Friday, January 30th, 2009...8:41 am
The Unraveling of a Rival
I want to follow on the heels of Graydon’s excellent Notebook with a comment about a single play from last night. This post is a variation on a theme: the unraveling of a rival.
With 38 seconds to play, down by 4, Steve Nash inexplicably fouled Bruce Bowen away from the ball. According to the rules, fouls away from the ball in the final two minutes result in two shots and possession. In other words, Steve Nash gave the game away on that foul.
We all goof from time to time, and maybe Nash, however uncharacteristically, just lost his head for a moment. Judging by Terry Porter’s pronounced sideline mannerisms, I suspect he did not direct Nash to make the foul. It was just a bone-headed play late in a game that was slipping away. In the warp and woof of a long season, it’s already forgotten. But it meant something to me.
The Suns have given the Spurs a handful of victories this decade. Whether considering Mike D’Antoni’s late game time management, hot-headed players clearing benches, or failed defensive rotations, the Suns have lost games against the Spurs they should have won. The one Sun, however, who seemed to possess an insatiable desire to win-whose passion to beat the Spurs stood strongly against their championship poise-was Steve Nash.
Everyone remembers Nash’s bloody nose from Game 1 of the 2007 Suns-Spurs series. That sequence has always stood out to me—it’s hung in my memory as an interminable symbol of Nash’s will to win. I vividly remember Nash’s expression as he set on the bench while the trainers attended to the difficult task of closing the gushing wound on his nose- he set and stared with a look of utter annoyance and spitfire resolve to get back on the court and secure a victory. He played like a lion that game. As a Spurs fan, I trembled a little. But we all know the Suns-Spurs metanarrative is a tragic tale for Phoenix. Nash returned to the court, but only to lose.
Nash’s muddleheaded foul on Bowen is a symbol of a different kind. It was the unexpected whimper that comes in place of the anticipated bang. The Suns have fallen. They are stuffed men, leaning together, headpieces filled with straw. I wish Steve Kerr would blow his team up. Not because it makes good basketball sense, but because it’s what’s best for the story.
7 Comments
January 30th, 2009 at 9:40 am
Kerr is a nice guy, however, he has made a huge mess:
trading for shaq: changing the tempo
-switching coaches, and role players like bell and diaw.
the only thing left from that team is nash, barbosa and amare.
-amare and nash are unhappy
-barbosa never reached his potential after his 2nd year.
January 30th, 2009 at 10:58 am
The problem with that team is Nash. Same reason Dirk will never win a title. Offensive-only players never win. Only mistake Kerr has made IMO is getting rid of Diaw and that other hot headed kid I can’t think of at the moment.
January 30th, 2009 at 3:00 pm
I’m not so sure Nash made the mistake. I thought it was coach Porter who did. In anycase, the continual fouling of Bowen was silly. Once he got his rhythm, it was clear he would keep knocking down shots. Anyone with hoops sense would see Bowen has a decent stroke- OTOH, Shaq does not- and it made sense to foul him.
IMO, it makes more sense to foul Duncan than Bowen. Bowen just doesn’t get to the foul line enough to put up any decent numbers- not that he’s a great foul shooter, but my monies on him in that situation.
January 30th, 2009 at 6:49 pm
Well written blog. The Suns’ team doctors lost that Game 1 for the Suns as much as the Spurs beat them. You can’t attach liquid bandage if you never stop the bleeding in the first place. It was a freakish injury, but the traineers made a bad decision not to just stitch it up in a few minutes.
Juan H., I totally agree with your assessment of Kerr’s “job” as GM. IMHO, with Richardson, this Sun’s team has more talent than any other team in the league, but it doesn’t gel. Look for them to catch fire going into the playoffs, then crumble.
Mason, I couldn’t disagree more. Sure, Nash can’t guard a chair one-on-one, but you can’t single out his lack of D as the reason the Suns lost-Tony’s not exactly tearing it up on the defensive end either (Alan Iverson uses him as a practice cone), and he’s got a Finals MVP trophy. Nash on D is not the Suns’ problem, the Spurs’ clutch execution is.
January 30th, 2009 at 7:40 pm
ChillFAN,
Good stuff. I’m not sure about your Suns talent evaluation though. It seems too charitable.
January 30th, 2009 at 11:27 pm
Okay, so here’s my quick defense of my assertion that the Suns’ roster as “the most talented in the NBA.” Forget the “Big Threes,” let’s compare the 4-7 guys on the Suns, Celts, Lakers and Rockets.
SUNS Richardson-Hill-Barbosa-Barnes
LA Odom-Vujacic-Fisher-Farmer
ROCKETS Scola-Landry-Rafer-Battier
or CELTS Rondo-Davis-House-Cassel
Richardson’s a more explosive scorer than anyone above, Hill’s back from the dead and made Diaw expendable, Barbosa is a speedy sixth-man award winner, and Barnes’ long arms defended big against Dirk in ’07.
It’s close, since Shaq-Nash-Amare isn’t quite Kobe-Bynum-Gasol, but I give overall the talent edge to PHX.
(As I write this I realize Ariza dropped 17 points on us last Sunday. I HATE the Lakers.)
January 31st, 2009 at 6:00 am
ChillFan,
You have more of an argument than I thought, but I still prefer teams like the Lakers, Jazz, and Rockets in terms of raw talent.
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