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Warriors Vs. Suns: Phoenix Offense Breathes Easy… |
By Tom Ziller – NBA Editor
Steve Nash had a lovely game as the Phoenix Suns’ offense broke out for a win over the Golden State Warriors. Follow , and Like SBNation.com on Facebook. Jan 3, 2012 – The Phoenix Suns, known primarily for their offense since Steve Nash arrived in 2004, had struggled on that end this season. But all the Suns needed was a matinee against the Golden State Warriors, which is just what they got on Monday. The Suns beat the Warriors 102-91 as Nash roared with 21 points on 9-13 shooting, nine assists and two turnovers. The Suns’ 102 points came in 91 possessions for an offensive rating of 112. The Warriors had appeared to be improving on defense under rookie head coach Mark Jackson, but that progress took a fall on Monday. Suns rookie Markieff Morris racked up 16 points and nine rebounds in 32 minutes off the bench. Monta Ellis led the Warriors with 16 points on 6-16 shooting with 11 assists, five rebounds and three turnovers. Stephen Curry scored 10 points, but played just 23 minutes due to foul trouble. David Lee was inactive, forcing Jackson to start Dominic McGuire at foward with Dorell Wright. The Suns and Warriors are now each 2-3. For more on the Suns, visit Bright Side Of The Sun. For more on the Warriors, visit Golden State Of Mind. Read More: Phoenix Suns, Golden State Warriors, Golden State Warriors at Phoenix Suns, Jan 2, 2012 3:30 PM EST Follow , and Like SBNation.com on Facebook. Do you like this story?
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Suns Take Down Warriors 102-91 |
Channing Frye #8 of the Phoenix Suns battles for possession of the ball with Dominic McGuire #5 of the Golden State Warriors in an NBA game played on January 2, 2012 at U.S. Airways Center in Phoenix, Arizona. Copyright 2012 NBAE (Photo by Barry Gossage/NBAE via Getty Images) PHOENIX (CBS / AP) — Steve Nash scored 13 of his game-high 21 points in the fourth quarter and rookie Markieff Morris added 16 points, helping the Phoenix Suns beat the Golden State Warriors 102-91 on Monday. Jared Dudley had 15 points, and Channing Frye and Shannon Brown added 10 each for the Suns, who have won two of three overall and six straight against the Warriors. Phoenix has not lost to Golden State at home since March 8, 2005, a 13-game stretch. Monta Ellis had 18 points, Dominic McGuire scored 14 and Brandon Rush finished with 13 points for the Warriors, who lost their first road game after opening the season with four in a row at home. Golden State was without second-leading scorer and top rebounder David Lee, who was a late scratch after being hospitalized earlier Monday with an undetermined illness. (Copyright 2012 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.) Thanks for visiting our blog =). |
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Phoenix Suns vs. Golden State Warriors – game chat |
by Paul Coro – Jan. 2, 2012 01:30 PM Warriors (2-2) at Suns (1-3), 1:30 tip-offC: Andris Biedrins … Marcin Gortat PF: David Lee … Channing Frye SF: Dorell Wright … Grant Hill SG: Monta Ellis … Jared Dudley PG: Stephen Curry … Steve Nash Key Warrriors subs: Brandon Rush, Ekpe Udoh, Ishamel Smith, Dominic McGuire, Kwame Brown, Klay Thompson. Snacking on some Orange Slices before an early tip-off: * Monta Ellis, averaging 21.0 points and 7.7 assists in two wins and a loss, missed Golden State’s Wednesday night loss to Philadelphia for his grandmother’s funeral in Mississippi but the Contra Costa Times’ Marcus Thompson reported this morning that Ellis has rejoined the team and will play today. Grant Hill fared well against Ellis defensively last season, including Ellis’ eight-point outing in the teams’ final meeting. * The Warriors have lost 12 consecutive games at US Airways Center, dating back to March 2005. Golden State was 10-31 on the road last season. This is the Warriors’ first road game of the season after opening with a four-game homestand that included wins against Chicago and New York. Golden State only has won 26 road games over the last three seasons combined. * The Suns have won six consecutive games overall against Golden State. * The Suns rank 24th in the NBA in scoring, 24th in field goal percentage and 27th in 3-point percentage. The very thing that was supposed to give the Suns a fighting chance at the playoffs despite little roster improvement was the continuity of the team. “Yeah, it doesn’t look that way, does it?” said Steve Nash, whose shot has been ailing due to a rib bruise. The Suns’ offense always has operated off rhythm and perhaps they never established that without spending the time they do playing together on their own each September before training camp started. The Suns clearly are getting good shots. In the last home game, they charted that they took 11 “Grade-A” shots in the first quarter and made two. “It’s not about anything another team does,” Frye said. “It’s about us. We’ve got to jump up and make shots and whether we’re going to stick to our defensive principles?” * How did the Suns defense go from giving up 29.8 percent shooting, the third lowest opponent mark in franchise history, against New Orleans on Friday night to yielding 53.2 percent shooting to Oklahoma City on Saturday night? For one, the Hornets don’t have much for scoring threats without Eric Gordon and the Thunder is playing like the best team in the West. But the Suns were a different defensive team internally Saturday night against the Thunder. “We didn’t stay within what we’re supposed to do,” Suns coach Alvin Gentry said. “We tried to make up too much as we went along. When we do that, we can’t have any continuity because nobody knows what the next guy is doing.” * The Suns’ best 3-point shooter this season is a rookie who looked throughout training camp like maybe he should hold off on adding it to his repertoire. But Gentry kept encouraging Markieff Morris to shoot and the Suns have another stretch power forward to show for it. Morris is 5 for 9 on 3s after going 3 for 4 in the Saturday loss. That included a fourth-quarter bank shot. “I actually tried to shoot it off the backboard,” Morris said. “I called bank. I don’t know if you heard me.” Morris also has the team’s third best rebounding rate (18 rebounds in 68 minutes) behind Gortat and Frye. * Frye is not the only notorious proficient 3-point shooter who has opened the season on a cold streak. Wright sank 194 3s last season in his first year with Golden State but is 3 for 17 (17.6 percent) in the first four games this season. Like Phoenix, Golden State has struggled from 3-point range as a team (27.5 percent). * The Suns and Warriors both emphasized a defensive culture change with offseason coaching hires — lead assistant Elston Turner for Phoenix and new head coach Mark Jackson for Golden State. It would have made for a nice turnaround with the teams if their offenses had not become polar-opposites of their past. Golden State (89.0) and Phoenix (89.3) rank as the sixth and seventh lowest scoring offenses in the league. * Michael Redd is joining the Suns today to begin working out with the team. He likely is at least a week away from playing. Post your comments on the game below: What do you guys think about this. |
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Golden State Warriors’ Wright’s 3-point shooting… |
By Marcus Thompson II
In his younger days, Warriors forward Dorell Wright said he would be much more bothered by shooting 17.6 percent from 3-point range over the season’s first four games. But Wright, in his eighth season, said he has no doubt he will return to being Golden State’s 3-point specialist. “It’s a matter of time,” Wright said. “I’m going to get hot, and everybody will forget about this little four-game stretch or however long it lasts. “? In due time, my shot will be back.” Last season, Wright proved to be one of the league’s best signings. In his first season with the Warriors, he knocked down 194 3-pointers. In his previous six seasons, Wright totaled 73 from behind the arc. Wright’s 3-point shooting became one of the most reliable components of the Warriors offense last season. But that’s a luxury Golden State hasn’t had this season. He’s missed 14 of the 17 he’s taken. Since much of his offensive game is based on his 3-pointer, Wright hasn’t been able to get much of anything going offensively. He’s averaging 8.3 points (half what he averaged last season) on 34.3 percent shooting. Saturday, when the Warriors needed offense with guard Monta Ellis out, Wright totaled four points on 2-for-10 shooting. With Wright not knocking down his 3-pointers (the Warriors are shooting 27.5 percent from deep), opposing defenses are not paying a price for packing in the lane. With no big man to create offense, the Warriors rely on outside shooting to open up the paint so Ellis & Co. can penetrate. “It helps when he makes the shot because it’s another weapon that they’ve got to protect and work against,” Warriors coach Mark Jackson said of Wright. “When he makes that shot, it’s more breathing room for everybody else on the floor. So we certainly need it.” So what’s wrong with Wright’s shot? He said it boils down to mechanics. He said usually when he misses, he knows exactly what’s wrong. To fix it, Wright said he’s shooting more before and after practice. He also said he hired someone to break down game film of his shooting so he can study his mechanics. But mostly, to get out of his slump, Wright said he is focusing on defense. After all, that’s what Wright hung his hat on before joining the Warriors last summer. “To tell you the truth, I really don’t care about the offensive end,” Wright said. “It’s not like that anymore around here. It’s not like if you can’t score 15, 16 points you’re coming out the game. … Whatever I’m contributing is a plus.” It’s doubtful Jackson would go that far. Golden State is 26th in the NBA in points per game at 89.0 — more than 14 points below last season’s average. The Warriors rank 21st in field goal percentage (42.2). Especially for the upcoming three-game road trip, Golden State needs Wright to get going on offense. That’s all the news for today. |
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Golden State Warriors’ Dorell Wright’s 3-point… |
In his younger days, Warriors forward Dorell Wright said he would be much more bothered by shooting 17.6 percent from 3-point range over the season’s first four games. But Wright, in his eighth season, said he has no doubt he will return to being Golden State’s 3-point specialist. “It’s a matter of time,” Wright said. “I’m going to get hot, and everybody will forget about this little four-game stretch or however long it lasts. … In due time, my shot will be back.” Last season, Wright proved to be one of the league’s best signings. In his first season with the Warriors, he knocked down 194 3-pointers. In his previous six seasons, Wright totaled 73 from behind the arc. Wright’s 3-point shooting became one of the most reliable components of the Warriors offense last season. But that’s a luxury Golden State hasn’t had this season. He’s missed 14 of the 17 he’s taken. Since much of his offensive game is based on his 3-pointer, Wright hasn’t been able to get much of anything going offensively. He’s averaging 8.3 points (half what he averaged last season) on 34.3 percent shooting. Saturday, when the Warriors needed offense with guard Monta Ellis out, Wright totaled four points on 2-for-10 shooting. With Wright not knocking down his 3-pointers (the Warriors are shooting 27.5 percent from deep), opposing defenses are not paying a price for packing in the lane. With no big man to create offense, the Warriors rely on outside shooting to open up the paint so Ellis & Co. can penetrate. “It helps when he makes the shot because it’s another weapon that they’ve got to protect and work against,” Warriors coach Mark Jackson said of Wright. “When he makes that shot, it’s more breathing room for everybody else on the floor. So we certainly need it.” So what’s wrong with Wright’s shot? He said it boils down to mechanics. He said usually when he misses, he knows exactly what’s wrong. To fix it, Wright said he’s shooting more before and after practice. He also said he hired someone to break down game film of his shooting so he can study his mechanics. But mostly, to get out of his slump, Wright said he is focusing on defense. After all, that’s what Wright hung his hat on before joining the Warriors last summer. “To tell you the truth, I really don’t care about the offensive end,” Wright said. “It’s not like that anymore around here. It’s not like if you can’t score 15, 16 points you’re coming out the game. … Whatever I’m contributing is a plus.” It’s doubtful Jackson would go that far. Golden State is 26th in the NBA in points per game at 89.0 — more than 14 points below last season’s average. The Warriors rank 21st in field goal percentage (42.2). Especially for the upcoming three-game road trip, Golden State needs Wright to get going on offense. What do you guys think about this. |
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