Get Up Eight Times

Charles Barkley says it often: “A series don’t start until you lose on the other team’s floor.” Well, the San Antonio Spurs just throttled the Phoenix Suns, one of the most dominant road wins I’ve seen. That was a dynasty win, a win that great teams get. Take a look at all the other teams that lost Game 3 up 2-0, and you’ll know why the Spurs are still the class of the NBA. They’ve turned the most intriguing series of the first round into a laugher so far, and it’s all by playing smart.

Steve Kerr made the Shaq trade to focus in on stopping Tim Duncan. Shaq’s done nothing wrong. He’s played pretty good defense on Duncan when the Spurs ran the post game in the first two games. But Gregg Popovich is the master of adjustment, and so far Mike D’Antoni has not made the necessary counteradjustments.

See, the problem with Phoenix was never that they couldn’t stop Tim Duncan–it’s that they could NEVER EVER stop Tony Parker. Now Parker is reaching the prime of his career, and he’s weaving through five defenders and running the pick and roll to perfection. Along with Ginobili, the Spurs backcourt has picked an aging Suns team apart, and they’re one win away from an amazing sweep.

You have to admire the great coaching by Pops. Duncan was rarely set up once in the post, neutralizing Shaq’s defensive importance altogether. They ran pick and roll after pick and roll after pick and roll, switching Shaq onto Ginobili and Parker about three dozen times, and they took him to the basket or had wide open jumpers. Phoenix went to the zone to stop the pick and roll, Parker went right to the basket and knocked it out to Bowen, Thomas and Finley for their few field goals.

The Spurs (especially Parker) got into their rhythm early. The Suns never got into theirs until it was way too late.

Duncan doesn’t give a crap if he scores 10 or 30, and he’s been playing smart basketball. As have all the Spurs.

Now, is the situation salvageable for the Suns? Yes. They’re just going to have to adjust to the situation, something their coach and players have as yet appeared unwilling to do.

1) Full court press on Parker. It’s time. Stop reacting to him and make him work on both ends. I don’t care if you make Raja Bell drive to the basket five to ten times. Make Parker use up energy on the defensive end. He’s juat the little TGV that could if he’s only working offensively.

2) Forget about Duncan. Let him score 40. Hell, let him score 50. Just don’t let Parker and Ginobili get theirs. Duncan has a terrible record if he’s the only one scoring.

3) Take Steve Nash off of Parker, put him on the slowest player on the court. It’s ghastly to see him try and guard Tony; his legs are almost shot at this point.

4) Nash and Stoudemire should be pick and rolling right back at the Spurs. That was their bread and butter move in Game 1, and now they’re just dribbling and setting up some funky looking jumpers. My goodness.

5) I know this is going to sound ridiculous, considering what Phoenix gave up to get to this point. But I’m going to throw it out there anyway:

Shaq’s role has to be minimized on the defensive end.

At this point in his career, O’Neal is useless in the pick and roll. He can’t rotate, he can’t switch off. He’s only good at defending big men. Put him on Kurt Thomas or Oberto, but put Stoudemire back on Duncan. It doesn’t matter what Duncan gets, but at least Stoudemire has the ability to guard Parker or Ginobili on the switch better than Shaq.

Or set him up on the defensive end selectively. I’d think you’d put him on Duncan if they go into the post, but if Tim goes out to set a pick, put Stoudemire on him. It’s amazing that D’Antoni hasn’t tried this ONCE with O’Neal and Stoudemire both in the game.

These are just some suggestions, but anything works better than getting burned on the pick and roll for the thousandth time. Phoenix may have the greater talent, but they’re getting outcoached in circles. And that’s why they’re on the verge of getting swept.