Suns vs Spurs 2007 Western Conference Semi-Finals Thread - Page 15 - Dallas-Mavs.com Forums

MavsWiLLHaVeRinGs · 05-19-2007, 08:15 AM

*looks into the future with crystal ball*

Breaking News:

The NBA has cancelled Game 5 and the remainder of the 2007 NBA Finals (aka Spurs/Pistons II) The ratings are so bad ABC has decided to show reruns of the Andy Griffin Show instead in hopes of a ratings boost. ESPN has decided not to even show the scores of the games and especially no highlights. There will be no way to find out the scores ever. Commishioner David Stern has made this decision for the betterment of the league.

ESPN.com

duboh7 · 05-19-2007, 10:28 AM

I offer my congrats to the Spurs. I think Q3 & Q4, combined was the best I have seen the Spurs play. Pop's offensive & defensive schemes against the Suns were great.

While I still think Timmy is a whiner & Bowen is dirty, the Spurs are still very good at playing a traditional style of bball, and it certainly doesn't seem they are yet too old. (besides, I still like Findog, and I think Pops is the best coach in the league)

This certainly has to be devastating to the Suns; their expectatins throughout the season, was as high as was the Mav's. I don't know what they do .... I can't see them ever breaking through to a championship with this style of play (if they couldn't do it with this group of players, they won't ever).......and you can tell this coach will never change his style of play. (I wonder if the owner recognizes that?)

dude1394 · 05-19-2007, 11:28 AM

Someone needs to pick up this guy in syndication. He's just too refreshing.

http://20secondtimeout.blogspot.com/...nate-suns.html

Quote:

Nash ended up with decent numbers, mainly thanks to his scoring explosion after the game was essentially out of reach, but he was not even the best guard on the court--that would be Ginobili--let alone the best player, which was Tim Duncan. No doubt we will hear that this series was "tainted" by the suspensions of Stoudemire and Boris Diaw (who had one point in Game Six) but the Suns led for most of Game Five even without Stoudemire and Diaw and lost convincingly in Game Six with their full complement of players; anyone who uses the word "tainted" to describe the result of this series simply did not pay attention to the games. In fact, this game and this series followed the same blueprint that San Antonio used to beat Phoenix 4-1 in the 2005 playoffs: stay tight on the three point shooters, contain Nash's penetration and live with whatever Stoudemire scores. The Spurs won the lowest scoring game of the series and the highest scoring game of the series, proving that they could beat the Suns at any tempo. They strolled into Phoenix and grabbed homecourt advantage after Game One. Duncan's dominance caused the Suns to change their starting lineup and Parker's speed forced the Suns to switch Nash on to Bowen and Marion on to Parker. The real significance of Game Four is not Horry's foul and the aftermath but the fact that the Spurs dominated for 46 minutes but ended up blowing a double digit fourth quarter lead for the first time in 28 playoff games and just the third time in 58 such postseason games during Duncan's career; if not for that lapse, the Spurs would probably have won in five games just like they did in 2005. Consider what happened in Game Six: the Suns had their full team, the Spurs still did not have Horry and the Spurs built an even bigger lead than they did in Game Four--and this time they held on to it.

For three seasons we have heard about Nash's greatness, which is supposed to consist mainly of his ability to make his teammates better. His coach publicly stated, more than once, that the Suns are more talented than the Spurs. Yet, Nash failed once again to lead his team to the NBA Finals--despite owning homecourt advantage and being paired with an All-NBA First Team player (Stoudemire), an All-Star/Defensive Player of the Year candidate (Marion), the Sixth Man of the Year (Leandro Barbosa) and a member of the All-Defensive First Team (Raja Bell). Sure, Nash had 14 assists in Game Six but--other than Stoudemire, who is clearly an explosive talent who would thrive on any team--who exactly did he "make better" in the biggest game of the year for the Suns? Marion shot 5-12, Barbosa shot 5-15, Diaw shot 0-1 and Bell shot 5-9. If Nash in fact "made everyone better" during the past three regular seasons and if the Suns in fact are "more talented" than the Spurs than why did this series not even make it to a seventh game? If Kobe Bryant is denied MVP honors for not leading the Lakers to 50 wins and Dirk Nowitzki is blasted for going out in the first round after a 67 win season then how can Nash escape any criticism when his team lasts exactly one round longer than their teams did despite enjoying homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs (after Dallas' elimination) and despite playing alongside so many talented players? If he has been "making them better" all along and deserves two MVPs as a reward for that then he has to be criticized for not making them better year after year in the playoffs.

The reality, of course, is that Nash is an excellent player but he is not and never has been the best player in the NBA. That is why teams led by Duncan and Nowitzki have knocked his Suns out of the playoffs each of the past three seasons--and why Kobe Bryant almost pulled off the same thing in 2006 with so much less help around him than Nash has that it is comical to suggest that Nash is better than Bryant; put Bryant on the Suns for this series and Ginobili would no longer be the best guard on the court and the Suns would be better than they are now both offensively and defensively. Every single writer and commentator who has been saying for the past two weeks that he would switch his MVP vote this year from Nowitzki to Nash because of what happened in the first round absolutely must follow that reasoning to its logical conclusion and publicly endorse Duncan as this year's MVP; you simply cannot bash Nowitzki for losing in the first round and then completely ignore that Nash's team lost in the second round despite having homecourt advantage.

dude1394 · 05-19-2007, 11:51 AM

Daaammnn....I mean really.

Quote:

Yet, Nash failed once again to lead his team to the NBA Finals--despite owning homecourt advantage and being paired with an All-NBA First Team player (Stoudemire), an All-Star/Defensive Player of the Year candidate (Marion), the Sixth Man of the Year (Leandro Barbosa) and a member of the All-Defensive First Team (Raja Bell).

No wonder Magic Johnson was all up in Nash's shorts, he thought that was himself out there playing with his stacked lakers team.

fluid.forty.one · 05-19-2007, 12:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dude1394

Someone needs to pick up this guy in syndication. He's just too refreshing.

http://20secondtimeout.blogspot.com/...nate-suns.html

Awesome.

TVI · 05-19-2007, 01:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dude1394

Someone needs to pick up this guy in syndication. He's just too refreshing.

http://20secondtimeout.blogspot.com/...nate-suns.html

genius...

chumdawg · 05-19-2007, 01:25 PM

Quote:

Yet, Nash failed once again to lead his team to the NBA Finals--despite owning homecourt advantage and being paired with an All-NBA First Team player (Stoudemire), an All-Star/Defensive Player of the Year candidate (Marion), the Sixth Man of the Year (Leandro Barbosa) and a member of the All-Defensive First Team (Raja Bell).

Spurs have all that stuff, too. And they also have Tim Duncan.

Arguments like this give me tired head.

V2M · 05-19-2007, 01:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dude1394

Someone needs to pick up this guy in syndication. He's just too refreshing.

http://20secondtimeout.blogspot.com/...nate-suns.html

2006-07 Basketball Writer of the Year: David Friedman

Thanks dude for posting that!

Tokey41 · 05-19-2007, 01:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chumdawg

Spurs have all that stuff, too. And they also have Tim Duncan.

Arguments like this give me tired head.

The difference is the Spurs had a better set of the same things. So the message is for the media to get off Nash's balls because he hasn't accomplished a damn thing more than Dirk or the Mavericks (who don't have all those things) despite all his advantages. There won't be any serious Nash bashing (especially after his emotional breakdown on national television) but the fact remains he's in the exact same boat as Dirk. If Dirk didn't deserve the MVP (based on those ridiculous arguments about his playoff performance) Nash wouldn't have deserved it either this year by that logic.

dude1394 · 05-19-2007, 02:22 PM

The comparison here isn't to timmah and the spurts it's to the mavs. But even if it were to the spurts, it's not the same. Who is the other all-nba player on the spurts? I agree with all-nba defensive player but certainly not an extra all-star.

Dtownsfinest · 05-19-2007, 02:44 PM

Quote:

What is "in the clutch"????? Listen to this ass-clown. Son, the clutch is late in a a close game. I didn't even see the Amare three, but if he hit one, it was a freakin blowout already. NOT clutch.

Ass-clown? Wow. U mad? Anyway, I know exactly what the clutch is. I'm asking your defintion because obviously you missed his 3 in the clutch which was his first of the season or his dunk against Duncan in closing minutes. This is why I ask what exactly is the clutch to you.

Quote:

No wonder Magic Johnson was all up in Nash's shorts, he thought that was himself out there playing with his stacked lakers team.

They're stacked but they are not a better team then the Spurs. That's what it comes down to. Nash has a great supporting cast. But his team play's no defense. Marion and Bell make up for some of Amare and Nash's shortcomings on that end but not enough. Especially when San Antonio wants to score in the 80's but for most of the series score over 100. If the Suns were the best team in the league then that writer would have a point. But that team wasn't a better team then the Spurs. And Chum does bring up a great point. The writer throws out everything the Suns have but the Spurs have just as much if not more. Ginobilli could've won 6th man just as easy as Barbosa did. Tony Parker may not have been a All NBA team'er but he sure as hell played like one this series. Then you have probably the MVP of the playoffs right now in Tim Duncan and solid role players in Finley, Horry and Oberto. Not to mention one of the best coaches in the game and I think we all know how much of shitty coach D'Antoni is. Suns just lost to a better team. Malone and Stockton could never get past the Bulls so does that take away the greatness of Stockton and Malone? I'm sure if the Bulls never existed guys like Barkley and Malone would have gotten their rings.

Flacolaco · 05-19-2007, 02:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dude1394

Someone needs to pick up this guy in syndication. He's just too refreshing.

http://20secondtimeout.blogspot.com/...nate-suns.html

He brings up the very excellent point that had the Spurs not screwed up and totally gave that game away in game 4, they probably would've won 4-1.

kingmalaki · 05-19-2007, 05:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tokey41

The difference is the Spurs had a better set of the same things. So the message is for the media to get off Nash's balls because he hasn't accomplished a damn thing more than Dirk or the Mavericks (who don't have all those things) despite all his advantages. There won't be any serious Nash bashing (especially after his emotional breakdown on national television) but the fact remains he's in the exact same boat as Dirk. If Dirk didn't deserve the MVP (based on those ridiculous arguments about his playoff performance) Nash wouldn't have deserved it either this year by that logic.

They both deserved the MVP's that they won. Nash lost again but his playoff performance wasn't as bad as Dirk's (this postseason that is). He was the Suns best player in the postseason, and I think Pho could have won this series if Barbosa didn't play like garbage. Either way, the Suns lost to the better team (Spurs play defense) and Nash went down to a better player (Duncan, who also has MVP's).

I don't really see the point of listing all the help Nash has when the Spurs have all of that as well, championship experience (so homecourt really doesn't matter) and arguably the best player in the game.

mary · 05-22-2007, 09:08 AM

Quote:

Goat of the series? Suns point guard Steve Nash.
Mon May 21, 2007 at 03:50:18 PM

Don't cry, Stevie. You've at least got one good year left...

Can there be any doubt two-time MVP Steve Nash is the goat of the series pitting the Suns against arch-rival San Antonio? I know, I know. David Stern's an ass for penalizing Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw for getting off the bench in Game 4 after Robert "Hurt-a-Man" Horry hip-checked Nash into the scorer's table. Horry even bragged about it afterwards, scorning Nash's "acting ability." Yeah, Horry was penalized two games versus one apiece for Big Stat and Diaw, but Horry couldn't carry Amare's jockstrap, people. It was a cheap, premeditated trick, and it worked. Minus Stat, the Suns ran out of solar power towards end of Game 5. The gripe was that with all hands on deck, the Suns would've won on their home court. Still, heading into enemy territory, the expectation on my part was that they'd pull it out in Game 6, and bring it back home for Game 7.

Think again, Portnoy. Nash allowed the Spurs to set the pace in G6, a grueling back and forth that ended the first half with a two-point lead for San Antonio. By the end of the 3rd quarter, the Spurs had turned that into a 14-point gap, too large for the Suns to close in the fourth. The Spurs closed it out at 114-106, and that was with Stoudemire shooting 38 points! Sheesh. What the eff happened in the third quarter? Here it is, from the goat's own mouth in the post-game press conference.

"If you look at the third quarter, they made a great run there," Nash stated sullenly. "We kind of fell asleep mentally and they took advantage of it and that was the difference in the game."

Fell asleep? Choked is more like it. But the team captain wouldn't own his loss, despite having admitted his team's fuckup in the third quarter. Asked what he could do next year to get past San Antonio, something the Suns will inevitably have to do post-regular season, Nash bitched bitterly, "I think not having two players taken from us for a game would help."

Hey, as I stated in my Thursday post "NBA Commish David Stern: Jackass du jour," Coach D should've put potato-eater Pat Burke into Game 5 with explicit instructions to send Tim Duncan's ass into the third row. But D'Antoni's spending all his time readin' Gandhi, apparently. Barring that, once Game 5 was over, the Suns had the manpower to make it happen, but they didn't.

At least Stat was willing to man-up, and take responsibility, though his own performance was solid. Asked one of those "what if" questions in the post-game, Stat told reporters, "I don't think about it too much. It is what it is. You know, we got suspended for Game 5. It happened that way, but we had a chance to win it here in Game 6, and we didn't get it done."

Who sounds like the team captain to you -- Nash or Stat? Remember, Nash is the veteran here, not Stat. Yet, Nash is playin' the crybaby Canadian. Ever hear of "projection," bubbe? You know, in the Sigmund Freud sense of the word? Nash's mad at himself for failing to rally his team like a two-time MVP should. Similar criticism was leveled recently at Nash's butt-buddy Dirk Nowitzki of the Dallas Mavericks, who garnered this year's MVP even though the Mavs were ousted by Golden State. We expect more from an MVP. And though Nash hit some valuable three-pointers in the 4th quarter of G6, the damage was already done by the Suns' lousy third.

Everyone knows Nash's one of the best players in the NBA. I'm not trying to argue otherwise. But the guy makes a gazillion bucks a year, he's a leader, and more is expected of him. Sorry, Stevie. That's why you're the effin' goat.

http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/bas...uns_forwar.php

MavsX · 05-22-2007, 09:30 AM

Robert "Hurt-a-Man" Horry

laugh out f*cking loud!

Edit: i posted the above before reading the whole article by mary. That article is butt funny. Lots of curse words, and i like how they call Amare "stat"