# I Do Not Like Mike D'Antoni



## Seuss (Aug 19, 2005)

I really do not.


His philosphy, his way of think, his rotations, his lack of defensive care.
He is easily one of the most overrated coaches in the NBA. Maybe the most.
I let it go because the Suns are winning. But if the Suns do not get to the NBA Finals this year, I will look to D'Antoni if I feel the coaching was the biggest reason as to why they failed again. I enjoy having this team be the most entertaining and one of the best teams in the NBA. But the Suns continue to fail, Mike deserves the heat for that. The Suns do not play 48 minutes of defense because D'Antoni allows the players to get away with being sloppy and careless. The offense is the perfect fit, but I don't believe Mike will ever start worrying about the defense.

I decided to let this out because of my frustration of him not playing Kurt and Amare because they aren't as quick. He has gotten better, but I still am worried about his way of thinking coming back to kill the Suns.

What is everyone else's take on Mike?


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## Hyperion (Dec 5, 2006)

wow. That's all I can say. I am really shocked that a die hard fan would be as oblivious to his gentle moves that he has made as you are. His rotation is predicated on tempo and flow. Right now, none of the backups (other than the 8) are making a the right plays during the games and are probably not doing so in practice. The second string has been a joke throughout the season, they lack focus or direction and seem happy to be the sideshow entertainment to close the game. Finally Burke is playing somewhat in the role that he has to play in order to get some minutes, and he will probably get 5-10 minutes after Diaw comes back. His defenses have been great... you don't get the the WCF without being able to identify and exploit matchup benefits as well as identifying and eliminating matchup problems. The Suns play better defense (statistically since you can't compare the two) as the 1980's Lakers. 

If you are frustrated with the Suns not blowing out everyone, or beating "the elites" in the league, get over it, it's the regular season. Would you be happier if opposing teams scored 65 points a night? Right now I smell a championship, there is more heart in this team than there is in Dallas or San Antonio. In fact, if Dallas gets SA again in the second round, they will be knocked out. 

Under D'Antoni, the Suns are enjoying the most balanced offense in over 2 decades, a top record, two record breaking win streaks.... and you're complaining because he's not playing a washed up Jalen Rose or Jumaine Jones? Neither of them play any defense. In fact, they are the exact opposite of defense. I could probably score on them! All of the announcers saying that the Suns need to rest their starters blah blah blah. What they don't realize is that A) they don't know basketball, they know how to play, but they don't know the game and B) none of the Suns players are averaging more than 39mpg. Dirk averages more than Nash and Duncan averages about the same (give or take 30 seconds). It just so happens that James Jones, Barbosa, and Kurt Thomas are all 20-30 mpg players.


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## Pimped Out (May 4, 2005)

_"The second string has been a joke throughout the season, they lack focus or direction and seem happy to be the sideshow entertainment to close the game."_

arent those things that you can at least partially blame on the coach?


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## Seuss (Aug 19, 2005)

IceMan23and3 said:


> wow. That's all I can say. I am really shocked that a die hard fan would be as oblivious to his gentle moves that he has made as you are. His rotation is predicated on tempo and flow. Right now, none of the backups (other than the 8) are making a the right plays during the games and are probably not doing so in practice. The second string has been a joke throughout the season, they lack focus or direction and seem happy to be the sideshow entertainment to close the game.


Do you realize that all their chances to prove themselves have come in garbage time?
Jalen, Jumane, Eric and Banks are more then capable of playing 5/10 minutes a game.
Mike has not given them enough chances to show they can play. We have to start accepting
that the offense will not be the same when Nash goes out. It just won't. D'Antoni cannot
keep basing the rotation off how well or bad the offense does when Nash is out. It's not
going to be the same, so it's his job to come up with a rotation that will work better
when Nash is not in the game. (I.E. give the ball to Amare in the post more) 



> Finally Burke is playing somewhat in the role that he has to play in order to get some minutes, and he will probably get 5-10 minutes after Diaw comes back. His defenses have been great... you don't get the the WCF without being able to identify and exploit matchup benefits as well as identifying and eliminating matchup problems. The Suns play better defense (statistically since you can't compare the two) as the 1980's Lakers.


I agree.

The Suns defense has picked up. But their lack of commitment to 48 minutes of solid D is
very frustrating. Since this team has it's "eyes on the prize" you would think they would
be more energized to make the correct rotations.



> If you are frustrated with the Suns not blowing out everyone, or beating "the elites" in the league, get over it, it's the regular season. Would you be happier if opposing teams scored 65 points a night?


That's not the point. I'm worried that they are not where they need to be on the defensive
end. Or at the level they should be at.

Also, if it's "Just the regular season" then playing 8/9 players a game shouldn't be too much to ask for. Especially, since it's "Just the regular season"



> Under D'Antoni, the Suns are enjoying the most balanced offense in over 2 decades, a top record, two record breaking win streaks.... and you're complaining because he's not playing a washed up Jalen Rose or Jumaine Jones? Neither of them play any defense. In fact, they are the exact opposite of defense.


You're right. D'Antoni is a genius.

I especially loved the move when he kept Raja Bell in the 3rd quarter when Bell picked up
his 4th foul. That was a great move. Or, that was showing his narrow-minded thinking that
I've been talking about. He should have went to the bench but he didn't, he rather risk
Raja's 5th foul rather then go to a more then capable bench player to play a few minutes.


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## Kekai (Jan 12, 2005)

I don't not like him but hes alright. I like the offensive philosophy, but some things I wish we would do is a keep a rookie or two on the team and develop him. Yeah please, use your bench mr D'antoni


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## dru_jones (Dec 1, 2006)

I think that D'Antoni is one of the best coaches in the NBA. Although I agree with Barkley that he is risking wearing out the Suns best players by not involving the other guys in the lineup. But I must give him his due for making the Suns a much better defensive team this year than in previous years. And his people skills must be really good because I haven't heard a peep from Jalen playing time.

And I think that the Suns are really going to miss Bryan Colangelo because he is really good at building teams. Look at what he's doing with the Raptors. With him in charge, I doubt the Suns sign Banks (a panic buy after Salmons rejected the team), Marks and Jalen Rose. Maybe scam some other team like he did the Hawks.


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## Hyperion (Dec 5, 2006)

Dr. Seuss said:


> Do you realize that all their chances to prove themselves have come in garbage time?
> Jalen, Jumane, Eric and Banks are more then capable of playing 5/10 minutes a game.
> Mike has not given them enough chances to show they can play. We have to start accepting
> that the offense will not be the same when Nash goes out. It just won't. D'Antoni cannot
> ...


 Ido realize that that is when they have to prove themselves in a game, and they don't. More often than not, they don't deliver. Now, they can prove themselves in practice since they obviously don't make a strong case in practice for playing time. Why in the hell did D'Antoni keep going to James Jones when he was shooting 15%? It's because he busts his *** during practice. He's completely fair as a coach, the players just don't prove themselves. Why should he sacrifice the team for the marginal contributions of two or three players? It's not fair to have Nash, Marion, Bell, Stoudemire, Barbosa, Diaw, Thomas, and James Jones to bust their butts for 30 mins each to have a guy playing lacksidaisically and letting his guy score important hoops or just not taking good shots (there are bad shots when you can swing the ball and get a better one).



Dr. Seuss said:


> The Suns defense has picked up. But their lack of commitment to 48 minutes of solid D is
> very frustrating. Since this team has it's "eyes on the prize" you would think they would
> be more energized to make the correct rotations.





Dr. Seuss said:


> That's not the point. I'm worried that they are not where they need to be on the defensive
> end. Or at the level they should be at.
> 
> Also, if it's "Just the regular season" then playing 8/9 players a game shouldn't be too much to ask for. Especially, since it's "Just the regular season"


 I didn't say that it's "just the regular season" you inferred that. I said that it is the regular season, we don't have to beat these teams until May, and I believe we will. We play 8-9 players a game so what's the beef? Is it because we don't play 12 like Dallas? How about Detroit, how many did they win it all with? You're buying into this media blitz led by Barkley that all of these "great" players aren't getting a chance to play because D'Antoni is being selfish or stupid? Have you forgotten how quickly leads disappear when those subs are in the game? He can't play all of the bench because he can't play more than 1 at a time with the starters (the main 8) because they are an embarrassment to watch when there's more than one end of bench player in the game. Do you watch the games or just read about them? Because if you watch, Jumaine Jones, Banks, and Rose are a liability on one or both sides of the court. 




Dr. Seuss said:


> I especially loved the move when he kept Raja Bell in the 3rd quarter when Bell picked up
> his 4th foul. That was a great move. Or, that was showing his narrow-minded thinking that
> I've been talking about. He should have went to the bench but he didn't, he rather risk
> Raja's 5th foul rather then go to a more then capable bench player to play a few minutes.


It's trusting a player to know how to play in foul trouble, because in the playoffs, he WILL have to play with foul trouble. Why take your best defender off of their best player when you don't HAVE to? This is crazy! You're mad at him playing to win! No one other than Nash and Kurt is over 30 years old! Barkley just doesn't like the Suns. Jalen doesn't play defense, or we're holding him out as a secret weapon, which is what it seems to be since Rose is smirking a little when asked about his playing time. The Suns have Diaw, Nash, Marion, Stoudemire, Thomas, Barbosa, Bell, and Jones along with Burke who is getting some nice minutes. So I don't see what the problem is. Only 2 players in in the Top 25 for MPG (Marion and Bell) and then next closest is Nash at 58th.


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## Dissonance (Jul 21, 2004)

I don't know if it's been said or not - I don't know, don't feel like reading a lot - but to me, if the players aren't as focused or determined every game, that should reflect them more. They're the ones playing, not the coach. Coach can get mad all he wants. If the players don't respond to it, it's on them. Only so much you can do when it happens. It's also hard to maintain focus when a season is freaking 82 games long.


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## Aylwin (Jan 29, 2007)

Usually, teams are built around 1 or 2 superstars. In my opinion, the Suns are built around their coach.  So either D'Antoni's style is a good fit for the players he has or the players he has have been chosen to fit his style. Either way, it works. For example, I don't think Nash would be a 2-time MVP with any other coach. I think D'Antoni's style allows Nash to really shine.

The big question is though: As entertaining as the Suns' style of basketball is, is it a style that can win a championship? I agree that a lot of the burden is on D'Antoni to steer his team. Afterall, he dictates how the Suns play on both offense and defense. I believe he's taken some strides in the right direction when it comes to defense. Whether it's enough or not we'll have to find out in the playoffs.

Do I like D'Antoni as the Suns coach? Absolutely! Without him we probably wouldn't even have Nash or some of the other guys. Sure, a lot of the credit for building the current team goes to Bryan Colangelo. But I'm sure the players he tries to get are based on the style of play or the type of team they are trying to build. A lot of that has to do with D'Antoni.

So, without D'Antoni I don't think we'd have the team we do today. And without the team today, I probably wouldn't be much of a fan.


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## Seuss (Aug 19, 2005)

IceMan23and3 said:


> I didn't say that it's "just the regular season" you inferred that. I said that it is the regular season, we don't have to beat these teams until May, and I believe we will. We play 8-9 players a game so what's the beef? Is it because we don't play 12 like Dallas? How about Detroit, how many did they win it all with? You're buying into this media blitz led by Barkley that all of these "great" players aren't getting a chance to play because D'Antoni is being selfish or stupid? Have you forgotten how quickly leads disappear when those subs are in the game? He can't play all of the bench because he can't play more than 1 at a time with the starters (the main 8) because they are an embarrassment to watch when there's more than one end of bench player in the game. Do you watch the games or just read about them? Because if you watch, Jumaine Jones, Banks, and Rose are a liability on one or both sides of the court.


I've felt this way before Barkley or any other person brought this up.
Ontop of that, we do not play 8/9 guys a game. D'Antoni just recently has started to
use 8 guys. Prior to that we had just been using 7. It's the regular ****ing season, playing
8/9 guys a game shouldn't be too much to ask for. D'Antoni is an idiot.



> It's trusting a player to know how to play in foul trouble, because in the playoffs, he WILL have to play with foul trouble. Why take your best defender off of their best player when you don't HAVE to? This is crazy! You're mad at him playing to win! No one other than Nash and Kurt is over 30 years old! Barkley just doesn't like the Suns. Jalen doesn't play defense, or we're holding him out as a secret weapon, which is what it seems to be since Rose is smirking a little when asked about his playing time. The Suns have Diaw, Nash, Marion, Stoudemire, Thomas, Barbosa, Bell, and Jones along with Burke who is getting some nice minutes. So I don't see what the problem is. Only 2 players in in the Top 25 for MPG (Marion and Bell) and then next closest is Nash at 58th.


Raja was guarding JOE JOHNSON! You really think that's a smart idea? The guy who has the
ball most of the time and he kept Raja in. Now if Bell was guarding a scrub like Sasha
Vujacic, I wouldn't have mind. 

Find me a coach outside of D'Antoni that only plays 7/8 guys a game.


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## Hyperion (Dec 5, 2006)

Dr. Seuss said:


> Raja was guarding JOE JOHNSON! You really think that's a smart idea? The guy who has the
> ball most of the time and he kept Raja in. Now if Bell was guarding a scrub like Sasha
> Vujacic, I wouldn't have minded.
> 
> Find me a coach outside of D'Antoni that only plays 7/8 guys a game.


1) James Jones entered the game to guard Joe Johnson at that point. Bell switched off onto Childress or Anthony Johnson. So, I still don't see the problem.

2) There are plenty of coaches that don't play more than 8 guys. It happens in the playoffs. Also why is everyone obsessed with that 9th guy? Is it that paramount that a ninth player plays 10mins of ineffective minutes off the bench? I don't think so. I would rather have my good/great players play 1 more minute! If you think about it, in the playoffs, the starters will play, hopefully, 30-35mpg. There are 240minutes in a game (5x48), which would mean that the main 8 players will play 30mpg if it was evenly distributed. I think that that is manageable and acutally really good. If Banks actually EARNS a spot in the game, then that would be great, but I'm not going to hold my breath. He has shown flashes of decentness and hopefully next year he'll be ready to contribute, but right now, this is the team. The Suns will beat Dallas in 7, Utah in 6, and LA Lakers in 5. Then they will beat Detroit in 6! Get back on the bandwagon!


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## Seuss (Aug 19, 2005)

IceMan23and3 said:


> 1) James Jones entered the game to guard Joe Johnson at that point. Bell switched off onto Childress or Anthony Johnson. So, I still don't see the problem.


No, Raja continued to guard Joe for another 2/3 minutes before being subbed out.

The point was showing how dumb D'Antoni really is.



> 2) There are plenty of coaches that don't play more than 8 guys. It happens in the playoffs. Also why is everyone obsessed with that 9th guy? Is it that paramount that a ninth player plays 10mins of ineffective minutes off the bench? I don't think so. I would rather have my good/great players play 1 more minute! If you think about it, in the playoffs, the starters will play, hopefully, 30-35mpg. There are 240minutes in a game (5x48), which would mean that the main 8 players will play 30mpg if it was evenly distributed. I think that that is manageable and acutally really good. If Banks actually EARNS a spot in the game, then that would be great, but I'm not going to hold my breath. He has shown flashes of decentness and hopefully next year he'll be ready to contribute, but right now, this is the team. The Suns will beat Dallas in 7, Utah in 6, and LA Lakers in 5. Then they will beat Detroit in 6! Get back on the bandwagon!


My point is, it's the regular season. Mike should be gearing his bench for the playoffs
so if an injury does occur, these guys can come in and play without trying to adjust to 
finally breathing on the court. 

We shouldn't have to play are main guys for alot of minutes against a team like the Hawks.
This rotation would make me happy.

Nash, 33mpg
Bell, 34mpg
Marion, 36mpg
Diaw, 34mpg
Amare, 36mpg

Kurt, 16mpg
James, 15mpg
Barbosa, 30mpg
Jalen(or)Jumane, 7mpg.

That we be a solid rotation. The Suns should be like th Spurs, they are playing for the 
playoffs. Now of their main guys play very many minutes. And they play their bench a good
amount as well.

Also, I'm still on the bandwagon. I just would like this to occur because I think would
strengthen the Suns chances of winning it all.


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## xray (Feb 21, 2005)

I will offer an outsider's perspective...

It's easy to see that the fuel conserved in one tank (defense) is spent in the other (offense). Make no mistake, I give him credit for stepping outside the box, and taking a good pg in one system and making him great by creating a system tailored to those talents is remarkable.

But is it cutting corners, and wasting talent? Not that the WCF is cookie dough, but it's title or bust right? 

If D'Antoni's system works (wins it all), will the rest of the league see things differently? :whoknows:


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## bootstrenf (May 24, 2006)

we will happily trade you our defensive minded coach for your offensive minded one...deal???


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## Cornholio (Feb 13, 2005)

Dr. Seuss said:


> Find me a coach outside of D'Antoni that only plays 7/8 guys a game.


JVG


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## xray (Feb 21, 2005)

bootstrenf said:


> we will happily trade you our defensive minded coach for your offensive minded one...deal???


Confusing propostion...

The nice thing about the Mavs situation is that the Nellie hangover is still present while Avery is screaming "48 minutes of hell!!" on defense.

Which makes one wonder: If D'Antoni stepped down and a defensive minded coach stepped in, would that make the Suns deadly?

I think so...


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## bootstrenf (May 24, 2006)

xray said:


> Confusing propostion...
> 
> The nice thing about the Mavs situation is that the Nellie hangover is still present while Avery is screaming "48 minutes of hell!!" on defense.
> 
> ...


would that work for the clippers too??? i was actually thinking the exact same thing...


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## Lukasbmw (Jul 30, 2004)

I think it is Nash, not D'Antoni, who had turned the Suns around.

Nash = MVP

D'Antoni = another guy that gets to look good thanks to Nash.

We will find out what Mike D is really made of when Nash leaves.


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## Seuss (Aug 19, 2005)

Lukasbmw said:


> I think it is Nash, not D'Antoni, who had turned the Suns around.
> 
> Nash = MVP
> 
> ...



When Nash retires, Mike will be fired a season or two later.

That's a guarantee.


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## Zei_Zao_LS (Apr 1, 2005)

Dr. Seuss said:


> When Nash retires, Mike will be fired a season or two later.
> 
> That's a guarantee.


On that note, I'd love to see Marc Iavaroni take over when D'Antoni leaves, if he's still an assistant here. He's got all the qualities a good coach needs, and will have already known the players and system we've got here, and he can add his own little spin to it. (Hopefully, a lot like Avery Johnson, stressing things that D'Antoni doesn't care about.)


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## bircan (Jul 17, 2005)

hrmm, interesting points, and i must agree. It does annoy me so much that we are not as focused on defense as we should be. 

The subs? Well, sure apart from kurt, jones and barbosa the rest may not even be played (even then, its something like 30 games a yr of 4 mins per game). I too believe we are wasting our bench, banks isnt the pg we thought he might be, but nevertheless, jalen and jumaine have got to be worth something right? Those 2 would be very valuable if D'antoni trusts them. 

If bell, barbosa arent clicking on offense, then give jalen and jumaine the chance to play. Defense wise? Well its not the subs problem, because the starters are very prone to giving up leads too. The mentality of defense that D'antoni preaches is not as strong as to discipline our guys ala spurs, dallas etc. and that is the thing we lack the most. I cringe everytime we give up the big leads we built up, because deep inside i realise how weak this team can be. 

And really, i only hope our shooters and playmaker steve nash can do something about it, coz our defense sure wont cut it. 
our coach may be too carefree at times, but we are fun to watch, and if the WCF or higher is not attained this year, either we have to trade for a shane battier and alonzo mourning defensive F/C type players......
or D'antoni becomes a strict general on defense or hes gone. I agree, D'antoni wont last long when nash retires from the suns, he has been kind of riding steves sucesses.


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## Phoenix32 (Nov 1, 2006)

I think that D'Antoni isn't so good coach, cause everything depends not on him, but on Nash... If Nash are not playin, D'Antoni can't do anything... So we gonna worry about this if we won't win a tittle this year...


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## Sedd (Sep 1, 2003)

Dr. Seuss said:


> When Nash retires, Mike will be fired a season or two later.
> 
> That's a guarantee.


He would have to fire himself, he's the GM too.


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## dru_jones (Dec 1, 2006)

Nash makes the Suns style of play work and I think that Mike knows that all too well. Throughout the history of the game, it has been the point guard dictating how team's play. The Lakers' showtime wouldn't be the same without Magic and the Jazz Pick N Roll would not be as effective if Stockton wasn't running it. But these teams adjusted once the aforementioned players retired, and this is something that D'Antoni is going to have to face sooner or later. 

Not unless he finds a Nash replacement (or actually clones Steve Nash), the Suns would have to change the way they play. I doubt if Mike will change his philosophy all that much, and this could be his downfall in the future. He seems to be really headstrong which is how he got to where he is, but unless we see a bit more adaptability in him, he could become the next generation's Don Nelson. Which would really be sad!

Granted, the Suns defensive improvement this year is a credit to his coaching performance. And I really want the Suns to win a couple of titles before Nash hangs up his sneakers for soccer cleats. I just hope that Mike can bring it to PHX.


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## Dissonance (Jul 21, 2004)

I thought this was funny. An article on some methods people have questioned D'Antoni about.

link


> INDIANAPOLIS - It is always easier to be critical than correct.
> 
> Despite receiving plenty of criticism, Suns coach Mike D'Antoni is confident he is correct. advertisement
> 
> ...


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## Hyperion (Dec 5, 2006)

Dr. Seuss said:


> My point is, it's the regular season. Mike should be gearing his bench for the playoffs
> so if an injury does occur, these guys can come in and play without trying to adjust to
> finally breathing on the court.
> 
> ...


So basically, you don't like the idea that James Jones can play 22-25mpg, but would rather have an old dude sit on the bench and come in cold and once he's warmed up, take him out of the game...
Let's not be like the Spurs. They are everything that takes the fun out of the game. There is no difference between playing 30 and 33 minutes in a game other than 3 minutes. I just don't see the logic in your hatred for him. He's great for the team, and when Nash retires, the offense will be reorganized into an inside-out offense with three good three point shooters and Amare and Diaw. On top of that, they have a great pick in ATL. I believe that the Suns will get a great point guard because they have always had a great point guard. They are going to be a dynasty for the next 10 years.


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## Dissonance (Jul 21, 2004)

Yeah, that's why we need the ATL next yr for PG Derrick Rose or one of the top PGs in that class.


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## Seuss (Aug 19, 2005)

IceMan23and3 said:


> So basically, you don't like the idea that James Jones can play 22-25mpg, but would rather have an old dude sit on the bench and come in cold and once he's warmed up, take him out of the game...
> Let's not be like the Spurs. They are everything that takes the fun out of the game. There is no difference between playing 30 and 33 minutes in a game other than 3 minutes. I just don't see the logic in your hatred for him. He's great for the team, and when Nash retires, the offense will be reorganized into an inside-out offense with three good three point shooters and Amare and Diaw. On top of that, they have a great pick in ATL. I believe that the Suns will get a great point guard because they have always had a great point guard. They are going to be a dynasty for the next 10 years.



Making dumb rotations,
Not getting on people enough about their horrible defense,
Lack of bench play,
Philosphy for always having to go small ball. Just to name a few.
"Mike, I think we're being outrebounded." Ivaroni says, "Well, lets put Shawn at center,
James at power forward, Raja at SF, Barbosa at SG and Banks at PG. I think that will solve
our problem."


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## Helvius (Jul 4, 2006)

Avery Johnson, Mike D'Antoni and Phil Jackson are the top three coaches in the game. Players are players but these three have designed systems that have also revolutionized the game. Steve Nash definitely makes this system flourish and work on a level that is noticeable and for that, he's the most valuable player but Mike D'Antoni is great.

That's the problem with outside looking in or putting pressure on the owner to fire a coach because he goes to the WCF twice and loses twice. First off, only 4 teams get to the semi-finals. Are you going to really think you can get another coach that can hop into the system, reorganize it and get different results?

Lets not fool ourselves. Raja Bell, Kurt Thomas, Boris Diaw and everyone except the All-Stars were relatively busts/nothing before becoming apart of the Phoenix Suns. We wouldn't be having this discussion. Their skill is relative to two things - how well Nash is doing and the system D'Antoni has brought. If they can't win with it, it's not because they didn't execute the Spurs offense and defense or the Dallas systems, it's because they didn't execute the Suns offense and defense, which has gotten them through Dallas, the Lakers, the Grizzlies and the Clippers in the playoffs.

It's not a difficult process. They've been a championship caliber team for three seasons and when all is said and done, they will either win by a few points or lose by a few points. The Mavericks will do the same. We didn't get blown out by them - they didn't run us off the court.

Everything else is bull**** and hating on Mike D'Antoni is ridiculous. He's helped bring in a new generation of fans and serves as an ambassador to Europe and hopefully in getting more of the better players (Dirk Nowitzki) to take a look at the U.S. and seeing opportunity. GMs and coaches won't see it as as big a risk to look east, hopefully.

Besides.


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## Hyperion (Dec 5, 2006)

Dr. Seuss said:


> Making dumb rotations,
> Not getting on people enough about their horrible defense,
> Lack of bench play,
> Philosphy for always having to go small ball. Just to name a few.


Yes, they a bad defensive team. In fact, their defense that is sooooo bad, that the Pacers managed 13 points in the final 15 minutes last night.
The philosophy for always having to go small is actually this crazy notion that the BEST 5 should be on the court and the WORST 5 should be sitting. You'll understand when you have watched more games. I have seen all of the Suns games for the last 17 years. I have seen Cotton, Westphal, Ainge, F. Johnson, and Skiles coach, and let me tell you this. D'Antoni is better than them. He is the probably the best coach that the Suns have had. He is personable, honest, fair, and a good stategist. So you should get used to him leading the Suns to the Finals, a lot.


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## Seuss (Aug 19, 2005)

IceMan23and3 said:


> Yes, they a bad defensive team. In fact, their defense that is sooooo bad, that the Pacers managed 13 points in the final 15 minutes last night.
> The philosophy for always having to go small is actually this crazy notion that the BEST 5 should be on the court and the WORST 5 should be sitting. You'll understand when you have watched more games. I have seen all of the Suns games for the last 17 years. I have seen Cotton, Westphal, Ainge, F. Johnson, and Skiles coach, and let me tell you this. D'Antoni is better than them. He is the probably the best coach that the Suns have had. He is personable, honest, fair, and a good stategist. So you should get used to him leading the Suns to the Finals, a lot.



Don't insult my intelligence because you misread my statement.

Being outrebounded and then going to small ball is foolish.
You're also implying from my statement that James Jones is part of our "Best 5".


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## Carbo04 (Apr 15, 2005)

I like D'Antoni, but he has flaws. Lack of trying to get us to play defense and things of that nature. But we are winning over 75% of our games and every team except Dallas, and San Antonio would kill for that. THe reason we are so good is because of D'Antoni's coaching and style of play. If we had another coach who wasn't so run-and-gun oriented we wouldn't be as good. D'Antoni is not an elite coach but he was FOR SURE in the right place at the right time with a team who would put together a perfect set of players for his style. He's the best coach for this team. We can crush the Mavs, and Spurs. We jsut have to go out there and play like we want it, and I agree with I think it was Joe who said alot of this has to go to the players blame.


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## Hyperion (Dec 5, 2006)

Dr. Seuss said:


> Don't insult my intelligence because you misread my statement.
> 
> Being outrebounded and then going to small ball is foolish.
> You're also implying from my statement that James Jones is part of our "Best 5".


We aren't a bruising team. I know that, you know that, everyone knows that. So when a team goes big, we get fast. Force them to foul, get them tired, get them out of the game. That's why we lost to Dallas last time. We didn't attack Dampier in the first quarter. If we attacked him early, we would have smoked Dallas. It's the path of least resistance, they want to play hard, smashmouth basketball and we know that we will lose if we play like that, so we speed it up and see if the 7 footers can keep up(which they never can). Since the Suns shoot in the first 7 seconds, and the center gets up the court in 5-8 seconds, we have a 5-on-4. That's how we beat them. So being upset that we don't go bruising, well, is asking the Suns to be what they aren't.


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## Seuss (Aug 19, 2005)

I like D'Antoni a LITTLE more then I used to.


If he had used his bench some in game 5, I would not be at fits with him.
But he decided to use a 6 man rotation because he has a hard time trusting two Finals participants. (Jumane and Rose)

That was inexcusable.


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## Hyperion (Dec 5, 2006)

If it were 20-something Jumaine and 20-something Jalen, then yes, I would agree with you, but what I _SAW_ when they were in the game was not worth it to play them. Why would we want a jump shooter with no defense in Jalen who has never really played defense and now is a step slower on defense? Jumaine is probably one of the worst wastes of talent I have seen in a long time. He just sits there and shoot 3's. He needed to get his *** into the paint where the TEAM needed him. Instead, he would shoot the 3. 

Now I wouldn't have a problem with a big guy who could shoot the 3, but he is nowhere near as good at shooting the 3 as Bell, Nash, or Barbosa. Hell, Marion has a more reliable 3 point shot than him. He also has an accute allergy to defense, which is probably why he sought the Suns who are known for no defense, but this is a different team. One which prides itself on playing both ways. I hope this series convinced you of their stiffling defense.

The reason why everyone claims that the run-n-gun system won't work in the playoffs like it does in the regular season is because the officiating changes in the playoffs. It doesn't make any sense! Why is there a whole new set of rules for the playoffs versus the regular season?!? All of a sudden, the hand-checking and blocking calls disappear in the post-season. If the officiating was the same in the regular season as the playoffs, we would still be posting in the playoff thread about the Suns. Same goes for GS. The refs need to officiate the same in the playoffs as in the regular season. 

I think our team is learning this.


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## cadarn (Feb 1, 2006)

> Right now I smell a championship, there is more heart in this team than there is in Dallas or San Antonio.


...


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## hogey11 (Aug 30, 2002)

This is what I don't understand:

Have you all forgotten that Phoenix, in all fairness, would have probably beat San Antonio had the game 5 suspensions not happened? I don't care what anybody says, they woulda won game 5, and game 7 is a flip of the coin, and i'm an optimist. 

This team was inches from the WCF and ultimately, the championship that San Antonio will most likely take. It doesn't need to be blown up, but it does need a little tweak here or there. To be honest, a half-ready draft pick at #24 and a one-year-older version of Barbosa, Stoudemire, and Diaw sound just fine and dandy to me. 

If anything, i'd like to see them package Bell, Banks and Atlanta's 2008 somewhere for a better shooting guard... Bell, Thomas, Banks and the atlanta pick for Ray Allen?


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## bircan (Jul 17, 2005)

dunno, dont you guys want rajas defense? Sure ray allen is a great shooter, but inserting a player of his caliber would cause some problems, we would have 4 all stars. This year boris diaws play has been the crucial, if boris was last years boris, then him coming off the bench would have given us the extra effort we needed. Barbosa did improve, but i doubt he will get better than 18ppg, hes not going to get 20 shots a game either, see boris diaw diaws fall off, i expect barbosa to come down a bit too.

In any dealings, we should keep kurt thomas, hes our other pf/c apart from amare, those 2 are our only bigs, if anything, we need a kind of 6"11 guy that plays defense and brings high energy. Duncan in the center if the spurs controlled their defense, and i think we need a quality big man, but who, im not sure.

Marion shouldnt be traded, that kind of a thing kills chemistry, we need to keep a constant team who will hopefully learn from their mistakes and shortcomings for the next season.

So any big men that interests you guys? NOT a steven hunter lol, no nothing like that. Reggie evans is too short, but great rebounder. Oh i know, someone mentioned this a while ago. Camby would be the defensive beast we seem to need. I would love if we got him, this would free up amare and take away some of his fouls, camby would be excellent with kurt and amare, those are some big guys that are plain mean, guys who rebound hard, play defense. Now, i dont know who we would be willing to give up, but that is kind of role player who doesnt need the lights on him to perform. 

Ray Allen, would make us weaker defensively


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## VeN (May 10, 2005)

Cornholio said:


> JVG


lol hes gone too :>


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## 604flat_line (May 26, 2006)

D'antoni has a great record, has done great things helping the young guys develop, and has done great helping build the team. I don't have any problems with him. Is he a relatively new coach to the league? Yes. Does that show a little bit too much on occasion? Sure. Does his italian temper get the better of him at times and detract from what the team is trying to do? I think so. He's also got a ton of potential though and his guys really believe in him.


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## Hyperion (Dec 5, 2006)

604flat_line said:


> D'antoni has a great record, has done great things helping the young guys develop, and has done great helping build the team. I don't have any problems with him. Is he a relatively new coach to the league? Yes. Does that show a little bit too much on occasion? Sure. Does his italian temper get the better of him at times and detract from what the team is trying to do? I think so. He's also got a ton of potential though and his guys really believe in him.


I'll drink to that. :cheers: On top of that he is a really nice guy if you met him on the street


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