We started the day with the Suns being an early 9.5-point underdog to the reigning NBA champs - you know those guys in the yellow and white called the LA Lakers. And - since it was Sunday - there was the possibility that some enlightened prayer might help the cause. No - we're not taking the Lord's name in vain - we were just hopeful that the fate of our Suns might be on the list of His concerns.

Well apparently even that was more than a little too optimistic. Let's say at least by half - as the Suns went down to a 20-point defeat (108 - 88) in their lowest scoring performance of the year. And we were the victim of a little poetic justice as the margin of defeat was largely the result of LA's vicious 3-point attack.

While the Suns went 4-13 from long range, the Lakers knocked down 10-21 from beyond the arc. Think of it - right there - that gives LA an 18-point edge in the offense.

Then add to that the Suns hitting 10-11 from the free throw line compared to the Lakers hitting 22-26 gimme' shots and LA comes out of the box with a 30 point lead. Say goodbye to that 9.5 point spread.

Please click "Read More" to continue reading--

The Suns tried to make it up from 2-point range as they hit 33 shots from nearby the basket - a bit better than the Lakers 28 from close but not nearly enough to overcome the gaping deficit.

So lesson Number Uno - that's One for those of you who are a bit linguistically challenged - c'mon Suns you must learn how to defend the 3-Ball!!

Yes, we know the Suns have made more 3-pointers than any other team in the NBA but apparently our guys don't know how to stop 'em. A case in point - Lakers bench rider Shannon Brown knocked down two 3-point shots in a row with less than 6 minutes left to go in the game.

Sure - Kobe Bryant is a headache who draws in the defense and Suns successfully limited him to 26 points - but you can't stop defending against those shots from beyond the arc.

To end on a lighter note - despite the Suns dragging their knuckles when it comes to the final score - our guys once again showed an ability to diversify the attack with four starting players hitting for double digit points. Our hat also goes off to Amar'e Stoudemire for another All-Star performance as he knocked down 18 points and grabbed 8 rebounds.

And don't forget to keep-up that NBA All-Star voting - especially for our man Amar'e who is listed as a Western Conference center on the electronic ballot. Throw in a few votes for Grant Hill, Steve Nash, Jason Richardson, and Leandro Barbosa for good measure. In the meantime, we are going to be gearing-up for Tuesday's game against the Dallas Mavericks.

See ya'.  

Comments (0)

Name

Email

Website

Title

Comment

smaller | bigger

Subscribe via email (registered users only)

Add Comment