I'm so damn excited, so damn scared and just going crazy for this series to start. I'll lose my voice yelling at the TV by halftime, guarenteed. J/K about the Finals. The Bulls and Pistons are both really good teams that I could see maybe upsetting one of these two.http://www.arizonasportsfans.com/blog/inde...tegories/2-Suns
OMG, Duncan shot in a drive-by led by Amare and his gang of thugs, Pat Burke, Eric Piatkowski and Boris Diaw!Pre-series fools! Just a fancy way to bump it up so my preview is read.
Should be a great series, I am rooting for the Suns here, I hate the Spurs with a passion. In the end, I think the Suns will take it in 6 or 7.
I think the Spurs are going to take this series, I like their matchups with the Suns. I think the Spurs will be able to control the tempo of this series, and keep it in the half court set more often than the Suns will be able to turn up the pace and tempo. The Spurs don't turn the ball over much, don't shoot to early in the shot clock, have Duncan downlow as all big men help to control the pace of the game, and their Parker and Ginobili are fast enough to get back to make the transition points harder to come by. Parker is going to be able to have his way with Nash on the offensive end, and do what he wants. Nash is not quick enough to stay in front of Parker, nor is he good enough defensively to keep in front of him. There is no way they can just switch Raja Bell or someone onto Parker, as that would leave Nash trying to play defense on Ginobili alot, or Michael Finley. Both are bigger, and would hurt Steve Nash alot also. Down low, Amare and Kurt Thomas will not be able to contain Duncan one on one in my opinion. They are going to need help, which is going to cause alot more open oppurtunities. When Parker and Ginobili drives, Amare or Thomas is not going to be able to rotate to play help defense, much like Camby couldn't rotate as much durin the Nuggets series, because they can't leave Duncan.I like how much The Spurs have going for them in this series, and I really believe that they will pull out this win.
Amare and Kurt have both done a good job on him so far this year, especially Kurt. I don't think we'll need double teams.Nash will probably go against Bowen who's only offensive game is the open 3 in the corner. Hopefully one of Raja, Jones or Marion can contain Parker, but yeah, it'll be tough. I just hope we have home court heading into the last 3 games.
Let me just say that your are spot on with your matchup assessments, I just disagree with how thing will likely play out:<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (valo35 @ May 5 2007, 11:29 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>I think the Spurs will be able to control the tempo of this series, and keep it in the half court set more often than the Suns will be able to turn up the pace and tempo. The Spurs don't turn the ball over much, don't shoot to early in the shot clock, have Duncan downlow as all big men help to control the pace of the game, and their Parker and Ginobili are fast enough to get back to make the transition points harder to come by.</div>Yes, they will control the pace of the game, but the Suns have proven they can win in an halfcourt set. Amare has become very cersatile offensively with his jumpshot, and with his driving ability it will cause chaos for Duncan or whoever else plays him. Thomas will also make the big men come out a bit to contest his jumpshot. Nash won't have a huge series, but he will get his season averages and can play well in a halfcourt set. The 3pt shooters will have a tough time, but with guys like Barbosa they will still put a lot of pressure on the defense. <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Parker is going to be able to have his way with Nash on the offensive end, and do what he wants. Nash is not quick enough to stay in front of Parker, nor is he good enough defensively to keep in front of him. There is no way they can just switch Raja Bell or someone onto Parker, as that would leave Nash trying to play defense on Ginobili alot, or Michael Finley. Both are bigger, and would hurt Steve Nash alot also.</div>Defensively, they'd be better suited to play box and 1, with Bell playing Parker, and Thomas and Amare both down low. But if they want more offense, they can put both Diaw and Amare down low, which will give Spurs as many problems defensively as Suns will have (although they could still weather the storm if they played a zone with that lineup since Oberto and Elsen aren't big scoring threats).<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Down low, Amare and Kurt Thomas will not be able to contain Duncan one on one in my opinion. They are going to need help, which is going to cause alot more open oppurtunities. When Parker and Ginobili drives, Amare or Thomas is not going to be able to rotate to play help defense, much like Camby couldn't rotate as much durin the Nuggets series, because they can't leave Duncan.</div>Thomas can do a good job 1 on 1 against Duncan, and NO ONE can guard Amare on the Spurs. He can now consistently nail the jumpshot, and if one of the Spurs' bigs step up, Amare will drive right past them for the dunk.Unlike 2 years ago, the Suns have 5 things going for them- They are much deeper, they have 3 guys who can create for themselves and/or others without Nash (Amare, Barbosa, Diaw), they have much better defense, they have no major injuries this time (Joe Johnson in '05), and the Spurs are older and slower than 2 years ago. IMO these 3 things are what will give the Suns the edge this time.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Yes, they will control the pace of the game, but the Suns have proven they can win in an halfcourt set. Amare has become very cersatile offensively with his jumpshot, and with his driving ability it will cause chaos for Duncan or whoever else plays him. Thomas will also make the big men come out a bit to contest his jumpshot. Nash won't have a huge series, but he will get his season averages and can play well in a halfcourt set. The 3pt shooters will have a tough time, but with guys like Barbosa they will still put a lot of pressure on the defense.</div>They can win in half court sets, but when it comes to a seven game series being played at a slower pace, things are going to be much harder for the Suns. That is when defense will mean the most from each possession, and while the Suns are improved defensively, they are still not as good as the Spurs. The Spurs will have the best defense in the series, limit the transition points, be able to contest three point shots in the half court set, and make things alot harder on the Suns than the Suns will make it back. <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Defensively, they'd be better suited to play box and 1, with Bell playing Parker, and Thomas and Amare both down low. But if they want more offense, they can put both Diaw and Amare down low, which will give Spurs as many problems defensively as Suns will have (although they could still weather the storm if they played a zone with that lineup since Oberto and Elsen aren't big scoring threats).</div>Defensively I believe if they try to play box and 1 it will be a huge mistake. The Spurs will be able to pull them out of the box and 1, and do damage to the Suns trying to run that defense. With Bowen, Ginobili, and Finley will be able to hit the three's alot because in a box and one it's harder to get out and defend the perimeter from three point shooting. Duncan can step out and hit the 15 foot bank shot with regularity that will cause Thomas and Amare to have to play away from the block more. If they decided to go box and 1, it could also be a good time to put in Bonner who can step out and hit the shots to help pull the Suns out of their box and 1. I really don't believe a box and 1 would be their best answer.<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Thomas can do a good job 1 on 1 against Duncan, and NO ONE can guard Amare on the Spurs. He can now consistently nail the jumpshot, and if one of the Spurs' bigs step up, Amare will drive right past them for the dunk.</div>Amare is going to get his, I have no doubt about that, but he got his two years ago in the playoffs and it didn't propel them to a win. The Spurs will be able to clamp down, and make things harder on everyone else on the team, just like they did two years ago. They will already be taking away one of the things that the Suns like to do alot, which is get out and turn up the speed of the game. They will be able to make it harder for them to hit three's, and will stay in front of them on three point shots.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (valo35 @ May 6 2007, 12:56 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>They can win in half court sets, but when it comes to a seven game series being played at a slower pace, things are going to be much harder for the Suns. That is when defense will mean the most from each possession, and while the Suns are improved defensively, they are still not as good as the Spurs. The Spurs will have the best defense in the series, limit the transition points, be able to contest three point shots in the half court set, and make things alot harder on the Suns than the Suns will make it back.</div>Yes, Spurs are a much better defensive team than the Suns, but the Suns at the same time are a much better offensive team. If the game in February is any indication, they will still get points in transistion. Even in the game in SA in March or April when the game was as slow as it could possibly be, in which Amare was missing shots he always makes, the Suns were right there 'till the very end. <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Defensively I believe if they try to play box and 1 it will be a huge mistake. The Spurs will be able to pull them out of the box and 1, and do damage to the Suns trying to run that defense. With Bowen, Ginobili, and Finley will be able to hit the three's alot because in a box and one it's harder to get out and defend the perimeter from three point shooting. Duncan can step out and hit the 15 foot bank shot with regularity that will cause Thomas and Amare to have to play away from the block more. If they decided to go box and 1, it could also be a good time to put in Bonner who can step out and hit the shots to help pull the Suns out of their box and 1. I really don't believe a box and 1 would be their best answer.</div>The Suns are athletic enough to help out on the shooters, and I'd much rather give some chances those jumpshooters rather than Parker drive through the lane and get 35pts like he did in their last game of the season. Same with Duncan, I'd be willing to give up a few jumpshots.<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Amare is going to get his, I have no doubt about that, but he got his two years ago in the playoffs and it didn't propel them to a win. The Spurs will be able to clamp down, and make things harder on everyone else on the team, just like they did two years ago. They will already be taking away one of the things that the Suns like to do alot, which is get out and turn up the speed of the game. They will be able to make it harder for them to hit three's, and will stay in front of them on three point shots.</div>As I said, unlike 2 years ago, the Suns are much better on both sides of the ball. Offensively, they have 4 guys who don't rely on transition baskets or other players making plays for them (Nash, Amare, Diaw and Barbosa). 2 years ago they only had 2 guys. This year, they have more guys who can hit the 3. This year, no major injuries. This year, they have another defensive stopper in Bell, a good low post defender in Thomas, and overall better team defense. It will be a tough series, and everything you say is true, but I disagree on how things will play out.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (ASUFan22 @ May 6 2007, 01:40 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>I'm worried. This series is gonna kill me either way. It's going to be intense man...</div>It won't kill you as much as what I just had to endure with Rockets-Jazz, and T-Mac's heartbreaking post game interview.
It sure will. After all this time the Suns have their best opportunity to win it all and if they don't I don't see them ever getting a better shot. I was going crazy for the last series kind of and over the Clippers series last year. I don't know yet how I'll react to the biggest series I'll have ever watched on TV.
I'm thinking Spurs in 6. Suns just aren't tough enough. They looked great against a beat up 7th seed, but now the real test begins.The Spurs are bigger, they play better defense (obviously), they rebound better, they're more experienced and they simply know how to win. And they don't need to be "on" to do it. They can win playing many different ways. The Suns lack that versitility, I mean they can do it against weaker teams, but the Spurs are better and, to make matters worse, they're playing well right now.
I was thinking the Suns in 7. The Spurs have a great team, its just Phoenix, is so much more explosive, and has more Fire-power. The Spurs No doubt will give them what there money worths, but sooner or later, there game will start to fade. They played a great first game, but I don't think they will continue. Duncan, hasnt really been hungry for the championship in a while, and they cant win this series, unless he's motivated to win.Also, I don't see the bulls upsetting either the Suns, or the Spurs. There still progressing, and plus they wont beat Detroit. Detroit's just to good, and I have them winning it all this year.
Really? I got San Antonio over Detroit in 5. I still think the Suns aren't "there" yet. We all know they can light it up but, they need more on the other end. The Spurs are showing their age but, they still have at least 2 more "contender" years left in them.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Michael Bryant @ May 7 2007, 04:30 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>I'm thinking Spurs in 6. Suns just aren't tough enough. They looked great against a beat up 7th seed, but now the real test begins.The Spurs are bigger, they play better defense (obviously), they rebound better, they're more experienced and they simply know how to win. And they don't need to be "on" to do it. They can win playing many different ways. The Suns lack that versitility, I mean they can do it against weaker teams, but the Spurs are better and, to make matters worse, they're playing well right now.</div>The Suns are plenty tough. The only players that are soft are Diaw, James Jones and Barbosa. We don't have many bruisers inside, but all of the players fight through injuries and can grind out wins.Spurs in 6 is a good prediction though.I was also looking for opinions on my actual writing.
