neal and actually did a fairly good job on him, forcing the behemoth to take some bad shots.

Steve Nash scored 30 points for the second time this season, which worries me, but not as much tonight. He had no choice but to step it up late in the game with no one making shots and with Bell and Stoudemire sitting out.

Still, this game could have been won a lot earlier, but the shots were just not falling for Phoenix. They actually made 15-33 from long range, a stellar percentage, but they missed some super-wide-open looks that normally get knocked down.

The team was hustling and playing hard, so that is great. The energy and desire appears to be back.

Now the chemistry and scoring will coming.

(I had to post the below picture of Shawn Marion becoming basketball-head and Haslem smiling for no reason in the background.)