2010 Playoffs: Round 1, Game 1 - Trail Blazers At Suns Game Thread

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Why is it so hard for folks to understand this?
I watched the game too(except for the 1st qtr) and Portland was in the face of our perimeter guys ALL NIGHT LONG. Amare was facing a couple bigs whenever he tried to get free....
the SUNS defense was decent and at times was very good but if anyone expects our poor shooting to just miraculousy get better for game's 2,3,4 & 5 they'd better wake up.

The BLAZERS are missing a MAJOR offensive piece(Roy)...the SUNS need to hone in on Aldridge/Miller and shut them down. Period. They'll be lucky to score 80 points if we can just get in their grill and D up.
Let our offense and jump shooting find itself IMO.

Focusing on just better shooting is shortsighted and misguided.

agreed. they do an excellent job of staying home on our 3 point shooters (like spurs used to do) becuase they have bigs down low and rarely have to double (especially with camby doing a job on amare - amare looked downright timid to me). moreover they do an unreal job of bringing a third person to hedge on the pick 'n roll . . . something i've never seen before. there just wasn't anywhere for either the picker or roller to go.

as for our defensive alignment . . . i cannot believe we don't go more zone on them. they're not known as a prolific 3-point shooting squad and the zone induces 3 point shots. it'll protect the horrendous d that our guards attempt to play. but the biggest problem is that we don't have a good defender down low to funnel players to in the zone. unfortunately what we have is a bunch of scrappy defenders (hill, duds, dragic) and no real defensive stopper, so we never seem to gain a defensive advantage anywhere on the floor which causes us to scramble . . . a lot. i like the thought of focusing more on miller and aldridge, but then someone like bayless or batum ends up killing us (he's a lot better than i remembered offensively). not to mention that team is very well coached. they know to head to the basket when we double and get easy layups. i have a sneaking suspicion we're gonna see a steady of bayless over rudy for the rest of the series. and that's not a good thing for us.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

That was the key to the whole game. Portland didn't guard Collins. Literally they left him by himself 80% of the time. It's no point having him in the game because regardless of how much "size" or "D" he gives us on the other end, there's no way that neutralizes the effect of them taking Amare completely out of out offense.

Bench Collins. He brings nothing.

that comes back to coaching then. what you have to do is everytime they leave collins he has to crash to the hole and you feed him for an open layup. christ that's what teams have done to us for years. how many times did we used to leave oberto to double duncan and he run right to rim for a layup.

 

[nashman]

Let me just say when Andre Miller takes as many FT's as our whole starting 5 things look a bit sketchy officiating wise. I thought there were many horrible calls and non calls that allowed Portland to steal this game! And also if Portland has to rely on Miller going off for 30+ a game to win games they are in serious trouble. I think they accomplished one thing....they didn't get swept, they have now pissed the Suns off and I expect them to respond in a big way on Tuesday!

 

[dreamcastrocks]

Let me just say when Andre Miller takes as many FT's as our whole starting 5 things look a bit sketchy officiating wise. I thought there were many horrible calls and non calls that allowed Portland to steal this game! And also if Portland has to rely on Miller going off for 30+ a game to win games they are in serious trouble. I think they accomplished one thing....they didn't get swept, they have now pissed the Suns off and I expect them to respond in a big way on Tuesday!

I'm not the one to blame the refs for a game, but 2 of Amare's blocks that were clean were called fouls. I can count at least 4 or 5 traveling calls that were not called against Portland, and the FT disparity was interesting to say the least.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Let me just say when Andre Miller takes as many FT's as our whole starting 5 things look a bit sketchy officiating wise. I thought there were many horrible calls and non calls that allowed Portland to steal this game! And also if Portland has to rely on Miller going off for 30+ a game to win games they are in serious trouble. I think they accomplished one thing....they didn't get swept, they have now pissed the Suns off and I expect them to respond in a big way on Tuesday!

the refs ALREADY?!? the refs didn't lose this game. we got bullied. again. we always get bullied in the playoffs. lopez would have made a difference this year (i still can't believe i say that), but he's not there. we're gonna continue to get bullied until we do something about it. it's not the ref's job. and as far i am concerned there was only one play where i truly felt jobbed and that was on amare's clean block of miller's layup. otherwise, i didn't really comment on the officiating all night. there was no bowen-like bruising of nash, nothing chippy. we just shrank. hill shrank, amare played soft, and richardson should wear a dress today (and that's an insult to women everywhere - i apologize).

and if they have to rely on andre miller's scoring i like their chances. he routinely dominates nash (hence the richardson switch), and he looked like he considers our entire defense swiss cheese. i will not be surprised if he averages a good 5 - 8 points above his regular season average for the entire series.

like i said earlier, i still think we'll win this series, but i don't know about "responding in a big way" . . . that tends to have little effect against a well-coached team as they stay disciplined, and this blazers team is nothing if not disciplined.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

I'm not the one to blame the refs for a game, but 2 of Amare's blocks that were clean were called fouls. I can count at least 4 or 5 traveling calls that were not called against Portland, and the FT disparity was interesting to say the least.

yeah, cheese and i noted a lot of travels, but honestly we can do that in every game. so i don't consider that to be one-sided.

and the FT disparity was a direct result of the fact that they played the aggressors and we played the patsies. they routinely took the ball to the hole, while j-rich was taking regular season circus shots that have no place in the playoffs. weak sauce gang, we just had weak-ass sauce.

 

[TJ]

I was at the game last night and here is what I saw:

~ First off, it was clear that the Suns underestimated the Blazers. I had a sinking feeling this would happen in game 1. McMillan is a good coach and convinced the team that they could beat the Suns sans Roy. Our team was completely flat and played with no sense of urgency

~ Amare was taken out of his game. Plain and simple. This is especially apparent when Collins is in the game. Since defenders arent going to respect him on offense, this allows the two bigs, Aldrige and Camby, to double up on him. Plus, he had trouble guarding any of them, evidence by fouling out.

~ Defensive transitions were awful. I think it had a lot to do with the fact that Portland was passing the ball well, but that does not excuse leaving Miller, Batum and Webster completely open on the perimeter (by about 10 feet).

~ I also thought the team was paying too much attention to Camby outside the lane; about 16-18 feet from the hoop. The logic is to let him beat you from outside. Use the extra defender elsewhere.

Overall, the team was convinced that they could beat POR with talent alone and not effort, which is what POR had. If we regain our focus, we should be fine.

 

[Ronin]

If I remember correctly Camby wasn't that effective against Duncan in the Nuggets last playoff series against the Spurs and that Nene did a lot better job against him.

Nene was the one that would guarded Duncan. Camby has trouble guarding low post players.

 

[Bert]

that comes back to coaching then. what you have to do is everytime they leave collins he has to crash to the hole and you feed him for an open layup. christ that's what teams have done to us for years. how many times did we used to leave oberto to double duncan and he run right to rim for a layup.

Are you trying to suggest that the Suns could make adjustments during the game? That's crazy talk!

I was really upset lastnight, well I'm still pretty irritated but all in all the Suns played about as poorly as they could play. Give all the credit in the world to Portland but we can shoot better than that, we can cut down turnovers and we can hit the offensive boards better and if we do any number of those things, we'll win the series.

There were 2 or 3 posessions last night where Portland got 3-4 offensive rebounds and I nearly put my remote through the TV.

 

[dreamcastrocks]

I was at the game last night and here is what I saw:

~ First off, it was clear that the Suns underestimated the Blazers. I had a sinking feeling this would happen in game 1. McMillan is a good coach and convinced the team that they could beat the Suns sans Roy. Our team was completely flat and played with no sense of urgency

I was at the game too, and I would agree with you here.

~ Amare was taken out of his game. Plain and simple. This is especially apparent when Collins is in the game. Since defenders arent going to respect him on offense, this allows the two bigs, Aldrige and Camby, to double up on him. Plus, he had trouble guarding any of them, evidence by fouling out.

Again, I mentioned a couple of the fouls on Amare were phantom calls, and the same with a couple of his offensive fouls.

~ Defensive transitions were awful. I think it had a lot to do with the fact that Portland was passing the ball well, but that does not excuse leaving Miller, Batum and Webster completely open on the perimeter (by about 10 feet).

Agreed.

~ I also thought the team was paying too much attention to Camby outside the lane; about 16-18 feet from the hoop. The logic is to let him beat you from outside. Use the extra defender elsewhere.

Yep, I know he is a good shooter from up to 18', but that's the price you pay. If he is 18 feet away, he isn't rebounding the ball.

Overall, the team was convinced that they could beat POR with talent alone and not effort, which is what POR had. If we regain our focus, we should be fine.

Actually, I think we could play worse, but not much. The good thing about this Suns' team is that when we play bad, we are still in the game. When we play good, we blow people out.

 

[82CardsGrad]

I think this is a classic illustration of the fact that this team is officially Amare's team. They simply have no shot at winning if Amare isn't playing well. Amare was rendered completely ineffective last night. Nash looked aweful with his crazy passes and turnovers, and his game-ending 3 pointer was just stupid... Should have dished it to Frye who was set and open. Steve was moving to his left when he took the shot...

Frye also should have taken the 3 pointer when he dished it off to J-Rich as the game was winding down. Showed a total lack of self-confidence. A very wimpy play by Frye and Eddie Johnson was all over him for it.

Hard to believe that the entire starting line-up can come out for the first playoff game, at home, as a shocking 3 seed, and be so flat.

Looking ahead, this series is totally on the shoulders of Stat. If he plays even slightly better, we win. If he can't rally, we'll lose... it's just about that simple...

 

[leclerc]

Bayless is a little ****. I'm glad we don't have that jerk on our team.

And the Suns start out weak in the playoffs as usual.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Frye also should have taken the 3 pointer when he dished it off to J-Rich as the game was winding down. Showed a total lack of self-confidence. A very wimpy play by Frye and Eddie Johnson was all over him for it.

cheese and i were griping about that too. there were actually a few plays where players didn't just take open 3's, but rather passed it. no cajones. those are shots they take, and drain, in the regular season, but now that it's the playoffs their sacks shriveled up. so disappointing.

 

[slinslin]

Looking ahead, this series is totally on the shoulders of Stat. If he plays even slightly better, we win. If he can't rally, we'll lose... it's just about that simple...

Not really.... Amare was surrouned by 2 or 3 Blazers all night. Other people need to step up and make their open shots which they didn't last night.

 

[elindholm]

Not really.... Amare was surrouned by 2 or 3 Blazers all night. Other people need to step up and make their open shots which they didn't last night.

Right. If the Blazers make it their mission to shut Stoudemire down, the Suns need to take advantage of their other options. It's not a one-man team, and the Blazers can't stop everyone at the same time -- unless several of them stop themselves.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

unless several of them stop themselves.

e, meet mr. richardson!

 

[nashman]

Thats crap ouchie! Amare was also trying to take it strong to the rim and the Refs SWALLOWED their whistles against the Blazers period! Their were too many fouls that were not called against them and phantom ones against the Suns hence the huge FT disparity in a game we lost by 5 points, while shooting terrible! Thats the way teams beat us play thug ball and if the refs let it go we get totally out of sync and frustrated. I can't really blame them they call fouls one way all season then decide tackle full contact basketball is ok come playoff time its a complete joke!

 

[mojorizen7]

Here's several shots across the bow:

1)Ask J.Collins to knock Andre Miller on his azz everytime he see's him enter the paint. Miller isn't one of the toughest guards in the league.
2) Throw 2 and 3 guys at Aldridge whenever he catches below the circle(Aldridge had an off-game[8-20] and still went for 22).
3) Give the heavy minutes to Lou at the 5. 30 minutes for Frye is ridiculous considering this game was neck-n-neck most of the way.
4) Hypnotize JRich before the game into believing we're constantly up by 15 points....and you'll see his production blossom.
5) Jared Dudley & Goran the Tragic Magic needs to STEP UP. Come on son's....get into the game. We need you both.....on both ends.
6) Grant Hill....pshht
7) SUNS will play better on the road in Portland
8) Quit blaming the officiating


I'm not going to bag on Amare....dude needs help in the paint. The whole team needs to "D" up and take away Portlands big two(Aldridge & Miller). Bayless can't do it all by himself...can he?

Sheesh...when was the last time that the SUNS were able to go into a playoff series and play downhill? Yeah, its a myth what they say about the tempo slowing down,and how there's a premium on teams with size, and how good defense always trumps good offense.<<< sarcasm served hot.

Game 2 looks like the game where the SUNS probably shoot lights out and everyone lets out a huge sigh of relief....ignoring the fact that Portland shoots lights out as well and just comes up short.

 

[AfroSuns]

4) Hypnotize JRich before the game into believing we're constantly up by 15 points....and you'll see his production blossom.
.

LMAO!!
Seriously this team needs to step up. I am just glad tomorrow's game is not on stupid TNT.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Thats crap ouchie! Amare was also trying to take it strong to the rim and the Refs SWALLOWED their whistles against the Blazers period! Their were too many fouls that were not called against them and phantom ones against the Suns hence the huge FT disparity in a game we lost by 5 points, while shooting terrible! Thats the way teams beat us play thug ball and if the refs let it go we get totally out of sync and frustrated. I can't really blame them they call fouls one way all season then decide tackle full contact basketball is ok come playoff time its a complete joke!

you're outta your mind. i yell at the television . . . a lot. and i used to complain about the refs . . . a lot. but after watching as much basketball as i watch, a few years ago it became painfully evident, sometimes the calls are skewed, but when it always seems so one-sided it's because of a fundamental flaw in the team. the suns teams have almost always been soft. the barkley years were a bit different because we had players that sought contact (kj, barkley, ceballos, dumas, even thunder early in his career), as a result the aggressive team got the better of the calls. we were definitely NOT the aggressors last night. it wasn't the officials fault we played like wimps. be a man and call out your team when they play like crap, don't cry about the refs.

 

[dodie53]

i'll settle for the suns winning the series 4 to 1.

 

[82CardsGrad]

LMAO!!
Seriously this team needs to step up. I am just glad tomorrow's game is not on stupid TNT.

It's a bigtime stretch to expect the rest of the team to "step up"... I think people are forgetting that this team was not even expected to make the post season at the start of the year...
The reality is that while we surprised just about everyone by making the 3 seed, the team is not nearly as good as we would expect from a 3 seed. Our starting lineup is a problem and again, if Amare doesn't take control, this team will lose...
J-Rich - far too inconsistent.
Nash - love the guy but he still makes WAY too many boneheads passes and turnovers. And this team just isn't good enough to overcome those mistakes and, at this late stage of the season, I am not sure Nash has the ability to take control of a game like he used to.
Hill - dude totally disappeared last night.
Collins - who?
Amare - a true stud who lacks a viable, consistent potent threat to run beside him. The loss of Lopez hurt Amare the most and a tall team like the Blazers can wreak havoc, particularly when the rest of the team is so off...

It's all on Amare. As he goes, so too will the Suns. The combination of Amare and J-Rich needs to kick it back in gear. If they combine for 50 points or more, the Suns are virtually a lock to win. Last night, they combined for 32 and of course, we lost... Need to see a 30 point, 15 Rebound from Amare tomorrow night.